. The Tongva are a Native American people who inhabited the area in and around Los Angeles, California, before the arrival of Europeans. Tongva means "people of the earth" in the Tongva language, a language in the Uto-Aztecan family. The Tongva are also sometimes referred to as the Gabrieleño/Tongva (often written "Gabrieleno/Tongva") or Gabrielino/Tongva tribe. Following the Spanish custom of naming local tribes after nearby missions, they were called the Gabrieleño, Gabrielino, or Sa… (More on Tongva)