Native Indians
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Native Indians
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This is our collection of links to Hidatsa folktales and traditional stories that can be read online. We have indexed our Native American legends 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 Hidatsas, the traditional stories of related tribes like the Mandan and Arikara tribes are very similar.
First Creator:
Coyote, the creator god of the Hidatsas. Unlike most Siouan tribes, the Mandans and Hidatsas did not consider Coyote as a
buffoon or trickster character, but as a powerful benefactor to humanity.
Spotted-Tail:
Coyote's clan cousin and sidekick, who often plays practical jokes at his cousin's expense.
Lodge-Boy and Spring-Boy
(Hidatsa names Atutish and Mahaash, also spelled A-tu-tish, Ma-hash, Mahash, and other ways):
These mythical twins whose mother was killed by a monster are common to the folklore of many
Midwestern and Eastern tribes. After slaying four monsters the boys were given the collective
war name Macee Nuubash (meaning Twin Men or Two Men,) by which they are also sometimes
known. They are portrayed as heroic monster-slayers in Hidatsa legends, and Spring-Boy's
suffering at the hands of their enemies was the origin of the Hidatsa Sun Dance.
Charred Body:
The uncle of the twins, Charred Body is a Hidatsa culture hero who led the people to the earth
from their original home in the sky. However, he also introduced murder to the world by killing
a woman who insulted him.
Old-Woman-Who-Never-Dies:
Spirit of the corn, who taught the Hidatsas the arts of agriculture.
Dahu:
The Thunderbird, an enormous eagle spirit whose beating wings cause thunder.
Man With No Head:
A man-eating monster with a gaping mouth but no head.
Hidatsa Creation Myth: 
Charred Body and First Creator: Lodge-Boy and Spring-Boy:Unknown One, Son of Two Men:The Sun Dance:Kadhutetash and the Corn Ceremony:Hidatsa Myth and Legend:Hidatsa Texts: Mandan-Hidatsa Myths and Ceremonies: Buffalo Bird Woman's Garden:Indian Legends from the Northern Rockies:
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