The drapo (ritual flags) are not islamic

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Halaou wasn't muslim	Saint Domingue's islamized were submissive

   

 

(Li li an Kreyòl)       (Version française)

Author : Rodney Salnave
Function : Dougan (Scribe)
Date : March 27, 2018
(Updated : Aug. 8, 2020)

1.- Haitian ceremonial flags and bold revisionists

How gigantic must it be, the audacity required to declare Haitian ritual objects islamic ! Especially after watching women and men fraternize in total equality during traditional ceremonies.

(Haitian ceremonial flag) 

Source : Maya Deren. Divine horsemen the living gods of Haiti. Kingston, 1983. p.198-199.

Indeed, the success of these traditional Haitian ceremonies, that are often exhausting, (which sometimes last several days, even weeks) depends on the entire collaboration of all participants, regardless of gender. And such gender interaction is incompatible with misogynist islamic segregation. 
We have, in the previous article, proven beyond any doubt that vèvè, these Haitian ritual drawings, were not influenced by islam. This time, we will discuss the Haitian ritual flags ("drapo" in Creole) to which the same small number of predatory revisionists arbitrarily attribute an islamic origin. The central argument of these revisionists is that around the year 900, muslims could have exposed the "African" ancestors of Haitians, to their banners that displayed various signs :

"Other scholars have been quick to point out that the introduction of flags to these various regions of Africa may possibly predate the era of European colonization. Islamic peoples are known to have been active in trade with these regions of Africa as early as 900 C.E., and they possibly could have brought their banners with them. European and Islamic flag usage became Africanized and their traditions intermingled with the variety of cultural beliefs and practices of the peoples of Africa. Once enslaved and forcibly mixed with each other, the Africans blended their traditions together to form the unique culture of Haiti. Just as the Lwa and Saints became syncretized, it can also be said that flags and flag culture were as well. And, just as the peoples of Africa asserted their own power through the use of flags, the people of Haiti developed their own traditions regarding flags." (1)

As we have already pointed out, such assumptions stem from the racist contempt present in the foreigner as much as in the Westernized Haitian. For them, the black man (from "Africa", from America or from elsewhere) is incapable of producing anything worthwhile. Thus, any of his possession that has value must necessarily come from an external source: Arab-muslim, Native American, Western, Asian, etc. And when no evidence supports their genocidal claims, they find all sorts of ploys to make their nonsense seem likely. We will therefore, by this article, continue to expose the flaws in their arguments. 

2- The origin of Haitian ceremonial flags and the Loango legacy

Here are some Haitian ceremonial flags at work.

(Haitian ceremonial flags)

Source : Milo Rigaud. La Tradition Voudoo et le Voudoo Haïtien. Paris, 1953. p.1. fig.1.

Banners similar to those of the Haitians were used in the courtyard of the King of Loango. This illustration, originally published in 1668 (11 years prior to the landing of Haitian ancestors in Saint Domingue), proves it :

(Banner of the King of Loango (Angola-Congo))

Source : Olfert Dapper. Description De L'Afrique... Amsterdam, 1686. p.331.*

This 1668 illustration by Olfert Dapper was based on the description of Dutch missionaries who visited Loango in the early 1600s. This means that in the Kingdom of Loango, symbolic banners precede the missionaries' visit.

(Loango Kingdom)

Source : Olfert Dapper. Description De L'Afrique... Amsterdam, 1686. pp.320-321.

And the Haitian ritual, being of monarchist nature, the King of Loango is still revered in Haiti under the name of Wa Loang or Wa Loango. For there were captives (slaves) from his Kingdom in Saint Domingue :

"A Saint-Louis, le 16 de ce mois, est entré à la Geole, un Nègre nouveau, nation Loango, étampé sur le sein droit, autant qu'on a pu le distinguer ERLE, taille d'environ 5 pieds, ne pouvant dire son nom, ni celui de son maître." (2)

Translation :

"In Saint-Louis, on the 16th of this month, entered the Jail, a new Negro, of Loango nation, stamped on the right breast ERLE, as far as we could distinguish it, about 5 feet tall, cannot say his name, or that of his master."

But, generally, Loango captives were named under various derivatives: Colango, Coulango, Coulingo, Coulongue, or Soulango. (3) Loango is the home country of Lwa Simbi Yanpaka Ponggwe, and Jean-Pierre Pongwe from the Mpongwe ethnic group (in present-day Gabon). And the Kingdom of Loango, located on the Atlantic coast of Central "Africa", did not know any muslim presence :

(Kingdom of Loango)

Source : Carte du Golfe de Guinée - Geographicus - Bonne, 1770.

Moreover, alcohol, proscribed by Islam, was consumed in the Kingdom of Loango, either on the form of palm wine, or on the form of brandy (or strong alcohol) :

"Les naturels du pays ne préfèrent au vin de palmier que l'eau-de-vie qu'on leur porte d'Europe." (4)

Translation :

"The natives of the country prefer to palm wine only the eau-de-vie (alcohol) that is brought to them from Europe."

Thus, since, as we mentioned, the ancestors of the Haitians began arriving in the Saint Domingue colony in 1679 (11 years after the Dapper illustration), we can say that the populations coming from Loango brought the art and use of symbolic banners on this island.

(Symbolic combat with flag in Loubou, South-Western Gabon (formerly Loango))

Source : Frank Hagenbucher-Sacripanti. Les fondements spirituels du pouvoir au royaume de Loango : République populaire du Congo. Paris, 1973. p.85. Photo 22.

(Symbolic combat with flags in the Haitian ritual)

Source :"Vaudou Haïtien : Salutations La-place et parade des drapeaux" ; URL : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ejp0BCraeQ

There is no doubt that Loango spirituality has influenced the part of the Haitian ritual pertaining to ceremonial flags and fights. However, strictly speaking, this part of the ritual can not be described as "Loango" or "Congo". Because, due to the hybrid nature of this tradition, these contributions Loango or "Congo" reinforced the rites of other ethnic groups; especially the Rada and the Nago. This is what we will analyze.

3- Ritual flags and Dahomean filiation

It must be said that ritual flags were not exclusive to the Loango Kingdom. Dahomey also made use of them, judging by the following pictures dated 18th christian century, for war as well as for religious and festive purposes :

(King Agadja Dossou (deified in Haiti as Kadja Bosou) leading his warriors into battle)

Source :Archibald Dalzel. The History of Dahomy : An Inland Kingdom of Africa ; Compiled from Authentic Memoirs. London, 1793. p.54-55.

(Libation feast at the Tombs of the Kings, during King Tegbessu Ahade (deified in Haiti in Achade))

Source : Archibald Dalzel. The History of Dahomy : An Inland Kingdom of Africa ; Compiled from Authentic Memoirs. London, 1793. p.145-146.

However, the Dahomeans used not flags but umbrellas to display their spiritual symbols :

"The high stool and umbrella of the most important reincarnated ancestor." (5)

And the Dahomeans also used umbrellas to display kingship symbols :

(Royal badge of Behenzin, King of Allada or Dahomey))

Source : "Le roi d'Allada (1900)" ; Fonssagrives, Jean Baptiste Joseph Marie Pascal - New York Public Library. 

And, we have certainly recognized, in the royal emblem of Dahomey, the icon of the Haitian Divinity Èzili Freda Dawomen :

(Symbol of Èzili Freda Dawomen in Haiti)

Source : "Vaudou Haïtien : Salutations La-place et parade des drapeaux" ; URL : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ejp0BCraeQ

4- The ritual flags and Yoruba/Nago filiation

However, the Haitian ritual flags don't only come from Dahomey and Loango Kingdoms. They originate from a mixture of different ethnic inputs from traditional "Africa". Thus, the sword (here in the hands of the Laplas Kay) combined with the flags made of glittering fabrics (the shoulder of the hounsi) is a Yoruba practice from Nigeria, Benin, and other places familiar with the Egungun ritual.

(Flags and saber in Haiti))

Source :"Vaudou Haïtien : Salutations La-place et parade des drapeaux" ; URL : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ejp0BCraeQ

Here in Nigeria is the same combination of saber and glittering icons in the Egungun ritual. Divine entities of the Yoruba ethnic group (called Nago in the Americas), the Egungun operate halfway between the world of the living and that of the dead ; and they represent deceased Kings and great dignitaries :

(Glitter costumes and Egungun's saber in West "Africa") 

Source : Christoph Henning, Klaus E. Müller, Ute Ritz-Müller. Afrique-La magie dans l’âme : rites, charmes et sorcellerie. Könemann, 2000. p.360

(Yoruba-Nago Egungun Costumes)

Source : Christoph Henning, Klaus E. Müller, Ute Ritz-Müller. Afrique-La magie dans l’âme : rites, charmes et sorcellerie. Könemann, 2000. p.355.

Quite clearly, the Haitian ritual flags' style and fabrics derive from Egungun costumes. The origin of this costume lies in the Yoruba tradition that combines: death, resurrection, poetry, "cloth, wind and power". (6) To better understand this point, one must refer to "Rara" which is another aspect of the Yoruba tradition preserved in Haiti.

4.1- The textures of the flags and the Yoruba-Nago Rara tradition

Egungun costumes and sermons, have left their mark in Haiti, particularly in "Rara" which are  processions by costumed musical bands. These "Rara" groups offer improvised songs that derive from the poetic songs that are also known as "Rárà" among the Yoruba (Nago) :

"Rara : genre poétique de louanges récité sur un mode de cantillation (sorte de chanter-parler) spécifique par des poètes professionnels. Ceux-ci se produisent lors de manifestations importantes cérémonies d'intronisation d'un roi ou d'un chef notamment." (7)

Translation :

"Rara : poetic genre of praise recited on a mode of cantillation (sort of singing-speaking) specific by professional poets. These occur during important events ceremonies of enthronement of a king or a chief among others."

"Rárà" means "to make noise" in the Yoruba language, (8) and it is identical among African-Americans and in Haitian Creole :

"Utilisé à la fois comme nom et comme adjectif, le terme « rara » désigne plusieurs éléments. Il signifie « vacarme » dans l’expression pa vin fè rara la a (éviter de faire du vacarme dans cet espace), sens proche de son origine africaine." (9)

Translation :

"Used both as a noun and as an adjective, the term "rara" refers to several elements: it means "din" in the expression pa vin fè rara la a (avoid making noise in this space), a meaning that is close to its African origin."

More than noise, among the Yoruba, the "Rárà", were poetic songs dedicated to their King (Oba). This Yoruba tradition continued in Haiti, giving birth to the so-called Rara festivities. Here are the Haitian Rara costumes :

(Rara costumes in Haiti)

Source : Pierre Turgeon, 2011 ; http://www.ipimh.ulaval.ca/fiche-rara-leogane-19.html

(Rara costume in Haiti)

Source : Elizabeth McAlister. Rara! Vodou, Power. and Performance in Haiti and its Diaspora. Berkeley, 2002.

Let's now look at the similar costumes from the Yoruba (Nago) Egungun :

 (Egungun costumes from the Yoruba in Nigeria)

Source : Robert Farris Thompson. African Arts in Motion : Icon and Act... London, 1974. p.220.

The transmission is therefore direct from Yorubaland to Haiti where the Egungun are still venerated as Gougoun, or Ti Gougoun, in the Nago rite. This Nago rite comes from the Yoruba Kingdom of Oyo (called Ayo in Saint Domingue) (10) and memorized as Nago Oyo, in the traditional Haitian ritual.
Moreover, among the Yoruba, rara is a form of Oriki, that is to say praise-offering poetry :

"Virtually all Òyó-Yorùbá royal bards perform in a tune peculiar to the Òyó speaking communities, known as rárà. According to Wolff (1962: 45), “rara is a chanted variety of oríkì. The term is used to refer to any kind of eulogy chanted or recited in which various types of personal names, including oríkì, play a prominent part”." (11)

This author defines "Oriki" in these terms :

"Oriki, (cf, ki) personal name, poem of praise given to any entity of the  yorùbà (lignage, ville, plantes, animaux, etc.). Les oriki forment la matière principale de toute la poésie yorùba.
Ki ni oriki omo yin? Àriké ni.
Quel est l'oriki de votre enfant?
C'est Ariké. Ki wôn tô le sode, àwon ode ri fi oriki ki àwon eranko. Avant d'aller à la chasse, les chasseurs saluent les animaux pour leur oriki." (12)

Translation :

"Oriki, (cf, ki) appellation personnelle, poème de louange donné à toute entité du monde yorùbà world (lineage, city, plants, animals, etc.). Oriki form the main subject of all yorùba poetry.
Ki ni oriki omo yin? Àriké ni.
What is your child's oriki?
It's Ariké. Ki wôn tô le sode, àwon ode ri fi oriki ki àwon eranko. Before going hunting, hunters greet animals for their oriki."

"Oriki", this portion of poetry contained in all entities, is also maintained in the Haitian ritual via sacred songs such as these :

Song 1 :

Achade Oriki e, peyi a chanje

Achade Oriki sa e, Oriki e, peyi a chanje 

Translation :

Achade Oriki e, the country has changed

Achade Oriki sa e, Oriki e, the country has changed

Song 2 :

Orikiki e, anye o

Orikiki e, anye o, Ogoun Achade

In the Haitian context, "Oriki" or "Oriki ki", the divine Nago poetry, is associated with Lwa Achade who was the King of the Yoruba (Nago) Kingdom of Refurefu (Lefoulefou or Lefulefu in Fon language), (13)  in current-day Nigeria. This testifies to the monarchical character of the Yoruba ritual that Haiti inherited. The Rara tradition and ceremonial flags decorations are only a small sample of it.

4.1.1- Origin of the shredded costumes and the meaning of Rara

What is the significance of the Rara phenomenon and the shredded costumes that accompany it??
According to Yoruba (Nago) tradition, Rara can be summarized in 3 words : "Cloth, Wind and Power". (14)

Cloth
For Yoruba tradition, (15) the Egungun clothes (mixed with rara songs, that make Haitian "rara") comes from the death of Chango the Orisha (sometimes the death of other characters). Chango, the Thunder Orisha, died, due to a smallpox-like epidemic. And Oya, the Wind Orisha (and Ogoun's wife) consulted a Divine Master who advised her to affix three red-colored cloths to the corpse. Oya followed the advice and as soon as she placed the 3 tissues on the corpse, his head lifted. Thus Chango resuscitated. And as high dignitaries died, pieces of their clothes were added to the lot of used fabrics (called Eku). And wiht that they sow the costumes of Egungun, the son of Chango and Oya, who symbolized the risen dead.

(Alabebe Egungun costume in Nigeria))

Source :  https://yorubaperformance.weebly.com/the-image.html

That is why, in Haiti, the Rara bands operate, other than to mark specific important moments, mainly during the catholic holy week. This period marking Jesus' death and resurrection was chosen because it corresponds to the death and resurrection of Chango, the Orisha or Yoruba  (Nago)'s Thunder God.

(Rara costumes in Haiti)

Source : http://www.galembo.com/rara/index.htm

Moreover, as do the Yoruba, Haitian Rara officiants also associate the deceased to their practice :

"Les rituels consistent, d’après Saint-Louis Perpilus, « à rendre hommage aux esprits protecteurs et aux membres décédés de la bande »." (16)

Translation :

"The rituals are done, according to St. Louis Perpilus," to pay tribute to the protecting spirits and the band's deceased members"."

And, in alignment with the red colored fabrics placed on Chango's cadaver, red is the predominant color in Haitian Rara :

(Ritual preceding a Rara parade in Hait)

Source : Rituel vodou avant la sortie d'une bande de rara. IPIMH 2008 ; http://www.ipimh.org/fiche-rara-leogane-19.html

 (Haitian Rara musicians)

Source : http://www.lenational.org/quel-rara-aujourdhui/

(Rara L'Oraj Band, in Haiti)

Source : http://www.jacmelrara.org/jacmel-rara/loraj-the-storm-of-cyvadier-2/

Wind
Oya (Okan Imede Oya, in Haiti), the Wind Orisha, was at the heart of the resurrection of Chango (Ogou Changgo in Haiti), her concubine. Their son Egungun, with the help of his post death outfit,  creates twirling motions that raise the Cosmic Wind.

Source : Davide Comelli. https://www.flickr.com/photos/neslab/7592132850/

Source : Anthony Pappone. https://www.flickr.com/photos/ronnyreportage/7598578504

(Egungun making twirling motions in Benin)

Source : https://yorubaperformance.weebly.com/the-image.html

In Haitian Rara, the Major-joncs also raise the cosmic Wind with the help of the whirling of their sticks (jonc) which ward off evil spirits.

Source : La bande de rara Tirailleurs © IPIMH 2008 ; http://www.ipimh.org/fiche-rara-leogane-19.html

(Major-joncs twirling their sticks during Haitian Rara)

Source : Saincilus Ismael https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/266345765443282524/

The Rara Major-jonc draws his name from the drum major marching band stick which he uses. We find this same stick in the Egungun tradition. It is used by a "Minder", that is to say, a supervisor, a member of the Egungun Association who uses it to prevent any physical contact with the Egungun.

(A "Minder" using sticks in the Egungun cult in Benin)

Source : https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/gallery/mysterious-living-ghosts-who-walk-10714320

For, a person's physical contact with an Egungun would cause the death of both the person and that of the Egungun costume wearer. (17) In Haiti, the function of keeping the crowd (and bad energies) out of the way belongs to the one with the title of "Colonel". However, instead of working with a stick which is used by the Major-jonc, the Colonel cracks a whip called "Kach" (Cash)" .

(Rara Colonels with their whips in Haiti)

Source : http://www.galembo.com/rara/index.htm

Power
As for the Power, it comes from the Egungun themselves who are supernatural beings. It also comes from the respect inspired by the Egungun in Western "African" societies. Because they maintain social morality by bringing deceased ancestors' judgments into the livings' daily life . In Haiti, a Rara band's parade require power in itself, which is accumulated along the way :

"Suivant la tradition, poursuit-il, « les membres doivent amasser la force spirituelle nécessaire en vue de mener de grands parcours à des heures indues de la nuit », réservées selon la croyance populaire à ceux qui pratiquent des activités mystiques." (18)

Translation :

"According to tradition," he continues, "members must accumulate the necessary spiritual strength to lead long journeys at undue hours of the night," according to the popular belief of those who practice mystical activities."

Rara bands also draw a level of power that comes from their role of social morality regulators. Using their improvised songs, they pay tribute to dignitaries, reward good deeds as much as they degrade wrongdoing.

5- Haitian ceremonial flags and Persian chess games?

The ceremonial flags (drapo in Creole) and vèvè have for some time caught the attention of glory hungry Western and Haitian revisionists. Upon spotting checkerboard symbols depicted in the flags and vèvè, the revisionists could not accept that they come from the genius of Blacks. To rule out the traditional Haitian religion, LeGrace Benson found that the "density and elaboration of the motif", that is the lozenge and checkered patterns, exceeded the capacity of Blacks. That's why, she sought the origin of these symbols out of "Africa". And since she failled to monopolize them, the revisionist tried poorly to strip them away from the Blacks.

(Vèvè with shapes resembling checkerboards)

Source : Milo Rigaud. Ve-Ve : Diagrammes Rituels du Voudou. New York, 1974. p.209.

LeGrace Benson's unconvincing thesis having failed, PhD student Jon Bullock took over by advancing, like Benson, that the ancestors of the Haitians would have received this checkerboard figure from Arab-muslims, who themselves took it off Persian chess games :

"The use of flags during vodou ceremonies resembles the pre-colonial Muslim practice of using flags to decorate the graves of marabouts, and as Benson suggests, the use of the checkered pattern in numerous vevé and flags of the lwa was most likely brought to Africa via Arab Muslims and their Persian chessboards." (19)

Jon Bullock, like LeGrace Benson, did not believe his argument was supported by facts. Moreover, in his article claiming the muslim paternity of "vodou" songs, this "researcher" had the audacity to say from the outset that he could not establish a direct link between muslim songs and "vodou" ones :

"Despite my inability to draw direct historical lines from West African Islamic practice to Haitian vodou music, especially since Islam possesses no universal body of sacred music, I believe that it is important nonetheless for music scholars to understand the complex origins of vodou beliefs and practices as they helped to create a worldview in which contemporary Haitian vodou music was made possible." (20)

Lacking evidence, Jon Bullock follows the revisionists' preferred road which is to bombard his article with fortuitous similarities between islam and disparate elements of Haitian culture.
In front of such nonsense, one can only wonder if these intellectuals realize that the "African" continent knew a version close to the game of chess since approximately 3500 years before the christian era, and several thousand years before Persia? Don't they know that the ancient Egyptians (the Kemit) played Senet in daily life?

(Queen Nefertari playing Senet)

Source : Tomb painting of Queen Nefetari (1295 - 1255 before the christian era) ; https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Senet#/media/File:Maler_der_Grabkammer_der_Nefertari_003.jpg

And even in the Hereafter, these ancient Egyptians played Senet (Sn.t) which means "passage, door" in their language :

(Goddess Ani playing Senet in the afterlife)

Source : Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead, Chapter 17 ; 1600 years before the christian era (British Musem) ; http://www.bkgm.com/books/JacobyCrawford/HistoryOfBG/pics/photo-2.jpg

(Senet game set owned by Queen Hatshepsut)

Source : Hatshepsut's Senet game, 1479 - 1457 before the christian era (Louvre Museum) ; https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Senet#/media/File:Jeu_de_S%C3%A9net.JPG

(Senet game set in the tomb of King Amenhotep III)

Source : Senet game from the tomb of Amenhotep III (Brooklyn Museum) ; https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Senet#/media/File:P9210016.JPG

As with the ancient Egyptians, for the Dogons of Mali, the checkerboard was intimately linked to death. But more than that, this mystical pattern structured their existence in its entirety: religious genealogy, architecture, urbanization, agriculture, art, clothing, etc. :

 

 

(The checkerboard shape in the life of the Dogons, in Mali)

Source : Marcel Griaule. Dieu d'eau: Entretiens avec Ogotemmêli. Paris, 1975.

That said, we do not advance genealogical or religious links between the Dogons and Haitians. For neither the colonial archives nor the Haitian memory display dogon references. Certainly, the neighbors of the Dogons, such as the Bozo, Fulani (Foula in Creole), and Bambara (Banmbara in Creole), left an impression in Haiti.

(Dogon territory maps)

Source : Marcel Griaule. Dieu d'eau: Entretiens avec Ogotemmêli. Paris, 1975.  

Thus, in the absence of proof, we will not attribute the Haitian checkerboard to a Dogon heritage. The point we are defending here is that tiles and lozenges are extremely prevalent as symbols in traditional "Africa".

(Checkerboard among the Vagla of Ghana)

Source : Christoph Henning, Klaus E. Müller, Ute Ritz-Müller. Afrique-La magie dans l’âme : rites, charmes et sorcellerie. Könemann, 2000. p.379.

(Checkerboard among the Yoruba/Nago of Nigeria)

Source : Robert Farris Thompson. African Arts in Motion : Icon and Act... London, 1974. pp.98-99.
 
These checkerboard patterns existed without islam having penetrated these traditionalist customs beforehand. In the previous article on vèvè, we have also presented ads depicting captives from Congo (area with little or no exposure to islam) that had tiles as tribal marks.

6-  The lozenges and the muslim divination art?

VHere is this (non ceremonial) painting from traditionalist Haitian painter Gérard Valcin :

Source : Gérard Valcin. "Cérémonie dans un temple vaudou", 1963 ; Milwaukee Art Museum ; https://hiveminer.com/Tags/art,haitian

Grace Benson drew inspiration from this to assert that the tiles and lozenges found there prove the influence of islamic divination art in the Haitian religion :

"The Valcin painting and the mandala each exemplify signs used to point to vast, complicated events and to relationships between ordinary humans and transcendent forces observed to work on and through them. In the Haitian example, the checkered pattern is almost certainly more than just a stylish background. It looks like the familiar game board, which is in turn a destiny board: the magic squares of Islamic divination." (21)

Since Valcin's painting is only artistic and not an object used in traditional services, Benson's comparison is therefore nil. The painter had all the latitude to transpose whatever pleases him in his work. Moreover, the shown floor is pure fantasy, as no hounfò or traditional sacred temples own floors, or even murals, so decorated. But, to be "fair play", let's pretend that Valcin's work is a liturgical object; a sacred flag, for example. And let's continue the exercise.
Here is the "khawatim", the muslim divinatory art mentioned, which is expressed in this scheme composed of tiles and lozenges :

Source : Sulaymān ibn Aḥmad. Explication de l'œuvre d'al-Ghazali et de Nuh ibn al-Tahir al-Fulani. Tombouctou, 1800. p.21 ; URL : https://www.wdl.org/fr/item/467/view/1/21/

Source : http://kisawung.blogspot.ca/2007/12/khawatim-at-taubah.html?m=1

Source : https://manojdev1.wordpress.com/2015/08/24/protection-totale/

There is indeed a certain resemblance between the Haitian painting tiles and the muslim magic element presented. However, nothing indicates lineage between these two entities. Moreover, 1- this muslim divinatory art is unknown in Haiti, a country known to absorb a panoply of magical practices from elsewhere. 2- And the word "khawatim" does not appear in any form (derived or direct) in the Haitian linguistic corpus.
So, without any of these factors, LeGrace Benson's assertion remains only speculative. Especially since the Valcin painting shows more similarities with Ndut, this initiatory object that the Senegalese Serer traditionalists used to carry on their heads :

(Ndut, Serer initiatory object in Senegall)

Source : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pangool#/media/File:Serer_Religious_Ceremony.jpg

Source : Gérard Valcin. "Cérémonie dans un temple vaudou", 1773 ; Milwaukee Art Museum ; https://hiveminer.com/Tags/art,haitian

Of course, islamic revisionists find little interest in traditional (or pre-islamic) contributions to Haitian sacred or profane symbols. But below, we will discover the exact origin of the lozenges found in the Haitian ritual.

7- Tiles and lozenges and Ibo heritage

Similarly LeGrace Benson takes the ritual flags in reference to this one representing Saint Jacques :

(Drapeau cérémoniel haïtien représentant Saint Jacques)

Source : LeGrace Benson. "Some Breton and Muslim Antecedent of Voudou Drapo". In : Textile Society of America Symposium Proceedings Paper 867. 1996.

Thus, according to the revisionist, although similar icons were found in French military banners, the Haitian tradition can only draw them from islamic war amulets :

"The drapo motifs that show the strongest visual congruencies with Islamic designs are the repeated squares, often diagonally divided, as borders, especially for Sin Jak drapo. (...) Motifs other than the magic squares also appear; for example, exact replicas of Islamic divination symbols appear on drapo for Sin Jak." (22)

Since it is necessary to analyze the islamic nature of this icon, then, let's do it seriously. The very fact that a human representation is considered sacred runs counter to islam, which forbids this. Moreover, why this icon depicting a catholic saint who has defeated muslim invaders, would be a proof of islam nature? This does not hold water.

Moreover, icons of this type are found in abundance among "African" traditionalists; and are anterior to islam. There is no need to extrapolate like a revisionist, we have the evidence. Take the example of the Igbos of present-day Southeastern Nigeria and Southwestern Cameroon :

(Officiants in a sacred Ibo House or Igbo House with sacred symbols)

Source : Robert Farris Thompson. African Art in Motion : Icon and Act in the Collection of Katherine Coryton White. Berkeley, 1974. p.186.

Here, one of the Ibo (Ibibio) officiants, sitting in the Ngbe house, carries the icon in question that fits perfectly with the decor. This icon is one of the characters of the Ibo non-syllabic writing script named Nsibidi :

Source : Robert Farris Thompson. African Art in Motion : Icon and Act in the Collection of Katherine Coryton White. Berkeley, 1974. p.181.

It is therefore a symbol of the multiplication of leopard spots, the emblematic animal of the Ekpes, that is to say, the Leopard secret societies among the Ibo ; especially in the Ibibio subgroup.

(Members of a Leopard Ekpe secret society)

Source : Percy Amaury Talbot. In the Shadow of the Bush. London, 1912. p.42-43.

(Ibo Nsibidi characters in clothes called Ukara)

(Members of a Leopard Ekpe society decorated with Nsibidi)

Source : https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/188729040612443671/

(Members of an Ekpe society applying lozenges on imoro sticks)

Source : Dr. Simon Ottenberg, 1960 ; URL : http://collections.si.edu/search/tag/tagDoc.htm?recordID=siris_arc_275011

(Ibo Nsibidi signs drawn on the ground, photographed in 1900)

Source : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odinani#/media/File:Ogbo_Obodo.jpg

This Nsibidi script inspired the anaforuana signs of Cuban traditionalists, members of the Abakuá secret societies :

(Afro-Cuban anaforuana signs from nsibidi)

Source :  http://ukpuru.tumblr.com/post/110636872592/cuban-abakua-and-the-cross-river-abakua-or-abaku%C3%A1

And of course, the Nsibidi script contributed (partially) in the Haitian vèvè :

(Vèvè of Lwa Ibo Lele in Haiti)

Source : Milo Rigaud. Ve-Ve : Diagrammes Rituels du Voudou. New York, 1974. p.351.

Here are some other vèvè for Ibo Lele and Ibo Swaman featuring iconic Ibo lozenges as banners :
 

(Vèvè of Ibo Lele in Haiti)

Source : Milo Rigaud. Ve-Ve : Diagrammes Rituels du Voudou. New York, 1974. p.352.

(Vèvè of Ibo Swaman in Haiti)

Source : Milo Rigaud. Ve-Ve : Diagrammes Rituels du Voudou. New York, 1974. p.354.

These Ibo Nsibidi symbols date at the year 400, at the earliest. Therefore, they precede by 500 years the date (year 900) that the revisionists suggested that muslims could have exposed "Africans" to banners with checkerboard (or checkers) signs. Author Robert Farris Thompson sees things the same way :

"Nsibidi do not derive from Western writing systems. There are no Arabic or Latin letters in the script. It is wholly African. (...) The moral and civilizing impact of nsibidi betrays the ethnocentrism of an ideology that would exclude ideographic forms from consideration in the history of literacy. Educated Western persons continue to assume that black traditional Africa was culturally impoverished because it lacked letters to record its central myths, ideals, and aspirations. Yet the Ejagham and Ejagham-influenced blacks who elaborated a creole offshoot of nsibidi in Cuba have proven otherwise." (23)

8- The Ibo heritage in Haiti

Of course, the Ibo are a Nation or Nanchon in the Haitian ritual. And the Ibibio subgroup was known in the colony of Saint Domingue under various nominations, including : Ibo, Bibio, Bibi, Bibis, Ibo-Bibi, Calaba, Calabari, etc.

"Un Negre nouveau, nommé Azor, nation Bibio, âgé de 12 à 14 ans, ayant des marques de son pays sur les tempes, de grands yeux, de longues paupieres & grosses levres, appartenant à Mde veuve Yvon, au Cap, est parti maron le 4 de ce mois. Il y aura récompense pour ceux qui le rameneront." (24)

Translation :

"A new Negro, named Azor, of Bibio nation, aged between 12 and 14, with marks of his country on his temples, with large eyes, long eyelids, and large lips, belonging to Mde Widow Yvon, in Le Cap, went marooned on the 4th of this month. There will be a reward for those who bring him back."

But the Ibibio are venerated in the traditional Haitian ritual under the name of Ibo Bibi ; which represents a subgroup of the sacred Nation or Nanchon Ibo. Six years before the revolutionary Bois Caiman ceremony, this decision by the Council of Port-au-Prince of June 3, 1785 concerns Caesar, a captive from the Ibo Bibi nation who committed murder :

"Par ce Procès-verbal il est constaté qu'il a été impossible de trouver une personne qui pût servir d'interprètre à un Nègre de nation Ibo-bibi. Ce Nègre, nommé César, accusé de crime capital, a été livré dans les mains de la justice." (25)

Translation :

"By this Report it is ascertained that it was impossible to find a person who could serve as an interpreter for a negro of the Ibo-bibi nation. This Negro, named Caesar, accused of capital crime, was delivered into the hands of justice."

Thus, in Haiti, the Ibo/Ibibio affiliation is clear and precise. And this judgment testifies that the Ibo, reputedly melancholy and suicidal in the Saint Domingue colony, (26) were just as dangerous. Moreover, the leopard secret societies, of which some of these captives were members, were aggressive of nature.
So Ibo contribution to the Haitian Revolution is unequivocal. And the Ibo and their Ibibio subgroups were as traditionalists as their ritual signs which, like the Haitian vèvè, were also drawn on the ground:

(Vèvè : Haitian ritual-drawing with checkers on an animal body)

Source : Milo Rigaud. La Tradition Voudoo et le Voudoo Haïtien. Paris, 1953. fig.15. p.128.

But Ibo influence goes beyond vèvè. It is marked by the Ibo sacred jugs, by the annual Manje yanm** feast (late November yam harvest celebration), and also by the reference to Ibo granmoun lakay li (Ibo is an adult at home) :

(Ibo House in Nigeria)

Source : Percy Amaury Talbot. In the Shadow of the Bush. London, 1912. p.216.

Because traditional Ibo cult was anchored on the Igbo Houses, these sacred Houses, called Lakay Ibo symbolically in Haiti, or often a set of sacred Houses (Compound) is called Lakou in Haiti. From there springs the sacred Haitian song referring to the Ibo House :

Ibo granmoun o, o granmoun o

Lakay Ibo, Ibo granmoun o

Translation :

Ibo is an adult, yes, an adult

Ibo is an adult (master) at home.

In Igboland (South-Eastern Nigeria and South-Western Cameroon), the central pillar (Okenze Agwu) of these houses of worship was particularly important. It represented one of the 4 most sacred elements (Okenze) that only a Dibia (a great officiant) in very good standing with the Divinity Agwu will have the divine authorization to install it in his house of worship (27) :

(Ibo Central Pillar with checkers on an animal body, in Nigeria)

Source : Percy Amaury Talbot. In the Shadow of the Bush. London, 1912. p.25.

(Ibo central pillar with decorated base, in Nigeria)

Source : Zbigniew Dmochowski ; http://www.nairaland.com/1005808/igbo-architecture-ulo-ome-nigbo/4

Here is the same Ibo sacred pillar, labelled potomitan in the Haitian tradition :

(Potomitan/central pillar with decorated base, in Haiti)

Source : Milo Rigaud. La Tradition Voudoo et le Voudoo Haïtien. Paris, 1953. p.240. 

And here is a diagram showing the checkers and the potomitan (represented by a middle circle) :

Source : Milo Rigaud. Ve-Ve : Diagrammes Rituels du Voudou. New York, 1974. p.209.

The Ibo tradition has its own circle culture with a central point (potomitan), here called Juju Circles :

(Cercle Juju à Oban)

Source : Percy Amaury Talbot. In the Shadow of the Bush. London, 1912. p.10-11.

Which brings us to the following complementary point: the rotations around the potomitan in the Haitian tradition.

9- The counterclock rotations and the falsifiers' relay

The revisionists attribute the rotations that Haitian traditionalists make around the potomitan (or around any other element) to islam, and to the rotations muslim pilgrims execute around the kaaba. The kaaba being, they say, a rock fallen from the sky (or from paradise). It was, according to their account, white because it was considered pure, and it apparently became black because of Adam's sin. There we have an anti-black concept that is incompatible with the traditional Haitian religion.
Moreover, the word "kaba" means "to die, finished, to finish with", in Haitian Creole. It does not refer to a rock, as is the case in islam. Let's take a closer look.

Failing to base their arguments on direct evidence, the islamist revisionists, similar to crooked lawyers, put forward a lot of circumstantial elements. In accomplishing this task of deception, they work by relay. The first dealing with a topic, generally, will be content to simply insinuate a relationship between the Haitian religion with islam ; or between the Haitian religion with the Taino Indian cult. Then, the following generations of revisionist "researchers" will take over :

1) Most of the time, the torchbearers will accept as factual, the falsehoods insinuated by other revisionists. This is the case with Jon Bullock who hence quoted as a "fact" a simple statement that LeGrace Benson has never demonstrated :

"The search for a historical understanding of Islam in Haiti (colonial Saint-Domingue) must naturally begin in West Africa, where Islam was incorporated into local belief systems centuries before the arrival of Christianity. By the time of the Middle Passage, both religions had made an impact on West Africans, enough so that, in the words of LeGrace Benson, “Qur’an and Bible traveled on the ships bound from Africa to St.-Domingue.” The value of this fact lies in its potential to render common ideas about “African tribal religions” as demarcating one end of a religious continuum untenable." (28)

In which book or archival data did LeGrace Benson ever discovered the reference of a captive (slave) carrying with him in a slave ship either a bible or a koran? If it exists, let someone introduce it to us. LeGrace Benson has certainly never found it in more than 25 years of supposedly scientific research. And I doubt that Jon Bullock, her disciple, will find this famous reference during the 25, or the next 50 years.
2) At other times, this relay operates with more subtlety :

a) They find that the traditionalists' rotations around the potomitan, goes clockwise ; and that they coincides with the rotations muslim pilgrims make around the kaaba (a kind of black rock). However, nothing tangible links this Haitian practice to islam .

b) The first one that approaches a Haitian practice will proceed cautiously. This is the case with revisionists Benjamin Hebblethwaite and Michel Weber who insinuated an islamic link they know to be completely unfounded. But, they camouflage their trickery by pointing out that various other religions were doing such rotations, and that an "African" common base could be responsible for the similarities in religious practices :

"Circumambulation in Haitian Vodou : This similarity between Arabian religion, Islam, and Haitian Vodou deserves far more research. Furthermore, additional religious traditions should be included in comparative approaches. Clockwise circumambulation is also important in forms of Hindu ceremonial ritual (personal communication Jaya Reddy). The phenomenon of ritual cycles reflects a fundamental form of human worship and stands as a good candidate as a trace element surviving from deep antiquity. We hypothesize that dance around fires was the origin of this ritual circumambulation. Given the “serial founder effects” of our languages phonologically (Atkinson 2011), analogous serial founder effects should occur in a model of the expansion of religion from Africa. We hypothesize that circumambulation represents a serial founder effect that impacts several world religions. Circumambulation is comparable to a ripple spreading outward from the African core." (29)

c) The dishonest relay will be done by the following "researcher", a certain Jon Bullock, who, knowing that few will bother fact-check, will quote Hebblethwaite and Weber's cautious statement as a proving fact of islamic influence on the Haitian ritual :

"Finally, it may be helpful to search for remnants of Islamic thought within the general principles organizing the practice of Haitian vodou music as ritual. According to Hebblethwaite and Weber:

"In Vodou, each salutation to a spirit requires a specific circumambulation ritual, accompanying drumming, songs, and ritual leadership from priests and priestesses who shake the ason (shaker) and form the center of the choreographed worship. Just as practitioners of Arabian religion circumambulated the Kaaba and their home shrines in a counterclockwise motion, in Vodou the worshippers also rotate the potomitan (center post) counterclockwise."" (30)

Naturally, Jon Bullock, the revisionist, will cut short his Hebblethwaite and Weber quotation to avoid presenting the following words which evoke a multitude of divergence between traditional Haitian and islamic rotations :

"In the course of the counterclockwise circumambulations that characterize Vodou’s “danced and choreographed worship,” Vodou priests and priestesses also salute “stations” within the Vodou temple in the course of their many circumambulations. These stations of salutation include the greeting of the cardinal directions, the drums and the drummers, the potomitan, the door to the altar room, the audience itself, and finally the greeting of the priest who will lead the following ritual cycle. The greetings are typically hugs, the touching of foreheads, and three back-to-back rotations. Other greetings involve full prostrations and kneeling. Indeed, the macrocosmic circular motion around the potomitan is mirrored in the many microcosmic circular aspects within Vodou ritual, especially greetings between Vodouists.
The circling of a sacred axis mundi is a fundamental dimension of Arabian religion, Islam, and Haitian Vodou—in each case, practitioners circumambulate a central symbol and conduit of spiritual power. In the context of the recent African single-origin hypothesis, it is conceivable that this primal ritual is tens of thousands of years old and reflects a deep religious structure once shared in a prototypical form by common African ancestors."" (31)

But, unfortunately for this flock of revisionists :

1.  Haitian traditionalists' circular rotations were not only done around the potomitan, but also around other important elements of the ritual. Which is absent in the muslim practice.
2. Men and women mix during these circular rotations. Element prohibited by islam.
3. These circular rotations often contain alcohol. Which is forbidden by islam.
4. These circular rotations were not only counterclockwise. During several ceremonies, they also go in the opposite direction, that is to say clockwise. Which is not done in islam.
5. Often, these rotations go in both directions successively. Again, that doesn't take place in islamic rituals.
6. The rotations are done at the sound of sacred songs and drum, which is not islamic.
7. At the Asòtò drum celebration, practitioners can sometimes hold a rod to symbolically beat the giant drum around which they turn. That is a practice that has no connection to islam, and goes even contrary to islam.
8. The clothing is not necessarily white, as is the case in islam.
9. Practitioners are not necessarily pilgrims, as are the rotating muslims.
10. etc.

Here are some pictures taken during a traditional Haitian ceremony that illustrate our points. There are many non-islamic points raised ; that is to say the mixture of men and women, the stick waving, and,

• a) the rotations take place counterclockwise,
• b) at the signal of the Sèvitè (High officiant) that delivers the sacred songs, the fast direction change takes place ; 
• c) the rotations then go clockwise :

a)

(Counterclock rotations, during a traditional Haitian ceremony)

b)

(Sudden rotary change of direction, during a traditional Haitian ceremony)

c)

(Clockwise rotations, during a traditional Haitian ceremony)

Source : "‪Cérémonie Assotor à Souvenance‬". ; URL : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAruC6k2XEE

And the direction changes are repeated several times during the ceremony.

9.1- Rotations and Moundang ethnicity

Not islam, but the Moundang tradition may well be one of the sources of rotation in the Haitian ritual. In the French colony of Saint Domingue, there were captives (slaves) from the Moundang ethnic group of Cameroon and Chad. They were called Mondongues :

"Cinq Negres nouveaux, dont trois Nègres Mondongues, & deux jeunes Négresses Congo, étampés D.BUTLER, sont marons depuis le 8 de ce mois. Mr. Bocher, Procureur de Mde. de Butler à qui ils appartiennent, prie ceux qui les reconnaîtront de les faire arrêter & de lui en donner avis sur l'Habitation de ladite Dame au Morne-rouge ; il y aura récompense." (32)

Translation :

"Five new Negroes, including three Mondongues Negroes, and two young Congo Negroes, stamped D. BUTLER, have been marooned since the 8th of this month, Mr. Bocher, Butler's Procurator, to whom they belong, pray those who will recognize them. to have them arrested, and to give him notice at the habitation of the said Lady at Morne-rouge, and there will be a reward."

During their religious celebrations, these Moundang (or Mondongues) while dancing, make rotations around a central point, in the counterclock direction :

 (Moundang rotary dance)

Source :  "Fing moundan" ; URL : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdGqYK4U1pw

And they were more so in the slave-era. Under the name "Mondong", "Moudong", "Moundong" or "Monndong", the Moudang (or Moundan) ethnic group is deified in the Haitian ritual. Lwa Mondong's family consists of several Lwa/Jany, including the following: Moundong Mousayi Kann Checho, Mousanmbe, Ti Moundong, Towawa, Mousayi Moundong, etc.
Here is the symbolic vèvè of the Lwa Mondongues in Haiti :

(Vèvè of Lwa Moundong Masay in Haiti)

Source : Milo Rigaud. Ve-Ve : Diagrammes Rituels du Voudou. New York, 1974. p.562.

Now, let's look at the picture of a dog in Moundang country, early 20th christian century :

(A Moundan dog, in Cameroon)

Source : Eugène Brussaux, Étienne Muston. Album de la Mission Moll, 1905-1907, Congo, Oubangui-Chari, Tchad, Cameroun. 201 phot. Enregistré en 1924. ; cliché We-260-152.

Without being entirely identical, we can still detect a line of resemblance in the two canine physiognomies ; especially in the high position of the tail, the thinness of the belly, the shape of the skull and legs. Without written reference, and several centuries away from the "African" source, Haitian traditionalists have, as best they can, retained the general appearance of the Moundang dog.

9.1.1- Why the dog as a symbol?

First of all, the Creator God of the Moundang is of the female gender (borderline androgynous). She is called Masin. Which means "The one above, in the sky". (trad.) (34) But this Creative Goddess being distant, (35) the Moundang, for their spiritual needs, appeal to deified Kingship (Gõn), ancestral spirits (Syinri), and totemic animals (snake, buffalo, birds, monkey, dog, frog, etc.) of several clans.

The Moundang settle a multitude of unofficially structured clans. And many of these clans identify and name themselves according to their specific totem :

• Ban se (Buffalo clan)
• Ban ju (Birds clan) 
• Ban guo or Bane Soo (Dog clan) 
• Ban suo (Serpent clan) 
• Ban su « clan du Fil » or (Cannabis fiber clan) 
• Ban ping ni (Monkey clan)
• Ban balé (Lion clan)
• Ban pin (Panther clan)
• etc.

There are special and varied reasons for identifying with each totem. For example, for the buffalo, it's strength. As for the dog, the Moundang retain the warrior ferocity and murderous rage they associate with "red-mouthed dogs", (36) (filled with blood and rage). But, the totemic identification with the fierce dog does not remain confined to the clans of the dog "Ban Guo" or "Bane Soo". It is extended to the entire Moundang people who see themselves as clan protectors in the manner of a killer dog attacking enslavers.

Thus, in Saint Domingue/Haiti, the fierce and protective dog as shown to be the Moundang people's archetype. And the Mondongue Lwa taking possession of practitioners' bodies act like true "rabid dogs" in pursuit of their prey (including dogs). For among the Moundang, during religious services or in specific places, the Spirit of a totemic animal can occupy the body of an individual who has him as totem. (37)

9.1.2- Mondong Masay/Mousay and the islamic revision

The word "Masay" in "Mondong Masay" is also a victim of islamic revision. Because, in the Haitian ritual, the word "Masay" takes various forms : "Masay", "Mousay" or "Mousayi".  Revisionist Bebe Pierre Louis claims that "Mousayi", comes from Kankan Moussa, the name of a muslim Mandingo King :

"Lwas like Kongo Mousayi refer to the famous Kango Moussa usually and wrongly referred to as Kankan Moussa, who was Islamic." (38)

The revisionist's argument does not hold water, for several reasons: a) The most basic of the reasons being that in Saint Domingue, there were traditionalist captives (slaves) such as Bambara bearing the name of "Moussa" :

"Moussa dit Simon, Bambara, étampé I.B. & XX au-dessous, âgé d'environ 47 ans, taille d'environ 5 pieds 2 pouces; d'une assez faible constitution, ayant plusieurs marques de son pays au visage, & les dents pointues, marron depuis le 15 ou 20 décembre dernier, appartenant à l'habitation Baujau du Quartier Morin." (39)

Translation :

"Moussa aka Simon, Bambara, stamped IB & XX below, about 47 years old, about 5 feet 2 inches tall, of a rather weak constitution, has several marks of his country on the face, and pointed teeth, marooned since December 15 or 20, belonging to the Baujau estate in Quartier Morin."

b) We must ask ourselves, if Haitian revisionist Bebe Pierre Louis is even aware that there exists in Haiti, a traditional dish named moussa (mousa in Creole)? I dare doubt it. Moreover, the Moussa dish does not refer to islam either, because in the colony of Saint Domingue, it consisted of one of the foods served to the Sacred Snake ; which is a practice that goes clearly contrary to islam :

"... me conduisit à leur rassemblement, et je vis adorer, devant un gros mapou creusé par le temps, une couleuvre qui y faisait sa résidence, et à laquelle, dans l'intervalle des prières, on apportait de quoi se nourrir, en viande, poisson, moussa, calalou, et surtout du lait..." (40)

Translation :

"... led me to their gathering, and I saw [them] adore, in front of a big mapou [tree] dug by time, a snake which made his residence there, and to which, in the prayers interval, they brought food, like meat, fish, moussa, calalou, and especially milk..."

c) The words "Masay", "Mousay" or "Mousayi"*** refer instead to the traditionalist Massa ethnic group that neighbors the Moundangs on the Cameroonian-Chadian border ; that is to say, between South-West Cameroon and North-East Chad :

(Location of the Moundang and Massa ethnic groups, between Chad and Cameroon (in black))

Source : Agence économique des territoires africains sous mandat. Togo Cameroun Paris, 1934. p.86.

Here we have 1972 Chadian stamps depicting their Moundang and Massa ethnic groups :

(Moundang soldier)

Source : https://www.hipstamp.com/listing/chad-278-moundang-warrior-cto-nh/2839343

(Massa soldier)

Source : https://www.hipstamp.com/listing/chad-277-cto-15fr-massa-warrior-1972/16898575

So it was not out of the ordinary that a certain religious fusion was developed in Haiti, between the Mondongues and the Massa, two neighboring traditionalist ethnic groups. Moreover, it is ridiculous to suggest an islamic origin for the word "Masa" and its derivatives, since the Massa, as well as the Moundang, were captured by their islamized neighbors (Baguirmi and Fulani) who constantly persecuted them on the basis of their religion. (41) It was only until early 1900s, due to military intervention from European settlers (German and French), that the islamized stopped their raids aiming at taking the Massa (and Moundang) as captive each dry season. (42)
It should also be noted that the Massa were listed in Saint Domingue as Gumbai (Gumay) and Magoua (Magaw) :

"À Jacmel, le 1er de ce mois, Pierrot, Nation Magoua étampé sur le sein gauche MORIN, au-dessous GR GVE, taille de 5 pieds, ayant des marques de son pays sur le visage et sur le corps, se disant appartenir à M. Morin, habitant." (43)

Translation :

"In Jacmel, on the 1st of this month, Pierrot, Magoua nation, stamped on the left breast MORIN, below GR GVE, 5 feet tall, with marks of his country on the face and on the body, claiming to belong to Mr. Morin, resident."

And the Massa honor, pray and even make sacrifices to the Creator God whom they call Lwana, the "God, father of men, creator of the universe and of the fuliana". (Trad.) (44) The Fuliana (plural of Fulla - not to be confused with the Foula or Fulani ethnic group), are, for the Massa, intermediate Divinities which are classified as "hot" or "cold", depending on their bellicose nature. (45) That's a classification that Haitian traditionalists have retained from their Massa Ancestors. 

10- The fake islamic centaur and the Akan heritage

It looks like the burden of proof escapes the experienced revisionist LeGrace Benson. The latter, in a supposedly scientific publication, claimed to have seen, somewhere in the Artibonite Valley, Haiti, terracotta figurines in the form of what muslims call Al-Burak, that is, to say a woman-headed winged mare on which Mohammed ascended to heaven :

"Islam as a religion was utterly stamped out of St.-Domingue and Haiti. Its vestiges remain visible but incomprehensible in a few scattered pieces of vèvè, some designs on a few older dwapo, and perhaps, only perhaps, in the centaur-like terracottas of the Artibonite ressembling beautiful Al-Burak who transported Mohammed to the seventh realm of heaven." (46)

Here is this famous Al-Burak :

(Depiction of Al-Burak)

Source : https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Al-Buraf_Hafifa.jpg

And although she emphasized the extreme hypothetical nature of her claim, by warning "perhaps, only perhaps", but that did not keep her, in a later article, from stating this once hypothetical claim as officially muslim. By such action, Benson demonstrated her lack of honesty and intellectual rigor :

"The Asofo regimental flags from the era when Ghana was a British colony show the checkered pattern in a number of interesting deployments (...) One of the Asofo banners in a traveling exhibition depicts al-Burak. In this case the Islamic influence is unmistakable, as this beautiful mare with the face and streaming hair of a woman is the steed who carried Muhammed to the Seventh Heaven in the Night Journey. She will appear in Haiti." (47)

For starters, the Asafo (or Asofo) banners called "frankaa" do not represent Al-Burak, as Benson suggests. The Asafo are various Akan (Ghana) military corps that the Dutch hierarchized around 1720. And these Asafo traditionalists used to paint their traditional deities, rivers, birds, and proverbs. (48) In contact with the colonizers (Dutch, then British), the Asafo transferred their symbolic images to military flags and banners.

"These flags "adorn villages and towns at the time of festivals and funerals… (they were developed by) the warrior groups of the Fante, known as 'Asafo'. As European military organization was adopted, so the identity of an Asafo company was adopted, so the identity of an Asafo company was developed and refined by way of new uniformes, flags and banners." (Peter Adler and Nicholas Barnard. Asafo! African Flags of the Fante. London: Thames and Hudson, 1992, p. 7). The inclusion on this flag of the Union Jack is an example of assimilating prestige from prior British colonial presence." (49)

Source : Doran H. Ross. "Flag dancing scene, No. 2 Company", Mankesim, Fante, Ghana, 1979 ; URL :https://africa.uima.uiowa.edu/topic-essays/show/9?start=15

Source : Doran H. Ross. "Asafo banner", Lowtown, Ghana, 1979 ; URL : https://africa.uima.uiowa.edu/media/photos/show/730?back=topic-essays%2Fshow%2F9%3Fstart%3D17

These flags and military banners, unrelated to Mohammed ascending to heaven, instead illustrate Shramantin, a traditional God of the forests :

 (Flag of the Goddess Shramantin)

Source :  http://www.kendalljenner.fun/hashtags/AntiqueFlag/

The Akan ethnic group remained traditionalist very late. It was not until the 20th christian century that they chose to convert. However, they did not opt for islam, but rather for christian conversion. And concerning the shapes that bear a resemblance to Al-Burak, they are western, not islamic :

"In the discussion of this and two related flags, the following proverb is cited, with the ensuing comments: " 'Will you fly or will you vanish?' [Either way you can't escape us.] This image is inspired by the dragons, griffins, cockatrices and wyverns of Europeans heraldry. The Fante say of this  monster, 'it can fly, it can dig in the ground, it can go anywhere'." (Ibid., pp. 74-75)." (50)

Source : Patricia Harris. "Art, Honour, and Ridicule: Asafo Flags from Southern Ghana" (Royal Ontario Museum) ; URL : https://www.rom.on.ca/en/exhibitions-galleries/exhibitions/art-honour-and-ridicule-asafo-flags-from-southern-ghana

Source : http://conversationpiecescuag.blogspot.ca/2011/03/exploring-issues-of-authenticity-and.html

Source : https://www.pinterest.de/pin/334673816039983699/

Source : http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/gh_asaf1.html

Source : https://www.sarajo.com/product/fante-asafo-flag-2/

Source : http://tonyminnion.co.uk/clothofgoldarchive/archive/6/inafrica/images/falarge1.html

Source : http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/gh_asaf1.html

Source : https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Brooklyn_Museum_2009.39.1_Asafo_Company_Flag_Frankaa.jpg

Source : https://www.pinterest.ca/jana7400/asafo-flags/

Source : https://www.pinterest.ca/imodara/fante-asafo-frankaa-flags/

10.1 - The Akan heritage in Haiti

In the French colony of Saint Domingue, the captives (slaves) of the Akan ethnic group were generally referred to as Côte d'Or [Gold Coast], Cramenti or Mina.

a) Gold Coast
Overall these Akan captives (slaves) from present-day Ghana were named "Côte d'Or" (Gold Coast), that country's old name :

"Pompée, de la côte d'Or, étampé V. MIAILLES, taille ordinaire, ayant des marques de son pays sur le visage & une excroissance qui lui pend à l'oreille; parti marron de l'habitation de Mme Ve Miailles, depuis environ trois mois, avec deux Nègres de même nation; ils ont été mis trois fois sur les Affiches, ces deux Nègres ont été arrêtés. Ceux qui auront connaissance dudit Nègre Pompée, sont priés d'en donner avis à Me Miailles, Procureur au Port-au-Prince : il y aura récompense." (51)

Translation :

"Pompey, of the Gold Coast, stamped V. MIAILLES, ordinary size, having marks of his country on the face and an outgrowth which hangs in his ear, marooned from Mrs. Ve Miailles estate, since about three months, with two Negroes of the same nation, they've been advertized three times on les Affiches [newspaper], these two Negroes have been arrested.Those who have knowledge of said Negro Pompey, are asked to give notice to Me Miailles, Attorney at Port -au-Prince : there will be a reward."

b) Cramenti
In the English-speaking Antilles, the Akan (Asante, Ashanti, Fanti, Anyi, etc.) are well known under the name Coromantee and its derivatives. The name derives from "Fort Kormantin", a slave establishment in Ghana, built by the British in 1638 and occupied by the Dutch from 1655 to 1868 as Fort Amsterdam.

(Fort Amsterdam/Kormantin in present-day Ghana)

Source : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Amsterdam,_Ghana#/media/File:Ghana,_Abandze,_Fort_Amsterdam_%28Cormantijn%29,_hoofdingang.jpg

  (Location of Fort Amsterdam/Kormantin in present-day Ghana)

Source : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Amsterdam,_Ghana
 
Therefore, in Saint Domingue, the captives (slaves) of the Akan ethnic group were designated Cromanty, Caramanti, Cramanty, Cramenti, Cramaty, Cronuanty, Croman, etc.:

"Le 8, Mars, nation Cramanty, étampé DAVAU, ne sachant dire le nom ni la demeure de son maître." (52)

Translation :

"On the 8th of Mars, of Cramanty nation, stamped DAVAU, unable to say the name nor the dwelling of his master."

c) Mina
Similarly, in Saint Domingue, Akan captives were called "Mina, Mine, Minant, Minan, Amina or Amine"; whether they were from Ghana, Dahomey (Benin) or Togo.**** The name "Mina" refers to the Portuguese Fort of Elmina (The Mine) founded in 1481 on the Ghanaian coast. Originally named Saô Jorge de Mina (Saint-Georges-of-the-Mine), this Portuguese trading post bought gold mined by Akan miners, before the more profitable slave trade took over. (53) :

(Fort Elmina or Fort Saint-Georges-of-the-Mine in present-day Ghana)

Source : https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elmina#/media/File:Elmina_slave_castle.jpg

(Location of the city of Elmina in present-day Ghana)

 Source : https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elmina

10.1.2 - The Akan heritage in the Haitian ritual

In the Haitian ritual, the Akan heritage is reflected mainly through the words : Anmin (or Anminan), Kwasi, Akann and Ntowo.

a) Anmin, Anminan et Anansi
The Akan of Ghana (Ivory Coast, Togo and Benin) form the sacred Nation or Nanchon Anmin or Anminan in which there is a large amount of Lwa/Jany. Many of these divine entities are "Gad", that is, family or personal Protectors. Here is a vèvè of Lwa/Jany Anmin or Anminan :

 (Vèvè of Lwa/Jany Anminan)

Source : Milo Rigaud. Ve-Ve : Diagrammes Rituels du Voudou. New York, 1974. p.533.

This Anminan vèvè represents the archetype of the Anmin sacred Nation. It figures the "anansi thread", which in Haitian Creole means "spider's web". (54) The following sacred song describes it :

Ti gason nou pral chache fil annasi pou n mare yo...

Translation :

Young man we will take the Anansi thread (spider web) to bind them...

"Anansi" or "Annasi", an Akan word, means "Spider" in the Haitian language. (55) We find it again in this other sacred song :

Marasa Kay la demen,

Anansi a dogwe.

Feminine Divinity Manbo Nansi is venerated, at least in the traditional ritual of Haiti's greater Northern region. And also, Larèn Nansi (Queen Nansi) receives tributes in sacred prayers, at least in Northern Haiti. You should know that among the Akan, Anansi is the name of the Spirit Kuaku Anansi (Kwaku Ananse), the Primordial Spider, son of Nyame, the Creator God who is also called Anansi Kokuroku, that is, say the "Great Spider".

(Poster of "Kwaku Ananse", an Akan short film from Ghana)

Source : Yaanom Multimedia ; http://www.design233.com/kwaku-ananse-film-wins/

Moreover, it is the diagram of the Anansi Spider Web that forms the basis of the "Kente", the iconic royal fabric of the Akan peoples (or Ashanti). For, according to the Akan, Anansi is the one who taught two brothers the art of weaving and coloring Kente. (56) :

(Kente, Kente, traditional Akan royal cloth)

Source : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kente_cloth#/media/File:KenteCloth.jpg

Everywhere, in the Americas, where the Akans were introduced, a version of "Ananse" remains, across various denominations, through ancestral tales :

• Anansi (Guyana)
• Anansi, Hanansi, Nansi (Jamaica)
• Mr Nancy, Miss Nancy, Aunt Nancy, Ann Nancy, (USA : North and South Carolina)
• Nansi, Kuent'i Nanzi (Curaçao), Kompa Nanzi (Curacao, Aruba, Bonaire)
• Ananse Tori (Suriname)
• Nanacy, Nancy, Brer Nancy, Brother Nancy (Canada : Nova Scotia)
• Ahnancy (Saint Martin)
• Banansi, Nansi, Boy Nasty, Gulumhanansi (Bahamas)
• Compè Czien (Granada)
• Compère Araignée (Martinique)
• Ti Malis (Haiti, but to a lesser extent due to confusion with Leuk, a Senegalese character) 
• Sister Nancy, Mr. Spider, Sis Nancy, Nansi Buy Nansi, Compè Anansi, etc. (elsewhere in the Americas).

For, according to the Akans (or Ashanti), Anansi, this Spider-Divinity, received the knowledge of the tales from his father Nyame, the God of Heaven, only after he used his tricks and his spider web to capture Osebo, the panther, Onini, the python and Mmoboro, the hornet.

(Anansi capturing with his web)

Source : https://pckvtes.wordpress.com/2013/02/28/anansi-captures-osebo-in-a-pitfall-trap/ 

Thus, the Akan heritage in the Americas ensures the durability of Anansi in the tales of multiple countries around the world. Anansi predominates in children's books :

 (Anansi in children's books in America)

Source : http://anansistories.com/How_Anansi_Came_book.html

And likewise in animated films and novels : 

(Anansi in novels in America)

Source :  https://www.amazon.com/Anansi-Boys-Novel-Neil-Gaiman/dp/006051518X

b) Kwasi
Among the Lwa of Nanchon Anminan, we find Anminan Sansan Kwasi Kosi Djoni. Kwasi (or Akwasi) is an Akan name given to boys born on a Sunday. Here is a runaway ad concerning a plantation Commander from the Mina nation, by the name of Coissi (Kwasi):

"Un Negre, nommé Coissi, nation Mina, Maçon de son métier, n'ayant pour toute étampe que DD entrelacés, sur la poitrine, âgé d'environ 38 à 40 ans, & ayant les joues creuses, une partie des deux machoires sans dents, & de l'autre jaunes & décharnées, les jambes ou genoux cambrés & les pieds en dedans : ledit Negre Commandeur de l'Habitation de M. de St Romes, près le Port-au-Prince, est maron depuis le 14 novembre dernier. Ceux qui le reconnoîtront, sont priés de le faire arrêter, & d'en donner avis audit Sieur de St-Romes, sur son Habitation, audit lieu : il y aura récompense." (57)

Translation :

"A Negro, named Coissi, of Mina nation, Mason by trade, has for all stamp only DD intertwined, on the chest, about 38 to 40 years old, & has hollow cheeks, part of both jaws without teeth, & the other yellow & lanky, arched legs or knees & feet inside : the said Negro is Commander of M. de St. Romes Estate, near Port-au-Prince, is marooned since last November 14. Those who recognize him, are asked to have him arrested, and to give notice to Sieur de St-Romes, on his Estate, at the said place : there will be a reward."

It should be noted that there is also the Lwa Nèg Kwasi Miyan Manyan Dogwe within the Lwa Azaka Family ; and that "Kwasi" (Kouassi, Couassi) remains a family name in Haiti.

c) Akann
In the Haitian ritual, the name "Akan" itself is retained in the form of "Akann Nago", indicating a form of ritual fusion with the Nago (or Yoruba) ethnic group) :

Akann Nago, Lwa mwen, yo pale nou mal o, Ogoun o...

Translation :

Akann Nago, my Lwa, we are slandered, Ogoun o...

It is also kept in the name of Lwa Ntowo Akanvi Ewa. "Akanvi" is a hybrid combination : "Akan" (the name of the ethnic group), and "Vi" meaning "Child(ren)" in the Fongbe language of the Dahomeans. Thus, "Akanvi" means "Child(ren) of Akan", just as "Gedevi" (name of a Dahomean people) means "Children of Gede".

d) Ntowo
Moreover, in Ntowo Akanvi Ewa, the word "Ntowo" is not trivial. On the contrary, in the mystical structure of the Akan, Ntoro (Ntowo) indicates the child's character, a paternal heritage. So, the Akan child is born with his Ntowo which is one of the following 12 character traits :

1. Bosompra : The Tough
2. Bosomtwi : The Tender
3. Bosommuru : The Distinguished
4. Bosom-Nketea or Bosompo : The Audacious
5. Bosom-Dwerebe : The Excentric
6. Bosom-Akom : The Fanatic
7. Bosomafi : The Chaste
8. Bosomayesu : The Truculent
9. Bosom-Konsi : The Virtuoso
10. Bosomsika : The Fastidious
11. Bosomafram : The Liberal
12. Bosomkrete : The Chivalrous.

Having received their Ntoro trait from their fathers, the Akan (fathers and sons) are grouped by Ntoro types, in separate spiritual associations. And each of these associations Ntoro has its own forbidden, its own ceremonial days, nicknames, greetings, etc. (58)
And in Saint Domingue, the Akan captives continued to associate the veneration of their Deities (Abossom) with the Ntoro structure. From this association was born the sacred Ntoro Nation or Nanchon Ntowo that holds multiple Lwa/Jany including : Ntowo, Nèg Ntowo, Ntowo Akanvi Ewa, Ntowo Twa Grenn, Èzili Ntowo, Figaro Ntowo, Ntowo Belekoun, etc.
But, despite the Ntoro paternal legacy, when it comes to the notion of divinized Ancestors, clans, and obligations of mystical family sacrifices, the Akan, of a matriarchal nature, refer to the maternal blood that they called Mogya. (59) Such a mystical obligation persists in Haiti. But it goes for both the maternal and paternal sides.

10.3 - The Akan heritage and Haitian cultural influence

On the cultural level, two Akan words: Kuaku and Anansi contribute to the global influence of Haitian culture. Haitians are very familiar with "Kuaku", which is an Akan name given to boys born on Wednesday. Because Coicou is a famous family name in Haiti. It is that of Jean-Baptiste Massillon Coicou (1867-1908), the famous Haitian poet and diplomat.

(Jean-Baptiste Massillon Coicou, Haitian poet)

Source : https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massillon_Coicou#/mediapoête/File:Massillon_Coicou.jpg

From the word "Anansi" derive female first names in Haiti. One of them is "Anasilya", title of 2 songs and 1 album from legendary Haitian troubadours Ti Paris (1970), and Althieri Dorival (1978) :

  ("Anasilya", Ti Paris, 1970)

 ("Anasilya", Althieri Dorival & L'Ensemble Le Progrès, 1978)

Anansi, the Akan Spider Divinity, possessor of Knowledge, is also a "trickster", a joker. This last facet will assimilate, in Saint Domingue-Haiti, with Gede, the Dahomean Divinities of death, who are prankers par excellence. Thus, from this symbiosis of Lwa Gede (Main Divinity of the Gedevi people of Benin) with Kuaku Anansi (the sacred Spider of the Akan of Ghana) was born Gede Zarenyen (Gede the Spider), a Lwa whose glory has been sung worldwide for decades.
Celia Cruz, the Cuban star, as part of her collaboration with the legendary Haitian singer Martha Jean-Claude, recorded the traditional Haitian song "Guede Zaina" in 1952 :

 ("Guede Zaiña" Celia Cruz con la Sonora Matancera, 1952)

Among others, Johnny El Bravo, the Puerto Rican singer, made a cover in 1972. Haitian singer Simbi did the same in 1992 :

("Gede Zarenyen", Simbi, 1992)

Then followed Kike Harvey (1993), Alquimia La Sonora Del XXI (2003), Oscar De Leon (2006), Haitiando (2010), etc. :

("Gede Zariyen", Haitiando, 2010)

The proof is thus made that the Akan heritage in Haiti was of a traditionalist nature. In no way did islam come to the Akan during the pre-slavery period so that its influence could have shaped the Haitian ritual flags.

10.4 - Centaur-shaped figurines in Haiti

If the Haitian figurines were relevant, why didn't the "scientist" take a picture of them? Why didn't she question their owners about their origin? And what race was the woman's head depicted? Are they old religious pieces or purely fictitious modern works? So many questions left unanswered by LeGrace Benson.
But what is undeniable is that culturally, Haiti is not so isolated from the West as one would like to believe. Since early childhood, the little Haitian schoolboy is immersed in Western cannons and learns French, Spanish, Latin, or even Greek. And from this learning, he is constantly exposed to all the classic European myths, including centaurs.
This is why it is hardly surprising  in Haiti to come across crafts in the form of centaurs, like the following that the artist identifies as such :

Source : Jean Rony "Art métal Centaur, Haïti féminin moitié cheval demi femme" ; URL : https://www.haitimetalwallart.com/listing/470887537/female-centaur-haiti-metal-art-half ;

Source : Jean Rony "Centaure femelle, moitié femme Haïti métal Art moitié cheval" ; URL : https://www.haitimetalwallart.com/listing/493934614/centaure-femelle-moitie-femme-haiti

Or in the form of other ancient Western figures that the artist, once again, identifies as such :

Source : Jean Rony "Royaume de Triton sur un bateau à la mer, recycler murale en métal art " ; URL : https://www.haitimetalwallart.com/listing/539758504/royaume-de-triton-sur-un-bateau-a-la-mer 

Source : Jean Rony "Maty, Triton, protecteur des marins hommes" ; URL : https://www.haitimetalwallart.com/listing/470886047/maty-triton-protecteur-des-marins-hommes

In short, the revisionist arguments, being based on childish speculation, allowed us to easily establish that the Haitian ceremonial flags do not come from islam, but rather from the traditional religion. We also demonstrated the richness of Haitian ancestral heritage that was born of the sharing, mutual aid and tolerance of various ethnic groups brought by force upon the Saint Domingue shores. This legacy serves as a bulwark against any intruder seeking to sneak into the history of Haiti to usurp what the Gods, in their generosity, have offered to the Haitians : the Haitian Revolution.

* Initially mentioned by Patrick Polk. "Sacred Banners and the Divine Cavalry Charge". In : Sacred Arts of Haitian Vodou. Los Angeles, 1995.
** Manje yam is not exclusively Ibo. In their country, the Dahomeans, among other peoples, also celebrate the first yam harvest. (60)
*** The Massa people are known on many denominations: Massa, Masa, Massas, Masana, Banana, Bonana, Yagwa, Magaw, Walia, Walai (Walay), Gumay, etc. In this context, the variants "Masay", "Mousay", or "Mousayi", listed in the Haitian ritual, are just as authentic. Also, one should not confuse the Haitian word "Masay" which refers to the "Massa" people of Cameroon and Tchad, with the "Massai" people of Southern Kenya and Northern Tanzania.
**** Ghana is not the sole place of origin of Mina captives, given the migration (in part) of the "Mina" people to Togo (and present-day Benin) in the 17th christian century (Thus, prior to the bulk of the French slavetrade). In Togo, the Mina merged with the Guen people to form the Guen-Mina ethnic group, (61) whose name became Amine in Saint Domingue, and Anmin or Anminan in the Haitian ritual.

Notes

(1) Argument de LeGrace Benson reprise par Anne M. Platoff. "Drapo Vodou - Sacred Standards of Haitian Vodou" In : Flag Research Quarterly, 2(3-4). August 2015.
(2) Les Affiches Américaines of Saturday March 27, 1784. Issue no.13. p.209. 
(3) Voir  Les Affiches Américaines of Wednesday August 1, 1770. Issue No.32, p.324.
(4) Liévin-Bonaventure Proyart. Histoire de Loango, Kakongo, et autres royaumes d'Afrique. Paris, 1776. p.22.
(5) Melville Jean Herskovits. Dahomey, an ancient West African Kingdom. New York, 1938. p.224-225. fig.33.
(6) Robert Farris Thompson. African Art in Motion : Icon and Act in the Collection of Katherine Coryton White. Berkeley, 1974. p.219.
(7) Michka Sachnine, Akin Akinyemi. Dictionnaire yorùbá-français : suivi d'un index français-yorùbá.  Paris, 1997. p.241.
(8) Samuel Adjai Crowther. Vocabulary of the Yoruba Language. Londres, 1852. p.221.
(9) Joseph Ronald Dautruche. "Le Rara de Léogâne : entre fête traditionnelle liée au vodou et patrimoine ouvert au tourisme". In : Ethnologies, vol. 33, n° 2, 2011, p. 123-144.
(10) Voir Les Affiches Américaines of Tuesday July 1, 1777. Issue No.27, p.420.
(11) Akintunde Akinyemi."The Yorùbá Royal Bards : Their Work and Relevance in the Society". in: Nordic Journal of African Studies 10(1): 90-106 (2001)
(12) Michka Sachnine,Akin Akinyemi. Dictionnaire yorùbá-français: suivi d'un index français-yorùbá.  Paris, 1997. p.211.
(13) Édouard Dunglas. "‪Contribution à l'histoire du Moyen-Dahomey : (Royaumes d'Abomey, de Kétou et de Ouidah)‬". In : Études dahoméenes. Volumes 17-20. Dakar, 1956. p.77.
(14) Robert Farris Thompson. African Art in Motion... Op. Cit. p.220.
(15) Ibid. pp.220-221.
(16) Joseph Ronald Dautruche. "Le rara de Léogâne". [en ligne] URL : http://www.ipimh.ulaval.ca/fiche-rara-leogane-19.html
(17) Becky Parkinson. "Mysterious 'living ghosts' who walk around with bodyguards because villagers fear they will die after touching them." Mirror du 30 juin 2017. [en ligne] ; URL : https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/gallery/mysterious-living-ghosts-who-walk-10714320
(18) Joseph Ronald Dautruche. "Le rara de Léogâne". [en ligne] Op. Cit.
(19) Jon Bullock. A salaam alay : Remnants of West African Islam in Haitian Vodou. [ University of Chicago]
(20) Ibid.
(21) LeGrace Benson, “Observations on Islamic Motifs in Haitian Religious Art,” Journal of Caribbean Studies, (1 and 2) (Winter/Spring 1993). Cité dans LeGrace Benson. "How Houngans Use the Light from Distant Stars." In : Vodou in Haitian Life and Culture. New York, 2006. pp.155-179.
(22) LeGrace Benson. "Some Breton and Muslim Antecedents of Voudou Drapo". in: Textile Society of America Symposium Proceedings. Paper 867. 1996.
(23) Robert Farris Thompson. Flash of the Spirit : African & Afro-American Art & Philosophy. New York, 1984. p.228.
(24) Les Affiches Américaines of Wednesday May 14, 1783. Issue No 20, p.262.
(25) Gouvernement de France. "Arrêt du Conseil du Port-au-Prince, touchant un Nègre Africain accusé, qui n'entend pas le Français, et pour lequel il ne se trouve pas d'Interprête. Du 3 Juin 1785". In : Moreau de St-Méry. Loix et constitutions des colonies françoises de l'Amérique sous le Vent. T. 6. pp.760-761.
(26) Moreau de Saint Mery. Description topographique, physique, civile, politique et historique de la partie française de l'isle de Saint-Domingue. Tome 1. Philadelphie, 1797. p.31.
(27) Jude C. U. Aguwa. ‪The Agwu deity in Igbo religion‬: ‪a study of the patron spirit divination and medicine in an African society‬. Unugu, 1995. p.109.
(28) Jon Bullock. Op. cit.
(29) Benjamin Hebblethwaite and Michel Weber. “Arabian Religion, Islam, and Haitian Vodou: The ‘Recent African Single-Origin Hypothesis’ and the Comparison of World Religions.” In Vodou in the Haitian Experience : A Black Atlantic Perspective. Lanham, 2006. pp.209-237.
(30) Jon Bullock. Op. Cit.
(31) Benjamin Hebblethwaite and Michel Weber. Op. Cit.
(32) Les Affiches américaines of Wednesday June 18, 1766. Issue no.25. p.223. 
(33) La Dépêche coloniale illustrée du 31 mars 1913. Paris, 1913, pp.89-90.
(34) Maud Gauquelin. De la royauté sacrée à la pluralité religieuse chez les Moundang, du Tchad au Nigeria : Stratégies locales, connexions transnationales. Anthropologie sociale et ethnologie. Paris, 2014. pp.118-119.
(35) Alfred Adler. La mort est le masque du roi : la royauté sacrée des Moundang du Tchad. Paris, 1982. p.13.
(36) Alfred Adler. "Le totémisme en Afrique noire, Systèmes de pensée en Afrique noire". In : Totémisme. Vol. 15. 1998. [En ligne], mis en ligne le 28 mai 2014, consulté le 24 février 2017.
(37) Maud Gauquelin. Op. Cit. p.231.
(38) Bebe Pierre Louis. Réponse sur le blog historique de Bob Corbett. 12 mars 2001."Islamic Influences on Haitian Voodoo". URL : http://www2.webster.edu/~corbetre/haiti/voodoo/islam.htm ; Consulté le 28 avril 2015.
(39) Les Affiches américaines of Wednesday February 2, 1785. Issue No.5. p.5658.
(40) Michel Pierre Descourtiilz. Voyages d'un naturaliste, et ses observations... Tome 3. Paris, 1809. p.210.
(41) Françoise Dumas-Champion. Les Masa Du Tchad: Bétail Et Société. Paris, 1983. pp.13-14.
(42) Ibid. pp.16-17.
(43) Les Affiches Américaines (Supplément) of Tuesday November 10, 1778. Issue No.44. p.0.
(44) Françoise Dumas-Champion. Op. Cit. pp.212, 214.
(45) Ibid. p.214.
(46) LeGrace Benson. "Qismat of the Names of Allah in Haitian Vodou". In : Journal of Haitian Studies, Vol 8 No. 2, 2002. pp.160-164.
(47) LeGrace Benson. "How Houngans Use the Light from Distant Stars." In: Vodou in Haitian Life and Culture. New York, 2006. pp.155-179.
(48) Doran Ross. "Military Arts of the Fante" [en ligne] ; URLt : https://africa.uima.uiowa.edu/topic-essays/show/9 ; Consulté le 24 décembre 2017.
(49) Courtney E. Kennedy, Mary Brinker. Important African & Oceanic Art Auction:   Heritage Auction Galleries Auction No. 645 June 7, 2007. Dallas. p.58.
(50) Ibid.
(51) Les Affiches Américaines of Saturday June 20, 1789. Issue no.50. p.0.
(52) Les Affiches américaines of Tuesday June 13, 1780. Issue no.24. p.191.
(53) See Bernard Nantet. Dictionnaire d'Histoire et Civilisations africaines. Paris, 1999. pp.14, 74-93.
(54) Jeannot Hilaire. ‪Foure'antre non kreyòl dayiti‬. ‪Fribourg, 1992. p.199.
(55) Ibid.
(56) Robert Z Cohen. Discovering the Asante Kingdom. New York, 2014. p.26.
(57) Les Affiches Américaines of Wednesday January 16, 1771. Issue No.3. p.24. 
(58) K. A. Busia. (Kofi Abrefa Busia) "The Ashanti of the Gold Coast". In : African Worlds: Studies in the Cosmological Ideas and Social Values of African peoples. Oxford, 1999 (1st ed. 1954). pp.190-209.
(59) Terray Emmanuel. Le pouvoir, le sang et la mort dans le royaume asante au XIXe siècle. In: Cahiers d'études africaines. Vol. 34 N°136. 1994. pp. 549-561.
(60) Voir Melville Jean Herskovits. Dahomey An Ancient West African Kingdom. New York, 1938, p.37.
(61) See Ayité Dzidzoe Dovi-Gaba. "La cérémonie de sortie d'enfant chez les Guin-Mina." Lomé, 2015. p.4.

How to cite this article:
Rodney Salnave. "The drapo (ritual flags) are not islamic". March 27, 2018 ; updated Aug. 8, 2020. [online] URL : https://bwakayiman.blogspot.com/2018/03/the-drapo-are-not-islamic.html ; Retrieved on [enter date]

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