Kokopelli, the humpbacked flute player

Who was Kokopelli ?

Kokopelli, the humpbacked flute player, is a mysterious character found in a number of Native American cultures. His name comes from 'koko' meaning wood and 'pilau' meaning hump, references to his deformed profile. He is prominent in the mythology of the Anasazi people (ancestors of the Zuni, Hopi and Pueblo Indians) who lived long ago in the "Four Corners" region of the American Southwest.


His image is commonly found in petroglyphs carved on canyon walls and pottery 3,000 years old. The geoNOMAD logotype was inspired from a petroglyph located in a cave on the Pajarito Plateau near Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Kokopelli is known as a trader, a prankster, a Casanova, and an entertainer. The humped back is said to symbolize a sack of seeds, water and rare objects carried for trade and as gifts. The feathered head-dress represents his adherence to the 'Spirit World'. He is seen as a symbol of joy, harmony, peaceful trade, courtship and fertility

Legends depict Kokopelli as a young virile nomad travelled to distant villages carrying the seeds of all the world and rare and precious objects. His arrival was a cause for celebration, trading and storytelling. Kokopelli would play his magic flute bring warmth to melt the winter snow and bring rain to ensure an abundant harvest. He would teach the villagers how to plant corn. It is said that Kokopelli would roam the corn fields all night playing his flute. In the morning the corn would be fully grown and Kokopelli would have vanished. His reputation as a Casanova is another manifestation as a symbol of fertility. Not only would the crops flourish, but the women of the village would find themselves pregnant after his visits!

Kokopelli is our symbol of the traveller who stimulates creativity and induces harmony. He brings a positive life force to the places he visits. He inspires dreams to come true. Let's play our flutes and wander with Kokopelli along trails to adventure and new horizons!

 
  Close window
© 2006 CWP - ARCHIdictus