The Maidu are a Native American people of northern California. They reside in the central Sierra Nevada, in the watershed area of the Feather and American Rivers and in Humbug Valley. In Maiduan languages, maidu means "person".
thumb|Map of Maidu peoples
Local division
The Maidu people are geographically dispersed into many subgroups or bands who live among and identify with separate valleys, foothills, and mountains in northeastern Central California. The three subcategories of Maidu are:
- The Nisenan or Southern Maidu occupied the whole of the American, Bear, and Yuba River drainages. They live in lands that were previously home to the Martis.
- The Northeastern or Mountain Maidu, also known as Yamani Maidu, lived on the upper north and middle forks of the Feather River.
- The Konkow (Koyom'kawi/Concow) occupied a valley between present-day Cherokee, and Pulga, along the north fork of the Feather River and its tributaries. The Mechoopda live in the area of Chico, California.
Population
[[File:Maidu Headmen with Treaty Commissioners.png|thumb|Original title: Maidu Headmen with Treaty Commissioners—widely regarded as charlatans.