Tokoloshe

The Tokoloshe , also Tokolosh , Tokoloshi or Tikoloshe , is a dwarfish , evil mythical creature in the mythology of the Zulu .

The Xhosa word uTikoloshe can be roughly translated as 'little spirit' or 'little devil'. It may be derived from the isiXhosa term uthikoloshe .

The tocoloshe should mostly only be seen by children, towards whom it shows kindness and often builds a friendship. Tokoloshe is often associated with a spirit that is called to harm another, which also explains why the tocoloshe spreads great terror. This is said to hide under the bed and attack while sleeping. In southern parts of Africa, some people raise their beds with bricks to protect themselves from the tocoloshe, since they assume that it is only 20–30 cm tall and therefore cannot reach the raised bed. Even pronouncing the name is avoided by many, as it is feared that it might appear on it. Fear of Tokoloshe also leads to some fear of frogs and snakes, as it can supposedly manifest in these animals.

There are many myths about the tocoloshe. The different peoples of South Africa also often have different descriptions of the spirit. They all have in common that the tocoloshe is depicted as a dwarf-like, hairy creature, and now and then also as the undead , whereby the size, which is usually less than one meter, is explained by the fact that when the corpse is resuscitated, the body shrinks, wrinkled and turns black, giving it the typical appearance of a tocoloshe. The author Eric Rosenthal describes the tocoloshe in his book They Walk By Night (1949) as not much larger than a baboon, but without a tail and thickly haired with black fur on black skin. “His hands and feet are those of an ordinary mortal, but you never hear him speak. He shuns the daylight ... and his deeds are limitlessly cruel and vengeful. ”The tocoloshe wants to harm humans, but only becomes dangerous for him when controlled by an evil wizard. According to the myths, the tocoloshe has the power to kill a person, allegedly he can also make himself invisible, but this is not passed down in all stories.

The only way to protect yourself from Tokoloshe is to call a n'anga (shaman) who has the power to drive Tokoloshe away. Other stories say that the tocoloshe is only called by a n'anga when, for example, he has been insulted by a person on whom he then attaches the evil spirit.