The Héroka and Xonunįgᵋra
Location: The Wisconsin River
Fairies / Fae, Indigenous & World Mythologies
by @wisconsinwizard
The héroka and the xonunįgᵋra are from Ho-Chunk folklore, and are two different tribes of archery spirits who take the form of little men, who live along the Wisconsin River. They are said to look identically as well as have all the same powers and abilities.
Their greatest power was the "héroka breathings," a mystical breathing technique which makes the sound “ahahé ahahé,” and enables the user to perform great feats of archery. Arrows shot after performing the breathings become not only accurate, but incredibly powerful, capable of felling whole trees.
They also possessed the power to shapeshift, walk on water, and even walk on thin air. They also, out of all the Ho-Chunk spirits, were the only ones who possessed the ability to marry their own nieces, which apparently counts as a supernatural power.
The only difference between the héroka and xonunįgᵋra is in terms of leadership. The héroka were lead by the Ho-Chunk culture hero Redhorn, also known as "He-Who-Wears-Human-Heads-as-Earrings" because he wore two tiny human heads as earrings, which would make silly faces at people as Redhorn travelled around. Redhorn was tasked by the Earthmaker to educate and enlighten mankind. Ultimately he failed this task, only because people found his earrings too distracting and silly to pay attention to his wisdom.
The xonunįgᵋra were instead lead by Redhorn's son, who was not given a name in any source I came across, but was known for wearing human heads as nipple rings rather than earrings. Make of that what you will.
Sources