MYTHS AND LEGENDS
OF ALASKA

[Pgv]

LONG ago, even before the days of the animal people, the world was just a vast ocean with no land or living creatures except for a great Bird. After a very long time, the Bird flew down to the water’s surface and dipped its massive black wings into the waves. The land emerged from the waters. This marked the beginning of creation. While the ground was still soft, the first man broke free from the pod of the beach pea and gazed out at the endless plain behind him and the gray salt sea in front of him. He was the only person. Then Raven showed up and the creation of other beings started. Raven also made animals for food and clothing. Later, since the land was so barren, he planted trees, shrubs, and grass, and allowed the green things to grow.

With creation by a Great Spirit, dangers emerged from evil spirits. These spirits took the sun and moon and hung them from the rafters of the dome-shaped Alaskan huts. The world grew cold and bleak, and in the Land of Darkness, white skins became darkened by the shadows. It became essential to find the sun and put it back in the dome-shaped sky above them. The darkness in the Land of Long Night caused, through magic, the bitter winter winds—winds that came down from the North, bringing ice, cold, and snow. This was the work of some Great Spirit, who has loosened the side of the gray cloud-tent under which they lived, allowing the harsh winds from another world to enter. Spirits blow mists over the cold northern sea so that canoes lose sight of their homeland. Spirits also drive the ice floes, with their fishermen, far beyond the horizon of the ocean, into the even colder North. Spirits govern the migrations of salmon, the hunting of whales, and all the life of the northern people who fight a fierce struggle for survival.

So there have to be people who have power over evil spirits, those who can use spells and charms, and perform ceremonial dances in symbolic outfits to control the intentions of those who constantly work against these children of the North. This is how shamans and all their ceremonies came to be.

The myths in this book are real. The original collections were created by government ethnologists, who have allowed this compilation to be made. No attempt has been made to alter these stories from the straightforward style of the natives. The language of all Native American tribes is very simple, and the more effort that goes into making the myths and legends sound more refined, the more their authenticity is compromised.

Only the most charming and pure myths have been chosen. Many Alaskan myths are lengthy and tedious, jumping from one topic to another, [Pgvii] and often reflect low moral standards. These have been left out, along with those that discuss the intermarriage of people and birds, and people and animals. Such myths are better suited for government documents where they can be easily accessed by those studying the topic in depth. They're not really appropriate for any collection meant for general readers. However, the prominent myth of the North, the Raven Myth, is included with a good level of detail. It wouldn't be possible, nor wise, to try to compile all the fragments of this vast myth.

Special thanks go to Dr. Franz Boas for the Tsetsaut and Tsimshian myths, to John R. Swanton for the Tlingit myths, to Edward Russell Nelson for the Eskimo myths, to Ferdinand Schnitter, and to others. Thanks are also due for their help in obtaining photographs to Mr. B. B. Dobbs and especially to Mr. Clarence L. Andrews, both of whom have spent many years in Alaska.

K. B. J.

University of Washington,
Seattle, WA
July 1911.

[Pgix]

[Pagexiii]

[Pg17]

Myths and Legends of Alaska

Inuit (Bering Straits)

It was a time when there were no people on the earth's surface. The first man lay curled up in the pod of a beach pea for four days. On the fifth day, he stretched his legs and burst out of the pod. He fell to the ground, and when he stood up, he was a fully grown man. He looked around and then at himself. He moved his hands and arms, his neck and legs. When he glanced back, he saw the beach pea pod still hanging from the vine, with a hole at the bottom from which he had fallen. Looking around again, he noticed he was moving further away from where he started. The ground felt like it was shifting under his feet, and it was very soft. After a while, he felt a strange sensation in his stomach, so he bent down to drink some water from a small pool at his feet. After that, he felt better.

[Pg18] When Man looked up again, he saw something dark coming toward him, flapping as it approached. He watched the dark shape until it stopped right in front of him. It was Raven.

As soon as Raven stopped, he lifted one of his wings and pushed up his beak, like it was a mask, to the top of his head. Just like that, Raven transformed into a man. Raven looked intently at Man, shifting from side to side to get a better look at him.

Raven said, “What are you? Where did you come from? I've never seen anything like you.”

Raven continued to stare at Man, amazed to discover this new being so much like himself. He made Man walk around a bit while he tilted his head from side to side to get a better look. Then Raven said again, in surprise, “Where did you come from? I’ve never seen anything like you before.”

Man said, “I came from the pea pod.” He pointed to the plant he originated from.

“Ah, I created that vine,” said Raven. “But I didn’t expect anything like you to come from it. Come with me to the high ground over there; it’s thicker and stronger. I made this ground later, and it’s soft and weak.”

So Man and Raven walked to the high ground that was solid and hard. Raven asked Man if he had eaten anything. Man said he had taken some of the soft stuff from one of the pools.

“Ah, you had some water,” said Raven. “Now just wait for me here.”

Raven lowered his beak like it was a mask over his face. He instantly transformed into a bird and soared high into the sky—out of sight. Man waited for four days. Then Raven returned with four berries in his claws. He lifted his beak and turned back into a man. Then he handed Man two salmon berries and two heath berries, saying, “Here’s something I made for you to eat. I want them to be abundant on earth. Eat them.”

Man put the berries in his mouth, one after another, and ate them. Then he felt better. Then Raven left Man by a small creek while he went to the edge of the water. He picked up two pieces of clay from the water’s edge and shaped them like a pair of mountain sheep. He held them in his hand until they dried, and then he called Man over to see them. Man said they were nice, so Raven told him to close his eyes. Man shut his eyes tightly. Then Raven pulled down his beak-mask and waved his wings four times over the pieces of clay. Suddenly, they bounced away as full-grown mountain sheep. Raven told Man to take a look.

Man was so happy that Raven said, “If these [Pg20] animals are abundant, maybe people will try to hunt them.”

Man replied, “Yes.”

Then Raven said, “Well, it’s better for them to live among the steep rocks, so not everyone can kill them. That’s the only place they’ll be found.”

Raven took two more pieces of clay and shaped them like gentle reindeer. He held them in his hand until they were partially dry, then told Man to look at them. Raven lowered his beak mask again and waved his wings four times over them. This brought them to life, but since they were only dry in certain areas while Raven held them, they ended up being brown and white, with a spotted coat. Raven told Man that these gentle reindeer would be very few in number.

Again, Raven took two pieces of clay and shaped them like caribou or wild reindeer. He held them in his hands just for a short time, so only the bellies of the reindeer dried and turned white. Then, Raven pulled down his beak-mask and waved his wings over them, and they jumped away. Because only their bellies were dry and white while Raven held them, that’s why wild reindeer are brown except for their white bellies.

Raven said to Man, “These animals will be very common. People will hunt a lot of them.”

[Pg21] So, Raven started to make the animals.

Raven said to Man one day, “You’re lonely by yourself. I’ll make you a companion.” He went to some white clay at a place far from where he had made animals and shaped the clay into a figure that looked almost like Man. Raven kept an eye on Man while he worked on the figure. Then he took some fine water grass from the creek and attached it to the back of the head for hair. Once the clay was formed, Raven pulled down his beak-mask and waved his wings over it. The clay transformed into a beautiful girl. The girl was pale and delicate because Raven let the clay dry completely before he waved his wings over it.

Raven brought the girl to Man. “Here’s a companion for you,” he said.

Now, in the days of the first people on earth, there were no mountains in sight. It never rained, and there were no winds. The sun always shone very brightly.

Then Raven showed the first people on earth how to sleep comfortably on dry moss when they were tired. Raven himself took off his beak-mask and went to sleep like a bird.

When Raven woke up, he went back to the creek. There, he caught two sticklebacks, two graylings, and two blackfish. As these fish swam around in the [Pg22] water, he called Man to check them out. Man raised his hand in surprise, and the sticklebacks quickly swam away. Raven explained that graylings could be found in clear mountain streams, while sticklebacks lived along the coast, and that both would provide good food.

Raven then created the shrewmouse. He said, “The shrewmouse won’t be good for food. It will keep the earth's surface from looking empty and dull.”

In this way, Raven was busy for several days, creating birds, fish, and animals. He showed each one to Man and explained what they were useful for. Then Raven flew into the sky, far, far away, and was gone for four days. When he returned, he brought a salmon to Man.

But Raven saw that the ponds and lakes were quiet and empty, so he created water bugs to dart across the surface of the water. He also made beavers and muskrats to live around the edges of the ponds. Raven told Man that the beavers would settle along the streams and build sturdy homes, so Man should also build a strong house. Raven mentioned that the beavers would be very clever and only skilled hunters could catch them. He also explained to Man how to catch the muskrat and how to use its fur for clothing.

Raven also created flies, mosquitoes, and other insects to make the earth a bit more cheerful. At first, [Pg23] mosquitoes were like flies; they didn’t bite. One day, a Man killed a deer. After he cut it up and left the fat on a bush, he fell asleep. When he woke up, he found that the mosquitoes had eaten all of it. Then the Man was really angry and scolded the mosquitoes. He said, “Never eat meat again. Eat people.” Before that, mosquitoes never bit anyone.

When the first baby was born on Earth, Raven covered him in white clay. He told Man that the baby would grow up to be just like him. The next morning, the baby was a big boy. He ran around uprooting the grass and flowers that Raven had planted. By the third day, the baby had grown into a full-grown man.

Then another baby was born on the earth. She was covered in white clay. The next day, the baby was a big girl, walking around. By the third day, she was a fully grown woman.

Now Raven started to worry that people would kill all the creatures he had made. He was afraid they would do it for food and clothing. So, Raven went to a nearby creek. He took white clay and shaped it into a bear. Then he waved his wings over it, and the clay transformed into a bear. But Raven quickly jumped aside when the bear sprang to life because it looked around fiercely and growled. Then Raven showed the bear to Man and warned him to be careful. [Page24] He said the bear was very fierce and would tear him apart if he disturbed it.

Then Raven made the seals and showed Man how to catch them. He also taught Man how to make strong lines from sealskin and snares for the deer.

Then Raven went to the spot with the pea vine.

When he reached the pea vine, he found three other men who had just fallen from the same pod as Man. These men were looking around in amazement. Raven led them away from the pea vine, but in a different direction than the first man. He brought them close to the sea. Raven stayed with these three men for a long time. He taught them how to gather wood from the bushes and small trees he planted in hollows and sheltered areas, how to create a fire drill, and also how to make a bow. He created many more plants and birds that thrived along the coast, but not as many as in the land where Man lived. He showed these men how to make bows and arrows, spears, and nets, and how to use them; plus, he taught them how to capture the seals, which were now abundant in the sea. Then he taught them how to make kayaks and how to build houses out of driftwood and bushes, covered with earth. After that, he created wives for these men and went back to Man.

When Raven arrived in the land where people lived, he felt the ground still looked empty. So, while the [Pg25] others were sleeping, Raven planted birch, spruce, and cottonwood trees in the low areas. Then he woke up the people, who were happy to see the trees.

Then Raven taught Man how to make fire using a fire drill, how to place the spark from tinder into a bundle of dry grass, and how to wave it around until it ignited. He also demonstrated how to roast fish on a stick, create fish traps using splints and willow bark, and how to dry salmon for winter.

Where Man lived, there was now a big village because the people did everything Raven told them, and as a result, all the babies grew up in three days. One day, Raven returned and sat down with Man by the creek, and they talked about many things. Man asked Raven about the skyland. Man wanted to see the skyland that Raven had created. So, Raven took Man to the land in the sky.

Man discovered that the skyland was a stunning country with a much better climate than his own. However, the people living there were very small. Their heads barely reached Man’s hips. They wore fur clothing with beautiful patterns, similar to what people wear on Earth today, because Man taught his people how to make them. In the lakes, there were strange creatures that would have harmed Man if he had tried to drink from the water. In a dry lake bed covered in tall grass, Man saw a remarkable animal resting on the tips of the grasses. It had a long head and six legs. It had fine, thick hair, and on the back of its head were two stout, short horns that bent forward and then curved back at the tips. Raven told Man it took many people to hunt this animal.

Then they arrived at a round hole in the sky, and around the edge of the hole was short grass, shining like flames. Raven said, “This is the star known as the moon-dog.” Some of the grass had been pulled out. Raven mentioned that he had taken some to create the first fire on earth.

Then Raven said to Man, “Close your eyes. I’ll take you to another place.” Man climbed onto Raven’s back, and they dropped through the star hole. They floated for a really long time through the air, then they moved through something else. When they finally stopped, Raven realized they were at the bottom of the sea. Man could breathe there, but it felt foggy. Raven explained that was just how the water looked. Then Raven said, “I want to create some new animals here; but you mustn't wander around. Just lie down, and if you get tired, roll over to the other side.”

Man went to sleep on his side and slept for a long time. When he woke up, he wanted to turn over, but he couldn't. Then he thought, “I wish I could turn over,” and immediately he turned. As he turned, he was surprised to see that his body was covered with long, white hairs, and his fingers were long claws. Then he went to sleep again. He did this three more times. When he woke up again, Raven was standing next to him. Raven said, “I’ve transformed you into a white bear. How do you feel about it?” Man couldn’t say anything until Raven waved his wings over him. Then he said he didn’t like it; if he was a bear, he would have to live by the sea, while his son lived on land, so Man felt sad. Then Raven struck the white skin with his wings, and it fell off. Man became himself again. But Raven took the empty bearskin and placed one of his own tail feathers inside it for a spine. Then he waved his wing over it, and a white bear came to life. Ever since then, white bears have been found on the frozen sea.

Raven asked, “How many times did you flip over?”

Man said, "Four."

Raven said, “You only slept for four years.”

Then Raven created other animals. He made the a-mi-kuk, a large, slimy creature with thick skin and four long, widely spreading arms. This is a fierce animal that lives in the sea. It wraps its four long arms around a person or a kayak and pulls it under the water. A person can't escape it. If he climbs out of his kayak onto the ice, the a-mi-kuk will dart beneath and break the ice. If a person runs away on the shore, the a-mi-kuk chases him by burrowing through the ground. No one can escape from it once it starts chasing them.

Then Raven showed Man the walrus, a creature with a head and teeth like a dog. It always swam in large groups of walrus, and with a flick of its tail, it could kill a man. He showed him whales and the grampus. Raven told Man that only skilled hunters could take down a whale, but when one was caught, an entire village could feast on it. He also showed him the sea fox, which is so fierce it can kill men; and the sea otter, which is similar to the land otter but has finer fur, tipped with white, along with various fish and animals as they surfaced in the water.

Then Raven said, “Close your eyes. Hold on to me tightly.”

Then Man found himself on the shore near his home. The village was quite large. His wife was very old, and his son was an elderly man. The people gave him a place of honor in the kashim and made him their leader. So, Man taught the young men many things.

Now Man wanted to see the skyland again, so Raven and Man went up to live among the dwarf people for a long time. Meanwhile, on earth, the village grew quite large; the people hunted a lot of animals.

[Pg29] Back then, the sun always shone really brightly. It never rained, and there were no winds.

Man and Raven were furious because the people had killed a lot of animals. One night, they took a long line and a grass basket and caught ten reindeer, which they stuffed into the basket. Back then, reindeer had sharp teeth, just like dogs. The following night, Raven brought the reindeer down to the ground near Man’s village. Raven said, “Destroy the first house you see and kill the people. There are too many men.” The reindeer followed Raven’s orders. They stomped on the house and knocked it down. They devoured the people with their sharp, wolf-like teeth. The next night, Raven let the reindeer down again; once more, they broke down a house and consumed the people with their sharp teeth.

The villagers were really scared. On the third night, they covered the third house with a mix of deer fat and berries. When the reindeer started tearing down the third house that night, their mouths were full of the fat and sour berries. Then the reindeer ran away, shaking their heads so hard that all their long, sharp teeth fell out. Ever since then, reindeer have had small teeth and can't hurt people.

After the reindeer ran away, Raven and Man [Pg30] returned to the skyland. Man said, “If people don’t stop killing so many animals, they’ll end up destroying everything you’ve created. It would be better to take the sun away from them. Then it’ll be dark, and people will die.”

Raven said, “That’s right. You stay here. I’ll go and take the sun away.”

So Raven flew off and removed the sun from the sky. He placed it in a skin bag and took it far away to a remote part of the skyland. Then darkness fell over the earth.

The people on Earth were scared when the sun disappeared. They gave Raven gifts of food and fur, hoping he would bring back the sun. Raven said, “No.” After some time, Raven felt bad for them, so he gave them a little light. He held up the sun in one hand for two days so people could hunt and gather food. Then he put the sun back in the skin bag, and the Earth went dark again. After a long time, when the people gave him many gifts, he would let them enjoy a little light once more.

Now Raven had a brother living in the village. He felt sorry for the people of the earth. So Raven’s brother thought for a long time. Then he died. The people placed him in a coffin and held a burial feast. After that, they left the coffin. Suddenly, Raven’s brother slipped out of the coffin and went away from the village. He hid his raven mask and coat in a tree. Soon, Raven’s wife came to get water. When she scooped up a dipperful to drink, Raven’s brother, through magic, turned into a small leaf. He fell into the water and Raven’s wife swallowed him.

When Raven-Boy was born, he grew quickly. He was running around just a few days after he came into the world. He cried out for the sun, which was in the skin bag hanging from the rafters. Raven liked the boy, so he let him play with the sun; however, he worried that Raven-Boy might lose it, so he kept an eye on him. When Raven-Boy started playing outside, he cried and begged for the sun again. Raven said, “No.” Then Raven-Boy cried even harder. Finally, Raven gave him the sun inside the house. Raven-Boy played with it for a long time. When no one was watching, he quickly ran outside. He went to the tree, put on his raven mask and coat, and flew far away with the sun in the skin bag. When Raven-Boy was high up in the sky, he heard Raven call out, “Don’t hide the sun. Let it out of the bag. Don’t keep it dark all the time.” Raven thought the boy had stolen it for himself.

Raven-Boy flew to the place where the sun was kept. He removed the covering and put the sun where it belonged. Then he noticed a wide path stretching far away. [Pg32] He followed it to the edge of a hole lined with short, bright grass. He recalled Raven saying, “Don’t let it be dark all the time,” so he made the sky rotate, along with all the stars and the sun. That’s why it’s sometimes dark and sometimes light.

Raven-Boy picked some of the short, bright grass by the edge of the sky hole and stuck it into the sky. This is the morning star.

Raven-Boy came down to the earth. The people were happy to see him. They said, “What happened to Man who went to the sky with Raven?” This was the first time Raven-Boy had heard about Man. He tried to fly back up into the sky, but he could only go a short distance above the ground. When he realized he couldn't return to the sky, Raven-Boy wandered to the second village, where the men who had come from the beach pea pod lived. There, Raven-Boy married and had many children. But the children couldn’t fly to the sky; they had lost the magic power. As a result, the ravens now flutter over the tundras like other birds.

[Pg33]

Tlingit (Wrangell)

LONG ago, in the time of the animal people, Raven-at-the-head-of-Nass got angry. He said, “Let it rain all over the world. Let people starve.” Suddenly, it became so stormy that people couldn’t find food, and they started to starve. Their canoes got destroyed, their homes collapsed on them, and they suffered greatly. Then Nas-ca-ki-yel, Raven-at-the-head-of-Nass, asked for his jointed dance hat. When he put it on, water started pouring out of the top. It is from Raven that the Indians got this kind of hat.

When the water reached the house floor, Raven and his mother climbed onto the lowest retaining timber. This house we're talking about, even though it appeared to them like a house, was actually part of the world. It had eight rows of retaining timbers.

When Raven and his mom climbed up to a higher log, the people of the world were heading into the hills. Then Raven and his mom climbed up to the fourth log; by then, the water was halfway up the mountains. When the house was almost full of water, Raven’s mom got into the skin of a cax. To this day, Tlingits don’t eat the cax because it was Raven’s mom. Then Raven got into the skin of a white bird with a copper-colored beak. Now the cax is a diver and stayed on the surface of the water. But Raven flew up to the very highest cloud and hung there by his beak, while his tail was in the water.

After Raven had been hanging in the cloud for days—no one knows exactly how long—he stretched out his beak and prayed to land on a piece of kelp. He believed the water level had dropped. When Raven landed on the kelp and flew away, he discovered that the waters were only halfway down the mountains.

Raven flew around until he came across a shark that was swimming with a long stick. Raven grabbed the stick and used it like a ladder to climb down to the ocean floor. But Raven had instructed Eagle to keep an eye on the tide.

Raven walked around the ocean floor until he found an old woman. He said to her, “I’m so cold after eating those sea urchins.” He kept saying this over and over again.

At last the woman said, “What low tide is Raven talking about?”[1] Raven didn’t respond. The [Pg35] woman kept asking, “What low tide are you talking about?”

Then Raven got angry. He said, “I’ll shove these sea urchins into you if you don’t shut up.” Eventually, he went ahead and did it.

Then the woman started singing, “Don’t, Raven! The tide will go down if you don’t stop.”

But the water was going back, just as Raven instructed it with his magic words. Raven asked Eagle, who was keeping an eye on the tide, “How far down is the tide now?”

“The tide is as low as half a man.”

“How far down is the tide?” he asked once more.

“The tide is really low,” said Eagle.

Then the old woman began her magical song again.

Raven said, “Let everything dry up all over the world.”

After a while, Eagle said, “The tide is really low right now. You can barely see any water.”

Raven said, “Let it become even drier.”

At last, everything was dry. This is the lowest tide there has ever been. All the salmon, whales, and seals lay on the sands because the water was so low. Then the people hunted them for food. They had enough food to last them a long time.

When the tide started to come back in, people got scared. They were worried there would be another flood, so they took their food and moved it a long way back.

[Pg36] Later, Raven went back to Nass River and saw that the people there hadn’t changed at all. They were celebrating with dancing and feasting. They invited Raven to join in.

[Pg37]

Tsetsaut

A LONG time ago, a man walked along the Nass River. Wherever he set up camp, he shaped rocks into interesting forms. His name was Qa, the Raven. The Tlingit refer to him as Yel.

Qa wandered all over the world. Finally, he traveled westward. At that time, the sea was always rough.

In the center of the world, Qa found a rock in the sea. He built a house beneath the rock. Then he made a hole through it and the ground and fitted a lid onto it. Raven assigned a man to oversee the hole. Twice a day, he opens the lid and twice a day, he closes it. When the hole is open, the water rushes down through it into the depths; then it's low tide. When he closes the lid, the water rises again; then it's high tide.

Once upon a time, Tael, a Tlingit chief, was hunting sea otters when the tide swept him out to Qa’s rock. The current was so strong that he couldn’t break free. As he was pulled toward the rock, he noticed a few small trees growing on it. Tael tossed his canoe line over [Pg38] one of the trees. This way, he avoided being dragged down by the water into the hole beneath the rock. After a while, he heard a noise. Someone was closing the lid on the hole. Then, the water started to rise. Tael paddled away quickly. He kept paddling until the tide began to go out again. Then he tied his canoe to a large stone nearby and waited for the tide to come back in. That’s how Tael escaped.

[Pg39]

Tlingit (Wrangell)

PETREL was the first person created by Raven-at-the-head-of-Nass. He was the guardian of the fresh water. No one else was allowed to touch it. The spring he owned was located on a rocky island called Dekino, Fort-far-out, where the well can still be seen. Raven took a big gulp of water, but as he flew over the land, drops spilled from his beak. These drops formed the rivers: the Nass, Skeena, Stikine, and Chilkat. Raven said, “The water that I drop onto the earth, here and there, will keep swirling all the time. There will be plenty of water, but it won’t flood the world.”

Now, before this happened, Raven was completely white. But when he stole the water from Petrel, he tried to fly out of the smoke hole. Petrel shouted, “Spirits of the smoke hole, hold him tight.” So the smoke-hole spirits restrained Raven until the smoke turned his white feathers black.

[Pg40]

Tlingit

LONG ago, in the days of the animal people, Raven saw a fire far out at sea. He tied a piece of pitch to Chicken Hawk’s beak. He said, “Go out to the fire, touch it with the pitchwood, and bring it back.” Chicken Hawk did that. The fire stuck to the pitchwood and he brought it back to Raven. Then Raven placed the fire into the rock and into the red cedar. Then he said, “This is how you will get your fire—from this rock and from this red cedar.” The tribes followed his instructions.

[Pg41]

Tlingit (Wrangell)

ONCE, Raven went to Groundhog's place for the winter. Groundhogs usually burrow in their holes by September. They live like humans at home. To them, humans are just animals.

So Raven spent the winter with Groundhog and became really tired of it. But he couldn't get out. Groundhog was having a good time, but Raven felt like a prisoner. Raven kept shouting, “Winter is coming. Winter is coming.” Raven believed that Groundhog had the ability to make winter shorter.

Now, back then, Groundhog had to stay in his hole for six months; he had six toes, one for each month of winter. Then, Raven pulled one toe off each foot so that winter would be shorter. That’s why Groundhog now has only five toes.

[Page42]

Tlingit

RAVEN’S mother passed away, so he threw a big feast, but first he went to the Ground-hog people to gather food. The Ground-hog people know when the slides come down from the mountains, and they understand that spring is just around the corner, so they clear out all their winter food from their burrows. Raven wanted them to do this. He said, “There’s going to be a big snow slide.” The Ground-hog chief replied, “Well, no one in this town is aware of that.”

In the spring when the snow melted, the groundhogs dug up all their green plants and roots from their burrows.

So Raven said to the people, “I’m going to throw a feast. I’m inviting the whole world.” Raven planned to invite everyone because he had heard that the Gonaqadet had a Chilkat blanket and a Chilkat hat, and he was curious to see them.[2] First, he invited the Gonaqadet, and then the other chiefs of all the tribes in the world. They arrived at the right time. [Pg43]

When the Gonaqadet entered, he was wearing his Chilkat hat adorned with multiple crowns and his Chilkat blanket, but he was enveloped in fog. Inside the house, though, the fog faded away.

Because Raven had this feast, people now have to have feasts. Because Raven had this burial feast, when a man is going to have a burial feast, he carves a many-crowned hat on the top of the deceased's grave post.

[Pg44]

Tlingit

RAVEN went into the woods to create porcupines. For the quills, he used strips of yellow cedar bark, which he arranged all along the porcupine’s back to scare off bears. That’s why bears never eat porcupines. Raven told the porcupine, “Whenever someone gets close to you, shake your tail.” That’s why people are afraid to go near a porcupine.

[Pg45]

Tlingit (Wrangell)

RAVEN taught the Chilkats about the Athapascan Indians. He returned to their land. So, the Chilkat people still earn money by going there. Raven also showed the Chilkats how to build secret storehouses outside their villages and how to store salmon in those storehouses to keep it frozen over the winter. That’s how the Chilkats got their name, from toil, “storehouse,” and xat, “salmon.”

Raven also showed the Chilkats the first seeds of Indian tobacco and taught them how to plant it. After the tobacco was grown, he dried it and ground it up with burned clam shells. The Chilkats made a lot of money by trading tobacco with the Athapascans.

After that, Raven traveled past Copper River to Yukatat. There, he taught the people how to make canoes from skins.

[Pg46]

Inuit (Bering Straits)

AFTER Raven had been living alone for a long time, he decided to get married. It was late in the fall and the birds were flying south. So Raven took off in the direction of the geese and birds heading to summerland. Raven stopped right in their path.

Soon Raven saw a young goose coming closer. He looked down at his feet and called, “Who will marry me? I am a really nice guy.” The goose flew on.

Soon, a black brant flew by. Raven looked down at his feet and called out, “Who will marry me? I’m a really nice guy.” The black brant continued on. Raven watched her go and said, “What kind of people are these? They don’t even stop to listen.”

A duck came closer. Raven hid his face and shouted, “Who will marry me? I’m a really nice guy.” The duck glanced at him, then flew away. Raven said, “Ah, I was so close! I’ll get it right this time.”

Soon, a whole family of white-fronted geese showed up. [Pg47] There were the parents, four brothers, and a sister. Raven called out, “Who wants to marry me? I'm a great hunter. I'm young and handsome.” The geese landed just beyond him. Raven thought, “Now I'll get a wife.”

Raven noticed a pretty white stone with a hole in it nearby. He picked it up, threaded it on a long blade of grass, and hung it around his neck. Then he tilted his beak so that it slid to the top of his head like a mask; this transformed him into a dark-colored young man. Next, he approached the geese. Each of the geese raised its bill in the same way and turned into attractive people. Raven took a liking to one girl; he gave her the stone, choosing her as his wife, and she hung it around her own neck. Then they all lowered their bills again and turned back into birds. So they flew south toward the land of summer.

The geese flapped their wings hard and flew slowly. Raven, with his wings spread wide, glided ahead. The geese watched him and said, “He’s so light and graceful!”

When Raven got tired, he said, “We should stop early and find somewhere to sleep.” Soon, they were all asleep.

The next morning, the geese were up early. They wanted to get going. Raven was fast asleep. Father [Pg48] Goose woke him up. He said, “We need to hurry. It’s about to snow here. We can’t wait.”

So the geese flapped their wings and flew slowly and heavily along. Raven led the others with his wings spread wide. He was always above or ahead of the rest. They said, “Look how light and graceful he is!”

Thus they traveled until they reached the seashore. They enjoyed the berries on the bushes around it. Before long, they were asleep.

Early the next morning, the geese prepared to leave without breakfast. Raven was hungry, but the geese wouldn't wait. As they flapped their wings and took off, Father Goose said, “We'll stop once along the way to rest; then our next flight will take us to the other shore.” Raven started to feel scared, but he was too embarrassed to admit it.

The geese flapped their wings slowly and flew steadily, laboring to keep going. Raven, with his wings spread wide, glided ahead. After a while, Raven started to lag behind. His wings were sore. The geese kept flying steadily on. Raven flapped heavily, then glided on his outstretched wings. But he got more and more tired. He fell farther and farther behind. Finally, the geese looked back. Father Goose said, “He must be tired. I thought he was light and quick. We should wait.”

The geese huddled close together in the water. Raven [Pg49] flew up slowly, gasping for air. He landed on their backs. Once Raven caught his breath, he placed his hand on his chest. He said, “I have an arrow here from an old battle. It hurts me a lot. That's why I lagged behind.”

After resting, the geese got up from the water. They flapped slowly along. Raven flew with them. After a while, Raven started to lag behind. He became more and more tired. Finally, the geese looked back. Father Goose said, “He must be tired. We’ll wait.” So the geese settled down together in the water while Raven flew slowly up to them and landed on their backs.

Raven said, “I have an arrowhead that pierced my heart in an old war. That’s why I fell behind.” Raven’s wife placed her hand on his chest. She could feel it pounding like a hammer; she said she couldn’t feel an arrowhead.

So the geese lifted off the water once more. They flapped slowly along. But Raven’s wings were really tired. Before long, he fell behind again. Once again, the geese waited for him.

Then the Geese Brothers started to chat among themselves. They said, “We don’t think he has an arrowhead in his heart. How could he survive?”

Now, this last time when they took a break, they could see the distant shore. Father Goose said to Raven, “We [Pg50] won't wait for you again. We won't stop again until we reach the shore.”

So the geese flew up from the water and glided slowly along. Raven’s wings felt really heavy. The geese flew closer and closer to the shore, while Raven drifted closer and closer to the waves. As he got near the water, he shouted to his wife, “Leave me the white stone. Throw the white stone back to me.” It was a magic stone. So Raven called out. Then he plunged down into the water, but the geese had already made it to land.

Raven tried to get up from the water. His wings wouldn’t open. Raven floated back and forth with the waves. The white caps of the surf covered him. Only occasionally could he lift his beak above the water to breathe. Then a huge wave threw him onto the shore. He struggled up the beach. He reached some bushes where he lifted his beak. That’s when he became a small, dark-colored man. Then he took off his raven coat and mask. He hung them on a bush to dry. Raven made a fire drill from dry wood and started a fire. This is how he dried himself.

[Pg51]

Tsimshian

A Raven was flying along when he came across a house where a man lived by the water's edge. Raven said to him, “I will be your friend.”

The man said, “That’s great.”

Now the beach in front of the house was packed with seals. Raven devoured them all over two nights. He consumed every seal in front of the house. Then he felt hungry again.

Raven killed the man. Then he used his canoe and harpoon. Raven used those. He speared four seals. After that, he returned to the shore. He took the seals out of the canoe and started chopping wood. Then he built a fire and put stones in it to heat them up. Afterward, he placed the seals on a stack of hot stones. He cooked the four seals and covered them with skunk cabbage leaves.

Raven then lifted the cover and took out a seal. He ate it. After that, he reached out and grabbed another seal.

Now Stump was sitting nearby. Raven held [Pg52] the seal in his hands and said to the stump, “Aren’t you jealous of me, Stump?” Then he went into the woods. Immediately, Stump stood up and sat down on the hole where the seals were steaming. The seals were right below Stump. When Raven came back, carrying skunk cabbage leaves, he saw Stump sitting on his seals and shouted. He was really upset because he was hungry. Then he grabbed a stick and started to dig in the ground. He cried the whole time he was digging. He found a little bit of meat and ate that. But he couldn’t do anything else. He cried the entire time because he was so hungry.

[Pg53]

Tsimshian

RAVEN traveled through the woods until he reached Little Pitch's house. Little Pitch was wealthy and invited him inside. After Raven ate his fill, he fell asleep. When he woke up, he said they should go catch halibut.

Little Pitch was willing, but said, “It’s not good for me to be out after sunrise. I need to get back while it’s still cool. I’ll have enough by then.”

Raven said, “I’ll do whatever you say, Chief.”

Little Pitch said, “Okay!”

Then they headed to the fishing spot. They fished all night. When the sun came up, Little Pitch wanted to go ashore.

Raven said, “I love fishing. Just lie down in the front of the canoe and cover yourself with a blanket.”

Little Pitch did that. After a bit, Raven called, “Little Pitch!”

He replied, “Heh!”

After some time, Raven called out again, “Little Pitch!”

He replied again in a loud voice.

[Pg54] After a while, Raven called out again, "Little Pitch!"

Then Little Pitch's response was very weak because the sun was warm.

Now Raven pulled up his line and paddled back home. He acted like he was paddling hard, but he just dipped his paddles into the water sideways. Again, he called, “Little Pitch!”

“Heh!” Little Pitch replied, but his voice was very weak. The sun was getting even hotter. Then Raven realized that Little Pitch was melting.

Look! Pitch spilled out and got all over the halibut in the boat. That’s why the halibut is black on one side.

Then Raven took the pitch and repaired his boat with it.

[Pg55]

Tsimshian

ONE day Raven put on his grandfather's shaman’s blanket. Then he wandered off. He was really poor and ended up tearing his dancing blanket. So, he caught some ravens. He used anything he could find to kill the ravens. After that, he took the skins of the ravens and tied them together. Then he walked around in them, looking really nice.

Now he saw a nice shaman’s blanket like the one he had before. He ripped his raven’s blanket. He grabbed the dancing blanket that was hanging in front of him. Look! It was not a shaman’s blanket. It was just the lichens on a tree. Now he realized it was just lichens. He sat down and cried. He took his old raven’s blanket and tied it back together. Then once again he went on, crying from hunger.

[Pg56]

Tsimshian

RAVEN did something else. He lured the olachen to Nass River. He told them, “Swim up both sides of the river.” They obeyed. Soon, Raven's canoe was overflowing with fish. He hadn't even used his rake; the entire school of olachen jumped right into his canoe.

Then he set up camp at Crab-Apple Place. He clapped on top of the stone. Then the top of that stone became so slippery that the olachen wouldn’t be lost. He put the olachen on skewers to roast them.

Raven shouted, “Little Gull!”

Then many gulls showed up. They devoured all the olachen of Raven. They said, “Qana, qana, qana, qana!” They chatted a lot while eating all the olachen of Raven.

Then Raven was sad. So he grabbed the gulls and tossed them into the fireplace. That’s why the tips of their wings have been black ever since.

[Page57]

Tlingit (Wrangell)

RAVEN said to Land Otter, “You can live in the water just as easily as you can on land.”

Raven and Land Otter were good friends, so they went halibut fishing together. Land Otter was a skilled fisherman. Raven said to Land Otter, “You will always have your home on a point where the wind blows from all directions. Whenever a canoe with people flips over, you will save them and make them your friends.” That’s how the Land Otter Man came to be: because Raven told this to Land Otter.

If people who are taken away by Land Otters are brought back by their friends, they become shamans. It was through the Land Otters that shamans were first recognized. Shamans, using the spirits of Land Otters, can see one another, even though others cannot.

[Pg58]

Athabascan (Upper Yukon)

A LONG time ago, Raven wanted all the birds to look good, so he painted them. Raven painted Coot last. Then Coot started painting Raven, who wanted lots of bright colors. So Coot painted Raven with bright colors with one hand, but in the other hand, he hid charcoal. When Raven looked away, Coot quickly covered all the bright colors with charcoal. Then Raven got angry and chased Coot. But Coot ran too fast, so Raven threw white mud at him—white mud that splattered all over Coot. As a result, Coot ended up with white spots on his head and back. But Coot flew away, leaving Raven all black.

[Pg59]

Inuit (Bering Straits)

ONCE Raven was flying over a reef by the shore, near seabirds that were sitting on the rocks. The seabirds shouted at him, “Oh, you scavenger! Oh, you carrion-eater! Oh, you black one!” Raven turned and flew off, crying, “Qaq! qaq! qaq!” He flew far across the vast water until he reached a mountain on the other side.

Raven saw the entrance to Marmot's burrow right in front of him. Then Raven waited by the door, watching until Marmot came home with food. But Marmot couldn't get into his burrow because Raven was blocking the way. Marmot asked Raven to step aside. Raven replied, “No. They called me ‘carrion-eater.’ Now I’m going to prove I’m not. I’m going to eat you.”

Marmot said, “Okay; but I’ve heard you’re a really great dancer. So, if you dance, I’ll sing. Then you can eat me, but I want to see you dance before you eat me.”

Raven agreed to dance. Then Marmot sang,

Raven danced. Then they took a break.

Marmot said, “I love your dancing. Now I’m going to sing again, so close your eyes and dance like you mean it.”

So Raven closed his eyes and awkwardly danced around. Marmot sang,

Because Marmot, with a quick dash, had zipped between Raven’s legs and was safe in his burrow.

When Marmot was safe in his burrow, he poked his nose out and teased Raven. He said, “Chi-kik-kik, chi-kik-kik, chi-kik-kik! You’re the biggest fool I’ve ever seen. You look so silly when you dance! I could hardly stop myself from laughing. Just look at me—see how chubby I am. Don’t you wish you could eat me?”

Raven, filled with anger, flew far away.

[Pg61]

Inuit (Lower Yukon)

IN the beginning, the sun and moon shone in the sky. Then they were taken away, leaving people with only the light of the stars. Even the magic of the shamans couldn't restore the light.

Now there was an orphan boy in the village who sat with the simple folks by the entrance of the kashim. Everyone looked down on him. When the shamans' magic failed to return the sun and moon to the sky, the boy ridiculed them. He said, “What great shamans you are. You can’t bring back the light, but I can.” The shamans were furious, beat the boy, and kicked him out of the kashim. This boy was just like any other until he put on a raven coat he owned. Then he became Raven.

Now the boy went to his aunt’s house. He told her the shamans had failed to bring back the light, and they had beaten him when he mocked them. The boy said, “Where are the sun and moon?”

The aunt said, “I don't know.”

The boy said, “I’m sure you know. Just look at that [Pg62] beautifully sewn coat you’re wearing. You couldn’t sew it like that if you didn’t know where the light is.”

So they argued.

Then the aunt said, “If you want to find the light, go far to the south. Use snowshoes. You’ll know you’re there when you arrive.”

The boy strapped on his snowshoes and started heading south. He traveled for many days, and the darkness never changed. After a long journey, he spotted a beam of light in the distance. Then the boy quickened his pace. As he moved closer, the light became brighter and clearer than before. But then it disappeared for a bit. This cycle of appearing and disappearing continued.

At last, the boy arrived at a big hill. One side was brightly lit; the other side was as black as night. Near the hill was a small hut. A man was shoveling snow from in front of it. The man threw the snow high into the air; then the light couldn't be seen until the snow fell back down. Then the man tossed the snow again. So the light kept appearing and disappearing. Close to the house was a large ball of fire.

The boy paused and started figuring out how to take the ball of light.

Then the boy walked up to the man. He said, “Why do you throw up the snow? It hides the light from our village.”

[Pg63] The man said, “I’m not hiding the light. I’m just clearing the snow. Who are you? Where did you come from?”

The boy said, “It’s so dark in our village that I don’t want to stay there. I came here to live with you.”

“All the time?” the man asked.

"Yeah," said the boy.

The man said, “Okay. Come into the house with me.” Then he dropped his shovel on the ground. He bent down to lead the way through the underground passage into the house. He let the curtain fall in front of the door as he passed, thinking the boy was right beside him.

Then the boy grabbed the ball of light. He placed it in the turned-up flap of his fur coat. Then he picked up the shovel and ran north. He ran until his feet were tired. Then he put on his raven coat and took off flying. He flew quickly to the north. Raven could hear the man yelling behind him. The man was chasing him. But Raven flew faster. Then the man shouted, “Keep the light; just give me my shovel.”

Raven said, “No, you can’t have your shovel. You made our village dark.” So Raven flew faster.

As Raven flew, he took a little piece of the light. This created day. Then he flew for a long time in darkness until he took another piece of light. [Pg64] That brought day again. So as Raven flew to the village, he collected the pieces of light. When he reached the kashim of his village, he threw away the last piece. He entered the kashim and told the shamans, “I’ve brought back the light. It will be light and then dark, creating day and night.”

After that, the Raven went out onto the ice since his home was by the coast. Then, a strong wind picked up, and the ice drifted with him across the sea to the land on the other side.

Thus Raven brought back the light. It is night and day, as he said it would be. But sometimes the nights are very long because Raven traveled a long way without giving up a piece of the light.

[Pg65]

Tlingit (Wrangell)

WHEN Raven had gotten quite big, he walked along the bank of the Nass River one day, until he heard the sounds people were making in the dark while fishing for olachen. All the people in the world lived in one place on the Nass River. They had heard that Raven-at-the-head-of-Nass had something called “daylight.” They were scared of it and talked about it a lot.

Raven shouted to the fishermen, “Why are you making so much noise? If you keep making all that noise, I’ll bring the daylight here.”

Eight canoe-loads of people were fishing there. They said, “You’re not Nas-ca-ki-yel. You’re not Raven-at-the-head-of-Nass. How can you have the daylight?” They kept making a lot of noise.

Then Raven opened the box, and daylight burst across the world like lightning. They made even more noise. So Raven opened the box wide, and there was daylight everywhere.

Then the people got scared. Some ran into the [Pg66] woods, while others jumped into the water. Those wearing fur seal skin clothes jumped into the water and turned into seals. Those dressed in bear skin, marten skin, and wolf skin ran into the woods and transformed into grizzly bears, martens, and wolves.

[Pg67]

Tlingit (Wrangell)

NOW Raven went among the birds, teaching them. He said to Grouse, “You will live in a cold place. You’ll always be high up, so you'll have plenty of breezes.” Then Raven gave Grouse four white pebbles. He said, “You’ll never go hungry as long as you have these four pebbles.”

Raven also said to Grouse, “You know that Sea-lion is your grandchild. You need to get four more pebbles and give them to him.” That’s why the sea-lion has four large pebbles. It throws these at hunters. If one hits someone, it kills them. From this story, we know that Grouse and Sea-lion understand each other.

Raven said to Ptarmigan, “You will be the maker of snowshoes. You will know how to travel in snow.” It was from these birds that the Athapascans learned how to make snowshoes and how to lace them up.

Raven approached Wild Canary, who lives year-round in Tlingit territory. He said, “You [Pg68] will be the leader among the tiny birds. You can't eat the same food as humans. Stay away from them.”

Then Raven said to Robin, “You’ll make people happy with your whistle. You’re going to be a great whistler.”

Then Raven said to Kun, the Flicker, “You will be the leader among the birds of your size. You won’t be everywhere. You’ll be rarely spotted.”

Raven said to Lugan, a bird that lives far out in the ocean, “You’re rarely seen near the shore. You’ll live on isolated rocks, far out in the ocean.”

When Raven got to Snipes, he said, “You will always travel in groups. You will never go out alone.” So, we always see snipes in groups.

Raven said to Asq-aca-tci, a small bird with yellow-green feathers, “You will always travel in groups. You will always be high in the trees. That’s where your food is.”

Raven said to a tiny bird, Kotlai, that was the size of a butterfly, “You’ll be liked. You’ll be seen only to bring good luck. People will hear your voice, but rarely see you.”

Then to Blue-jay, Raven said, “You'll have really nice clothes. You'll be a great conversationalist. People will want to copy the colors from your clothes.”

Then Raven said to Xunkaha, “You will never be [Page69] seen unless the north wind is going to blow.” That is what the name Xunkaha means.

To Crow, Raven said, “You’re going to be really loud. You’ll be great at talking.” That’s why, when you hear one crow, you hear a bunch of others right after.

Raven said to Gusyiadul, “You will only be noticed when warm weather is on the way. Don’t come near unless it's warm outside.”

To Humming-bird, Raven said, “People will love seeing you. Once someone sees you, they’ll want to see you again.”

Raven said to Eagle, “You will be very powerful and above all birds. Your eyesight will be excellent. It will be easy for you to get what you want.” Then Raven gave eagle talons and said they would be helpful to him.

Thus Raven taught all the birds.

[Pg70]

Tlingit

NOW Raven went to a certain place and created West Wind. Raven said to it, “You will be my son’s daughter. No matter how fiercely you blow, you won’t hurt anyone.”

Raven also created South Wind. When South Wind climbs on top of a rock, it never stops blowing.

Raven created North Wind and built a house for it on top of a mountain, with ice hanging down from the sides. Then he went inside and said to North Wind, “Your back is white.” That's why mountains are covered in snow.

[Pg71]

Tlingit (Wrangell)

RAVEN-AT-THE-HEAD-OF-NASS tried to create humans from both rock and leaf at the same time. But he ended up making humans from the leaf first. Then Raven showed the people a leaf. He said, “Look at this leaf. You are meant to be like it. When it falls from the branch and rots, there’s nothing left of it.”

That’s why there’s death in the world. If people had come from the hard rocks, there wouldn’t be death. Years ago, when people grew old, they would say, “It’s unfortunate that we didn’t come from the rock. We’re made from leaves; that’s why we have to die.”

[Pg72]

Tlingit (Wrangell)

ONCE Raven arrived at a big town that was empty. It seemed like everyone had died. Raven walked into the biggest house, but he felt something pushing him away all the time. Still, he couldn’t see anyone around. It was a haunted house. The place was called Ghost Town.

Raven loaded a canoe with supplies from the empty houses and began to paddle away. He didn’t realize that a long rope was tied to the back of the canoe and to a tree on the shore. When Raven paddled to the end of the rope, the canoe was pulled right back to the beach. All the supplies were taken back to the houses. Still, Raven saw no one. Then a ghost dropped a large stone on Raven’s foot, which made him very lame.

[Pg73]

Haida (Queen Charlotte Islands)

AFTER Raven had turned the crows black for eating his salmon—crows used to be white before that, or so they say—he came across some people with feathers on their heads and gambling-stick bags slung over their backs. They asked, “What’s wrong?”

Raven said, “Oh, my mom and dad are gone.”

Then they headed home with him. They say these were the Beavers. They were planning to go out to gamble but turned back because of him.

The next morning, they packed their gambling-stick bags and set off again. Raven flew behind a screen. Look, there was a lake! In a creek flowing from it, there was a fish trap. The fish trap was so full of salmon that it looked like someone was shaking it. There were lots of salmon in it, and small canoes were passing each other on the lake. Several patches of land were bright red with cranberries.

Raven took out the fish trap, folded it up, and placed it at the edge of the lake. Then he [Pg74] rolled it up along with the lake and the house, tucked them under his arm, and climbed up into a nearby tree. They weren't heavy at all for him. He had rolled the lake up as if it were just a blanket. Raven sat in the tree halfway up.

After a while, someone showed up. His house and the lake were gone. After he had looked around for some time, he looked up. There was Raven with their stuff!

Then the Beavers hurried to that tree. They started gnawing at it with their teeth. When it began to topple, Raven flew to another tree. When that one started to fall, he moved to another. After the Beavers had taken down a lot of trees this way, they decided to stop. They then traveled around for a long time, or so they say. Eventually, they found a lake and decided to settle there.

Then after Raven had traveled around for a while with the lake, he came to a big open space. He unrolled the lake there. There it was. He didn't let go of the fish trap or the house. He kept them to teach the Seaward (mainland) people and the Shoreward (Queen Charlotte Islands) people, they say.

[Pg75]

Haida

A LONG time ago, a canoe-load of Indigenous people were out seal-hunting. The weather was calm and the sea was smooth. Then a killer whale swam near the canoe, and the young men threw stones at it. They hit the fin of the killer whale with several stones. Then the whale went to the beach. Soon, the men in the canoe saw smoke rising from the beach. They went to see who was there. When they reached the shore, it wasn't Skana, the killer whale, but a man cooking some food.

The man said, “Why did you throw stones at my canoe? You’ve broken it. Now go find some cedar branches in the woods and fix it.”

So the men fixed the broken canoe. Once they were done, the man said, “Turn away from the water. Cover your heads with your fur robes. Don’t look until I call you.” They all followed his instructions. They heard the canoe scrape on the beach as it was lowered into the water. Then the man said, “Now look.”

[Pg76] They looked, and there was the canoe in the water. But when the canoe reached the second wave, it went under. When it resurfaced, there was no canoe. Instead, there was a Skana—a killer whale. The man-spirit was inside the Skana.

[Pg77]

Tsimshian

IN the days of the animal people, long, long ago, all the animals were split into different tribes. Back then, animals could shed their furry skins; then they appeared just like humans.

Now, back in those days, a group of women went out to look for wild celery in early spring. They found it growing in various spots and spent the whole day collecting it. Afterward, they tied it into bundles and headed home with it on their backs.

Now among these women was the chief's daughter. She gathered twigs as she walked along the trail in the evening light and then stepped into the footprints of a brown bear. The jolt caused her pack to loosen. She paused to fix her bundle of celery. She muttered harsh words about bears. Then she hurried on to catch up with her friends, who were already lost in the dusk.

[Pg78] Suddenly, the chief’s daughter heard footsteps behind her. A handsome young man approached her. He soon asked her to marry him. The chief's daughter agreed, so she went home with him. They walked deep into the woods until they arrived at Bear village. That's when the chief's daughter realized that her lover was part of the Bear tribe.

After some time, the chief’s daughter started to feel unhappy. She wanted to return to her father’s home, but the Bear tribe kept a close eye on her, preventing her from escaping.

One day, the chief’s daughter arrived at the shore. Out on the water, she saw a fisherman in a boat and called to him for help. The fisherman hit his canoe with his club, and in an instant, it jumped to the shore, just as the Bear and some of his tribe showed up. The fisherman started to fight the Bear, but he couldn’t kill him. Then the chief’s daughter told him to hit the Bear between the eyes because that’s where his heart was. So, the Bear was killed.

The fisherman took the chief’s daughter in his canoe. But guess what?—he wasn't a fisherman at all. It was Gonaqadet, the spirit of the sea. So the woman married Gonaqadet, who was very kind to her.

After a long time, the chief’s daughter grew unhappy again. She wanted her son to be trained by her people, as was customary. Then Gonaqadet allowed her to return to earth with the boy, but he made her promise to weave him a blanket that told the story of her life and his courtship. So the woman returned to earth from the sea. Then she wove the blanket for Gonaqadet. This was the first Chilkat blanket.

One day, Yel, the Raven, was wandering along the seashore when he came across a huge cavern under the sea. Inside, he found Gonaqadet, who was wearing a beautiful Chilkat blanket. Gonaqadet welcomed Raven and offered him food. He placed the food in front of him on two long, carved platters. After Raven enjoyed the feast, Gonaqadet taught him many dances and gave him a copy of the blanket pattern. Then, Raven taught the people how to weave the blankets, starting with the Tsimshian tribe. Later, the Chilkats also learned how to weave them.

[Pg80]

Inuit (Lower Yukon)

IN the beginning, there was water covering the entire earth. There were no people. It was extremely cold. The water was frozen, and the ice chunks ground against each other, creating long ridges and bumps.

Then a man arrived from across the vast waters and settled on the ice hills. He chose a wolf as his wife. Their children grew up, and each pair spoke a different language from their parents and from their siblings. So each pair went off in a different direction and built homes on the ice hills. Then the snow melted and flowed down the hillsides, carving out valleys and riverbeds, shaping the earth. That’s how the earth and the people came to be. That's why so many different languages are spoken.

[Pg81]

Athabascan (Upper Yukon)

A LONG time ago, water covered the entire world. There was one family, and they built a large raft. Then they placed animals on the raft.

Now there was only water, so the people wanted to create a land. The man tied a cord around a beaver and sent it down to find the bottom of the water. But the beaver only made it halfway and drowned. Then the man tied a string around a muskrat and sent it down. The muskrat drowned, but it reached the bottom and got a little mud on its hands. The man took the mud from the muskrat’s hands into his palm. He let it dry and then crumbled it into dust. Then he blew the dust out of his palm all over the water. This created the world.

[Pg82]

Inuit (Bering Straits)

LONG, long ago, a man and a woman came down from the sky and landed on one of the Diomede Islands. They lived there for a long time, but they had no children. Finally, one day, the man took some walrus ivory and carved five dolls that looked just like people. Then he took some wood and made five more dolls. One night, when he finished, he lined them up to the side, all ten in a row. The next morning, the dolls turned into people. The ivory dolls became men, which is why they are brave and tough; the wooden dolls became women, which is why they are gentle and shy. From these ten dolls came all the people of the Diomede Islands.

[Pg83]

Inuit (Bering Straits)

LONG, long ago there were many men living in the north, but there were no women among them. Far away in the south lived one woman. Finally, one of the young men from the north traveled south to the woman's home and married her. He thought, “I have a wife, while the son of the executioner has none.”

Now the son of the executioner had also begun his journey to the home of the woman in the south. He stood in the entryway of the house and heard the husband talking to himself. So he waited until everyone was asleep. Then the son of the executioner sneaked into the house and started to pull the woman away. He grabbed her by her shoulders.

Then the husband woke up. He ran to the hallway and grabbed the woman by her feet. The men pulled until they tore the woman in two. The headsman's son carried the upper half of her body to the north. Then they started carving wood to make each woman whole. So now there were two women.

[Pg84] The woman from the south was a great dancer, but she couldn’t do intricate needlework on the furs because her hands were stiff. The woman from the north wasn’t a good dancer since her feet were stiff, but she could sew the furs with exquisite stitches. So, all the women from the north are skilled with their hands, and all the women from the south are talented dancers, even today. This shows that the story is true.

[Pg85]

Inuit (Bering Straits)

ONE day, a man was hunting for seals along the beach. There were many seals around, but every time he tried to get close, they would slide into the water. Finally, only one seal remained on the rocks. The man quietly approached it, but just as he was about to grab the seal, it slipped into the water.

Then Man stood up. He felt a strange emotion swelling inside him. Tears began to fall from his eyes. He raised his hand and caught the drops, realizing they were indeed water. Then loud cries came from deep within him, and more tears flowed. Man's son noticed him approaching. He told his wife that Man was making an unusual sound. So they went down to the seashore. They were shocked to see water coming from his eyes. Man explained that he had tried to catch seals. He had crept up quietly, but they had slipped into the water. So all the seals had escaped. Soon, tears began to fall from the eyes of the son and his wife. Loud cries came from their hearts. This is how people first learned to cry. Later, Man and his son killed a seal; then they made snares for more seals using its skin. [Pg86]

[Pg87]

Inuit (Lower Yukon)

A LONG time ago, a man and his wife had no kids. One night, the man left the house to find a solitary tree that grew on the tundra. At first, he noticed a long path of bright light, similar to the moon shining on the snow, stretching across the tundra. He followed this glowing trail for a while until he spotted a beautiful tree, standing alone and shining in the light. He pulled out his hunting knife, chopped off a piece of the trunk, and made his way home along the bright path once more.

When the man got home, he carved a boy doll out of wood, and his wife made some fur clothes for it. Then the man sculpted little wooden dishes from the leftover scraps. The wife set the doll on the bench across from the entrance, giving it a place of honor. She placed food and water in front of it.

That night, when everything was dark, they heard faint whistling sounds. The woman said, “Do you hear that? It’s the doll.” When they turned on a light, they saw that the doll had eaten the food and drunk the water. They noticed that its eyes were moving.

In the morning, the doll was missing. The man and his wife couldn’t find it, but they noticed the tracks of the boy doll leading away from the door. The tracks went in the same direction as the trail of light that the man had followed the night before. So, the man and his wife went inside the house.

But Doll followed the bright path until he reached the edge of day, where the sky meets the earth. There were openings in the sky wall covered with gut-skin.

In the east, Doll noticed the gut-skin cover over the opening in the sky wall bulging inward. He stopped and said, “It’s really quiet in here. I think a little wind would help.” Doll took out his knife and cut the cover loose around the edge of the opening. A strong wind rushed in, bringing with it a live reindeer. Looking through the opening, Doll saw another world, just like earth. Then he loosely placed the cover back over the opening and said to East Wind, “Sometimes blow hard, sometimes lightly. Sometimes don’t blow at all.”

Doll walked along the sky wall to another opening at the southeast. The gut-skin cover bulged inward. Then Doll cut the cover loose at the edges, and a strong wind rushed in. It brought with it reindeer, trees, and bushes. Then Doll lightly fastened the cover and said, [Pg89] “Sometimes it blows hard, sometimes gently. Sometimes it doesn’t blow at all.”

Then Doll reached a hole in the south, and the gut-skin cover pushed inward. He cut the edges free and a hot wind rushed in. It brought rain and spray from the vast salt sea that was beyond the sky hole on that side. Then Doll gently closed the opening and said to South Wind, “Sometimes blow hard, sometimes softly. Sometimes don’t blow at all.”

Doll walked along the sky wall to the west. There he saw another opening, covered by gut-skin. So he cut the edges loose, and West Wind swept in, bringing with him rain, sleet, and spray from the gray ocean. Then Doll fastened the edges of the gut-skin loosely and said to West Wind, “Sometimes blow hard, sometimes lightly. Sometimes don’t blow at all.”

So Doll walked along the sky wall to the northwest. When he sliced into the gut-skin covering, a rush of cold wind swept in, carrying snow and ice. Doll got really cold; he almost froze. So, he quickly closed the hole, saying, “Sometimes it blows hard, sometimes lightly. Sometimes it doesn’t blow at all.”

Again, Doll walked along the sky wall to the north, but it got so cold he had to leave it. So he moved toward the center of the earth, away from the sky wall, until he saw the opening to the north. Then he went to the hole [Pg90] in the sky wall, but the cold was so intense that Doll was scared to cut the strings. He waited. Then he cut the strings quickly. The fierce North Wind rushed in, bringing large amounts of snow and ice. The North Wind scattered the snow and ice all over the land. Then Doll quickly closed the hole, but he left it loosely fastened. He said to the North Wind, “Sometimes blow hard, sometimes lightly. Sometimes don’t blow at all.”

Then Doll traveled to the center of the earth. He looked up and saw the sky arching above him, supported by long, slender poles, like a tepee, but made of beautiful blue fabric. Then Doll returned to the village where he was created.

[Pg91]

Athabascan (Upper Yukon)

A LONG time ago, when everyone was male, there was no wind. Bear used to walk around with a bag on his back. The animals were curious about what was inside the bag. They asked Bear many times, but he wouldn’t tell them. One day, Bear fell asleep with the bag still on his back. Then a man saw him asleep. The man cut open the bag and discovered the wind inside. As a result, the wind escaped and has never been caught since.

[Pg92]

Tlingit (Wrangell)

AFTER Raven left the Land Otters, he arrived at Taku. There, North Wind lived in a cliff at the entrance of the inlet. Raven stayed there with him.

Now North Wind is very proud and sparkles all over with what the Indigenous people believe are icicles. So the Indigenous people never speak out against North Wind, no matter how long it blows, because the spirits give it power. Years ago, people thought there were spirits in all the large cliffs on the islands and would pray to those cliffs. This was because Raven once lived in this cliff with North Wind.

[Pg93]

Tlingit

A HIGH-CASTE man first married the daughter of East Wind. When he learned about the beautiful daughter of North Wind, he married her too. He brought her back to the village where his first wife lived.

Then people said to the daughter of East Wind, “There’s a beautiful woman here. Her clothes sparkle all over. They make a tingling sound.”

The Daughter of East Wind was extremely jealous. She caused the east wind to blow. It started to get warm and cloudy. Then the Daughter of North Wind lost all her glittering clothes. The icicles and frost melted away. After that, the Daughter of North Wind was no longer beautiful.

[Pg94]

Tlingit

A MAN named Natsayane, from the Seal People, created the killer whales. He first attempted to carve them out of red cedar, then out of hemlock, and finally out of various other types of wood. He brought each set of figures to the beach and tried to make them swim; however, they just floated on the surface. Finally, he tried yellow cedar. Then the killer whales swam.

Natsayane drew one marked white line from the corners of its mouth back to its head. He said, “This is going to be the white-mouthed killer whale.”

When Natsayane put them in the water, he said, “Go into the inlets. Go up into the heads of the bays. Look for seal, for halibut, and for things in the sea. Don’t harm any humans.” Before this, people didn’t know what a killer whale was.

When the killer whale group heads north, the Seal People say, “Here comes another fight. Here come the warriors.” They say this because killer whales are always hunting seals. The killer whale that always swims at the front is the red killer whale, known as the “killer whale spear” because it's long and slender.

[Pg96]

Tlingit (Wrangell)

AFTER Raven had created people, a man died. Raven walked into his house and saw his wife and kids crying around him. Raven lifted the blanket covering the dead man with both hands and held it over his body. That’s how he brought him back to life.

Now Raven and the man both told the woman there was no death. She wouldn’t believe them. Then Raven said to her, “Lie down and go to sleep.”

When the woman slept, she dreamed of a long path. Many people were on it, along with some fierce animals. Good people had to walk this path to come back to life. At the end of the path, there was a wide river, and a canoe came to her from the other side. When she crossed the river, people approached her. They said, “You should go back. We aren’t in a good place. We’re hungry here and can’t find any water to drink. We’re cold.”

That’s why people cremate the bodies of the deceased and put food in the fire for them to enjoy. If they weren't cremated, their spirits would be left in the cold. That’s also why food and drink are offered to them during the feast of the dead.

[Pg97]

Inuit (Lower Yukon)

A YOUNG woman on the Lower Yukon died. When she died, she fell asleep for a bit. Then someone shook her arm and said, “Wake up. Don’t sleep. You’re dead.” Then she realized she was in her coffin, and the spirit of her grandfather was shaking her. After that, she went with her grandfather back to the village, but the place she knew was gone. Instead, there was a strange village that stretched as far as she could see.

As she entered the village, the old man told her to go into one of the houses. As soon as she went in, a woman picked up a stick of wood and raised it to hit her. The woman said, “What do you want here?”

So the young woman ran out, crying to her grandfather. He said, “This is the village of the dog spirits. Now you see how living dogs feel when they're hurt by people.”

They arrived at another village. Here she saw a man [Pg98] lying on the ground with grass growing through his joints. He could move, but he couldn’t get up. The grandfather said that this shade was punished for pulling up and chewing on grass when he was alive. Then the grandfather suddenly vanished.

The girl followed a path to another village, but she came to a fast-moving river. This river was filled with the tears of those mourning the dead on earth. When the girl realized she couldn't cross the river, she started to cry. Suddenly, a bundle of straw floated down the river toward her. She used it as a bridge to cross the stream. Before she reached the village, the spirits sensed her presence. They gathered around her, asking, “Who is she? Where does she come from?” They searched for the totem marks on her clothes.

Someone asked, “Where is she? Where is she?” and her grandfather walked over to her. He took her into a nearby house, where her grandmother was. The old woman asked if she was thirsty. The girl looked around and saw only one water container, similar to the ones in her own village. It held their own Yukon water, given to them by the girl’s father at the festival of the dead. The other containers only had water from the village of the shades. The old woman offered the girl a piece of deer fat, which was also given at the festival of the dead. Then the [Pg99] grandmother explained that the guide had been the grandfather, because the last person thought of by a dying person rushes off to show the way to the new shade. Thoughts can be heard in the land of the shades.

[Pg100]

Tlingit

THE young wife of a chief’s son passed away, and the young man was so heartbroken that he couldn’t sleep. Early one morning, he put on his best clothes and set out. He walked all day and all night. He traveled through the woods for a long time, then reached a valley. The trees were very dense, but he could hear voices in the distance. Finally, he saw light filtering through the trees and came upon a large, flat stone at the edge of a lake.

Now all this time, the young man had been walking along the Death Trail. He saw houses and people on the other side of the lake. He could see them moving around. So he shouted, “Come over and get me.” But they didn’t seem to hear him. On the lake, a small canoe was being paddled by one man, and the entire shore was grassy. The chief’s son shouted for a long time, but no one answered him. Finally, he whispered to himself, “Why don’t they hear me?”

At that moment, someone across the lake said, “Someone is shouting.” When he whispered, they heard him.

[Pg101] The voice also said, “Someone has come up from Dreamland. Go and bring him over.”

When the chief's son got to the other side of the lake, he spotted his wife. He was so happy to see her again. People invited him to sit down and offered him something to eat, but his wife warned him, “Don’t eat that. If you eat that, you’ll never get back.” So he didn’t eat it.

Then his wife said, “You shouldn't stay here too long. Let's leave right away.” So they were taken back in the same canoe. It's called Ghost’s Canoe, and it's the only one on that lake. They landed on the flat, wide rock where the chief’s son had been calling. It's called Ghost’s Rock, and it's at the very end of the Death Trail. Then they started down the trail, through the valley and the dense woods. By the second night, they reached the chief’s house.

The chief's son told his wife to wait outside. He went in and said to his father, "I've brought my wife back."

The chief said, “Why don’t you bring her in?”

The chief laid out a nice mat with fur blankets on it for the young wife. The young man went out to get his wife, but when he came in with her, they could only see him. As he got closer, they noticed a deep shadow following him. When his wife sat down and [Pg102] they draped a marten skin robe around her, it wrapped around the shadow as if another person were sitting there. When she ate, they saw only the spoon moving up and down, but not the shadow of her hands. It looked really strange to them.

After that, the chief's son died, and their spirits returned to the Spirit World.

[Pg103]

Tlingit

LONG ago, a man’s wife was taken from him. He cared for her so much that he decided to follow her. So he started to walk. He thought he was walking along the beach, but he was actually following a wide trail through the woods. He kept walking for a long time with his head down until he saw smoke ahead. When he got closer, he saw a woman tanning a hide. He showed her a necklace he had made and said, “I will give you this necklace if you tell me where my wife is.”

The woman said, “She’s over at the next camp.”

So he finally got to his wife and stayed there for a long time.

Now the people of this village wanted to kill him. They started a fire and began to drag him toward it. He said, “Oh, how happy I am! I want to die.” Then they stopped and began to pull him toward the water. The man said he was afraid of water, so they threw him in. He surfaced in the middle of the lake.

People said, “Look at him. He’s staring at us.”

[Pg104] The man laughed. He said, “The water is exactly where I want to be.” He said this because he was a great swimmer and there was a lot of rain in his country. He spent all his time in the water while he was there.

Now all this time, the man and his wife had actually been in the sky. They wanted to come down. They headed back to the house of a certain woman. She was the spider. The house was her web. The woman captured them in a web and began to lower them to the earth. Before they started, the woman said, “If you get caught on anything, jerk back and forth until the web comes loose.” She thought they might get snagged on the edges of the clouds. So the man and his wife reached the earth safely, and the web was pulled back up into the sky.

[Pg105]

Inuit (Port Clarence)

ONCE upon a time, everyone was gathered in a singing house. While they were dancing, the sun vanished. No one knew where it had gone. Because it was so dark, people couldn’t go hunting and soon their supplies ran out. They then asked the women to carefully repair their clothes and make as many boots as they could. They packed these into bags. After that, the people set out to look for the sun.

They walked along the coast. They went so far that they wore out their boots, so they switched to new boots from their bags. Still, it was dark the entire time.

After many days, they arrived in a land filled with seals, walruses, and deer. The local language was different from theirs. Eventually, they picked up a bit of it. They asked the locals where to find the sun.

These people said that the sun was far away. Before they reached the sun’s land, they would pass through five places. This was the first place. But in the fourth [Pg106] place beyond, there lived a woman who kept both the sun and the moon in her home.

So they kept going. It was really cold, and they ran as fast as they could because of it. Then their food ran out. But they arrived in a place where there was plenty to eat. The people there spoke a strange language. After a while, they learned to speak it a bit. These people told them that at the third place they reached, they would find a woman who kept the sun and moon in her house.

The people kept running. They ran because it was freezing cold. Once their food ran out, they arrived in another country where there was lots of food. The language of the locals was different from their own. But after some time, they started to understand it a bit. The locals said that at the next place they would reach lived a woman named Itudluqpiaq who had both the sun and the moon in her house, but it was uncertain whether they would be able to get them.

Then they moved on again. They had to run as fast as they could to stay warm. It was really cold. When their food was almost gone, they reached the land of the dwarfs. It was a land with plenty of food, including walrus, seal, and deer. The dwarfs tried to escape when they saw the large men approaching. But the people caught them. The dwarfs said that at the next [Pg107] place lived the woman Itudluqpiaq, who had both the sun and the moon.

As the people rushed away from the land of the dwarfs, they encountered ice and driftwood blocking their path. They kicked it all aside. At that time, the people were very strong and could lift heavy stones.

After they had run for a long time, they spotted a house with singing coming from it. As they got closer, they slowed down because they were scared. Finally, one of the men tied his jacket around his waist and his pants around his knees. Then he carefully crept through the entrance and peeked his head through the door at the bottom of the floor. He saw a young woman, Itudluqpiaq, sitting in the middle of the house towards the back. Her father was sitting in the middle of the house on the right side and her mother on the left side. In the back of the house, in the right corner on the rafter, hung a large ball; in the left corner was a small ball.

The man whispered, “Itudluqpiaq, we came to ask you for some light.”

The mother said, “Give them the little ball.”

The man turned down the small ball. He asked for the large one instead. Then Itudluqpiaq took it down and kicked it. It went straight into the entrance hole.

The people grabbed the ball and went outside. Then they ripped the ball apart and sunlight poured out of it.

[Pg108] It wasn't warm at first, but it got warmer every day. If they had taken the small ball, it would have been light, but it would have stayed cold. The small ball was the moon.

[Pg109]

Inuit (Bering Straits)

FAR away on the moon, there lives a great chief, and shamans with powerful magic visit him there. A long time ago, a shaman went to see the great chief. He flew high into the sky like a bird thanks to his magic. The sky was a land just like the earth, except the grass was long and grew downward toward the earth. The grass was covered in snow. When the wind blows up in the sky, it rustles the long grass stems that hang down and shakes loose the snow. When the wind releases the snow in the sky, it falls to the earth from the long grass stems, and people call it a snowstorm.

Up in the sky, among the grass, there are many small, round lakes. At night, they shine, and people call them stars.

But the Malemut tribes say that the north wind is the breath of a giant. When he builds a snow house and the snow flies from his shovel, that’s when a snowstorm hits the earth.

[Pg110]

Inuit (Lower Yukon)

ONCE upon a time, a long time ago, in a village by a great river, there lived four brothers and a sister. There was also a young boy who was a close friend of the sister. The brothers were hunters; in the fall, they hunted at sea, but after the Bladder-feast ended, they went to the mountains to hunt reindeer. Meanwhile, the boy was lazy.

Now the boy fell in love with the girl. One day, the girl picked up a plate of meat and berries and went outside. There, she spotted a ladder leading up into the sky, with a rope hanging down beside it. Grabbing the rope, the girl climbed the ladder into the sky. Then her brothers saw her and immediately started scolding the boy.

The boy picked up his sealskin pants. In a rush, he shoved his right leg into them and pulled on a deerskin sock on his other foot as he dashed out of the house. There, he spotted the girl, way up in the sky, and he started to climb the ladder to reach her. But the girl floated further away, with the boy chasing after her.

[Page111] Now the girl is the sun and the boy is the moon. He always chases her but never catches up. When the sun sets in the west, the moon rises in the east, but always too late. The moon has no food and sometimes nearly disappears. Then the sun offers a plate of meat and berries, and the moon becomes full again.

[Pg112]

Athabascan (Upper Yukon)

LONG ago, during the time of Raven, there was a terrible famine. Everyone in the village was starving. One night, a boy had a dream that they would hunt and kill many caribou. Soon after, the hunters started finding and hunting caribou. The boy insisted that once they killed all the caribou, the leader of the herd should be given to him. His uncle provided him with caribou, but not the leader, because he didn't believe the boy's dream. The boy cried for two nights because he didn't receive the specific caribou he wanted.

The next morning, the boy was missing. He had been wearing marten skin trousers. When they looked for him, they only found the left leg of his trousers hanging on a pole by the smoke hole. So they realized the boy had left through the smoke hole.

The boy went up to the moon. He was spotted there the next night. His mom and dad recognized him because his right leg was bigger than his left. The left leg didn't have any pants on because it got stuck in the smoke hole.

[Pg113]

Tsetsaut

A LONG time ago, flames were spotted flying through the air from the north. It resembled a giant creature. Its face was made of fire. Fire poured from its mouth and its back. Blazing flames shot out from its paws. The Thing, moving backward, roared through the air.

In the past, these monsters appeared frequently. Now, they haven't been seen in a long time.

[Pg114]

Tlingit

ONCE a Huna man and his wife were paddling in a canoe around midnight, looking for seals. The man kept hearing a noise near his head, like the sound of a bird. Eventually, he swatted it with his hand and knocked it into the canoe. It looked like a bird, but with eyelids that hung down a lot, and it was called Ta, Sleep. He handed the bird to his wife, saying, “Here, you can keep this for yourself.” She then gave it to her relatives, who built a place called Sleep House. All the poles inside were carved to look like this bird. After that, the man became very tired but couldn’t fall asleep. Eventually, he ran off into the forest.

[Pg115]

Koyukun

[Pg118]

Tsimshian

A DEER, even without teeth, can still achieve something.[5]

He is currently sleeping on a deerskin.[6]

He wants to die with all his teeth intact.[7]

You think the Nass River is always calm.[8]

You’re confusing the corner of the house with the door.[9]

What will you eat when the snow is on the north side of the trees?[10]

[Pg119]

Athabascan

ONCE there was a Fox who was really hungry and was traveling through the countryside. Suddenly, he spotted a goose with a bunch of goslings. The Fox chased after them. As he ran, he sang,

As Fox ran towards them, the geese came to the water and jumped in. Fox moved slowly along the water's edge. When he realized he couldn't catch the geese, he became so angry that he turned bright red all over—except for the tip of his tail.

[Pg120]

Tsimshian

NOW Beaver was Porcupine’s friend. They cared for each other a lot. One day, Beaver invited Porcupine to his house on the big lake. Beaver’s house was right in the middle of the lake. Beaver loved the water, but Porcupine couldn’t get from the shore to the lake because he didn’t know how to swim. Porcupine was afraid he would drown if he fell in, since he couldn’t swim. So, Beaver decided to help: he swam from the lake to the land to get Porcupine. Beaver only had to come out of the water twice to reach Porcupine, who was sitting on the shore.

Then Beaver said to Porcupine, “I’ll carry you. Hold on tight to my neck.”

Porcupine was scared. He told Beaver, “I might die.”

“You won’t die.” So said the Beaver to the Porcupine.

Then Porcupine climbed up onto Beaver's back.

[Pg121] Beaver said, “Quick, grab my neck.”

Thus did Porcupine. Then Beaver swam out on the water. But he didn’t swim for long. Beaver dived. Porcupine was very troubled because he didn’t know how to swim. Now the Beavers truly own the waters, but the mountains belong to Porcupine.

Twice, Beaver surfaced above the water. Then he reached the middle of the great lake where his home floated. But Porcupine was quite worried, fearing he would drown. Then they entered Beaver's house. They ate there. Beaver's feast consisted of sticks. Porcupine was really uneasy about eating sticks. Yet, Porcupine ate the stick.

Well, one day, Beaver said to Porcupine: “Hey, friend, let’s play.”

Then Beaver said how he would play: “I’ll carry you. Four times I’ll come out of the water.”

“Surely I'm going to die.” So said Porcupine's heart. Yet he went along with it.

Beaver said, “Hold onto my neck tightly. Snuggle close against the back of my neck.”

Then Porcupine was ready to die. Beaver dove into the water. But first, he splashed the water with his tail, hitting Porcupine in the face. Then Beaver submerged. He stayed under for a long time. Porcupine was nearly dead, his stomach full of water. Beaver resurfaced three times, and then there was just one more dive left. Again, Beaver plunged under the surface. Porcupine was almost lifeless. Finally, he brought Porcupine back from the lake to the shore.

Then Porcupine returned to his tribe. When he got back, he invited everyone to his house. The invited guests came into Porcupine's home. He shared what Beaver had done in his big house by the lake. He told the people what Beaver, who had invited him, had done. He said, "I was almost dead because of my friend."

Then his people said, “Great! You should invite him too. And have fun with him.”

This is what Porcupine did. He also invited his friend Beaver. He sent for Beaver to come over. Then Beaver arrived in the valley. He made his way up. Finally, he reached Porcupine's house. When Beaver entered, Porcupine struck the fireplace with his tail. Then it caught fire. After that, Beaver started to sing:

[Pg123] Porcupine ran around in front of Beaver to play with his friend. Once they finished playing, what did Porcupine do? He got food for Beaver to eat. Then Porcupine gathered tree bark and leaves to give him for a feast. However, Beaver was afraid to eat. Porcupine then said to his good friend, Beaver: “Eat quickly, friend. Eat quickly, friend.” And so Beaver did.

Then Porcupine said, “Hey, friend,”—he said this to Beaver—“tomorrow morning we’re playing, just you and me. There’s a tree on a grassy hill. That’s my playground.”

Then they went to sleep. But Porcupine sang,

Then Porcupine spoke to the sky, and the sky responded. The sky became clear. The ground was frozen in the morning.

Now Porcupine invited everyone to a feast for the great Beaver. Then Porcupine said, “Let’s have some fun, my friend. Over there is my playground.”

Now the cold was really sharp. The ground was covered in ice. Where water flowed, it was slippery with ice. But Beaver followed Porcupine. Then Beaver got worried again. His hands were always slippery, but Porcupine's claws were long. Then Porcupine [Pg124] turned back to check on big Beaver. Porcupine said, “Come on, do it, friend.” So Porcupine spoke to big Beaver. But Beaver couldn’t cross because the mountain was icy. Then Porcupine did this: he took Beaver's hands and led him across. So he got across. Porcupine was going to play with Beaver, just like he did before. Then they arrived at the spot where the tree stood.

"Great! Go ahead!" said Porcupine to Beaver. Beaver was very troubled. He was scared.

“Well! Look!” Porcupine said. So Porcupine went up first. Up he climbed to the very top. Then he let go of the top of the tree. As soon as he dropped, he said this while coming down:

Then he fell onto a stone but got back up. He wasn't dead!

Then Porcupine said to Beaver, “Look, buddy! It’s not that difficult.”

Then he carried Beaver up the tree. He said, “Hold on tight to my neck.” And Beaver held on really tight to Porcupine’s neck. When Porcupine got close to the top of the tree, he set Beaver on a branch. Beaver was very scared because his hands weren’t good for gripping a tree. Only a Porcupine knows that, because his claws are long.

[Pg125] Then Porcupine said, “Hold on tight, my friend. I’ll go down first.” The Beaver complied. All around the branch were his hands. Then Porcupine let go of the tree. He fell into the air. Again he said,

Then once again he dropped onto the stones, but he was not dead!

Much troubled was the heart of great Beaver, in holding the branch. Much troubled was he at falling. Then about the foot of the tree ran Porcupine. Then up he looked to where his friend was. Porcupine said, “Go on, friend. It’s not hard. Look at me. I’m not dead because I fell!”

Then Beaver let go of the branch. As he fell, Beaver said,

Then Beaver hit the rocks. He lay on his back. He was dead.

[Pg126]

Athabascan (Upper Yukon)

LONG ago, a hungry marten went to an Indian camp. The people around the campfire were eating salmon. The marten sat quietly and watched them. He was hungry and observed one Indian after another. Then one of the Indians threw a piece of red salmon at him. It hit the marten on the chest, and the reddish mark is still there to this day.

[Pg127]

Tsimshian

NOW the Wolves were having a feast on a prairie at the mouth of Skeena River. They then invited all the Deer chiefs to join them. The invited Deer arrived right away and sat down on the prairie, facing the Wolves.

Then the Wolves said to the Deer, “Laugh on the other side.”

“No,” said the Deer to the Wolves, “you laugh first.”

“Alright,” said the Wolves immediately, “then we will laugh. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha! Go ahead, you too. You too, on the other side, laugh.”

“Well,” said the Deer. Then they laughed, “Mm, mm, mm, mm, mm! You need to laugh too.”

“Well.” The Wolves laughed again: “Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!”

At the sight of the Wolves' sharp teeth, the Deer became very scared. The Wolves then said, “Come on! Go ahead and laugh, you over there. Don’t hold back when you laugh. That’s not how anyone laughs. Open your mouths wide when you laugh.” So the Wolves said, “Now, laugh!”

At that moment, the Deer laughed: “Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!” They laughed with their mouths wide open. But they had no teeth. Then the Wolves noticed that the Deer had no teeth. Immediately, they attacked. The Wolves bit them all over and quickly devoured the Deer. Only a few managed to escape. That’s why the Deer are now afraid of Wolves.

[Pg129]

(Upper Yukon)

NOW in the days of the animal people, the camp robber was a medicine man. One time, the people had nothing to eat, so they asked the medicine man to find food for them. For six nights, the men dreamed of a way to find food. The camp robber was the sixth man. He dreamed on the sixth night. Then he called all the people together and told them to bring their snares with them. He took all the snares, made a pack of them, and put them on his back. But the people piled up the snow into a huge mound. Around this snow pile, the camp robber walked, chanting and singing, “Soon enough, meat will come.” Thus he sang.

Then the camp robber dug into the snow and pulled out a caribou's head by the antlers. This wasn't a real caribou; it was the spirit caribou. So the camp robber painted the antlers and tail red and sent it back into the snow pile. The next day, a huge herd of [Pg130] caribou appeared. The one with the red antlers and tail was among them.

That’s why an Indian never kills a camp robber when he steals food. He lets him go because he helped them find food back in the days of the animal people, when the camp robber was a medicine man.

[Pg131]

Inuit (Bering Straits)

ONE day in the autumn, long ago, the cranes were getting ready to head south. As they gathered in a large flock, they spotted a beautiful girl standing alone near the village. The cranes wanted to take her with them. They surrounded her and lifted her on their outspread wings. So they carried her into the sky and far away. As they were lifting her up into the air, they circled underneath her closely so she couldn’t fall. They also cried out in loud, hoarse voices so that people couldn’t hear her calling for help. That’s why the cranes always circle around in autumn when getting ready to fly south and make loud hoarse calls.

[Pg132]

Inuit (Lower Yukon)

LONG, long ago there were many thunderbirds living in the mountains, but eventually there were only two left. These birds made their home on the rounded peak of a mountain overlooking the Yukon. They carved out a large basin at the summit for a nest, and from the rocky edges, they could see down onto a village by the riverbank.

From this spot, the thunderbirds, appearing like a dark cloud, would take off and bring back a reindeer in their claws for their young. Sometimes, with a loud noise like thunder, they would dive down on a fisherman in his kayak and snatch him away. The man would be eaten by the young birds, and his kayak would be smashed to pieces in the nest. Every fall, the young birds would fly north, while the adult birds stayed in the nest. They had taken so many fishermen that only the bravest would venture onto the big river.

One day, when a fisherman went to check on his traps, [Pg133] he warned his wife not to leave the house because of the thunderbirds. In the morning, she needed fresh water and headed to the river. Suddenly, a loud sound like thunder filled the air, a dark shadow loomed over her, and a thunderbird swooped down toward her.

When the fisherman got back to his house, the villagers told him about the thunderbird. He didn’t respond. He grabbed his bow and a full quiver of arrows and headed for the mountain. When he got to the edge of the giant nest, he peered inside. The adult birds were gone. The nest was packed with young eagles, their eyes bright and their cries piercing. The hunter nocked a war arrow, pulled back the string, and shot, taking down a young thunderbird. He ended up killing them all.

The hunter crouched behind a large rock near the nest. When the older birds returned, the sound of their wings could be heard even across the wide river; their angry calls scared the villagers along the riverbank. The mother bird swooped down on the hunter by the rock. He quickly nocked a war arrow, the string snapped, and the arrow sank deep into her throat. Then the mother bird, flapping her wings hard enough to make the hills tremble, flew off to the north.

The father bird circled above and then dove down at the hunter. He ducked behind the rocks, and the thunderbird’s huge talons only grasped the rock. [Pg134] The hunter readied a war arrow in his bow, the string snapped, and the heavy war arrow struck deep under the thunderbird’s massive wing. Spreading his wings like a dark cloud in the sky, the thunderbird flew off to the north.

[Pg135]

Tlingit

LONG ago, when we were first born, people hated us. Then the Sky People brought war upon us. They completely wiped us out. One woman saved herself; she hid in a hole she dug under a log.

Afterward, different people came to her. “I wonder who can tell me about things,” she said. Grizzly Bear approached her.

“What can you do?” she asked.

“Whenever I catch a guy, I slam my paws down on him.”

The woman said, "That’s nothing."

Someone in the sun spoke to her. “How am I?” said a voice.

"What can you do?"

“My father in the sun looks out through the clouds—the patchy clouds.”

So the woman married the child of the sun. He brought down from the sky a huge fort to protect her and her kids. When the enemy saw that, they came back. The father said, “When the enemy gets too strong, think of me.” So when the enemy became too powerful, the woman and her children focused on Grandfather Sun. He peeked out through the clouds at the enemy. It quickly got scorching hot. The sea out there started to boil. The enemy rushed into the water and were all destroyed. Then the water stopped boiling. The grandchildren of Sun stayed safe inside their fort.

[Pg137]

Tlingit

A LONG time ago, when some members of the Kagwantan clan were catching herring at Town-at-mouth-of-lake, a bear appeared where they were fishing. The bear reached down through the smoke hole and stole the herring they were drying. Then people asked, “Who is this thief stealing our fish?” Because they said that, the grizzly bear killed all of them. The Kagwantan grabbed their spears and went out to kill the nearby bears. When they found them, the bears were lying in holes they had dug for themselves. The people said to them, “Come out here. We will settle this.” So the bears came out, and the people killed them. They took the skins from the heads of the bears and preserved them. That’s how the Kagwantan came to use the grizzly bear crest.

[Pg138]

Tlingit

LONG ago, a man and his wife were crossing a large bay near Sitka when it became really foggy. They couldn’t even see the water around their canoe. Then, in the thick fog, they heard singing. The song was:

The voice was so powerful they could hear it echoing back among the mountains.

As the fog lifted, the song grew louder and louder. Finally, they saw that the voice came from a tiny little frog.

The man said, “This frog is mine. I'm going to claim it.”

His wife said, “No, it's mine. I'm going to claim it.”

Thus they argued. Finally, the man allowed his wife to take the frog.

The woman brought it to shore, caring for it just like a child. She carried it into the woods, set it down by a lake, and left it there. That's why the Kiksadi clan in Sitka considers the frog their totem.

[Pg139]

Tlingit

A YOUNG beaver was captured, long ago, by a family of the Decitan. It was well taken care of, but it grew angry and started to sing. Later, the beaver’s owner walked through the woods to a creek and found two beautifully carved salmon-spear handles at the base of a large tree. He brought them home, and when the beaver saw them, it said, “That is my work.”

After a while, something upset the beaver again. He started to sing just like a person. Then he grabbed a spear and threw it through his master’s chest. As a result, his master was killed. The beaver slammed its tail on the ground, and the house collapsed into the ground. The beaver had dug a big hollow under the house. It is from this story that the Decitan clan claims the beaver as their totem and has the beaver crest. They also have songs created by the beaver.

[Pg140]

Tlingit

A LONG time ago there was a man named Natsiane who always fought with his wife. One day, his brothers-in-law took him to a remote island in the ocean and left him there.

Natsiane started to wonder, “What can I do?” As he sat there pondering, he carved two killer whales out of cottonwood bark. He placed them in the water and shouted like the shamans do. They seemed to be swimming, but when they came to the surface, they were just cottonwood bark.

Natsiane carved two more whales out of alder. He aimed to capture the spirit of his clan in them. As he placed them in the water, he whistled four times like a spirit, “Whu, whu, whu, whu.” When they floated to the surface, they were just alder wood. Then he tried hemlock, followed by red cedar. Later, he experimented with yellow cedar. These whales took off swimming like big killer whales. They swam far away, but when they returned, they turned back into wood.

Then Natsiane made holes in their dorsal fins, grabbed one with each hand, and let the killer whales pull him out to sea. He told them, “If you see my brothers-in-law in canoes, tip them over.” After the whales had pulled Natsiane out to sea for a while, they returned to the island. They turned back into wood.

The next time Natsiane saw his brothers-in-law in their canoes, he channeled the spirit of his clan into the killer whales. Then they capsized the canoes and smashed them to pieces. They killed the people in them. After that, Natsiane said to his killer whales, “You are not to harm people again. You must be kind to them.”

So these two killer whales became the canoes of the spirits. Shamans are fortunate if they can obtain the spirit canoes.

It is through this story that the Daqlawe clan has the killer whale crest.

[Pg142]

Inuit (Bering Straits)

NEAR the village of Pastolik, at the mouth of the Yukon, grows a tall, slender grass that the women weave into baskets and mats.

A grass stalk that had almost been yanked out by the women got really scared. It wished it could be something else. Next to it was a bunch of herbs, living peacefully and quietly. The grass said, “I wish I were an herb.” Instantly, it became an herb and lived peacefully.

One day, the women returned with sharp picks made from reindeer antlers. They started digging up herbs and eating some of the roots. Grass grew scared again. He noticed a tiny, inconspicuous creeping plant nearby. Grass said, “I wish I were a Creeping Plant.” Instantly, he turned into a small Creeping Plant.

The women returned and pulled up a lot of the small creeping plant. Grass became quite anxious. He said, “I wish I could be that little Tuber-plant over there.” Suddenly, he transformed into a plant with a tuberous root.

[Page143] Soon, a small tundra mouse crept through the grass and started nibbling on one of the nearby tubers. Grass thought, "I won't be safe until I turn into a Mouse." Immediately, Grass transformed into Mouse.

He felt completely free as Mouse and dashed around the tundra, nibbling on roots. Sometimes he would sit up on his hind legs and look around. While moving along, Mouse spotted a huge white Thing coming toward him. Occasionally, it would drop to the ground, and after eating something, it would take off again. As it got closer, Mouse realized it was a large white owl. The owl noticed Mouse and swooped down on him, but Mouse quickly slipped into a nearby hole, and the owl flew away.

Mouse was really scared by this. When he came out of his hole, he said, “I’ll be an Owl. Then I’ll be safe.” Immediately, he transformed into a beautiful white Owl. With slow, silent wings, he flew north, stopping occasionally to catch and eat a mouse. After a long flight, he spotted Sledge Island. Owl thought he would head there. When he was far out at sea, he became very tired. He could barely reach the shore.

As he rested on a piece of driftwood on the sand, two men walked by along the shore. Owl thought for a moment. Then he said, “I will be a Man.” Suddenly, he became a handsome young man, but he had no clothes. Night fell, and the air grew cool. Man sat down [Pg144] with his back against the driftwood and slept there until morning. When the sun came up, he woke up. He felt sore and stiff from the cold night air.

Looking around, Man found some grass and wove it into a loose robe that helped keep out the cold. Suddenly, he spotted reindeer nearby. He crawled on his hands and knees close to one, grabbed it by the horns, and broke its neck in one swift motion. He carried the reindeer on his back to his sleeping spot. He felt all over the reindeer’s body, but its skin was too thick for him to break open with his fingers. After thinking for a long time, he noticed a sharp-edged stone nearby. He picked it up and found he could cut the skin with it. So, Man skinned the deer. But he had no fire to cook it. Looking around, he saw two round white stones on the beach. When he struck them together, they produced sparks. He then found some dry wood and scraped off bits. Using the wood and the stones, he made a fire and roasted some of the meat.

Man tried to swallow a big piece of meat, like he had when he was Owl, but he couldn't do it. He had to cut it with the sharp stone into smaller pieces.

The next day, he killed another reindeer and skinned it. The day after that, he did the same. The nights became so cold that he wrapped the skins around himself. When they dried, they felt like a part of his body. But the nights grew even colder, and the days felt chilly as well. Then Chunuhluk, the man, found some driftwood and built a simple hut.

After finishing his hut, Chunuhluk was walking over the hills one day when he came across a strange black beast among the blueberry bushes. Chunuhluk didn’t know what to do at first, but eventually he grabbed it by the hind legs. The black creature turned around with a growl and showed its white teeth. Chunuhluk quickly grabbed the bear by its thick fur and threw it to the ground, where it lay still. Then he killed it. After that, he threw it over his shoulders and headed home. Once there, he skinned it.

When Chunuhluk skinned the bear, he discovered it was full of fat. He thought it might be good for burning. His hut was quite dark. So he walked along the beach until he found a flat stone with a small indent in it. He poured the oil from the fat into that, then added a bit of dry moss and set the end of the moss on fire. After that, his hut was lit up pretty well.

Chunuhluk also draped the bearskin over the doorway to block the cold. This way, he lived for many days.

But eventually, Chunuhluk felt lonely. Then he remembered the two men who had passed by him when he was Owl. He went in search of people. Finally, he found two new kayaks at the base of a hill, along with spears, lines, floats, and other hunting gear. Then he noticed a nearby path. At the top was a house. On the ground around it were several dead white whales. Chunuhluk sneaked carefully into the entrance and approached the door. He lifted a corner of a skin and saw a young man working on some arrows. He stepped inside very quietly. The young man raised a bow and arrow to shoot, but Chunuhluk said, “I have come, brother.”

The young man said happily, “Are you my brother? Come and sit next to me.”

At first, the young man was really happy. He taught Chunuhluk everything. But eventually, he got jealous of him. Then Chunuhluk became dismissive. One day he said, "You can't kill anything without a bow and arrow. I can kill with just my hands." That made the brother even angrier.

One day, they were both out on the water in their kayaks. The young man said, “Let’s see who can get to shore first.” They both reached the beach at the same time. Then the young man said, “You’re no longer my brother. You go that way and I’ll go this way.” So they parted in anger. As they went, Chunuhluk turned into Wolverine and his brother became Gray Wolf. To this day, they wander the same land, but never together.

[Pg147]

Koryak (Siberia)

IT was a time when the Creator was alive. One day, a fierce snowstorm erupted and it howled endlessly. The Creator prepared to head to Wind Man’s village to discover why the storm was so relentless. He chose a skin boat instead of a sled. He hitched mice to it instead of reindeer. Then he set off.

He arrived at the village of the Wind People. Everyone gathered around him and laughed at his sled and reindeer. “How are you going to take our gifts with those reindeer?” they asked.

Creator said, “Just put them in the boat and don’t worry about how I’ll take them away.”

The Wind People took out all their food and clothes and filled up the skin boat to the brim. Creator sent his mice back to drag the loaded skin boat home. Then he returned to the Wind People's village. They loaded his skin boat once more, and he took everything they had. After that, Creator’s mice chewed through the straps of all the Wind People’s sledges and harnesses. As a result, the Wind People could no longer drive, and the snowstorm stopped. That’s all.

[Pg148]

Koryak (Siberia)

ONE day, Fox told his kids, “I’m going to get some eggs.” He headed into the woods and spotted Eagle’s nest high up in a tree. He stuffed some grass stalks in his ears, tapped on the tree with them, and said to Eagle, “Throw me down an egg. If you don’t, I’ll knock this tree down with these stalks and break it.”

Eagle got scared and dropped an egg.

"Pour another," said Fox.

“That’s enough,” said Eagle. “I’m not throwing down anymore.”

Fox said, “Drop it. If I take down the tree, I’ll get them all.”

Eagle was scared and dropped another egg. Then Fox laughed and said, “I tricked you really well. How could I have knocked down a whole tree with these tiny grass stalks?”

Eagle got really mad. He pounced on Fox, grabbed him with his claws, lifted him high into the sky, [Pg149] flew way out to sea, and dropped him on a deserted island.

Fox stayed on that island. He lived there and thought to himself, “Am I really going to die on this island?”

Fox started to sing shaman songs. Seals, walrus, and whales showed up near the island. “What are you singing about?” they asked Fox.

“This is what I was singing about,” said Fox. “Are there more animals in the sea or on dry land?”

“Of course, there are more in the waters of the sea,” the Sea People replied.

“Well, let’s see,” said Fox. “Come to the surface of the water and create a raft from this island to the land. Then I’ll walk over you and count you all.”

The Sea People all surfaced and formed a raft. Fox ran over their backs, pretending to count them. But as soon as he hit land, he jumped off and went home. That's it.

THE END