The Whilkut (variants: ''Whiylqit, Hwil'-kut, Hoilkut, Hoilkut-hoi'') also known as "(Upper) Redwood Creek Indians" or "Mad River Indians" were a

Pacific Coast Athabaskan Pacific Coast Athabaskan is a geographical and possibly genealogical grouping of the Athabaskan language family. California Athabaskan * California Athabaskan ** Hupa (dining'-xine:wh, a.k.a. Hoopa-Chilula) *** dialects: **** Hupa **** Tsnu ...

tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide use of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. The definition is contested, in part due to conflict ...

speaking a dialect similar to the

Hupa The Hupa (Yurok: / 'Hupa people') are a Native American people of the Athabaskan-speaking ethnolinguistic group in northwestern California. Their endonym is for Hupa-language speakers in general, and for residents of Hoopa Valley, also sp ...

to the northeast and

Chilula The Chilula (Yurok language term: Chueluela' / Chueluelaa' , ''Tsulu-la'', "People of Tsulu, the Bald Hill", locally known as the "Bald Hills Indians") were a Pacific Coast Athabaskan tribe speaking a dialect similar to the Hupa to the east and ...

to the north, who inhabited the area on or near the Upper Redwood Creek and along the Mad River except near its mouth (with the North Fork Mad River), up to Iaqua Butte, and some settlement in Grouse Creek in the Trinity River drainage in Northwestern

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, before contact with

Europeans Europeans are the focus of European ethnology, the field of anthropology related to the various ethnic groups that reside in the states of Europe. Groups may be defined by common ancestry, language, faith, historical continuity, etc. There are ...

Subdivisions

The Whilkut may then be divided into four subgroups (tribelets): * the Chilula Whilkut (Lower Redwood Indians) (by Goddard and Kroeber the ″Chilula Whilkut″ would occupy essentially the territory assigned to the Chilula and are considered a separate tribe called

) * the Kloki Whilkut / Prairie Whilkut' (Tł'o:q'-xwe / Xontehł-xwe - "Prairie People" or Tł'o:q' Xwiy¬q’it - "Prairie Whilkut", also: "(Upper) Redwood Creek Indians"; about 12 villages along Upper Redwood Creek) * the Mad River Whilkut (Me:w-yinaq / Me:w-yinuq, ''Mawenok'' - "underneath - upstream", also: "Mad River Indians"; about 16 villages along Mad River, Maple Creek and Boulder Creek), and * the North Fork (Mad River) Whilkut (also: "Blue Lake Whilkut", about six villages along North Fork Mad River and in Blue Lake area (Yitse'ni-xohch'indił-ding). Known Whilkut villages: ch'iłq'un-ding, mił-tehsch'e:-me'. The common tribal name as "Whilkut" is an adaption from the Hupa name for the Redwood Creek respectively the Redwood Ridge / Bald Hills as Xwiy¬q'it / Xwe:ył-q'it / Xoył-q'it. The Whilkut (together with Chilula) were called by the neighboring Hupa-speaking peoples Xwiy¬q'it-xwe / Xwe:yłq'it-xwe ("Redwood Ridge / Bald Hills People"), therefore they were also known as ''(Upper) Redwood Creek Indians''. Because of their close Hupa kin they are also called Upper Redwood Creek Hupa or Upstream Redwood Creek Hupa. Most authors consider class the

as a separate people, sometimes they are also considered another fourth tribelet (subgroup) of the Whilkut and are called the Chilula Whilkut. Little is known of the Whilkut culture beyond its similarity to that of the Hupa and criticized by the Hupa and Chilula as guarded, traditional, less settled

hill people Hill people, also referred to as mountain people, is a general term for people who live in the hills and mountains. This includes all rugged land above and all land (including plateaus) above elevation. The climate is generally harsh, with s ...

. Following the gold rush in Northwestern California, routes of pack trains between

Humboldt Bay Humboldt Bay (Wiyot language, Wiyot: ''Wigi'') is a natural bay and a multi-basin, bar-built coastal lagoon located on the rugged North Coast (California), North Coast of California, entirely within Humboldt County, California, Humboldt County, ...

and

Weaverville, California Weaverville ( Chimariko: ) is a census-designated place and the county seat of Trinity County, California, United States. Its population is 3,667 as of the 2020 census, up from 3,600 from the 2010 census. History Founded in 1850, Weaverville i ...

, lay through their territory, and their population, never large, was drastically reduced in the 1858-1864

Bald Hills War The Bald Hills War (1858–1864) was a war fought by the forces of the California Militia, California Volunteers and soldiers of the U.S. Army against the Chilula, Lassik, Hupa, Mattole, Nongatl, Sinkyone, Tsnungwe, Wailaki, Whilkut ...

. Estimated to have 250-350 warriors at the start of the war, the survivors were taken to the Hupa reservation soon after its establishment. After 1870 they drifted back to their traditional homes where they continued to live. Only 50 remained in the 1910 census. In 1972 only a remnant was left, perhaps only 20 to 25 individuals. Whilkut descendants have since been incorporated into the Hupa: *

Hoopa Valley Tribe The Hupa (Yurok: / 'Hupa people') are a Native American people of the Athabaskan-speaking ethnolinguistic group in northwestern California. Their endonym is for Hupa-language speakers in general, and for residents of Hoopa Valley, also sp ...

( Hoopa, Humboldt County, Population 2013: 3.139) (Hupa, Tsnungwe, Chimalakwe, Chilula, Whilkut) *

Blue Lake Rancheria The Blue Lake Rancheria is a federally recognized tribe of Wiyot, Yurok, and Hupa Indians located northwest of the city of Blue Lake in Humboldt County, California, on approximately .

( Blue Lake, Humboldt County, Population 2010: 58) (Wiyot, Yurok, Hupa, Whilkut)

Subdivisions

References

Further reading

See also