Blackfoot tradition tells of Napi (Old Man), a creator figure who slid down on his belly to form the Belly Buttes bluffs. The video argues, citing SFU archaeologist Eldon Yellowhorn, that Napi stories preserve memories of catastrophic ice-dam floods at the end of the ice age, comparable to the Missoula floods that carved the Channeled Scablands.
Video argues Napi legends recall ice-age floods in Alberta
Site mentioned
📍 Belly Buttes
Key facts
- Napi (Naapi), or Old Man, is a Blackfoot creator figure whose name is associated with dawn light.
- Blackfoot tradition says Napi formed the Belly Buttes bluffs by sliding down on his belly.
- The video attributes to SFU archaeologist Eldon Yellowhorn the interpretation that Napi stories may preserve memories of glacial-dam bursts at the end of the ice age.
- The video compares this interpretation with the Missoula floods and catastrophic glacial-lake drainage in the Connecticut River Valley.
Sources
Old Man and Old Womanencyclopedia.com
Blackfoot creation myths ... Old Man, also known as Napi, is a creator god and trickster figure in the mythology of the Blackfoot Indians of North America.
Blackfoot Legends – Napi The Trickstermysteriesofcanada.com
Napi, known as Old Man, is the culture hero of the Blackfoot tribe. Napi is often portrayed as a trickster, a troublemaker, and a foolish ...
Overlay: Chief Napi's divinity in Wonder Woman (2017)checkplease.neocities.org
In Blackfoot mythology, Napi (meaning "Old Man") is the creator deity who shaped the world and its people. By naming the character Chief Napi, ...
Blackfeet Creation Mythlegendsofamerica.com
The Blackfeet believe that the Sun made the earth--that he is the creator. One of the names by which they call the Sun is Napi—Old Man. This is the story.
Napi: The Trickster | Werklund School of Educationwerklund.ucalgary.ca
Napi, the Old Man of the Blackfoot Nation, appears prominently in mythology, sometimes as a quasi-Creator, sometimes a fool, and sometimes a brutal murderer.
Napi Legends - Ninastako Cultural Centrebooks.google.com
Our Blackfoot legends are vital to our nation, because they set us apart and define us as a distinct people in the family of man. These legends ...
Napi, Old Man, the Blackfoot Creator - Sacred Americasacredamerica.org
Napi, Old Man, the Blackfoot Creator. Napi is comparable to Coyote on the Pacific Coast as a geomorphic. Napi is approximately 350 miles long ...
Napioxfordreference.com
The creator deity of the Blackfoot Indians, Napi is a god of light rather than a solar deity. This would make his name 'dawn-light-colour-man'.
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