Description
The Acjachemen are an Indigenous people of California. Published maps often identify their ancestral lands as extending from the beach to the mountains, south from what is now known as Aliso Creek in Orange County to the Las Pulgas Canyon in the northwestern part of San Diego County. The Spanish colonizers called the Acjachemen Juaneños, following their baptism at Mission San Juan Capistrano in the late 18th century.The name is derived from the village of Acjacheme, which was less than 60 yards from the site where Mission San Juan Capistrano was built in 1776. Acjachemen creation and origins stories represent their history in Southern California as beginning in the beginning of time. Archaeologists argue there has been an Acjachemen presence in the region for at least 10,000 years.
Language
The Acjachemen language is related to the Luiseño language spoken by the nearby Luiseño tribe located to the interior. Considered to speak a dialect of Luiseño, the Juaneño were part of the Cupan subgroup of the Uto-Aztecan languages. The Acjachemen had no written language.
Culture
Myths and legends explained their arrival in this world. Like most Native Americans, they were a deeply spiritual people who believed in interacting respectfully with nature and co-existing with all life-forms. They celebrated their religion with sacred songs and dances. They are very closely related to the Quechnajuichom or Luiseno people to the south, both culturally and linguistically. Prior to association with the mission, the Acjachemen lived in stable villages, and believed in owning private property, both land and goods. In addition to hunting, they also harvested seafood, including marine mammals. Although earlier explorers had contact with the Acjachemen, they began to be associated with Mission San Juan Capistrano shortly after it was founded in 1776. In the era preceding colonization by Spain, the Acjachemen resided in permanent, well-defined villages and seasonal camps. Village populations ranged from between 35 and 300 inhabitants, consisting of a single lineage in the smaller villages, and of a dominant clan joined with other families in the larger settlements