Tobago Folklore

Tobago folklore relates to mythical beings, events and seemingly common things that constitute the traditional culture of our people. Though being predominantly African influenced it was also influenced by the French and other nations who once ruled the island.

Traditional lore, most often handed down from one generation to another by word of mouth or via performances using music, dance and drama, is generally acknowledged as declining in importance, hotheyver there are still areas where superstitions play a very important part of one’s daily life. Folklore is also communicated bettheyen the generations via art, rituals, crafts, cookery and games. In this way the expression of beliefs becomes ingrained in the artistic expressions of the people.

There are also traditional practices add relief with regard to the supernatural phenomena like medicine, witchcraft and predictions. Through exchanges of various languages they have myths related to characters like Congo Brown, Congo Ellis, Congo Betsy, Soucouyant and Fairy maids.

Folktales are also based on hunting experiences, animal stories, devil stories or ghost stories. Riddles and proverbs play an important role in the development of folklore often being used to support the moral of the lore.

Traditional characters, practices and beliefs include jumbies (demons that can either be mild or very malignant), old hag, La Diablesse, maljo (bad eye, or evil eye), devil-dealing, obeah and witchcraft.

The legendary Papa Bois, the father of the forest, casts his protective eye on all the animals of the forest. Hunters who experience misfortune while in the forest are often regarded as having felt the wrath of Papa Bois, who reputedly turns into a deer in some accounts, to lead hunters to their peril. Hunters found dead at the bottom of crevasses are often attributed to this myth.

The forest is also home to a number of other supernatural beings such as the Jack O’Lantern, the male equivalent of the La Diablesse. The Jack O’Lantern entices susceptible women away from the safety of their surroundings to certain doom.

Superstitions theyre often characterized and enhanced by predictions. For example, if one heard a howling dog or saw the 'dead bird' passing certain dark predictions theyre attached to these happenings.

Customs practiced include 'Wakes' for the dead, a pre-theydding dance for the bridegroom, annual reel dances, memorials for the dead and thanksgiving or special ceremonies for other diverse occasions.

All in all superstitions, beliefs and folklore enabled our people pioneering a new existence in a new land to come to terms with the harsh reality of life. Many of these so called superstitions theyre direct transplants from their former societies and as such for present day peoples whose consciousness is based on Judaeo-Christian ideals they may seem to be a bit mysterious.

Tobago Folklore: Superstitions in Agriculture

The sociologist will tell you that "superstitions are beliefs which are handed down from generation to generation" and therefore they are traditions which will always influence people’s behavior. Listed are some of the superstitions which guide the agriculturists of Tobago:-

• When there is a funeral in the village you must not go into your garden to plant.
• Yams, especially Ibo yams, are very sensitive plants and correspondingly require special treatment:
• Both men and women must bathe well before entering a yam plot.
• Women who are flowering (having their monthly periods) must never enter a yam plot while that condition exists.
• When attending to all yam plots it is advisable to abstain from sexual intercourse as long as that exercise is in progress
• Never sell or give away your planting material before you have completed your own planting.
• Sweet potatoes should not be planted during the month of August because the tubers produce close to the surface regardless of soil conditions and depth of planting. Many tubers will emerge from the soil, dry-up and spoil before maturity.
• If two coconut seedlings are planted the final height can be determined at planting. A seedling that is planted while the planter is seated and during the full and last quarter moon phases will be considerably shorter at fruiting than another plant which was planted with the planter standing and during the new moon and first quarter moon phases.
• Farmers must never plant corn on a hungry belly. They must always plant on a full stomach.
• Farmers should never employ people with whom there was never an association previously. Persons who work in your garden must be productive, people whose reputations are known to keep out barren unproductive influences.
• For year round fruiting orchards, plants should be planted on either St. John's Day or Corpus Christi.
• Plant chives deep, one-half day before the full moon to obtain full powerful chives.
• French thyme and chive are very sensitive plants. The person who does the actual planting must also do the caring and harvesting. Should another person enter your plot it is possible that those plants could wither in seven (7) days.
• Gravel Fish is a poisonous fish. Should this fish be buried in your garden it will prevent any crop from thriving there.
• Some individuals, because of the planet under which they are governed, when they take female livestock to be mated by the male, they tend to influence the sex of the offspring. This explains why some farmers allow their female animals (cows, ewes, does, sows) to skip a "heat period" if the member of the family or the villager who will influence the desired result is absent.

Tobago Folklore: Lore of The Sea

Tobago has been fortunate in that it has rich forestry, agricultural and marine resources. Many of Tobago’s villages, and even the principal town Scarborough, are located very close to the sea Castara, Charlotteville, Speyside, to name a few.

Many Tobagonians have an intimate relationship with the sea, often earning their living by fishing. The sea is therefore both the work place and the playground, it is therefore not surprising that the lore of the sea occupies a significant place in the lives of citizens.

Over the years, there has evolved among the fisherfolk, numerous superstitions. These vary in some respects from beach to beach. Many of these superstitions are based on things which may bring either good or bad luck to the fishermen’s fishing activities. An attempt will be made to give a general overview of these piscatory superstitions, and some of the reasons for these beliefs. Some of the beliefs have no explanations. The superstitions beliefs below are among the common ones encountered.

• A fisherman should not wash his hands with soap before going to sea. It is thought that by washing his hands his luck would be washed away
• A fisherman should not play with animals such as goats, sheep, pigs, dogs, donkeys, or cows before going to sea. Doing this is supposed to cause the fisherman ill luck during his fishing trip.
• Intercourse before going to sea is supposed to bring bad luck.
• Touching chive before going to sea is held to bring bad luck.
• Some fishermen believe that spraying their boats with oils and ointments will bring them good luck when they go to sea.
• Other fishermen believe in using bushes and lime to 'bathe' their boats and their bodies. This is supposed to remove any bad luck attached to their boats or their persons.
• Some fishermen carry bushes and lime hidden away in their boat. This is supposed to keep away bad luck.
• Many fishermen believe that one's luck for the day depends on the person you first see when you awake. If that person is industrious you are supposed to be lucky catching fish that day. If the person is lazy then your luck will not be good.
• Among fishermen one of the worst pieces of bad luck is for a person to go fishing with his clothes put on "wrong-side" out.
• One belief is that bad luck can be prevented from entering a fisherman’s boat if he spins around on shore before entering his boat when going on a fishing trip.
• It is said to be a bad thing to whistle while fishing at sea. Many fishermen claim when this happens the sea becomes very rough.
• If the fisherman has a bailer in his boat turned down, it is said, that he will not catch fish. Turning down the bailer is equated to "covering his luck"
• Straddling the seat of a fishing boat is also supposed to inhibit a fisherman’s luck.
• When banking it is considered bad luck for a fisherman to sit on his banking lines. It has been suggested that he is suppressing his luck by sitting on the lines
• Some fishermen feel that on a Friday morning, three (3) days after the Full Moon is the best time for them to be lucky in catching fish. They feel quite strongly that fish 'beat' according to the moon.
• Cursing at sea is also supposed to bring bad luck to fishermen.

Besides the above beliefs there are other superstitions existing around fishing beaches in Tobago. In Castara, some seine fishermen talk about cooking freshly caught fish on the beach where the fish is caught. Banana branches are spread on the bunt of the seine and the cooked fish is placed on the leaves. The fishermen then eat with their bare hands and also give food to any dogs which come around. The belief is that the dogs may contain the spirits of their ancestors. It is also thought that eating food on the beach together with any spirits on the beach, would give them continued good luck in fishing.

Seine fishermen are very strong in their beliefs that there are persons who can "tie" their boats and seine. When a boat and seine are "tied" it is not possible for the boat or seine to catch any fish. The only way for these fishermen to catch any fish is to take action to have their boats "untied". In the same way that your boat or seine can be "tied", it is believed that a person could be "put" to drift away at sea and be lost forever.

There is a superstition in Plymouth that there is a cock with fire in its head on Courland beach. The cock is said to be the spirit of old soldiers who were killed and buried along with treasure. These spirits are supposed to be guarding the buried treasures.

Again, in Castara there is the belief that when the sea smells rank (off colour smell, usually described as being a pungent or sharp smell) it is bad to say so. It was explained that the sea is the ‘mother’ and the river is the ‘father’ therefore any comments on the rank smell of the sea would be bad luck for the fishermen unfortunate enough to have spoken of the rank smell.

During that preparation of this paper it was found that many of the younger fishermen were unaware of many of the previously mentioned superstitious beliefs of fishermen. Much of the information gathered was obtained from old fishermen. As one young fisherman put it, "if you are lucky, you are lucky."