The Hoopa Valley Tribe: The Importance of Acorns

Samantha Sommerfeld

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The Hupa People

The Hupa are a tribe located in the northwestern part of California. Other names for the Hupa include: Nabiltse, Natano, and Trinity Indians. The Hoopa Tribe were named after the six-mile long Hoopa Valley located on their land. In the middle of the valley runs the Trinity River where their way of life revolved around the annual salmon runs (Wallace). At the base of the Trinity is the Klamath River, toward the southern part of the valley. This river was important to the Hupa because this is where they collected seaweed and dried it for salt (Hupa/Yurok). The valley is isolated by mountains, which created limited access for other tribes. Their traditional language is Athabascan, which is related to tribes in the northern parts of California and even into Alaska. Even though the Hupa share this language, they still hold their own tribal language, within their tribe, that differs from other tribes. It would be like a different kind of dialect in within the language that only the Hupa share. No written documents were taken before the 1800’s, because of their use of oral history passed down from the tribes’ elders to future generations. The first contact with white people occurred in 1828, as the gold rush started to invade the land. Fur trappers also played a role in introducing white culture to the Hupa (Tribal History).

While the word Hupa is used today to refer to the tribe, the word itself is not a native word to their tribal language. The word “Hupa” is a word used by their neighboring tribe, Yurok, describing of the territory that they live in. The name Hupa comes from the Hoopa Valley. Other neighboring tribes include the Wiyot and Tolowa. While the Hupa share many customs with these two tribes, they seldom traded. This is due mainly to a similarity of natural resources in the area that each of these tribes lived. It made little sense to trade for things that you already have. The Yurok and to a lesser extent the Karok were the main trade partners. Culturally, the Yurok were closely linked to the Hupa because they shared ceremonies and traded goods. The Hupa traded acorns and other goods for canoes the Yurok made from red cedar. The region that the Hupa lived in was more plentiful with acorns than the Yuroks territory (Wallace). They also shared their style of housing.

Hupas lived in permanent housing except for certain seasons of the year. The buildings they lived in were rectangular in shape and made from cedar planks. The women and children slept in the “ xonta ”. This was the storage house for the tribes. It housed food and other materials the tribe needed, such as clothing and tools. The men and boys, beginning at the age of nine, slept in the “ taikyow ”. This was the sweathouse. It was used for daily sweating of the men and also served as a workshop. The only time they would move was in autumn during acorn gathering season. It was only for a short time that the tribe moved away from their permanent dwellings. During this time they moved into roofless shelters made from brush. Sometimes, depending on the weather, they would camp in the open area with no shelter. The men and women were not separated, so they were allowed to sleep together (Wallace).

The Hupa had numerous food resources in their territory. They got their meat from deer and elk found in the surrounding forest. Berries and nuts could be taken from many trees and bushes in the forests as well. The Trinity River provided various types of fish such as eel, salmon and sturgeon. However, the two main foods that provided a staple for them were salmon and acorn (Bushnell). Their life my have revolved around salmon, but acorns were the base of most of their meals and also an important aspect to the tribe.

Acorn Nutrition and Work

Of the eighteen different species of oaks in California, Tan Oak ( Lithocarpus densiflorus ) and Black Oak ( Quercus kelloggii ) were favored for food by the Hupa Tribe. These acorns were more plentiful. Acorns proved to be a good source of essential nutrients and when combined with meat and berries, made up a well balanced meal. Acorns contain eighteen percent fat, six percent protein, sixty-eight percent carbohydrates, vitamins A and C, and many amino acids. These percentages vary somewhat by species. They are also a good source of minerals and fiber. Good acorn yields for these oak trees took from two to three years depending on the tree (Past and Present). Burning and maintaining the areas where the oaks were, proved to yield higher numbers in acorns, and eliminated pests in the site. This also proved to be easier to harvest (Beckman).

Hupas ignored the first acorn crop of the early fall because of the problem with the insects that infested the acorns. Around a month later the second crop of acorns would be collected by both men and women of the tribe. An average large oak would yield the tribe about 500 pounds of acorns to store per year (The Acorn). The average adult would eat one ton of acorns per year (Past and Present). The men and older boys in the tribe took to the duty of knocking the acorns out of the tree. They would either shake the younger trees, or climb the older trees in order to get the acorns down. The women and children then collected the acorns that had fallen out of the tree in large baskets. Because of the large quantity that needed to be gathered for the whole tribe, gathering took several weeks to accomplish (The Acorn).

After acorns were gathered, the nutmeat inside the acorns was too soft to process for cooking. The nutmeat would be either dried on a rock in the sun or over a fire in a basket. Generally acorns are stored in a granary for one year before they are used in any cooking (Acorn Preparation). After gathering the acorns, the people brought their vast crop to the granary. Some granaries could hold up to 2.5 tons of acorns per year. Because of competition for the acorns among the native wildlife, such as bear and mice, proper precautions were taken to guarantee the acorns survival in the granaries. Waterproofing the granaries helped to keep the insect invaders out and also helped dehydrate the acorns. Leaves and bark linings were another repellant used for drive away insects as well as rodents. Some leaves that were used would have been bay laurel or wormwood leaves. Just the aroma of these leaves was believed to repel the insects. The granaries were raised up on stilts to warn away attacks of rodents and larger animals, such as bears (The Acorn). If the acorn harvest survived through all these threats, unshelled acorns could be stored up to ten to twelve years (Past and Present).

Acorn Cooking

Acorns were generally made into mush, soup or bread. The women of the tribe did all the acorn preparation and cooking. To prepare the acorn nutmeat for the cooking process was not an easy project, and also took several hours for each step. When the acorns were dried from sitting in the granary, they were cut open by using tools such as a hammer stone and stone anvil. As the shell cracked open, the nutmeat in the shell would be carefully extracted by hand. The nutmeat would have a thin skin (pellicle) around it that the women needed to take off. This was done by winnowing. In this process the acorns were placed in a winnow basket that was shaped like a large scoop. The acorns were then tossed into the air, allowing the pellicle to fly away in the wind, and the naked acorns returning to the basket (Acorn Preparation).

Pounding was the next step and took the greatest portion of the processing time. Grinding the acorns instead of pounding would lead to a paste instead of flour. This is because of the heavy oils in the acorn that would be released under the pressure. Pounding used many tools. A basket hopper in the mortar held the acorns as they were being pounded. This basket helped to avoid any acorns that might hop out of the basket when in process (The Acorn). Pestles were used to pound the acorn into meal. Women usually spent the entire day doing this process. (Acorn Preparation) Sifting occurred regularly using a sifting basket. Larger pieces surfaced and were picked out to be pounded again. The fine meal was brushed into another basket using a small brush called a soaproot ( Chlorogalum pomeridianum ) brush. The soaproot brush was also used to clean the mortar and pestle (Past and Present).

Leaching the meal was an intensive part of this process. Acorns have a high content of tannic acid. Tannin is bitter to the taste and used to tan animal hides. If the tannins were not leached out, carbohydrates and other important nutrients could not be absorbed in to their body. Tannin makes the stomach lining tough and prevents non-absorption (Acorns). To remove the tannin, a large basin is dug into the ground. Acorn meal is spread across the basin, and then covered with branches (Acorn Preparation). The branches make sure that the flow of water is not too strong but just drizzles lightly and evenly over the acorn (The Acorn). Water is repeatedly poured over the meal so that tannins are thoroughly leached out. Tasting is done to make sure the meal is free of tannin, by detecting if there is bitter taste to the meal. When all the water is drained from the meal, it is then ready to be cooked (Acorn Preparation).

Cooking acorn meal can be done in various ways. The first is stone boiling. Large rocks are heated on the fire while acorn flour and water is mixed together in a basket. When the rocks are hot they are then added to the mixture and stirred with a large wooden paddle (California Indian). To prevent the baskets from leaking any water, they are coated with acorn gruel. When the mixture is boiling the soup or mush is done (Acorn Preparation). For flavor, berries are added to the mush. For a well rounded nutritious meal, dried meat was also added (The Acorn).

Bread was made in shallow pits. Preparation of the dough sometimes required adding clay, about five percent, to the dough. This removed the excess tannin that was left after the leaching process. After the hole was dug, heated rocks were lined in the bottom of the pits. Then a layer of green leaves were laid on top of the rocks. The acorn dough was then placed on the leaves with another layer of green leaves covering it. Then another layer of heated rocks were placed on top of the second layer of green leaves. The pit was then covered and left to sit for the night, or about twelve hours. When the bread was dug up in the morning it appeared to be soft, but as soon as the air touched it, it began to harden. With the green leaves around the dough, the bread did not dry out but remained as a heavy, oily bread. The heating process also made the bread sweet. Sometimes pits were not made but instead ovens were dug into hills or the ground so that it would be easier to check on the progress of the bread (California Indian). Another type of bread was made on hot rocks. This resembled pancakes. Flour was dampened and baked on a hot stone until it was cooked through (Wallace).

Acorn Importance

Religion was a very important part of everyday lives for the Hupa. “ Takimildin ” is where three of the Hupa ceremonies took place. “ Takimildin ” was translated into “Place of the Acorn Feast.” Ceremonies were not the only ritual held here but this was also the place were they selected a spiritual leader for the Hupa tribe, as well as a spiritual center for the whole valley. Large feasts were present at most ceremonies where women prepared acorn soup among other native dishes (Indian Law).

A ceremony that was held annually was The Acorn Feast. This was done in the fall of the year when the tan oaks started to drop their acorns. This ceremony was done to bless the first acorn crop. No one could eat acorns of the first crop until the ceremony procedures had taken place (Wallace). The ceremony started when the medicine woman and five other official women from the tribe prayed for good fortunes and did other sacred acts. They prayed for good health, good fortune and of course a large acorn crop that year (Hupa/Yurok). This ceremony was also the only sacred proceeding that was conducted by all females. All other “World Renew” ceremonies were conducted by men even though women took small roles in them. The prayers in their Acorn Feast are spoken while they prepared the acorn for the feast. One prayer that was translated reads as follows:

Ceremonies were an important part of their lives and were taken very seriously. Special herbs were burned in the fire while they prayed. Even though they prayed for fortune they also prayed to make their enemies, in this case the animals and insects, suffer if they tampered with their crop (Keeling).

With the limited use of acorns as a food crop today, it is hard to believe what a major food source they were to many Native American tribes. The Hupa lived off the acorns not only for sustenance but also as a trading good. They also praised the acorn through ceremonies, and were also included in all other ceremonies as well. Processing the acorn in to flour was a big project for the women of the tribe, but they also took great pride in it as well. The acorn is not only a food by also a way of life for the Hupa People.

Works Cited

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