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 Editor: John Powell ISBN: 1-58765-292-7 List price: $360     |
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Great Lives from History: The 19th Century offers worldwide coverage of important men and women in all areas of achievement who flourished between 1801 and 1900. Below is an excerpt from the Great Lives's essay on Geronimo.Geronimo Although the precise date and location of Geronimo’s (jeh-RAHN-ih-moh) birth are not known, he was most likely born around June, 1829, near the head of the Gila River in a part of the Southwest then controlled by Mexico. Named Goyathlay (One Who Yawns) by his Behonkohe parents, the legendary Apache warrior later came to be called Geronimo—a name taken from the sound that terrified Mexican soldiers allegedly cried when calling on Saint Jerome to protect them from his relentless charge. Geronimo’s early life, like that of other Apache youth, was filled with complex religious ritual and ceremony. From the placing of amulets on his cradle to guard him against early death to the ceremonial putting on of the first moccasins, Geronimo’s relatives prepared their infant for Apache life, teaching him the origin myths of his people and the legends of supernatural beings and benevolent mountain spirits that hid in the caverns of their homeland. Through ritual observances and instruction, Geronimo learned about Usen, a remote and nebulous god who, though unconcerned with petty quarrels among men, was the Life Giver and provider for his people. “When Usen created the Apaches,” Geronimo later asserted, “he also created their homes in the West. He gave to them such grain, fruits, and game as they needed to eat. . . . He gave to them a climate and all they needed for clothing and shelter was at hand.” Geronimo’s religious heritage taught him to be self-sufficient, to love and revere his mountain homeland, and never to betray a promise made with oath and ceremony. - Terry D. Bilhartz |
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