Native Americans facts
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Native Americans facts
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This is our collection of links to Saanich stories and folktales that can be read online. We have indexed our Native American myth 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 Saanich-speaking Straits Salish tribes, the traditional stories of other Salish people like the Skagit and Lummi tribes are very similar.
Xe'las (also spelled Xelas, Haylas, Hals, and other ways):
A Transformer figure, often known as the Changer in English, common to the mythology of many Northwest Coast tribes. The Changer brought balance to the
world by using his powers to change people, animals, and the landscape into the forms they have today.
Raven:
Raven is a culture hero of Saanich, Samish, and Lummi mythology.
He is a benevolent figure who helps the people,
but at the same time, he is also a trickster spirit, and many Saanich stories about Raven have to do with
his frivolous or poorly thought out behavior getting him into trouble.
Mink:
Mink is another Straits Salish 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 Salish people (greed, recklessness, arrogance, inappropriate sexual behavior, poor hygiene,
etc.) Saanich and Lummi stories about Mink are often humorous, but also are cautionary tales about how not to behave.
Basket Ogress (Ch'eni):
A giant cannibal monster who catches human children and carries them off in her enormous pack basket.
Komo Kulshan and his Two Wives:The Woman Who Married the Sea:Mythology of the Coast Salish:Salish Myths and Legends:Indian Legends of the Pacific Northwest: 
Learn more about the Lummi tribe
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