The Tamien are one of eight language groups of the Ohlone. The name is on record from 1777, when Spanish missionaries recorded what local people called the area of the first mission. Dozens of Tamien-speaking villages stood across the valley, several on Coyote Creek.
Questions people ask
Who lived in the San Jose area before the Spanish?
The Tamien, an Ohlone people, whose villages were spread across the Santa Clara Valley.
What language did they speak?
Tamyen, also called Santa Clara Costanoan, a Northern Ohlone language that fell out of use in the early 19th century.