A Simbi (also spelled Cymbee and Sim'bi, plural: Bisimbi or Basimbi) is a guardian spirit of water and nature in the traditional religion of the Bakongo people of Central Africa. It is also honored in spiritual traditions of African descendants in other parts of the world, such as Hoodoo in the southern United States and Palo in Cuba. Simbi have been historically linked to water people, mermaids, pottery, snakes, gourds, and fire. The Atlantic slave trade forced many Bantu people to leave Africa and be taken to the Americas. This movement of more than 12.5 million people explains why the worship of Simbi continues today in countries like the United States, Brazil, Cuba, and Haiti.

Etymology

Although there are few written records about the word "simbi," many agree that it began in communities that speak Bantu and Kongo languages. It was likely used to help these people understand the spiritual aspects of the world around them.

Some people think the word "simbi" comes from "simba," a Kikongo word meaning "to hold, keep, or preserve." A similar phrase, "isimba ia nsi," which means "a respected person in the community," was written in a Kikongo dictionary from the 1700s. Other phrases, like "kisímbi kinsí," meaning "the very old person who does not die," are some of the earliest examples showing how "bisimbi" is connected to both the world of the living and the world of the dead.

The word "basimbi" also means "guardians." Over time, the phrase "isimba ia nsi" came to mean "guardians of the land."

Kongo spirituality

The Bakongo people believe that bisimbi are magical water spirits (in Kikongo: nkisi mia mamba) that can appear as a person, a snake, pottery, a calabash vine, or Kalûnga, a spark of fire, similar to the spark that started the universe in Kongo creation stories. Some people also say bisimbi can appear as birds, twisted trees, or beings that look like mermaids. They are seen as protectors of nature and messengers who travel the Kalûnga Line between Ku Seke, the physical world of the living, and Ku Mpémba, the spiritual world of ancestors. Bisimbi are also believed to be spiritual guides who use storytelling and oral traditions to help the living connect with ancestors and learn about their history. The phrase kisímbi kinsí shows how important Bakongo elders are to the spiritual health of the community and how they pass down beliefs from one generation to the next.

The American diaspora

The belief that bisimbi live in rocks, gullies, streams, and pools and can affect the health and success of people in the area was brought to the United States by enslaved Bakongo and Mbundu people. Because about 40% of enslaved Africans taken during the Atlantic slave trade came from Central Africa’s Congo Basin, and 40% of enslaved people brought to South Carolina between 1733 and 1807 were from Kongo or Ambundu groups in Angola, bisimbi became important in Black American communities in Hoodoo traditions across the American South.

The earliest known record of simbi spirits was written in the 1800s by Edmund Ruffin, a wealthy slaveholder from Virginia who traveled to South Carolina to improve farming methods for enslaved workers. Ruffin wrote about a young enslaved boy who saw a cymbee (a simbi water spirit) running around a fountain at Pooshee Plantation near the Santee Canal. Ruffin noted that enslaved people believed cymbees were common, and it was considered bad luck to talk about seeing one, as it was said that doing so could lead to death. Another enslaved man described simbi spirits as having long hair.

In Black American folklore, the Gullah Geechee people of the Carolina Lowcountry tell a children’s story called Sukey and the Mermaid. In the story, a girl named Sukey meets a mermaid named Mama Jo, who helps and gives her gold coins. This story reflects the belief in simbi spirits from Central Africa, which were brought to the United States during the Atlantic slave trade. In Africa, simbi spirits are believed to protect people and bring them wealth. There are also stories in Africa about people meeting mermaids during the Middle Passage, the journey of enslaved Africans across the Atlantic.

The belief in bisimbi also exists in Haitian spiritual traditions. While Haitian Vodou is mostly influenced by West African religions from Benin and Nigeria, it also includes Central African influences from the Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Angola. These influences appear in the form of bisimbi, which are sometimes called lwa but remain sacred in Haitian culture. Examples include Mami Wata, Nsimba, and Nzuzi.

In an Afro-Cuban religion called Palo, bisimbi are called Nkitas and Mpungus (also spelled Ampungus). These spirits are similar to Kongo nature spirits that live in the Nfinda, or forest, which is also called Mfinda in Bakongo religion. They are believed to protect nature, including lakes, forests, and mountains.

In popular culture

• Governor General Michaëlle Jean of Ottawa, Canada, was born in Haiti. Her coat of arms includes two simbi serpents as symbols.
• The Deep, a book written by Rivers Solomon, uses Black American stories about a group of people who are like mermaids. In the story, they are called wajinru. These characters are said to come from Africans who were either thrown off slave ships or chose to jump into the water, preferring death to being enslaved.