- Khoikhoi mythology
This is a summary, in alphabetical order, of some of the gods, heroes and monsters that appear in the beliefs of the
Khoikhoi , an ethnic group from southernAfrica .Gods and Heroes
Gaunab/Gamab/Gauna
Known as Gamab to the
Haukoin and Gauna to theBushmen , he is the supreme god of the Khoikhoi. As a god of the sky, he resides in the heavens above the stars and shoots arrows down to the mortals of earth, killing them. This also makes him a god of fate and death. An alternative Khoikhoi sky god wasUtixo .Gunab
The god of
evil .Heitsi-eibib/Heitsi
One of the most famous heroes, he was the offspring of a cow and some magical grass that the cow ate. He was a legendary hunter, sorcerer and warrior, who most notably killed the Ga-gorib (see below). He was also a life-death-rebirth figure, dying and resurrecting himself on numerous occasions; his funeral
cairn s are located in many locations in southern Africa. He is worshipped as a god of the hunt.Tsui/Tsui'goab
"Tsui" is a god of sorcerery and sorcerers. He is also credited with being the god of
rain andthunder .Monsters
Aigamuxa/Aigamuchab
A man-eating,
dune -dwelling creature that is mostly human-looking, except that it has eyes on the instep of its feet. In order to see, it has to go down on its hands and knees and lift its one foot in the air. This is a problem when the creature chases prey, because it has to run blind. Some sources claim the creature resembles anogre .Ga-gorib
A legendary monster who sat by a deep hole in the ground and dared passers-by to throw rocks at him. The rocks would bounce off and kill the passer-by, who then fell into the hole. When the hero Heitsi-eibib encountered Ga-gorib, he declined the monster's dare. When Ga-gorib was not looking, Heitsi-eibib threw a stone at the monster and hit it below its ear, causing it to fall in its own pit.
In an alternate version of this story, Ga-gorib chased Heitsi-eibib around the hole until the hero slipped and fell inside. Heitsi-eibib eventually escaped and, after a struggle, was able to push the monster into the pit.
"Gorib" is "the spotted one" (meaning
leopard ,cheetah , or "leguaan") inCentral Khoisan languages, so the "Ga-gorib" probably has some connection with this formidable species. The element "ga-" remains to be explained. Possibly, it is a negative, "not-a-leopard", not only on comparative morphological grounds, but also because its adversary Heitsi-eibib has many symbolic connotations of the leopard, such as rain, stars and speckledness.Hai-uri
An agile, jumping creature who is partially-invisible and has only one side to its body (one arm and one leg). It eats humans and is comparable to the "Tikdoshe" of the
Zulu people and the "Chiruwi" ofCentral Africa .Bi-blouk
An alternate, female version of Hai-uri.
References
* Arthur Cotterell: "A Dictionary of World Mythology"
Oxford University Press , Oxford, 1979, ISBN 0-19-217747-8
* Dr. A. van Reeth: "Encyclopedie van de Mythologie" Tirion, Baarn, 1994, ISBN 90-5121-304-2
* [http://www.pantheon.org/articles/g/ga-gorib.html Description of Ga-gorib on Encyclopedia Mythica]
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