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Cahuilla

American  
[kuh-wee-uh] / kəˈwi ə /

noun

Cahuillas, plural Cahuilla plural
  1. a member of a North American Indian people of southern California.

  2. Also called Ivilyuat.  the Uto-Aztecan language of the Cahuilla.


adjective

  1. of or relating to the Cahuilla or their language.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of Cahuilla

First recorded in 1895–1900; from Spanish, possibly from Cahuilla kawi'a “master”

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Tongva, Chumash and Cahuilla workers in California formed the backbone of rancho agriculture.

From The Wall Street Journal Nov. 30, 2025

The region is the ancestral homeland of the Torres Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians and other tribes, who led the push for safeguarding the land.

From Los Angeles Times Jan. 12, 2025

“We are happy to see the designation protect this area that contains thousands of cultural places and objects of vital importance to the history and identity of the Torres Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians.”

From Los Angeles Times Jan. 3, 2025

Thomas Tortez Jr., tribal council chairman for the Torres Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians, said that monument status will pave the way for better oversight, protecting the area from trash dumping and graffiti.

From Los Angeles Times Nov. 19, 2024

Because even though Mai said during the cat search that her mother came from Vietnam, I hadn't completely given up on the idea that she could have something to do with the Cahuilla tribe.

From "Counting by 7s" by Holly Goldberg Sloan

He declared that the Cahuillas would surely come and murder him in the night, and begged piteously that the men would all stay with him to guard him.

From Ramona by Jackson, Helen Hunt

There was another Indian village nearer,—the village of the Cahuillas, on one of the high plateaus of San Jacinto.

From Ramona by Jackson, Helen Hunt

To the simple Cahuillas it seemed like a miracle; and they looked on Aunt Ri's weather-beaten face with something akin to a superstitious reverence.

From Ramona by Jackson, Helen Hunt

The  Americans cry “Hurrah!” the Germans, “Hoch!” the Mexicans, “E viva!” and the Cahuillas howl for joy.

From Sielanka: An Idyll by Bullick, Thomas H.

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