The Cahuilla name for Palm Springs was Se-Khi (boiling water). Streets and areas in Palm Springs using common Cahuilla surnames include Andreas, Arenas, Amado, Belardo, Lugu, Patencio, Saturnino and Chino. While Palm Canyon was occupied during winter months (the current site of the Spa Resort Casino was often used due to its natural hot springs), the Cahuilla trekked to much higher elevation in cooler Chino Canyon during the summer months, today easily accessible by the Palm Springs Aerial TRAM. In a 1990 census there were only 35 people who could still speak the language and tribal enrollment as of 2010 was 410 people.
They lived here in virtual isolation and spoke Ivilyuat, a dialect of the Uto-Aztecan language family. The historic journey that transformed Palm Springs from a Native American oasis to Hollywood’s Playground of the Stars began over two thousand years ago with the arrival of the Cahuilla people.
