Language and Folklore. . 441 
the stern of the umiak (agiwa, whence the word адегсо- ‘a steersman, helms- 
man’), while the accompanying kaiakers row in front of him. The summons 
is presumably to be understood as carelessness or foolhardiness on the part 
of Qilaatuaq. 
* (56) In A шр’ип зат (literally “beside the tent’) is evidently a misunder- 
standing, cf. in X tup'iciain and lupitsiap”a etc., which must be derived from 
tupit*iwa: (WGr. tupiz'uva:) ‘he makes it (him) into a magic animal, a tupilak.’ 
The song should be understood as a kind of magic chant or prayer. 
** (56) агегзоа‘гроа |arércoa'rpoa| analogously to nagersuarpoa (no. 125) 
and similar uaajeertoq-names (cf. по. 131, 134, 135 ишагроа-Чег etc.), must 
mean ‘I say, recite or sing that I авегсоа’, in which -гсоа is perhaps an ob- 
solete or fossilized future form (elsewhere in EGr. -rce‘wa) if itis not a form 
of the participle, “I being a steersman”, cf. WGr. адогтед ‘the one who is seated 
nearest the stern’ and aqutoq ‘the one seated in the stern steering.’ 
* (57) It may be seen from В that after cila a word has been lost (the 
weather “became fine” ?) — if indeed the word may not simply be understood 
as the interjection of the same form ‘oh heavens!’ expressing scorn (cf. p. 151). 
* (58) I read itiname (A) as Пегате, and ipe‘iarame (X) as il'e‘iarame. 
[dE] No. 226. Qasiättak, The Big Liar. 
small variations. The idea of the tale is a rough characterization of a kind of 
Eskimo Münchhausen, or a combination of a Simpleton and a boasting Jack, 
who makes a big number of his own self-imagined virtues. To my knowledge 
this tale is only known from the southern parts of Greenland. The name is 
sometimes Qasiatta(k), sometimes Qasiättaq. 
A. 
Qasiättak, the great har, who could never catch seals, dwelt in 
a house with his relatives. He went out hunting in his kaiak, while 
the women went out for a walk to pick berries.“ Then (they saw) 
Qasiättak seat himself in his kaiak and row in towards the shore. He 
went ashore, fastened his hunting bladder securely to a stone with 
a skin cord |?], then went out to sea. When he came home he hid 
himself (and) made his hunting bladder burst and sank it (in the 
ocean). ®— Then when Qasiätta came home he said: “I have lost my 
hunting bladder (by a big seal’s carrying it off).” His housemates be- 
lieved him at first, for an old man like Qasiätta does not usually 
lie ® When the women came home from berry-picking people said 
to them: “Qasiätta has lost his hunting bladder on a bearded seal.” 
The women said: “We saw Qasiätta row in toward shore and bind 
his hunting bladder, make it burst and sink it in the sea.” 4 — 
Qasiätta’s wife said: “What am I to hear? you have lied atrociously. 
(And then) you sank your hunting bladder yourself, didn’t you?” 
Qasiätta was ashamed (and) flying up (in rage) frightened his wife. 
From that time his wife ceased believing him; when he wished to 
row out, he pretended that he wanted to catch seals. ©) 
The women who went out to pick berries again saw Qasiätta row 
ashore. He let his kaiak run hard aground, crushed it (and) filled 
it with ice from a hummock. Then he went up a steep mountain 
