Ouyan (Tale 19)

Also known as: Ouyan the curlew · Role: Bleargah's son · First appears: Tale 19 · Ouyan The Curlew

Life events

Ouyan cut flesh from his own leg to bring food back to camp.(Tale 19 · Ouyan The Curlew)
- “He made a cut in his leg with his comebo and as he made it, cried aloud: ‘Yuckay! Yuckay,’ in pain. But he cut on, saying: ‘Sharper would cut the tongues of the women, and deeper would be the wounds they would make, if I returned without food for them.’ And crying: ‘Yuckay, yuckay,’ at each stroke of his comebo, he at length cut off a piece of flesh, and started towards the camp with it.”
Bleargah discovered that Ouyan had been bringing his own flesh instead of emu meat.(Tale 19 · Ouyan The Curlew)
- With: Beeargah (Tale 19)
- “His mother went up to him, and before he had time to cover his mutilated limbs, she saw that indeed the story of the women was true.”
Bleargah and the two women seized Ouyan and beat him.(Tale 19 · Ouyan The Curlew)
- With: Beeargah (Tale 19)
- “The three women seized poor Ouyan and beat him, though he cried aloud in agony when the blows fell on his bleeding legs.”
Bleargah cursed Ouyan with red, long, fleshless legs, and he became a bird known as Ouyan.(Tale 19 · Ouyan The Curlew)
- With: Beeargah (Tale 19)
- “Ouyan crawled away and hid himself, and never again did his mother see him. But night after night was to be heard a wailing cry of, ‘Bou you gwai gwai. Bou you gwai gwai,’ which meant, ‘My poor red legs. My poor red legs.’”

parent: Beeargah (Tale 19) “Bleargah the hawk, mother of Ouyan the curlew, said one day to her son:”

Extracted from the original text of Australian Legendary Tales. Made with Rho MD.