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Article Databases
- American Indian History OnlineA unique resource that offers fast access to more than 5,000 years of culture, history, and leaders. More than 240 Native American groups are presented through subject entries, biographies, primary source documents, historical maps, and photographs.Online encyclopedia
- American Indian IndexPart of the Labriola National American Indian Data Center Collection. Includes all topics dealing with the American Indian in Alaska, Canada, and the United States. Photographs are included in this collection.Contains citations for all material in the Labriola Center except for the books, which are in the ASU Libraries Online Catalog.
- Ethnic NewswatchFull-text of ethnic, minority and native press newspapers, magazines and journals. Provides a broad diversity of perspectives and viewpoints. Represents the diversity of the American population in ways that are not seen in the mainstream media.Current contemporary American Indian perspectives
- North American Indian Biographical DatabaseIncluding biographies, autobiographies, oral histories, reference works, manuscripts, and photographs, the database presents the life stories of American Indians and Canadian First Peoples in their own wordContains American Indian primary source material
- In the First PersonIndex to over 2500 English language personal narratives, including letters, diaries, memoirs, autobiographies, and oral histories.personal narratives, including letters, diaries, memoirs, autobiographies, and oral histories
- Bibliography of Indigenous Peoples in North AmericaCovers the history, life and culture of native North Americans.Indexes works from the 16th century to the present, including monographs, essays, journal articles, government documents, historical and ethnographic books, and dissertations.
Books
- Encyclopedia of Native American Religions by Arlene HirschfelderCall number: E98 .R3 H73 2000 RefA comprehensive reference publication on Native American religions and their components and historical antecedents, myths, and origin stories.
- Native American Religions by Paula R. HartzCall number: E98 .R3 H25 1997 RefSurveys the history and basic beliefs of Native American religions.
- Shamanism by Piers VitebskyCall number: GN475.8 .V57 2001A study of the shamanic worldview, regional traditions, becoming a shaman, shamans and their clientele and an overall understanding of shamanism.
- The Jesus road : Kiowas, Christianity, and Indian Hymns by Luke Eric Lassiter, Clyde Ellis, and Ralph KotayCall number: E99 .K5 L35 2002A sample of the Native American experience with Christianity.
- God is Red by Vine Deloria, Jr.Call number: BL2776 .D44 1973In God is Red Deloria argues that Christianity has failed today's society, and describes basic tenets that underlie Native religions.
- The Creation as the Maidu Told It = Puktim by William ShipleyCall number: E99 .M18 C7 2002 FolioAn original narration of the Maidu story by the story teller Hancibyjim circa 1900. Translated by linguist William Shipley.
- Sacred Ways of Knowledge, Sources of Life by Peggy V. BeckCall number: E59 .R38 B43x 1990 RefAn informative introduction to traditional and contemporary religious concepts of North American Indians, and a standard reference for all U.S. and Canadian universities.
- Shamanism and the Ancient Mind by James L. PearsonCall number: CC175 .P43 2002Using the theoretical premises of cognitive archaeology and a careful examination of rock art worldwide, Pearson discusses current theories of why ancient peoples produced art-totemism, art-for-art's sake, structuralism, and hunting magic.
- Prayer on Top of the Earth, the Spiritual Universe of the Plains Apaches by Kay Parker SchweinfurthCall number: E99 .A6 S38 2002The Spiritual Universe of the Plains Apaches, offers numerous stories recounted by seven self-appointed tribal historians, the last surviving primary repositories of Apache history, born between 1876 and 1903. The Plains Apaches' mystical kinship with the land and the natural environment that the tribes perceived and nurtured is embodied in their four sacred medicine bundles-the no bikagseli, or "prayer on top of the earth."
- Creek Indian Medicine Ways: the Enduring Power of the Mvskoke Religion by David Lewis, Jr. & Ann T. JordanCall number: E99 .C9 L49 2002Called the Mvskoke in their language, the Creek Indians of Oklahoma continue to practice traditional medicine. In Creek Indian Medicine Ways, David Lewis Jr., a full-blood Mvskoke and practicing medicine man, tells about the medicine tradition that has shaped his life.
- Dine Bahane: The Navajo Creation Story by Paul G. ZobrodCall number: E99 .N3 Z65 1984Paul Zolbrod collates his own transcriptions of Navajo oral traditions with the records of other scholars from decades past to create a narration of the Navajo story of creation.
- American Indian Myths & Legends by Richard Erdoes & Alfonso OrtizCall number: E98 .F6 A47 1984A gathering 160 tales from 80 tribal groups to offer a comprehensive study of the Native American mythic heritage.
- Dictionary of Native American Mythology by Sam D. Gill & Irene F. SullivanCall number: E98 .R3 G46 1994 RefA detailed guide exploring the numerous variety of mythical beasts, heroic humans, and nurturing spirits that make up the spectrum of Native American mythology.
- Bones in the Basket: Native Stories of the Origin People by Carrie J. TaylorCall number: E77.4 .T2 1994A collection of origin stories taken from Chuckchee, Cree, Mandan, Modoc, Mohawk, Osage, and Zuñi legends.
- Southern Indian Myths and Legends by Virginia Pounds Brown & Laurella OwensCall number: E78 .S65 S68 1985A compilation of fifty-seven stories from Choctaw, Chickasaw, Cherokee, Creek, and Seminole mythology, in such categories as creation and migration of tribes, the origin of tobacco, fire, and other gifts of the Great Spirit, and monsters and heroes.
- The fire stealers : a Hopi story by Ekkehart MalotkiCall number: E99 .H7 M318 2003Tells how several animals failed in their efforts to steal fire for the Hopis, but eventually Vulture succeeded.
- Creation myths and legends of the Creek Indians by Bill GranthamCall number: E99 .C9 G68 2002An extensive collection of all known versions of Creek creation stories, myths, and migration legends compiled from the reports of early ethnographers, sociologists, and missionaries, obscure academic journals, travelers' accounts, and from Creek and Yuchi people living today.
- Spirits of the sacred mountains : creation stories of the American Indians by William E. Coffer (Koi Hosh)Call number: E98 .R3 C66Written from an American Indian point of view, the book contains over thirty creation stories from the oral traditions of a wide variety of Indian tribes.
The following bibliography lists reference material dealing with Native American religions, myths and origin stories. These resources include material found in the Labriola Center in the University Libraries at Arizona State University, websites, and other research facilities.
GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT RELIGIONS, MYTHS & ORIGIN STORIES
Religion is a basic attribute of humanity cherished by mankind in all ages, races and cultures. This subject guide attempts to provide an overview of research pertaining to Native American religious beliefs, practices and histories.
Overall, a large body of material exists about Native American worldview and sacred beliefs in spirits, the Native American Church, peyote religion, Plains Sun Dances, Navajo Chants, Pueblo ceremonialism, guardian spirits and vision quests, Inuit masks, Iroquois thanksgiving rites, shamanism, and medicine objects. Within this core of research contains the mythology and origin stories of many Native American peoples which incorporates many mythical figures, elemental and seasonal phenomenon, and landmarks and sacred sites.
Theses and Dissertations
- Medicine Bundle Persons: Blackfoot Ontology and the Study of Native American Religions by Kenneth Hayes LokensgardCall number: LD179.15 1996 .L654A study of the use of medicine bundles in the Siksika religion.
- Native American Religion in the Work of Leslie Marmon Silko by Ekra, Soumaley Marie-OlgaCall number: AAT 8910135Examination of the Native American religious influences in the works of author Leslie Marmon Silko.
Video Recordings
- The Navajo by Donald CoughlinCall number: E99 .N3 N2385x 1997Stories of life on the Navajo reservation including the role of women in religious life.
- Everything Has a Spirit by Ava Hamilton & Gabriele DechCall number: E98 .R3 E94x 1992 VIDEODocumentary on the historical roots of Native American religious persecution and issues such as access and protection of sacred rites, first amendment protection and the use of peyote in the Native American Church.
- Seyewailo: The Flower World Yaqui Deer Songs by Danny CarrCall number: E99 .Y3 S49x 1980 VIDEOThe “enchanted talk” of Yaqui deer songs, which are considered religious expressions of the flower world.
- White Shamans and Plastic Medicine Men by Terry Macy & Daniel HartCall number: E98 .R3 W45x 1995 VIDEOA documentary exploring the popularization and commercialization of Native American spiritual traditions.
Audio Recordings
Wycliffe Bible Translations Jiosh Wechij O’ohana: The New Testament in O’odham (Papgo-Pima) [sound recording], s.l., n.d. The Christian bible translated into the Papago-Pima language. Two-sided, 30 minutes each side. BS 345 .O65x 1975
The American Indian Oral History Collection [sound recordings], s.l., n.d. A collection of 30 cassettes offering a broad account of the experiences of being Indian. Tape 16, for example, discusses traditional Indian religions and the similarities among other religions of various tribes and the teaching of Christianity within the Native American Church. E77 .A45x 1977 v.1:1-15
Oral History Collections
The American Indian Oral History Collection contains microfilm transcripts of some 700 interviews with members of the Navajo Nation, and from members of the Pueblo Tribes, some of which deal with origin stories and religious activities. Ask for the subject guide for these in the Labriola Center.
The University of South Dakota Oral history collection contains a taped series of interviews conducted in the late 1960s and early 1970s with Plains Indians and those non-Indians working actively with them. Participants include Native Christian clergyman Vine Deloria and medicine man Johnson Holy rock.
- Last updated: Feb 14, 2024 5:07 PM
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