Navajo origin stories


Navajo stories tell of many beginnings. How did humans come to be? How did the Navajo come to be on their land. How did the people come to be weavers? Who was Spider Woman? Changing Woman? The Flint Brothers? Rainbow Man? Mother Earth and Father Sky? How are these "First Beings" pictured? What do they symbolize? Who are the Yei. What is the shape of the layered Navajo world of first creation? How do the traditional Dineh talk about their origins in the world? What do archaeologists say about Navajo origins? The Navajo oral tradition is nothing short of astonishing. It contains some of the world's finest poetry & deepest psychological insights. We need an expert on this topic! Interested in mythologies? In cosmology? In visual art? In philosophy? In world literature? If so, then you'll want to pick this topic.

Bibliography:

Bahti. Southwestern Indian Ceremonials

Bahti. Southwestern Indians

Bierhorst. Mythology of North America

Downs. The Navajo

Dutton. American Indians of the Southwest

Erdoes. American Indian Myths and Legends (p. 39ff)

Handbook of the North American Indian (R 970.004 H19)

Lindig. Navajo: Tradition and Change in the Southwest

Locke. Book of the Navajo