Paiute facts for kids

Historic map of tribes called "Paiute" overlaid on a map of present-day western US state borders

The Paiute (also spelled Piute) are three different groups of Native American people who live in the Great Basin area of the western United States. These groups do not live right next to each other.

Even though their languages are related, they are not exactly the same. Their languages belong to the Numic group, which is part of the larger Uto-Aztecan languages family. However, these three Paiute languages are not more closely related to each other than they are to other Numic languages like Timbisha, Shoshoni, and Comanche, which are spoken in the areas between them.

The name "Paiute" does not mean one single, united group of tribes. Instead, it's a historical name that includes:

• Northern Paiute people who live in parts of northeastern California, northwestern Nevada, eastern Oregon, and southern Idaho.
• Southern Paiute people who live in northern Arizona, southern Nevada, and southwestern Utah.
• Mono people from east-central California. These are divided into the Owens Valley Paiute (also called Eastern Mono) and the Western Mono (also called Monache).

Languages of the Paiute People

Even though the three groups called Paiute share similar roots in the Numic language family, they speak different languages. The image below shows how these languages are related.

Tree of Numic languages showing the classification differences between the various groups called "Paiute". The Western Numic branch includes the Mono language with its Owens Valley Paiute dialect, and the Northern Paiute language. The Southern Numic branch includes the Colorado River language and its Southern Paiute dialect. Languages that are mutually intelligible (meaning speakers can understand each other) are grouped together at the bottom of each branch in italics.

See also

In Spanish: Paiute para niños