The Popobawa
On Zanzibar, people said a bat-winged spirit attacked men in their sleep, and whole villages slept outdoors in fear.
What was reported
The popobawa, a Swahili name meaning 'bat wing', is said to be a shadowy spirit that comes at night, sometimes as a one-eyed figure with bat-like wings, and attacks people, mostly men, in their sleep. Reports go back to Pemba island in the 1970s.
In 1995 a wave of reports swept Zanzibar and parts of mainland Tanzania. Many families slept outdoors in groups, believing it struck those who slept alone indoors.
Explanations offered
Researchers suggest sleep paralysis, which can bring a terrifying sense of a presence pressing on the chest, combined with rumour and social tension, often around elections. Further waves of reports came in 2000, 2001 and 2007.
- When
- Waves of reports from 1995
- Where
- Pemba, Zanzibar, Tanzania
- Witnesses
- Villagers across Zanzibar
- Status
- Mostly explained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.