OUTLINE OF ZUNI MYTHO-SOCIOLOGIC ORGANIZATION

A

^{completeoutlineof} the mytho-sociologic organization of theZuni tribe cannotinthisconnection be undertaken.

A

^sufrtcientcharacteri- zation ofthis probably notunique combination of the sociologic and mythologic institutions of a tribe should,however,be given to

make

plaincertain allusions in the followingoutlineswhich^itis feared

would

otherwisebeincomprehensible.

The

^Zuiiioftoday

number

scarcely1,700and, asiswell

known,

they inhabit only a single large pueblo

—

^{single in}

^more

^{senses than one,}

foritisnot avillageof separate houses,butavillageofsixorsevensepa- rateparts in

which

the housesare

mere

apartments or divisions, so to say. This pueblo,however,is divided,notalwaysclearly totheeye,but veryclearly inthe estimation of thei)eoplethemselves,intoseven parts, corresponding,not perhaps in arrangement topographically, but in sequence,to their subdivisions of the ^"worlds^" or world-quarters of this world. Thus,onedivision of the

town

is supposed toberelated to thenorth

and

to bo<!eutered in its kiva orestufa,which

mayor may

not be, however, in its center; another division represents the west, another the south,anotherthe east,yet another the upper world

and

another thelowerworld,while a finaldivision represents the middleor mother

and

synthetic combination of

them

^allin thisworld.

By

^{referencetothe early Spanish history of the pueblo it}

may

be seen that

when

discovered, the Ashiwi or Zunis were living in seven quite widely separated towns, the celebrated

Seven

^Cities of Cibola,

and

that this theoretic subdivision of the only one of these towns

now

remaining isin

some

nu'asurea survival of theoriginalsubdivision of the tribe intoseven subtribes inhabiting as

many

sei)arate towns.

Itis evident thatinboth cases,however,the arrangementwas,

and

is, if

we may

callit such,a mythicorganization^;hence

my

use of theterm the mytho-sociologic organization of the ^tribe.

At any

rate, this is

368 ZUNI CREATION MYTHS.

(eth.ann.I3

the key to their sociology as well as to their mythic conceptious of space

and

the universe. In

common

with all other Indian tribes of North

America

thus far studied,the Zufiis aredivided into clans, or artificial kinship groups, with inheritanceinthe femaleline.

Of

tbese clansthereare,oruntilrecentlythere were, nineteen,

and

thesein turn, with the exception ofone,aregrouped inthrees to correspond to the mythic subdivisionI have abovealludedto. Theseclansarealso,asare those of all other Indians, totemic; that is,they bear the

names and

are suj)posedtohaveintimaterelationshipwithvariousanimals,plants,

and

objects or elements.

Named by

theirtotems theyare asfollows

:

Ka'lokta-kwe, Crane or Pelican people; Poyi-kwe (nearly extinct), ^' Grouse or Sagecock people; Ta'hlui)tsi-kwe (nearly extinct), Yellow-

wood

^or Evergreen-oak people; Aifi'shi-kwe,

Bear

people; Siiski-kwe, Coyotepeojde; Aiyaho-kwe, Eed-topplantorSpring-herb people;

Ana-

kwe. Tobacco peojjle;

Ta'akwe,

Maize-plant jieople; Tonashi-kwe,

Badger

people^; Shohoita-kwe,

Deer

jjeople;

Maawi-kwe

(extinct),Ante- lope people;

Tonakwe, Turkey

people; Ya'tok'ya-kwe,

Snn

people;

Apoya-kwe

(extinct),

Sky

jieople; K'yii'k'yali-kwe, Eagle people;

Tiik'ya-kwe,Toador

Frog

people;

K'yana-kwe

(extinct),

Water

people;

Chitola-kwe (nearly extinct), Rattlesnake people; Pichi-kwe, Parrot-

Macaw

people.

Of

these clans the first groupof three appertains tothe north, the second to the west,the third to the south, the fourth to theeast, the

fifthtothe upperor zenith,

and

thesixth to the loweror nadir region;

whilethesingleclan of the

Macaw

ischaracterized as "midmost,"orof the middle,

and

also asthe all-containing or mother clan of theentire tribe,for in itthe seed of the priesthood of the housesis supposedto bepreserved.

The

Zufiiexplanation of^thisveryremarkable, yet

when

understood

and

comprehended,very simple

and

natural groupingof the clansortotemsis exceedinglyinteresting,

and

also significantwhether

it throwlighton theorigin,or at least native meaning, of totemic sys- tems ingeneral, as

would

atfirst

seem

to bethecase, orwhether, asis

more

probablythe casein this instance, itindicates anativeclassifica- tion, so to say, or reclassification ofclanswhichexisted before thecul- ture

had

beenelaborated to itspresentpoint. Briefly, the clans of the north

—

^{that is, those of} the Crane, the Grouse,

and

Evergreen-oak

—

aregroupedtogether

and

areheld toberelated to thenorthbecauseof their peculiarfitnessfor the region

whence

comesthe cold

and

wherein theseason of winteritselfis supposedtobe created,forthe craneeach

autumn

appears inthe

van

ofwinter, thegrousedoesnotfleefromthe approach of winter but puts on his coat of white

and

traverses the forests of the snow-clad mountains as freely as other birds traverse

summer

fields

and

woodlands, caring not for the cold,

and

the ever- greenoakgrowsas green

and

is as sturdyin winter as othertreesare in spring or

summer;

hence these aretotems

and

ina sen.segod-beings of the north

and

of winter,

and

theclanspeople

named

after

them and

cDSHiNG]

SYMBOLISM OF CLAN NAMES. 369

considered as, mythically at least, their breath-children, are theretore grouped together

and

related to the north and winter as are tlieir

totems.

And

asthebear,

whose

^coatisgrizzly liketheeveningtwilight orblack like thedarkness of night,

and

the graycoyote,

who

prowls amidstthesagebrushat evening

and

goesforth

and

cries inthe night- time,

and

the spring herb or the red-top plant, which bloomsearliest of allflowers in spring

when

first the moisture-laden winds from the west begin to blow

—

^these

^and

^{the people}

^named

^after

^them

^{are as}

appropriatelygrouped in the west.

The

badger,

who

digsLis holeon the

sunny

sides ofhills

and

inwinterappearsonly

when

thesunshines

warm

above them,wiio excavates

among

theroots of the juniper

and

thecedarfromwhichfire iskindledwith theliredrill; the wild tobacco, whichgrowsonly

where

fireshaveburned,

and

thecornwhichanciently

came

from the south

and

is still supposed to get its birth fi'om the southland,

and

its

warmth —

^{these are grouped in thesouth.}

^The

^tm--

key,which

wakes

with the

dawn and

helj)S to

awaken

the

dawn by

his cries; the antelope

and

thedeer,

who

traversefar

mesas and

valleys in the twilight of the

dawn —

^these

^and

^theirchildren are thereforegrouped

in theeast.

And

^{it is} notdifticulttounderstand

why

the sun,thesky

(or turkis),

and

the eagle appertain to theupper world; uor

why

the toad, the water,

and

the rattlesnake appertain tothe lower world.

By

^this arrangementof the world intogreat quarters, or rather as the Zunis conceive ^it, into several worlds corresponding to the four quarters

and

the zenith

and

the nadir,

and by

this grouping of the towns,or later of the

wards

(sotocall them)inthe town, accordingto such mythical division of the world,

and

finallythe grouping of the totemsin turn within thedivisionsthus made, not only the ceremonial

lifeofthepeople,butall theirgovernmental arrangements aswell, are completely systemized.

Something

akin to written statutes results from^this

and

similarrelated arrangements,foreach region isgivenits appropriate color

and

number, according to its relation to one of the regionsI

have named

ortoothers of thoseregions.

Thus

the northis

designated asyellow with the Zunis,because thelight at

morning and

eveninginwintertime isyellow,asalsoisthe auroral light.

The

west

is

known

as the blue world, not onlybecause of the blue orgraytwi- light at evening, but also because

westward

from Zuniland lies the bluePacific.

The

south is designated as red, it being the region of

summer and

^offire, which is red;

and

for an obvious reason the east is designated white (like

dawn

^light); while theuiiper regionis

many-

colored, like the sunlight on the clouds,

and

the lower region black, likethe caves

and

deep springs of the world. Finally, the midmost, so often mentioned ⁱⁿ the following outline, is colored of all these colors,because,beingrepresentative of this (whichis thecentralworld

and

of

which

in turn Zuiii is theverymiddleor navel), itcontains all the other quarters or regions, or is at least divisible into them.

Again,eachregion

—

^{at leasteachof the fourciu-dinal regions, namely,}

13

ETH

24

370 ZUNI CREATION MYTHS.

Ieth.a.nn.13

north, west, south,

and

eust

—

^isthe

^home

^{orcenter ofaspecial element,}

aswell asof oneof thefour seasonseachelementproduces.

Thus

the northisthe place of wind, breath, or ^air,thewestof water, thesouth of fire,

and

the east of earth or the seeds of earth; correspondingly, the north is of course the place of winter or ^{its origin,} thewestof

spring, the south of

summer, and

the east of autumn. This is all

because from the north

and

iu winter blowthe ^fiercest,the greatest windsor breaths, as these peopleesteem

them

^{; from} thewest earlyin spring

come

the moistened breaths of thewatersin early rains; from the south

comes

the greatest heat thatwith dryness is followed

by summer, aud

from the east blowthe winds that bring thefrosts that inturn maturethe seeds

and

perfect the year in autumn.

By means

of thisarrangement no ceremonial is ever performed

and

no council ever held in

which

thereis theleast doubt^as to the positionwhich a

member

of a given clan ^shall occupyin it, foraccordingtotheseason iu

which

the ceremonial is held, or according tothe reasonforwhich a council is convened, one or another ofthe clan groups ofone or anotherof the regionswill take precedence forthe time; the natural sequence being, however, first the north, second the west, third the south, fourth the^{east, fifth} the upper,

and

sixth the lower; but^first, as well as last,the middle.

But

this, to the Zuni,normal sequenceof the regions andclan groups,etc.,hasbeen determined

by

theapparent sequenceof the

phenomena

of theseasons,

and

of theirrelationstoone another; forthe masterful,allconqueringelement, the firstnecessity of

life itself,

and

to all activity,is the wind, the breath,

and

itscold,the latter overmastering, in winter all the other elements as well as all

other existences save thoseespecially adaptedto^itorpotentin it, like those of thetotems

and

gods

and

theirchildren of thenorth.

But

iu spring,

when

with the firstappearanceof the bear

and

the firstsup- posed growls ofhis spiritmasters in the thunders

and

windsof that time ^their breaths begin tobringwater fromtheoceanworld,thenthe strength of the winter ^is broken,

and

the

snows

thereby melted away,

and

theearthis revivifiedwith drink,inorder thatwith the

warmth

of

summer

fromthe south things

may grow and

be cherishedtowardtheir oldage or maturityand perfection,

and

finally toward ^their deathor sleeping in winter

by

the frost-laden breaths of

autumn and

theeast.

Believing,asthe ^Zufiis do, in thisarrangement ofthe universe

and

this distributionof the elements

and

beings chieflyconcernedinthem,

and

finallyintherelationshipof theirclans

and

the

members

^thereof

to these elementary beings,it is but natural that they should

have

societiesor secretorders or cult institutions

composed

of the elders or leading

members

of each group of their clans as above classified.

The

seriatiou of these secret

and

occult medicine societies, or,better, perhaps, societies of magic, is one of the greatest consequence

and

interest.

Tet

itcan but be touched

upon

^here. In strict accordance with succession of the four seasons

and

theirelements, and withtheir

CDSHiNo]

SYMBOLISM OF SACKED SOCIETY NAMES. 371

supposedrelationship to these,areclassifiedthe fourfuudamentalactivi- tiesof primitive life,namely,asrelating tothe north

and

its masterful- ness

and

destructivenessincold,is

war and

destruction;relating tothe westis

war

cure

and

hunting; tothesouth,

husbandry and

medicine;to theeast,

magic and

religion; while the above, the below,andthemiddle relate in one

way

^{oranother to all these divisions.}

As

aconsequence thesocieties of cold or winter arefound tobegrouped, notrigidly,but atleast theoretically,inthe northern clans,

and

theyare,respectively

:

'H16we-kwe, Ice-wand people or band; Achia-kwe, Knife people or band; Ka'shi-kwe, Cactus people or baud; for the west: Pi'hla-kwe, Priesthood of the

Bow

or

Bow

people or

band

(Api'hlan Shiwani, Priests of the

Bow);

Sdniyak'ya-kwe, Priesthood of the

Hunt

or Coyote people or band; for the south: M^ke'hlana-kwe, Great ^fire (ember) people or baud; MaketsAna-kwe, ^{Little fire} (ember) people or band; of the east: Shiwana-kwe, Priests of the Priesthood people or band; tJhuhu-kwe,

Cottonwood-down

people or band; Shi'ime-kwe, or Ka'ka'hlana-kwe,Bird-monster people or band,otherwise

known

as theGreat

Dance-drama

people or

band

^{; for} the upper region:

Newe-

kwe,

Galaxy

people or

band

or theAll-consumerorScavenger people or

band

^(orlife preservers);

and

for the lower regions: Chitola-kwe, Eat- tlesnake people orband, generators (or life makers). Finally, aspro- duced from ^{all the clans}

and

as representative alikeof allthe clans

and

througha ^tribal septuarchy ofall the regions

and

^divisionsin the midmost,

and

finally as representative of all thecult societies above mentioned is the

Ku'ka

or

Akaka-kwe

orMythic

Dance drama

people or organization. It

may

be seen of these mytlio-sociologic organiza- tions thatthey area systemwithin a system,

and

that^itcontains also systems within systems, all founded on this classification according to the ^six-fold division of things,

and

in turn the six-fold division of each of these divisions of things.

To

such au extent, indeed, is

carried this tendency to classifyaccording to the

number

of the six regions with its seventh synthesis of

them

all (the latter sometimes apparent, sometimes nonappearing) that not only are the subdivi- sions of the societies alsoagain subdividedaccording to thisarrange- ment, but each ^{clan is} subdivided both according to such a six-fold arrangement

and

according to the subsidiaryrelations ofthesix parts of its totem.

The

tribal division

made up

of the clans of the north takes precedenceceremonially,occupying^theposition of elderbrother or theoldest ancestor, as the case

might

be.

The

westis theyounger brother of this;

and

in turn, the south of the west, the east of the south, theupper of the east, theunder of

them

all, while the middle divisionis supposed to be a representative being, the heart or navel of all the brothers of the regionsfirst

and

last, as well as elder

and

younger. Ineach clan is tobe found a set of

names

calledthe

names

of childhood. These

names

^are

more

^{of titles} than of cognomens.

They

aredetermined

upon by

^sociplogic

and

divinisticmodes,

and

are

372 ZUNI CREATION MYTHS.

[eth.ann.13

bestowedin childliood asthe "verity

names"

ortitlesof the childrento

whom

given.

But

this

body

of

names

relating to

any

one totem

—

^for

instance, tooneof the beasttotems

—

^{will notbethe}

^name

^{of thetotem}

beast itself,butwill be

names

both of the totem in its various con- ditions

and

of variousiiarts of the totem, orof its functions, or ofits attributes, actual or mythical.

Now

^these parts or functions, or attri- butes of the parts orfunctions,are subdivided also inasix-foldmanner, so thatthe

name

relating toone

member

ofthetotem

—

for examjile,like the right

arm

or leg of the animal thereof

— ^would

^{correspond to the}

north,

and would

bethefirstinhonorina clan(notitselfof the northern group)^; thenthe

name

relating to another

member —

^{sayto theleftleg}

or

arm and

itspowers,^etc.

— ^would

^{pertaintothewest}

^{and would}

^besec-

ond

inhonor^;

and

another

member —

say the right^foot

—

^{tothe south}

^and

would

bethird in honor;

and

of another

member —

^{say the leftfoot}

—

tothe east

and

would be fourth in honor; to another

—

^{say the}

^head

—

totheupperregions

and would

be ^fifthinhonor;

and

another

—

^{say the}

tail

—

^tothe lower region

and would

be sixthinhonor; while the heart or the navel

and

center of the being

would

be ^firstas well^a.s lastin honor.

The

studies of Major Powell

among

the

Maskoki and

other tribeshave

made

^itveryclearthat kinship terms, socalled,

among

other Indian tribes (and the rule will apply no less or perhaps even

more

strictly tothe^Zuiiis)arerather devicesfordeterminingrelativerankor authority assignified

by

relative age, as elder or younger oftheper- son addressed or spoken of

by

the term of relationship. So thatitis quiteimpossiblefora Zuni speaking toanotherto saysimplybrother;

it is always necessary to say elder brother or younger brother,

by

which the speaker himself aflSrms his relativeageorrank; also^itis

customary^foroneclansmantoaddress anotherclansman

by

the

same

kinship

name

^of brother-elder or brother-younger, uncle or nephew,

etc.; but according as the clan of the one addressed ranks ^higheror lower than the clan of the one using the term of address, theword- symbol forelderoryoungerrelationship uuistbeused.

With

suchasystemof arrangementasallthis

may

be seento be,with such afaciledeviceforsymbolizing thearrangement(notonly according to

number

of the regions

and

theirsubdivisionsintheir relative succes- sion

and

the succession oftheirelements

and

seasons,but also in colors attributedtothem,etc.),and,finally,withsuch an arrangementof

names

correspondinglyclassified

and

of terms of relationship significantof rank rather thanofconsanguinal connection,mistake inthe order of a ceremonial, a procession or a council is simply impossible,

and

the people employing such devices

may be

said to

have

written

and

tobe writingtheirstatutes

and

lawsin alltheirdaily relationships

and

utter- ances. Finally, with

much

to add, I

must

be content with simply statingthat thehigh degreeof systemizationwhich has been^attained

by

the Zunis in thus groupingtheir clansseverally

and

seriallyabout a

midmost

group,

we may

see the influenceofthe coming together of