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A long out-of-print book of legends and stories from the 鈥� “,” or 鈥淭he Way It Was鈥� 鈥� is available again in a new edition.

The author is . But that鈥檚 not her only name.

鈥�My Indian name is Tux谩mshish,鈥� she said at the start of a recent interview with 成人X站 Newsradio.

Beavert has led 鈥� and is still leading 鈥� an amazing life. For decades, she has done so much to preserve and share dialects and other Native languages, as well as the culture and history of the original inhabitants of the Columbia Plateau 鈥� maybe more so than anyone else. She was born in Oregon in 1921, and grew up in the Yakima Valley with parents and grandparents who spoke many tribal dialects and languages that she learned to speak as well.

Beavert started early as a linguist. She documented the — which she spoke 鈥� for a researcher from Dartmouth when she was just 12 years old by helping to create written documentation. As a young woman, she raced horses at race tracks all over the Northwest. During World War II, she served in the military as a radio operator at a B-29 training base in New Mexico.

In the early 1970s, with encouragement from her family, and with federal and state grant funding that was becoming available in the early days of the 鈥渟elf-determination鈥� approach to Native education 鈥� which had grown out of the American Indian Movement (AIM) in the late 1960s 鈥� Beavert spent most of a year driving up and down Eastern Washington in her Dodge, from Wenatchee to Celilo. The project was to make audio recordings of stories and legends told by elders to be compiled into a book for use in classrooms on the Yakama Reservation.

鈥淚 knew several dialects of the Yakama language, and I was hired to go out and record all these stories,鈥� Beavert said. 鈥淎nd I had a deadline, so I was putting all my energy into collecting as many legends as I could find from the elders.鈥�

It worked to Beavert鈥檚 advantage that she already personally knew many elders, and that they knew her.

鈥淧revious to that, I had worked for the tribe, locating people for certain payments,鈥� Beavert said. 鈥淪o I knew where most of the elders lived, and then they would refer me to some others.鈥�

It was unusual for Native people to allow themselves to be recorded, but Beavert was trusted. She found many willing narrators.

鈥淲hen I explained the project the way it was explained to me, they said, 鈥楢ll right, I will record some legends for the children for their education,鈥欌�� Beavert said. 鈥淎nd I thought that was very open-hearted about them.”

“And I told them how much I appreciated that they didn鈥檛 turn me out the door,鈥� she said, chuckling.

鈥淭hen I had to translate these legends into English,鈥� Beavert said. 鈥淎nd without assistance, I couldn’t have completed it because I had so many recordings. And we couldn’t get all of them into the book.”

Though the audio tapes were stolen back in the 1970s and never seen again, Beavert and her co-editors translated the stories and legends from multiple Native dialects into English to create the 1974 edition of the book. It quickly became an indispensable resource for educators of the Yakama Nation, and over time, became a priceless text for anyone interested in Indigenous culture and Northwest history.

Many of the legends and stories in the book relate to specific recognizable geographic landmarks — such as — which Beavert says presents a unique opportunity to transmit history and values to children 鈥� and to adults 鈥� in person, out on the landscape.

鈥淲e want to interest people like that 鈥� not only the children, but the adults who have children, … take them there to these landmarks and talk to them about the legend and tell the beautiful parts about it,鈥� Beavert said.

But that鈥檚 not all, of course, because many of the stories and legends have lessons built into them 鈥� universal lessons present in stories told by elders to the young in all cultures.

鈥淚f you have to relate some of the hard lessons, then do it gently,鈥� she said. The Columbia Plateau elders 鈥渉ad a way of putting this across to the children so that it didn’t frighten them.鈥�

Along with the stories and legends, the original book and the new edition include dozens of illustrations 鈥� not by professional artists, but by Yakama Nation members who responded to notices tacked up on community bulletin boards by Virginia Beavert nearly 50 years ago.

鈥淭hey just wanted to contribute something. And these were people that I never expected to be 鈥� artists,鈥� Beavert said. 鈥淭hey came in and they said, 鈥榃e want to contribute.鈥欌��

鈥淚 just couldn’t believe it, and I actually almost cried when they did that,鈥� she said.

The 1974 edition was printed in a fairly limited run. Photocopied versions have circulated for decades, and on the rare occasions when actual copies of the book have turned up for sale online, they can sell for hundreds of dollars.

It鈥檚 clear that the reputation and impact of “Anak煤 Iwach谩” goes far beyond the Northwest.

鈥淚’ve been at international education conferences where I’ve heard experts talking about culturally responsive curriculum,鈥� said. 鈥淎nd they pointed to the first edition of ‘Anak煤 Iwach谩’ as a kind of wonderful model that other communities look to.鈥�

Dr. Jacob is a member of the Yakama Nation and a professor of Indigenous Studies at the University of Oregon and, along with Virginia Beavert and , is one of the editors of the new edition of the book.

鈥淪o that’s just a credit to Tux谩mshish,鈥� Dr. Jacob said. 鈥淎nd to everyone that she worked with.鈥�

Virginia Beavert is justifiably proud of the new edition of “Anak煤 Iwach谩.” And she鈥檚 optimistic that younger generations will do their part to preserve stories and legends, but also 鈥� as she鈥檚 been doing for most of her life 鈥� preserve Indigenous languages.

鈥淵oung people now are beginning to realize their culture is also disappearing,鈥� Beavert said. 鈥淏ecause without culture, there’s no language. And without language, there’s no culture.鈥�

“” is published by the Confederate Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation in association with the University of Washington Press, and is available through booksellers everywhere.

You can hear Feliks every Wednesday and Friday morning on Seattle鈥檚 Morning News, read more from him鈥�here, and subscribe to The Resident Historian Podcast聽here. If you have a story idea, please email Feliks鈥�here.