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CALIFORNIA INDIANS
Scientists believe that just a few hundred years ago about 300,000 people lived in the area now called California. These people were spread across the land. Some lived near the ocean. Others lived in the dry deserts. When we talk about those people we use names like “CAHUILLA,” “CHUMASH,” “MAIDU” or “MIWOK.”
These are just a few of the names that the people gave themselves or that others used to describe them. As a group they have come to be known as the California Indians.
Before the arrival of the Spanish, the California Indians spoke different languages and had different cultures. They celebrated their own festivals, had special dances and told stories that only their people would know. The California Indians hunted animals and gathered plants and nuts for food. The Chumash had long boats called tomols which they used to fish in the ocean.
