Algonquian Spirit
ISBN: 9780803205338
Platform/Publisher: Project MUSE / University of Nebraska Press
Digital rights: Users: Unlimited; Printing: Chapters; Download: Chapters
Subjects: Legends; Algonquian languages; Algonquian Indians; Algonquian mythology; Algonquian literature;

When Europeans first arrived on this continent, Algonquian languages were spoken from the northeastern seaboard through the Great Lakes region, across much of Canada, and even in scattered communities of the American West. The rich and varied oral tradition of this Native language family, one of the farthest-flung in North America, comes brilliantly to life in this remarkably broad sampling of Algonquian songs and stories from across the centuries. Ranging from the speech of an early unknown Algonquian to the famous Walam Olum hoax, from retranslations of classic stories to texts appearing here for the first time, these are tales written or told by Native storytellers, today as in the past, as well as oratory, oral history, and songs sung to this day.

Brian Swann is on the faculty of humanities and social sciences at the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art. His many works include Voices from Four Directions: Contemporary Translations of the Native Literatures of North America and (with Arnold Krupat) I Tell You Now: Autobiographical Essays by Native American Writer s, both available in Bison Books editions.

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