Tübatulabal
The valley of the Kern River has been the home of three distinct bands which are collectively named Tübatulabal. The name Tübatulabal loosely translates as "Pine-nut Eaters." The name was given to the tribe by the neighboring Yokuts. At one point in history the Yokuts also called the Tübatulabals, "Pitanisha" (place where the rivers fork). The name for the north fork of the river has the Indian name of, Palegewanap or "place of the big river." The south fork of the river conversely was given the name of Kutchibichwanap Palap, or "place of the little river."
The Tübatulabal people are an indigenous people of Kern River Valley in the Sierra Nevada range of Southern California. They may have been the first people to make this area their permanent home.Today many of them are enrolled in the Tule River Indian Tribe. They are descendants of the people of the Uto-Aztecan language group, separating from Shoshone people about 3000 years ago.
Estimates for the precontact populations of most native groups in California have varied substantially. By two estimates, the Tübatulabal were a small to very small nation. Alfred L. Kroeber put the 1770 population of the Tübatulabal as 1,000. Erminie W. Voegelin considered Kroeber's estimate too high. For the time of initial European-American settlement, around 1850, she estimated 200-300. Kroeber in 1910 reported the population of the Tübatulabal as 150. Yamamoto in 2000 estimated the population at 900. Today about 400 Tübatulabal people reside in the Kern River Valley of California. 500 more live in surrounding areas.