Suko (Tasbapauni flood account)

Overview

A Panamaka narrator from Tasbapauni tells Conzemius of the brothers Suko, glossed bamboo, and Kuru, glossed cacao pataste. Fishing in Cualigua Creek, a tributary of Río Oconguas within the Prinsapolca system, they catch ordinary food fish and then a gigantic river catfish. Kuru objects to eating it because it seems to be a spirit. Suko ignores the warning, roasts a portion and develops a thirst that no amount of fetched water can satisfy.

Kuru finally helps his brother to the creek so he can drink directly. As Suko drinks without stopping, his body becomes a huge boa constrictor, while his head retains its human form and ordinary size. Frightened, Kuru returns home and initially conceals what has happened, saying that his brother is still fishing. The neighbours become suspicious and go to look for Suko.

They find the transformed figure in the branches of a tall silk-cotton tree. Immediately a flood inundates the country. The printed ending names Suko, his wife and children as the only survivors; it does not transfer survival to the brother who refused the fish. Nor does it describe Suko becoming human again, explain how his family was protected, or identify this particular catfish with every water spirit.

Origins & earliest records

Conzemius explicitly dates this telling to1921 and identifies the narrator as a Panamaka Sumu from Tasbapauni on Río Prinsapolca, without providing a personal name. It is printed in the Deluge subsection of the1932 survey.

Records & interpretation

Complete selected narrative and its immediate collector framing read in Conzemius’s1932 original edition. Complete Deluge narrative,pp.130–131, including named survivors at its ending. Original narrative pages inspected visually.

Selected bibliography

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

1. 01

   Ethnographical Survey of the Miskito and Sumu Indians of Honduras and Nicaragua

   Eduard Conzemius · 1932

   Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin106. Complete Deluge narrative,pp.130–131, including named survivors at its ending.

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 textConzemius1932 original Smithsonian collectionResearch access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

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