Frank T. Hopkins: Shunka Wakan? Big dog. There’s no word in Sioux for horse. When the Indians saw the first one the Spanish brought over, they didn’t know what the hell it was. When they saw how it could run, carry a man through battle, become his friend for life, well, they figured it had to be a sacred animal.
Jazira: What does this mean?
Frank T. Hopkins: Shunka Wakan? Big dog. There’s no word in Sioux for horse. When the Indians saw the first one the Spanish brought over, they didn’t know what the hell it was. When they saw how it could run, carry a man through battle, become his friend for life, well, they figured it had to be a sacred animal.
Jazira: Indeed.