Native Languages of the Americas: Caddo Legends and Traditional Stories
This is our collection of links to Caddo folktales and traditional stories that can be read online.
We have indexed our Native American folklore section
by tribe to make them easier to locate; however, variants on the same
legend are often told by American Indians from different tribes, especially if those tribes are kinfolk or neighbors to
each other. In particular, though these legends come from the Caddo tribe, the traditional stories of
related tribes like the
Pawnee and Wichita are very similar.
Enjoy the stories! If you would like to recommend a Caddo legend for this page or think one of the ones on here
should be removed, please contact us and let us know.
˜Caddi Ayo (or Ayo-Caddi-Aymay.)
This means "Sky Chief" or "Chief Above" in the Caddo language, and is the Caddo name for the Creator (God.) Sometimes the
Plains Indian term "Great Spirit" is also used. Caddi Ayo is a divine spirit and is not generally personified in Caddo folklore.
˜Village Boy and Wild Boy.
These mythical twins whose mother was killed by a monster are common to the folklore of many Midwestern and Plains tribes.
In Caddo mythology, the twins (called Coninisí) are associated with thunder and lightning.
˜Coyote.
Coyote is the trickster figure of the Caddo tribe. As in other Plains Indian mythology, Coyote is sometimes anthropomorphized into
human form and other times depicted in the shape of a coyote (sometimes both within a single story.) Caddo coyote stories range
from light-hearted tales of mischief and buffoonery, to more serious legends about the nature of the world, to ribald jokes.
˜Caddaja. A sort of man-eating ogre,
similar to the Two-Face and Sharp-Elbow monsters of the northern Plains tribes. In some legends the Caddaja is portrayed as
a horned serpent, more like the Cherokee Uktena.
Native American cultures
Traditions of the Caddo:
The Brothers Who Became Lightning And Thunder:
