Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah

A nation today

View east from Sunrise Point over the Bryce Amphitheater, with pink and orange Claron Formation hoodoos filling the bowl below the rim.
Famartin, Wikimedia Commons (2013) · CC BY-SA 3.0

Background

Congress restored federal recognition and the federal trust relationship on April 3, 1980 under the Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah Restoration Act, and the Tribe says termination in 1954 had ended both. That Act established the Tribe as the federally recognized body of five constituent Nung'wu Bands, Cedar, Indian Peaks, Kanosh, Koosharem, and Shivwits, and each manages its own natural resources and lands near its traditional territory. A second Act in 1984 placed 4,770 acres of reservation land in trust, short of the 15,000 acres the 1980 Act had allowed the Tribe to acquire. Tribal headquarters are at 440 North Paiute Drive in Cedar City, Utah, and the Tribe holds reservation land in Iron, Millard, Sevier, and Washington counties in the southwest of the state. The Tribe's government is set out in its constitution.

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Visit and learn

Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah's own site

Tribal lands have their own laws. Check the nation's site before you visit.

Parks on its homelands

View east from Sunrise Point over the Bryce Amphitheater, with pink and orange Claron Formation hoodoos filling the bowl below the rim.Bryce Canyon National Park

Paiute people occupied the area around what is now Bryce Canyon from about 1200 A.D., using the Paunsaugunt Plateau for seasonal hunting and gathering. NPS says there is no evidence of permanent settlements there. Source

Mesa Arch on the canyon rim at Island in the Sky, Canyonlands National Park, framing the drop to the White Rim country below.Canyonlands National Park

Congress restored federal recognition to the Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah on April 3, 1980, establishing it as the federally recognized body of five Nung'wu bands, Cedar, Indian Peaks, Kanosh, Koosharem and Shivwits, each of which manages its own lands near its traditional territory. Source

The Grand Canyon dropping away below the railed paved overlook at Mather Point on the South Rim.Grand Canyon National Park

The Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah is the Utah government of the Southern Paiute, five federally recognized tribes in all, and the Koosharem and Shivwits bands are among those who lived in southwestern Utah. Source

Programs

  • Paiute Language Book for Beginners

    The Tribe's beginner's book in the Paiute language is in a second edition, posted on the Tribe's site to read online and download. Physical copies are available by calling the Tribe.

    https://pitu.gov/pitu-language-book·language

  • Puow'wan (Family) Program

    A family program that is part of the Tiwahe Initiative, funded by Congress through the Office of Indian Services and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. It covers the Youth Program, Education, and Family Services, and runs the Nung'wu Puha youth camp.

    https://pitu.gov/puowwan-program/·education

  • Cultural Resources

    The Tribe's cultural resources department preserves the Tribe's culture and history, works with local schools, and archives and catalogs resource materials and recordings.

    https://pitu.gov/culture·preservation

Sources

Checked September 2026.

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