Gallinipper (mythology)

For the gallinipper, a large New World mosquito, see Psorophora ciliata.
Gallinipper
GroupingCryptid
FolkloreAfrican-American folktales
CountryAmerica

The gallinipper is a cryptid in the African-American folk tradition.[1] These creatures were said to be a species of giant mosquitoes so big that their bones could fence a 140-acre field.[2][1] A popular telling of the legends has the creature get its bill out of a tree trunk, with the animal being large enough to clear 140 acres of land during the struggle.[3][1][4] Gallinipper tales were appropriated as a feature of minstrel shows, but have also appeared in American blues songs such as "Mosquito Moan" by Blind Lemon Jefferson [Paramount 12899], 1929.[5]

References

  1. ^ a b c Dorson, Richard M. (1954). "Negro Tales". Western Folklore. 13 (2/3). Western States Folklore Society: 160–169. doi:10.2307/1520611. JSTOR 1520611.
  2. ^ Justus, James H (2004). Fetching the Old Southwest: Humorous Writing from Longstreet to Twain. University of Missouri Press. pp. 391–394. ISBN 9780826264176.
  3. ^ Fauset, Arthur Huff (1927). "Negro Folk Tales from the South. (Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana)". The Journal of American Folklore. 40 (157). American Folklore Society: 261. doi:10.2307/534988. JSTOR 534988.
  4. ^ Ancelet, Barry Jean (1980). "Talking Pascal in Mamou: A Study in Folkloric Competence". Journal of the Folklore Institute. 17 (1). Indiana University Press: 1–24. doi:10.2307/3814219. JSTOR 3814219.
  5. ^ Waymer, Jim (June 13, 2013). "'Giant' mosquito invasion? Nope, just another Florida critter". Florida Today. Melbourne, Florida: Gannett Co., Inc.


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