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

Overview

Kagssagssuk warns children left alone during a spirit-calling gathering that excessive noise will bring the Great Fire. They disregard him. He escapes onto the drying frame while the visitor pulls children through the entrance with a living ribbon seal used as a whip, burning each victim. The seal has long claws in this telling. Before leaving, the visitor touches a skin hanging near the hidden boy.

The adults initially accuse the boy of killing the children. At his challenge they reproduce the noise and the Great Fire returns. This time they have heated oil above the entrance and pour it down, destroying the whip. The being then withdraws; the tale does not explicitly say that it dies. Kagssagssuk remains mistreated despite having told the truth, and the larger narrative continues through his acquisition of strength, revenge and eventual death. Great Fire is the opening adversary, distinct from the later helpful giant.

Summoned by a noisy householdLiving ribbon seal used as whipWithdraws after its whip is destroyed
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Origins & earliest records

The volume’s final source list assigns this narrative to Polar Inuit of Smith Sound. Knud Rasmussen collected the material; W. Worster edited and translated the 1921 English selection. No individual storyteller is named here. Worster states that he selected and edited versions, including omissions; this is not an unabridged performance transcript.

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Records & interpretation

The complete Kagssagssuk, the homeless boy who became a strong man narrative and source-list attribution were inspected, including the final outcome. It begins on printed p. 117.

Selected bibliography

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

  1. 01

    Eskimo Folk-Tales

    Knud Rasmussen, collector; W. Worster, editor and English translator · 1921

    Kagssagssuk, the homeless boy who became a strong man, begins printed p. 117.

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 textRasmussen/Worster 1921: Kagssagssuk, the homeless boy who became a strong manResearch 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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