Native American creation myths – A cross-legged man from Spiro Mound (modern Oklahoma), 900-1450 AD
Where did Native people come from?
Each group of people in North America had their own story about where the world came from and where they came from. Native American creation myths are very different from each other.
Here are some examples:
- Pueblo creation myth
- Navajo creation myth
- Chinook creation myth
- Cherokee creation myth
- Inuit creation myth
When did they start to tell these stories?
Nobody really knows whether people brought these stories with them from Asia when they came to North America about 15000 BC. Maybe people created these stories after they got to North America. Probably some of both.
Compare and contrast
You might want to compare these creation stories to similar stories from other cultures like these:
- Greek creation myth
- Hindu creation myth
- Jewish (and Christian) creation myth
- Zoroastrian creation myth
What do these stories have in common? What do they think needs explaining?
Bibliography and further reading about North American creation myths:
