Two origin myths from Arctic regions describe the beginnings of their communities. On Big Diomede Island, it’s believed the first humans descended from the sky. A man carved ten figures from ivory and wood, which transformed into men and women, ancestors of the islanders. Similarly, Siberian Eskimos trace their lineage to a man and woman arriving in stone-transformed kaiaks, with their descendants populating East Cape.
Source:
The Eskimo about Bering Strait
by Edward William Nelson
[Smithsonian Institution]
Bureau of American Ethnology
Eighteenth Annual Report
Washington, 1900
► Themes of the story
Creation: These tales explain the origins of the first humans in their respective regions, detailing how life began for their communities.
Origin of Things: They provide explanations for natural phenomena and cultural practices, such as the transformation of carved figures into humans and the petrification of kaiaks into stones.
Supernatural Beings: The involvement of mystical transformations and otherworldly events highlights interactions with supernatural elements in these origin myths.
► From the same Region or People
Learn more about Inuit peoples
An old man from the Diomede islands told me that it was believed among his people that the first human beings who came to Big Diomede island were a man and a woman who came down from the sky and lived on the island a long time, but had no children. At last the man took some walrus ivory and carved five images of people. Then he took some wood and made five more images from it and put all of them to one side.
The next morning the ten dolls had become transformed into ten people. Those coming from the ivory dolls were men, being hardy and brave, and those from the wood were women and were soft and timid. From these people came the inhabitants of the islands.
► Continue reading…
An Eskimo living at East cape, Siberia, told me that the first Eskimo who lived on East cape were a man and a woman who came there in two kaiaks from St Lawrence island. The kaiaks turned to stone when, the pair landed, and two peculiarly shaped stones, one on each side of the cape, are pointed out as being these kaiaks. From this pair of people came all of the Siberian Eskimo.
In those days there were two kinds of people on East Cape, who could not understand each other, but after a time the other people went away and only the Eskimo were left, as they are today.
Running and expanding this site requires resources: from maintaining our digital platform to sourcing and curating new content. With your help, we can grow our collection, improve accessibility, and bring these incredible narratives to an even wider audience. Your sponsorship enables us to keep the world’s stories alive and thriving. ♦ Visit our Support page
Dreamtime Whispers 