 Two Hia C-eḍ Oʼodham men after a successful fishing expedition. Lithograph from 1857 | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| Roughly 1,000[1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| United States (Arizona) | |
| Languages | |
| Oʼodham,English,Spanish | |
| Religion | |
| Indigenous religion,Catholic,Protestant | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Tohono Oʼodham,Akimel Oʼodham,Pima Bajo,Tepehuán |
TheHia C-eḍ Oʼodham ("Sand Dune People"), also known asAreneños,[2] are aIndigenous peoples of the Americas whose traditional homeland lies between theAjo Range, theGila River, theColorado River, and theGulf of California.[3] They are currently unrecognized at both the state and federal level in the United States and Mexico, although theTohono Oʼodham Nation has a committee for issues related to them and has land held in trust for them. They are represented by a community organization known as the Hia-Ced Oʼodham Alliance. The Hia C-eḍ Oʼodham are no longer nomadic, and the majority today live in or nearAjo, Arizona, or the small settlements of Blaisdell andDome nearYuma.
They have often been considered an O'odham subtribe by anthropologists, along with theTohono Oʼodham and several groups that vanished or merged with the Tohono Oʼodham. Anybody who can prove Hia C-eḍ Oʼodham ancestry meeting Tohono Oʼodham Nationblood quantum can apply for membership in the Tohono Oʼodham Nation. Some Hia C-eḍ Oʼodham people are enrolled in theAk-Chin Indian Community.
Along with theAkimel Oʼodham and theTohono Oʼodham, the Hia C-eḍ Oʼodham are members of theOʼodham people.
On February 24, 2009, 642.27 acres of land nearWhy, Arizona, which were previously purchased by the Tohono Oʼodham Nation, were acquired in trust for the Nation. This was done with the intention of eventually creating a new district of the Tohono Oʼodham Nation for the Hia C-eḍ Oʼodham. On October 30, 2012, a new tribal law went into effect creating the "Hia Ced District" as a new 12th district of the Tohono Oʼodham nation, with the trust land near Why as its initial land base. For three years after the effective date, previously enrolled members of the Tohono Oʼodham Nation had the right to request that their district designation be reassigned to the new district. People applying for tribal enrollment could also request the Hia Ced District as their district designation. Following controversy over its management and expenditures, the new district was dissolved in accordance with an initiative approved by voters of the Tohono Oʼodham Nation on April 25, 2015. Property and funds of the Hia Ced District reverted to the Nation, and members' enrollment reverted to their previous district.[4][5]
In December 2015, former leaders of the Hia Ced District announced the formation of an organization called Hia-Ced Hemajkam, LLC, whose goal would be to seek federal recognition of the Hia-Ced Oʼodham as a distinct Indian tribe.[6]
Due to geographical proximity, certain cultural traits were borrowed from the Yuman peoples, with some sources implying that theirculture was more Yuman than it was Piman, with the exception of their language. According to historical sources, the Hia C-eḍ Oʼodham were friendly with theCocopah, theQuechan, and theHalchidhoma.[7]
The Hia C-eḍ Oʼodham were traditionally hunters and gatherers. They caughtjackrabbits by chasing them down in the sand.[citation needed] They hunted mountain sheep,mule deer, andpronghorn with bows and arrows. They caughtmuskrats andlizards as well. During certain seasons, they went to the gulf to fish and obtain salt.
They also atePholisma sonorae, an edible flower stalk calledcamote and "sand food" found in the sand dunes, mesquite beans,saguaro fruit, andpitaya, which they gathered nearQuitobaquito and theLower Sonoita River.[8]
