[CHAPTER V]
AT BAH'S HOGAN
"Why do you call her 'Bah?' Is it because she watches the sheep?"
Billy was asking many questions of Bah's mother and he found her anxious and ready to answer him. She had already told him her name, which showed that she liked him, and Billy was pleased. He wanted to hear many things about this family, especially about his little friend, Bah.
Her mother shook her head. "No, not why. I tell you story why we call her Bah." And this is what Bah's Mother told Billy:
Many Indians name their babies in this way: Soon after the baby is born, the mother straps it to the baby cradle and goes to the door of her hogan—what she first sees as she looks out upon the world, is what she calls her newborn. If she sees a running deer—then the baby is called "Running Deer." If her first glance falls upon a lazy bull, resting himself, the baby will bear the name of "Sitting Bull."
WHEN BAH WAS A PAPOOSE