Oneida Iroquois Folklore, Myth, and History: New York Oral Narrative from the Notes of H. E. Allen and Others

This is the first major book to explore uniquely Haudenosaunee (Iroquois), and specifically Oneida, components in the Native American oral narrative as it existed around 1900. Drawn largely from early twentieth-century journals by non-Indigenous scholar Hope Emily Allen, much of which was published in Oneida Iroquois Folklore, Myth, and History for the first time.

Even as he studies time-honored themes and such stories as the Haudenosaunee account of creation, Anthony Wonderley breaks new ground examining links between legend, history, and everyday life. He pointedly questions how oral traditions are born and develop. Uncovering tales told over the course of 400 years, Wonderley further defines and considers endurance and sequence in oral narratives.. Finally, possible links between Oneida folklore and material culture are explored in discussions of craft works and archaeological artifacts of cultural and symbolic importance. Arguably the most complete study of its kind, the book will appeal to a wide range of professional disciplines from anthropology, history, and folklore to religion and Native American studies.

Anthony Wonderley worked for the Oneida Indian Nation in its cultural management and preservation programs and for the Oneida Community Mansion House as Curator of Collections and Interpretation. He is the author of At the Font of the Marvelous: Exploring Oral Narrative and Mythic Imagery of the Iroquois and Their Neighbors and co-author of Origins of the Iroquois League: Narratives, Symbols, and Archaeology with Martha L. Sempowski.