For the Dogrib, and indeed many Aboriginal groups, the concept of time is broken into two realms: 'floating time' and 'linear time'. 'Floating time' describes an era in which stories are told without reference to dates. These stories often begin with, "Long, long ago..." 'Linear time' follows 'floating' time, and describes events of a more recent nature. Stories from the linear era generally fall into a chronological order, and depict important historical events. The stories of Yamozhah occur during the transition from 'floating' to 'linear time', and thus bridge the two worlds.

"'Floating time' stories concentrate on the world when animals and humans could change form, and relate primarily to the relationships between them. With the coming of Yamozhah the final agreements between animals and humans are completed and they each take their respective, and final forms, forever adhering to the relationship of respect worked out in 'floating time'. Yamozhah is critical in bridging this temporal transition."
- from Andrews, Zoe, and Herter. "On Yamozhah's Trail: Dogrib Sacred Sites and the Anthropology of Travel."