Simbi

A Simbi (also spelled Cymbee and Sim'bi, pl. Bisimbi or Basimbi) is a Central African guardian spirit of the water and nature in traditional Bakongo religion, as well as in African diaspora spiritual traditions, such as Hoodoo in the southern United States and Palo in Cuba. Simbi have been historically identified with water people, or mermaids, pottery, snakes, gourds, and fire. Due to the Atlantic slave trade, a large percentage of Bantu peoples were either bought or stolen from Africa to the Americas. This forced migration of over 12.5 million people is the main reason that the veneration of simbi exists today in countries, such as the United States, Brazil, Cuba, and Haiti.

A Simbi (also spelled Cymbee and Sim'bi, pl. Bisimbi or Basimbi) is a Central African guardian spirit of the water and nature in traditional Bakongo religion, as well as in African diaspora spiritual traditions, such as Hoodoo in the southern United States and Palo in Cuba. Simbi have been historically identified with water people, or mermaids, pottery, snakes, gourds, and fire. Due to the Atlantic slave trade, a large percentage of Bantu peoples were either bought or stolen from Africa to the Americas. This forced migration of over 12.5 million people is the main reason that the veneration of simbi exists today in countries, such as the United States, Brazil, Cuba, and Haiti. ==In popular culture== Governor General Michaëlle Jean of Ottawa, Canada, who was born in Haiti, bears two simbi serpents as supporters on her coat of arms. The Deep, a novella by Rivers Solomon, incorporates Black American folklore of a mermaid-like people, who are called wajinru in the story. They descend from Africans who were either thrown overboard or purposely jumped from slave ships, choosing death over enslavement. ==See also== Jengu Kianda Mamba Muntu Nkisi ==References==

Text derived from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1372605971 under CC BY-SA 4.0; modifications have been made.