Shastan
Shasta Tribe
The Shasta Indians, part of the Shastan linguistic family, lived in northern California, primarily along the Klamath River and into Oregon. Comprising small tribes, they shared cultural and linguistic traits but spoke divergent dialects. Their sedentary lifestyle involved small villages with semisubterranean houses. Their diet focused on vegetation and salmon, which they preserved for winter. The arrival of fur traders in the early 19th century precipitated their decline, worsened by gold mining, leaving fewer than twenty individuals today, primarily on the Grande Ronde Reservation.
Atsugewi Tribe
The Atsugewi Tribe, part of the Shastan linguistic family, historically inhabited the Hat Creek, Burney, and Dixie valleys in California. Their language distinguishes them from the neighboring Achomawi people, with whom they acknowledge a separation. Today, the tribe’s population has significantly dwindled, leaving very few members. The books referenced serve as historical documents rather than expressions of the website’s creators.
Chimalakwe Tribe
The Chimalakwe tribe, once residing along the New River in northern California, is noted as an extinct group by historian Powers. Their name is likely a variant of Chimariko, although the two did not share the same territory. Instead, the region was occupied by a distinct Shastan group, often referred to as the New River Shasta, which diverged from the Shasta tribe in dialect. By 1902, only two elderly women were believed to remain from this people.