Yavapai

Yavapai

An early 20th-century Yavapai basket bowl woven of willow and reed
Total population
1,550 (1992)[1]
Regions with significant populations
United States (Arizona)
Languages
Yavapai (three dialects of Upland Yuman language), English
Religion
Indigenous religion, Christianity
Related ethnic groups
Havasupai, Hualapai, Mohave, Western Apache

The Yavapai (/ˈjævəˌpaɪˌ/ YAV-ə-PY) are a Native American tribe in Arizona. Their Yavapai language belongs to the Pai branch of the Yuman language family.

Today Yavapai people are enrolled in the following federally recognized tribes:

• Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation
• Yavapai-Apache Nation of the Camp Verde Indian Reservation
• Yavapai-Prescott Indian Tribe

The Yavapai historically controlled about 10 million acres of land in west-central Arizona.^[1] Their lands bordered the San Francisco Peaks to the north, the Pinaleno Mountains and Mazatzal Mountains to the southeast, and the Colorado River to the west, and almost to the Gila River and the Salt River to the south.^[2]

The Yavapai historically were divided into geographically distinct bands or subtribes:

• Kewevkepaya,^[3] Gwev G’paaya (southeastern)
• Tolkepaya,^[3] Tolkepaye^[1] (western)
• Wipukepa,^[3] Wiipukpaa (northeastern), also known as the Verde Valley Yavapai
• Yavepé,^[3] Yaavpe (northwestern)