# Great Kingfisher — Zuni Folktales character guide

> Great Kingfisher in Zuni Folktales by Frank Hamilton Cushing.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** the Great Kingfisher, Kingfisher, Instantly Great Kingfisher, himself, your

**First appearance:** 0001-zuni-folktales

## Snapshot

A bird figure whose name rings through the tale of the Salt City maiden and the young man from the Pueblo of the Winds.

## Who they are

He belongs to the winged powers that hover at the edges of the Mátsaki courtship story, where a suitor climbs a ladder with a bundle of mantles and necklaces rolled in white buckskin. The tale moves with careful ceremony — wafer bread offered, eaten sparingly, crumbs swept — and figures like the Kingfisher carry its sense of a world where birds and gods take part in human fortunes. His presence signals that the lovers' trial will be decided by more than earthly favor.

## In the story

### [The Young Swift-Runner Who Was Stripped of His Clothing by the Aged Tarantula](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/zuni_folktales_se/chapters/the-young-swift-runner-who-was-stripped-of-his-clothing-by-the-aged-tarantula)

A powerful bird summoned to retrieve the stolen garments, but fails.

## Links

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- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/zuni_folktales_se/characters