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Los Coyotes Band of Cahuilla and Cupeno Indians

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Los Coyotes Band of Cahuilla and Cupeño Indians of the Los Coyotes Reservation is a federally recognized tribe of Cahuilla and Cupeño Indians, who are Mission Indians located in California.

Contents

Reservation

Los Coyotes Reservation (33°17′52″N 116°33′22″W) is located in northeastern San Diego County. Of 288 enrolled tribal members, about 74 live on the reservation. It was founded in 1889.

Their reservation is the largest in San Diego County. Located at an 80-mile (130 km) drive from San Diego, the land sits between Anza-Borrego Desert State Park and the Cleveland National Forest.

Government

Los Coyotes Band of Cahuilla and Cupeño Indians is headquartered in Warner Springs, California. They are governed by a democratically elected tribal council. Their current tribal spokesperson is Shane Chapparosa.

Language

The Cahuilla and Cupeño languages are closely related and are part of the Takic language family. Cupeño and Cahuilla are endangered. Alvino Siva, an enrolled tribal member and a fluent Cahuilla language speaker, died on June 26, 2009. He preserved the tribe's traditional bird songs, sung in the Cahuilla language, by teaching them to younger generations of Cahuilla people.

Notable tribal members

  • Katherine Siva Saubel (March 7, 1920 – November 1, 2011), scholar of Indian language and culture, co-founder of the Malki Museum, and former Los Coyotes tribal chairperson
  • References

    Los Coyotes Band of Cahuilla and Cupeno Indians Wikipedia