Some thoughts on society

Again I think it’s wrong to bully and belittle homosexuals especially if knowing that some of them are like that from being abused before. But let’s not forget religion having a big say on what’s acceptable and what’s not. The likes of Albrecht Durer were made to draw witches instead, given the belief in witches being naked and that since female immodesty’s frowned upon in both Christianity and Islam witches were the exception that proved the rule.

Historically, especially in Europe somebody would get accused of witchcraft by indulging in lesbian activity. The link between homosexuality and witchcraft’s not lost among the Valangi. So is bestiality and let’s not forget that there’s a time when people would be accused of witchcraft for also possessing or becoming dogs and wolves themselves. Such beliefs are still found elsewhere to any degree.

Like I said, it’s not wrong to own dogs (in Islam, it’s permitted for as long as it’s done within reason) and that homosexuals shouldn’t be bullied (moreso if they had been abused before). It’s however parsimonious that secularism would’ve loosened things up unless if studied by scholars to get why homosexuality’s linked to witchcraft among others.

As it had been regarded

While I don’t think it’s a good idea to persecute and bully homosexuals again and the fact that a good number of homosexuals may’ve been abused in their formative years (some could be looking for love that they never had and could’ve difficulty trusting others), let’s not forget correlation between monotheistic beliefs and homophobia. Both strongly Islamic and Christian countries are homophobic to varying degrees.

Not to mention homosexuality’s even linked to witchcraft only strengthens this. If I’m not mistaken, if somebody indulged in lesbian activity she could and will be accused of witchcraft. Unsurprisingly, the Valangi community also links homosexuality with witchcraft. Don’t be too surprised if Islamic and Christian writers were up to something.

That and sexually transmitted diseases.

Is the werewolf a witch?

That’s a debate even European demonologists wondered as early as the Early Modern Period and one that should be supported by extrapolating comparable evidence from outside of Europe. Throughout Africa, there are reports of leopard societies and wizards and witches turning into leopards. (Or turning people into leopards.) Though it still depends on the country and community, the idea that a wizard becomes a leopard’s not lost. So is having them for a familiar.

This begs the possibility of wolf societies and the idea that werewolves are witches themselves in Europe. Witches are capable of turning into cats and dogs and so do werewolves (especially in Russia if I remember). There’s even a document called Displaying of Supposed Witchcraft where witches are said to appear as wolves, cats and dogs. Other documents like Compendium Maleficarum also say similar things about demons.

Others like Demonolatry as well as Demons of Urban Reform (a study on Swiss witchcraft) stating that witches do use wolves and dogs as familiars and with the latter, they’re said to ride on them. In some African communities and countries, witches are said to ride on hyenas in addition to dogs and baboons (especially in South Africa). All the more a reason to assume lycanthropy’s a form of witchcraft as vampirism is and that wolves are this tied to witchcraft.

Werewolves as they actually were

There’s a growing rediscovery of historic and folkloric female werewolves but then again I get the odd impression from my research that lycanthropy is and should be considered as a form of witchcraft itself. Not only from European and Russian demonology/folklore studies but also from African and Philippine examples. There’s a recurring belief among Ghanaians, Cameroonians, Tanzanians and Congolese that there’s a connection between leopards and witchcraft in whatever fashion.

There’s even a report about leopard secret societies in the Democratic Republic of Congo, so one wonders if there’s ever a case for wolf secret societies in Early Modern Europe to explain lycanthropy. If certain Congolese and Cameroonian chieftains are feared for turning into leopards as they’re believed to use occult powers to harm people, then there should be a strong case for lycanthropy as a form of witchcraft in Europe.

Actually if you believe Francesco Maria Guazzo, demons were also noted for turning into leopards (and wolves) themselves at some point in Italy. Since Dionysus’s cult was held there and Dionysus’s associated with leopards himself, by the time Christianity took root he too got demonised and marginalised in some manner. That’s what’s already happening in Africa following missionary activity.

From this, I get the feeling that the she-wolf and lonza weren’t just demonised versions of Roman deities but also standing in for witchcraft in the Divine Comedy. (I also come to think of it as a famous precursor to those contemporary ‘been to hell‘ testimonies.)

So much so that contemporary Africa might be Early Modern Europe in action to a damning, if not substantial degree. That is newfound belief in Christianity wrestling with pagan tendencies as well as struggling with polygamy and recovering from epidemics.

On wolves and Christendom

I think I came up with a coincidental correlation between the decline in Christianity and the rise of wolf fandom before. Maybe not articulately enough and not always entirely the case but enough to assume a correlation between it as far as witchcraft goes. (The Bible doesn’t have a high opinion of wolves either.) Extrapolating from that Cameroonians and Tanzanians believe in leopard witchcraft, one can easily assume lycanthropy to be a form of witchcraft too.

Witches are noted for turning into cats and dogs and well so do demons, The Devil and werewolves so there might be a close enough overlap to hint at interchangeability. Maybe not entirely the case but I do remember a Renaissance English document about witches turning into wolves themselves so there’s that. In some studies of Philippine folklore, the aswang is a type of witch.

Aswangs are also noted for shapeshifting into animals themselves, again it’s not a stretch to assume that werewolves could be one themselves and moreso when Christianity got in the way whenever it marginalises heathen worship. (Similar things could be said about Islam to a degree.) Let’s not forget that at some point in Switzerland, witches were believed to ride on wolves.

Again there’s a strong connection between wolves and witchcraft to the point where Christianity could be used to justify these fears.

British Colonies

Africa:

Nigeria

Ghana

Cameroon

Kenya

Tanzania

Gambia

Egypt

South Africa

Uganda

Botswana

Zambia

Zimbabwe

 

Asia:

Hong Kong (now part of China)

Malaysia

Singapore

 

Europe:

Ireland

Gibraltar (Spain)

Cyprus

 

Americas:

Guyana

Jamaica

Bahamas

Barbados

St Kitts

America

Canada

 

The Pacific:

New Zealand

Australia

Britain Conquering The World

Not that France, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Belgium, Netherlands and Germany never attempted to colonise outside of Europe. But to my knowledge, Spain mostly colonised South America and the Philippines. France colonised Africa and to a degree Southeast Asia and the Pacific (Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam, Tahiti and New Caledonia).

Actually Germany and Italy attempted to colonise Africa but with the former its territories eventually became French, Belgian and British respectively. These included Togo, Cameroon, Botswana, Tanzania and Burundi. Unsurprisingly they don’t use German anymore.

Italy only conquered Eritrea, Libya and to a degree Ethiopia. Turkey could be retroactively considered as a European colonial power with regards to its inclusion in the European Union and that it also conquered or heavily influenced Ethiopia as far as I can recall. Right down to using them as eunuchs during the Ottoman Empire though I could be getting my facts wrong.

Portugal conquered Angola, Cabo Verde, Mozambique, Brazil and to a lesser degree China via Macau. The Netherlands claims Suriname and previously Indonesia (again from memory). Belgium had Rwanda, Democratic Republic of Congo and Burundi. Britain by contrast exceeds theirs.

Not only they claimed Nigeria, Ghana, parts of Cameroon and China, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Malaysia, Hong Kong (now part of China), Singapore, Papua New Guinea, India (including what’ll become of Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka) and Egypt to varying degrees. But also North America which Canada, Jamaica, Barbados, Bahamas, Australia and New Zealand remain British commonwealths.

I think I remember reading somewhere that the British invaded much of the world. Admittedly I can name more British former colonies than I do with the rest since the British Empire’s scope exceeded all these other European empires. France and Spain come close but even then France mostly influenced Africa and Spain to South America.

It’s really astonishing that Britain conquered a lot of territory for a small island country.

Differences between each African region (Part One)

Africa, arguably until recently and outside of Africans themselves, was often perceived as something of a blank slate to colonial empires especially with interchangeable communities even though Africa has greater genetic diversity.

That and Africans being easily generalised by demeaning cliches. If I’m not mistaken, according to one global study most Africans (especially Nigerians) aren’t that well-endowed and likely in another study, similar for Kenyans too.

(Let’s not forget that there are African men who’re capable of controlling themselves and be faithful husbands.)

Not that there aren’t any indigenous darker skinned populations in Northern Africa as Egypt also used to cover much of Sudan and there’s a community there known as the Nubians. The Berbers, which also live in Northern Africa and to some extent Niger (the Tuaregs*), often practise monogamy. They also heavily use Arabic but there’s growing recognition for Berber languages.

Afro-Asiatic languages prevail in parts of Nigeria, Kenya and Tanzania (if I’m not mistaken) and are the norm in Eritrea, Ethiopia, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria and Egypt. Unsurprisingly, since Arabic’s something of the lingua franca in Muslim countries (though the usage varies as it’s mostly clerical in places like Indonesia and Turkey) it’s almost parsimonious that Arabic influence’s considerably stronger in Northern and Western Africa.

It should however be noted that they’re still a considerable community in Eastern Africa. Islamic populations vary from being around 25-30% in Cameroon, 50% in Nigeria, 14% in Uganda, 20% in Ghana, 11.1% in Kenya, 38.6% in Cote d’Ivoire, 35% in Tanzania and the norm in Guinea, Chad, Morocco, Egypt, Senegal, Mali, Niger, Libya, Tunisia, Sierra Leone and Sudan

Let’s not forget that the Ugandan kanzu is practically the Islamic thobe because it’s adapted from it. Though admittedly, thobes/kanzu robes are also worn outside of it such as Cameroon and historically Europe (robes are also still worn by clergy regardless of the denomination). And many Sub-Saharan Africans went modest due to Islamic and Christian missionary influence.

If Arabic’s the lingua franca of Islam and that of Middle East and Northern Africa (and to some extent, extant Islamic communities) like how Latin’s the lingua franca of Catholic Europe for years, then Swahili’s the lingua franca of East Africa. At least around Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and to some extent, Democratic Republic of Congo.

There’s a colourful saying surrounding its usage: born in Zanzibar, grew up in Tanzania, fell sick in Kenya, died in Uganda and was buried in Congo (as taken from The New Times Rwanda). But the other lingua franca throughout Africa trace back to European colonialism.

Francophone Africa predictably consists of Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi, Gabon, Central African Republic, Republic of Congo, Guinea, Mali, Benin, Togo and Senegal as well as Rwanda (at some point). Keep in mind that Burundi, Rwanda and DRC used to be Belgian colonies.

The rest are usually either former British or French colonies. Since Cameroon also got colonised by the British, it’s parsimonious to suggest that Rwanda and Cameroon have both Anglophone and Francophone tendencies to varying degrees.

This leads to the next one: Anglophone Africa. As one guesses, it consists of Nigeria, Uganda, Kenya, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia, Ghana, Rwanda (recently so) and to a lesser degree Cameroon. Keep in mind that some of them (Cameroon, Nigeria, Chad, Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania, Togo and Namibia) were former German colonies.

But then again German influence’s very brief since now most of them speak English with Cameroon and Togo becoming predominantly Francophone. Eritrea, Ethiopia (especially Addis Ababa) and Libya all used to be Italian colonies. (Due to Ottoman influence, Ethiopia could also count as a former Turkish colony.)

Though Spain also imported many of its slaves from Africa, there aren’t that many African countries still using Spanish (the only one being Equatorial Guinea, which shouldn’t be confused for French Guinea) and that Libya still uses Italian, the only other major Romance language in Africa is Portuguese.

It’s widely spoken in Cabo Verde, Angola and Mozambique. Like Brazi and Macau, they are all former Portuguese colonies and Angola was used as a sort of gateway for slave traders. Quite logically, though German used to be spoken in Cameroon and the other former German colonies yet English and Afrikaans (Dutch) remained the most persistently used Germanic languages there.

(South Africa, Namibia and Botswana were former Dutch colonies.)

*Music cultures of the Pacific, the Near East, and Asia – Page 40

https://books.google.com.ph/books?id=bCsuAAAAMAAJ
William P. Malm – 1967 – ‎Snippet view – ‎More editions
Unlike most Berbers, the Tuaregs adopted the Moslem social system while sharing Berber monogamy. Their form of matriarchy is unique (only the men wear veils), as is their writing system (only the women are literate). Their music shows …

Witches via Google Books

Witchcraft in Ghana: A Study on the Belief in Destructive Witches …

https://books.google.com.ph/books?id=tVUrAAAAIAAJ
Hans Werner Debrunner – 1961 – ‎Snippet view – ‎More editions
A Study on the Belief in Destructive Witches and Its Effect on the Akan Tribes Hans Werner Debrunner … I know of no man from the Northern Territories who is not absolutely convinced that men do change quite often into hyenas ” (Cardinall). … In the records of witch exorcism of a prophet, some of the animals mentioned were: Bat, goat, electric fish, green mamba, cock, smart hawk (sic), thrush striped snake, dog, soldier ant, house fly, louse, wasp, rat, black mamba, puff adder, crab, …

Roots of African Thought: Sources of power (a pilot study) – Page 163

https://books.google.com.ph/books?isbn=0869816047
Abraham Kriel – 1984 – ‎Snippet view – ‎More editions
livestock,1 but the latter, which are believed to dig up graves and eat corpses, are dreaded and hated.2 It is the witch’s favourite familiar and riding horse.3 An object representing a spotted hyena often stands for women’s necrophagous witchcraft and a witch’s familiar.4 So great is the aversion to the hyena that it figures among the very few animals which regularly appear in pure animal stories, where its one salient characteristic is its greed, one of the most deeply detested evils in the …
Asian Folklore Studies – Page 333

https://books.google.com.ph/books?id=k7XfAAAAMAAJ
1998 – ‎Snippet view – ‎More editions
Unfortunately, this author also does not differentiate between the spotted and the striped hyena species. At least in Tanzania people belief that witches ride only on the back of a spotted hyena (personal communication from Heribert Hofer, letter dated 21 March 1998). Witches use this wild animal “of the night,” as the Kujamaat call it, as a symbolic vehicle for metamorphosis. In the transformative rituals of secret societies, such as the Kore cult of the Bamana (Mali), people “become” …

 

Google books on Tanzanian dog superstitions

They’re in French and English:

 

Jeunesses, vieillesses, démographies et sociétés – Page 72

https://books.google.com.ph/books?isbn=2747530221 – Translate this page
Francis Gendreau, ‎Dominique Tabutin, ‎Maud Poupard – 2002 – ‎Snippet view – ‎More editions
Ils sont tout simplement invisibles, sauf à ceux qui ont des yeux pour les voir – d’où le titre du beau livre de Eric de Rosny, Les yeux de ma chèvre, (1979) : le mganga ou guérisseur étant foncièrement un voyant, il doit recevoir rituellement le don de la vision grâce au sacrifice des yeux d’un animal. En Tanzanie, nous avons recueilli des “recettes magiques” qui permettaient la vision des sorciers – êtres nocturnes. Elles étaient à base de chassie de jeunes chiots (le chien ayant cette …

Anna – Page 69

https://books.google.com.ph/books?isbn=2748129156 – Translate this page
Preview
La distance qui les séparait de Nairobi au Parc National du Serengeti en Tanzanie couvrait environ deux cents kilomètres à vol d’oiseau. Ils avaient la … Ainsi, ils rejoindraient la case du fameux sorcier qui leur offrirait l’hospitalité et leur indiquerait la meilleure piste. … Le pari était osé de risquer l’approche d’une espèce qui, au repos, n’est pas sans rappeler les plus débonnaires de nos chiens mais qui fait preuve d’une cruauté sans pareille, lors de l’attaque d’un zèbre notamment.
L’Islam en Éthiopie des origines au XVIe siècle – Page 156

https://books.google.com.ph/books?isbn=2723301117 – Translate this page
Joseph Cuoq – 1981 – ‎Preview – ‎More editions
Ainsi on voit les devins et les sorciers éthiopiens s’adonner aux prédictions comme faisaient les musulmans, on s’en souvient, du temps de ‘Amda Syôn. Ainsi, on … Il subit le même sort que Badlây : « on lui coupa la tête, les mains et les pieds… on les suspendit aux portes du palais, où les chiens et les hyènes se réjouirent de les dévorer. … On trouve actuellement encore chez certains chefs bantous de la Tanzanie de longues planches sculptées qui sont les insignes de leur autorité.

Vivere e “curare” la vecchiaia nel mondo: La vecchiaia nel mondo:

https://books.google.com.ph/books?isbn=8881633027 – Translate this page
Antonio Guerci, ‎Stefania Consigliere – 2002 – ‎Snippet view – ‎More editions
En Tanzanie j’ai recueilli des ” recettes magiques ” qui permettaient la vision des sorciers – êtres nocturnes – elles étaient à base de chassie de jeunes chiots (le chien ayant cette capacité de flairer des présences dans les nuits les plus noires). 17 Cf. pour le vieillissement au Nord, la somme éditée par M. Loriaux et alii, La révolution grise, Louvain, CIACO, 1986 et le n° 124 d’octobre 1991 de la revue Autrement ” Etre vieux ” ; pour l’Afrique, le livre édité par Cl. Attias-Donfut, Vieillir en …

Youth, Ag, Demographics and Societies – Page 72

https://books.google.com.ph/books?isbn=2747530221 – Translate this page
Francis Gendreau, Tabutin, Maud Poupard – 2002 – Snippet view – More editions
They are simply invisible, except to those who have eyes to see them – hence the title of the beautiful book Eric de Rosny, The eyes of my goat, (1979): the mganga or healer is basically a seer, he must receive ritually the gift of vision through the sacrifice of the eyes of an animal. In Tanzania , we collected “magic recipes” that allowed wizards’ vision – nocturnal beings. They were based on hunting young puppies (the dog with this …

Anna – Page 69

https://books.google.com.ph/books?isbn=2748129156 – Translate this page
preview
The distance from Nairobi to Serengeti National Park in Tanzania covered about two hundred kilometers as the crow flies. They had the … So, they would join the box of the famous wizard who would offer them hospitality and show them the best track. … The bet was daring to risk the approach of a species which, at rest, is reminiscent of the most debonair of our dogs but which shows a cruelty like no other, during the attack of a zebra in particular.
Islam in Ethiopia from the origins of the 16th century – Page 156

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Joseph Cuoq – 1981 – Preview – More editions
Thus we see the Ethiopian soothsayers and wizards indulge in predictions as the Muslims did, it will be remembered, in the time of Amda Syon. Thus, one … He suffered the same fate as Badlây: “They cut off his head, hands and feet … they were suspended at the doors of the palace, where dogs and hyenas were delighted to devour them. … Some Bantu chiefs in Tanzania still have long carved boards, which are the insignia of their authority.

Vivere e “curare” the vecchiaia nel mondo: The vecchiaia nel mondo:

https://books.google.com.ph/books?isbn=8881633027 – Translate this page
Antonio Guerci , Stefania Consigliere – 2002 – Snippet view – More editions
In Tanzania I collected “magic recipes” that allowed the vision of wizards – nocturnal beings – they were based on hunting young puppies (the dog having this ability to sniff presences in the darkest nights) . 17 See, for Aging in the North, the sum edited by M. Loriaux et alii, The Gray Revolution, Louvain, CIACO, 1986 and the October issue of October 1991 of the magazine Autrement “Being old”; for Africa, the book edited by Cl. Attias-Donfut, Aging in …