Chumash Indians.
The Chumash are a linguistic family who traditionally lived on the coast of southern California, and were also known as Santa Barbara Indians. Chumash is believed to mean either “bead maker” or “seashell people.” There were seven dialects of the Chumashan family. All were fairly similar except the San Luis Obispo, which stood apart. Evidence was found indicating that they had settlements on the Channel Islands and in the Santa Monica Mountains as far back as thousands of years. At their peak, over 20,000 Chumash lived along the California coast. The historic Chumash were a maritime culture that used long wooden canoes called tomols to fish and travel between villages along the Pacific coast. They also hunted and gathered to provide for themselves. Their grass houses were dome-shaped, often 50 feet or more in diameter, and several families inhabited each.
Mission Santa Inez, California, by the Detroit Photographic Company, 1898.
Europeans first visited them as early as 1542, when Portuguese explorer Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo spent time in their territory, receiving an exceedingly friendly reception. More explorers followed, and the Franciscans established five missions among the Chumash: San Luis Obispo, San Buenaventura, Santa Barbara, La Purísima, and Santa Inés, from 1771 to 1804. The missionaries met with little opposition and no forcible resistance. However, some of the bands began to resist missionary rule. In 1824, the Indians at Santa Barbara, Santa Inés, and Purísima revolted against the mission authority, though few lives were lost.
Even during mission times, the Chumash decreased significantly in numbers and continued to decrease as more and more white settlers moved into their lands. By 1900, their numbers had declined to just 200. However, several bands still exist, though they have no reservation lands. Only the Samala, or Santa Ynez Chumash, have received federal recognition. However, an estimated 5,000 people identify as Chumash. Many California cities still bear Chumash Indian names, including Simi Valley, Point Mugu, and Malibu.
©Kathy Alexander/Legends of America, updated November 2025.
Also See:
Native Americans – First Owners of America
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