Epic of Sun-Jata

Epic of Sun-Jata

West Africa (the Sudanese empire of Old Mali) Oral tradition: c. 13th century CEWritten summaries (Arabic): before 1890Translations (French, German): 1890-1898First line-by-line transcription: 1967     Epic of Sun-Jata*   Sun-Jata (Son-Jara, Sundiata) was the...
Mwindo epic

Mwindo epic

Congo oral epic first published in 1969     Mwindo       What makes great works of literature great is that which makes them belong, not just to the canon of their own nation, but to the emergent human canon. Mwindo is a case in point....
Mubila epic

Mubila epic

Democratic Republic of the Congo Oral epic first collected in the 1950s Mubila epic Introduction commissioned. ​ Contributor University Affiliation Works Cited If applicable. Resources...
Sirat Bani Hilal

Sirat Bani Hilal

Egypt Oral tradition: c. 14th century CEFirst transcriptions: 1986-90   Anonymous, Sirat Bani Hilal     The epic as it is sung in Northern Egypt is built upon the basic historical facts about the Bani Hilal tribe: their migration westwards from the Arabian...
The Epic of Askia Mohammed

The Epic of Askia Mohammed

West Africa Oral tradition, 16th centuryWritten accounts, 16th and 17th centuriesSummaries, 19th and 20th centuriesFirst linear publication: 1990 ​The Epic of Askia Mohammed (Mamar Kassaye Deeda) The Epic of Askia Mohammed was recorded by Thomas A. Hale in Saga,...