Ojibwe Constellation Nanaboujou Rules Summer, Coinciding With Scorpius

Summary: Ojibwe constellation Nanaboujou rules summer and coincides with Scorpius the Scorpion constellation, one of the IAU's 88 modern constellations.

The Ojibwe Star Map displays seasonality of four main Ojibwe constellations, with appearances of summer's Nanaboujou (top left), autumn's Mooz the Moose (center right), winter's Wintermaker (bottom center) and Mishi Bizhiw the curly-tailed Great Panther (bottom left) on Maigan Milk ("wolf's trail) the ecliptic: M. Womack @StarzanPlanets, via Twitter Dec. 2, 2013

Ojibwe constellation Nanaboujou rules summer and coincides with Scorpius the Scorpion constellation, one of the International Astronomical Union's (IAU) 88 modern constellations and one of second century C.E. Hellenized Egyptian astronomer Ptolemy's 48 constellations.

Bois Forte Ojibwe-Finnish artist and author Carl Gawboy (born May 21, 1942) identifies Nanaboujou as one of the four main Ojibwe constellations in Talking Sky: Ojibwe Constellations as a Reflection of the Land, which he co-authored with University of Minnesota-Duluth Geology Professor Ron Morton in 2014. The four main constellations in Ojibwe astronomy have seasonal significance. Biboonkeonini ("wintermaker") the Wintermaker constellation rules the night skies of biboon, winter, and occupies the celestial place recognized by Ptolemy and the International Astronomical Union as Orion the Hunter constellation. Mishi Bizhiw ("underwater panther") the Great Panther constellation dominates ziigwan, spring, and emerges as a composite of Ptolemaic and IAU constellations Cancer the Crab, Hydra the Water Snake and Leo the Lion. Nanaboujou cession of his dominance to Mooz the Moose constellation signals the annual seasonal transition from niibin, summer, to dagwaagin, autumn. Mooz the Moose claims residence in the same area as Ptolemaic and IAU constellation Pegasus the Winged Horse.

Nanaboujou inhabits the space designated by Ptolemy and the IAU as Scorpius the Scorpion constellation. The Ojibwe know Nanaboujou as a human-spirit hero. His parentage was a human as his mother and the sun as his father, according to stories collected from Aleck Paul (Osheshewakwasinowinini, "The Man Who Is the Sound of the Wind Rustling in the Trees"), second chief of northeastern Ontario's Temagami band of Ojibwe, and published by American anthropologist Frank Gouldsmith Speck (Nov. 8, 1881-Feb. 6, 1950) in Canadian Department of Mines Geological Survey Memoir No. 71 (pages 28-30) in 1915.

The constellation depicts Nanaboujou with a bow and arrow. He is aiming the arrow at spring's constellation, Mishi Bizhiw the Great Panther, also known as Curly Tail. The figure's name of Curly Tail derives from his long tail, which curls over his back. Mishi Bizhiw's curved tail traces the outline of Leo's Sickle asterism, the head of Ptolemaic and IAU constellation Leo the Lion.

When Nanaboujou emerges above the horizon, he is engaging in his annual pursuit of Curly Tail. Nanaboujou chases Curly Tail in order to end the spring floods that may characterize the Great Panther's season. Carl Gawboy relates that Nanaboujou only succeeds in a non-fatal wounding of his prey. Recuperating over autumn and winter, the Great Panther regains his strength for annual dominance of the spring skies.

Carl Gawboy explains that Ojibwe astronomy comprises more than the four seasonal constellations. Other summer constellations that keep Nanaboujou company are listed in Ojibwe Constellation Guide - Ojibwe Giizhig Anung Masinaaigan Ojibwe Sky Star Map, co-authored by Dakota Sioux artist, astrophysicist and Native Skywatchers founder Annette S. Lee with Carl Gawboy, Ojibwe Knowledge Keeper (elder) William Wilson and Ojibwe artist Jeff Tibbetts in 2014.

Ajiijaak ("crane"), also known as Bineshi Okanin ("skeleton bird"), achieves a post-sunset overhead position in summer. Ajiijaak the Crane constellation coincides with Ptolemy's and IAU's Cygnus the Swan constellation. Ajiijaak appears in spring and lingers through summer.

Noondeshin Bemaadizid ("a person who is exhausted") the Exhausted Bather resides in the Ptolemaic and IAU constellation of Hercules the Kneeling Hero constellation. The June 19, 2020, post for Ontario Parks web log, Parks Blog, describes Hercules Globular Cluster (Messier 13, M13; NGC 6205) as denoting the Exhausted Bather's head. Noondeshin Bemaadizid's body streams northward along the Kneeling Hero's kneeling leg. Noondeshin Bemaadizid appears in summer and remains through autumn.

Ojibwe astronomy recognizes the ecliptic, the apparent solar path across the sky, as seen from Earth. The Ojibwe know the ecliptic as Maingan Mikan ("wolf's trail"). The Native Skywatchers' Ojibwe team explain in the resource for their presentation, Two-Eyed Seeing: Ojibwe Astronomy & NASA Moon to Mars, why the path is traced by a wolf rather than by another animal, such as a deer or a rabbit. As keen observers of nature, the Ojibwe noticed that, although wolves usually travel in packs, sometimes a lone wolf rebelliously sets off in a different direction for a while before eventually rejoining the pack. The Ojibwe equate the rebellious retrograde motion of planets to the lone wolf's unique pattern of animal behavior (page 7).

The takeaways for Ojibwe constellation Nanaboujou's summer rule and coincidence with Ptolemy's and the International Astronomical Union's placement of Scorpius the Scorpion constellation in the night sky are that Nanaboujou numbers among Ojibwe astronomy's four main constellations; that the four main constellations of Biboonkeonini the Wintermaker, Mishi Bizhiw the Great Panther, Nanaboujou and Mooz the Moose are seasonal constellations, respectively representing winter, spring, summer and autumn; that Maingan Mikan the Wolf's Trail designates the ecliptic, the apparent path along which the sun moves and the planets wander; and that Ajiijaak the Crane and Noondeshin Bemaadizid ("a person who is exhausted") the Exhausted Bather constellations occur, not as rulers, but as a spring lingerer and an autumn harbinger, respectively.

The first sighting of Westfall's slender bluet (Enallagma traviatum westfalli), one of two slender bluet subspecies, in Canada happened in July 1991 in Southwestern Ontario's Pinery Provincial Park: Jason King @jasonjdking, via Twitter Nov. 11, 2017

Acknowledgment

The Ojibwe Star Map displays seasonality of four main Ojibwe constellations, with appearances of summer's Nanaboujou (top left), autumn's Mooz the Moose (center right), winter's Wintermaker (bottom center) and Mishi Bizhiw the curly-tailed Great Panther (bottom left) on Maigan Milk ("wolf's trail) the ecliptic: M. Womack @StarzanPlanets, via Twitter Dec. 2, 2013, @ https://twitter.com/StarzanPlanets/status/407575781150167041via Twitter

(left) pictogram of Nanabozho on Mazinaw Rock, Bon Echo Provincial Park, southeastern Ontario, central Canada; (right) illustration of "Still the Waters Rose," Nanabozho in the flood; R.C. Armour, North American Indian Fairy Tales, Folklore and Legends (1905), facing page 13: Fireside Canada Flag of Canada @fireside_canada, via Twitter Jan. 25, 2021, @ https://voiceforthewild.wordpress.com/2019/02/14/wolves-of-romance/

For further information:

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Available from University of alberta via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/bp_942417

The Decolonial Atlas @decolonialatlas. "Gazing at the sky, we're seeing them same stars as people from 1000s of different cultures across time & space, each with their own stories. In Ojibwe astronomy, this season is marked by Biboonkeonini, the Wintermaker (Orion, Canis Minor, Taurus)." Twitter. Dec. 20, 2019.
Available @ https://twitter.com/decolonialatlas/status/1208136193134739456

Dr. John Barentine FRAS @JohnBarentine. "Jessica Heim, a cultural astronomy researcher from Minnesota who came to Tucson for the @IDADarkSky meeting last week, dropped by our office yesterday to interview me. At the end, she gave me these beautiful prints featuring Native American (Cree, Ojibwe, Lakota) constellations." Twitter. Nov. 14, 2019.
Available @ https://twitter.com/JohnBarentine/status/1195150562913861632

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Fireside Canada Flag of Canada @fireside_canada. "Nanabozho (also Nanabush) is an Ojibwe trickster and hero. The son of a human mother and a spirit father, he is the namer of things and the inventor of fishing and hieroglyphs. Though a great teacher, he has an impulsive streak that gets him into trouble. #MythologyMonday." Twitter. Jan. 25, 2021.
Available @ https://voiceforthewild.wordpress.com/2019/02/14/wolves-of-romance/

First Nation Stories/Photos/Insights @NipissingFirstNationVoices. "Northerners, eh The Words of a Deep Water Elder from 107 Years Ago . . . . Aleck Paul (Osheshewakwasinowinini), second chief of the Temagami band of Ojibways, Bear Island, Temagami, Ontario. . . ." Facebook. May 5, 2020.
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