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In the Akata Witch series by Nnedi Okorafor, Leopard People (mages, in essence) receive chittim, a form of currency, when they reach some type of realization, acquire new knowledge or experience, and so forth. These tokens appear essentially from thin air and are used as a medium of exchange by Leopard People.
Who or what is the source of the chittim? A masquerade, a natural process, some sort of ancient juju or other magical working? Something else?
This may not be the most satisfying of answers, but according to an interview with Okorafor she herself does not know (or has not decided) where chittim comes from:
‘The rods [i.e. chittim] are based on objects used in real-life magical practices, but I don’t know where they come from in the world of the novel! They’re not from God, they just… fall from the sky when you learn something new.’
