Paiute

The Paiute are a group of Indigenous peoples of the Great Basin in the western United States. The term typically covers three broad groups: Northern Paiute, Southern Paiute, and Owens Valley Paiute, each with distinct languages and territories. Collectively, they have inhabited parts of Nevada, Oregon, California, Utah, and Arizona for millennia, engaging in adaptable hunter-gatherer lifeways tied to seasonal resource availability.

Linguistically, Paiute languages form part of the Numic branch of the Uto-Aztecan language family. Each group teaches its own language or dialect, and intercommunity communication historically occurred through trade and shared ceremonies. Many Paiute communities today maintain language and cultural programs to revitalize traditional speech, ceremonies, and storytelling, while others rely on bilingual education in schools.

Traditional Paiute lifeways centered on gathering seeds, roots, berries, and other plant foods, alongside hunting small game and fishing where rivers permitted. They organized communities in flexible bands and engaged in extensive regional trade networks with neighboring peoples. Basketry, beadwork, and woodcarving are notable crafts, reflecting attention to natural materials and seasonal practices.

Since European contact began in the 18th and 19th centuries, Paiute communities faced land dispossession, relocation to reservations, and pressures to assimilate. Today, Paiute people live across several federally recognized tribes and villages, working to preserve language, treaty rights, and cultural heritage while pursuing economic development and self-determination.