Maria Solares (, ; born Qilikutayiwit, also known as Maria Ysidora del Refugio, April 1842 – March 1923) was a Native Californian woman belonging to the

Chumash people The Chumash are a Native Americans in the United States, Native American people of the central and southern coastal regions of California, in portions of what is now Kern County, California, Kern, San Luis Obispo County, California, San Luis O ...

, notable for her association with documenting and preserving the Samala Chumash language and culture. Maria has been the focus of controversy, believing her to be a non-Chumash tribe member among other accusations. However John R. Johnson, an adjunct professor of anthropology at

UCSB The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an independent teachers college, UCSB joine ...

, has researched the history of Maria's ancestors in the Santa Ynez Valley and found that her parents, grandparents, and great grandparents were all on church records as being baptized at

Mission Santa Inés Mission Santa Inés (sometimes spelled Santa Ynez) was a Spanish mission in present-day Solvang, California, United States, and named after St. Agnes of Rome. Founded on September 17, 1804, by Father Estévan Tapís of the Franciscan order, t ...

Early life

Qilikutayiwit was born in

Monterey Monterey ( ; ) is a city situated on the southern edge of Monterey Bay, on the Central Coast of California. Located in Monterey County, the city occupies a land area of and recorded a population of 30,218 in the 2020 census. The city was fou ...

Alta California Alta California (, ), also known as Nueva California () among other names, was a province of New Spain formally established in 1804. Along with the Baja California peninsula, it had previously comprised the province of , but was made a separat ...

on 15 April 1842. She was Christened fifteen days later on 30 April 1842 and given the name of Maria Ysidora del Refugio. Her father Benvenuto was Samala

Chumash Chumash may refer to: *Chumash (Judaism), a Hebrew word for the Pentateuch, used in Judaism *Chumash people, a Native American people of southern California *Chumashan languages, Indigenous languages of California See also

* Pentateuch (dis ...

and her mother Brigida was Hometwoli

Yokuts The Yokuts (previously known as MariposasPowell, 1891:90–91.) are an ethnic group of Native Americans native to central California. Before European contact, the Yokuts consisted of up to 60 tribes speaking several related languages. Yokuts ...

. Maria documented her early life and travels in the region, observations of flora and fauna of what it must have been like traveling in the area.

Chumash contributions

Maria Solares is attributed with working with John P. Harrington as one of the last fluent Samala Chumash speakers. She contributed songs recorded on wax cylinders, stories, placenames and their translations and is credited with being a significant ancestor who preserved the Samala Chumash culture. Harrington's notes and recordings of Maria are archived at the Smithsonian Museum and have been used by Richard Applegate to recompile the Samala language, the Western Institute for Endangered Language Documentation has also used her notes for the

Purisimeño language Purisimeño was one of the Chumashan languages traditionally spoken along the coastal areas of Southern California near Lompoc, California, Lompoc. It was also spoken at the La Purisima Mission. A vocabulary of "La Purrissima or Kagimuswas (Pur ...

. The Elders Council of the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians has compiled a two-volume 700-page book set covering Maria's contributions. Maria also gave a native account of the Chumash Revolt of 1824. The Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Mission Indians have created a bust, placed at her approximate height, in her honor on display at the Santa Ynez Chumash Museum & Cultural Center (to be opened in 2023).

Legacy

Dr. Richard Applegate created a Samala Dictionary in 2008 based on Maria's notes and recordings, essentially reviving the language for future generations based on her words.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Solares, Maria 1842 births 1923 deaths Native American linguists Chumash people People from Monterey, California 19th-century American linguists Women linguists