Kinkirsi (Kinkirga)
Kinkirsi (singular: Kinkirga) are the powerful nature spirits of the Mossi people of Burkina Faso, invisible beings that inhabit the untamed wilderness beyond village boundaries. According to Mossi cosmology, these spirits are 'as numerous as the stars' and occupy all spaces not inhabited or cultivated by humans — sacred woods, hills, rivers, rocky outcrops, and wild plains. The Kinkirsi are described as small, invisible beings with large heads and long hair, and they play an essential role in human procreation: Mossi tradition holds that a Kinkirga spirit enters a woman's womb during concepti