Indian child resources
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Indian child resources
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This is our collection of Mi'kmaq 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, so you may also want to visit our page comparing the stories from the Wabanaki tribes (which include the Passamaquoddy, Maliseet, Abenaki, Penobscot, and Micmac Indians), since the traditional stories of those tribes are very similar.
Glooscap:
Glooscap is the benevolent culture hero of the Micmac tribe, who taught the people the arts of civilization
and protected them from danger. Like other Micmac names, "Glooscap" has many spelling variants (Gluskabe, Kluskap, etc.)
The correct Micmac pronounciation is klue-skopp. Glooscap shares some similarities with other Algonquian heroes such as the Anishinabe
Manabus, Blackfoot
Old Man, and Cree
Whiskeyjack, and many of the same stories
are told in different Algonquian tribes with only the identity of the protagonist differing.
Kisúlkw:
This means "Creator" in the Micmac language, and is the Micmac name for God, who is sometimes also referred to as Kjikinap or Kji-Niskam.
Kisulkw is a divine spirit with no human form or attributes (including gender) and is not personified in traditional Micmac folklore.
Pronounced similar to kih-soolk.
Nákúset:
The Sun, who was the first being created by Kisúlkw and the one who carried out most divine plans.
Often personified as an old man in Micmac myths, and frequently referred to as Niskam ("grandfather.")
Nákúset is pronounced nah-goo-set, and Niskam is pronounced niss-kahm.
Nukumi:
Glooscap's wise old grandmother. Pronounced noo-goo-mee.
Apistanéwj:
Marten, Glooscap's adopted brother, helper, and right-hand animal. Pronounced ah-bist-ah-nayo-ch.
Malsum:
This name is sometimes given as belonging to an evil wolf who is Glooscap's twin brother. However, this is probably not an
original Micmac myth -- the character does not appear in older Micmac texts, "Malsum" is not a Micmac word, and the wolf
is not a malevolent figure in Micmac folklore. Perhaps Malsum may have been a confusion of a wolf character from Chippewa
folklore (who was the culture hero's brother, but not evil,) with the Wabanaki character Luks (see below.)
Mikcheech:
Turtle, Glooscap's bumbling uncle. Pronounced mick-cheech.
Kwimu (Loon):
Glooscap's faithful companion, messenger, and tale-bringer. Pronounced kwee-moo.
Bootup (Whale):
Another animal spirit that serves Glooscap, by carrying him across the ocean. Pronounced boo-dup.
Luks (or Lox):
An evil spirit that seeks to destroy Glooscap. He is usually associated with the wolverine. His name rhymes with "dukes."
Ableegumooch and
Keoonik:
Rabbit and Otter, two light-hearted trickster figures from Mi'kmaq folktales who rob and play pranks on each other.
Like modern cartoon characters, they sometimes kill each other with their tricks and then randomly return to life.
Pronounced ah-blee-guh-mooch and cue-nick.
Muin:
Bear, one of the most prominent animal spirits of Mi'kmaq mythology. He is portrayed as powerful and honorable but gullible.
Pronounced moo-in.
Lusifee:
Wildcat, an aggressive and dangerous animal in Mi'kmaq folklore. Sometimes he is conflated with Luks (see above.)
Pulowech (Partridge):
An epic hero in Mikmaq myths. The most famous stories in his hero cycle involve him winning a water-fairy wife and
then avenging her murder by evil wizards. Pronounced puh-lah-wetch.
Chenoo:
Giant cannibal ice monsters, similar to the
Windego of the
Anishinabe and other northern tribes. Chenoos were once human beings who either committed terrible crimes or became
possessed by evil spirits, causing their hearts to turn to ice. Pronounced cheh-noo.
Kukwes:
A kind of man-eating ogre. They are greedy, hairy and have bear-like heads. Pronounced kook-wess.
Mikumwessuk:
These are little people like dwarves or fairies. They are generally benevolent forest spirits but can be dangerous if they are disrespected.
Pronounced mee-kum-oo-wess-uk.
Pukulatmuj or Wiklatmu'j:
Another race of dwarves from Mi'kmaq legends. Pukulatmuj are rock spirits (sometimes called Stone Dwarves or Stone Indians in English)
who live in mountain caves. Pronounced poo-goo-lah-tuh-mooch or wih-guh-lah-tuh-mooch.
Sabawaelnu:
Another race of nature sprites, these are water spirits, and like European mermaids, they have human upper bodies and fish tails.
Pronounced sah-buh-wahn-ill-noo. They are sometimes also known as the Halfway People.
Skadegamutc:
The ghost of an evil sorcerer, who returns to life by night to kill and devour humans.
Pronounced skuh-deh-guh-mooch.
Kinap:
A mortal hero gifted with uncanny physical strength and other powers. Pronounced kih-nopp.
Jipijka'm:
An underwater horned snake, said to lurk in lakes and eat humans. Pronounced chih-pitch-kawm.
Since it has only one horn according to most Mi'kmaq stories, it is sometimes called the Unicorn Serpent in English.
Kaqtukaq:
Mi'kmaq storm spirits, who cause thunder and lightning. Pronounced similar to kakh-too-kakh. They usually appear
as men with with bird's wings, and in some stories their clan intermarries with Indian people.
Klu:
A legendary giant bird of prey, said to eat humans and be large enough to carry off a moose in its talons. Pronounced kuh-loo.
Oochigeaskw:
Heroine of a French-Wabanaki fusion myth loosely based on the Cinderella folktale. Pronounced woodge-ig-eesk-w.
Winpe:
The name of a giant magician in Micmac folklore, an enemy of Glooscap.
Glooscap 
Gluskab Glooscap Gluskabe: Micmac Creation Myth Creation of the World According to the Mi’gmaq Mi'kmaq Creation: Mi'kmaq Creation Myth:Mi'kmaq Women Who Married Star Husbands:Glooscap Myths:Legends of Glooscap:The Girl-Chenoo:Mooin, the Bear's Child: The Lazy Rabbit Rabbit and Otter, the Bungling Host: Glooscap and Winpe:The Changing of Mikcheech:Nukumi and Fire:Glooskap and the Fearful Warrior:Ableegumooch: How Rabbit Got His Long Ears:Run, Rabbit, Run: How Glooscap Created Sugarloaf Mountain:Raccoon Learns A Lesson:Mikmaq Legend of the Wild Goose:How Glooskap Found the Summer:The Bird whose Wings Made the Wind: The Creator Visits:Glooscap Turns Bad Into Good:Rabbit and the Moon Man:A Míkmaq Legend:Wolverine and Bear:The First Pine Trees: Curse of the Third Bridge: Hand of the Medicine Man: The Puglutmu’j: The Invisible One The Hidden One Invisible One and the Rough-Faced Girl: Mi'kmaq and Maliseet Storytelling:The Horned Serpent:Cannibal Giants of the Snowy Northern Forest:On the Trail of Elder Brother:Legends of the Micmacs Glooscap The Great Chief: Red Earth: Tales of the Mi'kmaq Six Micmac Stories Stories from the Six Worlds: Nine Micmac Legends:The Rough-Faced Girl:Algonquian Spirit:
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