A Baja California Indian Community

William D. Hohenthal, Jr.’s Tipai Ethnographic Notes is a wonderful text on the native people of San Diego County and Baja California.  It dives into and explores every aspect of the Tipai history and culture. Hohenthal has laid the foundation for the research of the almost forgotten Tipai. Considering that this part of California's history was almost forgotten, this book is incredibly valuable for the appreciation and understanding of the Tipai.

Since this text is fantastic collection of ethnographic notes on the Tipai, it serves as an excellent scholarly source for research. The notes are organized into beautifully researched sections: natural environment, settlements, substance, social life, law and government, etc. If you're interested in San Diego’s ancient past or you need an excellent source for research, this book will quench your thirst for knowledge.

Kristi Phillips' wonderful piece on the growing interest of the Kumeyaay.

There is an ongoing exhibit at the San Diego
 Museum of Man, Kumeyaay: Native Californians. 

Buy your copy here

To Anthropologists And Explorers of Culture (that means you, Indiana Jones)--The World of the Tipai available through our Tipai Ethnographic Notes

front cover

click image to enlarge
click here to purchase paperback
click here to purchase hardback

Jerry Moore, Professor of Anthropology at California State University, Dominguez Hills calls   Ethnographic Notes: A Baja California Indian Community at Mid-Century a "salvaged treasure."

American Indian Studies Professor at San Diego State, Richard L. Carrico, praises the book for bringing "new life" to the work of anthropologist William D. Hohenthal.

And Ken Hedges, Curator at the San Diego Museum of Man describes the work as "a vivid account of a living culture making its way in the 20th century while holding onto ancient traditions," adding, "Tipai Ethnographic Notes deserves an honored place on the bookshelf of every California and Baja California anthropologist."

The endorsements are strong, but buy this important historical account and make your own decision.

The book contains incredible ethnographic details about family life, society, religion, government, healing, ethnomedicine and much, much more. Because cultures are constantly evolving, this work provides a snapshot of a way of life that no longer exists.

It's perfect for anyone interested in other cultures, indigenous groups, anthropology, changing societies, religion or the fieldwork of the 1940s--not far off from the time of Indiana Jones, might I add.

Each copy includes a separate, large and detailed map of Baja California during the 1940s, copied from Hohenthal's hand sketches of the area. You'll be hard pressed to find the like anywhere else.

So, buy a copy today (in hardcover or paperback) and let your own anthropological adventure begin.

back cover

click image to enlarge
click here to purchase paperback
click here to purchase hardback