Quechan, also known as Yuma, is the native language of the Quechan people of southeastern California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

 and southwestern Arizona

Arizona

Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...

 in the Lower Colorado River Valley

Lower Colorado River Valley

The Lower Colorado River Valley is the river region of the lower Colorado River of the southwestern United States in North America that rises in the Rocky Mountains and has its outlet at the Colorado River Delta in the northern Sea of Cortez in northwestern Mexico, between the states of Baja...

 and Sonoran Desert

Sonoran Desert

The Sonoran Desert is a North American desert which straddles part of the United States-Mexico border and covers large parts of the U.S. states of Arizona and California and the northwest Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur. It is one of the largest and hottest...

.

In 1980, it was estimated that there were fewer than 700 speakers of the language, including both the elderly and young. Hinton (1994:32) put a conservative estimate of the number of speakers at 150, and a liberal estimate at 400-500.

Quechan belongs to the River branch of the Yuman language family, together with Mohave

Mojave language

Mojave is the native language of the Mohave people along the Colorado River in eastern California, northwestern Arizona, and southwestern Nevada...

 and Maricopa language

Maricopa language

The Maricopa language is spoken by the Native American Maricopa tribe, on two reservations in Arizona: the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community and the Gila River Indian Community.-Grammar:...

s.