According to the best available figures, some of which are only reasonable guesses, populations of the local tribes were probably about as follows:
[Illustration: INDIAN TRIBAL AREAS OF THE LASSEN REGION after A. L. Kroeber and T. R. Garth—note the boundaries of Lassen Volcanic National Park dashed in above and left of center of the map. Lassen Peak is at the junction of the Atsugewi, Yana, and Maidu territories.]
ACHOMAWI SHASTAN OKWANUCHU NORTHERN WINTUN CENTRAL WINTUN S. E. WINTUN CENTRAL YANA NORTH (YANA) SOUTHERN YANA ATSUGEWI ATSUGE APWARUGE NORTHERN PAIUTE NORTHEASTERN MAIDU NORTHWESTERN MAIDU SOUTHERN MAIDU WASHO
Atsugewi 1,000 250 75 Yana (north, central, s) 750 25 10 Yahi 275 5 none Maidu (mountain) 2,000 800 300 Totals 4,025 1,080 385
Garth states that: “The Atsugewi are divided into two major groups, the Atsuge or pinetree-people, who occupy Hat Creek Valley, and the Apwaruge—from Apwariwa, the name of Dixie Valley—who live to the east in and around Dixie Valley. Sometimes the Apwaruge are called Mahoupani, juniper-tree-people, a name which reflects the dry and barren nature of their territory....
“... certain cultural differences (existed) between the eastern and western Atsugewi, who in most aspects of nonmaterial culture and in language are one people. In the western area there was more abundant rainfall and a fairly luxuriant growth of pines, oaks, and other trees. Here the Atsuge subsisted largely on acorns and fish; made twined basketry, using willow, pine root, _Xerophylum_ grass, and redbud materials; and had bark houses and numerous other structures of bark. On the contrary, in the eastern area, which is comparatively arid and lacking in trees, the Apwaruge depended on the acorn less than did the Atsuge and fishing was less important, to judge by the scarcity or lack of nets, fish hooks, and harpoons; made inferior twined baskets of twisted tule with a different twist to the weave; as a rule had their houses covered with tule mats rather than with bark; and were much poorer than the Atsuge. This cultural distinction between the eastern and western areas is also found to the north among the Achomawi.”
Dixon’s studies have revealed that the Maidu had no general name for themselves, remarkable as this may seem. The name Maidu was first used by Stephen Powers in 1877 in his volume “TRIBES OF CALIFORNIA”, a name he arbitrarily applied to these Indians since the word meant “Indian” or “man” in their language. The adjectives northwest or valley, northeast or mountain, and southern or foothill are applied to identify the three different cultures corresponding to the three distinct geographic provinces inhabited by the Maidu Indians as a whole. In a number of respects the culture of the mountain or northeast Maidu was more like that of their northern neighbors, the Atsugewi, than it was like that of the closely related southern and northwestern Maidu peoples. Obviously the factor of environment or characteristics of the land occupied is of extreme importance in creating such a situation.