KIZH NATION
(Pronounced Keech)

Gabrieleño Band Of Mission Indians

People Of The Willowhouse

The Gabrieleño were first known by the Spanish as Kichireños “people of the willow houses” they were the people who canoed out to greet Spanish explorer Juan Rodriquez Cabrillo upon his arrival off the shores of Santa Catalina and San Pedro in 1542. Cabrillo declined their invitation to come ashore and visit. Their original name Kizh (pronounced keech) having been lost through assimilation into Spanish culture, they came to be called Gabrieleño because of their forced labor with the San Gabriel Mission . They once inhabited all of Los Angeles County , as well as parts of Riverside, San Bernardino and Orange County. There were an estimated 5,000 in the region when the first Spanish settlers arrived in 1771. There are over 100 prominent known sites that are Gabrieleño villages, each having had as many as 400 to 500 kizh huts. Hereditary chieftains who wielded almost total authority over the community led the villages. Today academia continues to desecrate our true name, culture and history by promoting the misnomer of Tongva.

Ernest Perez, Teutimez, Salas


Chief and spiritual leader of the original documented Gabrieleño Band of Mission Indians has proven to be the most recognized and most accurately documented, direct lineal-descendant of former native ancestors of Kizh/Gabrieleño Villages or (rancherias), the villages of Sibangna Siba, Tameobit & Atongai / Tamet, from 1785 of any Gabrieleño Indians in Gabrieleño History. In 1994, the state of California recognized the Gabrielino Tribal Council, “Gabrieleño” – without the use of the term Tongva. The original Gabrieleño tribe of  San Gabriel led by Chief & spiritual leader Ernest P. Teutimez Salas, Gabrieleño Tribal Council gained acknowledgement of its nonprofit status by the state of California in 1994 ( incorporator and founder of the 501C3 Ernest P. Salas.) Chief Salas is the great great great grandchild of Nicolas Jose who was a man of great power and had an important part in the rebellion at mission San Gabriel.

 

Resource ManagementWe put our people first.

We have resources.

When developers and public agencies assess the environmental impact to their projects, they must consider “Tribal Cultural Resources” as an aspect of the environment in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act Guidelines. These “Tribal Cultural Resources” can include Native American graves and artifacts; natural resources used for food, ceremonies or traditional crafts and places that have special significance because of spiritual power associated with them.

When projects are proposed in areas where cultural resources are likely to be affected, one way to avoid damage to cultural resources and minimized litigation associated with the project is to perform archaeological testing, KIZH Nation has its own resource management company that can be on site during part or all of the construction work. By working with and acting as a liaison between Native American, Archeologist, developers, contractor and public agencies, KNRM can see that cultural resources are treated appropriately from the Native American point of view.
View Our Resource Management Website

 

The DetailsSee exactly what our goals are.

  • Step 1: Careful Planning

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  • Step 2: Team Assembly

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  • Step 3: Follow Through

    Eget facilisis quam felis id mauris. Ut convallis, lacus nec ornare volutpat, velit turpis scelerisque purus, quis mollis velit purus ac massa. Fusce quis urna metus. Donec et lacus et sem lacinia cursus.