Mattole traditional narratives include myths, legends, tales, and oral histories preserved by the
Mattole
The Mattole, including the Bear River Indians, are a group of Native Americans in California. Their traditional lands are along the Mattole and Bear Rivers near Cape Mendocino in Humboldt County, California. A notable difference between the Ma ...
and Bear River people living in the vicinity of
Cape Mendocino
Cape Mendocino (Spanish: ''Cabo Mendocino'', meaning "Cape of Mendoza"), which is located approximately north of San Francisco, is located on the Lost Coast entirely within Humboldt County, California, United States. At 124° 24' 34" W longitude ...
in northwestern California.
Mattole oral literature combined elements typical of central California with influences from the Pacific Northwest. (''See also''
Traditional narratives (Native California)
The traditional narratives of Native California are the folklore and mythology of the native people of California.
For many historic nations of California, there is only a fragmentary record of their traditions.
Spanish missions in California f ...
.)
Sources for Mattole narratives
* Margolin, Malcolm. 1993. ''The Way We Lived: California Indian Stories, Songs, and Reminiscences''. First edition 1981. Heyday Books, Berkeley, California.(Two Bear River Coyote myths, pp. 140, 147–148, from Nomland 1938.)
* Nomland, Gladys Ayer. 1938. "Bear River Ethnography". ''Anthropological Records'' 2:91-124. University of California, Berkeley. (Narratives, including Theft of Fire, pp. 118–123.)
* Powers, Stephen. 1877. ''Tribes of California''. Contributions to North American Ethnology, vol. 3. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. Reprinted with an introduction by Robert F. Heizer in 1976, University of California Press, Berkeley. (Creation myth, p. 110.)
Traditional narratives (Native California)
Mattole people
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