An ol’ man an’ a wife was travelling going on walk when they hear a nice music was playing an’ the ol’ man say to his wife, “O Quasiba,[1] hear dat sweet music singing over yonder. I like [[177]]to know where dat music come from.”—“Ol’ man, you tak time walk an’ we soon hear where dat music from.… But Bruddie, dat ol’ Cumbolo dat was singing las’ night!”—“Den you mus’ come let we dance de Cumbolo, Susan, we all a Cumbolo!” (sing and dance)—
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Susan, da’we all a Cumbolo. Susan, da’we all a Cumbolo.[2]
[1] Two school-mistresses in Bethlehem, Santa Cruz Mountains, gave the following list of “born-day names” which belong to negro children in Jamaica according to the day of the week upon which they are born. See Jekyll, int. x (l.c.).
An old woman who was telling me of some obeah practises assured me that the obi-man (sorcerer) did not use a man’s common name when he wanted to bewitch him, but his “born-day” name.
| Boys | Girls | |
| Sunday | Quashy | Quashiba |
| Monday | Quaco | Juba |
| Tuesday | Cubena | Cuba |
| Wednesday | Cudjo | Bennie |
| Thursday | Quaw | Abba |
| Friday | Cuffy | Pheba |
| Saturday | Quamin | Benneba. |
[2] The music was recorded by a colored boy who was organist in the church at Bethlehem. The dance (also called “calimbe”) is performed at wakes, two men holding a couple of sticks parallel while a third dances upon them to the strains of the song. [↑]