Referred to as “the dean of American Indian writers” by The New York Times, Scott Momaday holds an important place in the American literary arts. A poet, playwright, artist, essayist and novelist, Momaday crafts — in language and imagery — majestic landscapes of a sacred culture.

Momaday was the first Native American to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize for his novel, House Made of Dawn. His brilliant use of language has garnered him countless awards, including a Guggenheim Fellowship, The Autry Museum of Western Heritage Humanities Prize, a prize from the Academy of American Poets and the “Mondello,” Italy’s highest literary honor.
 
But it is through the spoken word that his dedication to his people’s heritage is most profoundly felt. Born a Kiowa in the Oklahoma Dustbowl, Momaday was raised on reservations in the Southwest, steeped in the oral tradition. “If I do not speak with care,” he has said, “my words are wasted. If I do not listen with care, words are lost.”

In his lectures, Momaday brings the oral tradition to life. “His complete control of his rich voice captivates any audience privileged to hear him.” (St. John’s College)

Momaday is the founder and Chair of The Buffalo Trust, a non-profit foundation for the preservation and restoration of Native American culture and heritage. The Trust promotes the sharing of story, song, art and history in Native communities all across the U.S. Above all, it provides young Native Americans with opportunities to experience and lay claim to their inheritance, to define themselves in terms of their collective and individual cultural identity.
 

Dr. Momaday’s presence on campus and in our community was greeted with such deep appreciation and interest it was stunning. Every single seat in our lecture hall was filled; students opted to sit on the floor just to listen to his voice. Scott Momaday is a treasure, not only to the Native American community, but to the American community and to our world community as a powerful voice of where we have been and where we are going. Stunning.

Arizona State University

A senior scholar at The School of American Research in Sante Fe, Momaday has held tenured teaching posts at UC Berkeley, Stanford University and the University of Arizona. He presently teaches a class on Oral Tradition at Sante Fe’s Institute of American Indian Arts. He has also been an NPR commentator and was a founding Trustee of the National Museum of the American Indian. In 2004 Momaday was named a UNESCO Artist for Peace, in recognition of his outstanding achievements as a writer and painter and his efforts to safeguard Native American heritage.

His works of fiction include In the Bear’s House (which includes his own paintings), The Way to Rainy Mountain and The Ancient Child. His collections of poetry include In the Presence of the Sun and The Gourd Dancer. He is the author of The Man Made of Words: Essays, Stories, Passages; his memoir, The Names; the children’s book, Circle of Wonder: A Native American Christmas Story; and two plays, Children of the Sun and The Indolent Boys. He is currently working on a new novel.

Behind it all beats the heart of the oral storyteller, keeping alive — in myths and memories — the people persecuted and the land lost. “In the oral tradition,” says Momaday, “stories are not told merely to entertain or instruct. They are told to be believed. Stories are realities lived and believed. They are true.”