The Chumash World At European Contact

"The Chumash World at European Contact is a major achievement that will be required reading and a fundamental reference in a variety of disciplines for years to come."—Thomas C. Blackburn, editor of December's Child: A Book of Chumash Oral Narratives "An extremely valuable synthesis of the historical, ethnographic, and archaeological record of one of the most remarkable populations of Native Californians."—Glenn J. Farris, Senior Archaeologist, California State Parks Department

This history of Native Americans, from the period of first contactto the present day, offers an important variation to existingstudies by placing the lives and experiences of Native Americancommunities at the center of the narrative. Presents an innovative approach to Native American history byplacing individual native communities and their experiences at thecenter of the study Following a first chapter that deals with creation myths, theremainder of the narrative is structured chronologically, coveringover 600 years from the point of first contact to the presentday Illustrates the great diversity in American Indian culture andemphasizes the importance of Native Americans in the history ofNorth America Provides an excellent survey for courses in Native Americanhistory Includes maps, photographs, a timeline, questions fordiscussion, and “A Closer Focus” textboxes that providebiographies of individuals and that elaborate on the text, exposing students to issues of race, class, and gender

As Reviewed by Eugene N. Anderson, University of California, Riverside in The Journal of California Anthropology, Vol. 2, No. 2 (WINTER 1975), pp. 241-244:A child born in December is "like a baby in an ecstatic condition, but he leaves this condition" (p. 102). The Chumash, reduced by the 20th century from one of the richest and most populous groups in California to a pitiful remnant, had almost lost their strage and ecstatic mental world by the time John Peabody Harrington set out to collect what was still remembered of their language and oral literature. Working with a handful of ancient informants, Harrington recorded all he could--then, in bitter rejection of the world, kept it hidden and unpublished. After his death there began a great quest for his scattered notes, and these notes are now being published at last. Thomas Blackburn, among the first and most assiduous of the seekers through Harrington's materials, has published her the main body of oral literature that Harrington collected from the Chumash of Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties. Blackburn has done much more: he has added to the 111 stories a commentary and analysis, almost book-length in its own right, and a glossary of the Chumash and Californian-Spanish terms that Harrington was prone to leave untranslated in the texts.

"[A] highly compelling documentation of the cultural, educational, and economic revitalization of our tribe... 'Chumash Renaissance' is very valuable in that it helps clear up a lot of the misinformation about the Chumash. We're very happy to support this important book." Vincent Armenta, Tribal Chairman, Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians "A rich, informative text highlighting Chumash ingenuity in rebuilding a long-oppressed culture." Kirkus Reviews "Chumash Renaissance is a landmark book. Exactly the opposite of the received wisdom about corrupting casino cash, it helps us to see California, Native America, and the casino revolution in a whole new way." Orin Starn, Professor of Anthropology at Duke University and author of Ishi's Brain: In Search of America's Last "Wild" Indian "Great introduction to the subject of Native American casinos and the indigenous empowerment that has resulted. Very well suited for the general public and undergraduate classes." Zoila S. Mendoza, Professor of Native American Studies, University of California at Davis "Gelles recounts an amazing history of cultural loss and educational marginalization that underscores the significance of the tribe's recent achievements. Chumash Renaissance is unique in the literature from the last twenty-five years of tribal government gaming. This new book will be of interest to tribal leaders and communities, state and federal policy makers, college and high school teachers for their classes, and to a general public interested in learning about the effects of casinos on tribal peoples and their surrounding communities." Katherine Spilde, Endowed Chair of the Sycuan Institute of Tribal Gaming at San Diego State University "Of great importance to libraries, scholars, students, and general public. An excellent work" Clifford Trafzer, Professor of History, Rupert Costo Chair, and Director of the California Center for Native Nations. Indian casinos are extraordinarily controversial. They have brought great wealth to previously impoverished tribes, but they also generate opposition. What effects do casinos really have on indigenous people? How do they really affect the larger community? Chumash Renaissance answers these questions for one California tribe, the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians. Paul H. Gelles examines how successive waves of colonization have impacted Chumash identity and cultural politics in the Santa Ynez Valley today. Exposing the stereotypes and false assumptions made about the tribe, he shows how the Chumash are overcoming cultural suppression and educational marginalization, how culture and education are interwoven in complex ways, and how the tribe has gained power over its cultural patrimony and heritage. Informative and illuminating, Chumash Renaissance provides an on-the-ground look at Chumash cultural renaissance, the opposition faced by the tribe, and the deeper historical currents and changing cultural politics of rural California today.

Who are the Chumash? In this text readers will discover the traditional beliefs and customs of the Chumash Indians of California. Understanding how the landscape of the Santa Barbara Channel region influenced their lifestyles, readers will learn about the resources used by the Chumash, the tools and crafts they made, their homes and villages, and their social structure. The book honors the heritage of the Chumash while appreciating that their culture continues to change with their modern descendants. This text is an excellent supplement to California social studies curriculum.

Colonized as early as 13,500 years ago, the Northern Channel Islands of California offer some of the earliest evidence of human habitation along the west coast of North America. The Chumash people who lived on these islands are considered to be among the most socially and politically complex hunter-gatherers in the world. This book provides a powerful and innovative synthesis of the cultural and environmental history of the chain of islands. Douglas J. Kennett shows that the trends in cultural elaboration were, in part, set into motion by a series of dramatic environmental events that were the catalyst for the unprecedented social and political complexity observed historically.

Explore the remarkable history of one of the jewels of the US National Park system California’s Northern Channel Islands, sometimes called the American Galápagos and one of the jewels of the US National Park system, are a located between 20 and 44 km off the southern California mainland coast. Celebrated as a trip back in time where tourists can capture glimpses of California prior to modern development, the islands are often portrayed as frozen moments in history where ecosystems developed in virtual isolation for tens of thousands of years. This could not, however, be further from the truth. For at least 13,000 years, the Chumash and their ancestors occupied the Northern Channel Islands, leaving behind an archaeological record that is one of the longest and best preserved in the Americas. From ephemeral hunting and gathering camps to densely populated coastal villages and Euro-American and Chinese historical sites, archaeologists have studied the Channel Island environments and material culture records for over 100 years. They have pieced together a fascinating story of initial settlement by mobile hunter-gatherers to the development of one of the world’s most complex hunter-gatherer societies ever recorded, followed by the devastating effects of European contact and settlement. Likely arriving by boat along a “kelp highway,” Paleocoastal migrants found not four offshore islands, but a single super island, Santarosae. For millennia, the Chumash and their predecessors survived dramatic changes to their land- and seascapes, climatic fluctuations, and ever-evolving social and cultural systems. Islands Through Time is the remarkable story of the human and ecological history of California’s Northern Channel Islands. We weave the tale of how the Chumash and their ancestors shaped and were shaped by their island homes. Their story is one of adaptation to shifting land- and seascapes, growing populations, fluctuating subsistence resources, and the innovation of new technologies, subsistence strategies, and socio-political systems. Islands Through Time demonstrates that to truly understand and preserve the Channel Islands National Park today, archaeology and deep history are critically important. The lessons of history can act as a guide for building sustainable strategies into the future. The resilience of the Chumash and Channel Island ecosystems provides a story of hope for a world increasingly threatened by climate change, declining biodiversity, and geopolitical instability.

"Relevant, timely, and approachable, California Indians and Their Environment is an instant classic that should be invaluable for anyone interested in California's diverse natural and cultural landscapes and the future sustainability of the state."--Torben Rick, author of Human Impacts on Ancient Marine Ecosystems: A Global Perspective "California Indians and Their Environment stands respectfully on the shoulders of scholarly giants and demonstrates the cumulative power of cultural, historical, and scientific research. It is a remarkably inclusive and relevant text that is both highly informative of past indigenous life ways and identities and strikingly insightful into current environmental crises that confront us all."--Seth Mallios, author of The Deadly Politics of Giving: Exchange and Violence at Ajacan, Roanoke, and Jamestown "In this highly readable and insightful book, Lightfoot and Parrish show how the natural diversity of California not only influenced the contours of Indian lifeways, but was indeed augmented by burning and other practices, that were used to sustain indigenous economies. The ingenuity and skill with which California Indians managed and used natural resources underscores the need to infuse modern land-use policy with the knowledge of people whose ecological experiences in North America eclipse those of Euroamericans by a factor of forty."--Kenneth E. Sassaman, author of People of the Shoals: Stallings Culture of the Savannah River Valley "This book is a deeply informative and fascinating examination of California Indians' rich and complex relationship with the ecological landscape. Lightfoot and Parrish have thoroughly updated the classic book, The Natural World of the California Indians, with critical analysis of anthropological theory and methods and incorporation of indigenous knowledge and practices. It is a lucid, accessible book that tells an intriguing story for our modern times."--Melissa K. Nelson, San Francisco State University and President of The Cultural Conservancy "At once scholarly and accessible, this book is destined to be a classic. Framed around pressing environmental issues of concern to a broad range of Californians today, Lightfoot and Parrish provide an historical ecology of California's amazingly diverse environments, its biological resources, and the Native peoples who both adapted to and actively managed them."--Jon M. Erlandson, author of Early Hunter-Gatherers of the California Coast "California Indians and Their Environment fills a significant gap in our understanding of the first peoples of California. Lightfoot and Parrish take on the daunting task of synthesizing and expanding on our knowledge of indigenous land-management practices, sustainable economies, and the use of natural resources for food, medicine, and technological needs. This innovative and thought-provoking book is highly recommended to anyone who wants to learn more about the diverse traditions of California Indians."--Lynn Gamble, author of The Chumash World at European Contact "This innovative book moves understanding of the Native Peoples of California from the past to the future. The authors' insight into Native Californians as fire managers is an eye-opener to interpreting the ecological and cultural uniqueness of the region. Lightfoot and Parrish have provided the best introduction to Native California while at the same time advancing the best scholarship with an original synthesis. A rare feat!"--William Simmons, Brown University

Saints and Citizens is a bold new excavation of the history of Indigenous people in California in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, showing how the missions became sites of their authority, memory, and identity. Shining a forensic eye on colonial encounters in Chumash, Luiseño, and Yokuts territories, Lisbeth Haas depicts how native painters incorporated their cultural iconography in mission painting and how leaders harnessed new knowledge for control in other ways. Through her portrayal of highly varied societies, she explores the politics of Indigenous citizenship in the independent Mexican nation through events such as the Chumash War of 1824, native emancipation after 1826, and the political pursuit of Indigenous rights and land through 1848.