Illustration of a pig genie riding a red river hog, by Jean Claude Thibault
Illustration of pig genii with human hunters by Jean Claude Thibault
- Other names: Pig ghost
- Country reported: Central African Republic
The pig genie (plural pig genii) was a cryptid small hominid reported from the Central African Republic.[1]
They are said to act as herdsmen to red river hogs (Potamochoerus porcus), leading them through the forests and using them as mounts. If a hog refuses to allow a pig genie to ride it, the genie will punish it by chasing it towards traps set by human hunters. They are also said to take part, alongside human hunters, in a ritual called boyebe, in which the hunters and the pig genii dance around a fire.[1]
Karl Shuker notes that the pig genie is similar to the agogwe of Tanzania and Mozambique, the fating 'ho of Senegal, the kakundakari of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the séhité of Côte d'Ivoire, which Bernard Heuvelmans speculated may be living australopithecines, proto-pymies, or bipedal chimpanzees. Shuker suggests that the dancing, hunting rituals, and pig-riding and herding of the pig genii are simply superstitions.[1]