zumbi

Zumbi, commonly known as Zumbi dos Palmares, was a 17th‑century Brazilian leader of the Quilombo dos Palmares, the most populous and durable of the fugitive slave communities (quilombos) in colonial Brazil. Born around 1655 in Palmares, his birth name is not clearly recorded; he adopted the name Zumbi early in life. Palmares was located in the area of Serra da Barriga, in what is now the state of Alagoas, and at times housed tens of thousands of escaped enslaved Africans, Indigenous people, and free Brazilians who banded together to resist colonial slavery.

After the death of Ganga Zumba, who had led Palmares in earlier years, Zumbi became the paramount leader around 1678. He continued the community’s resistance against Portuguese incursions and slave raids, successfully defending Palmares for many years and maintaining a network of villages and alliances that helped preserve the settlement’s independence.

Zumbi died during the 1695 siege of Palmares, when Portuguese forces led by Domingos Jorge Velho attacked the settlement at Serra da Barriga. Sources differ on the exact circumstances, but most agree that he was killed during the assault, and his death became a symbol of the end of Palmares as an organized, independent free state. His head is reputedly said to have been displayed in Recife, though details vary by account.

Today, Zumbi is remembered as a prominent symbol of Afro-Brazilian resistance to slavery and oppression. November 20, the date of his death, is observed in Brazil as Black Awareness Day (Dia da Consciência Negra). The Palmares legacy and Zumbi’s memory are widely discussed in Brazilian history as part of the broader narrative of resistance to slavery and colonialism.