Te'po'ta'ahl | |
|---|---|
 Miguelino family near Mission San Antonio de Padua | |
| Total population | |
| 681 (2000, census) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 California | |
| Languages | |
| English, formerlySalinan | |
| Religion | |
| Salinan traditional narratives |
TheSalinan are anIndigenous people of California whose ancestral territory is in the southernSalinas Valley and theSanta Lucia Range in the Central Coast ofCalifornia. TheirSalinan language was alinguistic isolate.
There were two major divisions and one subgroup. From north to south, the Antoniano lived in the lower part of the Salinas Valley (which flows south to north), near the future site of twomissions: (Mission San Antonio de Padua andMission San Miguel Arcángel). The Miguelino lived on the upper course of theSalinas River, and to the south nearSlates Hot Springs,Junipero Serra Peak, andSoledad. There was also a Playano subgroup on thePacific Coast in the vicinity of what is nowLucia andSan Simeon. Salinans wereHunter-gatherers and, like most other California tribes, were organized in small groups with little centralized political structure.
They left shellmiddens behind, indicating that they lived in the area in numbers along the coast. Their main diet during the summer consisted of fish and shellfish, evidenced by the fine particles of shell present in the soil for a depth of several feet in areas where the Indians camped. The Salinan named the peakPimkolam.[1][2]
The 56 acres (23 ha)Wagon Caves rock formation about 18 miles (29 km) northwest of present-dayJolon is an archeological site that was used by the Salinan Antonianos subtribe[3][4] who researchers believe occupied at least two villages in the area, an older site dating to approximately 450 A.D. and a later, protohistoric site with dates ranging from about 1450 to 1650 A.D. Archeologists have found astemmed biface,lithic flakes,shell beads, and non-human bones, as well as shell, bone,flaked stone, fire-affected rock, charred seeds, and mortars at the cave site.[5] The rock overhangs and caves have fire-scarred roofs that bear evidence of occupancy over hundreds of years. The Wagon Cave Research Natural Area of 806 acres (326 ha) contains diverse stands of Valley Oaks of varying ages and densities and has been recommended as a Research Natural Area within the Los Padres National Forest.[6]
The tribe's name is taken from theSalinas River, as the Spanish did not understand if the people had a name for themselves.[7][8] The people's autonym translates as "People of the Oaks".[9]C. Hart Merriam called these people theEn-'ne-sen on advice from oneinformant;En-'ne-sen was the Native word for the Salinan headquarters.[10] Merriam believesSalinan came from the namee'n-ne-sen.[9]
TheSalinan language is alanguage isolate. It may be a part of theHokan language family. Sapir included it in a subfamily of Hokan, along withChumash andSeri; this classification has found its way into more recent encyclopedias and presentations of language families, but serious supporting evidence has never been presented.[11] Salinan was spoken until the 1950s[12]
Estimates for the precontact populations of most Native groups in California have varied substantially.Alfred L. Kroeber put the 1770 population of the Salinan as 3,000.[13]Sherburne F. Cook similarly estimated that there were at least 700 Salinans.[14] The2000 United States census reported a total population of Salinan people as 681.[15]
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