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Now kilumi is an old Kamba dance which is periodically performed at ithembo all over the country with the…

Date of account
Published 1922
Source
Bantu Beliefs and Magic With particular reference to the Kikuyu and Kamba tribes of Kenya Colony; together with some reflections on East Africa after the war
Reference
Bantu Beliefs and Magic With particular reference to the Kikuyu and Kamba tribes of Kenya Colony; together with some reflections on East Africa after the war · selected passage 128
Rights
public_domain
Language
English
Record updated
2026-08-25

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Record summary

Now kilumi is an old Kamba dance which is periodically performed at ithembo all over the country with the object of warding off epidemics, but the Engai dances are carried on at villages to cure an individual possessed by the form of mania known as Engai

Published source text

Read the available text below. Archive transcriptions may contain OCR errors; later context is labelled separately. A recorded claim is not a finding that it happened.

Source passage

Source text · mention only

Now kilumi is an old Kamba dance which is periodically performed at ithembo all over the country with the object of warding off epidemics, but the Engai dances are carried on at villages to cure an individual possessed by the form of mania known as Engai. Fez caps and other unusual ornaments and clothing worn at Engai dances are not worn at kilumi dances. The word Engai appears to be loosely used in this connection, but this is possibly due to the fact that the individual organising the dance is supposed to be a person possessing occult powers, a person, in short, who knows the inner mysteries or who would not otherwise possess the “medicine” which is supposed to come from Engai.

Historical context

Contextual commentary · mention only

This material belongs to a folklore tradition. Story type, collector, community, transmission and literary editing matter when comparing it with other sources.

Modern context

Contextual commentary · mention only

Lattice compares motifs and reported features without assuming that a traditional being is a biological species or that similar stories document one external cause.

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