Credit: Brian Codding, University of Utah.
This map shows the rich diversity of Native American ethnic and language groups in California at the time of first contacts with Europeans in the 1700s and 1800s. The Native Americans settled California during the past 12,000 years, inhabiting the most environmentally productive coastal environments first and then settling in progressively less productive ecosystems farther inland. The legend on the right shows the major language groups, each of which was spoken by multiple tribes. This map is based on decades of linguistic, genetic and archaeological research and should not be misinterpreted as representing precise tribal boundaries.