Southern Diegueño Customs

[The book is going through the location of the tribes in the area.]

'kwamai'

This gens lived throughout the length of Rattlesnake valley west of Laguna mountain at xakwapiL (water on hillside), a big spring at Pine Valley, at xakwitceploi'ik (boiling strings) seven miles northeast, at wikilyntici's (singing rock: it whistles and sings when one passes), an equal distance in the same direction, at tisi'L (a grass) near the north end of the valley, and at kumtaukwiLk to the east. In the vicinity of Vallecito and San Jacinto creeks, they lived at matnu'k (bend) where the creek makes a sharp turn in Mason valley near Vallecito, at Wiipici' (rock, chemissa bush) three miles southeast, at tsiLmukz.a' (shoulder water) to the south, at matLaiu-inya (sandy road) a mile east at Indian Potrero, probably Palm Spring school, and at xapukaxa (lizard water) one mile east. The country to the east is cut off by Vallecito Mountain (Probably the fish creek mountain of the maps). They also lived about Laguna at piLyakai (pottery clay spring) at teh southern end of the lake, at teaunyiwa (Chauny's house) nearly a mile north of the lake, at wi'kana'RLaxa' (shell rock water), a small lake three fourths of a mile east of the preceding, at wikopxau' a mile north, and at yarxkai' (wild plums) on the mountain two miles northwest of the last mentioned.

This group seems to be mostly Laguna mountain and high desert areas. The use of the word Potrero probably has nothing to do with the modern Potrero town.

-- Raymond Lutz - 02 Aug 2007