Popular coverage frequently refers to the Spirit Cave individual as the “Spirit Cave Mummy.”

The phrase is understandable.

Dry conditions preserved portions of the body naturally, making him one of the oldest naturally mummified individuals known in North America.

But the label can also distort the story.

“Mummy” invites spectacle.

It suggests an object to be viewed, ranked, or compared with other ancient bodies.

Headlines emphasize age: oldest, mysterious, prehistoric, shocking.

The tribe’s language emphasizes something else.

Ancestor.

Those two words carry radically different assumptions.