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1 Department of Earth and Space Sciences, University of Washington, Box 351310, Seattle, WA 98195-1310, USA (e-mail: rludwin{at}u.washington.edu)
2 Department of History and Program in Religious Studies, 108 Weaver Building, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, , PA 16802, USA
3 Carver Geologic, P.O. Box 52, Kodiak, AK 99615, USA
4 , 13797 Silven Ave NE Bainbridge Island, WA 98110, USA
5 FEMA, Federal Regional Center, 130 228th St, SW Bothell, WA 98021-9796, USA
6 Dept of Anthropology, Douglas College, New Westminster, BC, V3L 5B2, Canada
7 Department of Anthropology, Room 13–15, Tory Building University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, T6G 2H4, Canada
8 Huu-ay-aht First Nation, P.O. Box 418, Port Alberni, B.C., V91 1M7, Canada
9 Duwamish Tribe cultural resources expert, Duwanish Tribal Services, 4717 West Marginal Way SW, Seattle, WA 98106, USA
10 Snoqualmie Tribe, cultural resources expert, and great-grandson of James Zackuse, Duwamish Indian Doctor, The Snoqualmie Tribe, P.O. Box 280, Carnation, WA 98014, USA
11 , 310 NE 85th St, Seattle, WA 98115, USA
12 , Rm 1297, 1873 East Mall, University of British Columbia, Vancouver BC V6T 1Z1, Canada
13 Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, B.C., Canada
14 Makah Cultural and Research Centre, Makah Tribe, P.O. Box 160 Neah Bay, WA 98357, USA
15 , Olympic National Park, Port Angeles, WA, USA
This article examines local myth and folklore related to earthquakes, landslides, and tsunamis in oral traditions from Cascadia (part of the northern Pacific coast of North America) and in written traditions from Japan, particularly in the Edo (present-day Tokyo) region. Local folklore corresponds closely to geological evidence and geological events in at least some cases, and the symbolic language of myth and folklore can be a useful supplement to conventional geological evidence for constructing an accurate historical record of geological activity. At a deep, archetypical level, Japan, Cascadia, and many of the world's cultures appear to share similar themes in their conception of earthquakes. Although folklore from Cascadia is fragmentary, and the written record short, the evolution of Japanese earthquake folklore has been well documented over a long period of history and illustrates the interaction of folklore with dynamic social conditions.
