Arctic latah
J. O’May’s brief note “Arctic Latah” (JMBRAS 1(2), 1923, pp. 381–383) draws parallels between the Malay psychogenic condition of latah and analogous abnormal mental phenomena observed among Arctic and North Siberian peoples.
Summary
O’May argues that the abnormal mental phenomena among North Siberian peoples such as the Yakuts are “notably similar” to those among Malays and “still more similar” to those among the Dayak peoples, and that the pawang and manang are essentially equivalent to the Central Asian shaman, a point previously made by Archdeacon Perham in 1887 (p. 382). He further contends that the outbursts of profanity for which the latah subject is famous are not peculiar to the condition, citing parallels among Yakut shamans, Batak spirit possession, and the insane generally, as well as among normal people under nitrous oxide or in hypnagogic states (p. 382). The note closes with an anecdote from Dr. T. B. Hyslop illustrating the extraordinary vocabulary that can emerge from a sub-conscious state, reinforcing O’May’s conclusion that the linguistic outbursts of latah admit of a general psychological explanation rather than being specific to the Malay context (p. 383).