| Kumina | |
|---|---|
| Classification | Afro-Jamaican |
| Region | Saint Thomas Parish, Jamaica |
| Origin | Post-Abolition era Jamaica |
| Separations | Kongo, Machunde, Mondongo, Moyenge |
Kumina is a branch of theMyal religion, dance and music form. Kumina has practices that include secular ceremonies, dance and music that developed from the beliefs and traditions brought to the island byKongoenslaved people andindentured labourers, from theCongo region of West Central Africa, during thepost-emancipation era.[1] It is mostly associated with eastern Jamaica particularly theparish of St. ThomasPortland,St. Mary andSt. Catherine, and the city ofKingston.[2]
TheMyal Dance of Kumina also gives its name to a drumming style, developed from the music that accompanied the spiritual ceremonies, that evolved in urban Kingston. Like allMyal drumming styles Kumina has a great influence onRastafari music, especially theNyabinghi drumming, and Jamaican popular music.Count Ossie was a notable pioneer of the drumming style in popular music and it continues to have a significant influence on contemporary genres such asreggae anddancehall.[3]
TheKumina riddim is a dancehallriddim produced bySly & Robbie in 2002. It has featured in recordings of over 20 artists includingChaka Demus & Pliers andTanya Stephens.[3]
Kumina is a branch of theMyal Religion and is not the same as Pukkumina or Pocomania.
Kumina emerged from thereligion and practices of the Bakongo people of Central Africa, who were brought to Jamaica as indentured servants, afterthe abolition of slavery in 1834. Kumina, as a branch of theMyal religion, differed from Zion Revivalism in rejecting the belief that theBible should be the central authority behind worship.[4]
With theSlave Trade Act of 1807, theBritish royal navy established anaval blockade along the West African coast, called theWest Africa Squadron, to intercept slave ships still attempting totransport African slaves across the Atlantic, for import into the Americas. Thus, any intercepted ship would be confiscated by the British, its crew apprehended as pirates, and its slaves liberated.
Slaves liberated from slave ships were not returned home, but were instead brought to British colonies as indentured servants. These included British Sierra Leone and regions of the British Caribbean, such as Trinidad, Jamaica, and St. Lucia. Although Jamaica abolished slavery in 1834, Cuba did not end slavery until 1886, and Brazil did not end it until 1888. Thus, slavers from these regions continued to smuggle slaves across the Atlantic, up until 1860.
During the reign ofKing Henrique III of Kongo, from 1840 to 1857, civil conflict once again arose between the rival elite families. Henrique III belonged to theKinlaza, and in 1848, he faced armed opposition bythe Água Rosada faction, led byAnde II. This armed conflict led to the acquisition of captives byHenrique, who illegally sold them into theAtlantic slave trade, in open violation ofthe Slave Trade Act of 1807.[5][6] Thus, some of the Kongo-captives enslaved in this conflict would have been liberated by theWest Africa Squadron, and rerouted to Jamaica, giving rise to Kumina.
The practices of Kumina in theMyal Religion are primarily linked to healing.[4] Healing ceremonies utilise singing, dancing, drumming, animal sacrifice, and spirit possession, with the intent of summoning spirits to heal the sick individual.[4] These elements are also found in Revivalism.[4]
Within the Kumina branch of theMyal Religion there are sub-branches or sub-communities which follows the general local character of pre-Christian religions in Jamaica. These communities are small family based communities or nations. Some nations includeMondongo,Moyenge,Machunde,Kongo,Igbo, andYoruba. People from Kumina families are given the titleBongo. Marrying into a Bongo family is one avenue to become a part of a Kumina nation; special initiation is the other avenue. Kumina nations are led by a "King" and "Queen".Imogene "Queenie" Kennedy AKA Queenie III (c1920-1998) was a well-known Kumina Queen in the 20th century, born in St Thomas in the late 1920s she later moved to Kingston and then Waterloo, St Catherine.[7]
The use of cannabis or ganja in KuminaMyal ceremonies influenced the adoption of this plant as asacrament inRastafari [a religion that developed in Jamaica during the 1930s[8]] and is a direct influence of the sacramental use in KuminaMyal ceremonies.
African diaspora religions in the Americas | ||||||||
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