Dictionary of Native American Mythology includes over 1,000 colorful, sometimes earthy, and always intriguing entries. Using the carefully chosen cross references, readers can quickly access the meanings of hundreds of elements of lore―from names, phrases, and symbols to images, motifs, and themes. Ten territory maps, which pinpoint exact locations of the tribes mentioned in the text, and a tribal index enhance this volume's usefulness. The bibliography is the most extensive ever compiled on the subject. A delight to the casual browser, and indispensable for anyone interested in the study of Native American cultures. Grade 7 Up-Over 1,300 entries are included in this valuable resource. Terms, concepts, stories, and symbols from more than 100 different Native American cultures are described and illustrated. Maps are useful for locating various peoples, and a tribal index refers readers to entries and to the extensive bibliography. Commonalities, such as the trickster motif, are discussed under English entry titles; other entries are under titles in specific Native American languages. An excellent cross-reference system makes this approach accessible to students. Rituals currently practiced and stories are described in the present tense in order to place "the reader more directly into the action of the story." If a ritual is no longer practiced, the past tense is used. This work updates and supplements North American Indian Mythology (Bedrick, 1985), which has more photographs and is more colorful, but is not as thorough, and The Portable North American Indian Reader (Viking, 1977), which contains poetry and oratory as well as mythology. An important resource, Gill's book will be useful for casual browsers and advanced students. Margaret Tice, Brooklyn Public Library Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. This dictionary entices readers to explore the complex fabric of North American Indian tales and ritual. While numerous other references treat Native American mythology, none offers the coverage found in this volume. Works such as Yves Bonnefoy's Mythologies (Univ. of Chicago Pr., 1991) and the New Larousse Encyclopedia of Mythology (Paul Hamlyn, 1968) focus primarily on classical, European, and Asian myths, with minimal coverage of Native American cultures. This new dictionary is well researched, drawing from scholarly sources such as the Journal of American Folklore and the American Anthropologist. Entries appear as either descriptive terms or in the anglicized form of Native American words, followed by tribal and/or cultural identifiers. Each entry includes generous cross references and bibliographic citations. An excellent tribal index refers readers to both main entries and to the work's extensive bibliography, which invites readers to pursue the research further in scholarly journals and monographs. This dictionary should be purchased by most libraries as a complement to the Handbook of North American Indians (Smithsonian, 1978+) and Arlene and Paulette Hirschfelder's The Encyclopedia of Native American Religions ( LJ 7/92). - Randy J. Olsen, Brigham Young Univ. Lib., Provo, Ut. Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. “A comprehensive bibliography and index by tribe complete this excellent reference work.” ― Library Journal “An important new work … Recommended for all Native American, religion, and folklore collections.” ― Choice Many people see an image of a coyote, a sand painting, or a sweat lodge and vaguely associate it with Native Americans from the southwestern United States. Schoolchildren make crude replicas of totem poles when they study northwestern tribal peoples. But in Dictionary of Native American Mythology we learn that Coyote is a cultural hero and trickster figure with vast numbers of stories from many tribes. Totem poles, while artistically beautiful, represent the animal lineage from which a human family has descended. And sand paintings are created as a part of an eight-day Navajo healing ceremony. These are just some of the more familiar of the more than 1,300 richly worded and illustrated entries. The importance of ritual and myth in creating meaning is nowhere more evident than in Native American traditions. Dictionary of Native American Mythology is a careful selection of the distinctive stories, characters, themes, symbols, and motifs that interweave the traditions of over 100 different Native American cultures. The alphabetically arranged entries are rigorously cross-referenced, allowing the reader to pursue in depth a particular path of inquiry. Each entry cites tribal origin and the corresponding geographic region. These regions in turn are keyed to ten tribal territory maps that pinpoint exact tribe locations. The massive bibliography and tribal index complete this work so that it is not only an indispensable resource for students and scholars, but also a delight to the casual browser. Dictionary of Native American Mythology is a monumental contribut