Headhunter tribe

The Headhunter tribe also known as the Umbala tribe is a group from the Jungle Cruise.

Description[]

The headhunter tribe is a tribe which inhabited the jungles along the Nile river in North Africa (in either Egypt or Sudan). They had a reputation for headhunting colonists to sever their heads for decorative skulls. Supposedly they were able to perform mysterious, magical rituals through the use of these skulls.

Members[]

Dancers[]

Witch doctor: This was the tribe's, "witch-doctor" who had a hut adorned with skulls.

Drummers[]

Horn-players[]

Warriors[]

Warriors of the Umbala tribe wore colourful wooden masks which were often-times horned. They could disguise themselves as greenery, and attacked using spears, blow-darts and colourful shields.

History[]

Background[]

Treasures of the Seven Seas[]

The Umbala tribe was a North African tribe active in some way since at-least the 18th century. The tribe made its territory along the Nile adjacent to a mystical waterway system known as the Rivers of Adventure that connected locations across the globe. It is unknown if the Umbala were aware of these rivers or ever used them in their history.

The tribe possessed a magical stone statue which held the, "Treasure of the Pacific" a golden and bejewelled skull. This skull was one of seven treasures which was originally created by the goddess of the sea, Calypso. Said treasure was sought after by pirates whom the Umbala killed and left as undead skulls. This was until the pirates Captain Jack Sparrow and Captain Hector Barbossa competed to reach the treasure first. Ultimately, Sparrow's crew came out successful and claimed the treasure.

Jungle Navigation Company[]

In the 1930s, the territory of the Umbala tribe was frequently invaded by the English colonial company, the Jungle Navigation Company; a company's whose founder Dr. Albert Falls had named an Umbala territory waterfall after himself in 1891, turning it into the tourist location, "Schweitzer Falls". The headhunters took a habit of killing the colonists, most frequently those who took boats through their territories. Skulls were mounted throughout the tribe's territory as a warning against the British invaders. In 1931, Dr. Albert Falls' granddaughter and successor Alberta Falls began the, "Jungle Cruise" which took tourism boats through Umbala territory.

Around 1936, the tribe attacked a boat with one, "Trader Dan" who tried to make a warning transmission for his fellow skippers, only to be cut off as he was presumably killed by the Umbala. When the Jungle Navigation Company mass-polluted the jungles of Adventureland with Christmas decoration, the tribe's people were observed wearing Christmas ugly sweaters, dancing to holiday victrola music, and decorating their village and skulls with Christmas lights (powered by an unknown source) as the ambush party cheered on colonists, letting them go in the holiday spirit. Around 1936/1938, the tribe killed a search party being ferried by a JNC boat and claimed their skulls.

Following a 1938 mission to find the Holy Grail, archaeologist Indiana Jones visited Umbala territory and/or encountered the Umbala tribe. Through unknown means, Jones lost possession of a headdress to the Umbala. This tribe belonged to Jones' dead enemy Mola Ram, the dark leader of the Thuggee in Pankot, India. The Umbala would mysteriously mount the headdress on a spike near their village. A Jungle Cruise boat would identify the location of the headdress and presumably recover it.

Development history[]

Creation & changes[]

The headhunter tribe were stereotypes integrated in the Jungle Cruise as antagonists. They used to appear celebrating the kill of a lion which was hung along the water. One skipper comment remarked on the Umbala celebration, " Looks like they're celebrating the kill of a lion, probably caught raiding the village. Try not to be seen, or else they'll be celebrating over us, too" The tribe members originally had predominately visible faces, having originally had much more offensive appearances, minstrel lips, and war-paint.

In Jungle River Cruise, they are shown using blow-guns which is not a weapon traditional to any African tribe and was instead likely taken from South American tribes such as the Jivaroan. In the 2021 refurbishment, several changes were made to the Jungle Cruise to remove the attraction of its more insensitive elements. Skulls throughout Adventureland and tribal masks in the Jungle Cruise were likewise removed. The tribe continues to appear in Hong Kong Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland.

Racism[]

The headhunter tribe were stereotypes integrated in the Jungle Cruise as antagonists. The tribe represented an inaccurate colonial stereotype which depicted Africana people as primitive and hostile when compared to Western colonists and furthermore portrayed their retaliation to European colonialism as a vilified trait. Headhunting is not a trait affiliated with African tribes but is rather a colonial exaggeration of practices belonging to Polynesian and South American tribes. Likewise, blowguns are affiliated with South American tribes rather than any African tribe.

While the removal of the vilified tribe was generally well received, the execution of it was controversial. Namely were claims of the altered attraction adhering to a form of white settler propaganda known as Terra nullius which is historically used to portray Indigenous territories in jungle region as open for colonization due to being allegedly devoid of civilization. This implication was likewise enhanced due to the same refurbishment romanticizing several characters emblematic of white colonial figures including Dr. Albert Falls and the Society of Explorers and Adventurers.

Appearances[]

Adventureland[]

Skulls belonging to the tribe used to be mounted throughout Adventureland. Their masks used to be on display near the gates of Adventureland.^[1]

A Pirate's Adventure: Treasures of the Seven Seas[]

The headhunters are antagonists in the mission, "Heads, you lose".

Big Game Safari Shooting Gallery[]

Umbala masks marked the exterior of this attraction. The backdrop of the attraction itself featured the Headhunter village being shot at by guests in the roles of big-game hunters.

Jungle Cruise[]

1955-2021[]

The Umbala performed a celebration in their territory before a small group of their warriors attacked boats. A warning transmission in the queue from Trader Dan spoke about being attacked by them, only to be cut off as the headhunters presumably killed him. The Amazon River Base contained missing posters for the Missing Search Party, killed by the Umbala.

2021-present[]

The Umbala do not appear in the ride itself. Their victrola and one of their Christmas sweaters can be found in Trader Sam's Gift Shop!, the sweater being pulled at by monkeys. The impaled stack of skulls does still appear nearby the Treasure of the Pacific.

Jingle Cruise[]

In Disneyland's extant version of this overlay, the Umbala were shown in sweaters dancing to a victrola playing holiday music. The tribe itself was decorated with holiday paraphernalia. The, "Ambush" was made up of several warriors drinking and cheering the passing boat.

Indiana Jones Summer of Hidden Mysteries[]

In this overlay, the headdress of Mola Ram appeared in their possession and was left behind by Indiana Jones.^[2]

Jungle River Cruise[]

The headhunter tribe still appears in this version of the attraction. When they spot JNC boats, they begin firing at them with poison blow-darts.

Tropical Hideaway[]

The ice-cream item, "The Twisted Ambush" is named as a reference to the Umbala's ambush.^[3] The name is likely in reference to how the item looks like it is impaled with various spears, similar to those used by the tribe's warriors.

Jock Lindsey's Hangar Bar[]

To promote the Jungle Cruise film, this bar served the duck-based meal-item, "Everyone DUCK!" flatbread. The name of this item was an allusion to what skippers would announce when attacked by the tribe in the attraction.

Trader Sam's[]

A renamed menu-item was called, "Headhunter Sushi Rolls" which was renamed to, "Big Kahuna Sushi Rolls".^[4]

In other media[]

Film[]

Jungle Cruise (film)[]

In this film, the, "Natives" are actors hired by Frank Wolff for his charlatanizeid attraction. The Puka Michuna tribe is also partially inspired by the Umbala.

Printed materials[]

Skipper Survival Guide[]

An entry from December 4th, 1934 mentioned a Jungle Navigation Company skipper named Herb passing through headhunter territory where three of his passengers were lost along with most of his cargo.

Trivia[]

The characterization of the tribe may be inspired by Joseph Conrad's 1899 novella Heart of Darkness, which features scenes of Indigenous African peoples attacking the British with spears.
One of the headhunters in the attraction shouted out, "I love disco!" during the ambush.
One of the headhunter warriors was shown with a mask modelled after Donald Duck. A similar mask was hung outside of the JNC's Lost Delta boathouse.
- Unused concept-art by Marc Davis showed the entrance for the boathouse in Disneyland would have been decorated with headhunter masks. Also in this concept art were African elephant-tusks.
Headhunting is not a practice traditionally affiliated with African tribes.
Promotional materials mentioned the Umbala as burning skulls as part of their mysterious rituals.^[5]
A removed shield from the headhunter camp in Disneyland showed the logo for the Lion King musical.^[6]
While being an African tribe, the Umbala are highly anachronistic.
- Headhunting is traditionally affiliated as a Pacific Islander practice.
- Blowguns are a South American form of weaponry.
- The Pacific Ocean is not located near North Africa.
- The Treasure of the Pacific was decorated with stone-carvings resembling those of Asian cultures, in-particular resembling the Irrawaddy ruins and Cambodian temple of the Jungle Cruise.
Several skipper jokes and comments seemingly hinted at the Umbala's history and culture to unknown canonicity:
- The skipper throw-away joke, "Would you folks please remove your watches and jewelry? The natives have been complaining of indigestion" seemingly implied the Umbala to practice cannibalism though the canonicity of this is unknown.
- "Those two trophies in the witch doctor's hut belonged to two of the nicest tourists who ever took a shortcut through the jungle" referenced them having a witch doctor.
- The boat of skulls has been referred to as a, "Tribal Burial Canoe".
- Some skippers translated the Umbala chant as, "You put your...left foot in...you put...your left foot out..." referencing the song, the Hokey Pokey.
- A much older comment stated they used bushes from the veldt to create a deadly, "Bushman's Poison".
- They were sometimes mentioned as growing to seven feet or more in height.^[7]

The artwork from the Umbala's huts is also used on a shack in the Lost Delta of India, located across from the Jungle Navigation Company's boathouse.
Occasionally, Nigel Greenwater's broadcast on the Global Broadcasting Service will be interrupted by the transmission of tribal drumming music. It is possible that this is the drumming of the Umbala tribe.