Old Indian Legends
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''Old Indian Legends'' is a collection of
Sioux The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin ( ; Dakota/ Lakota: ) are groups of Native American tribes and First Nations people from the Great Plains of North America. The Sioux have two major linguistic divisions: the Dakota and Lakota peoples (translati ...
stories retold by the
Yankton Dakota The Dakota (pronounced , or ) are a Native American tribe and First Nations band government in North America. They compose two of the three main subcultures of the Sioux people, and are typically divided into the Eastern Dakota and the Wester ...
writer
Zitkala-Sa Zitkala-Ša, also Zitkála-Šá (Lakota language, Lakota: , meaning Northern cardinal, Red Bird; February 22, 1876 – January 26, 1938), was a Yankton Dakota writer, editor, translator, musician, educator, and political activist. She was also kn ...
and published in 1901. Concerned about the effect of assimilation on the tribe's children, she wanted to preserve the traditional stories of her people. According to the
University of Virginia Library The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his Academical Village, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The original governin ...
Electronic Text Center, there are 14 legends which comprise this book. The first five legends have an unlucky trickster character, a spider fairy named
Iktomi In Lakota mythology, Iktómi is a spider- trickster spirit, and a culture hero for the Lakota people. Alternate names for Iktómi include Ikto, Ictinike, Inktomi, Unktome, and Unktomi. These names are due to the differences in languages betwe ...
.


The Iktomi stories


Iktomi and the Ducks

Iktomi befriends a group of dancing
ducks Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in the family (biology), family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked than swans and goose, geese, which are members of the same family. Divided among several subfam ...
and tricks them by playing music and having them dance in a way in which they twist their necks and break them, which kills the ducks. He then takes the ducks back to his
teepee A tipi or tepee ( ) is a conical lodge tent that is distinguished from other conical tents by the smoke flaps at the top of the structure, and historically made of animal hides or pelts or, in more recent generations, of canvas stretched o ...
and cooks them until he hears a tree cracking in the wind and goes to investigate. He breaks the limb that cracks but gets stuck by it, and a group of
wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, including the dog and dingo, though gr ...
comes along and eats his feast.


Iktomi’s Blanket

Iktomi is hungry and needs food because the wolf took the ducks. He prays to
Inyan In Lakota mythology Lakota mythology is the body of sacred stories that belong to the Lakota people, also known as the Teton Sioux. Overview The Lakota believe that everything has a spirit; including trees, rocks, rivers, and almost every natu ...
, whom he refers to as the great-grandfather, to bless him with meat. Iktomi offers Inyan his blanket. Upon returning from prayer, Iktomi comes across a wounded
deer A deer (: deer) or true deer is a hoofed ruminant ungulate of the family Cervidae (informally the deer family). Cervidae is divided into subfamilies Cervinae (which includes, among others, muntjac, elk (wapiti), red deer, and fallow deer) ...
and believes his prayer was answered. Iktomi builds a fire and cooks the deer meat, but while doing so he grows cold. Realizing he has nothing to put on for warmth, he decides to go back to retrieve the blanket that he gave to Inyan. Upon return to his
teepee A tipi or tepee ( ) is a conical lodge tent that is distinguished from other conical tents by the smoke flaps at the top of the structure, and historically made of animal hides or pelts or, in more recent generations, of canvas stretched o ...
, he sees that his meat has been eaten and that his fire is out. Iktomi realizes that he should have eaten the meat first before going to retrieve his blanket.


Iktomi and the Muskrat

Iktomi is preparing some fish when he hears a voice calling him "friend". He looks around and sees a
muskrat The muskrat or common muskrat (''Ondatra zibethicus'') is a medium-sized semiaquatic rodent native to North America and an introduced species in parts of Europe, Asia, and South America. The muskrat is found in wetlands over various climates ...
by his feet. The muskrat asks Iktomi if he will share his fish, and Iktomi suggests that they race for the fish and that if the muskrat wins, they will share it. The muskrat tells Iktomi that he cannot race, but Iktomi offers to strap a heavy rock around his waist to give the muskrat a fair chance. The muskrat agrees and they head off in opposite directions so that they can race back to the fish. The muskrat swims across the lake and wins the race, and tells Iktomi he should have just shared in the first place.


Iktomi and the Coyote

Iktomi is walking across a
prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...
when he comes across a
coyote The coyote (''Canis latrans''), also known as the American jackal, prairie wolf, or brush wolf, is a species of canis, canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the Wolf, gray wolf, and slightly smaller than the c ...
lying on the ground. He believes the coyote is dead even though it is still warm. Iktomi decides to take the coyote back to his teepee to cook. But the coyote is alive, and when Iktomi arrives at his place, he builds a fire and throws the coyote into the fire. The coyote escapes the fire and tells Iktomi that he had better make sure his prey is dead before preparing the meal.


Iktomi and the Fawn

Iktomi comes across a beautiful
peacock Peafowl is a common name for two bird species of the genus '' Pavo'' and one species of the closely related genus '' Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae (the pheasants and their allies). Male peafowl are referred t ...
in a tree and wishes to be as beautiful as the peacock. He begs the peacock to give him wonderful
feathers Feathers are epidermis (zoology), epidermal growths that form a distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on both Bird, avian (bird) and some non-avian dinosaurs and other archosaurs. They are the most complex integumentary structures found in ...
, so the peacock magically transforms Iktomi into a peacock. The only condition is that Iktomi may not try to fly. Being stubborn, Iktomi tries to fly but fails and gets transformed back into a human being. Next Iktomi comes across an
arrow An arrow is a fin-stabilized projectile launched by a bow. A typical arrow usually consists of a long, stiff, straight shaft with a weighty (and usually sharp and pointed) arrowhead attached to the front end, multiple fin-like stabilizers c ...
and is transformed into it, but again fails to follow one rule and returns to normal. Finally, he comes across a fawn and asks the
fawn A deer (: deer) or true deer is a hoofed ruminant ungulate of the family (biology), family Cervidae (informally the deer family). Cervidae is divided into subfamilies Cervinae (which includes, among others, muntjac, elk (wapiti), red deer, a ...
to give him spots similar to his. In order to get the spots, Iktomi has to be buried in a hole and burned with dried grass, sticks, and
cedar Cedar may refer to: Trees and plants *''Cedrus'', common English name cedar, an Old-World genus of coniferous trees in the plant family Pinaceae * Cedar (plant), a list of trees and plants known as cedar Places United States * Cedar, Arizona ...
ember. The fawn agrees to help Iktomi, and Iktomi lies down in the hole and blue smoke rises, but Iktomi climbs out of the fire before burning, and does not get the brown spots he desired.


References


External links

* {{Gutenberg, 338, title=Old Indian Legends 1901 short story collections American short story collections Children's short story collections Collections of fairy tales Dakota culture 1901 children's books