The Pit River Tribe is a federally recognized tribe of eleven bands of indigenous peoples of California

Indigenous peoples of California

The Indigenous peoples of California are the indigenous inhabitants who have lived or currently live in the geographic area within the current boundaries of California before and after the arrival of Europeans. With over one hundred federally recognized tribes, California has the largest Native...

. They primarily live along the Pit River

Pit River

The Pit River is a major river draining from northeastern California into the state's Central Valley. The Pit, the Klamath and the Columbia are the only three rivers in the U.S...

 in the northeast corner of California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

. Their name also is spelled as "Pitt River" in historical records.

Bands

The eleven bands are as follows:

• Achomawi
  Achomawi
  The Achomawi are one of eleven bands of the Pit River tribe of Native Americans who lived in northeastern California, USA....
  
   (Achumawi, Ajumawi)
• Aporidge
• Astariwawi (Astarawi)
• Atsuge (Atsugewi
  Atsugewi
  The Atsugewi are Native Americans residing in what is now northern California, United States. Their traditional lands are near Mount Shasta, specifically the Pit River drainage on Burney, Hat, and Dixie Valley or Horse Creeks. They are closely related to the Achomawi and consisted of two groups...
  
  )
• Atwamsini
• Hanhawi (Hammawi)
• Hewisedawi
• Ilmawi
• Itsatawi
• Kosalextawi (Kosalektawi)
• Madesi.

Languages

The eleven bands of the Pit River Tribe speak the closely related languages: Achumawi

Achumawi language

The Achumawi language is the native language spoken by the Pit River people of present-day California. The term Achumawi is an anglicization of the name of the Fall River band, ajúmmááwí, from ajúmmá "river"...

 and Atsugewi

Atsugewi language

Atsugewi is an extinct Palaihnihan language of northeastern California spoken by the Hat Creek and Dixie Valley people. In 1962, there were four speakers out of an ethnic group of 200, all elderly.Astugewi is related to Achumawi...

. These are both Palaihnihan languages

Palaihnihan languages

-Family division:Palaihnihan is said to comprise:# Atsugewi # Achumawi -Genetic relations:The basis of this Palaihnihan grouping is weakened by poor quality of data...

, believed to belong to the Hokan language family.

Reservations

The Pit River Tribe controls six rancheria

Ranchería

The Spanish word ranchería, or rancherío, refers to a small, rural settlement. In the Americas the term was applied to native villages and to the workers' quarters of a ranch. English adopted the term with both these meanings, usually to designate the residential area of a rancho in the American...

s. They are:

• Big Bend Rancheria
  Big Bend Rancheria
  The Big Bend Rancheria of the Pit River Tribe is located in California.-See also:* List of Indian reservations in the United States...
  
  , Shasta County
  Shasta County, California
  Shasta County is a county located in the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. The county occupies the northern reaches of the Sacramento Valley, with portions extending into the southern reaches of the Cascade Range. As of the 2010 census, the population was 177,223, up from 163,256...
  
  , 40 acres, population: 10
• Likely Rancheria, Modoc County
  Modoc County, California
  Modoc County is a county located in the far northeast corner of the U.S. state of California, bounded by the state of Oregon to the north and the state of Nevada to the east. As of the 2010 census, its population was 9,686, up from 9,449 at the 2000 census. The current county seat is Alturas, the...
  
  , 1.32 acres, tribal cemetery
• Lookout Rancheria, Modoc County, 40 acres, population: 10
• Montgomery Creek Rancheria, Shasta County, 72 acres, population: 15
• Roaring Creek Rancheria, Shasta County, 80 acres, population: 14
• XL Ranch
  XL Ranch
  The XL Ranch is a band of the federally recognized tribe Pit River Tribe and one of 11 bands of Achomawi Indians. They are located in northeastern California.-Reservation:...
  
  , Modoc County, 9,254.86 acres, population: 40.

The tribe also owns trust lands in Lake County, California

Lake County, California

Lake County is a county located in the north central portion of the U.S. state of California, north of the San Francisco Bay Area. It takes its name from Clear Lake, the dominant geographic feature in the county and the largest natural lake wholly within California...

, Lassen

Lassen County, California

Lassen County is a county located in the northeastern portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2010 census, the population was 34,895, up from 33,828 at the 2000 census...

, Mendocino

Mendocino County, California

Mendocino County is a county located on the north coast of the U.S. state of California, north of the greater San Francisco Bay Area and west of the Central Valley. As of the 2010 census, the population was 87,841, up from 86,265 at the 2000 census...

, Modoc, and Shasta Counties.

Government

The tribe conducts business from Burney, California

Burney, California

Burney is an unincorporated town and census-designated place in Shasta County, California, United States. The population was 3,154 at the 2010 census, down from 3,217 at the 2000 census...

. They were officially recognized as a tribe in 1976 and ratified their constitution in 1987. Each of the eleven bands is represented in the tribal council.

Constitution of the Pit River Tribe & claims

On August, 1964, a Constitution was formally adopted by the Pit River Tribe. The Preamble states:

"... for the purpose of securing our Rights and Powers inherent in our Sovereign status as reinforced by the laws of the United States, developing and protecting Pit River (Ajumawi - Atsugewi) ancestral lands and all other resources, preserving peace and order in our community, promoting the general welfare of our people and our descendants, protecting the rights of the Tribe and of our members, and preserving our land base, culture and identity,..."

While the Pit River group originally filed a separate land claims, after the Indian Claims Commission was created in 1946, the Pit River tribe was encouraged in 1963 to participate in the larger claims—Indians of California vs U. S. – but ultimately there was disharmony within the tribe and they rejected their monetary award.

External links

• Pit River Tribe, official website
• Constitution of the Pit River Tribe