Goose wife (Ititaujang’s story)

Overview

After rejection by a woman in his own community, Ititaujang travels inland to the birds’ country. He steals boots left beside a lake. One goose remains demanding hers, and he makes their return conditional on marriage. Putting them on changes her into a woman. They settle in a coastal village, have a son and live together while he becomes a successful whaler. Her later refusal to handle whale meat is expressed as a difference between her land food and his sea food, together with concern for her white clothing.

She gathers feathers and places them between her own and her son’s fingers. Both become geese and fly away. Ititaujang eventually reaches her island with help from Eχaluqdjung. The child recognizes him, but his mother repeatedly dismisses the warning. When the visitor enters, her new husband orders a box opened. Its feathers attach to the couple and child, turning all three into geese as their house disappears. Ititaujang attacks his departing wife, cutting her abdomen so that eggs fall out. The printed story ends there, without explicitly stating her subsequent fate.

Origins & earliest records

Franz Boas published this account in The Central Eskimo (1888), based on his Canadian Arctic fieldwork and expressly attributed earlier reports. No individual narrator is named for this selected story.

Records & interpretation

Ititaujang, pp.615–618; complete published English story read, including its final attack. Footnote9 identifies editorial abridgment; the separately cited uncut Berlin text has not been read.

Selected bibliography

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

1. 01

   The Central Eskimo

   Franz Boas, collector · 1888

   Ititaujang, pp.615–618; complete published English story read, including its final attack. Footnote9 identifies editorial abridgment; the separately cited uncut Berlin text has not been read.

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 textBoas 1888: Ititaujang, pp.615–618; complete published English story read, including its final attack. Footnote9 identifies editorial abridgment; the separately cited uncut Berlin text has not been read.Research access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

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