Yakari

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Yakari is a Franco-Belgian comic book series, aimed at a younger audience, written by the (Swiss francophone) Job and illustrated by (the Swiss francophone) Derib.

The books have been translated into at least 17 languages including German, Scandinavian languages, Finnish, Breton, Indonesian, Polish, Chinese, Arabic, Inuktitut, English and Catalan etc. Yakari has been adapted to a cartoon series on television.

Contents

[edit] Concept

Yakari is a young Sioux Native American who has the particularity to be able to understand and speak animal languages. During his adventures, he meets all sorts of North American animals. His best friends are a girl Sioux, "Rainbow", and his pony "Little Thunder". He has a totem animal, "Great Eagle".

The setting is the North American Great Plains, mainly. Horses have already been introduced by the Spanish, but there is no mentioning of white man whatsoever in the series (In one book, there's even a mention by an old tribesman that there's a mystery how the horse came to the land, and that it hasn't always been there). It can therefore be assumed that Yakari's adventures take place long before the settling rush in the late 18th/19th century.

[edit] Characters

Humans:

  • Yakari : the main character.
  • Rainbow : a Sioux girl and Yakari's best friend. She is increasingly accompanying him on his adventures as the series progresses.
  • Bold Gaze : Yakari's dad.
  • That Who Knows : chief of Yakari's village.
  • Little Bison : a Sioux boy and friend of Yakari's, who dreams of becoming a great hunter.
  • Slow Caribou : a man from Yakari's village. As his name points out, he is very slow.
  • Broth Eye : a man from Yakari's village. He smokes all the time, lying in front of his tipi.
  • Tranquil Rock : a sage from Yakari's village.
  • Strained Bow: a wandering warrior who sees himself destined (but is actually driven to) hunt and bring down the rarest and most unusual of animals. He has clashed with Yakari on several occasions and considers him a serious nuisance.

Animals:

  • Great Eagle : a great bald eagle and Yakari's totem who aids Yakari with his wisdom and advice.
  • Little Thunder : a white-and-black checkerd poney, who is Yakari's steed and closest friend.
  • Nanabozo : a rabbit capable of doing magical feats, and Rainbow's totem. He has revealed himself to Rainbow and Yakari on numerous occasions and taken them to educative journeys, including on a stint into prehistoric times.
  • Double Teeth : a beaver and artist.
  • Tilia : Young beaver, he is a joker and is adventurous.
  • Wild Rose Plant : a beaver, and Tilia's mother.
  • Rough Bark : a beaver, and Tilia's father.
  • Thousand Mouths : a beaver and builder.
  • Wood of a Bed : a beaver and a serious sleeper.
  • Snowball, a white-furred baribal.

[edit] Animals Yakari met

In the course of the series, Yakari encounters (and often befriends) members of any animal species found on the North American continent. These include (but are as yet not limited to):

[edit] External links