Legend of the Ant People

Hopi Pictograph of Ant People in Sego Canyon

When early European settlers came to the shores of North America, it wasn’t long before they discovered they were not alone. For thousands of years the continent was populated by a people who lived very close to the land and were deeply spiritual. They also had sacred legends they kept very close to their hearts. One of those legends come to us from the Hopi, a tribe from the American Southwest. It is legend of how in ancient times their people almost went extinct and were saved thanks to a curious race of people named the Anu Sinom, the Ant People.

According to Hopi legend, two great worldwide cataclysms called “world ages” nearly wiped their ancestors from existence. The first world was destroyed by an unquenchable fire that covered the entire world. Researchers believe this fire was either the result of an asteroid strike or seismic activity that caused volcanoes to erupt all over the world. A third option has been offered that suggests the fire was a coronal discharge that struck the Earth’s atmosphere.

The second great cataclysm occurred when the Earth was choked by great walls of ice that moved across the land freezing everything they touched. Anthropologists have suggested this was a shared memory of the last ice age or even a polar shift. Either by fire or ice, the Hopi narrowly escaped extinction. But they didn’t do it alone. They had help from a very unusual source and some believe this help may not have been of this world.

As the disasters destroyed everything in their path, the Hopi were guided by an unusual cloud by day; and a star guided them across the wasteland the earth had become by night. Eventually the wanderers found their way to the sky god, Sotuknang. Sotuknang heard their pleas and took pity on these devastated people. The wise sky god led them to a race of people who would see to their needs, the Anu Sinom, a race the Hopi came to affectionately call, the Ant People.

With the ancient ancestors of the Hopi safely in their hands, the Anu Sinom took them to a realm deep within the earth for refuge. The Ant People then taught the Hopi everything they needed to survive when the day came for them to return to the surface.

After many years, the Hopi bid farewell to their friends and returned to a surface world vastly different from the one they escaped. The Hopi, quickly adapted to their surroundings and made a life for themselves in what is modern day Arizona. The Hopi thrived and continued to do so today.

The Hopi legend of the Ant People has long been my favorite Native American legend. At its core, it teaches us to have hope in the face of insurmountable odds. But is it really just a legend passed down through the ages to teach a life lesson? Hopi elders remain steadfast in their insistence that a race of strange people saved them from certain doom. If so, we are left with the inevitable question, who were the Anu Sinom? Were they an ancient race hidden away from the world? Or were they something else? Perhaps, even otherworldly.

A unisex tri-blend shirt featuring Zener cards on the front.

T-Shirts, Mugs and More!

We now have t-shirts, tarot decks, ESP cards, coffee mugs, face masks, and much more merchandise available for purchase. Every dollar spent helps fund Paranormal Study!

An early theory to identify the Ant People can be found in a 1909 edition of the Phoenix Gazette. The story detailed the exploits of G.E. Kincaid, a rogue Smithsonian archaeologist. While on a dig in the Grand Canyon, Kincaid claimed to uncover a passageway that led to a subterranean metropolis deep within the walls of the Grand Canyon. 

While exploring, he discovered a cache of artifacts that appeared to be of Egyptian and Asian origins. Two cultures who, we are told, had nothing to do with the North American continent until the 19th century. When Kincaid returned and reported his findings, he was basically laughed out of the hallowed halls of the institute. The caves he reported were then sealed up. If what Kincaid said was true, it would radically change American history as we know it.

Armed with this possible pre-Colombian contact, researchers have put forth a theory. They believe that Pharoah Akhenaten sent explorers to the American Southwest. Their theory is strengthened by cave paintings of the Anu Sinom wearing what looks like Egyptian headdresses. The Ant People, in word-of-mouth tales, were said to have elongated skulls, almond shaped eyes and bronze colored skin. But the similarities don’t stop there.

The Hopi and the ancient people of the Nile shared similar words. For example, the Egyptian word for star is Sahu, while the Hopi word is Sohu. I realize of course this could be a coincidence. 

However, there is another belief that the Anu Sinom, weren’t human after all, but rather extraterrestrials from a distant world.

Zechariah Sitchin, an ancient astronaut theorist, authored a series of books about Annunaki, ancient Babylonian gods who he claimed were really aliens. According to Sitchin, the Annunaki created the human race as slaves to mine for gold in harsh conditions. One day, mankind rebelled and sent the Annunaki packing back to their home world of Niburu. Adherents of Sitchin’s believe the Anu Sinom were a rogue sect of Annunaki who saved the Hopi from destruction because they made a horrible error. You may be wondering where the connection is made. I’m getting to it.

In Babylonian and Sumerian mythology, Anu was the almighty god of the sky. Adherents of this controversial subject believe this because the Hopi word for ant is Anu, and their word for friend is Naki. They go further claiming the underground city supposedly discovered by Kincaid was an Annunaki outpost in the American Southwest. The story goes, the Annunaki were working on an experiment that went horribly wrong. The experiment severely damaged the ecosystem and the Annunaki hid the Hopi away while reshaping the world. 

The Hopi legend of the benevolent Ant People is one the Hopi hold dear to their heart and insist is absolutely true. I would say the jury is still out for me whether or not they were human or alien, but it ultimately doesn’t matter what I think. The Hopi believe they exist and owe them their lives.

If you found the content in this article to be of any value to your paranormal studies, please let us know in the comments below. Feel free to share this article with your friends as well because if you found it interesting, they might too.

Do You Want To Know More?

Our content creators also have podcasts that go much deeper into paranormal topics.

Tim Woolworth’s Walk in the Shadows, an episodic masterclass that consists of a deep dive into all things Fortean, paranormal and supernatural.

Rick Hale teams up with Stephen Lancaster in The Shadow Initiative where they explore various paranormal topics and discuss current paranormal news.

Please check these shows out and visit Paranormal Study social media to keep up to date on articles and all the things our authors are doing.

About Rick Hale 106 Articles
Rick Hale became interested in anomalous phenomenon at an early age after encountering an apparition in his grandparent's home. Rick is the author of "The Geek's Guide To The Strange and Unusual: Poltergeists, Ghost and Demons," and "Behold! Shocking True Tales Off Terror...And Some Other Spooky Stuff." Rick has been published in Haunted Times Magazine, Paranormal Underground Magazine, The Supernatural Magazine, Spookyisles.com and Legends Magazine. Rick appeared in Ghost Tapes 2 and Ghost Tapes: The Series found at YouTube.com.

Be the first to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.


*


This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.