The traditional lands of the Southern Paiute people are bounded by more than 600 miles of Piapaxa (Colorado River) from the Kaiparowits Plateau in the north to Blythe, California in the south. According to traditional beliefs, Southern Paiute people were created in this traditional land and, through this creation, the Creator gave Paiute people a special supernatural responsibility to protect and manage this land including its water and natural resources. Puaxantu Tuvip (sacred land) is the term that refers to traditional ethnic territory. Within these lands no place was more special than Piapaxa 'uipi (Big River Canyon) where the Colorado River cuts through the Grand Canyon.