Intro to  California Indian Art

 

I. Naming the People.  Why is naming important?

A.  All over the globe humans name themselves "The People.

1.  Some groups have kept their own names for themselves: 

a. Yokuts, Maidu, Atsugewi, Chemehuevi, Yurok, Hupa.

2.  Many groups are referred to by names given by outsiders: Cahuilla, Diegueņo, Luiseņo, Cupeņo.

3.  Others are regaining their own names: Gabrieleno>Tongva, Diegueņo>Ipai, Tipai, Yuma>Quechan.

a. This implies "insider" and "outsider" roles.

i.  All outsiders are outsiders.  Cahuilla and Pomo are not the same. 

B.  How do we refer to Indian people in a respectful way?

II.  Use the name they chose for themselves, "the People."

A. Is the term "these people" disrespectful.

III.  Divisions of North American Indian Art.  How to get a handle on the subject.

A. The three major temporal divisions of Native North American culture.

1.   Precontact - before 1492.  Rock art, shell, bone, pottery, and stone are the materials which have survived until now.

a.  One exception to this is in the dry caves of the Great Basin and deserts where coprolites, tules, mummies, hides, feathers, clothing, wooden implements, baskets, mats, and sandals remain.

b.  Another is encapsulation in mud or asphaltum which creates anaerobic preservation.

2.  Historic - 1493 until 1890.  All of the materials already mentioned remain plus a wide variety of introduced materials including, iron, german silver, brass, tin, silk and wool fabric, cotton broadcloth, glass, paper, graphite pencils, crayons, ink, .

3.  Contemporary - post 1890.  Plastic and other synthetic materials.

B. The seven major geographic divisions.

1.  Northwestern.

2.  Northeastern.

3.  Northcentral.

4.  Southcentral.

5.  Southern.

6.  Great Basin.

7.  Colorado River.

C. The five major language divisions.

1.  Algonkian - Northwestern.

2.  Athabaskan - Northwestern.

3.  Hokan-Sioux - All areas.

4.  Penutian - Northeastern, Northcentral, Southcentral.

5.  Uto-Aztecan - Great Basin, Southern.

6.  Unique languages - the split was so long ago as to be untracable

Yuki  - Northwestern and Northcentral.

D.  The five ecological divisions of California.

1.  Much cross over between groups.

a. Coastal tidelands collectors - Northwest , Northcentral, Southcentral, Southern.

b. Coastal sea hunters and fishers - Southern.

c.  Riverine and lake dwellers - all areas.

d.  Semiarid gatherer/hunters - Great Basin, Southcentral, Southern.

e.  Agriculturalists - Colorado River, Southern.

E.  Tribal divisions

1.  Impractical on a statewide scale.

a.  more than 250 tribes in California alone