Asdiwal
Tsimshian · demigod · post flood · Recorded classification
Hero of the eponymous Asdiwal cycle; subject of Lévi-Strauss's landmark 1958 structural analysis. Inherits supernatural hunting equipment from his father and travels between the Skeena River, the sky country, and undersea realms across the cycle.
Parentage
- paternal: Hatsenas
- maternal: Skeena Chief's Daughter
Powers
- unerring aim
- sky passage
- monster slaying
- Climb into the sky-world
- Make himself invisible
- Hunt without ever missing
Epithets
- Asdiwal The hunter-hero of the Skeena whose journeys between sky, sea, and mountain frame the great Tsimshian cycleFranz Boas, Tsimshian Mythology; Lévi-Strauss, The Story of Asdiwal (secondary)
Sources
- existence: Boas, Tsimshian Mythology (1916), pp. 243-273 (primary); Lévi-Strauss, "La geste d'Asdiwal" in Annuaire de l'EPHE (1958) (secondary)
- parentage: Boas (1916) (primary)