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Writer's pictureIosua Ioane Fānene

Of Earth, Blood, Horizons and Zenith

Updated: Sep 15, 2023

English: BLOOD

Hawaiian: KOKO

Sāmoan: TOTO

Māori: TOTO

Hebrew: אדמדם (edom dam/“reddish”/“Adam” + “blood”) (e/DO/m/DA/m) DO-DA = TO-TA =

(אד דם) “blood”


Learned a few new Hopi words, which seems promising for my research. Parenthetical notes are my own interpretation/hypothesized connections:


koko—

a burrowing owl, which lives in prairie dog burrows...(These avians take shelter in the heart of the red earth. This behavior seems to allude to the Hopi creation/origin myth as avians often symbolize migrant populations on the move, perhaps from persecution or cataclysmic or climatic change events, or particularly spiritually motivated/prophetic migrations, that is, a messianic movement. See end notes on Hopi creation/origin story.)


kokoùot— plural of koko, i.e. “burrowing owls”


Kokom—

Dark-red (like the soil, and rock strata of the High Mesa, for which Arizonan Hopi and Navajo lands are renowned)


kokom(a)—

Corn that is dark-red, to the point of being almost purple; associated with the zenith, a time at which something is most powerful; the highest point; in astronomy, when a celestial object is directly overhead from the observer (For the Hopi, their tribal tradition culminates with establishing their final settlement in the high places of the Earth atop the High Mesas, according to a prophecy given them by Maasau’u, a messianic figure, also known as the Skeleton Man, the first to come and who was sent by Kawa/Kiwa/Kiowa to guide the people. See Maasau’u creation/origin end notes.)


Kokomawsa—

Color that is dark-red to the point of being purple; purplish (like blood that is low in oxygen content)


Interpretations:


Kokom- might allude to several things. Most immediately apparent is an allusion to the color of oxygen-poor blood, in contrast to oxygen-rich blood. When lowlanders ascend to high altitudes, their blood color tends to grow noticeably darker.


The heart is the organ that pumps the blood. It is “buried” in the chest cavity like the kokoùot, or burrowing owls, which take shelter in the body of the red Earth in abandoned prairie dog burrows. These birds are widely found dispersed throughout the flat plains and mesas of North America. This suggests the Hopi ancestors encountered, and or followed a similar migratory path as this species of bird. Birds are tutelary symbols in many ancient world cultures and for a survivalist tribe, closely observing animals that thrive in harsh climates and terrains is a key strategy for locating food and water. Where there is life, there is water and food.


Polynesian word for...


Kawa/Kiwa/Kiowa...Yeh/Yah, Owa/Ova...YHWH


Endnotes:

Burrowing owl, description of:

Arizona’s:


California’s:


South Dakota’s:


Zenith, definition of:


Maasau’u/Maasaw:


Hopi creation and religion:


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