A Glimpse Into the Culture of Gemignani
As an anthropologist, this trip was an opportunity to live unobserved with the Gemignani tribe. I was deeply embedded within them; I even had my own backpack!
The Gemignani (sometimes spelled Gengawn) live together in small family units of five or so. They can be observed traveling by train or miniature automobile. Migrants, they seldom stay in one place for long. Fortunately, these omnivorous migrants leave little environmental impact behind them.
It was a chance to observe the younger members of the tribe blossoming in their own special ways that brought the richest cultural rewards.
The eldest redhead, was named Monkey. Her work habits were truly astonishing. Seizing her mother’s computer she would work far into the night drawing, plotting, sketching and planning on game creation software called “RPG Maker VX Ace”.
The middle male, named Buster, was perhaps prophetically named for his chaotic tendencies. While other family members had little problem remaining shod, he required no provocation to remove his sandals. Sometimes his bare feet could even be seen on the side of the dinner table, which earned scowls from the elder members of the tribe.
The youngest, a girl named Yessa, was a force of her own. Prone to ritualistic chanting, I often observed her on trains bursting past travelers with a rhythmic call of “stranger danger”. This seemed to strike her as humerous as she would whirl to a parental figure with a mad gleam in her eye. The second phrase that she often shrieked while attacking her brother (mock battles being one of the characteristic pass-times of this people) was “purple nurple”. Initially, I thought this related to a common childhood character.
Deeper (and painful) research made it clear that “purple nurple” was culturally related to an 1980s American tradition called a “titty twister”.
The Gemignani are a very intriguing people who live simple lives that seem to require only the light of electronics to sustain them. Though I have unpacked my backpack, I will not forget this time with them.
