The population of Africa is pygmies. Pygmies: the smallest people in the world

And etc.; formerly supposed pygmy languages

Religion

Traditional Beliefs

Racial type

Negrillian type of the large Negroid race

Pygmies(Greek Πυγμαῖοι - “people the size of a fist”) - a group of short Negroid peoples living in the equatorial forests of Africa. Another name for African pygmies is negrilli.

Evidence

Mentioned already in ancient Egyptian inscriptions of the 3rd millennium BC. e., at a later time - in ancient Greek sources (in Homer’s Iliad, Herodotus and Strabo).

Pygmies in mythology

Physical type

Among the Efe and Sua peoples living east of the Baka, small children are initially born - the growth limiter is activated during intrauterine development. Baka children are born normal, but in the first two years of life, Baka children grow noticeably slower than Europeans.

Occupation

Pygmies are forest dwellers, and for them the forest is the source of everything they need for life. The main occupations are hunting and gathering. Pygmies do not make stone tools; previously they did not know how to make fire (they carried the source of fire with them). The hunting weapon is a bow with arrows with metal tips, and these tips are often poisoned. Iron is exchanged with neighbors.

Language

Pygmies usually speak the languages ​​of the peoples around them - Efe, Asua, Bambuti, etc. There are some phonetic differences in the Pygmy dialects, but with the exception of the Baka people, the Pygmies have lost their native languages.

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Notes

Literature

• Putnam E. Eight Years Among the Pygmies / Anne Putnam; With a preface and ed. B. I. Sharevskaya; Artist B. A. Diodorov. - M.: Publishing House of Oriental Literature, 1961. - 184 p. - (Travel to Eastern countries). - 75,000 copies.(region)

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Excerpt characterizing the Pygmies

“Dr... or stupid!...” he said.
“And that one is gone! They were already gossiping about her too,” he thought about the little princess, who was not in the dining room.
-Where is the princess? - he asked. - Hiding?...
“She’s not entirely healthy,” said Mlle Bourienne, smiling cheerfully, “she won’t come out.” This is so understandable in her situation.
- Hm! hmm! ugh! ugh! - said the prince and sat down at the table.
The plate did not seem clean to him; he pointed to the spot and threw it. Tikhon picked it up and handed it to the barman. The little princess was not unwell; but she was so insurmountably afraid of the prince that, having heard how out of sorts he was, she decided not to go out.
“I’m afraid for the child,” she said to m lle Bourienne, “God knows what can happen from fright.”
In general, the little princess lived in Bald Mountains constantly under a feeling of fear and antipathy towards the old prince, which she was not aware of, because fear was so dominant that she could not feel it. There was also antipathy on the part of the prince, but it was drowned out by contempt. The princess, having settled down in the Bald Mountains, especially fell in love with m lle Bourienne, spent her days with her, asked her to spend the night with her, and often talked to her about her father-in-law and judged him.
“Il nous arrive du monde, mon prince,” said M lle Bourienne, unrolling a white napkin with her pink hands. “Son excellence le prince Kouraguine avec son fils, a ce que j"ai entendu dire? [His Excellency Prince Kuragin with his son, how much have I heard?],” she said questioningly.
“Hm... this boy of excellence... I assigned him to the college,” the prince said offended. “Why son, I can’t understand.” Princess Lizaveta Karlovna and Princess Marya may know; I don’t know why he’s bringing this son here. I don't need it. – And he looked at his blushing daughter.
- Unwell, or what? Out of fear of the minister, as that idiot Alpatych said today.
- No, mon pere. [father.]
No matter how unsuccessfully M lle Bourienne found herself on the subject of conversation, she did not stop and chatted about greenhouses, about the beauty of a new blossoming flower, and the prince softened after the soup.
After dinner he went to his daughter-in-law. The little princess sat at a small table and chatted with Masha, the maid. She turned pale when she saw her father-in-law.
The little princess has changed a lot. She was more bad than good now. The cheeks sank, the lip rose upward, the eyes were drawn downwards.
“Yes, it’s some kind of heaviness,” she answered when the prince asked what she felt.
- Do you need anything?
- No, merci, mon pere. [Thank you, father.]
- Well, okay, okay.
He went out and walked to the waitress. Alpatych stood in the waiter's room with his head bowed.
– Is the road blocked?
- Zakidana, your Excellency; Forgive me, for God's sake, for one stupid thing.
The prince interrupted him and laughed his unnatural laugh.
- Well, okay, okay.
He extended his hand, which Alpatych kissed, and walked into the office.
In the evening Prince Vasily arrived. He was met at the prespekt (that's the name of the avenue) by coachmen and waiters, who shouted and drove his carts and sleighs to the outbuilding along a road deliberately covered with snow.
Prince Vasily and Anatoly were given separate rooms.
Anatole sat, having taken off his doublet and resting his hands on his hips, in front of the table, at the corner of which he, smiling, fixed his beautiful large eyes intently and absent-mindedly. He looked upon his entire life as a continuous amusement that someone like that for some reason had undertaken to arrange for him. Now he looked at his trip to the evil old man and the rich ugly heiress in the same way. All this could have turned out, he supposed, very well and funny. Why not marry if she is very rich? It never interferes, Anatole thought.
He shaved and perfumed himself with care and panache, which had become his habit, and with a good-natured, victorious expression innate to him, carrying high beautiful head, entered his father’s room. Two valets were busy around Prince Vasily, dressing him; He himself looked around animatedly and nodded cheerfully to his son as he entered, as if he were saying: “So, that’s exactly what I need you for!”
- No, no joke, father, is she very ugly? A? – he asked, as if continuing a conversation he had had more than once during the trip.
- That's enough. Nonsense! The main thing is to try to be respectful and reasonable with the old prince.
“If he scolds, I’ll leave,” said Anatole. “I can’t stand these old people.” A?
– Remember that everything depends on this for you.
At this time, the arrival of the minister with his son was not only known in the maid’s room, but appearance both of them have already been described in detail. Princess Marya sat alone in her room and tried in vain to overcome her inner agitation.
“Why did they write, why did Lisa tell me about this? After all, this cannot be! - she said to herself, looking in the mirror. - How do I get out into the living room? Even if I liked him, I couldn’t be on my own with him now.” The thought of her father's gaze terrified her.
The little princess and m lle Bourienne had already received all the necessary information from the maid Masha about what a ruddy, black-browed handsome minister's son was, and about how daddy dragged them with force to the stairs, and he, like an eagle, walking three steps at a time, ran after him. Having received this information, the little princess and M lle Bourienne, still audible from the corridor in their animated voices, entered the princess’s room.

- (Pygmaei, Πυγμαι̃οι). Mythical people of dwarfs, the size of πηγμή, τ. i.e. height no more than the distance from elbow to fist. According to Homer, they lived on the shores of the Ocean; Subsequently, the sources of the Nile, as well as India, began to be considered their location. Current... ... Encyclopedia of Mythology

PYGMIES- a group of peoples belonging to the Negrill race, indigenous population tropical Africa. They speak the languages ​​Bantu (Twa, 185 thousand people, 1992; Rwanda, Burundi, Zaire), Adamaua of the eastern group (Aka, Binga, etc., 35 thousand people; Congo, Central African Republic) and Shari... ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

Pygmies- (foreign language) people are morally insignificant. Wed. For the crowd he is great, for the crowd he is a prophet; For himself he is nothing, for himself he is a pygmy!... Nadson. “Look, there he is!” Cf. In the midst of his wanderings, he loved his poor Fatherland. She is surrounded by blizzards, She is surrounded by pygmies... ... Michelson's Large Explanatory and Phraseological Dictionary (original spelling)

PYGMIES Modern encyclopedia

Pygmies- From ancient Greek: Pigmaios. Literally: The size of a fist. In ancient times Greek mythology Pygmies were the name given to the fairy-tale people of dwarfs who were so small that they often became victims of cranes, like frogs. Therefore, the dwarfs had to... ... Dictionary of popular words and expressions

PYGMIES- a people of dwarfs who, according to the legendary tales of the Greeks, lived on the shores of the ocean (Homer) and on the sources of the Nile (late writers), where they waged a constant struggle with cranes. Dictionary of foreign words included in the Russian language. Pavlenkov F., 1907. Pygmies ... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language

Pygmies- (Pugmaioi), own. people the size of a fist in Greek mythology, a fabulous people of dwarfs living in Libya. The Iliad (III, 6) tells about their battles with the cranes (cf. L. v. Sybel, Mythologie der Ilias, 1877, and L. F. Voevodsky, Introduction to Mythology ... ... Encyclopedia of Brockhaus and Efron

Pygmies- PYGMIES, a group of peoples: Twa, Binga, Bibaia, Gielli, Efe, Kango, Aka, Mbuti with a total number of 350 thousand people belonging to the Negrill race, the indigenous population of Tropical Africa. The name comes from the Greek pygmaios (literally the size of... ... Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary

pygmies- a group of peoples in Central Africa. Total number 390 thousand people (1995). They speak Bantu languages. Many pygmies retain a wandering lifestyle, archaic culture, and traditional beliefs. * * * PYGMIES PYGMIES, a group of peoples belonging to ... ... encyclopedic Dictionary

PYGMIES- (from the Greek “fist” or “distance” from the fist to the elbow) in Greek mythology, a tribe of dwarfs, symbolizing the barbaric world. The name is associated with the small stature of the pygmies and symbolizes a distorted perception of the true ethnic group. The Greeks determined... ... Symbols, signs, emblems. Encyclopedia

Books

• Kremlin pygmies against the titan Stalin, Sergei Kremlev. Although Putin and Medvedev are the same height as Stalin, in comparison with the titanic achievements of the Leader, the current owners of the Kremlin look like mere dwarfs. And the pygmies will always envy the political ones... Buy for 210 rubles
• Kremlin pygmies against the titan Stalin, or Russia, which must be found, Sergei Kremlev. Although Putin and Medvedev are the same height as Stalin, in comparison with the titanic achievements of the Leader, the current owners of the Kremlin look like mere dwarfs. And the pygmies will always envy political...

The first mentions of pygmies were made in ancient Egyptian records dating back to the 3rd millennium BC. Later, ancient Greek historians wrote about pygmies Herodotus, Strabo, Homer. Real existence these African tribes were only confirmed in the 19th century by a German traveler Georg Schweinfurt, Russian explorer Vasily Junker and others.

The height of adult male pygmies is from 144-150 cm in height. Women - about 120 cm. They have short limbs and light brown skin, which serves as excellent camouflage in the forest. The hair is dark, curly, the lips are thin.

Occupation

Pygmies live in forests. For them, the forest is the highest deity - the source of everything necessary for survival. The traditional occupation for most pygmies is hunting and gathering. They hunt birds, elephants, antelopes and monkeys. For hunting they use short bows and poisoned arrows. In addition to various meats, pygmies are very fond of honey from wild bees. In order to get to their favorite treat, they have to climb 45-meter trees, after which they use ash and smoke to disperse the bees. Women collect nuts, berries, mushrooms and roots.

Pygmies live in small groups of at least 50 members. Each group has a special area for building huts. Marriages between members of different tribes are quite common here. Also, absolutely any member of the tribe, whenever he wishes, can freely leave and join another tribe. There are no formal leaders in the tribe. Issues and problems that arise are resolved through open negotiations.

Weapon

Weapons are a spear, a small bow, and arrows (often poisoned). Pygmies trade iron for arrowheads from neighboring tribes. Various traps and snares are widely used.

Pygmies are the most famous dwarf tribes living in the forests of tropical Africa. The main areas of concentration of pygmies today: Zaire (165 thousand people), Rwanda (65 thousand people), Burundi (50 thousand people), Congo (30 thousand people), Cameroon (20 thousand people) and Gabon (5 thousand people).

Mbutis- a tribe of pygmies living in the Ituri forest in Zaire. Most scientists believe that they were most likely the first inhabitants of this region.

Twa (Batwa)- a tribe of pygmies equatorial Africa. They live both in the mountains and on the plains near Lake Kivu in Zaire, Burundi and Rwanda. They maintain close ties with neighboring pastoral tribes and know how to make pottery.

Tswa (batswa)- this large tribe lives near the swamp south of the river Congo. They, like the Twa tribe, live in cooperation with neighboring tribes, adopting their culture and language. Most Tswa are engaged in hunting or fishing.

In the tropical forests of the Ituri province of the Republic of Congo live the shortest people on the planet - the pygmies of the Mbuti tribe. Their average height is 135 cm. Their light skin color helps them live easily and unnoticed in the forest shade at the Stone Age level.
They do not raise livestock or cultivate plants. They live in close connection with the forest, but no longer than a month in one place. The basis of their diet is picked berries, nuts, honey, mushrooms, fruits and roots, and their shape public organization determined by hunting.

Among the Mbuti who hunt mainly with bows and arrows, the group may consist of only three families, although during the honey season the hunters unite into large groups, required during raids and escapes. But in the West, net hunters must have a group of at least seven families, preferably twice as many. In cases where the group already unites 30 families, it is divided.

There is enough space for 35 thousand Mbuti in the Ituri forests. Each group occupies its own territory, always leaving a decent-sized common area of ​​land in the center of the thicket.

The group as a whole considers itself a single family. And this is the main social unit, although the group does not always consist of relatives. Its composition can also change with each monthly nomadic journey. Therefore, there are no leaders or permanent leaders. In any case, all members of the group are in solidarity with each other.

When hunting, the family is divided into age groups. The older men set traps and ambush them with darts and clubs. Young men stand at a distance with arrows in their hands, so that if the game escapes, they can kill it. And women and children are behind the young hunters, facing them and waiting for the caught game to be put into baskets. They carry baskets behind their backs and are held in place by straps placed on their foreheads. When the group has caught game for the day, it returns to the campsite, collecting everything edible along the way. Then the food is cooked over a fire.

The most heinous crime among the Pygmies is considered to be when some cunning hunter sets up nets at the time of driving in game. The main catch ends up in his hands, and he doesn’t share it with anyone. But justice is restored simply and impressively. All the spoils are confiscated from the sly man, and his family remains hungry.”

A curious Englishman, Colin Turnbull, decided to conduct an experiment. He really wanted to check how the pygmy would behave outside his forest. This is what he writes: “I persuaded the experienced hunter Kenge to go with me to national reserve Ishango, to the savannah, which is teeming with game. We loaded up with all sorts of provisions, got into the car and drove off. Since it was pouring rain, Kenge did not even notice that the forest was left behind. When we drove out onto a grassy plain, my companion began to grumble: “Not a single tree, what a bad country.”
The only thing that calmed him down was the promise of large quantities game. But then he was upset again when he learned that it was impossible to hunt this game. When we climbed the slope and looked out over the plain, Kenge was dumbfounded. In front of him, a green plain stretched to the horizon, merging with Lake Edward. Without end and without edge. And elephants, antelopes, buffaloes, etc. graze everywhere. Kenge had never seen anything like this before.
“This meat would last for many months,” he said dreamily. I got into the car and kept getting out of it until we left the reserve. The next day, Kenge felt more confident and said:
- I was wrong, this a good place, although I don't like it. Here the sky is clear and the earth is clean. If only there were more trees... On the way back, the deeper we drove into the forest, the louder Kenge sang. At the camp he was greeted as a hero

The Mbuti tribe are pygmies living in eastern Zaire, numbering approximately 100 thousand people and speaking the Efe language. Their dark glory as merciless hunters is distinguished by a rather peaceful way of life, compared to the warlike North Kenyan tribes. All tribes have already been discovered, because European missionaries do not leave any ethnic group without their attention.

Mbuti pygmies change their sites once every five years in order to migrate closer and closer to civilization - near roads and rivers they can change their prey in the form of skins, meat, wild fruits and berries for the achievements of cultural life they need - salt, matches, metal objects.

Mbuti tribe

They also became interested in clothing, so it is almost impossible to see their famous skirts made of leaves and tree bark. The Mbuti come into contact for such natural exchanges with the sedentary and civilized Bantu (translated from Swahili - “people”).
Bantu is a linguistic group of most of the Zairian tribes and many other African peoples, the literal linguistic name of which denotes a sedentary people, tall in stature.

Some argue that by this act the hunters atone for their guilt for depriving the forest of game and vegetation, since the pygmies have an ambivalent attitude towards hunting. It brings them joy, pleasure, and they love to eat meat, but still they believe that it is not good to take the life of living beings, for God created not only the people of the forest, but also the animals of the forest.

Children at a very early age are instilled with the idea of ​​dependence on the forest, faith in it, they are made to feel like they are part of the forest, and therefore they are entrusted with the responsibility of kindling a redemptive fire, without which there will be no successful hunt.

The high mobility of pygmies also leads to the unstable nature of social organization. Since the composition and size of groups changes all the time, they cannot have leaders or individual leaders, since they, like other people, can leave and leave the group without a leader. And since the Mbuti do not have a lineage system, it would be difficult to share leadership when the group splits into smaller units once a year. Here in the system of government it also plays important role age, and everyone except children has their own responsibilities. But even children play a certain role: bad behavior (laziness, grumpiness, selfishness) is corrected not with the help of a punishment system - it does not exist among the pygmies - but simply by ridiculing the offender. Children can do this very well. For them, this is a game, but through it they comprehend the moral values ​​of adult life and quickly correct the behavior of the offender, making him laugh. Young people are more likely to influence the lives of adults, in particular they may express their dissatisfaction with a group or their approval of the group as a whole rather than individuals during the religious holiday of Molimo. Adult hunters have the final say in economic matters, but that’s all. The elders act as arbiters and make decisions on the most important issues of the group, and the elders are respected by everyone.

The closeness that exists between the Mbuti Pygmies and their forest world, manifests itself in the fact that they humanize the forest, calling it father and mother, since it gives them everything they need, even life. They don't try to control the world, but adapt to it, and this is the fundamental difference between their attitude towards the forest and the attitude towards the forest of its other inhabitants - fishermen and farmers. The Mbuti's technique is very simple, and other tribes that have a certain amount of material wealth consider hunters to be poor. But such material wealth would only hinder the Mbuti nomads, and the technology they have sufficiently satisfies their needs. They do not burden themselves with any excess. They make clothes from bark broken by a piece of elephant tusk, from skins and vines they make bags in which they carry children on their backs, quivers for arrows, bags, jewelry and ropes for weaving hunting nets. The Mbuti build shelters in a few minutes from young shoots and leaves, cutting them with metal machetes and knives that they receive from farmers living nearby. They say that if they did not have metal, they would have used stone tools, but this is doubtful - the pygmies are gradually entering the Iron Age.

The abundant gifts of the forest can be judged at least from the kasuku tree - the resin from its top is needed for cooking, and the resin taken from the roots of the tree is used to illuminate homes. The Mbuti also use this resin to seal the seams of the bark boxes in which they collect honey. Child with early years learns to use the world around him so as not to destroy it, but only to take everything he needs in this moment. His education comes down to imitation of adults. His toys are replicas of objects that adults use: a boy learns to shoot slow-moving animals with a bow, and a girl goes into the forest and picks mushrooms and nuts in her tiny basket. Thus, children provide economic assistance by obtaining a certain amount of food, although for them it is just a game.

Thanks to the sense of interdependence and community, brought up from birth, the pygmies as a single collective oppose the neighboring tribes of forest farmers, who have a completely different attitude towards the forest and consider it dangerous place, which must be cleared in order to survive. The pygmies trade with these farmers, but not for economic reasons, but simply to prevent farmers from entering their forest in search of meat and other forest products that the peasants always need. Villagers are afraid of both the people of the forest and the forest itself, protecting themselves from them with rituals and magic.

The only magical remedy for hunters is of a “sympathetic” nature - a talisman made from forest vines decorated with tiny pieces of wood, or mastic made from ash forest fires, mixed with the fat of some animal and placed in the horn of an antelope; it is then smeared on the body to ensure a successful hunt. The idea of ​​such a talisman is simple: if the Mbuti comes into even closer physical contact with the forest, then his needs will certainly be satisfied. These acts are more religious than "magical" in nature, as can be seen in the example of the mother who swaddles her newborn child in a special robe made from a piece of bark (although now the mother could get soft cloth) and decorates the baby with amulets made from vines, leaves and pieces of wood, and then bathes him in the forest water that accumulates in some thick vines. With the help of this physical contact, the mother, as it were, devotes the child to the forest and asks for his protection. When trouble comes, as the Mbuti say, all they have to do is sing the sacred songs of the molimo ceremony, “wake up the forest with them” and draw its attention to their children - then everything will be all right. It is a rich but simple faith, presenting a striking contrast with the beliefs and practices of neighboring tribes.

But otherwise, the life of the Mbuti has not changed in any way; they, as in past centuries, remain the same gatherers and nomadic hunters, preserving their traditional culture.

Video: Ritual dances of African pygmies.

Dwarfism and gigantism are opposites of the human world that attract attention. In addition to 190 cm giants, Africa is home to the smallest people in the world. And this is not just a glitch in genetics - there is a whole set of factors here that everyone will be interested in learning about.

The smallest people in Africa are called pygmies or negrillies.. Translated from Greek, “people the size of a fist.” Their height ranges from 124 to 150 cm (and dwarfism is considered height below 147 cm).

Pygmies are well adapted to life in tropical rainforests - it is easy for them to move in impassable wilds, their organisms cool better in hot climates and require much less calories for food.

On the mainland there is a fairly large community of pygmies (about 280 thousand people), distributed in the equatorial forests of Central Africa on the territory of 5 states. They are conventionally divided into Western and Eastern.

Pygmies can be found on all continents: the Philippines, Brazil, Australia, Bolivia, Indonesia, the Fiji and Adaman Islands. Except, tropical forests, the smallest people in the world live in other places (for example, African pygmies tva - in the desert).

Pygmies in history

The first mentions of pygmies are found among the ancient Greeks (III millennium BC) and Egyptians (II millennium BC). And officially the world became acquainted with the pygmies after the independent travels in Africa of the German G. Schweinfurt and the Russian V. Juncker in the 1870s.

In the 60s of the twentieth century, the Belgian researcher J.P. Alle lived for several months in one of the pygmy communities, Efe. He made 2 about the aborigines documentaries and founded charitable foundation. Now this organization provides real assistance to this people in the Congo, providing them with land for farming.

Genetics, anthropology of pygmies

Many researchers identify pygmies as a special race. Men with a height of one and a half meters are considered giants, and the average height of women is around 133 cm. African pygmies have light brown skin, a small head with a wide forehead and nose, black and curly hair, and thin lips.

It is interesting that in appearance the Negritos inhabiting the south and southeast of Asia, as well as the islands of Melanesia and the north of Australia are closest to the pygmies. But genetically the differences are quite large.

Pygmies still have the Neanderthal gene (up to 0.7%). These human ancestors lived from 600 to 350 thousand years ago, and modern man this gene has mutated and is practically not found.

Origin hypotheses

Reasons for short stature

• Hormones

It is not surprising, but the pituitary gland secretes growth hormone in pygmies in the same way as in ordinary people. But Africans do not experience growth acceleration, since the secretion of hormones during puberty does not occur at the proper level.

Already in childhood, strong differences are visible between the same Europeans and pygmies. A five-year-old pygmy is the same in height as a 2-year-old European. And in adolescence (12-15 years), pygmies simply stop growing.

• Malnutrition

Pygmies are not only small, but also extremely delicate. Their nutrition depends largely on luck. For example, the pygmy tribe in the Philippines is considered the thinnest of all human populations. Infant mortality in this tribe accounts for half of the total birth rate.

Therefore, in order to survive, the size of the pygmies decreased from generation to generation.

• Living near the equator

The tropics are characterized by hot and humid climate. In such conditions (if we add forests here), the body will definitely overheat. People usually sweat and thus can avoid heatstroke.

But with high humidity, you simply won’t be able to sweat intensely. Pygmies were able to reduce muscle mass and thus improve thermoregulation.

• Sun deficiency

Thick rainforests prevent sufficient penetration sunlight(and the formation of vitamin D in the body). Therefore, the skeleton of pygmies is smaller - calcium is not absorbed enough and bone growth is inhibited.

• Lifestyle

One of the main activities of the aborigines in Africa is collecting honey. Pygmies have been doing this for several millennia, so they have evolved into small and agile people, weighing up to 45 kg, who can climb vertically on branches that can support their weight. Among the Batwa pygmies, even the feet can bend at an angle of 45 degrees, although in ordinary people - only up to 18.

Pygmies even managed to enter into a kind of symbiosis with bees. Bees almost never bite people, and the latter practically do not react to minor stings. But it's worth showing up nearby to the white man and sweat a little - he will have no mercy.

• Small century

Unfortunately, the smallest people in the world live very short lives. Their average life expectancy is only 24 years, and 40-year-olds are already considered elders. Pygmies survive only due to frequent changes of generations.

Puberty occurs very early in them, simultaneously with growth inhibition. Men begin to reproduce at the age of 12, and the peak birth rate for women is at 15.

Pygmies in the modern world

Modern African pygmies live in forests, obtaining everything they need through hunting and gathering. They kill animals with a bow and arrow.

At the same time, until recently, they did not know how to make fire (they carried it when changing camps) and did not make tools (they exchanged them with neighboring tribes).

A large segment of nutrition (up to 30%) is occupied by collecting fruits and honey. And the pygmies exchange the rest of the food and things (metal, tobacco, clothes, dishes) from nearby farmers for honey and other forest provisions.

Pygmies are constantly wandering. This is due to the custom - when a member of the tribe dies, he is left in the hut where he lived. In this case, the entire community moves to a new place.

Pygmies are very good at medicinal plants. Therefore, no one can prepare a medicinal or poisonous mixture better than them. Even the bulk of the pygmy vocabulary consists of similar words.

Pygmies catch fish in an interesting way. They produce a poison that causes all the fish in the pond to float upside down. But over time, the poison loses its potency and the fish can be eaten.

Slavery and cannibalism

It turns out that slavery still exists in the Republic of the Congo. The neighboring tribe, the Bantu, has pygmy slaves in their families and passes them on by inheritance.

Pygmies obtain food for their masters in the forest in exchange for goods necessary for survival. To be fair, it is worth noting that slaves may well be in the service of several farmers.

And in the province of North Kivu there is still a belief that by eating the flesh of a pygmy, you can get magical powers.

Video