A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

Overview

The baboons see a man returning from a visit to white men with a gift of flour. They call him uncle and plan to cross his path and knock him down. He asks what they are saying, then mocks their foreheads as resembling overhanging cliffs. They become angry, break off sticks and approach to beat him. Their children join the band and ask their parents to give them his head to play with. The man hears their conversation and climbs a krieboom, hoping to keep beyond their immediate reach.

Below him, the young baboons discuss how long they could play with his large head without it breaking. An adult rebukes them: since their intended victim is grown, the grown baboons should receive his pieces. This conversation gives the band speech, kinship language and an age hierarchy, rather than supplying a single named monster. The narrator’s note separately gives a name and the Dutch designation Schildwacht for the large old baboon that follows the others.

The threatened man reasons that the baboons fear guns. He shouts as if calling the white men to drive them away, although the text identifies this as a deception. The baboons look around and flee towards the cliffs. He rapidly descends and runs in the other direction, escaping. Dia!kwain says that the man himself told this account to him and several other named listeners when they were children. That reported childhood transmission is distinct from Dia!kwain claiming to have witnessed the confrontation.

SpeechBand and family hierarchyStick weaponsThreatened head-takingFear of gunsFlight after bluff
01

Origins & earliest records

Bleek and Lloyd, Specimens of Bushman Folklore (1911), VII.—148, The Baboons and ||xabbiten||xabbiten, complete pp. 254–259. February 1876 Dia!kwain heading names the man as his source; the note records childhood listeners.

02

Records & interpretation

Complete account and notes read through the two parties’ separate flight on p. 259. Spoken threats and age hierarchy support this animal-band profile; the flour-carrier’s identity is retained bibliographically without creating a second supernatural being. The threatened mutilation does not occur.

In the literature

“baboons are not a little afraid of a gun”
W. H. I. Bleek and Lucy C. Lloyd · Specimens of Bushman Folklore
VII.—148, The Baboons and ||xabbiten||xabbiten; complete pp.254–259 and all notes; brief prose excerpt p.259 · Bleek–Lloyd original English translation; Lucy C. Lloyd, editor; L. identifies the earlier report listing

A flour-carrier insults the speaking baboons’ cliff-like foreheads; adults carry sticks and children demand his head. He climbs a krieboom; the adults dispute the children’s proposed share of his pieces. He bluffs by shouting for armed assistance, which frightens the band into flight. He descends and escapes; neither head-taking nor actual gunfire occurs.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

  1. 01

    Specimens of Bushman Folklore

    W. H. I. Bleek and Lucy C. Lloyd, collectors/editors · 1911

    VII.—148, whole pp. 254–259, February 1876 heading and source/listener notes.

  2. 02

    Specimens of Bushman Folklore — VII.—148, The Baboons and ||xabbiten||xabbiten; complete pp.254–259 and all notes

    W. H. I. Bleek and Lucy C. Lloyd; Dia!kwain narrative witness · 1911

    London: George Allen & Company,1911; original bilingual edition. Complete selected English account and all notes read; contributor heading, brief excerpt and complete ending checked in original page pixels.

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.

Located primary passages

Specific passages supporting details in this entry, grouped by their published witness.

Specimens of Bushman Folklore

London: George Allen & Company,1911; original bilingual edition. Complete selected English account and all notes read; contributor heading, brief excerpt and complete ending checked in original page pixels.

  1. A flour-carrier insults the speaking baboons’ cliff-like foreheads; adults carry sticks and children demand his head. He climbs a krieboom; the adults dispute the children’s proposed share of his pieces. He bluffs by shouting for armed assistance, which frightens the band into flight. He descends and escapes; neither head-taking nor actual gunfire occurs.

    VII.—148, The Baboons and ||xabbiten||xabbiten; complete pp.254–259 and all notes; Complete reported encounter pp.254–259/all notes

No entire volume, original performance/manuscript archive or independent translation of facing |Xam text claimed. Adjacent chapter material not treated as complete new coverage. Reported testimony and inherited interpretation retain their distinct attribution.

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

  1. Primary collected reported encounter with explanatory notesOriginal 1911 bilingual edition: Baboons and Flour-CarrierResearch access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

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