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Glossary
Abalone - A clam-like animal with a
colorful shell that lives in the Pacific Ocean.
Acorn - The seed of an oak tree. "Great
oaks from little acorns grow."
Antelope - A fast deer-like animal
that lives in herds or groups on
grassy plains.
Armband - A bracelet worn on the upper arm.
Awl - A tool with a handle and a
sharp point for making holes in
leather.
Baptize - Making a person a member of
a Christian church by prayer and sprinkling water on them or
dipping them in water. "The baby was baptized and named
Margaret."
Beaver - An animal with strong teeth
and a flat tail that lives in rivers and lakes. "Beaver skins
make a warm coat."
Bedrock - Rocks so large that they
are part of the earth and cannot be moved.
Belief - A thing people feel or think is true. "The
belief that animals have spirits was part of Native American
life."
Bitterness - sharp bad taste
Boundary - The outside edge. "Do not
cross the boundary of California into Mexico without a
passport."
Bow - A weapon used to shoot an arrow
Breechcloth - A piece of clothing
like a skirt.
Buckskin - Leather made from the skin of a buck, or male
deer. "The Yokuts made strong moccasins out of buckskin."
Burden - Something that is carried.
"The cradle basket on her back was a burden she carried
easily."
Burden baskets -
Baskets used for carrying things
Canal - a large ditch for moving water from one place to
another.
Ceremony - Special things done to celebrate an event.
"Hunters had a ceremony to the spirits of the animals before
they went on a hunt."
Chief - Leader of a tribe or group of
people. "The chief planned a hunting trip that the whole tribe
would be part of."
Communicate - to share information using language, signs
or in other ways.
County seat - The city in a county
where the county government offices are.
Cowrie - A small shell that was often used as money
among the Indians of California.
Crop - a plant that is grown, or farmed, by farmers.
Dam - A wood, rock, or concrete
structure that stops the water in a river, making alake.
Declare war - To say that there is
a war between two countries. " The United States declared war
against Mexico to get control of California."
Dough -
Bread before it is cooked.
Elk
- A large animal like a deer
Explorers - People who go to a place
that is unknown or little known to find out more about it. "The
Explorers from Europe found many Indians living in California."
Foothills - low mountains next to
high mountains. "We traveled through the foothills before we
came to the snowy high peaks."
Flour - ground seeds or grain that is used to make bread.
"The Yokuts Indians ground acorns into flour in their mortars."
Founded - Started by a government or other organization.
Freight - Things that are carried in
a wagon or train car.
Freight car - A train car made to carry things, such as a
box car.
Game - Animals people hunt for food. "There were many game
birds at the lake, such as ducks and geese."
Ghost town - a town where nobody lives
any more.
Gold - A metal that is very expensive, used for money and
to make jewlery.
Grain - Seeds grown as a crop and used for animal and human
food.
Headband - A strap around the
forehead used to help carrying heavy things, or a string around
the head used to keep hair off the face and for decoration.
Headdress - A special type of hat or head covering.
Hereafter - The time and place some people believe comes
after a person has died.
Inland - Away from the ocean. " The
San Joaquin Valley is inland, not near the coast."
Irrigate - To water plants with water moved from another
place.
Irrigation - Watering plants with water moved from another
place.
Landmark - An important visible place that is used as a
guide. "The Fox theatre is a landmark in Visalia."
Leach -
To soak with changes of
water.
Livestock - Animals used for travel
and in farming such as horses and cattle.
Mission - A place established by a
church to teach religion to people. "The Spanish had 21
missions in California to teach Christianity to the Indians."
Missionary - A person sent by the church to spread his or
her religion to another place. "The missionaries taught
Christianity to the Indians."
Mortar - A bowl made of stone or clay
for grinding seeds. "A pestle is used to grind grain in a
mortar."
Mountain Range - a group of mountains, usually in a long
line. "The Sierra Nevada is the highest mountain range in
California."
Mush -
Hot cereal made from ground grain or seeds.
Nourishing - Good for a person to
eat
Oak - A kind of tree. "Oak trees are tall
and have strong wood."
Obsidian - A glass-like volcanic stone that can be chipped
to a sharp edge.
Ox
- a kind of bull or cow that is trained to work pulling
wagons or plows.
Pestle -
A stone hammer used to grind things in a mortar
Preserve - To save for later or for people who live after
you. "The Fox Theatre has been preserved for the future."
Produce - The things that farmers grow or make to eat, use,
and sell.
Raft - A flat boat for carrying things
Rich -
Full of energy giving fat and protein
Sacred - holy, religious
Saddle - a special seat that is tied,
or cinched, to a horse for the rider to sit on.
Sawmill - a factory that saws logs from trees into boards
for building.
Settlement - The place where settlers
live. "Visalia was the largest settlement in the area."
Settlers - People who come to a place to live. "The
settlers built houses and started farming along the river."
Shelter - A place to live or to stay
out of the weather. "His tent was a shelter for the night."
Snare - A trap made of string or
rope
Soapstone - A soft stone used for carving
Soil - Dirt for farming, earth.
Stage or Stage line - A wagon for
people to ride in and on that was pulled by horses and traveled
on a regular schedule, like a bus today. " I bought a ticket
and rode on the stage to San Francisco from Visalia."
Stagecoach - the wagon that the horses pull in a stage
line.
Stalk - To sneak quietly up on an animal.
Territory - A large area of land. "Their territory
stretched from the mountains to Tulare Lake."
Trade - To exchange one thing for
another. "The Yokuts traded deer skins for shells from the
ocean."
Tradition - A belief or a custom that
is handed down from parents to children.
Transportation - moving people or things from place to place.
" When trains came to Tulare County they were a very fast form
of transportation."
Trap - To catch animals. "The man
trapped squirrels in a box baited with seeds."
Tribal government -
The people and the rules that control a
tribe.
Tribe - A group of families living
together under one leader or chief. "The whole tribe of twenty
families gathered for a feast."
Tulare Lake -
A very large, shallow lake in southern Tulare
County. It is usually dry now.
Tules - A kind of tall thin plant that
grows along rivers and lakes. "Yokuts Indians used tules to
weave baskets."
Wheat - a seed or grain that is used
to make flour for bread and cereal.
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