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Winalagalis is a war god of the Kwakwaka'wakw native people of
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...
. He travels the world, making war. Winalagilis comes from North (underworld) to winter with the Kwakwaka'wakw (formerly known, incorrectly, as the Kwakiutl). (Locher p. 24-25) Winalagalis is the bringer and ruler of ''Tseka'' (Winter Ceremonial), and imbues red cedar bark with supernatural power.
Winalagalis is associated with a magical war canoe (alternately described as made of copper, a sisiutl, invisible, able to travel underground, & permanently fused with Winalagalis). He is also described as thin, tall, black, with bat-like eyes. (Jonaitis 100)
Winalagalis' ceremonies include the '' Tuxwid'' and ''Hawinalal'' warrior invincibility dances, and the ma'maka (disease thrower) dance. In the ''Hawinalal'', dancers don sisiutl girdles, are pierced through back & thigh skin with skewers, and suspended from the rafters of the plank house to demonstrate invincibility & immunity from pain (Boas, "Social Organization...", p. 485).
He is announced by whistles & bull-roarers (the voice of Winalagalis).
Winalagalis Treaty Group
The Winalagalis Treaty Group is a group of four First Nations band governments on Vancouver Island in the Canadian province of British Columbia, Canada. The group was formed to coordinate and administer negotiations with the government of the Prov ...
References
*Boas, Franz. "Kwakiutl Ethnography." 1966. University of Chicago Press. London.
*Boas, Franz. "Social Organization and the Secret Societies of the Kwakiutl Indians." 1897. Smithsonian Institution. Washington D.C.
*Jonaitis, Aldona, ed. "Chiefly Feasts: The Enduring Kwakiutl Potltach." 1991. AMHH. Seattle.
*Locher, Gottfried Wilhelm. "The Serpent in Kwakiutl Religion: A Study in Primitive Culture".1932. E.J. Brill. Holland.
Kwakwaka'wakw godsLegendary serpentsNuu-chah-nulth mythologyWar gods