A note on the word “tribe”
The title refers to “the tribe,” as though the Apache were one group. In fact the Apache peoples are several distinct nations, including the Western Apache, Chiricahua, Mescalero, Jicarilla, Lipan and Plains Apache, each with its own history and narrative tradition. The figures discussed below appear in many of them, but not identically. Where this article generalizes, it is describing patterns noted in published sources, and it avoids ceremonial detail, which is not shared publicly.
Changing Woman and White Painted Woman
Among several Apache groups, one of the central holy figures is a woman associated with renewal, fertility and the life of the people. She is known by different names depending on the group and the source. In English-language writing she is often called Changing Woman, and in Chiricahua and Mescalero contexts White Painted Woman is a very common name. Her name in each Apache language is different again, and the names given in older books can be spelled inconsistently.
Published sources link her with the cycle of life and with the idea of renewal. She is often described in the literature as growing old and becoming young again. Because of this association, she is closely connected with the girls’ puberty ceremony, the Sunrise Ceremony, in which, according to public descriptions, the young woman is associated with her. The ceremony itself is a sacred event, and this site does not describe its contents.
Child of the Water
In many accounts, White Painted Woman is the mother of Child of the Water, a hero who is central to monster slaying stories. In several versions he has a counterpart, a brother or companion, and the two are associated with courage, strength and the protection of the people. In the Jicarilla and Chiricahua traditions, and in the Navajo parallel (the Navajo are a separate nation, though a close linguistic relative), the details differ in important ways.
Common ideas in the published accounts include the following:
- the world once held dangerous beings that threatened the people;
- a young hero, sometimes born in unusual circumstances, sets out to deal with them;
- his mother’s role is protective and sustaining, and she provides guidance and strength;
- after his work, the world is safer and people can live in it.
Different groups tell the story differently, and some versions are recorded in older collections under names that outsiders used and Apache people did not necessarily choose. The identification of one figure with another across nations is a matter that scholars discuss, and it should be treated cautiously.
Variation among groups
It is tempting to produce one smooth “Apache version,” but the evidence does not support it. Some points on which sources differ include:
- Names. The same figure may have several names within a single nation, some used publicly and some not.
- Parentage and siblings. Who the hero’s father is, and whether he has a twin or companion, varies.
- Role of the figure. In some groups, the woman is closely tied to ceremonies of the young; in others, other aspects come forward.
- Relation to Navajo accounts. The Navajo Nation tells of a figure with a similar name and similar associations. Scholars note shared roots among Southern Athabaskan peoples, and also real differences. The Navajo are a separate nation, so their stories are not simply Apache stories.
Where two accounts disagree, neither is automatically wrong. They may belong to different nations, families or occasions, and the people who tell them are the ones with authority about them.
Why these figures matter
For many Apache people, these figures are not characters in a story collection. They are holy beings who figure in religious life. A girl who goes through the Sunrise Ceremony, for example, takes part in something that links her to White Painted Woman, and the community gathers to support her. For this reason, writers outside the community often choose to say little, and readers are asked to keep that restraint in mind.
At a more general level, the figures illustrate several values often mentioned in connection with Apache storytelling: care for others, courage in the face of danger and respect for the cycle of life. They also reflect the importance of women’s roles in many Apache societies, which are frequently matrilocal, with a husband moving to live near the wife’s family.
Reading about this responsibly
Older sources, such as early twentieth-century ethnographies, often describe these narratives in detail, but they were written by outside observers and sometimes include material that families did not intend to be public. Newer work by Apache authors and by cultural programs is generally more reliable about what a nation is comfortable sharing. Be careful with websites that offer “the” Apache creation story or a ready-made ritual: these are frequently inaccurate or mix material from different nations. For current guidance on cultural material, the official websites of the nations are the right source.