native american creation story essay

Explore the Mystery of Native American Creation Myths

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Where did we come from?

Ideas and theories about the beginning of the world run the gamut, with different cultures, groups, and religions offering creation stories or myths, and explanations of how different parts of the world came to be.

Perhaps one of the most fascinating of these groups is the Native Americans. Across the board, Native American cultures offer many creation legends, many of which involve sacred caves or underground tunnels .

As we explore the stories offered by Native Americans as to the beginnings of everything, we also wind deeper into the Earth itself.

The Apache have several myths about creation that involve both gods and animals.

In one myth , Tepeu and Quetzalcoatl think everything into being. Essentially, their thoughts become reality, so they think everything from mountains to trees and the sky into reality. However, when they discovered these creations couldn’t praise them, they made others out of clay and wood. When these beings caused havoc on the world, the gods sent a great flood to wipe them out and start over.

Another of the Apache myths describes the beginning as an awakening of sorts, with darkness turning to light through the actions of a small, bearded man, the One Who Lives Above. They say by rubbing his face and hands, he created the Sun-God, Big Dipper, Wind, and Lightning-Rumbler, to name a few.

Then, after the gods united through a handshake, the Creator directed them to pull a brown ball that had dropped from his hands in all directions to form the Earth, and with the hummingbird’s guidance, placed four cardinal points on the Earth to make it still.

While the Hopi have multiple legends , perhaps one of the most intriguing involves the Ant People, who are credited with saving the Hopi not once, but twice.

The so-called “First World” was destroyed by fire — be it an ejection from the sun, volcanic eruption, or asteroid strike, and the “Second World” was destroyed by ice — perhaps glaciers or a pole shift. In both instances, Hopi legends say the tribe was guided during the day by an odd-shaped cloud, and during the night by a moving star. These guides led them to a sky god named Sotuknang, who took them to the Ant People.

It was in the aforementioned subterranean caves that the Hopi found refuge during the global cataclysms occurring above. In this legend, the Ant People are seen as generous and hardworking, giving the Hopi food and teaching them about food storage when they needed it most.

Interestingly, the Babylonian sky god was named “Anu,” also the Hopi word for “ant.” “Naki” is the Hopi root word for friends. So, the Hopi Anu-naki, or “ant friends” may have some correlation with the Sumerian Annunaki .

Such sacred caves are also a theme in Sioux legends, regarding a location in the Wind Cave National Park , in South Dakota.

In this legend, the Sioux feared a cave that had wind blowing in and out of it — they believed a breathing giant lived inside , and the giant invoked the providence of the Great Spirit.

However, one curious medicine man is said to have seen a vision from a young Indian maiden, telling him she was the immortal buffalo lady from under the Earth. She told the medicine man to tell the others the cave was a sacred place, and people should come and drop offerings and tokens, which would gain them great herds of buffalo.

The Lakota version of events starts with adultery.

In their version of events, Inktomi, the spider trickster, causes a riff between the Sun God Takushkanshkan and his wife, the Moon. Their separation created time. While previously, the gods had lived in heaven, Inktomi and his co-conspirators were exiled to live with the cultureless humans who inhabited Earth.

Upon arrival, Inktomi travels underground to meet where humanity lived , and convinces Tokahe (“the first”) to come to the surface. He emerges from the Wind Cave to find a beautiful place, so he convinces other families to come up.

Tokahe soon figures out he was duped , as “buffalo are scarce, the weather has turned bad, and they find themselves starving.” To make matters worse, he and the other families who settled there cannot return to their home underground, and so must eke out an existence on the surface of the Earth.

Finally, the Cherokee also have several myths that explain the beginnings of the Earth.

In one myth, a great island floated in an ocean, attached to four thick ropes from the sky, which was rock. Because everything was dark, the animals could not see. The Great Spirit told the animals to stay awake for seven days and nights, but most of them couldn’t. However, the plants that stayed awake were able to stay green all year, and the animals that were able to stay awake such as the owl and mountain lion could also go about in the dark.

Another story describes everything being water, and the animals living above it and the sky being overcrowded. One day, a water beetle named Dayuni’si volunteered to explore underwater and found mud he brought back to the surface. He brought back so much mud he created the Earth. As the Earth hardened, they pulled a sun out from behind the rainbow and placed it high in the sky to light the path.

In both of these legends, the animals came first , and the humans second.

Exploring the Connections Between Native American Legends

Without a doubt, the stories and legends behind the beginning of the world vary greatly depending on the Native American tribe attached to them.

However, many of the similarities and links among the stories bring about questions and curiosities about what might lie inside the Earth , and how it affected the creation of the world as we know it today.

Want more like this article? Don’t miss Ancient Civilizations on Gaia to journey through humanity’s suppressed origins and examine the secret code left behind by our ancestors.

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Human 'Hobbit' Ancestor May Still Be Alive in Indonesian Jungles

Could an ancient human species still be alive deep in the forests of Indonesia? An award-winning anthropologist thinks that might be the case.

On the Indonesian island of Flores, some locals tell tales of an animal that is like a human but is not human. Some say they are extinct, others claim to have seen them with their own eyes. Anthropologist Gregory Forth, who lived with and studied the people of the island for decades, calls this creature the “Apeman.” 

For years it was an interesting story, but as many anthropologists will tell you, stories like this are often allegory or a way to explain the natural world. But in 2004, the anthropological world was shaken when the “hobbit” skeleton was found. This was a tiny species of hominin. A rebuilt skeleton stands at just 3’7,” but apparently lived at the same time as early modern humans.

The tale of the relationship between oral histories and the fossils, dubbed Homo floresiensis , is the subject of Forth’s new book, “ Between Ape and Human .”

Forth, now retired, was a professor of anthropology at the University of Alberta for more than three decades. He first heard of the “Apeman” from the “Lio” people of Flores in the 1980s.

But what about this story sounded like it might be true?  

“It’s the way that people were describing them as animals, as a kind of animal — not human beings by the way, the distinction is very important for them as it is for most people. But at the same time they’re beings that walked erect unlike any other animal, and otherwise looked humanlike, although they were very small (or they are very small), and somewhat hairier.”  

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Lakota Sioux Creation Story

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The Lakota Sioux , like other tribal nations, had many versions of a creation story but all involved Wakan Tanka (Great Mystery or Great Spirit), the supreme creative power in the universe, who made all things and so caused all to be related as a family, whether human, animal, plant, spirit, or element; one's 'relatives' were all living things.

Since everything had been born from the same source, all things were imbued with the same sacred spirit, including what one might call inanimate objects such as stones, trees, mountains, and earth. Human beings were only one part of the great, intricate, web of creation; neither superior nor inferior to any other, whether a bear or elk or an ant or rock. Scholar Larry J. Zimmerman writes:

Most Native American origin stories give people no more power than the other parts of creation; people are the Earth's partners and know it intimately as the source from which they sprang. The lands on which Indians live reflect the creation and there is a rich body of stories that detail how things came to be. (76)

Two of the best-known Lakota creation tales are the one where Wakan Tanka creates the first world directly beginning with rock (a world later destroyed by fire) and the one where animals are enlisted as helpers in bringing up primordial mud from the deep waters after Wakan Tanka has destroyed the second world through a flood. The world in which the Native Americans were living at the time of the European conquest of North America was understood as the third world which, Wakan Tanka warned, would also be destroyed if people did not behave properly with respect for all living things.

Twelve Stories of the Plains Indians

Sioux creation stories.

There are no dates attached to either creation story as they were passed down generation-to-generation orally for many years, possibly thousands of years, through the storytellers who were entrusted to remember and relate the sacred tales that informed the culture of the Sioux. The first record of the stories comes from the 19th century when American explorers like George Catlin (l. 1796-1872) recorded them. The stories also have no titles but are usually referenced as "Sioux Creation Myth" or "Sioux Creation Story" without specifying which of the many versions is being related. There is also no way of knowing whether the story involving Wakan Tanka and the earliest gods (beginning with rock) is the story of the creation of the first world or of the second that is then destroyed by a great flood.

In the story where Wakan Tanka creates the world directly, nothing exists but darkness (described as "the Black of Darkness"), an aspect of Wakan Tanka known as Han. Wakan Tanka sent his spirit to inhabit a place within Han, and this became Inyan (Rock) and so rock existed within endless darkness. Wakan Tanka wanted to expand his creation and so made Maka (Earth) from his blood and then Skan (sky). There were now four primordial gods – Han, Inyan, Maka, and Skan – all aspects of Wakan Tanka but able to operate independently for their own purposes.

Skan drew on Han's deep darkness to create the darkness people know as 'night' and then drew on himself, Maka, and Inyan to create Wi (the sun), who gave light and warmth to the other gods. These gods then wanted something to share the light and warmth with and were lonely by themselves and so created the four winds of the world, the whirlwind, humans, and buffalo. The bear, who could walk on two legs, was created at the same time as the two-legged humans and was considered their brother. The four-legged creatures were created at the same time as the buffalo and were also spiritual brethren.

The creative act also gave birth to the spiritual power of all things individually and collectively (Sicun), the breath of life (Niya) as well as ghosts and one's "astral self" (Nagi) and the divine essence (Nagila, "little ghost ") that animates all things and allows one to recognize that same divine energy in other people, animals, and all of creation. Once these energies were active, the gods rested, and the created world was begun.

If this story is understood as the creation of the first world, then humans eventually lost touch with their Nagila, failed to recognize the sacred in each other and their fellow participants in the great dance of the universe, and were destroyed by Wakan Tanka in a great fire. Wakan Tanka then created the second world, but, in time, the human beings forgot themselves again and began to behave badly, and so this world was destroyed by a great flood. The second Sioux creation story, given below, describes how Wakan Tanka then created the third world, the world of this present era, and also explains why the world (or North America at least) was called "Turtle Island" – because it was formed on the back of the turtle.

The following text dates from c. 1910 but is understood to be much earlier and carries the vague date of "pre-18th century" on the site Native American Creation Stories . The same story in abridged form appears on the site First People as Lakota Creation Myth . In the following version, an aspect of the Great Flood story from the Bible (Genesis 6-9) appears when Wakan Tanka places a rainbow in the sky as a sign there will be no more flood, just as God does in Genesis 9:12-17 when the waters have subsided and Noah and his family are allowed to leave the ark.

This is understood as an example of syncretism of religious beliefs caused by the introduction of Christianity to Sioux culture. The Native American Church, epitomizing such syncretism, was well established by the late 19th century, and so it is not surprising to find literary borrowing from the Bible in a Sioux tale. Whether the rainbow featured in the original Lakota Sioux story is unknown.

There was a world before this world, but the people in it did not know how to behave themselves or how to act human. The Creating Power was not pleased with that earlier world. He said to himself: "I will make a new world." He had the pipe bag and the chief pipe, which he put on the pipe rack that he had made in the sacred manner. He took four dry buffalo chips, placed three of them under the three sticks, and saved the fourth one to light the pipe. The Creating Power said to himself: "I will sing three songs, which will bring a heavy rain. Then I'll sing a fourth song and stamp four times on the earth, and the earth will crack wide open. Water will come out of the cracks and cover the land." When he sang the first song, it started to rain. When he sang the second, it poured. When he sang the third, the rain-swollen rivers overflowed their beds. But when he sang the fourth song and stamped on the earth, it split open in many places like a shattered gourd, and water flowed from the cracks until it covered everything. The Creating Power floated on the sacred pipe and on his huge pipe bag. He let himself be carried by waves and wind this way and that, drifting for a long time. At last, the rain stopped, and by then all the people and animals had drowned. Only Kangi, the crow, survived, though it had no place to rest and was very tired. Flying above the pipe, "Tunkasllila, Grandfather, I must rest soon"; and three times the crow asked him to make a place for it to light. Remove Ads Advertisement The Creating Power thought: "It's time to unwrap the pipe and open the pipe bag." The wrapping and the bag contained all manner of animals and birds, from which he selected four animals known for their ability to stay under water for a long time. First he sang a song and took the loon out of the bag. He commanded the loon to dive and bring up a lump of mud. The loon did dive, but it brought up nothing. "I dived and dived but couldn't reach bottom," the loon said. "I almost died. The water is too deep." The Creating Power sang a second song and took the otter out of the bag. He ordered the otter to dive and bring up some mud. The sleek otter at once dived into the water, using its strong webbed feet to go down, down, down. It was submerged for a long time, but when it finally came to the surface, it brought nothing. Taking the beaver out of the pipe's wrapping, the Creating Power sang a third song. He commanded the beaver to go down deep below the water and bring some mud. The beaver thrust itself into the water, using its great flat tail to propel itself downward. It stayed under water longer than the others, but when it finally came up again, it too brought nothing. At last, the Creating Power sang the fourth song and took the turtle out of the bag. The turtle is very strong. Among our people it stands for long life and endurance and the power to survive. A turtle heart is great medicine , for it keeps on beating a long time after the turtle is dead. "You must bring the mud," the Creating Power told the turtle. It dove into the water and stayed below so long that the other three animals shouted: "The turtle is dead; it will never come up again!" All the time, the crow was flying around and begging for a place to light. After what seemed to be eons, the turtle broke the surface of the water and paddled to the Creating Power. "I got to the bottom!" the turtle cried. "I brought some earth!" And sure enough, its feet and claws—even the space in the cracks on its sides between its upper and lower shell—were filled with mud. Scooping mud from the turtle's feet and sides, the Creating Power began to sing. He sang all the while that he shaped the mud in his hands and spread it on the water to make a spot of dry land for himself. When he had sung the fourth song, there was enough land for the Creating Power and for the crow. Love History? Sign up for our free weekly email newsletter! "Come down and rest," said the Creating Power to the crow, and the bird was glad to. Then the Creating Power took from his bag two long wing feathers of the eagle. He waved them over his plot of ground and commanded it to spread until it covered everything. Soon all the water was replaced by earth. "Water without earth is not good," thought the Creating Power, "but land without water is not good either." Feeling pity for the land, he wept for the earth and the creatures he would put upon it, and his tears became oceans, streams, and lakes. "That's better," he thought. Out of his pipe bag the Creating Power took all kinds of animals, birds, plants and scattered them over the land. When he stamped on the earth, they all came alive. From the earth the Creating Power formed the shapes of men and women . He used red earth and white earth, black earth and yellow earth, and made as many as he thought would do for a start. He stamped on the earth and the shapes came alive, each taking the color of the earth out of which it was made. The Creating Power gave all of them understanding and speech and told them what tribes they belonged to. The Creating Power said to them: "The first world I made was bad; the creatures on it were bad. So I burned it up. The second world I made was bad too, so I drowned it. This is the third world I have made. Look: I have created a rainbow for you as a sign that there will be no more Great Flood. Whenever you see a rainbow, you will know that it has stopped raining." The Creating Power continued: "Now, if you have learned how to behave like human beings and how to live in peace with each other and with the other living things—the two-legged, the four-legged, the man-legged, the fliers, the no-legs, the green plants of this universe—then all will be well. But if you make this world bad and ugly, then I will destroy this world too. It's up to you." The Creating Power gave the people the pipe. "Live by it," he said. He named this land the Turtle Continent because it was there that the turtle came up with the mud out of which the third world was made. "Someday there might be a fourth world," the Creating Power thought. Then he rested.

The story features several elements from Sioux ritual including the use of the ceremonial pipe in ritual, sacred tobacco held in a special bundle, the power of song in creation, and the depiction of animals as vital co-workers in the cycle of existence. Wakan Tanka first creates land on the back of the turtle, then water, then animals, birds, and plants, and only then are humans created; suggesting, perhaps, that human beings should not think more highly of themselves than of all that was created before them. Zimmerman comments:

Some Native peoples believe that animals created the world. For many, the creator was an earth-diver, a turtle or other small creature, which brought up mud from the depths of the primeval waters and fashioned land from it…In Native belief, animals have spirits and enjoy a complex reciprocal relationship with people, plants, and the earth. Animals often play an important role in teaching people how to behave. (85)

In the story, the loon, otter, and beaver all do their best to bring Wakan Tanka the mud necessary for the creation of land (the loon even says, "I almost died") and, in doing so, honor the Creator and the creation. The turtle, considered especially sacred by the Sioux, accomplishes the mission by filling its shell with mud, something the other animals were not equipped to do, highlighting a central Sioux belief that each living thing had its own unique purpose to fulfill – human, animal, plant, or stone – and everyone's participation was necessary, no matter how small they might seem, in the wonder of the creation.

At the end of the story, Wakan Tanka gives the people the ceremonial pipe and a Sioux audience would have understood this to mean he was also giving them the seven sacred rituals that informed their spiritual beliefs and traditions. The conclusion of the story echoes the words of White Buffalo Calf Woman , the intermediary between the people and Wakan Tanka, that they will endure and prosper as long as they remember and honor their creator and creation through the Sioux ceremonial pipe and seven sacred rituals.

The rainbow, in this story, only serves as a reminder that it has stopped raining while, in the biblical tale, it is set as a sign of the promise that God will not destroy humanity again. The Sioux creation story makes no such promise, however, ending with the possibility of the destruction of the present third world if people again forget what they owe to their Creator, each other, the animals, and Earth as everyone's collective home.

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Bibliography

• Exploring U.S. History | Native American Creation Stories , accessed 11 Sep 2023.
• First People: Lakota Creation Myth - A Lakota Legend. , accessed 11 Sep 2023.
• Jackson, J.K. & Gill, S. Native American Myths & Legends. Flame Tree Publishing, 2013.
• Lake-Thom, B. Spirits of the Earth: A Guide to Native American Nature Symbols, Stories, and Ceremonies. Plume Books, 1997.
• Native Hope: Sioux Native Americans: Their History, Culture, and Traditions , accessed 11 Sep 2023.
• Nozedar, A. The Element Encyclopedia of Native Americans. Harper Collins Publishers, 2013.
• Various Ancient Authors. The Bible (King James Translation). Thomas Nelson, 2017.
• Zimmerman, L. J. The Sacred Wisdom of the Native Americans. Chartwell Books, 2016.

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Legends of America

Traveling through american history, destinations & legends since 2003., cherokee legend – how the world was made.

By Katharine Berry Judson in 1913

Standing at the Pool of Creation courtesy Guthrie Studios.

The earth is a great floating island in a sea of water. At each of the four corners, there is a cord hanging down from the sky. The sky is of solid rock. When the world grows old and worn out, the cords will break, and then the earth will sink down into the ocean. Everything will be water again. All the people will be dead. The Indians are much afraid of this.

In the long time ago, when everything was all water, all the animals lived up above in Galun’lati, beyond the stone arch that made the sky. But it was very much crowded. All the animals wanted more room. The animals began to wonder what was below the water, and at last, Beaver’s grandchild, little Water Beetle, offered to go and find out. Water Beetle darted in every direction over the surface of the water, but it could find no place to rest.

There was no land at all. Then Water Beetle dived to the bottom of the water and brought up some soft mud. This began to grow and spread out on every side until it became the island which we call the earth. Afterward, this earth was fastened to the sky with four cords, but no one remembers who did this.

At first, the earth was flat and soft and wet. The animals were anxious to get down, and they sent out different birds to see if it was yet dry, but there was no place to alight, so the birds came back to Galun’lati. Then, at last, it seemed to be time again, so they sent out Buzzard; they told him to go and make ready for them. This was the Great Buzzard, the father of all the buzzards we see now.

View of North Carolina and Tennessee from Newfound Gap, Kathy Weiser-Alexander.

He flew all over the earth, low down near the ground, and it was still soft. When he reached the Cherokee country, he was very tired; his wings began to flap and strike the ground. There was a valley wherever they struck the earth; whenever the wings turned upwards again, there was a mountain. When the animals above saw this, they were afraid that the whole world would be mountains, so they called him back, but the Cherokee country remains full of mountains to this day. [ This was the original home in North Carolina .]

When the earth was dry, and the animals came down, it was still dark. Therefore they got the sun and set it on a track to go every day across the island from east to west, just overhead. It was too hot this way. Red Crawfish had his shell scorched a bright red so that his meat was spoiled. Therefore, the Cherokee do not eat it.

Then the medicine men raised the sun a handsbreadth in the air, but it was still too hot. They raised it another time, and then another time; at last, they had raised it seven handsbreadths so that it was just under the sky arch. Then it was right, and they left it so. That is why the medicine men called the high place ” the seventh height.” Every day the sun goes along under this arch on the underside; it returns at night on the upper side of the arch to its starting place.

Underground Cave

There is another world under this earth. It is like this one in every way. The animals, the plants, and the people are the same, but the seasons are different. The streams that come down from the mountains are the trails by which we reach this underworld. The springs at their head are the doorways by which we enter it. But to enter the other world, one must fast and then go to the water and have one of the underground people as a guide. We know that the seasons in the underground world are different because the water in the spring is always warmer in winter than the air in this world, and in summer, the water is cooler.

We do not know who made the first plants and animals. But when they were first made, they were told to watch and keep awake for seven nights. This is the way young men do now when they fast and pray to their medicine. They tried to do this. The first night, nearly all the animals stayed awake. The next night several of them dropped asleep. On the third night, still more went to sleep. At last, on the seventh night, only the owl, the panther, and one or two more were still awake. Therefore, these were given the power to see in the dark, go about as if it were day, and kill and eat the birds and animals that must sleep during the night.

Even some of the trees went to sleep. Only the cedar, the pine, the spruce, the holly, and the laurel were awake all seven nights. Therefore they are always green. They are also sacred trees. But to the other trees, it was said, ” Because you did not stay awake, therefore you shall lose your hair every winter.”

After the plants and the animals, men began to come to the earth. At first, there was only one man and one woman. He hit her with a fish. In seven days, a little child came down to the earth. So people came to the earth. They came so rapidly that for a time, it seemed as though the earth could not hold them all.

By Katharine Berry Judson, 1913. Compiled and edited by Kathy Weiser-Alexander / Legends of America , updated November 2021.

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Native american creation stories.

These two Native American creation stories are among thousands of accounts for the origins of the world. The Salinian and Cherokee, from what we now call California and the American southeast respectively, both exhibit the common Native American tendency to locate spiritual power in the natural world. For both Native Americans and Europeans, the collision of two continents challenged old ideas and created new ones as well.

Salinan Indian Creation Story

When the world was finished, there were as yet no people, but the Bald Eagle was the chief of the animals. He saw the world was incomplete and decided to make some human beings. So he took some clay and modeled the figure of a man and laid him on the ground. At first he was very small but grew rapidly until he reached normal size. But as yet he had no life; he was still asleep. Then the Bald Eagle stood and admired his work. “It is impossible,” said he, “that he should be left alone; he must have a mate.” So he pulled out a feather and laid it beside the sleeping man. Then he left them and went off a short distance, for he knew that a woman was being formed from the feather. But the man was still asleep and did not know what was happening. When the Bald Eagle decided that the woman was about completed, he returned, awoke the man by flapping his wings over him and flew away.

The man opened his eyes and stared at the woman. “What does this mean?” he asked. “I thought I was alone!” Then the Bald Eagle returned and said with a smile, “I see you have a mate! Have you had intercourse with her?” “No,” replied the man, for he and the woman knew nothing about each other. Then the Bald Eagle called to Coyote who happened to be going by and said to him, “Do you see that woman?” Try her first!” Coyote was quite willing and complied, but immediately afterwards lay down and died. The Bald Eagle went away and left Coyote dead, but presently returned and revived him. “How did it work?” said the Bald Eagle. “Pretty well, but it nearly kills a man!” replied Coyote. “Will you try it again?” said the Bald Eagle. Coyote agreed, and tried again, and this time survived. Then the Bald Eagle turned to the man and said, “She is all right now; you and she are to live together.”

John Alden Mason, The Ethnology of the Salinan Indians (Berkeley: 1912), 191-192.

Available through the Internet Archive

Cherokee creation story

The earth is a great island floating in a sea of water, and suspended at each of the four cardinal points by a cord hanging down from the sky vault, which is of solid rock. When the world grows old and worn out, the people will die and the cords will break and let the earth sink down into the ocean, and all will be water again. The Indians are afraid of this.

When all was water, the animals were above in Gälûñ’lätï, beyond the arch; but it was very much crowded, and they were wanting more room. They wondered what was below the water, and at last Dâyuni’sï, “Beaver’s Grandchild,” the little Water-beetle, offered to go and see if it could learn. It darted in every direction over the surface of the water, but could find no firm place to rest. Then it dived to the bottom and came up with some soft mud, which began to grow and spread on every side until it became the island which we call the earth. It was afterward fastened to the sky with four cords, but no one remembers who did this.

At first the earth was flat and very soft and wet. The animals were anxious to get down, and sent out different birds to see if it was yet dry, but they found no place to alight and came back again to Gälûñ’lätï. At last it seemed to be time, and they sent out the Buzzard and told him to go and make ready for them. This was the Great Buzzard, the father of all the buzzards we see now. He flew all over the earth, low down near the ground, and it was still soft. When he reached the Cherokee country, he was very tired, and his wings began to flap and strike the ground, and wherever they struck the earth there was a valley, and where they turned up again there was a mountain. When the animals above saw this, they were afraid that the whole world would be mountains, so they called him back, but the Cherokee country remains full of mountains to this day.

When the earth was dry and the animals came down, it was still dark, so they got the sun and set it in a track to go every day across the island from east to west, just overhead. It was too hot this way, and Tsiska’gïlï’, the Red Crawfish, had his shell scorched a bright red, so that his meat was spoiled; and the Cherokee do not eat it. The conjurers put the sun another hand-breadth higher in the air, but it was still too hot. They raised it another time, and another, until it was seven handbreadths high and just under the sky arch. Then it was right, and they left it so. This is why the conjurers call the highest place Gûlkwâ’gine Di’gälûñ’lätiyûñ’, “the seventh height,” because it is seven hand-breadths above the earth. Every day the sun goes along under this arch, and returns at night on the upper side to the starting place.

There is another world under this, and it is like ours in everything–animals, plants, and people–save that the seasons are different. The streams that come down from the mountains are the trails by which we reach this underworld, and the springs at their heads are the doorways by which we enter, it, but to do this one must fast and, go to water and have one of the underground people for a guide. We know that the seasons in the underworld are different from ours, because the water in the springs is always warmer in winter and cooler in summer than the outer air.

When the animals and plants were first made–we do not know by whom–they were told to watch and keep awake for seven nights, just as young men now fast and keep awake when they pray to their medicine. They tried to do this, and nearly all were awake through the first night, but the next night several dropped off to sleep, and the third night others were asleep, and then others, until, on the seventh night, of all the animals only the owl, the panther, and one or two more were still awake. To these were given the power to see and to go about in the dark, and to make prey of the birds and animals which must sleep at night. Of the trees only the cedar, the pine, the spruce, the holly, and the laurel were awake to the end, and to them it was given to be always green and to be greatest for medicine, but to the others it was said: “Because you have not endured to the end you shall lose your, hair every winter.”

Men came after the animals and plants. At first there were only a brother and sister until he struck her with a fish and told her to multiply, and so it was. In seven days a child was born to her, and thereafter every seven days another, and they increased very fast until there was danger that the world could not keep them. Then it was made that a woman should have only one child in a year, and it has been so ever since.

W. Powell, Nineteenth Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1897-1898, Part I (Washington: 1900), 239-240.

Available through Google Books

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Primary source: native american creation stories.

These two Native American creation stories are among thousands of accounts for the origins of the world. The Salinian and Cherokee, from what we now call California and the American southeast respectively, both exhibit the common Native American tendency to locate spiritual power in the natural world. For both Native Americans and Europeans, the collision of two continents challenged old ideas and created new ones as well.

Salinan Indian Creation Story

When the world was finished, there were as yet no people, but the Bald Eagle was the chief of the animals. He saw the world was incomplete and decided to make some human beings. So he took some clay and modeled the figure of a man and laid him on the ground. At first he was very small but grew rapidly until he reached normal size. But as yet he had no life; he was still asleep. Then the Bald Eagle stood and admired his work. “It is impossible,” said he, “that he should be left alone; he must have a mate.” So he pulled out a feather and laid it beside the sleeping man. Then he left them and went off a short distance, for he knew that a woman was being formed from the feather. But the man was still asleep and did not know what was happening. When the Bald Eagle decided that the woman was about completed, he returned, awoke the man by flapping his wings over him and flew away.

The man opened his eyes and stared at the woman. “What does this mean?” he asked. “I thought I was alone!” Then the Bald Eagle returned and said with a smile, “I see you have a mate! Have you had intercourse with her?” “No,” replied the man, for he and the woman knew nothing about each other. Then the Bald Eagle called to Coyote who happened to be going by and said to him, “Do you see that woman?” Try her first!” Coyote was quite willing and complied, but immediately afterwards lay down and died. The Bald Eagle went away and left Coyote dead, but presently returned and revived him. “How did it work?” said the Bald Eagle. “Pretty well, but it nearly kills a man!” replied Coyote. “Will you try it again?” said the Bald Eagle. Coyote agreed, and tried again, and this time survived. Then the Bald Eagle turned to the man and said, “She is all right now; you and she are to live together.”

John Alden Mason, The Ethnology of the Salinan Indians (Berkeley: 1912), 191-192.

Available through the Internet Archive

Cherokee creation story

The earth is a great island floating in a sea of water, and suspended at each of the four cardinal points by a cord hanging down from the sky vault, which is of solid rock. When the world grows old and worn out, the people will die and the cords will break and let the earth sink down into the ocean, and all will be water again. The Indians are afraid of this.

When all was water, the animals were above in Gälûñ’lätï, beyond the arch; but it was very much crowded, and they were wanting more room. They wondered what was below the water, and at last Dâyuni’sï, “Beaver’s Grandchild,” the little Water-beetle, offered to go and see if it could learn. It darted in every direction over the surface of the water, but could find no firm place to rest. Then it dived to the bottom and came up with some soft mud, which began to grow and spread on every side until it became the island which we call the earth. It was afterward fastened to the sky with four cords, but no one remembers who did this.

At first the earth was flat and very soft and wet. The animals were anxious to get down, and sent out different birds to see if it was yet dry, but they found no place to alight and came back again to Gälûñ’lätï. At last it seemed to be time, and they sent out the Buzzard and told him to go and make ready for them. This was the Great Buzzard, the father of all the buzzards we see now. He flew all over the earth, low down near the ground, and it was still soft. When he reached the Cherokee country, he was very tired, and his wings began to flap and strike the ground, and wherever they struck the earth there was a valley, and where they turned up again there was a mountain. When the animals above saw this, they were afraid that the whole world would be mountains, so they called him back, but the Cherokee country remains full of mountains to this day.

When the earth was dry and the animals came down, it was still dark, so they got the sun and set it in a track to go every day across the island from east to west, just overhead. It was too hot this way, and Tsiska’gïlï’, the Red Crawfish, had his shell scorched a bright red, so that his meat was spoiled; and the Cherokee do not eat it. The conjurers put the sun another hand-breadth higher in the air, but it was still too hot. They raised it another time, and another, until it was seven handbreadths high and just under the sky arch. Then it was right, and they left it so. This is why the conjurers call the highest place Gûlkwâ’gine Di’gälûñ’lätiyûñ’, “the seventh height,” because it is seven hand-breadths above the earth. Every day the sun goes along under this arch, and returns at night on the upper side to the starting place.

There is another world under this, and it is like ours in everything–animals, plants, and people–save that the seasons are different. The streams that come down from the mountains are the trails by which we reach this underworld, and the springs at their heads are the doorways by which we enter, it, but to do this one must fast and, go to water and have one of the underground people for a guide. We know that the seasons in the underworld are different from ours, because the water in the springs is always warmer in winter and cooler in summer than the outer air.

When the animals and plants were first made–we do not know by whom–they were told to watch and keep awake for seven nights, just as young men now fast and keep awake when they pray to their medicine. They tried to do this, and nearly all were awake through the first night, but the next night several dropped off to sleep, and the third night others were asleep, and then others, until, on the seventh night, of all the animals only the owl, the panther, and one or two more were still awake. To these were given the power to see and to go about in the dark, and to make prey of the birds and animals which must sleep at night. Of the trees only the cedar, the pine, the spruce, the holly, and the laurel were awake to the end, and to them it was given to be always green and to be greatest for medicine, but to the others it was said: “Because you have not endured to the end you shall lose your, hair every winter.”

Men came after the animals and plants. At first there were only a brother and sister until he struck her with a fish and told her to multiply, and so it was. In seven days a child was born to her, and thereafter every seven days another, and they increased very fast until there was danger that the world could not keep them. Then it was made that a woman should have only one child in a year, and it has been so ever since.

W. Powell, Nineteenth Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1897-1898, Part I (Washington: 1900), 239-240.

Available through Google Books

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Creationism, Evolution, & Origin Stories: Indigenous Origin Stories

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• Natural Selection
• ABORIGINAL HISTORY (60,000 BP-1605 C.E.) As do other religions, Aboriginal religion has a body of myth contained in its creation stories, rules and prohibitions to follow, and a series of rituals that bring the myths to life. Religious rituals, regardless of the tradition in which they originate, are about regularly enacting the sacred moments of the believers’ history. For example, Christians partake in communion to reenact the last supper, when the apostles gave life to Jesus despite the sacrifice of his body on Earth. Aboriginal rituals likewise reenact the most important moments in the lives of their sacred ancestors as a way of connecting past and present. Rituals also provide moments for younger Aboriginal people to learn from their elders the words to songs, the moves to dances, the beat to songs, and the power of the ancestors in the past and present world.
• Native American Creation Myths Native American creation myths speak about origins. They are myths because they are imaginative stories that present events that took place at the beginning. They often relate how the world took shape, how a people were led to their own special place, and how humans, animals, plants, the stars, and all the variety of creatures in general or in particular came to be just as they are. Typically, they start out with the world and living creatures already in existence. Many of these stories have been written down and translated into English, often without indicating the narrator, his or her style, the audience response, and other circumstantial events. In this way the reader is already distanced from the stories themselves. Furthermore, to a reader more familiar with European storytelling and Greek and Roman myths, Native American creation myths are difficult because the reader's cultural expectations differ from those of the people whose stories are being told. Surprisingly, some of these stories are very long, the equivalent of hundreds of pages, while others are quite short. Although now in print, to be read at any time, some of these stories traditionally could be recited only during a certain season and at a certain time of day. Some are regarded as so sacred that it is questionable whether they should be collected in anthologies at all. Principally gathered by ethnographers, anthropologists, and Christian missionaries, the stories have become available in a wide range of publications. This may be fortunate for Indian and non-Indian alike. For the Native American, stories that have been lost in their own traditions have nevertheless been preserved, often in their original languages. For the non-Indian, the Indian perspective provides an alternative way of thinking about what is important for human beings. For readers accustomed to the stories in the Bible, these Native American creation stories are full of surprises.

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Perspectives

Diné Bahane' : The Navajo Creation Story

This is the most complete version of the Navajo creation story to appear in English since Washington Matthews' Navajo Legends of 1847. Zolbrod's new translation renders the power and delicacy of the oral storytelling performance on the page through a poetic idiom appropriate to the Navajo oral tradition. Zolbrod's book offers the general reader a vivid introduction to Navajo culture. For students of literature this book proposes a new way of looking at our literary heritage.

Creation Myths of the World

The most comprehensive resource available on creation myths from around the world their narratives, themes, motifs, similarities, and differences and what they reveal about their cultures of origin."

Maya Creation Myths

There is no Classical Yucatecan Maya word for "myth." But around the close of the seventeenth century, an anonymous Maya scribe penned what he called u kahlay cab tu kinil, "the world history of the era," before Christianity came to the Peten. He collected numerous accounts of the cyclical destruction and reestablishment of the cosmos; the origins of gods, human beings, and the rituals and activities upon which their relationship depends; and finally the dawn of the sun and the sacred calendar Maya diviners still use today to make sense of humanity's place in the otherwise inscrutable march of time. These creation myths eventually became part of the documents known today as the Books of Chilam Balam. Maya Creation Myths provides not only new and outstanding translations of these myths but also an interpretive journey through these often misunderstood texts, providing insight into Maya cosmology and how Maya intellectuals met the challenge of the European clergy's attempts to eradicate their worldviews. Unlike many scholars who focus primarily on traces of pre-Hispanic culture or Christian influence within the Books of Chilam Balam, Knowlton emphasizes the diversity of Maya mythic traditions and the uniquely Maya discursive strategies that emerged in the Colonial period. This book will be of significant interest to Maya scholars, folklorists, and historians, as well as students and scholars of religion, cosmology, and anthropology.

China's Creation and Origin Myths

How did the world begin? How were the first people created and which specific roles were they supposed to play in the cosmos? Like other mythologies worldwide, China’s creation and origin myths explain how man created order out of chaos and imposed culture on nature. Cross-cultural approaches to myth make us aware of the limitations of our own familiar classifications. This book makes a provocative case for the comparative study of the hidden treasures of China’s oral and written myth traditions in different languages and cultures, a legacy generously left behind by singers, storytellers, poets, and writers. This book opens new doors to the study of Chinese mythologies, a surprising and so far almost unknown world outside China

The Origins of Mississippian Culture

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Global Creation Stories

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Mayan Myths and Gods

Online articles.

• The Ch’orti’ Maya Myths of Creation Hull, Kerry The article offers information on the myths created by the Ch'orti' Maya peoples. Topics discussed include Ch'orti' people are primarily subsistence farmers, Ch'orti' language is part of the Eastern Branch of Ch'olan Mayan languages; and folktales, legends, jokes, and myths are the oral tradition of Ch'orti' Maya peoples.
• Creation Myth and the Prometheus Myth in Fulgentius The article deals with such element of the Prometheus myth as creation of humans from clay. This variation of the creation myth is present in such early sources as Hesiod and Aesop and in such classical ancient sources as Ovid and Properce; yet overall, it is rare. In late Antiquity, the plot becomes more popular (Pausanias, Hygin, Lucian). Sometimes, Hephaestus replaces Prometheus; sometimes the myth comes together with the Pandora myth, but the moment of animating a clay figure is usually vaguely described. The essay specifically focuses on Mythologies by Fulgentius (5–6 AD): both his narration and interpretation of the myth are rather unique. Fulgentius presents contamination of previous versions (such as stealing the fire from gods and giving it to humans; ascent to heaven; creation of humans from clay; Athena’s help; Pandora; punishment for stealing fire etc). Of particular interest is the stealing of the fire motif: in this version, Prometheus wants to animate humans with the help of fire instead of helping the humankind. The essay examines the etymology of Prometheus’s name and the allegory of the hawk in Fulgentius and pays special attention to the philosophical meaning of the fire that brings humans to life.
• The Mande Creation Myth, by Germaine Dieterlen, as a Historical Source for the Mali Empire This article proposes a new reading for Germaine Dieterlen's classic text “The Mande Creation Myth,” and presents it as evidence for Kangaba's prominent military role as ruler of the Niger and defender of the gold mines that for centuries provided the wealth of the Mali Empire. It is demonstrated that, although Dieterlen was in search of a unified cosmology, her informants in Kangaba provided answers that voiced Kangaba's military concerns and claims as political heir of the medieval Mali Empire and ruler of the River Niger. The starting point of the analysis are new insights on how creation is envisioned in the West African savannah, with an emphasis on termite mounds, earth, and blacksmiths. These insights are compared to the fieldwork data that Dieterlen collected in 1953-55, which she used in 1955 for a publication on the Kamabolon ceremony in Kangaba and, under strikingly different personal circumstances, in 1957 in the article “The Mande Creation Myth.” The article explains why Dieterlen herself nor other researchers have never been able to reproduce neither her 1953-55 findings nor her 1957 findings by pointing to Kangaba's raised prestige as a major historical site for a new Republic of Mali, which had acquired independence in 1960. Kangaba's new position replaced the earlier focus on military rule on the Niger and defense of gold mines (in what had become the Republic of Guinée in 1958). This argument is substantiated by a recently discovered contemporary report of the 1961 Kamabolon ceremony, written by a leading contemporary intellectual, Mambi Sidibé.

Nunavik Creation Stories

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Origin Stories of the Native American Tribes

Imagine a world where the skies are filled with stars, and the earth is teeming with life. A world where every plant, animal, and person has a story to tell. This is the world of Native American origin stories.

For centuries, these stories have been passed down through generations, shaping the beliefs and traditions of dozens of tribes across North America. They offer insight into how these cultures saw themselves in relation to the natural world, as well as their ideas about creation, morality, and spirituality.

But beyond that, they speak to something universal – our human desire for meaning and understanding in a complex and often confusing world.

Significance of Native American Origin Stories

Powerful stories from Indigenous communities show their beliefs and culture. They teach about Native American history and traditions.

Native American origin stories tell how humans, animals, and nature came to be. These stories help us understand how Indigenous people lived with the land.

Elders share these stories with younger people through oral tradition. This way, the important lessons are passed down for future generations.

These stories have deep spiritual meanings. They help people understand their place in the universe and how to respect all living things.

Native American stories teach us about connections to nature. They also remind us of the importance of preserving our unique cultures.

The Cherokee creation story is a great example of these amazing tales. By learning more about it, we can better appreciate Native American stories and their messages about nature and life.

Cherokee Creation Story

You’re transported back to a time when the world was dark and water covered everything, until a small creature dove down to retrieve mud from the depths and created land for the Cherokee people.

This is just one of many stories that make up the cultural significance of the Cherokee creation story.

The storytelling tradition is very important for Native American tribes. It helps to sustain their beliefs and special creatures.

The Cherokee origin story is about how divine beings created humans and animals. They used symbols to show their meaning.

For example, the gods gave corn as a gift. The people then used corn as a staple food in their lives.

The story also explains how humans were given fire by a spider named Grandmother Spider, which represents wisdom and creativity in their culture. It’s important to understand the historical context surrounding these origin stories.

The Cherokee people were forcibly removed from their ancestral lands during Andrew Jackson’s presidency in what is known as the Trail of Tears .

Despite this forced relocation, they’ve continued to pass down their traditions through storytelling. Through this oral tradition of sharing, they continue to honor their spiritual beliefs while preserving their history within each new generation.

The use of mythical creatures and symbolic elements adds richness to this narrative about how their tribe came into existence. In summary, the Cherokee creation may be a myth, but still holds deep cultural significance for its people.

As we move forward exploring other Native American tribes’ origin stories (next up is the Iroquois creation story, we see how each tribe has its unique way of understanding creationism despite sharing similarities in language or geographic location.

Iroquois Creation Story

The Iroquois origin story is a fascinating tale about how the world was made. It shows the beliefs and culture of the Iroquois people.

Celestial beings from the sky made the world in this story. This tells us that spirituality is important in Iroquois culture.

These beings created things like landscapes, animals, and humans. The story teaches us to respect nature and be thankful for divine help.

The Iroquois creation myth has been passed down through generations by telling it out loud. It uses special words to share spiritual ideas with listeners.

The story shows that everything in nature is connected. We learn that balance and harmony are important for the world.

Humans are not better than other living things in this story. All living beings are equal parts of a bigger whole, and divine help matters a lot.

There was once a big flood that put all life at risk. The Creator told one person to build an ark for animals so they could start again after the flood went away.

This event reminds us to always respect nature because it can give life or take it away. In short, this story helps us understand Indigenous cultures’ spiritual beliefs while appreciating nature’s power.

Hopi Creation Story

The Hopi creation tale offers a unique perspective on the formation of the world and emphasizes the significance of spiritual beliefs in shaping their culture.

According to Hopi mythology, the world was created by Spider Grandmother who spun a web that encompassed the universe.

Within this web, she created earth and all living beings. However, she soon realized that she needed help in governing these creatures so she called upon her nephew, Sotuknang, to assist her.

Kachina dolls are an important symbol in Hopi culture and play a significant role in their creation story. These dolls represent spirits who’ve been given physical form and are believed to bring blessings to their creators.

Another important figure in their mythology is Snake Woman who is said to protect the people from harm and guide them towards prosperity.

The emergence theory is also central to Hopi beliefs as it explains how they came into being as a people. They believe that they emerged from underground tunnels after passing through different worlds until they finally arrived at their current location. This belief is reflected in many of their rituals and ceremonies.

Hopi prophecy and symbolism are integral parts of their culture with many stories passed down through generations about the importance of certain symbols or signs. For example, rainbows are considered sacred because they represent harmony between the physical world and spirit realm. The blue corn plant represents spiritual strength while white corn symbolizes purity.

Transition: As we delve deeper into Native American origin stories, we’ll explore another fascinating tale – the Navajo creation story which offers its own unique insights into the formation of our world.

Navajo Creation Story

Let’s journey into the Navajo world of creation and discover their captivating tale.

The Navajo creation myth is an emergence one that tells of the four worlds and the holy people who helped create them. According to Navajo cosmology, the first world was black, the second blue, the third yellow, and the fourth white.

Each world was destroyed before a new one was created, with each destruction resulting from a conflict between good and evil.

The story begins with Changing Woman, who gave birth to twin sons named Nayenezgani and Tobadzistsini. They were born to fight monsters that were harming the people on Earth.

To help them on their journey, Spider Woman gave Nayenezgani a magic wand while Tobadzistsini received a crystal that could turn into any weapon they needed.

As Nayenezgani and Tobadzistsini traveled through each of the four worlds, they overcame challenges by using their gifts from Spider Woman.

When they reached the fourth world, they found two baby girls who had been abandoned by their parents. The twins adopted them as their own children.

The two baby girls eventually grew up to become Corn Mother and White Shell Woman. Corn Mother taught humans how to plant corn for food while White Shell Woman showed women how to make jewelry and pottery.

Together with Changing Woman, these three women became important figures in Navajo culture.

With this fascinating tale coming to an end, now we move onto exploring another origin story – Pueblo origin story that shares similar beliefs about nature’s power in shaping our existence.

Pueblo Creation Story

Let’s learn about the Pueblo creation belief. It is a special chronology for the Pueblo people that tells how their world was made.

Mythical beings helped create the world in this story. They used symbolic pictures to show their spiritual beliefs, which are still important today.

As we’ve learned about the first nations’ storytelling tradition, this has been passed down by people relaying it to their youth. This helps keep the Pueblo culture strong and alive for future generations.

The story also talks about special places like mountains and rivers. These places are very important in Pueblo culture.

The Pueblo origin myth is a great example of how story can teach us about different cultures. By listening to these tales, we can understand what people from long ago believed.

Now we will learn about another amazing Native American story: the Zuni creation myth. This story will help us learn even more about how these cultures used myths to explain their world.

Zuni Creation Story

The Zuni people have a special story about how the world was created. This story is very important to their culture.

The story says six spirit beings made different parts of the world. For example, one spirit made mountains and another made rivers.

Each month in the Zuni calendar is for one of these spirits. This shows how important they are in daily life and special ceremonies.

Zuni culture teaches that it is important to live in harmony with nature. The creation story reminds them to respect all living things.

Other tribes, like the Inuit, also have stories about creation. Even though their beliefs may be different, many stories share a love for nature and its connection to people.

Inuit Creation Story

The Inuit creation story has three main animal characters: Raven, Seagull, and Ptarmigan. They work together to make the world we know today.

Raven is a clever trickster who likes to make changes. In the story, he notices that it’s very dark and decides to create light.

To do this, Raven has to go through some challenges. At last, he makes daylight by taking it from an old man who hid it in a box.

Seagull helps shape the new world by using her beak to make mountains and valleys. Ptarmigan lays eggs that hatch into all sorts of creatures.

These stories are important for keeping Inuit culture alive. By sharing these stories with each other, they make sure their traditions continue for future generations.

The story also shows how connected the Inuit people are with nature. This connection is still a big part of their lives in the Arctic today.

Many Native American tribes have their own stories about how our world was created. Even though each tribe is different, they often share similar ideas about how humans are connected to nature and spirits. This shows how much indigenous people value both the physical world and things we can’t see or touch.

Common themes of Native American Creation Narratives

Imagine you are in a world full of different creation stories. These stories have been shared by families for many years.

Some common themes in these stories are how things began, cycles, magical beings, animals, special places, language, and balance. These ideas connect Native American people to their beliefs and what they find important.

Each theme is a building block that makes up Native American creation stories. They help us understand the world better and teach us about the past.

Symbolic imagery in stories helps us understand the deeper meaning of the world and its people. These images are connected to spiritual beliefs that show how humans and nature are linked.

Ancestral ties can be seen in Native American creation stories. These stories help tribes share their wisdom and knowledge with younger generations.

Many stories include natural elements like rivers or mountains. These elements have special meaning for the tribes who tell these stories.

Mythological creatures are often found in these tales. They represent different traits or characteristics important to the world and people.

Oral traditions are a big part of Native American creation narratives. This means they were mostly passed down by speaking, not writing.

Each tribe has its unique version of how the world began, showing cultural diversity. However, all of these stories teach us about our connection to nature and the universe around us.

Creation narratives, across all the first nations people, have common themes that anchor us to longstanding beliefs and values. These themes challenge us to respect all earth’s life forms while reminding us of our reliance upon nature.

Frequently Asked Questions

An interesting statistic shows that there are currently over 500 federally recognized Native American tribes in the United States, each with their own unique origin story. These stories play a crucial role in cultural preservation, as they are passed down through oral tradition and help to maintain a spiritual connection to the land and ancestors.

However, there can be challenges when it comes to historical accuracy and interpretation, as these stories have often been influenced by colonialism and Christianization. Despite these challenges, native communities continue to find contemporary relevance in their origin stories and use them as a tool for identity formation.

By understanding the significance of these stories, we can gain insight into the rich history and culture of Native Americans.

When exploring the differences between Native American origin stories and creation stories in other cultures, cultural comparisons are important to examine. The mythical differences lie in the historical context of each culture and the spiritual beliefs that drive their stories.

Native American origin stories often have ritual significance and incorporate symbolic imagery that is unique to their oral traditions. These stories often serve as a way to connect with ancestors and understand one’s place in the world, while also passing down cultural knowledge from generation to generation.

Overall, Native American origin stories offer a distinctive perspective on creation that is deeply rooted in their culture and spirituality.

When examining the creation myths of Native American tribes, one can discover common themes that reflect their spiritual beliefs and ancestral heritage.

Despite cultural diversity, many tribes share similar stories about the origins of humanity and the natural world.

Nature symbolism is often used to explain these creation myths, with animals and plants playing significant roles in the stories.

These tales are passed down through oral traditions, allowing for subtle variations to emerge over time.

Overall, exploring the similarities between these creation myths can offer insight into the interconnectedness of Native American cultures and their deep-rooted connection to nature.

Native American origin stories have been passed down through the generations primarily through oral tradition, cultural transmission, and storytelling techniques.

While there may be variations in the details of these stories due to adaptation over time and historical accuracy concerns, they still hold immense spiritual significance for many Native American tribes.

Additionally, the role of these stories in identity formation cannot be overstated as they often serve as a crucial link between past and present for many communities.

Despite being rooted in ancient traditions, these stories continue to resonate with audiences today who are seeking a deeper understanding of Native American culture and history.

Modern scientific discoveries have shed light on the origins of Native American populations, challenging and confirming some aspects of their traditional origin stories.

Genetic evidence suggests that the first inhabitants of the Americas migrated from Asia over 15,000 years ago, while linguistic analysis highlights similarities between indigenous languages and those spoken in Siberia.

Archaeological findings have also revealed evidence of early human settlements and migration patterns across North and South America.

Oral traditions have been a valuable resource for understanding cultural practices and spiritual beliefs, but environmental factors such as climate change may have played a role in shaping these traditions over time.

Overall, a combination of scientific research and indigenous knowledge offers a more complete picture of Native American history and heritage.

Different Characters Sharing a Single Outcome

The Native American origin stories are significant because they provide a glimpse into the beliefs and values of different tribes.

Each creation narrative is unique, yet they all share common themes such as the importance of nature, spirituality, and community.

These stories are not only a source of cultural identity but also offer valuable insights into how indigenous people view their place in the world.

Through their myths and legends, we see how Native Americans have maintained their connection to land and ancestors despite centuries of colonization.

By learning about these origin stories, we can gain a deeper appreciation for the rich diversity of Native American cultures and traditions.

It’s important that we approach these narratives with respect and an open mind to truly appreciate their beauty and significance.

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Native American Creation Stories

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Home — Essay Samples — Sociology — Native American — An Overview of Native American Creation Myths

An Overview of Native American Creation Myths

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Home > New Materials > Book Lists > Folklore and Stories from Native American Culture

Folklore and Stories from Native American Culture

When people think about Native American culture, they sometimes assume it is a unified belief system, but this is far from true. Native American beliefs are rooted in the natural world and reflect the geography of the place where they live. With tribes and nations spread across North America, there is a lot of diversity in geography and thought. Such diversity can be clearly observed in the narratives handed down through the generations by Native Americans. Stories transmitted by oral tradition encompass many aspects of the culture, natural and supernatural—creation myths, hero tales, cautionary warnings, and family histories, to name a few. This minibibliography brings together the traditional stories, legends, and myths passed on by Native Americans to their descendants.

All titles in this minibibliography can be requested from your local cooperating library. The digital talking book titles can be downloaded through  the NLS BARD (Braille and Audio Reading Download) website . Contact your local cooperating library to register for BARD. Registered users can also download titles on iOS and Android devices using the BARD Mobile app. To find your local cooperating library, go to  Find Your Library  or call toll-free 888-NLS-READ (888-657-7323).

For preschool to grade 2

For kindergarten to grade 3, for grades 2 to 4, for grades 3 to 6, for grades 4 to 7, for grades 5 to 8, for grades 6 to 9, grandmothers of the light: a medicine woman's sourcebook.

by Paula Gunn Allen Allen retells and explains twenty-one spiritual stories culled from the oral histories of various Native American tribes. These selections, which include creation legends, illustrate the tribes’ matriarchal values. Also discussed are the steps a woman passes through to become a medicine woman—the ways of the daughter, householder, mother, gatherer, ritualist, teacher, and wise woman. 1991. Download DB34434

The White Deer and Other Stories Told by the Lenape

by John Bierhorst Native American tales of the Lenape people, who were indigenous to New Jersey and its bordering states. The legends tell of magic dogs, lost children, and heroes. The title story depicts a white deer that can give game to hunters or can protect game by killing the hunters. For junior and senior high readers. 1995. Download BR10825

Native American Stories

by Joseph Bruchac Native Americans view human relationships with nature in terms of family, with the Earth as mother. This collection of tales and myths from various Native American groups focuses on this relationship. Chapter titles include "Creation," "Earth," "Wind Weather," and "Plants and Animals." For junior and senior high and older readers. 1991. Download BR08773 Download DB34361

American Indian Myths and Legends

by Richard Erdoes A wide-ranging anthology of one hundred sixty tales from one hundred tribes, including accounts of the creation, of heroes and monsters, of war and the warrior code, of love and passion, and of trickery and humor. 1984. Download DB22217

Raven Tales

by Peter Goodchild A selection of myths portraying the raven as a mythological figure accompanies a study of tales from a number of cultures. The chapters feature folktales of Native Americans living along the Pacific Northwest coast, and trace some variant tales as far as Asia. The raven commonly plays the role of culture hero, creator, transformer, or trickster in these oral tales. Violence. 1991. Download BR09147 Download DB35645

The Way to Rainy Mountain

by N. Scott Momaday Retells the Kiowa myths that the author learned from his grandmother; speculates on the actual history they may symbolize; and describes, with infectious nostalgia, the life he knew as a child. 1969. Download DB14482

Navaho Folk Tales

by Franc Johnson Newcomb These seventeen related Navaho tales were first collected by the author for her children, but the stories appeal to adults as well. The tales explain how "The People," as the Navaho refer to themselves, ascended to the Fifth World—the present—bringing with them some knowledge, magic, or skill to make this a better world. These are stories of creation and of Navaho respect for all forms of life. 1990. Download DB33343

Mitakuye Oyasin

by A. C. Ross Mitakuye Oyasin is an American Indian Roots story. It compares the myths and legends of the American Indian with the world's major philosophies and religions. Unrated. 1989. Download DB19691

Children’s books

Buffalo woman.

by Paul Goble A Great Plains Indian legend about a young hunter who marries a female buffalo in the form of a maiden. When his people reject his wife, the brave must undergo several tests to join the buffalo nation. 1984. Download DB24661

How Thunder and Lightning Came To Be: A Choctaw Legend

by Beatrice Orcutt Harrell Based on legends the author heard from her Choctaw mother and grandfather. The Great Sun Father lets two silly birds, Heloha and her fast-moving mate, Melatha, plan a way to warn people on Earth about coming storms. They discover that when Heloha's eggs roll around their cloud home, a loud rumbling is heard. And when Melatha rushes to catch the eggs, he streaks across the sky. 1995. Download DB40960

How Turtle's Back Was Cracked: A Traditional Cherokee Tale

by Gayle Ross Back in the days when all animals and people spoke the same language, Turtle and Possum were best friends because neither of them liked to go anywhere in a big hurry and both loved persimmons. One day while sharing their favorite fruit, something happens that changes Turtle forever. 1995. Download DB41522

How Raven Brought Light to People

by Ann Dixon A long time ago, the earth was new, and the people had no light. A great chief hid the sun, the moon, and the stars in three wooden boxes. Raven grew tired of the darkness and angry that the chief kept the light from Earth's people. This is a tale of how Raven tricks the chief out of the boxes, and gains black feathers in the process. Adapted from an Alaskan Tlingit Indian legend. For grades K-3 and older readers. 1992. Download DB38202

Iktomi and the Boulder: A Plains Indian Story

by Paul Goble Do you know why bats have flattened faces? Or why there are rocks scattered all over the Great Plains? It is because of Iktomi, a Plains Indian trickster who once tried to defeat a huge boulder with the help of some bats. 1988. Download DB30039

The Great Race of the Birds and Animals

by Paul Goble A retelling of the Cheyenne and Sioux myth about a contest called by the Creator to determine whether man or the buffalo should have supremacy and become the guardians of creation. 1985. Download DB24365

The Lost Children

by Paul Goble In this retelling of a Blackfoot Indian legend, six orphaned brothers are neglected by the people, teased by the children, and loved only by the camp dogs. They decide to leave for the Above World, where Sun Man grows angry upon hearing of their neglect and punishes the people. Today the orphans shine in the sky as the Pleiades stars, or "the Lost Children." For grades K-3 and older readers. 1993. Download DB39165

How Chipmunk Got Tiny Feet: Native American Animal Origin Stories

by Gerald Hausman Seven stories that explain how the coyote, bat, lizard, hawk, horse, possum, and chipmunk came to be the animals we know today. Includes "How Coyote Got Yellow Eyes," "How Bat Learned to Fly," "How Lizard Got Flat," and "How Possum Lost His Tail." For grades K-3. 1995. Download DB43880

We Are Water Protectors

by Carole Lindstrom When a black snake threatens to destroy the earth and poison her people's water, one young water protector takes a stand to defend Earth's most sacred resource. Commercial audiobook. Caldecott Medal. 2020. Download DB10382 3

Raven: A Trickster Tale from the Pacific Northwest

by Gerald McDermott Along the Pacific Northwest coast, Raven is the central character in the myths and legends of Native Americans. In this tale, Raven, feeling sad for the men and women living in the dark and cold, devises a clever plan to steal the sun from the Sky Chief to bring light and warmth to the people. For grades K-3 and older readers. 1993. Download DB38685

The Story of Jumping Mouse

by John Steptoe A young mouse sets off to follow his dream—to find the "far-off land" on the other side of the desert. He gives away his eyesight and sense of smell to two helpless creatures, but is well-rewarded at his journey's end. Caldecott Honor Book. 1984. Download DB23246

Coyote Steals the Blanket: An Ute Tale

by Janet Stevens Coyote, a hard one to take advice, ignores the warning of Hummingbird and swipes a beautiful blanket draped over a huge rock, thus angering the spirit of the desert. The rock takes off in hot pursuit of Coyote in this humorous Ute trickster tale. 1993. Download DB38478

Crow Chief: A Plains Indian Story

by Paul Goble In this Native American tale, Crow Chief always warns the buffalo when the hunters are approaching. That is, until Falling Star, the savior, comes to the camp and teaches Crow Chief that all must share and live together. For grades 2-4 and older readers. 1992. Download DB38567

The Stolen Appaloosa and Other Indian Stories

by Paul M. Levitt A collection of five folktales from the Indians of the Pacific Northwest. Includes "The Story of Hot and Cold" and "Why the Indians Changed Their Home." For grades 2-4 and older readers. 1988. Download DB30269

The Girl Who Helped Thunder and Other Native American Folktales

by James Bruchac Two dozen traditional tales from across North America recount the adventures of mighty chiefs, brave hunters, and clever animals. In the cautionary title piece, a proud young woman marries a stranger against her parents' advice and discovers too late that he is not what he seems. 2008. Download DB68851

Gluskabe and the Four Wishes

by Joseph Bruchac An Abenaki Indian tale of three foolish men and one wise man, each of whom seeks a wish from Gluskabe, helper of the Great Spirit. Their wishes are fulfilled in unexpected ways, thus conveying a moral lesson to the reader. For grades 3-6 and older readers. 1995. Download DB43269

Iroquois Stories: Heroes and Heroines, Monsters and Magic

by Joseph Bruchac Collection of thirty-two traditional Iroquois tales often told around the longhouse fire in wintertime. Includes stories about the Creation, how the bear lost his tail, how the buzzard got his feathers, the turtle's race with a beaver and then a bear, the vampire skeleton, and the hunting of the great bear. Some violence. 1984. Download DB41284

Spider Spins a Story: Fourteen Legends from Native America

by Catherine Byers Presents folk tales from various native peoples including the Kiowa, Zuni, Cherokee, Hopi, Navajo, and Muskogee, all featuring the spider character. In "Iktomi and Buzzard: A Lakota Legend," the arrogant spider figure learns the importance of kindness and humility. For grades 3-6 and older readers. 1997. Download DB57328

Back in the Beforetime: And Other Indian tales from Texas and the Southern Plains

by Jane Louise Curry Twenty-two Indian tales from "back in the beforetime," when the world was new and the animal people lived, and man had not yet been created. Included are "How Old Man Above Created the World," "How Coyote Stole the Sun," and "The War between Beasts and Birds." For grades 3-6 and older readers. 1987. Download DB29166

The Boy Who Found the Light: Eskimo folktales

by Dale DeArmond A collection of three Eskimo folktales. In the title story, "The Boy Who Found the Light," an orphaned boy cast out from his darkened village captures the sun and the moon for his people. Other tales are "The Doll" and "The Raven and the Marmot." For grades 3-6 and older readers. 1990. Download DB35352

by Paul Goble In this Native American legend, a young man is too shy to woo the woman he loves. He's brave in battle and a leader in the buffalo hunt, but he's afraid to speak to her, though he longs to stand with her draped in his blanket and confess his love. Sad and lonely, he wanders into the forest, where two Elk Men bring him a flute that the birds and animals have made. It is a flute that will speak to the heart of the woman he loves. For grades 3-6 and older readers. 1992. Download DB36819

Echoes of the Elders

by Lelooska Five folktales from the oral tradition of the Kwakiutl, a Native American tribe on the northwest coast of North America. The stories tell about natural creatures like owls, loons, ravens, seagulls, fish, and mosquitoes, and also about mythical creatures like Timber Giant, the devourer of children. 1997. Download DB45968

Spirit of the Cedar People

by Lelooska Five folktales from the Kwakiutl, Native Americans of the Pacific Northwest coast. Recounts a mythical time when the world was full of magic and some animals and humans could transform themselves into other species. Companion to Echoes of the Elders ( Download DB45968 ) . 1997. Download DB47945

The Children of the Morning Light: Wampanoag Tales

by Medicine Story Members of the Wampanoag tribe in Massachusetts are also known as Children of the Morning Light. The author, a tribal elder, tells his tribe's creation stories, which feature Maushop, grandson of the moon. Maushop made the land, plants, animals, and people. His jealous twin brother made poisonous plants and animals. Maushop became the helper and teacher of the people. 1994. Download DB41130

Trickster and the Fainting Birds

by Howard A. Norman A collection of seven Algonquian tales about the mischief-maker trickster. In the title piece, the trickster is rejected in marriage, so he transforms the young woman's suitor into a kingfisher, hoping she will change her mind. 1999. Download DB49900

How Glooskap Outwits the Ice Giants and Other Tales of the Maritime Indians

by Howard A. Norman Glooskap, in the Indian languages of maritime Canada and Maine, means "man from nothing." He is believed to be the first person to have lived on earth. These six tales feature Glooskap's travels and adventures from Nova Scotia to New England. For grades 3-6 and older readers. 1989. Download DB34172

Ladder to the Sky: How the Gift of Healing Came to the Ojibway Nation; A Legend Retold

by Barbara Juster Esbensen Long ago in the Ojibway lands, there was no sickness or death. A magic vine connected the kingdom of the Great Spirit with earth. At the end of life, one was carried by a spirit up the vine. When an old woman distraught over the loss of her grandson climbs the forbidden vine, sickness and death come to earth, but so does knowledge of using plants for healing. For grades 4-7 and older readers. 1989. Download DB36513

The Songs My Paddle Sings

by James Riordan Twenty brief legends—creation myths, pourquoi tales, cautionary stories, and hero tales—collected from a variety of North American nations. The Squamish legend "The Deep Waters" tells of building a giant canoe to save the children when the world was slowly being flooded. For grades 4-7 and older readers. 1995. Download DB49576

Coyote, the Trickster: Legends of the North American Indians

by Gail Robinson Short, witty tales about supernatural creatures who can be kindly gods and comic fools, gift-bringers and troublemakers. 1976. Download DB12913

The Naked Bear: Folktales of the Iroquois

by John Bierhorst A collection of sixteen traditional tales told by the Iroquois Indians, who inhabited what in now New York State. Includes stories of boy heroes, trickster turtles, flesh-eating creatures, and stone giants. For grades 5-8 and older readers. 1987. Download DB29434

The Girl Who Married the Moon: Tales from Native North America

by Joseph Bruchac This sequel to Flying with the Eagle, Racing the Great Bear ( Download BR10345 ) focuses on the time a young girl becomes a woman. In Native American cultures, this day is celebrated with song, dance, ritual, and story. Two storytellers have collected tales about women of four Indian nations from four different regions of North America. 1994. Download BR10192

Flying with the Eagle, Racing the Great Bear: Stories from Native North America

by Joseph Bruchac In this companion volume to Girl Who Married the Moon ( Download BR10192 ) , Bruchac focuses on the transition from boyhood to manhood. The collection of sixteen stories recounts the customs of tribes such as the Iroquois, Wampanoag, Cherokee, Apache, Pueblo, Lakota, and Cheyenne. 1994. Download BR10345

Native American Animal Stories

by Joseph Bruchac A collection of twenty-four animal stories from various native North American cultures. The foreword and introduction are valuable for understanding the messages of the stories. A glossary of key words and descriptions of tribal nations represented in the anthology are also included. 1992. Download BR09415

The Talking Stone: An Anthology of Native American Tales and Legends

by Dorothy De Wit A glimpse into the rich folklore of American Indians, these stories deal with tribal history and heroes, the much-loved trickster figures, and the origins of various animals and celestial bodies. A few, such as 'Little Burnt Face,' an Algonquin cousin of Cinderella’s tale, show the influence of early settlers. For grades 5-8 and older readers. 1979. Download DB21804

Red Hunters and the Animal People

by Charles Alexander Eastman First published in 1904, this classic collection of twelve folktales from the Dakota people reflects Native American attitudes towards hunting and animals. Included are "Wechah the Provider," "The Sky Warrior," and "Hootay of the Little Rosebud." For grades 6-9 and older readers. 1904. Download DB37176

Earthmaker's Tales: North American Indian Stories about Earth Happenings

by Gretchen Mayo Seventeen tales from Native American folklore that seek to explain the origins of natural phenomena such as floods, volcanoes, storms, snow, winds, and fog. For grades 6-9 and older readers. 1989. Download DB33687

Walking the Choctaw Road

by Tim Tingle Twelve traditional stories reflecting the history and beliefs of the Choctaw nation, spanning almost two centuries of tribal life. "Saltypie" is Tingle's own story of his family's close bond with his blind grandmother. For grades 6-9 and older readers. 2003. Download DB59053

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Natasha Heine's ENGL 470 Blog

"Oh Canada … Our Home and Native Land?"

3.5 : Comparing and Contrasting the Native Creation Story with the Biblical Creation Story

3. What are the major differences or similarities between the ethos of the creation story or stories you are familiar with and the story King tells in The Truth About Stories ?

I was raised in a Christian home so since I was old enough to attend Sunday school I’ve had the biblical creation story recounted to me more times than I can remember. As a child I accepted the creation story as truth, the way things came to be, how we came to be, and why there was good and evil in the world. However as I got older there were some things about this creation story that didn’t sit quite right with me. The question of whether the creation story is true or not aside, the fact that bothered me was that the story of “The Fall” following the creation story places blame for the existence of evil in the world on Eve, the woman.

You don’t have to look far back in history at all to see that women have blamed for a lot. From the middle ages with the witch hunts , today with so many unfortunate instances of women being victim blamed for sexual assault, and everything in between, before and after, points to a reality that women have been perceived as inferior to men. In many Eurocentric societies its not much of a leap to draw connections from the biblical creation story to the way women are treated.

And then, there is the Native creation story. A story that completely subverts the role of women and her role in the creation of the world. Rather than being responsible for bringing evil into the world and corruption it like Eve was, She, the Sky Woman is the creator! I perceive this to be the most significant difference between the Biblical creation story and the Native creation story. From this main difference stems many more, which are discussed by Thomas King in his 2003 talk “The Truth About Stories : A Native Narrative” for CBC’s Massey Lectures.

While I found that the role of women in each creation story is the contrast that stood out as a major difference, King discusses the difference between the hierarchies associated with biblical story, and the co-operative nature of the Native story. According to King the two creation stories are different because the creation of the world in one is a “solitary, individual act,” while the creation of the other is a “shared activity” (King 24-25). King contrasts these two stories and is quick to label them as a dichotomy. While I agree that the two stories can be greatly contrasted there are a few similarities that should not be over looked.

When I first considered the biblical and the Native creation stories side by side, I found that all I could see was differences rather than similarities, but after reading this great article by Brittany Kussman I found that there were actually a few similarities connecting these creation stories. In Kussman’s article she points out that all the similarities between the stories have not been considered much because for the early settlers in Canada, the idea that a Native creation story could be anything like a Christian one was unthinkable. However, she goes on to discuss the similarities; both have a concept of a pleasant sky world (Heaven) and a world that was originally covered in darkness and water below (the Earth). Both stories also have a clear concept of good and evil, with God and the devil in the Christian version and the “Evil Mind” and “Good Mind” in the Native version. Kussman notes that in the Native story, its the “Evil Mind” that creates all the dangers and terrible things in the world, and when viewing the Christian story through the lens of the Native story this explains why Eve was convinced to eat the forbidden fruit. I like this observation and this connection of both stories because it forces us to look at the woman’s role in the creation story in a different light. It seems to remove the blame from woman for the existence of evil in the world, and simply leaves the question of “evil” as something that is in the world to balance out “good”.

When considering both of these creation stories we can’t assume that one is better than the other, and the question of which is true or not is irrelevant because for the people who believe in these stories they are true. In my opinion however, since the biblical story has been privileged in our Canadian society over the Native one, I think its important for people to hear both stories and realize what good moral lessons can be learned from the Native version. Collaboration, co-operation and respect for women are all elements of the Native creation story that I liked. If you are familiar with both stories what do you think? Any similarities or differences that I missed?

– Natasha

Works Cited

Kaussman, Brittany, “Native American vs. Biblical Creation Stories”. Hubpages. April 17 2016. Web. July 18 2016.

King, Thomas, “The Truth about Stories: A Native Narrative .” CBC Massey Lectures . CBC Ideas. Web. July 18 2016.

Linder, Douglas, “A Brief History of Witchcraft Persecutions Before Salem”. University of Missouri -Kansas. 2005. Web. July 18 2016.

“Rape Culture, Victim Blaming, and the Facts”. Southern Connecticut State University. n.a n.d. Web. July 18 2016.

12 thoughts on “3.5 : Comparing and Contrasting the Native Creation Story with the Biblical Creation Story”

Hi Natasha!

Great post. I also tackled question three so I appreciate your insights here.

I’m glad you mentioned the different role women play in Genesis versus in King’s story- it’s sad that, though they both have a certain agency (and with that comes some power and influence), only Eve’s is portrayed in a negative light.

Your mention of viewing the Christian creation story through the lens of the Native story is something I hadn’t considered, though, and that perspective certainly does lessen the misogyny rooted in the former.

I think the greatest difference I perceived between the two stories was the cooperative/harmonious creation effort of King’s story versus the solitary creation effort in Genesis, which you also mentioned in your post. This difference between the two perhaps hints at a larger difference- that between Western and Indigenous thought. Many people believe that Western thought/society is extremely individualistic in comparison to their Indigenous thought/society. What’s your take on this theory?

Thanks again for the read.

Thank you for the wonderful blog Natasha and your insight here Victoria.

I found your theory very interesting and is a connection I had not made. I think you could be right about Western society being about the individual and Aboriginal society being about the group as a significant connection between creation stories and the cultures they come from.

Natasha, I also grew up in a Christian household and knowing what I know today as a proud feminist, I find that it was hindering to my view of gender and the world. The creation story in particular is what was taught so often to me and I never perceived Eve as the bringer of evil as anything atypical. Had the story been more team center like the Native creation story, it may have changed my relationships and the way I viewed men as I grew older.

Thanks for the discussion ~Stef~

As someone who identifies as both a feminist and a Christian I’m aware that my beliefs can sometimes seem somewhat contradictory, and the biblical creation story is one of the better examples of this conflict. On one hand how do I believe in these scriptures that I live my life by (I wouldn’t call myself a Creationist, but I do believe the Creation story has its purposes for Christians) while the story essentially places blame on women for every evil in the world, and for tempting men into bringing about this evil too! I find the whole idea of the woman as the “temptress” who brings out the worst in men to be absolutely disgusting because it is linked to a whole mentality that nothing is ever a man’s fault. See the link in this post about victim blaming and how ridiculous it is that the way a woman talks/dresses/behaves etc. can all be taken as an act of “tempting” a man to mistreat her, whether we’re talking sexual harassment or not. I think the creation story isn’t the only example of biblical stories being contorted into something they are not. The Bible has some really beautiful stories and messages in it, but society has a way of twisting things to make them seem like something completely different (don’t even get me started on how I feel as a Christian and LGBTQ supporter haha). From this assignment though, I’ve really learned how to see the value in comparing my faith to other belief systems. Like what I mentioned in my last paragraph, viewing one story though the lens of another can be a very enriching experience that does not discredit either belief. Thank you for your comment!

Hi Victoria,

I’m really glad you liked my insights from this post. I was a little nervous about where it would go, bringing perspectives of my own faith into the mix, but I’m glad I did it because I learned a lot!

To answer your question, I agree with you that Western thought and society can be seen as more individualistic compared to Indigenous societies. While it can be said that beliefs and faith do play some part in this I don’t think it should to be the only factor. I would argue that capitalism has a lot to do with the way Western societies are all about the individual. We get so much stimulus from media on a day to day basis that tells us we should buy this product to help ourselves in some way or another. Whether its the latest smartphone, or toothpaste that will make your teeth whiter, everything is about how you, the consumer, the individual, can be improved. This leads to a society-wide mentality that the individual is more important than the community. I don’t know as much as I would like to know about the societal structures of Indigenous communities, but I know there are some deeply rooted traditions that are more about community living, that Western society just doesn’t have. Like the whole concept of the Potlatch ceremony, which is based on sharing and exchanging goods and wealth. And I think I read somewhere that in many indigenous communities child-rearing is not just something for immediate family, literally putting the phrase “it takes a village to raise a child” into practice. From answering this question I think I’ve figured out that I would like to compare Western and Indigenous societies more. Creation stories were a good start, now I’ll see what else I can find! Thank you for your question, if you have any of your own insights that you want to add to this feel free!

This article, and many of the comments are completely off the mark. The Bible does not indicate that Eve brought evil into the world. It’s very clear that Satan did. Iniquity was found in Satan. He is responsible for brining sin into Heaven and the world and deceiving angels and humans. This is nothing more than reading a lot gender bias into the text that simply isn’t there… to support personal experiences endured in life.

I agree 100% Mr. O’Neill. God never said Eve brought evil to the world. She was faced with a choice. She heeded Satans temptations and ignored what her husband had told her. She then went and tempted her husband and invited him into sin with her. That’s why Eve recieved the greater punishment, but both her and Adam faced results for tasting the fruit which gave knowledge of good and evil.

Hi Natasha,

I’m glad you brought up the issue of women in these creations stories, seeing as we are still living with the consequences of the Creationist narrative in European and North American culture. Perhaps to a lesser extent, but the difference in treatment between men and women stemming from religious reasoning still exists.

I remember when I was little and heard the Creationist story of God and Adam and Eve, I said something along the lines of, “Well ok, but this book (The Bible) was written by a bunch of old guy farts in the middle of nowhere. What if they messed around with it to better suit them?” And while that not be the most accurate thing to say, right now it does make me wonder about the issue of authorship and the many translations the story might have gone through before it was even written down. So I guess my question to you is what are your thought on all this? (Also this isn’t meant to offend you or your beliefs, and I’m sorry if it does)

No offence taken at all, I’ve definitely asked myself that same question before. As a Christian I’m supposed to believe that the bible is the infallible word of God, and it was just a human writing down what God’s words were. A lot of the times I’m like “yes, got it, that all sounds good to me” but then there are things like woman’s role in the creation story and other things that I really struggle with, and I think that’s common for a lot of Christians. I just try to live my life by taking the best of what I can from the bible and weaving in some feminist beliefs in too. Things do get lost in translation, and as I mentioned in my response to Stefanie’s comment, the words of the bible have always been twisted and result in evil actions. So I think in this case the reader has a lot of power in what they decide they want to do with those words, and its not as much about authorship. I hope that I’m making sense. The question of authorship is interesting in the context of the Native creation story though, because it is traditionally an oral story and has no author! I guess that’s another contrast between the two stories. Thanks for your comment!

Thank you for your reflections on this question. I was considering writing on this question myself, as my childhood was quite similar to yours.

In reflecting on both of these creation stories, what struck me the most was how God is portrayed in both renditions. In King’s version, God is portrayed as selfish, insecure, belittling, and confrontational. So much so, that the God in King’s novel is almost comical. This God is not one the characters aspire to know, pursue, or be devoted to. On the other hand, in the Christian version, God is portrayed as generous for having given Adam and Eve everything in the garden. And by giving Adam and Eve agency, God is portrayed not as a controlling puppeteer, but more like a wise parent, encouraging Adam and Eve to go out and make decisions, mistakes, and lives of their own.

What I found interesting was how both stories are shaped by apriori assumptions about who “God” is and also how these assumptions shape how stories are told.

In King’s version, I related best to First Woman. I appreciate that she doesn’t react to GOD’s taunts and confrontations. She combats God’s autocracy by asserting her agency and leaving the situation to find a new home.

It’s interesting that First Woman’s approach to life seems much more in line with what I have learned about compassion and humility that mark stories from New Testament Christian literature. It makes me wonder if, like with so many belief systems throughout history, the Christian story was melted down to provide a scapegoat for implementing harmful and oppressive patriarchal and political systems. I wonder if stories like King’s can serve to combat the harmful dogmatic perspectives and beliefs that lead to close-minded thinking, prejudice, oppression, and hate.

By integrating so many stories, King opens the attentive reader up to new ways of thinking critically about the stories that we have been told and stories that we tell. I think his approach leads to better listening, more questioning, and ultimately (hopefully) more understanding.

What are your thoughts?

Couldn’t have said it better myself, I completely agree with everything you said. Its interesting that with these apriori assumptions that you mentioned, neither Native nor Non-Native seem to have realized the value of reading both stories together and extracting a message that feels more complete, like the stories seem to mutually reinforce each other in different ways, rather than just being stark contrasts. I say this with the sincere hope that I don’t sound insensitive to Native communities who have been harmed by the forcing of the Christian faith upon them for centuries. I guess what I mean is from a Christian perspective I can see how the Native creation story has aspects that I can see as also having value in my beliefs, like the ideas of working together, and peaceful collaboration – what a beautiful thing! I think the Native creation story should have a more of a prominent place in our society, and King’s book is a great medium for it to be accessed! Thank you for your comment!

Enjoyed your comments. If you think Genesis portrayal of Eve is bad notice that the story has Adam throwing Eve under the bus by saying “the woman you gave me”. Ultimately blaming God. A true expression of man’s condition. The universal human memory of creation story is interesting even though it varies from culture to culture. Indeed the 17th century Jesuit missionaries to New World native population used their creation story commonalities with Genesis to introduce Christ.

When I die, I will face the Creator. That makes it imperative that I know who this person is before I die! After all, whatever the Creator planned for creation determines how well (or poorly) we are doing in fulfilling that plan and what he/she plans to do about any inconsistencies.

What settles everything for me is the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. As soon as we calibrate the eye-witness testimony of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection, along with God’s Book showing us that it was Jesus himself who created us, his resurrection certifies him as our Creator.

God’s Book makes it very clear that Adam (referred to as “the first Adam”) is responsible for bringing sin into the world, and that Jesus (referred to as “the second Adam” in a final-Adam kind of way) is responsible for bringing salvation into the world.

As a son of Adam, obviously a sinner just like our first forefather, the fact that the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead not only certifies him as the Creator, but as the Living Savior, gives me certainty about the future, that the Creator who made me is also the Savior who saved me and the coming King who will one day take me into his new creation.

I recommend that we do not make this an issue over Adam and Eve’s distinctive roles in falling for the red dragon’s first temptation to Man. As God’s Book says, “ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” and, “the wages of sin is death” for us all, so it is imperative that we all receive the salvation God offers us in his Son rather than arguing whether it is men or women who are most responsible for the sinful mess we are in.

There is good news of great joy for us all; a Savior has come to us who is Christ the Lord (who is also our Creator), and all who receive him become the children of God forever. It isn’t about what Adam and Eve decided in the garden, but what you and I decide now when offered the invitation of the resurrected Christ to come to him and find rest for our souls.

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Exploring Indigenous Cultures and Creation Stories

By Julie Kinnaird

By Sheila Singh, Ephesus Elementary, Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools, Chapel Hill, North Carolina

OVERVIEW OF LESSON: Students will gain an understanding and appreciation of Indigenous cultures by exploring a variety of creation stories. They will recognize the diversity and significance of these narratives and how they reflect cultural identity. It is important that students understand that all creation stories should be respected as an important aspect of a group’s culture.

This lesson is intended as practice for students who have already learned how to identify the theme of a story.

SUGGESTED GRADE LEVEL: Grade 4

SUBJECTS: English Language Arts, Social Studies

  CORRESPONDING NATIONAL AND/OR STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA STANDARDS:

North Carolina English Language Arts : 4.9 Compare and contrast the use of similar themes and topics and patterns of events in stories, myths, and traditional literature from different cultures. 4.3 Describe in depth a character, setting, or event in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text.

North Carolina Social Studies : B.1 Understand ways in which values and beliefs have influenced the development of North Carolina’s identity as a state.

ESSENTIAL QUESTION:

• How do creation stories reflect Native Americans’ cultural beliefs and values?

LESSON OBJECTIVES:

Students will be able to:

• recognize different elements of culture
• explore a variety of creation stories from the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and other indigenous groups
• compare and contrast events and themes in creation stories

BACKGROUND INFORMATION FOR THE EDUCATOR or RESOURCES TO EXPLORE FURTHER: Members of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) descended from the same people. Two hundred years ago, the Cherokee Indians were still one tribe that lived in the southeastern United States (of course, they had been on that land for much longer. See NCPedia for a more complete history). Once Europeans discovered there was gold on Cherokee land in Georgia, the US government forcibly removed indigenous tribes, including the Cherokee, from the southeast to modern-day Oklahoma on the infamous Trail of Tears. Some members of the EBCI living in western North Carolina today are descendants of Trail of Tears survivors who returned home. Others descended from the Cherokee who successfully resisted removal. Eventually, this group of descendants reorganized and gained federal recognition as a tribe known as the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. The EBCI has a long tradition of oral storytelling. Below please find additional resources to extend your own learning about the Cherokee people through their stories. These would be excellent resources for an extension (or to meet the 3rd grade standard RL.3.2):

Myths of the Cherokee (James Mooney) The author provides some history as context for the retelling of these traditional stories. This eBook is free for use—You may copy it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License ( www.gutenberg.org )

Eastern Cherokee Stories (Sandra Muse Isaacs) A good companion for learning more about Cherokee culture and stories. From the website:

“These traditional stories embody the Cherokee concepts of Gadugi, working together for the good of all, and Duyvkta, walking the right path, and teach listeners how to understand and live in the world with reverence for all living things. In Eastern Cherokee Stories, Sandra Muse Isaacs uses the concepts of Gadugi and Duyvkta to explore the Eastern Cherokee oral tradition, and to explain how storytelling in this tradition—as both an ancient and a contemporary literary form—is instrumental in the perpetuation of Cherokee identity and culture.”

Other Resources: These are suggested indigenous creation stories. You may choose other stories from these resources to match the demographics of students in your class, extend this plan to add other cultures, or to focus on Indigenous peoples from a specific region.

Creation stories from around the world  This website includes origin stories from a variety of cultures. It is a good resource for teachers if you are interested in including origin stories from other cultures. Be sure to read the stories in advance as not all of them are suitable for 4th grade.

A dictionary of creation myths  This link is to the “Internet Archive” through which you can check out electronic access to this book. It is a comprehensive resource for teachers to find creation myths from around the world. As you might expect, it is in alphabetical order (the Cherokee myth is on pages 44-45). The authors provide insight and connections in addition to retelling the myths. This is a good resource if you are looking for something in particular to add to the selected myths.

Native Languages of the Americas This page has an extensive list of North American Indian tribes and their stories. It also has links to other resources including Central and South American Indian legends.

Williams College – Creation Stories This collection is a good alternative to printing stories. Any of these stories would be good for students to use and they could access them directly from this website.

SPECIFIC STUDENT STRATEGIES & ACTIVITIES:

Day 1 What is culture? (40 minutes)

“We” (in our community) are a diverse group of people with unique histories. Our “culture” depends on our background, environment, and experiences.

• Define culture and identify some elements of their own culture.
• Understand that people from different cultures have different traditions, foods, and languages.
• Construction paper cut into 9×9 squares (or bulletin board paper as an alternative backing)
• White paper cut into 8×8 squares
• Art supplies (markers, crayons, colored pencils)
• Glue (for student use)
• Masking tape (optional, for teacher use)

Warm-Up (10 minutes):

• Introduce the term “culture” – ask students if they have any ideas about what it means.
• Explain that culture is the way of life shared by a group of people, including their traditions (beyond just holidays), customs, beliefs, language, and art.
• Explain that each country has its own unique culture.
• Focusing on North America, point out that Canadian culture is different from American culture. Different regions of the United States, and even within a state, also have different cultures. For example, people in the Southeastern United States are distinctly different from people in the Northeast in terms of politics, religion, music, sport, and language. Invite students who have recently moved to the area to share differences they have noticed in “the way things are” here — that’s culture!

Learning Activities (20 minutes):

• Cultural Exploration (optional): Show students pictures or illustrations representing different cultures from around the world. Discuss the differences and similarities they notice in terms of clothing, values, landmarks, and traditions. Note : cultural anthropologists roughly define culture as all the beliefs, practices, symbols, and rules of groups of people. This culture is written, passed down verbally, spread through practice, or never even mentioned (but followed nonetheless).

option 1: Have students glue their white square centered onto a piece of construction paper, and then tape them all together (using masking tape on the back of the construction paper squares).

option 2: Make a grid of the white square on a piece of bulletin board paper, leaving a boarder of bulletin board paper as a frame between each square.

• Share Out: Invite students to share their culture squares– this could be in a whole group or within small groups. Encourage students to explain at least 1 or 2 things that represent their culture.

Wrap-Up (10 minutes): Lead a class discussion about the diversity of cultures (could be in the class or in the world). Discuss how learning about other cultures can help us understand and appreciate people who are different from us.

Day 2 Introduction to Indigenous Creation Stories (40 minutes)

Indigenous people are part of our communities today. Each tribe’s unique history, environment, and culture has an effect on how they view the world.

• Define creation stories
• Explain who are the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and where they live today
• Record the story elements of the Cherokee creation story
• Indigenous Creation Stories Graphic Organizer to be used in the rest of the lessons to compare and contrast story elements
• pencils/pens for note-taking
• Cherokee creation story ( The Story of Corn and Medicine )

Warm-Up (5 minutes): Begin by discussing the term Indigenous . If you Google a definition for Indigenous, you’ll find it means “originating or occurring naturally in a particular place; native.” When we talk about Indigenous Peoples, we mean people who are native to a place, who were in that place before colonists, and have a distinct culture. Just like there is a great deal of diversity in the culture of people in North America, there are thousands of unique Indigenous communities with their own traditions and cultures.

Learning Activities (25 minutes)

• Define creation stories: Creation stories are narratives that explain how the world and everything in it came to be according to a particular culture’s beliefs; they typically involve supernatural beings or events. While we sometimes find stories from other cultures strange, it is important to understand that all creation stories should be respected as an important aspect of a group’s culture.
• Emphasize that creation stories of Indigenous cultures provide insights into how they see the world, their relationship with the land, and their spiritual beliefs.
• Introduce the concept of oral tradition and that many Indigenous creation stories have been passed down orally from one generation to the next.
• Read aloud and discussion of Cherokee creation story:
• Share background about the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in North Carolina (see background section above).
• Read aloud The Story of Corn and Medicine (Cherokee creation story)
• Students refer back to their printed copy of the story to pull out details to complete the first column of the graphic organizer .
• Review the elements of this story that should be on the graphic organizer as a class (alternatively, this could be completed as a guided practice for students who need more support)

Wrap-Up (10 minutes): Class discussion making inferences about the beliefs and values of the Cherokee people based on details of the creation story.

Day 3 Exploration of Creation Stories (40 minutes)

• Summarize key elements of a story
• Notice similarities and differences when comparing two creation stories
• Indigenous Creation Stories Graphic Organizer used in prior lesson
• Ojibwe (video) – US and Canada
• Iroquois – US and Canada
• Mayan – Mexico ( video or text from Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian)
• Yakama – Washington/Northwest US
• Maori – New Zealand
• African Bushmen – Botswana (southern Africa)

Other resources for stories (optional)

• Williams College – Creation Stories  This collection is a good alternative to printing stories. Any of these stories are good for students to use.
• Creation stories from around the world A variety of cultures are represented here. Be sure to read the stories in advance as not all of them are suitable for 4th grade.
• Native Languages of the Americans This is a teacher resource with an extensive list of tribes and their stories.

Warm-Up (5 minutes):

• Review the concept of creation stories. The Indigenous Knowledge Institute of Melbourne, Australia says, “Creation stories tell people about their history, cultures and beliefs, and the environment in which they live or have come from…. These stories often blend science and historical events, such as how things came to be, with cultural norms and important lessons for living.”
• People often refer to “Native Americans” as if they were a singular group, but they never were just one group of people. Each tribe has its own culture. As a result, there is a great variety in Indigenous creation stories. We might find some elements of their stories are similar, and some will be different. Today you will explore these cultures by reading several creation stories. You will track the story elements on the same chart we used yesterday for the Cherokee story.

Learning Activities: Explore a variety of creation stories (15 minutes)

• Divide students into small groups and provide each group with a different Indigenous creation story to read or watch (alternatively, you could provide several stories from which students could choose).
• Encourage students to pay attention to key elements of the story to be recorded on the graphic organizer .

Note: There is plenty of space on the graphic organizer for students to complete the process for more than just one more story as a way of differentiating. If time allows, you could do an additional story as a group before sending students to do this on their own.

Wrap-Up: Have each group summarize their story to the class, highlighting key themes and symbols.

Discussion and Reflection (10 minutes):

• Lead a class discussion on common themes and differences among the creation stories shared.
• How do these creation stories reflect the relationship between Indigenous peoples and the natural world?
• What values or beliefs do these stories convey?
• How do these stories contribute to the cultural identity of Indigenous communities?
• Invite students to share their personal reflections or connections they made with the stories.

Conclusion (5 minutes):

• Summarize findings from the stories selected, emphasizing the point that all of these Indigenous cultures may have some common themes, but are also unique.
• Encourage students to continue exploring and learning about Indigenous cultures and stories from their own culture.

ASSESSMENTS:

Formative: Monitor students’ understanding through their participation in group discussions and the quality of their reflections.

Summative Assessment: Native Americans have a tradition of passing down cultural knowledge from one generation to the next through oral storytelling. Creation stories are one type of story shared in this way.

• Choose two creation stories from your exploration. Describe how these sequences of events (beginning, middle, end) in these stories are similar and how they are different.
• How do animals often play a role in Native American creation stories? Provide examples from two different cultures.
• How do Native American creation stories reflect the cultural values of respect and harmony with nature? Provide examples from at least two stories from your exploration.

LEARNING EXTENSIONS:

• Invite a guest speaker from a local Indigenous community to share their knowledge and perspectives on creation stories and Indigenous culture.
• Students conduct an inquiry into their personal family history and traditional stories from their own culture.
• If time allows (or adapting for 3rd grade), students could focus on a variety of Cherokee traditional stories prior to focusing on origin stories from a variety of cultures. This would better lend itself to drawing conclusions about the values of a cultural group than just looking at one origin story. (CCSS.RL.3.2: Recount stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson, or moral and explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text.)
• What beliefs or values do you want to reflect in your story?
• Who are the main characters?
• What is the setting?
• What is the problem and solution in your story?
• What elements of our world are explained?

Day 1: What is culture?

Day 2: What are creation stories?

• Cherokee creation story The Story of Corn and Medicine (printed copy for each student or pair of students)

Day 3: Exploration of Creation Stories

• Williams College – Creation Stories This collection is a good alternative to printing stories. Any of these stories are good for students to use.
• Creation stories from around the world  A variety of cultures are represented here. Be sure to read the stories in advance as not all of them are suitable for 4th grade.
• Native Languages of the Americas This is a teacher resource with an extensive list of tribes and their stories.

REFERENCES:

Anderson, William L., & Wetmore, Ruth Y., Bell, John L. (2021, December). Cherokee Indians. NCPedia. https://www.ncpedia.org/cherokee/overview

Eastern Band of Cherokee. (n.d.). The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. Cherokee, NC. https://visitcherokeenc.com/eastern-band-of-the-cherokee/

National Park Service. (2022, December 23). Great Smoky Mountains. National Park Service. https://www.nps.gov/grsm/learn/historyculture/cherokee.htm

Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media at George Mason University. (2018). A Trail of 4,000 Tears . Teaching History.org. https://teachinghistory.org/history-content/ask-a-historian/25652#:~:text=about%204%2C000%20perished.-,It%20is%20estimated%20that%20of%20the%20approximately%2016%2C000%20Cherokee%20who,River%20south%20into%20east%20Tennessee

The University of Melbourne. (n.d.). Understanding and respecting creation stories . The University of Melbourne.  https://indigenousknowledge.unimelb.edu.au/curriculum/resources/understanding-and-respecting-creation-stories#:~:text=These%20stories%20often%20blend%20science,scientific%20understanding%20of%20historical%20events .