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In Her Own Words [Villiana Calac Hyde Archive] (2 pages)
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Page: of 2
illness, and the birth of Louise’s daughter
Elizabeth (although Louise taught herself
to transcribe the Luisefio language during
her pregnancy).
What is significant about the archive is
that it is authored by a woman, and so will
represent Luisefio life, knowledge and culture from a woman's perspective. Because
anthropologists and other social scientists
have usually interviewed men rather than
women when working with the Luisefio,
Villiana’s narratives and dictionary, which
will be dedicated to her daughter Lorraine,
will stand in sharp contrast-to the general
exclusion of women’s voices in prominent
works on the Luisefio. The collection contains information recorded on an incredibly diverse range of topics, which Villiana
and Louise plan to make available for the
benefit of the Rincon Luisefio community.
Love charms, lullabies, a dictionary in both
literary and verbal form nearing 10,000
entries, traditional advice, tales of old-time
fiestas and ranch work, games, uses for
wild plants, stories of boarding school,
doctoring, and everyday life—all from the
voice and experience of a woman whose
life has spanned nearly a century.
With the steadfast encouragement of
family and friends, especially Villiana’s
daughter Lorraine, Louise’s husband Tom,
and Louise’s academic advisor, Professor
Renato Rosaldo, Villiana and Louise will
continue to bring the Villiana Calac Hyde
Archive to its fruition. A remarkable treasure whose life and work is testimony to
the truth that language is also where the
heart is, Villiana Hyde—mother, extraordinary educator, prolific author, gifted poet
and master of the verbal arts—has created,
in her own words, a unique Luisefio legacy
that surely will be realized by future generations as a true, right, beautiful and everlasting expression of herself and her times.
Yolanda Montijo (Chemehuevi) has a B.A. in
anthropology from UC Berkeley and works for News
from Native California and Heyday Books.