Listening Woman (1978)

In his Navajo detective novels, Tony Hillerman refers to both the regular dog-like wild animal found throughout the contiguous American continents and to Coyote, the trickster figure in Navajo cosmologies, for which the animal and its anthropomorphized character is the inspiration.

In Navajo mythology, Coyote (or First Coyote) is a trickster or troublemaker. He is often referred to as First Angry or First Scolder and is said to have brought witchcraft into the world. He appears in many stories both as a trickster who cannot be trusted and as a sexual being who tricks others in order to get his way. He is a main character of the Navajo creation story.

The name given to an individual who tends to and manages livestock on ranches in North America, and sometimes transports them from one place to another. The American cowboy is a descendant from the colonial Spanish vaquero, who performed a similar function in the northern provinces of New Spain. Although cowboys gained notoriety in the "wild west" of the nineteenth century, there are still modern day cowboys, who manage large numbers of livestock on ranches or compete in rodeos.

The figure of the cowboy became very popular in the first half of the twentieth century, due in large part to the prevalence of the Western genre in pulp fiction as well as in cinema. The Western usually portrayed the cowboy as a tough, rough, unwilling and unexpected hero, an outsider who protected women and fought for justice, albeit sometimes in unjust ways. In these fictional portrayals, the cowboy tended to prevail over Native Americans, Mexicans, and other dark-skinned characters in an implicit re-imagining of the colonizing mythos perpetuated by the U.S.'s belief in its Manifest Destiny to push ever further West toward a receding frontier. "Cowboys" did, in fact, along with the American government, kill many Native Americans, making their portrayal as "heroic" loners controversial. Moreover, the persistent representation of the "dying Indian," defeated at the hands of the iconic cowboy,within the Western genre dimishes the significance of the resistance efforts of numerous indigenous peoples across the continent as they attempted to protect their people and their traditional homelands.

Corpse powder, also known as corpse poison, is reputedly derived from the remains of a dead human body and used by Navajo witches to produce sickness in intended victims. According to some versions of traditional Navajo beliefs, people who come into contact with a human corpse are likely to become ill physically, mentally, or both, which is why even today there remains a reticence toward dealing with or even speaking about the dead. Witches who intend to cause harm to another person can secretly feed corpse powder to their enemies or blow it in their faces. By infecting victims with this powder, the witch effectively contaminates them by literally exposing them to death.

Corn Beetle, also known as Anlt'áni in Navajo, appears in the sandpaintings of some Navajo ceremonials. Early researchers incorrectly translated the Navajo word anlt'áni, which means "ripener," into English as "cornbeetle." In Navajo mythology, ripener insects refer to pollinating insects, specifially lacewing flies and tree crickets, that play a role in ripening corn. Corn Beetle is therefore also associated with fertility and the ripening of corn.

Corn Beetle Girl is often characterized as the female companion to Corn Pollen Boy, both of whom are personifications of the corn pollen required for most Navajo ceremonials, including the Blessingway. Because the Navajo believe the Holy People are present in all the things around them, Corn Beetle Girl is believed to be found in a variety of "ripener" insects.

Corn is a cereal plant, found throughout the Americas, that yields large grains, or kernels, set in rows on a cob. What we call corn today, however, has traditionally been referred to as maize. For many indigenous cultures in the Americas, corn is symbolic of life itself, and everything from its pollen, to its silky tassels, to its husks has symbolic significance. Thus, it becomes possible for a small boy to take scraps of corn husk and create an imaginary insect that turns into a messenger to the gods, which occurs in a Zuni myth retold by Hillerman as "The Boy Who Made Dragonfly." Even the smallest piece of this special plant is powerful enough to not only sustain but also to generate life.

Several of the other ceremonials described in Hillerman's fiction also use corn, its husks and pollen, in order to complete the rituals as per the Navajo Way as the Holy People prescribed.

Mostly found in wooded areas throughout the United States, Cooper's hawks are mid-sized predatory birds. They eat other smaller birds and have been known to forage for food in suburban areas at backyard bird feeders. Male Cooper's hawks are smaller than, and submissive to, the females.

The opposite of harmony, balance, equilibrium, and the Navajo Way, or hózhǫ́. Hózhǫ́ is the state in which all living things are ordered and in balance, walking in beauty. This term encompasses the Navajo world view, one in which all become peaceful and harmonious. The opposite of hózhǫ́ is hóchxǫ́ǫ́, which refers to a disorder and chaos in one’s life. In Hillerman's work, chaos and imbalance manifest as an illness or sickness, an infection obtained from contact with modern, predominantly White culture of the manistream U.S..

An alcoholic beverage, distilled from fermented grains and aged in wooden containers. Whiskey is made in many countries such as Ireland, the United States, Scotland, and Canada. Whiskey from Scotland is known as Scotch.

A concussion can result from a blow to the head which jars or otherwise impacts the brain. Brain function may be impaired temporarily, although a concussion does not always cause unconsciousness. Some of the symptoms and effects of a concussion are nausea, vision or equilibrium disturbances, confusion, and temporary amnesia.

A rhythmic vocal recitation that is usually intended to provoke a meditative trance, spiritual healing, or to create the aural context for a performance such as a dance or other ceremonial. Chants can also be thought of as prayers that are sung and are often comprised of repeated phrases.