The Jamul Indian Village of California is a

federally recognized tribe A federally recognized tribe is a Native American tribe recognized by the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs as holding a government-to-government relationship with the US federal government. In the United States, the Native American tribe ...

Kumeyaay The Kumeyaay, also known as 'Iipai-Tiipai or by the historical Spanish name Diegueño, is a tribe of Indigenous peoples of the Americas who live at the northern border of Baja California in Mexico and the southern border of California in the Uni ...

Indians, who are sometimes known as

Mission Indians Mission Indians was a term used to refer to the Indigenous peoples of California who lived or grew up in the Spanish mission system in California. Today the term is used to refer to their descendants and to specific, contemporary tribal nations ...

Reservation

The Jamul Indian Village is a federal reservation, located southeast of El Cajon, in southeastern

San Diego County, California San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county (United States), county in the southwest corner of the U.S. state of California, north to its Mexico-United States border, border with Mexico. As of the 2020 United States Cen ...

. It was established in 1912. It is in size. No one lives on the reservation although 20 members lived there in the 1970s. The last population recorded by the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

was in 2000.

Demographics

2020 census

Language

The traditional language of the Jamul Indian Village and their larger tribal group, the Kumeyaay, is from the

Tipai language Tiipai (Tipay) is a Native American language belonging to the Delta–California branch of the Yuman language family, which spans Arizona, California, and Baja California. As part of the Yuman family, Tiipai has also been consistently included i ...

grouping. The influence of the Spanish Mission system on the retention of the Jamul Indian Village's native tongue can be observed as there are only a small amount of less than 100 tribal members who retain their native language. The Jamul Indian Village as well uses English in modern times as a primary language for communication.

Government

The Jamul Indian Village is headquartered in Jamul, California. The current government for the Jamul Indian Village is a democratically elected tribal council. As of June 2021, Jamul Tribal Council consist of * Erica M. Pinto, Chairwoman * Mike Hunter, Vice-Chairman * Teresa Cousins, Treasurer * Jasmine Aloese, Secretary * James Cuero III, Councilman * Tina Meza, Councilwoman * James Hunter, Councilman

History

The Jamul Indian Village, as part of the Kumeyaay Nation, traces its roots in present-day San Diego County back approximately 12,000 years. Historically, the Kumeyaay were hunter-gatherers who developed a deep understanding of their environment, engaging in practices such as basket weaving, traditional hunting, and cultural burnings to maintain ecological balance. In 1769, Spanish explorers established

Mission San Diego de Alcalá Mission Basilica San Diego de Alcalá (, lit. The Mission of Saint Didacus of Acalá) was the second Franciscan founded mission in the Californias (after San Fernando de Velicata), a province of New Spain. Located in present-day San Diego, C ...

, initiating a period of significant upheaval for the indigenous populations. While many Kumeyaay villages resisted Spanish colonization, during the 1775 uprising against the mission, the Jamul and Sequan ( Sycuan) villages chose not to participate alongside other Tiipay villages in the rebellion. The Jamul Indian Village reservation was established in 1912, and the tribe gained federal recognition in 1981, affirming their sovereignty and enabling the creation of a formal tribal government. The Jamul Indian Village has worked to revive and practice many of their ancestral traditions, with a growing number of tribal members honouring their heritage. In 2016, the tribe opened the Hollywood Casino Jamul, which now serves as a significant source of income, though its development has faced ongoing controversy over its impact on the local community. In December 2024, the U.S. Congress passed the Jamul Indian Village Land Transfer Act, authorizing the transfer of 172 acres into tribal trust.

Education

The village is served by the Jamul-Dulzura Union Elementary School District and Grossmont Union High School District.

Bibliography

* * *

References

External links

Jamul Indian Village
official website * Erica Pinto , East County Magazine * https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/s-3857 * https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/hr-6443 {{authority control Kumeyaay Mission Indians Native American tribes in San Diego County, California Native American tribes in California Federally recognized tribes in the United States American Indian reservations in California East County (San Diego County)