Yuki traditional narratives include myths, legends, tales, and oral histories preserved by the
Yuki people of the upper
Eel River area of northwestern California.
Yuki oral literature is primarily affiliated with that of central California, although there are also influences from the Northwest Coast region. They clearly belong to the central California tradition. (''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 ...
.)
On-line examples of Yuki narratives
"The Northern California Indians"by
Stephen Powers
Stephen Powers (1840–1904) was an American journalist, ethnographer, and historian of Native American tribes in California. He traveled extensively to study and learn about their cultures, and wrote notable accounts of them. His articles we ...
(1872)
"Yuka Legends"by A. G. Fassin (1884)
"Indian Myths of South Central California"by
Alfred L. Kroeber
Alfred Louis Kroeber (June 11, 1876 – October 5, 1960) was an American cultural anthropologist. He received his PhD under Franz Boas at Columbia University in 1901, the first doctorate in anthropology awarded by Columbia. He was also the first ...
(1907)
''The North American Indian''by
Edward S. Curtis
Edward Sherriff Curtis (February 19, 1868 – October 19, 1952) was an American photographer and ethnologist whose work focused on the American West and on Native American people. Sometimes referred to as the "Shadow Catcher", Curtis traveled ...
(1924)
Sources for Yuki narratives
* Curtis, Edward S. 1907-1930. ''The North American Indian''. 20 vols. Plimpton Press, Norwood, Massachusetts. (Two myths, including Theft of Fire, vol. 14, pp. 169-170.)
* Fassin, A. G. 1884. "Yuka Legends". ''Overland Monthly'' 3:651-658.
* Gifford, Edward Winslow. 1937. "Coast Yuki Myths". ''Journal of American Folklore'' 50:115-172. (Myths, including Theft of Fire, collected from Tony Bell in 1926 and Tom Bell in 1929.)
* Gifford, Edward Winslow, and Gwendoline Harris Block. 1930. ''California Indian Nights''. Arthur H. Clark, Glendale, California. (One previously published narrative, p. 82.)
*
Goldschmidt, Walter
Walter Rochs Goldschmidt (February 24, 1913 – September 1, 2010) was an American anthropologist.
Goldschmidt was of German descent, born in San Antonio, Texas, on February 24, 1913, to Hermann and Gretchen Goldschmidt. He earned a bachelor's deg ...
, George Foster, and Frank Essene. 1939. "War Stories from Two Enemy Tribes". ''Journal of American Folklore'' 52:141-154. (Reprinted in The California Indians: A Source Book, edited by R. F. Heizer and M. A. Whipple, pp. 445-458, 2nd ed., 1971, University of California Press, Berkeley. (Four Yuki narratives about warfare with the Nomlaki, compared with Nomlaki accounts; collected in 1935-1937.)
* Kroeber, A. L. 1907. "Indian Myths of South Central California". ''University of California Publications in American Archaeology and Ethnology'' 4:167-250. Berkeley. (Myths, including Theft of Fire, pp. 183-186.)
* Kroeber, A. L. 1911. "The Languages of the Coast of California North of San Francisco". ''University of California Publications in American Archaeology and Ethnology'' 9:273-435. Berkeley. (Includes a Yuki myth, pp. 375-377.)
* Kroeber, A. L. 1925. ''Handbook of the Indians of California''. Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin No. 78. Washington, D.C. (Several narratives, including Creation myth and accounts of wars, p. 152, 156-158, 206-207, 216.)
* Kroeber, A. L. 1932. "Yuki Myths". ''Anthropos'' 27:905-939.
* Margolin, Malcolm. 1993. ''The Way We Lived: California Indian Stories, Songs, and Reminiscences''. First edition 1981. Heyday Books, Berkeley, California. (Two myths, pp. 46-47, 91-92, from Gifford 1937.)
* 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. (Two narratives, pp. 144-145.)
{{Traditional Narratives (California groups)
Traditional narratives (Native California)