Yurok traditional narratives include myths, legends, tales, and oral histories preserved by the

Yurok The Yurok (Karuk language: Yurúkvaarar / Yuru Kyara - "downriver Indian; i.e. Yurok Indian") are an Indigenous people from along the Klamath River and Pacific coast, whose homelands are located in present-day California stretching from Trinidad ...

people of the lower

Klamath River The Klamath River (Karuk: ''Ishkêesh'', Klamath: ''Koke'', Yurok: ''Hehlkeek 'We-Roy'') flows through Oregon and northern California in the United States, emptying into the Pacific Ocean. By average discharge, the Klamath is the second larges ...

in northwestern California. Yurok oral literature, together with the similar narratives of the

Karuk The Karuk people are an indigenous people of California, and the Karuk Tribe is one of the largest tribes in California. Karuks are also enrolled in two other federally recognized tribes, the Cher-Ae Heights Indian Community of the Trinidad Ran ...

and

Hupa Hupa (Yurok language term: Huep'oola' / Huep'oolaa = "Hupa people") are a Native American people of the Athabaskan-speaking ethnolinguistic group in northwestern California. Their endonym is Natinixwe, also spelled Natinook-wa, meaning "Peopl ...

, constitutes a distinctive variant within Native California. It has significant links with 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 ...

Examples of Yurok Narratives

"The Northern California Indians"
by Stephen Powers (1872)
''Myths and Legends of California and the Old Southwest''
by Katharine Berry Judson (1912)
''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 travele ...

(1924)

Sources for Yurok Narratives

* Bushnell, John, and Donna Bushnell. 1977. "Wealth, Work and World View in Native Northwest California: Sacred Significance and Psychoanalytic Symbolism". In ''Flowers of the Wind: Papers on Ritual, Myth and Symbolism in California and the Southwest'', edited by Thomas C. Blackburn, pp. 120–182. Ballena Press, Socorro, New Mexico. (Myths are used to illustrate themes concerning wealth, work, and emotion.) * Cody, Bertha Parker. 1941. "Yurok Tales: Wohpekumen's Beads, as Told by Jan Van Stralen to Bertha P. Cody". ''The Masterkey'' 15:228-231. * Curtis, Edward S. 1907-1930. ''The North American Indian''. 20 vols. Plimpton Press, Norwood, Massachusetts. (Four myths collected from Weitchpec George, vol. 13, pp. 185–190.) * Erikson, Erik H. 1943. "Observations on the Yurok: Childhood and World Image". ''University of California Publications in American Archaeology and Ethnology'' 35:257-301. Berkeley. (Includes a psychological interpretation of Yurok myths.) * Graves, Charles S. 1929. ''Lore and Legends of the Klamath River Indians''. Press of the Times, Yreka, California. (Includes Yurok, Karok, and Shasta narratives.) * Holsinger, Rosemary. 1992. ''Yurok Tales''. Bell Books, Etna, California. * Judson, Katharine Berry. 1912. ''Myths and Legends of California and the Old Southwest''. A. C. McClurg, Chicago. (One myth, p. 80.) * 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 Yurok myths, pp. 424–426.) * Kroeber, A. L. 1925. ''Handbook of the Indians of California''. Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin No. 78. Washington, D.C. (Assorted narratives, pp. 5, 25, 28, 47, 73-74.) * Kroeber, A. L. 1976. ''Yurok Myths''. University of California Press, Berkeley. (Many narratives, including Theft of Fire and Orpheus, collected in 1900-1908, with commentaries.) * Kroeber, A. L., and E. W. Gifford. 1947. "World Renewal: A Cult System of Native Northwest California". ''Anthropological Records'' 13:1-156. University of California, Berkeley. (Yurok and Karok myths, pp. 112–125.) * Kroeber, Theodora. 1959. ''

The Inland Whale ''The Inland Whale'' is a 1959 book by Theodora Kroeber. It is a retelling of nine pieces of Indigenous American folklore, along with authorial commentary. Kroeber's prose received praise, though a reviewer noted that she had taken some liberti ...

''. University of California Press. (Retelling of two traditional narratives with commentaries, pp. 17–38, 91-96, 159-167, 185-189.) * Luthin, Herbert W. 2002. ''Surviving through the Days: A California Indian Reader''. University of California Press, Berkeley. (One traditional narrative previously published in Robins 1958, pp. 85–89.) * Margolin, Malcolm. 1993. ''The Way We Lived: California Indian Stories, Songs, and Reminiscences''. First edition 1981. Heyday Books, Berkeley, California. (Two narratives, pp. 48–50, 141-142, from Sapir 1928 and from Spott and Kroeber 1942.) * 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. (Four narratives, pp. 59–64.) * Reichard, Gladys A. 1925. "Wiyot Grammar and Texts". ''University of California Publications in American Archaeology and Ethnology'' 22:1-215. Berkeley. (Includes several Yurok tales recorded in 1922-1923.) * Robins, Robert H. 1958. ''The Yurok Language: Grammar, Texts, Lexicon''. University of California Publications in Linguistics No. 15. Berkeley. (Narratives collected in 1951.) * Robins, Robert H. 1985. "The young Man from Serper: A Yurok Folktale". In ''Collectanea Philologica: Festschrift für Helmut Gipper zum 65'', edited by G. Heinz and P. Schmitter, pp. 633–644. Valintin Koerner, Baden-Baden, Germany. * Sapir, Jean. 1928. "Yurok Tales". ''Journal of American Folklore'' 41:253-261. (11 narratives, including Bear and Fawns, collected in 1928 from Mrs. Haydon.) * Spott, Robert, and Alfred L. Kroeber. 1942. "Yurok Narratives". ''University of California Publications in American Archaeology and Ethnology'' 35:143-356. Berkeley. (Legends and myths with analytical discussions, pp. 210–251.) {{Traditional Narratives (California groups) Yurok Traditional narratives (Native California)