Yu.E. Berezkin, E.N. Duvakin

Thematic classification and distribution of folklore and mythological motifs by area

Analytical catalogue translated by Jon F White

Introduction
Bibliography
Ethnicities and habitats

K8B. A woman is Keith's soul. .40.

The raven ends up in the whale's womb; the woman inside asks him not to touch a whale organ (usually the heart) or a burning lamp. The raven violates the ban, the woman disappears, the whale dies.

Nunivac, Central Yupik, Chugach, Bering Strait Inupiate, Labrador Eskimos, Baffin Land, West Greenland.

The Arctic. Nuniwak Island: Himmelheber 1951 [see K8A motif; A raven sees a dolphin, flies into his mouth, a woman sticks a thread inside, tells him not to touch the bladder; the raven pierces the bladder, does it's dark, the dolphin dies, throws it ashore; people cut the carcass, the Raven flies out unnoticed; he comes back, says something has flown out of the dolphin, probably an evil spirit; people throw the dolphin, the Raven eats it alone]: 58-64; central yupik: Alaska Native Writers 1986 [on the shore, a fishskin mitt and a grass bag, each repairs itself, tells the Raven that the other has tore it; The Raven invites the Beluga whale to swim to the shore with her mouth open, rushes inside, where the woman makes a park out of dry beluga whales, feeds the Raven, tells him not to touch the fat lamp; he touches him, Keith dies throws it ashore; people cut the carcass, the Raven jumps out unnoticed, says that he would not eat this whale because something flew out of it (i.e. himself); people decide not to eat the whale, the carcass goes to the Raven; he marries Norka, they harvest and eat kitten together; the Raven asks him to make akutak (fat and berries) for him, leaves; in a strange voice, he demands acutak from the aisle, otherwise he will eat Norka; she throws him akutak; the Raven comes back, the wife talks about what happened; the same the next day; the akutak is over, Norka throws his head; The raven comes with a black eye; Mink notices charcoal from the head in his eye; more The raven did not try to deceive Norka; but they did not have children]: 46-58; Andrew 2007 [The raven pretends to admire the beauty of the Beluga Whale; asks him to open his mouth, flies in, there is a lamp, it goes out; in the dark The raven falls asleep; wakes up to hearing the voices of people who find a whale carcass on the shore; they cut a hole, he flies out; comes back; he is offered meat; he refuses, says that something has flown out of the whale , eating this meat is dangerous; people leave; the Raven cuts the carcass; marries Norka; leaves, asking for an acutak; from a distance, demands acutak in a strange voice, otherwise he will eat Norka; she is afraid, gives all the acutak; The raven comes back, wondering who ate his akutak; the third time Norka pokes the unknown with a poker; the Raven returns, covering his broken eye; Minka sees coal in his eye, hits the Raven's nose, leaves]: 414-416; Wassilie 1978 [On the banks of Cuskoquim, the Raven steps with his foot on the Sea Anemone; he lets go of his foot for promising to give him Uncle Raven's wife or relative; released, Raven says that he does not have an uncle, pokes Anemone with a stick, killing him; sits at Groundhog's hole without letting him in; he asks the Raven to dance, promising to give something, slips down the hole; the Raven speaks Bear, who has raised an elk, has seals nearby; the bear goes looking for them, the Raven eats an elk; asks the White Whale to swim closer, jumps into his mouth, a little old woman and a lamp inside; the raven touches the lamp , it goes out, Keith dies, he is washed ashore; the Raven flies out unnoticed, returns in human form, tells the people cutting the carcass that the meat is dangerous; they leave, the Raven eats all alone with an old woman who came out of the whale; asks him to make "Eskimo ice cream" by his return, hides, frightens her, eats everything herself; the old woman throws ash at him, then notices it in the Raven's eye, forgives him]: 99-101; stranger [Raven to Kitu: My partner said you have a big ugly tail; Keith opens its mouth, Raven jumps inside; a bag hangs from above, it's Keith's heart; little woman smokes herring swallowed by the Whale; the Raven cuts his heart with a copper knife; the woman disappears, Keith dies, he is washed ashore; people refresh him, the Raven flies out; returns human, warns don't eat a whale, you can die; people go, Raven, Magpie, Jay eat the whole carcass; Magpie and Jay are thirsty; the Raven advises them to drink the lake; they burst, die]: Birket-Smith 1953:171-172; inupiat Bering Strait (Norton Bay Unalick): Ivanoff Brown 1987 [The raven marries a waterfowl; everyone flies south in autumn, decides to accompany them for a while, turns back, falls into the water , ends up in a whale's stomach; inside a lamp, he pokes it with a knife, it goes out; the whale's corpse is washed ashore, the Raven pecks a hole, goes out, eats to his heart's content]: 79-82; Nelson 1899 [The raven marries a Goose; in autumn he flies south with the Geese; when they see that he is tired, the Raven lies that he has an arrowhead stuck in his heart; Geese do not believe, the Raven falls into the water, has difficulty getting to the shore; asks Keith to open mouth, flies inside; inside the beauty warns not to touch her lamp; beauty is the soul, the lamp is the heart of a whale; the raven touches the lamp, the whale dies; the raven swims inside the carcass to the shore; forgets inside whale fire drill; when people fresh a whale and find a drill, the Raven says it's a bad sign; people run away, the Raven takes all the meat for himself; looks for a jar of fat, meets Mink, they build porridge; Raven; sends Nork to invite marine life to the festival; Seals come; the Raven says he should improve their eyesight by touching their eyes with his rod; glues their eyelids with resin; forgets about the seal at the doorway; he raises the alarm when another seal cries trying to open his eyes; the raven kills guests with a stick one at a time, only the seal in the doorway is saved]: 462-467; inupiat [The raven flies over by the sea, gets tired, flies into the whale's mouth; inside, the beauty warns not to touch her lamp; the beauty is the soul, the lamp is the heart of a whale; the raven touches the lamp, the whale dies; the raven swims on the carcass to the shore; brags that killed the whale]: Ostermann 1952:24-25; Labrador (Nain), Baffin's Land (Pangnirtung), West Greenland (Nuuq) [A raven accidentally flew inside a whale; inside a house with a woman in it repairs the lamp, tells you not to touch the lamp, for this is the heart of a whale; the raven lives with a woman, eats shellfish and crabs; out of curiosity, he extinguishes the lamp, the woman dies; through the whale's throat he climbs to its dead carcass; sails to the shore, takes a human form, says he killed a whale; they don't believe him, he agrees to repeat the trick, kayaks to the narwhals, they sink his kayak, he turns into a crow again, narwhal eats it]: Millman 2004:154-155.