The Baobab Tree

December is a vibrant and significant month for the Humbi community in Angola’s Cunene

region. During this time, families organize “EFIKO,” a traditional wedding ceremony. The
celebrations include the slaughtering of cows, brewing of traditional drinks, and the playing of
beautiful traditional music. It is also the period when teenage girls are given in marriage.

The Humbi community has organized the “EFIKO” for ten teenage girls from various

homesteads, including Nehova Yanhenge. Typically, the girls are not informed about the

“EFIKO” in advance; they are secretly summoned, and a white special powder is thrown in their

faces to weaken them and prevent escape, as some girls feel apprehensive and resistant to the

idea of being given in marriage particularly to older men.

Nehova Yanhenge had heard whispers about the “EFIKO” but didn’t expect it to be her turn yet,

as her breasts hadn’t fully developed, which is one of the physical signs the village elders

consider, despite her having started her periods. Secretly, her grandmother arranged for her to

participate in the “EFIKO.” Five cows were slaughtered for the ceremony: two from five girls in

the same village, one from Nehova’s family, and two from other villages.

All ten girls were secretly summoned, unaware that they

had been chosen for the “EFIKO.” Nehova Yanhenge was

also called into her grandmother’s hut. Her grandmother

knew that Nehova would resist being given in marriage and

might try to escape, as Nehova had dreams of studying,

getting a job, and having a beautiful white wedding.

Suddenly, Nehova felt something thrown on her face—it

was the white powder. Nehova started to feel dizzy and fell

to the ground.

After a few hours, the girls regained consciousness. Nehova

woke up to find herself dressed in beautiful African print

traditional attire. The elderly women had groomed her,

wrapping a long piece of fabric around her waist and adorning her waist with colorful beads.

Her chest was covered with beads arranged in a crisscross pattern. They had styled her hair into

two large cornrow braids, decorated with beads and smeared with cow fat to give off a

pleasant scent. Her wrists were adorned with bracelets made from the skin of the cows she had

seen slaughtered earlier.

Nehova was unhappy with the entire arrangement, as she had other dreams and plans for her

life. The next day, the brides, including Nehova and the other nine girls, now called “VA FIKO,”

were placed in a hut. They sat in a long row with their “katwandolos” (similar to bridesmaids) in

front of them, as per tradition. It was now time for people to see who the “VA FIKO” were.

According to tradition, the men seeking brides and guests who paid a contribution could enter

to see the girls’ faces.

One evening, Nehova and her katwandolo decided to

flee into the bush because she didn’t want to marry the

man who had paid her lobola price. They ran for miles

and eventually rested under a baobab tree. This tree was

known for its legend that if someone sat under it, its

large branches would close up and trap them inside. This

is exactly what happened to Nehova, they were trapped

by the baobab tree.

They screamed for help, but no one was around to hear them. their families searched for them,

fearing they had been attacked by the “MAKIXI” (monsters) and believing they had been killed.

Weeks passed with no sign of the girls. One day, an elderly woman went to the bush to collect

firewood. She found some branches near the baobab tree, but they were infested with

termites. As she shook off the termites, she heard sounds

coming from deep within the baobab tree. She heard a girl

singing, “ove kakulukandi ove puh puh, nkele wapumina nale

pupu ketuhekule keumbo pupu kutya omukwa walya Nehova

Yanhenge puh puh.” When the singing stopped, the elderly

woman realized that the girl, who had been declared dead by

her family in Mulondo village, was actually alive. Terrified and

shocked, she quickly ran back to the village to inform the

parents of the girls. Unfortunately, no one believed her, and

they cursed her, accusing her of being mad or a witch.

Some days later, the elderly woman, she decided to return to the same spot. She shook the

branches again, and with weak voices, the girls started singing once more. This time, another

person collecting wood witnessed the singing.

Both of them ran back to the village to report

that the girls were alive. This time, the villagers

believed the elderly woman. They went to the

baobab tree, cut off the branches, and found the

missing girls. The families were overjoyed.

by :Andriana Lylyene Felas