Hopi Coyote Tales: Istutuwutsi

by Ekkehart Malotki, Michael Lomatuway'Ma

This volume brings together twenty-one traditional tales recently retold by Hopi narrators. Complete with English translations and original Hopi transcriptions on facing pages and a bilingual glossary. Hopi Coyote Tales is important to an understanding of the Hopi language and folklore. To nomadic hunters such as the Navajo, who competed with him on the open range, Coyote was by turns a formidable trickster, a demonic witchperson, and a god. As sedentary planters, the Hopis tended to reduce Coyote to the level of a laughable fool. In these tales Coyote is a friendly bumbler whose mistakes teach listeners what tricks to avoid. Time after time he is hurt or killed for failing to understand a situation correctly. The collection is as amusing as animal fables should be, as simply told, and as instructive. Published as a companion volume to Father Berard Haile's Navajo Coyote Tales , Hopi Coyote Tales is a valuable contribution to cross-cultural studies.

Genres: History, Mythology, Reference

344 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1984

Reviews

[Tyler Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

An enjoyable bilingual collection (Hopi on one side and the English translation on the other) of Hopi Coyote stories. Exactly what you expect it to be, and an excellent resource to boot, with its bilingual glossary at the end.

[K.J. Russell · Rating 4 out of 5]

An exceptional resource for anyone interested in Hopi culture and how Coyote plays into it. The book attempts to record, not to modify or explain.

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

My father read this book to me while growing up and I hung onto it.
I miss being home but this keeps me connected.
The split page with Hopi translation is an amazing feature.

[Chris Southworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a perennial favourite of mine. I first read it in 1993, and I reread it every few years. It's funny, full of wisdom and foolishness, and it never fails to make me smile.