Case file · Witch trials
im Thurn on kanaima
In Among the Indians of Guiana (1883) Everard im Thurn described kanaima, the belief among Patamona, Makushi and other highland peoples that some deaths are caused by secret avengers or dark shamans.
1883 CE · 5.25, -59.85 · status: legend
The account
Kanaima is understood as a form of assault sorcery: the killer is said to stalk a victim, sometimes in animal form, and return to the grave. It remains a serious belief in the Pakaraima highlands. Position approximate.
The sceptical view
Colonial writers often sensationalised it; modern anthropologists treat it as a social and political institution as much as a belief.
Connections in the atlas
- The Alleluia religion of the Guiana highlands
- Dark Shamans: kanaima studied
- Matinta Perera, the whistling witch