Queen Califia | Did You Know California Was Named After A Native Black Woman?

Artistic representations of Queen Califia

Was California was named after, Queen Califia, a Black Amazon warrior Queen?

 Spanish writer, Garci Rodríguez de Montalvo, wrote about Queen Califia in 1500 in his novel,Las sergas de Esplandián (The Adventures of Esplandián). Califia was said to rule an “island nation” where gold was the only metal. Whoopi Goldberg even depicted Queen Califia in the Disneyland Film, Golden Dreams.

A seven foot high panel of Califia with her Amazons at the Mark Hopkins Intercontinental Hotel in San Francisco was created for the opening of the hotel in 1926, by Maynard Dixon and Frank Von Sloun. Louise Lloyd created a depiction entitled The Naming of California, which can be seen in Sacramento in the Senate Rules Committee Hearing Chamber on the 4th floor of the State Building.

Africa Resource writes:

In 2004, the African American Historical and Cultural Society Museum in San Francisco assembled a Queen Califia exhibit, curated by John William Templeton, featuring works by artists such as TheArthur Wright and James Gayles; artistic interpretations of Califia.

The show displayed a 1936 treatment of Lucille Lloyd’s “California Allegory” triptych, with Queen Califia as the central figure. Templeton said that “Califia is a part of California history, and she also reinforces the fact that African Americans had always been in California.”

“Califia is a part of California history, and she also reinforces the fact that when Cortes named this place California, he had 300 black people with him. And throughout the whole Spanish-Mexican war, 40 percent of the population was black.”

Some may refer to Queen Califia as a mythical character, but why would there be so many exhibits dedicated to someone if they didn’t really exist?

Original Article Found At TheAfroLounge.com

Queen Califia mural

 The creation of the name California is celebrated on September 9, 1850 (official date Ca. STATEHOOD). The designation “California” is another piece of African American history (derived from a knightly romance book that was published in 1510). The story was about an island paradise
near the Indies where a Black Queen Califia ruled. She was the leader a country of Black Amazons with masses of pearls and gold. Men were only allowed on Califia one day a year to help perpetuate the race.

Legends of Queen Califia and mythology

 When the Spanish first began exploring the Pacific Coast they thought that they were in search of a magical island, one filled with big black women and packed with gold.

That's because there was this book called Las Sergas de Esplandián, written by a Spaniard named Garci Rodríguez de Montalvo. In the book, there was a mythical, mystical island named California.

Garci envisioned the island inhabited only by large black women, no men, and their queen was named Califa.


 Seriously, look at this excerpt from Wikipedia Etymology of California

 From the novel Las Sergas de Esplandián
The Island of California, from a map circa 1650. Restored.

California was the name given to a mythical island populated only by beautiful black Amazon warriors using gold tools and weapons in the popular early 16th-century romance novel Las Sergas de Esplandián (The Adventures of Esplandián) by Spanish author Garci Rodríguez de Montalvo. This popular Spanish novel was printed in several editions with the earliest surviving edition published about 1510.

The novel described the Island of California as being east of the Asian mainland, "very close to the side of the Terrestrial Paradise; and it is peopled by black women, without any man among them, for they live in the manner of Amazons." The Island was ruled by Queen Calafia. When the Spanish started exploring the Pacific coast they applied this name on their maps to what is now called the Baja California Peninsula, which they originally thought was an island. Once the name was on the maps it stuck.

“Know ye that on the right hand of the Indies there is an island called California, very near the Terrestrial Paradise and inhabited by black women without a single man among them and living in the manner of Amazons. They are robust of body, strong and passionate in the heart, and of great valor. Their island is one of the most rugged in the world with bold rocks and crags. Their arms are all of gold, as is the harness of the wild beasts which, after taming, they ride. In all the island there is no other metal. . . .”

Kind of amazing right?  This stuff is not taught in the schools.

There is a strong Moorish connection to the story of Queen Califa as well can be expected considering the strong Moorish influence on Spanish culture.  Check out this excerpt from Wiki:

In the novel, Queen Calafia is a pagan who is convinced to raise an army of women warriors and sail away from California with a large flock of trained griffins so that she can join a Muslim battle against Christians who are defending Constantinople. In the siege, the griffins harm enemy and friendly forces, so they are withdrawn. Calafia and her ally Radiaro fight in single combat against the Christian leaders, a king and his son the knight Esplandián. Calafia is bested and taken prisoner, and she converts to Christianity. She marries a cousin of Esplandián and returns with her army to California for further adventures.[2]

The name of Calafia was likely formed from the Arabic word khalifa (religious state leader) which is known as caliph in English and califa in Spanish. Similarly, the name of Calafia's monarchy, California, likely originated from the same root, fabricated by the author to remind the 16th-century Spanish reader of the reconquista, a centuries-long fight between Christians and Muslims which had recently concluded in Spain. The character of Calafia is used by Rodríguez de Montalvo to portray the superiority of chivalry in which the attractive virgin queen is conquered, converted to Christian beliefs and married off. The book was very popular for many decades—Hernán Cortés read it—and it was selected by author Miguel de Cervantes as the first of many popular and assumed harmful books to be burnt by characters in his famous novel Don Quixote.[2]

Calafia, also called Califia, has been depicted as the Spirit of California, and has been the subject of modern-day sculpture, paintings, stories and films; she often figures in the myth of California's origin, symbolizing an untamed and bountiful land prior to Europeans taking the land by force.

Seriously I can't make this stuff up.

Disney even hired Whoopi Goldberg to portray Queen Califia in show called Golden Dreams that was shown at Disney Land.


 Golden Dreams was a 23-minute film and multimedia experience showing the history of California through several recreated scenes, narrated by Whoopi Goldberg as Califia, the Queen of California. A bust of Goldberg attired in queenly raiment was the target of a projected image showing Goldberg narrating the story—the sculpture appeared to come to life.

   

Sources:
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etymology_of_California

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calafia

http://www.theafrolounge.com/2013/12/11/california-was-named-after-a-black-queen/

 https://domoregooddeeds.wordpress.com/2013/02/07/queen-califia-the-real-amazons/

http://www.afrigeneas.com/states/ca/index-links.html#Queen

http://www.frenchcreoles.com/CreoleCulture/famouscreoles/Adah%20Menken%20Isaac/SAVANNAH%20CHURCHILLcalifa.html

http://russcugno.blogspot.com/2011/10/califia-queen-of-california.html