The Northern Bantu

Record summary

John Roscoe's The Northern Bantu surveys several Ugandan societies and discusses diviners, spirit possession, omens, healing and religious specialists. It offers multiple culturally neighboring comparison points for dreams and altered states, including how communities classify experiences as messages, affliction or sanctioned expertise. The material is historical ethnography rather than controlled evidence, and the category “Northern Bantu” reflects an older colonial classification. Researchers should identify the specific community and informant behind each passage, then compare Roscoe's account with contemporary linguistic and anthropological sources.