Hyena people

A Gadawan Kura

As Hyena People ( Hyena Men or Gadawan Kura ) in are Nigeria , members of a small group from the ethnic group of Hausa designated, secure in the country wandering living as showmen, jugglers and miracle worker. They draw attention to themselves with music and animal training in order to sell amulets, tinctures, ointments, magic powders and other goods that are considered medicinal products. They are named after their most conspicuous animal companions, the difficult to tame and risky hyenas . The city of Abuja seems to be a permanent place of residence . The public assessment fluctuates between criminalization ("drug dealers, bank robbers, gang bosses") and romanticizing admiration.

In Ethiopia , men who have tamed hyenas are known as hyena men. In Harar , hyena feeding is a tourist attraction.

In Malawi (to be distinguished from this) men are called hyenas when they offer ritual prostitution . The reason for the naming here is that these men come like animals at night. Also called hyena men in the press, they deflower underage girls for a fee after their first menstruation to protect them and their families from harm . They also sleep with widows during the mourning phase in order to carry out a sexual cleansing . The custom is called “Kusasa Fumbi” in Malawi, literally “brushing the dust away”, and persists despite an official ban. Similar rituals are said to exist in parts of Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana , Nigeria , Kenya and other African countries.