DEFINITIONS.
ALLEGED BELIEF IN A GREAT SPIRIT.
§ 4. It has been asserted for several hundred years that the North
American Indian was a believer in one Great Spirit prior to the coming
of the white race to this continent, and that, as he was a monotheist,
it was an easy matter to convert him to Christianity. Indians have
been represented as speaking of “The Great Spirit,” “The Master of
Life,” etc., as if the idea of the one and only God was familiar to our
aborigines during the pre-Columbian period.
While the author is unwilling to commit himself to a general denial
of this assertion, he has been forced to conclude that it needs
considerable modification, at least so far as it refers to the tribes
of the Siouan stock. (See §§ 7, 15, 21-43, 72-79, 92-99, 311, 312,
322-326, 341-346.)
On close investigation it will be found that in many cases Indians
have been quick to adopt the phrases of civilization in communicating
with white people, but in speaking to one another they use their own
terms. The student of the uncivilized races must ever be on his guard
against leading questions and their answers. The author has learned by
experience that it is safer to let the Indian tell his own story in
his own words than to endeavor to question him in such a manner as to
reveal what answers are desired or expected.
§ 5. In 1883 the author published an article on “The Religion of the
Omahas and Ponkas,” in The American Antiquarian of Chicago. Since then
he has obtained additional data, furnishing him with many undesigned
coincidences, which lead him to a broader view of the subject.
PHENOMENA DIVIDED INTO HUMAN AND SUPERHUMAN.
§ 6. In considering the subject from an Indian’s point of view,
one must avoid speaking of the supernatural as distinguished from the
natural. It is safer to divide phenomena as they appear to the Indian
mind into the human and the superhuman, as many, if not most natural
phenomena are mysterious to the Indian. Nay, even man himself may
become mysterious by fasting, prayer, and vision.
One fruitful source of error has been a misunderstanding of Indian
terms and phrases. It is very important to attempt to settle the exact
meanings of certain native words and phrases ere we proceed further
with the consideration of the subject.
TERMS FOR “MYSTERIOUS,” “LIGHTNING,” ETC.
§ 7. The attention of the author having been called to the article
on “Serpent Symbolism” of the Iroquoian languages, by Mr. Hewitt[1] of
the Bureau of Ethnology, a similar investigation of the Siouan terms
was made, the results of which are now presented. In connection with
the terms for “serpent,” Mr. Hewitt showed how they are related in the
languages with which he was familiar with other terms, such as “demon,”
“devil,” “wizard,” “witch,” “subtile,” “occult,” “mysterious,” and
“supernatural.”
In Dakota we find the following: Wakaⁿ, mysterious, wonderful,
incomprehensible, often rendered “holy” by the missionaries; wakaⁿ-hdi
(in Santee), wakaⁿ-kdi (in Yankton), lightning, perhaps containing
a reference to a zigzag line or forked lightning; wakaⁿ etcoⁿ, to
practice sleight of hand; and waⁿmducka, serpent. There are many
derivatives of wakaⁿ, among which are, Taku Wakaⁿ, literally “something
mysterious,” rendered “some one mysterious,” or “holy being,” and
Wakaⁿ-tañka, literally, “Great mysterious (one),” both of which terms
are now applied to God by the missionaries and their converts, though
Wakaⁿ-tañka is a name for the Thunder-being.
In Riggs’s alphabet (Contr. N. A. Ethn., Vol. VII), these words are
thus written: Wakaŋ, wakaŋhdi, wakaŋkdi, wakaŋ ećoŋ, waŋmduśka, Taku
Wakaŋ, and Wakaŋtaŋka. One of the Dakota words for “aged” is kaⁿ (kaŋ
in Riggs’s alphabet); but though this refers to persons we can not tell
whether it is related to wakaⁿ (or wakaŋ).
In the Ȼegiha, the language spoken by the Ponka and Omaha, Wakanda
means “the mysterious” or “powerful one,” and it is applied in several
senses. It is now used to denote the God of monotheism. Some of the old
people say that their ancestors always believed in a supreme Wakanda
or Mysterious Power. It sometimes refers to the Thunder-being. On one
occasion, a Ponka shaman, Cramped Hand, said to the author: “I am a
Wakanda.” Wakandagi, as a noun, means a subterranean or water monster,
a large horned reptile mentioned in the myths, and still supposed to
dwell beneath the bluffs along the Missouri River. With this term
compare the Dakota Uñkteqi (Uŋkteḣi, of Riggs) and the Winnebago
Waktceqi, the latter having given a name to the Water Monster gens
(Waktceqi ikikaratcada). Wakandagi is sometimes used adverbially, as,
si wakandagi, he is wonderfully stingy! E wakandagi, he (a small child)
speaks surprisingly well (for one so young)! ┴aⁿȼiⁿ wakandagi, he runs
very well (for one so young)! Maⁿȼiⁿ wakandagi, he (a small child)
walks very well! Wakandiȼe, to be in great haste, perhaps contains the
idea of putting forth a great effort in order to accomplish something
speedily. Wĕs‘ă, a serpent, is not related to the others just given.
Nor can the word for “wizard” or “conjurer” be found related to them.
In Kansa, Wakanda is used of superhuman beings or powers, as in
Omaha and Ponka, but the author never heard a shaman apply the term
to himself. Wakandagi has another meaning, mysterious, wonderful,
incomprehensible, as, nika wakandagi, mysterious man, shaman, juggler,
doctor; nanüŭⁿba wakandagi, mysterious or sacred pipe; wakandagi
wagaxe, the sleight-of-hand tricks of the mysterious men and women.
Wakanda qudje, the gray mysterious one, the elephant. Wakaⁿ does not
mean serpent, but pumpkin, answering to the Omaha and Ponka, wataⁿ, and
to the Osage, wakqaⁿ and watqaⁿ. [M]yets‘a (almost, Byets‘a) is the
Kansa word for a serpent.
In Osage, Wakaⁿʇa answers to the Kansa Wakanda, and Waɥkaⁿ-ʇa-ʞi is the
same as the Kansa, Wakandagi. Wets‘a is a serpent. In Kwapa, Wakaⁿʇaʞi
seems to answer to the Kansa Wakandagi.
In ┴ɔiwere (Iowa, Oto, Missouri), Wakaⁿʇa is the same as the Kansa
Wakanda. Wakaⁿ means a serpent. Wakaⁿ kiʞraʇɔe, the Serpent gens.
Wa-hu-priⁿ, mysterious, as a person or animal; but wa-qo-nyi-taⁿ,
mysterious, as an inanimate object.
In the Winnebago, three names for superhuman beings have been found.
One is Waʞuⁿse or Waguⁿze, which can not be translated; another is
Maⁿ‘uⁿ-na, Earth-maker, the third being Qo-piⁿ-ne qe-te-ră, Great
Mysterious One. Qopiⁿne seems related to waqopini (with which compare
the ┴ɔiwere, wahupriⁿ), a term used to distinguish people of other
races from Indians, just as in Dakota wacitcuⁿ (in Riggs’s alphabet,
waśićuŋ), now used for “white man,” “black man,” etc., retains in the
Teton dialect its ancient meaning of superhuman being or guardian
spirit. Wakawaⁿx, in Winnebago, denotes a witch or wizard. Wakaⁿ-na
is a serpent, and wakaⁿ ikikaratca-da, the Serpent gens; Wakaⁿtca, or
Wakaⁿtca-ra, thunder, the Thunder-Being; Wakaⁿtcañka-ra, a shaman or
mysterious man.
OTHER OMAHA AND PONKA TERMS.
§ 8. Other terms are given as being pertinent to the subject. They
occur in the language of the Omaha and Ponka. Qube, mysterious as a
person or animal (all animals were persons in ancient times); but a
mysterious inanimate object is spoken of as being “waqube.” Uqube
means the mysteriousness of a human being or animal. Uqubeaʇaȼicaⁿ,
pertaining to such mysteriousness. Wakandaʇaȼicaⁿ, pertaining or
referring to Wakanda. Nikie is a term that refers to a mythical
ancestor, to some part of his body, to some of his acts, or to some
ancient rite ascribed to him. A “nikie name” is a personal name of
such a character. Iȼa‘eȼĕ, literally, “to pity him on account of it,
granting him certain power.” Its primary reference is to the mysterious
animal, but it is transferred to the person having the vision, hence,
it means “to receive mysterious things from an animal, as in a vision
after fasting; to see as in a vision, face to face (not in a dream);
to see when awake, and in a mysterious manner having a conversation
with the animal about mysterious things.”
§ 9. The names for grandfather, grandmother, and old man are terms of
veneration, superhuman beings having these names applied to them in
invocations. (See §§ 15, 99.)
SIGNIFICANCE OF PERSONAL NAMES AND KINSHIP TERMS.
In a note upon “The Religious Ceremony of the Four Winds or
Quarters, as Observed by the Santee Sioux,” Miss Fletcher[2] remarks:
“A name implies relationship, and consequently protection; favor and
influence are claimed from the source of the name, whether this be the
gens or the vision. A name, therefore, shows the affiliation of the
individual; it grades him, so to speak, and he is apt to lean upon its
implied power. * * * The sacred import of a name in the mind of the
Indian is indicated in that part of the ceremony where the “Something
that moves” seems to overshadow and inclose the child, and addresses
the wakan man as father. The wakan man replies, calling the god, child,
at the same time invoking the supernatural protection and care for
the boy, as he lays at the feet of the messenger of Unseen Power the
offerings of gifts and the honor of the feast. The personal name[3]
among Indians, therefore, indicates the protecting presence of a
deity, and must, therefore, partake of the ceremonial character of the
Indian’s religion.”
In this ceremony the superhuman being is addressed by the term
implying _juniority_, and the human being, the wakan man, by that
associated with _seniority_, an apparent reversal of the usual custom;
but, doubtless, there can be found some explanation for this seeming
exception to the rule.
MYTH AND LEGEND DISTINGUISHED FROM THE SUPERHUMAN.
§ 10. The Omaha, Ponka, and cognate tribes distinguish at the present
day between the myth (higaⁿ, higu) and the legend or story (iuȼa, etc.)
on the one hand; and what on the other hand is called “Wakandaʇaȼicaⁿ,”
“uqubeaʇaȼicaⁿ,” and “iȼa‘eȼĕaʇaȼicaⁿ.” The former are told only for
amusement and are called, “iusictaⁿ iuȼa,” lying tales. They are
regarded as “iqawaȼĕaʇaȼicaⁿ,” pertaining to the ludicrous. With this
may be compared the statements of Lang:[4]
“Among the lowest and most backward, as among the most advanced races,
there coexist the mythical and the religious elements in belief. The
rational factor (or what approves itself to us as the rational factor)
is visible in religion; the irrational is prominent in myth.” * * *
“The rational and irrational aspects of mythology and religion may be
of coeval antiquity for all that is certainly known, or either of
them, in the dark backward of mortal experience, may have preceded the
other.” The author has found certain Indian myths which abound in what
to the civilized mind is the grossest obscenity, and that too without
the slightest reference to the origin of any natural phenomena. Myths
of this class appear to have been told from a love of the obscene.
Nothing of a mysterious or religious character can be found in them.
Perhaps such myths are of modern origin; but this must remain an enigma.
§ 11. The Omaha and Ponka are in a transition state, hence many of
their old customs and beliefs are disappearing. Some have been lost
within the past fifty years, others within the last decade, according
to unimpeachable testimony. The Ponka are more conservative than the
Omaha, and the Kansa and Osage are more so than the Ponka, in the
estimation of the author.
§ 12. Though it has been said that the Indians feared to tell myths
except on winter nights (and some Indians have told this to the
author), the author has had no trouble in obtaining myths during the
day at various seasons of the year.
§ 13. James Alexander, a full Winnebago of the Wolf gens and a
non-Christian, told the author that the myths of the Winnebago, called
wai-kaⁿ-na by them, have undergone material change in the course of
transmission, and that it is very probable that many of them are
entirely different from what they were several generations ago. Even in
the same tribe at the present day, the author has found no less than
three versions of the same myth, and there may be others.
The myth of the Big Turtle is a case in point.[5] The narrator
acknowledged that he had made some additions to it himself.
§ 14. No fasting or prayer is required before one can tell a myth.
Far different is it with those things which are “Wakandaʇaȼicaⁿ,” or
are connected with visions or the secret societies. This agrees in
the main with what Mr. James Mooney, of the Bureau of Ethnology, has
learned from the Cherokee of North Carolina. Mr. Frank H. Cushing has
found that the Zuñi Indians distinguish between their folk-lore and
their cult-lore, i.e., between their legends and mythic tales on the
one hand, and their dramatized stories of creation and their religious
observances on the other, a special name being given to each class of
knowledge. To them the mythic tales and folk-lore in general are but
the fringe of the garment, not the garment itself. When they enact
the creation story, etc., they believe that they are repeating the
circumstances represented, and that they are then surrounded by the
very beings referred to in the sacred stories. Similar beliefs were
found by Dr. Washington Matthews, as shown in his article entitled “The
Prayer of a Navajo Shaman,” published in the American Anthropologist of
Washington, D.C., for April, 1888.
§ 15. At the same time there seems to be some connection between
certain myths and the personal names called, “nikie names.” This will
be considered in detail in a future monograph on “Indian Personal
Names,” now in course of preparation. One example must suffice for the
present. In the [K]aⁿze gens of the Omaha there is a nikie name, Ԁasi
duba, Four Peaks. The author did not understand its derivation until he
studied the myth of Haxige and observed the prayers made in gathering
the stones for the sweat-bath. Each stone was invoked as a venerable
man (see § 9), the Four Peaks were mentioned several times, and the two
superior deities or chief mysterious ones (Wakanda ʇañga agȼañʞaⁿhaⁿ
hnañkace) were invoked.[6]
This last refers to the Wakanda residing above and the one in
the ground. It is therefore possible that in past ages the
Siouan tribes did not differentiate between the myth and what is
“Wakandaʇaȼicaⁿ.” But we have no means of proving this.
§ 16. Most of the Omaha governmental instrumentalities (“wewaspe”) were
“Wakandaʇaȼicaⁿ,” but there were things that were “Wakandaʇaȼicaⁿ,”
which were not “wewaspe,” such as the law of catamenial seclusion.
FOOTNOTES:
[Footnote 1: Am. Anthropologist, April, 1889, pp. 179, 180.]
[Footnote 2: Op. cit., p. 295.]
[Footnote 3: And also the kinship term in some cases.]
[Footnote 4: Myth, Ritual, and Religion, pp. 328, 329.]
[Footnote 5: See Contr. N. A. Ethn. Vol. VI, 271-277.]
[Footnote 6: Contr. N. A. Ethn., Vol. VI, pp. 234, 242]