 Middle Sky, Cocapah, photo byFrank A. Rinehart, 1899 (hand-colored) | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 1,009 in the United States (2010)[1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 Mexico(  Baja California and Sonora) United States ( Arizona) | |
| Languages | |
| Cocopah,English,Spanish | |
| Religion | |
| Traditional tribal religion | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| otherYuman peoples |
TheCocopah (Cocopah:Xawiƚƚ Kwñchawaay) areNative Americans who live inBaja California, Mexico, andArizona, United States.
In the United States, Cocopah people belong to thefederally recognizedCocopah Tribe of Arizona.
The Cocopah are also called theCucapá (inCocopa:Kwapa orKwii Capáy).
TheCocopah language belongs to the Delta–California branch of theYuman family. Their self-designation isXawiƚƚ kwñchawaay, translating to “Those Who Live on the Cloudy River” (fromXawíƚƚy - "river",kwii - "cloud",(ny)way - "to live",llyay/nyaam - "many"). According to the U.S. Census, there were 1,009 Cocopah in 2010.[1]
Alternate spellings of Cocopah in Spanish documents include: Cócopa, Cócapa, Cócope, Cósopa, Cúcapa.[2]
Ancestors of the Cocopah inhabited parts of present-dayArizona,California, andBaja California and are known by western academics as belonging to thePatayan culture. Patayan is a term used by archaeologists to describe prehistoricNative American cultures who inhabited parts of modern-dayArizona, west toLake Cahuilla inCalifornia, and inBaja California, between 700 and 1550 A.D. This included areas along theGila River,Colorado River and in theLower Colorado River Valley, the nearby uplands, and north to the vicinity of theGrand Canyon. They are mostly likely ancestors of the Cocopah and other Yuman-speaking tribes in the region. The Patayan peoples practicedfloodplain agriculture where possible and relied heavily onhunting and gathering.
The first significant contact of the Cocopah withEuropeans and Africans probably occurred in 1540, when theSpanish explorerHernando de Alarcón sailed into the Colorado River delta. The Cocopah were specifically mentioned by name by the expedition ofJuan de Oñate in 1605.
After theMexican-American War, Cocopah lands were split between the U.S. and Mexico through theMexican Cession resulting from theTreaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.
Westward expansion in the 1840s and the discovery of gold in California in 1849 brought many migrants through the area near the mouth of the Colorado River and the Grand Canyon region. The strategic importance of the river crossing was recognized by the U.S. government, and the United States Army established Camp Independence in 1850 to protect the entry route through the tribe's territories. Many tribes along the Colorado River entered the ferry business given its profitability, creating many jobs for the Cocopah.[3]
The Cocopah agreed to join Garra's Tax Revolt of 1851, led by theCupeño, to fight against the U.S. government alongside theQuechan and nearbyKumeyaay bands. Together, the Cocopah sieged Camp Independence but the siege fell apart after disputes with the Quechan over the distribution of sheep confiscated from white sheepherders earlier.
The Cocopah also entered theYuma War following the tax revolt initially on the side of the Quechan against the U.S. After making peace with the U.S., the Cocopah allied with thePaipai and Halyikwamai and turned against the Quechan, after accumulating tension between the two tribes. War broke out in May 1853, when the Cocopah besieged three Quechan villages holding them hostage. In retaliation, the Quechan-allied Mohave backed the Quechan and raided the Cocopah. The Yuma War came to an end when the U.S. threatened the Mojave that they would intervene on the side of the Cocopah.
During the Mexican Revolution, theMagonistas gained the support of the Cocopah, under the influence of Camilo Jiménez, who was the tribal leader of the Cocopah in the Mexicali Valley. The Cocopah were sympathetic of the Magonist struggle against imperialism from both Mexico and the U.S., and the privatized ownership of their land. The Cocopah were joined by the Paipai,Kiliwa, and Kumeyaay, and prepared to fight alongside the Magonistas, as Jiménez smuggled US arms to Mexico with the support of theIndustrial Workers of the World (IWW).[4]
On January 29, the Magonistas and the Cocopahcaptured Mexicali and provided further logistical support throughout their lands. Jiménez carried out a campaign with the Cocopah, Paipai, and Kiliwa armies fromEl Rosario toEnsenada, raiding small towns and lootingChinese-Mexican businesses.[4]
The Cocopah were eventually defeated by the Mexican forces in the following months and were forced off of their land by the Colorado River Land Company.[4]
In 1964, the Cocopah Tribe of Arizona, on the U.S. side of the border, ratified its first constitution and formed a five-person Tribal Council in theCocopah Indian Reservation. In the late 1970s and 1980s, the tribe acquired additional land, constructed homes, installed utilities, developed infrastructure, and initiated economic development.[3]
Cocopah peoples in the United States are enrolled in theCocopah Tribe of Arizona. As of the 2000 United States Census, the Cocopah Tribe of Arizona numbered 891 people.[1] There is acasino, speedway, resort, family entertainment center and bingo hall on the reservation as well as a Museum and Cultural Center.[5] Another Yuman group, theQuechan, lives in the adjacentFort Yuma Indian Reservation. On important occasions, Cocopah people wear their customary ribbon shirts and ribbon dresses.
Cocopah people live inMexicali Municipality,Baja California (settlements of Campo Camerina (Colonia Terrenos Indios), Campo del Prado (Colonia el Mayor), Campo Flores, Campo Sonora (Colonia Terrenos Indios), Colonia la Puerta, Comunidad Indígena Cucapá el Mayor [Ejido el Mayor], Ejido Cucapá Mestizo, Ejido Doctor Alberto Mota (El Indiviso), Ejido Durango, Ejido México, Familia Regalado (Ejido Sonora 2 Campos Nuevos), La Casa de las Curvas (Colonia el Mayor), Mexicali, Sainz Domínguez (Colonia el Mayor), and San Felipe) andSan Luis Río Colorado Municipality,Sonora (settlements of Pozas de Arvizu (La Reserva), and San Luis Río Colorado),Mexico,[6] and inSomerton,Arizona in theUnited States.
| Contemporary peoples native to Arizona | |
|---|---|
| Prehistoric cultures in Arizona | |
| More than 100,000 people | ||
|---|---|---|
| 20,000 – 100,000 people | ||
| 1,000 – 20,000 people | ||
| Less than 1,000 people | ||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
