The Nanyaa’yi of the Stikine River claim the grizzly bear as their emblem, rooted in a flood legend where a bear and mountain goat accompanied them to safety. They preserved and honored bear skins, hosting ceremonies that included costly gifts and the naming of children. Renowned for their association with the grizzly bear, they composed songs and traditions around it, though they value the mountain goat less significantly.
Source:
Tlingit Myths and Texts
by John R. Swanton
[Smithsonian Institution]
Bureau of American Ethnology
Bulletin 39
Washington, 1909
► Themes of the story
Transformation: The narrative describes how the Nanyaa’yi people, accompanied by a grizzly bear and a mountain goat during a flood, undergo a significant change. Their interaction with these animals leads to the adoption of the grizzly bear as a central emblem, symbolizing a transformative event in their cultural identity.
Sacred Objects: The preserved grizzly bear skin, maintained meticulously over generations, serves as a sacred object imbued with deep symbolic significance. It is central to ceremonies and traditions, highlighting the importance of sacred artifacts in cultural practices.
Cultural Heroes: The Nanyaa’yi clan, particularly the head chiefs known as Shakes, are portrayed as cultural heroes. Their stewardship of the grizzly bear emblem and the associated ceremonies reinforce their status and influence within the community, embodying the traits of foundational figures who shape societal values and traditions.
► From the same Region or People
Learn more about the Tlingit people
Myth recorded in English at Wrangell, Alaska, in January-April 1904
At the time of the flood the Nanyaa’yi were climbing a mountain on the Stikine river, called Seku’qle-ca, and a grizzly bear and a mountain goat went along with them. Whenever the people stopped, these two animals stopped also, and whenever they moved on the animals moved on. Finally they killed the bear and preserved its skin with the claws, teeth, and so forth, intact. They kept it for years after the flood, and, as soon as it went to pieces, they replaced it with another, and that with still another up to the present time. This is why they claim the grizzly bear.
During the times when this bear skin has been shown thousands of dollars worth of slaves and furs have been given away. Shakes (Ceks), head chiefs of this clan, would go up to a row of slaves and slap each one, upon which the slave would either have to be killed or sent home.
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This is why they gave great names to their children. They were very proud of owning this bear and did all kinds of things toward it. That is why all Alaska speaks of the Nanyaa’yi as the chief ones owning the grizzly bear. Very many songs were composed concerning it, with words such as these, “Come here, you bear, the highest bear of all bears.”
They also have the head of the mountain goat, but they do not value it as highly.
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