Afek is a mythic heroine in the religion of the
Min peoples Min people may refer to:
*Speakers of Min Chinese, a variety of Chinese originating in Fujian province
*The people of Minyue, an ancient Baiyue kingdom in present-day Fujian from which Min Chinese gets its name
*Mountain Ok people The Min peoples o ...
living in
Sandaun Province
Sandaun Province (formerly West Sepik Province) is the northwesternmost mainland province of Papua New Guinea. It covers an area of 35,920 km2 (13868 m2) and has a population of 248,411 (2011 census). The capital is Vanimo. In July 1998 the a ...
of
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...
.
[Biersack 2006, pp. 176-177.]
Humans were believed created in a multiple birth of the cultural heroine Afek, emerging immediately after the first dog. Afek gave the bush to the spirits right before birthing humans so that they would clear out the villages for the humans to dwell in.
Since as such dogs are spirits (and the "older brother" of man),
Urapmin do not kill or eat them (unlike some neighboring tribes), nor do they let dogs breathe on their food. (This contrasts with humans—the Urapmin previously had no
cannibalism
Cannibalism is the act of consuming another individual of the same species as food. Cannibalism is a common ecological interaction in the animal kingdom and has been recorded in more than 1,500 species. Human cannibalism is well documented, b ...
taboo, but they can share food with them.) In fact, the taboo on eating dogs is one of the few still widely observed.
[Biersack 2006, pp. 177, 190.]
See also
*
Afekan, equivalent of Afek in Tifalmin mythology
References
Bibliography
*
Heroes in mythology and legend
Papua New Guinean mythology
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