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Proverbial Expressions Among The Crow Indians
Author(s) -
Lowie Robert H.
Publication year - 1932
Publication title -
american anthropologist
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.51
H-Index - 85
eISSN - 1548-1433
pISSN - 0002-7294
DOI - 10.1525/aa.1932.34.4.02a00290
Subject(s) - citation , history , genealogy , library science , computer science
DISCUSSION AND CORRESPONDENCE PROVERBIAL EXPRESSIONS AMONG THE CROW INDIANS HE dearth, if not complete lack, of proverbs as a distinct literary category among the American Indians has been repeatedly stressed. This, however, does not imply a complete absence of proverbial sayings. As Professor Boas has pointed out in his Primitive Art, such traditional phrasings are found on the North west coast, though their number and significance in aboriginal life do not remotely approach those characteristic of, say, African Negroes. Some fifteen years ago I recorded two comparable sayings among the Crow Indians, which, however, I never published. During a visit in the summer of 1931 I corroborated the earlier information and secured some additional statements. It seems to be not altogether unusual for a Crow to refer to some well-known tradi tional or mythological episode and to make a personal application. So far I have been able to record four expressions of this type, all obviously conforming to the same pattern. The first two are those recorded in identical form on an earlier field trip. (a) T a ·c dut'u . 'r~k' hira' k'ara k'uci· 'riky. His scalp when they had taken then he ran, that he is like. (Free translation: He is like the man who did not run away until after he had been scalped.) This is, of course, applied to anyone who is belated in his undiitakings. It is said that the Crow once scalped an enemy and, on looking back after a while, saw him scurrying off. (b) ak'birikyuxci' The helper dahi kyuci'riky. poor he is like. (He is like the poor helper.) This is applied to one who proffers his assistance but turns out to be a bWlgler. I could get no light on the origin of this saying. (c) apa . 'ri du'tsi'k'uci'riky. Porcupine-taker he is like. (He is like the one who wanted to catch the porcupine.) This applies to persons who persist in a hopeless enterprise. The reference is to an incident in the Old-Woman's-Grandchild myth, one of the most popular of Crow hero tales: a girl is lured up a tree in pursuit of a porcupine, whose master (the Sun) causes the tree to grow miraculously until it reaches the sky.