article

Spirit mediumship in Upper Egypt

Anthropos102Published In 2007 • Pages: 403-419

By: Hopkins, Nicholas S..

AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
This article discusses the religious life of rural villagers in Upper Egypt as observed in 1930s. The focus is on spirit mediums whose world view combine elements of both traditional religions and Islam. Based on the life of a male spirit medium who was studied by a German anthropologist in 1930s, the article observes important patterns relating to the processes through which a person could (or could not) become a spirit medium.
SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
Magical and mental therapy
Revelation and divination
Cult of the dead
Ecstatic religious practices
General character of religion
Magicians and diviners
Community structure
Settlement patterns
Morbidity
Religious denominations
Domesticated animals
Religious experience
Burial practices and funerals
Special burial practices and funerals
Family relationships
Spirits and gods
Life history materials
cultureCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
Fellahin
HRAF PubDateThe date HRAF published the document
2010
RegionThe area the document pertains to
Africa
Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
Northern Africa
Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
article
Evaluation
Creator TypeThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
Anthropologist
Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
4: Excellent Secondary Data
5: Excellent Primary Data
AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
Teferi Abate Adem; 2010
Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
1975-2006
Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
1930-2006
Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
Egypt, Kiman village in Upper Egypt
NotesAdditional notes
Nicholas S. Hopkins
Includes bibliographical references (p. 418-419)
LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
07021775
LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
Peasantry--Egypt
Egypt--Social life and customs