Manny Loley

Storyteller & Educator
Dr. Manny Loley is a Diné storyteller, educator, and editor. He is ‘Áshįįhi born for Tó Baazhní’ázhí; his maternal grandparents are the Tódích’íi’nii and his paternal grandparents are the Kinyaa’áanii. Dr. Loley is from Tsétah Tó Ák’olí on the Navajo Nation. He holds a Ph.D. in English and Literary Arts from the University of Denver. Dr. Loley is the Editor for Leading the Way Magazine, and he co-founded and directed the Emerging Diné Writers’ Institute. His creative and critical work has found homes in Poetry Magazine, Pleaides Magazine, the Massachusetts Review, the Santa Fe Literary Review, Broadsided Press, the Yellow Medicine Review, and the Diné Reader: an Anthology of Navajo Literature, among others. His writing has been thrice nominated for Pushcart Prizes. Loley is at work on a novel titled They Collect Rain in Their Palms.

Contact: Manny.Loley@du.edu

Manny Loley's Presentations

Artist Talk

Indigenous Culture

Storytelling

Wellness

Díí Bee Adééhonilzindoo: Knowing the Self Through Language and Storytelling

In Diné families, a phrase that elders use after cultural knowledge is shared is Díí Bee Adééhonilzindoo meaning by these things, you will know yourself. The idea is that knowing the self is foundational to knowing, understanding, and empathizing with others, including the land. By knowing ourselves, where we come from, who our people are, and our ancestral stories, we make steps toward a humanity that is intercommunal, that makes space for other kinds of stories and ways of doing to exist. If we know ourselves, we move through the world with open minds and open hearts. Only then, can we truly call ourselves human. This session is a communal practice toward knowing the self through language and storytelling. Through discussion, interactive activities, and other meaningful ways of doing, we will meet the needs of your community by thinking creatively and critically about what it means to know the self and what it means to be human. Note: Storytelling is purposeful and communal. Storytellers will often adjust the nature of their stories to meet the needs of their family or their community. In honor of this ancestral tradition, this session can be modified in consultation with the presenter and the community that is requesting this session.