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Native American Myths Study Guide

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Last updated almost 4 years ago
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The Earth on Turtle's Back


Question 1
1.

Question 2
2.

Question 3
3.

Coyote and Wishpoosh

Question 4
4.

Question 5
5.

The Raven Myth of the Inuit

Question 6
6.

Question 7
7.

Question 8
8.

Question 9
9.

Origin Myth of the Acoma

Question 10
10.

Question 11
11.

Rabbit Boy/Blood Clot Man

Question 12
12.

Question 13
13.

Question 14
14.

Question 15
15.

Question 16
16.

Most Native American tribes have a long tradition of telling stories about their history and beliefs. These stories and legends weren't written down, but were passed down orally from generation to generation. A lot of their stories had to do with nature and how certain things came to be. Most tribes had a story about how the earth and people were created called creation myths. Below are some of the stories, legends, and mythology of the Native Americans. The specific tribe where the story originated is in parentheses.
Question 17
17.

Creation Myth (Powhatan)

There were five main gods in the world. The leader of the gods was the Great Hare. The other four gods were the winds from each corner of the earth. One day the Great Hare created people. He made a number of people and animals. He wasn't sure what to do with them so he put them into a large bag. He wanted to make a place for them to live, so he made the forests, rivers, and lakes. He created deer to live in the forests. The other four gods, however, weren't happy with what the Great Hare had made. They went into the forests and killed the deer. When the Great Hare found the dead deer, he was saddened. He tossed the skins of the deer throughout the forest and many more deer sprang to life. He then let the people out of the bag and spread them around the forest to live together with the deer.
Question 18
18.

Question 19
19.

Why Fire Belongs to Man (Alabama)

When the earth was young, Fire was owned by Bear. Bear carried fire with him wherever he went. When it was cold, Fire kept Bear and his family warm. When it was dark, Fire lit the way. One day, Bear and his family arrived at a forest. Bear put Fire down at the edge of the forest while he and his family went to explore. Soon Bear found that this forest had the best acorns he had ever tasted. Bear and his family moved deeper into the forest to find more acorns. They ate and ate and didn't stop. At the same time, Fire was running out of wood. Fire cried out to Bear "Come back and feed me!", but Bear was too far into the woods.
Just then Man came along. He asked Fire if he could help. Fire told him to bring him wood and sticks. Man placed sticks on Fire and soon Fire was blazing again, happy to have plenty of wood to burn. Man enjoyed Fire's light and warmth. They were happy together. When Bear finally returned, Fire drove him away and now Fire belongs only to Man.
Question 20
20.

Question 21
21.

The Thunder Beings (Cherokee)

Far in the sky to the west lived the god of thunder, Great Thunder, and his sons, the Thunder Boys. They caused lighting and thunder to rain down on the earth, but they also brought rain for the crops and the rainbow. The medicine men of the tribes prayed that the Thunders would bring soft rains for their crops and not harm the people of the tribe with their lightning.
Question 22
22.

How People Got Different Languages (Blackfoot)

One day a great flood moved through the land of the Blackfoot covering everything. All the people gathered at the top of the tallest mountain. The Great Spirit, or "Old Man", appeared on the mountain and turned the water into different colors. He had each group of people drink a different color of water. They all began to speak different languages. The Blackfoot drank the black water and spoke the Blackfoot language.
Question 23
23.

Question 24
24.

Interesting Facts about Native American Myths and Legends

  • The Cree told stories of tiny bald people called Mannegishi who played tricks on people.
  • The Seneca told stories of a man sized spider named Dijien who was impossible to kill because it kept its heart buried underground.
  • The Cherokee told how all animals were asked by the Great Spirit to stay awake for seven nights, but only the owl and panther managed to stay awake. For this reason the owl and panther could see in the dark.
  • Choctaw mythology told how maize was a gift from the birds and that solar eclipses were caused by black squirrels.
  • The Inuit had several mythological figures including Aningan the Moon god, Nanook the god of polar bears, and Pinga the goddess of the hunt.
Question 25
25.

Question 26
26.

Navajo Creation of the First Man and Woman
Question 27
27.

How mosquitoes came to be
Question 28
28.

Question 29
29.

Question 30
30.

Question 31
31.

Question 32
32.

Question 33
33.

In the story of the Earth on turtles back, why did the chief decide to uproot the great tree?
He needed firewood
The tree was blocking his view
Because of a dream
The tree was dying
When the chief’s wife fell from Skyland, what did the animals below decide to do?
They warned the animals on the water of her arrival
They decided to help her
nothing
They alerted her husband the sky chief
By the end of the story, what is created (after all, it’s a creation myth!)?
Fire
Language
The Earth
Man and Woman
Who or what is Wishpoosh?
Another name for Raven
Another name for Coyote
A huge beaver
The great spirit
How was Lake Toppenish created?
In a huge wrestling match between Coyote and Wishpoosh
The tears of the sky chief
From the footprint of Moshup
From the urine of Wishpoosh
According to the Inuit, how was the man created?
They were created by Rabbit
They fell from the sky
They grew from a pea pod planted by Raven
They were created by Coyote
In many Native American myths, the line between the which two worlds is blurry?
sky and land
land and water
human and animal
spirit and reality
When Coyote was having digestive problems, whom did he have a contest with?
Wishpoosh
Raven
2 crows
Rabbit
How does the Raven story from the Native American Peoples of the Pacific Northwest explain why ravens are black?
Athena turns him black as punishment for bringing bad news
Apollo turns him black as punishment for bringing bad news
Raven was always black
Raven's feathers turn black from smoke while he is escaping through a chimney
According to the Acoma, how was the world created?
It was dug up from the bottom of the great water
From a basket with little images of animals and plants
Coyote pooped it out
It fell from the sky
Why must locusts stay underground for so long?
Because Raven does not like them
They like it there
Because Coyote does not like them
Because the first locust disobeyed orders and went above ground before given permission
How was rabbit boy created?
Spider blew him out of his nose
Raven blew him out of his nose
A rabbit kicked a blood clot into the shape of a boy
Coyote blew him out of his nose
Who was Iktome?
Rabbit Boy's fiance
The wicked Spider Man
Rabbit Boy's friend
Rabbit Boy's father
What did Iktome pursuade the villagers to do to Rabbit Boy?
Turn him back into a blood clot
Allow him to marry one of their own
Send him to the sun
Kill him, cut him up into pieces and put him in a stew
What happened to Rabbit boy?
He turned into mosquitoes
He ascended to the sun
He married the village girl
He turned back into a blood clot
What happened to Iktome?
He became mosquitoes
He ascended to the sun
He married the village girl
He was cut into pieces
How were Native American stories and legends passed from one generation to another?
Orally
Through sand art
Using cave paintings
They were recorded on deer skins
They were written down
Who was the leader of the gods in the Powhatan creation myth?
Great Hare
Giant Bear
Wise Owl
Old Man
Eternal Chief
In the Powhatan creation myth, who were the four lesser gods?
Winds from the four corners of the Earth
Bears from the four great forests
Fish from the four great bodies of water
Men and women
Deer of four different colors
In the Alabama fire myth, who first owned fire?
Bear
Snake
Hawk
Deer
Owl
Who owned fire at the end of the Alabama fire myth?
Snake
Deer
Bear
Man
Fish
Who were the sons of the Cherokee god Great Thunder?
Electric Men
Windy Boys
All of the above
Thunder Boys
Lighting Bolts
In the Blackfoot language myth, who appeared on a mountain and told the people to drink?
Great Shaman
Bear
Old Man
Great Hare
Great Thunder
What color of water did the Blackfoot drink to get their language?
Blue
Green
Black
Red
Orange
What ability was granted to the panther and the owl after they stayed awake for seven nights?
Invisibility
Great hearing
See in the dark
Flying
Sharp claws
According to Choctaw mythology, what caused solar eclipses?
A giant spider
Tiny bald men
The Moon
Black squirrels
Great Spirit
According to the Navajo, how were the first man and woman created?
from corn
Coyote blew his nose
from a pea pod
Raven blew his nose
What did the giant do to people?
Race them
Sing to them
Eat them, especially the hearts
Imprison them
What was the plan to defeat the giant?
Throw him through a hole in Skyland
Have Coyote wrestle him
Drown him
Play dead
According to the story, how did mosquitos come to be?
Raven created them
They are the remains of Rabbit Boy come back to life
They are the remains of a giant who vowed to keep eating people
They are the children of a giant
Who is Moshup?
Another name for Coyote
Another name for Raven
A Giant who ate people
A giant who helped the Wampanoag people
What was Moshup's favorite food?
Buffalo
Giant beavers
whole whales
human hearts
What geographic feature is Moshup credited with creating?
The Appalachian Mountains
Martha's vineyard/Noepe Island
Massachussett's Bay
The Great Lakes