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

Overview

A wifeless ptarmigan hunter sees what first looks like a stone in a rocky valley, then recognizes a house. He crawls silently into the entrance and whistles at the old couple inside. At first they do not respond. When they hear him, the man addresses his wife as Puagssuaq and asks her to consult the spirits, wondering whether the sound belongs to a shore-dweller who catches fish.

As Puagssuaq loosens her hair to begin, the passage enclosing the visitor narrows until it is almost shut. It then opens again. The hunter seizes the next opening to escape and runs uphill, expecting pursuit that never comes. He returns home and relates the incident. The text presents the closing passage alongside the consultation but does not describe Puagssuaq’s body changing into the house or explain exactly who moves its walls. Nor does it establish that the couple intended to eat the intruder. Her named role and the responsive interior distinguish this brief encounter.

Named older womanConsults spirits after an intrusionPassage closes and reopensEscaping visitor is not pursued
01

Origins & earliest records

The volume’s final source list assigns this narrative to Godthaab, West Greenland Inuit. 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.

02

Records & interpretation

The complete Puagssuaq narrative and final regional source list were inspected. The story begins on printed p. 146.

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

    Puagssuaq, begins printed p. 146.

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: PuagssuaqResearch 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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