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A Study on the Structure and Pattern of Trickster Tales in Siberian Itelmens Kwak, Jin-Seok By language, the Itelmens belong, together with the Chukchi and Koryaks, to the northeastern group of paleo-Asiatic peoples. In the past, the Itelmens were divided, according to language, into northern, southern and western. The term Itelmen means ‘resident’, ‘living man’. In the documents and literature of the 18th century and later, the Itelmens were called Kamchadals. A Trickster in the Trickster Tales is a person or animal, however in most cases it appears as an animal such as a rat or a fox. In such cases, the trickster is related to a secular role such as gourmand or lazy person. The tricksters plays tricks for various reasons which include: ‘acquiring food’, ‘causing mischief’, ‘getting support’, ‘offering help’, ‘escaping danger’, and ‘punishment’. Judging by the purposes of the tricks, it is possible to say that the trickster is a secular figure following its carnal desires. Tricks in the Trickster Tales serve two narrative functions. One is the function which causes narrative tension and conflict and the other is the function which relieves them. If an agent which transforms a situation into a different situation is the mediation in the narratives, then the existence, success and failure, and the result of the mediation is linked to a cultural index. Narratives with no mediation or failed mediation are typically seen in a primitive society. On the other hand, narratives in which the mediation invalidates the initial result or substitutes the result for another one mainly appears in an advanced society. Considering the mediation relating to the cultural index, Trickster Tales of the Itelmens reflect a change of their world-view and development of their society.