146. The Cumbolo.
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146. The Cumbolo.
Sarah Findley, Santa Cruz Mountains.
An ol' man an' a wife was travelling going on walk when they hear a nice music was playing an' the ol' man say to his wife, "O Quasiba,[2] hear dat sweet music singing over yonder. I like
[2. Two school-mistresses in Bethlehem, Santa Cruz Mountains, gave the following list of "born-day names" which belong to negro children in Jamaica according to the day of the week upon which they are born. See Jekyll, int. x (l. C.).
An old woman who was telling me of some obeah practises assured me that the obi-man (sorcerer) did not use a man's common name when he wanted to bewitch him, but his "born-day" name.
|
Boys |
Girls |
|
|
Sunday |
Quashy |
Quashiba |
|
Monday |
Quaco |
Juba |
|
Tuesday |
Cubena |
Cuba |
|
Wednesday |
Cudjo |
Bennie |
|
Thursday |
Quaw |
Abba |
|
Friday |
Cuffy |
Pheba |
|
Saturday |
Quamin |
Benneba. |
]
{p. 177}
to know where dat music come from."--"Ol' man, you tak time walk an' we soon hear where dat music from But Bruddie, dat ol' Cumbolo dat was singing las' night!"--"Den you mus' come let we dance de Cumbolo, Susan, we all a Cumbolo!" (sing and dance)--
Su-san, da'we all a Cum-bo-lo. Sus-an, da'we all a Cum-bo-lo.[1]
[1. The music was recorded by a colored boy who was organist in the church at Bethlehem. The dance (also called "calimbe") is performed at wakes, two men holding a couple of sticks parallel while a third dances upon them to the strains of the song.]
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