#kokopelli

A fertility spirit of the southwestern Native groups, namely the Zuni, Hopi, and Hohokam. In most depictions he is shown as a trickster spirit with an erect phallus and is said to bring fertility through the land by spreading seeds, usually maize, as well as bring children to new mothers in a sack on his hunched back, often accompanied by his wife Kokopelmimi/Kokopelmana. In some imagery he is shown playing a flute and has become synonymous with this flute playing entity who in a similar fashion brings with him fertility and the seasons. Depending on the tribe he can be this flute deity or may mistakenly be misinterpreted, instead being another deity named Paiyatamu. In the modern day he has become a commercial symbol of the American southwest as a whole, appearing on anything from t-shirts to buildings.

Pantheon: Pueblo Groups, namely Zuni, Hopi, Hohokam.

Domain or Function: Fertility spirit of the land and of human beings, a trickster, brings children to mothers.

Alternate Names: Kokopol, Kokopele, Kokopilau, Neopkwai'i, Ololowishkya.

Character Traits: Usually a trickster spirit who brings fertility to the land and people, but is also a sacred clown archetype.

Visual Traits: Most often appears as a man with an erect phallus and an insectoid 'helmet' with feathers or antennae, often thought to represent the desert robber fly. Sometimes he is shown as the flute playter with a hunched back playing a flute.

Symbolism: Robber fly, flute, hunched back.

Design Notes: In a pose reminiscent of common "Kokopelli" imagery, playing his nose as the flute and using feathers to make up the 'antennae' on his head seen in the same imagery. He has a sack on his back with which he spreads seeds as well as brings a newborn to an expecting mother. His coloration is meant to mimic the robber fly!