Ebu Gogo
Encyclopedia
Ebu Gogo are a group of human-like creatures that appear in the mythology
of Flores
, Indonesia
. In the Nage language of central Flores, ebu means 'grandmother' and gogo means 'he who eats anything'.
people of Flores describe the Ebu Gogo as having been able walkers and fast runners around 1.5m tall. They reportedly had wide and flat noses, broad faces with large mouths and hairy bodies. The females also had "long, pendulous breasts." They were said to have murmured in what was assumed to be their own language and could reportedly repeat what was said to them in a parrot-like fashion.
, attributed to monkey
s.
The Nage people believe that the Ebu Gogo were alive at the time of the arrival of Portuguese trading ships
in the 17th century, and some hold that they survived as recently as the 20th century, but are now no longer seen. The Ebu Gogo are believed to have been hunted to extinction by the human inhabitants of Flores. They believe that the extermination, which culminated around seven generations ago, was undertaken because the Ebu Gogo stole food from human dwellings, and kidnapped children.
An article in New Scientist
(Vol. 186, No. 2504) gives the following account of folklore on Flores surrounding the Ebu Gogo: The Nage
people of central Flores tell how, in the 18th century, villagers disposed of the Ebu Gogo by tricking them into accepting gifts of palm fiber to make clothes. When the Ebu Gogo took the fiber into their cave, the villagers threw in a firebrand to set it alight. The story goes that all the occupants were killed, except perhaps for one pair, who fled into the deepest forest, and whose descendants may be living there still.
There are also legends about the Ebu Gogo kidnapping human children, hoping to learn from them how to cook. The children always easily outwit the Ebu Gogo in the tales.
on Flores Homo floresiensis
, alive at least as recently as 13,000 years ago, has inspired more literal interpretations of the Ebu Gogo stories. Anthropologist
Gregory Forth, Professor of Anthropology at the University of Alberta, Canada has stated that "wildman" myths are prevalent in Southeast Asia and has investigated their linguistic and ritual roots, speculating that H. floresiensis may be evidence that the folktales of Ebu Gogo and similar creatures such as the Orang Pendek
on Sumatra
may be rooted in fact.
Legendary creature
A legendary creature is a mythological or folkloric creature.-Origin:Some mythical creatures have their origin in traditional mythology and have been believed to be real creatures, for example the dragon, the unicorn, and griffin...
of Flores
Flores
Flores is one of the Lesser Sunda Islands, an island arc with an estimated area of 14,300 km² extending east from the Java island of Indonesia. The population was 1.831.000 in the 2010 census and the largest town is Maumere. Flores is Portuguese for "flowers".Flores is located east of Sumbawa...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
. In the Nage language of central Flores, ebu means 'grandmother' and gogo means 'he who eats anything'.
Appearance
The NageNage
For the poaching liquor, see nage The Nage are an indigenous people living on the eastern Indonesian island of Flores.-Study of the tribe:...
people of Flores describe the Ebu Gogo as having been able walkers and fast runners around 1.5m tall. They reportedly had wide and flat noses, broad faces with large mouths and hairy bodies. The females also had "long, pendulous breasts." They were said to have murmured in what was assumed to be their own language and could reportedly repeat what was said to them in a parrot-like fashion.
Appearance in Nage folklore
The legends relating to the Ebu Gogo were traditionally, according to the journal NatureNature (journal)
Nature, first published on 4 November 1869, is ranked the world's most cited interdisciplinary scientific journal by the Science Edition of the 2010 Journal Citation Reports...
, attributed to monkey
Monkey
A monkey is a primate, either an Old World monkey or a New World monkey. There are about 260 known living species of monkey. Many are arboreal, although there are species that live primarily on the ground, such as baboons. Monkeys are generally considered to be intelligent. Unlike apes, monkeys...
s.
The Nage people believe that the Ebu Gogo were alive at the time of the arrival of Portuguese trading ships
Portuguese Empire
The Portuguese Empire , also known as the Portuguese Overseas Empire or the Portuguese Colonial Empire , was the first global empire in history...
in the 17th century, and some hold that they survived as recently as the 20th century, but are now no longer seen. The Ebu Gogo are believed to have been hunted to extinction by the human inhabitants of Flores. They believe that the extermination, which culminated around seven generations ago, was undertaken because the Ebu Gogo stole food from human dwellings, and kidnapped children.
An article in New Scientist
New Scientist
New Scientist is a weekly non-peer-reviewed English-language international science magazine, which since 1996 has also run a website, covering recent developments in science and technology for a general audience. Founded in 1956, it is published by Reed Business Information Ltd, a subsidiary of...
(Vol. 186, No. 2504) gives the following account of folklore on Flores surrounding the Ebu Gogo: The Nage
Nage
For the poaching liquor, see nage The Nage are an indigenous people living on the eastern Indonesian island of Flores.-Study of the tribe:...
people of central Flores tell how, in the 18th century, villagers disposed of the Ebu Gogo by tricking them into accepting gifts of palm fiber to make clothes. When the Ebu Gogo took the fiber into their cave, the villagers threw in a firebrand to set it alight. The story goes that all the occupants were killed, except perhaps for one pair, who fled into the deepest forest, and whose descendants may be living there still.
There are also legends about the Ebu Gogo kidnapping human children, hoping to learn from them how to cook. The children always easily outwit the Ebu Gogo in the tales.
Speculated connection to Homo floresiensis
The discovery of the remains of a meter-tall hominidHominidae
The Hominidae or include them .), as the term is used here, form a taxonomic family, including four extant genera: chimpanzees , gorillas , humans , and orangutans ....
on Flores Homo floresiensis
Homo floresiensis
Homo floresiensis is a possible species, now extinct, in the genus Homo. The remains were discovered in 2003 on the island of Flores in Indonesia. Partial skeletons of nine individuals have been recovered, including one complete cranium...
, alive at least as recently as 13,000 years ago, has inspired more literal interpretations of the Ebu Gogo stories. Anthropologist
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
Gregory Forth, Professor of Anthropology at the University of Alberta, Canada has stated that "wildman" myths are prevalent in Southeast Asia and has investigated their linguistic and ritual roots, speculating that H. floresiensis may be evidence that the folktales of Ebu Gogo and similar creatures such as the Orang Pendek
Orang Pendek
Orang Pendek is the most common name given to a cryptid, or cryptozoological animal, that reportedly inhabits remote, mountainous forests on the island of Sumatra....
on Sumatra
Sumatra
Sumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...
may be rooted in fact.