Titildi Marimi and Titindi Maupa (Curtin’s Yana account)

Overview

Titindi Maupa wants his elder sister Titildi Marimi to marry his hunter friend Topuna, but she prefers Hitchinna. She wishes sharp rocks and thorns around the house and keeps Topuna outside until his clothing is shredded. Her angry brother leaves, ordering household objects not to reveal his route. He forgets the acorn flour, which tells his sister where he went. She follows because she fears that his enemies will kill him, and persuades the Sun to slow its passage so that she can catch up.

Her protective strength is established before the fighting: his arrows rebound from quartz, while hers shatter it. She makes herself small enough to travel concealed like an otter on his shoulder. He seeks Paiowa, Wakara’s youngest daughter, and wins a welcome by providing venison that remains undiminished while the household and its many star children feast. Later he compresses ninety-nine deer inside another for transport and restores their size at the house.

Jealous in-laws led by Lawalila turn an archery contest into a battle after losing their wagers. When Titindi can no longer stand, his sister carries him on her back and gives him her powerful weapons. He defeats the opposing force. Before dawn he restores his allies by turning their faces downward and striking them with a fire-drill; later, unwilling to leave the enemies lying dead, he restores them too. Renewed games and feasting proceed without another quarrel.

The siblings return with Paiowa after the visit. Topuna approaches Titildi again, and she now accepts him because she fears her brother might leave once more. This stated pressure is part of the ending, alongside her earlier independent choice and decisive rescue. The account is kept distinct from the collection’s other Wakara marriage narrative: a shared celestial father does not make the brides or their trials interchangeable.

Origins & earliest records

Jeremiah Curtin, Creation Myths of Primitive America in Relation to the Religious History and Mental Development of Mankind (Boston: Little, Brown,1898). Collection notes486–487 distinguish the first nine narratives as Wintu and the later thirteen as Yana. Curtin describes California collecting in1895 and prior publication of these narratives in The Sun. The Yana section begins at281; these selected chapters do not name individual tellers.

Records & interpretation

Complete Titindi Maupa and Paiowa, the Youngest Daughter of Wakara, pp. 389–403, read through the return and final marriage. Curtin identifies Titildi as black bear woman and Titindi as her brother; the individual Yana teller is unnamed.

Selected bibliography

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

1. 01

   Creation Myths of Primitive America

   Jeremiah Curtin, collector and English presenter; individual Yana teller unnamed here · 1898

   Titindi Maupa and Paiowa, the Youngest Daughter of Wakara, pp. 389–403; Yana section p. 281 and provenance pp. 486–487.

Family & connections

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References

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1. Primary textCurtin1898 digitised primary collectionResearch access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

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