Lakota Texts - (Studies in the Anthropology of North American Indians) by Regina Pustet (Hardcover)

About the Book

Lakota Texts is a treasure trove of stories told in the original language by modern Lakota women who make their home in Denver. Sometimes witty, often moving, and invariably engaging and fascinating, these stories are both autobiographical and cultural.

Book Synopsis

Lakota Texts is a treasure trove of stories told in the original language by modern Lakota women who make their home in Denver, Colorado. Sometimes witty, often moving, and invariably engaging and fascinating, these stories are both autobiographical and cultural. The stories present personal experiences along with lessons the women have learned or were taught about Lakota history, culture, and legends. The women share aspects of their own lives, including such rituals as powwows, the sweatlodge, and rites of puberty. The women also include details of the older Lakota world and its customs, revered myths, more recent stories, and jokes.

In addition to the valuable light Lakota Texts sheds on the lives of modern Lakota women, these stories also represent a significant contribution to American Indian linguistics. Regina Pustet has meticulously transcribed and translated the stories in a detailed, interlinear format that makes the texts a rich source of information about modern Lakota language itself.

Review Quotes

"The narratives add to the greater body of oral history and culture of the Lakota people."--Michael Smith, Nebraska History

"A delightful collection of stories."--Kimberly Field, Denver Posse of Westerners

About the Author

Regina Pustet (1963-2013) was a linguist who taught at the University of Munich. She is the author of Copulas: Universals in the Categorization of the Lexicon.