Profiles the Crow Indians and discusses how their society has been able to survive for more than a century because of their philosophies.

The oral historian of the Crow tribe collects stories which introduce the world of the Crow Indians, including its legends, humorous tales, history, and everday life.

For nearly ten years between 1907 and 1931, anthropologist Robert H. Lowie lived among the Crow Indians, listening to the old men and women tell of times gone forever. Lowie learned much about what had been, and still was, a society remarkable for its variability and cohesion, and for its resistance to the encroachments of white civilization. Written with clarity and vigor, Lowie's study makes instantly accessible what had taken him years to discover. He sacrificed neither personal sensitivity nor narrative skill to scientific scruples, but brought his scientific work to life. Crow religion, ceremonies, taboos, kinship bonds, tribal organization, division of labor, codes of honor, and rites of courtship and wedlock receive their due. The Crow Indians is a masterpiece of ethnography, foremost for Lowie's portrayal of the different personalities he encountered: Gray-bull and his marital troubles; the great visionary Medicine-crow; Yellow-brow, the gifted storyteller; and many more.

Exploring the links between the nineteenth-century nomadic life of the Crow Indians and their modern existence, this book demonstrates that dislocation and conquest by outsiders drew the Crows together by testing their ability to adapt their traditions to new conditions.

First published in 1935, The Crow Indians offers a concise and accessible introduction to the nineteenth-century world of the Crow Indians. Drawing on interviews with Crow elders in the early twentieth century, Robert H. Lowie showcases many facets of Crow life, including ceremonies, religious beliefs, a rich storytelling tradition, everyday life, the ties of kinship and the practice of war, and the relations between men and women. Lowie also tells of memorable individuals, including Gray-bull, the great visionary Medicine-crow, and Yellow-brow, the gifted storyteller. The Crow nation today is vital and active, creatively blending the old and the new. The way of life recounted in these pages provides insight into both the historical foundation and the enduring, vibrant heart of the Crow people in the twenty-first century.

Beginning in 1907, the anthropologist Robert H. Lowie visited the Crow Indians at their reservation in Montana. He listened to tales that for many generations had been told around campfires in winter. Vivid tales of Old-Man-Coyote in his various guises; heroic accounts of Lodge-Boy and the Thunderbirds; supernatural stories about Raven-Face and the Spurned Lover; and other tales involving the Bear-Woman, the Offended Turtle, the Skeptical Husband--all these were recorded by Lowie.

With vigor and insight, Crow elders tell their favorite stories of the exploits of memorable leaders from years past in The Way of the Warrior. Rousing adventures and unforgettable warriors inhabit these tales: the impetuous Rabbit Child, who rushes to his fate as he keeps a sacred vow; the rise to power and dreaded revenge of Red Bear, one of the greatest and most spiritually powerful Crow leaders; the dazzling success and even greater shame of Spotted Horse; and the legendary bravery of Top of the Mountain. ø Decades ago the storytellers represented in this volume?including Carl Crooked Arm, Plain Feather, and Cold Wind?recounted these tales to two Crow brothers, Henry Old Coyote and Barney Old Coyote Jr. The Old Coyote brothers recorded, transcribed, and translated into English the accounts, which have now been edited and introduced by Barney's granddaughter, Phenocia Bauerle. Bauerle?s editing has preserved the power of the traditional Crow oral tales and has made them accessible to non-Crow readers as well. The result is a work that entertains and teaches readers about traditional Crow leaders and their world. This remarkable collection of stories also shows that the values that guided and inspired the Crow people in the past remain meaningful for them today.