Genii of the River Niger

Genii of the River Niger
Author :
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
Total Pages : 240
Release :
ISBN-10 : 0226290522
ISBN-13 : 9780226290522
Rating : 4/5 (522 Downloads)

Book Synopsis Genii of the River Niger by : Jean-Marie Gibbal

Download or read book Genii of the River Niger written by Jean-Marie Gibbal and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 1994-02-08 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The river Niger, a source of life and danger for the people in impoverished eastern Mali, is also the origin of elaborate mythology. From his travels through Mali and down the Niger in a dugout canoe, Jean-Marie Gibbal has created a personal documentary of the cultures of the region. The result is at once an ethnography of cultures in crisis and a poetic evocation of the environment and people he encountered. Gibbal portrays the river as the dominant, cohesive force among people in the face of social and environmental strife. He focuses on the Ghimbala healing cult, which centers on the river, and how the cult structures social relations in the region. Gibbal vividly recreations the Ghimbala rites, nocturnal ceremonies of spirit possession and seance which animate the water spirits, or genii, that inhabit the river. The genii, he finds, provide the strength of social identity in a world where famine and competing versions of Islam threaten to overpower traditional culture. In its original French publication, The Genii of the River Niger was honored with an Alexandra David-Neel literary prize in 1989. Its powerful lyricism, combined with fascinating ethnographic depth, will delight general readers and specialists alike and will stir debates among specialists in African studies, the anthropology of religion, and literature.


Genii of the River Niger Related Books

Genii of the River Niger
Language: en
Pages: 240
Authors: Jean-Marie Gibbal
Categories: Family & Relationships
Type: BOOK - Published: 1994-02-08 - Publisher: University of Chicago Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The river Niger, a source of life and danger for the people in impoverished eastern Mali, is also the origin of elaborate mythology. From his travels through Ma
Embodying Colonial Memories
Language: en
Pages: 240
Authors: Paul Stoller
Categories: Social Science
Type: BOOK - Published: 2014-01-02 - Publisher: Routledge

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

A study of the West African Hauka - spirits that grotesquely mimic and mock "Europeans" of the colonial epoch. The author considers spirit possession as a set o
Rethinking Resistance
Language: en
Pages: 388
Authors: Gerrit Jan Abbink
Categories: Social Science
Type: BOOK - Published: 2003 - Publisher: BRILL

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

"Rethinking Resistance" analyzes revolts from the nineteenth century and early colonial Africa, post-colonial rebellions and recent conflicts in African history
The Timbuktu School for Nomads
Language: en
Pages: 372
Authors: Nicholas Jubber
Categories: Travel
Type: BOOK - Published: 2016-11-15 - Publisher: Nicholas Brealey

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

"A passionate paean to the Sahara." -- New York Times, Season's Best Travel Books The Sahara: a dream-like, far away landscape of Lawrence of Arabia and Wilfred
A Day in a Working Life [3 volumes]
Language: en
Pages: 2543
Authors: Gary Westfahl
Categories: History
Type: BOOK - Published: 2015-04-21 - Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Ideal for high school and college students studying history through the everyday lives of men and women, this book offers intriguing information about the jobs