Tribes information
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Tribes information
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This is our collection of links to Nootka folktales and traditional stories that can be read online. We have indexed our Native American myths 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 Nootka tribe, the traditional stories of related tribes like the Kwakiutl and Bella Bella are very similar.
Kwe'kustepsep (also spelled Kwi:kwistupsap and other ways):
Twin Transformer figures, who brought balance to the
world by using their powers to change people, animals, and the landscape into the forms they have today.
Raven:
Raven is the culture hero of the Nootka myths.
He is a revered and benevolent figure who helps the people,
but at the same time, he is also a trickster character and many Nootka stories about Raven have to do with
his frivolous or poorly thought out behavior getting him into trouble.
Mink:
Mink is another Nootka trickster character. Indeed, some of Raven's more light-hearted adventures are sometimes told with
Mink as the protagonist instead. However, compared with Raven, Mink is a more negative character who primarily embodies
traits that are looked down upon by the Nootka people (greed, recklessness, arrogance, inappropriate sexual behavior, poor hygiene,
etc.) Nootka legends about Mink are often humorous, but also are cautionary tales about how not to behave.
Woman of the Woods (also called the Basket Ogress):
A giant cannibal woman who catches human children and carries them off in her enormous pack basket.
Matlose:Raven Annoys Octopus:Mythology of the Nootkas:Tsawalk: A Nuu-chah-nulth Worldview:
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