West African cultures, especially the Yoruba, have a long history of divination practices that involve bone throwing. Their system of divination, known as Ifá, involves the use of palm nuts or cowrie shells, but bones and other objects are also used in certain practices. In the Yoruba tradition, the diviner (called a “Babalawo” for males or “Iyalawo” for females) communicates with the Orishas (spirits or deities) to gain insight. Bone throwing in certain African cultures was not just for personal prediction but was also used in communal rituals, for healing, and for maintaining harmony within the community.
Native American cultures, particularly those of the Plains tribes, practiced forms of divination using bones. In some tribes, the practice of bone throwing was used to interpret the will of the Great Spirit or spirits of ancestors. The practice might involve the use of bones from animals like deer or buffalo, and the divination was often tied to the community’s needs, such as hunting or resolving conflicts.
In China, bones (specifically oracle bones) were used as a form of divination in ancient times, especially during the Shang dynasty (c. 1600–1046 BCE). These oracle bones, made from turtle shells or ox scapulae, were inscribed with characters and used for pyromancy (a form of divination involving fire). While not exactly the same as bone throwing, this practice of interpreting patterns from marks on bones is related to the broader idea of using bones as a means of communication with the spiritual world.
Bone throwing was also practiced in parts of Europe, particularly among the Celts and Norse peoples. The Celts had a variety of divination methods that involved bones and other natural objects. In Norse culture, the runes carved on bones or other materials were used for divination and to receive guidance from the gods. In medieval Europe, practices like casting lots, throwing bones, or using objects with symbolic significance for divination became part of folk magic, often tied to local or regional religious practices.
