Kushtaka facts for kids
Kushtaka, also known as Kooshdakhaa, are mythical shape-shifting creatures. They are part of the folklore of the Tlingit people. The Tlingit are Native Americans who live along the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America. The name "Kushtaka" means "land otter man."
What are Kushtaka?
Kushtaka are often compared to similar creatures in other Native American cultures. These include the 'Watsa of the Ts'msyen people, the Nat'ina of the Denaʼina people in Alaska, and the Urayuli of the Yup'ik people in Western Alaska.
Kushtaka are known for their ability to change their shape. They can look like a human, an otter, or sometimes other animals. Some stories say they can become any type of otter, while others say only one specific kind.
Their behavior in stories can be quite different. Some tales describe Kushtaka as mean creatures. They enjoy tricking Tlingit sailors, leading them to their deaths. But other stories show them as friendly and helpful. They often save lost people from freezing in the cold.
In many legends, Kushtaka save a lost person by creating illusions. They might make the person think they see their family or friends. While the person is distracted, the Kushtaka changes them into another Kushtaka. This allows the person to survive the cold, but they are no longer fully human. This is often seen as a "mixed blessing."
However, not all Kushtaka legends are pleasant. Some stories say that Kushtaka will imitate the cries of a baby or the screams of a woman. They do this to trick people into coming to a river. Once there, the Kushtaka might kill the person or turn them into another Kushtaka.
People believed that certain things could keep Kushtaka away. These included copper, urine, dogs, and sometimes fire. Some people think the legends of Kushtaka were used by Tlingit mothers. They might have told these stories to keep their children from wandering too close to the ocean alone. It is also said that Kushtaka make a special whistle. It is a high-pitched, three-part sound that goes low-high-low.
Kushtaka in Books
Kushtaka appear in several modern books.
- In Legends in Wood: Stories of the Totems by Pamela Rae Huteson, they are in a legend called 'War with the Land Otter Men'.
- They are also in Pamela Rae Huteson's Transformation Masks in a section called 'Kooshdakhaa Den'.
- Kushtaka are mentioned in Raven Stole the Moon by Garth Stein.
- Harry D. Colp wrote a short story called "The Strangest Story Ever Told." It describes a miner's meeting with a Kushtaka at Thomas Bay.
- David Pierdomenico wrote a horror novel set in Alaska simply titled Kushtaka.
- They also show up in William Giraldi's novel Hold the Dark (2015).
- In the second book of Anne McCaffrey's science-fiction series, The Twins of Petaybee, called Maelstrom, there is a species of shape-changing deep-sea otters who call themselves Kushtaka.
- The Kushtaka is the main bad guy in the Bill Schweigert novel The Beast of Barcroft (2015).
- They are also described in the book Shamans and Kushtakas: North Coast Tales of the Supernatural by Mary Giraudo Beck.
