Seven Videos Of Caribbean Stilt Walking (Moko Jumbies)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post provides information and comments about stilt walking and stilt dancing (Moko Jumbies) in the Caribbean* and showcases seven video examples of stilt walking and stilt dancing in that region.

An alphabetical list of the nations showcased in this post are Guyana, St. Kitts, Trinidad & Tobago, and the Virgin Islands.

Disclaimer: This post isn't meant to be comprehensive depiction of Caribbean stilt walking traditions. A number of other Caribbean stilt walking videos can be found on YouTube.

*Note that one of these videos is of stilt walking in Guyana. Guyana is a South American nation which is also considered part of the Caribbean. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guyana

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2015/11/stilt-walking-in-africa-information.html for a pancocojams post on traditional African stilt walking.

Also, click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2015/11/caribbean-influenced-moko-jumbies-in.html for a post on Caribbean influenced moko jumbies (stilt dancing) in the United States.

The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

Thanks to all those who are featured in this post and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post. Thanks also to the publishers of these examples on YouTube.

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INFORMATION ABOUT MOKO JUMBIES
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moko_jumbie
"A moko jumbie (also known as "moko jumbi" or "mocko jumbie") is a stilts walker or dancer. The origin of the term may come from "Moko" (a possible reference to an African god) and "jumbi", a West Indian term for a ghost or spirit that may have been derived from the Kongo language word zumbi. The Moko Jumbies are thought to originate from West African tradition brought to the Caribbean.

...Moko, in the traditional sense, is a god. He watches over his village, and due to his towering height, he is able to foresee danger and evil. His name, Moko, literally means the “diviner” and he would be represented by men on towering stilts and performs acts that were unexplainable to the human eye. In one remote tribe, the Moko rises from a regular mans’ height to the skies fluidly with no help and descends similarly to leave others to wonder how he performed such an act.

The Moko arrived in Trinidad by “walking all the way across the Atlantic Ocean from the West coast of Africa, laden with many, many centuries of experience, and, in spite of all inhuman attacks and encounters, yet still walks tall, tall, tall. (John Cupid, Caribbean Beat)” The idea of the Moko survived by living in the hearts of African descendants during slavery and colonial life to eventually walk the streets of Trinidad in a celebration of freedom, Carnival. While this figure was rooted in African heritage, Trinidad adapted the figure, notably by adding on Jumbie or ghost to the name. The by the early 1900s Moko Jumbies had become an element of Trinidad’s Carnival. This figure would walk the streets of Port of Spain and other cities protecting the city and revelers from evil. As part of his role in Carnival the Moko Jumbie would accept donations from onlookers in upper floors of buildings. However, his notable figure of Carnival slowly faded until a drastic revival.

By the early 1990s Moko Jumbies were essentially non-existent in Carnival, until two men brought this tradition back. These men, namely Moose and Dragon, have brought the Moko Jumbie back to a place of prominence in Carnival and created a new kind of Moko Jumbie. One man originally brought the idea to them as well as the knowledge of how to make stilts. The style of stilts they walked was very similar to the modern day ones but with one main difference, they had no front leg brace. This changed when a man named Ben Block from Canada, a random traveler, came to Trinidad with a pair of stilts. He had a frontal brace on the upper leg and the Trinidadians took inspiration from this design and used it in their own. Now there are two main Moko Jumbie bands in Trinidad, Watusi and Kilimanjaro, as well as several smaller ones. So while the idea of the Moko came from Africa, Trinidad has made it its own."...

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SHOWCASE EXAMPLES
These examples are given in chronological order according to their publishing dates on YouTube with the oldest dated example given first.

Example #1: Moko Jumbies -- Trinidad Kids Carnival



IsDePanInMe, Uploaded on Dec 13, 2007

The beauty and splendor of Trinidad Carnival. Street Theater at its best.

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Example #2: Zanqueros Team extreme Guayana



Erickolivero, Uploaded on Apr 10, 2008

team extreme guayana... demostrando puro talento..
No hay imposibles, Solo mentes incapaces.
no hay limites, el limite lo pones tu.

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Example #3: Trinidad Moko Jumbies - Carnival 2011



Pradeep Latchman, Uploaded on Mar 3, 2011

Trinidad & Tobago Carnival 2011 - Moko Jumbies
Music: "Advantage" by Machel Montano

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Example #4: Keylemanjahro Moko Jumbies at 2011 Point Fortin Borough Day, Trinidad



Maria Nunes, Uploaded on Aug 26, 2011
-snip-
"Keylemanjahro" is a updated way of writing “Kilimanjaro”. Since Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, East Africa is the highest mountain in Africa, selecting that name for a Moko Jumbie school and group implies excellence.

Here's a link to information about Keylemanjahro Moko Jumbie School of Art & Culture in Trinidad: http://stefanfalke-archive.photoshelter.com/gallery/Keylemanjahro-Moko-Jumbie-School-in-Trinidad/G00004plQ3zQwdXc/.

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Example #5: Mini-Ritual Dancers Moko Jumbie WUK UP in Post Office Square! TUN UP! [Virgin Islands]



Chantel Hoheb, Published on May 2, 2013
2013 St. Thomas Children's Parade.

Follow the Caribbean Ritual Dancers! http://www.facebook.com/CaribbeanRitu...

2013 Winners of the "50 and Under" troupe category!

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Example #6: New Lands Point Fortin Moko Jumbies



point fortin moko jumbies Published on Nov 13, 2013
-snip-
Here's a comment from this video's discussion thread:
Ali Sylvester, 2014
"New lands jumbies are the best jumbies out of trinidad cause i feel they change the game with new moves i have never see this before on stilts im the ceo of brooklyn jumbies just want to give respect where its do bless up to the team keep keep jumbies alive"

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Example #7: Sugar Mass 42 St. Kitts Parade Day 2013/2014: Moko Jumbies



Livingston Huggins, Published on Jan 2, 2014

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Videos Of Ikoku, A Traditional Central African Dance

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post showcases six videos of the traditional Ikoku dance of Southern Gabon and the Republic of the Congo (Congo/Brazzaville). Some information about this dance is included in this post along with brief notes about the Central African nations of Gabon and the Republic of the Congo and information about the Puna ethnic group.

The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those who are featured in these videos. Thanks also to the publishers of these examples on YouTube, and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.

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The Ikoku dance is traditional to the Puna ethnic group. That ethnic group is found in the Central Africa nations of Gabon and the Republic of the Congo.

Several of the videos embedded below indicate that they feature "ikoku and dimbu". My guess is that "dimbu" is another type of dance. Unfortunately, to date, I haven't found any information online in English about "dimbu". If anyone reading this post could add information about that dance, it would be appreciated.

INFORMATION ABOUT GABON
From http://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/gabon.htm
"Gabon, a country at the Equator in West-Central Africa bordering the Atlantic Ocean in west is bordered by Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon, and the Republic of the Congo."...

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_of_the_Congo
"The Republic of the Congo (French: République du Congo), also known as Congo Republic,[5] West Congo, or Congo-Brazzaville, is a country located in Central Africa. It is bordered by five countries: Gabon to the west; Cameroon to the northwest; the Central African Republic to the northeast; the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the east and south; and the Angolan exclave of Cabinda to the southwest."...

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE PUNU ETHNIC GROUP
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Punu_people
"The Punu, or Bapunu (Bapounou), are a Bantu group of Central Africa and one of the four major peoples of Gabon, inhabiting interior mountain and grassland areas in the southwest of the country, around the upper N'Gounié and Nyanga Rivers. Bapunu also live in the Divenie, Kibangou, and Mossendjo districts of the Republic of the Congo. They are linguistically related to the Eshira."...

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE IKOKU DANCE
Here's information that I found online about the Ikoku dance. Additions and corrections are very welcome.

From https://sites.google.com/site/dancetherapyshistory/gabon "The Pharmacopoeia And Gesture Dance Of Yesterday And Today" by Jean Ondeno Rebieno, Author - Composer - Performer, Traditional therapist, Libreville, Gabon
..."The courtesans dances

In central Africa in general and in Gabon in particular, women's choreography should reflect its femininity and grace and typically the posterior portion thereof is widely and often put to use to magnify fertility, whereas for the man, power, agility and virility prevail...

Almost all of Gabon's ethnic groups have at least a courtesan dance, dance whose choreography performed by a person in the center of the circle and, after walking exhibition will invite an opposite sex person simulating a sex act .

Following the example of Mabumi (Massango) Ekunda (Myene), Malamu (Lumbu) Elone (Fang) Ikoku (Punu) etc .... these dances called courtesans can also have a ritual character (twins ceremony) in coarse songs which are often associated with choreography explaining them. They can be or be part of an initiation ritual, a ritual part of a funeral dance.

The choreography can take on the appearance of a provocative dance for a dance warrior or joy or profane dance.

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From http://www.academia.edu/2703762/On_Dancing_and_Fishing_Joy_and_the_Celebration_of_Fertility_Among_the_Punu_of_Congo-Brazzaville "On Dancing and Fishing: Joy and the Celebration of Fertility Among the Punu of Congo-Brazzaville" by Carine Plancke
October 28, 2010
..."In this article dealing with ikoku dancing among the rural Punu of south-western Congo-Brazzaville, the emotional experience of the dance is brought to the fore, along with the emphasis placed on this aspect by the Punu themselves. Indeed, joy is the concept used to account for the emergence of a dance event and to appraise its quality.1....

1.The transcription of the Yipunu language is based on Mabik-ma-Kombil (2001). I have,however, substituted the transcription -ny for ñ."

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SHOWCASE EXAMPLES
These examples are given in chronological order according to their publishing dates on YouTube with the oldest dated example given first.

Example #1: ikokou



La muse, Uploaded on Nov 11, 2007

clip d ikoku y dimbu
-snip-
This video includes stilt dancing.

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Example #2: Gabon - Dibaku - Ikoku



Seka Moke, Uploaded on Aug 15, 2008

AFRICA FROM A-Z : GABON

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Example #3: IKOKU stanley koumba



bangando77, Uploaded on Mar 9, 2009

pour ceux qui sont loin du pays et qui souhaitent retrouver maman
la nostalgie du bled
-snip-
Google translate from French to English:
for those who are far from home and want to find mom
nostalgia of corn
-snip-
A possible translation in Standard English - for those who are far from home and want to feel nostalgic about their home country

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Example #4: Gabon Ikoku



bangando77 Uploaded on Mar 27, 2009

Danse Ikoku du sud du Gabon. Regalez vous dans la culture gabonaise.
Dedicace aux exilés
-snip-
Google translate from French to English
Dance [from] Ikoku southern Gabon. Treat yourself [to] the Gabonese culture.

Dedicated to [Gabonese] exiles
-snip-
This video includes stilt dancing.

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Example #5: G45 (HEMYSON)



clark ogyama, Uploaded on Jan 29, 2010

Rythme Ikokou!!!!!!!!!!!

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Example #6: IKOKU Y DIMBU



Dolce Gaboma, Published on Mar 24, 2013.
-snip-
This video includes stilt dancing.

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