English

crane

Arapaho

1. (hi)té3oo 2. wo’óúhuu

Location

Sandhill Cranes can often be seen during migration in wet meadows and in farm and ranch fields, especially along the Big and Little Wind River. Flocks are occasionally seen in the area in summer as well.

 

Cranes in the Arapaho

The first word is used especially for the Sandhill Crane. The second word (more generally used for herons and egrets) was given by Lloyd Dewey.

One elder reported that Sandhill Crane wing bones were used like those of the eagle to create Sun Dance whistles. Sandhill Cranes migrating north in the springtime were seen as an indicator of the new season.

Porphyry Peak, in the Never Summer Range of Colorado, was called hite3ounokoy (‘sandhill crane lodge’). The Big Wind River in Wyoming is called hite3ounohuux (‘sandhill crane nest’).