More Than Just a Story

Pages turning, captive audiences, everyone enjoys a good story. Many

people like to listen to their familys oral traditions. Some people dont
understand the importance of the stories that are being told. Although some
people dont think tradition isnt important, the Native Americans thought
that oral tradition was important because it was a way to pass down their
heritage, they provide accounts of historical events, and they reinforce the
tribes beliefs.
To begin with, oral tradition was a way to pass down Native American
heritage. For instance, according to Bright Hub Educations, Creation Myths
are one of the most well- known traditions for Native American tribes. Native
peoples were able to explain everyday natural occurrences, such as weather
related events, as well as their own beginnings. This evidence illustrates
that oral tradition was a way to pass down their heritage by showing that
they used myths to explain things to the next generation; that generation
will teach the next one with the same stories. This keeps the of the tribe
heritage from dying out. Also, according to Teacher Certification, Native
American oral storytelling traditions allowed tribes to transmit their
mythological and spiritual understandings of themselves and the worlds they
inhabited to their children and their childrens children. This evidence
demonstrates that the Native Americans used oral tradition to pass down
their heritage because the Native Americans passed down the
understandings of themselves and the world.

Additionally, one importance of oral tradition is that it provides and

accurate historical accounts. For example, according to Oklahoma Historical
Society, Historical information, such as family genealogy and cultural
knowledge held within a tribal group, will most often be transmitted between
generations through spoken narratives. This conveys that historical
accounts from oral tradition are important because the historical information
from these accounts are being passed down. Another example, according to
The Oral History of the Cherokee, is that archeological evidence shows that
there were people living in the southern Appalachian Mountains at the end of
the last Ice Age. The climate was colder and the ancestors of the Easton
Band Cherokee wouldve encountered now- extinct species. Their oral history
still tells of those times. Jerry Wolfe, a Cherokee elder, says, My dad always
said that when the Cherokee came into this country, into these mountains,
that it was dangerous. It was dangerous because of the monsters that lived
there. This evidence displays that oral tradition can provide accurate
historical accounts because a Native American that lives in modern times
can provide an accurate account of something that happened in the Ice Age
because oral tradition passed the account down.
Furthermore, oral tradition can reinforce the tribes beliefs. For
example, according to Teacher Certification, Native American storytelling
was focused on helping people understand their place in natural world. This
proves that oral tradition reinforces a Native American tribes beliefs because
the stories, their beliefs, helped people understand the natural world. This

would reinforce their beliefs because the people they were helping
understand their place in the world are being taught that tribes beliefs and
stories. Also according to Teacher Certification, Native Americans translated
practical prescriptions along with subtle and sophisticated ideas about the
great mystery of life and existence into allegories filled with heroes and
villains, comedic twists, and dramatic encounters and lessons learned. This
evidence displays that Native Americans used oral tradition to reinforce their
beliefs because they used stories to teach about their lives and how they fit
into the world.
In conclusion, because it helped pass down heritage, provide historical
accounts, and reinforced the tribes beliefs, oral history was important to the
Native Americans. A Native American knows and can talk about how
dangerous it was during the Ice Age because his ancestors passed down the
information through verbal stories. So the next time you hear your
grandfather talk about what it was like when he was young, listen carefully.
There might be a story to teach you own grandkids with.