Indigenous peoples of the Great Basin

The Indigenous peoples of the Great Basin are Native Americans of the northern Great Basin, Snake River Plain, and upper Colorado River basin. The "Great Basin" is a cultural classification of Indigenous peoples of the Americas and a cultural region located between the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada, in what is now Nevada, and parts of Oregon, California, Idaho, Wyoming, and Utah. The Great Basin region at the time of European contact was ~. There is very little precipitation in the Great Basin area which affects the lifestyles and cultures of the inhabitants.

Great Basin peoples

Fremont culture (400 CE–1300 CE), Utah Kawaiisu, southern inland California Timbisha or Panamint or Koso, southeastern California Washo, Nevada and California Palagewan Pahkanapil

Northern Paiute Northern Paiute, eastern California, Nevada, Oregon, southwestern Idaho Kucadikadi, Mono Lake Paiute, California Bannock, IdahoD'Azevedo ix

Mono Mono, southeastern California Eastern Mono (Owens Valley Paiute), southeastern California Western Mono, southeastern California

Southern Paiute Southern Paiute, Arizona, Nevada, UtahPritzker 230 Chemehuevi, southeastern California Kaibab, northwestern Arizona Kaiparowits, southwestern Utah Moapa, southern Nevada Panaca Panguitch, Utah Paranigets, southern Nevada Shivwits, southwestern Utah

Shoshone

Eastern Shoshone people: Guchundeka', Kuccuntikka, Buffalo EatersLoether, Christopher. "Shoshones." Encyclopedia of the Great Plains. Retrieved 20 Oct 2013.Shimkin 335 Tukkutikka, Tukudeka, Mountain Sheep Eaters, joined the Northern Shoshone Boho'inee', Pohoini, Pohogwe, Sage Grass people, Sagebrush Butte People

Northern Shoshone people: Agaideka, Salmon Eaters, Lemhi, Snake River and Lemhi River ValleyMurphy and Murphy 306 Doyahinee', Mountain people Kammedeka, Kammitikka, Jack Rabbit Eaters, Snake River, Great Salt Lake Hukundüka, Porcupine Grass Seed Eaters, Wild Wheat Eaters, possibly synonymous with Kammitikka Tukudeka, Dukundeka', Sheep Eaters (Mountain Sheep Eaters), Sawtooth Range, Idaho Yahandeka, Yakandika, Groundhog Eaters, lower Boise, Payette, and Weiser RiversMurphy and Murphy 287

Western Shoshone people: Kusiutta, Goshute (Gosiute), Great Salt Desert and Great Salt Lake, Utah Cedar Valley Goshute Deep Creek Goshute Rush Valley Goshute Skull Valley Goshute, Wipayutta, Weber Ute Tooele Valley Goshute Trout Creek Goshute Kuyatikka, Kuyudikka, Bitterroot Eaters, Halleck, Mary's River, Clover Valley, Smith Creek Valley, Nevada Mahaguadüka, Mentzelia Seed Eaters, Ruby Valley, Nevada Painkwitikka, Penkwitikka, Fish Eaters, Cache Valley, Idaho and Utah Pasiatikka, Redtop Grass Eaters, Deep Creek Gosiute, Deep Creek Valley, Antelope Valley Tipatikka, Pinenut Eaters, northernmost band Tsaiduka, Tule Eaters, Railroad Valley, Nevada Tsogwiyuyugi, Elko, Nevada Waitikka, Ricegrass Eaters, Ione Valley, Nevada Watatikka, Ryegrass Seed Eaters, Ruby Valley, Nevada Wiyimpihtikka, Buffalo Berry EatersThomas, Pendleton, and Cappannari 280–283

Ute

Northern Ute San Pitch, central Utah Seuvarits, Moah Utah area Timpanogos, north central Utah Uncompahgre (Tabeguache), central and northern Colorado Uintah White River Utes, Colorado and eastern Utah Parianuche, along Colorado River valley in central and western Colorado Sabuagana, along Colorado River valley in central and western Colorado Yampa Southern Ute Capote, southeastern Colorado and New Mexico Muache, south and central Colorado Ute Mountain Weeminuche, western Colorado, eastern Utah, northwestern New Mexico Merged into the Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah Moanunts, Salina, Utah Pahvant, western Utah

History

The Great Basin has been occupied by people since prehistoric North America, around 10,000 years ago. The earliest evidence of people in the Great Basin is from projectile points found that were dated pre-clovis from over 13,000 years ago. They lived into the Archaic period, where people were mainly hunter and gatherers. Prehistoric people if the Great Basin were believed to be big game hunters, hunting large animals of the time such as mammoths. They lived in rock shelters and began hunting smaller game and gathering more, seen by the decline of projectile points and also the extinction of many large animals during the time.

During the Archaic period, people began to adopt agricultural like domesticating crops such as beans and squash, developing irrigation systems. Soon after, people of the Great Basin adopted practices from Fremont Culture, and started to domesticate maize, build pit-houses, and make ceramics. Dart points are still dated back to this time, and hunting is still prevalent in this late archaic period, as well as the start of sedentary lifestyle adopted by post-archaic tribes. In the Numic language-speakers, ancestors of today's Western Shoshone and both Northern Paiute people and Southern Paiute people entered the region around the 14th century CE."History Timeline of Great Basin National Heritage Area." Great Basin National Heritage Area. Retrieved 24 June 2013.

The first Europeans to document their encounters with Native groups in the Great Basin was Juan María Antonio de Rivera's expedition in 1765. Rivera led two expeditions from Santa Fe that year, the first departing sometime in June. Rivera's party camped with Paiutes on the Dolores River in July, and returned to Santa Fe for supplies. His second expedition departed Santa Fe in late September and went considerably farther, crossing the Colorado just south of present-day Moab, Utah. Rivera's diaries greatly influenced the Domínguez–Escalante expedition, which set off 11 years later in 1776 and passed far from present day Delta, Utah. Great Basin settlement was relatively free of non-Native settlers until the first Mormon settlers arrived in 1847. Within ten years, the first Indian reservation was established, in order to assimilate the Native people in the area. The Goshute Reservation was created in 1863. The attempted acculturation process included sending children to Indian schools and limiting the landbases and resources of the reservations.

Because their contact with European-Americans and African-Americans occurred comparatively late, Great Basin tribes maintain their religion and culture and were leading proponents of 19th century cultural and religious renewals. Two Paiute prophets, Wodziwob and Wovoka, introduced the Ghost Dance in a ceremony to commune with departed loved ones and bring renewal of buffalo herds and precontact lifeways. The Ute Bear Dance emerged on the Great Basin. The Sun Dance and Peyote religion flourished in the Great Basin, as well.

In 1930, the Ely Shoshone Reservation was established, followed by the Duckwater Indian Reservation in 1940.

Conditions for the Native American population of the Great Basin were erratic throughout the 20th century. Economic improvement emerged as a result of President Franklin Roosevelt's Indian New Deal in the 1930s, while activism and legal victories in the 1970s have improved conditions significantly. Nevertheless, the communities struggled against with poverty and low employment.

Today self-determination, beginning with the 1975 passage of the Indian Self-determination and Education Assistance Act, has enabled Great Basin tribes to develop economic opportunities for their members.

Cultures

Different ethnic groups of Great Basin tribes share certain common cultural elements that distinguish them from surrounding groups. All but the Washoe traditionally speak Numic languages, and tribal groups, who historically lived peacefully and often shared common territories, have intermingled considerably. Prior to the 20th century, Great Basin peoples were predominantly hunters and gatherers.

"Desert Archaic" or more simply "The Desert Culture" refers to the culture of the Great Basin tribes. This culture is characterized by the need for mobility to take advantage of seasonally available food supplies. The use of pottery was rare due to its weight, but intricate baskets were woven for containing water, cooking food, winnowing grass seeds, and storage, including the storage of pine nuts, a Paiute-Shoshone staple. Heavy items such as metates would be cached rather than carried from foraging area to foraging area. Agriculture was not practiced within the Great Basin itself, although it was practiced in adjacent areas (modern agriculture in the Great Basin requires either large mountain reservoirs or deep artesian wells). Likewise, the Great Basin tribes had no permanent settlements, although winter villages might be revisited winter after winter by the same group of families. In the summer, the largest group was usually the nuclear family due to the low density of food supplies.

In the early historical period, the Great Basin tribes were actively expanding to the north and east, where they developed a horse-riding bison-hunting culture. These people, including the Bannock and Eastern Shoshone, share traits with Plains Indians.

Today, the Great Basin Native Artists, which was cofounded by Melissa Melero-Moose and Ben Aleck represents Indigenous visual artists from the region and curates groups exhibitions.

Notes

External links Great Basin Native Artists, a collective of indigenous artists from the Great Basin Great Basin artwork in Infinity of Nations, National Museum of the American Indian

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