Genie Myths and Lore Trivia Quiz

Answer: Smokeless fire

Jinn are somewhat demonic creatures with free will. Sometimes the word jinn is interchangeably used with demon. The word jinn loosely means "to hide" referring to the fact that humans cannot see them, but genies can see humans.

Answer: Refusing to bow to Adam

Iblis was a jinni who thought he was better than Adam because Allah made Adam from clay. Iblis was punished by being sent to Jahannam or Hell and became Shaytan or Satan.

As Shaytan, the jinni tries to steer humans and other genies away from Allah through trickery.

Answer: Solomon

Solomon is often associated with jinn in Islamic lore as it is believed he could control the jinn. It is said that the jinn were an essential part of Solomon's rule as he ordered them to build his monuments among other tasks.

Genie, voiced by Robin Williams in Disney's "Aladdin" is similar to an ifrit. Genie was trapped in a lamp and granted wishes to whoever freed him. The ifrit in "The Fisherman and the Jinni" wanted to grant pleasant things to whoever freed him, but because his liberation took too long, he vowed to kill whoever eventually freed him. The fisherman was able to spare his own life and received great compensation from the sultan (which the genie said would happen after he spared the fisherman's life.) Ifrits can be good or evil but are often depicted as evil or evil then turned good.

Answer: False

Hadji is the name of the Chief of all Genies on the television show "I Dream of Jeannie." Hadji was played by Abraham Sofaer. Jeannie was played by Barbara Eden and Larry Hagman was Captain Nelson.

Answer: True

Ghouls are said to be evil jinn created by Iblis to steal the souls of the living at night. Islamic mythology also speaks of ghouls as being shape shifters to deceive humans.

Answer: Rwandan Genocide

The belief in genies saved thousands of Rwandan Muslims during the Rwandan Genocide as the Tutsi and the Hutu believed jinn were protecting the Muslims from harm. Although some Tutsi were Muslims and believed jinn were protecting them, they still did not risk attacking other Muslims due to their fear of genies.

Answer: A guardian angel

Genies acted as guardian angels of sorts as they were said to watch over a person for their entire life. Men had genii while women had juno. It was also believed that occasionally a person would have two genies watching them, one good and one evil and they would act similar to the classic angel and devil on the shoulders a person is said to have when contemplating a decision.

Answer: They always have wings

Peri are considered something like angels who are in purgatory working their way into heaven. They are ranked somewhere between good and evil but generally are evil early in their life and then good after they repent.

In Islamic lore, peri are similar to their Persian counterparts. However, they are usually depicted as females but can be male on rare occasions.

Answer: Genies can possess humans.

The Mende believe that genies have the ability to possess humans, specifically men. The cure for a genie possession is to drive it out with magic spells.

Answer: Tenerife

Chaxiraxi is one of the most important goddesses in Guanche mythology and is still celebrated in parts of the Canary Islands today. Maxios are considered friendly servant genies to Chaxiraxi. The Guanche also believe in tibicenas who are evil demonic genies that look like dogs.