Maria Solares

Maria Solares (US: /ˈmɑːriə soʊˈlɑːrɛs/, Spanish: Maria Solares; born Qilikutayiwit, also known as Maria Ysidora del Refugio, c. April 1842 – March 1923) was a Native Californian woman belonging to the Chumash people, notable for her association with documenting and preserving the Samala Chumash language and culture.

Maria Solares
Qilikutayiwit
External image
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María Solares, who worked extensively with John P. Harrington to document the Samala Chumash language and culture
Born15 Apr 1842
Monterey, Alta California
Died6 Mar 1923 [1]
Santa Barbara, California
NationalityAmerican
Other namesQilikutayiwit, Maria Ysidora del Refugio, Maria del Refugio, Maria Brigida, Maria Isabel del Refugio Solares, Maria Refugio Solares [2]
OccupationLaundress/At Home
Known forDocumenting the Samala Chumash language and culture[3]
Spouses
  • Joaquin (1861-1863)[4]
  • Manuel (1863-1866)[5]
  • Nicomedes Liberado (1866-1868)[6]
  • Frank Estrada (1868-1870)[7]
  • Jose Gallego (1870-1872)[8]
  • Manuel Solares (1872-1923)
Children4: Maria, Clara, Jose, Francisco "Frank"
Parents
  • Benvenuto (father)
  • Brigida (mother)

Maria has been the focus of controversy, believing her to be a non-Chumash tribe member among other accusations.[9] However John R. Johnson, an adjunct professor of anthropology at UCSB, has researched the history of Maria's ancestors in the Santa Ynez Valley and found that her parents, grandparents, and great grandparents were all on church records as being baptized at Mission Santa Inés.[10]

Early life

Qilikutayiwit was born in Monterey, Alta California on 15 April 1842. She was Chistened fifteen days later on 30 April 1842 and given the name of Maria Ysidora del Refugio.[11] Her father Benvenuto was Samala Chumash and her mother Brigida was Hometwoli Yokuts.[12] Maria documented her early life and travels in the region, observations of flora and fauna of what it must have been like traveling in the area.[13]

Chumash contributions

Maria Solares is attributed with working with John P. Harrington as one of the last fluent Samala Chumash speakers. She contributed songs recorded on wax cylinders, stories, placenames and their translations and is credited with being a significant ancestor who preserved the Samala Chumash culture. Harrington's notes and recordings of Maria are archived at the Smithsonian Museum and have been used by Richard Applegate to recompile the Samala language, the Western Institute for Endangered Language Documentation has also used her notes for the Purisimeño language. The Elders Council of the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians has compiled a two-volume 700 page book set covering Maria's contributions.[14] Maria also gave a native account of the Chumash Revolt of 1824.[15] The Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Mission Indians have created a bust, placed at her approximate height, in her honor on display at the Santa Ynez Chumash Museum & Cultural Center (to be opened in 2023).[16][17]

Legacy

Dr. Richard Applegate created a Samala Dictionary in 2008 based on Maria's notes and recordings, essentially reviving the language for future generations based on her words.[18]

References
  1. AVS-Deaths 1905-1939 - California, Ancestry.com, California Death Index 1905-1939, (ancestry.com), page 218/705 (10262). DEATH Name: Maria Solares [Initial of Spouse: M] Birth Year: abt 1841 Death Date: 6 Mar 1924* Age at Death: 83 Death Place: Santa Barbara, California [State File No: 35546]
    • DEATH DATE DISCREPANCY: Indian Census Rolls, 1923, Santa Ynez, states, "died 3/6/23"
  2. Schwald, R. (2015, April 2). India solares, Maria Ysidora del Refugio. INDIA SOLARES, Maria Ysidora del Refugio b. 15 Apr 1842 Monterey, Alta California d. 6 Mar 1923 Santa Barbara County, California: Schwald Family Genealogy. https://schwaldfamily.org/getperson.php?personID=I19009
  3. Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Mission Indians#Samala Chumash language
  4. CENSUS 1860 - U.S. Federal, (ancestry.com), page 8/18, 17 Jul 1860. 1860 CENSUS - Santa Ynez, Santa Barbara, California
  5. AVS-Marriages - California, Snta Barb Co, Santa Barbara Genealogical Society, (santabarbaragenealogy.org/SBMarriages.php), http://santabarbaragenealogy.org/Marriages/SB_Marr_Gr_i.php. MARRIAGE - Santa Barbara County Bride - Groom - Date - Place - Groom Nativity - Bride Nativity INDIAN, Maria del Refugio - INDIAN, Manuel - 11 Apr 1863 - La Purisima - Native American - Native American
  6. AVS-Marriages - California, Snta Barb Co, Santa Barbara Genealogical Society, (santabarbaragenealogy.org/SBMarriages.php), http://santabarbaragenealogy.org/Marriages/SB_Marr_Br_i.php. MARRIAGE - Santa Barbara County Bride - Groom - Date - Place - Groom Nativity - Bride Nativity INDIAN, Maria del Refugio - INDIAN, Nicomedos - 12 Feb 1866 - Santa Barbara Mission - Native American - Native American
  7. CENSUS 1880 - U.S. Federal, (ancestry.com), page 2/6, 12 Jun 1880. 1880 CENSUS - District 85, Ballard, Santa Barbara, California NAME - AGE - RELATIONSHIP - CIVIL CONDITION S/M/W - OCCUPATION - PLACE OF BIRTH self/father/mother Rafael Indian - 50 - _ - M - Laborer - Cal/Cal/Cal ... Maria Indian - 40 - squaw - W - _ - Cal/Cal/Cal Ramon Indian - 25 - son - M - Laborer - Cal/Cal/Cal ... Francisco Indian - 16 - son to Maria - S - Laborer - Cal/Cal/Cal Santiago Indian - 12 - son to Maria - S - _ - Cal/Cal/Cal
  8. BK-Breath of the Sun: Life in Early California, Fernando Librado, John Peabody Harrington, (Malki Museum Press, 1979), page 154. 1870 CENSUS - Township 3, Santa Barbara, California Book states this is Maria Solares. Book ALSO states, "Maria may also have been married to a Jose Gallego."
  9. Lynch, J. P. (2021, May 27). Maria Solares a dilemma for Chumash. Santa Ynez Valley News. https://syvnews.com/opinion/commentary/maria-solares-a-dilemma-for-chumash/article_e1d5fea8-6d7d-11e1-b0be-001871e3ce6c.html
  10. Johnson, J. R. (2021, May 27). Chumash deserve an accurate historical account. Santa Ynez Valley News. https://syvnews.com/opinion/commentary/chumash-deserve-an-accurate-historical-account/article_68d00c02-73da-11e1-afce-0019bb2963f4.html
  11. Alta Cal Msn Bk #00_1770-1855_Bap, Early California Population Project, (huntington.org), http://missions.huntington.org/BaptismalData.aspx?ID=28860. BAPTISM Msn. San Carlos
    1. 4385) 30 Apr 1842- MARIA YSIDORA DEL REFUGIO, Yndia, 15 d., Birth Date: de 15 dias de nacida, h.l. de Benvenuto, Origin: Msn. Santa Ynes, y de Brigida, Origin: Msn. Santa Ynes, neofitos.
    Padrinos: Maria Josefa Rodrigues y Ricardo Juan [Unstated]. Suares del Real
  12. (Johnson, John R. 1988:8, 227, 236, 238-239) 1988 Chumash Social Organization: An Ethnohistoric Perspective. Ph.D. dissertation. University of California, Santa Barbara.
  13. Zavalla, N. (2021, May 10). Maria Solares’ journey reveals much about her life. Santa Ynez Valley News. https://syvnews.com/opinion/commentary/maria-solares-journey-reveals-much-about-her-life/article_b0dfc9f6-5869-11e1-9c86-001871e3ce6c.html
  14. Zavalla, N. (2021a, May 10). “hearing Maria Solares” will fill two volumes. Santa Ynez Valley News. https://syvnews.com/opinion/commentary/hearing-maria-solares-will-fill-two-volumes/article_3464c054-4c96-11e1-940c-001871e3ce6c.html
  15. BLACKBURN, T. (1975). The Chumash Revolt of 1824: A Native Account. The Journal of California Anthropology, 2(2), 223–227. http://www.jstor.org/stable/27824841
  16. Loxton, M. (2022, August 16). How the Santa Ynez Chumash will showcase their 8,000 year history in a new museum. KCLU. https://www.kclu.org/local-news/2022-05-06/how-the-santa-ynez-chumash-will-showcase-their-8-000-year-history-in-a-new-museum
  17. Kahn, K. (2023, April 26). Chumash museum dreams becoming reality. Santa Maria Times. https://santamariatimes.com/news/local/state-and-regional/chumash-museum-dreams-becoming-reality-kenneth-kahn/article_78a680fb-a196-566e-8ad7-26bc3fbab2b1.html
  18. Chawkins, Steve (2008-04-20). "Chumash recover their 'alishtaha'n: Armed with a trove of scattered notes, linguist saves ancestral tongue from brink of extinction". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2013-05-07.
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