A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.
Overview
Siòna has something human about it but is distinguished from Kinòly and Angalàpona. It lives away from settlements and steals rice or chopping tools left unguarded by travelers in uninhabited country. At night it approaches the large logs woodcutters leave burning and warms itself at their fire. Its food includes an avòko root and other substances. Lichen covers its whole body, allowing it to blend with a rock even when someone stands nearby. No wings, cap, pointed ears or fixed miniature height are specified in this notice.
The account also records fear that an ill person who loses ordinary awareness may become a Siòna, and reports friends intervening to avert that fate. These statements concern historical interpretations of illness and social rescue, not a verified transformation or diagnosis. Sibree’s introductory description calls it a diminutive pilfering elf, while the translated notice emphasizes concealment, remote habitation, stolen equipment and fire warmth. The source therefore supports a particular wilderness-being representation without establishing that every reported lichen-covered shape was understood the same way by all Malagasy communities.
Origins & earliest records
Sibree translates the marvellous-creature notices in Dahle’s Malagasy collection, identifying their heading as accounts from the Betsileo district. Missionary collection and English translation mediate unnamed contributors; quoted named witnesses are preserved only where supplied.
Records & interpretation
The Folk-Lore Journal volume 1 printed pp 169–174, selected notice Siòna. Proofread page transcription with linked scans. Claims of encounters and transformations remain attributed narrative testimony; no present-day community consensus or biological identity inferred.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
On the Oratory, Songs, Legends, and Folk-tales of the Malagasy — Marvellous Creatures
Printed pages 174–174; numbered fabulous-creature notice.
Family & connections
A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.
References
Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.
- Primary collected narrative translation, proofread transcriptionFolk-Lore Journal 1883 — printed p 174Research access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
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