"Dzo" as "magic"? - A Tricky Translation

Abstract

This article problematizes the translation of powerful materials such as dzokawo employed by Ewe-speakers in southeastern Ghana and southern Togo as “magic,” pointing out how magic became a colonial and missionary category indicating an instance of “bad” religion and enmeshed with the idea of “idol” and “fetish.” Unpacking how such terms from the colonial lexicon still inform how dzokawo are understood today, I try to open up for alternative translations of dzokawo as forces. This yields the possibility of a take on magic as a play of and with forces that permeate the universe.