Papa Bois
Encyclopedia
Papa Bois a French patois
word for "father wood" or "father of the forest" is a popular fictional folklore
character of Trinidad and Tobago
. Often called the "keeper of the forest", he is thought of as the protector of the forest
s and their flora
and fauna
.
He is married to the La Dia Bless.
His appearance is thought to be that of a short, old man of Africa
n descent with cloven hooves (or at least his left leg ends in a large hoof) and a beard of leaves, who, despite his age sports strong muscle
s and can run faster than a deer. His body is completely covered with hair like that of a donkey and small horns sprout from his forehead
. He is also known to carry a hollowed-out bull
's horn
, which he uses to warn animals of hunters' approach. He is also known to have the power of metamorphosis
and is commonly thought to transform himself into a deer
, luring hunters deep into the forest and getting them lost. Much like his female counterpart, Mama Dlo
.
It is believed that if one meets Papa Bois, one must be polite and refrain from staring at his hooves, and say a polite greeting
to him. For example, "Bon jour, vieux Papa" meaning, "Good day, old father."
Patois
Patois is any language that is considered nonstandard, although the term is not formally defined in linguistics. It can refer to pidgins, creoles, dialects, and other forms of native or local speech, but not commonly to jargon or slang, which are vocabulary-based forms of cant...
word for "father wood" or "father of the forest" is a popular fictional folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
character of Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...
. Often called the "keeper of the forest", he is thought of as the protector of the forest
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
s and their flora
Flora
Flora is the plant life occurring in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring or indigenous—native plant life. The corresponding term for animals is fauna.-Etymology:...
and fauna
Fauna
Fauna or faunæ is all of the animal life of any particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is flora.Zoologists and paleontologists use fauna to refer to a typical collection of animals found in a specific time or place, e.g. the "Sonoran Desert fauna" or the "Burgess shale fauna"...
.
He is married to the La Dia Bless.
His appearance is thought to be that of a short, old man of Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
n descent with cloven hooves (or at least his left leg ends in a large hoof) and a beard of leaves, who, despite his age sports strong muscle
Muscle
Muscle is a contractile tissue of animals and is derived from the mesodermal layer of embryonic germ cells. Muscle cells contain contractile filaments that move past each other and change the size of the cell. They are classified as skeletal, cardiac, or smooth muscles. Their function is to...
s and can run faster than a deer. His body is completely covered with hair like that of a donkey and small horns sprout from his forehead
. He is also known to carry a hollowed-out bull
Bull
Bull usually refers to an uncastrated adult male bovine.Bull may also refer to:-Entertainment:* Bull , an original show on the TNT Network* "Bull" , an episode of television series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation...
's horn
Horn (anatomy)
A horn is a pointed projection of the skin on the head of various animals, consisting of a covering of horn surrounding a core of living bone. True horns are found mainly among the ruminant artiodactyls, in the families Antilocapridae and Bovidae...
, which he uses to warn animals of hunters' approach. He is also known to have the power of metamorphosis
Metamorphosis
Metamorphosis is a biological process by which an animal physically develops after birth or hatching, involving a conspicuous and relatively abrupt change in the animal's body structure through cell growth and differentiation...
and is commonly thought to transform himself into a deer
Deer
Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year...
, luring hunters deep into the forest and getting them lost. Much like his female counterpart, Mama Dlo
Mami Wata
Mami Wata is venerated in West, Central, Southern Africa, and in the African diaspora in the Caribbean and parts of North and South America. Mami Wata spirits are usually female, but are sometimes male.-Appearance:...
.
It is believed that if one meets Papa Bois, one must be polite and refrain from staring at his hooves, and say a polite greeting
Greeting
Greeting is an act of communication in which human beings intentionally make their presence known to each other, to show attention to, and to suggest a type of relationship or social status between individuals or groups of people coming in contact with each other...
to him. For example, "Bon jour, vieux Papa" meaning, "Good day, old father."