Traditional narratives of Indigenous Californians

The traditional narratives of Native Indigenous Californians are the folklore and mythology of the native people of California. In California, most of the native peoples can be categorized into three large groups, Penutian, Hokan and Uto-Aztecan. For many historic nations of California, there is only a fragmentary record of their traditions. Spanish missions in California from the 18th century Christianized many of these traditions, and the remaining groups were mostly assimilated to US culture by the early 20th century. Due to assimilation many native groups lost the original folklore and mythology that was integrated into their culture and traditions, resulting in the blurred and changed stories that are known today. While there are sparse records from the 18th century, most material was collected during the 19th and the early 20th centuries.

In California, most of the native peoples can be categorized into three large groups, Penutian, Hokan and Uto-Aztecan. Of these traditions, one of the best attested and most notable in US mainstream culture is Hopi mythology, the Hopi being a Pueblo people speaking a language of the Uto-Aztecan family.