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Abstract
Up to the Eighteenth Century the Acjachemen were a hunting-gathering people living along the coast of southern California. Their group consisted of over 20 villages and a population of approximately 3,500 people. Social and ceremonial connections extended beyond their boundaries to create a complex network over a wide region. The Spanish invasion of Alta California and the founding of the Franciscan religious mission of San Juan Capistrano in A.D. 1776 in the midst of Acjachemen territory initiated social, cultural and demographic disruptions of great impact.
Identification of Indian neophytes' villages of origin has made it possible to observe the Acjachemen separately from neophytes of other social groups and follow their progress at the mission. As an increasing percentage of their population entered the mission system, the social and religious networks that supported their way of life slowly disintegrated. Increased death rates due to introduced diseases, combined with fugitivism from the mission, also affected traditional life. The period studied ends in A.D. 1807 as the final Acjachemen born outside the mission were baptized.
