Tibik-kìzis - Tales from the Great Lakes & Canada

Folklore, fairy tales, myths and legends from the First Nations of the Great Lakes & Canada.
 
This volume, Tibik-kìzis covers stories originating broadly from North America’s Great Lakes communities and what are now largely Canadian provinces. As ever, it's been a simple but rewarding pleasure to discover just how deep and rich are the veins of folk and tribal lore across the Americas. There is a deep sense of nature, of the seasons, weather, plants, animals, earth, water, fire, sky and the heavenly bodies, together with common elements such as all ­embracing, universal and omniscient Great Spirit.
 
While some of the classic definitions of folklore were created by Europeans such as William Thoms, who coined the term in 1846 to refer to "manners, customs [...] of the olden times", the study of folklore has grown substantially out of the European concept of folk, often understood to mean "common, uneducated people mostly in villages or rural communities". This definition, however, falls short of capturing the formal aspect of many Indigenous traditions. Even 19th century folklorists collecting and attempting to translate Indigenous oral literature recognised the immense challenge of bridging the culture gap. Ethnographer Horatio Hale wrote in 1874 that creation myths and myths explaining the origin of sacred ceremonies, "were, in a certain sense, articles of religion and were handed down with scrupulous exactness."
 
One quoted First Nation chief is reported to have said, "It is very difficult for a stranger to rightly understand the morals of [our] stories [...] And when you have learned all that language can convey, there are still a thousand images, suggestions and associations recurring to [our people], which can strike no chord in your heart. The myriad voices of nature are dumb to you, but to [us] they are full of life and power."
 
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