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North America
Explore myths, traditions and legendary beings grouped under North America.
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Huruing Wuhti
Huruing Wuhti is a female spiritual being associated with Hopi mythology, although descriptions of her identity and role vary considerably between published accounts. Her name is also written in forms such as Huruing Wuh…
Kachinas
Kachinas, more accurately written katsinam in many Hopi contexts, are sacred spirit beings, ceremonial identities, and masked dancers in the religious traditions of the Hopi people of northeastern Arizona. The English wo…
Kokyangwuti
Kokyangwuti, commonly known in English as Spider Grandmother or Spider Woman, is an important female figure in Hopi sacred narrative. She is associated with creation, emergence, wisdom, protection and the guidance of hum…
Karwan
Karwan is a name associated in some English-language accounts with Hopi mythology, where it is sometimes described as a warlike spirit or a figure connected with warfare. The identification is not secure, however. Karwan…
Koshare
Koshare is a sacred clown figure associated with Hopi ceremonial life in northern Arizona. The name is often applied to a clown character or to ritual performers who appear in certain Hopi dances and public ceremonies. K…
Kloskurbeh
Kloskurbeh is generally identified with Kuloskap, Gluskabe, Glooscap, or related spellings of a major culture hero in Wabanaki Indigenous traditions of northeastern North America. The name is not normally associated with…
Kokopelli
Kokopelli is the name commonly given to a humpbacked flute player associated with the ancient and modern Indigenous cultures of the American Southwest. He is especially linked in popular accounts with the Hopi, although …
Koyemshi
Koyemshi are sacred clown figures associated with Hopi ceremonial life in northern Arizona. They are best known in English as the Mudheads, a name referring to their distinctive clay- or mud-covered masks. Rather than be…
Kwikwilyaqa
Kwikwilyaqa is a Hopi katsina associated in many English-language descriptions with the butterfly. The name is often translated or explained as “Butterfly Maiden,” although translations of Hopi religious names are not al…
Mana
Mana is a name that appears in some English-language lists and discussions of Hopi katsinam, the spirit beings represented in Hopi ceremonial dances and carved figures. Its identification is not as firmly documented as t…
Momo
Momo is a name sometimes presented in modern reference material as belonging to Hopi mythology, but it does not identify a single, consistently documented figure across the best-known accounts of Hopi religious tradition…