A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

Overview

Wind directs the hero to White Spot of Grass, where he finds twelve Hunger People. Their chief is large and fat even though his only food is a small brown cactus. The contrast belongs to the source’s depiction of this particular household; the passage supplies no separate bodies or names for the other eleven. The hero announces his intention to end hunger’s pain and deaths by killing them.

The chief claims friendship with the future human community. Without the Hunger People, he says, people would cease caring about food and lose the pleasure of preparing and eating good meals and of hunting. The hero leaves them alive and returns without a trophy. Wind names no further enemy afterward. The conclusion turns from repeated killing toward recognition of kinship, while retaining the discomforts that these spared figures embody.

Twelve people with one speaking chiefChief sustained by a small cactusAppetite linked with cooking and hunting
01

Origins & earliest records

Matthews published Navaho Legends in 1897. His introduction identifies Hatali Nez as the principal Origin Legend witness, Torlino as Version A and Jake the silversmith as Version B; supplementary matter is distinguished in notes. He used readable rather than strictly literal English and reports winter storytelling restrictions. This published narrative is not a complete ceremonial transcription or every Diné version.

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Records & interpretation

Origin Legend paragraphs 366–367. Matthews’s published narration retains the distinction between the principal version and individually credited alternatives.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

  1. 01

    Navaho Legends: Origin Legend

    Washington Matthews, collector and translator; principal narrative from Hatali Nez · 1897

    Origin Legend paragraphs 366–367. Complete selected encounter and conclusion.

Family & connections

A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

  1. Primary textMatthews 1897: Origin Legend paragraphs 366–367Research access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

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