The Folk-Literature of The Galla of Southern Abyssinia

HARVARD AFRICAN STUDIES
VOLUME III
VARIA AFRICANA III

EDITORS
E. A. HOOTON, Ph.D., B.Litt.

NATICA I. BATES
ASSISTANT EDITOR
RUTH OTIS SAWTELL
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THE AFRICAN DEPARTMENT OF THE

PEABODY MUSEUM OF HARVARD UNIVERSITY
CAMBRIDGE, MASS., U.S.A.
1922
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v. 3
COPYRIGHT. 1922. BY THE

AFRICAN DEPARTMENT OF THE PEABODY MUSEUM
OF HARVARD UNIVERSITY
INDIANA UNIVERSITY LIBRART
PRINTED AT THE HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS

PUBLICATION COMMITTEE
E. A. HOOTON, Chairman
NATICA I. BATES G. F. MOORE
R. B. DIXON C. PEABODY
FOLK-LITERATURE OF THE GALLA OF SOUTHERN ABYSSINIA
ENRICO CERULLI, Ph.D.

Member of the Societa Africana d'Italia and the Societa Geografica Italiana,
LATE SCHOLAR OF THE R. ISTITUTO ORIENTALE DI NaPOLI
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE
INTRODUCTION 11
PHONETIC VALUE OF THE CHARACTERS 17
SONGS 18
I. Songs on Historical Subjects
(a) The Independent Galla States 18
(6) The conquest of the Galla kingdoms by Menilek II 70
(c) The Italo-Abyssinian war (1896) 98
II. War and Hunting Songs ' 100
III. Love Songs 107
IV. Nuptial Songs 119
V. Cradle Songs 123
VI. Festive and Religious Songs
(a) Pagan 127
(6) Christian 145
VII. Caravan Songs 146
VIII. Pastoral Songs 147
PROSE 148
I. Texts on Historical Subjects
The chronicle of the Guma kingdom 148
The holy war of Hassan Ingamo 162
The death of Captain Bottego 165
II. Texts on Ethnological Subjects
The rites of initiation 167
The investiture of the Abba Bokku 176
Blood-price 181
III. Texts of Magic and Prophetic Literature 181
IV. Humorous Prose (Hdsd) 190
V. Proverbs 191
VI. Riddles 198
APPENDIX 200
The Watta: a low caste of hunters 200
INDEX OF PROPER NAMES 215

10
THE FOLK-LITERATURE OF THE GALLA OF
SOUTHERN ABYSSINIA
INTRODUCTION
Almost all of the texts printed in this article are composed in the dialects of the Ma$$a
Galla; and particularly in those of the northeastern Ma$$a groups: Lieqa, Lunmu, Guma.
The Galla apply the name M6$da to their tribes living in the districts beyond the Gible
River; that is, the five independent Galla kingdoms of Guma, G6mma, Gfmma, Giera, and
Limmu; the Ilu, the N6nno, and the five Lieqa tribes. In the present Galla language, the
word m&d$a means both " company of soldiers " and "people." Thus, with a change in
sense analogous to the Amharic sdw, " man," in the phrase ya-s&w ag&r, " land of men," i.e.
" foreign country," and to the Arabic bilddu 'nn&si, which has the same meaning,
mdfda, " people " also signifies " stranger," " enemy." Therefore the Galla living beyond the
Gible are called M6$$a Gam&ti, " the people of the other bank," by the Tulama of Shoa.
I do not intend to give in the following notes a definite, scientific classification of the
Galla dialects, but by coordinating and publishing the material collected from natives
during my researches, and by a careful analysis of the work already accomplished by travel
lers and missionaries, I hope to lay a foundation for future attempts to classify, within each
group of dialects, the sub-dialects today unknown. As a result of such classification, I
think the philologists will distinguish two large groups of Galla dialects, the Northern
Galla and the Southern Galla.
Northern Galla, that is, the Galla spoken in Abyssinia, is divided into three groups of
dialects:
I. Ma$$a dialects, corresponding to the dialect called by Tutscheck, " the Galla of the
Gogab River." Among the Ma$$a dialects, I distinguish the northeastern group, — Lunmu,
Guma, Lieqa, N6nno, — and the southwestern group of which the principal dialect is
spoken in Gimma Abba Gifar. The difference between these sub-groups consists principally
in phonetic and lexicological peculiarities, e.g. the dialect of Gfmma preserves the consonan
tal diphthongs, 1', r'.1
II. Tulama dialects spoken in Shoa, with dialectal peculiarities by the Abbiccu-Galan
and Salalie tribes. In addition to lexicological differences and the greater influence of
Amharic vocabularies, the Tulama dialects also differ grammatically from the Ma$$a, e.g.
in Tulama the pronominal suffix of the first person singular is -kiyd; in Ma<$a -kd. The
Tulama dialects have two sets of pronominal suffixes: masculine, -kiyd, -fctfe; feminine,
-tiyd, -tit, etc. The Ma$$a dialects show no difference between the masculine and feminine
gender of the pronominal suffix.
1 Vide infra, p. 17.
li
12 HARVARD AFRICAN STUDIES
III. Borana or Eastern Galla dialects. (Bor-dna is derived from the root b6r, "east.")
The dialects of the Galla living in the neighborhood of Harar, that of the Ittu, the Arussi,
and other Galla groups as far as the great lakes, belong to the Borana group. Loransiyos 1
tells me that the Amara Burgf living in the country near the southern bank of Lake Regina
Margherita is a Galla group.2 Burdi, he says, is the Galla pronunciation of the Amharic
word birz, " honeyed water," the favorite drink of these Galla. Other Borana groups live
by the streams of Canal Gudda, Canal Digg6, Doria, and Dawa, as far as the Somali coun
tries near Lugh. A few miles from Dolo, at the frontier of Italian Somaliland, the maps
bear Galla names, e.g. Mdlkd Rie 'S, " the ford of the she-goat; " 3 Matd namdfakkdte, i.e.
" the hill resembling the head of a man." * These dialects differ considerably from the
* It appears to me that this information given me by Loransiyos is not exact. Dr. Conti Rossini has published
from the unedited notes of Captain Bottego one hundred words of the language spoken in Amara Burgi (cf. Carlo
Conti Rossini, I Bambala di Amara Burgi ed il loro linguaggio ; Studii su populazioni dell' Et iopia, vol. 6). The natives
of Amara Burgi call themselves Bambala. Dr. Conti Rossini examining this material and comparing it with allied
languages, thus concludes his essay: " If the notes of Captain Bottego show us the real character of the language
spoken by the Bambala of Amara Burgi, my examination leads to these conclusions: 1. The Bambala grammar is
Galla grammar, or, at least, largely influenced by the Galla grammar; 2. On the contrary, the Bambala vocabulary
for the most part is Sidama; 3. The Sidama language spoken by the Bambala does not belong to the southern
Sidama group, i.e. the Omgti dialects, DawrS, WalfimO, etc., but to the eastern Sidama, i.e. it is allied with
Hadiya, TambarO, etc."
However, a recent examination of Captain Bottego's material in comparison with the result of my researches on
the Galla dialects, shows other Galla Lehnwdrter among the Bambala words published by Dr. Conti Rossini, e.g. Cap
tain Bottego translates mardnd, mdrra, " to go " (I agree with the hypothesis of Conti Rossini that these words are
not infinitives, but first persons plural of the imperfect). The word is certainly derived from the Galla root mar (in
Ma{{a dialects as in southern Galla, " surround," " go round," " walk about "). Is the Somali, mar, " to pass,"
derived from the same Kushitic root, or is it the Arabic mdrra'? Moreover, the Bambala ddnsa, " fine " = southern
Galla dansa, "good"; yera, "ugly" is perhaps the Galla ydrd, "lame" (cf. Antonio Cecchi, Da Zeila alle frontiere
del Caffa, vol. 3, p. 267). Bambala mina, " hut," is certainly the Galla mdna (but not m&nd) as Dr. Conti Rossini
says. The connection between the eastern Sidama words, min, mine, and the Galla mdn& is demonstrated by the
Somali min. Thus lukkanlo, " hen," (perhaps the real meaning of the word is " fowl "), appears to be derived from
the Borana Galla lukku, (southern Galla, lukku, Somali in Harar, luki). Bambala aju, " mother " is the Galla ay6;
Bambala inanada does not mean "fear" but "he is afraid," and is derived from the Galla root na', "to frighten"
(cf. Somali, n&', "pain," "trouble," "weariness"), reflexive form nod, "to be afraid." Bambala inagata, "to sell," is
allied, I think, with the Somali (MarrShan dialect) gad, "to sell." Therefore, out of one hundred words selected by
Captain Bottego, about thirty are derived from Galla roots. The eastern Sidama roots of Bambala are about twenty,
more numerous than the southern and western Sidama roots, of which there are five or six. Among the personal
names collected by Bottego, beside those already noted by Dr. Conti Rossini, the following nouns are certainly Galla;
bitaiio, the "left-handed," burjji, dambala (is dambala a personal name? In Galla, dambala means "rising in waves,"
and is the Galla name for Lake Regina Margherita); dargd ("the fine young man"), gobe, godana, guya (more
frequently guydlu; it means "[born] by day"); grid is perhaps the following dU6, idd6, kolM, walii, wayii, yaya (which
is not connected with the Arabic Yahya, " John," as Conti Rossini supposed, but is the Galla ydyd, "wolf"). Others
may be discovered after collecting further examples of the Galla onomasticon.
All this proves, I think, the extensive Galla influence on the Bambala vocabulary; however I will refer to the
statement made by Vannutelli and Citerni in their account of Captain Bottego's expedition (Vannutelli e Citerni,
L'Omo, Milano, 1899, p. 184) that almost all the Bambala of Amara Burgi also speak BOranS Galla. Loransiyos's
mistake may have arisen in this way, and it seems to me also that the many Galla elements in the words collected
by Bottego are probably derived from the same source; on the southern frontier of the Amara Burgi there are cer
tainly Galla tribes. And in addition to the information of travellers, the toponomy of this country is Galla: Bisan
Gurrae'ca, Gubba, Ballesa, Dada, Bultf Iddd, Galana Sagan, etc. Loransiyos adds that he has heard in Amara Burgi
a legendary genealogy of the Galla living round Burgi. According to this genealogy, these Galla are descended from
the Karrayu, the well-known eastern Galla tribe near Harar.
« Mdlkd Rie't at 4° lat. North, 42° East Greenwich. * West of Mdlkd Rle 'i.
THE FOLK-LITERATURE OF THE GALLA 13
Ma$$a dialects, but less from the Tulama, so Loransiyos tells me. The songs published in
this article (s. 52-54) concerning the war between the Arussi Galla and Ras Dargie were
chanted by the Arussi. For this reason, I hesitated to publish them; but Galla original
texts are still so scarce, and the three songs concern historical events so little known, that
I have decided to include them, especially because the poetical form, restricted by the
metre, assures, I think, the Arussi text against the variations which would probably be
introduced by a native who was not an Arussi.
The Wallo Galla, according to Loransiyos, are probably Borana. Cecchi has stated 1
that, according to Galla tradition, the Wallo are Arussi who emigrated from their native
country. Loransiyos tells me that the dialect of the Wallo resembles the dialect of the
Ittu, but as I have not collected texts in the Wallo dialects, I cannot vouch for this infor
mation. Loransiyos adds that among the seven Wallo tribes (called by the Amara sabdt
W&llo bfet, " the seven Wallo houses"), the Warra Himano speak more Amharic than
Galla; the Warra Babb6 and the Warra Qallu speak Galla; the others, Amharic mixed
with Galla; and the tribes near Aussa, Galla mixed with Dankali.2
The second large group of Galla dialects is the Southern Galla spoken by the tribes
living on the banks of the Tana River in British East Africa, known as Bararetta and Kofira
Galla. Pratorius 3 has noted the Bararetta dialectic peculiarity of the apocope in the sub
stantives; but from the Gospels of St. John and Matthew translated into Bararetta by the
missionaries of the United Methodist Free Churches,4 from the publications of Fischer,6 and
Miss Alice Werner,8 and from a manuscript dictionary by the Rev. Mr. Howe, there appear
a long series of grammatical and lexicological peculiarities. Southern Galla is closely allied
to Eastern Galla, and has great linguistic importance on account of the interesting glotto-
logical phenomena which occur in it, especially the influence of the accent on the final
vowel. It is therefore desirable that Southern Galla should be studied further, and prefer
ably in relation to Northern Galla.
I have collected the following Galla texts from four sources:
1. Llgg Hayla Maryam Gugsa Dargie, son of Ras Dargie, the uncle of Negus Menilek
II. He was born in Salalie, a district of Tulama Galla. As he came to Europe many years
ago, he remembers few Galla songs, but I obtained from him strophe 79, and some others
not published here.
1 Antonio Cecchi, Da Zeila alle frontiere del Caffa, Roma, 1886, vol. 1, p. 513.
» Cf. Lincoln De Castro, Nella terra dei negus, Milano, 1915, vol. 2, p. 333. This confirms the statement of
Loransiyos.
* Franz Pratorius, Zur Grammatik der Galla Sprache, Berlin, 1893.
* Gura Dansa ak Yohannes barese, afan oromati, printed by the British and Foreign Bible Society for the United
Methodist Free Churches' East African Mission (without date); Gur Dansa ak Mattayoe barese, London, printed
for the British and Foreign Bible Society, 1904.
• G. A. Fischer, ' Die Sprache des sud-Galla Land,' (Zeitschrift fttr Ethnologie, Berlin, 1878, vol. 10, p. 141-144).
• A. Werner, ' The Galla of the East Africa Protectorate,' (Journal of the British African Society, vol. 12, no.
50, and vol. 13, no. 51; ' A Galla ritual prayer,' (Man, vol. 14, p. 129-131). Cf. E. Cerulli, ' I Galla dell' Africa
Orientale inglese,' (Rivista Coloniale, Anno 12, November, 1914). This is a review of Miss Werner's writings.
2. Aga Mohammed Sa'id, born in Hagal6 (Lfmmu) a district of M&$$5 Galla. He was
taken from his native land and sold by slave merchants into Eritrea, the country of the
Assaorta Saho. Freed from slavery, he enlisted in the Italian colonial army and during
the war in 1911-12 fought in Libya against the Arabo-Turks. As there are many natives
of Galla countries, for the most part freed slaves, in the native battalions of Eritrea, it
was again possible for Aga Mohammed to speak his native language. I obtained from
him six strophes in the dialects of the northeastern Md$$a: the strophes 14, 65, 67, 68,
78, 141.
3. Loransiyos Walda Iyasus, born in the country of the Abbiccu Galla (Shoa). From
him I have collected nearly all the texts in this volume. He is an old man, a reliable, valu
able, and perhaps unique source of information concerning the Galla countries. He knows
de visu places and personages; and during his adventurous life he has participated in the
principal historical events of those countries for the last thirty years. He was taken by his
parents to Lieqa Naqamte and remained there during his youth. Soldier in the army of
Daggac Moroda, and afterwards of Daggac Kumsa (son of Moroda), he fought in all the
wars against the enemies of Lieqa Naqamte\ Then he went to Lieqa Qiellem and entered
the army of Daggac Got6; therefore he fought in 1897 in the combat in which Captain
Bottego was killed, and Lieutenant Vannutelli and Lieutenant Citerni were taken prisoners;
all three were members of the expedition sent into Abyssinia by the Royal Italian Geo
graphical Society. Loransiyos then enrolled himself in the army of Daggac Hayle Guddfsa,
brother of Ras Makonnen, and chief of the N6nno and Sulu Galla; he was afterwards
chosen by the chief to accompany Qanazmac Abba Nabr6 on a great expedition led by the
Qafiazmac to hunt elephants. This expedition crossed all the countries beyond the Gibie,
and advanced as far as the Galla around Lake Rudolph. Returning from this hunt, he
quitted Daggac Hayle, passed through the Sanqflla countries inhabited by the Berta to the
Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, and remained there a few months, fighting with the Egyptian
soldiers against Ali Dinar, the Sultan of Darfur. Finally, he enlisted in the Italian colonial
army and fought in Libya. He speaks the dialect of the Lieqa Galla (northeastern Ma$$a)
and while he knows the Ma$$a dialects well, on account of the vicissitudes of his life, he
remembers very little of the dialect of Shoa (Tulama-Galla). He lives today at Keren in
Eritrea. It would be well worth while to approach him again to collect other notes and
especially, the end of the " Chronicle of Guma " (Prose, text 1).
As I have already said, I have obtained from Loransiyos all the historical songs and the
notes concerning them (1-64), except songs 14 and 33; many of the war songs, love songs,
nuptial and religious songs, and the second song of the caravans, s. 146. He also helped
me to translate the songs of The Galla Spelling Book l and gave me all the prose texts, and
the proverbs, 90-96. The proverbs and the riddles of The Galla Spelling Book have also
been translated with Loransiyos's aid.
4. Other texts I have gathered from a strange little book published in 1894 under two
titles; a title in English, The Galla Spelling Book by Onesimos Nesib, a native Galla,
Printed at the Swedish Mission Press in Moncullo near Massowah, 1894; and a title in
Galla written in Ethiopic characters, which I transcribe literally, Galqaba barsisa innis
madafa dubbisu barsisanun afan oromotti, Warra biya oromo kara Waqayo agarsisudaf
walttti qabani tafani Awafi Onesimos kan ffedamuf Ganon Aster kan fiedamtu, Tolfame
Mutuwa bukke Isafiiru ganda Monkullotti goftakena Yasus Kristos erga dalate bode
wagget kuma tokko (jtbba sadetif sagaltami qfurittl. This means: "The beginning of
teaching; that is, a book of conversation for those who study the language of the Galla.
To show the natives of Galla countries the way to God; collected and printed (this book)
by Awag Onesimos and Ganon Aster. Made in the village Monkullo at the side of Massaua,
1894 years after the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ." Notice that in the English title Ganon
Aster is not named as author of the book. This small book, the substance of which was
till now unknown, appears to the reader to have been written purposely to discredit
the Swedish Mission. " To show the natives of Galla countries the way to God," there are
collected love songs, war songs, one of the tribal songs, and finally, the songs of the relig
ious ceremonies of Galla paganism (W&d&g'a), and a series of songs in honor of Atfite, the
goddess of fecundity, worshipped by the Oromo. The collection, of course, is most interest
ing; for little is known in Europe concerning Galla paganism. Being the first collection of
pagan religious songs printed and circulated in Galla countries, without any explanation of
customs, beliefs, and local historical events familiar to the Galla, but unknown to Europeans,
the contents were difficult to interpret; I could not have translated it without the aid of
Loransiyos. The texts published in The Galla Spelling Book (the whole volume except the
aforesaid title in English, is in Galla) are in the Ma$$a dialect with dialectal characteristics
of Lfmmu, the native country of Onesimos Nesib. The author or authors write the Galla
in Ethiopic characters; therefore, they are obliged to use a very complicated transcription
to express the sounds of the Galla language with the letters of the Ethiopic alphabet which
express very imperfectly even the sounds of the Ethiopic language. This transcription is
further complicated because the authors have sometimes attempted to mark the accent
of the words. There is no special sign for this in the Ethiopic alphabet; therefore, they mark
the accented vowel long, even when it is short. Moreover, the system of transcription is
not explained in the book; the authors do not indicate what Galla sounds correspond in
their system to this or that Ethiopic letter. Therefore, reading this small book is very
like deciphering a secret writing, and it is evident why, for twenty-five years after its pub
lication, its substance remained unknown, and the Swedish Mission fell into the aforesaid
error. I have transcribed the songs of The Galla Spelling Book in the usual transcription,
following the pronunciation of Loransiyos to indicate the accent and the double consonants.
When Loransiyos gives me variants, I add them; when he tells me that the version of The
Galla Spelling Book is incorrect, I indicate both versions. The texts of The Galla Spelling
Book translated in this volume are song 33 among the historical songs; many of the war,
hunting, and religious songs, the first song of the caravans (s. 145), several of the love and
nuptial songs, the pastoral songs, and the cradle songs, proverbs 1-89, and riddles 1-9,
Loransiyos knows by heart several verses of songs 99 and 126.
In view of the present condition of Galla studies in Europe, I hope that the following
texts are not without interest, whatever defects may be found among them. The texts,
translated literally as far as possible, are preceded by the notes which I have collected from
the natives on the subject of the song, and followed by some explanation in order to make
possible the reading of this book by the student who is not a specialist in Galla linguistics
and ethnology. The history of the independent Galla states, so vague and lacking in
documents till now, is the subject of the first group of songs. I beg the reader to note
particularly songs 8-27 concerning the religious wars between the pagan Galla and the
Islamized Galla tribes beyond the Gibie. The songs of the wars between the Galla and the
Amara during the conquest of the Galla lands begun and finished by Menilek II, contain
a short biography of Ras Gobana; and finally the songs of the Italo-Ethiopic war are a new
proof of the great losses of the Abyssinians in the battle of Adua.1
I should like to add some explanatory notes on peculiarities in grammar and vocabulary
of the dialect in which the texts were composed; but since Galla is almost unknown from
the scientific point of view, I do not possess a Galla lexicon which I consider authoritative,
to which I can refer the peculiarities of the songs; nor is the grammatical essay by Pratorius 2
a sound basis for comparison of dialectical peculiarities. A systematic exposition of the
grammar of the Ma$$a Galla dialect and the glossary of the texts contained in this volume
shall be the subject of a later work of mine, yd Waqayd nuf fiedi.
It is my duty to thank those who have encouraged my studies or made possible the
publication of this work : in Italy, Professor F. Gallina, professor of Amharic and Tigritian
languages at the Royal Oriental Institute of Naples, my eminent teacher, to whom I am
happy to express here my most respectful gratitude; Senator I. Guidi, professor of Semitic
Philology, Languages, and History of Abyssinia in the Royal University of Rome; Senator
Y. D'Andrea, President of the Italian African Society; and in England, Miss Alice Werner,
lecturer on Swahili and Bantu languages at the School of Oriental Studies in London.
ENRICO CERULLI.
Naples, 1917.
1 Cf. E. Cerulli, ' Canti popolari amarici,' (Rendiconti delta R. Accademia dei Lincei. Classe di scienze morali,
etoriche, e filosofiche, vol. 25, pt. 6, Roma, 1916, p. 13-14).
1 Op. cit.
PHONETIC VALUE OF THE CHARACTERS1

I have employed the following phonetic alphabet to designate the sounds of the Galla
language.
Plosives Fricatives
labials: p, b, p labials: w
coronals: t, d labio-dentals: /, b
precacuminals: t alveolars: s
cacuminals: d palatals: s
prepalatals: fi, d, ( pregutturals: y
mediopalatals: k, g Sonants
post-palatals: q liquids: r, I, r, I
laryngals: ', h labials: m
Nasals
alveolars: n
palatals: n
The consonants q, p, f, d, $ are not plosives in the most rigorous sense of this phonetic
classification; similarly I, r, cannot be called " sonants." They (p, (, q, d, d, 1, r) belong to
the sound-group which has been thus described by Sievers: 2 " After the formation of the
closing of the mouth, the communication between the mouth cavity and the lungs is inter
rupted by an energetic closing of the vocal chords." W. Schmidt » justly remarks that
there are two kinds of sounds with guttural occlusion; the explosion of the closure of the
glottis may occur either before or simultaneously with the closure of the mouth. If the
explosion of the closure of the glottis occurs after the explosion of the closure of the mouth,
the sound which is formed is properly a consonantal diphthong, i.e. p\ (, d' * q'.6 Therefore
Meinhof' transcribes the Galla sound d as 'd. If both plosives occur at the same time,
the sound is single and Schmidt transcribes it with an apostrophe on the consonant, e.g.
% % 'p.
In Galla the plosives always occur simultaneously except in the following cases: 4
between two vowels, e.g. baddnd, pronounce bad 'and; p in every case; I, r, in those dia
lects which have kept these sounds. When q is followed by i or ie (the fifth class of the
Ethiopic alphabet), the basis of articulation is pushed forward towards the prepalate.
Therefore, in this case, the closure of the mouth does not occur in the post-palate but in
the middle palate; the closure is made by the motion of the tongue's middle dorsal region.
1 The Editors wish to acknowledge their indebtedness to Mr. G. P. Lestrade of Harvard University for his as
sistance in reading this portion of the manuscript.
1 Eduard Sievers, Grundzuge der Phonetik, Leipzig, 1901.
' W. Schmidt, ' Die Sprachlaute und ihre Darstellung in einem allgemeinen linguistischen Alphabet,' (Anthro-
pos, Wien, 1907, vol. 2, p. 896).
4 Pratorius, op. cit., p. 26. « Ibid., p. 19-20.
' Carl Meinhof, Die Sprachen der Hamiten, Hamburg, 1912.
When thus pronounced, it is not followed by or joined with closure of the glottis. The same
forward tendency in the closure of the mouth occurs in the sounds k, g, when they are fol
lowed by ie. I have not used special signs to transcribe these modifications of the sounds
q, k, g, in order that my phonetic alphabet may be as simple as possible. There is no
vestige in the northeastern Ma$$a dialects of the consonants I, r, except the words hdfa,
" today," maftmdn, " entrails," bdld, " broad." Loransiyos pronounces I and r only in these
words; he tells me that both sounds have been retained in the dialect spoken in Cfmma
Abba Gifar. Therefore he calls the Gfmma Galla, " those who speak with bound tongue."
The vowels used in this dialect in the following texts are : a, &, a, d, e, e, ie, e, e, I, i, I,
o, o, g, o, U, u, ud; e, g, are closed e and o of the Italian alphabet. The other vowels have
the same value as in the usual transcription of the Semitic languages.
I have transcribed all the changes occasioned by the contact of a final sound and an
initial sound of two words with the sign " placed between the words, e.g. hdrkd irbdrd =
hdrkd ybdrd. In Galla the accent of the word in a phrase is different from the accent of the
isolated word; I have indicated in the following texts the accent of the word as I heard it
in each phrase.
SONGS
Songs on Historical Subjects
a) The Independent Galla States.
1
The king of Giima, Abba Dula Abba Gubir, fought against Gfmma Abba Gifar three
times during his reign. First Gfmma won, but the second time Abba Gubfr defeated the
army of Tullu Abba Gifar II, entered the capital of his enemy's kingdom and sacked it,
although the kings of Lfmmu and G6mma rushed to help their ally, Abba Gifar. The date
of this war (according to Loransiyos) was probably about 1885-1886. Concerning it, a
Guma minstrel sang:
Guma"bbd dtild mimiftd (iimmd"bb5, filifdr mdrqd garbutti
Ondo Gildd mardtta dd g'immdtd 4ufi qiddmie"ndumti
1 Giima of the Abba Dula is pepper. 2 Onco Gilca is furious. 3 Glmma of Abba Gifar
is porridge of barley. 4 He [Abba Gubir] came [to Gfmma] Friday; Saturday, he has not
yet finished [pillagin •].
Notes. Abba Dula is the title of the Guma kings (literally, " lord of the expedition ").
King Abba Gubir is called, according to the Galla custom, by the name of his famous
ancestor, Onco Gil6a. Abba Gif&r was the war-name of Tullu, the king of Gimma. There
is a custom among the Galla and the Amara of taking as a war-title the name of their
horses. Thus Abba Gifdr means the " lord of the dapple grey horse." The day of the
victorious entry into Gimma was Friday (v. 4). " Porridge of barley," food of the poor,
symbolizes the want of bravery in Gimma's army, opposed to the pepper, i.e. the audacity
of Guma's soldiers.
2
In this victorious expedition against Gfmma, Abba Gubir took prisoner G^nn6 Alima,
sister of King Abba Gifar. Alima was carried off to Guma and confined in the royal resi
dence; but her husband, Nagau Garbf, chief of Lieqa Bill6, entered Giima, skillfully
disguised, assuming the ironically threatening pseudonym, " B6r AIM " (" tomorrow,
colic," i.e. " tomorrow, my enemies shall be afraid "). He advanced by night to the royal
residence, and killed the sentries by thrusts of his spear, including the famous warrior
Dilbd, and Muhammed Yasi, son of Dilb6. Thus Nagau rescued his bride, and after adorn
ing his horse with the spoils of his dead enemies, fled with G§nne Alima toward Gfmma.
Abba Gubir himself pursued the fugitives; and, running more swiftly than his soldiers,
he passed his escort and was unexpectedly assailed by Nagau Garbf. The king of Guma,
seeing that he was far from his soldiers, alone, face to face with his enemy, fled, and Nagau
Garbf, as a triumphant proof of the king's flight, cut off the tail of Abba Gubir's horse
and brought it to Gfmma. Thereafter, he sang this boasting-song:
d6bd Garbi Giti bdr ifidn dimmdta
N&gAu Abbd Gifdr 10 Gdridda si ndia
gafgdf tdrbd"d^si jjatdni qdqd
abbdf ilmd "tiffi gdndd dawi 0ndo
5 akkakayu habnd batdni ddqa
jjinfu lafd rfebl Surd murd Garbi
tiepdf harri wami 15 Surd na"muratb
(jimma told"rgall nitikietti"mati!
1 The hero [son] of Garbf [son] of Gil6, 2 Nagau [brother-in-law] of Abba Gifar 3 every
day kills seven [warriors]. 4 He killed the father [Dilb6] and the son [Muhammed Yasi],
5 and, as the grandfather remained [yet living], 6 he struck the ground with the haft of
the spear. 7 Bring [literally, call] the girths for the charger and the ass! 8 Send the pres
ents [i.e. the spoils] to Gfmma! 9 The day after tomorrow, Friday, 10 Gorfdda will eat
you [O Abba Gubir!] 11 The builders [construct] the ceiling. 12 From the village of Gaw6
Onco, 13 I will arise and go forth. 14 The tail-cutter Garbf 15 has cut off the tail for me!
16 Tell your bride [O Abba Gubir!]
Notes. Abba Gorfdda (v. 10) was the war-name of Nagau Garbf (literally, " lord of
Gorfdda "; Gorfdda was his horse). In verses 11-15 Garbf says: " The builders of Giima
construct the ceiling of their huts (where the Galla hang their spears). Guma has warriors
and spears, nevertheless I came in and went out." Nagau Garbf fought against the
Italians in 1896 and died in the battle of Adua. His father was Garbf GU6.1
1 Antonio Cecchi, Da Zeila alle frontiere del Caffa, Roma, 1886, vol. 2, p. 399-402.
3
At the court of Tullu Abba Gifar at Gingo, hunting expeditions and Islamic holidays
followed closely on one another. Abba Gifar was considered a strict Mussulman and his
eldest son even more so. Gimma, already the heart of commerce in the countries
beyond the Gibfe River, became also the centre of Islamic studies in these lands. Conse
quently, all the most celebrated Galla minstrels gathered at the court of Abba Gifar to
produce their songs in this literary and commercial centre. Several songs were chanted on
the occasion of a challenge between the Mussulman warrior, Tola Mamud, a famous
elephant hunter, and Qitt*essa Gallo, governor of a province in the Gimma kingdom.
Tola Mamud wagered that he, alone, without a spear, could kill an elephant by sword
thrusts in the presence of the whole court of Gimma. The stake was Sard6, a horse
presented to Tola Mamud by Tiicco Danno, the chief of Lieqa Horda (see song 15). After
accepting the stake, Qittiessa Gallo invited the court to ascend a hill, and there they saw
Tola Mamud assail and kill an elephant by his sword, although, during the struggle, the
elephant struck with his trunk and killed Sard6, the horse at stake. Here is the victory
song of Tola:
QHt&S8a gade GdU6 nitikte nattl ditti
kordttu"kkd dird Sardd jjanndto Tuddo
yd dUu"kkd naddtimi batssa Tute Ddnno
qaqard torbd ydbi (isi-kd du 'd ddqqo
5 ddltu galld anibdddd 15 duni dird akkand
torbanu kufu dabi Qitttessd intali Gdllo
amedi naitl kottu sdba wdyd guttdtte
matfari nan si hidd nd qabati, yd Qittiessd
gdfd mattarrt"n(itti kMla moti qabati
10 lubbunki'e Idfd litti 20 yd "mag'g'in garadi
hirydn durbd Gindd
1 O Qittiessa, vile [son] of Gdllo, 2 proud as a man 3 [but] living as the women, 4 go
climb seven qaqaro trees! 5 O daughter of Gallo, the lion, 6 seven times fall down [from
the trees] and break yourself ! 7 Run! Come to me! 8 With the bindweed I will bind you.
9 When the bindweed was cut, 10 your heart sunk into the ground. 11 Your bride has
resolved [to come] to me! 12 Sardo, the necklace of Tucco, 13 the fine (horse) of Tute"
Danno, 14 repose!1 15 There is the death of a man! 16 O, Qittiessa, girl [daughter] of GallS.
17 The he has filled the togas! 18 Seize me, O Qitt&ssa! 19 At the gate of the king, seize
me! 20 O enemy of the servant maids, 21 friend of the girls of Ging6!
Notes. Note that in the whole song, the feminine is used instead of the masculine to
express the contempt of the singer for Qittiessa. Qaqard (v. 4) is a kind of gigantic
1 The sense of the words dti 'a Idggo is not clear.
sycamore growing in Kaffa and in the countries of Gimma and Garo, contiguous to Kaffa.
Sard6, the horse at stake is called (v. 12) " the necklace of Tucco," his most precious gem.
Tute (v. 13) is the diminutive of the name Tucco. It is the Galla custom to use the diminu
tives of proper names in boasting and war songs. Verse 14 means " your toga covers lies
only," i.e. you are a liar! Verses 20-21 allude to the rumor that Qittfessahad much luck
in his gallant adventures at the court of Gfmma.
4
The warrior Sdne ol the Lleqa Sibu tribe was challenged by Sima "bba Dfenta of Guma,
an officer of Abba Gubir. Here is the boasting song of Sima:
(ird firi! fatti Simd kalle Iten(d
mdf dn gird firdf bakdkkd kue-da
Simd simi! fietti irrd nd darbdta
mdf dn Simd simdf 10 §ald nd murdta
5 nien%& nien(d batu mdf an Simd simd?
mardttu dbbd Dtenta
1 " Weed the weed! " you said. 2 How can I weed the weed? 3 " Surpass Sima! " you
said. 4 How can I surpass Sima? 5 The lion bringing a lion ('s skin), 6 the furious (brother)
of Abba Dfenta, 7 Sima (bringing) the cloak of lion's skin. 8 The lightning (son) of Kue
9 pierces me above, 10 cuts me below. 11 How can I surpass Sima?
Notes. 1-2 are introductory verses, usual in Galla songs, forming a kind of parallelism
of sounds or images with the following verses of the song. Here, the pun of the first verse,
Ht& dri is analogous to the pun of verses 3-4, Simd simi. The name Sima means in
Galla " he who surpasses "; thus the singer puns: " How can I surpass him who sur
passes ? " Kue (v. 8) was the mother of Sima (see song 109). Verse 10 alludes clearly to the
Galla custom of cutting off the genitals of the captive warriors as war-spoils.
5
Sone answered the boasting-song of Sima with this song:
ndmd Simd simd mQ$a Buii Mifigu
ani biekdn himu hatlsa Bofiedd
gdra Sibutli"mii abbdsa BuSdni
Soni mudl ribCi argdsa"nqufdni
5 gdra SibHUi"mii
1 A man surpassing Sima, 2 I know him and I will say (his name). 3 I speak of
Sibu, 4 of Sone whose waist is a rope. 5 I speak of Sibu, 6 of the child of Bu§6 (son) of
Miggu. 7 His mother is Boge. 8 His father is Busani. 9 No one grows tired of looking
at him.
Notes. In this song appears one of the characteristic features of boasting in Galla war-
songs, the enumeration of all the ancestors on both the father's and the mother's side.
(See also the fdrsa, songs 30-33). Sone" was the son of Busani (diminutive, Bus6, cf.
song 3), son of Miggu. His personal name was Gienda, but, according to Galla custom, the
women of his house did not pronounce his name, and called him Sone, i.e. "gem." Verse 4
alludes to the thinness of Sone, one of the qualities most appreciated by the Galla.
6
On assailing Sima, Sone said:
gatand Bv$S Mijj§u
GiendaiH (abbi roM
1 The thin (son) of Busfi (son) of Miggii. 2 Gfenda rains (like) hail.
7
Sima answered:
hardngamd Gumd
$6msUu §dla ijirti
1 The thorny thicket of Guma. 2 The $amsftu is below.
Notes. The $amsftu are sorcerers capable, according to Galla belief, of checking rain
by the fumes of burning aromatic grass. When it does not rain in the country, and the
tribal chief suspects that the drought has been occasioned by the sorceries of the $amsftu,
he orders that they be arrested and buried to the waist in holes dug for the purpose, and
there they remain till the coming of the rain. Similarly, the populations inhabiting the
banks of the great rivers (Gibie, Omo, Diddtessa) have recourse to the $amsftu to restrain
the river at the time of floods.
8
After the conversion of the Galla kingdoms beyond the Gibte to Mohammedanism in the
years 1855-70,1 wars between these kingdoms were often occasioned by religious pretexts
which several times disguised the usual motives of competition. The slight diffusion of
Islamic culture and the survival of pagan beliefs in the Islamism practiced by these peoples,
resulted in giving little evidence in those early times of a change of religion. But the
Egyptian and Sudanese merchants aided, says Loransiyos, by Khedive Ismail began to
form local centres of religious culture. The first among these centres was Gunma Abba
Gifar (see song 3). From these centres originated the first fanatics and the first attempts
at rebellion. The first rebel was a warrior of Darra, a tribe in Shoa near Salalle. He, ac
cording to the custom of these Galla Mussulmen, kept in addition to his Mohammedan
name Hasan, his pagan name Wadag. Hasan heading the Darra (all converted to Islam),
and choosing from the most famous Mussulmen of these countries ten dervishes, as a
kind of personal guard (perhaps an embryonic zawiyah), began to fight Daggac Masasa
1 Cf. £. Cerulli, ' L'Islam nei regni galla indipendenti,' (L'Africa Italiana, Napoli, 1916, vol. 35, p. 113-119.
Some statements made in this article are corrected and enlarged by the following songs.
Sayfu, sent against him by Menilek. After defeating Masasa, he prepared to resist Ras
Mika 'el, sent by Emperor Johannes IV to Darra. Ras MikS '61 was defeated and obliged
to take refuge on Tulhi Aylu, a mountain near Darra, to escape from the cavalry of Hasan
Wadag. Then a minstrel sang this strophe in Amharic to honour Hasan:
Ijasdn Wad&jj Abbd Kurdrd wdrdd yigtifrndl Ud6& laMttd
gdddl saddddd yihen hvUKt Amdrd 5 b-abbdtu Mumdd bd-nnatu Fa$m&
bdbbatu zVidn bd-nndtu ambaddd Iflbanjjd bittakkudS zdr ayillmmd
1 Hasan Wadag Abba Kurara 2 sent into the abyss all these Amara. 3 By his father's
side, he (his father) is an elephant; by mother's side, she (his mother) is a lioness. 4 He
descends and fights face to face. 5 By his father's side, he is Muhammad; by mother's side,
she is Fatmah. 6 Although the guns are discharged, he does not turn back.
Notes. Abba Kurara was the war-name of Hasan, i.e. " lord of Kurara " (his horse).
Notice in verse 3, ambaddd instead of the usual Amharic ambassd; the change of -ssa to
-dea has been occasioned either by the necessity of the rhyming with bidia, or by the influ
ence of the Galla ambdddd. It is clear that the song was composed by a Galla who used
the Amharic as a literary language; for example, in v. 5 Mumad is the Galla pronuncia
tion of the name Muhammad. This verse 5 seems to me noteworthy, because the singer
uses to indicate the Islamic ardor of the hero, the strange expression: " His father is
Muhammad, his mother is Fatmah," certain proof of the very slight culture of the Galla
Mussulmen.
9
The Emperor Johannes IV and King Menilek II, although they might not have been
pleased by the foundation of such a small Mussulman state on the frontiers of Shoa and
Goggam did not act in concert to organize an expedition against Hasan. So at first, Ras
MikS '61 in the Emperor's behalf, and Daggac Masasa Sayfu for Menilek, fought and were
defeated separately. Afterwards, when a large army had just been prepared in Shoa to
assail Darra, the Galla sang this riddle:
tdkki tarakki
laf&t okkotit rakkatlf
1 Come on, divine! 2 Is the bone distressed in the pot?
Notes. The bone was Hasan, desired by the dogs, i.e. the Amara; the pot was Darra,
his tribe. As a pot protects a bone against the dogs who will not risk rushing into the pot,
and cannot get the bone except by breaking the pot, so Hasan was protected by the Darra
against the Amara who would not risk their lives by coming into Darra's country and
could not capture Hasan except by defeating the Darra. The Shoan expedition had not
yet departed when Hasan died a natural death, after slaughtering his war-horse. " After
my death," he said, " no one can ride Kurara! "
Notice the formula tdkki tarakki. Loransiyos tells me that this formula has no sense,
but is used to attract the attention to the text of the riddle to follow.
10
The following songs were inspired by the wars between pagans and Mussulmen, cen
tering in the kingdom of Guma. Giima was converted to Islam, says Loransiyos, before
the other Galla kingdoms.1 In the year 1882, the king of Giima, Abba Gublr, resolved to
make an expedition against the pagans of Gabba at the northwestern frontier of his king
dom. The expedition was especially directed against Hanna, a Gabba country, of which
the governor was Abba Bara, a famous sorcerer. The first battles were favorable to the
Mussulmen who defeated Abba Bara and Abba Dfma Tamb6, chief of the Lfeqa Nos
and Arroggi tribes, allies of Hanna. Hanna's prisoners taken to Guma sang this strophe:
Abbd Bdrd kdn duriti
matdm "bdi na furl
gatin U}n afuri
1 O Abba Bara of times past, 2 turn your head and redeem me! 3 The ransom is four
cows.
11
In these combats, Ambassa Abba Somfe, an officer of Abba Bara's army, was killed by
Gallo, governor of a province (Abba Qoro) in the Guma kingdom.
Ambassd"bbd Somieti
Gdllo ambds8d"rrd gungumd
1 Over Ambassa Abba Somie, 2 Gdllo, the lion, roars.

Note. The singer puns on the double sense of the word ambassd, personal name of the
slain warrior, and " lion " in Amharic.
12
The first success of Abba Gubir alarmed all the chiefs of the countries between the
rivers Diddtessa and Baro, who saw that these Islamic propagandists enforced their ser
mons with spear thrusts and pillaging of villages. Therefore, they began to help Abba
Bara who was very tenaciously defending his country, availing himself of the natural ad
vantages of the woody and rugged territory. Then Abba Gublr, seeing that his enterprise
had become difficult and fearing that the result of an expedition without success would be
great loss of prestige for his kingdom, sought allies. Therefore four ambassadors of the
four states, Giima, Gfmma, G6mma, and Lfmmu, met in Goggf, a place between Guma
and Gomma.2 These four Mussulmen kingdoms resolved to confederate and proclaimed
a holy war against the Galla pagans. The league, according to Galla customs, was called
by a special name, Arfd, i.e. " the four." Afterwards, it was called Arfd Naggdddtd to
1 According to the information which I have already gathered, the conversion of the Giima kingdom occurred
during the reign of Gawfi Onto (eon of On5o GiI6a) about 1854-60. Cf. CeruIIi, ' L'Islam nei regni Galla indipendenti,'
op. cit., p. 115.
> Owing to a misprint the date of this meeting in Goggi is 1886 in my account, ' La questione del Califfato in
rapporto alle nostre colonie di diretto dominio,' (Atti del Convegno Nazionale Coloniale, Napoli, 1916, p. 8).
distinguish it from the pagan league. (See song 18.) Arfd Naggaddtd means " the four
Mussulmen " (literally, " the four merchants "), because Islam was introduced by the
Arabic merchants. Therefore naggddie means both merchant and Mussulman.
After confederating with the other Mohammedan states, Abba Gubir took up arms
again. Then, to weaken the hostile army, he tried to detach from Abba Bara the warrior
Tufa R6ba, chief of Hanna Cakka Gadf (see songs 15-17). The first propositions of Abba
Gubir were repulsed by Tufa R6ba. Then a ministrel sang:
dappd matd ydftd fdrda obbonk6 bitd
yd timS R6ba Wdrie 10 tokkicUd Ondo Gawt
as gdl denndn didde malii 6ndo Gaw&
nad maU haftd nitisa gdfatd
5 fdrdd kan dbbokd qallun 6ndo (taw&
qallu lamd"nfiirtu $dkkd Gofidt gald
tokkUdd Ondo (jawi 15 gardn Ondo Oawl
moti lamd"n(jirtu matd"rratti batd
1 O red sorghum with a sharp head! 2 O son of R6ba Warfe, 3 we said to you,
"Come! " and you refused. 4 You shall remain without soldiers! 5 O horse of my Lord!
6 Two sorcerers are not there. 7 Onco Gaê" is alone. 8 Two kings are not there. 9 My lord
will buy a horse (for me). 10 Onco Gawe is alone. 11 Of the skill of Onco 6awe, 12 ask
his wife! 13 The sorcerer Onco Gawe' 14 enters the wood of Goggf. 15 The mind of
Onco Gaw§ 16 rises over his head!
Notes. The singer says: There is not in these countries such a generous king, such a
foresighted sorcerer as our king, Abba Gubir (called Onco Gaw6). In many Galla and
Sidama states, there is a general belief in the magical powers of the king; therefore Abba
Gublr is called " the sorcerer." Verse 14 alludes to the meeting at Goggi. Verses 15-16
mean: The mind of Onco Gaw61 is open. His thoughts rise up from the belly to his head,
and therefore are manifest. He does not keep them in his belly!
13
Verses 11-12 of the preceding song allude to a tale well known in Guma. It is one of
the numerous tales of the cruelty of the Galla kings. They say that Abba Gubir once saw
some artisans covering the roof of a hut in the royal residency.2 Calling his wife Bfsa, he
sang:
BlSd! Bi$d"bbd Dangle arragiessd"§esi btekta
Bl&d kan nd godi b&kta arragtiissa muka"rrdtt"ag'ese'
1 Bfsa, O Bfsa (daughter) of Abba Dangfe. 2 Bfsa, you will know what I did ! 3 You
will know that I killed a crow! 4 I killed a crow on the tree!
1 Literally, " the belly of On5o Gaw§." The Galla, like the Amara, believe the belly to be the seat of reasoning.
1 Cf. Guidi, ' Strofe e piccoli testi Amarici,' (Mitteilungen d. Seminars f. Orientalis Sprachen zu Berlin, vol. 2,
pt. 2, p. 17), and Cecchi, op. cit., vol. 2, p. 541.
Note. After this song, similar in its fashion to the songs of the buttd (see song 142), he
brandished his spear, and hurling it at an artisan on the roof, killed him.
14
Tufa R6ba (song 12) afterwards was won over by the promises of Abba Gubir and
deserting Hanna's army, passed to the enemy's camp. But the other chiefs of the Gabba
tribes persevered with Hanna in fighting against the invaders of their country. The land
of Gabba is very rich in coffee, and allusion to this is made by the singer of the following
strophe:
Gabbdin bunnl"ndibti gdri ardrri"n4ibu
gabbatd fulli "ndibu ardrsi, yd "bbd bdrd!
Gdrd arinni"n4ibu
1 Gabba is not lacking in coffee. 2 A fat man does not lack la bonne chere. 3 In Garo
there is no lack of beards. 4 A good man does not lack contentment. 5 Hear us favor
ably, O Abba B6ra!
Notes. The song is addressed to Fatansa Ilu (whose war-name was Abba B6ra, i.e.
" Lord of the light-bay "), king of the Gabba Ilu. Garo (v. 3) is a little Sidama state
to the southeast of Gimma. It was conquered by Abba Gommol, king of Gfmma.1 The
slaves of Garo carried off to Gfmma, surprised the Galla because of their long, rough beards.
Therefore, they became proverbial in these Galla countries.
15
On account of the difficult country, the struggle became ever more intense, but the
Moslem allies of Abba Gubir did not send their armies against the Gabba. At this time,
the king of Guma suffered another loss. Tufa R6ba after a short stay in Guma (he was
there appointed by the king governor, Abba Qor6, of a district near the frontier of the
Lieqa tribes) became hateful to some dignitaries of the royal court and especially to the
king's brother, Abba Digga. This was increased by the rumor that Tufa secretly loved
Genne Qanatu, Abba Digga's wife. Tufa resolved to return to Hanna; and after an agree
ment with Tucco Ddnno, the well-known chief of Lieqa Horda, prepared to fly to the
Lieqa country. Here is his song of farewell to Guma:
6bd goftt Burdmd Idfd sirri tirfidd
Idfd gabbdte ddma hdra firi birgidd
hdra qamdlie tdla 49 "an 9(Ma liendddd
Idfd (isd ganami galdn biy"dfin told
5 hdra Zibsa gabbare 10 bi'e nan gdla biydkd
1 Jules Borelli, Ethiopie mendionale, Paris, 1890, p. 433.

Hdnnd (ibsd gafart utu gurgurds tdte
Idfd mdU"bbd bard yd Tud6o Ddnno Bierd
hdra sart nu wdmi 4ga nu sin gallad
doUien hannd gafari yd Wdqdyd nuf fi$de
15 dur obbokd nu"nd$lu 60 galmds kadglen and
doUien ddra Gumd Rdba gurrdddd Wdrie
kuni qalliddd nu"ndetii mfe si wdmu takkarri
dn biydkd kaSÛ Rdba fand dani
dubbin hamdn dkka dolgie madae
20 kdrd naddieni dufd 65 isa dowd debiyu
bokkdn hamdn dkka birrusd dute
kdrd bdrudd dufd Robi Rdbd"bbd Tullu
bokkdn hamdn kdn dakte ndttu sietti
kdrd bdrudd dufd dakdnu giddi iidtti
25 (dmsitu fiirdf maU 70 Robi Robd"bbd Tullu
dubbin hamdn dagdn fdi kdrrdtd
kdrd naddHeni dufd 4ga dirsiSe bade"
dirsdtu fiirdf maU iii gald Hannddd
n"fen(a gdldtd Surd iSe" cLirsd kakaM
30 m&"kka arbu"n (ardnure 75 maldd lafdtd Sani
mie"mma"n gdu ildlure kanfdrda kuddSani
slid Danndtt"an gald maldd kafigle ani
biyd binifrisd Bterd utum maldd "nqabini
ganamd ndmd ktenne utum buttd"nqaUini
35 galgald ndmd fuddta 80 ramni maldikssu maU
sild Garbitt"an gala malddnke gwssMti
biyd biniensd Gild tumtu gabbdref maU
dagndtu ta 'i mugd motitti himinddf maU
dabierd dadi duge maldd kadtyle anurrl
40 sild (jimm&Tan gald 85 yd drawl Ondo gdlo
(hmmd"bbd Qifdr Sdnd Surdmu Gdld 0n6o
kani"no dibbe" disif naddienis gurdd"nqdbne
dubarti kdsa dufd ildlu "kka "Sen fokkifti
4irdt "itillie "nafd lafdn qonddld"nqdbne
45 sild Kafdt"an gald 90 sa'dmti kdrmd"nqdbne
Kdfa Gallitto Kdmo ildlu "kka "Sin fokkifti
biyd moti Busdsie masitti baum mogd
kani"no dibbe" (fisif masin Gumd garidd
hunddSi gomfdn uffdta •iero ddbannef maU
50 hundd (akkdtti gala 95 lafti Gumd ba&sd
dkka dolUtd wdnni qotdn qotannif maU
kandfd gibbi hafi kamiktti Gumd garidd
motiddf Bdrd qdmna gurdd^nqabduf maU
yd Idfd hdmd Gumd motin Gumd garidd
55 Qga dabdrsd tdte 100 Wdtd ddlatUf maU
$ga nus biyd qdmna Guma qilltensd rc&ru
galdn biyd"fin tola 110 Gumd"nafin na fi$d6
4ga nu"ngdUa bardnd Hanndktii"nbusin fi$di
nd himCera Abba Sangd $ga nus biyd qdmna
105 mannl Wattd qarqdrra galdn biyd"fin tola
hinni gard qarbatd $ga nu"ngd.Ua bardnd
firdkte"nbusin facM 115 yd Wdqdyd nuf d^di
haddkte"ngatin g'$di
1 Oh Surama, my lord. 2 The fertile and rich land 3 today has become fit for monkeys
(only)! 4 The land, rest of the mulatto, 5 today pays tribute for the cow's enclosure!
6 To the land, bed of Tirff, 7 today, weeding the way I desire to return there (literally,
today I weeded on its way). 8 Therefore I am a vagabond lion! 9 To return to one's own
country is good. 10 Come! I will return to my land, 11 Hanna, enclosure (of the cows)
of Gafare, 12 the land of King Abba Bara! 13 Today call us dog, 14 the sons of Hanna
Gafar6. 15 Already called us, my lord, 16 the sons of this Guma. 17 "This is a sorcerer!"
they say to us. 18 I long for my country! 19 The bad contest 20 comes out of women's
cause (literally, comes out of women's way). 21 The bad rain 23 comes at daybreak
(literally, comes out of daybreak's way). 24 The bad rain 25 comes at daybreak 26 if the
6amsUu is not there (to keep it back). 27 The bad contest 28 comes out of women's cause
29 if the man is not there (to keep it back). 30 O Lion, my dear (horse) with (fine) tail!
31 Come! like an elephant I will roar! 32 Come! I will look where I may go. 33 If I
could go to the country of Danno, 34 the country of the wild-beast of the Blera (family) !
35 In the morning he gives presents to a man. 36. In the evening he takes back from this
man (his presents) ! 37 If I could go to the country of Garbf, 38 the country of the wild
beast (son) of Gil6! 39 The brave rest and slumber. 40 The vile drink the hydromel.
40 If I could go to Gfmma, 41 Gfmma (the country) of Abba, Gifar Sana! 42 This (land)
I hated and left it. 43 The girl rises and comes. 44 The man stretches for her the skin for
a bed! 45 If I could go to Kaffa, 46 Kaffa (the country) of Gallftto Kamo, 47 the country
of the kings of Busasie. 48 This (land) I hated and left it. 49 All wear (on their heads)
the gomfd. 50 All go into the woods 51 like the sons of the baboon. 52 I hated these and
left them. 53 We will go towards the king (Abba) Bara 54 if the land of Guma is bad.
55 " After being in exile, 56 perhaps you will be sold also! " 57 O Tucco Danno Biera
58 then we will go to your country. 59 If God has spoken (thus) in our behalf, 60 I desire
to return! 61 O R6ba (son) of the black Warie, 62 please, I will call you! 63 Follow the
tracks of R6ba 64 like a wounded elephant! 65 He is an obstacle which makes one fall
back 66 like an angry elephant! 67 O Rob6 (daughter) of R6ba"bba Tullii! 68 Do you think
that she eats what she milled herself? 69 (The slaves) work by constraint and she eats.
70 O Rob§ (daughter) of R6ba"bba Tullii, 71 beautiful, chosen among the girls with fine
teeth! 72 Since the death of her husband, 73 she has been in Lower Hanna. 74 She has
sworn against all men (never to marry again). 75 The armlet for five foot soldiers 76 and
for fifteen horsemen, 77 the armlet I desire! 78 Although I may not have the armlet, 79
although I have not sacrificed at the buttd, 80 I am a rdbd worthy of the armlet! 81 Your
armlet would reach me, 82 if I had paid the tribute to the smith, 83 if I had not spoken
to the king. 84 Have I really desired the armlet? 85 O dear Gaw6 Onco, 86 dear Suramu
Onco. 87 Women without the gurdd, 88 I will see how ugly they are! 89 Foot soldiers
without a qonddld, 90 cows without an ox, 91 I will see how ugly they are! 92 The com
ing out of the courtyard is bad. 93 The courtyard of Giima is beautiful, 94 but they plant
there the tiero. 95 The land of Guma is good, 96 but they dig and dig it. 97 The women
of Guma are beautiful, 98 but they have not the gurdd. 99 The king of Guma is good,
100 but he loves the Wdtta. 101 Come! We also have a country! 102 Returning to
one's own country is good. 103 Then we will return there, this year! 104 That Abba,
Sanga told me, 105 he whose hut is on Watta Qarqa, 106 he whose belly is a leather
107 " Give not up your relations! " he said. 108 " Give not up your mother! " he said,
bottle. 109 " Guma is the breeze of spring." 110 "Remain not in Guma!" he said. lll
"Give not up your Hanna," he said. 112 Come! We also have a country! 113 Returning
to one's own country is good. 114 Then we will return there this year, 115 if God has
spoken (thus) in our behalf!
Notes. In this song, Tufa refutes the accusations and the slanders of the Guma (first
part); then explains the motives of his dwelling in Guma after the desertion from Hanna
(second part) ; boasts of his ancestors and their enterprises (third part) ; finally excuses
himself of the principal accusation (i.e. as the lover of Genne Qanatu); and after giving
like for like to Guma, in the matter of slander, recalls the counsels given him by an old
diviner (fourth part). The verses of this song are put together in an orderly way not usual
in Galla poems.
The song begins by describing the pitiable condition of Hanna, the country of the
singer (v. 1-12). Surama (v. 1) was the war-name of prince Abba Digga, the aforesaid
brother of Abba Gubir. Tufa R6ba. was a nephew of Warie,a negro who immigrated to Hanna
Cakka Gadf (Hanna was partitioned in two districts: Hdnna Cdkkd Gadi, i.e. " Hanna of
the lower wood " and Hdnnd Cdkka Oli "Hanna of the upper wood"). Verse 4 alludes to
Warie. Tirff (v. 5) was the wife of Warie, and therefore grandmother of Tufa. Gafar6
(v. 11) was an ancient chief of Hdnna. It is a Galla custom to join to the country's name
the name of a famous chief or king who governed the land, e.g. Gunma Abba Gifar (Abba
Gifar was the war-name of two kings of Gfmma); Gfmma Qadfda (Qadfda Wannabfe
was the chief of this other Galla state); Affill6 Gar6 (Gare was an ancient chief of
the Affill6 tribe). This is a source of mistake to travellers and geographers who do not
know the Galla tongue, e. g. the map of Abyssinia by Major De Chaurand has the
locality Dano Bera, really not a place but a chief of Gfmma Argo and Lieqa Horda,
Danno Biera.
Verses 19-20 reproach Abba Digga because he considered worthy of belief the prating
of the Giima women about Tufa and Genn6 Qandtu. On the (drnsitu keeping back the
rain, see song 7.
Lion (in Galla, lienga) was the name of Tufa's horse. Verses 32-35 allude to Danno
Biera. It was said that he changed his officers very frequently. The verses 36-39 allude to
Garb! Gil6, chief of Lieqa BU16 (see song 2). A very valiant warrior, he was so jealous of
his renown that he preferred to give the high offices of his court to persons who could not
push him into the shadow. The verses 40-44 allude to the bad reputation of the girls of
Gimma Abba Gifar among the Galla. Abba Gifar Sana (verse 41) was the first king of
Gimma.1 Verses 45-51 relate to the customs of Kaffa, which appear very strange to the
Galla. The Kaffa used to wear on their heads the gomfd, that is, a kind of cap made of
monkey's hair and adorned by ostrich feathers or by feathers of the red bird called by the
Galla gudSi.* The houses in Kaffa are often surrounded by coffee trees which they utilize
to hide and protect their houses. The coffee in these countries grows so high that it forms
small woods (see song 14). Gallitto Kamo (verse 46) was the king of Kaffa, the last king
but one before the Amara conquest. He was born of the Busase1 dynasty which claims to
be derived from the Portuguese. In fact, the kings of this dynasty are of a lighter color
than the natives, and to keep this characteristic, they do not marry women who are not
born of the same stock." Verses 55-56 allude to the tradition current in Giima that
Tufa was about to be sentenced to exile or slavery.
With verse 61 begins the glorification of Tufa's ancestors. First, Tufa sings about his
father, R6ba, who left tracks of the blood of his slain enemies everywhere he went, as a
wounded elephant leaves blood tracks that guide the hunter to him. Then the poet sings
about his step-mother, R6b6 R6ba, who was said to have been a freed slave (v. 67-74).
Last (v. 45), Tufa begins the oratio pro domo sua, vaunting his own enterprises. The Galla
used to grant to the warrior who had killed five men, five buffaloes and five lions, an
armlet called maldd. The maldd was awarded by the Abba Gud6i during the feast, buttd,
after the reckoning of the spoils. The number of the victims necessary to obtain the
armlet was the aforesaid, but it was calculated according to a kind of computation table
known by heart by the old men of the tribe. This table fixed the value of the different
victims. Here is the table which Loransiyos gave me:
one elephant = five horsemen
one panther = fourteen foot soldiers
five monkeys = one foot soldier
one lion = two horsemen
one buffalo = one horseman
In this case, Tufa had killed, beside five foot soldiers (v. 45), fifteen horsemen, that is,
five lions and five buffaloes, according to the table.4 In Giima the king was the president
1 Cf. Cecchi, op. cit., vol. 2, p. 640. » Ibid., p. 490.
« Ibid., p. 497. * Cf. Cerulli, ' Canti popolari amarici,' op. cit., p. 64.
of the buttd feast. Tufa says (v. 81-83) he should have obtained the maldd, if it had not
been for the circumstance that the judge in the computation of the victims was the king.
Perhaps the king of Guma would have granted the maldd to Tufa, if Tufa had paid the
tribute to the smiths (v. 82). The smiths exacted a special tax on the honors granted
at the buttd. Verses 81-83 allude also to the favoritism of the dynasty ruling in Guma
toward the lower castes of the population (see Appendix).
With verse 85, the song comes back to the accusation of adultery, and Tufa tries to per
suade the jealous husband, Abba Digga, that he (Tufa) has no love for strange women.
The women in Gabba, Hanna, and Lieqa used to gird themselves with the gurdd (v. 84).
The gurdd is a sash of jet and hair which is wound round the body, its pointed ends dangling
to the knees. The Galla think that the gurdd is the best remedy against the evil-eye.1 On
the contrary, in the other Ma$$a countries as Guma, Gfmma, etc., not the women but
the men wear this sash. To Tufa, born in Hanna, a woman without a gurdd (who appears
to him as a cow without an ox) is very undesirable; therefore he did not court Genne
Qanatu.
Verses 97-100 scoff at the Guma. They used to plant round the courtyards of their
huts a thorny shrub which is called by them tero (in Tulama dialect, walUnsu; in Somali,
wal&nso = erithryna melanachanto). The land of Guma is not rich in corn, but in woods
and natural vegetation; therefore, the cultivation of corn necessitates keeping it free
from the grass that smothers it. The Guma used to spade up the soil many times before
sowing and remove carefully all the roots of the extraneous vegetation (v. 95-96).
As I have already said, in Guma the low caste of the Wdttd had certain privileges.
Is this fact connected with the Galla legend of the origin of the Adamite dynasty (see
Prose, I) ? Or has the legend been occasioned by this partiality of Adam's descendants for
the Wdttd (v. 99-100) ?
Verses 104-111 recall the predictions and the counsels of Abba Sanga. Abba Sanga
(a war-name which means " lord of the castrated horse ") was an Abba Mord, i.e. a sooth
sayer, reading the future in the entrails (mora) of the sacrificed victims (sheep or
cows). In verse 8 of this song, the word gdUa meaning " errant," " wandering," is
especially noteworthy. The word is probably connected with the Somali root gal meaning
" stranger " and afterwards, " non-Moslem." Reinisch* has already suggested connecting the
Somali word with the national name of the Galla. The fact that this word is still used
today by the Galla is a veritable proof of Reinisch's hypothesis. Cf. the etymology of Ge' ez,
the national name of the Ethiopians, from the root Ga 'aza, "to emigrate"; and the etymol
ogy of Sidama, which is derived, according to Reinisch, » from the root aid, " to emigrate."
1 Antoine d'Abbadie, Dictionnaire de la langue Amarififia, Paris 1881, very inaccurately translates gurdd as " tres
petite eeinture, souvent une corde et portee sin* la peau, ce mot oromo n'est usit£ que chez les Amara melanges avec
les Oroma. Ceux-ci attribuent au gurdd la dignity d'une institution." Cf. Ignazio Guidi, Vocabolario amarico-italiano,
Roma, 1901, p. 729.
1 Leo Reinisch, Somali Wdrterbuch, Wien, 1902, sub voce gal.
* Leo Reinisch, Die Kaffa Sprache in Nord Ost Afrika, Wien, 1888, vol. 1, p. 15, vol. 2, p. 79.
In verse 64, dxilgie is the Galla name of the adult male elephant called folie in Amharic
In verse 66, birrusd is the Galla name for a kind of young elephant, but greater than the
gord, which is the Amharic and the Galla name of the elephant not yet reached maturity.
The birrusd is feared on account of its anger. As to other examples of the rich terminology
employed in the East-African languages to indicate the different kinds of elephants, see
my Canti Popolari Amarici.1
In verse 74, the text has iSi (jirsd kakatte meaning, " she has made a holy oath against
the men." About the holy oath, kdkd, see song 143.
Rdba (v. 80) is the name for the young men who have not yet sacrificed at the buttd
(see songs 34, 142). P. Martial de Salviac 2 states that there are, among the Galla, "trois
dignitaires: VAbba-Bokou (Pere du sceptre), premier magistrat, le Dori et le Raba, assesseurs
et juges "; but the same author3 says, that the Abba Bokkti, the Dori, the Raba, are all
called dori " comme denomination generate." Loransiyos tells me that the information
given by P. Martial de Salviac seems to him inexact. He does not recognize dori as a
dignitary; he knows this word only as a personal name, e.g. of a Sulii Galla chief, father
of Fitawrari Ciifa Dori and relative of Fitawrari Habta Giyorgis.4
Watta Qarqa (v. 105) is a place in Guma near the frontier of G6mma. Watta Qarqa
means " Watta's ascent." Notice the old form of the genitive; the construction employed
today would be Qarqa Watta.5 Wdru (v. 109) is a strong but not steady wind blowing
in the dry season (December-March) called by the Galla bond.
16
The signal for Tufa R6ba's flight, to acquaint him that his allies beyond the frontier
of Guma were ready to aid him, was the following song. At the time appointed, this
strophe was sung by the soldiers of Genne Tufa Cirfa, a woman who governed a country
half-way between Hanna and the frontier of Guma.
$£i hammarri yd Tuti Ddnno
wdrqte Ondo Gdvoe hunguldle
1 Pass (the frontier) and seize, oh Tucco Danno 2 the gold hoarded by Onco Gawe.
As to the verb hunguldle, see song 21, v. 60 and notes).
1 E. Cerulli, ' Canti popolari amarici,' op. cit., p. 60-61.
» P. Martial de Salviac, Les Galla, Paris, 1901, p. 183.
• Ibid., p. 186.
4 Philipp Paulitschke, Beitrage zur Ethnographie und Anthropologic der Somal, Galla und Hararf, Leipzig, 1886,
p. 56, says, "Bei den Galla am Gara Mulata (Gara Mulata, ' hill manifesting itself) und bei den Ennta (two Galla
tribes living near Hara) hiess der M6ti (king) ddri, d. i. 'Furst des Landes.'". Dori, then, is used only in the Boraiia
dialects, and is therefore unknown to Loransiyos.
• See Appendix, The WdttH; a low caste of hunters, p. 200.
17
Tucco went to the frontier of Guma and Tufa Roba fled to him, safe and sound. This
flight impressed the Galla deeply and was interpreted as a real victory for the Pagan League.
Therefore, Abba Gubir in revenge prepared an expedition against the pagans with the aid
of an army sent him by the king of Limmu.
%Ufi0n6o Oromtitti ad ofCndu' u ndUu
qalliccd 6ndo kdn karrd qalti hiiindttu.
<5awt Ondo b&r ganamd daqin iSifidd
b6r ganamd daqen ise fidd 10 adamirrd"n4aldnne
5 yd laftitti barite. yd"n isdfidu badi
Oromdn attdm qHftef Mr ganamd daqbi iSb fidd
1 The ruler Onco, 2 the sorcerer Onco, 3 Gawe (i.e. the python) Onco! 4 To-morrow
morning I, Onco, will go to bear him (Tufa) off, 5 when the day shall break (literally, when
the earth shall dawn). 6 How saucy the pagans grew! 7 The pagans eat dead cows (i.e.
dead from natural causes), 8 do not eat (cows) that the knife has slaughtered. 9 To
morrow morning I, Onco, will go to bear him (Tufa) off. 10 I am not born of Adam's
stock. 11 If I were, I should not be able to bear him off! 12 To-morrow morning I will go
to bear him (Tufa) off!
Notes. Abba Gubir, called also in this song by the names of his ancestors, Onco and
Gaw6, accused the pagans of eating impure meat, i.e. cows which have not been slaughtered
with a sharpened knife, according to the ritual demanded by the Moslem law. Ofu "ndu
'a, (v. 7) literally, " dead by itself " is the Galla translation of the Arabic word maytah,
meaning impure meat (literally, " the corpse "). The pagan Galla used a spear to kill
cattle and after killing them, cut them in pieces.1 Verse 10 alludes to the descent of Abba
Gubir from Adam's dynasty. Notice in verse 7 the feminine article -ti used in contempt
after the noun, Oromo (pagans) ; for a like motive, Tufa R6ba is indicated in the verses
4, 9, and 12 by the feminine pronoun iSi (literally, " she," " her ").
18
Tufa, after returning to Hanna, continued to incite the minds of the pagans against
Guma. Then was formed a pagan league to oppose the Moslem league of Goggf. The
allies were: Lieqa Bill6 with its chief, Garbf Gil6 (see song 2); Lieqa Horda with its chief,
Tucco Danno; the Nole Kabba tribe (see song 21); Hanna, and other secondary tribes.
The league took the name Arfd Oromdta, i.e. "the four pagans," corresponding to the name
Arfd Naggdddta, " the four Mussulmen " of Goggf (see song 12). According to the Galla
custom, both armies, before the battle, sang their song of defiance. Here is the song of
the pagans.
1 Guidi, op. cit.
l8ldm huddu diqdttu gdra bdddd Lieqd
iSi wddfiin dabaUami"nbaUCesu IAgditti ergdttind.
nus qabdnna maid 15 yd dibben nu dibbi
nu imbunu baddd gdra bddda Sibu
5 ydgga isin butdni Sonitti ergdttind
gdfd isin duftdni yd guldntd Sibil
saddn naggdddtd §on6 mudl ribu.
isln wamaddittu 20 buta bddda Qumbd
arfdn oromdtd bum qitte mukd
10 nuyu wamaddinna isin induftdni
wdl agarrd baddd nuyu asin Qgna
yd dibben nu dibbi 24 bddddrrdtti Qumbd
1 The back-rinsing Mussulmen! 2 I will not fight (literally, ruin), joining myself with
them. 3 We also have taken counsel. 4 We will go out to the plateau. 5 When you go thither,
6 when you come thither, 7 call you 8 the other three Mussulmen! 9 We will call
10 the four pagans. 11 We will meet each other on the plateau. 12 If we should be dis
tressed (literally, if the distress should distress us), 13 towards the plateau of Lieqa, 14 we
should send (messages) to Ligdf. 15 If we should be distressed, 16 to the plateau of Sibu,
17 we should send (messages) to Sone\ 18 O obstacle of Sibu, 19 Sone, whose waist is
a rope, 20 go out to the plateau of Qumba! 21 Pay (the ritual offering) to the qittie tree.
22 You will come there. 23 Then we will await you there 24 on the plateau of Qumba.
Notes. The first two verses (1-2) allude to Tufa R6ba, who returning to his country,
will no longer fight on the side of the Mussulmen. " Back-rinsing " (v. 1) is the usual
nickname for the Mohammedans in the Galla tongue as in Amharic (Amharic, qit tdt
tabi). The name alludes clearly to the Islamic ritual ablutions. As to other pleasantries
on Islamic ceremonies and beliefs, see songs 21, 23, 142. In verse 14, Ligdf Bakarie (see
song 20) and Sone' Miggu (see songs 4-6) were two auxiliaries of the pagan league. Qittie
mukd (v. 21), says Loransiyos, is one of the trees most venerated by the Galla. It is known
that the Galla and the Kushitic populations in general venerate certain trees, symbols of
supernatural beings or habitations of the lesser spirits. Qumba (v. 24) is a plateau in the
Lieqa territory near the dominion of Tucco Dann5.
19
In the battle at Qumba, the army of the Mohammedans was defeated; the pagans
pursued them as far as the frontier of Guma. Abba Gubir, seeing the threatening progress
of his enemies, requested his allies to observe more strictly the terms of the league. Lfmmu
sent a new army, which joined itself to the Guma forces and assailed the pagans at Giedo,
in the territory of the Gabba Ob6 tribe, on the hilly banks of the Didd'essa. There also
the pagans won a victory. The Moslem armies retreated separately. The Guma army was
again pursued as far as the frontier of the kingdom and Ligdf Bakarie took prisoner Abba
Digga, the brother of Abba Gubfr, the aforesaid rival of Tufa R6ba (see song 15, intro
duction).
&tedo §ald butt agtiddu fardikni
(jaldi'essi 4s8a"mbu 'tifdrdd busi. butdn fardd"tti hiqi.
fdrda yo"bbdn"mtwft1u
1 I came down to Gledo. 2 Where the monkeys are not seen to descend, I made my
horse descend! 3 When the horseman would not leave his horse, 4 the hoofs of the
horse, 5 the horse was restrained there by the sword (literally, the sword has restrained
there the horse).
Notes. Verses 3-5 mean: The horseman can restrain his horse in the precipices of
Giedo only by sword thrusts.
20
Ligdf Bakarie was a brother of Moroda, the chief of Lieqa Naqamt6. The captivity of
Abba Digga, the prince of Giima taken prisoner at Giedo, made more difficult the position
of Lieqa Naqamte between the two belligerent leagues. Lieqa Naqamt6 did not join itself
to the Mussulmen (although its chief enemy, Tucco Danno had added his army to the
pagan league) because it was on eveiy side surrounded by pagan populations and its little
army would not have been able to resist till the arrival of the Moslem armies; nor did it
fight on the side of the pagans because of the old enmity with the Warra Biera (see song
28). Here is an interesting strophe, which Moroda sang to deplore the dangers of neutral
ity. Lieqa Naqamte, as I have above said, remained neutral during the war.
yd"bbdk6 Bakarte 4ssa"bbdk6 daqari
yd"kkdkd Yamugte rdkkd rdkko na dufb
1 O my father Bakarie! 2 O my ancestor Yamugie! 3 Where can I go? 4 All woes

reached me!
Notes. However, the brother of Moroda, Ligdf, followed the pagan league. Abba
Digga was taken after his capture into Lieqa Naqamt6 ; Ligdf desired to hang him, but
Moroda, to avoid worse difficulties between his tribe and Guma, let him escape disguised
in woman's clothes.
21
The army of Lfmmu, which had gone to aid Guma, after the battle at Giedo was pur
sued by the Nol6 Kabba, a Galla tribe living on the left bank of the BIrblr, west of Hani
Gada Dull6 and Gfmma Horro. The " four pagans " decided that the Nole Kabba, after
pursuing the army of Lfmmu, would attack Lfmmu itself. In fact, the Nole Kabba pene
trated Lfmmu as far as Hursa.
Idld Noli Kabbd hdrra Hdnnd d$tti
abbdn ole gdbbd yd birrdn bariti
Guma fdrdd bu.se 40 gdfd doqqien qorti
Lieqdn kdlfa qufi Ndnno Rafifil himd
5 laloso dibiddd Limmu ta 'i bod
habakkd yd futi Oromdn gamtati
Gumdn t&rba"fi$ft& hinargu"ttdm gotari
si tynna muffldkd 45 hdmma dufdn isd
mudd tokkittikd Gdmba Ragfid raddi
10 dibbtf dinki fidi g$td"lkanl guyd
sitt"ergddda seo in&uqqdllan innd
yd "n argddda ta 'i gasasdn Fingillie
ddra Noli Kabbd 50 isa Sieqd darbi
dind y&nl "mbiehu $ga Sieqd darbd
15 torbani bultari loldrra "ntinnattd
kudatdrbd"d^se manni Gimma "mbadu
lok&n bd 'a dinndn (jrimma Gdro bu 'd
Bdro told "rgati 55 Limmu"ttdm gotari
kardn $ssa g£de Oromdn malate
20 §dldi'essi"ssd mbu 'u atu"ttdm gotari
bowdn kdn Diddiessd hinergitu gomfd
bowdn kdn hiy$ssd bund sila"nfunu
Guma biydf diimi 60 wdrqie hunguldli
Limmu mdftu dibbi kan kiena naddieni
25 nu sanif lammieda buqqi"rkatti batti
gdndd"bba Bdgibd hoqdnkiessan dir&ma
bdfta b&na Gied6 hundumtum gdfatd
Ligdin dalaterra 65 dirdf naddien kiessdn
namn"dkka bakakkd nu wart wdlldU
30 qabdi ad^sifta $ga nu egddda
bakdkkd"bbd Riebu masqdld gubbaml
Oromdn tokkorri farddkie sorraddu
naggddien kuddni 70 $ga nu eggaddi
bda gQdd bund yd torbdn Guduru
35 mdnakieiid dufdni yd €ldn Gimmd futd
hdrkd quUd"ngaldni wdlin nu barbadddni
Hursd Limmu mitl $ga nus $gannd!
1 The war of the Nol6 Kabba. 2 Whoever has failed, repents (his failure). 3 (They)
have pulled down the Guma from their horses. 4 (They) have taunted the Lieqa by"
laughing. 5 Laloso (wood for yoke) of the oxen! 6 If you have taken the long spear (ha-
bdkka), 7 seven Guma you will have killed! 8 I will bring to you (their spoils), oh my girl.
9 Oh my one girl, 10 take the drum and the dwarf! 1lI will send you that, 12 if I have
found it. 13 These Nole Kabba, 14 an enemy whose language is unknown! 15 Seven days
do you wait? 16 I shall have killed seventeen (enemies). 17 As the horse (literally, the
halter) has refused the burden (of the spoils), 18 I have sent to you the spoils by the way
of the Bar5. 19 " Where is the way? " he said. 20 Where the monkeys do not descend!
21 The precipice is of the Diddiessa. 22 Weeping is for the poor! 23 The Guma perished
utterly. 24 Why have the Lfmmu been distressed (for them) ? 25 We are born from
kindred lineages. 25 O country of Abba Bagib6! 27 You descend, we descend into Giedo!
28 Ligdf is born, 29 a man like thunder. 30 (Whoever) you have taken (into your com
pany), you cause him to kill (i.e. to fight bravely). 31 The thunder, Abba Riebu. 32 One
Oromo (i.e. pagan) 33 against ten Mussulmen! 34 Go out, let us descend to the plain! 35
They came into our house. 36 They will not return from there with empty hands! 37
"Hursa is no (longer) Lfmmu. 38 Today it is Hanna," you said. 39 When the spring has
broken forth, 40 when the dirt has become dry, 41 the Nonno will tell wonderful tales.
42 The Lfmmu afterwards will weep! 43 The pagans have agreed. 43 It is not there. What
can you do ? 44 As soon as he comes here, 46 Gamba Ragga, the wonderful, 47 brave by
night and by day, 48 he will trench, he 49 the short (warrior) of Fingilbe, 50 he (the son)
of Lieqa, has decided. 51 When (the son) of Lieqa has decided, 52 as to war, he is not too
short for it! 53 The house of Gfmma does not perish. 54 Gfmma descends to Garo. 55
What can Lfmmu do? 56 The pagans have taken counsel. 57 And you, what can you
do? 58 Send not coffee as tribute, because we will not take it. 60 Hoard gold! 61 Our
women (only) 62 carry pumpkins. 63 Do your servant-maids do the work of men? 64
Question (about it) all 65 your men and your women! 66 We do not know the night. 67
Then await us, 68 (when) the Cross holiday has been celebrated (literally, burnt). 69 Give
food to your horses. 70 Then await us! 71 Even if you confederate with the seven Gudru
(literally, if you should take in your company the seven Gudru), 72 and with the six
Gimma, 73 and then look for us, 74 we will await you !
Notes. In the verses 5-18, the victorious warrior tells his sweetheart that he intended to
send her the captured spoils, but on account of their great quantity and the ruggedness of
the country where the horse had refused so heavy a burden, he has flung them into the
Baro (perhaps in a stream flowing into the Baro), tributary of the Saint Bon (Upeno).
Dwarfs (v. 10) were most appreciated as buffoons by these Galla populations (see Prose,
text 13). The Nole Kabba (v. 13) were followed during this expedition by a group of
Affill6, a Sidama tribe living on the banks of the Upeno. The Affill6 speak a Sidama dia
lect very similar to the Kaffa language. They were "an enemy whose language is unknown",
to the Galla of Guma. Loransiyos affirms that the king of the Aifill6 is born of the same
line as the Busasie who reign in Kaffa. The verses 19-20 point out the ruggedness of the
Giedo country. They are very similar to verse 2 of song 19. Then the singer wonders why
Lfmmu has intervened in the war just when Gfmma was in a bad condition (v. 21-24).
Veree 25 alludes to the affinity between the Nole" Kabba and the Lfmmu Soba tribe (the
Lfmmu Soba and the far distant Lfmmu are brothers according to the Galla genealogists).
Abba Bagib6 (v. 26) is the well-known king of Lfmmu.1 The verses 28-36 allude to an
enterprise of the famous warrior, Ligdf Bakarie. Pursuing his enemies, he advanced as far
as the village of B6qa Mara$$o in Guma and challenged the people to send against him
ten Moslem warriors whom he alone fought and defeated. The verses 35-36 (which are
supposed to be sung by the conquered soldiers) allude to the spoils that these soldiers were
obliged to give to Ligdf Bakarie, as a recompense for the excursion which Ligdf had made
into their country. Abba Riebu (v. 31) was the war-name of Ligdf, " lord of (the horse)
Riebu," (Riibu means whip). The Nonno (v. 41) although they were old enemies of Lfmmu,
did not confederate with the pagans, and fearing an invasion of their country, they guarded
their frontier and made trenches on it. Gamba Ragga (v. 16) was a chief of the Nonno,
ironically praised by the singer on account of the trenching. Lamu, son of Lieqa, (v. 49-
52), was a brave officer of the army of Tucco Dann5. His country was Fingillie in Lfeqa.
The Nole' Kabba, after invading nearly the whole of Lfmmu, began to sack the adjoin
ing districts of Gimma Abba Gifar. Therefore, the verses 53-55, praising the victory,
allude to the custom of the court of Gimma of escaping to Garo, whenever the capital of
the kingdom was in danger. The verses 61-65 contain the usual pleasantries about the
Moslem ritual ablutions. When travelling, the Galla Mussulmen carry the water necessary
for these ablutions in an empty pumpkin called masaguld.2 The pagans say, " Among our
people, only the women bring the pumpkins and draw the water; your men do this work
fit only for women. Then who among you does the work fit for men ? Perhaps the women ? "
The song ends with the threat of a new invasion of Lfmmu.
The pagans mention the feast of the Cross (v. 68) as a well known date in their calendar.
Some Galla pagan tribes, the Kaffa, the AffiU6, the Zingaro,3 celebrate with primitive rites
the holiday of the Cross. Loransiyos tells me that, according to a Galla tradition, these are
survivals of the cult taught to the Galla by Moti W&rqfe. (i.e. "the King of the Gold") who
conquered the Galla and Sidama countries before the invasion of Grafi. One finds in
Galla countries beyond the Gibie ruins of ancient churches built by the "King of the Gold."
Legends allude to the expeditions led by the Ethiopian emperors against the Sidama king
doms and the Galla countries to the southern frontier of the Ethiopic state. Verse 71 alludes
to the confederation of the seven Gudni tribes, which afterwards became a little kingdom
governed by Gama Muras.4 Verse 42 alludes to the confederation of the six Gimma; they
are the five tribes, Gimma Rare, Gimma Gobbo, Gimma Tibbie, Gimma Arg5, Gimma
1 Cf. Cecchi, op. cit. vol. 2, p. 157-160; Fra Guglielmo Massaja, I miei trentacinque anni di missione nell' alta
Etiopia, Milano, 1885-88, vol. 5, p. 12-15; I. Guidi, 'Strofe e piccoli testi Amarici,' (Mitteilungen d. Seminars f.
Orientalis Sprachen, zu Berlin, vol. 10, pt. 2, p. 180-184).
8 Cf. E. Cerulli, ' L'Islam nei regni Galla indipendenti,' op. cit., p. 118.
* According to Loransiyos, the present chief of the Zingard is Fitawrftri Antonie, a late Catholic, converted bv
Cardinal Massaja, who has kept, as a remnant of his Catholicism, only his name Antonie, i.e. Anthonv.
4 Cf. Massaja, op. cit., vol. 2, p. 196-199.
Qadfda, and the kingdom of Gimma Abba Gifar. Although Gimma Abba Gifar is separated
from the other five tribes living between Gudru, Lfmmu and Lieqa, on account of the
remembrance of their common origin, the six Gimma always consider each other akin, but
there is no political bond between them. Likewise, the Lieqa esteem themselves brothers
of a tribe living near Warra Himano in Wallo, and say that Grafi expelled them from
Wallo to their present seat.
Laldso (v. 5) is a tree, the wood of which is used by the Galla to construct yokes for
oxen; habakkd (v. 6) is a kind of spear with long wooden shaft and short blade; it is called
also tuma JAmmd, because the smiths in Lfmmu construct and sell it in great quantities.
Sid (v. 11) " thing " is an Arabism; l6ko " halter " means horse figuratively; hungulMe
(v. 60, see also song 16), means " to hoard the gold dust," which in these countries was
found in the river gravels, and heaped up by the Galla. In this form, it is brought to the
chief as tribute. Borelli J tells that Menilek II hurled against Walda Giyorgis the gold
heap which this dafigM had paid as tribute to the Emperor.
22
The second defeat by the pagan league and the invasion of Lfmmu forced Abba Gubir
and his allies to demand an armistice, which was accorded to them by the pagans. In the
meantime, Abba Gubir sent his brother, Abba Digga, to Dapo Gumbf, the only land con
quered by him during the war and kept by him till the armistice. Abba Digga was ap
pointed governor (Abba Qor6) chiefly to spy from the north upon the movements of the
pagan armies. Then Abba Gubir asked his allies whether they would conclude a new agree
ment to take up arms again after the armistice. The king of Lfmmu, who had suffered
the largest losses during the invasion of his country, and had participated in the Islamic
war from motives political rather than religious, refused to renew the alliance. Likewise
Gfmma Abba Gifar did not desire to participate in another war. These refusals were
perhaps the cause of the wars between Guma and the two kingdoms of Lfmmu and Gimma
Abba Gifar which I have discussed in the notes to the songs 1-2. Gomma alone sent a
favorable answer by means of a special embassy. Then Abba Gubir assembled all the
princes and officers of his kingdom and recited to them the following riddle. The solution
of the riddle was given by Abba Digga.
Abba Gubtr: hibd! hibd! gafdrsd mirg&n td 'u
AbbS Digga: hip! qierrdnsd mil&n td 'u
AbbS Gubir: godarri bdkkte fctfcssa g-iurrd rdfU 10 kdna bCkka
w&rra guddd dabdmi Abbfi Digga: dond6do, rwTmdrU
5 mimitfd sinidd& dond6co, dn ndn"imd!
kabald ndmd"g'(tfiu godarrt bakkte kiessa
nifcn(a bukktkoH gtirrd rdflb kan jj(tte
1 Jules Borelli, fithiopie meridionale, Paris, 1890, p. 166.
15 abbdkd, IAmmi.4a yd"bbdk6 Tudddda

wdrra guddd dabdmi gafdrsa mirg&n td 'u
abbdkd kan jj$tte (kmmdia yd"bbdk6 Tambdda
mimittd sinicdd 25 qierrdnsd mildn td '«
kabald ndma "jj$ftu yd "bbdkd Nole^d
20 abbdkd kan dgtte Gommddd kdna sif nan biek£
ntknda bukkekieti
1 Abba Gubir: "A riddle! a riddle!" 2 Abba Digga: "Come on!" 3 Abba Gubir: "A
calladium moves the leaves (literally, the ears) in the plain! 4 There is great family of cow
ards! 5 The very hot pepper, 6 a handful (of it) kills the people. 7 (There is) a lion at
my side, 8 there is a buffalo at my right hand, 9 there is a leopard at my feet. 10 Divine
this! (literally, know this!) " 11 Abba Digga: "My Lord, pardon me! 12 My Lord, I will
tell (it to you). 13 The calladium which in the plain 14 moves its leaves (literally, the
ears), as you have said, 15 my Lord, is Lfmmu. 16 The great family of cowards 17 which
you have mentioned, O my Lord, is Gimma (Abba Gifar). 18 The very hot pepper, 19 a
handful (of which) kills the people, 20 as you have said, O my Lord, is Gomma. 21 The
lion at your side, 22 O my Lord, is Tiicco (Danno). 23 The buffalo which is there at the
left hand, 24 O my Lord, is (Abba Dfma) Tamb6. 25 The leopard which is there at the
feet, 26 O my Lord, is the Nole (Kabba tribe). 27 This I have divined (literally, known)
for you."
Notes. The population of Lfmmu (v. 3, 13-15) not brave, but vainglorious and in
constant, is compared to the calladium sativum, the tuber of which is eaten by the Galla;
its leaves more according to the direction of the wind. The Galla often call the leaves
gurrd mukd, i.e. "the ears of the tree," (cf. v. 3, 14 of this song and song 93) ; likewise, they
call fruits ififia mukd, i.e. " the eyes of the tree " (this second metaphor is so usual that often
ififia, "eyes," without the genitive muka means " fruits "). Also the Sidama (e.g. the Kaffa,
the Dawro, and the Walamo) call leaves, "the ears of the tree." There is no doubt a close
correspondence between this animistic conception and the religious ideas of the Kushites
concerning trees. Song 138 is a very important proof of this connection.
The population of Gimma Abba Gifar, although very numerous, was said to be wanton,
(see song 15, v. 40-44), and therefore not valiant in war (v. 4, 16-17). The warriors of
G6mma were few, as their native country was small; but they fought very bravely (v. 5, 18-
20). As to the pepper, symbol of bravery, (v. 5) cf. song 1, notes. The three enemies who
resemble the three wild beasts (lion, buffalo, leopard) are north of Guma — "at my side,"
says the singer, Tucco Danno; west of Guma, " at my right hand," Abba Dfma Tamb6;
northwest of Guma, "at my feet," the Nole Kabba. Naturally this orientation was de
termined by the place where the council of the officers had assembled, and by the position
of the singer (Abba Gubir). As to Abba Dfma Tamb6, cf. song 10.
Worthy of notice in this song is the formula for stating and for solving riddles; Kdna
bifcka, "Divine (literally, "know") this" (v. 10), and Kdna sif nan bfeke, "This I have
divined (literally, "known") for you"( v. 20). These formulae may be compared to Min
awgUliS? "What shall I divine (literally, "know") for you?" used by the Amara in their
riddles.
Siniddd (v. 5, 18) is a very hot variety of pepper. In some parts of Shoa on the Galla
frontier, the Amara also call it Hnt&o. Dondddo (v. 11, 12) was the title of the kings of the
Galla state beyond the Gibie, used only when addressing the king as the Amharic ganhoy
(cf. the Kaffa word, ddno, " lord "; Gonga, d&ntio, d6n§d, " lord ").
23
The new war between the pagans and the Mussulmen was occasioned by the arrogance
of Abba Digga. He had resolved that instead of the usual tribute, the population of Dapo
should give him the whole crop of maize for that year. The chiefs of two clans in Dapo,
Ebiyo and Dukkulla, were obliged to vouch for the preservation and consignment of all
the crops. On one occasion the crops were found damaged, and both guardians laid the
blame to monkeys that had visited the fields by night. But Abba Digga, finding in their
houses a large part of the stolen maize, condemned them and their families to slavery and
ordered that they should be brought to Guma and sold in the market place. Ebiyo was able
to escape and reach the pagan army commanded by Tokko "ndarse, who had pitched his
camp near Dapo. Tokko "ndarse was easily persuaded that the guardians were innocent
and unjustly condemned; he sent many soldiers to cut down all the maize of Abba Digga
as a sign of the declaration of war. Then he besieged Dapo with his army. Abba Digga,
as soon as the war began, was aided by the army of Guma which went to deliver him from
the siege of the pagans. After three days of battle, the Mussulmen were defeated for the
third time. The army of Guma was pursued as far as Ebfcca Ruya at the frontier of the
kingdom, and only the resistance of Nagarf Ganna, a chief of D&p6, converted to Islam
and therefore fighting together with the Mussulmen, was able to prevent the invasion of
the Moslem kingdom. Here is the triumphal song of the victors:
4lgni Ijlbdn SuUi yd Surdmu (jawi
boqqollS "bbd duld katiso garbi&Sd
durbi ]$bd SuUi yd and namiddd
doUi£ namdtti hindanqd sosoqqd
5 nu Guma miti 15 qaU mdrd"ngi&ssa
dur ingurgurdmne mora giessi"mbieku
dkka tomborS lafd ddra Gumd
sani naggddteda tdkko"ndicdd"nbdsd
hatik,fe W&rfidte namnl hdrra dabde
10 abbdnkte naggddte 20 Guma fird"nargltu
yd Gadd"dd Yambi fdqtn immoroddi

kalle Iten(d mofd 65 hinni svRsa"mbi"kku
durdtt"asin dird Wdqi buU kani
Yambte"$ssd mogd gandi Tdkko"nddrst
25 tumdttu"kkd Simd kuni Wdqi bu 'b
agadd na fabsi dkka qallu"bbukku
dabbi Tokkd "ndarsd 70 yd ilmd Onto <jawt
Gadddd Abba Gabbi kdrmd si frginna
jjiUl Tdkko jjird ani"nndttu d§Ue
30 ndmn"dkka kudani kdrmd ndmd mali
ibirkun guddisd 4%gd ndmd maU
daw en hold tiksd 75 korb&ssd ro 'old
kan Tdkko nd gode sogidda nam"bitd
bakke f)dpo dald (rubtr Abba Dinqi
35 si "ndinqu yd Gumd isa sitti frgatd
kuddJdn qabati isa s&sa"mbieku
saqaltdmd muri 80 DoddS ndmd"ngikessi
riefdn ta '6 bdsi Abbd Mind Hannd
Idfd ta '6 Gumd Godddmin hindidu
40 boqqolld fa(dfne yd Gdlld hiUitu
lommottd tomburd hundi'e botorddd
Hanndn kolfd qufe 85 gdgd dabbi $dmd
tokkdn siesa "mbieku hundi'en Oromddd
harkakd berrukd sddd rabbi somi
45 isa tiepd hirbu Surt mdl kiessani
and ndtu"bbokd Oromdn mardti
mudd"ndarsd Obi 90 isa sirri kiessi
Tokkdn bddd dumd ofi dald liessi
gait mdl sodatd dkka Tdkko"ndarse
50 lafd"bbd ofilti kososdn diratti
duru bdsd bdfti Told Wdqi wamdtte
naggddten qumbidd 95 bakardti"nddftu
qumbi gurgurdti ilmi Gannd Sabu
mdl bar(umd qabdi bakakkdn ga"bu 'i
55 yd algdsdn kiema utu hinni"ndiri
gurgurdidu (allte Gumd tdkko"ngalu
yo Gumd daddabdi 100 yd Gumd motummd
Qimmdn is dabali itti kienni Sabu
Negitd Tambard utu Sabu"ndiri
60 Tambardtii ergati akkakunkte "nafu
tumtu kudos' ani mdnikCe "ngubbatd
fdqt torbatamd 105 hdrkakte dtibisi
tumtu tumd tumtl nitikie "nardmti
1 The blood of Ebiyo Suite, 2 (is it) the maize of Abba Dula? 3 The daughters of Eba
Sulle 4 are noble women (literally, " daughters of man"). 5 We are not Guma, 6 for
merly were not sold 7 like negroes. 8 O race of Mussulmen, 9 your mother is Warfidie,
10 your father is a Mussulman. 11 O Suramu (son) of Gawe, 12 you also are a slave, 13 if
I am a (free) man. 14 A pullet 15 I have slaughtered and brought to the diviner (Abba
Mdra). 16 Beforetime, I had not gone to the diviner. 17 Among the troopers of this Giima,
18 I will kill one for the indi66d. 19 The man who has not gone today (to the battle),
20 shall no longer be able to revenge his family (literally, shall not find the blood-vengeance
of his family). 21 O Gada, whose mother is Yambe, 22 (who has) an old cloak of lion's
skin, 23 long since he is here ! 24 What blemish has the son of Yambe ? 25 He hits only with
the point, like Sima. 26 Break for me the cane (of the maize) ! 27 O calf of Tokko "ndarse,
28 Gada, shepherd of calves! 29 There is a g'illd, 30 one man, who is (in value) as ten men.
31 He cultivates the plants ibirku, 32 and he, a python, guards the sheep. 33 Only one
has done (this) for us, 34 below, in the plain of £>apo, 35 [do you not wonder, O Giima?]
36 fifteen (soldiers) he took (prisoner), 37 ninety (soldiers) he stabbed. 38 The corpses
have made fruitful the land! 39 In the fertile land of Guma, 40 we have reaped the maize.
41 O valiant negro! 42 Hanna is satiated with laughing. 43 Tokko does not know flight.
44 O my hand, O my palm, 45 twist this strap! 46 Woe to you, O my Lord! 47 The child
of Handarse Obe, 48 Tokko, has struck down the proud ! 49 O coward, why are you afraid ?
50 In his father's land, 51 long since he has done ill. 52 O Mussulman (merchant) of
myrrh, 53 sell your myrrh! 54 Why have you ascended the throne? 55 If his throne be
longs to us, 56 let him sell jet! 57 If Giima has been defeated, 58 add (to them) also
Gimma, 59 and N6gita (the king of) the Tambaro! 60 Send to the Tambaro (many am
bassadors) : 61 fifteen smiths 62 and seventy tanners; 63 the smiths striking on the anvil,
64 the tanners scraping (the skins!) 65 They do not know flight! 66 They have descended
from heaven 67 to the land of Tokko "ndars6. 68 They have descended from heaven,
69 as the sorcerer Bukko! 70 O son of Gawe Onco, 71 we will send you a bull! 72 " I will
eat nothing," you have said, 73 " except male sons of men, 74 except blood of men! "
75 A he-goat among the goats 76 I will buy with a (piece of) salt. 77 O Gubir Abba, Dingf,
78 that I will send to you 79 who do not know flight. 80 Do6ce" does not reach (the
stature of) a man. 81 He is the chief of Mina's family in Hanna. 82 He does not reject
the Godjamians, 83 if he does not enter the Galla (families). 84 O root of the tree
botord, 85 O skin of a fat calf! 86 The race of the Oromo 87 fasts on account of the fear
of God! 88 O Suramu, what has become of your (soldiers)? 89 The pagan has gone out
of his mind. 90 He has placed that on the throne. 91 He has placed himself below ! 92 As
Tokko "ndarse, 93 he has weeded Kososo. 94 He is called Tola Waql. 95 He hits with the
bakard. 96 The son of Ganna Sabu, 97 the thunderous, has gone down. 98 But for him,
99 no one would have returned to Guma! 100 O Guma, as for the kingdom, 101 give it to
him, to (the nephew) of Sabu! 102 But for the nephew of Sabu, 103 not even your grand
fathers would have remained (living). 104 Your house would have been burned; 105 your
hand would have given back (what you had taken) ; 106 your wife would have been sold
as a slave!
Notes. In verses 1-4, the singer alludes to the sons of Ebiy6, one of the two guardians
of the maize, condemned to servitude by Abba Digga (see above). Warfidie (v. 5-13) the
mother of Abba Digga, was a Sidama concubine of Onco. Therefore, Abba Digga, although
he was older than Abba Gubir, was destitute of right of succession to his father's throne.
The custom of consulting haruspices (Abba Mora, i.e. Master of the entrails, see v. 14-
16), who read the future events in the entrails of sheep and cows, is general among the
Galla. We already know the Galla legend about the cow that ate the sacred book, and
thenceforth kept it in its peritoneum. Lefebvre * after telling a new version of this
legend (the cow is replaced by a sheep) writes: " Les Gallas expriment cette tradition dans
leur langage par les mots suivants, matdf ouakabouiisaa lone ignati mora te-e ourmone
matdf ni mora." I think that the Galla words quoted by Lefebvre may be interpreted as
follows: matdf Wdqa bu 'e", sd 'a I6n inflate, mora ta '<?; hara-mmd matfifni mora, " the
book has descended from heaven, a cow of a cattle-herd has eaten (it), it (the book)
has stuck in the peritoneum (of the cow) ; and to-day the book is the peritoneum." On
the contrary, in Kaffa and other Sidama countries, the fowl is the sacred animal, holding
in its entrails the secrets of the future.2 These Sidama beliefs were not unknown in Dap6,
unless the verses 14-16 may be interpreted as another ironical allusion to the Sidama origin
of the slave, mother of Abba Digga. When a pagan Galla kills an enemy, he does not enter
his house on returning after victory until he has slaughtered a she-goat at the threshold.
This sacrifice is called owpft. If the victim has been an elephant, one slaughters an ox,
and the sacrifice is called indidc~d. The singer (v. 17-18) would sacrifice his indi6dd by slaugh
tering a Giima soldier instead of the usual ox. Verses 21-28 allude to the warrior Gada
Yambe born in Dimtu, a country between Hanna and Qumba. He had taken a holy oath
(kaka, see song 15, v. 74, 143) not to strike his enemies during battle by hurling his
spear but only with the point, fighting hand to hand. A similar oath was taken by Sima
(see song 4-6). Abba Gabbf, " shepherd (literally, master) of calves " is the nickname
given to Gada Yambe' by his sister-in-law. According to Galla custom, a sister-in-law may
not call her brothers-in-law by their personal names, but she must address them with a
special nickname. There is probably a connection between this custom and the levirate in
force among the Galla. Verses 29-38 mention the warrior, Tiira R6ba Nonce, bom in
Bienti near Dimtu. He had gone to the Abba Muda; therefore he was g'illd (see Prose,
text 4, notes). The verses 52-56 allude to the origins of the Moslem penetration of these
lands, i.e. to the Arabic merchants who entered the Galla countries beyond the Gibie to
buy the local products, giving in return myrrh and necklaces of jet. (The pagans use
myrrh to supplicate the genii.)
1 Theophile Lefebvre, Voyage en Abyssinie, Paris, 1845, vol. 1, p. xv. » Cf. Cecchi, op. cit., vol. 2, p. 197.
Verses 57-58 allude again ironically to the Sidama origin of Abba Digga's mother.
The allies fit for Abba Digga are the Tambaro (i.e. the inhabitants of the well-known Sidama
kingdom southwest of Shoa), especially since it was said that Negfta, the king of Tambaro,
had been at that time converted to the Moslem faith. If Abba Digga has recourse to such
an ally, he may not send noble Galla ambassadors to the Sidama who were and are consid
ered by the Galla worthy only of servitude, but an embassy of low caste men such as smiths
and tanners. Bukko (v. 68) is Abba Bukko, a sorcerer of the Lieqa (see song 44). In the
verses 69-70, the singer touches again upon the servitude of the sons of Ebiyo and Duk-
kulla, and says to Abba Digga, " An ox or a he-goat is enough to repay you for the lost
maize. Do not desire human blood! " Docce1 Dangasa (v. 79-82) was a warrior (of low
stature, according to verse 80) belonging to the family of the Mina Hanna. This family
had not been reckoned in the Galla tribes of Hanna, but they pretended to be emigrated
Godjamians. As I have said above, the Islamic ritual ablutions and the fast of Ramadan
were the laughing-stock of the pagans. The verses 84-87 allude clearly to the fast. The
verses 87-94 mention a slave of Tokko "ndarse, whose name was Tola Waqi (i.e. Gift of
God, Theodore). He fought valiantly during the battle and was very dear to his lord.
Kososo (v. 93) is a place near Dap6, one of the plantations of maize which occasioned the
war.
The last verses of the song nobly commend the bravery of Nagarf Ganna, the warrior
born in Dap6 and converted to Islam, who stopped the pagan army at Ebicca Ruya. But
for him, Guma would have been wasted. GoUie namdtti (v. 4) " sons of men " means
" noble "; in a similar way, ilma abba, " son of father " means " noble." The Amharic
words ya-saw Ilfifi, " son of man," are used with the same sense. Ibirku (v. 31) is a plant
often employed to make hedges and enclosures; therefore, it grows around the huts. The
Amara in Shoa call it aldltu (according to Loransiyos). SObsa (v. 43, 65, 79) is the infinitive
of the verb si'es, which in the northwestern Ma$$a dialects (Dap6, Hanna, Gabba) means
" to flee " (other Macca dialects, dies). Site is probably connected with the Amharic
Said, " to flee." Botdrd is a big tree (v. 84) ; bakard (v. 95) is a kind of long spear.
24
Even after the victories of the pagans and the conquest of the country by the Christian
Amara, the kingdom of Guma remained a centre of Moslem fanaticism. After submis
sion to Ras Tasamma, who had married Genne Alima, daughter of Abba Foggf (younger
brother of Abba Gubir and last king of Guma), the princes of Adam's dynasty remained in
the land as officers of the Amara government. However, Firrisa, the heir to the crown of
Guma, fled to Massowah. There he met §ek Abderroman (this is the Galla pronunciation
of the name, Sayh 'Abdu' l-rahmdni) native of Gomma, another fugitive on account of
the Shoan invasion. They (Firrisa and Abderroman) lived together for a long time, mak
ing frequent pilgrimages to Mekkah and Medina. About the years 1899-1900 as it has
been stated, there arose in Guma an agitation against the Shoans. Firrisa went boldly
through Eritrea to Kassala, and thence to the Sudan. Here he assembled some of his friends
along the Sudan-Ethiopic frontier, entered the country of the Affill6 and thence went
through Lieqa into Giima. Reaching Ebicca Ruya, he invited all the chiefs of the land to a
meeting, and proclaimed himself king of Guma, independent of the Amara. Among the
chiefs, many submitted to Firrisa (e.g. Imama, brother of Firrisa, and the governor, Abba
Qord, of Siddf) ; others refused the invitation and took refuge in Shoa (e.g. Wayessa, an
other brother of Firrisa) ; others remained neutrals (e.g. the Abba Qord of Ambiera, and
also the famous Moslem warriors, Asm Said and Gufa Ruf6). Firrisa during the meeting
at Ebicca Ruya proclaimed a holy war, dxhM, against the Christian Amara. Ras Tasamma
sent against him Fitawrari Sagirdie, who was defeated by the Mussulmen at Laga Santo
and driven beyond the Diddfessa. Then Firrisa, carrying out the plan of his ancestor Abba
Gubtr, proceeded to Hanna Abba Baro, defeated Hanna's army, and burnt the village.
Thus began a series of skirmishes between the armies of Firrisa and Ras Tasamma. The
struggle continued for two years, until at last Firrisa decided to retreat from Guma to
Gabba, and to the Sanqilla lands near the Sudan-Ethiopic frontier.
asin addi kunnd, Gubiriekd amdrd gaduUe", yd Gubtr mdlo
Firrisd"bbd Gubtr, Gubiriekd isinis 'addatu, yd Gubtr mdlo
gard naggdditlt, Gubiriekd gaddni"ngudiedd, Gubiriekd
bdr is a "nndmmattd, Gubiriekd kan ddra IquTrrafu, yd Gubtr mdlo
5 mdndkiena kottu, Gubiriekd 30 mdti Gumd boi, yd Gubtr mdlo
Idfd Firren oU, Gubiriekd guma gumtu soddd, Gubiriekd
allattin bokoki, Gubiriekd sild sdni dagnd, yd Gubtr mdlo
gulldnis naffami, Gubiriekd aid fird"nqabdu, Gubiriekd
ati g'ollie Marie, yd Gubtr mdlo garbiUM Adami, Gubirieko
10 miekatammd bosi, yd Gubtr mdlo 35 Adamin Dulludd, Gubirieko
utu ati"ngirri, Gubiriekd inmurin inqabin, yd Gubtr mdlo
allattin induti, Gubiriekd asdmd nd $irri, Gubiriekd
gulldn sdmd olii, Gubiriekd gardn G&mmd diesse", (jubiriekd
yd ilmd"bbd Gubtr, Gubiriekd dddi md"nkadanni, Gubiriekd
15 Firrisdn indufi, Gubiriekd 40 dalasdn indirtu, Gubiriekd
dagnd kdrru luU, Gubiriekd gard banti Kafd, Gubiriekd
e."rdgta"bbd fardd, Gubiriekd bakakkdn dalaie", Gubiriekd
Firrisdn bodumd, Gubiriekd Gufd Rufd fardd, Gubiriekd
lafd"mbusin fardd, Gubiriekd gabdnnd yd dufti, Gubiriekd
20 as&md nd (irri, Gubiriekd 45 yd dalasd Gumd, Gubiriekd
qierrdnsd"guggati, Gubiriekd ie sirri "bbd dvM, Gubiriekd
nien(d daddafati, Gubiriekd atirr"indigamU, Gubiriekd
kuni bu 'u Gandi, (jubiriekd dungd qafsifattu, Gubiriekd
kiessa tattafate", (jubiriekd kiessa barbaddaddd, yd Gubtr mdlo
25 Firrisdn indufti, Gubiriekd 50 ddmmd Gumd busi, Gubiriekd
yd F.bittd Ruyd, Gubiribkd Gubirie Imdmd, Gubiriekd
fomborin immotu, Gubiriekd Imdmdn marati, Gubiriekd
gardni si bdU, Gubiriekd mare" MM dxtt, Gubiriekd
wdrqie mieka bdsi, Gubiriekd 95 du 'dsa dingatd, Gubiriekd
55 Mdd md si dalti, Gubirieko Firrisd biniensd, Gubiriekd
utu"n ififid"nargi, Gubiriekd sdnttu Ambierd, Gubiriekd
Mndurd"ndungatti, Gubiriekd mdlifu sodatd, Gubiriekd
utu boru duti, Gubirieko yd MM Surriyddd, (jubirieko
gumd abbdkies bafti, Gubiriekd 100 Ambierd md "nbutu, yd Gubtr mdlo
60 guma sanl bafti, Gubiriekd bundn infonantu, yd Gubtr mdlo
dibM miek"onsitti, Gubiriekd yd ilmdn Gubirie, Gubiriekd
nagdritti busi, Gubiriekd kuy"ydddn nd qabdi, Gubiriekd
$ssa buleta"si, Gubiriekd gdfd Hdnnd gubbi, Gubiriekd
yd Tasammd Nddd, Gubiriekd 105 Qiellim yadddn qabdi, Gubiriekd
65 essdtti diessitd, Gubiriekd negufni"nnagieni, Gubiriekd
utu galte Sod, Gubiriekd dkka Hanndn ta 'i, Gubirieko
mdlinta negusd, Gubiriekd naddien qottd bufte", Gubirieko
nagdritti bufti, Gubiriekd Iddd Irrd fdrdd busi, Gubirieko
utu Tut^ngHrri, Gubiriekd 110 kobdsa daddisd, Gubirieko
70 nagdritli"nafti, Gubirkiekd Firrisd"bbd Gubtr, Gubirieko
Firrisdnis mM, Gubiriekd kobdo barati, Gubirieko
asi md yd Siddi, Gubiriekd dkka qaUu"bbukkd, Gubirieko
lafd gddd Siddi, Gubiriekd Tullu Sanqd ydbi, Gubirieko
isin kudaSani, yd Gubir mdlo 115 infdga Firrisdn, Gubirieko
75 hundiU dddidd, yd Gubir mdlo harkisa wdrqqiedd, Gubirieko
sild Wdqd bule", yd Gubtr mdlo namni"sammd argi, Gubirieko
ndma miti"Send, Gubiriiekd agabusa"mbuld, Gubirieko
md Lieqd uffatti, Gubiriekd dkka Wdqd"mani, Gubirieko
hurri da6cafatti, Gubiriekd 120 du 'a"nsodatu, yd Gubtr mdlo
80 itti tattafoJti, Gubiriekd bu 'i ggdd Ambd, Gubirieko
asumdn kunndti, Gubiriekd Nonnd fiard (akkd, Gubirieko
lafti baddd Qumbd, Gubiriekd kard na kiennitu, Gubirieko
qorrisa biniensd, yd Gubir mdlo and"n(4a! g$di, Gubiriekd
imbu 'in yd fiddt, yd Gubtr mdlo 125 Gdrd tarkanfati, Gubiriekd
85 luggdmd"nqabattu, yd Gubtr mdlo Yabaldtt"ergaU, Gubiriekd
ildni"ndandiessu, yd Gubtr mdlo kard $irsifati, Gubiriekd
fidra marmd diddd, Jubirieko dkka BuSi Garbd, Gubirieko
tydpd gdr"ergattu, Gubiriekd utu"rabd buti, Gubiriekd
matd gadi dV£, Gubiriekd 130 dunnikie"kkasirri, Gubirieko
90 ilmd"bbd Gubiri, Gubiriekd guya lamd"nbuUd, Gubiriekd
WdyQssdn qallodd, Gubiriekd
1 This (man) is here, my Gublrie, 2 Firrisa (nephew) of Abba Gubir, 3 race of Mussul-
men, my Gubirie. 4 Tomorrow I will send him a message, my Gubirie. 5 Come into our
house, my Gublrie! 6 In the land where Firrisa has dwelt, my Gubirie, 7 the vulture has
swelled, my Gubirie, 8 the hyena has fallen sick (by eating corpses). 9 You, son of Maram,
O Gubir what is there? 10 How many men have you caused to weep; O Gubir, why?
11 But for you, my Gublrie, 12 the vulture would have died, my Gubirie; 13 the hyena
would have lived by fasting, my Gubirie. 14 O son of Abba Gubir, my Gublrie, 15 Firrisa,
he has come, my Gublrie, 16 the brave, whose teeth are white jet, my Gubirie! 17 Where
are you going, O horseman, my Gubtrie? 18 Firrisa is back, my Gublrie. 19 Do not descend
from the horse and fight on foot, my Gubirie! 20 The sickle has weeded for me, my Gu
blrie. 21 The leopard has veiled his head, my Gublrie. 22 The lion has veiled himself two
fold, my Gublrie. 23 This (man) will descend to Gang!, my Gublrie. 24 He has come thence
in haste, O my Gublrie. 25 And Firrisa will come, my Gublrie. 26 The Amara are black
ants; O Gubir, why? 27 And you are white; O Gubir, why? 28 Fighting, one does not
grow fat, O my Gublrie. 29 Those who guard them (the Amara prisoners) do not sleep;
O Gubir, why? 30 The wealth of Guma has wept; O Gubir, why? 31 He will get blood-
vengeance against his brother-in-law, O my Gublrie, 32 because he is born from a brave
stock; O Gubir, what is there? 33 You have no relation, O my Gublrie. 34 O slave of
Adam, O my Gublrie. 35 The Adamites are like Dullu, O my Gublrie. 36 " Do not cut!
Do not take prisoners! " O Gubir, why? 37 The sickle has weeded for me, O my Gublrie.
38 A belly of Gomma has given birth to him, O my Gublrie. 39 O warrior of the holy war,
why do you not pray ? O my Gublrie! 40 There are no zawdya, O my Gublrie. 41 Toward
the sky of Kaffa, O my Gublrie, 42 thunder is born, O my Gublrie. 43 Gufa Ruf6, the
horseman; O my Gublrie. 44 Even the whole market would have come, O my Gublrie.
45 O enclosure of Guma! O my Gublrie! 46 O throne of the abba dula\ O my Gublrie!
47 Before you, it had been knocked down, O my Gublrie. 48 Let him light a torch, O my
Gublrie, 49 and seek in the interior; O Gubir, why? 50 Gather the honey of Guma. 51 O
Ebicca Ruya! 52 " The mulatto shall not reign! " 53 The belly which has brought you
forth, 54 how much gold has it brought forth ? 55 Who is the mother who has given birth
to you ? 56 If I had seen her with my eyes, 57 I would have kissed her navel. 58 Even if
you should die tomorrow, 59 you have (already) got blood-vengeance for your father,
60 you have (already) got blood-vengeance for your relatives. 61 How many drums
have you pulled down? 62 You have forced (the enemies) to abandon the war-drums.
63 Where has he dwelt ? 64 O Tasamma Nado, 65 where have you flown ? 66 If you have
returned to Shoa, 67 what have you told to the emperor? 68 You (O Firrisa) have forced
(the enemy) to abandon the war-drums. 69 But for Tu6co, 70 not one war-drum would
have been kept (by the Amara). 71 Firrisa has won! 72 What will you do now, O Siddf ?
73 The troopers of the Siddf plain, 74 they are fifteen; 75 they are all warriors of the holy
war. 76 Since he is come from the sky, 77 he is not a man. 78 Why have the Lieqa put
on their clothes? 79 They have doubly veiled themselves with the fog, 80 and they have
come to him (Firrisa) in haste. 81 There is, behold, 82 the land of the Qumba plateau.
83 It causes the wild beasts to freeze. 84 Do not descend here, O warrior of the holy war!
85 You would not be able to rein (your horse), 86 you would not be able to look. 87 By
this valley of the Diddiessa. 88 send messages to Dapo! 89 You have trampled upon their
heads (O Firrisa) ! 90 The son of Abba Gubir, 91 Wayessa is thin. 92 (The nephew) Abba
Gubir, Imama, 93 Imama has gone out of his mind. 94 Going out of his mind, he has
trampled upon his mother. 95 May he die suddenly! 96 O Firrisa, wild beast, 97 whose
race is Ambiera, 98 why do you doubt ? 99 O you, whose mother is Surrfya, 100 why do
you not descend to Ambiera? 101 Why do you not gather the coffee? 102 O sons of Abba
Gubir! 103 I take care of these (people) (literally, the care of these has taken me).
104 When Hanna was burnt, 105 Qiellem was alarmed (literally, the care has taken
Qiellem). 106 The Emperor has not heard 107 what Hanna has become. 108 You (O
Firrisa) have caused the axes to descend upon the women. 109 You have pulled down Idd6
Irr6 from his horse 110 and he (Idd6 Irr6) is wandering alone. 1ll Firrisa (nephew) of
Abba Gubir, 112 he alone has learned. 113 As the sorcerer Abbiikko, 114 he has ascended
Mount Sanq6. 115 Does Firrisa descend thence ? 116 His hand is gold. 117 He who has
looked at him, 118 dwells fasting. 119 He is as worthy of faith as God. 120 He does not
fear death. 121 Descend to the Ambd plain! 122 " The Nonno of these woods, 123 let
them give way to me! 124 I will pass by! " he has said. 125 He has passed the Garo.
126 He has sent messages to Yabal6. 127 He has caused the way to be weeded, 128 even
as Buse Garba. 129 If you should descend to (the land of) the Arabians, 130 your death
would follow immediately. 131 You could not dwell (there) two days!
Notes. Firrisa (v. 9) is called son of Maram, i.e. Attete (see song 127). The verses 20-
30 celebrate the victory of Gangf, where the Mussulmen led by Firrisa, defeated the Amara
army of Ras Tasamma. Gang! is a place between Guma and Dapo. Among the Amara
captured during this battle by the Mussulmen, there were many negro slaves, sanqilld, who
had fought together with Ras Tasamma's army. The verses 26-27 allude to these negro
prisoners. The verses 31-36 sing about the harshness of Firrisa who fights even against
his brother-in-law, Tasamma, (see the introduction to this song) to revenge his father,
Abba Foggf, killed by the Amara. The princes of Adam's dynasty, says verse 35, are im
movable in their severity, unshaken as Mount Dullu (a mountain in Gumma). Firrisa is
called garbiMd, i.e. " slave " (v. 34), because he had ordered that all the warriors of this
holy war would take the nickname garbiddd Rabbi, i.e. " slave of the Lord." He had also
forbidden his soldiers boasting by calling themselves slaves of their ancestors, or chiefs.
It was the custom among the Galla pagans to sing a short boasting song, calling themselves
" slave of my father " or " slave of the king." Also recently Daggac (today Ras) Kabbada
had used in boasting the Amharic cry "ydrDdndw baryd," " the slave of Danaw," that
is, Menilek whose war-name was Abba Danaw (see also Prose, text 2). Besides, Firrisa
ordered that his soldiers should not cut off the genitals of the conquered enemies, as was
usual among the Galla, and that they should not take prisoners in order to gain, after
wards, great ransoms. The holy war, according to Firrisa, should not procure profane
trophies (v. 36).
Verses 37-40 allude to Sek Abderr6man, native of Gomma (see the introduction to this
song). He established in Guma and in the conquered lands many zawaya of the Tariqah
Mirganiyyah. (It is known that the Arabs called zawiyyah, pi. zawaya, the single seats of the
Moslem congregations. The congregations are called in Arabic tariqah, pi. turuq). The
verses 41-42 allude to Asm Said (see the introduction to this song). Verses 43-44 refer to
Gufa Ruf6, native of Giera, who was once obliged to take refuge in Kaffa, because he had
been banished from his native land. He, like Asm Said (song 25), was favorable to the
Mussulmen of Giima, but did not fight in the holy war. Verse 47 alludes to the first sub
mission of Giima to Ras Tasamma. Verses 48-51 honor the parliament assembled by
Firrisa in Ebfcca Ruya (see the introduction to this song). The singer in verses 50-51
puns on the two senses of the word ebid6a, name of the aforesaid village and meaning also
a plant, vemonia myriocephala, and a kind of dark honey which is produced by the bees
from the flowers of this plant. Verses 52-60 sing about the mother of Firrisa, who was
a slave of Abba Foggf. Therefore, Firrisa had been insulted by his enemies, who declared
that, according to the Galla law, the sons of the king's negro slaves must be excluded from
the throne. Likewise Abba Digga, when Gawe Onco died, was obliged to acknowledge that
the legitimate king was his younger brother, Abba Gubir. The verses 61-70 allude to a
strange episode of the battle at Gangf. Ras Tasamma, flying, abandoned the war-drums
of his army," and then sent Tuc6o Danno to retake them. Tucco with twenty horsemen
defeated the guard of Firrisa and was able to restore this loss. The verses 71-75 praise the
bravery of fifteen warriors, natives of Siddf. Siddf is the place of the tombs of the Giima
kings; no strangers were allowed to enter there, and even today, after the Amara conquest,
a proclamation of the Emperor has forbidden even the soldiers of the Amara governor of
the country to enter this royal cemetery. The verses 78-80 allude to the Lfeqa Horda, who
fought with their chief, Tucco Danno, ally of Ras Tasamma, against the Mussulmen. The
verses 81-86 recall the battle at Qumba during the first Moslem war (see songs 18-19).
Firrisa took revenge for this defeat of his uncle Abba Gubir, by devastating Dapo. The
verses 90-95 allude to both brothers of Firrisa; Wayessa, who fought together with his
brother and died during a battle against the Christians, and Imama, who, traitor to his
family, flew to Shoa to the court of the Emperor. The verses 96-100 relate to Ambiera, a
village where Firrisa had been brought up during his youth. Therefore, although Ambiera
had remained neutral during the holy war, Firrisa did not assault this village and force
it to pay the usual tribute of coffee. The verses 104-116 sing of the revenge which Firrisa
took against another enemy of his uncle, Hanna, which he pillaged and burned. During
the pillaging of Hanna, Firrisa killed the horse of Idd6 Irr6, chief of the army of Abba
Bara. TuM S*!anq6 (v. 114) is a mountain in the territory of Hanna. On this mountain,
Firrisa retreated at the end of the two years of war to attempt flight toward the Sudan. In
the verses 121-127, Firrisa demands of the N6nno an open way to escape. The Nonno
whom he addresses (v. 122) are the Nonno Gaccf, a tribe living westward of Hanna and
northwest of Gabba. Amb6 (v. 121) is a place between Hanna and Qumba. Garo (v. 125)
is Garo Sanqilla, a river near Gurra Farda, in the region of Naccaba. Yabal6 (v. 126) is
the chief village of the N6nno Gaccf. Verse 128 compares Firrisa with Bus! Garba, an
ancient Galla king of Horr6, who conquered the whole country of Lieqa, many districts
of Lfmmu, Gimma Abba Gifar, and the lands of the Nonno near Lfmmu. He was father of
Ras Waranfia.1
Agabu (v. 1 18) is fasting in a general sense (i.e. not eating) and also in the pagan religious
sense (see song 133, v. 78-80). The Moslem fast is called in Galla s&md, which is an Arabic
loanword. In this song (passim) the Moslem soldiers are called fiadi, Galla pronunciation
of the word fiihadi, adjective from jjihad, " holy war." Thus fiadi means " the holy war
rior," "the warrior of the holy war." The Christians and the pagans punned on this word,
pronouncing it fiadi, that is "little buffalo" (the buffalo is considered a low animal by the
Galla, see song 34, notes). The zaiviyyah (see note to the verses 37-40 of this song) is
called by the Galla dalasd, i.e. " enclosure." Even the residences of the sorcerers are called
dalasd (see song 114, v. 9).
25
Asm Said (see song 24, v. 41-42) was a native of Gimma Abba Gifar, and husband of
Tullu Abba Gifar's sister. He was banished from Gimma and went to Giima, where he
became at once famous on account of his Moslem zeal. However, as Abba Gubir became
very partial to him, and gave him great presents, many people in Guma protested against
this favoritism towards a stranger. Then the women of Guma sang:
Siddmd gdrd ddbsd
durisa "mbullu mitl
jjimmiddd kabd gaUd
1 The Sidama with broken belly, 2 we will not dwell before him. 3 Let the native of
Gimma return to (his native) walls!
Then Asfn Said, who had heard this song, went to the royal residency and demanded of
the king permission to go to Kaffa. The king asked Asfn the reason for this demand.
Asfn answered: " Dondt6o, lafti gurdd "nqabdu wdl ind&ltu" that is, "Sire, the land where
(the women) have not the gurdd, is not the best (land)." As to the gurdd, see song 15,
notes. And he went to Kaffa; thence he advanced as far as Giera, when he heard the
reports of the return of the Adamite dynasty to Guma, and the holy war. However, seeing
the expedition of Ras Tasamma already prepared, Asfn remained in Giera and did not
participate in any battles.
1 Cf. Guidi, ' Strofe e piccoli testi Amarici,' op. cit.
26
After passing through the Nonno country, Firrisa reached Gabba and tried to convert
Fatansa Ilu, the king of Gabba, to the Moslem faith. However, Fatansa Ilu, as he did not
understand the ascetic fervor of Firrisa, and saw that Firrisa and his companions offered
prayers and held religious ceremonies in a way which appeared to him very strange, im
agined that Firrisa was a sorcerer and imprisoned him. In the meantime, Ras Tasamma
went to the frontier of Gabba and ordered Fatansa to consign Firrisa to the Amara soldiers.
Fatansa answered that Firrisa had been suspected of sorcery while he was a guest of Gabba.
Therefore, he (Fatansa) might condemn Firrisa, but by the ancient customs, he could not
deliver a guest of Gabba to strangers, especially to the Amara, enemies of the guest.
Then Fatansa assembled his army and went to the frontier. In the meantime, he ordered
that during the actions between his army and the Amara, no food should be given to Fir
risa, to enfeeble him and thus hinder him from making sorceries against Gabba. Since,
during the battle the Dorannf, led by their chief, Abba Calla, refused to fight in behalf
of their ancient enemy Firrisa, Fatansa was defeated by Ras Tasamma. However, he
imagined that his defeat had been caused by the sorceries of Firrisa, and returning to
his capital, ordered that Firrisa should be brought before him to inquire whether Firrisa
had fasted, according to orders. The orders had been executed, but it appeared to Fatdnsa
that, in spite of the fast, Firrisa had la bonne-ch&re. Then he sang :
findanitti find&ni
gabbati naidni
qoricdd har 'a isdf ta 'd turdf
1 O urine, son of urine ! 2 He has eaten and grown fat. 3 Had he today a medicine ?
Qoritta (v. 3), "medicine" is often used to mean "poison," and also "sorcery." Gun
powder was called qorOda gaw$, "the medicine of the gun," by the Galla when firearms were
first introduced among them.
27
After defeating Fatansa, the Amara advanced as far as Bure, the chief village of Gabba
Ilu. Then Fatansa surrendered to Tasamma and consigned to him Firrisa, Sek Abderroman,
and their companions. S6k Abderroman was able to escape; the others were tried by Ras
Tasamma and condemned to death. Firrisa demanded to be executed holding the Koran
in his hands, and before the hanging he cried out that he would be buried outside Ethiopia.
In fact, says Loransiyos, although Tasamma had surrounded the gallows with sentries,
the corpse of Firrisa disappeared mysteriously during the night after the execution. The
tragic death of the last prince of Guma made a great and painful impression on the Galla.
Even today, all the Mussulmen of these lands consider Firrisa a saint (wall). Fatansa Ilu
repented delivering Firrisa to Ras Tasamma and feared divine vengeance. In fact he died
after some months, struck by lightning, and the day after his burial the sepulchre was
found open and the bones scattered in the ground.
The following song was composed by a Galla pagan minstrel after hearing the news
of the condemnation of Firrisa. The singer, by threats and prayers, demands an act
of grace for Firrisa. He recalls the power of Firrisa and the battle at Laga Sant&, thus
admonishing the Amara not to provoke the Galla to sanguinary reprisals; then states
the relationship between Firrisa and Tasamma. Finally he threatens divine vengeance
against Tasamma, if he should order the execution of Firrisa and S6k Abderroman (the
song was evidently composed before the flight of the latter).
yd Adami, guyd gdfd"rbi wdl gubba 6ibsi

hundu ratdi 35 gangdnni"mbuttu
bulti gdfd"nfi ilmi"bbd Gubtr
qord"bbd Wald du' d"nsodatu
5 hofd bidati gdrtko fetti
Firrisa Gobi yd du 'a mali
gard murdtu 40 jj%di Firrisdn
Tdsdmma Nddd ilmCbbd Gubtr
kutti garakte billdn butadd
10 mu(dn sodddkie fird (iratd
jjimmdtd rdbu ilmi"bbd Gubtr
mand"mbaind 45 qott6n"arkdtti
Faydn dutddd billdn mudditti
qoU6"bbd Cdffi qordn falafd
15 Mdrydm Amard mdl gdta dqnndn
imbt'eku Kirrdn lafie ktifird
ilmi"bbd Gubtr 50 funan&n gubbd
gami rabbitti jjede Firrisdn
sagdl ajji>se qaddt namdti
20 lamd hindiddd imballiesin
fuqurdn dute §^di sotiddnkie
saddqa buti 55 §$ddt"itti"md
daldsd mand Tdsdmma Nddd
otu jjarratti yd duga dubbi
25 Tdsdmma Nddd dukkdnd bai
si "ndnkaku "nnd butdttu Firrd
Diddiessd (fi 60 ardrafird
du 'd dengatd firrt"ndaddabu
Sdgirdinirri aken imbdtu
30 hinnu"nargatt sdni Adami
amsd bdl-qamts fird"mbiekani
gdfd tokkorrt 65 isdn gorra 'u
garbiddd goftd Qimmd tabbari
mand"mbaini isin kdfird

Tdsdmma Nddd dutdn md"ndiru
dvt&ljba dubtr baddn md"nqabdu
70 sdni nien$iddd 90 guydgdfd"rbi
ebd si"mbaddu lagd Santoti
d$di kakati yd dugd himd
garni si"mbaddu ani sin himd
d^dikakaU ilmCbbd (jubtr
75 yd qdtto maU 95 gdfd kamlsd
qottdn inmurd ald"lasiri
bilidn inkuld yoggd saggadu
dedi Firrisdn qdlbin indagti
A bdurramdnts hinni "nmardtd
80 gubbd mimittd 100 alldtti ta, 'i
sdni Gommadd gard wdqatti
nien(i"bbd Dammte bdM biqildi
Makkd Sdn daqi si galafatd
Medina gai mand"mbaini
85 du 'd"nsodatu 105 Qugdjirdma
Tdsdmmd Nddd imdn si himd
1 O Adam, the day of Wednesday, 2 all were astonished. 3 After one day, the day of
Antf, 4 the land of Abba Wat6 5 has sharpened its spears. 6 O Firrisa (nephew) of Abba
Gublr, 7 O belly-cutter, 8 Tasamma Nad6 9 has cut your belly, 10 your young brother-
in-law. 11 Friday, it has rained. 12 Do not go out of your house! 13 Faysa is angry. 14
In the spirit of Abba Caffie, 15 in Mary (venerated) by the Amara, 16 Kirr& does not be
lieve. 17 The son of Abba Gubir, 18 traitor of the Lord, 19 has killed nine (enemies),
20 has made two sacrifices (indUM). 21 The Moslem missionary grew angry; 22 he offered
a sadaqah. 23 The enclosure of the house, 24 oh, if you had (well) constructed it! 25 0
Tasamma Nad6! 26 He (Firrisa) will not neglect to come. 27 Pass beyond the Diddiessa!
28 Here, there is sudden death. 29 Sagirdie, 30 he has found it (i.e. sudden death). 31
Fifty officers 32 in one day. 33 The slave of his Lord 34 has placed him on his own
throne. 35 The mule does not bring (the spoils). 36 The son of Abba Gubir 37 does not
fear death. 38 " It is good for me," you have said, 39 " even death! " 40 So has said
Firrisa. 41 The son of Abba Gubir 42 is a long sword, 43 weeder of weeds. 44 The son
of Abba Gubir 45 is an axe for arms, 46 is a sword for waists, 47 wood-cutter! 48 "What
are you doing? " we said to him. 49 " The bones of the infidels 50 I collect and burn
(them)," 51 Firrisa has answered. 52 " The noble dynasty, 53 do not waste them (0
Tasamma) ! " 54 has said your brother-in-law. 55 What he has said, say you to this (i.e.
to Tasamma)! 56 O Tasamma Nad6 57 if the matter is right, 58 go out of darkness! 59
O valiant man, O Firrisa! 60 Peace between the relatives! 61 The noble family does not
debase itself, 62 does not become low caste. 63 The dynasty of Adam 64 does not ac
knowledge relationship. 65 They slaughter each other. 66 Await us in Gfrnma! 67 Do not
go out of your house, 68 O Tasamma Nad6! 69 Abba Gubir is angry. 70 He is a race of
lions. 71 " I will not bring for (fighting) you a spear! " 72 he said, and took a holy oath.
73 " I will not bring for (fighting) you a gun!" 74 he said, and took a holy oath. 75 "On
the contrary (I will bring) the axe! 76 The axe will split; 77 the sword will cut! " 78 has
said Firrisa. 79 And Abderroman, 80 burning pepper, 81 native of Gomma, 82 the lion,
Abba Dammie, 83 he went five times to Mekkah; 84 he reached Medina. 85 He does not
fear death. 86 O Tasamma Nad6, 87 you infidels, 88 if you die, 89 what will you be
come? 90 What will you have after (death) ? 91 The day of Friday, 92 the river SantS 93
may testify to it! 94 I will tell it to you. 95 The son of Abba Gubir 96 the day of Thurs
day, 97 at the hour of the asr 98 after the prayer, 99 will go out of his mind (literally,
the mind will go out of him). 100 He will be a fool. 101 He will become a vulture; 102 tow
ard the sky 103 wings shall break forth to him. 103 He shall destroy you. 104 Do not
go out of your house! 105 With a relative's good faith, 106 I sincerely advise you!
Notes. The song begins with the description of the astonishment of the inhabitants
when Firrisa unexpectedly appeared in Guma, and the struggle of the Doranni against
Firrisa. Friday was the day sacred to the spirit of Abba Caffie, a sorcerer of D&po (see
song 29). The Galla, and especially the nobles, consecrated one day weekly to their guar
dian spirit. This day they called by the name of the spirit. The spirit of Abba Caffle was
Antf, to whom Friday was consecrated. Therefore, Friday is called the day of Antf (v. 3).
Abba Wat6 (v. 4) was an officer of the Doranni. The verses 11-13 allude to Faysa Bud6,
another Doranni warrior. The verses 14-16 sing about Sek Kirr6, a companion of Firrisa.
The singer, a pagan, wonders because Sek Kirr6, a Mussulman, believes neither in the
Virgin Mary venerated by the Christians nor in the genii venerated by the pagan Galla.
Note that Mdrydm (v. 15) means in Galla the Virgin Mary (Mdrydm is the Amharic
form of this name) ; whereas Mardm means Atete, the goddess of fecundity (see song 127
and following). The verses 17-22 allude to a strange tale which had been told in the Galla
countries about Firrisa. It was said that, as he had killed nine horsemen, he made before
again entering his house, two sacrifices, inditt& (see notes to song 23). It is customary
to offer up the indidda for the killing of one elephant, but as one elephant is valued as
five horsemen (see notes to song 15), Firrisa offered two inditt& for his nine victories. After
wards he was reproached by the zealous Moslem missionaries (called by the Galla fuqurd.
Amharic fuqrd, Arabic, faqir) on account of these pagan ceremonies, and he made a dona
tion to the poor to expiate his sin (these donations are called in Arabic sadaqah). The
verses 23-32 urge Tasamma to fly beyond the Diddiessa, reminding him of the defeat of
Fitawrari Sagirdie at Laga Santo. The verses 33-36 allude to Docce' Dangasa, an officer of
Firrisa, who had once fought in behalf of Dapo against Guma. The pagan singer praises
him by calling him " slave of his Lord " (see song 24), thus unconsciously violating the
order of Firrisa (see notes to song 24). The verses 52-68 demand the act of grace for Fir
risa on account of his relationship with Tasamma. The verses 63-65 mean, " The other
noble families are sensible of family bonds. Why do only the descendants of Adam kill
one other?"
Tasamma, after the victory against Fatansa, returned to Gfmma Abba Gifar where he
awaited the arrival of the prisoners (v. 66). In Gfmma, far from Giima, Firrisa was
judged and executed, perhaps because it was feared that there might be a rebellion of
Giima against the sentence. The verses 69-78 refer to an oath taken by Firrisa not to
fight against Christians with the spear (the weapon of the pagans), nor the gun (the weapon
of the Amara Christians), but only with the axe and the sword. Naturally, however,
his soldiers were armed with guns. As to the holy oath (here the verb kakati is used), see
song 143. The verses 79-85 allude to Sek Abderroman (see the introduction to song 24).
Abba Dammie (v. 82) was the war-name of the Sheikh. The verses 86-93 read: " The
Amara infidels must fear death, but the Mussulmen (i.e. the condemned men, Firrisa and
his companions) have not been afraid of their sentence, because they await eternal joy.
Certainly they have not feared death during the battles and the Laga Santo may testify
on this point! " Verse 91 is not Galla, but Amharic : amsd bal-qamts. Butattu (v. 59) means
" valiant;" it is a formula used in the boasting-song. According to Loransiyos, it is like
in its value to the Amharic formula: akdki zarrdf.1 Aki (v. 62) is the general name for
the low castes: smiths (tumtu), hunters (wdtta), tanners (Jdqi) etc. Verse 96 is not Galla,
but Arabic : ' aid 'l-asr ' pronounced by the Galla singer (according to the Galla pronuncia
tion), aid' lasiri. AWasr is the well-known hour of the day in which a special prayer must
be offered according to the Moslem custom.
28
The chiefs of the Warra Biera, the famous family ruling over the Lieqa Horda were
obliged to fight many times against Gimma Gobbo. First of all, Tucco Danno defeated
and killed Bi6c6 Garba, chief of Gimma Gobb6; then the uncle of Tucco, Rumicc6 Biera,
defeated at Hufo the king Faysa Lamu, son of Bicce" Garba and well-known among the
Galla on account of his strange cruelties :
rteba Bt'era Otd Ufa Hordd"mbtegne
Rummte hammd "ngiessi Hufd hordad£isi
hdmma"botti gtessi ndmS, kolfd"mb&gne
fdrddn fafti adiemti 10 Tviii kolfaS&isi
5 nad4%tn (jimmd Gobbd Fdysd"lmd Lama
moid murad&si bodi obad6isi
1 The hero (son) of Bfera (son) of Ota, 2 Rumicco, how far does he reach? 3 He (i.e.
his stature) reaches a fist. 4 (His) horse comes and goes. 5 The women of Gimma Gobbo
6 he (Rumiccd) has caused to shave their heads. 7 In a land where fences had never been
1 Cf., Guidi, Vocabolario amarico-italiano, op. cit.
raised, 8 in Hufo, he raised his spear. 9 A man, who had never laughed, 10 Tucco, he
(Rumicc6) has caused to laugh. 11 To Faysa, son of Lamu, 12 he (Rumic66) has given
drink with his spear (i.e. has caused the blood of Faysa to flow).
Notes. To shave one's own head is a sign of mourning (v. 6). Kolfd "mbtiegne (v. 9) lit.
" he does not know laughing," i.e. " he had never laughed," is an unusual construction.
Similarly, the Amharic runs, siq6 ayawqim, " having laughed, he does not know."
29
Tucco Danno also fought, during the Amara invasion, against Moroda, the chief of
Lieqa Naqamte, who after the Amara conquest was appointed dafifiazrn&d. Moroda, who
favored the Shoans, joined Ras Gobana and followed him first into Gimma Abba Gifar
and then into Dilalo and Imbab6 during both actions between Ras Gobana and the God-
jamians led by Ras Daraso (see song 39). Tucco Danno, on the contrary, joined the God-
jamians, and fought with them during the entire war. Here is Moroda's song of defiance
against Tucco.
kgkku murinna alis fidd rds DarasukCe
mannikie yd mandkd (dla anis fidd Goband Dandiko
k#Lu bulimia arfasdn ydgga barite
maUikie yd maldko 6dla Abbd Qdffi'e wamadinna
5 hidankiena sambdtd tokkorri 15 aiis aydndkie &id§6 Bdd6o kadaditta
dvbbi Wdq jjfyM torbdni lamdttu wdl agdrra
dkka Wdqtu (Ala du 'a sodatdni"nafdni
ddmsikiena sambdtd nigHsd gabbartra
rdbi w&l agarri kanl bird ndmd hund&md ndn danqiera
10 motif naddfen imbdfna
1 We will cut the stalks of kekku, 2 if your house is better than my house. 3 We will
become your servants, 4 if your wit is better than my wit. 5 Is our appointment for Sun
day definite? 6 Yes! I have said the word of God! 7 I am strong as God! 8 Our appoint
ment is for Sunday. 9 Wednesday we have met. 10 Let us bring our wealth and our women
(as stakes of the combat)! 11 You will lead your Ras Daraso. 12 I will lead my Gobana
Dan$i, 13 when autumn breaks forth. 14 We will call Abba Caffre. 15 You will pray to
your genius, Giggo Bacc6. 16 We will meet twice in the week. 17 Those who fear death
cannot escape from it! 18 I have paid my tribute to the Emperor. 19 Except him (the
emperor), I will fight (lit. make trenches) against all.
Notes. KSkku (v. 1) is a plant the stem of which resembles the stem of sorghum. The
Amara call it fiimmugd. The armies of Ras Daraso and Ras Gobana met each other twice
(v. 9), the first time at Dilalo in Nonno's land on a Wednesday, the second time at Imbabo
on a Sunday (see songs 39, 40). Abba Caffre) (v. 14), was a famous sorcerer, native of
Dapo; Giggo Bacco was a sorcerer of Lieqa Horda (v. 15). l
1 For the historical subject of this song, cf. Guidi, ' Strofe e piccoli testi Amarici,' op. cit., song 4; G. J. Afevork,
La vita di Menilek II, Roma, 1906; De Castro, Nella terra dei negus, op. cit., vol. 2.
30
The four following songs belong to the class of poems called by the Galla fdrsa. They
are long poems with short verses, in which are celebrated the most famous warriors of the
tribe, particularly by recalling their ancestors on the father's and the mother's side. They
are the poetical expression of the bonds which unite the members of the tribe. They are
the boasting songs of the tribe as a whole, as opposed to the boasting-songs of the single
warriors which are called gierdrsd. Here is the fdrsa of the clan Laga Gartf of the tribe
Lieqa Bill6.
ififo adi qadd Ligdi dmma"ndufu
afdn bolld qayd gdra"rfasd tfufd
Gord Ndbt Bold fdrdd"lbasd buld
yd"bbd Godddmfayd yd kalldydl"lagd
5 fudu qord sadi 35 sodddn Ddti"ns^ne
ddra (dkkd gadi yd Walld"bba Qabd
boqqolld hlloqi WaUd"dollten torbd
did goftd dald gut§"g'ajjjji kolfd
SanqiUdn obokd morkCtiolte golfd
10 lommottd lomburd 40 gaddamd middni
kan Ddqd kan Qorkd jjabbi Roris Bakd
lafd 4&bi ndddi Watard kan isdni
Ufa ddbi $allie 'nfebd Bulgu Dord
addi kai darbi TuUu Dansie qallu
15 rCebd Dasd 0s$ 45 amarti guticdd
Dolt olu mannd qubdrrattl riebu
dulli olu wdyd dbbd adi guddicdd
fardiel "Ldgd Gdrti <M"laUibtiku
iS6n mdnd $dlli Kolobd afdn kiyd
20 i$in biyd (dUi 50 dinni "fan Badtisssd
yd da6&te barari dabbi Rasu Guddi
yd qollo gargari qufi muUu ddbd
sodddn Wdrrd Bterd QupS lubbu lafd
kolfdn fdrdd "htela yd murd"fan killd
25 Lotd lokkd dierd 55 yd Turd"bbd BiUd
dirsi Loddd Bierd niti Biyd Garbd
dirsi Disd Buld dirsin kdrd dirbi
dkka "n$ir6 murd lafdnduga Idltu
rtebd Siefi Simbd indirdti maU
30 Ligdi Robie WaUd 60 Qiltu Robd dirti
1 The pure, white cup 2 is burned at the edge of the ditch. 3 O Gor6 Nabi Bat6!
4 O safety of the lord of Goggam! 5 Take three districts 6 and the forests down there!
7 The maize has ripened. 8 (Like) the moon (he is) under his lord, 9 the negro of my lord,
10 the robust mulatto! 11 Daqa and Qorka! 12 Plant in the ground necklaces of jet!
13 Plant in the ground anklets! 14 Put them here and go away!
15 The hero (son) of Dasa Ose, 16 D61e, why is he absent? 17 (Then) it is better not
to go to war! 18 O horsemen of Laga Garti! 19 It (i.e. Laga Garti) is the best house!
20 It is the best land! 21 O datte, be propitious (to us)! 22 O qoU6, aid (us)! 23 The son-
in-law of the Warra Bfera 24 pushes forward his horses, laughing. 25 Lota with the long
bridle, 26 the husband of Logg6 Biera, 27 the husband of Dis6 Bula, 28 he cuts down (his
enemies) like stalks of sorghum. 29 The hero (son) of Sieff, (son) of Simb6, 30 Ligdf (son)
of Robie, (daughter) of Wall6, 31 Ligdf does not come now. 32 He will come in the autumn.
33 He will terrify the horses (lit. he will cause the horses to have colic).
34 O grass at the borders of the river! 35 The son-in-law of Dati "nsiene, 36 Wall6,
father of Qaba. 37 Wall6 has seven sons. 38 He laughs, standing upright in Gut6, 39 the
stubborn man whose sons are demons. 40 O sickle for corn! 41 The sons (lit. the calves)
of Rorrfsa Bakarie, 42 Watar6 is their land!
43 The hero, son of Bulgu (son) of Dora, 44 Tullu (son) of Dansie, the sorcerer, 45 with
rings and ear-rings, 46 he beats the fingers. 47 Lord of a great white horse, 48 he is known
in every country. 49 The Kolobo, whose mouth is a snare, 50 the demons of the banks of
the Badiessa, 51 sons of Rasu Guddf.
52 I am full of boiled pulse and pudding. 53 Qup6, soul of the warriors! 54 O cutter of
borders of wooden bowls! 55 O Tura, lord of (the horse) Bill6!
56 The wife of Bfyo Garba, 57 Direi stitches the saddles. 58 He (Bfyo Garba) is a
trooper truly valiant, 59 but he is cruel. 60 He is at Qiltu Roba.
Notes. As I have already remarked (see notes to song 4), very frequently in these Galla
songs there is a parallelism of sound between two verses. The first verse in this case is in
no way connected with the sense of the song, but it is introduced merely to make with its
syllables, similar to the syllables of the second verse, the aforesaid parallelism. This paral
lelism is used especially in the fdrsa; there are many examples of it in the preceding song:
v. 1-2 with v. 3-4; v. 7 with v. 9; v. 34 with v. 36; v. 52 with v. 53; v. 54 with v. 55.
The first hero named in the song is Gor6 Nabi Bat6 (v. 3-6). He stood by the king of
Goggam, Takla Haymanot (at that time rds) during the unfortunate expeditions against
Kaffa. Once, the soldiers of Kaffa unexpectedly reached the Omo where the armies were
encamped, and under the protection of the night, attacked the Amara camp, massacring
the Godjamians and the Galla of Gimma Abba Gifar, allies of Ras Adal. (Takla Haymanot
was the royal name taken by Ras Adal at the time of his coronation.) Then Gor6 Nabi
Bat6, who was on the other side of the camp, running to join the combat cried: " Yd"bba
Gofifidm, an abbanki'e 4uferar"nsodatin! " " O Lord of Goggam, I have come! I, your pro
tector, do not fear! " He defeated the Kaffa and thus saved Ras Adal. Then Ras Adal
gave him three districts at the frontier of Goggam.
Verses 7-12 extol two brothers, Daqa and Qorka, sons of a negro slave. The singer
warns the enemy not to stand against Daqa and Qorka, and to abandon to them that
which they desire. The dad&fe and the qoU6 (v. 21-22) are two kinds of genii venerated by
the Galla.1 The verses 23-28 allude to Lota Motf, husband of Logg6, sister of Tucco
Dann5. The suggestion of the other wife of Lota (v. 27) demonstrates the spread of polyg
amy in these Galla countries. Gute (v. 38), Watar6 (v. 42), BadJessa (v. 50), Qfltu Roba
(v. 60) are districts of the Laga Gartf clan in Lieqa Bill6. The verses 43-48 sing about the
sorcerer, Tullu Dansie, who is so wealthy that he uses rings and earrings, instead of a
whip, to beat the fingers of his servants. As it is known, the whip (alangd) is a sign of power
among the Galla.
31
Here is the fdrsd of the clan Bu'a Sorga, belonging to the tribe Lieqa Naqamte on the
frontier between the territory of Moroda and the territory of Lieqa Sibu.
yd da4i §Qla bdka godi bati, yd doUie
ndtt"urgdfte IdUi gdtd mand dubbd"nqotiu, yd dollie
figdnirri kotti yd"b6kd bitddcd BakarCe, yd dollie
§arrd"kka bakakkd, yd fiollw 30 Qannd yd"bbd Dilbd, yd dollie
5 Soli glbildate, yd fioVLik gurrddd&"kka ayand, yd jjoUie
Soni disasu gal, yd dollik bien nd dukd"ydnd, yd dollie
nit hd-basu daddi, yd dollie dn offd"nqinqimi, yd dollie
kombrratti mild, yd fiollie wambari nigusd, yd dollie
dubbl Mordddri, yd dollik 35 yd Bur(d TitiUi, yd fiollie
10 nit hd-basti, dad6i, yd doliik yd"bbd banti Giddd, yd dollie
Dilidld"bbd biyd, yd dollik sirbd ganni"ngurrdi, yd g'oUie
fiilak6 fiilakd, yd §ollik enun"naqi nafidd, yd doUie
Sibuttu fifMkd, yd dollik (xiddd fardien hurrd, yd dollie
fordn(d buqqfedd, yd fiollik 40 fakUd gag "guri, yd dollie
15 Moroddn UrgHedd, yd dollte mii$a Bond DiM, yd dollie
maid §oUife, Bakd Godl, yd fioUte Qabatd yd Uldi, yd dollie
Dinqd (jorgik Gieddd, yd fioUte bakakkd Ba(urie, yd §oUte
babatte gindidd, yd fioUfe fiird fiilli tdkko, yd dollie
mU(a Bakd Godt, yd §oUik 45 fidra nuf hd-4issu, yd dollie
20 Amanita Iggidd, yd dollie yd Gomugie Bond, yd fioUte
fiibl korni luli, yd fioUie sif salpind uU, yd gollie
gdfa bu 'i'rabd, yd fioUie abbdn dibsd ulU, yd doUie
duka oU bvM, yd doUik Nagari fayumd, yd doUie
irrdtto murani, yd dollie 50 fiarri kan (aUumd, yd gollie
25 mold fiabbi Bakd Goii, yd fiollte as&md nd {Hire", yd doUie
Girdddo Gumari, yd gollie badti burfafiudd, yd dullik
1 Cf. Cecchi, op. cit., vol. 2, p. 314-316, and Guidi, Vocabolario amarico, op. cit., sub voce, gollie.
hdrkarrdti"abuku, yd dollie 90 gamd sirbisise', yd dollie
batu kun tumtudA, yd gollie hddd"lmd tokkiddi, yd dollie
55 kdn farddtt"uluqu, yd doUie ilmdSi had$si, yd doUie
muffd moil Hor6, yd doUie hddd siribsisi, yd dollie
Gayi darbd giessd, yd doUie Gidadd Rdbddd, yd dollie
mdlu fardien fird, yd doUie 95 ilmi Obd Bart, yd doUie
la/6 Bu 'd Bayt, yd doUie insodatu du 'd, yd dollie
60 kuni f)appd denndn, yd dollie dinni"kka bakakkd, yd doUie
waqardn qartami, yd doUie fardarrd"nddmaddd, yd dollie
kuni Babbd denndn, yd doUie Nagt Bagd Liessd, yd dollie
bulu fiard (akkd, yd doUie 100 dabbi Obd Bari, yd d.Mie
nd gardn tds gabi, yd doUie itt"adiemd urgi, yd gollie
65 si gardn attami, yd dollie indaqi nd fidd, yd doUie
dkkaonkd durbd, yd doUie lafd Gubbd Gombd, yd doUie
hadikds natfdieni, yd doUie agadd nd (absi, yd doUi'e
lafdn dugd Idttu, yd fiollie 105 yd Gadd"bbd Sambd, yd dollie
lorb"ofi badattl, yd foUie (jimald (kmalt, yd doUie
70 torbi baddifatti, yd fioUie mu$a Girdd Warri, yd doUie
nili"ndieM maU, yd fioUie fufldnîlt"dn dittt, yd dollie
kdn samitd nattu, yd dollie BuUdn middgditti, yd dollie
i£6"nsiftsini, yd fiollie 110 Gabbi (kmaliedd, yd doUie
lafd"UoUi maU, yd fioUie Wdyin Abbd Kolti, yd doUie
75 kdn innard battu, yd fioUie sodddn Bakariedd, yd dollie
is~e""nmilklsini, yd dollie ormdf dabariedd, yd dollie
yd nili bosielti, yd doUie indaqi nd fiddd, yd dollie
si bieka bukokie, yd doUie 115 lafd Bu 'd Sgrgd, yd doUie
bukd fiqqiUiekd, yd doUie Nagt Sombe Ute, yd dollie
80 lafdn 4uga Idttu, yd dollie abbd Bu 'd Sgrgd, yd doUie
si bieka guokie, yd dollie Wanddn kdn kiessumd, yd doUie
kdn qiUiessi rdsu, yd gollie Kumd"bbd Qalandi, yd doUie
lafdn tdkko dirU, yd doUie 120 gabd mdl naggdddi, yd dollie
Kutl bu 'd baeti, yd doUie Said Said Obd, yd doUie
85 &ud (iqqiUiekl, yd doUie Dinqi Somi Dand, yd dollie
kdn qiUiessi rdsu, yd doUie adard yd"lmdkd, yd dollie
Qiddiessd gamaltu, yd doUie sitt"ergddda"nd, yd dollie
Bard bittinfattu, yd dollie 125 dard siesd"mbiegne, yd doUie
Lieqd gamd"d$si, yd doUie lafd Bu 'd SQrgd, yd doUie
1 O hydromel of the storehouse, O old hydromel! 2 (Like the hydromel) I smell the
valiant warriors. 3 Those of Kottf run, O my Lord! 4 They are like thunder, O children!
5 The plant of Soli has shot up, O children! 6 Sone is about to deluge, O children! 7 Let
the datte save us (from Sone)! l 8 On the ankle is the leg! 9 From Moroda (lit. from
Moroda's matter) 10 let us save the da5&\ 11 Dilicca, chief of the land, 12 my terror,
my terror! 13 Sibu is my terror! 14 The pulse among the pumpkins! 15 Moroda, son of
Urgie! 16 What are the sons of Bakarie Godano? 17 Dinqa, son of Gorgie Giecco! 18 the
ploughshare and the plough-handle! 19 The son of Bakarie Godano, 20 Amante, son of
Iggf, 21 hyena with thin ankles! 22 When the Arabians descended here, 23 he pursued
them day and night 24 by cutting them off from above. 25 Where are the sons of Bakarie
Godano ? 26 Cirracco, the son of Gumarf, 24 descends for the expedition. 28 He does not
plough behind his house. 29 O left-handed (son) of Bakarie, 30 O Qanno, lord of (the
horse) Dilba, 31 black as a beneficent genius! 32 Come on, follow me, O beneficent genius!
33 I have cut the canes. 34 The judge of the Emperor, 35 Bur$a, son of Titill6, 36
chief of Gidda, 37 while we sing about him, he becomes famous. 38 Who will go and bring
him to me? 39 The horses of Gidda are like shrubs for torches. 40 I have collected the
wood. 41 The child of B6na Dula, 42 Qabata, son of Ul$e, 43 the thunder of Ba$urie\
44 There is a §illd. 45 This, we will leave him! 46 O Comugie, son of Bona. 47 For
you dishonor was avoided! 48 The master of cows has remained (there). 49 How do you
do, O Nagarf ? 50 Those are the best (warriors).
51 The sickle has weeded for me. 52 The curds have curdled. 53 You can eat them
with your fingers. 54 Is this so brave a smith ? 55 He jumps on the horse. 56 The son of
Motf Horo, 57 Gaye hurling hits (the enemy) ! 58 What (may be said) about the kindred
horsemen? 59 The trooper of Bii'a Bayi! 60 On calling the white sorghum, 61 the mill
stone has broken. 62 On calling Babb6, 63 " He will descend to this forest! " 64 My mind
has rejoiced, 65 and what says your heart? 66 My aunt is a girl, 67 my motheriaawoman.
68 The trooper truly valiant 69 has burdened himself with seven, 70 has caused seven to
be brought. 71 A woman who has not brought forth, 72 may she eat boiled pulse? 73 This
does not satiate her. 74 A soldier who has not fought, 75 may he bear the parade-shield?
76 This does not indicate him (i.e. is not his proper sign). 77 O rough woman, 78 I can
recognize you by your leavened cake, 79 by the leavened cake which you have on your
elbow. 80 O soldier truly valiant, 81 I can recognize you by your red shirt 82 which is
moved by the wind! 83 There is a trooper. 84 He has come to Kottf Bu'a. 85 The red
shirt on his elbow 86 is moved by the wind!
87 Those of the other bank of the Diddiessa 88 have passed the Baro. 89 He who has
killed the Lieqa of that bank 90 has caused the Lieqa of this bank to dance. 91 The mother
of an only son, 92 he has killed her son. 93 He has caused the mother to dance! 94 Gidada
son of R6ba, 95 the son of Oba Bare, 96 he does not fear death. 97 Demon, thunderlike,
98 standing on the horse, he sends (spears). 99 Nagi (son) of Bago (son) of Liess6, 100
the calf of Oba Bar6, 101 where he comes, smells. 102 Who will go and bring (him) to
1 Thenceforward all the verses of the song are followed by the refrain, " O children." I have not added it to
every verse of the translation.
me? 103 Trooper of Gubba Gomb6, 104 break for me the canes of sorghum! 105 Gada
Abba Samb6, 106 Gimala (son) of GimaUe, 107 the child of Girg6 Warri. 108 Pulling
the rope, has broken it. 109 Buil6 is a beautiful warrior. 110. He is the calf of Gima-
he. 1ll Wayf, lord of (the horse) Kottl, 112 is the son-in-law of Bakarie. 113 He is a hurler
of spears for others. 114 Who will go and bring (him) to me? 115 The trooper of Bu 'a
Sorga, 116 Nagl (son) of Somb6 (son) of Ube! 117 O chief of Bu 'a Sorga, 118 Wando
is your land! 119 O Kumsa, lord of (the horse) Qalangf ! 120 What can I sell to the market ?
121 (The son) of Sala (son) of Sal6 (son) of Obo. 122 Dinqf (son) of Some (son) of D4fio.
123 I beseech you, my son! 124 I will send messages to you! 125 He does not know
flight, 126 trooper of Bu 'a Sorga.
Notes. After mentioning Kottf Bu 'a, the chief family of Bu 'a Sorga (v. 1-4), the
singer alludes to the neighboring chiefs, Sone and Moroda, both feared on account of their
bravery (v. 5-7, 8-10); then sings about Dilicca, brother of Sone (v. 11-13). Next, he
enumerates the sons of Bakarie Godano; the first is Moroda, whose mother was Urgie
(v. 14-15) ; the second is Dinqa, whose mother was Gorgi Giecc6 (v. 16-17) ; then Amante,
whose mother was Iggf (v. 18-25). Amante was an officer (JUawrari) of Ras Gobana and
fought together with his chief against the Dervishes when they invaded Wallaga and Lieqa
(see song 49). Another younger son of Bakarie is Cirracco (v. 25-28) whose mother was
Gumari. As may be seen, there are enumerated four wives of Bakarie: Urgfe, Goigie
Gieccd, Iggf, Gumari. The last son of Bakarie is Qanno (v. 29-32). As to the words "black
as a beneficent genius," see song 138, notes. The verses 33-39 allude to Burea, chief of the
village Gidda, (his mother was Titille) but a native of Bu 'a Sorga. The verses 40-46
allude to the two brothers, Qabata Bona and Comugie B6fia. The mother of the former was
Ulce, and the land which was governed by him was Ba$urie in the territory of Bu 'a Sorga.
The verses 47-50 allude to a warrior, Nagari, who evidently is not Nagari Ganna (see song
23). This other Nagari was a rich owner of cattle. The verses 51-56 sing of Gaye, son
of Motf Horo, a valiant horseman, and the verses 57-65, of Babb6, native of the family
Bu 'a Bayf, belonging to the clan Bu 'a Sorga. After a few verses on the general subject
of gallantry, which make an interlude and a pause in the long enumeration of the warriors
(v. 66-82), the singer celebrates the exploits of Gidada whose father was Oba Bar6 and
whose mother was R6ba. During a war between the two Lieqa (i.e. the confederation of
the five Lieqa tribes and the Wallaga), Gidada fighting together with Tucco Danno and
Kumsa (see song 32) against Wallaga, killed a traitor, and although Lieqa was standing
by Wallaga, Gidada himself brought to the mother of the traitor the news of her son's
death. The mother danced for joy on hearing this news, which, however sad, cancelled
the dishonor of her family.
Verses 99-103 allude to the brother of Gidada, Nagl Oba Bare, whose mother was
Bag6 Liesso; the country of Nagl was Gubba Gomb6. The song ends with references to
several warriors; Gada Abba Sambd; the two brothers, sons of Gimalie, Gimala and Bull6;
Wayf, son-in-law of Bakarie ; Nagf, son of Somb6 Ub6 and governor of the Wand6 marshes;
Sala, son of Sal6 Ob6.
The Soli (v. 5) is a tree, the smaller branches of which are used by the Galla to cure
toothache. The leaves of this tree are also used to check discharges from the eye. Loran-
Biyos tells me that they rub the teeth with twigs of the Soli; the rubbing causes a hemor
rhage, after which the toothache disappears. Loransiyos adds that a French doctor has
studied this tree, and, moreover, collects many twigs of it and sends them to France. The
Amara calls it ingim.
32
This is the fdrsd of the tribe, Lieqa Naqamte\
r&bd Mori Bakd Bonin Gibie gaU
Kumsdn GQsd Rufd 25 fdrdd dibbt ta 'i
S&wdH&um gabbare gabd mdl naggddi
Gog'g'dtnfe danqdri riebd Abdi Bdsd
5 §ftje bard kanl wdnt"dbbd Qalanfii
middn nu nadtisi wdnld mdnd btitt
Gibiklti ydbati 30 mdnd dubba"nqottu
Siegdtti"rrd bu 'i mannd si 'addati
sangdn htelp hage wdntd gadi bdU
10 mOfa Mori Bakd fdrdd "ndurd "nkuliu
Kumsdniyd iQld mdlin si fakkdte
atl mdyd"Uglti 35 fofandn hin 'aru
abbdn Gtebo Gari Bosard Bidaru
wdmbdrte negusd Amdrd torbani
15 si Wdq n"u guddisd dn afi%su fi$di
bakakkd Bakarie hindtbbdddu fi$di
Ligdi mand "mbaSe" 40 gumd"bbdk6 §$di
mandn Gat6 fiird Gofifidm lorbatdmd
gurrdn J)dp6 gird Sdwdn dibba Sani
20 yoggd"n kief5 gode ffumd"nbdsd fi$dl
Lieqa nd dabasd makari fuddttu
4irsd Siekd Golbi 45 gibiri butdttu
Sida"bba Ydbasd
1 The hero (son) of Moroda (son) of Bakarie, 2 Kumsa (son) of G6sa (daughter) of
Ruf6, 3 has paid tribute to the Shoans, 4 has stood against the Godjamians. 5 In this
time of famine, 6 he has given us corn to eat. 7 He has ascended toward the Gibfe, 8 he
has descended from there to Sfego. 9 The horse has evacuated a tape-worm. 10 The child
of Moroda (son) of Bakarie, 11 Kumsa himself fights. 12 Why do you not fight? 13 O
Lord of Giebo Gare, 15 judge of the Emperor, 15 may God increase you in our behalf!
16 The thunder (son) of Bakarie, 17 Ligdf (son) of Hanbas6, 18 his house is in Gat6,
19 his fame (reaches) Dapo. 20 When I have collected the kiefo, 21 the Lieqa men will
annoy me (i.e. by demanding some ktefo of me). 22 The husband of Sleko Golbe, 23 Sfda,
father of Yabasa. 24 The Bonaya have returned to the Gibie; 24 the horses have become
sick.
26 What can I buy at the market? 27 The hero (son) of Abdf (son) of Bas6, 28 the
shield of the lord of (the horse) Qalangf, 29 Wanta has gone out of the house; 30 he will
not plough behind his house. 31 Your wife is white for you. 32 Wanta has gone out below.
33 Please do not cut the navel of the horses. 34 How does it seem to you ? 35 The tobacco
with light leaves does not burn. 36 Bosara Bidaru : 37 "Amara during one week 38 I will
kill! " he said. 39 " I will not anoint myself! " he said. 40 "It is the blood-price of my
father! " he said. 41 " Seventy Godjamians, 42 one hundred and five Shoans! 43 It is
the blood-price of my father! " he said. 44 "Now take counsel, 45 pay the tribute."
Notes. The fdrsa begins by extolling the bravery of the chief of Lieqa Naqamte, Kiimsa
Gabra Igziabher, son of Moroda Bakarie. Kumsa is his pagan name; when he was
baptized, he took the Christian name Gabra Igziabher (i.e. in Ethiopic, Slave of God,
lit., Slave of the Lord of the Earth). After the death of his father Moroda, Kiimsa was
appointed dafifi&c' and governor of his father's land. G6sa (v. 2) was the mother of Kiimsa.
Kiimsa, like his father, was always loyal to the Shoans; he made an expedition against
Siego (v. 7-8), a place between Shoa and Lieqa. Verse 9 alludes to the fright of the warriors
of Siego assailed by Kiimsa; even the horses, on seeing Kiimsa, have evacuated the worms
living in their bellies! Giebo Gara (v. 13) is a large territory in Lieqa Naqamte, fief of Kiimsa.
The verses 16-19 allude to Kumsa's uncle, Ligdf Bakarie, owner of the territory of Gat6 in
Lieqa Naqamte (see songs 19, 20). The verses 24-25 refer to the secession of the Bonaya
family, who, after a contest with Kumsa, left Lieqa Naqamte and camped near the
frontier of Lfmmu on the banks of the Gible. The verses 22-23 allude to the warrior Sida
Tufa, father of Yabasa, and chief of Hindieba Gaccf (see Prose, text 9). The hCtfo (v. 20)
is an aromatic plant.1 The verses 26-34, singing of the warrior, Wanta, pun on his name,
which in Galla means " shield." Abba Qalangf (i.e. lord of the horse, Qalangi) is the war-
name of Kiimsa.
Verses 35-45 describe the terrible vengeance taken by the warrior, Bosara Bidaru
upon the Amara. When the Shoans advanced to conquer Lieqa, Daggac Lul Saggad, com
mandant of an Amara corps, received the peaceful surrender of the clan Lieqa Wayo.
However, after entering the country, the Amara soldiers began to sack and pillage the huts
of the Galla. During this plundering, Bidaru, father of Bosara, was killed. Then his son,
a youth of seventeen, devoted himself to a relentless hunting of Amara. Following the
Shoan troops on their march, he assailed all the soldiers, who, disbanding in their usual
way, detached themselves from their comrades. Bosara did not anoint his head with
butter because of these victories for the reasons stated in song 34.
1 Cecchi, op. cit., vol. 2, p. 281.
33
Here is the song1 of the tribe Sulu Manne, living between Limmu, Shoa, and Liban
Tokko. The tribe paid tribute to Fitawrari Habta Giyorgis (see song 35) :
yahati bu 'arri G. S. B. : bu'dre kan dulli wame
Idfd obdida 30 tumdttu"rkd"rbord G.S.B.: tumdttu"rk&ybor&
ydBaidGu'd ol gorikd sitt"an ddmadd
lafd Sobfidd mdgdn yd gu 'd
5 hoqd matadd $Umtu gogse
Ofd Gadddd gddi kordsi
asin ul goru 35 mdgdn yd du 'd
sitt6 daggald kan gdri doksi
yd Sido Boru w&rie baHesi
10 lafdGabbard yd Ogd Kormd
qiensdn falfald G. S. B. : qiensdn silt "dbbd farddUi
yd Gdro Binnd 40 ergdddu lokdn si dird
lienM Gabbard G. S. B.: liendd yd ndpdriesd
dn Wfo so/l yd C6ro $oni
15 yd Ogo Loft sitt "dbbd farddtti
gu 'd"nrdsanu ergdddu lokdn si dird
dalu"ndlsanu 45 hindanqdn kormd
du 'd"nfdrsanu sadiento iyyd
maqd"ndlsanu tdkko "nbarrisd
20 mdgdn yd gu 'd wdl gifti Bogbd
%Umtu gogse G. S. B.: elimtu sadiento simd
gddi kordsi 50 Girdd (dldisd
mdgdn yd du 'd Sum&nu "nsimd
kan gdri doksi Qwrienu"nsimd
25 wdrie baHest Girjj6 (dldisd
gdbd garbudd liendd Gubbd"lielu
hantuni ndti 55 Girjj6 BogiWan fdrsai
Rdbd Barjjudd
1 He has ascended. Will he descend 2 to the ground of the threshing floor? 3 O Bato
Gu 'a, 4 you are the trooper of Sobgf. 5 I scratch my head. 6 Ofa (son) of Gada! 7 Here
shall be raised 8 the grass of the desert. 9 O Sfdo Boru, 10 trooper of Gabbara, 11 with
the nails he hurls spears!
12 O Garo Binno, 13 lion of Gabbara!
14 I have filled the cup, 15 O Ogo Lofe!
1 This song is included in The Galla Spelling Book (see Introduction). I give the variations of The Galla
Spelling Book in parentheses, since I have written the song according to the pronunciation of Loransiyos. This song
with a few others has already been published by Paulitzsche in his Ethnographie Rord Ost Afriktu, vol. 2.
16 With cows which have no milk, one cannot make butter, 17 (but) they do not
cease bringing forth (calves). 18 For the dead (warrior), one does not sing fdrsd, 19 (but)
one does not forget his renown. 20 O cow without milk, 21 you have made the milk pot
dry, 22 you have hung up [forever] the rope for milking! 23 O death, 24 you have hidden
(from us) the valiant (warriors); 25 you have wasted their renown!
26 In the market of the barley 27 the rat has eaten. 28 O Raba (son) of Bargu, 29 the
war has called (us) ! 30 Slayer with the point of the spear, owner of the armlet of ivory,
31 after ascending, I will speak with you!
32 O cow without milk, 33 you made the milk pot dry ; 34 you have hung up (for
ever) the rope for milking! 35 O death, 36 you have hidden (from us) the valiant (warriors) ;
37 you have wasted their renown!
38 O Ogo (son) of Korma, 39 you horseman, 40 send (to me) your bridle; I will
stitch it for you! 41 O Naparieso! 42 O C6ro Conf! 43 You horsemen, 44 send (to me)
your bridle; I will stitch it for you! 45 The cock 46 crows three times; 47 once causes
the day to dawn. 48 Likewise Bogib6. 49 Three (sons of his) distinguish themselves.
50 Girgo is the best. 51 Sumonu distinguishes himself. 52 Qurienu distinguishes himself.
53 Girg6 is the best! 54 The lion of Gubba Alielu, 55 Girg6 (son) of Bogie, I will sing (of
him) in my farsa\
Notes. Verses which have no sense, but are sung only for the sound parallelism (see
song 30) are very frequent in this song (e.g. 1-2, 5-6, 7-8, etc.) Sobgf (v. 4) is a place in
the Sulu territory near Liban Tokko; the population is Mohammedan. Gabbara (v. 10,
13) is a village near Liban Tokko at the bank of the river Bisan Gabbara. As to " the
rope for milking " (v. 22), it is a Galla custom to bind the feet of the cows before milking
them. These special ropes are called gddi. The armlet of ivory (v. 30) belongs only to the
slayer of one elephant (see song 15, notes). GubM Alielu is a place, probably a hill, be
tween Sulu and Lfmmu (v. 54).
34
The warrior Bosara Bidaru, after the massacre of the Amara (see song 32, v. 35-45),
sang this song:
kdn abbd buttd"nqallu kandfa"d^sdni
gand hall rak6r'nqdbdu dddd dibbdd6un sdld
1 (Warriors) whose father does not make the sacrifice of the butid, 2 whose mother has
not yet received the sacrifice of the rdkol 3 After killing such warriors, 4 it is contrary to
custom to anoint one's self with butter.
Notes. Similar outrageous words are quoted by Bahrey in his Historia Gentis Galla.1
The Galla are forbidden to anoint themselves with butter after killing ignoble beasts, i.e.
1 I. Guidi, ed., Historia Gentis Galla, (Corpus scriptorum orientalium, Scriptores Aethiopici, Paris, 1907, ser. 2,
vol. 3, p. 20&-207).
all beasts which, after receiving the shot, cry out. Thus, the buffalo is ignoble, because if it
is wounded, it lows as a cow; and, according to a proclamation of Bakarie Godano, even
the elephant is ignoble among the Lieqa Naqamte tribe, because many elephants roar when
they were wounded. The Amara are compared by the singer to ignoble beasts, because
(v. 1-2) they have none of the signs that distinguish men from beasts according to the
Galla standard, i.e. offering the sacrifice of the buttd and the sacrifice of the rdko. The
buttd is a great Galla festival which each tribe celebrates every eight years. It is connected
with the initiation ceremonies (see song 142 and Prose, text 4). The rdko is the sacrifice
which legalizes a wedding (see Nuptial Songs). A woman " receives the rdko " when she
is anointed with the blood of the victim sacrificed for the rdko.
35
The Sulu Galla, as I have already said (song 33), paid tribute to Fitawrari Habta Giyor-
gis. This chief, after a great murder followed by many blood vengeances, proclaimed that
blood revenge must be abrogated in the territory governed by him. The Galla law con
cerning adultery reads: " The offended consort must kill the adulterous consort and his
companion to take vengeance for their crime." Habta Giyorgis, on the contrary, decided
that for the killing of the adulterer, could be substituted payment of a fine equal to the
blood-price, by the adulterous consort to the injured husband. The proclamation excited
the protests of the Sulu, who considered the abrogation of this ancient custom impious.
As Habta Giyorgis did not retract his proclamation, the Sulu rebelled against him. The
emperor Menilek, following his policy of great toleration of Galla customs, removed Fita
wrari H&bta Giyorgis from his command, and gave the governorship of the Sulii to Daggac
Hayhe Guddfsa, brother of Ras Makonnen (see song 82). Haylie Guddfsa, as the first act
of his government, abrogated the proclamation of his predecessor, and re-established the
ancient Galla law. Then a Sulu minstrel sang:
kan duri dubH balliese 10 ddrsiddl dubbi balliese
abbdn odd bdga dute ta 'i ddbsa galte bdsa
garbid£i gommdna bide Disd yd Disd "bo "rqieko
duftu sdni Guddisdti Disd fardi jjdtamdlae
5 sdni mdti durattiti dubbi fitawrdri Gorgieko
tuttumdtta dgdanto 15 gdfd Sda ddqe goftdn
gati ddlfd ddlfd ndtu kardn qintirrd"nqad§li
tuttumdtta d^di goftdn dubbi"bba qurld"sandso
Um "abbd firdi furdddd Mygssi gifti kad§li
1 The ancient matter is finished. 2 Abba Oda is really dead. 3 The slave harvests sprouts.
4 He who is born from the stock of Guddfsa, 5 the stock of the ancient kings, 6 " Hit with
the point! " he has said. 7 May the price of the womb be eaten by the womb! 8 " Hit
with the point! " the lord has said. 9 The son of the judge is wise! 10 The ancient matter
is finished. 11 Those who had sat down (in your houses), break them! Those who had
entered (your houses), send them out! 12 O Dis6, my Dis6 (daughter) of 0b6 Warqie,
13 Dis6 whose horses are sixty! 14 The matter of Fitawrari Habta Giyorgis. 15 When the
lord (Habta Giyorgis) has gone to Shoa, his way has been directed to the sky! 17 The
matter of Abba Qurta. 18 The poor has desired the lady!
Notes. Abba Oda (v. 2) was a famous Galla sorcerer (see Prose, text 11) who had prophe
sied, as Abbukko, the submission of the Galla to the Amara. Therefore the Sulu do not
bewail him! The verses 3-6 compare the noble mind of Hayhe Guddfsa, born of Galla
Tulama stock, with the cowardliness of Habta Giyorgis (the penalty established by Habta
Giyorgis seemed a cowardice to the Galla), pictured as a slave collecting sprouts, the well
known vegetables, food of the poorest Abyssinians. In verse 9, Haylie is called " the son
of the judge," because his father Guddfsa was a judge in the territory called Sululta be
tween Wallo and Shoa near Ankobar. To explain verse 16, it is necessary to remark that
the Galla ironically called Shoa qint/i goftd, that is " the Lord's sky," alluding to the court of
Menilek, a destination very much desired by all the Amara officers sent far from their own
countries to govern the Galla lands. In verse 17, Fitawrari Habta Giyorgis is called Abba
Qur(a. This is an ironical name given to him by Menilek, because Habta Giyorgis was
famous for his skill in deciding the most intricate questions. The name is formed like the
war names (that is, preceded by the word, abba, " lord ") from the Amharic root qorrata,
"to decide a question." The true Amharic name is Abba Qur0w; Qurfd is the Galla pro
nunciation. Verses 12-13 have no meaning other than sound parallelism with verses 14-15.
Diso 6bo Warqie was a Galla heroine who governed the Nonno Gibat tribe. She was the
only woman among the Ma$$a Galla to whom her tribe had given permission to carry a
spear.
36
In The GaUa Spelling Book (see introduction to this article), among the pastoral songs,
there is the following little song concerning Tura Tobb6, a warrior native of Liban Kuttaye.
urdn fardd (itti Turd K&rma Tobbd
bu' asd biekaie 5 du 'asd biekaU
murd mdrma 0f6 Turdn marqd diddi
1 The girth of the horse has been broken. 2 It has been well understood that it shall fall
down. 3 O cutter of the rim of the cups! 4 Tura, the son of Tobb6 5 has well understood
that he will die. 6 (But) Tura has refused porridge.
Notes. The song means: Tura, although he has known that it was not possible to
win, has preferred to die, rather than to live as a coward (porridge is the food of the
cowards, see song 1). The verses of this song are joined together with an artful sound
parallelism; the first verse with the sixth, the second with the fifth, the third with the fourth.
37
The following song may be found in The Galla Spelling Book among the boasting
songs (gierdrsa). However, as it concerns a single warrior, I have included it among the
historical songs. Nasiro, the hero of this song had fought bravely, but in a foreign land,
exiled from his native country.
Nasird bdtu base otd biydkotitti
ambd6td mdnd base qaletd natti gomfd
ambac"£ank6 bdtu bdse mdgdn yd biyd ormd
didd kielld qieUami ta 'eto natti kolfd
5 didd baqd gudddtti
1 Nasir6 has fared badly going out (of his country). 2 The lion has gone out of his
house. 3 My lion has fared badly going out (of his country). 4,1 5,1 ... 6 If I had stayed
in my country, 7 they would have killed (cattle for sacrifices after victory) and they would
have given me presents. 8 O foreign country! 9 They (i.e. the strangers) stay and laugh
in my face!
Notes. The verb gomfa (v. 7) means exactly " to pay a tribute "; but the Galla call
also " tribute " gomfd or gibiri the presents which must be given according to the laws of
custom. Thus the present to the victorious warrior paid by the other warriors of his tribe;
likewise the present given to the host (see Prose, text 3).
b) The Conquest of the Galla Kingdoms by Menilek n.

38
Among the first expeditions made against the Galla during the reign of Menilek II,
one worthy of note is that of Daggac Waldie Baseyum against the Gullallie and the Abbidcti
living in the district where Addis Abeba was afterwards established. The assembly of the
Gullallie resolved to stand resolutely against the Amara led by Waldfe (see song 142).
Here is the text of the law passed by the assembly. Like most Galla laws, it is drawn up in
verse.
luggdmd farddtti"nbasin bokkudd
addu addarrd"nbufatin daffieda
miedid&i"rkarrd"nbufatin $dffie dbbd Galldii
tumi sierd 10 dkka (dffiekHena balliesi
5 muri sierd Amdrd agabusa oldd
sCerd dbbd lubbdti
1 Do not take away the harness from the horse! 2 Do not take away the addti. from
your head! 3 Do not take away the mieoliMd from your hand! 4 I have struck the law!
5 I have cut the law! 6 The law of the fathers lubboW 7 This is the sceptre! 8 This is the
1 Loransiyos could not give to me a clear explanation of verses 4 and 5.
parliament, 9 the parliament of the Galla fathers! 10 According to our parliament, waste!
11 Force the Amara to fast this day!
Notes. The law may be divided into three parts: the first part (v. 1-3) is formed by
introductory verses, commanding everyone to be ready for war; the second part (v. 4-9)
is the formula for all Galla laws passed by the assembly. " I have struck the law "! says
verse 4, because the president of the assembly, after the vote, strikes the ground with his
sceptre as sign of the approval of the law. " I have cut the law! " that is, " the law has been
decided "; "to cut " is often used in the sense of the verb " to decide." As to the lubbd
or Itiba (v. 6), see Prose, text 4. The sceptre (v. 7) is the bokkH of the Abba BokkH, who is the
president of the assembly (see Prose, text 5). AddH or addd (v. 2) is the skin of a she-goat
or bull's head, with which the Galla elders cover their heads (see Prose, text 5) ; mieîMA
is an armlet of she-goat's skin (see song 132).
39
Among the protagonists of the wars, whom the Amara sent out to subdue the Galla
during the reign of Menilek II, Ras Gobana is perhaps the most famous. He was the son
of Dan$f, a king of the Tulama Galla, who had his residence at Falle. The name Gobana
(meaning in Galla, " full moon," as the Arabic personal name, Badr) demonstrates the
Galla origin of the rds. It is not strange that Gobana, a Galla, was a chief of the Amara,
who tried to conquer the independent Galla countries in Shoa and beyond the Gibie;
these wars were, in the beginning, only sanguinary expeditions such as for many centuries
had been made by the Galla tribes. They ended apparently with the conquest of the Galla
lands, but really they gave to the Ilm6rma an important political position in the Ethiopic
empire. The horse of Ras Gobana was called DamtAw (the Galla pronunciation is Damto) ;
therefore the war-name of the rds was Abba Damtaw; not Abba Daqi, as Afevork
states.1 The Galla relate that Gobana, after the death of his father, was banished from his
country, and reduced to the rank of a reaper on the plantations of Menilek II (at this time
only king of Shoa). Once, during the feast of the Cross, Gobana went to the ritual joust,
and unhorsed all the jousters. Menilek II, who was present at the joust, desired to know
the winner personally. Gobana appeared before the king's throne and revealed to Menilek
that he (Gobana) was the son of a king. Then Menilek appointed him ligdba, and gave
him the title of At6.
His first expedition was made against the Guragie, following one led there by Walche
Baseyum. Gobana had, at this time, only fifty guns of ancient type, and twelve Sanadir
(the Abyssinian name of " Sniders ") ; nevertheless he conquered and plundered the
country of the Guragie, but without remaining there long enough to subdue the region
decisively. Then he was sent by Menilek against the Galla of Shoa, and defeated Tufa
Botora, chief of the AbbiScu and Galan. He marched victoriously into Fall6, and estab
1 Afevork, op. cit., p. 32.
lished his chief camp (Amharic, katamd) in the former district of his father. There he was
appointed rds. When Menilek decided to conquer Saialie, Ras Gobana and Ras Dargie
united their strength and, after six months, set out for Saialie to subdue its inhabitants.
Later, Gobana made three expeditions against the kingdom of Tufa Oba (another portion
of the Galan, Abbiccii and Gullallie territory), but without conquering the land. The fourth
time he was stopped in a new invasion by Daggac Nad6, who had already concluded an
agreement with Tufa Oba.
After making sure of the dominion of the Amara over the Galla of Shoa, Menilek also
desired to extend the frontiers of his kingdom beyond the Gibie. At this time, those Galla
districts were occupied by the Godjamian army which, after subjugating the intermediate
countries, had advanced as far as Kaffa.1 Ras Gobana, in charge of this far from easy
enterprise, feigned to rebel against Emperor Johannes and King Menilek, and demanded
to be appointed governor of the Galla countries occupied by the Godjamians. The em
peror Johannes refused to grant to him these lands, and Gobana began a campaign against
the Godjamians and passed the Gibie. At this time (1882), the king Takla Haymanot,
negus of Gogâm, was already engaged in his third invasion of Kaffa, when the hostilities
between Shoa and Goggam began. Menilek stood, at the beginning secretly, then publicly
by Ras Gobana. The king Takla Haymanot, to avoid being surprised far from his own
country, withdrew the greater part of his army toward Gogâm, leaving his officer, Ras
Daraso, in Gfmma Abba Gifar to guard the territory already conquered. Daraso had
under his command the army of Gfmma, the Lieqa Horda led by Tucco Danno (v. 29), and
the Gudru. Menilek sent against these troops Ras Gobana, who, without fighting, forced
Daraso to retreat.2 Finally at Dilalo in Nonno, the two armies assailed each other; but
after a short struggle, almost without shedding of blood, Daras6 continued his retreat.
dn busi fidbbi hird Nonnd dunni sutumd
yd mudie Dambi (jigd 5 fiimmdtd dufu fiirta
gorrd dumnl tufiubd robi dumu fiirta
1 I have bought a calf and paid for it. 2 Abba Miida Dambf Giga! 3 Behind the gorrd,
there is a precipice. 4 Among the Nonno, death was scarce. 5 Friday you had gone.
6 Wednesday you had ceased (to dwell here).
Notes. At the time of the combat in Dilalo, the Abba Mudd (see Prose, text 5, note),
Dambf Giga (v. 2) was in Nonno, and like almost all the Galla, favored the Godjamians.
The last two verses (5-6) concern Ras Darasd and his exceedingly short stay in the country
of the Nonnd. Behind the gdrro, i.e. the enclosure for calves, in Galla houses are the
rooms for the men. Verses 1, 3 make a sound-parallelism with verses 2, 4.
1 Cf. Cerulli, ' Canti popolari Amarici,' op. cit., song 20.
1 At Gimma Qadida, the Godjamian army halted and it appeared probable that they would attack their pur
suers. However, Guttata, son of the king Qadida, stood by Ras Gobana. Darasd withdrew from Gimma Qadida.
40
Ras Daras6 continued his march toward Goggam till he reached Imbab6, a plain in
Gudrd. There he stopped and awaited his enemies, drawn up for battle. After numerous
actions favorable to the Godjamians, the king Takla Haymanot himself appeared on the
field of battle. The final combat took place on Sunday, December 25, 1875 (Abyssinian
era). The Shoans won a great victory. Takla Haymanot was taken prisoner by a negro
slave named Sambat6 who, therefore, was freed and appointed fitdwrdri. Ras Mangasa
Atikam recognizing that the prisoner taken by Sambat6 was the king of Goggam, bought
him for ten thalers, and led him to Gobana's tent. Gobana, seeing the king, cried to him
(in Amharic), " Goffidmte, wdfti asw&rg'in," "0 Godjamian, bring to me the plate!"
answering thus a boast of Takla Haymanot, who had said that: " After the battle Ras
Gobana will bear my mit&d during the return journey to Goggam! " The mlt&d is a
plate of iron used by the Abyssinians to bake bread.
qarabd Saffisa"ddi
goftd dagg'&c Darasd
ganamdn salpisisi DanM
1 Shave, O sharpened razor! 2 The lord, Daggac Daras6, 3 in the morning has been
humbled by (the son) of Dan$i!
41
After this victory Ras Gobana, instead of returning to Shoa, advanced toward the ter
ritory of the Cabo Galla to subdue them. But when he reached Wareg6, he was assailed
and pushed back by the Cabo; during the battle, the brother-in-law of Gobana, Bfrru
Nagawe was killed.
Birrii Nagawi ' natti fiiâmmd
soddd Goband iulti kiessi
alldtti Cabd tdbd"rbatdk6
guild W&regd (?6fa5 dinakd
5 Surruba Birru 10 ddmi Gobannl
1 BIrru Nagaw6, 2 brother-in-law of Gobana! 3 O eagle of Cab6, 4 O hyena of Wareg6.

5 The hare of BIrru, 6 have you (O eagle, O hyena) eaten it entirely? 7 (Or) have you put
it away and kept (it) ? 8 "A bite of my supper 9 may be Cab6, my enemy!" 10 Gobana
has said.
42
Gobana returned, after reorganizing his army, and together with Garasu Bfrratu de
feated the Cab6. During the battle, Ligg Habta Giyorgis distinguished himself by lead
ing the Amara troops to surround the Cab6. (Habta Giyorgis was a native of the Cab6
country!). He was appointed fitdwrdri on account of this exploit. Gobana revenged his
brother-in-law by cruelly massacring the Cab6. Then a Cab6 minstrel sang:
yd soriessd kor&md kori Goband fdrdd qilliessd
yd hiygssd botimd boi 5 hindumtu dufd wdl nu qitiiessa
qabaniessd Dan(i
1 O rich, be proud! 2 O poor, shed your tears! 3 The cold (son) of Dan$f, 4 Gobana
whose horse is the wind, 5 no doubt he will come and he will make us all equal!
Notes. Gobana by killing all without distinction, abolished the difference between rich
and poor.
43
After his victory over the Cabo, Gobana marched toward the Hadiya Wambie whose
chief, Hasan Ingamo, a very fanatic Mussulman, had rebelled and declared a holy war
against the Christians. Hasan defeated Ras Gobana four times; then, after a victory
gained by Habta Giyorgis over Hasan Ingamo, Gobana returned to the neighborhood of
Qabiena, defeated the Hadiya, and entered the town. Hasan was not found in Qabiena;
it was supposed that he had been hidden by Abba Gifar in Gfrnma. Abba Gifar was
summoned by Menilek to Shoa, and, as he refused to surrender Hasan Ingamo, he was
imprisoned for six months on a mountain near Ankobar. Finally he was liberated after
an animated dispute between Gor6 Nab! Bato and the Emperor Menilek (see song 30).
However, Gimma was forced to pay an annual tribute to Ras Gobana.1
Next, Ras Gobana passed the Gibfe and entered Lfmmu. Conquering Lfmmu in a brief
contest, he turned against the N6nn5 who tried to cut off his route to Shoa. This time,
Moroda Bakarie, chief of the Lieqa Naqamte, intervened in behalf of Gobana. The Nonno
fought bravely in many engagements but at last they were defeated and their Abba Muda,
Dambf Giga (see song 39), was taken prisoner and exiled on a mountain (Amba) in
Gudar.
After a short stay in Gudar, Ras Gobana renewed his invasions and fearing Moroda,
went to Lieqa. Garbf Gil6 (chief of Lieqa Bill6), Tu66o Dann5 (chief of Lieqa Horda), and
Gfenda Buse (chief of Lieqa Sibu) joined their armies to resist the Amara. Ligdf Bakarie,
the uncle of Moroda, vexed by the treason of his nephew, making an agreement with Garbi
Gil6 and Tucco Danno, prepared the little army of his fief, Bunaya (near the Wama river)
to fight against the invaders. The struggle of Gobana against the Lieqa Galla was con
centrated in two great expeditions which devastated the country without forcing the in
habitants to acknowledge the Amara domination. However, after thus gaining victory
over the majority of the Galla nation, Gobana returned to Shoa and established his camp
in Fall6. Then a minstrel sang a boasting-song for Gobana; Loransiyos remembers only
the first verse of this song:
Gobie sangd $nadddUi bdti
1 See Proee, text 2.
1 Gobana rides the belly of his steed!
Note. This means that Gobana, a skilled horseman, was accustomed (to prove his ex-
pertness) to bend in the saddle as far as the spear passed under the belly of his horse.
44
After the return of Gobana to Falle, the Galla whom he had recently conquered took
up arms against the Amara. A league was formed between the Nonn5 Roggie (whose chief
was Turf Gagan), the Nonno Migra (whose chief was Mardasa Konce) ; three Lieqa tribes,
— Lieqa Bill6, Lieqa Sibu and Lieqa Horda; Lfmmu and Gimma Gudaya. Moroda with
his soldiers (Lieqa Naqamte and Wayu) remained with the Amara party on account of
his rivalry with Tucco Danno. Against this Galla confederation, Gobana sent the sons
of Daggac Nad6; Tasamma Nad6, commandant of the corps, Dasta Nad6, and Dallansa
Nad6. The Amara were defeated in a battle at Gura D6ba near the Wama river. Tasamma
repaired to Shoa; Dasta Nad6 died during the combat; Dallansa Nad6 was obliged to
open a way of retreat for himself by fighting against the Tuqa, a clan of the Lieqa Sibu
tribe. Here is the triumphal song of the victors:
Tdsdmmd fdrdd luffi'edd 25 dtila"lkani duld d&lu
Roggie gaunis kuttidd adald "ntutd fundna
Wayus baqdnni kuttedd essdttiftga Tasie"no
(jimmds dufunsa kuttidd ndn ifidra ndn iddra
5 Giendd fardisa Sanidd gibbi bantClmd W&dddo
lafd Santdmd gab"bdse 30 andso giddi qaberd
tumtu lamdtu biterd nd nattdnis ndmd ndta
mig'du basd"bbd biyddd nd natldtti fidtamdni
yd mand Harangamddd yd Buldd yd BuWumndkd
10 nami6&u. Tdsdmmd dabd saytdnni Wdmd hamddd
goromsds malammalinna 35 busdn Gibtii barbadddd
korbds kolu si ergaterd golfd saddietdma hdfna
yd "ti Basd yd "Imd Nddo sambatd dimmdtd dulle
alfi sangd Idma bdfta banti Wdmd Gurd DQbd
15 mdl si ddmi goftdhkie gdndd GdWlmd WdqfeUi
garso arriedd bukkv.ru 40 ddmannerd nuf isdtto
dura faldld ddi huru yd Fatansdtt"IluttÎlu
fdytu yd TdyUukd bald yd mu(a lukkd
nu gatra ddmsikieso qallun Abbukko mardte
20 yd halkdn qabatti bultd koromnl saddietamdfi
guya qabatti mufld 45 gorbd Santdmd gad"dfa
Tdsdmmd yd Taste Nddo indu 'a abbdn dulldmd
dibbie saddietdma bdsi infiirdta fiirddSo
g"arri sired nu soddle Wdmd bUsunkd sumdfi
dbbdn bokku dubbatird qilh'essi gabbabatird

50 Nonndn kannisd ganndti btita dill Idgd Wdmd
saddn Lieqd gungum&rd yd mu(d Nddo soddte
IAmmu tistsd WarCUi bdfta Hord Bidiru
Gvddyd wd dibamtord 65 si Qganiso malkdtti
kdn Dasstie NddS fakkdte indfti dibbfen kunlsi
55 nu si gard muranntrd Nonndn kannisa dimuti
lokkldHaktenas qamntrd namn"dkka tdkko lamdfi
hdddf gard muranntrd Timsd timd SuMfd
kakanni wd bardnd 70 goggd saddietdmd"d^se
kfena guydn gad"adihna fasa gauf quba rdsa
60 kiessdn guydn ol adiema
1 O Tasamma with a sickly horse! 2 The coming of the Roggie is decided. 3 The com
ing of the Gfmma Gudaya is decided. 4 The flying of the Wayii is decided. 5 Gienda has
five horses. 6 He has put down fifty warriors. 7 He has bought two smiths. 8 He will per
form the obsequies of the chief of the land, 9 if his (i.e. Gienda's) house is in Harangama.
10 O useless little man, Tasamma, 11 we have chosen a heifer for tribute; 12 we have
sent a male calf to you. 13 O you, whose mother is Basa, O son of Nad6, 14 will the war
rior pay to you two oxen? 15 What (word) has your lord sent to you? 16 The poor little
old man with a speckled beard 17 hit him on his nose with a piece of wood! 18 O Taytu, O
my Taytii, 19 your news has reached us. 20 If you take a man in the evening, and he
with him, 21 in the morning, you take and pierce him! 22 O Tasamma, Tasamma Nad6,
23 prepare thirty drums! 24 That (man) is more afraid than you! 25 He fights only by
night! (lit. fight-fighter of the fight by night). 26 The cat gathers the rats. 27 Where are
you running, O Tasamma? 28 " I will construct, I will construct 29 the residency of the
chief, son of Wadago ! " 30 I am now distressed. 31 They will eat me, but I will eat (others).
32 He will eat me, but he will be eaten (by me) ! 33 O Bulca, O Bulca, my strength! 34 The
devil of the Wama is bad! 35 The fever (malaria) of the Gibfe is a destroyer! 36 We,
thirty devils, have remained. 37 Friday and Saturday we have fought 38 (led by) the
chief of the Wama of Giira D6ba, 39 the land of Calf, son of Waqie. 40 We have sent a mes
sage to him (i.e. Fatansa). 41 O Fatansa (son) of Ilu, 42 strike, O our kinsman! (lit. O son
of my thigh). 43 The sorcerer Abbukko has gone out of his mind. 44 " Thirty oxen
45 (and) fifty heifers may be led down by you! 46 The old men will not die. 47 Those who
have already lived long, will live on! " 48 For you I have descended to the Wama! 49 The
Abba Bokkti has spoken. 50 The three Lieqa have roared. 51 The Nonno, bees of the sea
son of the rains. 52 The Lfmmu, flies of the breeze of the autumn. 53 The Gudaya are a
little distressed! 54 O you, who resemble Dasta Nadd, 55 we have split his belly! 56 Our
only son, we have taken him! 57 Also we have split his mother's belly. 58 We have taken
the holy oath for this year. 59 Our fortune falls. 60 Your fortune will ascend! 61 The wind
is diminished! 62 Descend to victory by the Wama river, 63 if the son of Nado has been
afraid. 64 Go out to the salt springs of Bidiru! 65 We will wait at the ford! 66 The
drums will not be absent. 67 The N6nn5, red, stinging bees, 68 men who are doubly
valiant (lit. men who are as one and two men). 69 Tfmsa, the son of Sulufa 70 has killed
eighty warriors, who had the cloak of skin (lit. has killed eighty skins). 71 Where he
reaches, he causes the fingers to tremble!
Notes. After mentioning the Oromo allies (N6nno Roggie, (jrfmma Gudaya) and the
allies of the Amara (Lteqa Wayu and Naqamt6) (v. 1-4), the song states that Gienda, the
chief of Sibu (the chief village of Sibu is Harangama), had " bought two smiths," i.e.
had bought from another Galla chief the right of patronage of two smiths (see song 15,
and Appendix). This is a token that the right of patronage might be bought and sold, at
least among the western Galla. The smiths constructed the spears necessary for GiendS to
take vengeance for his father, killed by the Amara (v. 5-9). Then follows a taunt at Ta-
samma, who vainly waits for the tribute of the Galla (v. 10-14) and is a slave to Menilek,
the poor old man (v. 15-17) and of Taytu. As to the Empress Taytu, the Galla say that
she gave herself to a warrior for a few nights, after which she killed him and called to her
bed another man. The verses 18-21 allude to this story. The next verses make game of
Ras Gobana who had remained in Falle' (v. 22-24), while the Galla pursued his officer,
Tasamma, as a cat chases rats (v. 26-27). The verses 28-29 allude to the aggafdri of Ras
Gobana, Fitawrari Bantf Mann6, chief of the Sulii. It was said that he had descended from
a family of carpenters and bricklayers. Here the minstrel mocks because the fortune of
Bantf Manne" has permitted him to order the construction of his own residence.
Then the singer incites to the combat: even if the strength of the two armies should
be unequal and the diviners should have predicted defeat, it would be preferable to die
fighting and killing (v. 30-32). Next, he recalls the deeds of bravery performed during
the battle. The first warrior celebrated in this part of the song is Biilca, a slave of the
Nonno (v. 33-35). Although very few in number (" thirty devils"), the Galla of the Wama
fought valiantly led by their chief, Calf Waqie (v. 36-39). The Galla awaited the army
of Fatansa Ilu, the king of Nonno Ilu (see song 26-27) and Gabba; but he did not move
from his land (v. 40-42). The verses 43-47 refer to the prophecy of the sorcerer, Abbukko
of Lieqa Bill6. He had predicted that resistance was useless, because the Amara would at
last conquer the sons of Orma. However, comments the minstrel (v. 46-47), this prophecy
declares that the life of the Amara shall be eternal and the old men shall never die; yet the
Galla have already defeated the Amara in the recent battle, and have made them feeble
old men; therefore, in a second combat they (i.e. the Galla) will decisively conquer their
enemies, contrary to the prophecy. Since the Abba BokM " has spoken " (v. 49) (this
probably means " has declared war " and should prove that the Abba BokkH had the
power to make a solemn proclamation of the war decided by the tribe), the allies have come
together (v. 49-53); the Lieqa roaring like lions; the Nonno, like bees during the season
of the rains (the bees at this season do not attack, if they are not molested in their hives) ;
the Lfmmu numerous and insistent as flies during the autumn; the Guyada, a little dis
tressed on account of their casualties in the battle. Then the minstrel celebrates the killing
of Dasta Nad6, brother of Tasamma (v. 54-57). The prophecies unfavorable to the Galla,
are again quoted after the victory (v. 58-62). The song ends by challenging the Amara to
another combat at the salt springs of Bidiru, an hour's march from the Wama river. The
Nonno will enter the new battle, with their chief Tfmsa Sulflfa (v. 63-71).
Harangama (v. 9) is a village in the Lieqa SibA territory (clan of the Iieqa Sibu Dicda),
chief village of the Sibu. Giira D6ba (v. 38) is a vast plain near the Wama river. Mdlam-
malinna (v. 11) is the Amharic verb malammala, " to choose," used principally when the
king chooses the cattle for tribute.1 The mother of Tasamma Nad6 was a Galla named
Basa (v. 13). Notice in verse 23 the frequent metaphor: dibbi'e, "war-drum" meaning
" army of a chief." A similar metaphor is used in Amharic with the word nagarit, " war-
drum." Bald (v. 2) is the Amharic word baldw, " hit him"! TokkiZdakfena (v. 46), "our
only (son) " is an ironically tender allusion to Dasta Nad6. Dimu (v. 67) is a kind of red
bee, which produces excellent honey; the hives of these bees have two queens.
45
After the victory at Giira Doba, the Galla began to pursue Tasamma, who fled toward
Shoa. The Nonno Roggie advanced as far as the Gudar River, where they defeated the rear
of Tasamma's army.
jjabbin furi @dgdn"6te ddrsi£d6 mand"mbdtu
farsd qadddd dibbdyu $rg&ta Idld lamdtu
aid na ndtta sildyu 10 ndm "akka gdrd Wdy4ssa
wdmi ddrsd mdnakwfia mandf Saldiihra I6na
5 yd"kka did muddikfd oVolif GuUdlikn as olla
tiabbin furi Gdgdn"6te wdn soddlu ilml Nddo
salgi gumbi (abi gdte
1 The calves of Tiiri Gagan have sucked 2 the beer of the old man's cup. 3 You now
(say), " Woe to me!" 4 Call the old man to our house 5 if (the affair) is like the moon of
September! 6 The calves of Turi Gagan have sucked! 7 They have made your necks as
broken vessels. 8 The poor old man does not go out of his house; 9 he sends others to war.
10 (Led by) a man with a heart like the heart of Way&ssa, 11 we will slip even into the
houses of Salalie. 12 After some time (lit. passed the day, passed the day), we will stay there
in the Gullalhe's (territory). 13 The son of Nado will tremble a little!
Notes. The old man (v. 2) is Menilek, whose armies had been defeated by the N6nno
led by Turf Gagan. If things go badly with Tasamma (the moon of September is full of
ill omen, according to the Galla), it is useless for him to demand aid of Menilek: Menilek
1 Cf. Guidi, Vocabolario amarico-italiano, op. cit., malammala.
does not go out of Shoa, and sends others to war (v. 3-9). Wayessa (v. 10) was a famous
N6nno warrior, native of Galse between the N6nn5 and the Liban Tokko. The GullaUe
(v. 12) had fought with the Amara against their compatriots.
46
The position of Tasamma, who had remained at the Gudar to prevent a Galla invasion
of Shoa was precarious. He took refuge on the Amba Gudar, near the river. The Galla
sang to him:
Guddrin, garri hamdda
GaUdnis, yanni hamdda
atis dubbinkie hamdda
1 The ascent of Gudar is hard. 2 The mind of the Galla is hard, 3 And you, your
condition is hard!
47
Tasamma sent messages to Ras Gobana, demanding relief. In the meantime, he kept
back by the fire of his guns the Galla camped in the plain, who were armed only with spears.
Then the Galla, who could not reply on account of the distance, sang songs of defiance.
yd Tdsdmmd qfiensd bud$ simtarri m&$d &ildko
nitinkie diengddda dOte irujufa Garbi simtio
mvffidnk'te $dddrra b&te 25 si kfenna badddsa Lieqd
ndggddfen qarbdtd giaii bdddd bisingd fa(dsu
5 gdra ydb&nko sumdfi gamddi bobte fa(dse
md wdmtiro Gobandkik Amdra"rari harfdse
fardten Santdma gag"gHre hindufa Ndgi simUo
Gobanni ydddd gay"ydse 30 si mdsisa Sdnd Lieqd
dkka kor&mto ddldi'essa maqakie nigtisd"mbdsa
10 Makdn gauf akkabsdta gdmfd mdrdsa wdrqtidd
hidanndsa"kkd dird baddin sifida"ndyu
mallisa"kkd nafyibni yo ndmd Ndgi soddtie
yd diigna ddgnd tdte 35 sitt"ida kdte tombiyu
bit, 'i ggddsa gudddkd si baddisa okkotiko
15 yd fdrdd isini qabdure Wdmd adunsa hamdda
qawt fdrindi tumdti mdtd un'e"ga si ddba
ydfdrdndi durbikieti irrdn buMin isldmddd
mdllf soddtta"sa g$dd 40 dira Musd"lmd Goddna
mdllf mukdyi ydbda gdgd jjabbi (6md 0f5
20 bu 'i godddsa gudddda hundien ordmddd"lmdkd
Billd, farddd Sanidd sddd Rabbi somandyo
Garbin kitssa bakakkddd kudaSdn ofi"nbadddte
45 Santdmd Metu bdta 60 Tdsdmmdn slid duttudd

kandfd qdbda yd Gdbl maUisa"kkd nitittidd
butu tokkdn fiddi §irtire bufta oboliessd kan kfyu
fardi gard {jdla bdta gurrddd&"kkd fiid muddtefd
muddi gald wd yaydme Garaddn Waldiks bofidme
50 robi gandmd yd bdte 65 dimd bakkdlcd fakkdlu
karrAsd yd bdddu bdfte gadi ydftu dalldkie
si bddda yd"mmabietiek5 hinollunis kuttidd
svddd&sdnni gudddno bit 'i gaddsa dimtu
drama kan kie wdn fiirture wdrdbsisi garaddtd
55 gdndi Cdli"lmd WdqCejd 70 birrd quotisa"ndtfne
bdqaterrd"nni gudddno lafd"nkoUisun kakvedd
yd"ggafdrl yd"lmd Mdnne dkka Morflmd Bakdfd
duro "nsoddttu fi$ddni ndmd "nsoddnnu "nkdku
md bdtta"g'4t& Gobtefd
1 O Tasamm& with long nails, 2 your wife died yesterday, 3 your daughter this night
has gone out (of life) ! 4 The merchant loads the leather bag. 5 My ascent of the moun
tain is for you. 6 Why have you called your Gobana? After assembling fifty horsemen,
8 Gobana has lost his head. 9 Iike a male monkey, 10 he runs to reach Makan ! 11 He has
the belt (for arms) of a man, 12 the mind of a woman! 13 If you (O Tasamma) are really
brave, 14 come on, descend to the great plain, 15 if you have horses (to fight there).
16 The Europeans manufacture guns. 17 If the Europeans are your kindred, 18 why do
you fear the plain? 19 Why do you climb trees? 20 Descend to the great plain! 21 Billd
has five horse (men). 22 Among these, Garbf is like thunder. 23 He will advance, the son
of my Gil6; 24 he will advance, Garbf, and he will arrive. 25 I will give you the plateau
of Ueqa, 26 the plateau where one sows sorghum, 27 the valley where one sows white
sorghum. 28 The Amara let fall the cartouches! 29 He will come, Nagt, he has advanced.
30 I will cause you to reign over the five Lieqa tribes, 31 your name will be the name of
king, 32 you will have a golden ploughshare for tribute. 33 I will charge myself with it,
and I will bring it to you. 34 If you (O Tasamma) fear the men of Nagi, 35 I will bring
you the clothes of the negro slaves. 36 I will load you with my pots. 37 The sun of the
Wama is bad. 38 I will pierce your head; thus I will stop you! 39 The Iira Butu are Mus-
sulmen. 40 There is (among them) Musa, son of Godana, 41 skin of a fat calf (fit for) a
cup. 42 He is (born) from Galla stock, my son, 43 but he fasts because of fear of the Lord!
44 With fifteen (spears) he has loaded himself. 45 Fifty (others) are brought for him by
his servants. 46 Will you catch such a man, O Gobana? 47 There is a Butu, soldier of the
holy war, 48 who rides his horse under the belly; 49 he plucks something under the waist
(of his enemies). 50 If he (i.e. Tasamma) should go out (to fight) Wednesday morning,
51 if he (Tasamma) should be completely defeated, Thursday, 52 I will burden myself
(with presents) for you, O my lady! 53 Even this great man will be frightened! 54 Then
there is something even for you! 55 In the village of Calf, son of Waqie, 56 even that great
man fled! 57 O aggafdri, O son of Manne! 58 Once it was said that you were not afraid.
59 Why do you bring now the basin of efitta to Gobana? 60 Because Tasamma is angry!
61 His mind is like the mind of a poor little woman! 62 You (O Tasamma) abandon even
your brother, 63 who is black as the moon of September. 64 And Garad6 WakUe also has
been taken prisoner, 65 (Garad6) who resembles the red star of Venus. 66 Descend from
your compound (O Tasamma) ! 67 We will not be absent; it is decided! 68 Descend to the
plain at Dfmtu! 69 Order the servant maids to the water! 70 We will leave off in order to
plough during the spring. 71 The country during the dry season is the object of a holy oath.
72 As Moroda, son of Bakarfe, 73 we do not fear any man. It has been sworn with a holy
oath!
Notes. Uncut nails are, among the Galla, a sign of the low castes (v. 1). The verses
7-10 allude to Gobana, superb, but also easily frightened, as the male monkey, chief of the
herd. Makan (v. 10) is a place near Hindfeba Gaccf in Lieqa. The verses 21-33 praise
Garbf Gil6, the chief of Lieqa Bill6. Atari (v. 28) is the Amharic word ardr, "cartouch;"
mdrdsa (v. 32) is the Amharic word mardSd, " ploughshare." In verse 34, the singer again
addresses Tasamma. Kali (v. 35) is the name of a kind of clothes worn by the Sidama
slave maids. The verses 37-38 mean: "We have already defeated you at Gura D6ba
near the Wama; we will now again defeat your army." The verses 39-49 sing about two
warriors of the cavalry corps called Irrd Butu (Loransiyos translates this name with the
Amharic word, ydmîddarrabu, i.e. " those who double ") ; the soldiers of this corps were
natives of Darita. They were Mussulmen; therefore the singer scoffs, as usual, at the
Moslem fast (v. 43). " Skin of a calf, fit for a cup " (v. 41) means " white skin " because
white cups are most appreciated by the Galla. As to verse 48, see song 43. Verse 49 al
ludes to the Galla custom of cutting the genitals of their enemies. Notice the Amharic
word Immabiet (v. 52), "lady" used here instead of the Galla word gifti. Verses 53-56
threaten "the great man," i.e. Gobana with a defeat more crushing than that of his officer,
Tasamma. The verses 57-59 allude to the submission of Bantf Manne, chief of the Siilu
Galla to Ras Gobana (see song 44, v. 28-29). The efi&ta (v. 59) is a plant from which the
Galla make basins to wash their hands. It was the duty of the valets to hold the basin while
the lord washed. The verses 62-63 allude to the rash flight of Dasta Nad6 who was
brown in color like a negro. As to the moon of September, see song 45, v. 5. The verses
64-65 sing about Fitawrari Garad6 Waldie, famous on account of his light skin color. He
was taken prisoner during a combat near the Gudar, but he escaped. The verses 65-68
defy Tasamma to descend from the mountain and to engage in battle at H6ra Dfmtu, a
salt spring near the Wama. The verses 69-73 add to the challenge the holy oath not to
plough the country before victory. Koldsu (v. 71) is a kind of ground, which is ploughed
more than three times during the dry season; then one leaves off for ten days without
sowing it; after this period, it is planted with chick-peas. Verse 71 cites ironically as an
example of bravery Moroda who many years before had surrendered himself to the Amara.
48
During the battle at Gura D6ba, Ligdf Bakarte had taken the horse of Dallansa Nad5,
the famous Raggf (ra,jjji means in Galla " wonder ").
g&ri DaOdnsd Ndd6
abbdnkte biyo goie
dn abbd Uyd goU
1 O fine steed of Dallansa Nad6, 2 your master had made you ashes. 3 1 have made you
lord of the country!
Note. This means : Your master had humbled you, being defeated ; I have accomplished
with you glorious exploits!
49
At this time, Ras Gobana departed with his officers from Shoa to aid Tasamma and
went towards Lieqa by the way of Gledo. Fitawrari Garad6 advanced by the way of Tibbie;
Moroda attacked the Sibu tribes, and Wayzaro Mastayft, the princess of Warra Himano
(who had already fought together with Gobana in the battle of Imbab6), marched to assail
the Lieqa Bill6. Gobana defeated Tucco Danno after many undecisive combats at Malka
Naggadie on the banks of the Wama. Tucco withdrew to the Tullu Amara; thence, after a
year of siege, he escaped and went to the court of the Emperor Menilek II, who, according
to his usual policy, appointed Tucco fitdwrdri and gave him the government of his own
once independent domain. Mastayit had conquered, in the meantime, the Lieqa Bill6, and
the Sibu had been defeated by Moroda. Thus, after seven years of struggle, all the Lieqa
tribes were conquered. Garbf Gil6 and Glenda Sone were appointed fitdvrrdri and governors
of their former kingdoms.
Ras Gobana, fearing a new rebellion of Lieqa, decided not to return to Falle in Shoa
and took up his residence at Hindieba Gaccf. Then he was obliged to begin a new campaign
against the Dervishes of the MahdI. The Mahdl, during his war against the Emperor
Johannes IV ending with the battle at Matamma, had sent an expedition to Wallaga
hoping that the Mussulmen of that region would be favorable to him. Ras Gobana had
already fought against the chief of Lieqa Qiellem,Gote (a Mussulman), and the Nole Kabba;
but he had been obliged to leave off this enterprise on account of the outbreak of an epidemic
in his army. When the Arabs of the Mahdl entered Galla territory, Gote came to an agree
ment with them, and his example was followed by the Sibu Gantf, Sibu Wambara, and
Sinasa. Ras Gobana moved against the invaders with Daggac Moroda and Moroda's brother,
Fitawrari Amante leading the Lieqa Naqamte and the Tuqa. The two armies fought at
Somb6 Darr6, within the territory of the Sibu Wambara. The Mussulmen were defeated
by Gobana. Then the dervishes withdrew to the Sudan, and the Galla allies of Gobana mas
sacred the fugitives, especially their Galla compatriots, natives of Qiellem and Sibu, who
had helped the strangers to enter Wallaga. However, Ras Gobana, in order to avoid the
prolongation of this barbarous carnage, ordered his auxiliary troops to bring to him as
prisoners all fugitives who yielded, and forbade the killing and the cutting of the genitals
of these defenceless prisoners. These orders caused great discontent among the Galla
soldiers of Moroda; Moroda himself did not execute this proclamation of Gobana. A re
bellion of the Galla auxiliary troops threatened. However, Gobana prevented the rebel
lion by an energetic action. He surrounded the Galla troops with his Amara soldiers;
then called the chiefs of the Galla to a meeting. When an officer of the Lieqa Naqamte ap
peared at the meeting, riding a horse whose bridle was adorned with the genitals of the
prisoners, Gobana, as soon as he saw him, flung at him the wooden stool on which he had
been sitting. Alluding to this fact, a Galla minstrel sang the following song:
Gobannd (firmd $ig& Goband qdba rdg~da
Morin Piddiessd gute Morin ag$da rddda
Arabd dutd"d,femu 30 farrl mdtl Amdrd
Gott Santdmd buU afi(8lf nu wdmdni
5 Wdmbarin bird bule ajj$fna nu dandni
6bo Got$"bba Igqu ururukd"lm6 harrt
ail yd"nkakdnne oti tiqi nutti"mdni
dn"nkakdnni kaku 35 qawi gar tokko mukd
Arabd"mbaqu g$tti abbdn qawio qabi
10 imbaqaidni and"nqabatln maU
Goband Umd Danft, and giddi"nqabari
Mort"lma Bakarie gangd gar tdkko hxrrt
garadd"bbd falasi 40 abbdn ydbd yd ydbi
Aramni Tuqdydmna and"yydbatln maU
15 Goband tuqdmu dldl Sammd gar tdkko dirM
butu tullu kanarrds kdn uffatt huffati
jjarsidSd 4ufu jjiru and"nuffatln male
Darrd manddrd guddddd 45 ands giddi "nqabarf
Tullu Wdrqte nann$8b moti gar tdkko"romd
20 uiu sagdld buU abbdn mdd yd moi
Arabd diUi godi ani"mmoanl maU
ndmd dildbd gode kdn momi giddi"nqabari
Gobandn bdsd base 50 mie Disokd todmari
namni Sambd qaraiu mie"kka"rbd (ardnuri
25 buna qardta maU Amdrd gdsi bu 'i
namni dildld"mbafni GdUd dugdd d§bfie
GobCe"lml W&d&jjo irrdn gadi gaccise
55 rardn b&temmo jjirtt Idkkd ndtt"ergifaU

sagdl baUiesen mirgdsd na"mbadisu
sagdl balliesd bae godald"rre nd godi
ntenH Sirfl Odd ddku ndtti badiSi
yd Gudariessd Gumt 75 ds lalldn Tullun Bdqqo
60 Goband mdl kiessdni gandi §oUie SdnqiUd
§arrd motl Saldlie twfn did fakkdta
isa sirri kiessdni Gdrdn gadi gurami
ofi §ald tiessdni yadddn itti tvlami
bdkarattin kiessdni 80 Addl Gojjg'dmin tiifi
65 Minilik guydf moe Minilik Sdd tiid
eb6 Morodd $did TvM, Gimmain titi
Wdyfin hd-ddlu Mori Moroddn Wdyti, titu
tongd yd"n0tto (did Arabni dibbien tokko
Sod Minilik $did 85 misimmd ,rdtd tdte
70 garbicHi birri lamd
1 Gobana is a trunk which crashes down. 2 Moroda is the Diddiessa, when it overflows.
3 The Arabs have gone away angry. 4 Gote has lived fifty days. 5 The judge has stayed
near him. 6 Lord Gote, lord of (the horse) Iggu, 7 if you have not taken the holy oath,
8 I have not taken the holy oath. 9 " The Arabs will not fly! " you said. 10 (On the
contrary) they have fled. 11 Gobana, son of Dan$f. 12 Moroda son of Bakarie. 13 Garad6,
lord of (the horse) Talas. 14 The Arabs have ascended to the Tuqa's (country), 15 but
Gobana has refused to be touched. 16 Descend from this mountain! 17 The old man has
come. 18 Darr6 is a great village. 19 I have surrounded the Tullu Warqie. 20 "After I
have stayed nine days, 21 1 will defeat the Arabs. 22 I will make the warriors merchandise!"
23 Gobana has done badly. 24 The man has paid the customs duty, one Sambd. 25 One
pays the customs duty for coffee! 26 A man does not become merchandise! 27 Gobana,
whose son is Wadago, 28 Gobana (has said), "Take!" O wonder! 29 Moroda (has said),
" Kill! " O wonder! 30 This king of the Amara 31 has called on us to kill. 32 We have
killed and he hits us. 33 Sleep, sleep, O little son of an ass! 34 If they speak to us about
the stubborn (warrior), 35 the gun is wooden on one side. 36 The fusileer has taken it,
37 but I will not take it. 38 This matter does not concern me. 39 The mule is an ass by
one side. 40 (Even) if the rider rides it, 41 I will not ride it. 42 The toga is cotton by one
side. 43 This man who has worn it may wear it, 44 but I will not wear it. 45 This matter
does not concern me. 46 The king is Galla by one side. 47 He who has reigned may reign,
46 but I will not reign. 49 To be governed does not concern me. 50 Come on, I will call
my (horse) Dis6. 51 Come on! like an elephant I will roar! 52 The Amara have descended,
marching; 53 the Galla have followed them to the plain. 54 They have caused (the enemy)
to come down from above! 55 The horse-cloth has fallen and stands. 56 He has killed nine
(warriors), 57 and has shaved his head nine times! 58 The lion (son) of Sirfl Oda. 59 O
Gudartessa Gume. 60 What is there for you, Gobana? 61 That king of Salalie? 62 You
have kept the throne for him, 63 and you have put yourself down! 64 You have put aside
your spears! 65 Menilek has reigned because of good fortune! 66 Among the spears, the
filed spear is the best, 67 Among the Wayu, Moroda may be the ruler. 68 Among the tongd,
the tongd of Entotto is the best. 69 Let Menilek rule in Shoa! 70 The slave (whose price
is) two thalers, 71 has sent me the bridle. 72 He has not burdened me with his trophies. 73
He has made me a male ass; 74 he has loaded me with meal! 75 Seeing there the Tullii
Baqqo, 76 the village of the sons of the Sanqilla, 77 he thought that it was near. 78
He has gone down to the Garo. 79 He has collected his thoughts! 80 Adal has ruled in
Goggam. 81 Menilek rules in Shoa. 82 TuM has ruled in Gfmma. 83 Let Moroda rule
in Wayu! 84 The Arabs, one drum, 85 dinner has been supper for them!
Notes. Gobana (v. 1) is similar to a great trunk which falling crushes everything under
it. The singer in the verses 4-13 addresses Gote, who, during the fifty days of the Dervish
invasion, might have believed himself the lord of Lieqa. The brother of Gote, Asana was
supreme judge of his brother's dominions. In verse 5, the Amharic word w&mbdr is used,
wambari, according to the Galla pronunciation, instead of the Galla dbbafirdi, "judge."
Abba Iggu (v. 6) was the war-name of Got6. Gote' had taken, before the battle, a holy
oath that the Arabs would defeat the Amara (v. 7-10). In verses 14-15 the singer puns on
the double sense of Tuqd, name of a clan, and the verb tuq, " to touch." The "old man"
(v. 17) is Ras Gobana. The verses 19-21 allude to an oath of Ras Gobana that he would
defeat the Arabs within nine days.
Then the minstrel begins to state his complaints against the rds's orders. The verses
22-25 concern the order not to kill the prisoners but to keep them and accept the ransom.
Note that Gobana had established a tax of one Sambd for every ten prisoners taken by his
auxiliaries, a real deduction from the ransom. Verses 26-34, quoting the contradictory
orders of Gobana and Moroda (v. 28-29), allude also to the event which took place before
the tent of the rds (see introduction to this song). With such a command of the war, says
the singer, the warrior becomes similar to an ass; that is, he bears only provisions, not
spoils, i.e. genitals of the conquered warriors. The song next rails at Ras Gobana, who,
although born of Galla parents, has adopted the laws and the customs of the Amara, like
a gun, half of wood and half of iron, like a mule, half horse and half ass, like a toga, half
cotton and half wool (v. 35-49). Dis6 (v. 50) is the horse of the singer, Abba Dis6. The
Galla warrior, Gudariessa Gum6, son of Sirff Oda, native of Lieqa Naqamte, has killed nine
warriors, and then, according to Galla custom, has shaved his head. Why has such a
valiant warrior, asks the singer, surrendered himself to the Amara (v. 58-64) ? Moroda
must rule the Wayu according to the Galla laws. Menilek with his laws reigns in Entotto,
not in Galla lands (v. 65-69). And Gobana, slave of Menilek has ordered that the steed
of the singer bear meal and not spoils (v. 69-73) !
Verses 74-79 describe the flight of the Arabs. Each chief may reign in his own king
dom; Moroda may reign in Lieqa Wayu (v. 80-83)! The Arabs, who are only one corps
(in verse 84, drum = corps), have flown in such haste that they have not even had time
to eat twice in one day (v. 84-85).
Darr6 (v. 18) is Somb6 Darr6, the field of the battle; Tullu Warqie (v. 19) is a mountain
near Darr6; Sanibd (v. 24) is a measure for corn. Note that verse 50 is found also in
song 15, v. 30, and verse 62, also in song 23, v. 90. The tongd (v. 67) is a tree, which has a
trunk so tough that one cannot split it even with an axe. Near Entotto (the capital of
Shoa at this time, 1889), there is a forest of tongd. Mount Baqq5 (v. 75) is in the territory
of the Mao negroes. Sanqilld (v. 76) is the common Abyssinian name of the negroes. The
Garo River (v. 78) is a tributary of the Didd^sa.
50
Wa$$u Dabal6, chief of the Sibti Ganti, had taken part with the Arabs, and he had aided
them in the battle at Somb6 Darr6. Once when he had decided to hunt elephants, the sor
cerers of the region gave him unanimous counsel not to depart on the appointed day.
Wa$$u did not delay his departure, however. In the night a great storm threw down the
sacred sycamore of the tribe; at day-break a thunderbolt killed Wa$$u's horse, and his
uncle was found dead in his bed; when Wa?$u mounted another horse, a python came out
from a thicket and assailed him, but he killed the serpent and departed. Then he killed
two elephants and returned happily to his house, contrary to all predictions.
Dabald yd Dabald Ddymo 20 §aband mdltu §ird
sdmbo qtlli'essi jjigse garbiiW gangd ydmnd
bakakkdn guydf bu 'i tumtu §and uffdnna
wasilldn guyd gab Gobti yd GobCe Dan(i
5 bdfCawdra sifdia twmtun guld"yydbdttu
ddbadabdn Dabald 25 bufd ydbdtti maU
Waffidti dolgie dabaU ddbadabdn Dabald
Morodd qubd damnd ydi du 'akds idti
Amantin huddu ddbi galannlso hatd'u
10 Tiiqd Mtuqb"ldU Idgd bu 'i"bbd Sombd
Mori qiUiessd daqi 30 Abba Somb6 sarddl
Ddnno Gibitetti diese Abbukkd surrasurre
Gobandn Sdd gaU qallu Mandt daM
ddbadabdn Dabald kardti jj^lMe gore
15 Gobie yo qubd dabi ydrie'i blyd badi
ands gimbikd ydbi 35 kdn Sambd Soddu hafi
AramnU dili tdte yd qallu blyd badi
arbis dildld tdle kdn Abbd Dis6 hafi
§abannd jjird jj$du
1 Dabal6, O Dabal6 (son) of Daymo. 2 The sycamore has been thrown down by the
storm. 3 The thunderbolt has fallen by day. 4 Your uncle has reached his (last) day.
5 The serpent has eaten the powder. 6 The exterminator (son of) Dabal6. 7 Wa$$u has
added an adult elephant (to his former spoils). 8 Moroda has stopped his fingers. 9 Amante"
has stopped his back. 10 The Tuqa taste and watch. 11 Moroda has gone off (like) the
wind. 12 Danno has flown to the Gibie. 13 Gobana has returned to Shoa. 14 The extermi
nator (son) of Dabal6! 15 If Gobana has had news of it, 16 I have ascended to my castle.
17 Also the Arabs have been defeated, 18 and the elephant has become merchandise fit
for a huckster. 19 " The time has arrived! " they say. 20 What time have they said? 21
The slave rides the mule; 22 the smith wears the toga! 23 O Gobana, O Gobana (son) of
Dan$f, 24 the smith rides the horse! 25 Ride a pitchfork indeed! 26 The exterminator
Dabal6! 27 Even if it is my death, 28 praise be to God! 29 Descend to the river, O Abba
Somb6. 30 Abba Somb6 Sarda 31 has worn the magic shirt. 32 The sorcerer Abba Mand6
is born. 33 I have passed by the way which you have told me. 34 May all the shegoats
in the region perish! 35 Let only the shegoats of Sambe Soddu remain! 36 May all the
sorcerers in this region perish! 37 May Abba Dis6 remain!
Notes. Wa$$u is called by the name of his father, Dabal6. The verses 1-7 enumerate
the events of the day which should have been unlucky for Dabal6. The verses 8-13 allude
to the sorrow of Dabal6's enemies when they heard of his victory: Moroda first has been
struck by wonder, then has fled (v. 8, v. 11), Amante1 has stayed (v. 9); Danno and Go
bana have escaped; the Tuqa did not believe the news. The verses 19-20 allude to the
prophecies which have been denied by events. The verses 21-25 insult Gobana by calling
him "smith," because he used guns for the first time in these regions. Verses 26-37 again
mention the false sorcerers. Abba Somb6 (v. 29-30) and Abba Mando (v. 32) were two
sorcerers who had predicted Dabal6's death; Abba Dis6 (v. 37) another sorcerer, had
given to Dabal6 the counsel to depart. Samb6 Soddu (v. 35) was a rich owner of cattle in
Lieqa Sibu. The verses 34-35 make the usual sound parallelism with the verses 36-37.
Dabadabd (v. 6, 14, 26), the title which the singer gives to Waîi Dabal6 is the Galla rela
tive form of the Amharic root dahaddaba, " to hit," " to massacre." Verse 29 alludes to
the Galla belief that the genii live in the rivers. This belief is widespread among all the
Hamitic peoples of the Ethaopic plateau. (See Appendix and song 117; I).1
51
After defeating the Dervishes, Ras Gobana returned to his residence at Hindieba Gaccf
and remained there for a year. Then he had a struggle with the sorcerer, Abba Caffie (see
songs 27-29), ordered that Abba Caffie be arrested, and sentenced him to death. Abba
Caffie said to Gobana, " I shall die today, but within three days, Moroda Bakarie will also
1 As to similar ideas among the Agau, see Carlo Conti-Rossini, ' Note sugli Agau,' (Giornale della Societa Asia-
tica Italiana, vol. 18, Firenze, 1905, p. 113-118).
die, and within seven days you yourself will die! " Gobana, impressed by the prediction,
decided to return immediately to Falle in Shoa. However, the day of his departure, the
news reached him that Moroda was dead (Moroda's tomb was found open, and three ser
pents were twined to his corpse). Gobana continued on his way, but, falling from his
horse, died exactly as Abba Caffie had predicted (according to Loransiyos's tale) ! Allud
ing to the life of Daggac Wadago, son of Ras Gobana, a dandy, not fit for a warrior, this
song was sung :
yd okkote damfl gommand wdjjg'in kardn GibCe ha/i Goband wdddln
1 O pot, boil with the sprouts! 2 The way of the Gibie has remained with Gobana!
Notes. This means: there is no one who can follow in the steps of Gobana beyond
the Gibie!
52
Another protagonist of the wars between the Galla and the Amara during the reign of
Menilek II was Ras Dargie (Galla pronunciation, Dargie). He was the son of Sahle Sal-
lasie, king of Shoa and brother of Hayla Malakot, the father of Menilek II. His war-name
was Abba Geraa.1 After the conquest of Salalie, accomplished with the aid of Gobana (see
song 39, introduction), Dargie was appointed governor of this region. His two residences
were at Salalie and Ficce\ As Waldie Baseyum (see song 38) had not helped to conquer the
Guragie's land, Ras Dargie was charged by Menilek to subdue the Guragie and the Arussi
Galla. As to the Guragie, the expedition ended successfully and many inhabitants of this
region were taken prisoners and sold as slaves. On the contrary, the Arussi resisted des
perately, led by S6k Nur Husseyn (Galla pronunciation of the Arabic name, Sayh Nur
Hussayn). He had, according to Loransiyos, gone to the Arussi country from Harar, to
convert these wild Galla tribes to the Moslem faith. In the beginning, he had little success.
Once while he was teaching the Koran, he was assailed by a squadron of pagan horsemen.
They rushed upon him; but Nur Huss6yn, making a sign with his hand, turned them all
to stone. The pagans, still in the posture of hurling their spears, thus became statues of
stone. Even today pilgrims go to admire these statues of Nur Husseyn's enemies; they
are near the grave of Nur Husseyn in the place which is called " Sek Nur Husseyn." ! After
this miracle, the Arussi were all converted to Islam. When Dargie moved against them,
Nur Husseyn proclaimed a holy war (fiih&d). An officer of Ras Dargie, Fitawrari Duf6ra
who was in the vanguard of the invaders, was defeated at Fugug and obliged to withdraw.
After some other unfortunate combats, Dargie himself was forced to retreat to Shoa :
yd lima hdda mattiedd garbotdhte qabdi dulta
duro jjabbdla wdg'g'ln d&We 5 nCiso NutOe qamn&rd
g'abbotdki"e"'S8d takdlte
1 O son of a slave mother, 2 first you have gone to war with your calves. 3 Where have
you bound your calves? You go to the war with your slaves, 5 and you (go) with Nur!
1 Cf. Cerulli, ' Canti popolari amarici,' op. cit. * According to Loransiyos' tale.
Notes. Ras Dargfe had taken with him in his expedition his sons Dasta, Asfaw, and Tas-
aroma. MaU'fe (v. 1), like tombori, is a Galla insult; it is the name for slaves from Sidama
districts.
53
Here is the triumphal song of the Arussi after the retreat of Ras Dargie:
qoti nd qo66isi ilmdle ingdfatin firdsdfl
bfen durdkiena adfimu gdfd Sod galianio
dkka Gobielmd Dan6ifd 40 ilmikd $ssa dirdfe
dkka Fit"fe Takiltirfd gdfds gdfdttu yd ddrsd
5 dkka Garddo Wdldtefa du ' "arussi barando
dkka DaUie"lmd Ndddfd Ddrgien awddd murera
bddd garddif toldfi Minilik tumd tum&ra
dura gimddn adiemu 45 inoliessin yd"lmd"g'$mi
yd Ddrgt'e bit, 'i gamddi balbaUi himu d$dera
10 hinni loldkie soddtte yd hddd"russi kan diesse
du'a yddi Nur"us6ni mieka durbd gad adiemte
and ilmd Nur"useni yd"russi"mmd dirdta
8%tta doUten Arussidd 50 akkdttu Nuru qabdilta
tikOen gay"ydte Idni Dargie dibbi onsisifte
15 fardten Dargie bubbisddd Sdd hundasdUTogdme
fardien AlQlu qiUiensa Kdn Dargie gudddtti rddda
sadi tdni si "nsoddnnu robi Amdrri gad dulu
bddd"lmd Idko guddddd 55 Arussin du 'd"nsoddtu
nigufnl bd6dn kunio mdli balliesitta"lmdkd
20 ofi Soa ki'essa ta 'i imbdi yd"lmdn Saldlte
Dargie Arussitt"aliela in$ietu Mdddd gamdti
Dargie guddd nit, si"ng6ne kdn Abbd (xifdr gudddto
Goband nil barari 60 ingdUu Glmmd gamdti
qiUiessa Gobie"lmd Dan$l hdti"lmd tdkko dabditi
25 Gobie bokkd maskirdmi misiro kobd bultiti
insoddtu indumtdi nigufnl gdddafatera
indumto Oromtittldd yd"russi busumd busi
hit 'o bdd "mballiessa 65 indufa guydnkie mdnna
gdlald fiollumd wdli wdl ildUa wdl ildlla
30 vi a I amdnta yd goftd ydgga"rfasdn kuni dite
ofl Sod tessanio nigufnl sierd tumera
Dargie Arussitl"alieldni GaUdn awdda rukuta
busira kan niti buse 70 Gotten Falli qubd ndta
Inno ddsi Idgd bi.se Wdlien Etfifiu qubd ndta
35 buli Tasdmmd si "mbusa Mikun W&U6 qubd ndta
guyd gdfd"rbi dabdfa gdfa"rfasdn kuni dite
hatun Gullield 6dbdfa
1 Plough and let me plough, O child! 2 Come on! go before us, 3 as Gobana, son of
Dan$f, 4 as Fitawrari Taklie, 5 as Garad6 Waldie, 6 as Dallansa, son of Nado! 7 Retreat
is fit for servant maids! 8 Let the coat of silk go before! 9 O Dargie, descend to the valley!
10 If he fears to fight you, 11 the warrior of Nur Husseyn, he will die. 12 " I am the son
of Nur Husseyn," 13 the child of the Arussi has said. 14 The herdsman leads down the
cows. 15 The horses of Dargie are breezes. 16 The horses of Alelu are storm. 17 We are
three, but we do not fear you! 18 The proud son of Lokko Gucc6! 19 This proud emperor
20 remains in Shoa, 21 and pushes Dargie to the Arussi! 22 Dargie, we do not estimate you
highly! 23 May God preserve for us Gobana! 24 The storm, Gobana, son of Dan$f! 25
Gobana, rain of September! 26 He does not fear and will not leave off (coming) ; 27 he will
not leave off (coming) in behalf of the Oromo! 28 He wastes on the ascent and descent!
29 (Their) love is like a voluble boy ! 30 Why do you trust (them), O lord? 31 They remain
in Shoa, 32 and push Dargie to the Arussi. 33 He has already deserted, he will desert his
wife, 34 he has deserted the ddS at the river. 35 Within a short time, he will desert you, O
Tasamma! 36 The day of Friday is serious. 37 The brigand Gulliela (native) of Cab6!
38 "Do not question about your relatives! " 39 When you have returned to Shoa, 40
" Where is my son? " 41 if you, O old man, question, 42 " He is dead by the (hand of the)
Arussi this year! " (This is the answer!) 43 Dargie has issued (lit. cut) a proclamation.
44 Menilek has sanctioned a law (lit. has struck a stroke). 45 " Do not speak, O son of
Agemi! 46 Let the door speak! " you have said. 47 O mother who has given birth to the
Arussi, 48 how many girls have you afterwards brought forth? 49 O Arussi, you live now,
50 and justly have taken Nur with you. 51 You have wasted the drums of Dargie. 52 The
Shoans have all perished. 53 O wonder of Dargie, the great! 54 Friday the Amara have
descended for the invasion. 55 The Arussi do not fear death. 56 Why do you ruin yourself,
O my son? 57 Do not go out, O son of Salalie! 58 Pass to the strangers of the other bank,
59 to the land of Abba Gifar, the great! 60 Enter Gfmma on the other bank! 61 The mother
has lost her only son. 62 The bride has spent the night alone. 63 The king has grieved
because of it. 64 O Arussi, descend to the attack; 65 your fortune has come; is it not
true ? 66 We will see each other again, we will see each other again, 67 when autumn shall
be ended. 68 The king has proclaimed (lit. struck) a law. 69 The Galla issue (lit. hit) a
proclamation. 70 Gobana will eat his fingers in Falle ! 71 Walie in Yeggu will eat his fingers !
72 Mika, 'el in Wallo will eat his fingers, 73 when this autumn shall be ended!
Notes. The song begins by railing at Dargie, who, contrary to the other Abyssinian
chiefs quoted in verses 3-6, used to follow his army in the last ranks, rather than fight in
the first line (v. 1-9). The coat of silk (called in verse 8 by the Amharic word, gim§&) is the
sign of the rank of rds (see song 56, v. 24, 65). Fitawrari Taklie (v. 4) was afterwards ap
pointed lig&ba; he died at Amba Alagi, fighting against the Italians.
Then the singer speaks of the Arussi, led by Nur Husseyn, who has said, " May we
die if we fear Dargie!" (v. 10-14). Among the Arussi there were the soldiers of Alelu, an
Arussi village, with their chief, the son of L6kko Guc66 (v. 15-18). After stating that
Menilek sends others to war while he remains in ambush in Shoa (v. 19-22), the minstrel
appeals to Gobana, hoping that he will remember his Galla origin and stand by the
Arussi. Why does he trust the Amara rather than his compatriots (v. 23-30) ? Then the
retreat of Dargie is described (v. 31-35); verse 35 alludes to Daggac Tasamma Dargie.
Verse 36 alludes to a warrior, Gulliela about whom Loransiyos knows nothing. Ras
Dargie, to avoid the discouragement of the people in his domain, had forbidden his
soldiers to give any news to the civilians about the outcome of the expedition. They were
merely permitted to announce to the families of the dead soldiers the death of their kins
man without any details concerning the engagements. The families also were forbidden
to celebrate the tazkdr of the dead soldiers, i.e. the solemn obsequies. An officer of Dargie,
" the son of Agemi " violated this order and therefore was removed and exiled on the
dmba (v. 37-46). " Only the door may speak," says verse 46; that is, without tazkdr,
only the absence of joy in the families of the dead soldiers may announce their death.
The singer then asks how many girls the mothers of the Arussi had brought forth to
counterbalance the birth of such valiant warriors (v. 47-48). The verses 56-60 invite the
Galla auxiliaries of Dargie, the natives of Salake, who fought against their compatriots,
the Arussi, to desert. And after mentioning again the casualties of the Amara (v. 61-63),
the song ends by challenging Dargie to another combat after the season of the rains. Note
the abbreviated form of the personal names in this song: Goble = Gobana; Fitie Taklie =
Fitawrari Taklie (which itself is the abbreviated form of the name Takla Giyorgis) ; Dallie
= Dallansa; Miku = Mika '61. Similar abbreviated forms are very common in all Galla
songs; I have not mentioned them explicitly each time, as they may be found passim
throughout the article.
54
The soldiers of Dargie answered the song of the Arussi with the following verses which
announce the arrival of Menilek to aid Ras Dargie:
ydgga birrdnis bartte fldi (jabbdta dimdidd
Arussi mdl malaUtta gurbfen saddiktamnl dulte
darumto disaf indisu 15 Arussi mdlfa kad$Ua
atis dufunke kuttidd fldi gomfd mdndktena
5 kdn hundumd yd giksse gdnnd sild mdnd"rribdnu
yd Wdl"fe sUa"nankdku gdnnd dakdtti gaw"wdmu
maqdn farddsa QaUddd Gurdgte biSdn inndtu
afarfatdmd fiagndli 20 Ba&H Sabdsa gamdfd
yd WdUo slid sobdmi baccisi wdrqie"sa dimd
10 yd Gobim sQd"nankdku Ddno sild si"nankdku
Arussi wd qabamtitta dkka sild si"nankdkne
Nuruktenuratt"dbdtu Mdrydm fecM kakatfrd
25 abbdtte Giydrgis jjedtra §&n GimmA gabbarbra

dkka birrd kuni bdte torbdn Gudrti gabbarira
dull"Arussi ganamddd md Arussi gdmfd didda
fidi ya "russi g'abbdla AwaSin bdlld fakkdtte
utu naddfenkie"nqabin 40 gad"dule bakktim imbdtu
30 jjabb&nki"e"nbojjamtn Ddno sild"nkakatdra
fidi gomfdsa wdrqi'edd akka"nafni Arussini
wdrqie Sanqilldn"ungulMe mdl malatbtta Arussiko
fidi gomfd mdna id 'u gomfd fiddufis imbdte
kanumto isin $dltu 45 kdna diftufis badida
35 hCeqa Sandn gabbarira
1 And when the spring breaks forth, 2 what have you planned, O Arussi? 3 These (i.e.
the Amara) will not give up the enterprise. 4 Also for you, your coming is decided, 5 even
if you will lead all, 6 because Walfe will not give up coming ! 7 The name of his horse is
Tattaw, 8 a furious hero! 9 For even if the Wallo he, 10 if Gobana will not give up
coming, 11 O Arussi, you will be caught! 12 Let your Nur be in charge of lamps! 13
Bring calves for the yoke! 14 Let eighty young men descend for the expedition! 15 O
Arussi, what do you desire? 16 Bring the tribute to our house, 17 because we will not go
out of the house during the spring. 18 During the spring one calls down to the valleys.
19 Let the water take away the Guragie! 20 O Bacci Sab6 of the other bank, 21 carry for
us red gold! 22 Because Danaw will not give up coming against you, 23 and will not give
up coming against you. 24 By Mary, he has vowed and sworn. 25 By my father, Saint
George, he has vowed. 26 As soon as the spring breaks forth, 27 the expedition against
the Arussi is to be made at morning. 28 Bring to us the calves, O Arussi, 29 before your
wives be taken, 30 before your sons be prisoners! 31 Bring to us the tribute of gold, 32 the
gold which the negro hoards! 33 Bring it and let it be hidden in the coffers. 34 Those who
are stronger than you, 35 the five Lieqa tribes, have paid tribute. 36 The six Gfmma have
paid tribute. 37 The seven Horr6 have paid tribute. 38 How can you, O Arussi, refuse
tribute ? 39 Do you believe that the Awas is a precipice ? 40 He, Menilek, will descend for
the expedition and will fight on the plain, 41 because Danaw has sworn 42 that he will
not give up the expedition against the Arussi. 43 What have you planned, O my Arussi?
44 Bring the tribute, and you will go out! 45 If you neglect this, your end will come.
Notes. The verses 4-5 state that the Arussi will come to the court of Menilek to sur
render themselves as the other Galla tribes have done (afterwards enumerated in verses 35-
37). Verse 9 alludes to the question whether or not Ras Mika 'el would fight against the
Galla, compatriots of the Wallo and Mussulmen, as he himself once was. Verse 12 puns
on the word Nur, name of the sheikh of the Arussi, and ntira, " lamp " (Arabic, nUr).
Verse 18 means that, during the season of the rains, they (the Amara) will remain on the
hills and thence they will call the Arussi to bring tribute (this is the explanation given me
by Loransiyos) ; but they will not descend into the valleys (cf. the frequent invitation in
the preceding Arussi song, "O Dargie, descend to the valley"). Verses 19-21 allude to
the Guragie who were allies of the Arussi against Dargie. Their chief was Baccf Sab6,
native of the Caha, the chief tribe of the Guragie. Verses 22-26 quote the oath of
Menilek to come against the Arussi. Note the Amharic formula of both oaths: Marydm
(v. 24) = Mary, abbatfe Giy&rgis (v. 25) = my father, St. George (Galla, abbakd Giydrgis).
Verse 39 means: Do you believe that the river Awas is an insurmountable barrier?
55
When Menilek decided to conquer Harar, he first of all asked Ras Dargie to join this
new enterprise, but Dargie, who had already been engaged in the war against the Arussi,
refused. Therefore Menilek sent to Harar, Daggac Walda Gabr'el, governor of the Ittu
land, who was defeated and driven back. Again the negus made overtures to Dargie. Dargie
refused again, perhaps not wishing to aid Dagj|ac Walda Gabr '61, with whom he was not
on good terms because of the following incident. A little time before the overtures of Meni
lek, Dargie had ordered his officer, Fitawrari Hullumanti, to occupy C6pa, an important
strategic position on the frontier between the Arussi and Carfar. But Walda Gabr '61,
saying that Copa belonged to his territory, sent there Fitawrari Sori Abba Gambar, who
forced Hullumanti to withdraw. Dargie was much offended by this affair, and it was said
that he afterwards ordered the murder of Fitawrari Sori. Sori was actually killed in a place
on the way to Harar, which is still called Mot Abba Gambar, i.e. "Abba Gambar's Death."
After the refusal of Dargie, Menilek himself carried out the invasion of Harar (1887),
and after conquering the land, appointed Balambaras Makonnen governor of Harar; on
this occasion, Makonnen received also the title of dag'g'dc'. He easily reconciled the Harargie,
and his soldiers, comparing the prompt pacification of Harar with the long and unsuccess
ful wars of Ras Dargie against the Arussi, sang:
Makonnen alelu Dargie diessi gaU
hagugatc ndta sabdsa bielase
1 Forward, O Makonnen! Dargie has returned (to his house) flying! 2 He (Dargie) eats
after veiling his head and causes his men to be hungry!
Notes. For the answer by Ras Dargie's minstrels, see ' Canti popolari amarici'.1 The
eating with veiled head demonstrates the greediness of Ras Dargie (v. 2).
56
Ligg Hayla Maryam Gugsa, son of Ras Dargie, who was one of my informants, denies
that there had been rivalry between his father and Ras Makonnen. On the contrary,
Loransiyos states that the motives of dissension between the two chiefs were anterior even
to the expedition to Harar. (Ligg Gugsa is the youngest son of Ras Dargie, and he was only
1 Cerulli, op. cit.
about fifteen years old at the time of the conquest of Harar). Loransiyos, as a proof of his
assertion, cites the following song. Ras Gobana at the beginning of his career had led an
expedition against the Karrayu and the 'Afar (Danakil) of Adal. Makonnen, at this time
ligdba, was one of the officers of this expedition. According to Loransiyos, the date of this
affair was about eight years before the conquest of Harar, that is in 1878-79. Makonnen
fought very valiantly and afterwards demanded of Menilek a new feudal title. But Ras
Dargie blocked his promotion. This was the chief motive of the rivalry between Dargie
and Makonnen, and alluding to this opposition of Dargie, a minstrel of Makonnen's court
sang:
Gobannl wd malalera motummdn kdn bodandti
gdgatti bati harreda 35 Ddrgie bu 't gamdfli
kd gard wd malat&ra fldlaliessa Makufude
Dargi'en ilma wdjjg"in dula fldlalfiko Makufude
5 Minilik yd"lmd wdygssd ydsibilld haddisidd
hibbilik mdli baUCessa maqdnsa wdfligrddd
unguldlien tuma nugi 40 adiemdkd dkka"lldtti
moSoUdlie dirsi jjuli kdna Makonneniu bdse
dule gurbdnki'e way^ssa busi Ddrgie gadi bdsa
10 kdn duri sdbd balliessa lisisd sirrie"sa goftd
dtilile AwdSin gattdte motummdnu kannisdti
flula mdnd ki'essa die 45 sdni duftu Guddisdti
gurdn gimald gag"gure yd homl sofumd s6fi
fluid mdnd kiessa (isa ndmn"akkd Wdqd qlidte
15 Qisi jjula mdndkCeti yd sori boumd bdi
bdli bdi mdndkieti gafarsd hdqd fundna
Gobannl ddnd ta 'era 50 niendo karrdsa dadMsa
Ddrgi'em"molokkust'e ta 'ira floMiessis garbu $gdfa
Makonnd yd Guddisdko motin motummd kandti
20 gudddddu yd Guddisdko yd Maku ddlumd ddli
sirrien kan kiessdn fakkdtte Miniliki ddldi ki'essa
ligdbd galdi abbdtti 55 Miniliki hori ktessa
fuddukd rdsd guddddd Garbi Sang6"bbd Turdfd
uffaddukd qamisikie Ondo Das6"lmd Dagiefa
25 dkka Ddn "ilmd gudddfd baldmbardsi Faysdfd
Gobte sitti ditt$ra namn"dkka Fdyo Surufd
odi sitti firrikiefd 60 kd 'a gala mdndki'ena
Makonnin rdsd ta 'era motummdn kan ndmd tokkoti
mdl godu fldrsd"ffid bulci sa 'dn kormd"nqabnire
30 tiksisu hololdsa gdfd hard fokkifture
hd ifldrukd Saldlie namni qamtsi"nqamn£re
kdn ddlMsa nd hundde 65 sdni rdsisi"mbdne
fl$di Ddnd Milufd ilM "dkka "Sen fokkiftue
1 Gobana has decided upon something; 2 he has worn the skin (i.e. the cloak of skin)
and runs. 3 My mind has decided upon something. 4 Dargie goes to war with his sons.
5 " 0 Menilek, good child, 6 why do you suddenly waste everything ? " 7 I have hoarded the
nvg and I thrash it. 8 An energetic girl has a sluggish husband. 9 The good child has gone
to war; 10 he has wiped out the ancient wrong. 11 He has gone to war, he has descended
to the Awas. 12 The sluggard has remained in his house. 13 The brave man has overthrown
the camels. 14 The sluggard has slept in his house. 15 Go out of your house, O coward!
16 O cursed man, go out of your house! 17 Gobana has become judge. 18 Dargie has grown
pious. 19 O Makonnen, O my Guddfsa, 20 may you increase, O my Guddfsa! 21 Do you
believe that the throne is yours? 22 Leave off the title of ligAba! 23 Take the title of
great rds! 24 Come on! Wear your shirt of silk 25 like Danaw, the great son! 26 Ras
Gobana has decided in your favor. 27 Your kinsmen speak in your favor. 28 Makonnen
has become rds! 29 What will you do, O old man with ill-omened eyes ? 30 Let him graze
his sheep! 31 Let him build the enclosure for them in Salalie! 32 " This will be the chief
of us all," 33 has said Danaw Menilek. 34 And afterwards, he (will obtain) the sove
reignty. 35 O Dargie, descend to the valley! 36 The love of Menilek is for Makonnen.
37 My love also is for Makonnen! 38 If the iron is new, 39 his name is Wagigra (Gras).
40 Come on! Go as a vulture! 41 Such (arms) have been used first by Makonnen! (lit.
such arms Makonnen has caused to go out). 42 Descend, O Dargie, go away! 43 O flies of
the lord's throne! 44 His kingdom is the kingdom of the bees, 45 who is born from the
stock of Guddfsa! 46 O wood of homi, plane tree and plane tree! 47 A man like unto God
has approached. 48 Shed, O rich man, your tears! 49 Even as the buffalo collects the grass ;
50 even as the lion guards the enclosure for cattle; 51 even as the monkey guards the
barley, 52 so the king guards his kingdom! 53 O Makonnen, be even more superior! 54
Among the sons of Menilek, 55 among the cattle of Menilek, 56 (there are) Garbf (son)
of Sango, lord of (the horse) Tura; 57 Onco (son) of Daso, son of Dargie; 58 Balambaras
Faysa, 59 a man like to Faysa (son) of Suru! 60 Go out of our houses, return home!
61 The sovereignty (must belong) to only one man ! 62 Cows without a bull, 63 when (they
go) to the salt springs are shameful! 64 A man who does not wear the shirt of silk, 65 a
noble man who does not become a rds, 66 all this is shameful!
Notes. The verses 1-4 explain that while Ras Gobana and the singer had planned some
thing (i.e. to demand the title of rds for Makonnen), Ras Dargie was far away in the Arussi
land, thinking it would be easier to obtain this appointment from Menilek at such a time.
If Makonnen should be appointed rds, Dargie on his return would complain of this to Meni
lek (w. 5-6 are supposed to be spoken by Dargie), but he could not revoke it. Verses 7-16
contain the usual boasts, and the mockery of cowards. With verse 17, the singer begins to
demand definitely the title of rds for Makonnen. Verse 18 alludes to the fact that about
this time, R&s Dargie had constructed a sumptuous church in Salalie. The church had a
pavement of marble, and was considered, therefore, a very wonderful edifice. After a few
years, it was destroyed by fire, so Ligg Gugsa Dargie tells me. As to verse 19, remember
that Makonnen was son of Guddfsa and brother of Daggac Haylie Guddfsa (see song 35,
v. 4). Most interesting is the verse 34, which, if it is not a recent interpolation, should
bear evidence that even at that time (1878-79), there was talk of the probable succession
of Makonnen to the throne of Menilek. The verses 30-31 refer to the sons of Dargie who
always accompanied him. Perhaps verse 31 alludes to Ligg Gugsa, who was fostered by
the Galla in Salalie. The verses 37-41 extol another virtue of Makonnen: he first intro
duced into Ethiopia the use of guns, gras, which he had received from the French govern
ment. It is well known that Makonnen, — and today his son, — was a good friend to the
French. The verses 42^15 rail at Ras Dargie who had not appointed in his army a single
officer dag'g'd6, except his own sons. This court, formed only by fitdwrdri and subaltern
officers, had caused the Shoans to give Dargie the Amharic nickname ya-zimb ddna, (in
Galla, ddiid tisisa), i.e. "the judge of the flies." The verses 46-53 praise Menilek who had
given peace to his kingdom, even as the lion guards the cattle. The verses 54-60 allude to
three warriors who had fought in the expedition: Garbf Sang6, native of the Galan tribe;
Fitawrari Onco Daso whose mother was Dagie, also a Galan; and Balambaras (today
Daggac) Faysa Suru, native of Gimma Qadfda. The sense of verse 60 is not clear. Verses
61-66 end the song by again demanding the desired title. The verses 7-8, 5-6, 46-48 are
connected by sound parallelism.
57
The Ob6rra Galla, a tribe between Shoa and Wallo, rebelled against the Emperor
Menilek. He sent against them Ras Dargie, Makonnen, and other chiefs. However, in
spite of the boast of the Shoans, the Oborra together with the Abbiccii clan governed by
Tufa Botora, resisted valiantly for an entire year.
Makonnin Guddisd Gait Hard g'ird
gdrd murtl"nqdbni yd"g'olie Minilik
ndmd dudubbUa Ddrgie dbbd guddd
to '£ rard dird 10 G&r&sii Birrdtu
5 billiqd"bbd Golfid yomi wdl agarrd
fidlald negusd ydgga bonnl batd
1 Makonnen (son) of Guddfsa 2 has no colic; 3 he chatters with the people. 4 After
some time, I will stitch the horse-cloth. 5 The thunderous lord of (the horse) Golga, 6 love
of the king, 7 Gate is in Haro. 8 O sons of Menilek, 9 Dargfe, the great father. 10 Garasu
(son) of Birratu, 11 when shall we meet each other? 12 When summer breaks forth.
Notes. Verses 2-3 allude to the boasts of Makonnen and perhaps, ironically, to his weak
body. Verses 4 and 7 are connected with sound parallelism. Gate (v. 7) is Ligg Gatane,
an old officer of the Shoan court, who fought against the Oborra. As to Grazmac Garasu,
son of Daggac Birratu (v. 10), see song 64.
58
After a year of war, the Oborra yielded. But Menilek, according to his established policy,
did not take vengeance on the Oborra. He simply imposed a tribute and replaced Daggac
Wubie, chief of the Oborra, with Ligg Gatane. Wubie, instead of being punished, was
appointed governor of the N6nno. (Promoveatur ut amoveatur!)
gafarsi"ndalu yd Miettd kan ddrsd Ddrra baddfte
fiabannl"ngalu biekta 5 g'&rsa mdtd muka"rrl
kdn gard tdlbd fa(dfte
1 The buffalo does not generate sons, O Mietta! 2 You know that time does not return!
3 You have sown flax for the belly! 4 You have sent us the old man of the Darra, 5 the
old man with a head, like the tree, harril
Notes. The Oborra, speaking to their allies, Mietta, complain because Menilek has
given them as chief, an old man, Ligg Gatane. Darra (v. 4) was the native country of Gatane.
The flax (v. 3) is used by the Galla as medicine for colic. The tree, harri (v. 5), called in
Amharic yd-gdmmd ind&t, i.e. " the tree of the mane " has instead of leaves a kind of
thorn of a whitish color, very similar to the hair of an old man.
59
The Emperor Menilek, having completed the conquest of Lieqa, assembled the princi
pal chiefs of the subdued Galla regions among whom were the Warra Biera and the family
of Moroda. Ligdf, son of Bakane and brother of Moroda, was on this occasion appointed
chief of the king's guards, after defeating the candidate who was opposed to him by the
Warra Biera, the famous Rumicc6 Biera (see song 28). Ligdf was always loyal to the
Emperor, but he did not discard the spear, the weapon of the Galla nobles, and always
refused to arm himself with a gun, the weapon of the Europeans.
BakarCe Gvddno irrd dibd"bbd fardd
wd gamdnd tdni ndmd lafd dibbiessi
dkka g'ollie"bbd Ddno farddo dibba gvM
dkka doUik"bd Ddrgfe fIda na qttte fardd
5 gamdtt"ad$fatdni 15 yd §oUi& Ddrgie gvddd
mirgdtti hakkdurre yd fioUte KumtA Mori
yd fioUte ddra"mdrd hir 'dtu iU,"dn gutd
dadddba "mdra miti gutuf irrd "ndirbdba
kdn ^dtisi bufte miti fida na qttte fardd
10 gangdnni kdn ditte mill
1 (The son) of Bakarie (son) of Godano 2 remaining on this bank, 3 like the sons of the
lord of (the horse) Danaw, 4 like the sons of lord Dargfe, 5 kills those of other bank ! 6 I
will reckon the spoils. 7 O sons of those Amara, 8 they (i.e. my spoils) are not (spoils) of the
sluggish Amara; 9 they are not (spoils) of (boys) abandoned by their mothers; 10 they
are not (spoils) of (fallen warriors) trampled by the mules. lll have overthrown horse
men! 12 As to troopers, I have a hundred (spoils of them), 13 and as to the horsemen, I
have overcome a hundred. 14 Bring (spoils) of horsemen equal to (the spoils) of mine! 15
O sons of Dargie, the great, 16 O sons of Kumsa (son) of Moroda, 17 if (my spoils) are
small, I will complete (their number) ; 18 if they (i.e. their numbers) are complete, I will
heap up (others)! 19 Bring (spoils) of horsemen equal to (the spoils) of mine!
C. THE ITALO-ABYSSINIAN WAR (1896)

60
When the Emperor Menilek passed the Abbay and marched toward Tigr6 to fight
against the Italians, a Galla minstrel sang:
motin bdr gamd (§i Wdqdtti"matti yd Ddno
Ddno faranlfl riebS dugdnkieti yd Ddno
1 The king has crossed to the other bank of the river. 2 O Danaw, whip the Europeans!
3 Appeal to Heaven, O Danaw! 4 You are in the right, O Dafiaw!
Notes. Dafiaw was the name of Menilek's horse. Therefore, the war-name of Menilek
was Abba Danaw (according to the Galla pronunciation, Abba Ddno).
61
Fitawrari Gabayahu was chief of Guragie and asdlldfi, i.e. cupbearer of Menilek. He
fought valiantly during the Italo-Abyssinian war. A little Amharic song runs:
TUydn bilo ndbbdr S&wa ndw dambarie
TUydn bUo ndbbdr Tigre ndw ddmbarie
Irribi aid Gdbdydhu tdtdmdo Indd bdrCe
1 The Italian said, " Shoa is a territory of mine! " The Italian said, " Tigre" is a terri
tory of mine! " 3 " No! " said Gabayahu, yoked as an ox.
62
Gabayahu was killed in the battle at Adowah. This very beautiful song laments his
death:
asdUdfi Gdbdyd Gdbdy6 ydggumd kufu
iddi^m gard"nfidllatti wayd badM yd nitikd
vlt ditntu qallayd 10 nitis bdr hierumti
fdrdnjji si ndtte yd Gdbdyd Gdbdyd ydggumd kufu
5 Gdbdyd ydggumd kufu badde yd hdddkd
badM Idl$kd g$d4 Gdbdyd
loltn nigusdf galtl
1 O cup-bearer Gabayahu! 2 You have never loved your life, never! 3 Red, supple as
a rod! 4 The Europeans have killed (lit. eaten) you, O Gabayahu! 5 Gabayahu, when he
fell, 6 " My poor soldiers! " (he said) 7 The soldiers went in the service of the Emperor.
8 Gabayahu, when he fell, 9 "My poor bride!" (he said). 10 His bride after one day has
married again! 11 Gabayahu, when he fell, 12 "My poor Mother!" 13 has said Gabayahu!
Notes. That is, only the grief of the mother cannot be consoled.
63
Since before the battle, there had been a contest between Ras Makonnen and Fita-
wrari Gabayahu about the order of the battle-array of their troops, after the death of
Gabayahu, a minstrel sang: ,. T , Tl,
utum bardna olte
utum bardna hafti
algd qiûmdU"inirmattdni
1 If you had lived this year, 2 if you had remained (living) this year, 3 you would
have divided the throne in two equal parts (i.e. you, Makonnen and Gabayahu, would
have become equal).
64
In the battle at Adowah, Grazmac Garasu Birratu also was killed (see song 57). After
an expedition of Ras Gobana, during the second war of Gobana against Lieqa, he had
received the command to conquer Danno Biera. (The domain of Danno was separate
from that of his son, Tucco.) He gained fame, also, through the aid of Daggac Moroda,
ancient enemy of the Warra Blera. This was the only time that Garasu left Shoa. He
always remained in the Mietta's territory and had his residence near Addis Abeba. He was
called, therefore, "yd-Galld maskot" (Amharic), i.e. " the window of the Galla," because
he limited his activities to looking at the Galla from the window of his territory (Shoa).
Here is a song, in which a minstrel laments the death of Garasu :
moti malin faddani nitisa Aydntu
yd Garasu Birrdtu farddtu Daldcdo
Gdrdsu Birrtedd nigusUti Minilik
farddrra mirribdd 20 giftln fdytu4d
5 dbbd banti Mvettd Idfd Mi'ettd qabd
yd Gdrdsu Birrdtu sdfiif Miettu dirti
harki la&u fonl sassabdn Birrdtu
dkka jjfoZifc qalli Ddnno Bierd Otd
yd Gdrdsu wdmdni 25 guddi"nfalmd d^dl
10 nigufni"ndubbdta wdrqfen gubbdn kai
bu 't kielld (ufi . Gdrdsun Birrdtu
qawion Gullallib guto harkdsd kai
wdrqie safarsisi nigusdn gabbari
JHddiessa gamatti 30 motl mdlin fa§dani
15 hiy^ssa baddsi yd Gdrdsu Birrdtu
riebdn Birri GoU
1 What has burned the king? 2 O Garasu Birratu! 3 Garasu (son) of Birratu 4 on
his horse whirled. 5 O chief of the Mietta, 6 O Garasu Birratu, 7 your two hands were
(full) of meat, 8 like the son of a butcher. 9 If they called (into another land) Garasu,
10 the Emperor spoke: 11 " Descend and close the gate!" 12 For the fusileers of the Gul-
lallie, 13 he has caused the gold to be measured out 14 on the other bank of the Diddiessa.
15 The poor man has grown rich. 16 The hero (son) of Birratu (son) of Gole; 17 his wife
was Ayantu, 18 his horse was Dalacco, 19 his emperor Menilek, 20 his empress Taytu.
21 He owned the land of the Mietta. 22 His stock was Mietta. 23 "With the men of Bir
ratu, 24 Danno Biera Ota, 25 we will have a great dispute." 26 He placed his gold in the
pot for corn. 27 Garasu (son) of Birratu 28 has placed his hand in the pot, 29 has paid
tribute to the Emperor. 30 What has burned the king? 31 O Garasu Birratu!
Notes. Garasu is called in the song moti (v. 1), " king," and abba banti (v. 5), a title
which in the Galla kingdoms corresponded to the Amara title, rds. Verses 7-8 allude to the
severed genitals, war-spoils of the Galla. Verses 9-11 relate that the Emperor ordered that
the gate be closed to keep Garasu from leaving his residency. The verses 23-29 celebrate
the expedition of Garasu against Danno Biera.
II. WAR AND HUNTING SONGS

Here are a few songs of the kind which the Galla call gierdrsa.
65
hdrkd jjiru twssQma dtifd"rribanu Vugni"rikoru
wdddillo bdsd basi g'dldi'essd bdsd basi
mdtd jjiru ttessumd bdlld"ngalu tumtun kolfdn"nadtemtu
kdrkdrro bdsd base 10 qamaU bdsd basi
5 jjagni"Uuttu naggddie mukd"yydbdu
qierrdnsd bdsd basi wdnnttu bdsd bast
1 He who has a hand, does not open the door with his back; 2 the bachelor has been
shameful! 3 He who has a head, does not go into a hole with his back; 4 the wild boar has
been shameful! 5 The valiant does not sneak; 6 the leopard has been shameful! 7 A coward
does not become prôud; 8 the ape has been shameful! 9 The smith does not go on laugh
ing; 10 the little monkey has been shameful! 11 The Mussulman does not climb a tree;
12 the baboon has been shameful!
Notes. The song enumerates the qualities of cowards; shameful behavior (v. 1-4),
sneaking (v. 5-6), boasting (v. 7-8), lack of dignity (v. 9-12). Each defect is common
to an ignoble wild-beast: the wild boar (v. 4), the leopard (v. 6), the monkey (v. 8, 10, 12).
The bachelor is reckoned among the wild-beasts! Among the Galla, great contempt for
unmarried men is universal. Then follow examples of dignity; the smith, on account of
the belief in the magic powers of the worker of iron (v. 9), and the Mussulman. Here is
perhaps an ironical allusion to the popular comparison between the Mussulmen and the
monkeys, " both crying at special hours of the day," a mockery of the Moslem prayers,
(see song 142, v. 51-55, notes).
66
Loransiyos knows the following version of song 65;
utii harkisa diru busiettin quUd"nkdtu
hudducl&n (ufd bani 5 kamietti bdsa bafti
waddello bdsd bast kdn gulld dagnt simti
1 Although he has hands, 2 he has opened the door with his back. 3 The bachelor has
been shameful! 4 An ugly girl does not rise naked. 5 Has the beautiful girl been shame
ful 6 who has shown herself naked to the valiant?
67
motin mukd wd sadi matin ilmd wd sadi
gofd firri bulfatu tdkko gdgnd dalatd
wddd diUi ddbatu tdkko gdmnd dalatd
tdkko mukd yaiti 10 tdkko drdd dalatd
5 isfri bird (aranâriUi mukd isbn bird daran$aritti lugnd
qottdn md tdp ingdni golfdn md idp ingoni
1 The kings of the trees are three: 2 on account of the gdfd, the family sits up; 3 the
sycamore is planted by the ljill&; 4 the other is the tree of the meeting. 5 Except these,
the other useless trees, 6 why are they not cut down by the axe? 7 The kings of the chil
dren are three: 8 one is born valiant; 9 one is born wise; 10 one is born generous. 11 Ex
cept these, the other useless cowards, 12 why are they not cut down by the fever?
Notes. Gdfd (v. 2) is the celastrus edulis (Arabic, qdt, Amharic, $at). Its roots, which
are chewed by the Galla Mussulmen, have excitant powers, thus they " cause to sit up."
The gHlld (v. 3) are those who have made the pilgrimage to the Abba Mudd and have been
anointed by him with butter.1 On returning, they plant a sycamore, the sacred tree of the
Galla tribes. (See Prose, text 4, notes.) The meeting or the parliament of the Galla tribes
assembles usually on a plain in the shade of a tree, often a sycamore; the tree is called
" muka yaiti," " the tree of the meeting " (v. 4).
68
guddi adu dallaM wamiddd kudafuri
ndqam"malkd dippddd hinol&ni torbani
irrd gati "bbd fardd 10 ds id H gdrd mirgd
gunfurd min§t"mbutu gierdrsd dadl kiesa
5 fild tialllle"mmaru Ijannatd mdrd kiesa
afdn dungd hiryddd ani kanumd yddd
bagd"dtfti jjolityd lubbukd mdll yddd
1 Cf. Guidi, ' Strofe e piccoli testi Amarici,' op. cit.
1 The gvMi loves the sun. 2 I have descended to the narrow valley 3 and I have pulled
down the horsemen! My god-father will dress my hair; 5 the beautiful girls will adorn
my comb; 6 my friends will kiss my mouth. 7 The children will say to me, " You have
killed well! " 8 Fourteen invitations. 9 " Do not leave off (coming) for a week. 10 Sit
down here on the right hand!" 11 War-songs mingled with hydromel, 12 necklace within
the peritoneum, 13 this is what I am thinking of! 14 As to my life, what have I thought
about it?
Notes. The song describes the joyous welcome which is given to the valiant warrior
when he returns from a successful excursion. The gvMi (v. 1) is a small variety of vulture
with red, transparent wings and tail. The warriors make crests of these feathers, which
they place in their hair. The gudH is the size of a pigeon. It must not be confused with
gudti (meaning "ostrich") of other Galla dialects. The valiant warrior adorned with these
feathers is called abba gvMi, (see song 142) or bdlle gvMi qdbdu.1 The godfather (ming'e* =
Amharic, mize) dresses the hair of the victorious, and anoints them with butter (v. 4) ; the
most beautiful girls of the village place in the warrior's hair a comb, the haft of which is
adorned with wire (v. 5). Bagd "gefti (v. 7), "you have killed well!" is the ritual welcome to
the warriors returning from victorious exploits. (Hannatd (v. 12) is a necklace of jet which
is ceremonially wrapped up in the peritoneum of the sacrificed victim. This Galla custom of
wrapping round the neck the peritoneum of the victim is often described by travelers,
and also by Massaja. It is evidently connected with the religious ideas about the peri
toneum (see song 23). According to Loransiyos, Menilek had forbidden by proclamation
this custom of the fiannatd, as " contrary to the Christian faith."
69
bullS bulld yd burunqulld odoUd qullu ta 'l
bullS koUe"rfd muld 5 kdn lubbukd of ydbd
ndmvTori qabu bitd
1 O bay horse, O bay horse, O light horse! 2 O bay horse with four sharpened hoofs!
3 He who has money, buys it. 4 The white horse has become pure! 5 My mind rises over!
(i.e. I desire it).
70
h&rfa qotisa bddda attamin middn nalu
gamug't qubd"nqabu horfani loldn maU
hvrfani qotdn maU attamin dirdrra bdsu
1 Hail! field of the plateau! 2 In the valley they have no news. 3 By vigorous plough
ing, certainly (they can obtain a harvest); 4 (otherwise) how could they eat the corn?
5 By vigorous fighting, certainly (you can gain renown) ; 6 (otherwise) how could you dis
tinguish yourself from other men?
1 Cf. Guldi, Vocabolario amarico-italiano, op. cit., p. 278.
Hdrfa! is a war-cry which usually precedes the boasting-songs. It may be compared

with the Amharic cry, zarrdf]
71
said buttdn ddkkutti said Idma ba6iifatani
dirriqun durbd said 5 dlrdrra 4iessun said
said lamd batdni
1 The edge of the sword on the apron is shameful. 2 To spit on a girl is shameful. 3
After bringing two edges (of a spear), 4 after ordering two (edges of a spear) to be brought,
5 the flight from men (i.e. enemies) is shameful.
Notes. As it is shameful to assail the peaceful shepherds (v. 1), or to insult a girl
(v. 2), so is it shameful to flee when one hears arms (v. 3-5). The Galla warriors used to
be followed by their valets, who bore the extra spears. Dakkii (v. 1) is a kind of leather
apron worn by the Galla shepherds (Amharic, Sirdra).1
72
ditrbd qarri golbodd qopdi na $gdu
kal Hd66 gorbd sdyd hdti dird gcwddd
dibbiekie hidi dibbi kdn gaUf tiesse bosi
fOqaleie tola ,dddu kdn du' if ktisa kufti
5 ani qopain dufd
1 The girl has a shaved tonsure; 2 (her) clothes are (made from) calf of cow ('s skin).
3 Play on your drum and strike it! 4 Clean your flute! 5 I will come prepared. 6 Prepare
yourself and await me! 7 The mother of the warrior is stupid. 8 She sits down and weeps
for him who has returned; 9 she makes preparation for him who is dead!
Notes. The mother weeps, moved by the return of her son (v. 8) ; the mother does not
believe the news of her son's death (v. 9).
73
afurin binndn btiii tdkko mdtd"nulaltu
Sanin binndn ddfuri tdkko uldttu"nurgoftu
fdrdd magdla"mbittu wdl lolli mdfi g'ibbu
kdn boqd qabu"ndlsu fiabbi bode barbddda
5 d"urba magdld"nfudu 15 duld&d kuji. kasd (G. S. B.: kiesd)
kdn karru qdbdu"ndisu mU(d duti awdla
wdl Mil wali lamd boyin bordtta mdli
tdkko matumd"ndaqu kdn takkd"ndardninl
tdkko ddqu"ndarbata Umd"bbdn daldi mdli
10 bo&ieltin wali lamd 20 kdn takkd^nwardnini
1 Cf. Guidi, Vocabolario amarico-italiano, op. cit., Hrdrd.
1 I have wandered for four days; 2 I have not wandered the fifth day. 3 The horse of
dark color is not bought. 4 He who has a horse with a white star on his forehead, does not
remove it. 5 The girl of a poor complexion has not married. 6 He who has a girl with fine
teeth, does not desert her. 7 The (ways of) fighting are two : 8 one does nothing at all but
go (to the war) ; 9 one goes (there) and does not hurl his spear. 10 The coarse women are
(of) two (kinds): 11 one does not perfume her hair; 12 one perfumes herself and has no
unpleasant smell. 13 Why do you hate the war? 14 Look for the lost calf! 15 Raise the
old cow that has fallen! 16 Bury the dead girl! 17 Why does the wild boar howl, 18 if it
does not grunt with joy (at least) once ? 19 Why is the son of nobles (lit., son of father) , born
20 if he does not hurl a spear (at least) once?
Notes. The singer commends his own perseverance in the expedition; nevertheless he
might not get any prey during the first four days (v. 1-2), but this perseverance, says the
singer, is caused by the confidence which the warrior has of his own bravery; just as the
knowledge of the beauty of a horse or a girl keeps the love of jthe owner constant (v. 3-6).
Verses 13-15 mention the ignoble deeds which cowards perform.
74
gord qobi godeka
qobi gode ydbikd
1 Make the young elephant (like) a castor tree! 2 Make him (like) a castor tree and
climb him!
Notes. That is: Cut down the elephant as one cuts down a tree! As sign of victory,
the hunter climbs upon the corpse of any large wild beast he has slain.
75
The soldiers of Ras Tasamma, when starting on an elephant hunt, sang:
obd goftt Tasammd gogoftb Tasammd
ajj$si kottti. ddbd 15 moti duqqdlla B&nga
mdltti kielld nd dabd dirsd Alima"bbd Foggl
loti wdrqie daddabd abgum"matd no, diga
5 allatti rdsd raqd ddddn dibddda Idtd
hummd rdsd bokkddd abduddn miikd yabi
si 'd rdsi nd qabi 20 fdrdd nd bittd"ntdtu
gdla galu nd dowl abdim dugdi na diga
balltes nd balliestiti kalle natti uwiftdre
10 ddrd ndt gingilct qard ndtti uwiftdre
niti gaddd nd goî kdti ndtti dubbiftdte
balliesi qaqd fundn 25 matin ka 'i dubbisu
hala£ gadi fud£
1 My lord Tasamma! 2 " Come and kill! " he commands. 3 What gate shall be for
bidden to me? 4 I have set aside the golden earrings! 5 The vulture moves towards the
corpses; 6 the hornbill moves towards the rain; 7 the rash (man) moved and surpassed
me. 8 He enters and keeps me from entering. 9 The balttesa has ruined me; 10 he has
covered my head with ashes; 11 he has made me (like) a widow. 12 The balliesa taking
away the soot, 13 has swept and pulled it down. 14 O my lord Tasamma, 15 king of the
trench of Bonga, 16 husband of Alima (daughter) of Abba Foggf, 17 in a dream my head
bleeds; 18 perhaps I will anoint myself with butter. 19 In the dream, I have climbed a
tree; 20 perhaps you will buy a horse for me. 21 In the dream, my shoulders bleed; 22 per
haps you will clothe me with the cloak of skin; 23 perhaps you will rise to speak with me;
24 perhaps you will clothe me with the shirt of silk. 25 The king will rise to speak with me!
Notes. Verse 4 alludes to the custom of Galla elephant hunters who give their wives
golden earrings as a sign of victory (see song 76). The following verses 5-13 allude
to the Galla custom that a warrior may not anoint his hair with butter after his first
victory. On the contrary, after gaining the first victory, the young warrior is called
battiesd (lit., waster) and he is obliged to await his second exploit before anointing him
self. According to Loransiyos, the balliksa are much feared in battle, because they do deeds
of rash bravery to obtain the right of anointment. In fact, the singer says that he has
been preceded in killing the elephant by a balKesa (v. 5-6), who was seeking the booty
as the vulture seeks the corpses, and the hornbill the rain (the hornbill during the dry
season cries with a hollow note, very similar to lamentation; the Galla say that the hornbill
thus implores the rain to fall, see song 135). In verses 10-11 there is an allusion to the
custom of the Galla widows who cover their hair with ashes as a sign of mourning. The
widow for an entire year after the death of her husband does not cut her hair or her nails.
After a year, the old men of the tribes with solemn ceremony cut her hair and nails
and thus her mourning is finished. Verse 15 calls Tasamma, "lord of the trench of Bonga,"
because, when these verses were composed, he was in the Ma$$a kingdom to protect the
last Amara conquests against the invasions of the king of Kaffa (Bonga was the capital of
Kaffa). Tasamma after conquering Giima, married Genne Alima (see introduction to
song 24). Verses 17-25 interpret the singer's dreams. The first interpretation (bleeding
head = anointing with butter) and the third (bleeding shoulders = wearing a cloak of
skin) are made according to the laws of sympathetic magic.
76
The hunters who went from Shoa into Wallaga to hunt elephants under the command
of officers desiring renown and honors, sang their songs in Galla more frequently than in
Amharic. Here is one of their songs:
arbd yd"bbd diedrd guggufi rdfu bui
daladdd Bust Sayd 5 §arti bard fakkdta
gowd gurrd wddard gungume' dûkkdma
Wdq "arfasd fakkdta lotin gadi dabatb

arbd yd moti Lgld niti ndmd "rbd qabu
si maU namni"ntolu 20 ibsddd Idgd ddgte
10 namnl arbd mu(ol&dd ibsd"rkatti damnd
urursd maWrrafa latin ibsetti galti
rasd maU"ndammaqu niti ndmd"rbd"nqdbne
arbd mukd"yydbanl ibsadd Idgd dagte
qobi bird"ndarbani 25 ibsd"rkatti damnd
15 Gawd Barari robiti a£dumd lagd bulM
sammd gadi"g'jjajjfr&t£ dabord qabi buU
bombdtu gand bati
1 O elephant, O ugly father, 2 O old cow of Bus6 Sayo, 3 the stupid one with long ears
4 stumbles and gathers sprouts. 5 He resembles a decrepit old woman. 6 He grows angry
and murmurs. 7 He resembles the sky in autumn. 8 O elephant, king of Lol6, 9 without
you, no man can be estimated. 10 The hunter of elephants is like a little boy; 11 he does
not sleep without a cradle song, 12 he does not awake without being roused. 13 O elephant,
do not climb the tree! 14 Do not pass near the castor tree! 15 It has rained at Gawa
Barare, 16 the buds have been crushed. 17 The bombdtu has gone out for the second time
18 and won the ear-rings! 19 The wife of a killer of elephants 20 goes to the river with
a lamp. 21 If she puts out the lamp with her hand, 22 the golden earrings shine and she
can return. 23 The wife of a man who has not killed elephants 24 goes to the river with
the lamp. 25 If she puts out the lamp with her hand, 26 she (is obliged) to stay there
during the night. 27 " I have married a coward, and I must remain there."
Notes. Bus6 Say6 is a place in Lieqa Say6; so are L616 and Gawa Barare. Verses 1-7
rail at the old elephant who groans like an old woman or like the sky of autumn (during
the autumn thunder is very frequent). He falls to the earth at one blbw (ironically the
singer says that the elephants do this to gather the sprouts which are on the ground, v. 4).
I was not able to get any explanation of verses 13-14. Verses 15-18 sing about the elephant
hunters who have had only one victory. They are called bombdtu and may not give their
wives earrings, unless they kill a second elephant (see song 75, v. 4). The verses 19-27
allude to the custom already mentioned, of presenting earrings to the wife of the victorious
hunter. The wife of the coward (v. 23-27) has no golden earrings which are a brilliant lamp
at the ears of the brave man's wife.
77
gierard"rbd"d^si fdrsitu lima dai
gafdr8d dabaUdddu intdld dabaUdddu
1 He who sings a boasting-song after killing an elephant, 2 will add (to the elephant) a
buffalo! 3 She who sings after bringing forth a son, 4 will add (to the boy) a girl!
Notes. " I must not boast too much of my own exploits; perhaps the future will not
be so favorable as the past. The buffalo, ignoble animal, after the elephant! A daughter
after a son!"
III. LOVE SONGS

78
utum an sangd ta 'l bosetti nd dofsisd
sangdsd didd ta '£ , kamiettt nd bitatti
diddsd bifd ta 'I 10 ifefco ndtti dakdtti
ndggddi'en nd bitatti waritti marmdn buld
5 bitatti nd qalatti warettl marmdn old
gdgdkdti difatti namni du 'add jj$da
gdbdtti nd bafatti anammo jjdlald fittra
1 If I might be an ox, 2 an ox, a beautiful ox, 3 beautiful but stubborn; 4 the merchant
would buy me, 5 would buy and slaughter me, 6 would spread my skin, 7 would bring
me to the market. 8 The coarse woman would bargain for me; 9 the beautiful girl would
buy me. 10 She would crush perfumes for me ; 11I would spend the night rolled up (around
her) ; 12 I would spend the afternoon rolled up (around her). 13 Her husband would say,
"It is a dead (skin) ! " 14 But I would have my love!
Notes. The singer longs to become a cloak of skin to be worn by his sweetheart.
79
Saldlie Goband"nmdu Ddrgie maU
g'dlatiiti'e fdrdd"mbittu gangtiz maU
yd kvtatt bfen yd Berri
1 In Salahe, Gobana does Dot rule, but Dargie. 2 I do not buy your love with a horse,
but with a mule! 3 If you have decided, come on, O Berrf!
Notes. In the Galla lands, mules are valued more than horses (v. 2). Verse 1 makes the
parallelism with the second verse.
80
toU toU maloi da kdt yd sobd li(d
Sumtbd dird b6rd ddnoi toldmmo gubbd si fidd rigd
1 Yes, very well! very well! 2 Your tresses are (like) the tail of the Emperor's sorrel
horse. 3 Come here, O liar! 4 I will give you in return a tooth-brush!
Notes. The tooth-brush (Galla, rigd; Arabic, miswak) may be given to a girl only by
her brother or fianc6.
81
Suld SuU GiU obolitese Sord mannagaSd gadi Cangarte Sogillie
sabbdtd nd ergi ndn jjabtessa gard dn kd gard rdfi kie gdra mojjirri
1 O Sula (daughter) of Sule (daughter) of Gil6, whose brother is Sora, 2 send to me

your girdle; I will bind with it my sides (lit. my belly). 3 The residency here below belongs
to Cangarie Sogillie. 4 My heart is troubled. And your heart? I do not know!
Notes. Cangarie Sogillie (v. 3) was a king of the Mietta, who died a few years ago, when
nearly a hundred years old. This verse has no sense connected with the song, as is usual
with the popular refrains.
82
hiddi Dag'jjdbdSd baqqe dima Tasdmma fakkdta
kljkku gadi ydsa IQnko mama"kka dajjg'dda Haylteda
likki ddg'g'amdca Ddrgife turkl hatte kdte kdie
l&ma Dastd fakkdta dubbt laft tdte tdie
5 ldfd"kka tdbbd Hrtra
1 The flowers of the plant hiddi are the toga of Daggabasa. 2 I will lead my cattle down
to K6kku. 3 Surely the dafig'aemM (son) of Dargie, 4 the fragrant Dasta, you resem
ble! 5 I have weeded the ground as far as the ascent. 6 You resemble the red Tasamma!
7 You are a man like Daggac Haylie! 8 The Turk of the Emperor runs and runs. 9 The
matter of the heart (lit. of the bones) stays and stays!
Notes. As to the plant hiddi (v. 1), see song 135. Daggabasa and Kekku (v. 1, 2) are
two villages in Calliya Ob6. Daggac Dasta (v. 3-4) son of Ras Dargie, governed Calliya
Obd (he died in 1892). As to Daggac Haylie, brother of Ras Makonnen, see song 35. The
GondarCe, a corps of cavalry under the command of Daggac Damissie, were called by the
Galla, turU, " the Turk."
This song was composed by a girl who celebrates the beauty of her beloved by comparing
him with the governors of the nearby regions.
83
— it Kumsd gabbari Gott yd "$e kokd "rrd ga§dma
nd gtibba maggdli"lmdkd nd kiennit1Cif tlmd diesa
— 6bo Gott qlta ddma nd ddwdttu masi'enta
1 O Kiimsa, pay the tribute to Gote! 2 Answer my song, O my little son! 3 Lord Got6
sends his message in haste. 4 O you, who have drooping breasts, 5 give me (yourself) and
you will bring forth a son! 6 If you refuse, you will become sterile!
Notes. As to DaggaS Ktimsa Gabra Igzi 'Abher, see song 32; Daggac Gote is the chief
of Lieqa Qiellem, who killed Captain Bottego (see song 49 and Prose, text 3). The song is
an example of the poetical contests between a man and a woman. The woman usually
begins by defying the man with a distich; the man answers with verses audaciously gallant.
These contrasting songs are called maggald.
84
Miniliki arbi ndte hibbiliki nd"rra bdte
Loft baiinko bundfi boi dabunko sumdfi
1 Menilek has been eaten by an elephant! 2 I have ascended to Lofe because of the
coffee. 3 You have surprised me suddenly; 4 I weep, I am distressed because of you!
Notes. Lofe (v. 2) is a market in Gudni. The first two verses are the refrain of the song.
Menilek is named in verse 1 only on account of the sound-parallelism: " MinUiki,"
" hibbtiiki." This is a proof that the Galla valued beautiful refrains more than reverence
for their chiefs!
85
The following refrain containing a similar crimen laesae was forbidden by a proclamation
of the Emperor.
Wdqd Sibillti mardte Wdqd SibilMb budddd
ddnd idfii dlgu na ndte ddnd ig'g'i dlgu sumddd
1 Waq6 Sibillu has gone out of his mind. 2 A toga with red eyes has killed me! 3 Waq6
Sibillu is a sorcerer. 4 The toga with red eyes is you!
Notes. Waq6 Sibillu, a chief of a Sulu clan, demanded and obtained a proclamation of
the Emperor forbidding this refrain.
86
Gobanni Dan(i WdUddd 5 Ddnno g'immdtd ga"duU
kdtt"akkd wdtiyo wdVdna yanni sifdna na gule
Garbi Gild abbd qawtti abbankie bdra g^g$ssa
yd"lfi tinnd ilkdn aSeti wd"rgdnkvs biela fakQssa
1 Gobana (son) of Dan^f is a Wallo! 2 Come! we will suck each other as the calf (sucks
the breast)! 3 Garbf Gil6, the fusileerj 4 O little lady, whose teeth are (like) the first
fruits! 5 Ddnno goes to war on Friday. 6 My mind wanders because of you! 7 Your
father accompanies the old woman! 8 Seeing you is like hunger!
Notes. The verses 1, 3, 5, 7 are introduced for the refrain. Ras Gobana (v. 1) was
born from Wallo stock; his mother was, on the contrary, a native of Calliya Ob6.
87
Morodd kdn Bakarteti tdkko ifidre tdkko dtga
Orom6t"ammd sarMi 5 §dlald"kka ilmd daliiti
fidlaltdn ilmd garbttti tdkko ildle tdkko ftga
1 O Moroda (son) of Bakarie! 2 The Or6mo are like dogs. 3 I was in love with the
son of a slave; 4 now he builds up and now he lays waste! 5 Love is like the calf of a cow;
6 now he looks (for you) and now he runs away (from you) !
88
yd musstii yd"lmd Sabure ati ndmd ydddu hinndsdbda
kdn harml bu 'i dilbd ddfure' 5 asdllaftt gali
yd Goband yd soddd as kdt yd wdSo biyd barl
1 O Monsieur, O son of Sabure! 2 Her breast descends and wanders as far as her knees.
3 O Gobana, O his brother-in-law! 4 You are thinking of another, do not lie! 5 Enter the
service of the cup-bearer! 5 Come here, O liar! learn the country!
Notes. Long breasts are much appreciated by the Galla as a sign of feminine beauty.1
Monsieur Savour^ 2 (v. 1) was a French merchant, who emigrated to Shoa. The brother-
in-law of Gobana (v. 3) is Blrni Nagawe (see song 41). The " cup-bearer " (v. 5) is Fita-
wrari Gabayahu (see song 61). Verses 1, 3, 5 are introduced to form the refrain:
89
(jimma"bb& Gifdr dufi gardnkie hd gubbdtu
Addis Ababd dubd qubdte akfc&ma gdranko gubbdte
1 I have come from Gfmma Abba Gifar; 2 I have camped behind Addis Abeba. 3 May
your heart be inflamed, 4 as my heart has been inflamed!
90
sild Saggdrd"n bad Ififid nu wdl agarre
yd qunnd hatfiri Saqqa^dkie yd guyd qeddmie galatdkie
1 When I ascended to Saggara, 2 O qunnd, the huckster bargained for you! 3 We met
each other with the eyes (our eyes met). 4 O day of Saturday, may you be blessed!
Notes. Saggara is the Galla name of the region where Addis Abeba has been built.
The place of the imperial residency (gebbi) was called by the Galla, " foietfl ilmdn Ldli,"
" the kosso of Lalf's son." Lalf was an ancient chief of the Gullalie (Kosso = Brayera
antielmintica) .
91
uggian yd db6 Gote afdn nd dungdtte
ASand"nergdttu 5 nagd ta 'i"nd$ttu
mdndkiena 4ufle
1 Very well, O lord Gote! 2 Do not send Asana! 3 She has come to my house; 4 she
has kissed my mouth; 5 she will not say (to me) good-bye!
Notes. Asana is the brother of Daggac Got& (see song 49; Prose, text 3).
92
Burayu"bbd gdsd nd bird ga"tiese
mdqd duwa"nndtu 5 mdrmd duwd"nkdtu
yd faffatd maU yd ddnnatd maU
1 O Burayu, chief of the tribe! 2 You do not eat medicines only, 3 but soup! 4 She
has sat down at my side; 5 she will not have the neck bare, 6 but necklaces!
1 de Salviac, Lea Galla, op. cit., p. 15, says that the Galla women are " femmes au teint tres clair, dignes de
figurer a c6t^ de nos elegantes, et qui le ©Sderaient a un petit nombre par leur beauts et leur esprit."
• Cf. Bollettino della Societa Africana d'ltalia, Napoli, 1895, vol. 14, p. 138.
Notes. Burayu was the chief of a Lieqa Say6 clan. Faffatd is the Galla name of the kind
of soup called in Amharic/tt/tt (v. 3) ; mdqa (v. 2) is a kind of medicine made with a broth
of corn.
93
Guragie gommand"nbulu gurrattl jjdlald"mbtektu
gurrd kutti gurgurti mali fundn butti gungumti maU
1 The Guragie do not pluck off sprouts; 2 they cut the ears and sell them (i.e. the
sprouts). 3 The dark girl does not understand love; 4 one pulls her nose and she murmurs!
Notes. The sprouts of Guragie are famous in Southern Shoa. The " ears " of the
sprouts (v. 2) are its leaves (cf. song 22).
94, 95, 96
The following songs were inspired by a love-adventure which befell the Lieqa. A girl
who was betrothed to a young warrior called Ayanie, became enamoured of another warrior,
Waq Kfenne. Ayanie demanded, according to the customary law, that the girl should be
given to him, as he had paid the dower. The two families met to decide whether the paid
dower might be returned and the girl thus become free again, or if it were necessary to
celebrate the ritual wedding. In the meantime, both lovers implored their judges to show
mercy.
milikkitd dierd sdwdtti"nydsind
yd diessa mdl ddksa dubbdddu yd fird
Gdro gadi Bard gargdr nu"nbasinl
yd Sodari maid bieka dubbi fitd
5 ntenta fird (ird
1 O long signal, 2 O you who fly, what do you hide? 3 Under Garo there is the Baro.
4 O my sweetheart, what is there ? 5 The lion weeds the weed ; 6 we will not graze our cows.
7 Speak, O kinsmen! 8 Do not separate us from each other! 9 Decide and end the matter!
Notes. The long, flying signal means Ayanie. The verses 3, 5, 6 are introduced to make
the refrain. The lion " weeds the weed " by hitting the grass of the prairie with his tail.
The decision of the meeting was that Ayanie was lawfully betrothed to the girl, and she
was obliged to marry him. She protested by singing:
bisingd sdnida g'ig"lg'sa lammida
bobe"ttam goduri boi"ttam gdnark,
1 The sorghum is (full of) seed. 2 What makes the white sorghum ? 3 To cause sorrow
is natural to one's relatives. 4 I weep! What can we do?
Notes. The first two verses form the refrain. The bobi (v. 2) is a kind of white sorghum
very little valued and the people eat it only in times of famine.
Waq Kienne answered his beloved with the following song:
Aydnikbudddd gdndd Kumsd Mori

kumuntu du' ddd gurgvdd&n gobidd
bardnd si ndta 10 {inn&n"ndabi lold
WdqKvmne"bbdSorrd biten Naqamti"nddgna
5 gafd riettl dabd gxddntdnkie ilkdn
mdl g'$tti dubbikd harkikie hirbdrd
gdfd refidi §ald
1 Ayanie is a sorcerer; 2 that is death! 3 He will eat you this year. 4 Waq Kienne,
lord of (the horse) Sorr6, 5 is broken (like) a horn of the goat. 5 What said to you my words
6 that day, under the sycamore ? 7 In the village of Kumsa (son) of Moroda, 8 the great
(man) is a coward, 9 the small does not go to war ! 10 Come ! Let us go away from Naqamte.
11 You will slip on the ivory; 12 your arms will have armlets of ivory!
Notes. Waq Kienne sorrowing compares himself to the broken horn of a he-goat
("broken- hearted," we should say). In the houses of the rich Galla, it is the custom to
place on the ground at the side of the chief's bed the teeth of elephants, upon which the
lord places his feet when arising. The hirb&ra (v. 13) is an armlet of ivory, (Amharic, yar-
bora).1 Waq Klenne's beloved understood the sense of the verses 6-7 alluding to a secret
appointment already made, and fled with Waq Kienne. The decision of the council of the
families was therefore useless.
97
yd Gubie yd gobitti
narakik soddd hdmma yomltti
1 O Gobana, O coward! 2 How long shall I fear your eyebrows?
98
manguddd idbbfn(absd. magalli quUd"nkdtu
lakki d$da §dldiessdn lakki y(da bosiettin
1 The elder does not break the shoots. 2 " Leave off! " I have said to the (old) monkey.
3 The dark girl does not rise naked. 4 " Leave off! " I have said to the coarse girl.
99
—hiendn gqttd dabi (Loransiyos: addin dirakd dabi) (a) kdn ydnni ndn safari
h£end g^ttdn nd dabi (ds Sird md nd dabdi) (a) kdn billdn butid Sabit
dn ^riid'u biyand 10 kdn oMn ndmd sardu
Sond Ofdt"dn darbd asi barbdd&n dabi
5 wdrrd angdfif qulisu dn si batdn daqo£
wdrra dinni dubbisu qord Hid Dibbild
—kdn qalbin ndn dabari kdn fannisd si finnd
1 Cf. Guidi, Vocabolario amarico, op. cit., yirbora.
15 dn si dukkdn didimd fidlallikotif isd

biekdn biydkfe"ndirCi, kdn akkd"biddd gubbu
kdn gorsi nd diebisu kdn akkd diddd dufu
gennend $dld daqti 25 ergumdn si ddladdi
— golgdnd bird"nafu darte tdkko"nddlanni
20 di'etdnk6"ndukkubsatd siU"indiebiu tobd
indu'dt"odiesanl wdn RabWmbieku maU
1 (a). 2 (a). 3I will not remain here; 4 I will go to Sona, (the land) of Ofa, 5 (where)
the elder and the younger sons 6 speak with the sons of the genii. 7 My heart has flown
from me. 8 My mind has departed from me. 9 The great sword belongs to Sabu. 10 She
hastens to say to the people, "How do you do?" 11 I have looked for you here, but vainly.
12 I have heard that you have gone away thither, 13 to the district of Lita Dibbila.
14 We will pull you with the girths. 15 I have been stopped while following you. 16 Is
there no one wise in your country, 17 who gives you counsel to return to me? 18 The
lady surpasses (all the others). 19 The veil has not remained aside. 20 My husband (?)
is sick. 21 They say that he will die. 22 O my love and his love 23 which burn like fire,
24 which come like colic! 25 After loving you, 26 I had not turned to love another. 27 I
fixed (my thoughts) on you only! 28 Your thoughts were not fixed (on me); there were
two! 29 I will not return to you, upon my word! 30 But we cannot know the mind of God!
(a) Verses 1-2, according to the version of Loransiyos, may be translated: 1 My stay
here has distressed me. 2 Why can I not remain there?
Notes. The song is a dialogue between two lovers. The first verses (1-6) are said by
the woman who desires to go to another country, to Sona, a district in Nonno land governed
by the famous sorcerer, Abba Ofa. The man answers (v. 7-18), lamenting the departure of
his beloved. Verse 9 is introduced to make the sound parallelism with the following
verse 10. Litsa Dibbila (v. 13), according to Loransiyos, is a district of Gimma Abba Gifar,
where the singer resided. The woman replies in verses 19-30 that she is tired of the in
fidelity of her lover. I was not able to get from Loransiyos any explanation of the sense of
verses 19-21 in connection with the subject of the song. Tobd (v. 27) is the formula of the
holy oath (kakju") as it is used by the Mussulmen (see song 143). This song was composed
by Mussulmen: this is demonstrated both by the formula tobd and by the reference to
God as Rabbi (v. 30). Rabbi is the name of the Moslem divinity as opposed to Wdqa, the
pagan divinity.
100
harkdkd si danda'i kdn alldtti"ndorgomu
kdn gaddd muri gogsu gardkd si daddabi
mildk6 si danda'e fugiddd balU qabu
kdn Roggi'e mure galu (Loransiyos: kdn Roggvs dieme" galu) kdn akkd bart dabu
5 ifjgako si danda 'i
1 My hands are stronger than yours; 2 they cut and cause the tree gafifid to dry. 3 My
feet are stronger than yours; 4 they cut (?) and reach Roggie. (Loransiyos: They go and
reach Roggie). 5 My eyes are stronger than yours; 6 they follow the vulture (in its flight).
7 My heart is less strong than yours, 8 my wicked (heart) which has wings, 9 which breaks
like a pumpkin!
Notes. The bare' (v. 9) is an empty pumpkin in which the Galla stir milk to make butter.
Roggie (v. 4) is the capital of the Nonno Roggie tribe on the left bank of the Gibie, op
posite Limmu. The gafig'd (v. 2) is a big tree called in Amharic dand din.
101
gubba guli kudd6 liendHM fdn obsd
agdmsdfi komboldd si obsa nd obsl
1 Gubba is full of kutto trees, 2 of carissa edulis and komhoUd. 3 Even the lion spares
the flesh! 4 I spare you. Spare me!
Notes. Kutt6 (v. 1) is a big tree. KomhoUd (v. 2) is a kind of thorny shrub which
forms thickets. Aga Mohammed tells me that this korriboUd is called in Tigrina 'a£ 'at, a
kind of gymnosporia.1 On the contrary, Loransiyos tells me that the Tigrina word for
komboltd is maq'i. Gubba (v. 1) is a village in N6nno Gibat, the land governed by the
GenneDis6"bo"rqie.
102
sokoksinna jj$dbn si obsinna d$din
sokoksu daddabe 5 si obsu daddabe
dkka bdll"agamsd dkka gard dald
1 " Let us move! " I said. 2 We cannot move, 3 like the leaves of the carissa edulis.
4 " Let us spare you!" I said. 5 We cannot spare you, 6 like the belly of a woman at child
birth.
Notes. The leaves of the carissa edulis are little thorns, therefore they cannot be moved
by the wind; and the pangs of child-birth cannot be suffered in silence. Comparisons of
child-birth with love are frequent in Galla songs.
103
yd mdna soriessd yd gdrd fldlald
mdt"adurri qabd 5 hdrkd uUi qabd
golgven marragddd doksi ndma dand
1 O house of a rich man, 2 you have the head of a wild cat; 3 the pavement is polished.
4 O heart enamoured, 5 you have a stick in your hand 6 which secretly strikes men!
Notes. Love strikes men like a stick. Because of the departure of Loransiyos from
Naples, I could not get any explanation of the sense of verse 2. Verses 1-3 form the
refrain.
1 Cf. Emilio Chiovenda, Etiopia, Roma, 1912, p. 89; Carlo Annaratone, In Abissinia, Rome, 1914, p. 499-500.
104
$b6n dtga maU |W miti
fialalli dungd maU §alaUd miti
1 A javelin without blood is not a javelin! 2 Love without kisses is not love!
105
wdqni g"awe"numti kdn fidlald umti
bagd qonZfnumU (G. S. B.: konl&n umU) bagd obsd umti
1 God has created the python; 2 justly he has (also) created the bark of a tree. 3 He
has created love; 4 justly he has (also) created patience.
Notes. The Galla use the bark of certain trees as medicine against serpents.
106
naggddie giesdni giesdni qiensdni qiensdni
Tobbdn gadi busdni 5 tdfo Sdn guttdni
imimdn ijdlald
1 They have led, have led the Mussulman; 2 they have caused him to ascend to Tobb6.
3 The tears of love 4 have overflowed, overflowed; 5 they have filled nine cups!
107
yd t/Ufi hdmatdni gdra ddbsa ydddni
gdragdl6d Hdtdni 5 hdrkd"fdrsa katdni
yd gari ddlattdni dkka ambd6dd 'dddni
1 If they reap the t'Cej (poa abessinica), 2 they will eat pudding. 3 If they love a beauti
ful girl, 4 they expect to ruin themselves. 5 They will move their hands like a pitchfork;
6 they will roar like lions!
108
mar 'attdn kottt "nqabu 5 fdrdd bidit guddd
qorifdtu ddtdmd gardn nd rdfamd
ddlattdn onni "nqaM akkumd fitte gurdd
mar 'umdnlu rdfdma
1 The serpent mar 'dttd has no hoof, 2 but he has sixty nails. 3 Love has no heart,
4 but my entrails are troubled (by it). 5 Great horse sick! 6 My heart is troubled 7 as
the points of the gurdd.
Notes. The mar 'dttd (v. 1), according to Loransiyos, is a big serpent with a red head.
He has sixty little claws which the hunters cut off and sell for a great price, because the
Galla believe that these claws are a remedy for many diseases. "My entrails" (v. 4) means
" my heart, my mind." As to the points of the gurdd, this kind of girdle worn by the
women of most Galla districts (see song 15, notes), moves whenever they walk: even
so is the heart of the singer troubled by love (v. 6-7). Verse 5 is introduced to make the
sound-parallelism with verse 7.
109
Kut yd"dd LHentd 10 wdMu Kut GumA
bar(ummd §dn kiesa kdn fdqiddt dugi
dombi sagdl bfesa Adisa Qaqai
Kut Idfd tiesa bdlld si qotdni
5 wdditti §dn btesa andtt"d gatdni
fuwt sagdl k&sa 15 wdyd si bitdni
ndddi qufa dabe'n and"namardni
$isi"rriba ddbi dt"afidagai
du 'i mdl nd 4gda dn addtn kakai
1 O Kue, mother of Dienta, 2 between five chairs, 3 between nine stools, 4 O Kue, I
sit down on the ground. 5 Between five plates, 6 between nine cups, 7 I have eaten and
I am not satiated. 8 I have stretched and I have not slept. 9 I am dead. Why do you
await me? 10 The clothes of Rue" (native) of Guma 11 have been tanned by the tanner
12 of Adisa Qaqa. 13 They have dug for you a hole; 14 let them throw me in! 15 They
have bought the shroud for you; 16 let them roll me in it! 17 As for you, remain and hear!
18 As for me, place me there!
Notes. The song laments for Kue, native of Guma, mother of Fitawrari Sima (see songs
4-6) and Dienta. The Galla Spelling Book has placed this among the love-songs, perhaps
because it seems to have been composed by a lover of Kue\ The first verses (v. 1-9) ex
press the pain of the singer who cannot calm himself; verses 10-18 state that the singer
desires to die in place of Ku6. Adfsa Qaqa (v. 12) is a village in Nonno land.
110
gufu yd gufu gvddd dumbuld"kka dibicdd
gufu fiali kotited gungumd"kka fiinniddd
md dufu dufu diddd 10 kdn ififii bobi baddd
(jifdr itt"df giesitti kdn nari §immd 6orqie
5 Duldn df qiftiesitti kdn konkdnni fdn muru
fiarri lamdn motidcd kdn mormi"rkotti bulu
nu lamdntu sogiddd ddfurd"lmd"bbd gvddd
1 O stumbling, O great stumbling! 2 O stumbling (as if) the pavement were pitch! 3
Why do you refuse to come, to come? 4 Have you made yourself equal to Gifar? 5 Have
you become like Dula? 6 They are two kings; 7 we are two (bits of) salt! 8 Ingenuous as
a calf, 9 murmuring like a spirit. 10 Her eyes are like the white sorghum of the plateau;
11 her eye-brows are like g'imma not yet ripe; 12 her cheeks are like pieces of pierced flesh;
13 her neck is a support to pass the night. 14 Sons of nobles go mad for her.
Notes. Verses 4-5 refer to Abba Gifar, the king of Gfmma, and to the Abba Dula,
i.e. the king of Guma, who had this title, (see Prose, text 1, note 14). Verse 7 alludes to
bits of salt used as money by the Galla. Verse 10 mentions the bobt (see song 95, v. 2,
notes). The {jimma (v. 11) is a plant with red ears. It can be eaten, but the Galla use it
principally as a remedy for infection of the eyes.
lll
kdn qaldn duladdA kdn boi gdrddd
riettin ddfi duti lappen ndsu duti
1 That which they have killed is the old cow; 2 the shegoat has died suddenly. 3 That
which weeps is the mind; 4 the heart has died because of sorrow!
Notes. Here the song distinguishes between the mind and the heart: the former is still
living and weeps; the latter has died after an unhappy affair of the singer's.
112
Gimma gdmd farddrra"ntd 'u dirma ndma gargdr nu basi
moti Wdrqie farddtu kdsi 5 wdq"drkd ta 'b badd"nfakkdtu
kotif kankte wdq "drka id 'u
1 Do not let Gfmma of the other bank ride horses. 2 The king of Warqie has moved his
horsemen. 3 Let my affair and yours be in the hands of God. 4 The wickedness of men has
divided us. 5 As it has been (placed by me) in the hands of God, let it not seem that it is
lost.
Notes. Gfmma Warqie is a little Galla state, north of the Gibie, according to Loransiyos.
The oath waq"drka td 'u (v. 3-5), " let it be in the hands of God," is very common. The
Galla always swear " by the hand ": their formula for the f$tm (the legal oath of the
Ethiopic law) is hdrkd motitti, "by the king's hand." The singer says (v. 3-5) that, although
the slander of the people has divided him from his sweetheart, he still hopes that matters
can be adjusted.
113
Riebuf abbdn Riebu bariedd fuldkie
galgdld duldni baqqdld busdni
gddddnd gurdni dudn bariesdni
Laid balliesdni dofie "kka ilmdn hold
5 kottt sangd boqd 10 obistn wdrra told
1 Riebu and Abba, Riebu 2 last evening, made an expedition. 3 They have collected
shields (as spoils) ; 4 they have wasted Lal6. 5 Pawing of the horse with a white star on
his forehead! 6 Your forehead is beautiful. 7 They have gathered togas; 8 they have
stitched draperies (for her). 9 Innocent as the little lambs, 10 she is compassionate and
benign to everyone.
Notes. The first verses of the song (1-4) concern Sayo Garba, a warrior, native of Hanna
Abba Bara, who made an expedition against Lal6 Qile, a village west of Hanna. Riebu
(v. 1) was the name of the horse of Sayo Garba; thus Abba Riebu (lord of Riebu) was the
war-name of the warrior. In the second part of the song (v. 5-10), the minstrel praises his
beautiful sweetheart. Perhaps the word fuld (v. 6), " front," "forehead " should be more
exactly translated " aspect."
114
Riebuf abbdn Riebu dalldsa%bd Ofd
gafdrsd"jj$sdni 10 dugdd dubni mukd
nuri wdl sdmdni fulduri bubbukd
sar§dmd"kka GdMd dinki jjdl adiemd
5 qallu"kka Dagdgd G. S. B. : qdlu dugdd dubni du 'd
kandfd ddksisu fulduri duUumd
ddksisdni ndlu 15 firditti dn adiemd
turi wdlldldni kandf dn bubbutd
1 Riebu and Abba Riebu 2 have killed a buffalo, 3 have contended on account of the
nuri. 4 Swift as the (torrent) Gacc6, 5 a sorcerer like Dagag6. 6 These order to grind,
7 order to grind and eat; 8 they do not know impurity. 9 The enclosure of Abba Ofa,
10 the foremost part is wood, 11 the back is incense. 12 A dwarf serves him (Abba Ofa).
13 Behind us there is death; 14 before us there is old age. 15 I will come to a decision:
16 therefore, I will win (her).
Notes. Verses 1-3 refer to Abba Riebu (see song 113). Nuri (v. 3) is the trophy of
the Galla buffalo hunters, made from the skin of the buffalo's head, and its horns. Verses
4-5 praise the sweetheart of the singer. The Gac66 (v. 4) is a torrent in Gabba. Abba
Dagag6 is a sorcerer of the Dorannf. Verses 6-8 concern a family of girls, so rich they
eat only bread made with meal ground by slaves (cf. song 15, v. 67-69). This is a sign
of great wealth among the Galla because usually the women of the family grind the corn.
Verses 9-16 contain a graceful comparison. The Galla sorcerers used to build the front
of their compound of aromatic shrubs. The singer says that as the front of Abba Ofa's
(sorcerer of the Gabba Du) enclosure is aromatic wood, while the rest is of wood with
out perfume, so the life of the two lovers is beautiful at present, but afterwards it will
have as its foremost part, old age, and as an end, death. He has therefore resolved to
make the most of his youth and win his beloved. Loransiyos translates the word bubbutd
(v. 11) with the Amharic word i0,n, meaning " incense." However, perhaps the true
sense of the word is some aromatic plant. Verse 12 alludes to the custom of the rich
Galla (the sorcerers are the richest men in these regions) of having dwarfed slaves who
usually are the buffoons of these little courts. Also at the court of Menilek II, there were
dwarfed buffoons called ya-negus adcdwdd (" Emperor's jester," in Amharic). Among the
Galla the court dwarfs are called, according to Chiarini, sattd moti, " king's whip " (see
song 21, v. 10, notes).
115
(o(opi ruda 'i gadddk'ie rura 'i
rdbi bu 'u gab boi du 'u gab
1 It falls; it clouds (the sky) ; 2 the rain is about to fall. 3 Because of your pain, I dote;
4 I weep, I am about to die.
Note. Loransiyos explains that " your pain" (v. 3) means "the pain for you," "the
pain which you cause me."
116
daldc'do daltrd 5 wdrra "gartu callte
qarmltt"an gad"ofd wdrrd gatu"ndabnb
iffidn si qabtra rabbltCan gad"odd
namdf si dabtrd rabbi "ttam nd gotd
1 The white cow has brought forth; 2 I have led it down to the stubble field. 3 I have
caught you with my eyes; 4 I have lost you on account of the people. 5 The apples of her
eyes are jet. 6 There have not been lacking people to drive (me) out. 7 I have recourse
to the Lord. 8 O Lord, what will you do for me?
Notes. The singer complains that he has lost the love of his sweetheart because of the
malignity of others. Notice in verse 5, wdrra"gartu, "the fellow of the eye-apple" = "the
two eye-apples fellows." Loransiyos thus explains the words, and denies that they mean
" the fellow," " he who looks." This construction would be similar to the Amharic phrase,
yayn mammitto. The song was composed by a Mussulman; for God is called Rabbi in
verses 7-8 (see song 96, v. 30 notes).
117
The Galla Spelling Book places the following love-song among the pastoral songs.
naggddie naggddumd gardtd murtd dabe
kdn tullu Burt, (jirtu 5 kdn tullu muri jjigsii
ijjg'ald qottd dabe
1 O merchant of the merchandise 2 who is at the mount Bur6! 3 The eyes have no
axe; 4 the mind has no sickle 5 to cut and throw down mountains!
Notes. This is the lament of a woman separated from her lover. Bure (v. 2) is perhaps
the capital of Gabba Ilu.
IV. NUPTIAL SONGS

When the date of the wedding ceremony has been fixed (if the wedding is to be cele
brated according to the rite of the rdko), the bridegroom, accompanied by an elder of his
tribe called fidrsd durd, by four godfathers called min(fe by the Shoan Galla and marri by
the Ma$$a, by his father, and the train of his fellows armed with wooden spears, goes to
the girl's house, driving before him the sheep and the oxen to pay the price to the girl's
father. Reaching the bride's enclosure, if an ox is to be sacrificed for the rdko, the bride
groom slaughters it. The bride's brother leads his sister by the hand to a hut expressly
constructed, and anoints her on the abdomen and the pudenda with the blood of the
sacrificed victim.1 Then the bride's brother cuts the ends of her hair and keeps this hair
as a sign of the bride's blood-relationship after her marriage; this ceremony is called qarri
murd. The rdko and the qarrt murd may not be celebrated unless the entire bride-price
has been paid. Otherwise, they simply perform the garre murd after the birth of the first
son. However, a wedding without the rdko is not considered complete according to the
law of custom.
After the rdho, the bridegroom, aided by his godfathers, catches the girl with feigned
violence and placing her on his horse, flies across the plain with his fellows until he reaches
running water (a river or torrent). He crosses this stream; on reaching the opposite bank,
he recrosses it, and returns at a gallop to his father-in-law's house. Ideas of magic connected
with running water are very common among the Galla and also among the Agau. After
returning to the compound of his father-in-law, the husband leaves the girl, who enters the
hut with her friends, after placing a piece of wood before the door, almost an obstacle to
hinder entrance. Then the friends of the bride begin to rail against the husband, and to
sing to the bride all the advantages of remaining in her father's house, and all the mis
fortunes which marriage brings.
118, 119
Here are two examples of these songs:
bisingdie Giedd mure yd dtero soddd
yd soddd "si hie0 "ndugn£ firrdd6d "ns$e
wdrraktis8"intu lannemd irrd"jjg"e"n(@e
harkdkife qabaWndugrd 20 haftitti"nganti
5 Sdf godd qawt jjalatti hdd&Se ydbdi
qalio d$ttd andfo and
yd diero soddd yd diero gurbd
meri qollag"g'i ndddu fdn namd
qierd"fi.n d$ttd 25 egd"mmas gi"essi
10 yd diero soddd miekd"ndaqiessi
meri fdn maddi handdqa "rmibte
homl fannisi netiblii, nitik&
had&sa note qarbdtittiltie
wdllu fannisb 30 (iirs£ dutddd
15 gamdna ddppu kunu budddd
gamdtt"utaU hinnu si ndta
1 de Salviac, op. cit., p. 216, says that this unction is made by the bridegroom himself, but according to Loransi-
yos, the Galla do not permit the bridegroom such liberties with the bride before the wedding.
1 O sorghum which Giedo cuts! 2 O the son-in-law who does not drink the kosso!
3 Does not your family hoard it (the kosso) for you? 4 Do you not catch it with your hand
and drink it? 5 Knock him down with the gun! 6 " I have slaughtered! " you have said.
7 O ugly son-in-law, 8 where is the skin? 9 " I am a fine young man! " you have said.
10 0 ugly son-in-law, 11 where is the flesh of the cheeks ? 12 I have driven in (the ground)
the wood of homi. 13 I have ruined his mother. 14 I have suspended the dress. 15 Stop
on the other side! 16 Jump on this side! 17 O ugly son-in-law! 18 He has thought that
they were pebbles! 19 He has passed, trampling upon it! 20 The spinster has become old;
21 she has covered her mother. 22 As to me, 23 O ugly son-in-law, 24 eat the people's
flesh ! 25 Then you have reached (middle age). 26 How many times have you gone into the
forest? 27 The forest of Handaq is your terror! 28 Eat your bride, 29 your leather bag!
30 The husband is angry. 31 This is a sorcerer; 32 he will eat you (O girl) !
Notes. Verses 1-5 deride the husband, who, according to the singer, has a tapeworm
and does not drink kosso (brayera antielminihica) , the usual remedy for worms. Verses
6-11 mean: The husband says that he has slaughtered the ox for the rdko, but where
is the skin of the victim, proof of the sacrifice ? Likewise, he says untruthfully that he is
a fine young man, but he has such a weak face! Verses 12-21 mention a ceremony which
must be gone through by the husband before entering the house of his father-in-law. The
friends of the bride suspend a woman's dress on the peg of wood of homi, placed by the
bride (see introduction to the song), and two of them hold in their hands the two outer
edges of this dress. The husband, before going into the house, must jump over this
obstacle, and must not trample upon it with his feet. Verses 20-24 abuse the husband's
sister who has not found a husband, and say to the husband, " Marry her whom you
desire! Ruin her whom you desire! " The song ends by again mocking the "ugly son-in-
law " of the bride's father. The forest of Handaq is between Lieqa and Wallaga.1
hinnddun sobd mandyd alU kiesisa foqd
doksin kutddda mdndyokieti da(absd ndnnd
durM yd"rydkd mandyd alld $adabd ndnnd
si"nyddun sobd mdnd"Ud qarqd
5 doksin gubddda 15 qdrqd ydbdddu
hiendn (ndmabolil) ydbdddu bu 't
hiend dabbinkie ndtui alldn gdliesa
siendn (ddmaboli ?) dau"nlaliesa
siend qabbink'Ce rdsui ga "qabi buli
10 mdndyokieti kiesisa bgkd
1 He does not eat; it is a lie! 2 He cuts secretly! 3 O girl, my friend, 4 he does not think
of you; it is a he! 5 He is enamoured secretly! 6 The passion 8 . . . 7 The passion has
ruined your calf! 8 The thought 2 . . . 9 the thought has moved your heart! 10 Your
1 Cf. Jean Duchesne-Fournet, Mission en fithiopie, Paris, 1909, vol. 1, p. 236, map 3.
* Loransiyos does not understand the word ndmaboli of The Galla Spelling Book, nor the word (j&maboli.
house, its interior is hydromel; 11 the stranger's house, its interior is filth. 12 In your
house we have eaten soup; 13 in the house of the stranger we will eat bits of bread. 14 The
house of the stranger is an ascent. 15 Climb up it and then down! 16 Climb the ascent.
17 The father-in-law is a cursed man. 18 His touch causes sickness. 19 Lay down your
head and sleep.
120
In the evening, the husband and his band of friends demand entrance to the bride's
father's house. The friends of the father-in-law reply by railing at the band; sometimes
they actually scuffle with wooden spears. The husband jumps over the wood and the
dress suspended at the door of the hut, and enters the inner room (dinqd in Galla, Ufin in
Amharic). Here is the bride and round her, all her friends. They feign again to resist the
husband; the two parties, the bride's and the husband's, assail each other by throwing egg
shells. Then the bride's dearest girl friend pulls the ears of the husband and leads him by
the hand to his place by the bride. As soon as the husband has sat down, the songs expres
sing pain at the bride's departure begin again. In the meantime, the boys of the village
come to the door of the hut, demanding to enter and see the feast. They sing:
yd soddd obd soriessl soddd nd dabarsi gilgili fi$i
sodddkie ndn argd mdnd"bbdyokd
dinqahfe ndn darbd mdnd "bbd gurbd
mdnd"bbdyok6 10 gdlfan asiteite
5 mdnd"bbdr1ntald sinkiri dlgti
hdlan asfente
1 O father-in-law, my lord, O rich father-in-law, let me pass! 2 I will see your son-in-
law, 3 I will pass into your inner room! 4 In the house of my father, 5 in the house of the
girl's father, 6 may sheep enter 7 and empty the baskets! 7 In the house of my father,
8 in the house of the young man's father, 8 may fever enter, 9 may all perish!
121, 122
Here are some examples of the songs of the bride's friends after the entrance of the
husband into the inner room.
aylfe durbd 5 mukii galgald
gufH, balbald ka 'I ganamd
and"nddbann4 and"nfidlanni
sittd dSbati sittd gdlatti
1 O beautiful girl, 2 the obstacle at the door 3 has not been placed for me; 4 it has been
placed for you! 5 Slumber in the evening, 6 rise in the morning! 7 He does not love me;
8 he loves you!
durbte yd"ridkd $b6balbald

wdn it nan si ddmn kolfd wdrsddd
awdrrd tuft 10 mand"narsini
buddtend (abdi moqdttu taid
5 ambdn galfadd,u matd"nddmsini
wdn it nan si ddmu bosietti t&td
ijjdjjjji aid
1 O girl, O my friend, 2 these things I recommend to you: 3 to take away the dust
(from him) ; 4 to break the bread (for him) ; 5 to help (him) at the table. 6 These things
I recommend to you: 7 to stay out of the court-yard; 8 the spear at the door; 9 not to
laugh with the sister-in-law. 10 Do not perfume (your body) in the house; 11 (otherwise)
you will be a coquette. 12 Do not leave off (the dressing of) your hair; 13 (otherwise)
you will be a coarse woman.
Notes. Her friends advise the bride to do three things (v. 1-5): to brush her hus
band's clothes, to prepare his bread, and serve his dinner. Then they advise the girl not
to do three other things: to go out of the house to gossip (v. 7); to permit or to invite
strangers to enter the house when her husband is not there (v. 8), (When a Galla enters
another's house, he leaves his spear at the door); or to discourse too freely with her
sister-in-law, who is, even among the Galla, the natural enemy of the bride. Verse 10
alludes to the perfumes used by the women of Abyssinia.
123
The morning after the wedding, the bride, together with the husband, depart for her
new house. The band is preceded by the cattle which the father-in-law gives to his daughter
as a dowry, even as the bride-price had preceded the train of the husband's friends (see
soDg 118, introduction).
gogsinna jj$detdn (G. S. B. : gogsinnd) gurgurtdn gala giesset
gogsu daddaM hodi yd mvidkd
gogsi yd adukd 10 ribu qabd
Sunkurtd bdlldn kieneb obsi yd gardkd
5 obsinna jj%detdn (G. S. B.: obsinnd) si dugd qabd
obsu daddabe gugubanni md tienei
obsl yd gardkd
1 " Let us dry up! " they say. 2 Drying up has been impossible. 3 Dry up, O my sun!
4 The onions have hidden their leaves! 5 " Have patience! " they say. 6 Patience has
been impossible. 7 Have patience, O my heart! 8 The sold girl has been led down! 9
Stitch on my bodkin, 10 you who have the rope! 11 Have patience, O my heart, 12 you
who have the right! 13 We have been assembled; why have we stopped?
Notes. As the sun cannot dry up the leaves of the onion, which are already shrunk,
so it is impossible for the bride's relatives to console themselves after the departure of the
girl they love (v. 1-8). " Sold girl " (v. 8), means she has been married to her lover after
the payment of the bride-price. The last verse alludes to the stopping of the train at a fixed
point on the road, where the bride's relatives and friends take their leave from the hus
band's relatives and friends, and return to their homes.
124
dallall fallCe naggaACe qabd 5 ammd gatriti bosd
qannani qarrCe manayb qabd alagdn rdtudd
durbte gddisieko dunni mardtudd
qarntn gddis&dd (Loransiyos: qarrien gad"disidd) gargdr nu basuf hard
1 The most beautiful necklaces of jet, the merchant has them. 2 The most beloved girl,
this house has her. 3 O girl, O my shadow, 4 the tonsure is shadow (Loransiyos : the tonsure
has been left off (by you)). 5 Then you will weep. 6 The stranger is a stupid (man) ; 7 the
angry (man) is a fool. 8 We will separate from each other at the salt springs.
Notes. Verse 4, according to the version of Loransiyos, alludes to the ceremony of the
qarre murd (see song 118).
V. CRADLE SONGS
125
si "mbinni yd si "mbinn£ itilltn hubd "nqabu
s&ni mora si"mbinni hatdi si aftra
(oUien gdlla si"mbinni mudakd maltti, dani
gard toll si bitte qannani ddni maU
5 gard toli hd tolu 15 kdra bosisi maU
Wdqa ktenne hd kiennu kdrd b&u lakkisi
'andni bosu dugi qannani"nlakkisini
qabin qammand"nqabu tinndyd ndmd qubd
qords£ si naqtra urgd ddmd qumbitti
10 hirribd bosd rafi 20 mi 'd ddmd sogidddtti
1 I have not bought for you. O you for whom I have not bought, 2 I have not bought
the cow of the enclosure for you; 3 I have not bought the steed of the stable for you; 4 I
have bought for you that which your heart desires. 5 Let him present that which his heart
desires! 6 Let him give what God has given! 7 Drink the milk when crying! 8 I have
taken it; there is no straw in the milk. 9 I have smoked it and I have kept it for you! 10
Lie down, cry, and sleep! 11 The bed has no straw. 12 I have swept and spread it
dowri. 13 O my boy, what has beaten you? 14 The great love has beaten you; 15 pride
has made you cry. 16 Cease crying because of pride! 17 Do not cease your great love! 18
O my little, little finger of a man, 19 who exhales the perfume of myrrh, 20 who possesses
the softness of salt!
126
URURU TITINNA
ururu yd muZ$akd abbtt bisdn galmd
mu&dkd yd tinmayokd diedesu mu$d galmd
hdti mudd simbird 40 ag'$sd fddld galmd
abord kdti wd(H abbte algd qdmu
5 barl kdti dubbatl Dingdre ddrsd"ns£ne
hddd muda nd godi sol wdlgd Bieramd
abord nd damaqsi guddd guduru nerd
wdrrd guddd nd godi 45 guddd qdmd gorord
wdri ndtti dier^si kal 'iddd bietieliedd
10 hdti guddayd "nqdbne mudanmuddi turtdd
bdddu barbddd"nqdbdu muddtn sdnsa goromsd
dutu awdld "nqdbdu tiksitu uU rierd
hdti guddayd qdbdu 50 $lemtu gddt rierd
bdddu barbddd "nddbdu qdbdu okkoli rierd
15 dutu awdld"nddbdu diedesu mudd rierd
guddayd mdltu dani intald bonnu gatu
qannani dani mate bonnl giendn ndn gati
kdrd bosisi mate 55 ganndn giendn ndn gdbe" (G. S. B.: gatdn)
kdrd bou lakkisi gatdnsie mukd dald
20 qannanl"nlakkisinl kaddnsie kdrrd durd
qannan 'd lima lubd kurd basi sl"mbinni
kdrd lima qonddld gard tott si biti
adamd kiesa robe' 60 gardn tote mdllmmd
ddku lummuftu dae" mdllmmd orobayu
25 somayd dadalisi sdnl kdn Abbd Boni
$md kiesa robi sdnl kdn Dadl Gotfjd
gddi lummutttU dae" ga"bae' dargu gosi
okkold dadalisi 65 gdle dkkoU gosi
kiennatu ndmd kfenna sdnl kdn Abbd Ijlgu
30 wdqtu ndmd guddisd sanl kdn Gumd Sambd
kfennan galatd mill ga"bae" dargu gosi
guddisdtto galatd gdle dkkoU gosi
galatdkie "mballtesu 70 sdnl kdn Abbd Ddgd
toldkie "nrdnfaddu sdnl kdn Tullu Guddd
35 yd kiennd and kiennl ga"bae' dargu gosi
yd Wdq and guddisi gdle dkkoU gosi
sol yabald galmd
The Cradle Song of the Little Boy

1 Sleep, sleep, O my boy! 2 my boy, O my little (one)! 3 The boy's mother is a bird;
4 at morning she rises chirping; 5 at day-break she rises chattering! 6 O boy's mother,
give me this pleasure: 7 tomorrow, awake me! 8 O great tribe, give me this pleasure:
9 prolong for me the night! 10 A mother who has not a little son, 11 if she is lost, there
is no one who seeks her, 12 if she dies, there is no one who buries her! 13 The mother who
has a little son, 14 if she is lost, there is one who seeks her, 15 if she dies, there is one who
buries her! 16 O my little son, what has beaten you ? 17 Great love has beaten you; 18
pride has made you cry. 19 Cease crying because of pride ! 20 Do not cease your great
love! 21 Great love is fit for the sons of the lubd; 22 pride is fit for the sons of the
qonddld! 23 In the country it has rained; 24 the meal has been struck and dampened;
25 the canes have been bent. 26 During the milking it has rained; 27 the ropes have been
struck and dampened; 28 the pot of osier has been bent. 29 O giver who gives to the
people! 30 O God, make men grow! 31 Giving (a son) is not (a reason for) thanks
giving; 32 his growing up is (a reason for) thanks. 33 My thanks to you will never be
ended; 34 your presents will never be forgotten! 35 O giver, give to me! 36 O God, make
him grow for me! 37 The guardian of the sacred enclosure, the gdlma! 38 The pot with
the water for the gdlma! 39 The mother with the boy for the gdlma! 40 The hunter with
the spoils for the gdlma! 41 The pot is on a bed of qamu grass. 42 Do not think that Din-
garie is an old man! 43 The guardians of the sacred enclosures, their meeting is in Bierama.
44 The little son with his head dress! Sleep, sleep! 45 My little man slobbers over his
breast; 46 the skin clothes are short; 47 the groin is dirty; 48 the waist is like (the waist)
of a young wasp. 49 The shepherd with the stick! Sleep, sleep! 50 He who milks with the
ropes! Sleep, sleep! 51 He who takes the milk with the pot! Sleep, sleep! 52 The girl
whom I abandoned, 55 when the winter has come, I have wept for her! 56 She had
abandoned her under the tree; 57 she now prays for her before the enclosure! 58 I have
not bought for you that which has gone out of the enclosure! 59 I have bought for you
what your heart desires! 60 What is it that the heart desires? 61 What is ( . . . )?
62 The cows of Abba Bong, 63 the cows of Dad* Golge, 64 they have gone out and made
the grass crack; 65 they have entered again and made the pot crack. 66 The cows of Abba
Egu, 67 the cows of Giima Samb6, 68 they have gone out and made the grass crack,
69 they have come in again and made the pot crack. 70 The cows of Abba Dag6, 71 the
cows of Tullu Gudd6, 72 they have gone out and made the grass crack, 73 they have
come in again and made the pot crack.
Notes. As to verses 21-22, see Prose, texts 4, 5. The Galla bind their cows before
milking them (see song 33, notes). Verses 37-43 allude to the gdlma. The gdlma is a
Galla religious ceremony which is performed as follows: in each Galla tribe, there is an en
closure expressly constructed which is guarded by an elder of the tribe, called (according
to Loransiyos) soi yabald. The tribe goes there in days of calamity to offer prayers to
God, which are followed by sacrifices. Those who celebrate the gdlma, which continues usu
ally for four days, are obliged to eat all the meat of the victims. Thus they feast in the
sacred enclosure. This is the rite of gdlma gabdro (see song 141). On the contrary, some
foods, e.g. the bread of ddgussd (eleusine tokosso), and the beer of ddgussd are forbidden
during the gdlma, according to the rite of the gdlma borantiddd.
Bierama (v. 43) is a village between Gimma Abba Gifar, Lfmmu, and the Nonno, where
every year there is a great market of spices (ginger and coriander), and coffee; after this
market they celebrate solemnly within the gdlma, a wdddda (see song 135). Another village,
called Bierama, is in the Galla Azabo's territory. Verses 53-57 allude to the barbarous
custom, today almost extinct among all the Galla tribes, of abandoning the daughters
whom the father considered superfluous. The rejected baby was called gatd, " thrown
away." She was usually adopted by another family; otherwise she was given over to the
slave merchants. The abandoning of daughters was permitted by the law of custom for
forty days after birth and again on the second birthday of the baby. I cannot vouch that
the translation which Loransiyos has given me of verse 42 is exact. Dingarie, according
to Loransiyos, was " probably " a sorcerer or the guardian of a sacred enclosure in Lfmmu.
Warra Bayu is a clan of the Lieqa Naqamte tribe, another clan of the W&rra Himano, and
a tribe in Shoa. Its meaning, " large tribe," makes it a very general name for Galla
clans and tribes. Qamu (v. 41) is a plant, the stem of which is like sorghum; its roots are
sweet like sugar, and are chewed by the Galla.1
VI. FESTIVE AND RELIGIOUS SONGS

a. Pagan
The greatest holiday of the Galla pagans is the feast of Atete, the goddess of fecundity.
(As to the name Atete, cf. the Amharic word atet, "fortune," " wealth"). Atete is much
venerated by the Galla tribes and even the Mussulmen celebrate the holiday. She is called
in the songs ayd, "the mother," often with the diminutive ayoWb, "the little mother," and
also (which may seem, perhaps, strange to those who are unfamiliar with the Galla) Marydm
or Mardm, i.e. " Mary." Here we see the usual mixture of Christianity and paganism;
perhaps it has been occasioned by a pagan assimilation of the survival of the worship of
the Virgin Mary in the countries conquered by the Galla. It is interesting that the Holy
Virgin should have become the goddess of fecundity. The Galla also celebrate the holiday
of the Cross, and many localities recognize the feast of the Abb6, that is Saint Gabra
Manfas Qeddus.
The feast of Atete usually begins with the gdlma of four days' duration (see song 126).
On the last day, the dbba gdlma, chief of the meeting, sits down before two great leather
1 Cf. Guidi, Vocabolario amarico, op. cit., qamo.
bags, one of which is filled with hydromel, the other with beer. On the bags there is placed
a rod of abbasiidd. During the days of the gdlmd, the women sing songs asking the goddess
to grant them fecundity and lamenting the woes which are caused by sterility.
127
Atfyiyd wdggdtu gau gai 5 iliUn wdqi akkd
wdgg&n gtendn wdl gienei ilildbi waqin kadd
hart wdmndn hari"noU gabd Saqqdfa fdqi
dagiesd yd Mar&m and saggddu wdqi
1 O Atete, the time has come; 2 since the time has come, we have met; 3 since we have
called everyone, everyone has passed the day. 4 Hear us, O Maram! 5 A cry to Heaven,
6 a cry will invoke God! 7 It is the tanner who hawks in the market. 8 It is God whom I
adore!
Notes. The hawker is considered ignoble by the Galla and the Somali; therefore all
the Galla hawkers are born in low castes.
128
lome qordn karrd aydnni b6ro gomf£
yomirri wdl agarrd yd dabdu wdllu mosd
b6r guyd"fan wart aydnni bdro sokki
Iqnb wdl agarrd 25 yd dabdu masd dirsd
5 garbu kabdla tdkko dirsatiu sottdn hawi
mantiessun akkdwati yd diesu masdnu dirsd
kdn masientitti"nhort£ dirsatiu dadn hawe
kdn diesi lakkawati yd sard egte dabbdsa
diesun akkdna"njj$tti 30 kdn qufb waqin darbdta
10 mu($dk6"nargin §§tti kdn Mdrdm namd gottu
golldkd "ndarbi "tifyti hattofi namd"ngottu
tiabbise golld miti sibilld mutd gvU
mutydsi dord miti kdn digd mu$& goti
yd ddbdu and ndtu 35 badddn qullubi"nqabu
15 ulfofti gumd "nndnne muri Idga ddbatd
diesi gumdtd"ndugne kan kie dukkubi "nqabu
ddgd kakatd guttu turti namd yddatd
rdrietu wdl baddisi ardrfani yd Mdrdm
dabdun dau"ndibni 40 sirrd dxenei
20 Mardmtu wdl ddldisi ga"d(>dkn t&fi hdmd
yd diesu wdllii kobi d1 d^din waqin wdmd
1 The wood of the enclosure is fragrant. 2 When shall we meet? 3 Tomorrow at mid
day, 4 by stealth we shall meet! 5 A handful of barley 6 the concubine has toasted. 7 That
which the sterile woman has hoarded, 8 the fertile woman has gained ! 9 The fertile woman
has said: 10 " Do not enter my enclosure! " she has said. 11 " Do not look at my sons! "
she has said. 12 Her calves are not an enclosure (which may not be passed) ; 13 her sons
are not the werewolf (which may not be seen)! 14 O she who has no (sons), woe to her!
15 (Like) the pregnant, she does not eat fruits; 16 (like) the confined woman, she does
not drink the relatives' gifts. 17 The stones and the pebbles are abundant, 18 the dirt is
heaped. 19 The sterile woman has not hated child-birth; 20 Maram has been against her!
21 O she who has (sons), beautiful clothes; 22 the beneficent genius has adorned her
room! 23 She who has no (sons), dirty clothes; 24 the beneficent genius has flown away
from her room! 25 She who has no (sons), (even if) most dear to her husband, 26 the
husband looks for a whip (to hit her). 27 She who has (sons), (even if she is the) second
wife of the husband, 28 the husband looks forward to the confinement. 29 O dog with a
shaggy tail! 30 He who is satiated, hurls spears to the sky! 31 Maram creates the man;
32 the mother alone does not create the man. 33 The iron for nails is abundant. 34 You
have made the boy with blood. 35 The plateau does not produce onions; 36 one cuts them
and plants them by the river. 37 You, O Atete, do not produce despair; 38 after a short
time, you have compassion on the people. 39 By praying, O Maram, 40 we have obtained
(grace) from you. 41 One bows to reap the ttef; 42 one rises up to pray to God.
Notes. The song begins by inviting the women to go into the enclosure of the gdlma.
Verse 4 is important because it confirms what had been vaguely mentioned by some travel
ers concerning the secret character of the feast of Atete, reserved only for the women.
Verses 7-8 mean, as may easily be understood, " the sons of the fertile wife will be heirs
to the wealth of the sterile wife of the same man." Verse 15 refers probably to the gifts
which must be presented during the pregnancy; verse 16 alludes to the Galla custom that
the husband's relatives must give to the confined wife special presents called gumdtd. These
presents usually are pots of milk and hydromel; therefore, the words, " drinks the rela
tives' presents." Verses 41-42, which are found in many Galla religious songs, indicate
the Galla custom of rising up to pray; this custom distinguishes the pagan religious
ceremonies from the Christian and Moslem ceremonies, the genuflections of which are
scoffed at by the pagans.
129
abietukd ardramikd yd"yok6 yd"y6 umtu
ardrd wayd kdn hikd dugd gotii
hdti "lmd tdkko "nkortu masiend dirsi "njjijbbii
saggadd rabbi "noltu 15 itiUie urgiesitti
5 and} ndggdrd kienni lamrmdd tinniesttti
buddf qabard ki'enni garbu kabald guttk
masiend mas6 dirad mantiessutti akkdwati
masiend, folln bgkd §abbl masieni kiessi
galgald bultin mogd 20 gumbi masieni kiessi
10 yd"bbakd ya"bbd umd diesutti lakkdwate
kdn 4tyd mti£d gotu
1 O my Lord, be merciful! 2 Mercy is good! 3 The mother of an only son 4 does not
fail to adore God. 5 Give me your grace; 6 give the jackal to the werewolf! 7 The sterile
woman most dear to her husband, 8 the sterile woman, perfume of hydromel; 9 to pass
the night with her is bad. 10 O my father, O father creator, 11 make the boy with blood!
12 O my mother, mother creator, 13 give us a safe delivery! 14 The sterile woman does
not hate her husband; 15 she perfumes the bed 16 (but) she weakens the relationship. 17
A handful of barley 18 the concubine has toasted. 19 The calves which the sterile woman
has kept, 20 the bags of corn which the sterile woman has planted (in the ground), 21
the pregnant woman has gained them!
Notes. The song repeats the usual invocations already made in the preceding song.
Loransiyos thinks that this song was composed by Mussulmen; in fact, God is called
Rabbi. The Mussulmen of the Galla countries celebrate the feast of Atete, another proof
of the strange religious tolerance of the Galla who have been converted to Christianity and
to Islam only superficially, and still retain their pagan religious conceptions.
130
dubartln wdlaUMd ilmdn dabordyu mitl
illamdn kilh'kdd d§tti dabordn maqdsi toldi
ilmdn daborddd d^M 10 dirso diekkdmayu mitl
dirsdn 4iekkdmadd jj§tti 4tekkamdn dirusi toldl
5 illamdn kiU^yi, mitl yd wule yd"bbasuddb
hidandn qdni dai yd"ndirif ndmd suqd
tolfandn martu tolde~ yd"diruf ndmd mutd
1 The girl is foolish! 2 She has said, " The plates are porringers! " 3 She has said,
" The sons are cowards! " 4 She has said, " The husband is violent! " 5 The plates are
not porringers; 6 by force or voluntarily she has brought forth; 7 in dressing, she has
dressed her tresses. 8 The sons are not cowards; 9 and (even) the coward makes good the
name of her (i.e. of the mother). 10 The husband is not angry; 11 and (even) the violent
makes good the conduct of her (i.e. of the bride). 12 O rod of abbasuddl 13 While it
(the rod) lasted, it was suspended for the people; 14 to cause it to last, one makes it
pointed.
Notes. The song derides girls who do not desire to be married, fearing to have cowardly
sons, or an angry husband. The minstrel says ironically (v. 8-11) " the cowardly son, as he
does not go to war, remains in the house and helps his mother to clean and adorn the rooms;
and the violent husband improves his bride, even if he has to use force. Verse 2 means:
This girl mistakes things absolutely different, as earthen-ware plates for wooden porringers;
likewise, she mistakes marriage and its real advantages for the dangers which result
only in a few cases. The translation of the word qdni which, according to Loransiyos,
means " voluntarily," "spontaneously," appears to me uncertain; Loransiyos hesitated in
translating it. The last verses of the song (v. 12-14) allude to the custom that, after the
ceremony, the rod of abbasudd (see song 127, introduction) is kept till a new ceremony
(see song 134).
131
§abband"nkorni 5 mdnd"bbdn kabt kabu
g'abannl giesd dumd wdtt"undd kabd mitl
bari nanniesa dumd kdn gardn naif nau
bultiddn babaddni wdtt"undd nad mili
1 The coffee-pot does not boil. 2 The time has just arrived (lit., its arrival finishes).
3 The year accomplishes its cycle. 4 On the day (fit for the holiday), they have been dis
persed. 5 The house which its owner has covered with grass, is covered, 6 but all houses
are not covered with grass! 7 He whose heart is moved, is moved, 8 but all are not
moved.
Notes. The song rails at those Christians or Mussulmen who do not celebrate the
feast of Atet6. The first verse forms a sound-parallelism with the second.
132
dubbin wdqayd furdai yd isi durbd di'esse
dabdn miedidMn gaU handurd dinqd liessi
dabdun ddtiddn galti wdndabbd lafdn giessi
qabd g'%tti "nkorni ddwand g'ilbdn giessi
5 dabi g'$ltir'nbdinl
25 handurd dinqd tiessi
yd dabdu and ndtu alagd gard giessi
'angdsi afdn ndti qomosi gard ndti
ulfofU guma "nndni diesu incHldlakd
diesi gumdtd"ndugni mu(ddnkie ndtt"urgdftei
10 anerti"mbusiesini 30 yd diesu kaliessa nafd
tolditi 5abd"mbdfni kaliessd nafd
diesu nakard dirsd $dda wd rafti latai
masfend masd dirsd kdn Mdrdmi kiessei
yd namd moyi totfu $ga di'esse kiennii
15 akkanl ta 'e tolcu 35 guradci wdllu"ntolu
yd isi ilmdn"nqabne guraddi wdq sif hd nau
akkasin tiesi (optu sambatd 'abbdn dubbisa
yd isi ilmd di'esse At$ti aydn dubbisa
handurd fond tiessi ga§"g'<>de'n middn bubbisa
20 gomosi gard giessi 40 d1 d$din wdqin dubbisa
1 The word of God is providence (literally, is fertile). 2 She who has no (children)
obtains the miediddd; 3 She who has no (children) receives the umbrella. 4 Do not be
proud (then) if you have (children). 5 Do not weep if you have none. 6 O the woman who
has none, poor thing! 7 The bed destroys her strength! 8 Pregnant she will not eat fruit;
9 in confinement she will not drink the gifts of childbed; 10 having made the arierd, she
will not make use of it; 11 having made bread, she will not make loaves of it. 12 The fruit
ful wife, the love of her husband! 13 The sterile wife, torture of her husband! 14 O the
people who make mortars! 15 Thus do they make them? (literally, standing thus do
they make them?) 16 O she who has no children! 17 Thus is she weeping? 18 O she who
has brought forth a male child! 19 She has placed the firstborn (literally, the navel) in the
enclosure. 20 She has made her family happy. 21 O she who has brought forth a daughter!
22 She has placed the firstborn (daughter) in the nuptial house; 23 she has pushed the
garment to the earth ; 24 she has pushed the bells to the knees. 25 She has placed the firsts
born (daughter) in the nuptial house; 26 she has made strangers happy; 27 she has sad
dened her family. 28 O fruitful one, O my perfume! 29 I smell the perfume of thy children.
30 O fruitful one, yesterday thou wert suffering (on account of the pains of childbirth).
31 Thou who didst suffer yesterday, 32 this evening perhaps thou wilt fall asleep. 33 What
you kept for Maram, 34 now that you are delivered, give it to her! 35 The black dress
is not beautiful ; 36 may the black heaven give thee gifts ! 37 Sing the festival of
Abb6! 38 Sing for Mother Atete! 39 Bending, sift the wheat! 40 Standing upright, pray
to God!
Notes. The song begins by saying: The providence of God brings it about that the
one who has no children has other consolations, e.g. riches (v. 1-5). The miedi66d (v. 2) is
a bracelet of goatskin which may be worn only by those Galla who have a certain number
of heads of cattle; the umbrella (v. 3) is another sign of wealth because in Abyssinia only
great chiefs or great ladies can have one. Verses 6-17 bewail the lot of the sterile woman
who will not have the gifts of childbirth, gumdtd (see song 128, notes) ; who will not pre
pare ari&ra or loaves of bread, because she has no children for whose nourishment she
must plan. Arierd is a drink made of the whey of milk mixed with water, much used
among the Galla. Verses 14-15 serve to form a parallel in sound and sense with verses
16-17. Then the song bewails also the lot of one who bears female children, destined to
be married and therefore to go out from the paternal house to " make strangers happy "
(v. 18-27). The Galla call " navel," handtira, the firstborn. The song ends by inviting
the fruitful woman, who with the aid of Atete has avoided the two misfortunes above-
mentioned, to come to the festival (v. 28-40). As to verse 37, observe that the Galla call the
sky " black " ; they have no word to indicate the color blue. On the other hand, " black "
by metonymy is equivalent to " sky." Verse 38 would make one think that with these
ceremonies to Atete there are also mixed celebrations to Abuna Gabra Manfas Qeddus,
the well-known Abyssinian saint.
133
arari yd arbi figd Gidddn Bddco, Mdrydmi
mandnko rqibi sambdtd"bbd Kormd, Mdrydmi
arbin arbd "§$si Abbukko goromsd, Mdrydmi
arari yd arbi ardr, Mdrydmi
5 arbi mand"yqU 45 yd aydnd"nfagd, Mdrydmi
arari yd arbi yd maggdnnd"nlagd, Mdrydmi
mdna"y(jtt lamd ardr, Mdrydmi
Mdrdm fi^"mbieku kankte guddd rabbi, Mdrydmi
yd dad4abl"mbieku yd nurd nurie, Mdrydmi
10 arari yd arbi 50 digds muddd goU, Mdrydmi
imdndnkd rabbi, Mdrydmi ardr, Mdrydmi
yd"yqU yd"ddkd, Mdrydmi kdn kiessa gdrddd, Mdrydmi
dI utali tanl, Mdrydmi Mdrdmtu ergati, Mdrydmi
mukd "rratti dai, Mdrydmi ergd wdqd guddd, Mdrydmi
15 Sf&md ydde tani, Mdrydmi 55 Mdrdmtu adiemd
dfdrdii ta 'b, Mdrydmi ardr, Mdrydmi
kard gubbd"nfigd, Mdrydmi nu ardr yd "yQlie, Mdrydmi
ydddn mu(d dimd, Mdrydmi galdtdki'etu"sd, Mdrydmi
ardr, Mdrydmi 8d$i nurrd qabdi, Mdrydmi
20 hdld Dingie Bofd, Mdrydmi 60 gabbari Wdqayd, Mdrydmi
kuddni ndn biti, Mdrydmi Mdrdmif arbidd, Mdrydmi
ayd gurbd dulu, Mdrydmi ardr, Mdrydmi
ayd gurbd"^su, Mdrydmi ilmdn Hajjjji Musd, Mdrydmi
ardr, Mdrydmi Medina "n$dl&su, Mdrydmi
25 kotti fardd dimd, Mdrydmi 65 Medina duttudd, Mdrydmi
qotti bolldfutd, Mdrydmi maggdnnd buttudd, Mdrydmi
ardr, Mdrydmi ardr, Mdrydmi
aydnd"bbd Gurrd, Mdrydmi gadulliest"nnddu, Mdrydmi
Mdrdm (jijjjj6 Gobi, Mdrydmi Mdrdm gifti guddd, Mdrydmi
30 ardr, Mdrydmi 70 yd gifti yd"bietd, Mdrydmi
yd hdld bisolli, Mdrydmi mandkie"ttdm bull, Mdrydmi
jjdldldkie"noli, Mdrydmi ardr, Mdrydmi,
wdqd GoSu Garbd, Mdrydmi balbaldtti kufi, Mdrydmi
wdqdrre nu kaddu, Mdrydmi bord "ttam adiemd, Mdrydmi
35 ardr, Mdrydmi 75 ardr, Mdrydmi
bodin saddietamd, Mdrydmi Mdrdm hddd dimd, Mdrydmi
Mdryamlf dn gaUb, Mdrydmi tomborie handurd, Mdrydmi
ardr, Mdrydmi kaliessasd'noU, Mdrydmi
lokd fardd dimd, Mdrydmi diengdddasd'noU, Mdrydmi
40 qo$dn galmd"ng'iru, Mdrydmi 80 agdbukd du 'e, Mdrydmi
ardr, Mdrydmt nien$d si"ngdditd, Maryamt
utun si kadaddu, Mdrydmt moti si"najj$ftd, Mdrydmt
namni Mdrydm kadi, Mdrydmt 95 hiy^ssdsi"nbaddfta, Mdrydmt
oggurratti"nargu, Mdrydmt ardr, Mdrydmt
85 $bdn inwdranu, Mdrydmt namni gadi jj$di, Mdrydmt
bakakkdn inddii, Maryamt dangala.se buu, Mdrydmt
ardr, yd gifti nu hundHm"ol §^nndn, Mdrydmt
gifti jjdrti dulo, Maryamt 100 Mdrydmi"nkadannd, Mdrydmt
gifti jjdrsd gutd, Mdrydmt ardr, Maryamt
90 ardr, Maryamt ardr yd"ygle
Maryamt, yd"yglie, Maryamt ardr, yd gifti
arbdwdn takaltd, Maryamt
1 Be propitious, O Friday! 2 It has rained in my house. 3 Friday has slain the elephants.
4 Be propitious, O Friday! 5 Friday, house of the little mother; 6 be propitious, O Friday!
7 There are two houses of the little mother. 8 Mary is never prayed to 9 unless one is in
trouble. 10 Be propitious, O Friday! 11 My faith is in God, O Mary! 12 O little mother,
O my mother, O Mary! 13 I have leaped up, O Mary! 14 I have struck (with my head) the
wood of the shelf, O Mary, 15 because I was thinking of thee, O JMary, 16 after having
stretched myself out on my bed, O Mary! 17 I run upon the road, O Mary, 18 because I
am thinking of the red maiden, O Mary! 19 Be propitious, O Mary! 20 Sheep for Dingie
Bof6, O Mary! 21 I have bought ten, O Mary! 22 Mother of the young warrior, O Mary,
23 Mother of the valiant youth, O Mary, 24 be propitious, O Mary! 25 Hoofs of a red
horse, O Mary! 26 Thou diggest and causest to rise from the tomb, O Mary! 27 Be propi
tious, O Mary! 28 O beneficent genius of Abba Gurra, O Mary, 29 Mary of Giggo Ga-
bata, O Mary, 30 be propitious, O Mary! 31 O sheep with the black wool, O Mary!
32 Thy love is lacking to none, O Mary! 33 O God of Gosii Garba, O Mary! 34 We will
pray to God, O Mary! 35 Be propitious, O Mary! 36 Thirty pieces of salt, O Mary, 37 to
Mary I have made as an offering, O Mary! 38 Be propitious, O Mary! 39 O headstall of
a red horse, O Mary! 40 Jests are not suitable in the gdlma, O Mary! 41 Hasten to Giggd
Bacco, O Mary! 42 Sunday belongs to Abba Korma, O Mary! 43 A cow to Abbukko, O
Mary! 44 Be propitious, O Mary! 45 If thou art a beneficent spirit, descend, O Mary!
46 If thou art an evil spirit, go to the river, O Mary! 47 Be propitious, O Mary! 48 The
powerful Lord is yours, O Mary! 49 O trophy, O trophy! O Mary! 50 Thou hast
made the child of blood, O Mary! 51 Be propitious, O Mary! 52 What is within the
womb, O Mary, 53 Mary has sent it, O Mary, 54 from the great heaven, O Mary! 56 Be
propitious, O Mary! 57 Be propitious to us, O little mother, O Mary! 58 Behold thy
thanks, O Mary! 59 Thou hast placed thy veil upon us, O Mary! 60 Pay the tribute to
God, O Mary! 61 Friday is Mary's, O Mary! 62 Be propitious, O Mary! 63 The children
of Haggi Musa, O Mary, 64 prefer Medina, O Mary! 65 Medina is angry, O Mary; 66
she brings bad fortune, O Mary! 67 Be propitious, O Mary! 68 The black ants do not
speak, O Mary! 69 Mary, great lady, O Mary! 70 O lady, pity, O Mary! 71 How has
thy house passed the night, O Mary? 72 Be propitious, O Mary! 73 I have fallen at the
door, O Mary! 74 How shall I be able to reach the rooms, O Mary? 75 Be propitious,
O Mary! 76 Maram, the red mother, O Mary! 77 The negro of my heart (literally,
of my navel), O Mary! 78 Yesterday again I passed the day (fasting), O Mary! 79 Day
before yesterday again I passed the day (fasting), O Mary! 80 From fasting I am dead,
O Mary! 81 Be propitious, O Mary! 82 Thus I pray thee, O Mary! 83 He who prays
to Mary, O Mary, 84 evil does not find, O Mary! 85 The lances do not smite him, O
Mary! 86 The lightning does not strike him, O Mary! 87 Be propitious, O Lady! 88 O
Lady of our decrepit old women, O Mary! 89 O Lady of our old men with the gutH hair,
O Mary! 90 Be propitious, O Mary! 91 O Mary, O little mother, O Mary! 92 Thou
bindest the elephants, O Mary! 93 Thou bindest the paws of lions, O Mary! 94 Thou
killest the kings, O Mary! 95 Thou makest rich the poor, O Mary! 96 Be propitious, O
Mary! 97 The man who stoops, O Mary, 98 gathers what he has sown, O Mary! 99 We
all gazing aloft, O Mary, 100 will pray to Mary, O Mary! 101 Be propitious, O Mary!
102 Be propitious, O little mother! 103 Be propitious, O Lady!
Notes. Loransiyos knows this song by heart, having learned it at a festival held among
the Lieqa Nagamte in honor of Atete (Loransiyos was at that time a Mussulman and bore
the name of 'Abdallah). The song begins with an invocation to Friday (verses 1-6).
The pagan Galla believed that every spirit had a day sacred to him, on which he should
be honored (see song 27) ; the day sacred to Atete was Friday. Verse 3 is, as usual, intro
duced into the song in order to obtain the play on words of arbd, " elephant," and arbi,
" Friday." Verse 7 seems to mean that, beside Friday, there is another day sacred to
Atete, but Loransiyos cannot explain it to me. Dingie Bofa (v. 20) was a magician of the
Lieqa Naqamte; Abba Gurra (verse 28) a magician of the Calliya Ob6; Gigg6 Gabata
(verse 29) a magician of Shoa; Gosu Garba (verse 33) was also a magician; for Gigg6
Bacco (v. 41), see Prose, texts 7, 8, 9, 10; Abba Korma (verse 42) was a magician of Hin-
dieba Gaccf; for Abbiikko (verse 43), see song 24, v. 113. Verse 46 alludes to the well-
known Galla belief that the rivers are the seat of malevolent spirits. In verse 49, the trophy
which is alluded to is the nuri.1 Verses 54-55 are noteworthy, giving as they do, the pagan
Atete' the Christian name of Mary, and also attributing to her the power of intercession
with God in favor of mortals. Verse 59 also seems to me to have a trace of Christian ideas.
Verses 63-67 jeer at some uncompromising Mussulmen who do not take part in the festival
of Atete, preferring to prepare themselves for a pilgrimage. Verses 73-75 say that the help
of Atete is necessary to a weak mortal, just as one who has fallen on the threshold needs
aid to enter the interior of the house. In verses 78-80, the singer says he has performed a
gdlmd, fasting four days in honor of Atete. Verses 94-98 are the paraphrase of Proverb 20
1 See song 113.
in this article. Verse 77 calls Atete, " the negro of my heart." Perhaps it is a sort of
intimate term of caress, or perhaps it alludes to the magic beliefs as to the color black
which are diffused among all peoples. Verses 25, 31, 39, 49, 68 are introduced into the song
in the usual way in order to obtain correspondence of sound with the respective verses
which follow.
134
Having finished the songs in honor of Atete, the Abba Gdlmd rises to his feet and
says: —
(Abba Galma) farsd farsd sambatd (Abba Galma) bgkd bgkd sambatd
farsd kun kdn sambatd bgkd kun kdn sambatd
sambanni nd tiksu sambanni nd tlksu
(Chorus) sambanni nu tiksu (Chorus) sambanni nu tiksu
(Abba Galma). 1 The beer, the beer of the festival! 2 This beer belongs to the festival!
3 May the festival protect me!
(Chorus). 4 May the festival protect us!
(Abba Galma). 5 The hydromel, the hydromel of the festival! 6 This hydromel be
longs to the festival! 7 May the festival protect me!
(Chorus). 8 May the festival protect us!
Notes. Then the Abba Gdlmd spits into the two vessels containing according to song
127, beer and hydromel; then he takes the wand of abbasudd and hands it to the head of
the family or to the head of the tribe. In the festivals celebrated by all the tribes, it is an
elder of the tribe itself; in the festivals celebrated by a single family, it is the head of the
family itself, or an elder invited for the occasion, if the head of the family is not luba,
because a man cannot be abba gdlmd who has not been through the first two degrees of
the initiation (see Prose, text 4). The wand of abbasuda, until the next festival of Atete,
remains hanging from the ceiling of the house, and is regarded as a sacred object. They
give it a point and usually hang on it glass necklaces and amulets (see song 130).
135-139
The true Galla prayer, which, according to the beliefs of the pagan Or6mo, places man
in contact with the Divinity, is the wdd&g'd. From the same Kushite root is derived the
Somali wdddd, which once indicated the magicians of paganism and now is used to designate
the Mussulman priests. Thus, in a special sense, wdd&d-ki, the wdddd, is the well-known
Sayyid Muhammad ibn ' Abdallah, the " Mad Mullah " of the English. The Galla wdd&g'd
usually consists of the sacrifice of a sheep, preceded and followed by propitiatory songs.
A tufd (blessing by means of spitting) of beer or hydromel, followed by libations, may be
substituted for the sacrifice. The wdd&g'd is directed, like the festivals of the gdlmd, by the
father of the family, or by an invited elder. Here are some of the songs of the wdd&g'd.
dinql! dinqi! (Chorus) nagd nit, butti
(Chorus) mdllf mdl dinqif 15 bfeld kdn dute
wd ddd dinqi qufd kdn gabbdie
hummd dukkuba maU 'dddu yd wdq nd otti
5 hiddi sdrd matt gabbdiu (Chorus) yd wdq nu olci
bisdn ofidcd maU yd 'u (Head of the wdddfid) dubbi abbd qabu
Idfd disd maU diriru 20 fuie kfrini
wdqd utubd maU ddbdtu yd wdq nd otti
wdqd Oumburd samdy faddse (Chorus) yd wdq nu oldi
10 kandtu nd dinqa (Head of the wdddfia) argiti himi
wdqd"nkaddnna hundumd dugd sobdti nd basi
wdqni kan nd otti 25 yd wdq nd otti
nagd nd butti (Chorus) yd wdq nu otti
(Head of the wdddg'a): 1 O wonder! O wonder!

(Chorus) : 2 What are the wonders?
(Head of the wdddg'a) : 3 The wonders are six: 4 The hornbill complains without being
sick; 5 the plant hiddi flourishes without nourishment; 6 the water runs without being
urged; 7 the earth is fixed without pegs; 8 the heavens hold themselves up without sup
ports; 9 in the firmament He (God) has sown the chick-peas of heaven. 10 These things
fill me with wonder. 11 Let us all pray to God! 12 O God, who hast caused me to pass the
day, 13 cause me to pass the night well!
(Chorus) 14 Cause us to pass the night well!
(Head of the w&ddd'a) : 15 From the hungry one who grows angry, 16 from the satiated
who grows proud, 17 O God, deliver me!
(Chorus): 18 O God, deliver us!
(Head of the wdddga): 19 From the one who meddles with others' affairs; 20 from
(the one who says) "you took, and now give," 21 O God, deliver me!
(Chorus): 22 O God, deliver us!
(Head of the wdddg'a): 23 From (the one who says), "thou sawest and now tell"; 24
from (the one who says) " bear false testimony for me! " 25 O God, deliver me!
(Chorus) : 26 O God, deliver us.
Notes. For the hornbill, see song 75. The hiddi (verse 5) is a little plant which produces
flowers similar to the lily; it grows in the form of thorny clusters, even in arid places and
during the dry season. In Amharic it is called imbdbo. The " chick-peas of heaven " (v. 9)
are, as is clear, the stars. Verses 20-21 and 23-25 give the direct discourse in the Galla,
where we should prefer to say: " From my creditors, O God, deliver me " (v. 20-21) and
" From being called to bear witness, from being asked to bear false witness, O God, de
liver me! " (v. 23-25). Being called to bear witness was in the small independent Galla
kingdoms no slight annoyance. The king or the head of the tribe in cases in which it suited
him to condemn the accused, procured for himself the necessary witnesses without too
many scruples and silenced those witnesses opposed to him by any means whatsoever.
This especially was the case in trials instituted directly by the king on some futile pretext
but really with the sole inteDtion of condemning the innocent accused to slavery and selling
them to the merchants.
kard wdq darbb yd fili "nbaqu
$n"abbdn argi imdninjjilu
yd qard $b6 yd jjiWudabu
wdq gard biekd ararfdnb ydr"argani
5 sunsummi"nJUu
1 The ways by which God has passed, 2 who can ever see ? 3 O edge of the lance! 4 God
knows the mind (of men). 5 The head is not combed, 6 unless, after it has been combed,
it is oiled. 7 I shall not weary of speaking, 10 if by growing weary, I shall not fail (to
obtain). 11 We have prayed: when shall we ever find (favor) ?
humba humbd yd Wdq 5 dagatti nu"nbusinl

humbd humbd yd Wdq humbd humbd yd Wdq
umti nu "ngdtinl 'abdbdy^ssd nu&ulekieti
humbd humbd yd Wdq ardrfani yor"arganl
1 Humba! Humba! O God! 2 Humba, Humba, O God! 3 Thou hast created us, do
not cast us away! 4 Humba, Humba, O God! 5 Thou hast shown us favor, do not abandon
us! 6 Humba, Humba, O God! 7 l 8 We have prayed; when shall we ever find (favor)?
Notes. According to Loransiyos, humbd is a word which has no meaning, used in these
invocations to Waqa, because a magic force is attached to it.
ijjdrli nu"ndigin, yd Wdq 5 gargdr bau nu olM, yd Wdq
kabdb nu"nbuqqisin, yd Wdq nd ddbikd, yd Rdbbi
t§§& boil nu oldi, yd Wdq dkka mukd, yd Rdbbi
gard nau nu oldi, yd Wdq
1 Thou hast raised us up, do Dot cast us down, O God! 2 Thou hast covered us with
grass, do not destroy us, O God! 3 From weeping of the eyes, deliver us, O God! 4 From
grief of heart, deliver us, O God! 5 From being separated from one another, deliver us, O
God! 6 Plant us, O God, 7 like a tree, O God!
Notes. The first verses compare, metaphorically, man created and protected by God
with a hut built and covered with grass by the hand of man.
In the second volume of Cecchi's account of his travels occur some phrases which are
in reality a little song of the w&d&g'd. As the transcription is very incorrect, and the trans
1 Loransiyos could not translate this verse for me.
lation in many respects inexact, I introduce here the song written and translated as Loran-
siyos, who knows it by heart, has corrected it.
ddrsd Wdqayd dagdi ddrti Wdqayd fudi
jjarti Wdqayd dagdi si hdrka qdbda
si gurrd qdbda 10 fdrdd gari yd jjalldtta fudi
jjdrsd Wdqayd argi niti gari yd dalldtta fudi
5 fidrti Waqayd argi garbid6d gari yd galhit to fudi
si itjjjd qdbda dagdi Waqayd
ddrsa Waqayd fudi Wdqayd dagdi
1 O old God, listen! 2 O decrepit God, listen! 3 Thou who hast ears, 4 O old God,
look! 5 O decrepit God, look! 6 Thou who hast eyes, 7 O old God, take! 8 O decrepit God,
take! 9 Thou who hast hands, 10 if thou lovest beautiful horses, take them! 11 If thou
lovest beautiful women, take them! 12 If thou lovest beautiful slaves, take them! 13
Listen, O God! 14 O God, listen!
Notes. In verses 2, 5 and 8 the feminine fiarti, " old " is used in a disparaging sense,
which makes superlative the adjective garsa, " old." Thus, for a decrepit old man, in Am-
haric the feminine baWet is used. The translation of Cecchi,1 " old women who are near to
God " is certainly erroneous.
140, 141
In the paganism of the Galla, as in so many other primitive religions, there exist special
ceremonies for asking the divinity for rain. One of these ceremonies is that of the rayd,
which is a solemn procession of women and children who go in search of a special grass,
out of which they then weave wreathes. It is a part of the ritual to eat a barley pudding
before the procession. On such an occasion, songs are sung invoking rain. Here are two
of them:
kusurru Gibie tssa si dM
hursa Mandiyd rdbi r6b
1 O grass kusurru of the Gibie! 2 O storm of Mandiy6! 3 Where art thou shut up?
4 Rain! Rain!
Notes. The kumrrti, is a kind of grass which grows on the banks of rivers, and which
the Galla use; to cover their huts; Mandiy6 (v. 2) is the diminutive of Abba Mand6, a
$amsitu (see song 7). Perhaps it is the same Abba Mand6, magician of the Sibu Gantf,
referred to in song 50, who has held back the rain now invoked by the singer.
bdkkdt 'dno diegd baddsd
'dnd gabbdrd 5 gddt diergsd
dullddd& kasd bdkkdi rdbi
1 Op. cit., vol. 2, p. 33.
robi Ufa gai diddibi qallildd

lafi lafd fudu siera naggddi&d
ddrsa dinqd fudu 15 bdkkai "bd garbu
10 darti golld fudu bokktn"dra"ndarbu
mu(d ukd fudu robumd robi
bokkd gamd Wdddiessd
1 O rain! 2 l . . . Gabbaro! 3 It will make the old cow rise; 4 it will make rich the
poor; 5 it will moisten the pots; 6 it will lengthen the bonds. 7 O rain, rain down! 8 Rain
down, reach the earth! 9 It will take the bones away from the ground; 10 it will bring out
the old man from the dinqd; 11 it will bring forth the old woman from the room; 12 it
will take the children from the arms (literally, from the armpits) (of their mothers). 13 The
rain of the other bank of the Waddiessa, 14 let the magician beat the drum (to obtain it).
15.2 . . . the Mussulman. 16 O rainy blessing of the barley! 17 The rain will not pass
by today (without falling here). 18 O rain, rain down!
Notes. Verse 2 probably refers to a division of the Galla clans into bordnd (sing.
bbrantitta) and gabdro (sing. gabartidda). The sudden departure from Naples of Loransiyos
(see Prose, introduction) prevented my obtaining further particulars as to this interesting
point of the constitution of the Galla tribes. Such a division into gabdro and bordnd is
apparently adopted by the Galla of all regions. The eastern Galla (the Borana in the geo
graphical sense of the word) are ignorant of it. Among the Lieqa on the other hand, it is
in use. It seems that, as among the Lieqa tribes, those of Billo have a position inferior to
the others (today not as to actual rights, but only in public estimation) on account of
less noble genealogical traditions, so within each tribe there is a distinction made between
the borantiZdti, who boasts of his origin from Babb6, the ancestor of the Lieqa, and the
gabartidda who cannot prove such an origin by means of genealogies. The gabdro do not
go to Abba MUda, but on the other hand they possess among the Lieqa equal rights with the
bordnd. D'Abbadie,3 speaking of this distinction does not specify the Galla tribes among
whom he has observed these customs, and says that the gabdro claim to be children of
Adam (?) while they say that the bordnd are children of Satan; the bordnd on the other
hand say they are the children of Sapiera (the son of Ma$$a). It is probable that the
gabdro are people of servile origin (either Sidama subjugated by the Galla at the epoch
of their recent invasion of Ethiopia or slaves of the Kushite race afterwards liberated),
who by degrees have acquired a legal status almost equal to that of their former masters.
One is led to such an hypothesis by the name gabar-6 itself, which seems to be an ancient
plural from the root gabar which probably has the same meaning as the Ethiopian gabara,
1 Loransiyos cannot translate for me the word 'dno.
* The meaning of the word si&ra in this verse is not clear to me.
* Antoine d'Abbadie, ' Sur les Oromo, grande nation Africaine,' (Annales de la Socie'te' Scientifique de Bruxelles,
1880, vol. 4, p. 189).
" to work," whence gabr, " slave." Such a root still exists today in Galla in the wordgarbi6td,
garbitti, masculine and feminine singular forms of the less used garbd, " slave." A similar
development as to legal status has been attained by the Cawa, former military colonies
of the Emperor of Ethiopia, made up of corps of troops recruited among the Galla tribes
and the frontier populations, who afterwards acquired all the rights of their former chiefs,
also making legendary genealogies for themselves.1 The Waddlessa (v. 13) is a river of
Lfmmu. The singer invokes rain, which will bring everyone out upon the threshold of
the hut to see it and rejoice, even the old men and children (v. 10-12).
142
The greatest festival of the pagan Galla is that of the buttd, called gdra by the Borana
and the southern Galla. This festival is very important in connection with the social life of
the Galla, because it is the last ceremony of the second as well as the third degree of initia
tion (see Prose, text 4) ; that is, it marks the acquisition of the right to be present and take
part in the deliberations of the assembly of the tribe. Every gddd (see Prose, text 4) after
the second period of initiation is called on to sacrifice an ox for the buttd. The buttd is
celebrated every eight years. Beside the sacrifice of the ox, at the buttd the account is
given of the victories obtained by the warriors of the tribe in wars and hunts, followed by
the assignment of decorations (see song 15, notes). The account is given by a widow chosen
from the tribe; the assignment of decorations is made by an elder of the tribe who puts
in his hair for the occasion some feathers of the little red bird called gudH (see song 68).
The warrior whose victims are to be reckoned up comes forward toward the elder and enum
erates his deeds one by one, prefacing every statement with the cry, " Sararard! " which
has, perhaps, a magic force (see song 137). Here is one of these songs for the reckoning
up of victories recited during a buttd celebrated by the Gullallie a little after the victory
over Ras Waldie Baseyum (see song 38).
Sararard! . . . dabdmtu dkka hCeitu
dbba guddi ndn tumtu ag'Qsl kdn tobieddn farrd
ndggddik somd 6Uu kdn si fakkdtu taddd ag'$si
fuqurd mukarrdtti ad$si 15 sararard! . . .
5 kdn si fakkdtu wanni ad$si dbba gu&H ndn dugdu afi$si
sararard! . . . hdttu mu$a sd 'a
dbba guddi ndn Idnb ad$si kdn si fakkdtu dugdu afi$si
holqd ki'essa duftu sararard! . . .
kdn si fakkdtu 6dno ad$sd 20 dbba guddi ndn amd"fi$si
10 sararard! . . . mukarrdtti kannisa fittu
dbba gud6i ndn taddd a§$si kdn si fakkdtu amd"d$se'
1 Cf. Carlo Conti Rossini, Principi di diritto consuetudinario dell' Eritrea, Roma, 1916, p. 89-90.
sararard! . . . raen#i "$fs^ ajjffsu
dbba gucSl ndn bdnga "ti§sb kdn nd fakkdtu n&n6d"Szsi
25 kdn akkakie gurrd gurgudddtu sararard! . . .
kdn si fakkdtu bdnga d§si dbba gudci lafd ad$s£
sararard! . . . 50 namiMd kalU nCen$d ufatu
dbba guddl ndn gafdrsa"d$s£ kdn nd fakkdtu lafd atj$se
bude budd bosoqqd sararard! . . .
30 kdn gurri gurrakie fakkdta dbba gudci lafd at) cue
kdn si fakkdtu gafdrsd"d$si figd kalU qierrdnsd
sararard! . . . 55 kdn nd fakkdtu lafd ad^si
dbba guddl qierrdnsd"g'$sb sararard! . . .
luttu hattu dakkd dbba guddi dbba fdrdd "d§si
35 kdn si fakkdtu qierrdnsd"g'$si gQtd dowd d$biyu
sararard! . . . kdn nd fakkdtu "bbd fdrdd "jj$se
abba guddi amaki"etd"d§se 60 sararard! . . .
jjdra gam& utald dbba gudci Arussi ad$s£
kdn si fakkdtu amaki'etd"d^si tiksitu I6n Arussi ad$si
40 sararard! . . . kdn nd fakkdtu Arussi ad$si
abba guddi ndn gidd6 ad$s£ sararard! . . .
ndma kudafuritti lakkdmtu 65 dbba guddi Amdrd "d$si
dbba guddt gidilld ajj$si W&ldie agabu olci
sararard! . . . kdrrd Zufdn olM
45 abba gudSl nfenld "jj$si dbba gudSl Amdrd Wdldte ajjf£s£
1 Sararard! ... 2 O thou with the vulture's feathers, I have killed a blacksmith,
3 a Mussulman who was keeping a fast. 4 I have killed a Mussulman missionary on the
tree! 5 A monkey who looks like thee, I have killed! 6 Sararard! 7 O thou with the vul
ture's feathers, I have killed a great baboon 8 who was emitting farts in his den! 9 A
great baboon, who looks like you have I killed! 10 Sararard! ... 11 O thou of the vul
ture's feathers, I have killed a porcupine, 12 wicked like thee, 13 who was injuring the
budding plants! 14 A porcupine who resembles thee have I killed! 15 Sararard! . . .
16 O thou of the vulture's feathers, I have killed a wildcat, 17 thief of the young of the
herd! 18 A wildcat that resembles thee have I killed! 19 Sararard! ... 20 O thou of the
vulture's feathers, I have killed a wildcat 21 which destroys the bees on the trees! 22 A
wildcat that resembles thee have I killed! 23 Sararard! ... 24 O thou of the vulture's
feathers, I have killed an antelope 25 who had ears longer than the ears of thy grand
mother! 26 An antelope that resembles thee have I killed! 27 Sararard! ... 28 O thou
of the vulture's feathers, I have killed a buffalo, 29 a full-grown buffalo with long horns,
30 who had ears like thy ears! 31 A buffalo that resembles thee have I killed! 32 Sararard!
... 33 O thou of the vulture's feathers, I have killed a leopard, 34 the insidious robber
of the forests! 35 A leopard that resembles thee have I killed! 36. Sararard! . . . 37 O thou
of the vulture's feathers, I have killed a big leopard 38 that was leaping on that bank
there! 39 A big leopard that resembles thee have I killed! 40 Sararard! ... 41 O thou of
the vulture's feathers, I have killed a panther 42 who is equal to fourteen men! 43 O
thou of the vulture's feathers, a panther have I killed! 44 Sararard! ... 45 O thou of the
vulture's feathers, I have killed a Hon! 46 I have killed a lion and I shall kill more! 47 A
lion that looks like me have I killed! 48 Sararard! . . . 49 O thou of the vulture's feathers,
I have killed a footsoldier, 50 a warrior who wore a lion's skin, 51 a footsoldier who re
sembled me have I killed! 52 Sararard! ... 53 O thou of the vulture's feathers, I have
killed a footsoldier, 54 a strong warrior who wore a leopard's skin, 55 a footsoldier who
resembles me have I killed! 56 Sararara! ... 57 O thou of the vulture's feathers, I have
killed a horseman, 58 a valiant man, an obstacle that made people draw back, 59 a horse
man who resembles me have I killed! 60 Sararard! ... 61 O thou of the vulture's
feathers, I have killed some of the Arussi, 62 two shepherds of the Arussi herds, 63 some
Arussi who resemble me have I killed! 64 Sararard! ... 65 O thou of the vulture's
feathers, I have killed some Amara! 66 I have made Waldie spend the day fasting! 67
I have kept the fold closed! 68 O thou of the vulture's feathers, the Amara of Waldie
have I killed!
Notes. The slayer, as one sees, begins by boasting of the easiest victories and by de
grees enumerates the more difficult. He begins with the victories over animals which are
considered ignoble (monkeys, porcupines, wild cats, antelopes, buffaloes, leopards), and
after having mentioned the panther, an animal which stands between the noble and ignoble
prey, he passes to the lion and men. The ignoble animals are compared to the elder who
listens to the account, the noble animals to the victorious warrior who recites the song.
In verses 1-5, the warrior relates his first victory over a monkey. The latter is called
ironically " the blacksmith " (see song 65), as, in the same way, it is called " the Mussul
man," because the Galla say that monkeys go without eating for several days (thence the
usual comparison with the fast of the Mussulman), and also, they utter cries only at
certain hours of the day (thence the comparison with the mueddin who calls believers to
prayer at certain hours). In verse 4 I have translated the Galla fuqurd by " Mussulman
missionary" ; that is, that kind of Islamized magician who among the Galla reads the Koran,
and also foretells the future by the ancient rites, and makes amulets. The Somali call
these holy men wdddd.
In verses 15-18 and in verses 19-22, the hunter boasts of the killing of two wild cats of
different species, one called qltigdu, literally " drinker," and the other amd. In verses 27-
31, the hunter boasts of the killing of the buffalo, which from very ancient times has been
regarded as an ignoble animal by the Galla1 (see song 34). In verses 36-39, the hunter
boasts of the killing of a large species of leopard called in Galla amaki'etd, and in Amharic
sidii6d. It is related that the amakfeta is the one of the lesser felines most like the lion, be
1 Cf. I. Guidi, ed., Historia gentis galla, op. cit., p. 206.
cause when the lioness, to test the strength of her nine children, made them leap across
the ditch, according to the wide-spread Galla fable,1 the amakitta succeeded in clinging
with its claws a little below the opposite side of the ditch and therefore only a little behind
the lion. Verse 42 about the panther alludes to the calculation tables of the spoils which
are made use of in the buttd (see song 15, notes). Verses 64-68 sing of the slaying of the
hostile Amara. It is noteworthy that such slaying should be reckoned up at the end, per
haps not so much because it is more glorious (it is to be remembered, on the contrary, that
among some Galla tribes the killing of Amara is not worthy of being included in the buttd,
cf.song 34), but because it was the last victorious undertaking of the tribe, and therefore
the one most present in the memory of the hearers. The festival of the buttd is the most
significant ceremony of Galla paganism; thus the Chronicle of Guma (see Prose, text 1)
relates that Adam when he wished to convert Guma to Islam, first of all forbade the buttd.
In like manner, the Emperor Menilek forbade the buttd to the Galla converted to Christian
ity, but a terrible drought having come upon them, this misfortune was attributed to the
abandonment of the ancient ceremonies, and Menilek was obliged to revoke his prohibition.
143
The solemn oath of Galla paganism is a special and most interesting rite. Rather
than an oath, it should be called a "sworn renunciation," because in it one does not swear
to do a thing, but not to do the opposite thing. Thus, Menilek in song 54, v. 24-26, swears
that " they will not abstain from going among the Arussi," according to a negative formula;
thus, the mother of Tufa R6ba in song 15, v. 74, swears " not to take a husband," and there
fore to consider all men forbidden to her by oath. The oath is called by the Galla kakd or
kaku; the Amara who border on the Galla use to indicate such a Galla oath the word
glzzit which really is equivalent to excommunication. The thing or person who is the
object of the sworn renunciation by which one binds oneself not to do a certain act,
is also called kaku (in Amharic yd-tagazzd). The oath is taken with the feet resting on the
skin of a wild boar, and, at the conclusion, a four-pronged fork is hurled into the air. It is
noteworthy to find the skin of the wild boar (regarded from most ancient times as an unclean
animal among the Semito-Hamites) as a property of this ritual. This feature must certainly
be very ancient. Here is a stanza which is recited as the fork is hurled:
nd darbi fi$M 5 badi baddu bai
mutfuttd kaku balbald idn badi
M ubaydy h6 Ubaydy
qfeko boy&n"d ddltu
1 " Hurl me," has said 2 the murtut0 of the oath. 3 H6! ubaydy! 4 May the wildboar
inherit my house! 5 Perish! Destroy thyself ! 6 O five doors, perish! 7 Ho! ubaydy!
1 Also collected by Tutscheck.
Notes. The murtutti (v. 2) is a bush which provides the four-tined forks necessary for
the sacred promise. H6! ubayay! (v. 3, 7) are magic syllables without any lexical meaning.
Perhaps the " five doors " (v. 6) have also a magic sense which Loransiyos cannot explain
tome.
6. Christian
144
The Galla celebrate with special solemnity the festival of the Cross. After great bonfires
(in Amharic ddmfara) preceded and followed by salutes of guns, there takes place between
the warriors the traditional tourney with lance and shield (Amharic, gugs). The male
cattle are crowned with flowers as a sign of rejoicing. The boys of the region, led by one
who bears a flower in his hand, go to the doors of the huts and sing:
ygkd dardr! yd"babd dardr! barari harddsi, yd"babd dardr!
ki'ena manni sirte, yd"bab6 dardr! 15 hindanqd baddsi, yd "babd dardr!
barari har$asi, yd"babd dardr! abbd wdrrd sirbi, yd"babd dardr!
mdsqdl dbbd kormd, yd"babd dardr! faffatd harddse, yd"babd dardr!
5 ibsd kor&mmidd, yd"bab6 dardr! i§§olU baddsi, yd "bab6 dardr!
ani koftl"ngumi, yd"bab6 dardr! darard $bicdd, yd"baM dardr!
Ligdi Bakd gubbi, yd"bab6 dardr! 20 kannifni marsiti, yd"bab6 dardr!
gubbi natti ddmi, yd"babd dardr! darard bisingd, yd"bab6 dardr!
and koftd"ngumnl, yd"babd dardr! simbird marsitb, yd"babd dardr!
10 Rorr6 Bakd gubbi, yd"bab6 dardr! darard masqald, yd"babd dardr!
gubbl natti dami, yd"babd dardr! ijjjjolle marsiti, yd"bab6 dardr!
hd gubbu Borand, yd"bab6 dardr! 25 yqkd dardr! yd"babd dardr!
abbd wdrrd sirbi, yd"bab6 dardr!
1 Come, blossom! Blossom, O little flower! 2 Our family has sung; blossom, O little
flower! 3 It has made the goats fall; blossom, O little flower! 4 The Cross of the one rich
in oxen; blossom, O little flower! 5 The light of the young bulls; blossom, O little flower!
6 Not I alone have made the fire; blossom, O little flower! 7 Ligdf Bakarie has made the
fire; blossom, O little flower! 8 " Do thou make the fire, too! " he sent me to say; blossom,
O little flower! 9 Not I alone have made the fire; blossom, O little flower! 10 Rorrisa
Bakarie has made the fire; blossom, O little flower! 11 " Do thou, too, make the fire! "
he has sent me to say; Blossom, O little flower! 12 Let the borand make the fire; blossom,
O little flower! 13 The chief of the people has sung; blossom, O little flower! 14 It has
made the gnats fall; blossom, O little flower! 15 It has made the hens rejoice; blossom, O
little flower! 16 The chief of the people has sung; blossom, O little flower! 17 He has had
the soup set on the table; blossom, O little flower! 18 It has made the boys rejoice;
blossom, O little flower! 19 The flowers of the verbena; blossom, O little flower! 20 The
bees make a circle; blossom, O little flower! 21 The flowers of the sorghum; blossom, O
little flower! 22 The birds make their circle; blossom, O little flower! 23 The flowers of
the Cross; blossom, O little flower! 24 The boys make their circle; blossom, O little flower!
25 Come, blossom! O little flower, blossom!
Notes. Verses 2-3 and 13-15 jestingly say that the song has made the gnats which were
clinging to the ceiling fall, because it has so stirred the air of the hut. In verses 6-12 the
boys say that all are celebrating a festival for the Cross, making the bonfires, referred to
above; also the warriors like Ligdf, son of Bakarfe, and his brother Rorrisa; also the noble
bordnti6dd (see song 141, notes); also the head of the tribe, who sings and by making the
gnats fall feeds the hens.
SONGS OF THE CARAVANS

145-146
When the caravans of the merchants left the regions of the Gibie and by way of the
Gudni and of the Goggam went to the Red Sea, the caravaners used to sing songs in
praise of commerce along the way. Here are two of them:
sid bond yd kuttd kdsdn maU mdfd ndmatt"uwisd
sid gtinnd yd doqie ditdn maU 10 ddfd ndmd tdsisd
magdldn oddn maU g$cdd gdratt"ambisd
dtmtu boqordn maU ndmd dierd gabdbsd
5 diegni ndma"Uakkisu gababd baddu basd
diegd maggdnnd kormd hdtti diese"nfiallattu
luqqiettu ndmd litd 15 abbdn umi"llellisu
lummie ndmd fiallisd
1 In summer they even make the dust rise; 2 in winter they even trample the mud!
3 If they talk with the dark maiden, 4 and smile upon the red maiden, 5 poverty will
never leave them. 6 Poverty is a terrible disease; 7 it penetrates the sides, 8 it bends the
vertebrae, 9 it dresses one in rags, 10 it makes people stupid; 11 it makes every desire
remain in the breast; 12 those who are long, it shortens; 13 those that are short it destroys
wholly. 14 Not even the mother that has borne (the poor man) loves him any longer!
15 Not even the father who has begotten him any longer esteems him !
Notes. The maggdnnd of verse 6 is the Amharic maggdnnd.1 Maggdnnd kormd means
literally " the male of the disease," " a terrible disease."
sid"rfasd yd awarrd saqdn maU uffand mdfd godd
sid gdnnd yd doqie ditdn male" wdmiMd bodi godd
attamin diegd bau 10 niti ndmd diegddd
dmma diegni hamddd wdmiddd maU dagti
5 ndmd dierd gababsd ds ta 'I male" galU
gababd baddu basd galti dirsdS^nkorU
ta' umsd dombi godd dkka udn dirsd ddni
1 Guidi, Vocabolario araarico, op. cit., maggdhUd.
1 Even in the autumn season they walk on the dust! 2 Even in the winter season they
trample the mud ! 3 How can one escape from poverty ? 4 For poverty is a misfortune.
5 Tall men it shortens; 6 short ones it destroys wholly. 7 Of the chairs it makes little
stools; 8 of clothes it makes rags. 9 It sends away invitations. 10 The wife of the poor man
11 goes away without invitations. 12 Without "sit down here," she returns to her house.
13 She goes home and quarrels with her husband, 14 as if he had beaten her!
PASTORAL SONGS
147-151
dbd durd duriessdkd obi obi
obasi"bdn durd obd lamu Idmadddk6
tiksi"bdn duriessd obdsin bor$ssi
obdsin bor$ssi tiksin barbad$ssi
5 tiksin barbadgssi 10 obi obi
1 The first watering, my first one ! 2 I have had them drink the first watering, 3 I have
led to pasture for the first watering. 4 I have had them drink, I have had them make
muddy (the watering place). 5 I have led to pasture, I have had them eat (all the grass).
6 It has drunk! it has drunk! 7 The second watering, my second one! 8 I have had them
drink, I have had them make muddy (the watering place). 9 I have led to pasture, I have
had them eat (all the grass). It has drunk! it has drunk!
Notes. The Galla take the cattle to water twice a day. Both the first and the second
waterings are preceded by grazing.
adu bosd bird sirbi

bosiettikd sirri dimbiMd
bosd gali d1 jj$din str'loid
holdqali mie litl"ldll
5 rdfu irbi
1 O ugly sun! 2 O my ugly one! 3 The ugly one has gone in. 4 He has cut the throats
of the sheep, 5 he has supped on sprouts, 6 then he has danced. 7 The bed is of fragrant
grass. 8 By raising (my glances) I see thee. 9 Come! enter! look!
Notes. The shepherds sing this when they lead back the cattle to the fold at sunset.
adit, kottu kottu uU ddddbatd

kard hord (an(6 5 diddibbisd kottu
qordtti §gatd
1 O sun, come! come! 2 On the road of the rising salt pit of Canco, 3 beware of the
thorns, 4 lean upon the staff! 5 Come singing!
Notes. The shepherds sing this when at dawn they lead the flock forth from the fold.
hurri yd hurri 5 qardba"rkd qaba
abbdn fardd dufi gurrd sittl murd
bokku harkd qabd gdra yahi yd hurri
bokku sitti fabsd gdra ydbi yd hurri
1 O mist! O mist! 2 The horseman has come. 3 He has a stick in his hands. 4 With the
stick he will crush thee! 5 He has a knife in his hands; 6 he will cut off thy ears! 7 Go
up on the mountain, O mist! 8 Go up on the mountain, O mist!
Notes. A playful song of the shepherds in misty weather.
abbd fardd dollie 5 sombd guddd §ald bal

gabdbd botoWe bodt dlnd durd bal
bojjitd naditd mi"e ddwa6&isl
bojjitt galtd
1 O master of the swift courser, 2 short, little, 3 thou eatest sprouts, bofiito. 4 Thou
wilt return a prisoner! 5 Come forth under the great sycamore! 6 Come forth before the
lances of the enemies! 7 Come, gallop!
Notes. This is a song of contempt of the shepherds for the horsemen who gallop pass
ing near the flocks. Bofiitd (v. 3) is a green vegetable similar to the sprouts, also a food of
the poor.
PROSE
Introduction. I had begun the collection of various kinds of Galla popular literature
in prose, and, as may be seen, had succeeded in gathering a number of texts, when by the
order of the Italian military authorities, my assistant, Loransiyos Walda Yasus (see Intro
duction to this article), was sent back to his country, or rather, sent to his last residence at
Keren in Eritrea. This sudden return of Loransiyos to his country not only prevented my
completing the collection of prose texts, but left me without explanation, or at least without
all the necessary explanation, of some texts which I had already gathered; for instance,
several songs, the remainder of the Chronicle of Guma, and another long historical text
relating to the cruelty of King Faysa Lamu.
I. Prose Works on Historical Subjects

1. The Oral Chronicle of the Kingdom of Giima.
As among all primitive people historical and genealogical traditions abound, so in the
independent Galla kingdoms such traditions assume the form of genuine chronicles. Since
writing does not exist, these chronicles are handed down orally from father to son. Their
existence has been hitherto unknown. Yet they are not without importance for the special
history of the kingdom with which they deal, and for the general history of Ethiopia, as
one can obtain from it references to the condition of the region which is at present Galla,
before the invasion of this people into Ethiopia, and at the same time receive information
as to the relations between these Galla kingdoms and Christian Abyssinia. Nor should one
show himself skeptical of the possibility that oral tradition constitutes a fount of informa
tion of importance concerning ancient events. For example, Conti Rossini 1 observed
that in the oral historical traditions gathered by Bieber in Kaffa,2 there was reference to a
Sipenhao, i.e. Sapenhi, governor of the Innarya under the rule of Malak Saggad, also re
corded in the written Ethiopian chronicle of this king. In this work I have collected proof
of the preservation through the centuries of the legends about the Emperor Theodore I;
and in the course of my studies of the Kushite peoples, I have frequently had the opportunity
to observe that the genealogies of their tribes which the natives know, are a source of informa
tion not to be despised. Unfortunately, however, as I have said, among the chronicles of
the Galla kingdoms, this of Guma is the first which has been published. And the Amharic
conquest, by destroying the independence of the Galla kingdoms, has resulted in these
chronicles becoming less known day by day among the Galla people themselves, because
there is now lacking one of the principal reasons for the existence of the chronicles: that
of exalting the noble origin and the deeds of the reigning dynasty. (Observe that the chroni
cle of Guma mentions only the family of Adam.) These chronicles stopped at the Amharic
conquest. The struggles of the Amharic chiefs, their rise and fall, and their disagreements,
are not, Loransiyos says emphatically, subjects dealt with in the stories of the sons of
Orma. Now the chronicles are known only to the elders. It would, therefore, in my opin
ion, be of great scientific interest to collect them soon, before the remembrance of them is
lost and these unique historical documents fall into oblivion.
The present chronicle has the title Dubbi motumma Guma, which Loransiyos translates
in Amharic, Ya-Gumd mangist ntigar, " Chronicle of the Kingdom of Giima " (the Galla
dubbi, from the root dubb, "to speak," corresponds exactly in sense to the Amharic ndgar,
" account," " thing," " contest "). The chronicle begins with the account of the way in
which the Adamite dynasty got possession of the kingdom of Guma. It should have ended
with the cruel death sentence of the last king, Abba Foggf, decreed by Ras Tasamma;
however, as I have said above, I was unable to finish my work, and, unfortunately,
was prevented from publishing the last fragment gathered of this chronicle, because
many points in it are obscure to me. Therefore, I have published only a summary of it,
reserving the publication of the original until, with the aid of some native, I have revised
and cleared it up.
1 Carlo Conti Rossini, ' Studii su alcune popolazioni dell' Etiopia,' (Riviata degli studii Orientali, 6th year, pt. 2,
p. 416).
* Friedrich J. Bieber, ' Das Land Kaffa und seine Bewohner,' (Revue des Etudes Ethnographiques et Sociolo-
giques, Paris, 1909, p. 225-249).
Dubbi motumma Guma.

I. Addm ddkka turi. Ijlbiddd Tald ktessdtti turi. Qdkka kdna kiessa w&Sdtu dird. Addm wdSd
ddgdddn dufi, gafdrsa gadi elma, gafdrsa korrndsa qaU ndtu. Addm ndmd akkdna turi. Arbd boqu
qabilti kuffisd. Addm ndmd akkandti. Gdfd Dagoyen adamd bu 'i, Addm inargi. Isdn argindn
baqatdni. Namil&i kuni bintimsd d$ddni baqdtani. Abba aid Dagoydn egdutti kienni. Kdn namiddi
kuni d$du ildla! Gedi Dagoyen egdid6i kun to 'i $ge. Gafarsi digddmd to 'i dufi. Adam kd 'i, ebd "nqabu.
Hdrkd gulld dukd figiti tdkko qabati. Yadt guddidcd"sa gafdrsd mogoli qabi. Bitdtti diebisi kuffisi.
Hadu qabd gaU. Gdrfarsd kdna bati qad§li wdSdtti gaU. Ddga kdna hdrkd tdkko"nqabi balbaldsa bani.
Gafdrsd kdna fudati gaU. Gafdrsd kdna otu tinnd hinturin marummdni gati. Maid gdfd maU gdgar-
rdttu"nbasin ndti fitt. I$gdun galti dbbd aldtti himti. Attdm godif G%din. Gafarsi jjadt hdrkd"nqabi
qali. QaUti"sd matdfi marummdn gati. Cr eddni dbbd aldtti himdni. Abbdn mild galiti moti Dagoyiti
himi. MotinDagoyi Sarboraddd turi. Hinni dbbd mildtti: mCeijgdu kdna fidi! dedi. £gdu kdna wdmi.
Sarbdradddn. Ammandn: ati gurbd! dedi. Dubbin kun dugdddf Gedi gdfati. Dugumd, goftdkd!
dedi. Akka ati argiti kand, namni bird yd argi, fdrdd dn si kienna! jj$di. Yd dubbi kun sdbd to 'i,
dkka korbiessa hold ndn si qald! jj$(M. Dubbi kand wuli godi. Ndmd kudaldmd lakkdi Sarboraddd
egdutti kienne. AgarsisiJ (j%di. Toli! G$difudatiti adamd bu'i. Gdra kudalamd kani ildldni Addm
inargani. Ydnamd! ydnamd! (jeddniwdmdni. Mildsa mirgd d1 fudati ildli. Namiddi'adidd. Namdn
bini'ensd! G$ddni sodatdni. Kdna"mbaqdtoni. Ammandn mdl galU mdtitti himnd arginio; hardf
bori hin$gna! G^ddni mart goddni. Kandn guyd lamd $gdni. Gafdrsd solaniessd dufi, gafdrsd kdna
ittiutaliqabi. Hinqalindto. Uttimd ildldni fiti. Namni kun bddanundta! G$ddni sodatdni. Irrddci
baqatdni to 'ani. Ammandn isdni yogga \innd turdni gafarsin daltin dufi. Gafdrsd kdna qabi, qabiti
qundi qun&slti lukd"sa lamdni hidi. Hiditi afdn gala qabati elmati. Andn gafdrsd kdna dugi, qundi
kdna irra hiki gddi ged "dtsa. Gafarsi ilmdsa fudati adiemi. Ammandn gdra mandtti qad^le waSdsatti
gali; balbald wdSdsa kdna hdrkd tokkdn irrafudi gali dufati disi. Ammandn jjarri"tti dufaniti Sar-
boradddtti himdni. Dubbin dugati, yd goftdkd. Goddni Sarbdtti himdni. Sarbdn b$a dubbin dugati
jj$ndni daqiti dn qabd! Qedi. Dagoyi daMasi moggd kdna abbd bu 'i, daqiti argi. Cdkka kiessa"sa
ddbati: mdl gdna qamnaf 6edi! Namd arbd gadi elmu, gafdrsd qabi qalu mdltu danda 'i qdbaf (jli_ttu.
Ddgd hinni balbald iltl $ufi kdna hundumti duld harkisa! d$di. Harkisdni daddabdni. Kuni ndmd
miti Saytdni mali! Oeddni. Ammandn disi gali. Gdfd Sarbdn disi galu, durbi Dagoyi! Ani ndn
qabd! §$tti! Attdm goti qdbattof Qedani. Durbi: ndn qabd namittd! G$tti! G$dani Sarbdtti himdni.
Intdld kdna ndtti fidd! Gedi. figa intdld kdna Sarbotti fiddn. Attdm goti qdbda yd"ntdlak6f Gedi.
G$ssi, addi nd kai mandn itti galu"sa balbald, ibiddd nd kfenni, mindn guyd tdrbd kdn ndttu nd ki'enni!
£gdu ndmd tdrbd nd ktienni. Gdfd guyd torbd ndn qaba! Geiti. Ammandn ijgdu tdrbd gdfd guyd tdrbd
ki"enni ergi Sarboraddd egdun kdrd tdkko ddkkd buldni, iSin kopasi rafti. Intdld giessdni balbald mdnd
kadni. Hinni ndmd bai turi Addm. Ydgga intdld balbaldtti tiessu, yadd gafarsdtti gatitti bati dufi.
Gafdrsd kdna Idfd kai. Mdli kdn ndtti"adduf (jgdi. Ndmd ndmd kdndidu kun! Gafdrsd kdna lafd
kai qaliti ndti. Wd tdkko mdnd"nbul5ini fiti. Ganamd yoggd Idfd intdld kdn ildli wd itti"ndubbdnni,
bird darbi adiemi. (?dfcfcd daqi gafdrsa qabi dufi qalati ndti. Ndti ydgga fit/u wdSdtti gali buli. Gdfd
lamdffa intaldtti lafdtti ildU qabi durbummdMb fudati. Intdla kdn qabati halkdn kand bulito borumti
ddkkd daqi. Gafdrsd guddd daddabi, ilmd gafdrsd qabati dufi. Gdfd lamdffa gafdrsd kdna ndlitti buli,
niti godati mandtti gaUi. Mandtti gaUi adamd diebii bu 'i. Gafdrsa daddabi, wdrabbd qabate gali.
Galiti intdld wddjjin disi. Gdfd saddffd balbald harkisi $ufdmu didi dkka duri; ammandn balbaldtu
6uftn (dkkd daqi. £gdu suni induftu. Hinnl mannd"ndiru. Intaldti kdpd argdni. ISgamaUn la 'df
(Sedani. Balbald afdn band buU, harkisi daddabi. Dura gafdrsd guddd fiditi, bulettid ilmd gafdrsd
wdrabbd fidi. Kandn ganamd bdrd bdr kottu! (i$ttiti. Ammandn ganamdn dufdni. Kurupvt"nni
qabati gaUti, wdldkkdsi ndti, wdlakkd daddabi buU. Ammandn fudatdni galdni. Egdu ganamd
halkani"ndufte, mdnd bandn, d1 galdni qabatdni Adamin. Qdbatdni fuddni galdni, mandtti galddni.
Fiddni moti Dagoyitti kienndn. Motin Dagoyt mdnd kiennif intaldtti fudi gaU, niti godati. Ydgga
iiin ulfdftu intalli, $bdnsa dundumd kudafuri biti. Maqdnkd dbba Baldtti! (*$di. Ammandn Sar-
boraddd gdrba kudaSdnfudati: ani si dufd! dedi. Garbi 6dkkd bodi mdlnd gddat Gedi Sarbdn, ammandn
wdlitti"mdni; firrisumd ganamd Adamin Sarbd ad$si. Gdfd Sarbdn du 'u, wdrqie qubdrra bafati Sarbd;
gdfd lamdffd Dagoy&n Sarbd awdldme. Namni kun balddd! Wdrqie $ga qubdrra bafati hd mou! (j$ddni
mdsisdn.
II. Ammandn hinni Gumdin moi. Gdfd bardumd Gumd bardumd Dagoyi ydbu, akkasitti motummd
fudati Adamin. Adamin Saytdndrra dalati, namdrra dalatu nu"mbiegnu. Fdn hinni"nndtin"ndiru,
darbati"ndabu, dubbati"nqolu. Ammandn asallami! fi$di Gumddd. Gumdn Oromd turi; buttdsa
balliese; motummd kdn motummd isldmdti! d$di. Akkdna dafi asallami Adamin. Gdfd hinni du 'u,
ilmisa Gumd itti moe", maqdnsa Gilca kdn d^ddmu. GilM biyd Dagoyeti kopdsa moi.
III. Gdfd (Hldd du 'u, ilmisa mde Ondo kdn d$ddmu. Onddn Qimmd G&mmd Gterd itti Idle, Hannd
daddafati, Ndnno Gacdi daddafti. Kandf maqdnsa dbba dula d$dami. Waranni Addm. dur Bald d$ddni.
Waranni Ondo akkasitti Bald d$damti. Maqdnsa Abba Bald d$ddni. Hinni intdld Gommd hierumsisi!
Fdn ndmd barbaddi qaldisi. Nitinsa didditi fdn sort goti: bildatera fdn namdti! G^ttiti kienniti.
Hinadda! gati! g$de. Kandn fdn namd dlsifti. Ammandn: hunduma god&ra! d$di! Dadi dakd nd
hafi! d$di. Bidiru soksisi, daditti naqsisi guti. Lititti (dankatti) dugati. Dugd kand qomdsd d 'ai
afi$si.
IV. Gdfd hinni du 'u, ilmisa moi Gawi kdn d^ddmu. Maqdn wdranisa Abba Bald d$ddni dkka
wdrdnd abbdsdtti. Hinni digddmi tdrbd naddfeni qabi. Abbdn Bqqd motin Gimmd mari torbd ergi.
Torbdn marin kun daqtiti d mandtti galti. Doksi harrt qaldisi ddddf sogidddtti naqsiesio itti kienni.
Namni torbd kun ndtdni buldni. Bdda kandtti ganamd ydgga ta' i ndmd ddd kani daksisi torbaffdti
gdfd"tti giessdni. Maqdnsa Abba Malati turi. Daqi ddgd kurra ta' i. BiSdnfidi! G$digarbittidd. Abbdn
Bald bardumd ddbati ta 'i ildla. BiMnitti dagd diqi. Mdlitti ddgd dlqtaf d$di. Ndmd Gumd dabddd,
mindn Gumd dabddd; bUsdnitti yd ani ddgd diqa, Idfd ta 'd Idta! d$di. Kandn daksisa! 8$di. Ega
dafi fi$nndn ydgga dakutti darbu:
dinq"abbd Bald! dinq"abbd Bald!
nu ddku"ns%ne; nu dadi s$ne!
ydgga hinni fiqdu: ddgd kandrra ka 'i! d^di. Mdqdnkie $nuf d$di. Abba Maldti! d^di. Maldki'e
wdddin biydkieti gali! d$di gad"disi. Ammandn Gimmd galdni, Abba Boqdtti: akkdna godi motin
Gumd! d&ldni himdni. Namdkd mdlif akkdna gotif d&liti ergati Abba Bgqdn. Siyu ndn daksisa!
^de Abba Boqdtti ergati Abbdn Bald. Abbd Bgqdn Uld itti ddmati. Abbdn Bald: nd dabarsi! Gom-
mddd d$din, Gommdn: toU! d$deti dabarsi. Ammandn dufdni Faddti wdlloldni. tlgdu mukd ydbsisiti
e.gdun kun mukdrra liessi: yd Abba Bald! yd Abba Bald! d$tti egdun Gimmdn mukd kdna d1 ildJe.
Ydgga ildlu ndmd tokkiti mukdrra tiessi arge. Mdl abbdkd nd wdmtaf d$di Abbdn Bald. Billdn mdrmd
abbdkieti hd kutu. (5yLi diebisi Abba Bdloti. Ammandn: qottd nd fida! fi$di Gumddd mukd kdna
murd! jj^di. Qottd fiddni, mukd kdna dirdni, $gdu kdna ad§sdni. Ammandn (jimmd itti ka' 6ti dbbd
fdrdd afurtami afur fudati motin (jimmd. Namni (jimmd guddddd. Gumdn kannisd kdna daddabb,
gdfd tdkko lafdrra Gumd fiifi (jimmdn. Ammandn gali baqati Gumd. Abbdn BQqd: namni lamV
ajjfse clddd "ndibbatin ndmd afur Gumdin ajj$si maW d^di sve.ra tumi. Kandn ka 'iti namni tokkiddi
(jimmd ilmd abbd Gumdin kudafuri ad$si, Nagari Batd d^ddni. (jimmd ilmd ndmd guddd, garbiZM miti.
Adami kudafuri afi$si. Kudafuri ad$si gdfd ka' i daqi, moti (jimmd fuldurd: mteka aj^fti, yd gurbdf
(j§nndn: kudafuri Adamin quHd"nag'§sb! d$db. Mdlin biekta dkka Adamitif d$nndn: Oromdn
Gumd ddgnd"ntayidtu! jjq&i. Adamin isldmd dagni tayirida. (j$di, moti Abba Bgqd fuldurdtti fiM
agarsisi. Ammandn kdn bo§ami hundinu gdti kienni. Ammandn motin (jimmd gadi disi. Ammandn
Nagari Batd qord kiennifi dbbd Idfd godi gultaiind ta '£. Gumdif (jimmd Abbdn BQqdfi Abbdn Bald
ammandn ardramani.
Chronicle of the Kingdom of Guma.

I. The Legend of Adam. Adam lived in the woods, lived in the forest of Ebicca Tal6 (1).
In this forest there is a cave. Adam closed the opening to the cave with a stone, milked
the buffaloes, killed the big buffaloes and ate them. Such a man was Adam. When the
Dagoye (2) went out to hunt, they saw Adam. They saw him and fled. " This man is a
wild beast," they thought, and fled. The Dagoye gave a guard to the chief huntsman (3).
The Dagoye said to them, " Spy out what this man does! " The guard stood and waited.
After a while, twenty buffaloes came. Adam rose,; he did not take a lance; he followed
(the buffaloes) unarmed until he caught one; he seized by the haunches a young buffalo
which was quite large. He dragged it to the left and threw it down. Then, taking a knife,
he cut its throat. Then he shouldered this buffalo and went to the cave, which he entered.
He seized that rock which served as a door to the cave with one hand and opened the door.
He entered carrying the buffalo. Although this buffalo was not small, he threw away only
the entrails. He did not even take off the skin; he ate the whole of it except the head and
the horns (4). The guard went back and spoke to the head of the scouts (5). " What did
he do? " the latter asked. " He seized (it) with (unarmed) hands, and cut its throat. He
killed it and threw away nothing but its head and the entrails," the guard related to the
chief of the scouts.
The chief guide entered to speak with King Dagoye. King Dagoye was then Sarboradd6.
He said to the chief guide, " Come, bring hither this guard! " The former called the guard.
Then Sarboradd6 asked, " Young man, is this story true? " " It is true, my lord," he
replied. " If then another sees what thou hast seen, I will give thee a horse. But if this
story is a lie, I will cut thy throat like a sheep's," said Sarboradd6. And so they made an
agreement. Sarboradd6 chose twelve men and gave them to the guard. " Show them
(Adam)!" he said. "Very well," replied the former, and with the twelve men he went
out into the country. These twelve men watched and saw Adam. " O man! O man! "
they shouted and called him. He lifted up his right foot and looked. The man (Adam)
was white (6). " This giant is a wild animal," they thought and were afraid; therefore they
fled. Then they said, " When we return, what shall we tell the king that we have seen? "
and therefore they decided to remain there another day. Thus they waited two days. A
full-grown buffalo came; Adam fell upon this buffalo, seized him, cut his throat and de
voured him. While they were looking at him, he finished (eating) it. " This man will eat
us next! " they said and were afraid. Then they ran far away and there they stopped.
Then, when they had stood still a while, there came a mother buffalo. Adam seized the
buffalo and tore off withes, and bound its haunches together (7). Having bound it, he
took hold of it underneath and milked it. He drank the milk of this buffalo, then freed it
of those withes, and took off the fetters. The buffalo with its little one went away. Then
he (Adam) went toward home and entered his cave. He raised the door of his cave with
one hand, entered, closed the door again, and went to sleep. Then they came and told
Sarboradd6. " The story was true, my lord," they said to Sarb6 (8).
When they said to Sarb6 that the story was true, he said, " I will go and seize Adam."
He gathered together the Dagoye people, descended to that elephant wood, went and saw
him. He stood still in the middle of the wood. " How shall we seize him ? A man who milks
elephants, who seizes buffaloes and eats them up, who will be able to catch him? " he said.
" This stone with which he has closed the doorway, O all my army pull at it! " he said.
They pulled, but they accomplished nothing. " This is not a man; it is Satan," they said.
Then Sarboradd6 gave up the undertaking and went back.
When Sarb6 gave up the undertaking and returned, the young daughter of the Dagoye
said, " I will seize him." " How wilt thou capture him? " they said to her, and they told
Sarb6 that the girl had said, " I will capture him." Then he said, " Bring this girl to me."
Then they brought the girl to Sarb6. " How wilt thou seize him, my daughter?" asked
Sarb6. " Take me, leave me at the door of the house which he enters; give me some
fire, give me food for seven days, give me seven guards. In seven days I will capture him! "
(9) said she. Then Sarboradd6 gave her seven guards for seven days and sent her. The
guards passed the night on a path in the woods; she slept alone. They took the girl then
and placed her at the door of the house. Adam had gone out of the house. When they placed
the girl at the door, Adam came with a young buffalo on his shoulders. He set down the
buffalo. " What odor do I smell? " he said. " It is what is called man, man! " He put
down that buffalo, cut its throat, and ate it. He did not leave even a little piece; he ate
the whole of it. When in the morning he saw that girl, he did not say a word to her; he
passed by her and went away. He went into the wood, seized a buffalo, returned, cut its
throat, and ate it. When he had finished eating, he entered the cave and spent the night
there. The second day he looked at the girl on the ground, seized her, and took away her
virginity. He took this girl and passed the night; the next day he went to the wood. He
could not catch a big buffalo; he took a young one of the buffalo and came back (10).
The second day he ate this buffalo and spent the night; he made her his wife; he had her
enter his house. He had her enter the house and went back to the country. He could not
catch buffaloes, and returned after catching an antelope. He returned and slept with the
girl. The third day he pushed the door, but it did not close as formerly. Then, without
having closed the door, he went to the woods. Then those guards came. He was not at
home; they found the girl alone. " Well, how are things going? " they asked her. " He
passed the night with the door open, because he pushed it but could not close it. Before, he
brought a big buffalo; after one night he brought a little buffalo and an antelope. So come
tomorrow at dawn," she said. Then they came the next morning. He had returned with
a gazelle and had eaten only half of it. He had not been able to eat the other half and thus
he had passed the night. Then they entered to capture him. The guards came at early
dawn and opened the door. They took Adam by surprise. They seized him and returned
with him (to the city) and brought him into the house (of the king) ; they led him to the
king of the Dagoy6 and handed him over to him. Since the king of the Dagoye gave him
a house, Adam took the girl, made her his wife and entered (that house). When his wife
was pregnant, he bought for himself a lance fourteen cubits long. " My name is Abba
Bald," he said (11). Then he took fifteen slaves and said to Sarboradd6, " I will come to
fight with thee." " What can a slave made prisoner in the woods do to me? " said Sarbo-
raddo. Then they came to combat; at the first dawn Adam killed Sarb6. When Sarb6
died, Adam took the gold ring from the finger of Sarb6 (12). The second day Sarb6, the
Dagoye, was buried. " This man is an evil spirit. Since he has taken the gold ring from
the king's finger, let him reign," they said and they let him reign.
II. The Reigns of Adam and Gilda. When he mounted the throne of Giima, the throne
of the Dagoye, thus did Adam rule. Whether Adam was born of the devil or born of human
beings, we do not know. There was no flesh that he did not eat; if he hurled a lance, he
did not miss the mark; if he spoke, he did not err. Then he said to the Giima, " Become
Mussulmen." The Giima were pagans. Adam abolished the festival of the buttd. " This
kingdom is a Mussulman kingdom," he said. So Adam quickly made them become
Mussulmen (13). When he died, his son of the name of Gflca reigned over Giima. Gflca
reigned only over the land of the Dagoy6.
III. The Reign of Ondo. When Gflca died, his son by the name of Onco reigned. Onco
fought against Gimma, Gomma, and Giera. He made an expedition against Hanna; he
made an expedition against the Nonno Gacci. Therefore, he was called abba dUla, i.e.
" father of the expedition " (14). The lance of Adam was called in ancient times Bal6;
the lance of Onco was also called Bal6. His name was therefore Abba Bal6. He married
a girl of Gomma. He desired to eat human flesh and therefore he cut the throats (of men).
But his wife did not wish it and prepared for him dog's meat. " The human flesh is
cooked," she said and gave it to him. " It smells bad! Throw it away! " he said. And
thus (his wife) made him give up human flesh. Then he said, " I have done everything.
There remains for me to swim in hydromel." He had a great trunk hollowed out; he
had it filled full of hydromel. He immersed himself in it and drank (15). This drink
struck him in the chest, killed him.
IV. The Reign of Cawi. When he died, his son by the name of Gaw6 reigned (16) ; the
name of his lance was Abba Bal6 as was the name of his father's lance. He married twenty-
seven women. Abba Boqa, king of Gimma, sent him seven ambassadors. These seven
ambassadors came and entered the house (of the king). (Gawe) secretly had the throat of
an ass cut, had it cooked with butter and salt; and gave it to them (17). These seven men
ate and spent the night. After this when it was morning, six of the men (of the ambassa
dors) he sent to the millstone. The seventh, on the other hand, when they brought him
forth, — his name was Abba Malate (literally, " father of cunning ") — went and sat on
the millstone. He said to the slave, " Bring some water." Abba Bal6 was seated on the
throne and was looking on. (Abba Malate) washed the stone of the millstone with the
water. " Why dost thou wash the millstone? " asked (Abba Bal6). " The people of Giima
are hard, the cereals of Giima are hard. Let us see whether I succeed at least in softening
the millstone by wetting it with water," replied the other. Then, " Have them grind,"
ordered Abba Bal6. Then while they made the millstone revolve quickly, (Abba Malate)
sang:
" 0 wonder of Abba Bald I 0 wonder of Abba Bald !
We did not think of grinding. We thought of hydromel." (18)
When he had spoken thus, (Abba Bal6) ordered, " Rise from that millstone," and he
asked him, "What is thy name?" The former replied, "Abba Malate" (literally, "father
of cunning "). " Then return to thy country, thou and thy cunning," said (Abba Bal6)
and he sent him away. Then they returned to Gimma and told Abba B5qa how the king
of Giima had treated them. " Why hast thou treated my people thus?" Abba Boqa sent
to ask (the king of Giima). Abba Bal6 sent back in reply, " I wish thee to grind, too."
Abba Boqa then declared war on him. Abba Bal6 asked the king of Gomma to let
them pass (through the territory of Gomma). Gomma consented and let him pass. Then
they advanced and drew up in battle line on the Fa$a (19). (The king of Gomma) having
had a scout climb up on a tree, the one on the tree shouted, " O Abba Bal6! O Abba
Bal6!" (Abba Bal6) raised his eyes toward that tree. When he looked and saw that man
who was on the tree, he said, " Why do you call me my father? " The other replied,
" May the sword cut off the neck of thy father." Then Abba Bal6 said to the men of Giima,
" Bring me an axe, and cut down this tree." They brought an axe, cut down the tree, and
thus killed that scout (20). Then Gimma moved forward. The king of Gfmma had with
him forty-four horsemen (21). The people of Gfmma were numerous. The men of Guma
could do nothing against that swarm of bees; in one day the army of Gimma destroyed
the people of Giima, the army of Guma. Then the Guma returned fleeing (to their own
country).
Abba Boqa made a law which said, " The warrior who has killed only two enemies may
not anoint himself with butter (22) ; instead it shall be one who has killed four of the people
of Guma." Then a man of Gfmma, of a good family (23), killed fourteen of the Giima.
When he went away after having killed fourteen of the Guma, the king of Gfmma himself
having asked him, " How many have you killed, young man? " he replied, " I have killed
and have taken the genitals of fourteen princes of the Adamites." And the king having
asked him, "How do you know that they are Adamites?" he replied, "The pagans of Guma
are not circumcised. The Adamites, on the other hand, being Mussulmen, are circumcised
(24). He brought (the trophies) into the presence of King Abba Boqa and showed them to
him. Then all the prisoners paid the ransom, and then the king of Gfmma let them go.
Then he gave the government of a district to Nagarf Bat6, made him a property owner,
and he became a vassal. Giima and Gfmma, Abba Boqa and Abba Bal6 then made peace.
Summary of the last passage of the chronicle. (See Introduction, pages 148-149.) The
chronicle continues narrating a war which broke out shortly after between Guma and the
Lieqa Bill6. Garbf Gil6, chief of the Lieqa B1116, cuts a plant of makannisa (croton macros-
tachys) and binds it to an olive branch. He calls together the assembly of the Lieqa Bill6
and says he wishes to send the two branches bound together to Gawe Onco, declaring to
him that he (Gawe) is the makannisa (a plant despised among the Galla, used as a remedy
for venereal diseases), while he (Garbf Gil6) is the ever green olive. The deputation having
been sent, Gawe and Garbl prepare for war. Garbi Gil6 is advised by his son, Nagau Garbf,
to avoid a face to face battle with the army of Giima which is more numerous in cavalry ; and
instead, to have the army pass through the territory of the neighboring kingdom of Gomma,
so as to attack the army of Giima from the rear. Garbf Gil6 accepts the advice, calls to
his aid Gfmma Argo, Gfmma Gudaya, K6kku, the Lieqa Sibu, the Lieqa Naqamte, and the
Lieqa Horda. Gawe is occupied with these preparations; but nevertheless he sends this
word to Garbf Gil6: "You will enter Guma, to be sure, but fastened to the tail of my
horse." The contingents of the Lieqa Sibu and of the Lieqa Horda arrive to help Garbf Gil6.
The latter having crossed the Lfmmu territory without a struggle attack the kingdom
of G6mma. In a single day G6mma is defeated and the Lieqa arrive at the Fa$a. Their
vanguard crosses the river. The royal enclosure of Gomma is taken by the Lieqa and the
king's women are made prisoners; the king of G6mma escapes into the kingdom of Giera.
The army of Guma hastens to the Fa$a; it arrives there on a Thursday evening. Gawe
On6o says to wait for the dawn before beginning battle, because he is not a hyena that
fights by night. The next day, Friday, the Mussulmen of the Guma army offer their
morning prayer. Garbf Gil6 sends a messenger to Gawe" Onco to inquire of him ironically
if before joining battle, he must also wait for the Guma Mussulmen to take their coffee.
Meanwhile a column of Lieqa cavalry has crossed the Fa$a unexpectedly and having
crossed the Giima frontier is devastating the country in the rear of the hostile army.
Messengers arrive for Gawe Onco who tell him this. Gaw6, preoccupied, does not give
battle that day. The day after, Saturday, the devastations in Giima continue. Gawe on
the other hand gives battle and is vanquished. His defeated army is scattered in flight.
Garbi Gil6 returns victorious to Bill6: " I have gained my end! Instead of the five Lieqa
having been taken, the Giima have been taken! Instead of the sons of Lieqa having been
made prisoner, the sons of Giima have been taken prisoner! Instead of the vulture descend
ing upon my land, the vulture has descended upon the land of Giima, and has ravaged the
possessions of Guma! I have gained my end! "
Here my account is interrupted.
Notes
(1). Ebicca Tal6 is a wooded region between Giima and the N6nno Gaccf. Guma took
it from Ilu Abba B6ra in ancient times. Recently a king of Giima (perhaps Abba Gubir)
gave this land to Burni Biera to govern. The latter, however, made himself independent
of the kingdom of Giima.
(2). This was the reigning dynasty in Guma before the Adamites.
(3). Literally, abba aid means "master of the country." It was the title held by the
head and organizer of the royal hunts.
(4). Therefore, the Giima nobility, like the head of the ruling dynasty, eat neither the
head nor the intestines of butchered animals. The rule has its origin in the beliefs of Kush-
ite paganism, which are also prevalent among the Somali.
(5). Abba mild (literally, "master of the legs") was the head of the guides and the
scouts.
(6). The idea of the descent of certain royal Galla and Sidama dynasties from the
Portuguese is widespread (see song 15, notes). Perhaps saying that Adam was a white
man points to similar ideas existing in Guma.
(7). It is a Galla custom to tie the hind hoofs of animals to be milked with fetters of
withes. Compare song 33, notes, and song 126, notes.
(8). Sarb6 is the name Sarboradda, shortened according to the Galla custom.
(9). Notice the repetition of the number 7.
(10). As may be seen, by degrees as Adam draws near to the Dagoye girl, he loses part
of his gigantic strength, and, therefore, the results of his hunting become more insignificant.
(11). The custom prevails among the Galla of assuming as a battle name the name
given to the warrior's own lance. Here Adam has himself called Abba Bal6, even as Fita-
wrari Sorf had for a war-name Abba Gambar (Gambar was his lance). See song 55.
(12) The gold ring was the symbol of royalty in Giima as in the other Galla kingdoms
beyond the Gibfe. Cf. Massaja, op. cit., vol. 6, p. 6-14.
(13). Compare, however, note 24.
(14). The other kings of Giima, also, up to the last one, Abba Foggf, had the title of
abba dtiM.
(15). I do not understand the word dankdtti, which is here found in the text.
(16). Gawe, that is, "python." The name is common among the Galla as a proper
name either of a person or a tribe, certainly chosen in order to invoke favor for the person
or the tribe, the serpent in the pagan religion of the Kushites being considered as the in
carnation of a divinity. Cf. Conti Rossini, 'Note sugli Agau ' and my unpublished works
on the Walamo and the K6m5.
(17). Cf. Guidi, ' Strofe e brevi testi Amarici,' op. cit., p. 17.
(18). That is, as Guidi correctly interpreted, " we ambassadors expected to be received
with honors, and not to be obliged to grind corn." I prefer to translate dakii as a verbal
noun from the root dak, " to grind," rather than as the noun, " flour."
(19). The river Fa$a between G6mma and Gimma.
(20). That is, the scout had imprudently leaned forward; he was surrounded by the
men of Giima. Nevertheless he had the audacity to insult the father of Gawe.
(21). As may be seen, the wars of the Galla reigns resemble in regard to the small
number of combatants the usual skirmishes of the Bedouins.
(22). Compare song 34.
(23). Literally, "father's son." See song 23, notes.
(24). Compare note 13 and the historical remarks at the end.
Historical Observations. It is worth while to compare the chronicle here published and
translated, with the sources hitherto known of the history of Giima. There are three pieces
of information received from natives and published by D'Abbadie 1; a genealogy of the
kings of Guma, with anecdotes about some of the kings, published by Cecchi2; the part
concerning Giima of the very short Storia dei loro regni (of the Map), taken from a manu
script compendium of Abyssinian history, published and translated by Guidi.3
The origin of the reigning dynasty of Giima from Adam, the man of the woods, gives
rise to an interesting legend in the chronicle which I have gathered. But Loransiyos
himself pointed out to me that there were in Guma some who, contrary to the version of
the chronicle, maintained the descent of the Adamites from a Mussulman merchant who
came from Tigre. This second legend is related by itself in the notes of Cecchi and in
the Storia of Guidi. The Giima, according to what Loransiyos tells me, link with the
first legend the kind treatment which the Watta traditionally received from the king of
Giima. However, it is certain that in order to be included in the oral chronicle, the legend
must not appear uncomplimentary to the reigning dynasty. I think that the second
legend, that of the descent of the Adamites from a Mussulman merchant, is more recent, and
was created on purpose to " Islamize," so to speak, the origin of the dynasty. It is useful
to make comparison with the genealogical legends of the reigning dynasties of the other
Galla Mussulman kingdoms; for example, the legend which claims that the Awallini
(auallini is a misprint in Cecchi) reigning at Gomma are descended from a sheik who came
1 Antoine d' Abbadie, Geographie d' fithiopie, Paris, 1890. * Op. cit., vol. 2, p. 541.
' Mitteilungen des Seminars filr Orientalis Sprachen, vol. 10, pt. 2, p. 15-18.
from Mogadiscio,1 while, according to the Sioria of Guidi, the dynasty was descended from
a Mussulman merchant who came from Goggam.
Another element, though a secondary one, of the legend contained in the chronicle
is the justification of the prohibition of eating the head and the entrails of slaughtered
animals. (See note 4). Was the Galla who furnished information to D'Abbadie referring
vaguely to the legend of Adam, the man of the woods, when he said,2 " The flocks of the
king of Guma pasture in Atarkada with the elephants and buffaloes; the shepherds do not
take women there " ?
The references contained in the chronicle to the kingdom of Guma before the Adamites,
seem to me important. Even if we regard as later additions the remarks as to court offices,
— the same in the reign before Adam as under recent Galla rulers, — the legend certainly
points clearly to the existence in Guma of a monarchy, even before the Adamites. This
would carry back farther than seems possible the date when the people of Guma passed
from tribal organization to a monarchic kingdom. The war-name of the first king of the
new dynasty, Abba Bal6, (a name which afterwards, as the chronicle itself relates, was
adopted as a war-name also by Onco Gflca and by Gawe Onco), appears likewise in Guidf
and Cecchi, giving occasion for some mistakes, of which I will speak later. The Islamizing
of Guma ordered and carried out by Adam is in contradiction of what the chronicle itself
says, when in regard to the trophies of war brought back by Nagari Bat6 from the battle
against the Giima, it makes the distinction between the Mussulman Adamites and the pagan
peoples of Guma. This shows how in Giima, as in the other Galla kingdoms, the Mussulman
propaganda was cleverly carried on to gain to its own cause the reigning dynasty through
which, later, the people might be influenced. Let it be observed that, according to the
chronicle, the first act of the Mussulman king, Adam was to abolish the festival of the buttd.
According to the chronicle, the kings of Guma of the dynasty of Adam would be: 1
Adam, 2 Gflca, his son, 3 Onco Gflca, son of the preceding, 4 Gawe Onco, son of the pre
ceding, to whom succeeded 6 Abba Gubtr, son of the preceding, 7 Abba Foggf, brother
of the preceding. D'Abbadie writes 3: " Guma obeys Abba Gflca, whose oldest son is
Abba Remo and the younger, Abba Gobar." Now the Abba Gflca of D'Abbadie can only
be Gaw6 Onco, father of Abba Gubir (the Galla custom of having oneself called by the
name of one's most celebrated ancestor is well-known) ; and, on the other hand, even if it
were correct that Abba Gubir was not the first born but the younger son of Gawe Onco,
the name of the first born, whom D'Abbadie calls Abba Remo, is incorrect. The first son
of Gawe Onco was called Abba Digga, and from my texts the reasons are clear why he did
not succeed his father (see song 23).
Cecchi gives the list: 1 Adam, 2 Dale Abba Balo, 3 Ciolle, Abba Boca, son of Abba
Balo, 4 Abba Rago Hadi, son of Abba Boca, 5 Nagesso Abba Gilcia, son of Abba Rago
1 Cecchi, op. cit., vol. 2, p. 239. * Ibid., p. 21.
! Op. cit., p. 114.
Hadf, 6 Abb5, 7 Abba Gilcia, son of Abbo, 8 Abba Dulla, 9 Abba Giubir, son of Abba
Dulla.1 First of all one must notice that these genealogies of the Galla dynasties given by
Cecchi are, in general, not without inaccuracies, due especially to the slight knowledge of
the Galla language on the part of whoever gathered the information. Mistakes are not
lacking, especially in the part which refers to the more ancient period of the history of
these reigns: for example, in the case of the kingdoms of Gfmma and Giera, Cecchi mixes
the genealogy of the Ma$$a Galla with that of the ruling dynasty, making an error
afterwards in relating the genealogy of the tribes, which he confuses, thus causing to figure
among the ancestors of the Giera dynasty a " Guraghe " 2 (Gurage), not a person but the
well-known Semitic population of southern Ethiopia. At other times, Cecchi, so I am as
sured by Loransiyos, to whom I have read the genealogies, has confused the names of kings
with the names of dignitaries of the court or vassals. In this list of kings of Guma, there
figures, for example, Dale Abba Balo. But is Dale a proper name? I do not know of
such a name among the Galla. Or is not rather this king of Cecchi's a phrase, dale Abbd
Bald, that is, "Abba Balo begot? " 3 The two rulers that follow are not known to Loran
siyos, who thinks they are two warriors, and, certainly, they could not have been forgotten
by him in reciting the chronicle, in which the names of the kings are each of them followed
by the name of the father. The fifth king in Cecchi's list might be Gilca or some of his
successors designated by his name; but Nagesso (Nafiisso) is not a Galla name, and an
other Abba Gilcia reappears as seventh ruler in Cecchi's list. The sixth king of Cecchi,
Abbo, whose cruelties are narrated, might correspond to Onco of the chronicle. But is
Abbo an abbreviated form of Abba Bal6? I do not know that the Galla abbreviate the
war-names; in boasting of warlike deeds, it is customary, on the contrary, to abbreviate
only the personal name and have it followed by the war-name in full. Abb6, moreover, is
the name under which the Galla venerate the saint, Gabra Manfas Qeddus. The eighth
king of Cecchi's list, Abba Dulla, is not a king but the title that all the kings of Guma
bore. The title of Abba Duld, according to the constitution of the Galla tribe, was given
to the distinguished man who was chosen to command the army; when the change was
made from the republican to the monarchical regime, these offices of the tribes were in
general retained. Loransiyos tells me that at Gfmma, even the Abba BokM were elected.
The king, however, had absolute power, so that practically the republican offices were a
decoration without political value. The kings of Guma had reserved for themselves the
title of Abba DUla, head of the army, imperator.
The Storia dei Met$a translated by Guidi gives Adam as the first king and cites among
his descendants, Abba Balo, whose cruelties he narrates. Of these accounts, two corre
spond to similar accounts of the chronicle; but of them, the first (swimming in hydromel)
1 Op. cit., p. 541-542. • Op. oit., p. 266.
* In the same way Cecchi, (ibid.), speaks of the daughter of Raja, who " married Maccia Raco Calle." Now the
name of the husband is doubtless Mafffi, the ancestor of the tribes of similar name, and Maccia Racd Calle is not a
name, but signifies " Ma{$a married," literally, " Ma{fa made the sacrifice " of the rdko (see song 118).
is attributed by the chronicle to Onco Gilca and the second, on the other hand (forcing
the ambassadors to grind corn), is attributed to Gawe Onco. The mistake of the Amharic
historian is clear when he confounds Onco and Gawe under their common war name,
Abba Bal6. Loransiyos knows the account of the treacherous slaying of Tullu Gangf, king
of Giera, carried out by Onco Gilca, a tale which appears in the Storia dei MeiZa. He cor
rects the distich incorrectly related by the Amharic writer of the History thus:
malli Abbd Bald gard ktessa fiird
matd Tullu Garuji kard gubbd §ird
1 The cunning of Abba Bal6 is in his mind.1 2 The head of Tullu Gangf is on the road.
As to the name Azza Balo Kadana,2 Guidi thinks it probable that Azza Bdlo is a slip
for dzangito: in that case, in my opinion, kadana should be read kaddd-nnd, and the phrase
would mean azangilo kaddd-nnd, " unexpectedly betrayed." La Storia dei Meiffia then
concludes: " After him (Abba Bal6) his son Onco reigned and at present he is the king of
Guma, Gilca Abba Balo Onco Gilca Abba Dula." In reality (observe that the manuscript
of the Storia is extremely inaccurate), the last names are names of two kings and not of
one alone: Gilca (personal name), Abba Bal6 (war name); Onco (personal name), Gflca
(name of the father), Abba Dula (title). However, the chronicle is confirmed by these
names.
Since in the chronicle the duration of the reign of each king is not indicated, the chronol
ogy of the events related in it remains doubtful. Some indication in regard to the more recent
part, however, may be secured from other sources; first of all from D'Abbadie.3 When
compared with what I have said above, one makes out that in 1841 Gawe Onco was ruling
in Guma. This makes one think that the king of Guma, who in the Storia dei Me66d is
called Onco and is said to be " at present reigning," is in reality Gaw6 Onco (according to
the usual custom of the name of the father being borne also by the son), because the Storia
dei Me66d is a chapter of an unedited compendium of Abyssinian history which goes as far
as the first years of the reign of Theodore II, who ascended the throne in 1852. Then,
from Cecchi,4 one secures the precise date of the death of Gaw6 Onco (called by Cecchi
Abba Dulla, father of Abba Giubir or Abba Giubri), which took place June 26, 1879. As
it is a case of events taking place under his eyes (the mourning of the court of Giera at the
news of the death), Cecchi is a sure source. On the other hand, the date for the accession
to the throne of the father of Abba Gubir (1854), 5 which Cecchi himself suggests, from
information which he had gathered, is surely erroneous. We have seen how in 1841,
D'Abbadie gathered the information that at Guma there reigned " the father of Abba
Gubir." Not even the date of the end of the kingdom of Guma can be fixed exactly. The
last king, Abba Foggf, had a very short reign (about two years, according to Loransiyos).
1 Cf. Song 17, n. 4 Op. cit., vol. 2, p. 417.
* Storia dei M§<tfa, op. cit., p. 181, 1. 17. • Ibid., p. 542.
» Op. cit., p. 21.
It can only be said that in October, 1886, the dafig&Z (then rds) Tasamma was fighting
against the Guma without, however, having as yet subdued them.1
Summing up, we have, according to the most reliable information:
Adam
J
Gflca
Onco Gilca
Gaw6 Onco (ruling in 1841; died in June, 1879)
Abba Digga Abba Gubir Abba, Foggf (last king)

(ascended the |
throne in 1879) | | | |
Wayessa, Imama Firrisa Alima
(rebel in 1900) (wife of
Ras Tasamma)
2.
The Holy War of Hasan Ingamo.
Hdsan Inddmo moti Hadiyd turi,isldmd turi. Dura Sulu wdg'jjin wdlqabi, Banti Mannd mob,
Oromd "mma baUiesse aSaddisi. Sulu hunduma isldmd godi, Tuldma Sdddo isldmd gode. Wdgga afur
to 'b, bddd nigufni Amdrd rds Gobandn, fitowrdri Garadd, BaSd"boyi: isldmd kandtti ddqa! d^di ergi.
Dufdnl ti$ddni gdfd Hasanitti himdni: namdsa dadcasi, ofisa $6 gati, guradiesa gulld harkdtti qabati.
(j&din kummi guradie tdkko qdbdu maU, §bd "nqdbda. Hindarbdnnu! d^tti tobdtd kienniti. Gimmdta
ganamd qabiti, dibbi rds Goband fiti, ndmd rds Gdband fitfe jjddtn. Galgald ydgga gau, rds Goband qabi
Soddd baqati Olisdtti gale; Gddtn W&lisdtti hingalu, kard bulti. Qiddmie ganamd wdl qabdni. Lamaffdn
Amarri dumi; rds Goband baqati Sodtti diebii. Hasdn Injjdmo ydgga qiddmie galgald: garbicdd abbdkd!
6%d£ fakkari. Md garbiddd abbdkd §etti, ati garbicdd rabbitti maU! $ga kafdrto! jj$di ilmisa. Astofur
alW diebisi. Dugumd d$tti, yd"lmdkd! d$di. Ammandn biyd qabdni. (jimmdtti ergi: jjddi nd wd#jjin
bai! jj^di Abbd Gifdrin. Abbdn Gifdr gddi miti dalasdn biydk6"njjiru! §^di. Ammandn w&ggd afur
mob. Wdggd tokkiddd kiessa Goband saditti diebii, namnisa dumi. Ammandn afurltti diebii. Fito
wrdri Hdftd Giydrgis: qamUi ndtCuwisi Qabiendtti! d^di. Hdsan Inddmo ndn I6Ia; ilmd lagd lagdtu
bieka! g'^di. Fitawrdri Hdfta Giydrgis ilmd W&lisdti qamtH Wdlisdtti uffati. Kandn itti bu 'i. Boqilb
dibbd kienndni. Gdfd Fitawrdri Hdftd Giydrgis Wdlisdtti Somdmu dura-barambdrdsi turi—Gdlld Wdlisd
Sulu Cabbd hunduma Hdfta Giydrgis wdrri fdrdd itti dufi: si wdddin dirrd! d$di. Tulamd Sodddtti
qabi jjddi lafdrra fHadci. Gadt lafdrra fifiti, Qabiendtti gale. Qabiend jjlya dda manddrd iddre irra to 'i.
Nigufni bdda Sodtti wdmd. Gdfd Sodtti wdmu, Hasandn dkka gand dubbi kdsi biyd Ambati, to 'i.
Fitawrdri Hdftd Giydrgis Urdgietti gdfd diebiu, ammandn §dd&n ka 'i, I6ld itti goddni. Sulu Banti
Mannt rds Goband fitowrdri d$di qamlSitti uwisi. Sid lamdffd diebii daqu rds Gobanni Hadiyd lafdrra
fiti dddt balliesse. Ammandn dufi Qabiendtti gate. Hdsan lafd fiti"mmo wdqd lili namni"mbieku
kandn bade". Hasdn Inddmo e.ssdtti baqatef d^ddni. (hmmd"bbd Gifdr itti baqati. Abbdn Gifdr
1 Borelli, fithiopie m^ridionale, op. cit., p. 150.
isldmddd. Isldmd kdna massi'erasdtti irra tiessi riaddisd buUd! g'$ddni Gobandn himdni. Nigufni
Amdrd Abba Gifdr Sodtti wdmi: Hasdn nd fidi! fi$di. Hasanin firridd. Q6dd ki'essa ndn kai sittl
fidat Ammd nigusdtti dubbandn: atu wd kalite! §$di nigufni Minilik. Daqi safdraktedd! g$di. Yog-
gd"nni bad, baJbaldtti qabsisi, Arikobdrritti ddbarsisi. Abbdn Gifdr Ankobdr §%d §dd hidami ammandn
Gor6 Nabt Bat6 Sodtti dufi, gibiri nigusd Jidi. Ati nigusd mdlittif fi&li. Nigusummd"nqdbdu, atl
Siftddd. Wdmbadik dkka kietiti. Abbdn Gifdr ydm Goband Dan(i la 'i, ydn buddtend dirgpSd mandkietti
Mte? Nigusd"nturri Abba Gifdrf Guyd si kienne. Gttririkfe fuddti, ndti! Hasdn yd mdnd"bbd Gifdr
itti gaU, yd Hasdn biya Gimmd kiessattârgdni, ani mormdkd si kfenna! d$di ftiawrdri Gor6 Nabt.
Ammandn nigufni: dugddd! fi$di. Goftdkte ndn hikd! g'yte. Kandn galM Gordn. Ammandn nigufni
Minilik Abba Gifdr hiki. Akkdna ta 'i.
Hasan Ingamo was king of the Hadiya; he was a Mussulman (1). First he had a con
test with the Sulu; he conquered Bantf Manne (2). Then he exterminated the pagans
and converted them. He made all the Sulii Mussulmen. He made the Tulama S6ddo
Mussulmen. After four years the king of the Amara sent against this Mussulman Ras
Gobana; Fitawrari Garad6 (3), and Basah Abuy6 (4). When Hasan was warned of the
coming of the latter, he gathered together his people, threw away his lance, and took in
hand his drawn sword. The thousand soldiers of the holy war then armed themselves with
the sword only and not with the lance, and they swore not to hurl lances (5), (6). One
Friday morning he joined battle, destroyed the subchiefs (literally, the drums) of Ras
Gobana; the soldiers of the holy war exterminated the people of Ras Gobana. When
evening came, Ras Gobana decided to escape to the Soddo, and withdrew to Walis6 (7).
The soldiers of the holy war did not enter Walis6; they spent the night on the street.
Saturday morning they went to battle. For the second time the Amara perished. Ras
Gobana fled, and reentered Shoa. Hasan Ingamo on Saturday evening made his war boast,
saying, " Slave of my father (I am)." His son then said to him, " Why hast thou said,
' slave of my father ' ? Thou art rather only the slave of the Lord. Therefore thou hast
said a thing contrary to religion." (Arabic in the text, kafarta.) " I ask pardon for it of
Allah. (Arabic in the text, astagfir Alldh.) Thou hast spoken truly, my son," replied
Hasan (8). Then they occupied the region. He sent a messenger to Gfmma, saying to Abba
(jlifar, " Come to the holy war with me." Abba Gifar answered him, " I am not a soldier
of holy wars and in my country there are no zawaya (9).
Then Hasan reigned four more years. In one of these years Gobana returned for the
third time, but his people perished; then he came back for the fourth time. Then said the
fitawrari, Habta Giyorgis (10), " Give me the command of Qabfena (11). I will fight with
Hasan Ingamo. The river knows the dwellers on its banks " (12). The fitawrari, Habta
Giyorgis, native of Walis6, had command of Walis6 (7). And so he descended thither.
They gave him a hundred guns (13). When the fitdwrari, Habta Giyorgis, was placed at the
head of the Walis6, before he was bdldmbaras, the Galla of Walis6, of Sulu, of Cab6, all
the horsemen came to Habta Giyorgis and said, " We will be with thee." He then went
to the Tulama S6dd5 and wholly destroyed the soldiers of the holy war. He utterly
destroyed the soldiers of the holy war and entered Qabiena. He built a residence for himself
at Qabiena and remained there six months. Then the emperor called him to Shoa. When
he called him to Shoa, Hasan resumed the war and stopped in the region of Ambate (14).
When Fitawrari Habta Giyorgis returned among the Guragie (15), the soldiers of the holy
war began to fight with him. Then Ras Gobana named as fitawrari the head of the
Sums, Bantf Manne, and gave him command. For the fifth time Ras Gobana returned and
exterminated the Hadiya, destroyed the soldiers of the holy war. Then he advanced and
entered Qabiena. Whether Hasan Ingam5 sank into the earth or rose to heaven, no one
knows; he disappeared. " Whither has Hasan Ingamo fled? " said the Amara. " He must
have fled to Gfmma, (to) Abba Gifar. Abba Gifar is a Mussulman. He has hidden this
other Mussulman in his royal enclosure and maintains and lodges him." This they thought
and said to Gobana. Then the negus of the Amara called Abba Gifar to Shoa, ordering him,
" Bring me Hasan." And Abba Gifar said to the negus, " What? Is Hasan perhaps a
sum of money that I can place him in a sack and bring him to thee (16)? " "Thou goest in
search of trouble," Negus Menilek answered him, "Go to thy encampment!" And
when Abba Gifar went out, he (Menilek) had him arrested at the door and exiled him to
Ankobar. Abba Gifar remained a prisoner in Ankobar for six months. At last, Gor6 Nabi
Bat6 came to Shoa to bring tribute to the negus and said, " Of whom art thou negus?
Thou hast not the qualities of a negus; thou art a brigand. Robbers do as thou doest.
Perhaps Abba Gifar is like Gobana Dan$f? Perhaps he has eaten dry bread in thy house?
Was not Abba Gifar a negus? (God) has given thee good fortune; take for thyself the
tribute and eat. If Hasan has entered the house of Abba Gifar, if they find Hasan in the
land of Gfmma, I will give thee my neck," said the fitawrari, Gor6 Nabi. Then the negus
said, " Thou art right. I will free thy master (17)." Then Gord returned. Then the negus
Menilek set free Abba Gifar. Thus it was.
Notes
(1.) See song 43.
(2.) Bantf Manne was head of the Sulii Manne. See song 44, notes.
(3.) Fitawrari, Garad6 Waldie, officer of Ras Gobana. See song 47.
(4.) Daggac Basah, son of Abuy6, and therefore brother of Ras Walda Giyorgis. He
died at Adua. Cf. Cerulli, ' Canti popolari Amarici,' op. cit., p. 573.
(5.) The lance being the noble weapon of the pagans, Hasan swears not to use it in
the Mussulman holy war.
(6.) In the figurative sense, for which see song 27, v. 69-78, notes.
(7.) Waliso or Oliso in southwestern Shoa.
(8.) For a similar anecdote, see song 24, notes.
(9.) This reply of Abba Gifar, a Mussulman sovereign, to another Mussulman chief
who asked help against the infidels is noteworthy. Evidently Abba Gifar feared the Am-
haric armies. For the Galla name of the zawaya, see song 24, notes.
(10.) Fitawrari Habta Giyorgis, the present minister of war, was then under the orders
of Ras Gobana. See song 42.
(11.) Qabfena was the capital of Hasan's petty state.
(12.) This is a Galla proverb similar in sense to proverb 31 in this article. Iima lagd,
" son of the river " is used in Galla in the sense of river-dweller. Thus the plural Wdrra
lagd, " the sons of the river," is equivalent to river-dwellers, whence the name Wallagd,
i.e., wdr-lagd.1
(13.) The gun called " boqlUfe " was an old type of gun used in Abyssinia before the
Gras.
(14.) Ambate, a locality near Qabfena.
(15.) That is, toward Qabiena, bordering on the Guragfe.
(16.) Notice the pride of this reply of Abba Gifar, and also of the following words of
Gor6 to the Emperor Menilek.
(17.) The release of Abba Gifar following the far from respectful speech of Gor6
Nabi Bat6 to the Emperor is an additional proof of the kindly policy pursued by Menilek
toward the Galla during his entire reign.2
3.
The death of Captain Bottego.3
Farandi tdkko gibtdnd kdn d$ddmu biyd Siddmd bfessa bai. Ldfd Sdnqilld gubbd'dditi, Affi.116 Gar-
Ui"mbae". Moti Abbd Gimbi dabarsi, Qiellemitti erge. 6bo(jot&n: kiessumd nigusdti! §#li, ndtd kien-
nio, gati kienni: buldi! d$di. Bdda: 4ga kdrd kdna"mbaa! fiyte. Gabdtu gubbd Wakd$o"nqdbi,
Btni Bangui dn daqd! wdu hinddqtu! d&M daggdc Goti. Nigufnl biyakiena fiird. Ani nigiisa qabd,
nigusdtt"dn si trga maU,fiqddd kdna"nqdbdu and! hinni d^nndn, farandin suni qufi du' a barbdda.
Ega giddi8 yd ta 'i, nigufnl biydkd maU nigusd sari gurrdddd"mbieku and. jQga nigusd sdna"mbiegne,
b&r ddmd batitti nd $gi! (jdma batl nd fail Ydgga d$du: giddi"nqabu, ndn si 4ga! fi$dd diebisi Got&n.
Ammandn fitawrdri ASand: farandi kuni namnisa tinnddd! d$<M. Du 'a barbdda maU, mdl Idlaf Hd
du 'u maU, mdl gdna f Farandi kuni tumtudd bdr $amdtti wdl loldnna; Idk in hdrra kiessumd nigusdti
gibiri kiennina! fi$di ASandn. 6ga holdtd gadi yasi, buddfend qolomSdM kiesse", dadi gombd kiessi,
faranditti ergi. Farandi kuni Tullu Sayd kdn d$ddmtu namdsa safarsisera. Ydgga ergd>ntu 6bd Goti
safdrd faranditti dufu, farandi kuni qolomsdsi fudeti ldfd gati, gombd fudi dabsi. B&r 6dmdtti wdl
loldnna! d$di mardti. £ga buldni. Ydgga ganamd barite; fitdwrdri ASand salfi godi. Ydgga"nni
dufu, farandi aSkdrdnisa tasallafti, qawi tokkosu qabdi. Ammandn: algla! d&M. ASkardnni gdfd
rukuttu, namni 6bd Goti: yd tisisa fardndi, malif duftaf d$ddni. ASkardnni farandi kukkufti. Abba
Gadddn Abba Qalld kan d$ddmu farandi kuffisi, gdfd hinni gudddn kufu, ^ga farandi hafti hdrkd qabdni,
walitti"ddni dkka ddbbi Soatti erge.
1 Cf. Reinisch, Die Kaffa Sprache, op. cit., vol. 2, p. 21.
* Cf. Cerulli, ' L' islam nei regni galla independents,' op. cit., p. 117.
* The translation and notes of this text have already been published. Cf. E. Cerulli, ' La seconde spedizione
Bottego,' (L'Africa Italiana, Naples, 1917, vol. 36, p. 25-28).
A European by the name of Gibtana, (1) went forth from the land of the Sidama (2).
He crossed the land of the ânqilla and went forth among the Affill6 Gare" (3). The king
[of the Affill6], Abba Gimbf, let him pass and sent him to Qiellem. The lord Gote said,
" This is a guest of the negus," and he gave him food and made him the gifts of hospitality
and invited him to stay there. Afterwards, however, said [the European], " I will not go
away by this road (4). Passing above the territory of the Gabatu (5), and taking the road
of the Wak6so (6), I will go among the Beni Sangul (7)." The lord Gote" said, " No, thou
wilt not go there. There is a negus in our country. I have my negus and I will send thee
to him because I have not this power (to let thee pass by the road of the Wakoso). Then
the European grew proud and sought death. He said, " Even if it is to be by force
(my being sent back to the negus), I obey the negus of my country; I do not acknowledge
the negus of the black dogs. And since I do not acknowledge this negus, tomorrow at the
beginning of dawn, await me." When he had said, " Tomorrow at the beginning of dawn,
await me " (8), Gote1 replied, " Very well. I will await thee." Then the fitawrari, Asana
said (9), " This European has few soldiers. He is seeking death, but what resistance can
he offer us? Let him die, then. What can we do? This European is a blacksmith (10).
Tomorrow at dawn we will fight, but today, since he is a guest of the negus, let us give
him the gifts of hospitality." Therefore he had sheep brought, had bread put in a basket,
some hydromel in a jug, and sent them to the European. The European had had his men
camp on the (hill) called Tullu Saya (hill of the cow) (11). When the messenger of the lord
Gote1 came to the camp of the European, this European took the basket and cast it upon
the ground, took the jug and broke it. " Tomorrow at dawn we will fight," he said and
grew angry. Then they passed the night. When the dawn broke, Fitawrari Asana drew
up his men in battle array. When he came, the Italian (colonial) troops of the European
drew up in line of battle and began to discharge their guns. Then, " Forward! " said
(Asana). When the troops fired their guns, the people of the lord Gote said, " O flies of
the European, why do you discharge farts? " The troops of the European fell in great
numbers. The shieldbearer, Abba Calla (12) slew the European. When the chief fell, then
the Europeans who remained were seized. They bound them like calves and sent them to
Shoa.
Notes
(1.) Gibtana, that is, " captain." The Galla heard his troops give this title to Bottego
and thought that it was his name.
(2.) As is known, Bottego came from the southern region of Ethiopia inhabited by the
Sidama.
(3.) The Affill6, river-dwellers of Saint-Bon (see song 21, notes).
(4.) That is, by the usual way of Qiell6m-Shoa.
(5.) Gabdtu is a region situated between Gambela and the Lieqa Qiell6m.
(6.) The Wakoso live near the Galal, to the north of Gab&tu, two days' caravan trip
from the country of the Sibu Gantf.
(7.) Such was precisely the plan of Bottego: to return by way of the Sudan.
(8.) Bottego in saying, " Wait for me tomorrow at the beginning of dawn " (according
to this Galla version), gives the challenge with absolute observance of the Galla customs
involved.
(9.) Asana, brother of Gote. See song 49, notes.
(10.) It is to be remembered that among the Galla, blacksmiths are low caste people.
(11.) Vannutelli and Citerni call it " Hill of Slaughter." >
(12.) In the account of Vannutelli and Citerni, an Abba Calla, brother of Gote is
mentioned.2
II. Texts on Ethnological Subjects
4.
The rites of initiation.
The text which follows was obtained from Loransiyos during the last days of his stay
in Naples before his sudden departure; therefore, certain points in it are not clear to
me. But the importance of the information which it contains induces me to publish it,
nevertheless, hoping that when it has once been given to the public, others, if not I myself,
may obtain from natives the necessary explanations. I have placed here at the beginning
some information received from Loransiyos in explanation of the text. The gddd system
is not simple, but it seems to have been especially maltreated by European ethnologists.
At many points, Loransiyos's information and my own opinion differ widely from the
statements of other writers. A bibliography of the chief references to the gddd follows this
introduction.
Every Galla tribe is divided into ten groups called in Galla gddd. Each gddd is made up
of all the males belonging to the tribe who are to be initiated, at the same time. By exten
sion of meaning, the period of eight years during which the Abba Bokkti belonging to a
given gddd governs is also called gddd and is distinguished by the name of the gddd that is
governing. Thus Gddd B stands for group B of those to be initiated, as well as the period
in which the Abba Bokkti is elected from among the members of this group. The men
belonging to the tribe must, before arriving at complete attainment of the rights of nobility,
pass through a period of initiation with special rites. Such an initiation is not undergone
by single individuals, but collectively by gddd. According to the following text, the periods
of initiation are four3 : those who are in the first period are called dobbolU; those who are
in the second period are called qonddld; those who are in the third period are called rdba;
those who are in the fourth period are called guld, while those of the third and fourth periods
have the general name of lubd or lubba. Since the Abba Bokkti is elected from among the
1 Vannutelli and Citerni, L'Omo, op. cit., p. 413. * Ibid., p. 415.
* Loransiyos does not say whether after the fourth degree of initiation, and therefore after the retirement from
office of the Abba Bokkd of a grids group, there are further degrees of initiation for the elders. I believe that after the
ICba, there is a higher degree, that of jjilld.
members of the gddd in passing from the second to the third period, and remains in office
until the end of the fourth period, Iubd indicates, therefore, the members of the gddd whose
Abba Bokkti is in power. The period in which one is dobbolU is equal in duration to three
gddd periods, that is, to twenty-four years; the period in which one is qonddld is equal to
one gddd, that is, to eight years; the period in which one is luba equals one gddd, that is,
eight years, of which four years (one-half gdda period) is the time in which one is rdba, and
four years (one-half gddd period) the time in which one is guld.
The gddd are ten; they are divided, however, into two series of five each. One belongs
to a definite gddd group by birth. Every Galla belongs to the gddd group which, in the gddd
Diagram I
The arrow indicates the direction in which the gddd
follow each other in power.
series opposite to that of his father, corresponds to the gddd group of the father. For ex
ample, calling the ten gddd by the first ten letters of the alphabet, one can explain the
system by Diagram I.
Remembering that every gddd remains in power for eight years (a gddd period), one
sees from the diagram that every Galla arrives at each of the periods of initiation exactly
forty years after his father has reached it, there being always between the gddd of the
father and the gddd of the son five gddd periods. Therefore, the period of government of
the sons begins forty years after the beginning of the period of the gddd of the fathers.
The complete cycle of the ten gddd, that is, the return to rule of a member of the Gddd A
(therefore, of a grandson of a member of the preceding Gddd A) requires eighty years.
Similarly, the complete cycle of the periods of initiation, that is, the period from birth
to the end of the period of governing of the gddd itself, requires forty years (#4 dobbolli,
8 qonddld, 4 rdba, 4 guld). However, the initiation taking place collectively by gddd, since
membership in a gddd does not depend upon age but is hereditary, the cycle of initiation
may be more or less brief according to the relation between the gddd to which one belongs
and that which is in power in the year of birth. For example, if in the first year in which
Gddd A is in power, a son is born to a member of Gddd G, the child belongs to Gddd B;
he will be, therefore, qonddld (see Diagram II) and as such, eight years after his birth, will
become rdba, and after sixteen years, he will have completed his period of initiation.
If, on the other hand, in the fifth year of the period in which Gddd A is in the power, a
son is born to a member of Gddd G, the child belongs also to Gddd B, as in the first case,
but, since in the first four years of the period in which Gddd B is in power, the qonddld
have completed the four necessary ceremonies, the child does not belong to the qonddld of
his gddd. For the time during which the Gddd B will be completing the period of qonddld
and then of luba (rdba and guld), he will remain outside the degrees of initiation (see note
to Diagram II).
At the close of the period in which Gddd B will be in power, the child will follow the lot
of this gddd of his and therefore will find himself again with Gddd B in power ninety-two *
years after his birth. On the other hand, if during the period in which Gddd A is in power,
a son is born to a member of Gddd E, the child will belong to Gddd L, and will complete,
therefore, his cycle of initiation in nine gddd periods, that is, in seventy-two years, plus
the years which pass between his birth and the end of Gddd Period A; that means in a mini
mum of seventy-two years or in a maximum of seventy-nine years. Therefore, the period of
initiation in general has a minimum of fifteen years from birth and a maximum of ninety-two
years from birth, and there remains as the only fixed figure, the fact that this period of
initiation begins and ends for the sons forty years after the period of initiation of their
fathers has begun and ended.
I have not been able to get from Loransiyos the complete list of the names of the gddd
of the Ma$$a. Other sources, however, give more or less complete lists. The best of these,
d'Abbadie, Bahrey, de Salviac, and Werner, are represented by Diagram III. The cor
responding arrows indicate the gddd coupled together, i.e. if the fathers belong to one of
a pair, their sons belong to the other. Since the cycle of gddd is continuous, it is naturally
immaterial with which gddd one begins the enumeration. From a comparison of the lists,
it appears that the names of the gddd differ according as the tribe belongs to the Borana
or the Baraytuma, the two great divisions of the Galla people. One should be warned not
to confuse the Borana, a branch of the Galla tribes in general, with the present confedera
tions of the Borana, i.e. the Harar, the Ittu, and the Arussi. Thus, the Ma$$a who certainly
do not belong to the confederation of the Borana are, on the other hand, of the Borana
branch. Furthermore, their nobles call themselves Borana in contradistinction to the
plebeian Gabaro. (See song 141, notes.)
1 80 + 8 + 4 - 92.
The period of initiation of the dobbolli does not require special ceremonies, at least so
far as one can find out from the following text. On the other hand, the periods of initiation
of the qonddld and of the rdba each require four ceremonies, which must be completed one
in each of the four years corresponding to the first half of the period of qonddld and to the
whole period of rdbd (which, as is known, is the first half of the period of luba). The four
ceremonies of the qonddld correspond each with one of the four ceremonies of the rdba.1
After each of the four ceremonies, the qonddld and the rdba proclaim a law, that is, pro
nounce the formula of a Galla law which has reference to them. The four formulae of law
pronounced by the qonddld correspond each to one of the four formulae of law pronounced
by the rdba,9 The ceremonies must all be carried out on the plain outside the village where
the assembly meets. This information, received from Loransiyos to illustrate the follow
ing text, is in two points (the four ceremonies and the four formulae of law of the qonddla)
in apparent contradiction to the text itself. (See, however, note 4 to text 4.) It is almost
unnecessary to point out the predominance of the number four in these ceremonies; it is
perhaps due to magic significance.
According to the different grades of initiation, the Galla have a different arrangement
of the hair. The dobbolU have their hair shaved off, except for curls which are gathered at
the back of the head. The qonddld let the hair grow without cutting and arrange it by
throwing it back. The rdba shave off the hair and make a tonsure on the top of the head.
The guld make an arrangement called gutu which consists of several tufts of hair inter
woven and twisted around the back of the head.
The gddd are also the basis of the Galla calendar, the Galla counting by gddd periods
as the Greeks did by Olympiads. The gdda whose members are luba (that is, the gddd
from which is chosen the Abba Bokkti) gives its name to the period of eight years during
which its members remain luba and its Abba Bokkti governs. But it must be kept in mind
that while he is in power, four other gddd are also in operation, so to speak; three as dob
bolU and one as qonddld. Calling the ten gddd by the first ten letters of the alphabet, for
a complete cycle (eighty years), there results this general arrangement (see Diagram II).
Circumcision is connected with the system of the gddd, this being the ceremony with
which one passes from the third to the fourth degree of initiation, from rdba to guld. The
festival of the buttd is also allied to the system of the gddd, this being the last ceremony in
common of the second and third degrees of initiation, the qonddld and the rdba. The as
sembly of the tribe is connected with the gddd, only those being able to take part in its
deliberations who have passed the second degree of initiation; that is, from the rdba on.
Only exceptionally are there admitted, as deliberating members, the qonddld who have
already completed the four ceremonies of their period. The assembly is presided over by
the Abba Bokkti elected from among the members of the gddd which has reached the degree
of Iubd (third to fourth period of initiation). See text 5.
1 See text 4, note 19, and text 5, note 34. * See text 5, note 34.
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CO t-
CO CO ^
't ^
OS CO t^ i-i
"5 CO
PQ o O X
id id id id id id id id
-O -C -a
-d >d vd "d >d vd
O o o O o a o a a
It is difficult to decide to what this system of the gddd was originally due, and it is also
doubtful, in my opinion at least, at the present stage of our knowledge, whether the sys
tem of the Galla calendar originated from the system of the gddd groups, or whether the
system of gddd groups is not derived in its turn from the cycles of years. So far as we now
know, among no other Kushite people does the system of gddd exist. On the other hand,
this has been adopted with some modifications by the Sanye and the Pokomo of British
East Africa.
If the system of the gddd groups were derived from the cycles of years, it could perhaps
be compared with the astrological calendar of the Danakil.1 But these problems of the origin
of a certain custom are as fascinating as they are usually impossible of solution; and
furthermore, they are secondary in value to the exact knowledge of the custom itself and
of the kindred rites from which it might be derived. And, indeed, present knowledge of
the ethnology of the Kushites is not extensive.
References to the gddd may be found in the following works:
Antoine d'Abbadie, ' Sur les Oromo,' (Annates de la Soc. Sci. de Bruxelles, 1880, vol. 4, p. 162-188).
Manuel d'Almeida, ' Historia Aethiopica,' (Rerum aethiopicarum scriptores occidentals, Romae, 1907, vol. 5,
p. 477).
Rene" Basset, Etudes sur l'histoire d'Ethiopie, Paris, 1882.
Francesco Beguinot, La cronaca abbreviata d'Abissinia, Roma, 1901.
James Bruce, Voyage en Nubie et en Abyssinie, Paris, 1791.
Antonio Cecchi, Da Zeila alle frontdere del Caffa, Roma, 1886, vol. 1, p. 527-530; vol. 2, p. 30-32, 284, vol. 3,
p. 169.
I. Guidi, ed., Bahrey, ' Historia gentis galla,' (Corpus scriptorum christianorum orientalium, Scriptores aethiopici,
Paris, 1907, ser. 2, vol. 3).
I. Guidi, ' Strofe e piccoli testi Amarici,' (Mitt. d. Seminars f. Orientalis Sprachen zu Berlin, vol. 10, pt. 2, text 1).
Ludwig Krapf, Travels, researches and missionary labors ... in East Africa, London, 1860.
Jerome Lobo, A voyage to Abyssinia, London, 1735, p. 9.
Hiob Ludolf, Historia aethiopica, Frankfurt, 1687, Book I.
Guglielmo Massaja, I miei trentacinque anni di missione nell'alta Etiopia, Milano, 1S85-1888, vol. 3, p. 78.
Philipp Paulitschke, Ethnographie Nordost Afrikas, Berlin, 1893-1896.
P. Martial de Salviac, Les Galla, Paris, 1901, p. 183-184.
A. W. Schleicher, Zenahu-la Galla, Berlin, 1893.
Paul Soleillet, Voyages en Ethiopie, Rouen, 1886.
Karl Tutscheck, Dictionary of the Galla language, Munich, 1844.
A. Werner, ' The Galla of the East Africa Protectorate,' (Journ. Afr. Soc., London, 1914, vol. 13, p. 141, 263-264).
Here is the text gathered by Loransiyos on the rites of initiation. It must be borne in
mind that this, as well as the additional information received from him and above adduced,
refers to the Ma$$a and more especially to the Lieqa.
Qondalll gfyld bu 'I, goddtti fdqd tifdra additti sited tumd. QondalU s&rd tumbli guyd kudaSdn buli.
Namnl hate godo qond&la hindagu. QondalU gdfd tumd tumu, tumtun goftd"nqdbni, fdqtn goftd"nqdbni
dara butera jj&U intumd. Guyd kudaSdn buU, margd bugqisi: bakkt nu kiessa bulU Cola tumami. Gdfd
kdn sirbd ka 'd, niti ulfin fuldsa dura"nddbatln. QondalU df kan (ubdie, nitin kun ulfin lira bad.
1 Leo Rednisch, Die Afar Sprache, Wien, 1887, vol. 2, p. 42-74.
Ilmi tinndn ilmi gudddn: yd qonddld, hofkalU! d$di margd kuti kfenna. Margd karkdtti fudati hofkalii
kienna. Kandn bakktedd gald. Gdfd wdggd to 'u lamdffd bu 'd. Abbdn kormd duka bat, buttd $bisi
(dffie $bisi. Kienniti kandn gaU. Kandn $bd fudati gaU. Qondalli faladd! d$di; garbidd qonddld yd
du 'i, gumd Sant'amd! g'$di; kandn timid tumi. Dxebii gdfd wdggd saddftd doqqik busa. Sd 'a wdlitti
qdbi, gdlld tokkiddd kikssa guya dibbd buld, doqqien kuni intuldma. Gdfd guya dibbd kdna guti, buttd
qald. Buttd qdfd qalu, miediddd harkdtti fudati, addd adddtti fudati. Buda yo fiirati insama. Kandn
diebii buttdsa qaU wdmi naddisi MiddilHetti kienni. Amma ddgnd qabdti. 6ga kdn isdti ddffie. Gdfd
wdggd gutij, ddgnd qabd daqd, wdmi $bisi qald. ffdccisi ddgnd qabdta. Kandn $ga dobbollin bakki
bu 'd. figa dobbolliti kienni, bakk&n kdn dobbolld tdU, mdqd fuddtte. Qonddld fi$ddmli, w&ggd afur
kdna akkuma dmma fiiru, bokM buUti dobbolli. Qonddld dmma maqd fudati. figa qondalli Dido to ' i
qarri murati matdsa utun"adin"indfa. £ga"nnui rdbd (a 'i; dobboUi qonddld tdti. AkkasittioUtti
kienne ddffik abba gdlld.
The qonddld goes out to the plain, constructs upon it an enclosure and there proclaims
the law (1). The qonddld proclaims the law and spends fifteen days there. Anyone who
has stolen cannot go into the hut of the qonddld (2). When the qonddld proclaims the law:
" The blacksmith who has no master, the dresser of skins who has no patron " . . . (3),
he says and proclaims the law. He stays there fifteen days, uproots some grass and: " The
plain on which we have stayed is (...) (4) " is proclaimed. When the dance takes
place (5), the women who are pregnant must not stop before him (the qonddla) (6). The
one on account of whom the qonddld has purified himself (7), that pregnant woman has
an abortion. The young men and the boys say, " O qonddld, give a blessing." They cut
some grass and give it to him. The qonddld takes it in his hand, blesses it, spitting upon
it, and gives it to them (8). Then he returns from the plain. When a year has been com
pleted, he goes forth for the second time. He who is rich in cattle follows him, and he (the
qonddla) blesses the buttd (9), blesses the meadow of the assembly. He gives it (the bless
ing) and then goes away. Then (the other) takes the blessing and goes away. The qonddld
is (...) (9), says, "If a slave of the qonddld dies, the price of his blood is fifty (head of
horned cattle)." Then he proclaims this law. He goes back, and, when he comes the third
year, he has collected the dung of the oxen (10). He gathers together the horned cattle
inside a single enclosure; a hundred days pass and that dung accumulates. At the end
of these one hundred days, he performs the sacrifice of the buttd (11). When he has per
formed the sacrifice of the buttd, he puts the mi'edid6d on his arm (12), he puts the addd (13)
on his forehead; then he returns, performs his sacrifice of the buttd, invites guests, offers
a banquet; and gives place to the Miccillie (14). Then he is circumcised (15). Then the
assembly is his. When the year has arrived, he goes to the circumcision; he invites; he
blesses; he makes the sacrifice. He offers a banquet, he is circumcised (16). Then the
dobbolU go forth to the plain. Then he (the qonddla) gives to the dobbolli (the plain) ; the
plain belongs to the dobbolli; (the latter) takes the name (17), he is called qonddld. Not
until these four years have thus passed does the dobbolli go out in the plain. The qonddld
also takes the name (18). Then the qonddld is Dulo; he shaves a tonsure; he does not fail
to shave his head. When he is rdba, the dobbolU is qonddld. Thus is transmitted from one
to another the assembly of the Galla fathers.
Notes
(1.) That is, proclaims one of the four formulas of law of the qonddld. The text of
this formula, which is given later, is not clear in its last two words.
(2.) Thieves are, therefore, excluded from initiation. I do not know, however, whether
this exclusion lasts for a lifetime, or whether it is temporary.
(3.) This is the first formula of law of the qonddld. It seems to refer to people of low
caste without a patron. Gofta means literally, " master," but undoubtedly it is to be
translated here more properly, "patron," those of low caste not being slaves but clients.
(See Appendix.)
(4.) It would seem that this is the text of the second law of the qonddld. Here, too,
the last word tala is not clear. Cdld means in Galla " better," but is does not seem to me
that the sense of the phrase accords correctly with this interpretation. However, as the
second law is pronounced in the second year of qonddld, it should be further on and not
where it is; but this text is rather confused (it must be remembered that Loransiyos, dur
ing the last days of his stay in Italy, was in bad health, because he had a chronic bronchial
catarrh which produced a violent cough, so that he could not speak long at a time).
(5.) It would seem, therefore, that the first ceremony of initiation of the qonddld con
sists in a dance. Certainly, in all these initiation rites, dancing is one of the most frequent
ceremonies.
(6.) Perhaps because of the magic conception of the propagation of the species.
(7.) That is, the qonddld must purify himself, if a pregnant woman stops in front of him.
(8.) Blessing by means of expectoration is very common among the Galla and is evi
dently connected with the magic beliefs existing among so many nations in regard to the
parts of the human body. The one who spits is considered as bound magically to his
saliva and therefore to the body of him upon whom he has spat. It is noteworthy that
this blessing is in connection with grass, in regard to which so many religious ideas exist
among the Kushites.
(9.) These two words do not seem clear to me. Perhaps Loransiyos meant to indicate
by the word buttd, not the sacrifice, but the place where this sacrifice is usually performed
among a tribe. Moreover, the qonddld in the second year of his initiation would bless the
place of the buttd, the horned cattle that are afterwards to be sacrificed for the buttd, and
the place of the assembly.
(10.) The ceremony of the gathering together of ox dung really takes place, not in
the third, but in the fourth year of the period of qonddld. But, as is pointed out in note 4,
Loransiyos gives a law of the qonddld without the ceremony with which it is always cus
tomary to accompany the proclamation of a formula of law. On the other hand, in a note
of mine, independent of the text, I have gathered the information from Loransiyos that
one of the ceremonies of the qonddld is as follows: the chief plants in the ground a tree trunk
called muka bori and around this tree the qonddld, divided into two sides pretend to fight.
3 A
Diagram III
Fig. 1. After Antoine d'Abbadie, 'Sur les Oromo,' (Annales de la Soctete' Scientifique de Bruxelles, 1880,
vol. 4, p. 175).
Fig. 2. After I. Guidi, ed., Bahrey, Historia gentis galla, (Corpus scriptorum christianorum orientalium,
Scriptores aethiopici, Paris, 1907, Series 2, vol. 3, pp. 198-202).
Fig. 3. After A. Werner, 'The Galla of the East Africa Protectorate,' (Journ. Afr. Soc., London, 1914,
vol. 13, p. 263).
Fig. 4. After P. Martial de Salviac, Les Galla, Paris, 1901, p. 193.
If this ceremony, as is probable, is in fact one of those annual rites which Loransiyos has
forgotten in his exposition (text 4), then one would have the complete cycle of the rites
of the qonddld. What Loransiyos says about the ceremony of the planting of the tree is
confirmed by Cecchi,1 who, however, does not give the name of the tree planted by the
qonddld. For the ceremony of the collecting of the ox dung, see Cecchi.2
1 Da Zeila alle frontiere del Caffa, op. cit., vol. 1, p. 527. • Ibid., vol. 2, p. 284.
(11.) See song 142.

(12.) See song 132, v. 2.
(13.) See song 38, v. 2.
(14.) The words missing from the text at this point are the beginning of the specific
example cited by Loransiyos in explanation of the foregoing matter.
(15.) Four years after the buttd, as has been already said.
(16.) This is a useless repetition. See note 14.
(17.) That is, from being dobboUi, as they were before, they assume the degree of
qonddld.
(18.) That is, from being qonddld, as they were before, they assume the degree of rdbd;
this is the first period of lilba, and the period itself takes the name of their gddd. Here
the gddd Ditto is given as an example. (See Diagram III, 1.)
(19.) To summarize, the ceremonies of the qonddld are:
First year. Rite: planting of the mukd bore. Formula: that relating to the smiths
and the dressers of skins.
Second year. Rite: dance (?), blessing of the grass. Formula: that relating to
the plain of the ceremonies.
Third year. Rite: blessing of the place of the assembly and of the buttd. Formula:
that relating to pregnant women.
Fourth year. Rite: ox dung, buttd. Formula: that relating to the property of
the qonddld.
The qonddld take part in the ceremony of the buttd as well as the rdba with the difference
that while the rdba at the end of the ceremony of the buttd are circumcised, the qonddld
naturally are not circumcised.
5.
The Investiture of the Abba Bokku.
Ergdmtu dbba bokku ndma rdbd t&te; ldgd"n£#u, biSdn namni wdrdbi"ndugdu. Utu nannau
mdna ndma "mbulu. Kan mdndsdti fudati bai isdtu ndtu. Gdfd hinni mdna dbba bokku galu, abbdn
bokku hiyessd miti garbd qabd, sd 'a qabd; garble ofute qotatti Haiti, hinnis ofi qotdta ndta. figa mdnd
dbba bokku ydgga"s$ndni darrl kunl: ddbadda! jj$ddn. Aid ddbatanlti, nitisa wdmdni. Bardumd
fidi! jjqddni. Sid torbd gadi fidde, sid torbd dxebifti. Yd giftikd, mall rajjg'l nutti fiddlf Kun ti$ddni.
Gdfd saddiettaffd barûma lamd batti. Bar$umm& kanarrdtti biSdn guJti: ta 'a! jjl>tti. Mdgdn! g'$danlti
guyasdni lakkstdni. Ammandn abbdn bokku dufb, (fabdnd lakkdi; guya qabdf guya akkandti! ti$d6
$bisdf. Kandn ergdmtu dbba bokku gatii. Abbdn bokku dura gdfd laffie dagdgd bakke bu 'e, fdqd i§dra.
Kormd dagagd qald. Gdfd hinnl kdrmd dagagd qalu, bokkun durd inbuqqd. Bdkkunkt'ena! d$de qald.
H6rd qawifati fdqd ijjdri, mandtti gaU. Diebiiti gdfd wdggd bakkd bu 'e: dogdmd! d^de. Nitln uffd
dura"nqattamurlu tume gold. Gaggafds motummdn bokku gold: murd sierd! tume sierd! sfera dbbd
lubbdti! jjqleti, arfdn lubbd ka 'e bokku kienne. Abbdn bokku dubbififeti: dugd bdntd, §$de. IjJga kandn
bokku mukdrra kae gale. Diebieti gdfd wdggd: bokku busa! jj$de, gdga sd 'a qaldni, didd sd 'a uffati,
maid kormd qale, gafdsa itti (abse, mdtd itti dirdta, addd gode miediccd harkdtti gddati, faafuldsa dibbe,
mukd ydbd borrdta, gdfd hinni busd, bokkun mukdrra busi: nitl lubbd qananldd, ilml lubbd qana nldd,
garbiddl lubbd qananldd, kaldn Ivhbd qananldd! g'$di, lubbd $bisi gald. Sidd6i buttd qald nad6isi obasi,
doqqfe busi. Kandn sfera tumdta. Tumi sferd! Muri sikrd! fi$di. Kdn dura lumml ka 'i: hd
buqqdu! d$di, kandn $affvi dabiessi gald. Addika 'iti waggd afur. Gdfd ta 'u, hinni ammd bokku
qabi kuni, ddgnd qdbatu. Gdfd ddgnd hinni, qabdtu matdn"addati: ddrsd gututi! §$di: yd gut A, nd
oUi, nd bul&H fi$di matdsa hambifati. Ega hinni kiessa bau lubbidH kunl $ga kdn bird dufaniti Itti
gald. Isdnisd akkumd kdna tumd tdkko goddni, bdrantidM wdmani. Kdn durd guld d^ddmti; ramnl
fudaU gald. Isdni kdn durlti gdfd badni, kdn fdrdd qabu fdrda fudati, ramnl mild adfemi. GuMn
akkumd wdrdndtti ittl dufd. Guldnfardarrdtuta'igdgduffatidufi. SI ktinne, fuddu! d$ddn. Mirgd
ddbdtu! d$ddn. Dura mirgd ta 'i bitdtti darbi gulli. Hd bokku! d$da. Bokku nd kienni! fifyttti bok-
k&sa hdrkd fudati. Tumi sierd! muri sterd! d$di. Bokkun kdn dagdgdti! d$di ebisi. Harkdsa
rukuti sirbdf garmamsd"ngald. Kandn $bifami, kandn bakfa boda fudatd. Tumdm ^ga gdra birdtu
Imnis kdn durlti gdfd badni, fogd buqqisanilti, iddd tdkko tuldni. Kdn bird iddrdni. Mukd didd mu-
rani, $ga kdn bird godatdni.
The messengers of the Abba BokM (1) are rdba (2). They do not ford the rivers; they
do not drink water touched by others; when they go about, they do not spend the night
in the house of strangers. They eat only what each one of them carried with him when he
left his own house (3). When they enter the house of the Abba BokM, the Abba BokkU is
not poor; he has slaves, he has cattle, but his slaves eat the produce of the land cultivated
by themselves; the Abba BokkH eats the produce of the land which he himself has culti
vated (4). Moreover, when they enter the house of the Abba BokM, they say to one another
(among themselves), " Stop! " They stop at the threshold and call the wife of the Abba
BokkH. " Bring us the stool! " they say. Three times she brings them the stool and three
times she carries it away. They say, " O my lady, why have you brought us this wonderful
thing ? " The third time she brings two stools. On these stools she pours water, " Sit down,"
she says (5). " Very well! " they reply and count their days (6). Then the Abba Bokkd
comes, counts the years, counts the days. "The day on which I shall take (possession of my
office) is this one! " he says and blesses them. Then the messengers of the Abba BokM go
back. The Abba BokM first descends to the plain for the assembly of the ox (dagagd) (7)
and makes an enclosure. He sacrifices an ox. When he has sacrificed the ox, the ancient
sceptre is taken away (8). He offers the sacrifice, saying, " To our sceptre! " He performs
the ceremony of qawisd upon the salt springs (9) ; he constructs an enclosure and goes back
to his house. When in the second year he descends to the plain for the dogdmd (10), the
pregnant women do not pass before him (11). He makes a law (to that effect) and returns.
Then the reign of the sceptre is his. " I have determined the law! I have struck the law!
The law of the I'Oha fathers! " he says, and the four Itiba (12) hasten to give him the
sceptre. The Abba BokM, to finish the matter, performs the cLuga bdntd (13). Then the
Abba BokM puts the sceptre on the tree (14) and returns. At the end of a year he per
forms the ceremony of the bokM busd (15). He cuts the throat of an ox with a fine hide.
He puts on the skin of an ox, he puts on his head the head of the ox whose throat he has
cut, after having broken the horns. He thus puts on the addd (16), he puts the miediddd (17)
on his arm; then he anoints his forehead, climbs upon the tree and dives in (among the
branches) (18). When he has performed this ceremony of the bokkti btisa, he says, "The wife
of the Mba is sacred, the son of the luba is sacred, the slave of the Itiha is sacred, the grass
of the luba is sacred (19)." He blesses the luba and goes back. Then he performs the
sacrifice of the buttd (20), gives food and drink, and has the ox dung collected (21).
Then he makes a law. " I have cut the law! I have struck the law! The former luba have
gone away. Let them be uprooted! " he says (22), and then he places himself at the head of
the assembly and goes back. After four years from the beginning of his office, the one who
had now held the sceptre is circumcised. When he has been circumcised, he shaves his head
(23). " I am an old man with a gutti," he says, " O gutu, protect me! " (literally, "cause
me to pass the day, cause me to pass the night"), and he arranges his hair (24). Then these
luba go forth (from that degree); others come and (the degree) is for them (25). They,
likewise, proclaim a law and call themselves borantittd (26). The former (luba) are called
gUld (27); the rdba enter and take (the power). When the former (rdba) go away, those
among them who have horses, go on horseback; the rdba come on foot (28). The guld
come like an army. The guld are on horseback and come dressed in skins. " I have given
it to thee. Take it! " they say. "Remain at the right!" they say. And then that guld who
was first at the right, passes to the left (29). "Take the sceptre!" he says. " Give me the
sceptre! " says the other (30), and he takes the sceptre in his hands. " I have struck the
law! I have determined the law! The sceptre belongs to the ox dagagd " (31), he says,
and gives the blessing. Then they clap their hands and go through the garmdmsa (32)
dance. Then (the others) are blessed and they withdraw from the plain. The authority
to make laws then falls to the other. When the former go out, they pull down the enclosure
and pile up the wood in one place (33). The new ones make another; they cut green wood,
and make another (34).
Notes
(1.) That is, those who go to the hut of the Abba Bokkti to announce to him officially
his election and the beginning of his period of rule. As may be seen, the text gives no in
formation as to the rites with which the election of the Abba Bokkti takes place, nor as to
the choice of these messengers.
(2.) The messengers are rdba, that is, they belong to the same gddd group as the newly
elected Abba Bokku". See text 4, preface.
(3.) These requirements, all attributable to magical conceptions, are strangely similar
to those which the candidates for the degree of dilld must observe during their journey to
the Abba Mudd. This would confirm what has been said in text 4, note 6, namely, that
the dilld is a higher grade of initiation.1
1 Cf. Guidi, ' Strofe e brevi testi amarici,' op. cit., p. 11-14.
(4.) This requirement of eating only products of the land cultivated by the person him
self is common among the Galla. Certain famous magicians do the same (see text 12). If
one considers the fact that the Galla are forbidden to eat the products of land cultivated by
the Watta and others of low castes (see Appendix), the two prohibitions may readily be
connected, showing them to originate from the same idea, that magic contact by means of
food is to be avoided both on the part of those who have occasion to fear the magic in
fluences of others (as is the case in regard to those of low caste) and also on the part of
those who should preserve their own magic power intact, as is the case with soothsayers
and perhaps with the Abba Bokkti.
(5.) The rite is described minutely by Loransiyos, yet I do not see clearly the reasons
for it.
(6.) That is, they count the years of the gddd periods which have gone by while they
have passed through the preceding degrees of initiation as far as that of rdba which they
are on the point of attaining.
(7.) Dagdgd is really a species of big ox, and the word is used also in a general sense to
indicate the full grown male of big animals. In Amharic, it has come to mean only the full
grown male elephant.
(8.) The preceding Abba Bokkti yields the power to the new one, and therefore one
gddd period comes to an end and another begins.
(9.) The gawisd consists of a solemn blessing which the Abba Bokkti bestows by spitting
upon the waters of the salt springs where the flocks of the tribe go to drink.
(10.) The text does not say what this ceremony of the dogdma is.
(11.) Compare text 4, note 6.
(12.) That is, the four who had gone during the first year to the house of the Abba
Bokkti to announce to him his election.
(13.) The text does not say of what the ceremony of the 4tigd bdnta consists. If I am
not mistaken, duga bdnta means " that which opens the truth."
(14.) That is, upon the tree sacred to the tribe.
(15.) That is, " descent of the sceptre."
(16.) See song 38.
(17.) See song 132.
(18.) Observe this impersonation of an ox by the Abba Bokkti. The ox is the sacred
animal of the Kushites.
(19.) The formula indicates that those who have reached the third degree of initiation
(luba) are fully guaranteed by the tribe against any injury that might occur to them or
to their belongings. This judicial status which the patrimony of the lUba assumes after
the proclamation of this formula, is expressed in Galla by the word qanani (the abstract
of which would be qanand or qanan'd). Naturally, the word is untranslatable; I have
rendered it by the word " sacred," which is, however, inappropriate.
(20.) The buttd is the last initiation ceremony both of the qonddld and of the luba
degrees. In the four years following the buttd, during which the man continues to be
qonddld or luba (gula), no other ceremony takes place.
(21.) The text is confused; the ceremony of the ox dung precedes the buttd and is
performed, in so far as appears from text 4, by the qonddld, perhaps with the permission
and at a time fixed by the Abba BokM.
(22.) The text has the usual collective singular.
(23.) That is, the hair is shaved except for those locks which serve for the gutvi. See
the preface to text 4.
(24.) The words of the text emphasize the importance of the gutH arrangement of the
hair among the Galla.
(25.) It means the four years after the buttd and the circumcision, which represent
the central period of the gddd period, during which the man is a lubd.
(26.) It seems that one may deduce from this phrase of the text that the Gabaro do
not enter the gddd of the Galla nobles, or, at least, that nominally they do not enter them,
each proclaiming himself as belonging to the gddd bdrantiddd. This agrees with what
d'Abbadie has written.1
(27.) The text now passes to the description of the ceremony which the Abba Bokkvi
and his gddd go through at the end of their gddd-period, that of the handing over of the power,
to the new Abba BokkH and his gddd. It is evident that in the eighth, and, therefore, last
year of their entrance into the degree of luba, the Abba Bokkti, and his gddd are guld (see
preface to text 4); while the new Abba BokkH and his gddd, entering the degree of luba
just at that time, are rdba. Therefore, the handing over of the power always takes place
from guld to rdbd.
(28.) As a sign of their inferiority to the guld, they, as rdba, not having yet received
the sceptre (bokkd).
(29.) As a sign of their subjection to the new Abba BokM.
(30.) That is, the newly elected Abba Bokku~. As may be observed, the speeches on
entrance into office are reduced to a minimum among the Galla.
(31.) Perhaps the formula refers to the sacrifice of the ox (dagdgd), which is the first
ceremony of the newly elected Abba BokM.
(32.) We have already noted the use of dances in initiation rites.
(33.) The enclosure where the annual ceremonies of a gddd are gone through, is torn
down to symbolize the end of the period of the gddd itself.
(34.) The ceremonies to be performed by the luba in the eight years during which
they remain such are, therefore:
First year. Ceremony: sacrifice of the ox (dagdgd), blessing of the salt springs
(gawisd); Formula of law; that relating to pregnant women.
1 d'Abbadie, ' Sur les Oromo,' op. cit., p. 176.
Second year. Ceremony: dogdmd; Formula of law: that relating to the legisla
tive power of the lute.
Third year. Ceremony: duga bdntd (" opening of the truth "); Formula of law:
Fourth year. Ceremony: bokkti busd ("descent of the sceptre"), buttd, and cir
cumcision; Formula of law: that relating to the patrimony and family of
the lute.
6.
Blood-Price.
Namnl ndmd ajj$si sd'a dibbd sadi"mmo gdrbi&d tokko gumd bdsa. Fdn sd 'a kuni hinndtu. Fira
fird8a qabati daqd. Lagdttu wdl daqaniti, sdni gurraSSl giddusdni ddbdta. Garbicdi gumd qabati
ddbati. Sa 'icca qaldni. Hdrkd fuddni fdn sd 'a. Ammandn wdl $bisdni galdni. Gumdn inbai.
Garbi&Si mdna wdrrd du 'itifudati gaU. Garbidci kuni garbid£d"nd$ddm,u, ilmdsdti d£du maU.
A man who has killed another man pays as the blood-price either 103 head of horned
cattle or a slave. The flesh of these cattle is not eaten. The relatives go with their kindred
and assemble near a river. A black cow is placed in their midst. The slave who is to serve
as payment of the blood-price stands still there. They sacrifice the cow and take in their
hands a piece of the flesh of this cow. Then they bless one another reciprocally and go
home. The blood-price has been paid. The slave enters (literally, takes and enters) the
house of the family of the dead man. This slave is not considered as a slave, but instead,
they regard him as their son.
III. Texts of Magic and Prophetic Literature

As is well known, soothsayers and magicians enjoy very great authority among the
pagan Galla. Their responses are often handed down from generation to generation in
the memory of the sons of Orma: not infrequently the prophecies of the magicians have
reference to entire historic periods. There is, for example, a series of prophecies in regard
to the future of Ethiopia, which the Galla have seen fulfilled to a great extent. As to the
part which has not yet come to pass, the future is "on the knees of Waqa."
One of the greatest Galla soothsayers was Abba Raggi [literally, " father of prophecy "].
His name was Giggo Bacco; the title of Abba Raggi and the name of Bacco were handed
down from father to son, thus forming a dynasty of magicians. Abba Raggi still resides at
Hindieba, which is called Hindieba Gaccf from the name of one of its ancient kings, a
region in the so-called bdddd Bierd, " plateau of the Biera," near Lieqa Horda and Gfmma
Argo, dominions of Tucco Danno. These two prophecies of his (7-8) are famous:
7
Onni (jijjdd Bddco mdtdkieti"mbain, jjdrdkieti"mbdin! motin Kdfd Amdrd amoli'e tokkdtti gurguru,
bar(u tokkdtti gangd gurgurd. Kdna and agarsise. Bddd Amarri biyd Kdfd qabi. Motummdn Kdfd
utu ilmdtti intarkanfatin"afd. (jftj&n indufd, jjabanni"mbaddi fon sa 'dli andn sa 'd ndti dabdnd
bafati. Gdfa wdggd lamdffd sdni "ndumd. (jed8n"amdn dufi namni"wdla"wdlu hindibd. Middn
badi, ilmi abbd busi, dalti muMsi gatti; utu jjabanni kuni baddu "mbain nigufni du 'd. Wdggd lamd
w&lltCansl jjabanni badi. Gdfa wdggd saddffd nigufni garbiMd Ilmdrmd tumtu Amdrd obold godi wdl
fusisu kdn akkdna nigusd"tti dufd. Gdfa nigufni kuni moi, jjabannl toU. Firakdkandur du'i! dijM
hinni jjabanni badu kuni kdn diru boi; farddn gangdn blyd guti, wdggd digddmi tdrbd m5b, du 'dnsa
wdggd sadi moi. Gdfa wdggd soddomd ta 'l, namni ilkdn fuldurd jjdd wdggd tdrbd mda, ydi wdggd
kudatdrbd mda. Onni Gijjdd BdMo mdtdki"eti"mbain, gdrakieti"mbaln!
Let not the word of Giggo Bacco go forth from thy head, let it not go forth from thy
heart! The king of Kaffa will sell the Amara for a piece of salt; at the price of a bardd he
will sell the mules: this I prophesy! But in the end, the Amara will occupy the country
of Kaffa. The kingdom of Kaffa will not pass to the son [of the present king]. A famine
will come; it will be a terrible time. Thou wilt pass this time eating cow's flesh and drink
ing cow's milk. But in the second year, there will be no more cows. At this time of
terrible famine it will not be possible to bury the people. The grain will be destroyed, the
son will forsake the father, the mother will forsake the daughter; before this time comes
to an end, the emperor will die. In the following year, likewise, the times will be bad; in
the third year the emperor will make the slaves and the Galla, the blacksmiths and the
Amara, like brothers, and will have them marry. Such an emperor will come. When this
emperor shall reign, the times will become better. Those who will be living at that time
will bewail their own dead relations; there will be horses and mules in abundance. He
will reign twenty-seven years and his corpse will reign three more. When thirty years are
at an end, a man with six incisors will reign for seven years or for seventeen years. Let
not the word of Gigg6 Bacco go forth from thy head, let it not go forth from thy heart! "
Notes. As may be observed, all the events prophesied by Gigg6 Bacco have thus far
come to pass. The king of Kaffa conquered the negus, Takla Haymanot of the Goggam,
and the Amharic slaves were sold in Kaffa for a piece of salt each, ("a piece of salt"
was used as the monetary unit in Abyssinia).1 In the three-year period 1888-1891, the
well-known terrible famine afflicted the whole of Ethiopia; in the second year of the famine
(1889), the emperor John IV died. There came to the throne Menilek II, who, with an
aw64, forbade the insulting of negroes and blacksmiths; "Birdt gatgdd dabandnsa bildh atis-
ddbau; yd-negus sardtdM ndw Infii bildh ngdrdw," runs the imperial decree, which Loran-
siyos remembers by heart. (" Do not insult them by calling them smiters of iron, wizards!
Say instead that they are laborers of the emperor and the people of Hamitic origin.")
By decree of the negus, Takla Haymanot of the Goggam, it was then forbidden to call
faldid (" Hebrew ") even the recently converted Hebrews; " Krtstinnd yd-tanassdw hullu
simd Sammdmie balut indifalMd atbalut" the decree reads. ("Call all those who have been
converted to Christianity weavers; do not call them Hebrews! ") In reality, however,
neither the decree of Menilek nor that of Takla Haymanot succeeded in modifying the
1 Cf. E. Cerulli, ' Canti popolari amarici,' op. cit., p. 583-584.
attitude of the Abyssinian populations toward the workmen who exercised these trades,
which are considered ignoble, and toward the peoples of low caste. While Menilek ruled,
the times improved, as the prophecy said. Menilek, however, did not rule for twenty-
seven years, as the Abba Raggf predicted, but for twenty years (1889-1909), if the date
of his actual death is put in 1909. On the other hand, his corpse really reigned three
years (1909-1911). After him reigned LIgg Iyasu, who has behind the two upper and lower
incisors another tooth in each jaw (so says Loransiyos) ; he has six incisors, as the Galla
magician foresaw. The date of Menilek's death being placed in 1909, Iyasu would actually
have reigned seven years up to his present deposition (1916). Apart from the suspicion
that, as regards the more ancient events, the prophecy was made apres coup, the exactness
is striking in regard to this last circumstance relating to the duration of the reign of Iyasu,
which was confirmed under my eyes and after I had gathered the text of the prophecy from
Loransiyos.
Giggo is the title of many famous magicians; for example, it is that also of Giggo Kura,
Gigg6 Galate, Gigg6 Gabata, etc. Bardti is the Galla name of the piece of bent iron used
as the monetary unit in the Sidama countries.1
8
Hiddi tdkko kalld tokkltli baridd ka 'e, Hind"feba Gaddt gad. Gdfd Hindieba Ga&ti, gdu, nigusd Bokkahd
wdggd torbd moe lafdrra darbd du 'd. Gdfd hinnl du 'u dagmdwi Bokkahd hinni dufd. Lamaffdn Bok
kahd wayAdd: ydi wdggd tdrbd moe, y&i guya t&rbd moe; bdda kandtti imbdda Bokkahd, motumma Bok
kahd irribdda. Gdfd motumma Bokkahd bddu, namni dimdn indufd. Namni dimdn kunl dufeti, Idfd
Gdlld "nqabd. Dimbi kan d^du dufd. Mandard godeti gimbi ta 'd. GaUdn itti gamtatiti, nigusd dimd
kdna sart gurrdddd gogdsa itti "daniti, fayd "wdldma. Gdfd hinni du 'a sandtti bari Bdrd .tarkanfati, 'adin
suni "ndufd. Namni dimdn indufd. Gari 'adin essumd durbi ta 'e, inmoa wdggd kudatorbd. Wdrrd
ndmd Lieqd ka 'Hi indarbd. Ldkin ilmdn Gdlld namiddd kuni dukdsa"mb6si isa darbifi. Dubbi kdna
isa additli wdqd tdkko bieku. Nigufni 'adin kuni kdrd lilfi biftu bad; litd biftuti baeti lamaffdn dufe
Gondaritti mdnd "ddra. Afurtami afur mahabdrd isldm godd, kudaldmd gimbi kristydnd "ddra. Nigufni
'adin tdkko bad, biftutti bad. Litdtt "an darbd! d$da. Hinni Htd biftuti bai nigufni kuni, abbdnsa "mbie-
kdme 'adidd. Sanqilldn gabbard, Sdn Lteqd gabbard, torbd Gudurutti darbHi Gondaritti dea. Gdfd
hinni Guduru ka 'i, lafti innaqdnnaqamti; nigufni akkdna"ndufd! ndn fiqdi. Go^dm billddd tasallafe.
Boditti gdfd idddn argu nigusd salfi sand, Gdlld Bisili bai, Sanqilldn Commdnd bad; nigusd kdna
qabdd yd dufti dura biUddaTn^gde. Amma sangdta fidd, ddmmd kienna Gondaritti naggasisa. Nigufni
bdr bad kuni F,fig'utti"tti lold. Ldkin F(g'g'u gdfd gad"nddbdta. Motumma wdggd kudaldmd moiti sarde
Bokkahd qabe indu 'a. Ilmd Tiewodrds kdn d$ddmu daUd. Fardi Tiewodrds Idfd kikssa bad, eMn
Tiewodrds"inni"tti naggasu suni wdqddd dufd. Gdfd Tiewodrds dalatd wdggd torbd, nigusd Gonddr
yd-Gdilla negus dylami, Naddusdr qabe. Namni"tti hinlolin; kankd guydtu dume! g'$Mti, saldm d$dd
ergati nigusd Bokkahdtti. Gdfd nigusd Gonddra ka 'u sand, andn sd 'a tdkko yd elmd manddrd tdkko
inqufa; Gabarie afur kdnqotte lafti biyahundumdqufd. Nigufni gari nurra"diemd! fi$debde. IfigoUfen
1 Cf. Julea Borelli, fithiopie mfridionale, op. cit.
ilmi wdggd kudaldmd intalli wdggd kudaldmd nigusd kdna duka baddi. Tiewodrds ka 'iti: Gimbi
nigusd kdna Gondardtti dn argd! dida. Gondari utu"ngdin, Lalibdld wdggd torbdtti naggdsa; Ldlibdld
gdfd ka 'i, £aggven gubbd B&ngd Sdnqilldtti darbd. Mafts kdn decfdni Idfd 161a daqd. Wdqni samdyo
Idfd gdfd umi, muka tokkitti mdqd kdn inqdbni umi. Namni yd muted sdna bieki argaii innaggdsa.
Tiewodrds Bokkahi sunt mukdtti sdna yd argati: maqankte ifiuf 8%de gdfatd. Mukdtti sunt: ani
Tiewodrds! d^tta; qoriddl bar$umd, wdrqien nigistdti iso gubbdU"argdma. Yd muka sdna wdMUfi:
Bugd ndn darbd! dedi. Ldfd Bugd kdna I6ld inargdta. Kdn fuldsa dura ddbati kdn hill hinargdta.
MukiMd sdna yd maqdsa biekifi 6dd Gidd6 Kurdtti diebU, wdggd digdami tdrbd inmda.
A plant hiddi, an herb that grows by a river, will rise from the east and will come to
Hindleba Gaccf. When it reaches Hindfeba Gaccf, the king of Bokkaha will reign another
seven years and then he will pass to a better life; he will die. When he has died, a second
king of Bokkaha will come. The second Bokkaha will reign, how long is not known, per
haps seven years, perhaps seven days. After this, the Bokkaha will come to an end, the
reign of Bokkaha will end. When the reign of Bokkaha is ended, a red man will come.
This red man will come and will take the lands of the Galla. He will come to the country
called Dimbf. He will build a village and will reside in a castle. The Galla will unite in a
league, and they will gird this red king with the skin of a black dog. He will be buried alive.
When he is dead, the sea will pass the Baro, and the white man will come. This white
man will become a relative, cousin on the mother's side; he will reign seventeen years. He
will depart from the Lieqa people and will pass beyond. But the sons of the Galla will
weep behind this man's back, because of his departure. This story God alone knows. This
white king will go forth by the way of the west: he will go forth by the west, and a second
will come and will build a house at Gondar. He will build forty-four mosques for the
Mussulmen, and he will build twelve churches for the Christians. A white king will come
forth; from the east will he come forth. " I wish to go to the west! " he will say. The
father of this king who will have gone forth by the west is unknown; he is white. The
Sanqflla will pay him tribute; the five tribes of the Lieqa will pay him tribute; he will pass
beyond the seven tribes of the Gudni and he will arrive at Gondar. When he departs from
Gudru, the earth shall tremble.
I foresee the coming of a similar king. The men of the Goggam will array themselves
with swords against him. But then, when the king has seen these tribes with his eyes,
the Galla sons of Bisilf will come forth; the Sanqflla, sons of Commana, will come forth.
If they come with this king, first they will guard him with their swords, then they will
bring him oxen, then they will give him honey, and they will cause him to reign at Gondar.
That king who has come forth from the sea will fight in Yeggu. But when he has arrived
at Yeggu, he will stop. He will reign in the kingdom of Bokkaha twelve years; he will take
the throne of the Bokkaha and he will die. He will beget a son by the name of Theodore.
The horse of Theodore will come forth from the earth; the lance with which this Theodore
will reign, will come from heaven. Seven years after the birth of Theodore, the king of
Gondar will be called YdrGaUa negus (" king of the Galla " in Amharic), and will take
Na$$usar. No one will fight against him. " My days are fulfilled! " he will say and he will
send a message of peace to the king. When this king departs from Gondar, the milk of a
cow, if milked, will satisfy a village; the land cultivated by four peasants will satisfy the
whole region. " A good king has left us," they will say, and they will weep. Some children,
a boy of twelve and a girl of twelve, will be lost in following this king. Theodore will de
part to go to see the castle of this king at Gondar. He will not reach Gondar, but he will
reign seven years in Lalibala. Then, when he departs from Lalibala, passing above the
Saggada, he will go to Bonga of the Sanqflla. He will fight in the land called Mafis and he
will go beyond. When God created heaven and earth, he created a tree without a name.
The man who knows and finds this tree, will reign. Theodore, this king of Bokkaha, if he
finds that tree, will ask it, " What is thy name? " And the tree will answer, "Iam Theo
dore." The secret of the throne, the gold of the dynasty will be found on this (tree). If
(Theodore) does not find this tree, he will decide to go to Buga. In the land of Buga, he
will find war. They will make a stand against him and there will be war. If then he knows
the name of that tree, he will return near the sycamore of Gigg6 Kura, and he will reign
twenty-seven years.
Notes. As may be seen, Gigg6 Bacco foretells the construction of the telegraph lines
from the coast to the Lfeqa (thus Loransiyos explains the opening passage of the prophecy),
followed after seven years by the death of the king of Shoa (Loransiyos says that Menilek
died exactly seven years after the arrival of the telegraph at Hindieba Gaccf). There
follows a final king, with whom the dynasty of Shoa ends. Then the throne passes to a red
king, whose end will be mysterious. With the latter will end the native kings of Ethiopia,
and three white kings will come. The first will come from the Abbay and his kingdom will
reach as far as Baro; after a reign of seventeen years, he will depart for the west and will
disappear. Having returned, he will unite the Galla and the Sanqllla in a league, and hav
ing conquered the second king, he will establish himself at Gondar. The second white king
will establish himself at Gondar and will show himself more favorable to the Mussulmen
than to the Christians: he will be driven forth from Gondar by the first white king. The
third king will depart from the Red Sea and will go as far as Yeggu; he will then become
king of Shoa and after twelve years, he will die. He will have a son by the name of
Theodore, the one who will return to unify Ethiopia.
It is noteworthy that the Galla have adopted and modified, after their own fashion, the
legends current among the Amara in regard to the return to the world of the Emperor
Theodore the First.1
1 Cf. Beguinot, La cronica abbreviate d'Abissinia, op. cit., p. 11. To the bibliography there given : — d'Abbadie,
' L'Abyssinie et le roi Theodore,' (Le Correspondant, Paris, 1868); Clements R. Markham, A history of the Abyssin
ian expedition, London, 1869; Noldeke, ' Theodoras, Konig von Abessinien,' (Deutsche Rundschau, vol. 10, 1884)
— may be added Cecchi, Da Zeila, etc., op. cit., vol. 1, p. 503-505.
The first white king, that of Gondar, will meantime extend his kingdom as far as the
Sudanese frontier; then he will renounce the throne in favor of Theodore, and will go
away, regretted by all. Theodore will place his capital at Lalibala; then he, too, will pass
to the Sudan in search of the nameless tree. If he finds it, he will continue his way in the
Sudan; if not, he will return among the Lieqa.
In the whole prophecy, as in the texts that follow, the kings of Shoa are called " kings
of Bokkaha." Bokkaha or Bokkaa is a mountain in the territory of the Gombiccu Galla
to the southeast of Addis Abeba. On this mountain are the ruins of the ancient castle of
the kings of Shoa. There the atffe, Takla Giyorgis had his capital, Loransiyos tells me.
On the slopes of the mountain there is a big sycamore much venerated by the Galla of
Shoa (Mietta and Gullallie), who go there every year on a pilgrimage. Cecchi l speaks of
just such a mountain to the southeast of Addis Abeba in the Gombiccu territory, where
are found ruins of ancient dwellings of emperors. And it is significant that, according to
Cecchi, "these ruins are connected by local traditions with the legend of King Theodore."
The name of the mountain is, however, written Boccan. (It is perhaps the objective case,
Bokkadn.) For the plant "hiddi," see song 82. Dimbf is a region between the Lieqa Sibft
and the Lieqa Naqamte near Tuqa. Bdr is near the Lieqa, by metonymy the Abbay (the
bahr 'l-azraq of the Arabs). To indicate the mosques, the periphrasis mahabdrd isldm
(Amharic, ya-tsldm 'mahbar) is used; for the Christian churches, on the other hand, gimbi
kristy&nd (Amharic, ydrkristydn gimb, literally, " palace of the Christians ") is employed.
From the Amharic naqannaqa has been formed the Galla passive naqannaq-am, " to move,
tremble " (of the earth). Cf. the Amharic tanaqdnnaqa in the same sense. The following,
also, are Amharic words: tasallafS is Amharic, tasallafa, and salfi is Amharic, salf. In
the phrase sarae Bokkahd, the word sarad was translated into Amharic for me by Loran
siyos, b&ta mangest. I think it is the Persian word saray, which has passed into Galla
through the Arabic. Na$$usar is a region on the borders of the Sudan. Caggie is the Galla
name of the region which the Amara call Saggada.
Bonga of the Sanqflla (so called to distinguish it from Bonga, the capital of Kaffa) is
a region on the borders of the Sudan. The inhabitants, who are negroes, go naked; the
women wear a gold circlet around their necks, the men a gold circlet on the arm. Their
country is marshy and unhealthy. The jUawrari, Girata, sub-chief of Kumsa of the Lieqa
Nagamte, made an expedition into their country. These Sanqflla of Bonga, led by their
king Bas6ra, resisted for four years. Then they came to terms. Girata received as a tribute
a considerable number of gold necklaces and bracelets; King Bas6ra was given the title
of dag'g'dd and changed his name to Abba S6ra, to make it more to the taste of the Abys-
sinians. Finally, Girata, having received five thousand talari from the tribute of necklaces,
used part of it to acquire loin-cloths with which by degrees he made the Bonga gird them
selves.
Op. cit., vol. l, p. 503.
Maffs is a country of the Bahru'l-gazal; the Arabic name is Gazlrah, or, more precisely,
Gaziratu'l-HabasT. It is in Nuer territory near the river Sobat. QoriZdi bard&md, literally,
" the medicine of the throne," means " the secret for winning or keeping the throne."
Qori6dd means not only medicine but every other mysterious object or practice. Qori££d
gawd, "the medicine of the gun," was the name for gunpowder at the time of its introduc
tion among the Galla. Buga is a country in Sudanese territory; it is situated on the
Nile and is at a distance of six days by caravan or two days by river boat from Khartoum.
For the sycamore of Gigg6 Kura, see text 11. Bisilf is one of the progenitors of the Galla;
Commana was the father of the Sanqflla (that is, of the negroes). Commana once had a
red skin, like the Galla sons of Orma, but he was afterwards given a black face by God as
a punishment for his wickedness.
9
A third prophecy of Gigg6 Bacco says:
Namni idfil tdkko ddmd milli tdkko ndfa hinfuddta biyd; Hindieba Ga&Htti mdnd^dra. Gdfd hinni
wdggd gutu, gafarsi Handaqi bai, namni hdrkd bitd&d gafdrsd afiQsa. Gafarsi kun wdrdnami hamiena-
kdrrdtfi, dufd. Bdda namiddi gafdrsd"d^si kuni, biyd"nni bai"mbi'egne, galddd. Biyd Hindtlsbd Gaddi
fuddta. Namidci ujfii tdkko fiamd milli tdkko ndfa itti loUfi giela ddbi; Idkin namni gafdrsd"fi$si kuni
motummd biydkd"rrd fuddta. NamtiZci ig'fii tdkko g'dmd milli tdkko ndfa kuni biydsdtti ditbii namtiddi
kdn adiemi"nqtifue, kdn naWnqufne gdldrra biydkd fudata.
A man blind in one eye and lame in one foot will take this region : he will build a house
at Hindfeba Gaccf. When a year shall have been completed, a buffalo will come forth from
(the forest of) Handaq. A left-handed man will kill the buffalo. The wounded buffalo
will come upon my tomb (literally, upon my misfortune). As to the man who will kill
the buffalo, from what country he may have come forth no one knows; he is a wanderer.
The country of Hindieba Gaccf will be occupied by him. The man blind in one eye and
lame in one foot will fight with him and will set up fortified enclosures; but the man who
has killed the buffalo will take the government of my country. The man blind in one eye
and lame in one foot will return to his own land. A man who will never be sated with
walking and who will never be sated with devouring, will take my land from the wanderer.
Note. This prophecy of Abba, Raggi also came true. Hindieba Gaccf was occupied
by Danno Biera, who was in fact blind in one eye and lame in one foot. The Nonn5 Migra
of Mardasa Konce (the buffalo of the prophecy) invaded the country. Then there emigrated
to Hindfeba Gaccf one of the Tulama, Slda Tufa (see song 32, notes), who was left-handed.
He wounded with a gunshot Mardasa Konce, who fell near the tomb of Giggo Ba66o.
Sfda Tufa, having been made Abba Gord by Danno, rebelled against him and, having con
quered him, remained master of the country. At last the Amara, who are indefatigable
in marches and very greedy, subjugated the country by means of an agreement between
Ras Gobana and Sfda Tufa.
For the forest of Handaq, see song 118, notes. A tomb is often called by the Galla,
euphemistically, " the misfortime." QCda is one of the many kinds of fortified enclosures
used by the Galla in warfare.
10
Finally, 6igg6 Bacco, having been asked what would be the outcome of the wars,
said:
Motummdn dbbd Gdlld badi, Tnotummdn Amdrd 4ufd. Dur biSdn bariti qabi dmma MSdn Bdrdti.
Bdri 'adi bdrt gurrd&d mStin tokkidH moa.
The kingdom of the Galla fathers will end, and the reign of the Amara will come. They
will first take the water of the Abbay, then that of the Baro. And a single king will reign
over the white river and over the black river.
" The white river " is the Abbay; " the black river " is the Bar5. For these prophecies
and counsels of the Galla magicians predicting the victory of the Amara and bidding their
fellow countrymen not to resist, see song 44.
11
Another famous soothsayer was Abba Oda. His name was Giggo Kura and he resided
among the Lieqa Bill6. His name of Abba Oda (literally, " father of the sycamore,") and
his reputation were due to a wonderful tree, the story of which follows:
Odd Gig'jj6 Kurd dura tullurrdtti biqiU. TuUH kand Glijjjjd Kurd kdrmd Ml qaU. &ijjg'6 Kurd suriessd
ttma"nqabu. Ndmd warrd n&d£isi obasi; ilmikd odd kdna! jj$di. Ammandn dbbd odd d$ddni. Oddn
kun tullurrdtti kdn dalate utuma siqu bakkS bu 'b. Bakke hand utumd siquti, dugdd"diemi. Sided
Gig'g'6 Kurd gdfd du 'u wdgga kudatorbdUi mukni §igd. Mie! 6dd gdfdtla! dyM Bakarie ammd, gdfd 6dd
rajjjjl daqdni, (jig'jjd Kurd du 'i. fifig'g'6 Kurd du 'iti, wdggd kudatorbdtti mukni §igi. (kg'jj6 Kurd du 'i,
maqdn Gig'g'd Kurd otu"ndu' in"afd, dddn hinni guddd huddun galagaU, afur biqild hammiendsa gub-
bdtti biqite. Arfdn (jiUjjd Kurd d$ddni. IjjjjoUie Kurd tdti oddn.
The sycamore of Gigg6 Kura sprang up in ancient times on a mountain. On this moun
tain, Gigg6 Kura used to sacrifice oxen. Gigg6 Kura was a rich man who had no children.
He called the people to a banquet; he gave them to eat and drink. Then he said, "This
sycamore is my son." And after that, they called him Abba Oda (literally, "the father of
the sycamore "). This sycamore, which had sprung up on the mountain, by creeping and
creeping descended to the level ground. From this level ground, by creeping along it passed
into a meadow. Then (it was said) : When Giggd Kura dies, after seventeen years the tree
will be overthrown. " Come, go and ask questions of the sycamore," Bakarie once said,
but when they went to the wonderful sycamore, Gigg6 Kura died. Seventeen years after
the death of Gigg6 Kura, the tree was overthrown. Gigg6 Kura died, but his fame will not
die. That great sycamore was uprooted and four shoots sprang up on his tomb. They
called them " the four of Gig\g6 Kura." The sycamore was truly the son of Kura.
Notes. The legend is associated with the veneration of the pagan Galla for the syca
more. The Bakarie here named is, of course, the head of the Lieqa Naqamt6 (see songs
20, 31, notes). The name of the four shoots which sprang up on the tomb is in Galla arfdn
Gig'g"6 Kurd. The forms arfd, sadd, Sand, are generally used to render our multiplicative
numerals: in the names of confederations, they mean " the triple, the quadruple, the
quintuple "; here, it means rather a group of four little roots, something like our " four-
forked." The adoption of the sycamore is made by Giggo Kura with Galla rites in the
presence of the chief men of the tribe.
12
Another celebrated magician was Abba Bieko (literally, " father of wisdom "). His
name was Gigg6 Galat6. He lived on the hill of Catto Galan near the Tullu Korma in the
territory of the Lieqa Naqamte. The Galla went on pilgrimages to this hill, and offered
oxen and sheep to Gigg6 Galat6, which he sacrificed. He did not eat the flesh of the vic
tims sacrificed, as did the other magicians; he ate only the grain from a field which he
himself had ploughed and sown. He had the power of quelling buffaloes with his glance,
afterwards using them as horses. Here is a prophecy of his about the future emperor,
Theodore (see text 8) :
Nigufni Tiewodrds harkisd urddd. Nigufni Tiewodrds kuni Idfd Misiri isldma kristydnd godd.
Qaqiti irra to 'd. Nigusais maskdbi nigusa isldma arte gdfd biyd bad, nigusa Tiewodrds additti daqd.
Biyd isldma kiessd to 'i, wdggd tdrbd naggdsa. W&ggd torbdtli nigusa Tiewodrds nigusa Maskobitti
wdl argdni. (jarri kun gdfd wdl argdni, namnlsa lakkami"ndumu Maskdbi iessdtti bait d.q&e' walitti"-
mdni wdl loldni. Ndmd Maskdbi lafdrra fiti biyd Misiri. Bdda Misiritti naggdsa. £ga fiir$nisas
Misiridd. Akka gand motummd"ba$d badi. Dubbi dbbd GdUd duritti diebii. Namnl nagdttu wdlloU.
E.ssumdn durbi wdl aS^sl. Motummdn kani badd. Motummd kdn moe Sandn Lieqd hdrkd qieSUti gale,
qieSitu mod. Namni kdrd Wdqdtti diebid. Ldkin motummdn Tiewodrds utu biyd isldmdti dl, ind$bin
bar(umnl suni badd. Motummdn Tiewodrds baditi, dubbi kand olttti Wdgd mate, nu"mbiegne.
King Theodore will have an ulcer on his hand. This king will make Christians of the
Mussulmen of the land of Egypt. He will go there and will stay there. The king of the
Russians will drive out the king of the Mussulmen and will go forth into that region. Then
King Theodore will go there; he will stay in the land of the Mussulmen, and he will reign
there seven years. After seven years, King Theodore and the king of the Russians will
meet. When they meet, the number of their people will be very great. " Whence have
come forth these Russians? " (Theodore) will say. They will come to a dispute and they
will fight. He (Theodore) will exterminate the race of the Russians in the land of Egypt.
Then he will reign over Egypt, and after that his life will be passed in Egypt. In the future,
the kingdom of Abyssinia will come to an end. The times of the Galla fathers will return.
The men will fight in time of peace; relative will kill relative. Then this kingdom will come
to an end. The five Lfeqa tribes, who had once reigned, will be subject to a priest and the
priest will reign. Men will return to the way of God. But the kingdom of Theodore will
not return again from the land of the Mussulmen, and that throne will perish. The king
dom of Theodore will perish; and the rest, God on High knows but we do not know.
Notes. The ulcer on the hand, a sign of King Theodore according to this prophecy,
made current the saying among the Galla that the future emperor of Ethiopia was the
dag'(fd6, Gugsa, son of the rds, Araya Sellasie, and therefore grandson of Emperor John IV.
The part that concerns the Russians is truly strange for a Galla magician of past times.
The same prophecy of a black king who will come from Ethiopia into Egypt and who will
fight in Egypt with the Russians, is also widespread among the races of Kassala. Indeed,
a native of Kassala told me that the wise men of his country quoted in corroboration of
this prophecy some verses of the Koran, which he, however, could not point out to me.
Theodore, according to the prophecy of the Abba Bieko, will reign, therefore, in Egypt
and will abandon Abyssinia. Then the Galla will again become independent and will
destroy one another in civil strife. The Lieqa will be subject to a Christian priest (for
" priest," the word qie$l is used in the text; Amharic, qtis and Tigrina, qa§i).
IV. Humorous Prose (Hdsa)

The Galla, as has been elsewhere pointed out, delight in the humor of professional
jesters, who are maintained at the expense of the small courts. The wittiest sayings of
these jesters are quickly learned by heart and spread abroad. Thus there has sprung up
among the Galla a distinct literary form of great interest to students of folk-lore. I have
gathered from Loransiyos the three following texts, but it is desirable that a larger collec
tion be made of these brief humorous compositions, called hdsa by the Galla. The verb
hasaw, which is derived from hdsa, signifies in Galla and likewise in Somali, "to converse,
chat with." Therefore, the word hdsa corresponds very closely to the Amharic dawatd, as
hasaw to ta6awwata. (It has already been said that the Amara call these jesters adfawdc.)
13
The three misfortunes of the universe.
Alami udduniyd wdn"amdn saditu §ird. Sadi kan §iru kunt tdkko hori guddati bayaU. Lamaffdn
nitikiHi. Sadaffdn Wdqni nu umi. Hori kdn gudddte tdkko wd hamdn isa tdkko. Yd horin baydte,
nigufni: kdrd tdkko ndnfudd"rra! d^da. Kanaf"amaU horin. Lamaffdn hamdn nitikietidd. Nama
fagnd (fallatietti; §agni kuni gdfd "Si falldtu, si afigsa. Fudati madddti badd. Sadaffdn hamdn wdqni
nu umi. Tdkko 'adi umi, tdkko magdld umi, tdkko gurrdtti 6ildtti umi. Abbdnktena haddaml durd turi,
hdtiktima Hawddd. Nu hundumtu obolddd utu bifakvena tokkidddtti godi, nu wdl inagQfne wdl ingur-
gurru wdl iflndnnu. Akkuma dura Wdgni nu umi sandn wdl fialanni hafnd, utu biftikikfia tokkidda
ta 'i; dmma blfakitna sadi gode. Kandf inafiQfna. Kandf"amoM Wdqni.
In the whole world there are three misfortunes. Of these three misfortunes, one is
wealth when it is great and increases. The second is thy wife. The third is God, who has
created us. Wealth which is great is the first misfortune. If money increases, the king
will say, " I wish to seize it for myself in some way." Therefore, wealth is a misfortune.
The second misfortune is thy wife. She falls in love with a valiant warrior, and then, if
this warrior loves her, he kills thee, marries her, and flees away to another country. The
third misfortune is God who has created us. He has created us, one white, one red, one
black as coal. Our father in the beginning was Adam; our mother Eve; we are all brothers.
If he had made us all of the same aspect, we should not have killed one another; we should
not have sold one another; we should not have destroyed one another. As God created
us in the beginning, we should have loved one another, if we had all looked alike. Now he
has made us of three kinds. Therefore, we kill one another. Therefore, God, also, is a
misfortune.
14
My Father's chick-peas.
Namni tdkko SaMKe ka 'Hi Sodtu dufi, Sumburd buqqifati. Abbdn Sumburd argl: yd lima hdda
rdvm, mdl Sumburakiyd ndttuf Yd haddkd rdfte, 4ga ati abbakdti. Middn abbakd ndn ndta! d$di,
Sumburd buqqifatifiti.
A man departed from Salalle and came to Shoa; he began to pull up [small plants of]
chick-peas. The owner of the chick-peas saw him [and called out to him], " O son of a
mother with whom I have lain, why dost thou eat my chick-peas? " "If thou hast lain
with my mother, then thou art my father. I am, therefore, eating my father's chick-peas! "
replied the other, and finished pulling up the chick-peas.
Notes. Sumburakiyd (line 2) is an imitation of the speech of Shoa for the Ma$$a
Sumburdkd.
15
The Macca Galla.
The Ma$$a are accustomed to work in their houses and for their families, while the
Tulama consider domestic work suitable only for women. So the jester, Abba Wadago,
having seen a Ma$$a who was carrying timber on his back, pointed him out to his lord,
saying, "Manita kdna argil Natjdieni ofi yd hobobsisdni, ndma akkasdti daUi." " Look
at this Ma$$a! If women were to cohabit carnally among themselves, they would produce
such men! "
V. Proverbs
1. GaragalH milli matd hoqa. "The opposite part, the feet, scratch the head."
When undeserving people have an office or obtain an unexpected victory over deserv
ing people.
2. Yd gdwd, si dubbdn b&wd! " O fool, there is a precipice at thy back."
For one who is pleased with false flattery.
3. Oldn bulU bfkka, akkdtti buli abbatu b&ka. " Good day, good evening! he knows how
to say, but how he has passed the time, his father (alone) knows."
Everyone can make salutations, but only the family is truly interested in its own
relative.
4. Akka biya wallun iyya. " The skin creaks according to the country."
Different countries, different customs.
5. Badn bai"nquttdn. "The courser once gone forth (from the stall) is no longer pure."
6. Intalilld dda hddd gorsitt. " The young girl wishes to give advice to her mother on
childbirth."
7. Kan"oddt dabi dangaldsi bud. " He who has nothing to do, scatters and gathers."
8. Ndn toUd"ti tortorsL " I make and thou spoilest."
9. (kru diegd | diru sietd \ rafu fittf | rafu dideU. " Dost thou think that the life of the
poor man is living? The sprouts are at an end! Sleep is denied him! "
10. Sild"nolu kadeld .dura wami. " Since the beggar would come any way, it 's best to
invite him first."
It is better to begin by satisfying the most insistent.
11. Sard ban gai wdl arrabd \ namni du 'u gai wdl dalattd. " When cows are about to go
out, they lick one another; when men are about to die, they love one another."
12. Tdkko ka 'uf tdkko du 'it, lafti bad. " One rises, one dies, the land increases."
The family property is increased as much by the birth of a son who can conquer new
lands, as by the death of an old man who leaves his heritage to the survivors.
13. Y6mu ati mimmittd \ ani sanafiddd | ydmu ail lilmd \ ani qardbadd. " When thou
art pepper, I am mustard; when thou art a needle, I am a knife."
A corsaire, corsaire et demi.
14. Mukni tokki&&i"n'dra maWnbobd'u. " A single stick smokes but does not burn."
15. Kardn sobdn darbdn diebitti ndma 4ibd. " People obstruct return by the way of
falsehood."
On account of the difficulty which the liar has in defending himself against the ques
tions of his listeners.
16. Hdrkd"bba tokkdtti ibidda qabu"nsoddtdnu. " The hand of a single person, even if
it holds fire, is not feared."
Compare Proverb 14.
17. Isaygantuf hinargdtu. " What has been blown away is not found again."
18. (kbiMa korma ta 'u gordnto kiessdtti bibku. " That the calf has become a bull is
known in the enclosure."
Only the members of a family can appreciate the virtues of their relative. Compare
Proverb 3.
19. And naiun bfeld"nbasu yd dabani toUdn maU. "To say, 'O poor fellow,' does not
appease hunger, but setting up the oven and baking bread [does]."
20. Kdn diegdtti rorissi"nba4ddu. " He who has despised the poor man will not grow
rich."
21. Wdqni arifattu Idja daqu"nolu. " What God has sent does not fail to reach the
earth."
22. Iyemif ibiddi tuttuqd "nfialldttu. " The poor man and the fire do not like to be
poked."
23. Didiga gardda dufi ilkdn "ndiebim. " The vomit which comes from the stomach
cannot be sent back by the teeth."
It is impossible to restrain the impulses of the soul.
24. 'Angdn nanndn 'angd"nta'ti. " To eat a great deal is not strength."
Doing many things does not mean doing them well.
25. Yd gdra qaUrinkd fiiru. German manni tinndn owdti. " When [the husband] says
[to one of his wives], 'O heart of mine/ the other looks sullen.
26. Kdn argatdnirrd kdn abdatdntu ddld. " What one hopes for is better than what one
finds."
27. Ganamdn badni Wdq durd "nbadnu. " They went forth in the morning, but they did
not go forth before God."
However much one tries to do evil in secret, divine punishment will not be lacking.
28. Mdna tdkko lubbu koqd, mdnd tdkko okkoti kogd. " With one wife, the heart is
warmed; with the other wife the kettle is warmed."
Two wives are necessary: one beautiful and one rich.
29. Ani hdmma namd"ngau, namni gard nd"nga&. "I do not reach the height of
others; the things of others do not reach my thought."
He who is not powerful has neither cares nor worries.
30. Ilmon gdfd hddd"nsoddtu. " The calves do not fear the horns of their mother."
31. BvddCend ndmd qubsu elUrratti bieku. " One knows even when one neighbor's
bread is in the oven."
Neighbors' affairs are well known.
32. Biniknsdygatdni ndma"nndttu. "They have found the wild beast; they will no
longer eat the people."
When an overbearing person finds some one to resist him.
33. Ofi fietton dirsakd"nfiettu. " ' I myself,' she said; ' My husband,' she did not say."
One thinks first of all of oneself, then of others.
34. Akka"balu sirbd tndrmd fiallisd. " Move your neck according to the music."
35. Dxegin diegefis d6rd "nnddda! delte fdqifi. " ' However poor I may be, I will not eat
fleshings,' said the dresser of skins."
However, the Galla believe that the dressers of skins eat the fleshings of the skins they
have dressed. The proverb is used of one who, being famous for a vice, swears and swears
falsely that he does not possess it.
36. Egienif gabtn bode adiemtu. " The tail and repentance go behind."
37. Atufiddi atufifti. " Thou broughtest; thou thyself destroyest."
38. Kan namd 'o'i elle fialdtti namd bitilld. " He who is warm for anyone will cook
cakes for him under the oven."
For friends and favorites, one attempts anything.
39. Hdda yu"nqabu akka6"nqabd! fiette qamaUn. " ' If I have no mother, I have my
grandmother! ' said the monkey."
If one has not the most desirable thing, at least one has always something good.
40. Itti qabatdfi. dlni holld gtrd. " What keeps him is that there is a wedding at his
neighbor's."
Therefore he does not go to the festival of those at a distance, even if they are relatives.
41. Ani fiirdn sea gogdnko gabd ftirdl fiette kurup,ptn. " ' I thought I was alive and in
stead my skin is already at the market,' said the gazelle."
This means the same as the Italian: Vender la pelle dell' orso prima d'averlo ammazzato,
" To sell the bear's skin before you have killed him."
42. Hinqdbnu hinadddnu! fiette qaqCen. " ' We have none and we do not shave,' said
the bald-headed man."
One must resign oneself to misfortunes and assume bonne mine.
43. Qalbin yartun bisdn ki'essa dabate dieboti. " The fool was thirsty in the midst of
water."
44. Nd qaldnu ndumun qalldtti dumd maU! Ijettl tafkin. " ' If they cut my throat, they
could not kill me, but with boiling water I am destroyed,' said the flea."
Against each enemy, use the suitable weapon.
45. (jabbin hdtu"nmar'dtu. " A calf that is sucking does not bellow."
Thus the vassal does not rebel so long as he has a rich country to exploit.
46. Sorus damns ififii misird lamd. " Whether it rains or stops raining, the lentils have
two eyes."
For one who does not conform to circumstances and events.
47. Harki namd rukutd maU hdrnd "naUlu. " The outsider claps his hands but nothing
moves."
48. Lafti"mbiekni qarqd duwdda wdn itti"mbCekne ddfqa duwddd. " The ascent to an
unknown land is useless; what is not known, is useless to toil for."
49. Yd dubbatdn bubb$ yd tdl fieddn buqqie. " If they speak, they are wind; if they are
silent, they are gourds."
Of futile people.
50. Kan qaban qabd "ngani gadi dlsdn bakki gutti. " They took it and it did not fill the
ring of the thumb and forefinger; they left it and it filled the whole plain."
For example, when a person is asked questions and he says he does not know; whereas,
if he had not been asked, he would have said even more than was necessary.
51. Kdn $alunfid&! deden mdna mitt harkd kai. "He said, 'I will bring the best there
is! ' and he put his hand into the hole of the white ant."
The awkward, with the best of intentions, cause the worst calamities.
52. UlUn qddd kopd dabsd. " The stick only breaks earthenware utensils."
On the other hand, the stick is useful to correct those who should be corrected. The
Galla Spelling Book gives the proverb thus: UlUn qddd qofd dabsd; Loransiyos, however,
says kopd instead of gofd.
53. Akka gard ofi harki mar0 "nmurd. " The hand does not cut the pantaloon ac
cording to one's own belly."
It is better to work for oneself and not rely upon strangers.
54. Kord maMald'ndird \ kori wdq"arkd fiird. " The saddle and the cover of the saddle
are sewed; pride is in the hands of God."
All articles are made and the rich may buy them; but God alone may be proud.
55. Kdn soddtdn du 'd kdn enole du 'd. " What they fear is death; that which never
fails is death."
It is, therefore, useless to fear it.
56. Akka madd qubd ydnni gard gubbd. " As the wound the finger, so thought inflames
the mind."
57. Kdn 4ibbt qlibbu qotU gindd qarqdtti bata. " The one who is oppressed with misery,
after having ploughed, carries the plough on his back up the slope."
The poor man endures all misfortunes.
58. Kdn hdddn qitjfi qdyd haqldfiUi. " That (daughter) who has grown to equal stature
with her mother, has put an end to the mother's decorating herself."
59. Afdn toldn afd told ddld (Galla Spelling Book: $alA). "A good conversation is
better than a good bed."
60. Dubbi barbadda sarin gabd daqti. " He looks for quarrels; the dog goes to the
market."
Because of the repugnance which the Mussulman Galla have for the dog, if a dog goes
to a place where many people are assembled, he will surely receive some kicks. So it is
with one who looks for quarrels.
61. Bdr unbieknin qoddn bukd lamd. " Since one does not know the morrow, (let there
be prepared) a vessel with two raised cakes."
62. Kdn har 'ad ndtti fit0 kdn bori mdl kies&erre"! " If thou eatest everything today,
what hast thou kept for tomorrow? "
63. Kdn sobti"nsokoksii. " A he cannot be overtaken."
It is difficult without witnesses to prove that a liar is such. It is the opposite of the
Italian proverb: La bugia ha le ganibe corte, " A lie has short legs ".
64. Kdn qufi ddmmd tufd. " He who is sated, spits out honey."
65. Dabd mand falamd wdyd. " For one who has no house, it is a good thing to bring
lawsuits."
Since he has everything to gain and nothing to lose.
66. Ho 'u! denndn diddi 61 kieMn haU. " ' Take it,' we said to him, and he refused;
we put it back and he stole it."
Forbidden things are a temptation.
67. Ndtd"ngabbatdnu yddd gabbdtu. " Upon food one does not grow fat; upon thought
one fattens."
68. Namni biydnd; nagd! dede ndma gad; fayd! dedA namdtti fayd. " The men of this
country say: ' Greeting,' and enter people's houses; they say: ' Hail! ' and they carry
away the people."
An allusion to the spies and to the seizures and confiscations so frequent in the Galla
kingdoms.
69. Ani qCensa "nqabu qubd nan "oqddda \ ani kiessa "nqabu idzd ndn dow 'ddda. " I
have no nails, I scratch myself with my fingers; I have no brain, I look at it with my
eyes."
For one who looks without understanding.
70. SaM hddd intdldfarsd qal '6. " Offspring of the mother, the daughter is poor beer."
Tel pere, tel fils. (Like father, like son.)
71. Wamtf&i ulfind ollun salpind. " It is lightness not to respond to a heavy invi
tation."
Here, the Galla play upon words; between ulfind, which means both " heavy " and
" worthy of respect " and salpind, " light " materially as well as " contemptible."
72. Hidin gaddntu ise oldntu tufati. " The lower Up scorns the upper lip."
Cf. " The pot calls the kettle black."
73. Kardddf garatu gargdr ndma basd. " The way and the thought divide people."
As travellers separate at the crossroads, so differences of opinion separate friends.
74. Hdrd"ngdin harrdtti mad6ofU. " Thou hast not yet reached the warm spring and
thou art already intoxicated with the water of the pool."
For boasts made before going to war.
75. Mi 'effaU nd arrdbi dede sogiddi. " ' [The other time] I was sweet; lick me [now]! '
said the salt."
For one who, having once yielded, then prepares to resist the second time.
76. Otu"nkolfun gubbadde! dette akkain. " ' If I had not laughed, I should have been
burnt,' said the parched chick-peas."
The Abyssinians and the Galla while cooking parched chick-peas (Amharic: qolld;
Galla: akkae) are in the habit of sprinkling them with water. Then the chick-peas crack
(the proverb says, "laugh"). The proverb is applied when distraction from a long piece
of work is needed.
77. Sari bisdnfoni mi 'effaWndubbitu. " The dog who likes soup does not quarrel."
Because he fears to lose his dinner. Cf. proverb 65.
78. Namni dufu dubbin dufd. " If a man comes, a quarrel comes."
This is almost a literal translation of the Amharic proverb saw mattd nagar yxmatflX, "A
man has come; a quarrel will come."
79. Otu kdn si"n(feddn dagese kdn si kadn hinndtu! detJLe sieren. '"If thou hadst heard
what (ill) they said of thee, thou wouldst not have eaten what they served up for thee,'
said the gossips."
For insincere hospitality.
80. BieM bofd mild dowe". " Wisely He (God) denied feet to the serpent."
Because, if he had feet also, poisonous as he is, he would have destroyed the world.
81. Otu duUaMi $iru gorbi duti. " While the old cow lives, the calf dies."
Death sometimes spares the old and takes the young.
82. Tolten"ntollu intalli akkadn guddiftu. " As to being good, the girl brought up by
her grandmother is not good."
Because the grandmother, left without a daughter, brings up her granddaughter with
too many caresses.
83. Dagae" g'etti"nodiesini \ argi! 6etti"ndubbdtini \ kiesdsd otu"nubdtini. "Do not
speak, saying, ' I have seen him,' if thou hast not first searched his heart."
One should know things and persons well before speaking of them.
84. Otu "nubatin qubd "ngubbatin. " If thou hast not examined, do not burn thy finger."
That is, do not put your finger in the fire; do not undertake an enterprise, without
having first considered well whether it can be successful. Cf. preceding proverb.
85. Gor&n dubWnmargu abbdn ofi"nargu. " Nothing sprouts in the enclosure [if] the
master does not himself watch over it."
This corresponds to the Italian, "The eye of the master fattens the horse," L'occhio del
padrone ingrassa il cavallo.
86. Kdn 6abd tufati agabu buld. " He who has scorned the piece of bread will pass the
night fasting."
87. Guddiguddd! Marqdn buU afdn gubbd. " O great wonder! The cold pudding burns
the mouth."
When one who is considered cowardly or insignificant vanquishes a valiant man.
88. Namni ig'g'a tdkko namni niti tdkko tokMmdn dumtu. " The man who has but one
eye and the man who has but one wife perish in one and the same moment."
Because, if the one eye is lost or the one wife is lost, it is all over with them.
89. Ati gurbd dubbi MaSaSd Sdyfu sitti"ndebin. " O youth, do not let the affair of
Masa Sayfu be repeated in thy case."
Masasa Sayfu, dag'g'd6, made an expedition against the Gullalie. Notwithstanding the
thousand boasts made by him before the fight, he, with his whole army, was surrounded
and had to pay the Galla a great ransom. Thus, for the Galla of Shoa " the affair of Masasa
Sayfu " became proverbial, like the Italian pifferi di montagna (" mountain fifers ").
90. Amarri"ndallagu buddfen Sdn tufdta. " The Amara who does not cultivate the
earth spits upon five loaves."
This is said of one who, not having worked himself, despises the work of others. The
Amara are, as is well known, despisers of agricultural work, which, on the contrary, is
held in esteem among the Galla. The proverb belongs to the Harar.
91. Harre wdfifiin oU dkka harrS dufd. " He has stayed with the ass; he emits farts like
the ass."
Cf. the corresponding Amharic and Tigritan proverbs.
92. Kdn barand lakkisi \ k6tt"arkdkd harkisi! " Never mind about the matter of this
year; come and pull out my arm."
It is related that a robber who had entered a woman's house, having thrust his arm into
a vessel of grain, could not pull it out again. The woman who had been to the spring to
draw water, having come back, set down the large jug without noticing the thief and, being
tired, exclaimed, " Yd barand!" "Oh, this (unlucky) year!" The thief then burst out with
the above-mentioned phrase which afterwards became proverbial.
93. Ndtti"ndufin sltti"ndufd! {jedibusdn. "' Do not come to me; I will not come to
thee,' said the malaria."
Because whoever does not go to the malarial zone is not affected by the disease. This
is said of one who does not attack without being provoked by his adversary.
VI. Riddles
1. Guyd namd gadi halkdn namd oli. " In the daytime below man, in the night above
man."
Answer: The fowl.
In the daytime the fowls are in the yard in front of the house; at night, according to
the Abyssinian custom, they are above the ceiling of the hut, that is, in the space between
the ceiling of the room and the roof of the hut.
2. Kdn du 'dni oli, kdn fiirdni gadi. " Over those who are dead, beneath those who are
living."
Answer: The earth.
3. Irri du 'd gall du 'd giddun fiira. " That which is over is dead; that which is under
is dead; that which is between is alive."
Answer: A man in bed. The bed is usually made of an ox-hide, and the covering is an
other skin.
4. Hunddmd kfessa kdi fudi bisdn ki'essa k&i fu$u daddabi. " It went into everything
and it caught ; it went into water and it could not catch."
Answer: Fire.
5. Horikd biellamd kdbd hfessa"nkd&nu. " My cattle have only one eye; do not put
them in the hut."
Answer: Fire, whose eye is the flame.
6. Kadun qaqdbu. Kun6 qabi. " By running one does not reach it. Here, take it."
Answer: The sun, whose light is present everywhere, although it is intangible.
7. Malkd gai qasi. " Having reached the ford, it made a noise."
Answer: The handle of the lance.
When the Galla reach a ford, they have a custom of striking the ground with the handle
of the lance, perhaps in order to exorcise the genius of the river.
APPENDIX
The Watta: a Low Caste of Hunters
It appears worth while to add here a note on the Wdtta of whom I have already spoken
(song 15, notes). As it is known, we find in Abyssinia and in the adjacent districts of East
Africa certain classes of the population engaged in particular trades or occupations which
are considered ignoble by the rest of the natives. Their social status differs in the various
districts; sometimes they form low castes, sometimes a kind of trades union with limited
political power. Among these lower strata of the population, the caste of hunters is one of
the most important. In Abyssinia, hunting is an occupation noble or ignoble in respect
to the animal sought. Groups which live by hunting wild beasts considered ignoble, form,
according to the universal law of East Africa, a low caste. The Galla call these hunters
Wdtta.
It must be noted that Wdtta are not found in every district of Abyssinia, — a strong
argument against the hypothesis that these hunters have been a primary low caste of the
Semito-Hamitic peoples ever since their origin in Asia. On the contrary, the Wdtta have
a special geographical distribution in three groups. The southern group is formed by the
hunters living in villages along the banks of the Dawa, north of its confluence with the
Awata, on the banks of the Ganal Doria,1 and the banks of the Galana Sagan, east of its
confluence with the Galana Dulei.2 About this group we have only the two accounts of
Captain Bottego and his companions, and of Captain Colli de Felliggano.8 These Wdtta
are autonomous and have villages and territories distinct from those of the adjacent peoples.
Around them the country is inhabited by Borana Galla, but the group living on the banks
of the Galana Sagan is limited northwards by the land, until recently unknown, between
the Uba Sidama and the negro tribe of Konso.
The central group is formed by the families scattered through the districts of the Ma$$a
Galla and Kaffa. These Wdtta are not independent and live in subjection to the Galla and
Sidama. The size of these Wdtta groups differs, being large in Giima, smaller in Limmu
and Gfmma Abba Gifar, larger in Giera, and largest in Kaffa. Wdtta families, according
to d'Abbadie,4 live west of Kaffa in the land of the Suro, a negro group mixed with Hamitic
elements. This statement of d'Abbadie's, reported also by Conti-Rossini,8 is indirectly
confirmed by the discovery of Wdtta in the country of the Gimirra, north of the Suro.
Montandon 6 first noticed them in his travels. These are the most western branches; the
most eastern branches are the Wdtta whom Krapf 7 met at Watta Dalocca, a village in the
1 Vittoris Bottego, II Giuba esplorato, Roma, 1895, p. 328, 336.
1 Vannutelli e Citerni, L'Omo, op. cit., p. 344, and the general map.
» G. Colli di Felliggano, ' Nei paeai Galla,' (Boll. Soc. Geog. ItaL, Roma, 1905, vol. 42, p. 111).
4 d'Abbadie, Geographie d'fithiopie, op. cit., p. 199.
• Conti-Rossini, ' I mekan o Suro,' (Rend. d. R. Accad. d. Lined, Roma, 1914, vol. 22, pt. 7-8, p. 411).
• George Montandon, ' Au pays Ghimirra,' (Bull. Soc. Neutcateloise de Geog., Neuchatel, 1912, vol. 22, p. 65).
' Krapf, Travels, researches, etc., op. eit.
Tulama Galla district of Shoa on the banks of the Awas; and those who live in Guragie.
If Soleillet's notes l are really referable to the Galan, they should confirm the fact that
there are or at least were Wdttd groups in southern Shoa.
About the central group, we have more material than about the southern. The
principal references are to be found as follows: for the whole group, the account of Cardinal
Massaja; 2 for the Wdttd living in Shoa, the travel notes of Soleillet; 3 for the groups living
in Kaffa, the report of the Italian Geographical Expedition by Captain Cecchi,4 the two
accounts of Bieber,4' a note by Reinisch,7 and a letter by P. Leon des Avanchers reprinted
by d'Abbadie;8 for the Limmu group, d'Abbadie's note to the letter of P. Leon; 9 for the
Wdttd of the Awas, the Amharic dictionary of Isenberg; 10 and finally, the notes collected
by me from Loransiyos.11
The northern group is formed by the hunters scattered along the banks of Lake Tana
and the Abbay, i.e. the Blue Nile. The hunters living on the banks of the Takkazie, i.e.
the Setit, according to an Amara informant of mine, are the most northern branch of this
group. These hunters live in small, separate villages or wander along the banks of the rivers.
They occupy a lower political position than the Amara population. Rava12 estimated the
population of the Tana region at six to seven hundred persons, but, later,13 wrote that
according to his calculations, there were about fifteen hundred Wdyto (Wdtta) around the
Tana!
About this group, we have the notes contained in the accounts of Bruce14 who encoun
tered them near the Tana in the region of Matraha at the mouth of the Rebb river; of
Ruppel15 who found them near the Tana; of Cardinal Massaja16 who found them along
the Abbay near Tadbe Maryam at the mouth of the Basfllo river; of Heuglin17 who
found them in Dambya on the western bank of the Tana; of Ferret and Galiner18 who
found them in Fogara, east of Lake Tana; of Isenberg;19 of Rosen20 who found them be
tween the mouths of the Abbay and the Gelda, and in Fogara between the Rebb and the
1 Voyages en fithiopie, op. cit., p. 255.
2 I miei trentacinque anni di missione nell'alta Etiopia, op. cit., vol. 5, p. 56, 59.
* Op. cit., p. 255.
* Da Zeila alle frontiere del Caffa, op. cit., vol. 2, p. 366.
6 Federico G. Bieber, ' Nel Caffa,' (Boll. Soc. Afr. d'ltalia, Napoli, 1906, vol. 25, pt. 9-10, p. 202).
' ' Reise durch Aethiopien und den Sudan,' (Mitt. K. K. Geogr. Gesellschaft, Wien, 1910, vol. 53, p. 344).
' Die Kaffa sprache, op. cit., vol. 1, p. 16.
* Geographie d'Ethiopie, op. cit., p. 266.
' Ibid., p. 269.
10 Karl Wilhelm Isenberg, Dictionary of the Amharic language, London, 1841.
11 Vide supra, p. 14.
u Maurizio Rava, Al lago Tsana, Roma, 1913, p. 79.
u Ibid., p. 154.
14 Voyage en Nubie et Abyssinie, op. cit., vol. 3, p. 455.
" Reise nach Abyssinien, Frankfurt, 1840, vol. 2, p. 205.
" Op. cit., vol. 3, p. 8-10.
17 Theodor von Heuglin, Reise nach Abyssinien, Jena, 1868, p. 289-291.
11 Voyage en Abyssinie, Paris, 1847, vol. 2, p. 256-257. " Op. cit., Wayjo.
" Felix Rosen, Eine deutsche Gesandtschaft in Abyssinien, Leipzig, 1907, p. 380-381, 391.
Gumara rivers; of Rava l who found them on the banks of the Tana at the mouth of the
Gumara at Igaso between Bahala Maryam and Zanzalima (north of the mouth of the
Abbay), in the short peninsula beyond Goga, and at Delgi Maryam; in the Amharic
texts collected by Mittwoch,2 and in an unedited Amharic text collected by me from a
native of Dambya.
Reinisch,3 annotating the letter by P. Leon des Avanchers, writes: " The Wafa or
Waft, are the gipsies and wandering musicians of East Africa. I found them among the
Bogos, the Habab, and the Saho tribes. All over Abyssinia they wander unmolested, as
musicians, and in like manner among the Galla." If this were true, we ought to find a
northern branch of the Wdttd in Eritrea. However, it seems clear to me that the statement
made by Reinisch is a mistake. In fact, the Wdtta (Wdyto) are not musicians but hunters;
furthermore, hunting is their characteristic occupation. However, in the Tigrinna and
Tigre languages wdtd or wdtdy means " wandering musician " (they play on a kind of
bugle called in the Semitic languages of Abyssinia, malakat) and wdtd 6ira in the same
languages means " minstrel," " playing on the violin." Minstrels in Abyssinia have a
peculiar position because their trade is esteemed ignoble by the Abyssinians. This cir
cumstance has probably misled Reinisch. But wata, " singer," " wandering musician "
(the word is used also in the Bilin, Saho and 'Afar languages as a loanword) has no connec
tion with the Galla word, wdtta. Possibly, but even this seems to me doubtful, it is con
nected with the Galla weddu, "song" (thence the verb wedd-is "to sing"). The minstrels do
not form a special group of the population with their own peculiar geographical distribu
tion, but are Abyssinians instructed in the arts of singing and playing; neither are they
subjected to political and social restrictions, except the prohibition of marriage between
them and the noble Abyssinians.
Having thus fixed the location of the three groups of these hunters, I will outline their
ethnology. First, it is interesting to note the different names by which they are known in
the languages of the adjacent peoples. The Galla, as I have already said, call them Wdttd,
or with a variation common in Galla dialects, Wdtd. They also use the plural form, Wdttd
or Wdtd. The etymology of this word is not clear; it is, perhaps, the national name by
which these hunters called themselves at the time of their meeting with the Galla. However,
it is also probable that this name comes from the Kushitic root, from which is also derived
the Amharic, wdttata, " to wander without permanent occupation." 4
The Amharic name for the hunters of the northern group is Wdyto. It is difficult to
demonstrate the linguistic connection between Wdttd and Wdyto; nevertheless it is almost
certain. The Kaffa name, according to Massaja 6 and Bieber,6 is Mandd. However, Reinisch
1 Op. cit, p. 79, 81, 123, 156-157.
1 ' Proben aus amarischen Volksmunde,' (Mitt. d. Sem. f. Orient. Sprachen zu Berlin, vol. 10, pt. 2, p. 214-215).
• Op. cit.
4 Cf. Guidi, Vocabolario amarico, op. cit., udiiaia.
1 Op. cit. " 'Nel caffa,' op. cit., p. 214.
in his Kaffa dictionary gives the name Waft. (It would be interesting to find in the Kaffa
name ( instead of t ; that would help to explain the change of Wdtta to Wdylo.) The name
Mdnfio is an adjective (properly a relative form) from the root man which in the western
Sidama languages (Kaffa, in Gonga and in Gimirra) means " to tan." It is probable that
as the tanners form another low caste, their name is used in a general sense to indicate all
low castes, including hunters. This hypothesis is confirmed by the fact that the Walamo
(central Sidama or Ometi Sidama) call Man-a the potters, another trade carried on only
by low castes. This I learned from a Walamo native who also added, " Only the potters,
Man-a, among us eat the flesh of a hippopotamus," and this is new evidence of the connec
tion Manfio, Mand, Wdtta. Reinisch after writing with reference to his notes that the sense
of the word mdnfio appeared to him obscure, states that it was derived from a hypothetical
root manfi connected with the Amharic verb maHafa, " to strip off hair." But beside the
improbability of the change mallata, man/jo, this etymology is not correct; for the root of
the word is not manfi but man.
The Gimirra call the hunters Kouayegou; this is a literal transcription from Montandon
and must therefore be given the French pronunciation.1 We have no evidence of the
name given to the Wdtta by the Suro. The Gurage, according to Captain Cecchi,2 call them
Rugd; the word, however, which he adds in Ethiopic characters is Ragd.3 But is not Rugd
a misprint for Fugd ? 4
As to the physical characters of these hunters, no anthropometric data have been col
lected; therefore, the accounts of travellers must be accepted with great caution and ap
plied only to the group visited in each case. The Wdtta of the southern group appeared to
Bottego,6 "men of considerable strength, with flat noses, and noticeably big lips . . .
their color is a little darker than the Borana's." Therefore, they are physically different
from the Galla. " They are not at all related to the true Galla." Grixoni 6 noted the beauti
ful figure of their women.
The Wdtta of the central group whom Cecchi saw in Giera7 had " low stature and color
of a darker brown than the Galla, ordinary noses, lips somewhat protruding, coarse, curly
hair; " they were " robust, with beautiful figures, supple." Although Captain Cecchi
says before his detailed account, " They (the Wdtta) do not differ greatly from the Galla,"
I think that this statement is disproved by his own notes.
P. Leon 8 says that the Wdtta in Kaffa have the features of negroes; but d'Abbadie 9
notes that in Limmu (Innarya), the Wdtta bear no resemblance to negroes. Cardinal Mas-
saja10 presents this interesting account: among the Wdtta, the parents hang a small weight
1 Montandon, op. cit., p. 65, writes, " the Galla name of the Wdtta is Mdnjjo," an evident mistake.
• Op. cit., vol. 2, p. 368.
• Ragd in Amharic means " a weaver who is not born of a weaver's family but is the first of his family to learn
weaving." Among the Amara, weaving is another ignoble trade. Cf. Guidi, Vocabolario amarico, op. cit., p. 134.
4 Vide infra, p. 213-214. ' Op. cit., vol. 2, p. 368.
• II Giuba esplorato, op. cit. > d'Abbadie, op. cit.
• Bottego, op. cit., p. 336. » Ibid. l° Op. cit., vo 5.1.
from each lobe of their children's ears, gradually increasing it until the lower portions of
the lobes have reached the desired length. Massaja does not indicate the region in which
the Wdtta practice this custom, but I think that it is probably in Kaffa. It is evidently
allied to the custom of perforating the lobes of the ears and enlarging the incision by the
insertion of pieces of wood or metal, a custom prevalent among the Gimirra,1 and farther
south among the Masai and Wakikiyu.2 Massaja also says that the Wdtta are darker in
color than the Galla. The southern group of hunters is thus described by Rosen;3
" thin people without calves (of the leg), ugly, with narrow foreheads, big, hooked noses,
and long, projecting chins."
What language do the Wdtta speak? We have no evidence on this point concerning
the southern group. About the central group, Massaja gives us these data: "Generally
they all speak the language of the country in which they reside; but they also have a special
language which is remarkably different from any of the languages spoken in those countries.
Today, this is a very incomplete language, losing rapidly its original form and richness
because of the scattering of this race and the low condition in which they live. During
my stay in Kaffa and other countries inhabited by these people, I collected from them
many of the words and constructions of their language, intending to coordinate these
notes and write a useful work, but the loss of my manuscript kept me from accomplishing
this." Cecchi adds,4 "Their language (the Wdtta), according to d'Abbadie, is as unknown
as that of the Zingaro.6 I have not been able to find any connection in the language of
the Wdtta with the speech of the adjacent populations."
As to the northern group, the information is at first sight very dubious. According to
Bruce,6 the language of the Wdtta is absolutely different from all other languages of Abys
sinia; Ferret and Galiner,7 confirming this, add that all the Wdtta speak Amharic also.
That explains why Rtippel denies that they have a separate language, but even he recog
nizes that further research is necessary. Heuglin also writes that the language spoken by
the Wdyto is simply Amharic. It seems to me that the Wdtta have a language or jargon
which they keep carefully secret from all strangers, i.e. from everyone who does not belong
to their caste. The Midgan, the hunters of Somaliland, furnish a remarkable analogy in this
matter of a secret language.8 It would be very interesting from a linguistic and ethnologi
cal point of view to collect specimens of this language or jargon.
1 Montandon, op. cit., p. 174.
1 Cf. John Bland-Sutton, Man and beast in eastern Ethiopia, London, 1911, p. 118-127.
• Op. cit.
1 Op. cit., vol. 2, p. 368.
6 However, the language of the ZingarO, i.e. the Yang&ro or YammS language is known, although only slightly.
It is the principal language of the Sidama group called by Conti-Rossini " the Sidama of the Upper Gibie." (Studii
su popolazioni dell' Ethiopia, op. cit., p. 411).
' Op. cit., vol. 2. ' Op. cit., vol. 2.
8 Cf. E. Cerulli, review of P. Giovanni da Palermo, ' Dizionario della Somala,' (Revista degli studii orientali,
vol. 3, pt. 3, p. 794), and E. Cerulli, ' L'origine delle basse caste della Somalia,' (L'esplorazione commerciale, Oct.
1917).
Concerning the religion of these hunters, accounts are also scarce. Massaja 1 says,
" They have fewer religious ceremonies than the pagan Galla, but they have a conception
of the deity and an obscure idea of the immortality of the soul and the final aim of human
life. They follow many dogmatic traditions found in the Bible." Ruppel's notes which
concern the northern group state that they have no religious ceremonies nor do they practice
circumcision. Heuglin, quoting Riippel, adds that according to the Amara, who, however,
do not give consistent information, the Wdyto have no religion. My Amara informant said
to me, " Their religion is similiar to the FaldSa religion (Abyssinian Judaism)." By
this, he meant that the Wdyto do not follow the official religion of Abyssinia. On the con
trary, Mittwoch 2 states that the Wdyto have many customs common to the Mussulmen;
they use some Arabic phrases, e.g. Alhamdu li'Uah, " Praise be to God! " but they have no
knowledge of the Koran, and they are not reckoned as membres of the same religion by
either Mussulmen or Christians. They celebrate the feast of 'Arafah,3 the well-known
Islamic holiday occurring on the tenth of the month Dulhttjfiah, which is the most solemn
religious feast of the Mussulmen of East Africa. Rava,4 after saying that the Christians
call the Wdyto Mussulmen, and the Mussulmen call them Christians, both in a disparaging
tone, adds: "However, the basis of their religion is clearly Moslem." I do not understand
why Rava thinks so: the facts which we know, — no circumcision, and the eating of flesh
impure alike to the Moslems and the Christians of Abyssinia, —definitely deny this hypoth
esis. Probably Rava gives the literal reports of the natives without analysis. It is note
worthy that he mentions that a Wdyto said to him, " We are Mussulmen, but we eat the
hippopotamus and we think we have the power to make it pure." All these facts induce
me to believe that while the hunters (Wdtta, Wdyto, etc.) have in general kept their ancient
paganism of which we know nothing, in many places they have accepted some of the forms
of the religions of the peoples who surround them, without understanding the real meaning
of these customs. Anyone who knows what a strange mixture of Paganism, Islamism, and
Christianity was practiced in many Galla tribes after the Amara conquest will not be sur
prised at the present indeterminate state of Wdtta religion.
The clothes of the hunters of the central group are thus described by Cecchi6: " The men
wear conical hats of monkey fur, and like the Galla of the poorer classes, they fasten
around the body a large apron made of calfskin, of leopard or antelope hide.6 The women
1 Op. cit., vol. 5.
1 ' Proben aus amarischen Volksmunde,' op. cit.
* Cf. A. Werner, ' The Utendi of Mwana Kupona,' (Harv. Afr. Stud., Cambridge, 1917, vol. 1, p. 147-181).
Evidently yaumu li-arafa is not " the day of judgment " but the aforesaid holiday. The importance of the 'Arafah
in the life of the East African Mussulman has been pointed out to me by a Moslem Amara, a native of W&115 who
called the feast of the Cross, the greatest feast of the Abyssinian Christians, " Yi-Kristydn ArOfd, the 'Arafah of the
Christians."
* Al lago Tsana, op. cit.
' Op. cit., vol. 2, p. 368.
* Also worn by the Amara countrymen who call it Hrdra. (Cf. Guidi, Vocabolario amarico, op. cit.) The Galla
call it ddkkii. See song 71.
pass under their shoulders a large leather band which they use as a sort of basket for carry
ing their children. The boys wear a skin which is knotted on one shoulder, leaving the
other shoulder and the rear of the body uncovered." Massaja also says that they wear on
their heads a hat of monkey fur, pyramidal in form. Among the Wdyto of the northern
group who were photographed by Rosen, one has wrapped about him a band, perhaps of
cotton cloth, which is knotted on one shoulder in the manner Cecchi describes. The other,
however, wears the Abyssinian toga.
The arms of the Wdttd in addition to the javelin later described, consist among the
central group of a bow and arrows. According to Cecchi,1 they also use crooked knives
and spears, but it is probable that by the word " spear " he means javelin.
As to their habitations, Bottego, with regard to the southern group, simply tells us
that they live in villages along the banks of rivers in spots considered unhealthy by the
Borana or, I think, shunned because of the Galla belief that genii live in rivers, (see songs
50 and 117). He also adds that the Wdttd huts are covered with the leaves of the palm
tree. The Wdttd of the central group, according to the unanimous opinion of travellers and
also of my native informant, live on the outskirts of the Galla, Kaffa, and even Suro vil
lages. Cecchi 2 states that in Giera, they live in the woods and build themselves hiding
places in the trees. The Wdyto of the northern group, according to Heuglin, inhabit port
able huts of cane, shaped like an oven. Rosen also writes that the huts are constructed of
cane, perhaps of cyperus papyrus. Rava noticed on two Wdyto huts climbing plants in
bloom. Massaja met a family which had taken refuge in a cave.
Their chief occupation, naturally, is hunting, especially the hunting of the hippopota
mus. For the Monophysite as for the Mussulman, the flesh of the hippopotamus is im
pure, but before this religious motive, there certainly existed a more ancient taboo, because
even the pagan Kushites consider the hippopotamus unclean. It is a question very diffi
cult to decide whether these ideas are derived from the oldest beliefs of the Semito-Hamites 3
or from the common superstitions about rivers, on account of which the Kushites do not
eat fish, and some tribes believe that the crocodile is the embodiment of a spirit. Certainly
at present all over Ethiopia the hunting of the hippopotamus is inglorious.4
The manner of hunting is the same in all three groups of Wdttd; when the beast comes
up to the surface to breathe, they strike it with javelins, the poisoned heads of which are
detachable. According to Riippel, the poison causes the death of the animal within
twelve hours. Heuglin says this poison is extracted from a plant with sharp thorns, called
in Amharic ydrgomdri S6h, " the thorn of the hippopotamus," a plant of the genus aster-
achantus. Heuglin also states that the iron point of the javelin has a special mark to dis
1 Op. cit., p. 368. • Ibid., p. 369.
3 Bible, Old Testament, Job, ch. 41.
* There are only a few groups, perhaps mixed with W&y(o elements, who boast of killing the hippopotamus, e. g.,
the child whom Rava met near the Tana (op. cit., p. 84), and the poet of an Amharic song collected by me, who
after enumerating the noble hunting enterprises (Hon, elephant), closes: " And are the spoils of the hippopotamus fit
only for Wdy(o? When it (the hippopotamus) appears breathing, does it not frighten? "
tinguish the hunter who has killed the hippopotamus, in case the animal after being
wounded is carried away by the current. Each Wdyto family has its own peculiar mark.
The utilization of the products of the hunting is everywhere the same. With the skin
of the hippopotamus, the Wdtta make switches, the famous kurbdd, and less frequently
shields; the teeth are sold as ivory; the fat is used by the Wdtta to anoint themselves
(this, according to Cecchi and Heuglin, causes an offensive stench of the body) ; the tail
is cut off and hung from the ceiling of the hut as a triumphal spoil; the meat, according
to all sources, is eaten by the hunters, thus proving that the poison used to kill the hippo
potamus is not harmful to men. Heuglin also says that they dry the meat to preserve it.
In addition to the hippopotamus, the Wdtta of the central group at least, also hunt mon
keys, aquatic birds, and crocodiles.
As to occupations other than hunting, those of the central group, according to P. Leon
des Avancher,. Massaja, and Cecchi, are the executors of the death sentences decreed by
the kings of Galla and Kaffa countries. This is confirmed also by the Galla-Italian diction
ary compiled by Viterbo.1 This dictionary translates Wdtta and Watto, "executioner."
P. Leon adds that they also cut wood for their patrons, and Cecchi says that they tan
skins. This is perhaps a mistake because of the frequent confusion of the two low castes,
the Wdtta and the tanners. But still it is probable that the Wdtta, although chiefly hunters,
also engage in other occupations esteemed ignoble. Cecchi states the Watta make their
own knives. Those of the northern group are also fishers and boatmen. They construct
a kind of raft (called in Amharic tankHa), putting together canes of the papyrus (cyperus
papyrus), and laying them in piles. The rafts are pushed by one oar only, with which they
row alternately to the right and to the left. Moreover, all these hunters of the northern
and central group are considered by the Amara, the Galla, and the Sidama to be sorcerers,
and rich in magical powers. Their malediction is much feared. This helps to lighten for them
the yoke of the high castes.
As the low castes of Somaliland are called by the insulting nickname bdhth 'tino, i.e.
" dead-eating " (those who eat impure meat), so the most usual reason of contempt for
the hunters of Abyssinia is their eating flesh of unclean animals, e.g. the hippopotamus,
monkeys, aquatic birds (the Galla call the water-hen hindaqd Saytdna, " the fowl of
Satan "), hares, and wild boars. Naturally the popular imagination has exaggeratedly im
puted to the contemned Wdyto all other kinds of impure foods; even crocodiles,2 elephants
(according to P. Leon), and serpents.8
We may distinguish two legal codes of the Wdtta (Wdytd, etc.) ; one governing their
relations among themselves, the other governing their relations to the higher castes. We
know almost nothing about the law of the Wdtta. Massaja tells us that in the central group
marriage between brother and sister is not forbidden by these hunters forced into endogamy
1 Vocabolario della lingua Oromonica, (Cecchi, op. cit., vol. 3, p. 263).
* Bruce, op. cit., p. 455. * Cf. Guidi, Vocabolario amarico-italiano, WdyfS.
by the contiguous populations. Bieber relates that those living in Kaffa have a pseudo-
king called Mdrujo tdto, i.e. " the king of the Mdnfio " who has his residence in Andarasa.1
This statement is very interesting as a sign that the Wdtta have kept in Kaffa at least an
appearance of political organization.2 About the northern group we know also from the
note by Heuglin that the Wdytt) impress property marks on their hunting javelins.
The information concerning the Kushitic and Abyssinian Semitic laws concerning the
Wdtta (Wdy0, etc.) of the central group3 known at present is: 1. Marriage is forbidden be
tween Amara, Galla or Kaffa, and the Wdtta (Wdyto, etc.). This rule rigorously kept forces the
hunters into endogamy. 2. Wdtta are forbidden to pass beyond the threshold of a noble's
house. 3. Nobles are forbidden to pass beyond the threshold of the Wdtta huts. 4. Any food
touched by Wdtta is taboo because of their ritual impurity; this extends even to corn
sowed or reaped by them. 5. The Wdtta do not fight in the Galla, Kaffa, and Amara armies,
remaining in their villages during time of war.
These rules apply generally to the central and southern groups. In addition, there are
other rules which especially apply to single groups. For example, among the Wdtta of the
central group in Kaffa before the Amara conquest, the hunters, as one may readily infer
from the statements of Massaja and P. Leon, lived under the patronage of the king or of
a high caste Kaffan. I suppose that there were also Wdtta living out of patronage, and
therefore outside the law. The client Wdtta was obliged to pay some services to his patron.
For those living under the king's patronage, the services were the execution of death sen
tences (according to Cecchi, also the custody of the criminals condemned to imprisonment),
and the guarding of the gates of the kingdom. For those living under the patronage of a
Kaffan of high caste, P. Leon states only that their service was the cutting of wood for their
patron. The hunters living under patronage were not the property of the men of high
caste and could not be sold.4 In the Galla countries, according to Massaja, they had a
better legal status than in Kaffa, but this statement appears to be inexact, as it is contra
dicted by the description of their life in Giera, given by Cecchi. According to Loransiyos,
there is no vengeance or blood-price for Wdtta killed by men of high caste. However Soleil-
let6 refers to a Galla law which, enumerating the different blood-prices, fixed at 70 oxen the
blood-price for killing a Wdtta. It is probable that this apparent contradiction has been
occasioned by the fact that Loransiyos alluded to the Wdtta living out of patronage, and
Soleillet to those living under patronage. This hypothesis may be confirmed by the similar
terms of the Somali law. According to DeCastro,6 and I do not know the source from which
1 ' Nel Caffa,' op. cit., p. 214.
' ' Reise durch Athiopien und den Sudan,' op. cit., p. 344. Here Bieber Bays that the Wdttd were " bis ins 14.
Jahrhundert staatlich geeint," but I do not know the source of this information.
3 As to the Wdttd of the southern group, we know that they live under the patronage of the Borana tribes and
that marriage between the Wdtta and the BoranS is forbidden. Cf. Colli de Felliggano, 'Nei paesi Galla a Sud dello
Scioa', op. cit., p. 111-112.
4 Therefore Massaja is mistaken in saying that the Wdttd live in the lowest slavery, op. cit., vol. 6, p. 60.
* Op. cit., p. 257. • Nella terra dei negus, op. cit., vol. 2, p. 384.
he has gathered this information, the hunters in Kaffa may not possess arms. This is
evidently inexact; I think that he meant that the Wdtta are forbidden to possess certain
arms considered for nobles only, as the Somali law prohibits the low castes' possessing
spears. For the northern group, all that we know about the particular terms of the Amara
law concerning the Wdyto is that, according to my Amara informant of Dambya, the
Wdyto have no landed property (rest in Amharic).
Thus there naturally arises the question: What is the ethnic origin of the Wdtta and
why have they such a political position today? First of all, it is interesting to relate the
traditions of the Wdtta themselves concerning this. Massaja, about the central group,
writes:1 "It is a firm tradition of this race (i.e. the Wdtta) that in Kaffa as in Abyssinia,
they were the original lords and free peoples of these countries," and in another place:2
" However, it appears that in the beginning, the greater part of the regions south of the
Blue Nile were occupied by the race called in Kaffa Mdnfio and Wdtta by the Galla, and
Wdyto in the neighborhood of Gondar. These peoples, lords from many centuries, in
almost all the Ethiopic countries of southwestern Abyssinia, lived tranquilly according to
their customs and traditions, until an Abyssinian emperor who had his residency in Autotto
(Entotto), today a Galla village of Shoa, invaded the countries of the Wdtta with a large
Christian army and occupied very promptly the countries of the Innarya, subjugating the
native races." The second statement of Massaja alludes perhaps to the expedition of the
emperor ' Amda Syon to southern Abyssinia (see song 21, notes) ; but the population of
Innarya was at that time Sidama, at least predominantly, and not Wdtta. Moreover, it
is not true that the capital of Abyssinia was Entotto. The first account is then more
accurate. Isenberg also states: "They (i.e. the Wdtta) pretend to keep the original in
stitutions of the Galla pure, whereas all their other Galla brethren are said to have fallen
off." This is a new proof of the survival among the Wdtta of traditions of an origin more
ancient and more noble than the neighboring peoples, but Isenberg may give the infor
mation in an inaccurate form; certainly the Wdtta are not the " brethren " of the Galla.
As to the northern group, Rava says that he has collected the following Wdyto tradition:
On the banks of the Tana lived Esau and his four brothers, who, according to Rava have
in the Wdyto legend the names of the founders of the four Moslem sects (Has Rava meant
to signify by the word " sects," the rites (maddhib)? Esau killed a hippopotamus and
began to eat it. However, he was discovered by his brothers who cursed him. His sons are
the Wdyto. But in Igaso, the same author collected another legend according to which
the Wdyto were banished from Egypt by the Pharaos, and, when a small group of them
arrived at their present localities, they were subjected by the natives and obliged to eat
the hippopotamus.
Many European ethnologists have tried to decide the question of the ethnic origins of
these hunters; but all of them up to the present have based their general conclusions simply
1 Op cit., vol. 7, p. 9. • Ibid, vol. 6, p. 56.
on the rather uncertain evidence of one particular group. The following statements con
cerning the Wdttd have been made by travelers and ethnologists. P. Leon des Avancher
said: " I think that this race (Wdtta) is the primitive race of the country." Before him,
Riippel had remarked that the Wdyto are not allied to, but very different from the Qemdnt,
confirming what Bruce had first written. This mistake was occasioned by the frequent
confusion between the different low castes, all equally contemned by the noble Abyssinians.
Isenberg, while he erroneously called the Wdttd of the central group " a class or tribe of
Galla," later wrote, " As they are fond of the hippopotamus, Mr. Krapf who gives this
information thinks that there may be a relation between them and the Wdyto (i.e. the
northern group of hunters)." On the contrary, Bottego connected the southern group
with the pariahs and freed slaves of Somaliland and specially with the Gubahin and the
Add6n living in Benadir.1
The first ethnologist, who has discussed the entire question of the origins of the low
castes is Biasutti.2 He connects the hunters (Wdtta, Wdyto, etc.) living in the Ethiopic
plateau with the hunters (Midgan) of Somaliland, the hunters (Andorobo) of the Masai
country, and with certain independent groups of hunters, e.g. the Dume northwest of Lake
Stephanie, and the Wapare living in the declivities of the Kilimanjaro. Concerning the
Wdttd, he draws his conclusions only from the southern group. He concludes: " In the
interior of East Africa, as in other countries of the African continent, the occupation of
hunting became in a few places fit only for the more or less pure remains of the primitive
races, the Negrillos and Bushmen. On these peoples were imposed expansions of the Ethiopic
peoples coming from the north, and the negro peoples advancing by way of the interior
marshes, meeting each other as two waves. But it appears that some very old Ethiopic
groups such as the Paleo-Egyptians have kept, more than any others, and perhaps even
more than the negroes, traces of the absorption of the primitive populations. Moreover,
the remaining hunter tribes afterwards accepted a large quantity of Hamitic and negro
pariahs, thus forming different grades of mixture and ethnic groups with different com
position." 3
Montandon,4 however, denies that there were ever Bushmen in Ethiopia. According
to him, the Ethiopic plateau "a l'origine des temps connus" was already occupied by the
negro race; and even at that time, perhaps some emigrations of peoples had begun to be
directed towards Abyssinia. He adds in a note: 6 " Certain authors seem to recognize the
descendants of the primitive inhabitants in those pariahs living solely by the chase, whom
the Abyssinians call Wdyto." But, although he says in this part of his article, " it would
be interesting to know whether this race scattered over nearly the whole of Ethiopia,
1 Bieber also says: " They (the Wdlta) are the remnants of the primitive population of Abyssinia," ' Reise nach
Abyssinien,' op. cit.
* Renato Biasutti, ' Pastori, agricoltori e cacciatori nell' Africa orientale,' (Boll. Soc. Geogr. Italiana, Roma,
1905, s. 4, vol. 6, p. 175).
* Ibid. ' Montandon, op. cit., p. 65. * Ibid.
(a statement which is very incorrect) speaks one and the same language,"1 in another place,
he classifies the language of the Wdyto among the Kushitic languages,2 and remarks that
it is spoken " by individuals scattered along the banks of Lake Tana," therefore, only in
the northern group. It would appear that he was undecided whether to ascribe the hunters
to the negroes or to the Proto-Kushites.
Giuffrida-Ruggeri, on the contrary, definitely assigns them to the group which he calls
" Proto-Ethiopians." 3 He demonstrates this hypothesis by means of two arguments, one
linguistic, the other cultural. The linguistic argument is that the Wdtta, Wdyto, etc. speak
an Agau dialect; the cultural that they live in portable tents with conical roofs, a kind of
hut peculiar to the Ethiopians. However, it is not true that the Wdtta speak an Agau
dialect. Giuffrida-Ruggeri has gathered this information from de Castro,4 a source not
worthy of consideration. De Castro has here repeated the mistake of the predecessors of
Bruce, confusing Wdyto and Qemant; even worse, he has confounded the Qemdnt and the
Agau linguistically. This confusion of de Castro is not strange; he connects the language
of the Wdyto with that of the Vavassa (possibly a Bantu people), and in another place
writes that into Ethiopia " came the Pre-Semites or Kushites, among whom were the Agau,
the Kanuri, the Bogo, etc.," thus transplanting into East Africa the Kanuri of West
Africa ! Moreover, he adds that after these peoples, " the Hyxos came into Ethiopia." When
one founds his opinion on many different sources, it is necessary to distinguish between the
original sources, and the secondary sources or compilations.
The second argument of Giuffrida-Ruggeri has been taken from Heuglin who accurately
describes the Wdyto of the northern group as living "in ambulanten backofenformigen
Schilfhutten." But this must not be considered as a general cultural character of these
groups of hunters, because, as I have already said, the habitations of the Wdtta range
in different districts from cane huts to hiding places in trees. It is not worth while to
consider in detail the opinion of Rava that the Wdyto (he speaks only of the northern
group) were originally Moslem Amara, as so many others (sic !) and that when they moved
to the banks of the Tana, far from their churches and religious centres, their faith degener
ated and therefore they were abjured by their brethren. How does this explain the origin
of the Wdtta living on the banks of the Galana Sagan where Islam has penetrated only
during the last few years and is perhaps known only by name ? It is not true that the Wdyto
of the Tana are Moslem, and besides, they do not live far from religious centres, since the
Islam-bfet of Gondar was at least until a few years ago, a little centre of Islamic culture.6
1 Montandon, op. cit., p. 65. * Ibid., p. 202.

* V. Giuffrida-Ruggeri, ' Nuovistudi sull'antropologia dell' Africa orientale,' (Archiv. l'Antrop. e Ethnol., Firenze,
1915, vol. 45, p. 142-144).
4 De Castro (op. cit., p. 384) says that " they (the Wdtta) spring from Mingio, a man of the Busciascio, the
first tribe to occupy this country." Here he confounds the Mdndo, i.e. the low caste of hunters with the MlnQo of
the dynasty Bucasie (called in some Kaffa dialects Busaso), now the ruling branch of that dynasty in Kaffa.
* This is illustrated by the following anecdote which I learned from a native. When the emperor Johannes IV,
before Matamma, returned to Gondar which had been plundered in the preceding year by the Dervishes of the Mahdi
I think then that first of all, we may safely accept the fundamental thesis of Biasutti
that hunting, the occupation of the Wdttd, signifies here a cultural stage characteristic of
primitive peoples. Therefore, it appears to me that among the Wdttd may be found many
elements of the hunting races, that is, the peoples inhabiting the Ethiopic plateau before
the Kushites. When the Kushites penetrated Ethiopia, they had already passed from the
hunting to the pastoral stage; even the most primitive of the Kushites, if we so designate
the Baria and the Kunama, were never hunters, according to what we can deduce from
their present ethnographic character.
What non-Kushitic races, then, are represented today by the Wdttd? The evidence of
Bushmen in Ethiopia seems to me very vague. And even if there are found in the most
southern regions of the plateau a few groups who seem possibly allied with the Bushmen,
what arguments are there to support the hypothesis that they are the last remnant of a
race driven out of Ethiopia toward South Africa, rather than the opposite hypothesis
that they are the most remote groups of the races of South Africa who advanced in the
earliest times towards the north and were stopped in the declivities of the plateau by ob
stacles natural or human met in this region?
Little more certain are the traces of Negrillo (pygmy) groups. The low stature of which
Cecchi writes concerning the Wdttd in Gfera is corroborated by the following sources: for
the Midgan of Somaliland, Luigi Robecchi Bricchetti, Somalia e Benadir, Milano, 1899,
p. 216; for the Walangulo, Wakefield in Paulitizsche, Ethnographie Nordost Afrikas, op.
cit., p. 32; for the Dume, Donaldson Smith, Through unknown African countries, Lon
don, 1897, p. 272; for the Wapare, Paul Reinecke, ' Beschreibung einiger Rassenskelette
aus Afrika,' (Archiv f. Anthrop., Braunschweig, 1898, p. 185-231).
The chief evidences of negro origin are clear: " large and protruding lips " noted in
the central and southern groups, " flat noses " in the southern group, " darker color " in
the central and southern groups; also, the custom of hanging a weight in the lobule of the
ear indicates a relationship to Hamitic groups with negroid admixture. Therefore, it is
clear that the formation of the Wdttd is not the same in all three groups, and that this for
mation rose from historical causes, from different environments, and from the different
peoples with whom each of the three groups came in close contact. Traces of the negro
and Negrillo are more evident in the southern than in the central group and almost no
evidence of them can be found at present in the northern group. I agree with Biasutti that
Kushitic pariahs were assimilated by these primitive groups. Naturally these Kushitic
pariahs, representing a stage of culture inferior to that of the Kushites, were confused with
he ordered that the Mussulmen living in Gondar be killed and their property confiscated, suspecting that they had
been allies of the enemy. It is said that in the Moslem quarter, an Arabic minstrel sang at this time:
yd 'Aduwah 'adu All&h
Gonddr bild&d AMh!
That is: " O Adua, enemy of God! Gondar is the town of God!" punning on the two words of similar sound, Aduwah,
the town of Tigre (Johannes IV was born in Tigr§) and 'adH, meaning " enemy " in Arabic.
the native races of Ethiopia after the Kushitic invasion, since these primitive peoples also
represented a culture, i.e. hunting, inferior to that of the pastoral Kushites. It also seems
probable to me that those who are considered descendants of pygmies are in fact descendants
of pariahs of the negroes. In the history of Ethiopia, so rich in ethnic struggles, these groups
of negroid pariahs assimilated after the Kushitic conquest, with their patrons, the negroes,
and with the pariahs of the Kushites, although geographically dispersed in the aforesaid
three groups, still maintained for many centuries a uniformity of material culture which
was caused not by an absolute identity of ethnic origins, but by an analogy of historical
formation.
Here I may note that the Wdttd were connected by de Castro and later by Giuffrida-
Ruggeri 1 with the race whom the ancient Egyptians called Uauat. (Earlier still, Hart-
mann 2 had seen in the Agau the modern representatives of the Uauat.) This Uauat-Wdttd
hypothesis cannot be proved linguistically, especially since the final -t does not seem to be
radical. The name also appears in the form Uaua, e.g. in the inscriptions quoted by Schi-
aparelli,3 and in the form Uaua-it.* Nor does the conclusion of Schiaparelli who has recently
examined the hieroglyphic sources agree with the above hypothesis. According to Schia
parelli, Uauat is the country between the southern frontier of Egypt and Taka in the valley
of the Atabara, much farther north than the probable sites of the Wdttd in a historical
period such as that of the Egyptian inscriptions.
It is also noteworthy that the southern Galla in British East Africa call the Wasanye
and the Wabone Wat. (Southern Galla wot = northern Galla wdtta because of the phonetic
rule of the southern Galla dialect that a, if it is a final vowel, is dropped.) Both the Wasanye
and the Wabone are hunters. In Italian Somaliland, the Waboni in the popular traditions
of the Somali who surround them are said " to eat every unclean thing, even crocodiles
and serpents." 5 The most southern Galla branches who encounter the groups of hunters
on the banks of the Yuba call them Wat, as the northern branches call the hunters of the
plateau Wdttd. Moreover, the Wasanye are said to be sorcerers and each of their clans seems
to live under the patronage of a Galla clan whose name they accept as their own.8
In conclusion, I ask the reader to turn his attention to a group of hunters of the Ethiopic
plateau which, up to the present, has not been noted by ethnologists. I allude to the Fuga,
a small group discovered by the Italian traveller Bianchi,7 between the Gurage and the
Soddo Galla, about an hour's march southeast of Gorieno before reaching the river Ruffay.
Bianchi calls them Galla, but afterwards writes: " They appear to be the most savage of
1 Op. cit., p. 141. * Robert Hartmann, Die nigritier, Berlin, 1876, p. 371.
« ' La geografia dell' Africa orientale,' (Rend. d. Lincei, s. 4, vol. 19, pt. 7-10, p. 518, 528).
4 Ibid., p. 512.
• T. Carletti, I problemi del Benadir, Viterbo, 1912, p. 55.
• Cf. Werner, ' The Galla of the East Africa Protectorate,' op. cit., p. 137-138, 278, and ' A few notes on the
Wasanye,' (Man, vol. 13, p. 199-201). I have only pointed out here the identity of the name Witts, for the southern
and northern hunters of the Galla; I have not included here the hunting groups of British East Africa.
7 Gustavo Bianchi, Alia terra dei Galla, Milano, 1884, p. 303, 313.
the Galla in the countries through which I have passed." The ethnographic characters of
the Fuga are those which especially mark the hunters of the central group. They are
" darker in color than the Guragie and the inhabitants of Qabiena; they wear no clothes
until adolescence, after which they cover themselves with a short petticoat of cowskin."
Bianchi remarks that the true Galla use this petticoat only in war; it is, however, used also
by the poorer classes and especially by countrymen. The arms of the Fuga include arrows
and a bow made of "an elastic rod of acacia, which is kept bent by a cord of musa ensete."1
In addition to warfare, this bow is also used in dancing since the Fuga accompany the dance
by throwing blunt arrows, thus honoring their guests.
The Fuga, says Bianchi, are tributaries of the Guragie; it is probable that this means
that they are clients of the Guragie. The native informant of Bianchi told him that the
Guragie had converted the Fuga to Christianity.
1 Cf. E. Cerulli, ' L'origine delle basse caste della Somalia,' (L'Esplorazione Commerciale, October, 1916), for
the use of the bow by the Midgan, hunters of Somaliland, and also, Franz Stuhlmann, Handwerk und Industrie in
Ostfrika, Hamburg, 1910.
INDEX OF PROPER NAMES

In this index, the word "Galla," which occurs on almost every page of the book, is not included; however, the
name "Or6m6" is included. By the side of each name the song or text in prose in which the name occurs is indicated.
As to the abbreviations, s. = song; t. — text in prose; by the abbreviations 15 n., t. 3 n., I have indicated the notes
to song 15 and to text 3. The abbreviation I. means introduction; p., preface; pr., proverb.
Abba Bdgibd (king of Limmu), s. 21. Abba Disd (war-name of a Galla minstrel), s. 49.
Abba Bald (war-name of many kings of Gumd). Abba Dulld (a king of Gumd, according to Cecchi),
See Adam, Ondo, Gawi. t. 1n.
Abba Bdrd (sorcerer, chief of Hdnnd), s. 10, 12, Abba Qgd, s. 126.
24 n. Abba Foggi (brother of Abba Gubtr and king of
Abba Bteko. See Giddd Galati. Gumd), s. 24, 75; t. 1, t. 1 n.
Abba Billd (war-name of Turd). See Turd. Abba Gers"d (war-name of Rds Ddrgi'e). See Ddrgte
Abba Bonl, s. 126. (rds).
Abba BQqd (king of Gimmd Abba Gifdr), t. 1. Abbd Gimbi (king of the AffiMd), t. 3.
Abba Bdrd (war-name of Fatdnsd lid). See Fa- Abbd Goldd (war-name of Udd Gdtdne). See
tdnsd lid. Gdtdne (lujd).
Abba Bukku (sorcerer of Lt'kqa, perhaps the true Abba Gommol (king of Gimmd Abba Gifdr), s. 14.
name of Abbukko. See Abbukko), s. 23, 133. Abbd Goriddd (war-name of Nag&u Garbi). See
Abba Gdfffe (sorcerer of Ddpo), s. 27, 29, 51. Nagdu Garbi.
Abba Galld (chief of the Doranni), s. 26. Abba Gurrd (sorcerer of Gdlliyd 0b6), s. 133.
Abba Galld (warrior, native of Lteqd QielUm), t. 3. Abba Gabbi (nickname of Gadd YambS). See
Abba Dagdgt (sorcerer, native of the Doranni Gadd Yambt.
tribe), s. 114. Abba Gdmbdr (war-name of Fitdwrari Sori). See
Abba Ddgd, s. 126. Sori (fitdwrari).
Abba Daldd6o (war-name of Garusd Blrrdtu). See Abba Gifdr Sdnd (king of Gimmd Abbd Gifdr), s. 15.
Garasu Blrrdtu. Abba Gifdr Tullu (king of Gimmd Abbd Gifdr),
Abba Dammxb (war-name of S$k Abderromdn). s. 1, 2, 3, 15, 25, 43, 49, 53, 110; t. 2.
See Abderromdn ($(k). Abba Gifdr (Gimmd . . .). See Gimmd.
Abba Dam0.w (war-name of Rds Goband). See Abba Gildd (a king of Gdmd according to d'Ab-
Goband (rds). badie), t. 1 n.
Abba Dangi'e (father-in-law of Abba Gubtr), s. 13. Abba Gubir (king of Gumd, son of Gawt Ondo,
Abba Ddndw (war-name of Menilek II). See war-name Abbd Dinqi), s. 1, 2, 4, 10, 12, 13, 15,
Menilek II. 17, 19, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27; t. 1 n.
Abbd Daqi (war-name of Rds Goband according to AbbdGubri. See Abba Gubtr.
Afvwork), s. 39. Abba Iggd (war-name of Dadddi GotS). See Goti.
Abba Di'entd (brother of Simd), s. 4, 109. Abba Korma (sorcerer of Hindikbd Gaddi), s. 133.
Abbd Diggd (brother of Abbd GvJbtr, son of a negro Abba KoM (war-name of Wdyi). See Wdyi.
concubine, governor of Ddpo, nicknamed Bu- Abba Kurdrd (war-name of Hasan Wdddd). See
rdmu), s. 15, 19, 20, 22, 23, 24 n. Hasan Wdddd.
A bbd Dilhd (war-name of Qdnno). See Qdnno. Abba Malati, t. 1.
Abbd Dimd Tambd (chief of the L&qd Nos and Abbd Mandd (sorcerer of the Sibd Ganti), s. 50,
Arrdfigi), s. 10, 22 n. s. 140 n.
Abbd Dinqi (war-name of Abba Gubtr). See Abba Abba Nabrd, I.
Gubtr. Abba Ntenta (war-name of Tufa R6bd). See Tufa
Abba Dis6 (sorcerer, native of Sibd Gantl), s. 50. R6bd.
Abba Odd. See Giffid Kurd. Adam (our common ancestor), s. 141 n.; t. 13.
Abba Ofd (sorcerer of the Ilu), s. 114. Adam (king of Guma; founder of the Adamite dy
Abba Ofd (chief of Sond Ofd), s. 99. nasty; war-name Abeba Bald), s. 24, 27, 142; t. 1.
Abba Qalandi (war-name of Datiddc Kumsd). See Addis Abbd (the present capital of Abyssinia),
Kumsd. s. 38, 64, 89, 90; t. 8 n.
Abba Qurtd (nickname of Fitdwrari Habta Giyor- Adddn (outcast tribe of Italian Somaliland),
gis). See Habta Giyorgis (fitdwrdri). appendix.
AbbdRaddi. See Gi6§6 BdBo. Adisa Qdqd (village in the Ndnno country), s. 109.
Abba Rago Hadi (a king of Guma according to Adowa (town in TigrS), s. 62, 64, 2 n.; t.2n.
Cecchi), t. 1 n. 'Afar or Danakil, (a people of East Africa), s. 56,
Abba Remo (a prince of Gumd, according to t. 4 p.
d'Abbadie), t. 1 n. Affilld Gari (Sidama tribe on the banks of the
Abba Riebu (war-name of Ligdl Bakarie). See Saint Bon), s. 15 n., 21 n., 24; t 3.
Ligdi Bakarie. Africa, appendix.
Abba Riebu (war-name of Say6 Garbd). See Say/} Agau (Kushitic population in East Africa), s. 118;
Garbd. appendix.
Abba Sangd (diviner of Hdnnd), 8. 15. Agordat, s. 24.
Abba Sombd Sardd (sorcerer of the Sibu Ganti), Adfyni (father of an officer of Rds Ddrgie), s. 53.
s. 50. Al$lu (village in Arussi territory), s. 53.
Abba Sord. See BaSdrd. Al$lu (Gubbd . . .). See Gubba Al&u.
Abba Sorrd (war-name of Wdq Exeunt). See Wdq Ali Dindr (sultan of Darfoor), I.
Kienni. Altmd (Galla pronunciation of ' Allmah; sister of
Abbd Turd (war-name of Garbi Sangd). See Garbi Abbd (jifdr TuUu, wife of Ndgau Garbi), s. 2.
Sangd. Altmd (see above; daughter of Abba Foggi and
Abba falds (war-name of Fitdwrdri Garadd Wdl- wife of Rds Tasammd), s. 24, 75; t. 1 n.
die). See Garadd Wdldie (fitdwrdri). Amante' (fitdwrdri) (son of Bakarie), s. 31, 49, 50.
Abbd TaUdw (war-name of Rds Wdlie). See Walie Amara (population in Central and Southern
(rds). Abyssinia, speaking a Semitic language), I.;
Abba WdMjjo (buffoon), t. 15. s. 1 n., 8, 12 n., 15 n., 23, 24, 26, 27, 29, 30 n., 31,
Abbd Watd (officer of the Daranni tribe), s. 27. 32, 34, 35, 38, 39, 42, 43, 44, 45, 47, 49, 52, 53,
Abbdy (Amharic name of the Blue Nile), s. 15 n., 54, 59, 75, 142; t. 2, 7, 8 n., 9 n., 10, 13; pr.
60; t. 8 n., 10. 90; appendix.
Abbidcu (Galla tribe in Shoo), I.; s. 38, 39, 57. Amdrd (TuUu . . .). See Tullu Amdrd.
Abbd (a king of Guma according to Cecchi), t. 1 n. Amdra Burjji (called also Bdmbala), I.
Abbd (Amharic and Galla nickname of Saint Amba Aldjji (mountain in Central Abyssinia), s.
Gabra Manfas Qeddus), s. 127, 132; t. 1 n. 53 n.
Abbukko (sorcerer in Lieqa Billd), s. 24, 35 n, 44, Amba Guddr (mountain near the river Guddr),
133. s. 43, 46.
Abdl Basd (father of Wdntd Abdi), s. 32. Ambdssd Abbd Somie (officer of the Hdnnd army),
Abderromdn (8$k). (Galla pronunciation of Sayh s. 11.
' Abdu 'rrahmdn; Moslem doctor, friend of Ambatd (village near Qabiend), t. 2.
Firrisd, war-name Abba Dammie), s. 24, 27. Ambierd (district of Gumd), s. 24.
Aboli, t. 4 p. Ambd (place between Hdnnd and Qumbd), s. 24.
Abuye (father of Rds Walda Giyorgis and Dadg'dc Amda Syon (Emperor of Abyssinia). See Grdn.
BaSdh), t. 2 n. AnddrdSd (town in Kaffa), appendix.
Abyssinia, s. 15 n., 122 n., 132 n.; t. 1, I., t. 2 n., Andorobo (outcast tribe of the Masai), appendix.
t. 12; appendix. Ankobar (town in Shoa), s. 35 n., 43; t. 2.
Addl (country), s. 56. Antonie (fitdwrdri), (chief of the Zlnjjard), s. 21 n.
Addl (rds). See Takla Haymdnot (negus). Anti (familiar spirit), s. 27.
Arabian, s. 24, 31, 49, 50. Balliesd (torrent in the Amdrd Burjjt country), I,
Ardyd SeUasie (rds), (son of the emperor Johannes Bald (spear of Adam, king of Gumti). See Abbd
IV), t. 12 n. Bald.
Arjjo (Gimmd . . .). See Gimmd Ardo. Bdmbala. See Amdrd Burjji.
Arrdg"g'i (Mdfta-GaUa tribe near Gabbd), s. 10. Banti MannS (JUdwdri), (chief of the Sulu
Arussi (Bdrdnd Galla tribe between southern Mannt; master of ceremonies (agga fdri) of
Shoa and Somaliland), I.; s. 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, Rds Goband), s. 44 n, 47 n; t. 2.
142; t. 4 p. Bdqqd (Tvllu . . .). See Tullu Bdqqd.
Asfdw Ddrgie (dajjjjd£) son of Rds Ddrgie), s. 52 n. Bararetta (Galla population in British East
Asin Sa' td (warrior of Gimmd), s. 24, 25. Africa), I.
Assaorta Saho (tribe in Eritrea), I. Bdrd (river in western Abyssinia), s. 12, 21, 31,
ASand (fitdwrdri), (brother of Dajjg'dd Gott), s. 94; t.8, 10.
49 n, 91; t. 3. Bdryd (population in Eritrea), appendix.
Atdrkddd (wood in Gumd), t. 1 n. Bdsa (wife of Nddo; mother of Rds Tasammd),
Aibara (river in the Sudan), appendix. s. 44.
At4te (goddess by the pagan Galla), I.; s. 24 n., BaSdh Abuyt (dajjjjd£), t. 2.
27 n., 127, 128, 129, 131, 132, 133, 134 n. BaMllo (river, tributary of the Abbdy), appendix.
Aussa (country in eastern Abyssinia), I. BaSdrd (chief of Bdngd Sdnqllld; called by the
Awallini (dynasty of the kings of Gdmmd), t. 1 n. Abyssinians, A bbd Sord), t. 8 n.
AwdS (river in Shoa), s. 54, 56; appendix. Batd Gu' d (warrior of Sobgi), s. 33.
Awata (river, tributary of Ganal Doria), ap Bayi (Bu 'a . . .). See Bu 'a Bayi.
pendix. Bayu (Wdrrd . . .). See Wdrra Bayu.
Aydnie (a Liega youth), s. 94, 96. Beni Sangul (tribe of the Sudan), t. 3.
Aydntu (wife of Garasu Blrratu), s. 64. Berri, s. 79.
AyM (TuUa. . . .). See Tullu Aylu. Berta (negro population of the Sudan), I.
'Azabo (Galla tribe in TaU$), s. 126 n. Bidde Garbd (chief of Gimmd Gobbd), s. 28.
Azzd Bdlo Kaddnd (personal name according to Bidiru (Hdrd). See Hdrd Bidiru.
the history of the Md(dd published by Guidi), Bienti (village near Dimtu), s. 23.
t. 1n. Bierd (ancestor of the Bierd family), s. 28.
Babbd (warrior of Bu' a Bayi), s. 31. Bierd (family ruling many districts in Lieqa;
Babbd (ancestor of the Li'eqd tribes), s. 141 n. called in Galla Wdrra Bierd, i.e. " the family of
Babbd (Wdrra . . .). See Wdrra Babb6. Bierd"), 8. 15, 20, 28, 30, 59, 64. See also
Bad£i Sabd (chief of the Cdhd Gurdgie), s. 54. Bdddd Bierd, Burru Bierd, Ddnnd Bierd, Tudco
Bdddo (Giddd . . .). See Giddd Bdddo. Ddnno, Log'g"d Bierd.
Ba(urie (place near Bu 'a Sdrgd), s. 31. Bierdmd (village between Gimmd Abba Gifdr,
Bdddd Bierd (country near Li'eqd Hordd and Limmu and Norma), s. 126.
Gimmd Ardo, lit. " the plateau of the Bierd "), Billd (horse of Turd). See Abba Billd.
t. 7. Billd (Lieqa . . .). See Lieqa Billd.
Badiessd (place in the territory of the Ldgd Blrrdtu GoU (dajjjjdS), (father of Garasu Blrrdtu),
Gdrti tribe), s. 30. s. 57, 64.
Bagd Liessd (wife of Obd Bare; mother of Nagi Blrru Nagawi (brother-in-law of Rds Goband), 8.
Obd), s. 81. 41, 88 n.
Bahala Marydm (village near Lake fdnd), ap Bisdn Gabbard (lit. " water of Gabbara" ; river
pendix. between Sulu territory and Libdn Tdkko), s.
Bohr el Garzdl (section of the Sudan), t. 8 n. 33 n.
Bakarie Goddno (chief of the Lieqd Naqantt tribe; Bisdn Gurrdddd (lit. "black water"; river, south
father of Morodd, Amanti, Dinqd, (!irrdddo, of Amdrd BurSi), I.
Rorrisd; husband of Iggi, Gumarl, Gorgie, Bisili (ancestor of the Galla), t. 8.
Urgie), s. 20, 31, 32, 34, 47, 49, 59, 87; t. 11. Bisd Abba Dangie (wife of Abbd Gubtr), s. 13.
BMddo,l. BuSl Garbd (Galla king, father of Rds Wdrannd),

Biyo Garbd (warrior of the Ldgd Gdrtl), s. 30. s. 24. See perhaps Bid€& Garbd.
Boccan (mountain in Shoa, in the Gombiddu's ter Bushmen, appendix.
ritory; according to Cecchi, perhaps Bokkahd), Canal Diggd, see Ganal LHggd.
t. 8 n. See Bokkahd. Canal Doria, see Ganal Doria.
Bogibd (warrior of the Sulu Manni; father of Canal Guddd, see Ganal Guddd.
Girfid, QurCenu, Sumdnu), s. 33. Citerni (lieutenant), I.
Bogos (population of Eritrea), appendix. Colle deW Eccidio, (lit. " hill of the massacre "),
Bodi (mother of SonS), s. 5. t. 3 n.
Bokkahd (mountain in Shoa, in the Gombiddu ter Cdbo (Galla tribe in southwestern Shoa), s. 41,
ritory), t. 8. 42,43,53; t. 2.
Bund Dvld (father of Qabatd and Comugie), s. 31. Cdhd Gurdgie (Gurdgie population), s. 54 n.
B&nayd (family of the Lieqd Naqamti tribe), Cdli Wdqie (chief of the Galla near the Wdmd),
s. 32. s. 44, 47.
Bdngd (capital of Kaffa), s. 75; t. 8 n. CaUiyd Obd, s. 82 n, 86 n., 133 n.
Bdngd Sdnqllld (territory at the frontier of the Qangarie Sogilli (king of the Mietid), s. 81.
Sudan), t. 8. Cdtto Galdn (hill near Tullu Kormd), t. 12.
Boni (Wd . . .). See Waboni. Cawd (name of an Abyssinian army-corps), s.
Bdqa Mardd$o (village in Gumd), s. 21 n. 141 n.
Bdrd (horse of Fatdnsd Ilu). See Abba Bdrd. forrdddo Bakarie (son of Bakarie), s. 31.
Bordnd (ancient group of Galla tribes; upper class (lollie Abba B$qd (a king of Gumd according to
of Galla in Lieqd), s. 141 n, 143; t. 4 p. Cecchi), t. 1 n.
Bordnd (present group of Galla tribes with pecu Commdnd (ancestor of the SdnqWd), t. 8.
liar dialect), I; s. 141 n., 142; t. 4 p.; appendix. Comugie Bond (warrior of the Bu 'd SQrgd), s.
Bdid, s. 21 n. _ 31 n.
BdSard Bidaru (warrior of the Lieqd Naqamte), Qdpd (place on the frontier between Arussi and
s. 32, 34. Ittu), s. 55.
Bottego (captain), I; s. 83 n.; t. 3. (idro Conl (warrior of the Sulu MannS), s. 33.
Bu'd Bayi (lit. "the descent of Bayt" ; territory Dabald Ddymo (father of Watfu Dabald), s. 50.
near Bu 'a Sdrgd), s. 31. Dada (place near Burdi; perhaps Qddd), I.
Bu 'a Sdrga (clan of the Lieqd Naqamte tribe on Dadi Gold&, s. 126.
the frontier between Naqamti and Sibil), s. 31. Dagie (mother of Fitdtvrari Ondo Ddso), s. 56.
Bugd (village in the Sudan), t. 8. Ddgoyi (dynasty ruling Gumd), t. 1.
Bulda (slave of the Ndnno), s. 44. DddddhdSa (village in Cdlliyd Obd), s. 82.
Bulgu Dord (father of TuM Bulgu), s. 30. DalaMo (horse of Garasu Birrdtu). See Abba
Build Crimalie (warrior of the Bu 'a Sdrgd), s. 31. Dala&o.
Bulti Iddd (place near Burfii), I. Dale Abba Bald (a king of Gumd according to
Bundyd (territory near the Wdmd river), s. 43. Cecchi, t. 1 n.
Burayu (chief of the Lieqd Sayd), s. 92. Dalldnsd Nddo (son of Da^dl Nddo), s. 44, 48,
Burdd (warrior of the Bu 'a Sdrgd; chief of Giddd), 53.
s. 31. Dambald, I.
Burl (capital of the Ndnnd Ilu), s. 27, 117 n. Dambi Gigd (Abba Mudd), s. 39, 43.
Burdi, I. Dambyd (territory, west of the fdnd river), ap
Burfii (Amdrd . . .). See Amdrd Burdi. pendix.
Burru Bierd (chief of Ebiddd Tald), t. 1 n. Damissie (dag~ddS), s. 82 n.
Busdsie (dynasty ruling Kaffa), s. 15, 21 n. Dammie (horse of S£k AbderromAn). See Abba
Bust Sayd (place in the Lieqd Sayd's territory), Dammie.
s. 76. DanUdw (horse of Rds Goband) . See Abba Ddmfdw.
Busdni (father of §on&), s. 5. Dandkil, see 'Afar.
DanSi (king of a Tuldmd tribe, father of Rds Dis6"bo"rqte (Diso Gb6 Wdrqfe); (Galla heroine,
Goband), s. 29, 39, 40, 42, 49, 53, 86. chief of Ndnno Gibdt), s. 35, 101 n.
Ddnno Bierd (chief of Gimmd Arfio and Lrteqd Doddi DangaSd (warrior of the MiM family), s. 23,
Hordd; father of Tuddo Ddnno), s. 15, 15 n., 27.
50, 64,86; t. 9n. Dolo (village in Somaliland), I.
Dansik (mother of Tullu Bulgu), s. 30. Doranni (Galla tribe near Gabbd), s. 26, 27 n.,
Ddn&w (horse of Menilek II). See A bba Ddndw. 114 n.
Ddqd (warrior of the Ldgd (idrti), s. 30. Dori (chief of the Sulu; relative of Fitdwrdri
Ddqi. See Abba Ddqi. Habta Giyorgis), s. 15.
Darasd (rds), s. 29, 39, 40. Doria, see Ganal Doria.
Darfur, I. DukkuUd (chief of Ddpo), s. 23.
Ddrgi'e (rds), (uncle of Menilek II; father of DulM, see Ganal DulU.
Asjdw, Dastd, Gugsd, Tasammd; governor of Dullu (Tullu . . .). See TulluDuUu.
the Arussi; war-name Abba Gerid), I; s. 39, 52, Dume (negro population on the banks of the
53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 59, 79, 82 n. Omo), appendix.
Dargd, I. Ddpo Gumbi (village near the Diddiessd), s. 22,
Darifd (Galla country north of Lieqd), s. 47. 23, 24, 27 n., 29 n., 32.
Ddrrd (Galla tribe in Shoa near Saldlie), s. 8, 9, Ddti Hinsiene (father-in-law of WaUd), s. 30.
58. Qidditessd (river, tributary of the Abbdy), s. 12,
Ddsd Ose (warrior of Ldgd Gdrti; father of DoU 7 n., 21, 24, 27, 31, 49, 64.
Dasd), s. 30. Diggd. See Ganal Diggd.
Dastd Ddrgte (dafig'dS), (son of Rds Ddrgie), s. 52 n., Dufera (fitdvxrdri), officer of Rds Ddrgi'e, s. 52.
82. I$biddd Ruyd (residence of Gumd kings), s. 23, 24.
Dastd Nddd (dafifidc), (son of DafitddNddd), s. 44. E]biddd Tdlo (territory near Gumd), t. 1.
Dawa, I.; appendix. Qbiyd (chief of Ddpo), s. 23.
Ddwrd (Sidama population on the banks of the Egypt, t. 12; appendix.
Omo), I. English, s. 133.
Delgi Mdrydm (village near Lake fdnd), appendix. Ennarea. See Innarya.
Dervishes, s. 15 n., 31 n., 49, 51 (called by the Enniyd (Galla tribe near Harar), s. 15 n.
Galla the Arabians. See Arabian). Enfatfo (town in Shoa), s. 49; appendix.
Diddd (L"feqd Sibu . . .). See Ldeqd Sibu DicHd. Esau, appendix.
Dildlo (place in Nonno territory), s. 29, 39. Ethiopia, s. 21 n., 39 n., 56 n., 141 n.; t. 1, 3 n.,
Dilbd (horse of Qdnno). See Abba Dilbd. 7 n., 8 n., 12 n.; appendix.
Dilbd (warrior of Gumd), s. 2. Europeans, s. 47, 59 n., 60, 62.
Dili&Sd (brother of Son& BuSdni; warrior of the Eve, t. 13.
hveqd Sibu), s. 31. Fdid (river between Gdmmd and Gumd), t. 1.
Dimbi (village near Tuqd, between Sibu and Na- FaldSd (Jews of Abyssinia), t. 7 n.; appendix.
qamtS), t. 8. Falle' (village in Shoa; residence of Rds Goband),
Dimtu (territory between Hdnnd and Qumbd), s. 39, 43, 44, 49, 51, 53.
s. 23 n. Fatdnsd Ilu (king of the Ndnno Ilu and Gabba)
Dimtu (H&rd . . .). See H&rd Dimtu. s. 14, 26, 27, 44.
Dingdrte, s. 126. Fatmah (daughter of the Prophet Mohammed),
Dinqfe. Bofd (sorcerer of the Li'eqd Naqamti, s. 133. 8.8.
Dinqd Bakarie (son of Bakarie), s. 31. Fdysd Bude (officer of the Doranni), 8. 27.
Dinqi (horse of Abba Gubtr). See Abba Dinqi. FdysdLamu (king of Gimmd Gobbd), s. 28; prose,
Dinqi Said (warrior of the Bu 'a Sdrgd), s. 31. introduction.
Dirsi (wife of Biyo Garbd), s. 30. Fdysd Suru (baldmbdrds, afterwards dag'g'dS), s. 56.
Dis6 (horse of a Galla minstrel). See Abba Diso. FiMi (village in Shoa; residence of Rds Dargie),
Disd Buld (wife of Lotd Moti), s. 30. s. 52.
FingiUie (territory of Lieqd), s. 21. Gannd Sabu (father of Nagari Gannd), s. 23.
Firrisd (son of Abba Foggi; prince of Gumd), s. 24, Ganti (Lieqd Sibu . . .). See Lieqd Sibu Ganti.
26, 27; t. 1 n. Garadd Wdldie (JUdivrari), s. 47, 49, 53; t. 2 (war-
Fogard (territory east of Lake fdnd), appendix. name Abba falds).
Fugd (population of hunters near the Gurdgie dis Gard Mulldtd (Galla tribe near Harar), appendix.
trict), appendix. Garasu Blrrdtu (grdzmdS), s. 42, 57, 64 (war-name
Fugug (place in Arussi territory), s. 52. Abba Dalad6o).
Gabdro (upper class of the Galla tribes in Lieqd), Garbi GiU (chief of the Lieqd BUM), s. 2 n., 15, 18,
s. 141 n.; t. 4 p. 43, 47, 49, 86; t. 1.
Gabatd ((kSid . . .). See Gvjdt Gabatd. Garbi Sangd (warrior of the Galdn), s. 56 (war-
Gabdtu (territory between Gambield and Li'eqd name A bbd Turd).
QieUem), t. 3. Gor& (chief of the AffiUd), s. 15.
Gabayyahu (fii&wrari), (cupbearer (asdUdfl) of the Gdro Binnd (warrior of Gabbard), s. 33.
Emperor Menilek II), s. 61, 62, 63, 88 n. Gdro (Sidama kingdom, southeast of (jlmmd Abbd
Gabbd (land northwest of Gumd), s. 10, 14, 15 n., Gifdr), s. 3 n., 14, 21.
24, 26, 44 n., 114 n., 117 n. Gdro SanqUld (river, tributary of the LHddiessd
Gabbard (village in the Sulu country at the border near Gurrd Fardd), s. 24, 49, 94.
of Libdn Tdkko, on the banks of Bisdn Gab Gdro SanqUld (village near Gurrd Fardd), s. 93.
bard), s. 33. Gdwd Barart (place in Lieqd Sayd), s. 76.
Gabbard (Bisdn . . .). See Bisdn Gabbard. Gayi Moti (warrior of the Bu 'a Sdrgd), s. 31.
Gabra Manfas Qeddus (an Abyssinian saint). See George (saint), s. 54.
Abb6. Gers"d (horse of Rds Dargie). See Abba GerSd.
Gaddi (Ndnno . . .). See Ndnno Gaddi. Gibfe (river, tributary of the Omo), I.; s. 21 n.,
Gam (river in Gabbd), s. 114. 32, 39, 43, 44, 50, 51, 100 n., 112 n., 140, 145;
Gadd (father of Ofd), s. 33. t. 1n.
Gadd Abba Sambd (warrior of the Bu 'a Sdrgd), Gibtdnd (name given Captain Bottego by the
8.31. Galla). See Bottego.
Gadd Yamb& (warrior of Dimtu), s. 23. Gidddd Oba (warrior of the Bu 'd Sdrgd), s. 31.
Gafari (chief of Hdnnd), s. 15. Gi'ebo Gar& (district of Lieqd NaqamtS), s. 32.
GaUll (tribe living north of Gabdtu), t. 3 n. Giidd (village in Gabbd Ob6, on the banks of the
Galdn (Galla tribe in Shod), I. ; s. 39, 56 n. ; t. 4 p. ; LSddiessa), s. 19, 21, 49, 118.
appendix. Giendd (personal name of SoniBusdni). SeeSoni.
Galdnd DuUi (river, tributary of Galdnd Sagdn), G&rd (Galla kingdom beyond the Gibie, south of
appendix. Gimmd and Gdmmd), I.; s. 15, 24, 25; t. 1,
Galdnd Sagdn (river, tributary of Lake Stephanie), 4 p.; appendix.
I.; appendix. Gild, I.
Galaie (&#5 . . .). See (kftjd Galati. Gimirra (population west of Kaffa), appendix.
Galdd (village near Lake fdnd), s. 15. Gindo (village in Gimmd Abba Gifdr, residence of
Gallitto Kdmo (king of Kaffa), s. 15. the king), s. 3.
Gdllo (governor of a district in Gumd), s. 11. Gir§5 BogibS (warrior of the Sulu Manne), s. 33.
Gdmd Murds (king of Gudru), s. 21 n. Girdd Warri (mother of Gimalie), s. 31.
Gdmbd Rdgga (chief of the Ndnno), s. 21. Goband (rds) (son of Dandi, governor of many
Gambield (village at the banks of the Bdro), t. 3 n. Galla countries), I.; s. 29, 31 n., 39, 40, 41, 42,
Ganal Dnggd (river in the Arussi district), I. 43, 44, 47, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 56, 64, 79,
Ganal Doria (river in Arussi and Somali coun 86, 88, 97; t. 2, 9 n. (war-name Abba Ddmfiw).
tries), I.; appendix. Gobbd (Oimrnd . . .). See Gimma Gobbd.
Ganal Guddd (river in Arussi and Somali coun Gobi, I.
tries), I. Godana, I.
Gandl (village between Gumd and Pdpo), s. 24. Godjamians, s. 23, 29, 30, 32, 39, 40.
Gofid (village on the banks of Lake fdnd), ap GuUaUie (Galla tribe of Shoa), s. 38, 45, 64, 90 n.,
pendix. 142; t. 8 n., pr. 89.
Gojdb (river, tributary of the Omo), I. GuUiela (warrior of the C^bo), s. 53.
Godfidm (Amara kingdom in western Abyssinia), Guma (Galla kingdom beyond the Gibie, northeast
s. 9, 30, 39, 40, 49, 145; t. 1 n., 7 n., 8. of Limmu), I.; s. 1, 2, 4, 7 n., 10, 12, 14. 15, 16,
Gofifil (village between Guma and Gdmmd), s. 12, 20, 21, 23, 24, 25, 27, 75 n., 109, 110 n., 142;
18. t. 1; appendix.
Golfid (horse of IA$fi GdtdnS). See Abba Golfid. Guma Sambd, s. 126.
Gombidcu (Galla tribe in Shoa), t. 8 n. Gumard (river, tributary of Lake fdnd), appendix.
Gombd (Gubbd . . .). See Gubbd Gombd. Gumari (wife of Bakarie, mother of GirrdMo), s. 31.
Gdmmd (Galla kingdom, south of Guma and Gurd Ddbd (plain near the Wdmd), s. 44, 45, 48.
Ltmmu), I.; s. 1, 12, 22, 23, 24, 27; t. 1. Guraghi (ancestor of the dynasty of Oimmd Abbd
Gondar (town in western Abyssinia), t. 8; ap Gifdr, according to Cecchi), t. 1 n.
pendix. Gurdgik (population speaking a Semitic language,
Gondarie (name of an Abyssinian army corps), living south of Shoa), s. 38, 21 n., 52, 54, 61, 93;
s. 82 n. t. 2; appendix.
Gdriddd (horse of Ndgdu Garbi) . See Abba Gorlddd. Gurrd Fdrdd (lit. "ears of a horse," village in
Gorieno (village in southern Shoa), s. 15. Gabbd), s. 24 n.
Gord Nabi Bald (warrior of Gimmd Abba Gifdr), Gurrdddd {Bisdn . . .). See Bisdn GurrdcHd.
s. 30, 43; t. 2. Gutt (village of the Ldga Gdrti), s. 30.
Gdsd Rufd (mother of Kumsd), s. 32. Guttdtd (son of King Qadidd), s. 39.
GoSu Garbd (sorcerer), s. 133. Guya, I.
Gran (called by the Amara, Gran, " the left- Guydtu, I.
handed "), s. 21 n., appendix. Gambar (spear of Fitdwrdri Sdri). See Abbd
Gubahin (outcast tribe in Italian Somaliland), Gambar.
appendix. Gdrti (Ldgd . . .). See LdgdGdrti.
Gubbd (place near BurgT), I. (jdtdnl (ttdf), (chief of Oborrd), s. 57, 58 (war-name
Gubbd (village in Ndnnd Gibdt), s. 101. Abbd Gotijd).
Gubbd Al$lu Git. " hill of Al$lu "; place between (jaid (territory in Li'eqd NaqamtS), s. 32.
the Sulu territory and Llmmu), s. 33. Gawi Ondo (king of Guma, father of Abbd (hMr),
Gubbd Gombd (place in the Bu 'a Sdrgd territory), s. 2, 10, 12, 15, 16, 17, 23, 24 n.; t. 1 (war-
s.31. name Abba Bald).
Guddr (river, tributary of the Abbdy), s. 45, 46, Gazirat el BiabaM (Arabic name of Mafts). See
47 n. Mafts.
Guddr (Ambd . . .). See Amba Guddr. (jibdt (Ndnno . . .). See Ndnnd Gibdt.
Gudariessd Gumt (warrior of the Lieqa Naqamte), Giddd (place in the Bu 'a Sdrgd territory), s. 31.
s. 49. Gififi6 Bdd6o (sorcerer of the Li'eqd Hordd), s. 29,
Guddyd (Gimma . . .). See Gimmd Guddya. 133; t. 1, 8, 9, 10 (called Abba RafiSl, "Lord of
Guddd (Ganal . . .). See Ganal Guddd. the Miracle ").
Guddisd (chief of SuluUd, father of Rds Makonnen (jifi§6 Gabatd (sorcerer in Shoa), s. 133; t. 7 n.
and Dafi(jdd Haylie Guddisd), s. 35, 56, 57. Gig'g'6 Galait (sorcerer of the Lieqa NaqamtS),
Gudru (confederation of seven Galla tribes at t. 7 n., 12 (called Abba Bi'eko, " Lord of the
the frontier of Gog'ddm), s. 21, 39, 40, 54, 84, 145; Science ").
t. 4, p. 8. Qififid Kurd (sorcerer of the Lieqa Billo), s. 35;
Gufd Rufd (warrior of Gi'erd), s. 24. t. 7 n., 8, 11 (called Abbd Oda, " Lord of the
Gugsd (dag'g'dc"), (son of Rds Ardyd Selldsie), Sycamore ").
t. 12 n. GliMd (king of Gumd, father of Onto GiUd), t. 1.
Gugsd Dargie (0fi$), (son of Rds Ddrgie), s. 52 n., Gild, I.
56. Gild (father of Garbi Gild), s. 2, 47.
GiU, s. 81. Hiefo Ilmdn Ldli (district of Shoa, where after

Gimald Gimalie (warrior of the Bii 'a So"rgd), s. 31. wards was erected the royal residency at Addis
Gimalie (father of Gimald and BvM), s. 31. Abeba), s. 90 n.
Gimmd (confederation of six Galla tribes), s. 21, Himdnd (Wdrrd ..." hill of the massacre."
23, 24, 54. See Colle dell 'Eccidio). See Warrd Himdnd.
Gimmd Abba Gifdr (Galla kingdom beyond the Hindieba Gad6i (village of Lieqd), s. 32 n., 47 n.,
Gibie, south of Gdmmd and Limmu), I.; s. 1, 49,51, 133 n.; t. 7, 8, 9.
2, 3, 12, 15, 21, 22, 23, 24 n., 25, 27, 29, 30 n., Hdrd Bidiru (lit. "salt spring of the canoe"; salt
39, 43, 49, 53, 89, 99 n., 126 n.; t. 1, 2; ap spring near the Wdmd), s. 44.
pendix. Hord Dimtu (lit. " salt spring of the red "; salt
Gimmd Ardo (Galla tribe ruled by Ddnno Bierd), spring near the Wdmd), s. 47.
s. 15 n. 21 n.; t. 1, 7. Hordd (Li'eqd . . .). See Lieqd Hordd.
Gimmd Gobbd (Galla tribe), s. 21 n., 28. Hord (father of Moti Hord), s. 31.
Gimmd Gudayd (Galla tribe), s. 21 n., 44; t. 1. Horrd (country ruled by Bute Garbd), s. 24 n., 54.
Gimmd Qadidd (Galla tribe), s. 15, 21 n., 39, 56. Hufo (village in Gimmd Gobbd), s. 28.
Gimmd Rari (Galla tribe), s. 21 n. Hullumanti (fitdwrdri), (officer of Rds Ddrgie),
Gimmd Tibbie (Galla tribe), s. 21 n., 49. s. 55.
Gimmd Wdrqie (Galla tribe, north of the Gibie), s. Hursd (place in Limmu), s. 21.
112. Iddd, I.
Girdtd (fitdwrdri), t. 8 n. Iddd Irrd (chief of the army of Hdnnd), s. 24.
Gorgie Giedd6 (mother of Dinqd, wife of Bakarie), IgdSo (village near Lake Tdnd), appendix.
s. 31. Iggi (wife of Bakarie, mother of Amantt), s. 31.
Goth (dajjjjd£), (chief of the Lieqd QieUem), I.; Iggu (horse of Da§jjdd GotS). See Abbd Iggu.
s. 49, 83, 91; t. 3 (war-name Abba Iggu). Ilmdrmd (national name of the Galla; lit. " sons
Habab (a people of northern Eritrea), appendix. of Orma "), s. 39.
Habta Giyorgis (fitdwrdri), s. 15 n., 33 n., 35, 42, Ilu (ancestor of Fatdnsd Ilu), s. 44.
43; t. 2 (nicknamed Abba Qurtd). 114 (Ndnno . . .). See Ndnno Ilu.
Hadiyd (Sidama population, south of Shoa), I.; Imdmd (brother of Firrisd), s. 24; t. 1 n.
s. 21 n. Imbdbd (place in Gudru), s. 29, 40, 49.
Hadiyd Wdmbie (Sidama state south of Shoa), Inndryd (ancient name of Limmu), s. 21 n.; t. 1,
s.43; t. 2. 4 p.; appendix.
Hagald (district of Limmu), I. Irrd Butu (Galla army corps), s. 47.
Hamites, appendix. Isldm, s. 8, 10, 52, 142.
HanbaSi (mother of Ldgdi Bakarie, wife of Bakarie) , Isma 'tt (khedive), s. 8.
s. 32. Italians, s. 60, 61.
Handaq (wood between Lieqd and WdUagd), s. Ittu (Galla tribe in southeastern Shoa), I.; s. 55;
118; t. 9. t. 4 p.
Handarsi 6bt (father of Tdkko"ndarse), s. 23. Iydsu (lijjf), (nephew of Menilek II), t. 7 n.
Hdnnd (village and district of Gabbd), s. 10, 12, Johannes IV (emperor of Abyssinia), s. 8, 9, 39,
15, 18, 21, 23, 24, 113 n.; t. 1. 49; t. 7 n., 12 n., appendix.
Harangamd (chief village of Lieqd Sibu Dicdd) , s. 44. Kabbada (dag'g'd6, afterwards rds), (son of Rds
Harar (town in southwestern Abyssinia), I.; MangaSd Atekim; present governor of Kaffa),
s. 15 n., 52, 55, 56; t. 4 p.; pr. 90. s. 24 n.
Hasan Wdddd (chief of the Ddrrd), s. 8, 9. Kaffa (Sidama kingdom in southern Abyssinia),
Hasdn Injjdmo (chief of Hadiyd Wdmbie), s. 43; s. 3 n., 15, 21 n., 23 n., 24, 25, 30 n., 39, 75 n.;
t. 2. t. 1, 7, 8 n.; appendix.
Hayla Malakot (king of Shoa), s. 52. Kanuri (West African population), appendix.
Haylie Guddisd (dajjg'dS), (chief of the Sulu and Karrayu (Galla tribe near Harar), I.; s. 56.
Ndnno), I.; s. 35, 56 n., 82. Kassala (town in the Sudan), s. 24; t. 12 n.
K$kku (village in Gdlliyd Obd), s. 82; t. 1. Lieqd Nos (Galla tribe of southwestern Wdllagd),
Keren (village in Eritrea), I.; prose, introduc s. 10.
tion. Li'eqd QielUm (Galla tribe of Wdllagd), I.; s. 24,
Kikuyu (Wa . . .). See Wakikuyu. 49, 83n.; t. 3.
Kilimanjaro, appendix. Lieqd Say§ (Galla tribe of Wdllagd), s. 76 n., 92 n.
Kind (i$k), (friend of Firrisd), s. 27. Li'eqd Sibu (Galla tribe of northwestern Lieqd),
Kofira (Galla tribe of British East Africa), I. s. 4, 31, 43, 44, 49 n., 50 n.; t. 1, 8 n.
Koldbo (family of the Ldga Gdrti), s. 30. Li'eqd Sibil Diddd (clan of the Lieqd Sibu), s. 44 n.
K&mo (negro group of western Abyssinia), t. 1 n. Lieqd Sibu Ganti (clan of the Lieqd Sibu), s. 49,
Kdnso (negro group of southern Abyssinia), 50, 140 n.; t. 3 n.
appendix. Lieqd Sibil Wdmbard (clan of the Li'eqd Sibu), s. 49.
Kormd (Tullu . . .). See Tullu Kormd. Lieqd Wdyu (tribe of central Lieqd), s. 32 n., 44,
Kososd (place near X>dpo), s. 23. 49.
Kotte (horse of Wdyi). See Abba Kotte. Libdn Kuttdyt (Galla tribe), s. 36.
Kotti Bu 'd (clan of the Bu 'a Stfrgd), s. 31. Libdn Tdkko (Galla tribe), s. 33 n.
Kuayegu {Gimirra name of the Wdttd), appendix. Ligdi Bakarik (son of Bakarie, chief of Bundyd),
Kut (mother of Simd), s. 4, 109. 8. 18, 19, 20, 21, 32, 43, 48, 59, 144 (war-name
Kumsd (dafifidS), (son of Morodd; governor of Lieqd Abbd Riebu).
Naqamte; Christian name Gabra Igzi'abher), I; Ligdi Siefi (warrior of the Ldga Gdrti), s. 30.
s. 31, 32, 59, 83, 96; t. 8 n. (war-name Abba Limmu (Galla kingdom beyond the Gibie), I.;
Qalanfii). s. 1, 12, 15, 17, 19, 21, 22, 24 n., 32 n., 33 n.,
Kunama (population in western Eritrea), ap 43, 44, 100 n., 126 n., 140 n.; t. 1; appendix.
pendix. Limmu Sobd (Galla tribe in Wdllagd), s. 21 n.
Kurd (Gi$fi6 . . .). See £$» Kurd. Litfi Dibbild (district of Gimmd Abba Gifdr), s.
Kurdrd (horse of flasan Wdddtf). See Abba 99.
Kurdra. Loft (village in Gudru), s. 84.
Kushites, t. 1 n., 4 p; appendix. Lofifid Bierd (daughter of Ddnnd Biera, wife of
Kuttdye (Libdn . . .). See Libdn Kuttdye. LotA Moti), s. 30.
Ldga Gdrti (river in Lieqd Billd, lit. " river of Ldkko GiiMd (father of an Arussi chief), s. 53.
the old woman "), s. 30. Lq16 (place in the Lieqd Sayd's territory), s. 76.
Ldga Gdrti (clan of the Lieqa BUM), s. 30. Lotd Moti (warrior of the Ldga Gdrti), s. 30.
Ldga San(6 (river in Gumd), s. 24, 27. Lugh (village in Italian Somaliland), I.
Ldli (king of the GullaUie), s. 90 n. Lul Saggad (dag'g'dd, afterwards rds), s. 32 n.
Ldlibdld (town in central Abyssinia), t. 8. Libya, I.
Laid QiU (village northwest of Gumd), s. 113. Ma£dd (ancestor of a Galla population), s. 141 n.;
Lamu (ancestor of Faysd Lamu), s. 28. t. 1 n., 4 p.
Lamu Sieqd (officer of Tuddo Ddnno), s. 21. Mdddd (group of Galla tribes and kingdoms), I.;
Langulo (Wa- . . .). See Walangulo. s. 35 n., 53, 76, 118; t. 1 n., 14 n., 15; appendix.
Lieqd (country of western Abyssinia, inhabited Maccia Racd CalU (ancestor of the dynasty ruling
by five Galla tribes), I.; s. 15, 18, 21, 24, 30 n., Gimma Abba Gifdr), t. 1 n.
31, 32, 34 n., 43, 44, 47, 49, 54, 59, 64, 94, 118 n., Mafts (village of the Nuer territory in the Sudan),
141 n.; t. 1,4 p., 8, 12. t.8.
Lieqd Billd (Galla tribe of southern Li'eqd), s. 2, Mahdi, s. 49.
15, 18, 30 n., 43, 44, 47, 49, 141 n; t. 1, 11. Makdn (place near Hindieba Gaddi), s. 47.
Lieqd Hordd (Galla tribe of western Lieqd), s. 3, Makonnen (rds), (son of Guddisd; governor of
15, 18, 24 n., 28, 29 n., 39, 43, 44; t. I, 7. Harar), I.; s. 35, 55, 56, 57, 63, 82 n. (war-name
Li'eqd Naqamt& (Galla tribe of central Lieqd), Abbd QaHaw).
I.; s. 20, 29, 31 n., 32 n., 43, 44, 49, 96, 126 n., Malak Saggad (emperor of Ethiopia), t. 1, 4 p.;
133; t. 1, 8n., 11 n., 12. appendix.
Mdlkd Naggddie (lit. "ford of the merchant," Morodd (daddd6), (brother of BakarCe, chief of the
place near the Wdmd), s. 49. Lfeqa NaqamtS), I.; s. 20, 29, 31, 32, 43, 44, 47,
Mdlkd Rie '6 (lit. " ford of the she-goat," place 49, 50, 51, 59, 64, 87, 96.
near the Dawa), I. M6t Abba ddmbdr (lit. " AbbaGdmbdr's death,"
Manduyd (sorcerer), s. 140 n. See perhaps Abbd place on the way to Harar), s. 55.
Mandd. Moll Hord (father of Gayemoti), s. 31.
Mangald Ateklm (rds), s. 40. Moti Wdrqfe (lit. "King of the Gold," legendary
Mdndo (Kaffa name of the Wdtia), appendix. king of Galla folklore), s. 21 n.
Manni (father of Banil MannS), s. 47. Muhammad ibn 'Abdallah. See Mullah.
Mad (negro group in western Abyssinia), s. 49 n. Mullah (Mad Mullah), 8. 135.
Mdrdm (Galla name of the Virgin Mary), s. 24, Musd (Hdfidl), s. 133.
27 n., 127, 128, 132, 133. Musd Goddnd (warrior of the Irrd Butu), 8. 47.
Marddsd Kond& (chief of the Ndnno Migrd), s. 44; Naddabd (country near Gurrd Fdrdd), s. 24 n.
t. 9 n. Naffusdr (lit. " white grass," village on the Sudan
Marrehdn (Somali tribe in northern Italian frontier), t. 8.
Somaliland), I. Nddd (dag'g'dS), (father of Rds Tasammd, and
Mary (Holy Virgin), s. 27, 54, 127, 133. Dastd Dalldnsd), s. 39, 44, 53.
Masai (population of British East Africa), ap Nagari (warrior of the Bu 'd Sdrgd), s. 31.
pendix. Nagari Batd (warrior of Gimmd Abba Gifdr), t. 1.
Massowah (town in Eritrea), s. 24, 145. Nagari Gannd (chief of Pdpo), s. 23, 31 n.
Mastdyit (Wdyzard), (princess of the Wdllo; Ndgdu Garbi (fiidwrari), (son of Garbi 6ild; chief
Galla heroine), s. 49. of the Lieqd Bill6), t. 1 (war-name Abbd Go-
Maiold Sayfu (dag'g'd6), s. 8, 9; pr. 98. riddd).
Matammd (village at the frontier between Abys Nagesso Abbd Gilcia (king of Gumd according to
sinia and the Sudan), s. 49; appendix. Cecchi), t. 1 n.
Maid Arbd (lit. "elephant's head," hill in the Naggddi'e (Mdlkd . . .). See Mdlkd Naggddie.
Arussi's territory), I. Nagt Obd (brother of Gidadd Obd; warrior of the
Maid namd fakkdte (lit. " that which resembles Bu 'a S^rgd), s. 31.
the head of a man," hill on the frontier of Abys Nagi Sombe (warrior of the Bu 'd Sdrgd), s. 31.
sinia and Italian Somaliland), I. Naqamti (Li'eqd . . .). See Lieqd Naqamti.
Matraha (village near Lake Tand), appendix. Nasird (Galla warrior), s. 37.
Medina, s. 24, 27, 133. Negitd (king of the fambdro), s. 23.
Mekka, s. 24, 27. Negroes, appendix.
Menilek II (emperor of Abyssinia), I.; s. 8, 9, Nien(d (horse of Tufa R6bd). See Abba Ntenld.
24 n., 35, 38, 39, 43, 44, 45, 49, 52, 53, 54, 55, Nile, t. 8 n.
56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 64, 68 n., 84, 114 n., 142, Nile (Blue . . .). See Abbdy.
143; t. 2, 7 n., 8 n. (war-name Abbd DdMw). NoU Kabbd (Galla tribe living on the banks of the
Midgan (hunters of Somaliland), appendix. BlrVlr), s. 18, 21, 22, 49.
Mietta (Galla tribe of Shoa), s. 58, 64, 81 n.; t. 8 n. Ndnnd (Md$d Galla tribes living east of Limmu),
Migrd (Ndnno . . .). See Ndnnd Migrd. I.; s. 21, 24 n., 39, 43, 44 n., 58, 99 n., 109 n.,
Mifidu (father of BuSdni), s. 5, 6. 126 n.
Mikd '&I (rds), (son-in-law of Menilek II; gover Ndnno Gam (Galla tribe living northwest of
nor of Wdllo), s. 8, 9, 53, 54 n. Gabbd), s. 24, 46; t. 1.
Minfid (branch of the Kaffan royal dynasty), ap Ndnno Gibdt (Galla tribe living east of Limmu),
pendix. s. 35 n., 101 n.
Mind (family of Hdnnd), s. 23. Ndnnd Ilu (Galla tribe of Gabbd), I.; s. 114 n.,
Mogadishu (capital of Italian Somaliland), t. 1 n. 117 n.; t. 1n.
Mohammed (prophet of the Moslem faith), s. 8. Ndnno Migrd (Galla tribe living east of Limmu),
Mohammed Ydsi (warrior of Gumd), s. 2. s. 44; t. 9n.
Ndnno Roggie (Galla tribe living east of Limmu), Rdbd Barjju (warrior of the Sulu Mannt), s. 33.
s. 43, 44, 45, 100. Raffli (horse of Dalldnsd Nddo), s. 48.
Nos (Lieqd . . .). See Lieqa Nos. Rari (Ckmma . . .). See Gimma Rart.
Nuer (Nilotic population of the Sudan), t. 8 n. Ram Guddi (ancestor of the Koldbo family), s. 30.
Nur Husseyn (£#:), s. 52, 53, 54. Rayd (ancestor of the Galla), t. 1 n.
Ndpdrieso (warrior of the Sulu Mannt), s. 33. Rie 't (Mdlkd . . .). See Mdlka Rib 't.
Obd Bart (father of Gidddd and Nagi), s. 31. Rebb (tributary of Lake fand), appendix.
Obd (father of Said), a, 31. Riebu (horse of Say6 Garbd). See Abba Riebu.
Ob&rrd (Galla tribe of Shod), s. 57, 58. Red Sea, t. 8 n.
Ofd Gadd (warrior of the Sulu Mannt), s. 33. Regina Margherita (lake in southern Abyssinia,
Ogo Kormd (warrior of the Sulu Mannt), s. 33. called by the natives Abbayd or PagadS), I.
Ogd Lof6 (warrior of the Sulu Mannt), s. 33. Rdbd (mother of Gidadd and wife of Oba Bard),
Om$ti (Sidama population), I.; appendix. s. 31.
Omd (river in southern Abyssinia), s. 7 n., 30 n.; Rdbd Abba Tullu (father of Rdbt Rdbd and father-
appendix. in-law of Rdbd Warie), s. 15.
On5o Ddso (fitaurr&ri), s. 56. Rdbd Ward (father of Tufd Rdbd), s. 12, 15.
On6o GlUa (father of Gaw$; king of Guma), s. 1, RoM Rdbd (wife of Rdbd Warie and mother of
10, 16; t. 1 (war-name Abba Bald). Tufd Robd), s. 15.
Ormd (ancestor of the Galla), s. 44; t. 1, 7, 8 n. RdU Walld (mother of Ligdi Siefi), s. 30.
Or&mo (national name of the Galla) I.; s. 23, 27 n., Roggie (Ndnno . . .). See Ndnnd Roggie.
44 n., 53, 87, 135. Rorrisa Bakarie (son of Bakarie; brother of DaJd-
Otd, s. 28, 64. jjddMorodd),s.Z0,lM.
Pare. See Wapare. Rudolph (lake in southern Ethiopia, called by the
Portuguese, s. 15 n.; t. 1 n. natives Bass Narok), I.
Qabd Walld (son of WaUd; warrior of the Ldga Ruffdy (river in western Shoa), appendix.
Gdrti), s. 30. Rugd (name given to the Wdttd by the Gurdgie),
Qabiend (capital of Hadiyd Wdmbie), s. 43; t. 2; appendix.
appendix. Rumi&d Bifrd (brother of Ddnno Bierd), s. 28, 59.
Qabatd BdM (warrior of the Bii 'a Sdrgd), s. 31. Russians, t. 12.
Qadidd Wannabie (king of Qimmd Qadidd), s. 15 n., Sabu, s. 99.
39. Sabu (grandfather of Nagari Ganna), s. 23.
Qadidd ((jimmd . . .). See Gimmd Qadidd. Sagan (Galdnd . . .). See Galdnd Sagan.
Qalanjji (horse of Dag'jjdd Kumsd). See Abba Sahla Salldsie (king of Shoa), s. 52.
Qalandi. Saho (population of Eritrea), appendix. See also
QaUu (Wdrrd . . .). See Wdrra Qallu. Assaorta Saho.
Qandtu (wife of Abba Diggd), s. 15. Saint Bon (river in western Abyssinia called by
Qannd (warrior of Bu 'a Sdrgd), s. 31 (war-name the natives Upend), s. 21 n., t. 3 n.
AbbaDilbd). Said Said (father of Dinqi Said), s. 31.
Qiellim (Lieqa . . .). See Lieqa QielUm. Saldlie (village of Shoa), I.; s. 39, 45, 49, 52, 53,
Qemant (Hamitic population in northwestern 56, 79; t. 14.
Abyssinia), appendix. Said 6bd (father of Said Sold), s. 31.
Qityu R6ba (place in the Ldga Gdrti district), s. 30. Sambatd (JUdwrdri), s. 40.
Qitft'essd GdUo (governor of a district in Gimmd Sambt Soddu (a rich cattle owner of Sibu Ganti),
Abba &ifdr), s. 3. s. 50.
Qorkd (warrior of Ldga (jdrti), s. 30. Sapenhi (governor of Enndryd), t. 1.
Qumbd (village in Lteqd, near Tuddo Ddnno's Sapiera (ancestor of the Galla), s. 141 n.
dominions), s. 18, 19, 23 n., 24. Sarde Bokkahd (place in southern Shoa), t. 8.
Qwpt (warrior of Ldga (jdrti), s. 30. Sarboraddd (king of Gumd), t. 1.
Qurienu Bogibd (warrior of the Sulu Mannt), s. 33. Satan, s. 15 n., 141 n.; t. 1.
Sardd (horse of Tuddo Ddnno, and afterwards of Surriyd (mother of Firrisd), s. 24.
Told MamM), s. 3. Saggada (district in northwestern Abyssinia), t. 8.
Savour i (a French trader), s. 88. Saggdrd (a district of Shoa), s. 90.
Sayd (Tvllu . . .). See Tullu Sayd. Sdgirdie (fitdwrdri), s. 24, 27.
Say6 (Lieqd . . .). See Lieqd Sayd. SdnqUld (negro populations of Abyssinia), I.;
Sayd Garbd (warrior of Hdnna Abba Bdra, s. 113, _ s. 24, 49; t. 3, 8.
n., 114 n. (war-name Abba Riebu). Sdnq6 (mountain near Hdnnd), s. 24.
Siefl Simbd (father of Ligdi Siefl), s. 30. SindSd (Hamitic population in western Abyssinia),
Siego (place in western Shoa), s. 32. s. 49.
Semito-Hamites, s. 143; appendix. Sippenao, t. 1.
Sieko GoM (wife of Sidd Tufd), s. 32. Shoa (region in southern Abyssinia), I.; s. 8, 9,
Sieqd (father of Lamii), s. 21. 22 n., 24, 33, 35, 39, 41, 43, 44, 45, 49, 50, 51,
Setit (river in northwestern Abyssinia), appendix. 52, 53, 57, 64, 76, 82 n., 88 n., 93 n., 118,
Sibu. See Lieqd SibH. 126 n., 133 n.; t. 2, 3 n., 8 n., 14; appendix.
Sibu I>iM&. See Lieqd Sibu Dittd. Shoans, s. 24, 29, 32, 40, 53, 56 n.
Sibil Ganti. See Lieqd Sibu Ganti. Send Ofd, s. 99.
Sibu Wdmbard. See Lieqd Sibu Wdmbard. Son$ (fitdwrdri), (chief of the Lieqd Sibu), s. 4,
Sidd Tufd (Tvldmd warrior, chief of Hin(Lieba 5, 6, 7, 18, 31, 43, 44, 49. See Gtendd.
GoM), s. 32; t. 9 n. Sard, s. 81.
Siddmd (Hamitic population in southern Abys Sorrd (horse of Waq Kienne). See Abba Sorrd.
sinia), I.; s. 12 n., 14, 15 n., 21 n., 23 n., 24 n., Suliifd (father of Tlmsa Sultifd), s. 44.
25, 52, 141 n.; t. 1 n., 3, 4 p., 7 n.; appendix. Sumonu Bogibd (warrior of the Sulu MannS), s. 33.
Siddi (place in Gumd), s. 24. Suramd (nickname of Abba Diggd). See Abbd
Sidd Borii (warrior of the Sulu MannS), s. 33. Diggd.
Simd (fitdwrdri), (warrior of Gumd), s. 4, 5, 7, 23, Tadba Mdrydm (village near the Blue Nile), ap
109 n. pendix.
Sirfi Odd (mother of Gudariessd Gum£), s. 49. Takkazie (river in northern Abyssinia), appendix.
Sobd (IAmmu . . .). See Limmu Sobd. Takla Giyorgis (emperor of Abyssinia), t. 8 n.
Sobat (river in East Africa), t. 8 n. Takla Haymdnot (king of Gojjjjdm; called before
Sobjji (village in the Sulu Manni territory), s. 33. his reign Rds Addl), s. 30, 39, 40, 49, 56; t. 7 n.
Sdddo (Galla tribe in southern Shoa), t. 2; ap Taklie (fitdwrdri, afterwards ligdbd), s. 53.
pendix. Tana (river in British East Africa), I.
Somali, I.; s. 127 n., 141 n.; t. 1 n. Tasammd (rds), (son of Da^dd Nddd), s. 24, 25,
Somaliland, I.; appendix. 26, 27, 44, 45, 46, 47, 49, 75, 82; t. 1.
Somb$ Ubd (father of Nagi SombS), s. 31. Tasammd Ddrgie (dajjg'dS), (son of Rds Ddrgie),
Sombd Darrd (place in Sibu W&mbdrd), s. 49, 50. s. 52, 53.
Somt Ddnd (mother of Dinqi Said), s. 31. Theodore I (emperor of Abyssinia), t. 1, 8, 12.
Sdrgd (Bu 'a . . .). See Bu 'o Sdrgd. Tibbie (Grimmd . . .). See Gimmd Tibbie.
Sori Abba Gdmbar (fttdwrdri), s. 55; t. 1 n. Tlgr$, s. 60, 61; t. 1 n.; appendix.
Stephanie (lake in southern Abyssinia), appendix. Timsd Suliifa (Ndnnd warrior), s. 44.
Sudan, I.; s. 24, 27, 49; t. 3 n., 8 n. Tirfi (wife of Wdrie; grandmother of Tufa R6bd),
Suld, s. 81. s. 15.
Sult Gild, s. 81. Titiltt (mother of Bur(d), s. 31.
Sulu (Galla tribe of Shoa), I.; s. 35, 47 n.; t. 2; Tobbo, s. 106.
appendix. Tdkko(Libdn . . .). See Libdn Tdkko.
Sulu Mannt (clan of the Sulii), s. 33; t. 2 n. Tdkko"ndarst (chief of a pagan army near Pdpo),
Sulultd (village in eastern Shoa), s. 35. s. 23.
Surd (Negro-Hamitic population in southwestern Told MamUd (hunter from Gimmd Abba difdr),
Abyssinia), appendix. s. 3.
Told Wdqi (slave of Tdkko"ndarsS) , s. 23. Waboni (population of hunters in Benadir and
Tuddo Ddnno (chief of Likqa Hordd, son of Ddnno), British East Africa), appendix.
s. 3, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 22, 24, 28, 29, 30, 31 n., Wad$u Dabald (chief of the Sibu Ganti), s. 50.
39, 43, 44, 49, 64; t. 7 n. Waddgo (dag'g'aS), (son of Rds Goband), s. 49, 51.
Tufa Botord (chief of the Abbidcu Galdn), s. 39, Waddgd (ancestor of Fitdwrari Banti MannS),
57. s. 44.
Tufa Cirfd (g$nnS), (governor of a country near Waddiessa (river in IAmmu), s. 141.
Guma), s. 16. Wakikuyu (Bantu population of British East
Tufd Obd (king of the GuUallte), s. 39. Africa), appendix.
Tufa R6bd (warrior of Hdnnd) s. 12, 14, 15, 16, WakoSo (population living near Gabdtu, north of
17, 19, 143 (war-name Abba Lfen&i). GaM), t. 3.
Tuldmd (Galla tribes in Shoa), I.; s. 35 n., 39; Wdldmo (Sidama population near Lake Regina
t. 2, 4 p., 9 n., 15; appendix. Margherita), I.; appendix.
Tullu Abba Gifdr. See Abba Gifdr. Walangulo (population of British East Africa),
Tullu Amdra (lit. " mount of the Amdra "), s. 49. appendix.
Tullu Aylu (mountain near Darrd), s. 8. Wdlda Gabr 'il (dag'g'dS), (governor of the land of
Tullu Baqqd (mountain in Mad), s. 49. the Ittu), s. 55.
Tullu Bulgu (warrior of Ldga Gdrti), s. 30. Wdlda Giyorgis (rds), (governor of Kaffa; today
Tullu Dullu (mountain in Gumd), s. 24. governor of Gondar), s. 21 n.; t. 2 n.
Tullu Ganfii (king of GCerd), t. 1 n. Fafcfoe Baseyum (da^fidS), s. 38, 39, 52, 142.
Tullu Guddd, s. 126. WdKe (rds), (governor of Yeû; brother of
Tullu Kormd (lit. " mount of the bull "; moun Tdytu), s. 53, 54.
tain in Lfeqd), t. 12. Walisd (village near Qdbitnd), t. 2.
Tullu Sayd (lit. "mount of the cow"; hill in Wallagd (Galla country in western Abyssinia),
Likqd QidUm), t. 3. s. 31 n., 49, 76, 118 n.; t. 2n.
Tullu Wdrqfe (lit. " mount of the gold "; moun WaUd (warrior of Ldga Gdrti), s. 30.
tain near Sombd Darrd), s. 49. Wdll6 (country in eastern Abyssinia, I.; s. 21 n.,
Tuqd (clan of the Dfeqa Sibu), s. 44, 49, 50; t. 8 n. 35 n., 49, 54, 57, 86; t. 4 p.; appendix.
Turd (horse of Garbi Sangd). See Abba Turd. Wdmd (river in Likqd), s. 43, 44, 47, 49.
Turd (warrior of Lagd Gdrti), s. 30 (war-name Wdmbard (Sibu . . .). See Lieqd Sibu Wdmbard.
AbbaBilld). Wand6 (marsh near Bu 'a Sdrgd), s. 31.
Tura Rdba Nondt (warrior of Bwnti), s. 23. W&ntd Abdi (warrior of Likqd NaqamtS), s. 32.
Tura Tobbd (warrior of Libdn KuttayS), s. 36. Wapare (population in German East Africa), ap
falds (horse of Fitdwrari Garadd). See Abba pendix.
falds. Wapokomo (population of hunters in British East
Tambdro (Sidama population in southern Abys Africa), t. 4 p; appendix.
sinia), I.; s. 23. Waq Kiennt, s. 94, 95, 96 (war-name Abba Sorrd).
Tana (lake in northern Abyssinia), appendix. Wdqte (father of Gdli Wdgte), s. 44, 47.
fattdw (horse of Rds WdW). See Abba TaUdw. Wdqd Sibillu (chief of a Sulu clan), s. 85.
Taytu (wife of Menilek II; empress of Abyssinia), Wdrannd (rds), s. 24 n.
s. 44, 64. Wdrte. (father of Rdba WdrCe), s. 15.
Turt Gdgdn (chief of Ndnno Roggi'e), s. 44, 45. Waregd (place in Gdbd land), s. 41.
Uba (Sidama population northeast of Lake Wdrfida (mother of Abba Diggd), s. 23.
Stephanie), appendix. Wdrqfe (Gimmd . . .). See Gimmd Wdrgte.
U1d$ (mother of Qabatd Bdnd), s. 31. Wdrqte (TvM . . .). See Tullu Wdrqte.
Up&no (Galla name of the Saint Bon). See Saint Wdrra Bdbbd (Walld tribe), I.
Bon. Wdrrd Bayu (name of many Galla clans), s. 126 n.
Urgte (mother of DaSfidd Morodd), s. 31. Wdrra Himdno (WdUd tribe), I.; s. 21 n., 49, 126 n.
Vannutelli (lieutenant), I. Wdrrd Qallu (WdUd tribe), I.
Wasanye (population of hunters in British East Wdy1p (hunters living in Amara countries), ap
Africa), t. 4 p., appendix. pendix.
Watar6 (place in Ldgd Gdrti territory), s. 30. Wdyu (Lieqa . . .). See Lieqa Wdyii.
Wdtta (hunters living in Galla countries), 8. 15; Wubte (dajjg'dZ), (governor of the Obdrrd, and
t. 1 n; appendix. afterwards of the Ndnno tribes), s. 58.
Wdtta Qaldd&i (place in Shoa), appendix. Yabald (capital of the Ndnno Gaddl), s. 24.
Wdtta Qarqdrra (place in Gumd), s. 15. Ydbasd (son of Sidd Tufd), s. 32.
Wawat (Wawa, Wawait), appendix. Yamugie (ancestor of Dajjjjdd Morodd), s. 20.
Wdy$ssd (brother of Firrisd), s. 24; t. 1 n. Fe^w (region of central Abyssinia), s. 53; t. 8.
Wdy$ssa (Ndnno warrior), s. 45. Zlndaro (Sidama population in southern Abys
Wdyi (son-in-law of Bakarie), s. 31 (war-name sinia), s. 21 n.; appendix.
Abba KottS). Zenzalimd (village near Lake fdna), appendix.
THE WAYAO OF NYASALAND
HUGH STANNUS STANNUS M.D., M.R.CP. (Lond.), M.R.CS. (Eng.), F.R.A.I.
In the Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute for 1910,1 there appeared under the title of ' Notes on some
tribes of British Central Africa,' observations made by me on natives around the southern end of Lake Nyasa. These
notes referred largely to the Anyanja people. Since then I have been stationed for several years at Zomba in the Shire'
highlands of Nyasaland (late British Central Africa) and the present paper relates to the native peoples living in that
vicinity, Machinga Yao. Many analogies in the customs of these two tribes will become obvious on comparing the
present paper with that referring to the Anyanja. It seems probable that most of these customs have a common
origin and have evolved along similar lines, though in some instances, there is evidence that one tribe has adopted
a custom from the other. The problem in many cases is very difficult to solve but where any evidence of value on
such points is forthcoming, it is mentioned.
I wish to acknowledge my indebtedness for help in the preparation of this article to Dr. Meridith G. Sanderson for
his assistance in etymology and for the rendering of many Chiyao words, to Mr. E. F. Colvile for aid in making cor
rections, and to Thomas Cheonga, a native hospital assistant, for invaluable help in getting to the bottom of many
customs. The very beautiful photograph of the Ching' wenyeng' wenye dancer (PI. I) was taken by Dr. J. B. Davey
of the East African Medical Service and is with his kind permission here reproduced.
Introduction. Concerning the ethnology of the peoples of Nyasaland, little has been
written. Officials have, for the most part, been uncommunicative, and the large body of
missionaries has taken slight advantage of the unique opportunities for study which early
occupation of the country and close connection with its people offered them. In the case
of the Yao, however, there are two brilliant exceptions, the Reverend Duff Macdonald 2
whose Africana remains an authoritative exposition of the customs of the Yao around
Blantyre, and the Reverend Dr. Hetherwick,3 author of the standard work on Yao lin
guistics.4 Apart from these, some information can be gleaned from Livingstone's 5 account
of his travels, from the writings of Sir H. H. Johnston,6 and the Hon. H. L. Duff,7' and
from Miss Werner's 9 popular book written after a short stay in the Protectorate. Other
references to the Wayao are too scanty to be of value.
For information concerning the Wayao of German East Africa, the reader is referred
to Dr. Fiilleborn,10and to the published results of an ethnological research expedition to the
1 H. S. Stannus, ' Notes on some tribes of British Central Africa,' (Journ. Anth. Inst., vol. 40, 1910, p. 285-336).
* Duff Macdonald, Africana or the heart of heathen Africa, London, 1882.
* Alexander Hetherwick, A handbook of the Yao language, London, 1902.
* Since these notes were made in 1912-1913, Dr. M. G. Sanderson has published a Yao grammar and intends
shortly to follow it with a Chiyao dictionary.
■ David Livingstone, Narrative of an expedition to the Zambezi and its tributaries and of the discoveries of the
lakes Shirwa and Nyasa, 1858-1864, London, 1865.
' H. H. Johnston, British Central Africa, London, 1898.
' H. L. Duff, Nyasaland under the foreign office, London, 1903.
> Now Sir Hector Duff, K. B. E., C. M. G.
* A. Werner, The natives of British Central Africa, London, 1906.
u F. Fulleborn, Das deutsche Njassa-und-Ruwuna-Gebiet, Land und Leute, nebst Bemerkungen uber die Schire-
lander, Berlin, 1906.
m
southern part of that territory by Dr. Karl Weule. I have not had access to Weule's
official reports but judging from Miss Werner's translation of his popular edition,1 the book
shows a good deal of evidence of inaccurate information, or perhaps it would be better to
say, evidence of want of extensive observation, and all the strictures which his translator
passes upon the book 2 are well deserved. I am inclined to think that much of what Weule
describes in connection with various tribes including the Wayao bears witness to consider
able modification by intermixture, and it may be interesting to compare his account of
Yao customs with my own.
Duff Macdonald,3 then, remains the one author whose writings are of value to the
student of the Wayao of Nyasaland, and one cannot help feeling that the ethnological
character of his book suffers from the attitude which he, in common with most missionaries,
takes in regard to many native customs. I believe that if missionaries, instead of turning
away their faces in horror, had regarded these practices with an open mind, they would
have found that their veiled statements were exaggerations of the truth, and that the old
social code of the Yao native would compare favorably with the order of things in most
civilized countries.
Morals are after all only the laws that regulate the social welfare of a community and
there can be no theoretically perfect code of morals which does not take into considera
tion the living conditions of the community to which it is applied. Before the ties of cus
tom which bound their social system were cut by European government and missionary
influence, I think the natives of Nyasaland sinned against their code of morals compara
tively seldom. The present time is one of transition. Freed from old customs and beliefs,
and with nothing of equal strength to take their place, the younger generation of natives
has suffered and only time with just rule and efficient education can raise them to the higher
moral standard which European influence strives to impose upon them.
The old order is passing rapidly and I therefore make no apologies for recording my
observations, since the time will soon come when the things I speak of will be entirely for
gotten. I find I have gone over much of the ground covered by Macdonald, but in most
cases, I believe that I can add many details which may be of value to ethnologists.
Divisions and History of the Wayao. In regard to the question of tribal names, I think
it is perhaps better to reserve the word Wayao to denote the whole Yao family and give to
each section of the tribe the designation by which it is known to all its members. Thus the
name Amangoche should be applied to the Yao people settled around Blantyre, while the
Yao about whom I shall speak belong to that branch of the tribe known as Amachinga,
now living near Zomba under their chief, Malemya. These two sections, together with a
third, to the north, the Amasininga, contain all the Yao of Nyasaland. (PI. IX)
1 Karl Weule, Native Life in East Africa, tr. by Alice Werner, London, 1909.
• Ibid., p. ariii-xiv.
» Op. cit.
THE WAYAO OF NYASALAND 231
That these several sections of the Wayao differ in many respects may be seen by com
paring the Amangoche of Africana J with the Amachinga of this article. I am not suffi
ciently conversant with the Amangoche to make a definite statement on this point but I am
inclined to believe that after longer residence and wider knowledge, Macdonald would
have found that some of his statements needed revision. Those whom he considered the
" Yao proper " but whom I prefer to speak of as the Amangoche seem to have a consider
able mixture of Anyanja, since their language contains many Chinyanja words and many
of their customs are practically those of the Anyanja. I am of the opinion that the Ama
chinga may be regarded as more typical of the Wayao, and except when ambiguity might
arise, I shall speak of them as the Yao.
The original home of this Bantu speaking people is uncertain; in historic times all the
sections of the Wayao were originally grouped in that part of Portuguese East Africa
around the hill called Chao, whence they probably derived their name, Wa Chao or Wa
Yao. About the middle of the nineteenth century, as the result of inroads by neighboring
tribes of Alolo from the southeast, and raids by the Makwangala, a branch of the Angoni
of Zulu origin, from the northwest, disruption of the Yao people occurred, and the divi
sions mentioned above, moved toward Nyasaland. The Masaninga branch settled for the
most part along the eastern shore of Lake Nyasa but a sub-section known as Tambala
Yao reached the west side of the lake. The Machinga made a settlement near Lake
Chiuta under a number of old chiefs, including Malemya (Nalutumbo), Kawinga, Chenkula,
Kalimbuka, and Maole.
The descents of the Makwangwala again caused the Wayao to move on from Chiuta
to Naminga on the Mikoko stream. Here Malemya suffered another defeat at the hands of
the Angoni; many of his people were driven off and taken to the neighboring Anguru
country where they were held in captivity for some time. Finally they were restored by the
enterprise of one of Malemya's old men, Kulungala, who went alone to the Angoni, saying
that he wished to live with them and with his own brethren. One day, he asked the Angoni
if they would like to see their captives dance, and when they assented, he called the Yao
together, and clapping his hands to keep time, he began to sing one of their dance songs.
Gradually he gathered all the Yao into the village open space, dancing and singing; then,
keeping to the same air, he told them why he had come, using their own language which
the Angoni did not understand. " Malemya, our chief, remains at the Mikoko stream. It
is not far off. We must all join him again. Now dance for joy. If anyone does not return
there, it is his own fault." Then, a few at a time, the dancers left the crowd and stole away
into the bush and, as night came on, they all made off and reached Malemya's camp in
safety.
Malemya's people were again attacked by the Angoni, and on this occasion they defeated
their enemies. The Angoni retreated and skirting Zomba mountain, reached the Shire"
Macdonald, op. cit.
River at Mpimbi where they intended to settle. Here, an old chief, knowing that their
presence would cause trouble, persuaded them by tales of many cattle far away on the other
side of the river, to cross over, and there they remained.
Kawinga and Malemya, then, to avoid further raids from the north went down to the
Upper Shire' River near Lake Pamalombe, Kawinga going to Mvera, while Malemya stayed
on the east side of the river among the Anyanja, claiming friendship with them because
they bore many of the same clan names. Later, Malemya moved up to the highlands
about fifteen miles north of what is now Zomba, and Kawinga went to Chikala. Malemya
was friendly with the Anyanja chief, Chenyani, who was of his clan, and was therefore able
to buy from him for a red blanket all the country from the Likwenu stream to the Namadzi
River, a district thirty to forty miles long. There his people settled.
Kawinga was once again attacked by the Makwangwala from the north, but beat them
back, after which they returned to the country whence they came — German East Africa
near Lake Nyasa. The Angoni chief was killed in this battle, and the story goes that two
Yao captives were told off to carry the eviscerated body back to the Angoni country for
burial. As they were not provided with food for the journey, the two men began to eat the
corpse. After several days, this was discovered; one of the men was killed but the other
escaped to tell the tale. These were barbarous days, and the Yao relate that after raiding
a village, the Angoni would leave a pot cooking on the fire with the body of a child in it,
well covered with beans, so that when they had gone away with their booty and the vil
lagers who had taken refuge in the forest returned hungry, they would start eating the
beans and then come upon the body of the child, and having eaten of the juices of a human
body, they would have committed a terrible sin.
The immigration of the Amachinga into the country around Mangoche mountain
caused the Amagoche Yao settled there to move. They passed into the Blantyre and
Mlanje districts, and invaded the country of the Anyanja. The chief, Malemya, known as
Nalutumbo died about 1880, and was succeeded by his nephew, a sister's son, according to
the Yao custom. This nephew, Wandalama, then took the name of Malemya.
In consequence of this succession, there was considerable bad feeling between Wanda
lama and the other aspirant to the chieftaincy, his cousin, Kumtaja. The latter moved
down to the plain below Zomba mountain to the south, where he gathered about him a
band of friends and malcontents. Malemya decided to attack him and with this purpose,
sent two messengers, Nkopiti Jand Mapondela, asking Chikusi and his Angoni to come and
do the job for him. Led by Nyamuka, Njeremoli, and Kabayi, the Angoni came from the
ShirS River opposite Blantyre, via Matope. They attacked and routed Kumtaja who,
owing to the thick country, managed to fall back with most of his people toward Lake
Chilwa. Here he was received by his cousin, Chimombo, a son of Nalutumbo, and father of
my interpreter, Cheonga, who ruled among the Anyasa. Afterwards, he moved to Mpimbi
on the Shir6 where he built a stockaded village.
1 Died July 14, 1914.
After the defeat of Kumtaja, Chikusi and his Angoni routed Kumtumanja, a brother
of Malemya, who had also been making a nuisance of himself. Kumtumanja, who suffered
from a large hydrocoele, is supposed to have lost his balance on account of this impedi
ment, and fallen into a stream where he had stopped to drink and to have been drowned.
The Angoni still burned for more warfare, and Malemya, fearing that with his work
done, they might prove a nuisance to him, turned them on to the Amangoche Yao around
Blantyre. Thither they set off on a raiding expedition and returned to their own country
via Chiradzulu. This raid took place in 1884.
During the next few years, Kawinga, who had always held a grudge against Malemya
for having got ahead of him to the best country, occupied the chief with raiding and war
fare. In 1891, Wandalama died, and was succeeded by Chisala, the son of his sister, Chisi-
gere, and at the present time, he is the reigning Malemya.
It is of these Amachinga Yao under Malemya that the following notes are written. I
have gone at some length into the history of these people in order to disarm criticism by
those who, familiar with other sections of the Wayao, may not agree with all my statements.
Life History. Generally speaking, the life of the Yao native in the old days was full of
ease spiced with the excitement of intertribal warfare. He cultivated his crops, kept a few
goats and chickens, and relieved the monotony by hunting. Even domestic slavery was
not a great hardship, nor did the Yao probably suffer from coast slave-raiding to the same
extent as many other tribes. As children, they are wont to spend their days free from care,
seldom reprimanded, and rarely or never physically chastised. During youth, the same
easy lot is theirs, with the addition from time to time of a few small tasks; minor house
hold duties for the girls, such as drawing water, sweeping the hut, and " minding " the
baby, while the boys hoe or fetch and carry for their fathers in the village or in the bush.
Left to their own devices, they play games,1 dig out rats' nests, or shoot birds with bows
and arrows.
Now, as formerly, when they are about five years old, the girls usually go to live with
their grandmother who may thus have a number of children around her; or several girls
of a somewhat more advanced age may sleep together in a hut dormitory. Boys of this
age all live in a big hut called nyumba ja chachanda, " the boys' dormitory." This is their
quarters until one by one they leave to get married. The girl, similarly, remains in the
girls' dormitory or with her grandmother until she is taken in marriage.
Puberty. The first interruption of this placid life of youth is the onset of puberty or the
first initiation ceremonies.2 Formerly, these ceremonies took place after puberty but of
late years, as is pointed out elsewhere, they are performed much earlier.
Child betrothal. Bethrothal in childhood or before birth is not uncommon. A woman
learning that some friend of hers is pregnant will arrange that if a girl is born, her son will
marry the friend's daughter, or a man taking a fancy to a little girl will select her as his
1 Vide infra, p. 357. • Vide infra, p. 246.
betrothed. In this latter case, the child lives with one of his wives and is brought up in
his house.
When this girl first menstruates, she tells the man's wife who in turn informs her hus
band. He then goes out into the bush with his axe, while the wife reports to the young
girl's mother and to the man's female relatives. The girl is put to rest on a mat in the hut,
the women remaining with her after shutting and fastening the door. The man, meantime,
cuts a strip of bark, hammers it out into a piece of cloth, and puts the cloth, wound round
and round the stem of the tree from which he has taken it, on the roof of the hut where the
girl lies. The first passer-by who notices this sign, spreads the news; then all the women
in the village assemble and trill with their tongues to show their joy, while the women in
the house sing.
Until the girl's menstrual period is over, the old women relatives sleep each night in her
hut, and instruct her in the taboos relating to menstruation. The front door is kept closed,
and exit for purposes of nature is made only through the back door. When the girl is up
again, the fire in the hut is extinguished, the bark-cloth which she has worn and her sleep
ing mat are rolled up and put away in the veranda-room, and the girl, having procured
clay, replasters the floor of the entire hut. A woman then brings fresh fire from another hut.
At subsequent menstrual periods, there is no ceremony. The girl, as is the custom of
all women at such times, must sleep on a mat apart from her husband. Sexual intercourse
is strictly forbidden under penalty of dire sickness. For the same reason, no menstruating
woman may put salt in the food, etc. Until the girl's first menstrual period is over, the
man to whom she is betrothed stays in the hut of another wife. Later, he may cohabit
with the girl.
If the girl has not been to her initiation ceremony, Chiputu,1 on returning to her hus
band's hut after this ceremony, the first coitus takes place in the veranda. It must be in
complete, so that ejaculation takes place after withdrawal and the semen falls upon her
cloth. This should be taken by the girl to some of the old women in the village who report
on the proceedings. Should withdrawal not have taken place, the man is considered bad
and the girl, unless doctored, may sicken. Later, ordinary cohabitation is allowed. This
species of ceremonial coitus is called Kwasa mauta or in Chinyanja, Ku-taya mafuta, " to
roll away the oil," referring to the oil with which the girl was anointed at Chiputu. A girl
who has no betrothed, on returning from Chiputu to her grandmother is given medicine
similarly to prevent her sickening.
Betrothal and marriage in adult life. Apart from child betrothal, when a man seeking
a wife, sees a girl he fancies, he talks the matter over with his brother, uncle, or some friend,
who then goes and makes overtures to the girl's uncle or brother, her guardian or ngoswe 2
as he is called. The ngoswe corresponds very closely to our idea of a god-parent; he may
be called the sponsor. The word " surety " is used by Macdonald.3
1 Vide infra, p. 269. * Ngoswe is a word adopted from the Chin, Nkoswe.
» Macdonald, op. cit., vol. 1, p. 118.
If the suitor receives a favorable reply, he informs his father and the elders of his village
and then goes to the girl's village where he begins to build a house and spends much time
performing duties for the girl's parents, such as hoeing. If, after a month, he is approved,
the girl's people send a messenger to the man's village, asking, " Have you missed anyone
from your village? " The answer is, " Yes, So-and-So," to which the reply is given, " Well,
he is here with us." The man's people then arrange to come to the girl's village on a certain
day.
On the appointed day, the two sponsors (ngoswe) on each side, meet in the village open
space and being assured that there is nothing to prevent the marriage and the man and
woman being willing, the tie is made. There is no formal ceremony or token of marriage
between the man and woman. Porridge is cooked for the sponsors and a fowl provided.
The back of the fowl is broken by the elder sponsor as a sign of the compact. The man is
exhorted by his sponsors to be a credit to them in his new village, while the woman is told
by her mother and her aunt that they expect her to live an exemplary life. The man's
chief sponsor tells him that no longer is he a member of his own village, but belongs to
the girl's sponsor, and the converse is told to the girl. Hereafter, in all matters relating
to them as married people, the girl will consult her husband's sponsor and vice versa.
The elder sponsor on both sides is called mgogo wakugona, borrowing from Chinyanja,
"a log lying down," and is usually an uncle; the junior is commonly the brother of the
bridegroom.
On leaving the girl's village, the mgogo wakugona will say, " You will see me no more in
this village but this, my younger companion; if you see him, you will know he comes from
me." The sponsors' responsibilities last so long as the pair lives, unless they separate for
some reason. Thus, should the husband's goats die or should he lose his axe, the woman
reports to his sponsor. If the husband kills an antelope, the sponsors receive some portion
of the meat. If a village is to be moved, the inhabitants consult the sponsors of every
married couple. In this way, the sponsors become the repository of all the events of the
married life of the husband and wife and in case of any dispute or untoward event, theirs
is the accredited testimony on family matters. The account given by Macdonald,1 I ven
ture to think may be incorrect.
Should the mgogo wakugona die, the junior sponsor takes his place and a new junior is
appointed. The new mgogo wakugona sends a message to the other party's ngoswe telling
him of the change, at the same time presenting him with a fowl. As he may be acting for
a number of people, he may have to distribute several fowls; later, he visits his confreres.
Following the marriage compact and the departure of the ngoswe, the married pair go
away quietly to the house the man has built for his wife, or she may wait until evening
and, if she is shy, she may be accompanied by an elder sister, or may be sent with food for
her husband. Consummation may not take place for a day or two, after which the hum
1 Macdonald, op. cit., p. 139.
drum of her married life begins. The man and woman live together peaceably enough as
a rule, each attending to his own sphere of work. The man builds the house, the woman
muds the floors; she sweeps and cooks, she is the hewer of wood and drawer of water. The
man hunts, fishes, makes mats, baskets, the grain store, game traps, and bark-cloth; he
looks after the tobacco, and makes the snuff, while his wife brews the beer. He it is who
fashions the gourd vessels and carves the spoons, while the woman is the potter (PI. Ill, 4)
and pipe-maker. Together they hoe and together they harvest, but to the woman falls the
monotonous drudgery of pounding and sifting the corn for flour.
The Yao have a custom like that of the Anyanja. A sister brings to the house of the
newly wedded pair a log of green wood from a mbanga tree which is very hard; the log
may be two feet in diameter and four feet long. Should the bride not become pregnant
before it is burned away, the husband is laughed at and they may both be teased by having
many logs brought to the house. A man who has no children is much despised and there
is a saying, " He must have eaten some ground-nuts," punning on the word for a thick-
skinned variety of ground-nut, chimbuwila, a word which also means sterility. An impotent
man may, with the consent of his wife, introduce some male friend into the house, any
children born in consequence being claimed as the husband's. He usually chooses some
friend from a distance to obviate any attachment springing up between him and the wife.
Two married couples may, all consenting, exchange consorts for the night, but they never
live together like this for long periods.
There is one well-defined marriage taboo; a man may not marry a woman of his own
clan. In the old days, he was also restricted to his own tribe, except in the case of slave
wives and wives by capture. Since the clan is inherited from the mother,1 a man may not
marry the daughters of his maternal aunts, but he may marry his other female cousins.
He may not marry two sisters nor a deceased wife's sister; neither do two brothers marry
two sisters.
The number of wives is limited only by the husband's ability to provide for them. In
addition to free wives, a man might formerly have a number of slave wives. The head wife
is called kusyeto, the other wives, mangumba. The word given by Macdonald, akusyeto,2
meaning the junior wives, is a Chinyanja word and, I think, wrongly applied.
It has been said that a man always marries into the village of his wife. For this reason,
female children are always prized as it means an increase in the number of able-bodied
men added to the village. In rare cases, the wife might be taken to the husband's village,
as is the Anyanja practice.3 This, of course, is true in the case of chiefs and headmen. Here,
we may also note that no payment is made for the wife and no dowry is received with her.
To revert to betrothal, occasionally the sponsors will not agree to the marriage and a
runaway match takes place, but in the end, the marriage is usually regularized by the
sponsors coming to an agreement. If, however, the woman has in the meantime become
1 Vide infra, p. 282. • Op. cit., p. 134. » Stannus, op. cit., p. 309.
pregnant, the meeting of the sponsors will have to be postponed until after the ceremony
connected with her first quickening with child, IAtiwo.1 This ceremony must be performed
whether the girl is regularly married or not. One party cannot ask the other for permission
that both ceremonies take place at the same time. The answer would be given, " You are
asking me to kill two beasts with one bullet." In rare cases, the chief may sanction the
marriage and IAtiwo ceremonies taking place at about the same time, i.e. the marriage is
arranged before the child is born.
Widowhood. A widow is considered unclean for a period after the death of her husband.
She wears a band of palm-leaf or string around her forehead. When the period is passed
and some man wishes to marry her, arrangement is made with some other man to cohabit
with her for payment; she is then said to be clean and can go to her prospective husband.
This ceremony is called kutema ngonji, " to cut the strings," or in Chinyanja, ku-dula
mlaza, " to cut the palm "; unless it is performed, the new husband will sicken. The man
introduced for the purpose is called by the Yao, litunu, the "hyaena," "he who comes by
night."
Divorce. From time to time, married people disagree and one deserts the other. If the
woman leaves the man, he has a claim against her and the man to whom she goes for all
the clothes he has supplied her with during their married life. The husband usually sides
with the wife's relatives and arranges that they look after the children; he does not claim
them. When the husband and wife mutually wish to separate, they both meet with their
sponsors and everything is duly arranged. The husband will give his wife an arrow, saying,
" Mpamba (the arrow)," meaning, " If I come back, may it kill me." The place of the
arrow may be taken by a bullet or any other object, even a piece of grass. The man will
add, " Swaka, swaka, no likoswe! (rattling, rattling, it is a rat!)," inferring that if his wife
hears something rattling in the house, it is a rat, not himself trying to come back. There
is no definite payment of compensation. If the woman marries again, she presents the
" arrow " to her second husband as a sign that she has been freed from her first marriage;
without this token, no man would marry her.
Actual adultery was in the old days very rare owing to the strict enforcement of rules,
and the case of a woman demanding divorce on account of the adultery of her husband
formed a cause cttebre. The case heard by the chief would last for days and hundreds of
people would come to listen. Neighboring Anyanja pleaders would be invited to speak
and great excitement prevailed, as these latter would be accompanied by their villagers,
who, to the accompaniment of continuous drumming, would sing, " Mbawala anakadwa
m'nkonde,2 (The bush-buck has run his head into the net)," while they ran about running
their heads into their game-nets.
Other causes of separation are neglect of duty, sterility of the wife, and habitual death
of the children born.
1 Vide infra, p. 274. » Chin.
Pregnancy and childbirth. An event of the first importance in the Yao world is the
first conception or rather the "quickening" with the first child, Litiwo; this is described
below, together with the other ceremonies of the Unyago.1 After the ceremony of Litiwo,
the period of waiting until the birth of the child passes without further event. A point of
medical interest is that native women suffer in many cases from " morning sickness " dur
ing pregnancy. That they may have perverted appetites is also recognized, grain husks
and crabs being among the things most commonly desired. As the Anyanja,2 the Yao
believe that the child develops from the semen of the male, although the growth of the
child is in some way connected with the mother.
When labor commences, the woman retires to the bush a few hundred yards away from
her house, attended by some friend, seldom a midwife, and never by her own people, though
the mother and the mother-in-law will probably be near the spot. If labor is not completed
by evening, they return to the house and the birth may take place actually within its walls.
The attitude assumed in labor is the same as that adopted by the Anyanja,3 the patient
semi-reclining in the arms of another woman who sits behind, grasping her belly. The
vulva is smeared with a decoction made from the bark of the mposa tree as a lubricant, but
no other help is given. Kumkuli is the name given to the place of confinement; m'luuli
means the house where the woman remains for a period after the confinement. The Yao
recognize the protruding bag of amniotic fluid and call it the " oil-gourd ". "Chisasi chika-
sichef (The oil-gourd, has it broken?)." They wait until the placenta is delivered before
dividing the cord. This is done with the sharp edge of the outer covering of a maize stalk
or sugar cane; a knife is never used. The section is made near the placenta or half-way be
tween it and the child, after tying the proximal end with a bark string.
The woman who receives the child at birth is the ambusanga, friend or godmother. If
the infant is born in the bush, she carries it back to the house whither they go as soon as
labor is completed. The mother herself, unless she is very ill, goes Out shortly afterwards
and buries the placenta in the ash-heap, using a stick to dig the hole, never a hoe.
After the birth, the mother and child must remain in the house until the umbilical cord
separates, during which time the husband does not enter, though he may come to the
door to look in at the child.
The day on which exit from the house is made, the floor is entirely replastered with mud.
The baby's head is shaved and a cross is made upon it with ngama, a kind of red pigment.
The husband may then receive the child and in the case of a first-born, it is he who gives it
its name; other children may be named by the ambusanga, the mother, or the aunt.
When the mother leaves the house to appear in public, the nakanga who put her litiwo
on,4 removes it.
So long as the infant remains in the house, care must be taken as to persons allowed to
handle it. A woman who has recently had a menstrual period or coitus with her husband,
1 Vide infra, p. 274. • Stannus, op. cit., p. 310. » Ibid. * Vide infra, p. 274.
or a girl who has just returned from Chiputu must not touch the child, as it is said, " Her
body is hot and would give fever to the child." To guard against such a happening, some
" clean " woman, after handing some beads to the mother, will ask to be allowed to take
the infant. This indicates that should it sicken, the beads will pay the medicine-woman
who comes to cure it. The mother and baby are simply washed in water and are not treated
with medicine, unless meconium has been voided before the child was delivered.1 If the
infant dies before it is presented to the outside world, it is disposed of in the same way as
a stillborn child, i.e. buried in the ash-heap. About the tenth day, the baby is adorned
with a girdle of beads and two little pieces of stick obtained from a medicine-woman to
make the infant grow fat.
The length of time during which the father and mother refrain from cohabitation after
the birth of a baby varies greatly according to circumstance. Four months is probably a
minimum, while two years, during which the woman suckles the child, is the common
interval. After the first coitus, the man and woman wash themselves and the baby is
bathed in the same water to prevent any ill coming to it.
Suckling often continues much longer than two years. If the mother dies, the child may
be suckled by the grandmother, an aunt, or some other woman, but the breasts must first
be treated with medicine or the child would die
A child born breech first is called salanga, a word which is also used to denote a variety
of domestic fowl which always has the appearance of having its feathers ruffled. A child
who dies before the father and mother have resumed sexual relations is buried in a grave
yard apart from that of adults. The grave, dug with sticks, not hoes, is very shallow,
and when it is filled in, a heap of stones is made above it. Only women attend the burial.
A deep grave would cause the mother to go on losing children at an early age. The body
of such a child is called litunu, " hyaena."
A woman dying undelivered is placed in the grave in the usual way and then, before
filling in the earth, one of the grave-diggers descends into the pit, cuts through the envelop
ing shroud, and incises the abdomen. One end of a long bamboo stick or reed is inserted
in the incision and the other end is brought out to the surface of the grave. If this were not
done, " many would die in childbirth."
Twins are not killed by the Yao but are well treated and always cared for equally.
They are given similar clothing and food.2 There is a story that the mother of Nkwamba,
1 Chinyera, vide infra, p. 286.
1 Cf. A. Werner, ' Among the Congo Cannibals, by John H. Weeks, London, 1913, a review,' (Man, vol. 14, no.
15, 1914, p. 15).
I take this opportunity of referring to Miss Werner's review in which, speaking of twins, she says, " They are
always among the Anyanja given the names Mngoli and Nyuma." Mngoli in Chinyanja refers to a kind of musical
instrument and the Chiyao meaning is " cocoanut palm." Nyuma is a Chiyao word which certainly means " the back."
It is sometimes used of the second born twin but does not occur in Chinyanja. I have never heard of twins either
among the Wayao or the Anyanja spoken of by these names. A mother carries the first born on the right arm and the
second born on the left, but, so far as I know, she does not give a duplicate greeting nor make a habit of eating equally
with both hands.
one of Malemya's men died, after giving birth to quintuplets, some thirty years ago. De
formed children are buried alive. A large number of children is always hoped for and where
polygamy is practiced, some families are of considerable size, although the mortality
among young children is very high. It is, of course, very difficult to state the child-bearing
period among natives. It does not start so early as is commonly supposed, and I think the
menopause is found within about the same limits as among Europeans.
Death. Natives of Nyasaland live to a good old age. That such is not the case I have
found to be one of the many fallacious beliefs concerning natives which should be relegated
to the realm of exploded theories, as I have pointed out elsewhere.1
Death in old age is recognized as a natural event but apart from this, all sickness and
death were formerly and are still to a large extent looked upon as the result of the machina
tions of some person, an idea which forms the outstanding feature in their belief in witch
craft, usawi."1
Here I shall mention the ordinary customs in the case of death. During the last hours
of a mortal illness, a man is tended by his wife or wives; the head wife sits constantly sup
porting his head on her lap or against her breast. A woman is similarly tended by her mother,
sisters, and friends. As unconsciousness sets in and the extremities become cold, they
say, " His spirit has gone and only the heart remains alive."
The native does not like the idea of lingering on and a man on his death-bed will say
to his sons, " Now watch me that I die quickly." He may take medicine to help him over
that time or he may give his sons instructions as to what to do. Should a man linger un
conscious for a long time, friends will ask his sons, " Did he give you any instructions? "
If he has done so, the sons will then carry them out. This perhaps consists of bathing them
selves in medicines left by their father, while they stand on the roof of his house. Some
times, the natives say of a lingering case, " Ah, perhaps he has eaten of a tortoise's heart! "
knowing the phenomenon of the tortoise's heart and believing that by partaking of it, the
same property can be conferred on the heart of a man.
When death is manifest, the body is covered with a cloth by a brother, a son, or some
other person in attendance. The eyes are closed, the mouth shut, and at the present time,
the body straightened out. This, however, is a recent practice copied from the Anyanja,
Europeans, and Mohammedans.
News of the death must be sent to the chief, and a messenger goes to his village where
the chief and his people sit in the village open space. He carries a fowl in his hand. The
present of a single fowl always denotes bad tidings. One of the chief's men, seeing the
stranger approach with the single fowl, will jump up and take the bird. He is joined by
the others and they go away to the cross-roads where they kill the fowl, pluck it, cook it,
and eat it. In the meantime, the messenger delivers his news to the chief who will produce
from his house about eight yards of white calico; if the deceased has been a much respected
1 Hugh S. Stannus, ' The life-span of negroes ', (Lancet, April 11, 1914, p. 1083). * Vide infra, p. 293.
person, he may also give a goat. The calico is to wrap up the body of the dead, the goat
is for the undertakers, awiio.1
Until eight or ten years ago, the Wayao buried their dead in a posture of complete
flexion. The preparation of the body after death is carried out by friends from a neigh
boring village who volunteer for the service. They are known as awiio, (sing. riibilo).
Macdonald 2 thinks the word originally meant relatives; it has essentially the opposite
meaning now. The corpse is washed in ordinary water and no anointment is made. The
limbs, formerly, were then flexed on the body and at all the joints. The clenched hands
were placed under the chin of the bent head or the hands were spread over the face of the
flexed head, while the legs were tightly bent at the knees and brought up close against the
abdomen. The corpse was securely bound in this position 'and adorned with a loin-cloth
of bark. The body of a man found stiff and extended was a source of great trouble. Water
was heated, and the body bathed until it was as relaxed as possible. As much force would
then be applied as was necessary to gain the required degree of flexion, the bones often
being broken in the process.
In the case of a woman, her female friends put on her bark-cloth loin covering, but the
washing and trussing up of the body were usually done by men unless there were some
women particularly skilled in the operation.
The flexed body was then set up on the deceased's sleeping mat within the hut, and from
time to time, so long as it remained exposed, it was washed, people coming from other vil
lages to offer their services for this task. Watchers sat continually by the body, the wife
and perhaps a brother on either side, while others slept in the hut to take their turn later.
The rest of the mourners sat on the veranda about the door.
As soon as the awilo had finished their work, wailing began, started by the wife and car
ried on by all the women of the village and the women relatives from elsewhere. Wailing
continued all day until about ten in the evening, and then started again between two
and three in the morning. This went on for three or four days or was intermittent for a
longer time, always recommencing with the arrival of a party from another village. I have
never heard of flour being put on the heads by Yao mourners, as mentioned in Africana?
News of a death was always sent to all the relatives, and burial might be delayed to
allow for the arrival of those from a distance. Under such circumstances, the body was
enclosed in a casing of bark, the ends being closed by bamboo pegs. Exaggerated signs of
grief were sometimes made by the mourners who beat their breasts with their hands while
they knocked their heads against the ground or a wall, but the Yao did not indulge in the
excesses of the Anyanja near Lake Chilwa who practiced a kind of flagellation, the wallers
within the house meeting any new-comers at the door and beating them with sticks. This
treatment was not resented. Women alone did the wailing; a man indulging in such expres
sion would be laughed at. His part in the old days when the natives possessed firearms was
1 Vide infra, p. 244. » Op. cit, vol. 1, p. 103. » Ibid.
to fire off his gun as long as his powder lasted. During the period of mourning, drumming
went on continuously, chindimba being played on the three small drums called ichoma.
With the exception of the flexed attitude of the body, the foregoing description is a
correct account of what happens today. The body is now fully extended.
The avrilo are two or four in number, although other friends may assist in all their ser
vices. On about the third day, the amlo sew up the body in bark cloth, completely envelop
ing it; a bamboo needle is used and left sticking in the cloth at the last stitch. The body
is then enclosed in a mat slung on a pole, and carried from the hut to the grave. First, the
procession makes a round of the village, passing by all the houses which the dead man used
to visit, and over all the paths he used to cross. His children and those of his relatives under
seven or eight years old gather in the village, and throw pieces of charcoal toward the body
as it passes, "so that they shall forget the dead man," or run after the corpse, while some
one sprinkles medicine over them.
As the procession leaves the village, it is headed by the drums playing chindimba, but
after a few hundred yards, only the ching'anga drum, now called chitanda, beats time for a
short distance; the procession then goes on quietly. Following the drums, walks the mother
or another relative carrying flour with which the grave will be marked out. Behind this
mourner, the body is borne by the amlo. The awilo are always the first to carry the body,
but are later relieved by other friends of the deceased; no one would ever ask to be relieved.
After the chief mourner, follow the other relatives and friends, the men first, the women
behind. Boys just back from their unyago attend to learn the customs. All the relatives
of the deceased go to the burial, contrary to Macdonald's account.1
In this order, the procession reaches some tree thirty or forty yards from the place of
burial where the corpse is put down in the shade, mtula, "resting place", and while the
women and part of the men watch beside it, the awilo proceed to the burial place. They
cut branches from a sacred tree, and strew them on the path. On approaching the appointed
spot, they clap their hands in salutation, asking that the burial ground be opened to
them.
The head rribilo chooses the site where the grave shall be dug, after which the mourner
marks out the limits with the flour she has brought. In the days when the body was buried
in contracted posture, a circular grave was dug just big enough to allow two men to work
in it. Eight feet was the usual depth but this was decided by the deceased's ngoswe, if he
were living, otherwise, by his near relatives. In the east side of this circular well, a cave
was excavated, just large enough to admit the contracted corpse. When all was prepared,
the body accompanied by all the mourners, was brought from mtula to the graveside.
The chief mbilo with a friend of the man's family and one of his wife's, standing in the
grave received the body and placed it in the cave, resting on a mat and covered with
bark cloth. The body lay on its side with its back toward the well, and its face looking
Op. cit., vol. l, p. 105.
toward the east. After adjusting the body in its place, the mbilo would tear open the shroud
over the ear, and pour on to the pinna some powdered beads to be used by the dead man as
money in the hereafter. Except in the case of chiefs, no objects were buried with the dead,
contrary to Macdonald's description l of the Amangoche. The pole on which the body
had been carried to the grave was broken into bits and together with any stick that had
been used to measure the body for the cave, was placed in the grave. The opening into the
chamber was then closed by a mat fastened over it by pegs and supported by pieces of
wood. The awilo clambering out of the well, pushed the first earth backward into the grave
with their elbows, after which the rest of the earth was shovelled in quickly, and a heap
made at the surface. The ground about this mound was swept clean with a bunch of leaves
by some one walking backward so that no footprints were left; the bunch of leaves was
thrown on top of the mound. No medicine was put in the grave, nor were the household
utensils placed on the mound, as Macdonald states concerning the Amangoche.2
For some years past, the type of grave made among the Yao has resembled that of
the Anyanja,3 a long pit with a chamber scooped out along the whole length of one side.
In this, the corpse is placed in a fully extended position so that it lies on its back with the
feet toward the east. With this exception, the account given above holds good for the pres
ent day. The method of suspending the corpse in a mat slung on forked sticks within the
grave, mentioned in Africana,* is not found among the Amachinga Yao.
On the way back to the village, two awilo lead, followed by the men, the women, and
lastly, by the other awilo. First, all wash, the men upstream, the women downstream; no
one may wash another's back. The hoes used in digging the grave are also washed; hoes are
never washed on any other occasion.
During the funeral, some responsible old man is left in charge of the village with several
younger men to assist him. Just before the return of the funeral party is expected, the old
man sends one of the younger men to set medicine at the side of the path along which the
mourners will pass. This medicine is made from the bark of the mpingo tree and is used
for purification; it is placed in a sherd. Each person as he arrives at the spot squats down,
dips the little finger of each hand into the medicine, and passes the fingers between the
little toe and the third toe of the corresponding foot. The last comer throws any remaining
medicine into the bush. As they near the village, a gun is fired and wailing is resumed for
a few minutes, after which it ceases altogether. The old man who has been left in charge
of the village always inquires whether all has gone well at the interment.
That evening, the time is passed in singing chindimba.* All those who attended the
burial, sleep in the village, and if the deceased's relatives can afford to provide the necessary
food, all remain in the village for a number of days equal to the period which elapsed be
tween death and burial. Sometimes, when burial was long delayed, the mourning party
1 Op. cit., vol. 1, p. 107. * Macdonald, op. cit., p. 106.
* Ibid. » Vide infra, p. 367, 370.
• Stannus, ' Notes on natives of British Central Africa,' op. cit., p. 313.
might not break up for a week, but the practice was often modified to some degree, people
returning to their homes during the day and coming back each night to sleep in the de
ceased's village. At the present time, there is a tendency to cut the proceedings short, and
the mourners generally disperse on the second day after the funeral. This period of wait
ing is usually whiled away by playing and singing chindiniba.
On the day before the company leaves the village — now, often on the day after the
funeral — the ceremony of shaving the head takes place. The awilo, assisted in the case
of a large party, by those who helped at the burial, shave the heads of all the dead man's
relatives. When this is completed, they begin to tear down the deceased's house. The
grass from the roof, with the hair removed from the heads of the relatives, is carried to the
cross-roads and burned. The walls of earth are torn down and made into a heap; on the
top, a stick is raised, and at its base is placed the dead man's snuff box. Sometimes a
cactus euphorbia, ngachi, is planted on the mound and cassava round about. The snuff box
is kept replenished with snuff. This, with the cassava, is reserved for the awilo; no one
else may partake of them.
While the house is being pulled down, the chief rribilo ties around the neck of the widow
a single string of beads or a small piece of calico, ng'onji. After the house has been demol
ished, the awilo return to their homes and on the following morning, everyone else departs.
The position of mbilo is a strange one. Every man in the course of his life probably acts
as undertaker for some friend; many have probably performed the service several times.
He receives no regular payment, but beads, and, nowadays, coins are often thrown into the
pot of water with which he wets the heads of those he shaves after the funeral, and he has
the freedom of the village in which he has so acted forever afterward, the degree of freedom
being determined by the distance which he has travelled to officiate. When Wandalama
died, a headman named Chisui from Makanjila's on Lake Nyasa, over a hundred miles
away, acted as one of the awilo. The occasions on which he revisited Malemya's village are
well remembered, as they were marked by much frolicking and some obscenity. He was
the recipient of enormous presents of fowls, sheep, and anything else he cared to take, and
having commandeered men from the village to carry these gifts for him, he would leave,
accompanied by all the people, yelling and shouting their joy at seeing him again.
Any fowls or other provisions that friends may present to the deceased's relatives at
the time of the funeral to help defray expenses are given to the awilo; no one else may
eat them. Some may be kept against the next death in the family.
A few days after the funeral, recourse is had to the chief to settle whether any action
must be taken in regard to the cause of the death. Some near relative of the dead man will
be chosen for this purpose; he must not be shaved by the awilo at the time of the funeral.
The consultation takes place at some secluded spot outside the village. The chief always
brings some one with him to witness what is said. On arriving at the appointed place, the
chief salutes the unshaven mourner who is probably accompanied by other relatives, and
then listens to an account of the circumstances attending the illness and death. The point
at issue is whether there is any evidence pointing to death from unnatural causes which
requires consulting a diviner. The chief practically always agrees with the relatives, and it
is said that he will never press them to go to the wachisango unnecessarily. The case may
end with this conference, or here may begin the long series of events described under usawi.1
During the month subsequent to the funeral, certain taboos have to be observed. The
widow may not bathe, and with the exception of the awilo, all who attended must refrain
from sexual intercourse. At the expiration of this period, beer is brewed in the village, and
all the friends and relatives are again summoned. This beer-drinking is called " the beer of
rottenness," or " the beer of resignation." In addition to the beer, food is provided, and
everyone helps himself without ceremony. Chindimba is sung and danced and at the pres
ent day, bands of trained dancers attend, including ching'wenyeng' wenye.1 A pot of beer is
sunk into the ground, marking the site of the dead man's house. The night of matapata*
sees husbands and wives reunited, and the widow may go through ceremonial intercourse
with a man appointed for the purpose called litunu or mMlo. Sometimes the widow refuses
litunu, and is given medicine instead to cleanse her; her body is then no longer " hot " and
likely to bring disease to those about her. A widow does not marry again for two or three
years. A young man who loses his wife has no longer any standing in her village after
matapata. He is usually given a present, with the suggestion that he go elsewhere. After
the death of an infant, the mother is considered unclean. She sleeps on a mat apart from
her husband till after the ceremony of shaving, and then undergoes a ceremonial coitus
with her husband — in which case he is called litunu — after which, ordinary cohabita
tion is resumed. If she has been a widow, or if the child was born "with disease,"4 another
man acts as litunu.
The morning following matapata, all the fires in the village are extinguished. A fresh
blaze is then kindled with the fire-drill, lumangu, either in the chief's house or in some spot
nearby, and from there, fire is carried to all the houses. The ashes of the old fires, the
stones supporting the cooking pots, and the porridge sticks are taken to the cross-roads,
and there destroyed. Everyone then shaves all his own hair, head, axillae, and pubis.
The custom of the second shaving by the audio, described in Africana,6 is, I think, an
adaptation from the Anyanja. A year later, beer is again brewed, and all the relatives
summoned to the village to partake of it. There is dancing, but no ceremony.
The Yao bury their dead in regular graveyards in wooded country, the thicker the
forest the better, often two or three miles away from a group of villages. Different villages
bury their dead in different parts of the burial ground; relatives are usually buried near
one another. Graves are never revisited, and no one would enter a graveyard except at the
time of a funeral, and then only after obtaining permission from the chief. Such spots are
1 Vide infra, p. 296. * Beer-drinking. • Macdonald, op. cit., p. 111.
• Vide infra, p. 370 and PL I. * Vide infra, p. 286.
supposed to be the abode of spirits. Except in the case of chiefs, the Wayao never make
any erections over their graves, like the Anyanja grass shelters, and the present-day Mo
hammedan earth imitations of Swahili tombs.
Chiefs, and the more important headmen, are usually buried in their own villages. Over
the grave, a grass hut with a veranda is erected; the hut is covered with calico, and guns
were formerly set in as veranda posts. Guns and ivory used to be buried with the corpse
but these Yao, I am told, never practiced the barbarous custom of burying slaves with
their chiefs. Information of the death of a chief was always conveyed to other chiefs by
slaves who were kept by the recipient of the message.
Since the time of the old Malemya, the corpse of a chief always lies with its head in the
direction of the old chief's grave. The grave is swept around, and the house pulled down as
in the case of an ordinary man, but the grave-hut is rebuilt every year and never forgotten.
Since the burial of the dead is more or less correlated with the idea of planting seed from
which progeny will spring, the natives will not bury a leper, believing that if they did so,
leprosy would spring up all around them. Persons dying of an epidemic disease such as
small-pox are dealt with in the same way. In these cases and in that of a man dying of
ordeal poison, the body is enclosed in a mat and put up in a tree, a manner of disposing of
the dead common among the Anguru and some Anyanja. Concerning death from dropsy,
similar precautions are taken to those in the instance of a woman dying in childbirth,1 and
a tube is put down to the body from the surface of the ground.
A leper feeling that the end is near, will ask to be put in a hut built outside the limits
of the burial ground. Here, provided with water and food for a few days, he will wait to
die near the graveyard wherein he knows he cannot be buried.
Anyone who is wounded with a spear or any other weapon is not taken into the village,
but is kept in a hut in the bush. If death results, the mourning ceremonies differ somewhat
from the ordinary rites and are much curtailed.
Initiation Ceremonies. Under this heading I propose to deal with the three ceremonies,
Lupanda, Chiputu and Litiwo. They are occasions of great importance in the life of the
native and their educative effect for the good of the tribe is far reaching.
At Lupanda (Ndagala) the young boys attend; at Chiputu the young girls go through
their initiation and a side ceremony for young married men takes place, while Litiwo cele
brates the first quickening with child. All the ceremonies are included in the word Unyago.
Macdonald in Africana while referring to " the mysteries " 2 gives scant information about
the ceremonies and has, presumably, without much knowledge of what goes on, condemned
these customs like many others as furthering " absurd superstitions." He has failed to
recognize that they are occasions when a large amount of useful advice is imparted, good
manners are insisted on, and tribal custom is made known. Sexual questions are dealt
with in these mysteries, and, though mixed up with a large amount of superstition, a
1 Vide supra, p. 239. * Op. cit., vol. 2, ch. 7.
code of morals is imparted which is far reaching for the social welfare. Macdonald makes
the statement that " when a girl is initiated, she must find some man to be with her on her
return; otherwise she will die." 1 Speaking with reserve as to what happened among the
Amangoche around Blantyre Mission thirty years ago, I believe that no such practice is
or was part of the Machinga Yao ceremonies. I have heard similar stories from other
Europeans but I am inclined to discredit the whole idea as a practice among any section
of Yao. Of the Anyanj a, I cannot speak with the same conviction. Similarly I believe
that the practice of artificial dilatation of the vagina is foreign to the Yao though possibly
introduced in some places from the Swahili.
At Lupanda and Chiputu, the youth have to undergo a good deal of hardship which is
all for their benefit, but year by year, as civilization progresses, greater numbers forego
these ceremonies. Their manners and morals suffer in consequence, and one is forced to
acknowledge with the " old people " that the younger generation, decked in European
clothes, with an air of smug self-conceit, no longer shows that decorum and self-respect
which characterize the older, unsophisticated natives. My experience with regard to the
attitude of natives to their initiation ceremonies differs from those related in Africana
and I am afraid that Macdonald's native friends 2 were laughing at the inquisitiveness of
the white man and not at their own experience.
In the Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute for 1913,3 Dr. Davey and I gave
a short account of part of the ceremony at Lupanda. Since then, through the friendliness
of some of the chiefs in Zomba district, I have been present at several more ceremonies.
I have collected a number of fresh observations and made a complete set of sketches of
the inyago or images in relief made on the ground at one of these ceremonies. I have also
a complete account of the boys' ceremonies from a celebrated master of ceremonies or
m'michila as he is called, named Mlemala (Kumpika) of Che-chamba, in his own words,
with his own songs. In writing down the songs, I have simply recorded the words, without
giving the many full and partial repeats, and I have never attempted to score down the
airs to which they are sung.
In the account given below I shall follow Mlemala' s practice, giving such variations as
I myself have observed. It will be understood that each m'michila has his own way of
doing things so that there may be many variations in detail.
Lupanda: Every year, a certain number of boys in a group of villages reach the age at
which the ceremony is commonly performed. In response to requests made by the village
headmen, the chief appoints a date on which the unyago shall be held; this is usually
towards the end of the dry season (September) but before the long grass of the bush has
been burnt, as this affords the necessary privacy to those taking part.
1 Op. cit., vol. 2, p. 126. s Ibid., p. 130.
* H. S. Stannus and J. B. Davey, ' The initiation ceremony for boys among the Yao of Nyasaland ', (Jour. Anth.
Inst., London, 1913, vol. 43, p. 119-123).
The chief, having appointed a day on which the ceremonies shall begin, sends a mes
senger with a fowl to a medicine-man whom he asks to conduct the ceremonies. The medi
cine-man is called m'michila " he of the tails." He carries his medicines stuffed in the tail-
skin of a gnu or zebra and we shall see that his tail or tails play a very important part.
Having sent word back to the chief of his acceptance of the invitation, he gets his wife to
prepare some fresh castor-oil with which he will remake his medicines, and sends out the
boys of the village to collect firewood. A big bonfire is made and dancing goes on all that
night in his village. Early next morning he returns to the door of his hut where his wife
hands him his " tails." He then immediately departs for the village of the chief. His wife
trills with her tongue, this being the sign of his departure, and dancing men, some friend
(often his brother) who acts as his chief assistant, his wife, and others will go with him.
He signals his approach to the chief's village by singing:
" Ku musi'ko ngwisa, ngwisa'ne! Tingaiche! "
"You at the village! I shan't be long! "
As he enters the village, all the women hail his arrival by trilling the tongue (ku-luluta).
He goes straight to the open space in front of the chief's house where the chief meets him.
The chief immediately goes into his house and producing a cloth, gives it to the m'michila
who then places his " tail " on the ground, (ndulilo, "things put down") ; these are the signs
of the compact. A house is given to the m'michila wherein he may rest and sleep.
That night, all the mothers of the boys who are to undergo their initiation, now called
wali (sing. mwali), pound flour for the morrow. Early the next morning, the m'michila
visits the place where the pounding is going on and collects a little flour from each
woman's basket into a small basket he himself carries.
The chief then gives him a cock and a hen, an axe and a hoe; with these he goes off
accompanied by the fathers of the wali to the spot where Lupanda will be made. Arrived
there, he first points out the spot where his own hut is to be erected. This is quickly built,
followed by the shelters for the wali.
The cock and hen are then killed and cooked, also some porridge; the entire fowl is
cooked; the liver is not cooked separately. When it is ready, the m'michila takes a piece of
the liver from the pot and some porridge from the other pot together in one hand and then
throws them into a little hole where his " tail " has been resting. At this spot, Lupanda is
made. The m'michila then partakes of both again and eats; after he has finished, the
other men eat.
After the building of the shelters is finished, fire-wood is collected. On the roofs of the
grass shelters figures of animals in grass may be strung up on posts, but they have no
definite significance.
In the meantime in the village, the chief has had mbepesi (ceremonial flour) prepared.
It is made from millet by his head wife, who must not be near a menstrual period.
When the sun sets, all the boys to undergo the ceremonies (wall) together with their
sponsors or guardians, akamusi, (mkamusi sing.) are called together to the village open-
space (pang'anya). The mkam/usi attends his ward throughout the ceremony; he may be
an elder brother, an uncle, or someone else who volunteers for the service.
The wali are lined up and headed by a "leader," nachilongola, who is usually the most
important boy, perhaps a relative of the chief; thus they pass one by one in front of the
chief who anoints each on the forehead with mbepesi from a small basket. As each boy
passes, his mother runs up and throws into the basket a string of beads or nowadays small
silver coins. When all have passed, the chief sends some near relative with the basket still
containing some flour and the beads or money to the m'michila who is waiting at Lupanda.
This is his signal to prepare to receive the wali; he dresses, and accompanied by drum
mers goes to meet the file of wali. The wali accompanied by their akamusi, their mothers
and sisters, sing as they approach:
" Tuuje kanga (unyago) vkdkuli luuje! "
" Let us go back, perhaps there is no ceremony! "
The m'michila as he meets them sings:
" Anachichi pakwisa nawo wanache'wa kuleka lilonibe kvrisa nalyot"
"Why to come with them these children to leave (a small drum) to come with it?"
and follows this in answer to the song of the wali with:
"Kumkuli mkauja, (Repeat) Kwakwa! (Chorus) Mkauja wose! "
" To the village don't go back. Don't go back all! "
The wali now on the outskirts of Lupanda are formed into a ring, behind them their
akamusi and behind these their mothers and sisters. Then the m'michila leads the way to
Lupanda singing:
"Likumbo lya nderribo!"
"Spoor of an elephant!"
Next, he calls all the mothers to form in two lines resting at right angles on Lupanda
and sings to them:
"Kapungu tula pasi kwin'ani kwangali ulongo!"
"The eagle lighted on the ground as in the air there is not near relationship!"
The m'michila and his chief assistant each provided with a " tail " strike lightly on the
basket which each woman has on her head; then each with a hand on the basket, they
lift it down to the ground. Starting with the mother of the " leader," they go round to
each mother in turn. The m'michila then to the sound of drums and clapping by the women
dances and runs round peeping into each basket exclaiming, " I see so and so in this basket!"
saying noses, penes, medicine, women's pudenda and so on, after which the women take
the baskets of food away to the boys' shelters. The m'michila next sings:
"Tingamtole mwanangu ku Lupanda, pinguuja'pa kundenda manganga!"
"I will go and bring my child to Lupanda, when I am going home I feel nervous!"
and running round he seizes hold of one of the wall and makes him sit down at Lupanda,
continuing this until he has placed them all in a circle round Lupanda. He then sings a
song about the little basket which the chief sent him containing the remains of the mbepesi
flour:
"Kaselo asyene akuwilisya, napele mberemende, amao!"
"Little basket the owner asks for it back, give me beans, mother!"
His wife who has been waiting in his hut nearby brings him the basket. Holding it in
his hands, he prays to the spirits of his ancestors and all the previous medicine-men to
whom his medicine-tails have belonged, invoking their aid that the ceremonies may go
well.
Still holding the basket he begins to dance, singing:
"Apakale mbepesi jao!"
"Let them (us) smear flour their (Let us baptize them!)"
and dipping his right elbow into the basket he smears each mwali on the forehead with the
mbepesi flour. He then goes into his hut and fetches a bundle of powdered roots (which no
woman may touch), medicine called mtibulo, that is, a medicine used for its aphrodisiac
properties. Holding the medicine between the palms of his uplifted hands, he starts singing:
"Kukusimonga kuchigopola, twatawaga mlamu!"
"I cannot find out how to untie this, we tied (with) my brother-in-law!"
He is immediately surrounded by his assistants and the drummers, who dance round him,
all holding their hands about his own, after which he unfastens the bundle of medicine and
puts a little on the tongue of each mwali, beginning with the leader. He then takes some
sweet-beer made by the chief's wife and pouring it into his old medicine-gourd, he mixes
in some mtibulo and gives some to each mwali to drink after which he sings:
"Amwela,1 amwela msunje wa imanga, chakulya mandanda
"You have drunk a mixture of water and maize flour, of eating eggs
achileche panopano, Amwela, amwela ndundile makweso;
you stop now, you have drunk (but) I have passed water (in it) ;
wati(ji) kalamuka! "
you thought to be clever!"
Next he goes into his hut with the small basket containing the mbepesi and paints his
assistant with the flour, a semicircle round the forehead, a line down the middle of the face,
a band across the chest, a line down each arm with rings round the arms and forearms, and
a line down the middle of the back. They go out again into the ring and while the m'michila
sings:
1 This may be a reference to amwele, the sacrificial cup.
"Nampopo londola chisango amwali kumalembe kwendela kuwila!"
"The lizard casts lots boys to graves as to going to die!"
his assistant with the basket held in his mouth acts the part of the nampopo, a medium-
sized lizard with brilliant blue body and orange head which bobs its head up and down.
The assistant lies on his belly and bobs his head and shoulders up and down, lifting him
self on his hands. (Children often clap their hands as they watch the nampopo bobbing
up and down " like a lot-caster " and call out to it to cast lots for them.) The assistant
than crawls up to the leader and puts the basket on his head. Bowing his face to the ground
for a moment, he again takes the basket and places it on the head of the next mwali and
so on all around.
After this the wali go and sit near the bonfire which is not yet lighted, while the
m'michila sings to the women :
"Ngund(e) ateleche! kajosolo!"
"The beans! Let him cook a cricket."
and the women give him a basket of beans with which he makes sifting movements, sing
ing: " Shall I throw them away, shall I put them in the cooking pot?" while the women
clap.
His assistants are then told to go and light the bonfire. He himself goes to his hut and
places his "tails" in the mbepesi basket, and carrying it to the bonfire, he throws some of
the flour on the fire, " to regulate its heat." This is the sign to begin the dancing which
goes on all night while the wali lie round the fire, each lying with his head on the waist of
the next, the leader in front.
In the early morning of the second day, the m'michila holding his " tails " in his hands
runs astraddle over all the reclining wali and facing the same way, runs back, after which
the boys are called.
He sings a song:
"Mascdau (a) 'go kundumaga!"
" The red ants those bite! "
and he pretends to pick them off the boys. After this, he sings:
"Natuteni kongo mkakuligwe! (mkakidugwe)\"
" Push clitoris little mother!"
as he goes to each mwali and throws his " tail " into the boy's hands, receives it back and
then puts it on his head till the mother places a coin on his head which is the payment
made to the assistant. Ku-kugwa — to occur; ngakugwa = not at home; mkakuligwe =
is it not at home, is it not present? The meaning of the phrase in the song is, " Is your
mother not here to pay the fee? " Mkakuligwe is a pun on mkakulugwe, " little mother."
This is followed by another song:
"Kapirribi'gwe, ugwe sanga mtela!"
" The little lemur, you jump from tree to tree!"
as he climbs a tree with his back to the trunk; at the top he hangs by his legs and looks
down on the crowd, his assistants doing the same. Coming down he runs to his hut; throw
ing his " tail " into the air and catching it again, he enters.
This is about nine a.m.; all rest till about eleven o'clock, the wali meanwhile eating
food cooked by their mothers in the shelters. About eleven o'clock, the m'michila takes a
big gourd and putting his " tails " into it covered with a calico cloth, gives it to his assistant
who carries it on his head and follows him to a pool of water, accompanied by all the women
except any young ones who have not borne children. He invites them to go " crab hunting."
At the pool he enters the water with his assistants round him, except the assistant with
the gourd, who stands on the bank. The m'michila makes movements as of hunting for
crabs in the water singing:
" Chisasangala ngalili ugaliwangu wosuma!"
" There must be hunting otherwise I should have had to eat porridge my without relish! "
He pretends to catch a crab and his hands are immediately grasped by his assistants in the
water who all help him to convey it to the gourd as the " tail " is taken out of it.
The crowd then returns to Lupanda to enact the nambande ceremony. Nambande is a
representation of an animal made of bark on a frame-work covered with mud and painted
with flour in spiral markings, hence the name (mbande is a part of a spiral shell from the
Zanzibar coast much prized by natives as an ornament). The animal is really the sable
antelope with horns and the m'michila's " tails " in place; there is a man inside it. It is
made perhaps a mile away and then brought near to Lupanda and placed in a cleared area.
The m'michila on his return from crab-hunting has gone into his hut and put on his full
regalia; then, accompanied by his drummers, he comes out and is immediately followed
by the wali and the rest of the crowd; knowing where the nambande will be put, he leads
the people in the opposite direction calling out to them to look out for the antelope. They,
of course, all look in the wrong direction, so when he knows nambande is in place, he wheels
around and sings, " There is the animal! "
In the old days the chief was present for this, a platform being built for him. When the
nambande appeared, he gave his hunters much powder (no bullets) and they shot at the
animal. The animal would fall as if hit and the m'michila would approach to claim it as
his beast, but it would promptly get up and charge, to be driven off by the crowd, where
upon it would run away into the bush.
Lots are then cast by the m'michila, using a tortoise shell stuffed with medicine. The
wali all stand in a circle with their mothers behind them, while the m'michila goes to the
leader and throws the tortoise at the boy's chest. If it sticks there, all is well and he
proceeds to each boy. Should the shell not stick on the boy's chest, it portends ill-luck to
that individual and he has to be dealt with further. The m'michila, holding his " tail,"
and his assistant holding a horn of medicine, stand back to back, with the boy between
them. They then rub the boy up and down with their backs, after which the assistant
throws the horn at the boy's chest. If it sticks, the bad-luck is overcome and the women
will trill joyfully with their tongues; if it drops to the ground, evil is foretold and fore
bodings as to the boy's fate at Ndagala are whispered round. He is given further medicine
against the predicted evil, but lots will not again be cast about him.
Next the m'michila sings:
" Namchechere maumbo, wanjoko nganawe, jisa ngumoje
" The one who scrapes hairs, (your) father is still living, come that I may shave thee,
namchechere maumbo, wanjoko nganawe!"
the one who scrapes hairs, (your) father is still living! (Chorus) "Jondi, jondi! "
Jondi is a word meaning " sticking up in all directions " and refers to the hair.
One assistant holds a pot of water, a second, a leaf of the mpembu tree, and the m'michila
a razor. They approach the leader; water is rubbed on the forehead by the first assist
ant, the second smears the place with the leaf. The m'michila then removes a little tuft of
hair from the boy's forehead and puts it in the boy's left palm, followed by the nail parings
from the left hand, and a tuft of hair from the back of the head. This is done to each mwali
in turn after which he sings:
" Twamoje lipalamandule! "
" Let us shave them " (kitr-palamandula, to trim by shaving)
as he walks round them, after which the boys go to their mothers who are allowed to trim
the hair on the forehead in any way they like. This may take ten minutes, after which they
return, still holding their hair and nails in their hands. As they return, the m'michila,
thrusting his " tail " under the left arm, starts off, all the wali falling in behind him, and
thus he leads the way into the bush accompanied only by the wali, singing:
" Kapili ka msolo! amwali! "
"The Kapili snake the msolo tree amwali!"
He searches through the forest until he finds chikula, a small dome-shaped ant hill about a
foot high. He carries his "tail" under his arm and a reed-buck's horn of medicine in his
hand. Arrived at the chikula, he chips the top off the ant hill with the horn and his "tail,"
scoops a hole in the exposed surface with the horn, and then smears this hollow with medicine
from the horn. The leader then approaches and drops his hair and nail parings little by
little into the hole, followed by each mwali in turn; each immediately turns about and never
looks back on the ant hill. When all have done so, the m'michila sets the top of the ant
hill back into its place, having the " tail " and medicine horn in his axilla; he then turns
about and becomes the last of the file as they march back to Lupanda while he sings the
same song as before.
This particular ceremony is the most sacred of the Unyago as it is known only to the
wali. It is the sign of burying the past of childhood. If another m'michila could find such
a place, he would take part of it and its contents and add to his own medicine " to make
him a more powerful m'michila."
On the way back, the m'michila takes apiece of bamboo in his right hand and when he
comes to a mjombo sapling, the boys all surround him in a ring; with the " tail" in his left
hand he strikes the mjombo sapling, and as it rebounds, he strikes it with the bamboo; while
the sapling swings backwards and forwards, he sings:
" Ngoma ngomene mlasi ni mjombo!
"Striking I have struck together the bamboo and the mjombo tree!
kalinolda1 amwali kalinolela! "
sharpen for yourself "
The m'michila takes both his " tails." Holding them in his left hand against the mjombo
sapling, the bushy part of the tails uppermost, and in the other hand a stick smeared with
beeswax, he rubs the sapling at a point just below the " tails," still singing the song given
above. The stick is said to represent an axe. After this, he takes a real axe and cuts off
the top of the sapling. Then all the boys seize the sapling and work the bark off without
cutting it anywhere, while the m'michila continues to sing. The bark he puts in his armpit
and sings as he jumps about:
" Tinjigwila peyenje, (lichenje) chiguluka gulvka! "
"I shall fall into the pit, jumping about here and there! "
When they arrive at Lupanda, the m'michila unseen goes to his own hut to make string
from the bark, the boys to the place where Lupanda is made. This is at about three in the
afternoon.
When the string is ready, the m'michila takes it to cross-roads, plaits it into necklaces,
and anoints them with medicine for the wali. On his return to his own house, the mothers
have cooked porridge for the boys, and the baskets of food are put ready at Lupanda.
The m'michila then steps in and sings:
" Tolo (nji) winji wana amao, wosepe wakwagawilape! "
" (A) little mouse (has) many children, mother, all are to be fed! "
As he does so, he takes some food in his hand and puts it into the mouth of the leader,
and so on all round, while all the people keep at a distance. Then with a hoe he makes a
small mound where ching'unda-ng'unda will be erected and puts on it a little of the mbepesi
from his house. Here he seats the leader and round him sit all the other wali. The
m'michila then sings:
" Tinawvle chuma changu lelo kwakuja'ko akuwangala ngasauja! "
" I will take off beads my today where they go to it seems they will never come back! "
1 Kv.J/iola, to whet a knife.

He collects from the boys' necks the beads they are wearing, lifting them off with his
medicine horn; these are all his perquisites, to be sent off to his house. He then starts
singing:
" Nachilongola Lupanda nyama ngulungwa yelele jakusomaga, mchila! "
" The leader (of) Lupanda (is) an animal big worth killing with a spear, tail!"
This means to the leader's relatives that the boy is worth a spear; one is promptly
brought and leaned against the leader; the m'michila steps up and taking it, bends the
spearhead and sends it towards his house. He then sings:
" Njejeka nati kalungu kwejeka nali
"Things which are put to lean up against even little sugar cane to lean things up against even
kapaniba kwejeka! "
little arrow ! "
The relatives then bring all kinds of presents and lean them against the boys; these are the
perquisites of the dancing men. The wali go away to eat now with their akamusi behind
the shelters. The akamusi tie up any food that is left in leaves, for later use. They then
return to the roughly-made ching'undang'unda where the m'michila meets them. The wali
stand in a circle round him and outside them in a ring, the parents, while the leader is set
on the ching'undang'unda mound.
The m'michila sings:
"Ananjati ndenga pa mtw'po tagani utandi, ankunga, ambiranja!"
" You of the buffalo hair (lit. feathers) on the head you put flour ankunga call me."
as he then goes around and touches each mwali with his " tail." The idea here is that the
wali with flour on their foreheads resemble buffaloes which have white patches on their
horns, and they will therefore be as strong as these beasts in the bush whither they are
about to go.
The m'michila then runs away to his hut and breaking a hole through the back, makes
for the bush. The assistants know this disappearance is the signal of his departure for
Ndagala. This happens about four o'clock. All exclaim " Aaaah!"; (to exclaim thus is
kwamira, "to exclaim with apprehension.") The assistants head off in the same direction,
followed by the akamusi and their wali, while the mothers of the boys who may never see
them again, throw sticks on the path as they run away as the sign of forgetting their
sons for the time being.
All the men will also accompany the wali until they find the m'michila. He having left
the chief's basket at Lupanda has brought some of the mbepesi with him in his own basket.
One of the men brings a gourd full of water; the m'michila pours some of the water into
his basket of flour and gives a drink of this first to the leader and then to each mwali
in turn. After drinking, they sit down while the m'michila gives instructions that here they
sleep tonight. He takes his basket and starts to run back to Lupanda, singing:
" Ku twajile yeleleiya acharribuje kutwajire kuMunde!"
"Where we went to masters to Munde!"
Then going to the back of his hut, he enters and takes a piece of bark left there bent up
into a dish containing medicine which has been put in by an assistant. This assistant holds
in his hand the neck of one of the fowls which was killed at Lupanda. The m'michila washes
his face and chest with medicine to cleanse his eyes and then leans forward to the assistant
and bites a piece off the neck of the fowl which the assistant holds out, and eats it.
This is ku-lumira, " to taste a small piece," often the liver, before starting to eat the flesh;
this is generally done by the most important person. The m'michila has been followed
by his assistants who do as he has done. They all follow him next round the cooking place
for the boys at Lupanda, each standing for a moment on the stones which have supported
the cooking pots, while the women sit looking on sadly. He begins to dance and the women
join in, singing likwata. He then calls the parents of the wali and leads them to where the
bonfire was. There assembled, he tells them they must not bathe, and that tomorrow
morning early, porridge is to be sent to the wali which must be prepared by a woman who
has had connection with her husband and who has not washed her hands; this is supposed
to make the boys strong. Early in the morning, the husband, who likewise has not washed
his hands, carries the food to the wali and personally gives portions to each boy to eat.
When they have partaken of the food, the circumcision is performed by the m'michila
who has returned the same morning early. The wali one by one, commencing with the
leader, go forward a little to the place where the m'michila awaits them. Each mwali is
accompanied by his mkamusi who commonly says, " Come along and you shall eat of the
honey made by the bumblebee." Such honey is very sweet and called msoma. This refers
in sarcastic terms to the pain the boy is about to undergo. The boy squats down, leaning
back on his mkamusi who supports him, while the medicine-man, having warned the lad
not to cry out, performs the circumcision with a small knife called chisondo. It is a triangu
lar knife with one cutting edge and a handle produced from the opposite corner. Properly
the Yao method is, I believe, only to nick the free margin of the prepuce just to the right of
the middle line near the frenum, but complete circumcision is now commonly practiced,
possibly as the result of Swahili influence. In this case, the prepuce is seized and held by
the fingers, and division made by a circular incision without using a clamp or forked stick.
A dressing of charcoal and oil may be applied or medicine is chewed in the mouth and the
saliva spat on the wound and the boy sent on to rest under some convenient tree.
When all the wali have been circumcised, they are gathered together in one place and
the m'michila dividing them into groups, puts on the neck of the leader of each group a
necklace made of plaited bark from the mjombo tree : J these necklaces contain medicine
against all evils — witchcraft, attack by lions, etc. The akamusi then set about building
shelters in which the wali will remain during their term of instruction.. According to the
number of the wali so the number of places where shelters are built may vary from one, two
or three, to as many as eight. Each of these places is called Ndagala. They may be many
miles apart and are so placed for the convenience of the mothers in various groups of villages
who bring the food daily to the group of boys from those villages.
The boys when they originally left the village were wearing a large bark-cloth covering,
with beads and calico, which latter articles have been taken by the m'michila and his as
sistants. At Ndagala they wear simply a loin-cloth of bark.
During their stay at Ndagala, the wali are given animal names by the akamusi who
carry on the instruction of the boys until their return to Lupanda, the m'mchila having
gone back to his village immediately after the circumcision. The names given to the boys
are commonly names of beasts of prey such as Alikule (likule = the jackal), Achisuwi
(chisuwi — the leopard), etc.
Certain restrictions as to diet are laid upon the wali by the m'michila, e.g. no meat of
an animal killed by a beast of prey, no mudfish, likambale. He will not allow any villager
to visit Ndagala after seven p.m. and visitors may only be men who have been through the
ceremony. An uncircumcised man is called mbalale, one who has not been to his Unyago.
Other restrictions as to foodstuffs may be made by the akamusi, generally in connection
with the mythical origin of such food substances. A finger-shaped yam called lipeta is
taboo, as it is said to have first sprung from the grave of a leper, the inference being obvious.
After the Unyago, the boys have to undergo a special doctoring before they may partake of
them. Bananas and rice are similarly refused them, the latter on account of a story to the
effect that rice grew from the nostrils of a dead man, the idea doubtless having relation to
the resemblance of rice grains to maggots. Fish is denied them by some masters of cere
monies, as it is said to have originated from the diaper of a woman which she threw away
while bathing.
Each m'michila may have special observances of his own. One near Zomba caused all
cassava to be roasted in a certain way. Rows of pieces of cassava were placed in split
bamboo spits and so roasted before the fire in the manner of fish. If roasted in the ordinary
way, the cassava would split and show the white floury material inside, signified by the
verb ku-lagala. If this is eaten by the wali, it is said that the preputial wound would reopen.
The length of time spent at Ndagala varies from four weeks to as long as three or four
months. In the first place they must wait till the circumcision wounds of all are com
pletely healed. Delay may be occasioned by complications having arisen in some cases.
Again, permission to return may be withheld by the chief for some reason or other.
Should one of the wali die at Ndagala, the body is buried out in the bush and nothing
is said to the parents until after the ceremonies are over and all have returned to the
village.
During the period of seclusion at Ndagala, rigorous discipline is maintained among the
boys, the day commencing with bathing in a stream whither the wall are driven before sun
rise, a favorite form of punishment being to make the boy sit for hours in the cold water.
Other disciplinary measures take the form of frequent beatings. At one Unyago I know
of, there was a kind of mutiny among the boys. The akamusi from a nearby Unyago were
called in and the boys received very severe " hidings " for their trouble.
For the entire time, the wall are occupied in receiving instruction given by their aka
musi, on the discipline of manhood; they are taught native custom as applied to their
relations with their fellows, an exacting code of etiquette to be observed to their elders,
and the observances of married life. They learn to become proficient in the arts associated
with their sex — the making of baskets, mats, traps, etc., the method of agriculture, drum
ming and dancing. They stay up late into the night listening to the stories of their tribal
history.
Until such time as the circumcision wound is healed, each boy must cook his own food,
after which food is brought ready cooked by his mother.
Posted in the bush a little way from the encampment are some of the boy's guardians,
akamusi or alombwe (sing. mlombe) who act as pickets to warn off innocent or intentional
intruders. They are armed with sticks, etc., and give pretty severe treatment to any in
quisitive persons they catch. A visitor to Ndagala may be required by them to give visible
evidence of not being mbalale. The mothers who come with food call from a distance,
"Alomwe ndute!" Answer is made, "Atutulile tulye!" "Put down for us that we may eat."
When the chief decides that the time has come for the return from Ndagala, he sends
for the m'michila. Arrived in the village with medicine which he has collected, he is
given millet by the mother of the leader from which the malt for beer making is to be
prepared, also a cock and a hen and a pot. Into the pot he puts a tail feather from
the cock and one from the hen, together with his medicine; then the millet, and water is
poured on, after which he goes to Ndagala and shaves the heads of all the wali beginning
with the leader and then returns to his own village. When the millet has sprouted, the
woman takes it out to dry on a mat, and the two feathers and the packet of medicine are
laid on the mat by its side. From this time, all the mothers are busy preparing malted
grain for brewing beer, and, when it is ready, the m'michila is again called to the village.
He orders the women to prepare for brewing, to bring firewood, their brewing pots, and
stones to support them on the fire. These are all set round in a circle in the presence of the
chief and headmen. Across the stones the m'michila lays his "tails" and on the firewood he
sprinkles some medicine; the " tails " are then removed and the pots set on the fire. Com
mencing with the pots belonging to the mother of the leader, he acts similarly all round.
The following day, he again visits the scene of the brewing. Putting his " tails " on the
ground, he dips from each pot in turn and pretending to drink the sweetbeer from the dipper,
he empties it into other pots carried by his assistants. From his own pots, he then empties
some sweetbeer into a big gourd. These his assistants will carry away, together with a hoe,
to Lupanda, whither the m'michila now goes to remain while brewing goes on for four days.
During their stay at Lupanda, the m'michila and his assistants live on flour and chickens
begged from the mothers of the wali. On the first day nothing is done; on the second day
they begin making the Inyago or figures in relief of animals, etc., to be described later;
Namungumi is made this day. On the third day the other figures are made and on the
fourth day ching'undang'unda. Into the ground where ching'undang'unda is made, some
of the strong beer, known as nganga, which is added to the flour and water mixture on the
fourth day as signified by ku-kolojela, is poured by the m'michila.
When the work at Lupanda is finished, the m'michila carrying his " tail " leads his as
sistants wearing their feather headdresses back to the chief's village singing:
"Ningalnle ukana kanga akolojele ku musi, midungu achamao!
"I must go and see beer perhaps they have mixed at the village, ancestors oh dear!
Chilawile chamajusi ngalya sona ningawile sala!"
The going out of a day or two ago if I had not taken tobacco I would have died of hunger!"
Arriving at the village where the brewing is going on, the m'michila takes a cup and
putting his " tails " on the ground, he dips into the pot of beer belonging to the leader's
mother, pours some on his " tail," and then drinks some. Then he puts more into a gourd,
together with some medicine, and going up to the chief who sits in his verandah overlooking
the brewing place, he kneels, and first drinking a little himself, he presents the drinking
gourd of beer to the chief who drinks and then returns the cup to the m'michila who finishes
it. Picking up his " tail," he then goes straight back to Lupanda while his assistants with
some men nominated by the chief go round choosing pots of beer in turn. The assistants
choose by striking a pot with a medicine-tail. These pots of beer are then put aside to
cool, while moderate drinking begins in the chief's house. This takes place in the morning
of the day on which the wali will return from Ndagala to Lupanda, and in the afternoon,
the people from the villages will go out to Lupanda to take part in the return. The
return is made about sunset.
The wali at Ndagala are put into their shelters and the doorways barricaded. At sun
set or just after, the place is set on fire and the wali have to charge their way through the
back of the shelters. They then form in line, wearing a slip of bark cloth round their loins
and over this, a kind of kilt called magajawisa if made of frilled-out bark-cloth, or majenga
if made of palm leaves. Accompanied by the akamusi, they proceed towards Lupanda, each
carrying a stick of smouldering wood and an unlit torch of bark-cloth.
The burning of the huts at Ndagala has been the sign to the m'michila that the wali
have left; he puts round his waist a bark cloth belt, chamba, and a calico sash round his chest
with the ends hanging down behind and on his head he wears the liunga headdress made of
the feathers of chiunga, the widow-bird. In each hand he carries the tail of gnu or zebra,
held right end up, with the hollow end filled with " medicine." Thus arrayed, he goes out
along the path towards Ndagala, to meet the wall, accompanied by the drummers and all
the women, singing:
"Makomba kwiwanda sulo!"
"The lemurs down the stream!"
When he meets the wali, they all throw their lighted torches at him and he flees back
to Lupanda. The wali continue their procession and are brought round to the still unlit
bonfire known as chilangali.
At the order of the m'michila, the fire is now lighted and the wali lie around it. The
m'michila again appears with the drummers, and all the women and other villagers form a
big circle round about. He sings:
"Chomboko chikuweja rnbeja, wandu'wa chikwajogopa! "
"The (ford) fire is now flaring up people these it is afraid of them!"
Dancing and singing then go on all night while the wali lie round the fire where they are
allowed to sleep. As dawn approaches, the m'michila again sings:
"Chonde! Mwalira, amwali, Amsuse mwanache, mbule
"Please! it is crying, you girl, arrange the child, the girdle of beads round its waist
uwoneche ukapagwe!"
lest there be exposure of the person!"
Amsuse : a woman carries her child bound to her back by a piece of cloth passing under her
own arms and tied in front. If the cloth gets loose, she jogs the child up higher on her back
as she rearranges the cloth; this is what is meant by amsuse.
The akamusi waken the wali as the m'michila sings:
' ' Kwambulira waka! ' '
" To nose after the scent ! ' '
That is, he is looking about for the inyago. He then leads them off to nalumgumi, the
whale, the first of the inyago.
I shall first go on with an account of Mlemala's practice to the end of the ceremony and
then discuss the inyago in greater detail.
Arrived at nalumgumi, the m'michila sings :
"Nalumgumi nalitanda, nalumgumi asiwili kuchiko!"
"The whale in the pool, the whale has blocked the ford!"
after which he straddles the head of the whale while one of his assistants does the same at
the tail and thus sitting, they do a kind of wriggling dance, singing to the time marked by
clapping of hands :
"Nalumgumi atundumula, eh! eh! (Repeat) Apalapala wate kundema; apalapala
"The whale showed his back above the water, eh! There it did fail me; there
wate kunumba; Kwa, kwa, kwa, kwa!"
it did half break;"
The m'michila then gets off on the left side, his assistant on the right and they stand in the
shallow depressions. The m'michila starts asking riddles; he says, " Ndawi (riddle) ! " and
is answered by his assistant " Jiiche (let it come)! " Here is one:
"Kanyere, kapite pasi!"
"The little mouse it has defecated, it has gone into the ground!"
Answer : "Michiga! (roots) ! "
He then goes round the crowd for the answer — if they cannot guess, they say, "Ali
asyene," " it is yourself (to answer)." There are hundreds of such riddles.
The m'michila points to the tusks depicted in the chinyago and tells the people, " Long
ago this used to be an elephant; look at the tusks." The hump at its back he tells them is
the same as ching'undang'unda which they will find farther along.
They pass next to mbunda, the zebra; a pair, male and female, is always figured.
"Ajiji ngati mbunda ja mbuje Achilemala! Yosepe yekoto!"
"This one is it not the zebra of Mister Mlemala ! everything (is) beautiful!"
Sometimes a story is told to show that the zebra used to go to the sea to drink but see
ing the whale, he ran away and came to the country of the python.
Then to sato, the python; he sings:
"Anasato kwajanji! yerere, eja! Yosepe yekoto!"
"You python come and answer! all (is) beautiful!"
At the crocodile, ngwena, he sings:
" Chengwena idamba, yerere! eja! akugona mungidugulu mesi!"
"Mr Crocodile cleverness, he sleeps at the side of the water!"
At mwesi, the moon:
"Amwesi idamba, yerere! eja, amao!"
"You moon cleverness, !"
Next, they come to wakoUle ukana, the people drunk with beer. Two men he on the
ground, feet to feet with nothing on; the pudenda are covered with bark-cloth and the
whole of their bodies painted with earth and flour to look like two female figures in earth.
The song is:
" WakoUle ukana: kumlole amwali, wakolele ukana! "
"Drunk with beer: come and see the women, drunk with beer!"
A moral is pointed: the disgrace to a woman who gets drunk, lies on the ground, and ex
poses her person. As the m'michila makes these remarks, the figures breathe stertorously
as a drunken woman would. He conducts the wali and all the other people past many of
the other images such as chisui, ngaka, ndomondo, mbale, etc., and only stays at those he
considers his own special inyago. The seven specially dealt with by Mlemala were as above
together with mbalapi, the sable antelope:
"AnambcUapi ulamba, yosepe yekoto!"
"You sable deceit, everything (is) lovely I"
Next comes chomboko, the ferry. There is no image but two posts represent the ferry;
the m'michila stands on one side of the two posts with his two assistants opposite him, one
holding a bunch of leaves, the other a burning log: the first fans the log of the second,
using leaves as bellows, while the m'michila sings:
"Nguniba, ngumba, kujikviuta, ngumba!"
"The female pudenda, where it pushes itself!"
after which the wali one by one are pushed through between the two assistants. Chomboko
signifies the passage from one part of the ceremony to another; here, from the inyago to
ching'undang'unda. Ku-jomboka = to cross a stream.
As they reach ching'undang'unda the m'michila sings:
"Ching'undang'unda nalilembile jingawe nguo jakupochela wailambo!"
"Ching'undang'unda I have marked out if it were calico distinctive of chiefs!"
One of his assistants is told to go and get a pot of beer. When it is brought he sings:
"Amwali, kamembe, namla kunyuma!"
"You girl, little fly, wash your hands behind you!"
This is the sign for the woman who volunteers for the service to the leader, to come for
ward, followed in turn, as each mwali is dealt with, by other women. The woman stands
back to back with her mwali and they hold hands, while the m'michila comes and pours a
little beer on their hands; they make movements as of washing the hands and then separate,
the woman rejoining the crowd, the boy standing to one side until all have performed the
rite. This woman ever afterwards is treated by the mwali as his adopted sister. After this,
each mkamusi takes his mwali into the bush near by and holding the boy's cloth over the
lad's head, he waits there for the boy's relatives to come and redeem him with fees. It is a
point of honor that as many relatives as possible shall turn out to show that the boy is much
liked, this being, of course, so much the better for the mkamusi who gets a present from each.
The akamusi then uncover the boys' faces and hand over the lads to their mothers who take
them away to rest in the shelters.
The m'michila, meantime, has withdrawn to his hut, where all the relatives later collect;
he then comes out holding his " tail," singing:
"Kwende akajoje ukwanonyere koga!"
"Come and bathe those who love to bathe!"
Each adopted sister or woman guardian takes her mwali brother on her back and carries
him off to the stream to bathe. The woman sets her mwali down on the bank and then
leans across his back while the m'michila comes along and dipping his " tail " into the
stream, sprinkles the boy on the chest with the water. Then the positions are reversed and
the woman receives the " tail " on her chest, after which they plunge into the water and
bathe, each pouring water over the other. The woman rubs the boy's back and he in turn
shyly rubs the back of his woman guardian. Clothes are not removed. Everyone looks on.
While this is going on, the m'michila and his assistants build a kind of fence across the
return road; as the people start back, he sings:
"Motowangu akusuma namsyene wakurriba masoka! "
"Fire my they are buying I myself they give me the spirits!"
that is " everyone has got to buy from me the gifts I myself have from the spirits." As
each woman comes up carrying her mwali, the mother runs out and makes a payment to
the m'michila so that her son may be allowed to pass. The boys are carried back to the
shelters where they rest. The mother of the leader cooks food into which the m'michila
puts medicine; he then gives some to each mwali to eat, after which they partake of the
food prepared by their mothers, while the m'michila goes to the village for the beer drinking,
returning in the afternoon. In the interval the dancing men dance chamba, etc.
Oil standing in separate basins on the ground has previously been prepared for anointing
the wali. The m'michila takes each basin and passes it across the palm of his hand on which
he has smeared medicine, each basin being set down on the ground again. Taking a stick,
he smears it with medicine from his " tail," and he dips it into each basin. He then comes
with his "tail" to detect any woman who may have had any sexual intercourse instead of
remaining continent during the stay at Ndagala. He dips his " tail " into each basin of
oil in turn and holds it up for the oil to run off. If the oil runs off in a stream, the mother
as she stands behind her basin of oil is welcomed as a good mother; if the oil runs off drop
by drop, " ndoli," the woman is laughed to scorn. Her basin is changed for that of another
woman or her oil is thrown away and some from another basin is put in its place so that
no harm shall result to the boy.
The akamusi then take the boys into the bush near by. The magajawisa dress is re
moved, the body anointed with the oil, and fresh bark-cloth dyed black is put on. Little
bows and arrows are made of small branches and grass and with these the wali shoot as
they again enter Lupanda, putting the bows down on ching'undang'unda to the trilling of
all the women present.
Immediately after this, the return is made to the village, just after sunset, the women
having been busy gathering up all their belongings, while the boys were being anointed.
Some of the assistants lead the procession, the wali following in single file, all much
subdued and walking very slowly, dressed in the new bark-cloth round the loins, with
many ropes of beads round the neck and body, a headband of bark, and down the back a
string of beads to which is attached a tassel. Each carries in his hand a wand about five
feet long, ngongo, with a pattern burned in the shaft and two rattles, masewe, affixed at the
upper end.
While the wali thus march solemnly along shaking their wands, the assistants begin
singing:
"Ku mlango asiwire!"
"To the gate they have shut!"
to which the wali reply:
"Kusowa kwakupita!"
"There is no place where to pass!"
The m'michila remains at Lupanda till everyone else has left; he then sets fire to the
shelters and leaving without looking back, runs to overtake the procession and then leads
it on towards the village still at a slow pace, while all around is a yelling crowd of delighted
mothers and other relatives and the assistants and drummers, all singing and shouting.
When the outskirts of the village are reached, the m'michila halts and waits for the
chief to come out and give them permission to enter. The chief brings calico which unrolled
on the ground measures the length of the procession of wali. Headed now by their leader,
the wali walk over this calico, while the assistants roll it up behind them for the m'michila,
as it is part of his payment. Flour may be brought him at the same time, carried by the
chief's wives.
At an Unyago I witnessed at Kuminama's, the halt was called on the bank of a stream
at the edge of the village where a bamboo arch had been erected. The arrival of Chief
Malemya at this point with calico and flour was the sign for a demonstration by his young
men who ran forward as if in battle, firing off blank rounds from old Tower muskets and
executing a kind of war dance.
After the calico has been handed over, the chief returns to his kraal and the procession
continues into the village, across the village open space to the fence round the chief's house.
There, the wali enter by a gateway and disperse over the courtyard where they find
their sleeping-mats laid out ready for them by their mothers. The m'michila lays his
" tail " on the leader's mat to bring good luck thenceforth. With Mlemala, there is
no further part for the wali, but in some cases they are called upon by the chief to give an
exhibition of their dancing and drumming. The wali sleep that night in the kraal and
disperse the following day.
In the morning, the m'michila takes his " tail " and a stirring stick made from a millet
stalk with the roots on it, and strikes the ground at points in a row in front of the chief's
house. Here the pots of beer which have been prepared are placed in rows, those chosen
by the chief and those chosen by the m'michila, and drinking commences. The m'michila,
before he joins in, takes the wali to an ash-heap in the village and there sprinkles them with
medicine from a grain-mortar after which they go with their akamusi behind a house and
change into new cloths. They then go and salute the chief by clapping their hands and
depart to their villages, duly initiated and somewhat subdued by what they have been
through. Their new names as " men " may be given them by the akamusi either at Lupanda
or after the return to the village. The boys often wear all their beadwork and new cloth
for several days; after carrying their ngongo for a similar period, they give them up to
their akamusi. Together they go into the bush where they break up their wands and put
them either into a pit or in the forked branch of a tree. Before the m'michila leaves, he
brings to the chief all his takings and these are divided between them.
Mention has been made above of the inyago and it now remains to consider these more
fully. The figures vary in subject, in number and in arrangement. At the ceremony at
Kuminama's, the following were arranged in a long line beginning with the whale and
ending with the python before ching'undang'unga (PI. X, fig. 2).
1. Nalumgumi the whale (PI. XI, fig. 7).

2. Ngwena the crocodile (PI. XII, fig. 1).
3. Chisui the leopard (PI. XII, fig. 3).
4. Mbunda the zebra (PI. X, fig. 6).
5. Ngaka the scaly anteater (PI. XII, fig. 2).
6. Ndomondo the hippopotamus (PI. XII, fig. 4).
7. Kanga (nakanga ?) (PI. X, fig. 5).
8. Mbalapi the sable antelope (PI. XI, fig. 3).
9. Wakongwe wa chitunu-balala . . . .the woman dead in child-birth (PI. XIII, fig. 2).
10. Lyuwa the sun (PI. XI, fig. 4).
11. Likoloto the scorpion (PI. XII, fig. 6).
12. Mbale the plate (PI. XI, fig. 6).
13. Likamambo a kind of cloth (PI. XI, fig. 5).
14. Njasi the lightning-lizard (PI. XIII, fig. 4).
15. Sakata the iguana (PI. XII, fig. 5).
16. Mundu the man (PI. XIII, fig. 1).
17. Liguluwe the wild pig (PI. XI, fig. 1).
18. Sungula the hare (PI. XI, fig. 2).
19. Sato the python (PI. XIII, fig. 3).
Beside these, Nyasa, the lake, nearly always appears ; l Mwesi, the moon, the drunken
women, and certain animals may be represented, and in addition, chiuta, "the dwelling
place of all the old spirits." Each particular m'michila has his favorite figures about
which he sings, always commencing, however, with the whale.
Reproduced here is the series of inyago at Kuminama's village sketched at the time of
my visit. It seems probable that originally the same set of figures was always reproduced.
It is hard to trace their significance with any certainty. Natives aver that they are made
only for instructional purposes. " The animals are made so that the boys may recognize
them, while some of the other figures have reference to customs." They deny the more in
1 Cf. Stannus and Davey, ' The initiation ceremony for boys among the Yao of Nyasaland,' op. cit., PL III,
fig. 2.
teresting possibility of a totemic origin and it is, of course, true that at the present time
the Yao have few clan names referring to animals and practically no clan food taboo.
At Mkangula's village in September 1913, I saw the inyago figures being made. The
long grass was cleared away and the earth hoed up into heaps, roughly of the shape and
size of the figures to be made. A number of women were employed carrying water from the
stream with which the mounds were well moistened and moulded into more definite form.
The outlines of the figures were then drawn in, all by one oldish man, with flour smeared
on by hand. In drawing nalumgumi, it was interesting to note how the efforts to keep to
symmetry failed.
Of ngwena, chisui, ngaka, ndomondo, mbalapi, sakata, liguluwe, sato, I have little to
add; the wali are told of their habits, whether they are good to eat, whether they are
dangerous, etc. ; and all the stories about them. Mbunda, the zebra, is always represented
in duplicate for some unknown reason. Sungula is pointed out in reference to a story the
boys have been told at Ndagala, namely, that the hare is good to eat but they must not
eat it till after they are married and their wives have borne children; otherwise they will
be childless. The superstitition regarding the hare is mentioned elsewhere. Njasi is the
hypothetical lizard-like animal which lives above the clouds and is seen as lightning. Lika-
mambo is a cloth which the Yao used to wear. In the presence of his chief, a man must not
throw a fold over his shoulder. Mbale, the plate, refers to the chief's plate from which he
eats. Likoloto: It is said that the old people used to eat scorpions and the people of Man-
goche, Amangoche Yao, used to call the Amachinga Yao the " Makolokoto eaters." Lyuwa
is the sun, the giver of daytime. Wakongwe is a representation of a pregnant woman who
has died undelivered because her husband was unfaithful. This is a well recognized super
stition and one among others of equal moral value, inculcated into the youths during their
stay at Ndagala. Though rough, wakongwe is a very realistic figure. The woman is evi
dently lying down, as one hand supports the head, the other hand grasps the thigh as if
she were in pain; the breasts are made large and the figure being in relief, the prominent
abdomen, and expanded umbilicus are noticeable features. The face and pudenda are
modelled in clay and superimposed on the earth figure; a maize cob stalk is placed in the
nose to counterpart the nose-button worn by women.
In contradiction to wakongwe, mundu is symbolic of the man who has led a proper
life and is blessed with a child. The child is shown on one side. On his other side is seen a
conventional illustration of a spear, possibly to indicate that the figure is that of a man.
I am not very sure about Kanga; it may be meant for nakanga, the woman who officiates
at Litiwo; there is nothing about the figure to suggest a woman and I could learn nothing
concerning it.
Nalumgumi: There appears to be some difference of opinion about this animal. For
merly I accepted the translation given by Scott,1 namely, the whale. Others have supposed
1 David Clement Scott, 'A cyclopaedic dictionary of the Mang'anja Language,' Edinburgh, 1892, p. 421.
that the word refers to some large animal which lived or may still live in the big lakes.
The older natives say of nalumgumi that " it lived in the big sea at Zanzibar. It would
come and he on the surface of the water, maybe near a village; then the people would go
down and cut lumps of meat off without its knowledge; the wounds healed up immediately.
Meat from different parts differed; some was nasty to taste. It was a very large animal
indeed and never lived in the lakes." They distinguish it from liporo of the Anyanja which
was "bigger than a hippopotamus but not so big as nalumgumi, lived in the lakes of Nya-
saland, in the deep parts as at Tunde on Lake Chilwa; was very fierce and killed the hippo
potamus; would upset canoes. There are no more liporo but probably there might be."
One of my informants, a man of forty, said his father had been told of them by his father,
but he had never seen them. At the present time, other natives say that the nalumgumi
used to live in the lakes but they seem really to refer to liporo and I think looseness of
speech only accounts for the idea that the word refers to anything but the whale. Hether-
wick translates nalumgumi as a large fish figuring in the initiation ceremonies,1 a poor
description, since it always has four limbs. The word nalumgumi meaning a whale, occurs
among the Mchiwambo people who live at Quilimane. These people do not make any
figures on the ground at their circumcision ceremonies but it is interesting to note that
their wali carry staffs similar to the ngongo on their return to the village. I think, there
fore, there can be little doubt that the word refers to the whale which was probably well
known to the Yao before they migrated so far inland as Nyasaland. Whether the word
was adopted or not in these parts in the past and used for some indigenous animal now
extinct, one cannot be quite sure, but I think it is improbable; I believe the confusion
with liporo is of quite recent date. Liporo itself appears to have been some large mammal
of the hippopotamus type, extinct probably for some time. The stories of liporo resemble
those of the monster of Lake Ngami and are not without interest. The most weighty
evidence against the animal now depicted at the Unyago and called nalumgumi being a
whale, is found in the representations themselves. It has a neck with a knob at the
junction of the head with the body and a second knob at the junction of the body, tail
and hind limbs; the tail is well marked. The " webbing " between the limbs is, I think,
a means of finishing the figure and is not supposed to represent some anatomical feature of
the beast. The same is, I think, true of the markings, lines, dots, etc., which are purely
decorative. Reference has already been made to its tusks. The little mounds on either
side of the body of the animal, on one side within the "webbing," are spoken of as the
" little hills " and are not suggested breasts as one might imagine. The hollows have no
significance according to my informers except that they are where the m'michila stands;
the mark which looks like a native hoe, I believe, is meant to represent the hoe which has
been used in making the figures.
Chinyasa, the lake: the photograph in the article by Dr. Davey and myself of Nyasa2
1 Op. cit., p. 250. • Op. cit, PL III, fig. 2.
gives an excellent idea of the average figure; it is circular in plan, often with a little hillock
in the centre known as katumbi kangongoli, " the hill of debt," and disposed in the quadrants
are four depressions.
When the wait are introduced to Chinyasa, they stand round in a circle while the
m'michila stands in one of the depressions with perhaps two of his assistants in others.
The m'michila sings:
"Nyasa kusyungida chinapagvrile mwanache ningawile kwilambo, amao!
"The lake enormous was I born child I would have died on the plain, mother! "
Ningawile ningawile!"
or
"I have lived by the great lake all my life; I should have died in the plains."
while all three make movements as of paddling a canoe. The depressions are said to rep
resent canoes. I believe this is the recognized form but I have also seen an oblong figure
with two outlines of unmistakable canoes. Chinyasa is usually found near nalumgumi.
Chiuta, when represented, stands beyond mbunda. It consists of two trenches at right
angles forming a cross, which are covered over with logs and earth and the whole outlined
with flour in a decorative pattern. The end of one limb of the cross is left open and round
this opening a screen of grass is made. As the wait approach Chiuta, some of the assistants
or akamusi descend into the trenches for the ceremony. The m'michila takes up his stand
at the centre of the cross and sings:
"Chiuta, amao, kwalole chiuta!"
"Chiuta, mother, come see chiuta!"
Then as everyone says " Listen, listen ! " crying is heard "coming out of the bowels of the
earth," followed by drumming and the singing of the chindimba songs (sometimes mkonde
or mseche) ; a horn is sometimes heard as well as kululuta, trilling with the tongue against
the lips. Chiuta is called " the resting place of all departed spirits " and the sounds are said
to be the echoes of their doings. The word is not met with elsewhere among the Yao,
although it occurs in the Chinyanja and in other languages of this country with the mean
ing " the heavens."
Chiwuta is said by Hetherwick l to be " a large fish that forms one of the pictures at
the Unyago," but I have never seen it or heard of it, and I am doubtful of the correctness
of the statement.
Ching'undang'unda: Dr. Davey's photograph 2 is an excellent reproduction of this
figure, which consists of a mound of earth flattened on the top, and decorated with geometric
patterns in flour which extend to the ground. In the centre and at the four corners, so to
speak, are implanted billets of wood with decorative lines and dots in black and red on the
white wood (PI. X, figs. 1, 2). The billets are three inches in diameter and project twelve
to fifteen inches above the ground.
1 Handbook of the Yao language, op. cit., p. 141. * Op. cit., PI. Ill, fig. 3.
The actual meaning of this figure it is very difficult to ascertain. It may be referred
to as " the little hill of debt " signifying, I believe, an idea that everyone owes a debt to his
Unyago, to his progenitors, and to his own future progeny. It is the spot where medicine
has been buried to insure the Unyago success, and may be looked upon as the keystone of
the ceremonies which take place at Lupanda. The derivation of the word is probably from
ku-unga, " to heap up earth into a mound," or maybe from ku-unda, " to teach children
manners," but it is uncertain as the word is variously spelled; the spelling I have given
follows the pronunciation of the old people.
Lupanda: This consists of a mound of earth closely resembling ching'undang'unda
in shape and decoration with similar wooden billets at the base, while on the top is often
planted a branch from a tree (Pl. X, figs. 3, 4). The word is derived from the verb ku-panda,
" to plant " and signifies the place which the m'michila marks for the ceremonies to take
place.
Reference has already been made to the assistants of the m'michila. The chief assistant
has been already mentioned; some three or four others who aid him are friends of the
m'michila from his own village. They participate at the essential moments of the cere
monies, singing, drumming, or dancing, and together with some of the akamusi, take
part in chiuta. Beside these, there are regular bands of trained drummers and dancers
who attend Lupanda and dance in the village in the morning and at Lupanda in the after
noon of the day of return. They usually dance chamba and sanje. They are men who come
for the fun of the thing and, of course, may gain a good deal from presents. On so important
an occasion, there is much criticism of their performance. Should one of them not dance
well enough to please the old people, they may call out, "Pluck off his feathers!" and
the unlucky fellow has all his dancing kit and any clothes beside stripped off and he is
driven forth naked, the laughing stock of the crowd.
Chiputu: The initiation ceremony for girls is on lines very similar to the boys' ceremony.
The age at which the girls take part is from about ten to fourteen years, though lately they
have been much younger on the whole, in consequence of the older people's wishes that
their children shall benefit from its instruction before they come under civilizing influ
ences and the recently introduced mission teaching.
When a number of girls have reached the proper age in a village or group of villages,
as with the boys, the chief is approached and he arranges a date for the ceremony during
the same season as Lupanda and for similar reasons.
The woman corresponding to the m'michila who arranges everything is called mteresi.
Each girl mwali about to be initiated is looked after by a woman, her mkamusi.
The girls, their guardians, and the mistress of the ceremonies, together with the inhabit
ants of the villages adjourn, as in the case of Lupanda, to a spot some little distance from the
main village, called Chiputu, Here grass shelters have been erected beforehand and food
has been collected.
The evening of the first day is called lyuwa lya makunami, or " the day of singing," as
singing is kept up far into the night, but the exact significance of the word likunami I
have been unable to find out.
The second day is spoken of as lyuwa lya manawa, " the day of washing of hands,"
(kunawa, " to wash the hands ") when the wali are specially instructed as to the neces
sities of washing hands before preparing food, etc.; precept is followed by practice.
The night is spent quietly; for this day's proceedings few people probably will have
remained.
On the third day, however, they come back again from their villages in crowds to wit
ness the performance of usame, lyuwa lya usame, " the day of house moving " (kusama,
" to change one's abode, carrying goods and chattels with one "). A representation is given
of an onslaught on a village by enemies and all pretend to run away carrying their worldly
goods with them. The part of the attackers is played by a number of women who, armed
with guns and having donned belts and powder horns, rush in on the crowd from the bush
and make prisoners of all they can catch. The men are put in miniature slave-sticks;
women who are seen trying to run off with a child on the back, one round the neck and one
on each hip, are driven as prisoners into a group. When all the noise and fun are over, the
prisoners are released. This is often followed by a mock trial. Two women dressed up to
impersonate chiefs of rival tribes, argue an old, imaginary quarrel, usually pretending that
there has been a raid by one party on an ivory caravan going to the coast, with stealing of
the ivory, while the other party in revenge has caught and killed some of the people belong
ing to the first mentioned. The thing may be kept up for an hour with much talking and
great zest, all those taking part being women. Finally each party agrees to give compensa
tion for the damage done; each presents the other with bundles of sugar cane, and friend
ship is reestablished. That night, everyone again rests quietly.
The fourth day is known as lyuwa lya kusyunga (kusyunga, " to go round about," re
ferring to the dancing which goes on). Dancing takes place during the day and also the
ceremony of Lukwi to be referred to later. One of the favorite songs sung this day runs as
follows:
" Ndembo'ji mkamba'yoiyo aninde mwana mkongwe'ya, amao! ambosango uganjanone! "
"(Tusk this) a present don't give me free wait for me little girl, dear me! and we'll have
some fun together! "
On the fifth day, return is made to the villages. The girl wali attended constantly by
their akamusi then live together for the period of instruction in huts in a special enclosure
in the chief's village or in similar enclosures in a number of villages. The wait may go out
into the village but must go about with bowed head and look no man in the face; they wear
bark-cloth called liwiko and should they meet anyone, they must pull over their faces the
kind of hood with which their garments are provided. They may not share food with out
siders. If they did so, the latter would sicken with a disease called chiumbelu.
The wali thus remain for about a month under the care of their guardians, during which
time they receive most valuable instruction as to their behavior to others, especially to
their elders and to members of the opposite sex. Their faults are brought home to them
and many little pieces of advice given. They are taught the household duties which will
be their lot thenceforth and they are forewarned of approaching puberty and what it
means to them.
During this period their child-names are not used and until their new names are as
signed to them, they are called after birds and animals, generally some of the smaller animals
e.g. Anyingalwe (myingalwe = the shrew rat), Alitawala (litawala = a big species of rat),
Analyelye (nyalyelye = the shrew). I have been unable to ascertain whether these have
any totemistic significance.
The girls are usually given a fright to impress on them the danger of lions; one night
an imitation of a lion approaching their enclosure is made when all is dark; then all of a
sudden one of the akamusi armed with big thorns instead of claws will spring upon one
of the girls, generally picking out the worst behaved.
When the term of instruction is completed, they again adjourn to Chiputu for two days
where Unyago is danced on the first night by women, on the second night by men. The
first day is spent by a party of men and women in the bush, preparing figures of animals and
their dress for the dance. The women wear a small garment of bark-cloth called matako-
gaiula, a word which literally means " buttocks of a frog " but which is used with the mean
ing of trousers and refers in this case to the fact that the bark-cloth is sewn round the upper
part of each thigh into a garment like a pair of knickerbockers. Round the abdomen and
chest are worn bands made of short pieces of small, decorticated millet stalks; similar
bands are worn on the legs and arms, two on each thigh, two on the leg, one at the wrist,
below the elbow, and one round the upper arm. In the dark these give the body the ap
pearance of being painted in alternate bands of black and white. They also wear a head
dress of the same material.
On the first evening of the return to Chiputu, this party of women appears after dark;
they dance in a row, advancing and retiring in step, swinging their arms and moving their
bodies to exclamations of Bi-di! Bi-di! Other women dress up as men, wearing long beards
made of likanga, a kind of fibre plant.
The second night, the representations of animals made of grass and bamboo frame
work supported by men appear, the elephant, the rhinoceros, and various antelopes being
the common figures, also the zebra made of painted bark cloth. These animal figures are
similar to the vinyao or zinyao of the Anyanja and to those of the Awisa,1 but the sanchima
is unknown among the Yao.
During all these presentations at Chiputu, the wali seated on mats are the chief specta
tors and are duly frightened by the performances of the last two days.
1 Stannus, ' Notes on some tribes of British Central Africa,' op. cit., p. 293.
The following morning at dawn, each guardian washes her ward, anoints her from head
to foot with oil and puts on her body new calico, ropes of beads being worn round the neck,
and on the head a little bark-cloth cap fringed with beads called chiwala. At a given signal,
each guardian picks up her ward on her shoulders and pretends to run away with her to
her own village. This is the signal for the fathers of the girls to run up and redeem their
children by making presents to the guardians. Each mwali is given her new name by her
guardian, often the guardian's own or that of the girl's grandmother. The girls are then set
down again, a procession is formed and all return to the village, with great rejoicing, as in
the case of the boys. The girls then disperse and go back to live with their mothers or
grandmothers. The wali may be made to give an exhibition of their dancing; they dance
chamba.
On the occasion of the first visit to Chiputu, as a kind of accessory, there is a ceremony
for young married men which forms, as mentioned elsewhere, the second part of their ini
tiation ceremonies or Unyago.
It is known as Kulukwi and is a kind of test of manhood. It was formerly considered as
important as Lupanda, but now, I think, the last Kulukwi has been performed; for the
young men of the present day, largely emancipated from chief-rule and freed from the ties
of tribal custom, care less and less for their old method of up-bringing.
When Chiputu is about to take place, any young newly married men whose wives have
not become pregnant are pressed to go to their second ceremony. The wife may ask some
woman friend to act as his guardian or some woman may volunteer for the service. Often
the young fellow will make pretence of not wanting to go ; he may be chased and caught,
and with his hands tied behind his back, wearing bark-cloth, he is conducted to the cere
mony by other men.
Each young man is attended by a woman guardian and during the first visit to Chiputu,
they sleep in two rows of grass sheds facing each other, the women in one line, the young
men in the other line, each facing his woman guardian, with fires in the free-way between
the two rows of huts. Or they may sleep in one big grass shed, each woman guardian next
to the young man she attends, and so in pairs all down both sides of the grass shed, the
fires being made in the middle. The young men have to pay for a share in the food and beer
made for Chiputu, but each guardian cooks for her man.
On the afternoon of lyuwa lya kusyunga, the young men are taken off to a place
in the bush perhaps a quarter to one mile away from Chiputu, ku-lukwi " to lukwi " as
is said.
Here they are formed into a semi-circle of from half a dozen to ten or twenty of them,
each with his guardian and a crowd of the grown-up population from the village in attend
ance. Good advice is given them as to their behavior, especially in regard to their wives
and mothers-in-law. Anyone who has any particularly bad trait is sure to hear of it now,
the mother or father of the young man having arranged that it shall be brought up. The
woman guardian shows to her man red and white beads in her hand and tells him that
white indicates health while red means sickness, thereby pointing out to him their deep-
rooted beliefs in the diseases associated with intercourse or association with women during
menstruation.
Then follows a test of manhood. The women guardians put little pieces of stick
(lukm = sticks or firewood) on their heads and sing:
" Ngampe mkwangu lukm Iwa msuku'chamuno liu! "
" I must give my wife (when sick) firewood of the msuku although it gives lots of ashes! "
What is meant is that when his wife is ill, the husband should fetch the firewood even though
he does not know which woods give least ash; the msuku tree gives many ashes. The
little piece of wood a few inches long with a notch in the middle is then handed to the young
man by his guardian. He places it on the ground in front of him, kneels down, and with
a small axe he attempts to divide the stick at the notch. If he is successful, he is greeted
with cheers, clapping, and much rejoicing. By proving his power to hit straight, he has
also established his manhood; it is prophesied that he will soon have children. Should he
miss through nervousness, shouts of derision welcome him and his guardian shows her
disgust with his performance. If he is a young fellow well-liked in his village, he may be
allowed to make a second attempt. After this ceremony, each couple bathes each other in
their shelters by pouring water over the head and body without removing the clothes, thus
making brotherhood. Forever after the man must treat this woman with great respect,
must not address her for some time, and then only after making her a small present.
The woman guardian picks up the two pieces of the broken lukwi and on the morning
before they all leave Chiputu, the mother or sister of the young man gives her a string of
red or white beads saying, " These are to bind up the bundle of wood." The man's guardian
binds up the pieces of wood with the beads and gives it to her man. When they have re
turned to the village, they go to the young man's wife and he presents them to her. The
guardian, however, steps in and slips off the beads which she keeps, while the wife, pleased
at her husband's success, drops the two pieces of wood into the fire.
During the weeks that the girl wali remain under instruction in the village, those young
men who have been ku-lukwi sleep in one big enclosure away from their wives and do not
cohabit until after the second return from Chiputu is made.
Another ku-lukwi test sometimes, I believe, introduced into Yao ceremonies but really
one practiced by the Mpotola people and not proper to the Yao, is as follows:
The guardian lies on the ground, wearing a small loin-cloth, and holding beads in her
clenched hands, red in one, white in the other. Her man standing at her feet, bends over
her and projects saliva on to her abdomen through a rolled up leaf held between his lips, at
the same time choosing one of her hands. If he chooses the hand containing the white
beads, he is hailed with delight as a man indeed, but should he choose the hand containing
the red beads, he is jeered at and laughed to scorn. In this case, the white beads are held to
indicate semen, the red beads menstrual blood.
Litiwo: This ceremony is enacted at the time when a young married woman quickens
with her first child. Litiwo (ku-tiwa, to plait) refers to the plaited cord put round the
woman's neck. The woman and her husband both are present, and in addition, only
women, possibly with their babies.
For the man, Litiwo is looked upon as the third or completing ceremony of his Unyago.
He must have been to Lupanda and Chiputu, otherwise he cannot be admitted to Litiwo.
If, however, the husband is not eligible, some other man who has completed his Unyago,
is married, and has children, may act as proxy to a woman at Litiwo.
In every district there is generally some woman who arranges and conducts the cere
mony. She is called nakanga; naturally, no European has been present at Litiwo but my in
formation was gained from Kuliati, a woman who for years acted as nakanga in the villages
round Malemya's kraal, and Chilandana, her old mother who had acted in the same capacity
before her and who had come from the old Machinga country where her mother in turn had
been a well-known nakanga.
When a woman quickens with child for the first time, her women-folk visit the local
nakanga, saying, " We are going to shave so and so (naming the woman) and to get bananas.
Tomorrow, we start pounding flour. In three days we shall be ready, and you will come
over to arrange things." At the appointed time, the nakanga having partaken of food early
because she will not eat for the rest of the day, goes out of the village to some spot a half-
mile away in the bush and there sees that all preparations are made and sufficient food
collected. The food is supplied by the mothers of the man and woman, and consists essen
tially of beans (njama and ngunde), porridge, sugar-cane, and bananas, but no beer.
All being ready, a procession in single file leaves the village for the appointed place, the
woman's sponsor leading, the woman followed by the husband and his sponsor (a woman),
and the married women assembled from nearby villages. The sponsor is known as mkamusi
or alombwe. Neither mkamusi nor nakanga may have sexual relations with their husbands
till after the birth of the child. The woman wears bark-cloth stained black, but may wear
blue cloth on returning to the village, while her husband is decked out in his finest cloths
and ornaments. They have partaken of food early in the day as they fast until the next
day.
Arrived at the place, the man and woman take up their positions on mats separated from
each other by some twenty or thirty paces, each with his mkamusi. The man's mkamusi
sits on the same mat with him and never leaves him throughout the ceremony. The woman
preserves a dignified quiet but the man is expected to make the most of himself sitting
with hands on hips, and displaying his fine clothes worn after the fashion of a chief.
While all the assembled crowd of women sit round in a semi-circle, the nakanga com
mences the proceedings, singing a number of songs to the woman and the man in turn,
the other women joining in the refrain. A number of these songs are here given but each
nakanga has her own favorites which she sings. They are only sung at Litiwo.
Alitete, lisinjeni: alitete lisinjeni; Chorus Mbiranjirani.
Now you are clucking before laying an egg. Be content then, you must not be running about
any more: (Chorus) Call her back for me.
Ku-teiera, " to cluck as a hen " comes from tel tef the sound of the hen. Another song is:
Atetereje atolo te. Chorus Atetereje.
You must cluck, cluck, cluck, little mouse.
A set of songs sung by Kuliati are as follows:

1. Mtwe ngidwala, kumalembe; amao!
I have a headache, surely; oh dear me!
2. Jogolo, jogolo, chemwaii, kuutuka mwanyama!
Startled (like a rabbit), little girl running like a wild animal.
3. Asungula'wa walapire ulamba!
The rabbit they praise for its cleverness!
Kumkamida ngolokototo kumlemba ilemba!
He caught (the name of a little bird) and cut his hair in the ilemba fashion!
4. Uneji ndiri jua mtima; ndigonile, Chenjerero apite!
I have a good heart; I am contented, Chenjerero has gone!
Ajigere makwatagao, amao! achamao!
He has taken away all his dancing things, dear me! oh dear me!
5. Wakwambaga'wala, leere! nowe atidanjire twalole!
Those who are speaking (an exclamation) show us that we may see!
Mlasi ugwile mbungo, tetemera, chikata, ngolekwe, wajoje; ngolengolekwe wajoje!
The bamboo has fallen with the wind, they shivered with fear (an alluvial plain), (a thing
which is stuck) (well-dressed).
In native songs, full poetical license is indulged in and it is often difficult to give exact
translations of them. The first has reference to the woman making a fuss because she feels
ill with her pregnancy; this she is not supposed to do. Number 2 refers to the fact that
she has a new experience which may cause her to be startled, but she need not fear. In
number 3, ngolokototo is a bird which has a mark running back on either side of the mid
line of the crown of its head, resembling a method of hair dressing wherein two bands are
shaved from front to back parallel to the mid-line. Chenjerero (number 4) is the name of
a man but this reference is apparently now without point. Number 5 is sung by the nakanga
when she hears murmurs of others in the crowd starting to sing other songs; she intimates,
" Here are we singing, let us hear you others who wanted to sing; you are probably afraid
now." In the latter part of this song, words are made use of which have a slang meaning
known only to women. Chikata is a woman's slang word for the female pudenda; ngoleko,
when in child-birth there is delay in delivery it is said of the woman " Akolekwe," "she
is stuck," from ku-kolekwa " to be suspended, to be caught by a thorn"; wajoje, well
dressed, is a slang exclamation meaning "everything, everything is out!" The verse
refers, of course, as all obstetricians will recognize, to the moment of crowning of the
oncoming head during parturition when it appears to be stuck; then suddenly it slips
over the perineum and " everything, everything is out."
The nakanga now gives way to the songs of the other women. In different districts
different versions of the songs are sung, but the other women will quickly pick up the re
frain of the song sung by a woman who has come in from some distance.
After these songs, the nakanga instructs the woman and her husband in the care they
must take until after the child is born. Macdonald says, speaking of the instructions
"but of the quality, we prefer to be silent." l What a pity he allows no one else to judge!
The woman is especially cautioned against sitting with her legs crossed; they must be
kept apart lest the child in her womb be suffocated. She is also told many useful things
concerning her pregnancy and confinement. The husband is cautioned to cease inter
course with his wife or if he has intercourse, his wife may not lie on her back, lest the child
be injured.
While this instruction is going on, all the assembled women cook and eat the feast
which has been made for them. When all has been said, the nakanga anoints the man with
castor oil, which has in the meantime been warmed, and ties round the neck of the woman
the litiwo, a cord made of plaited bark-cloth with a tassel in front; at the base of the tassel
white beads are strung for good luck, and at the end of the tassel, red beads are affixed,
having symbolic reference to the haemorrhage at the time of childbirth. The woman wears
only a strip of calico of two hands breadth called mletu. She is anointed on the head, body,
and limbs.
The tying of the litiwo is the sign for dancing to begin. It is a dance in which women try
to excel one another. They come with all their tattoo marks on buttocks, thighs, and ab
domen renovated; they wear diaper-fashion a narrow strip of cloth, always black in color,
and round their bodies numerous strings of beads. With the beginning of the dancing,
their other clothes are thrown off and practically naked, they vie with one other in exhibit
ing their charms and skill in dancing, which afterwards becomes the subject of much dis
cussion among the women onlookers. " So and so is really too old and skinny for such
exhibition," and " So and so has buttocks as flat as a wall," while "Such and such a one is
fat and beautiful and dances wonderfully, with such abandon," etc. In front of the woman
is set a wooden plate, in front of the man a mat, and on these are thrown donations by
the dancers and onlookers, consisting of beads etc., or nowadays pennies and small silver
coins to help to pay the expenses of the entertainment and, in the woman's case, to buy
medicine which may be necessary should the baby fall ill. When the wedded couple are
1 Africana, op. cit., vol. 1, p. 129.
generous and popular, the donations may mount up to a useful sum. Dancing goes on late
into the afternoon when all return to the village.
The man may not speak to his guardian again until after the birth of the child. The
two women guardians, the mkamusi and the nakanga, as a rule cease sexual intercourse with
their husbands during the same period or, at all events, during the last month before the
birth of the child.
The child born of a woman who has not gone through Litiwo is buried alive.
Chieftainship. The Yao when they migrated to their present country were headed by
a number of their chiefs. These eventually settled in different areas adjacent to one another,
each ruling over a considerable tract of country. The chief was supported by a number
of headmen, each of whom looked after a village; the chiefs and headmen in turn being
assisted by the village elders.
Often among a chief's counselors one found a number of his relatives, and sons and
brothers were often made headmen. A man assuming chieftainship often had to dispose
of a brother of whom he was afraid.
Chieftainship is hereditary, the chief's name being passed on to each successor. Succes
sion is to eldest son of the eldest sister or a son of some other sister. Failing these, it passes
to a grand-nephew. If there is no acceptable adult nephew, a full brother may succeed.
Macdonald's account of the Malemya's succession1 is, I believe, incorrect. The old
Malemya (Nalutumbo) was succeeded according to custom by his nephew, Kasabola who,
as Malemya, was called Ndalama. Kumtaja was not a younger brother of Nalutumbo or
Kasobola, but a cousin of the latter. Ndalama was succeeded by a nephew, not the eldest
but the second son of a sister, the eldest having already succeeded to the chieftainship of
Kumtaja was therefore ineligible. The present Malemya will be succeeded by a grand-
nephew, the son of a daughter of his eldest sister, his sister having no sons.
A successor inherited all the wives and slaves of the deceased chief and all his goods
and chattels, guns, ivory and gardens. Any small possessions might be divided among the
deceased's children and in the case of guns, those who had always used them often laid
claims not to be separated from their weapons; these claims were often allowed by the
new chief.
In the same way, any ordinary man's successor is his nephew, the son of a sister, who
inherits all goods and chattels and slave wives, but not free-born wives, nor gardens, which
go to the free wives. Stock is generally divided among the children.
Before 1891, when a British Protectorate was formally declared over Nyasaland, each
chief ruled supreme. He was consulted as to the dates for Unyago; he directed the har
vesting, etc.; he proclaimed war and generally was paramount among his people. It will
be seen, therefore, that he was a busy man, but he received no direct remuneration. His
wealth consisted of slaves and ivory. Slaves he obtained in warfare and as blood money,
1 Op. cit., vol. 1, p. 190.
ivory by his own hunting parties or as a kind of tithe on other hunting expeditions. The
ground tusk, i.e. the tusk on the side on which the elephant falls when killed, was the chief's
share. In the same way, the hind leg on the ground side of any game animal killed was sent
to the chief. He took a share of the spoils of war and most of his people yearly gave him
either service in building houses, etc., or kind in the form of food-stuffs, but he enforced
no service and levied no tax, except for the making of a new burial place.1 New settlers
in his village were expected to invite him to drink beer made with their first crops.
In return, he always provided cloth to invest the body of the dead. He also made pres
ents at the time of Unyago.2
A chief's life, therefore, may not be " all beer and skittles," though he consumes a
good deal of the former and a kind of skittles3 was a favorite pastime of one of the
Malemyas. A saying embodying this idea was used when pleading for a man who had
committed adultery with his chief's wife " one who carries a tortoise (on a string over his
back) is likely to get his clothes soiled " ; a man has to put up with the troubles his belong
ings bring him. So a chief must bear with his own people who do wrong.
Ample opportunity for exercising such forbearance was provided, since the chief was
formerly the adjudicator of all disputes and dispenser of justice in all crimes. The headman
did the same in a smaller way but appeal could always be made to the chief. Cases were
heard by the chief sitting in council. He and his headmen and elders would assemble in
the village open space and here cases were stated, often at great length.
Each party to the case would employ some man well known for his powers of oratory
as leading counsel. The speaker for the plaintiff would start proceedings by a recital of all
the evidence he could collect. After him would follow innumerable speakers, whether
actual witnesses or not, each telling as good a story as he could, and the defendant's case
would then be put by his representatives. There was no cross-examination but at the end,
a summary was made and judgment given. A chief often took the advice of some one of
his old men whom he trusted.4 The chief received no payment for his services, except in
the case of murder; neither did the " counsel " receive anything for their efforts.
Crimes. Causing the death of a person by witch medicine, usawi, was the most heinous
crime; a mwai ordeal might be held, but if the offense was proved, burning was the pun
ishment which usually followed.
The offense second in gravity was adultery. This might be expiated by payment or
by death, according to the circumstances under which it occurred; mutilation was often
performed in the case of a chief's wife. All death sentences with the exception of those
1 Vide supra, p. 244. ! Vide supra, pp. 248, 264. 3 Vide infra, p. 360.
4 The old Malemya (Nalutumbo) has some very fine men among his counselors. Kumtupa and Chiupile, the
latter renowned for his oratory, were his chief advisers in legal matters. Ndeleka, a slave, was his mentor in all per
sonal and family affairs, while Chekasongo was in charge of all ceremonies and served with his assistant, Mpanje,
as high priest on all occasions of intercession. Others acted as his emissaries, such as Mkopiti who always went on
any missions to the Angoni, among whom he was known as Ndonjira.
for witchcraft were carried out by strangling with a piece of calico at a place appointed for
the purpose some miles from the chief's village.
There was no case against a man who seduced an unbetrothed girl, the latter being
considered entirely at fault.
After divorce, the children always remained with the mother. The man left his wife
after the case, saying, "I will take my spear and some of the goats and chickens, but the
children will always know their father."
Murder was a question of compensation to the deceased's relatives and was not pun
ished by death.
Stealing was a serious offence but many who were found guilty were rather despised
than punished. The thief with the stolen goods tied about his body but otherwise stripped
naked would be driven through the village and prodded with sticks to the sound of drums
and hoots of derision. Most crimes, however, might be punished by exacting compensa
tion. Payment took the form of goods or slaves. In the case of murder, the accused might
have to pay several slaves to the deceased's relatives, and in addition, a fine to the chief
for spilling blood, consisting perhaps of one slave. The amount of compensation expected
was mentioned by the plaintiff in the case. One of the expressions used was, "My compen
sation must cover an ant hill," meaning enough slaves, standing hand in hand, to sur
round an ant hill; ant hills in this country are sometimes very big. If a man had no slaves,
he would send his relatives or he himself might be forced to become the slave of the plain
tiff. There is a saying anent this practice:
Chitunibili wachilawile mchila wakwe!
The monkey they tied (with) tail his (own).
Slaves passed over to a man in payment for crime became free men; they were an ad
dition to the village and might even be adopted in place of a murdered individual.
When compensation was made by the defendant to the plaintiff, the latter always
returned some part of it as a sign that friendship was again established.
Goods or money received in compensation for murder, i.e. blood money, might not go
for the purchase of food or clothing. Detection of a guilty party by means of magic and
proof of guilt or otherwise by ordeal poison are dealt with elsewhere.
Bluffing anyone into giving something for nothing, obtaining goods by false pretence,
was not considered a crime, as anyone was "fair game." For instance, a party of youths
would waylay a man with a load of fish, saying they had been ordered by their headman to
commandeer it. If the man parted with his fish, so much the worse for him; if he showed
fight, he was respected and friendship made with a give-and-take of fish and snuff. Such
bluffing is called kulya nawo, " to eat with them." To add to their appearance of bona
fides, the party might have secretly borrowed some well-known article belonging to their
headman.
Slavery. Slaves were acquired by capture or purchase, or were received as payment.
Prisoners taken by the vassals of one chief in a fight with the partisans of another chief
became slaves. Slave raids were also made by the Wayao upon the weaker Anyanja or
again expeditions were sent out hundreds of miles away into the Chipeta country to buy
slaves.
Slaves were a man's goods and chattels, to do with mainly as he pleased, but no man
might kill a slave without bringing the case before his chief and obtaining consent. While
some were bought and sold and sometimes found their way into a slave caravan bound for
the coast, many, perhaps the majority, lived the life of ordinary individuals in the villages.
A man who was unhappy in a village and wished to escape from his vassaldom might run
away to another village and there commit some act so that he might be claimed as a slave.
The custom was to go to the village and sit by the site of a house which had been pulled
down after the death of the occupant, and the saying is, "He has been called by the dead
man's spirit."
Many a slave has become an important man in the village and slaves were often the
trusted advisers of their chiefs, but there was no means of becoming a freeman. Neither
a slave himself nor a second party could purchase his freedom. A slave capturing another
man in warfare, for instance, could not ask for his own freedom in exchange for his captive,
but anyone so taken became, in a way, the slave of a slave, and the master could not sell
the second slave without the permission of the slave captor. An old slave might often be
allowed to do just as he pleased and to all intents and purposes was a free man, but he was
never actually freed. A slave might earn a return for work done for others than his master;
part of this he would probably give to his master, but there was no regular tax upon such
earnings.
The idea in accumulating slaves seems to have been to increase the population of the
villages and hence their power and progeny. This is borne out by the fact that marriage
between free men and slaves was allowed. Marriage between a free man and a slave woman
was unaccompanied by any ceremony and was therefore rather in the nature of recognized
concubinage. Such a wife, if unsatisfactory, could be sold out of the village, but generally
she was well treated. The children of two slaves were of course born into slavery; the
children of a slave woman by a freeman husband, were not quite emancipated, as the father
could not remove the child from the village of the slave mother's master, and in very ex
treme cases, it might be sold by him.
Women might marry slave husbands and often a master married his daughters to his
slave men whom he thought well of. This amounted to a guarantee to the slave that he
would never be parted with. A woman with a slave husband could not leave him infor
mally; she could not sell him, inasmuch as women have no property.
Land Ownership. The ownership of all land was vested in the chief, but he appeared to
hold it in surety for all the people over which he ruled. Headmen had no land rights.
There has never been any shortage of land and therefore the plotting out of gardens
was a matter which caused little trouble. A man wishing to make a new garden the next
season simply marked the site in the bush by scoring some trees or hoeing around some
patches of grass and tying the grass ends into a knot. If anyone else came along and hoed
this plot, the man who had marked it out still claimed it and need not pay for the hoeing
done. Whenever a man was doubtful about a piece of land, he would ask advice of the
headman of the village.
When an abandoned garden had become overgrown, anyone wishing to take it up ap
plied to the headman who sent him to ask the original owners whether they wished to take
it up again. The newcomer could take possession only with their permission.
Often if a village were moved, during the first season the people simply put up shelters
in their gardens. Later, the site of the village was chosen and around it a medicine man
sprinkled medicine to insure happiness and prosperity. The tree from which this medicine
was made became sacred to the village and might not be used for firewood, or was subject
to any other taboo the medicine man might care to make. He might also say, " In this
village there shall be no pounding of grain at night," etc.
If a village were to be built near a spot previously inhabited, medicine and offerings
were made to the departed spirits of the former occupants to put them at rest and " open "
the place to the newcomers. The beer-pot from the grave of some former chief or headman,
who was supposed to have directed the destinies of the old village, was brought to the new
location and beer placed in it to insure his continued guidance.
In the case of a village into which a number of men had married, the sponsors of the
wives went to the sponsors of the husbands and asked permission to move the village.1
Later, beer was brewed in the new village and the sponsors invited to come and drink and
" put foot in the new village."
Relationship. Family relationship among natives presents certain difficulties to the
European accustomed to equivalent relationship of males and females on both sides of
the family. In the diagram below (Fig. 1) the relationship of the two children (C 5)
will be traced. The mother and father (B 10 and 9) are the achikulu and wese but are
addressed as amao and atati. The maternal uncles older and younger than the mother (B 11
and 15) are called akwelume and their wives (B 12 and 16) akwegwe. The maternal aunts
are addressed as amao, mother, anyone older than the mother being distinguished as amao
wakulungwa, "the bigger " (B 13), a younger aunt as amao wanandi, "the lesser " (B 17);
their respective husbands are addressed atati, atati wakulungwa (B 14), and atati wanandi
(B 18). On the father's side the uncles are called atati wakulungwa (B 1) and atati
wanandi (B 5), respectively, for those older and younger than the father, and their wives
amao wakulungwa (B 2) and amao wanandi (B 6). The paternal aunts are called atati
wakongwe (female uncles) (B 3 and 7), their husbands (B 4 and 8) atati.
The children of maternal uncles (C 6 and 8) and of paternal aunts (C 2 and 4) are
called cousins achasiwani (sing. msywani), and, conversely, the children of maternal aunts
(C 7 and 9) and of paternal uncles (C 1 and 3) are called " brothers and sisters " ; one
would address the other as "chemwali" or " achimwene," but either is mbako to the
other.
It is interesting, therefore, to note that cousinship is of two kinds: the relationship
between a child and his maternal aunts' children or his paternal uncles' children is uwako,
whereas the relationship with his maternal uncles' children or his paternal aunts' children
is usiwani.
It is easily understood why the maternal aunts' children are considered as brothers and
sisters, as among the Yao, matrilineal descent is the rule, the children taking the clan of
Figure 1
the mother. In the diagram, this is indicated in black. That the paternal uncles' children
bear the same relationship would seem to indicate that matrilineal descent is not absolute
but that dual descent from both parents is recognized.
Children C 5 may not marry C 7 and 9, nor C 1 and 3. In the case of the former, this
is because persons of the same clan may not marry, but in the case of the latter, no such
reason is given but they are simply said to be brothers and sisters. Children C 5 may
marry their cousins C 6 and 8 and C 2 and 4, but this is not very common as it is said such
marriages are always unhappy.
The wife of a maternal uncle (B 12) speaks of her nephew by marriage (C 5) as msono,
husband, because, in the event of her husband's death, this nephew would inherit from
him and he might marry the widow.
A parent-in-law or child-in-law is called mkwegwe indifferently. Paternal and maternal
grand-parents, and great-uncles and aunts are all called ambuje; a grand-child, chisukulu.
The words atati and amao commonly mean father and mother, but, as given above, there
are other words for these two parents, whereas atati and amao are applied to certain aunts
and uncles as well. I am inclined to believe that the words primarily refer to a person's
maternal and paternal relatives whose children bear the relationship of uwako to the person.
A strange point, however, crops up, namely, that the paternal aunts are called atati (atati
wakongwe) and their husbands atati again.
An elder brother is akulu, his younger brother mpwakwe, a sister mlumbu, mlumbu
wanandi and mlumbu wakulungwa, younger and elder sister.
Disease. Apart from old age, the native recognizes in all illness and death the hand of
an enemy or the result of transgression of some custom: some one has made medicine
against him, or he or some one else has broken a custom founded on superstition which is
visited on his head. These ideas are so deeply rooted in the native mind that it is with
difficulty any appropriate treatment will be received. They rely, rather, on some medicine
man to cure them by medicine more powerful than that made against them. Even an or
dinary accident or an attack of pneumonia is accounted for in this way.
The names given in speaking of sicknesses are, of course, applied rather to symptoms,
but in some cases where the symptom named is pathognomic of a disease, the word prac
tically stands for the disease. The word used may imply the supposed cause or refer to
a resemblance to some object, or again simply state the part affected; thus chitumbo
(the belly) meaning stomach ache, meso (eyes), conjunctivitis, etc.
The following words most of which are found in the Reverend Dr. Hetherwick's Yao
Language, give some idea of the Yao native's conception of disease. The sense which the
above authority gives is not always quite the same as I would venture to give. I shall not
enter into the question of the diseases as such but only in so far as they bear on customs,
etc.
The word chilwele signifies any disease or illness; chitopa and chipindupindu refer to
epidemic diseases; the former refers to a disease of fowls and dogs characterized by wheezing
and hence is occasionally used for bronchitis in man. Chipindupindu refers to a series of
deaths from a cause unknown to the natives. The word chaola, which Hetherwick gives
as meaning a plague, rather means arrow poison, I think.
Chomboto: a liver disease of fowls.
Chipago: a congenital deformity of any kind (kupagwa = to be born with).
Chitwesime: a patch of white hair on the scalp of congenital origin.
Chisiwani (a cousin): the word used for a birth-mark or freckle; helical fistula is also
included. Children examine each other to see how many " cousins " each has; any
one with none is made fun of.
Chindundumuli (tundumula — a big lump) : a hunchback.
Chiwalula (ku.walula = to split) : a " splitting " headache, or more commonly, medi
cine by means of which the possessor can inflict pain or death.
Ching'alang'ala: a localized pain in the head.
Chisyungusyungu: giddiness.
Chibuli: deaf and dumb (Chin) ; the word is used in slang to mean impotence.
Chiwisuku: an old word meaning high fever.
Chilundulundu: " wakongvx vxittnle chilundulundu," the woman died in confinement
without giving birth (unopened). The sense of dumbness and constipation are sec
ondary.
Kululilwa: constipation.
Malundunguli: colic; Masyongo, rumblings in the bowels, borborygmi.
Mandindili: " pins and needles."
Chikusa: sore and swollen gums, pyorrhoea; has been translated scurvy.
Chingungulukuta: hardened skin, like a corn on the hand.
Njeseka: without eye-lashes, as result of disease.
Ndandagasi, Lungumbisi: indistinctness of vision (Hetherwick).
Lososo: watering of the nose; nasal catarrh.
Mamboko: the secretion at the corners of the eyes in the morning, also the purulent
secretion of conjunctivitis (Hetherwick translates " watering of the eyes ").
Namila: nasal mucus.
Chimbondogolo: crusts from the nasal passages (Hetherwick translates merely " nasal
mucus ").
Likosomola: cough.
Chisungusya: after-pains of labor.
Ngwikwi: hiccough.
Ng'anang'ana: nystagmus, from a verb meaning "to look from side to side aimlessly."
Iwenga: any skin eruption supposed to be due to eating various substances, chiefly meat.
KvAilimuka: to have a rash on the body of the nature of urticaria.
Ngolokolo: the name of a condition in which the place where a man passes water be
comes whitened; hence it refers to cystitis, lithuria, etc.
Chikonokono (likonokono = a snail) : the white on the ground resembling a snail track
left by a man with Ngolokolo.
Nduwi or Mlili: smallpox.
Ndonyola or Kasabola: chicken pox; this term may also include other diseases with
similar rash, i.e. modified smallpox and pemphigus.
Chitembo (ndembo = an elephant) : elephantiasis.
Matana: leprosy.
Magawagawa: yaws (chimatuli, given by Hetherwick as "rodent ulcer," is a Chinyanja
word for yaws).
Chindoko: (Swahili) syphilis.
Chisonono: (Swahili) gonorrhoea.
Lulachilachi: whooping-cough.
Chikuku: measles.
Mbumu: asthma.
Chiukula (ku-ukula = to scrape out) : diarrhoea, dysentery.
Chipango (mbango = warthog) : swelling at angles of jaws, mumps.
Liundika: nasal or bronchial catarrh.
Masoka: insanity; mangwengwe, delirium of fever (Hetherwick translates as periodic
madness).
Mbulu: ascites.
Litolomiso: goitre (lidotilo: pomum adami).
Ncduwaula: leucoderma of hands and feet.
Chisungupute: a pustule.
Chisumbukute: a boil.
Chikanga (nganga = the spotted guinea-fowl) : ring-worm of face.
Limasa: any mark on the skin, e.g. birthmark, pigmented spot, ringworm, scar.
Susuwa: a wart.
Ndundi: a burn of the skin.
Lipuluwa: a keloid scar (Hetherwick gives " boil ").
Lonya: a rash after shaving.
Lituku: a blister.
Chipuluwa: a wheal after a blow or an insect bite.
Chiiya: oedema of a limb.
Chipupu: whitlow.
Lipute: an abscess; uwou, pus.
Liimbapa: an abscess; (ku-umba: to swell).
Liwanga: a sore or ulcer.
Mkwangwasya: a chronic ulcer.
Lisiuchila (ku-syuka = to come to life again): an ulcer which heals and then breaks
out again.
Liimbachiga: secondary enlarged glands in groin or elsewhere from a sore on the foot,
etc.
Ndesi: Any freely movable lump under the skin, e.g. sebaceous cyst, patella, ganglion,
etc.
Chilumi (ku-luma = to bite) : rheumatism.
Upere: itch, scabies.
Honda mkamwa: thrush.
Luwoga: diarrhoea in infants with green stools.
Lukweso: passage of blood in urine; Urinary Bilharziasis.
Ng'ala: ulcer or leucoma of cornea.
Ching'ang'a: rabies in dogs.
Lisichini: round-worm of man.
Manyongolosi: round-worm of dogs or found in the ground.
Wakongwe wajumu: a barren woman (lit. dry).
Chisungula: sterility in the male.
Chisyungula or gojo: an impotent man or Mundujua iyoyo: a useless man!
Mpuli: impotent.
Mchese (ku-chera = to cut off) : a " cut man "; a man soon after he has been castrated.
Mtonga: a eunuch after he has become fat.
Namtundira (nalimvimvi Chin.) : the word is derived from kutunda, to micturate. Na
tives say that when disturbed, the insect of this name which is a locustid, Enyaliopsis
durandi, makes water which falling on the skin of the passer-by causes ulceration.
I have seen a variety of cases of extensive ulceration due to syphilis, etc., assigned to
the effects of this insect; I have, however, shown that it does secrete a corroding
fluid from pores at the sides of the body which dropped on to the skin will dissolve
the superficial layers of the epidermis and should such abrasions become infected,
ulceration may, of course, result.
Utendeu: tremor, similar to the movements of one of the wasps.
Manjenje: tremor of old age, paralysis agitans.
The preceding short list of words will give some idea of the richness of the language in
some directions and also its limitations. There now follows an account of diseases which are
based on superstition, generally connected with the idea of uncleanness or the transgression
of some rule of life. Whatever the symptoms, if there has been a transgression, the disease
is labelled with the name of the disease supposed to follow the act. Similar diseases are to
be remarked among the other tribes in the country; some of those relating to the Anyanja
I have already mentioned,1 and the following may be read as an amplification of the re
marks previously made.
Chinyera (Kanyera Chin.) from kunya, to defecate: At the birth of a child, if the con
tents of the bowel (meconium) are passed before the body is born (as often happens in
breech presentations), the child is said to be " born with disease." One of the women at
tending the confinement will always go out and inform the husband of what has happened,
saying, " Apali 'chenene," (it is born well) or " Apali ni chilwele," (it is born with disease).
This only refers to the passage of meconium and not to any antenatal disease.
When this significant event has happened, the husband may not occupy the same sleep
ing mat as his wife and have intercourse with her until the child of its own accord crawls
from the mother's sleeping mat to that of her husband on the other side of the hut; Ku-
pitisya mwanache ku magono (Kitr-pititsa mwana ku mpasa, Chin.) = "to go the child to
the mat." Should the husband disregard this custom, he will sicken with Chinyera. The
symptoms commonly ascribed to Chinyera are pain in the loins and in the hypogastrium.
1 ' Notes on some tribes of British Central Africa,' op. cit.
This has led to the word being translated as Blight's disease (Hetherwick). No symptoms
referable to the pudenda are included under this disease. Mwera (Chin. Kagundu) : hy
drocele; said to be another sequela. A woman soiled by the excrement of her infant after
birth is not considered unclean and intercourse will have no ill result to the husband.
Sometimes in the event of Apali ni chilwele, recourse is had to the practice of intercourse
between the woman and some other man. She is thus rendered " clean " and the man who
is not her husband will not sicken. Such a man is called Litunu (see Widowhood).
Lwaso: a disease similar to Chinyera, which inflicts a man having coitus with his wife
who has not been cleansed after abortion.
Kusisimula: a practice indulged in if a new-born child falls ill; the word refers to the
" hardening " of pots when they are being made and the same idea is applied to the child.
If the new-born child gets fever, the illness is ascribed to the carunculae myrtiformes about
the vulva of the mother. These are cut off by an old medicine-woman and the blood al
lowed to drop into a mortar; water and some leaves are added and pounded together, and
the mother attired only in a cloth reaching to the loins, washes her breasts with the liquid
while the baby is supported on one thigh; the child is then given the breast and the mother,
turning her back on the mortar, pushes it over backwards with her buttocks.
Ya njete (from salt; Chin., dza mchere): If a woman who, after the death of a child,
has not been cleansed by medicine, adds salt to her husband's food, he eating it will sicken.
Tsempo (a Chinyanja word) : If a man or a woman commits adultery and any member
of the family falls ill, the natives say the illness is due to the unlawful act; the sinner is
said "to have gone in front of the other"; kwapunda (wapambana, Chin.), "he has
gone in front of," from ku-punda and ku-pambana, to go in front of, or ku-sempha (Chin.),
to go slyly in front of. Hence the word tsempo which also is used loosely for dza mchere.
If a child who according to custom has gone to stay with the grandmother, returns to the
parents' house and the parents continue to have sexual intercourse, the child may sicken;
it is said that the house is " hot " for the child and its disease may be called tsempo. Or
if a child which has been weaned is again given the breast after the mother has resumed
cohabitation with her husband, it may sicken with tsempo. And the husband is called
kwapunda.
A child which is suckled after menstruation is reestablished, is not affected by any
untoward symptoms.
In the event of a woman dying in childbirth, if it so happens the husband has com
mitted adultery, he is held responsible for the death and her relations claim very heavy
compensation.
Ku-simanilwa, to be met with (ku-kumanidwa, Chin.) : if the act of coitus causes the
onset of menstruation and the husband cannot draw back in time to prevent himself being
contaminated, he will sicken, and he is said " to have met with (it) " when referring to his
illness. In this disease, the penis is said to withdraw into the bladder. Soot from the roof
of the hut, chenjelele, and the red part of the flower of the banana, doubtless on account
of its shape, are used as medicine for this disease.
Kwimbangana or Ndaka: If a man dies and his relations eat of the food-stuffs left by
him, such as corn from his grain-store, before they have been cleansed by medicine, they
will sicken with ndaka, the symptoms being anaemia and wasting. The word kwirriba ndaka
is also used for sickness due to partaking of food cooked by an unfaithful wife.
Chipata is a word used by both Yao and Anyanja to denote a disease which a man
contracts from adulterous intercourse. Scott 1 derives the word from ku-pata, to stick
to; the woman is so influenced by medicine made by her husband that should any man have
adulterous intercourse with her, the disease will "stick" to him, while it will not affect
the woman herself nor her own husband. Both the disease and the medicine made to
cause the disease are known as Chipata. Secondarily, the word has come to be used for any
disease which may be gained by sexual intercourse and is sometimes used as a general term
for venereal disease.
Chipata cha chipula (chipula, a knife) : A man who is going away from home obtains
medicine and doctors his knife with it. As he leaves his house to go on his journey, he
pretends just to remember his knife and calls for it. His wife brings it to him and it is put
into its sheath; he then goes out and sticks it in the grass of the roof of the house. The
medicine is made from the tail of a dog, an animal in which coitus is prolonged and the
two animals cannot separate. Should the wife commit adultery, it is supposed that just
as the knife was unsheathed and doctored with dog medicine, so the adulterous pair will
remain fixed in coitu and be found out. This may be called chipata cha kutega (kutega =
to set a trap).
The Anyanja make medicine with the same idea, chipata cha kuchera (ku-chera, to
set a trap, Chin.) ; medicine is put round the house and any man crossing the medi
cine and committing adultery with the wife will be trapped. In all cases, the man will
become ill.
Chipata cha miasi, miasi, blood (mwazi, Chin.); disease caused by intercourse with a
menstruating woman. Blood is passed in the urine.
Chipata cha uwou, uwou, pus (mafinya, Chin.) : practically means gonorrhoea.
Chipata cha litonji, litonji, cotton (tonje, Chin.) : the discharge from the urethra resem
bles a thread of cotton; it is supposed that this thread can be pulled out endlessly.
Chipata cha ucheche, ucheche, the white-ants (chiswe, Chin.) : so called when a man passes
whitish-yellow debris in the urine. It is supposed that when he has finished passing water,
white ants rush up the penis and enter the bladder, thus causing the pain which character
izes this affection. The origin of the idea lies in the fact that if one sprinkles water or uri
nates on the ground near white-ant burrows, the ants will come to the surface of the ground
in numbers and make a rustling sound.
1 D. C. Scott, A cyclopedia dictionary of the Mang'anja language, op. cit.
Other hypothetical diseases which are caused by disobedience to custom are mentioned
under various other headings. Kasipa: a disease generally characterized by ulceration of
the legs but in some cases by pains in the back, or loosely used for a variety of symptoms,
is said to be caused by the entry into the body of a worm which lives in water-pools. This
worm which I have had identified is a gordian worm and not known to be parasitic in man.
Luasi: When a man kills another in battle, he will slit open the belly of his victim; other
wise he believes he will sicken with luasi and his own belly will swell up like that of the
corpse when putrefaction sets in. He is supposed also to hunger after more killing and blood.
Likango is the name of a supposed disease which kills off one child after another in a family
when they are about six months old. Congenital syphilis naturally suggests itself but I
have never been able to verify this idea. Likango lya kututa: a supposed disease which
causes the death of the first child when the second is born, the second when the third
is born and so on, whatever the intervals between the births. Each child is said to
push (ku-tuta) the previous one out of this world. Under these circumstances the disease
is ascribed to something wrong with the mother or father and they are examined by a
medicine-woman or medicine-man, and any carunculae or an external pile found will be
cut away.
If a snake inflicts two bites, the case will prove fatal. If a crocodile emits a grunting
sound when seizing its victim, though he escape he will certainly die.
Treatment of disease. Of surgical treatment there is very little to be noted. Nothing in
the way of operation is performed with the exception of circumcision (see Lupanda).
An abscess is allowed to burst, the smallest tumor is left untouched, but accessory digits
which are not rare, attached only by a fine pedicle, are snipped off.
The natives cannot extract teeth. They are incapable of rendering any assistance in
cases of difficult labor. Dislocations are not recognized as such, but fractures are treated
by the application of wooden sticks placed at intervals round the circumference of the limb
parallel to it and held in position by twisted pieces of bark string (PI. XXII, fig. 3). The
principle of the tourniquet appears to be unknown.
The only instruments used consist of a small knife for incision, a cupping-horn, and a
primitive form of funnel for administering enemata (PI. XXII, figs. 1, 2, 4). The knife has
a triangular blade with a stem which is commonly twisted at one of the corners. The knife
is used for wet-cupping, tatooing, and circumcision (PI. XXII, fig. 2). The cupping-horn
is a small horn of a calf. The apex is pierced and after application to the part, suction is
made with the mouth and then the hole sealed by working a piece of beeswax over it with
the tongue. Six small incisions are made in the skin for the withdrawal of the blood. The
cupping-horn is called chuwi (tulumika, Chin.). Cupping is used for headache and for pain
in the chest and back. The enema funnel, chigolya (ntimbiri, Chin.) is made from the neck
of a gourd to which is attached a hollow straw for introduction into the anus. Half a pint
of an infusion of nungaiu is injected for constipation associated with pain.
Simple incision is practiced for relief of pain or again " medicine " may be introduced
into the wound. Such medicine usually consists of charcoal prepared from various vege
table substances. There is no evidence that any active medicinal principles are involved
and the most that is attained is probably a certain amount of counter-irritation. For pain,
a string is tied tightly round the part; thus for headache one sees a string tied round the
head and doubtless some relief is felt when pressure is made on the temples. A man with
an abscess of the hand or foot will tie a string round the arm or leg, but I have never seen
it so applied as to produce any effect comparable to that of Bier's hyperaemic treatment.
By analogy a string may be worn round the chest for pleuritic pain and by limiting
movement may be effective. In many cases a charm is attached to the string as an
adjuvant.
The use of drugs as such is widespread but I have very little evidence of their efficacy. The
methods of administration are various. The vapor bath is often used. Over a pot of water
in which have been dropped herbs and stones heated in a fire, the patient squats enveloped
in a blanket and is thereby subjected to the action of the medicated steam. This method
is also adopted for exorcism. A case which came recently to my notice was the wife of a
native hospital dresser who, suffering pain in the abdomen, avoided my ministrations and
consulted a female medicine-maker. She was given a vapor bath as above described and
after a few moments, the medicine-woman clapped her on the back and told her to rise.
The old woman plunged her hands into the pot and brought forth some human hair tied
in a piece of calico and a human metacarpal bone. " These are what troubled you," she
said — fee £1 ! This is called ku-logolola, to take evil things out for.
Various powdered barks and leaves are applied to ulcers and appear to have an astrin
gent effect in some cases but the majority seem to go from bad to worse. No other external
applications have been observed except one for scabies. Incision of the skin and insertion
of " medicine " have been mentioned above.
Large numbers of vegetable products are administered by mouth, always in the form
of an infusion or suspension. It is probable that a number of these are really beneficial
but I am not able to speak in detail of their effects. Many astringents are undoubtedly
used for diarrhoea. Herbs containing oil are used for gonorrhoea.
Apart from magic medicine dealt with elsewhere and commonly employed for purposes
outside disease, charms are used for the prevention and treatment of ordinary diseases and
injuries. There are only a few varieties of charms. A vegetable substance, root or stem,
may be worn on a string round the part of the body concerned. Thus one sees a couple
of little pieces of stick, mbiji, on a string tied round the head, round the arm or round the
chest for headache, a whitlow or diarrhoea as the case may be. The medicine may be in
the form of a preparation, generally charred vegetable substances, and is made into a little
packet in leaves and cloth worn most commonly round the neck; it is called katumwa.
Such a charm is supposed to be effective against all ills.
Again, charm medicine may be contained in various articles which are also generally
worn round the neck. The teeth and claws of the beasts of prey are so employed, generally
arranged in pairs bound together so as to form a crescent and suspended from a string.
The teeth of crocodiles, lions, leopards, and the claws of the same beasts and of some large
birds of prey are thus employed. The teeth etc., are in themselves charms against injury,
probably against what one might call homologous injury. The idea of stuffing them with
medicine is probably a secondary consideration, a process of fortification of the charm so
that its use comes to have a more powerful influence. It is interesting to see of late years
that the native, recognizing the decorative value of these crescent-shaped amulets, has
begun to copy them in lead and ivory. A series of these of graduated size is worn as a neck
lace by women.
When a medicine-man is consulted, part payment is made in advance, " payment to
go and dig medicine (roots)." The rest of the payment is made when the cure is effected.
Should a patient not be satisfied with his treatment and wish to consult some other medicine
man, he pays to the first a quarter of the fee he would have paid if his cure had been effected ;
this is called " paying him to get his medicine away." Unless this is done, should he
recover later, he will be liable to claims for full fees from all of the medicine-men he has
consulted; each will say his own medicine has gone on acting and has effected the cure. A
medicine-man may take a case he is treating into his own house.
In prescribing medicine, very particular instructions are given with an embargo on
certain things which may or may not have some use and significance. A medicine-man in
1891 at Malemya's, who inoculated every one in the forehead with bullet proof medicine,
said that no one must step across a mwisi (pestle for pounding grain), and no one must eat
the leaves of the sweet potato.
A medicine-man always partakes of part of the decoction he is giving to a patient to
show that it is harmless; I think these preparations are mostly inactive. I should hate to
sample all the castor oil I have prescribed, though many natives have had suspicions about
me when I have not done so.
Poisons. Though there are a large number of species in this country, both vegetable
and animal, from which poison might be extracted, those that have gained any reputation
among natives and have come under my observation are but few in number. Mwai (Mwabvi
Chin.) "the ordeal poison," is the bark of Erythrophloeum guineaense. The natives distin
guish two varieties of mwai, the two trees differing slightly in leaf, flower and bark; mwai
is the Erythrophloeum guineaense, the second variety known as mperanjilu is doubtless
an allied species. Mwai is the poison employed in the poison ordeal.1 It is administered
in a poisonous dose as a decoction of the bark, recovery or otherwise depending on
whether or not the poison is voided by vomiting. Natives give as the symptoms headache,
giddiness, disturbances of vision, vomiting and purging, with slowing of heart beat. Mper
anjilu is a more deadly poison and is not used in the poison ordeal but is administered with
intent to murder; it is usually given mixed with beer or in porridge. Death is said to be
assured in a few hours. Ligombela: the Yao name of beetles belonging to the genus Myla-
bris, found in large numbers in June and July in the native gardens where they do much
damage to the bean crops. The name is, I think, more especially applied to a species with
yellow bands, those with red markings being said to be harmless. These beetles are pre
pared for poisoning food by frying and then grinding into a powder. In this form, they are
administered with intent to murder or they may be taken for suicidal purposes, five or six
beetles being used. These beetles contain cantharidin in a greater proportion than can-
tharis itself. The symptoms described by the natives as occurring after exhibition are con
stipation followed by high fever, and death eight hours later. This same beetle is known
to other tribes and is the zwezwe of the Anyanja.
The bile of the crocodile, nyongo (ndulu, Chin.); nyongo and ndulu also are used, mean
ing the gall-bladder. Crocodile gall has the reputation of being a powerful poison over
nearly the length and breadth of Africa. It is known, I think, to all the tribes in Nyasa-
land. In this district, they qualify their beliefs by saying that the bile of crocodiles from
Lakes Chilwa and Chiuta which do not eat men is not poisonous. The poison is also said
not to be used on the Lower Shire1 River where, and where only, crocodiles are eaten as food
by the natives. Among the Yao, the gall-bladder is removed with the contained gall,
dried, and then ground in a little mortar or on a stone. The dose of the powder is said to
be as much as would cover a sixpence. Symptoms are said to be great pain in the stom
ach, swelling and discoloration of the tongue, and loss of speech. Public destruction of
the gall-bladder of any crocodile which has been killed is said to be the custom on the West
Coast of Africa, and the same is true of some tribes in Nyasaland as at Kotakota, but so
far as I am aware, this is not done among the Yao.
The gall of other animals is similarly used, but among the Yao I am not quite certain
of the species. Lipiri, the puff-adder, certainly is utilized, and I think other snakes, such
as Nalukukuti, a grey, ash colored snake, Liuyi, a water-snake six feet long, and Songo, the
crowing-snake. Certain lizards are also employed, such as Likwakwala, and frogs, both
Chiula and the running frog, Chiswenene. Scorpions too have found a place among poison
ous preparations, so it is said, and likewise, the bile of some mammals. Bamboo fibre,
animal hair, the bones of fish, and ground glass, I have also heard mentioned as being ad
ministered with the desire to produce a fatal enteritis.
Pupal cases made of twigs and the contained pupa (species of the family of Psychidae)
called chitemangu or chitema ngwi (from ku-tema, " to cut " and ngwi, " fire-wood ") are
said when eaten by cattle to cause death. I cannot vouch for the truth of this nor can I
say whether they are ever given to man.
A wild yam, miuu (malapa, Chin.) is poisonous if not well boiled and the water thrown
away, but is not used as a poison so far as I know. The same is true of ngunga, a kind
of cassava.
Strophanthus is specially reserved for poisoning arrows and it is doubtful if it is ever
given by mouth; Kombe is the name used in this country, but there are two species of
strophanthus in Nyasaland, Strophanthus kombe and Strophanthus courmonti. The seeds
and bark are used and, less commonly, the root. They are mixed with the roots of a
shrub called Nchazimba, pounded together and boiled, and the liquid used to anoint
the arrows. The use of poisoned arrows is a Manyanja custom adopted to some extent
by the Yao.
A number of poisons are also employed in catching fish, Ngunga and Mtutu being the
most common, also Kamsimbile Ngachi (Nkadzi, Chin.), and Chinyenye.
Witchcraft. In my article on the Anyanja,1 reference is made to witchcraft and mfiti.
Beside the Nyanja mfiti or the Yao msawi, all tribes as far as I know in Nyasaland have
firmly fixed among their beliefs, the conception of the supernatural, human-flesh eater.
It is a little difficult to define the term mfiti or msawi, as it has come to have the somewhat
generalized sense of one who practices witchcraft, but the original meaning is defined by
Scott,2 a person who has acquired the knowledge of occult medicine by which he can kill
his fellow men; " what makes the power so dreaded is not that the mfiti exercises this
power for reasons of spite but (as is supposed), to eat the body of his victim." It is at once
interesting to note that the word mfiti does not belong, according to Scott, to the personal
class of nouns but to the ya-za class, which seems to imply that they believe a mfiti to be
something outside the idea of a person. Among the Anyanja in Zomba district, however,
the word belongs to the first class of nouns (the personal class) as also does msawi in
Chiyao.
The natives believe that any man in a village may be a mfiti or it |might be more correct
to say, is capable of changing into a mfiti. Ufiti is the state of being a mfiti; in Chiyao,
usawi.
As I have pointed out under Diseases, practically all illness and death are thought to be
due to the machinations of some person or persons. The inciting motive which may cause
a man to compass the death of another may be spite, revenge, etc., or the desires of usawi.
Until recent years, when the Government legislated to put down witchcraft, the charges
of usawi were everyday occurrences. Whether or not the prevalence of the idea of cannibal
ism has any substance in correspondingly frequent practice has never been and now prob
ably never will be surely proved. Duff Macdonald believes it to be so.3 It is true that
native graves have been and are still rifled and that the graves of some Europeans have
been so opened in the past, as I have learned from eyewitnesses. It seems probable that
the graves were tampered with by natives with the object of removing the human remains,
possibly to be eaten or to obtain portions of the body to use as charms. Mr. L. T. Moggridge,
1 ' Notes on some tribes of British Central Africa,' op. cit., p. 302.
» Op. cit., p. 345.
* Africana, op. cit., vol. 2, p. 213-214.
294 HARVAED AFRICAN STUDIES
Resident Magistrate at Blantyre, told me of a case where the grave of a well-known Euro
pean hunter was opened and his trigger finger removed, the reason being obvious. The
same thing is said to have occurred in regard to the heart of a brave man. In the former
case the finger was probably worn as a charm; in the latter, the heart partly eaten and
partly made into medicine. I have found human fingers and skulls among the outfits of
witch-doctors. Such practices seem akin to those of cannibalistic societies found in other
parts of Africa.
The natives insist that wasawi are banded together in some sort of society. There are
numerous discrepancies in the evidence brought forward about usawi, but such would
necessarily arise and they do not, therefore, disprove the general belief in the actuality of
usawi. Be that as it may, it seems probable that though there may be little or no cannibal
ism at the present day, the beliefs about usawi have arisen in consequence of common
cannibalistic practices in the past. There are individual cases of cannibalism well known
and one has only to call to mind that of Kamtukule of Malemya's village. This man more
or less openly killed and ate a number of people. On one occasion after a fight, he was seen
looking over the dead bodies of the slain foes and in answer to an enquirer, he denied that
he wanted any spoils but said he was just marking the bodies, " that would be his share."
Later on, his own son, who tells the story, brought an Angoni man into the village who
wished to settle under Malemya. It was evening, so he was introduced into his father's
(Kamtukule's) house where Kamtukule gave him food and later a mat on which to sleep,
the son meanwhile having gone to a beer drinking. In the morning, he returned to take
his Angoni friend to the chief, but his father said he had gone away. Entering the hut, how
ever, the son came upon the Angoni's snuff-box, and said to his father, " No Angoni would
go away and leave his snuff-box." But the father said, "Well, he has gone." The lad being
suspicious again went into the hut and found the place where the Angoni had been sleeping
drenched with blood. Going out again, he noticed blood dripping through the bottom of
Kamtukule's grain-store and looking inside, he found the body.
This man Kamtukule was a great friend of the reigning Malemya's headwife, Kung'-
ando; after the death of Malemya and after his wives had passed to the present Malemya,
circumstances arose in the village which cast suspicion on Kamtukule and the woman.
One of two brothers was ill and, it appeared afterwards, that the woman had said to Kam
tukule, "Won't you finish him off?" It is supposed that Kamtukule thought she meant the
brother who was not sick; for it so happened that both died the same night. It was sup
posed they were killed in order that Kamtukule and the woman, his friend, might eat
them. Malemya had the woman turned out of the village. She now lives near Zomba and
has once come under my care. The man, who was also turned out, took up his abode near
a highway where he is reported to have killed several Angoni porters whom he said he pre
ferred, because "being travellers far away from their homes, no one would bother about
them."
The father of one of my servants helped to clear out the remains of a body from his
grain store on one occasion and shortly afterwards, it is supposed that his own sons who
had said they could not allow it to go on any longer, employed some one to kill him, as he
was found, one day, with his head smashed in. There are, I believe, a number of similar
cases known.
A person is supposed to gain the powers of usawi by procuring medicine from some one
willing to sell his secrets at a price, and by performing certain rites usually connected with
his method of bathing. It is said that " such and such a one takes his bath on the top of
an ant hill" or "on the roof of his house by moonlight." The usual initiation into usawi
is a long business, the individual being successively initiated into all the various practices
of ukoma, the supernatural. Medicines are made from a still-born .child, from various plants,
from the hyaena, etc., and used for preparing the individual in the new science. He is in
troduced to the hyaena, the fox, etc. It is also asserted that a man may acquire super
natural powers by having sexual intercourse with a near relative, a sister or mother. I
have had pointed out to me an old man who is said to have wished thus to acquire power
but the women refused and he has been a laughing-stock ever since.
On one occasion, a man related to me the pathetic life story of his attempt to find his
favorite sister who, like himself, had been taken away to the coast as a slave. In despera
tion he has adopted the above procedure to try to gain supernatural powers to help him
but without result. It would therefore seem to be a method not particularly associated
with usawi.
The msawi is supposed to bring about the death of his victim not by administering poison
or other such direct means, but by the more subtle mode of making medicine " against "
him. When the victim has succumbed and is in due course buried, the msawi arrives at
the grave to secure that for which he has been working. To the msawi is attributed the
power of making himself invisible, and of taking the form of an animal; owing to the
carrion-eating habits of the hyaena, this animal form is most commonly taken. Other
animal forms which are associated with the msawi are the leopard, the fox, and the owl,
all night-going animals. The Yao say, " The cry of the fox (jackal) is heard at night be
cause he associates with usawi doings."
Arrived at the grave after sunset, the msawi blows his horn, the horn of a small ante
lope, to call his brethren ; a fire with a blue flame is made by the grave and around it they
dance, or the grave may be illuminated by blue flame without a visible fire. The msawi calls
upon the deceased to rise from the grave, addressing him by the name he bore before he was
initiated, i.e. his child-name. Obeying the summons, the dead man rises to the surface of
the ground, though how he comes out is not quite clear — " the hole may be ever so small."
The risen dead is then killed again by magic medicine and his body divided to be eaten by
the congregation of wasawi. It is said that the skull is made into a gourd, the eyes are used
as beads, and the ribs formed into a girdle.
A msawi may be met with under different circumstances. An educated native told me
of his experience one night when riding a bicycle back to a township where he was employed.
Coming along a smooth-hoed path with his lamp alight, he became aware of the presence
of something in the bush in front and at the side of him. Suddenly his lamp was smashed
and he was left in darkness, while something pushed him over so hard that he fell off his
cycle. Picking himself up, he started to wheel his cycle on, when there appeared on the
path in front, figures who, rubbing their hands together to produce a phosphorescent glow,
held them up in front of the boy's face. He was, however, not molested further, and coming
to a group of huts he knew, he went in and made inquiries as to the cause of his experi
ences and was promptly told that there was a man living in a hut near the spot on the path
where they had occurred who was supposed to be msawi. Such a story is given for what it
is worth. The boy was about twenty-two years old, a highly educated native with an intel
ligent appreciation of the worth of superstition.
Some wasawi demonstrations can have no object but to strike terror and keep up the
prestige of the msawi class. Mr. Moggridge wrote me, " A boy of mine was certainly
attacked and squeezed about the neck by a man whom he described as naked, huge, and
slightly luminous, on the road at the back of my house in Blantyre. The boy was strolling
up and down in the dusk and had nothing about him to provoke robbery; he was almost
choked before he managed to let out a yell which determined his assailant to let him go.
He was not a local boy and no theory of personal spite was supportable. I thought and
still think that the motive was to show that even the Resident's servant twenty yards from
the Resident's house was not safe from usawi." It seems possible that some natives with
intent to rob had pretended to be wasawi but recognizing that their victim was likely to
cause trouble, they went no further.
It is said that the phosphorescence is produced by rubbing in the hands two vegetable
substances from local trees and that this is the method the wasawi adopt to announce their
presence.
Poison Ordeal. As I have said above, when anyone sickens or dies, the illness or death
is likely to be considered the work of some one who is msawi, and action will be taken by the
relatives to find him out. The proceedings in such a case where witchcraft is suspected will
now be briefly sketched; though I give an account of a case from beginning to end as if
it occurred at the present time, it must be understood that the giving of mwai, the ordeal
poison, is now much less common than formerly. A man becomes ill in some village and does
not get better, so the caster-of-lots is consulted. The sick man's relatives or friends go to the
lot-caster and approach the subject indirectly by asking him his advice about a number
of imaginary cases; they may say, " Things have been stolen from our house." The lots
are cast and the caster replies, " No, you have not come to see me about that." This may go
on for hours before the facts of the case proper are mentioned to him. Finally, they tell
him that one of their relatives is ill in the village, the lots are consulted and advice is given
as to procuring medicine for him from a medicine-man. If the caster of lots is suspicious that
some one has caused the illness, he will at the same time add, " Let so and so pray," men
tioning the name of the man whom he suspects. Following the advice given, the medicine
man is consulted. He promises to get medicine for the sick man and goes into the forest
to search for it. Having returned, he prepares his decoctions and having first partaken
of a little himself, he gives it to his patient with further instructions. The friends of the
sick man having returned to the village, indirectly ask the man on whom suspicion has
been cast to pray for the sick man saying, " He is covered by some spirit." The man prays,
sometimes using mbepesi and beginning chonde! chonde! "please! please!" and goes on to
ask Mlungu to take away the spirit which has covered the sick man, adding that he himself
is innocent of any ill doing against the man and that any grudge he may have had against
him is now forgotten.
If the sick man recovers, well and good, but should he die, there is more to be done.
The morning following the burial, the relatives go to the chief and in answer to his inquiry
of what they are going to do, they say they must again consult the caster-of-lots. They
will choose some one who lives a long way off and is not cognizant of the death of their
relative : those who go to him have not been shaved after the funeral. Much the same business
is gone through as on the first occasion but, in the end, the caster-of-lots is told that they sus
pect some one unknown to have brought about the death of their relative. The names of
all the possible persons are given, the lots cast in each case and, eventually, one is picked
out as the guilty man; the caster-of-lots saying, " If I am not telling the truth, you can
test my words by giving mwai (ordeal poison) to a fowl; if it does not die, come back and
break up all my properties."
He may have gained information from his lots that the suspect is a man of power gained
by some special rite, e.g. the midnight bath on the ant hill, in which case he will insist that
the fowl poison-ordeal must take place on an ant hill or he will give other specific instruc
tions. On the way back, the relatives will buy two fowls; mwai will be prepared by a boy
who has not passed through his initiation ceremonies, and two of the party will be chosen
as pleaders, one for the deceased, the other for the accused. One fowl is then selected to
represent the accused and the poison administered according to the conditions laid down
by the lot-thrower, while the two pleaders give injunctions to it, one saying, " You are
guilty; you shall die "; the other, " You are innocent and you shall show your innocence
by vomiting the poison and recovering." If the fowl dies, a third man cuts off its head,
saying, " I am the burier of the dead." Mwai is then administered to the second fowl to
ascertain whether any other persons are involved. The head of the first fowl is singed,
stuck on a stick and carried back with the party towards their village. A little way out
side, they halt in the bush, and send word to the headman that they are returning. He
then comes out privately to see them, asking what has happened, and is told all the events
in sequence.
One of the group is chosen to go in the morning and summon some one to appear on
behalf of the accused man. He and the headman join the party in the bush when the whole
of the case from the beginning of the deceased's illness, is again related, ending with the
fowl test and dramatic statement of the name of the accused, whereupon the fowl's head on
its stick is planted in the ground opposite to the man who has appeared for him as he
squats listening to the story. The man who has been called to defend the accused, though
the latter may have no particular claim on his kindness, is in honor bound to do his best.
As the fowl's head is planted opposite him, he will shift quickly to one side, protesting the
innocence of the accused. All then adjoum to the village to put the case before the chief.
One of the men acts as prosecutor, again going through the whole case, calling witnesses
and others to aid him in speaking. The accused is then defended by the man chosen for
the purpose, assisted by others whom he asks to help him. They may speak for a week or
more. The chief decides the case, and the result will be communicated to the defendant
by his pleader.
If he is found guilty of causing the death of the deceased, he must pay the fine inflicted
or if he has been accused actually of usawi, he may have to undergo, or may offer to undergo,
the mwai ordeal poison himself or the test may be made with a dog tied to the leg of the
accused man. If the ordeal is satisfactory to the defendant, the man claims compensation
for wrongful accusation. If he dies with mwai, his relatives have to pay compensation for
the crime he is thereby shown to have committed.
If either party is dissatisfied with the chief's decision, recourse may be had to a hearing
before another chief, the first being very glad to be rid of the case. The second gives judg
ment quickly. If the case goes on to a poison-ordeal, a day is fixed and the accused is taken
out to some spot two or three miles from the village where a hut is built called ndawo
(place of torture). Accompanied by the two pleaders, he remains here for several days.
People from the village come out and attempts are made to make him confess any ac
complices; beans are fried over a fire and when very hot are put into the accused's hands
and his fists closed over them, or theyare put in a cloth which is fastened round the perineum,
or bamboo sticks are arranged one on either side of the head and tightened by a string.
The third day, natural undyed bark-cloth is obtained and men go out to fetch the mwai
poison, two men from each party, the prosecutors and the defendants. One man sent
by the prosecutor has actually to take the bark from the tree, while the others look on to
see fair play. The bark can only be taken from the east or west side of a tree; it may not
be cut with a knife or axe or be pulled off, but must be cut with a stone and allowed to fall;
only a piece which falls with the inner surface lying upwards is taken. Any of the party
may carry it but they must on no account leave one another. Having returned, they hide
the mwai.
On the appointed day, the big drum is sounded and a crier goes round saying that every
one who wants to see so and so drink mwai must go to the appointed place. Every large
village had its regular place of torture and mwai drinking, two or three miles from the
village. Those used by Malemya, the old Zomba chief, may still be seen.
A clear way is made two feet broad and fourteen feet long in the bush and here the
accused takes up his position attended on either side by the two pleaders, the defending
pleader on the right, the prosecuting on the left. Facing east or west or following the direc
tions originally given by the caster-of-lots, that is, taking up the position in which the
accused is supposed to take a midnight bath, or practice some rite under a tree or an ant
hill, etc., he is given a decoction of mwai to drink from a gourd. This decoction is made on
the spot, the bark being pounded up on a stone by one of the prosecutors. The accused
must have had no food that day. He then starts to walk up and down the short cleared
path with the two men, one on either side of him, the one saying, " Now you have drunk
mwai, you shall die as you deserve; you did in So-and-So," the other denying the accusa
tions, saying, " He shall vomit the poison." He is watched by the assembled crowd who
note the various symptoms of which vomiting is the first and said to be the most character
istic. After this has gone on for some time, they watch for what is called the nyongo which
is said to be " a ball of bile formed in the mouth and expelled by vomiting so that it bursts
on reaching the ground but not before ", followed often by a second ball, twenty minutes
later. Should this be expelled, recovery may be expected, foreshadowed by clearing of the
vision. If he recovers, he is indeed a wonderful man and is hailed on all sides. The women
trill with their tongues and shout, and he is carried back in triumph; the defending pleader
will swagger about and demand anything he wants for his client.
A fatal termination is characterized by little and non-forcible vomiting. Purging is
common but said to be painless. Vision is affected and as time goes on, the spectators
ask what he can see, " Do you see that over there? " indicating a hill. If he makes mistakes,
then they say, " Ah, he is going to die! "
The poison may not take full effect for three or four hours. The end is ushered in by a
last stage when the legs become weak; he staggers, then unable to stand any longer, falls
to the ground dead, execrated by the onlookers who rush in and hurl stones upon the body,
crushing it. The relatives take the mangled corpse and lay it on logs covered with grass in
the bush. No other covering is permitted. It may be placed in a tree by people acting as
awilo. Burial is forbidden.
In some cases wasawi used to be burned, not being given the chance of the poison trial.
This took place at a recognized spot like ndawo. The last man to be burned by Malemya
was Mtulula in 1892. Burning was also a punishment in some bad cases of murder. Such
was the fate of Chingale. The man was put in a slave-stick, a pile of logs was built round
him and then set on fire.
Witch-finder. In addition to ordeal poison, another method of discovering a msawi is
by " smelling out." If a number of people have died in a certain village, the inhabitants
may begin to think that there is a msawi among them, and procure the services of a mbisalila.
Mbisalila is a Chinyanja word from ku-bisa, " to hide," referring to his custom of hiding
in the village; the practice is originally Mang'anja, since adopted by the Yao. Mbisalila
is often a woman and may be young.1 She comes to stay in the village unknown to the
people, lives in a watch house in the gardens and is said to go about at night when she is
able to summon msavri persons from their houses. The fee for her services is paid before
hand. Later, the villagers are assembled and going round the company holding out flour
in her hand, she calls upon So-and-So as the guilty man saying, " This is his ' night-name.' "
The villagers all answer, " There is no one of that name in the village." She then goes
round again and throwing the flour over the accused, utters his ordinary name and runs
off into the bush, not to appear again. The accused may then offer to take mwai (ordeal
poison) to prove his innocence or if it is a case of illness only and not death, he may be
treated by a medicine man, the process being called ku-logolola, "to take evil things
out of."
A msavri man is sometimes said to renounce his old practices and may then be received
into the company of mbisalila. A famous mbisalila near Zomba affirms that he used to be
msavri. The mode of action of mbisalila varies greatly with different men; for some the
ceremony is quite a minor matter; in other cases, it is an important affair.
Witch-destroyer. Where death is suspected to have resulted from usawi, steps may be
taken immediately to catch and kill the msavri. For this purpose, the help of the mundu
juaseketela is sought. Ku-seketela means " to break off the end of a stick "; it appears to
be both a Chinyanja and a Chiyao word. The word refers to the practice of the profes
sional witch-killer who is supposed to run a stick through the anus up the bowel of his
victim and then break it off, leaving part inside. The juaseketela having been informed of
the approaching funeral hides in the bush near the graveyard and watches the interment.
After everyone has gone, he is free to put in operation that for which he has been called.
The following modus operandi is related of a celebrated mundu juaseketela called Angoni
of Zomba. The water in which the corpse had been first washed was obtained and put in
an earthenware dish. He also provided himself with a gourd containing medicines and some
stones, and another gourd filled with poison made from crocodile gall to anoint the seketela
sticks. He also had a small antelope's horn containing medicine which when smeared on
the head rendered him invisible, together with the stalks of a species of millet called mbalwe
which sheds its grains at a touch, and a whistle made from the horn of a small antelope, the
oribi.
So provided, he proceeded to the grave, around which he drew a ring with medicine con
tained in still another horn. Within this circle, all was safe. This was followed by a square
immediately around the grave with a stone from the gourd placed at each side, north,
south, east and west. The plate of water was placed on top of the grave. The mundu
juaseketela then anointed himself with the medicine which made him invisible to the mswai
1 Cf. Scott, op. cit., p. 299.
and sitting within the circle, he blew his whistle which was irresistible to the mswai man
who was then induced to come out of his house. When he had reached the grave, the water
was sprinkled over him by the juaseketela with the millet stalk from the dish on the grave,
or he was struck with the gnu's tail; in either case, he fell to the ground senseless. He was
then ready to be dealt with. The seketela sticks, small bamboos filled with crocodile poison,
were pushed up the anus and broken off to liberate the poison. Sticks might also be in
serted behind the ear or in various other spots. The mswai was then beaten to wake him
up; he ran off to his own village and there, a little later, he sickened and died, telling no
one the cause. After death, the awilo when preparing the corpse of the hitherto unsuspected
mswai, might find the end of the stick projecting from the anus or see the punctures
elsewhere with the medicine adhering to them, and the man was revealed in his true
colors.
At Mtwiche's village, there was a man called Liunga who professed to be able to extract
the poison injected by the juaseketela by causing his patients to undergo a vapor bath and
to drink certain decoctions. This man would never reveal the name of anyone who came
to him for treatment but would brag that " trade was brisk." The symptoms of the mortal
malady caused by the seketela are said to be intestinal obstruction with tremendous disten
tion of the abdomen (peritonitis).
Of this same village, a story is told which, if not true, at all events illustrates the sort
of thing that is believed. As has been mentioned above, whenever the juaseketela blows
his little horn, any wasawi will hear it and thinking it is one of their band calling, will go to
meet him. A woman of this village told how she and her husband were sitting over the
fire while the evening meal was cooking, when he suddenly jumped up and said he must
go outside for a bit. She remonstrated and asked him to wait for his food, but he hurried
off. Later he returned, complaining of feeling very ill ; his belly swelled up and he died soon
after. It was said that this man was very friendly with a woman named Abibi and that
when he went out into the bush, he was heard calling in a low voice, "Is that you, Abibi?"
When his body was examined, two punctures were found on the left side of the chest. It
was supposed that it was Abibi he expected to meet and with her enjoy a cannibalistic
repast, whereas it was a juaseketela who had called and killed him.
This brief outline of a case of sickness, suspicion of witchcraft, death, and the consulta
tion with the caster-of-lots, the witch-finder, ordeal poison, death, and the catching of the
cannibal witch, has been given as a more or less consecutive story in order that it may be most
easily understood. Some further details concerning the lot-caster, witchcraft, etc., must
be added.
Lot-casting. Medicine men who cast lots were at one time fairly plentiful and were con
sulted on many matters, often of small importance from a European point of view. Chief
of all were questions of witchcraft. The modus operandi varied in different cases. In usawi
and other important matters, the medicine man always used the chisango (divining in
strument). These were of various types but the most usual was made of a gourd, chitumba,
called ndumba,1 containing a number of small articles, each of which had some special name
and if it appeared in the casting, a special significance. Among these articles are:
(a) Achikaiekale; small pieces of broken white earthen-ware. These have the signifi
cance of whiteness, cleanness, innocence, or answers in the negative to questions as to any
particular person having done some action.
(b) Chiwamsagaja; the body of one of those beetles which feign death. This indicates
death in answer to the question asked. Chiwamsagaja is the name of the beetle.
(c) Ugono; a small piece of a sleeping-mat, signifying illness.
(d) LiwaU; a small piece of stick or grass.
(e) Or Mawale the plural; little pieces of stick, said to indicate that the people have
previously consulted some other diviner, whose findings are called for by the man who is
then casting lots.
(J) Msengo; the horn. For convenience the small horn of a guapi is used. It indicates
witchcraft, referring to the fact that witches like medicine men are supposed to keep
their medicines in horns.
(g) Ngoleka; the coiled tendril of a vine, indicating a dispute, etc.
The lots are cast, and according to the disposition of the various articles, an interpreta
tion is given in answer to the question put to the instrument.
Chipendo (plur. ipendo) is the word used in referring to instruments used for divination
in minor cases and several of these are usually included in a diviner's kit. They may be
called chisango.
1. A small heap of flour or ashes is raised and any article, such as a knife or a piece of
stick is flipped towards it; interpretation is based on the direction taken by the article
flipped.
2. A small tortoise shell filled with medicine propelled by a feather stuck in one end is
similarly used, and is called chisango cha ngongo; 2
3. A horn and feather may be used in the same way.
4. The stuffed skin of a weasel, chindindi (likongwe, Chin.) is also used, in the same way
as gologolo, the squirrel.8
On February 4, 1914 at Zomba I witnessed Chiunganire of Chapita village, a Manganja
man, use a small outfit for divining, consisting of: (1) A small oribi horn in a gourd with
pieces of stick (PI. XVI, figs. 3, 5); (2) a piece of bamboo matting with a horn fixed on
each end of the strip called chisango cha ugono (Pl. XVI, fig. 2) ; (3) medicine in a gourd
(PI. XVI, fig. 1); (4) a rattle (PI. XVI, fig. 4). He commenced by taking these things out
of his bag and dusting them by rubbing in his hands. The gourd cup was cleaned out with
his finger and spit into. The horn was spit upon, rubbed in the hands, and anointed with
1 Stannus, ' Notes on some natives of British Central Africa,' PI. XXVII, fig. 4.
« Ibid., PI. XXVI, fig. 2. » Ibid., p. 304 and PI. XXVI, fig. 9.
medicine from the gourd by means of a stick ; then placed at the forehead, point forwards,
held for a second at each armpit, and finally rubbed over in the hands again. The cup was
similarly anointed, especially the edge, and rubbed in the hands, as were the horns on the
cha ugono. All this was done with great precision and evidently in definite order, each
article being laid on the ground in turn, and the string of matting rolled up. Four pieces
of reed of a size that would lie over the mouth of the gourd cup overlapping the edges about
an inch were then selected from among others and set ready on the ground. The rattle
was treated with medicine from the same gourd. The horn was placed in the gourd by the
operator, point upwards and lying towards himself, as he held the gourd by its body in
the palm of his left hand, the handle towards him. Shaking the rattle in the right hand,
he constantly muttered to the chisango " to tell him truly," " to answer his questions," and
so on. By slight movements of his left arm which were well disguised but quite easily
perceptible to the watcher, he could make the horn assume the erect position in the gourd
and then fall backwards or forwards or to either side. The first position indicates " all is
well," "nothing need be done"; the second means "there is trouble," "some one is talk
ing at the village," " there is a case to be settled." These answer questions put to it by
the owner who is being consulted about some case of illness, etc.
Another method of divining is with the horn in position as before mentioned and the
four pieces of stick set across the mouth of the gourd touching one another, the ends pro
jecting at the sides. The operator is able to make the horn appear to force off all the sticks
without moving the gourd, or he can make any number of the sticks tumble into the gourd,
and repeat the performance. If they fall off, it means a good day to go on a journey; if
they fall in, the journey should be postponed.
The chisango cha ugono is held similarly in the left hand by the middle so that two wings
are formed, each with the weight of a horn at the end. The caster-of-lots is able by almost
imperceptible movements to make the two wings open and fall away from each other or
swing together, and together partly roll up. When they fall apart wide open, it is an in
dication that all will be well; when they close, death may be expected. The gourd and horn
and this chisango cha ugono form a pair which are called female and male.
Chipendo cha mbingu: mbingu is a word relating to omens in regard to journeys. Thom
Cheonga told me that he remembers as a boy, when his father was going on a journey, he
would take some pieces of root, moisten them in his mouth, and stick them on the wall of
the hut. These pieces of root were daily watched by Thorn's mother, as unaided they
gradually took up a position lower and lower on the wall until they reached the ground.
Then she knew that her husband had safely reached his destination.
Omens may be told in yet another way, chisangu cha kuwecheta (ku-wecheta, to speak).
Ndumba is put in an empty house and the medicine man and his clients sit outside. The
medicine man is asked some question which he puts to the ndumba which then answers
like an oracle. I have never seen this done but my native informants tell me the voice that
speaks is invariably nasal in character and Chinyanja is the language always used. It is
doubtless a case of what we should call ventriloquism. The custom is evidently of Mang'anja
origin but in great favor with the Yao.
Divination also plays an important part in tracing thieves or stolen property or in pick
ing out from a number of people anyone guilty of some crime. Several modes of procedure
may be adopted. The chisango called ndumba may be used as the chisango cha chipeta
(chipeta, a kind of basket). Medicine in the form of certain roots is placed on the ground
and covered by the inverted basket on which is placed the ndumba. Each person in turn
is requested to lift the basket and the guilty one is at once revealed by his inability to
budge the basket off the ground. This method may even be used to reveal a man guilty
of usawi.
Other methods of divination include a kind of trial by ordeal somewhat similar to a
boiling water ordeal. Kaundula (from ku-undula, to tramp round, referring to the pere
grinations made in search of what is lost, or namlonda, the Chinyanja word from ku-londa,
to follow on the footsteps of) is the name of the witch-doctor who searches for stolen
property or traces the thief. The same man may be called mabvurnbula in Chinyanja (from
ku-vumbula, to reveal) when he uses his instrument to detect in a crowd the person
guilty of some crime. The kaundula uses the horn of a kudu stuffed with appropriate
medicine, the actual mise en schne and methods adopted varying somewhat with different
practitioners. The practice I believe to be a Mang'anja one and I think most of the operators
were Anyanja men and not Yao, though the Yao, as with other customs, adopted the sys
tem fully. In my district, the kaundula was usually armed with a rattle; when the horn
indicated the guilty individual, he intimated the fact to the assembled crowd by throwing
flour over him.
When a search is to be made for stolen property, the horn is put into the hands of four
men, alternate men pressing down and pulling up on the long horn, while the medicine man
stands by, operating his rattle and exhorting the horn to do its work of revelation. I know
a man who has on several occasions assisted in holding the horn; he said it simply seemed
to drag him on in a series of jerky movements, sometimes going very fast, at other times
moving slowly, dragging the holders " along the footsteps of the thief with the stolen goods "
in and out of the house, through the bush, and across streams, until suddenly the horn
dropped from their hands to the ground, where on digging, the stolen goods were found
buried. (Cf. table turning, planchette, etc.)
A good description of kaundula under the headings mabvumbula and namlondola is given
by Garbutt,1 who describes the Mang'anja operators. In this same article, he makes the
mistake of describing as mabisalila, the juaseketela. As I have stated above, the juase-
ketela is an order of medicine men who trap the man who is an msawi while in the msawi
state, but the mbisalila points him out while he appears as an ordinary man of the village.
1 H. W. Garbutt, ' Native customs in Nyasa,' (Man, London, 1912, vol. 12, p. 35-40).
Witch-medicine. The making of medicine against people has been shown to occupy
an essential place in warn, and it plays an important part in all occultism. So by insensible
grades, the ordinary use of drugs in common diseases is reached, though it is probable that
very much greater faith is placed in a packet of burnt roots put under the floor of the house
than in the efficacy of any concoction taken by mouth.
There is a general belief that by medicine extra ability verging into supernatural power
can be acquired. This power in a general sense is represented by the word ukoma and a man
so possessed is spoken of as mundu jua komala. The desire for increased power may be a
perfectly natural one, such as a desire for influence and popularity as a chief, or on the other
hand, the power of usawi may be aimed at, or again, the knowledge of magic medicine for
thieving or for any other practice. Ukoma is, therefore, a relative matter. The necessary
medicine or initiation into the understanding of magic can be purchased from persons
already practitioners, the honest herbalist merging by imperceptible degrees into the most
criminal witch-doctor. A single practitioner may prescribe a charcoal dressing for an
ulcer, exorcise an evil spirit by a vapor bath, sell medicine to enable the buyer to win a
case at court, arrange medicine on a pathway to act as a selective love potion, or prescribe
a drug to change a man into a lion.
Deserving of special mention are the people who thieve by the aid of medicine which
they have either purchased or prepared themselves. Such a man is called chitaka and the
medicine mtela wa chitaka. The active principle of this medicine is said to be prepared
from the tail of a hyaena, an animal which is said to be able to enter a house where people
are sleeping and kill and carry off the fowls without waking the occupants. The medicine
is often carried in a hyaena's tail. The chitaka is supposed to approach the house he would
rob and chewing some medicine in the mouth, gently blow towards it to put everyone to
sleep. The door is supposed to unfasten itself and the thief is free to take what he wishes.
He is even said to kill, cook, and eat food in the house while the inmates remain unconscious.
A special characteristic of the chitaka is that whatever he lays his hands on in the house he
must remove, though he does not want it, so that in the morning many unwieldy, useless
objects may be found outside the hut.
There are many other magic medicines. One of these, luunga, if introduced into a vil
lage, will cause the illness and death of some inmate. Anyone handling the body of the
sick man or the corpse after death, sickens and dies until the whole village is wiped out.
There is a man serving a life sentence now at the Central Prison, Zomba, who was convicted
of having caused the death of many people in a village in Angoniland. He is said cheerfully
to have admitted the power of his medicine.
Medicine made from a cousin is supposed to be efficacious in various ways. The blood
of a cousin is instilled into the ear for otorrhoea. Drinking the water which has been used
by a cousin to wash his face relieves intestinal colic. Medicine is made from the hairs of
the beard of a cousin or from an mbilo and used for chest trouble.
Mpasi is a love potion. Men are often anxious that women should ask them for love
(kiirpala). A man seeing a woman whom he fancies, takes up some of the dust where
she has trodden and mixing this with medicine puts it in his hair. If [he meet her again,
though he takes no notice of her, she will come to him.
When crops are harvested, a layer of the cereal is laid at the bottom of the corn-store,
and umba, which consists of medicines contained in the skull of or made from the body of
a still-born infant, is then put in and the store filled. In this way, he who has only a small
garden may be sure that his grain will last a long time. Similar medicine is put in gardens
with the first rains to insure heavy crops. A man on the approach of the planting season
should never give away seed to anyone until his own seed is put in or it may bring bad
luck to his crop. This is evidently a superstition arising from the fact that if he gives
seed away, he may not have enough left to raise a crop sufficient to support his family.
Some people are considered " lucky at planting pumpkins, other people when they plant,
reap only watery pumpkins." A man, therefore, will often ask one of the lucky people
to plant his pumpkins for him. My hospital boy always got the cook to plant his
pumpkins.
A man wishing to become a person of importance, with a village of his own, takes a
medicine made from a certain tree and then builds his hut in a new place, hoping people will
flock to him. The tree is known as chukamhili. Another medicine, taken in the belief that
people will flock to a man in consequence, is made from the bush called mtola. Cf. litule
planted at the threshold to attract visitors.
Conjuring. There are other performances akin to magic in the eyes of the natives,
which I have never had the opportunity of witnessing but which would appear to be of
the nature of juggling or possibly hypnotism; some resemble the tricks of jugglers; others
are more like some of the performances in India. I naturally supposed that they had been
learned from men at the coast (Zanzibar), but I am assured that they belong to the Yao
themselves.
Kambenje, a Yao of Chiradzulu, well-known at dances and Unyago, after some prelimi
nary dancing, stands still and is covered by a cloth; when the cloth is again removed, he is
discovered with a number of squealing puppies held in his loin cloth, which he then hands
round. He begins to dance again and the persons to whom the puppies have been given
watch him and then find they are holding excrement, not puppies. Or mud-fish are handed
round and the people find they are holding women's diapers.
Another trick often performed by Kambenje was the burial of a man in the ground,
covered up completely with earth; at the sounding of the drums the buried man comes
running in from the back of the watching crowd.
Kasonga, a Yao of Malemya's, priest, and medicine man, after an Unyago ceremony
used to put on his red blanket and walk over the hot embers of an enormous fire in the
village open space. He admitted that he smeared himself with medicine and an eyewit
ness told me that when he put his feet on the hot logs, it caused a sizzling sound.
Tingulingu was another well-known performer; he used to do the same tricks as Kam-
benje. He also was possessed of an elastic skin and is said to have been able "to tie his
ears together behind the back of his head."
Mpechetula, a Yao of Mkanda, is a man with considerable renown. He is said to be able
to produce a lion at will from a lion's tail and claw. He would offer to show this if there
were any brave enough to go through with it. On a moonlight night, he would expose on
the ground in a cleared space near a village the tail of a lion held cross-wise in a piece of
split bamboo. At the split end of the bamboo, he would place a lion's claw and round this, a
woman's belt held in position by three bamboo pegs, around which he would draw a circle
of mbepesi flour. Everyone would then withdraw to a hut in which the seance was to take
place. After an hour or so, Mpechetula would send some one out to inspect the lion's tail
where probably all would be found intact. He might then pretend to be uninterested and
sleepy and suggest that some one should go out again in half an hour. Sooner or later, a
man would come back, having found the tail gone; then everyone would go out to see what
had happened. The pegs would be found in place but the tail and claw gone. A little way
off, the split piece of bamboo would be found and further still a bead or two from the woman's
belt. These, Mpechetula would pick up, and leaving a little trail of flour on their way, all
returned to the hut, while he whistled as if calling some one. Suddenly they would be aroused
by the sound as of a lion brushing against the hut walls, as the beasts are known to do,
and next, a loud roar. Mpechetula would immediately open the door half-way so that the
people could look out into the moonlight and there, a little way off, would be the lion. It
would immediately advance towards the house and then, as it prepared to spring for the
door, Mpechetula would offer it some of the flour in his left hand, armed with a stirring-
stick, mtiko, in his right hand. As the lion landed, he would strike it on the head with the
stick and lo and behold! the lion would vanish and the tail and claw would be found in his
hand.
Superstitions. Scattered throughout these notes, particularly under Usawi and Disease,
mention is made of practices which show a strong belief in superstition. Below are given
a number of minor beliefs, and it is interesting to compare them with many well-known
superstitions in other parts of the world.
1. A child who cuts the upper incisor teeth first will be unlucky. Such children used
to be killed by the Yao. (Other tribes make medicine against the threatened ill-luck.)
2. A woman with polydactylism may not take food out of a corn-store. Otherwise the
stock of corn will not last long. (Rudimentary sixth fingers are not uncommon.)
3. An insect called chisyene mesi which lives in the mud at the bottom of pools, if killed
causes the water to dry up.
4. If a boy puts a water-spider in the armpit when learning to swim, he will learn
quickly.
5. A man wishing to prevent rain falling on a day he is making a journey, will wrap
some of the leaves of the mtomoni tree in his loin cloth and go without drinking.
6. It is believed that signs of guilt are visible in the eye of a murderer; medicine is
procured in the hope of getting rid of these signs.
7. The possession of the hair of another person is supposed to give the possessor power
over that person, hence a medicine man, when the patient he has been treating is cured,
shaves the patient and keeps the hair until payment is made.
8. A native with light greenish-grey eyes is not to be trusted. He is said to have eyes
like a cat and is called majerijeri; these eyes are rare among natives.
9. It is unlucky for a child to get into a basket; he may be burned.
10. Should a woman turn the porridge pot upside down, every one who has eaten will
become constipated. For the same reason, a woman, after turning out the porridge from
the pot, just touches the top of the mass of porridge with the bottom of the pot.
11. A woman will never leave the pounding stick in the grain-mortar. Should she do so»
the heavens would fall.
12. When a zebra is killed, a knot is tied in its tail so that eating of the meat shall not
cause indigestion.
13. It is unlucky to sit upon a headrest, the msamilo. The person would surely be
bitten by a snake.
14. If a man commits murder, and his wife is pregnant at the time, she must sleep on
the spear used.
15. Children are told that they must not eat at night; that if they are hungry, they
must lie quiet and try to go to sleep again. If they don't obey and sit up eating porridge,
a long hairy arm will come through the fastened door and beg for some, the voice of the
unseen saying:
"Nyao chimkiiii'choni nusya ni mjasa!"
"Give me that which you put to your nose to smell and throw away,"
the repeated movements of the hand to the mouth (nose) and back to the pot being sup
posed to make the " bogey " think that they are not really eating but merely smelling and
throwing away the food.
16. A male should not scrape the porridge off the porridge stick; this is only allowed
to the woman. Should a man do so, it is supposed that when he goes hunting, he will hit
anything he shoots at, only in the tail.
17. There is a saying that the men and boys may eat little pieces of porridge which fall
out of the pot, while cooking, on to the supporting stones and it will give them power to
escape unhurt from battle. The fragments are called ngulupuko, (from ku-lupuka " to
escape").
18. Children are instructed to take their food sitting down instead of being in a hurry
and standing to take it. They are told that if they do not obey, their porridge will not go
into their stomachs but into their legs and swell out their knee-joints.
19. That portion of the gut of animals having folds of mucus membrane inside, may
be eaten only by old people past the child-propagating age. If a young woman should eat
it, she would have difficulty in labor.
20. It is believed that people who eat too freely of a little fish like whitebait called
matemba get obstruction of the bowel by the wedging together of the bones. The treatment
adopted is to pass up the rectum a smooth stick with a pad of rag at the end. This cannot
be done by the person himself and so the aid of another has to be called in; only an
intimacy, such as the relationship of brother-in-law gives, will warrant this service being
asked.
21. The Yao believe that there is a little insect which lives in the ear, called chisyene
lipikanilo, which tells the person what is said to him, the wax in the ear being its excre
ment. The pupil is called mwanache jua liso, the child of the eye.
22. Among women, the uterus is called nameso (meso = eyes); it is supposed to be a
little person who holds the foetus. When the child is born, nameso cannot find it and starts
looking about, the movements causing the afterpains.
23. A man making his first journey to the coast used to sprinkle himself with water
from every stream he crossed to give him a safe journey. In the same way, women at the
present day going between Zomba and Blantyre sprinkle their babies with water from
each stream.
24. An ant-like insect called ndupatumba (tumbatumba, Chin.) [dasylabris mephistis]
is lucky. On seeing it a native pats its belly and then rubs his own, wishing for plenty of
food that day. If he is embarking on a journey or beginning some enterprise, he will wrap
one of these insects in a fold of his loin cloth and take it with him for luck.
25. When a native hears the mwiyo bird call (its call is like the mew of a cat), if he
wants something, he immediately says, "Oh mwiyo, I want so-and-so. Be quiet and I will
then be quiet, too!" If the bird ceases calling, he knows the wish will be granted. The
female bird is said to be the more certain prophet.
26. The snake, nalukukuti, which lives in trees and is of a buff clay color with green
markings, is said by natives to pierce the chest and tie a knot in itself on each side so that
it can only be withdrawn by cutting off one knot. When the snake is thus withdrawn, its
blood mixes with that of the man and he will die.
27. Natives have a habit of marking the spot where any event takes place by a stone
by the side of the path, and every passer-by will add a stone for luck. In this way some
large piles of stones have been made.
28. A man resting on his way home from a long journey places a stone in the fork
between the branches of a nearby tree, so that on his arrival he may find his wife has put
by some food for him and has not used up the day's stock of flour.
29. A chameleon found digging in the path is said to presage the death of the finder's
nearest relative.
30. If a chameleon is found holding on to the grass at both sides of the path, the path
is " closed " and a man will turn back to his home and not proceed on his journey. It
would be unlucky to continue.
31. Snakes seen in coitu are a bad omen.
32. The slow-worm known as litumbula masugulu (" the cutter open of ant hills "),
and the scaly anteater, if seen on the path, are of bad import.
33. To knock the toes against a stone on a journey is bad luck; if blood flows from the
big toe, it points to good luck.
34. A man knocking the sole of his foot against a stone knows that some one is speaking
ill of him.
35. A person whose hands itch knows he will receive a present.
36. Tremor of the circumorbital muscles of the right eye indicates that something
good will be seen. When the left eye is affected, the outcome is less sure.
37. The cry of the bird ngulukulu (the green turaco), indicates to the hearer that he is
about to meet some one, either friend or enemy.
38. Anyone who kills one of the large stick-insects (Phasmidae) known as chikasa
chiwiga, will always be breaking the cooking pots afterwards.
39. The natives believe that the caterpillar of the Hippotion osiris moth will jump at
the breast. It is called chisumbila mawele, " that which jumps at the breasts," and children
seeing it will cover up their nipples with their hands.
40. Of Lisulu, the Mongoose, there is a saying:
" Lisulu gapochelangene mbilo! "
" The banded mongooses relieve each other (at) the races! "
It is said that mongooses assist one another when being hunted. When one is tired, a
fresh one runs in so close to the pursuer that he goes after this one and leaves the tired
one, and so they keep it up till the pursuer is exhausted.
41. Chiula, the frog. Children are told they must never kill a frog, or its spirit will come
at night with porridge made of excrement and make them eat it. If a small child playing
with a frog kills it by mischance, he will tear off a small piece of his calico cloth and place
it by the frog as an offering.
42. Chindindi (likongwe, Chin.) the weasel. It is said that the weasel hides its body
and leaves exposed its anus, so that a chicken seeing it, goes up to peck at it, whereupon
the weasel turns round quickly and catches the chicken with its mouth.
43. Chinyeru, the skunk (from ku-nya, to go to stool), so named on account of its
color, is said to apply the anus to a rat-hole and make wind. This will render insensible
all the rats in the burrow and he can then dig them out at leisure.
44. Mkuli, the honey badger, when hunted is always said to attack a man by attempting
to seize the testicles. Natives when they hunt this animal, tie stones in their loin cloths so
that they hang down between the legs to defeat the badger.
45. A child, when one of its milk teeth drops out, stands some five yards away facing
the door of the hut and throws the tooth over the roof of the hut, saying:
" At likungulu lino lyenu alyo, mbani lyangu lyambone 'lyo!"
"Oh! crow tooth your there is, give me my of good one!"
Religion. The matter of the religious beliefs professed by natives of East Central
Africa is one beset with many difficulties to the student of today. It has been the subject
of many essays by workers in the missionary field, but the wide contact of the natives of
Nyasaland with missionary effort during the past thirty years has done much to confuse
the problem, and one feels that many missionaries in their writings rather color the picture
with their own feelings.
I think probably the Yao with whom I am now concerned have a truer conception of
their own beliefs than many of the subject tribes among whom mission teaching has more
easily taken root. The religious beliefs of a people are to a large extent the reflection of
the circumstances under which that people lives. The outstanding event to all natives
is death. At death, something is lost to the body, without which life is impossible. This
is the msimu which may be translated "soul" or "spirit." The msimu is said to leave the
body of the dying man when he becomes moribund or unconscious. It appears that this
same msimu may leave the body during unconscious states unassociated with death, as
when a man faints, in epilepsy, and during sleep.
Apart from this evidence of the dissociation of the msimu from the living body, the
Yao believe that a man's shadow is an objective manifestation of the soul and they will
say " the shadow is the msimu." Fear is experienced if a man jumps on the shadow of his
fellow. Light is also thrown on the constitution of the msimu by the belief in a certain
evil-spirit which dwells in deep pools. It is called chimalomesi, which means " one who
may finish (drink up) all the water." The superstition regarding this evil spirit is that it
can suck the blood from your shadow as you stand at the edge of the pool, till you become
so weak that you fall in and are drowned.
After leaving the body at death, the msimu goes to take up its place in the spirit-world,
occupying a position corresponding to that held by the man during his life. With a truly
materialistic conception, the soul is supposed to have all the attributes of the dead man,
to be wealthy in proportion as the man was so on earth, and its relative position will be
identical with that which he held among the living. The tribal chief becomes a paramount
chief in the spirit world, the lesser chief holds sway in his lesser capacity, etc. We shall
see that in intercession, when the tribe is threatened with calamities, it is the late para
mount chief who is appealed to for help, and when one feudal chief is at war with another,
the chief's dead predecessor will be called upon for aid. When a village is moved, it is from
the spirit of the dead headman of the village that success in the enterprise is sought. Simi
larly, in family trouble, some dead ancestor is entreated to set things right, while a native
setting out on a journey may ask the intercession of his deceased father to assure his safe
conduct.
The spirits of the dead are in general said to dwell " above." They haunt the grave
yard or visit the scenes of their life, and may be associated with natural objects or with
certain animals, into which they are supposed to enter temporarily. Thus a dead man's
spirit will visit the earth mound which marks the site of his old house in the village. The
spirits of headmen are often thought to haunt the big trees of the village open space; such
trees are held sacred for this reason. Some time ago in the old village of the chief, Malemya,
a party of women cut down one of these trees for firewood, ignorant of its sacred character.
With the crash of the falling tree, they became frightened, and one of the present Malemya's
wives came upon the scene, predicting all kinds of evil to follow unless reparation were made
to the insulted spirits of the dead chiefs. The remains of the tree he there to this day,
untouched except by natural decay.
To quote another example, near a bathing pool called jogawali (from ku-joga, to
bathe, and wall, the initiates) where boys bathe after initiation, on the Domasi river,
there is a small cataract whence a cloud of spray rises and a continued rumbling sound
comes forth. Here, the old men say, you can hear the drumming of the spirits, while
you may see pythons and the crowing cobra in whose bodies the spirits live.
As I have already mentioned, the spirit-world so far as the native has speculated on the
problem is " above " in a semi-materialistic heaven. If questioned closely, the phrase " I
do not know " will figure largely in his replies. He will not say there is any " marriage or
giving in marriage." If a child dies, they often say, " So-and-so (some deceased person)
wants a water-carrier." Indeed they often use a phrase under the circumstances identical
with an English expression, " They are calling away the children."
Natives attribute to the spirits of the dead the power to partake of anything on this
earth, such as food. They have no exact ideas with regard to animals and what happens
to them when they die. They will not tell you that an animal has an msimu but at the same
time, a goat is often killed at a funeral, with the remark, "The goat will follow the dead
man." The goat's meat will be eaten by those assisting at the funeral; hence there is the
suggestion of the idea that animals' spirits do go to the spirit-world.
In referring to the spirit-world, the native generally uses the word ku-mulungu, and
here we have the second element in their religious beliefs, namely a supreme being; ku-
mulungu means at the place of or with mulungu, the supreme being. Mulungu, however,
takes a very secondary place to the msimu. He is referred to only in a general way. In
answer to such questions as why has a woman an albino child born to her, she will say
" Mulungu made it so"; in fact in reply to many questions to which the native has no
answer, he will use practically our English phrase, "Oh, God knows!" and with about as
much meaning.
To Mulungu is ascribed the sending of.the rain, but apparently he has no part in giving
good crops or causing a plentiful harvest, neither has he any direct interest in men's affairs,
nor is he " God the creator," of man or earth. He, however, receives the spirits of the
dead. Should he refuse to do so, a man continues to live. When a man has recovered from
some commonly fatal disease, the natives say, " Mulungu wakaniU (refused him)! " or if
he has been very near to death and then recovers, they say "Mulungu wasuniU (spat him
out)".
It would thus appear that among the spirit hosts there is a regular law of precedence,
and presiding over all is a supreme being, but all this is so remote as to have little impor
tance for the living. The vagueness concerning Mulungu, I must admit, has given rise to
some doubt in my own mind as to how far he was a deity with an entity of his own in their
religion of a little time ago.
Ancestors tend to be forgotten in proportion to the length of time which has elapsed
since their death, unless they played some important part during their lives: then some
particular one may be remembered to the exclusion of others, and to him prayers of inter
cession are offered. In the case of chiefs, the names of a long line of rulers may be remem
bered on occasions when all else about them has fallen into oblivion. It seems possible
originally Mulungu was the oldest ancestral chief who was raised up as a supreme being
but who, in the process, has lost all other attributes. On the other hand, the word often
refers only to the place where the spirits dwell; this may have been the original meaning.
There is no religious worship in the proper sense of the term but only propitiation,
prayer for intercession, and return of thanks for favors granted. The keynote of this an
cestor worship, the sum total of their religion to the exclusion of the belief in a supreme
being, is fear. We have seen at the funeral that everything is done to lay the spirit at
rest. The people wish never to hear of the spirit again. It is chiefly with a view of avert
ing some evil that worship takes place or with a view of expiating some crime that sacrifice
is made or to alleviate some suffering that communication is sought with the spirits. It
is a question of, "Do us no harm, do not vent your wrath upon us for what we have left
undone," rather than " Keep us from doing evil, save us from being our own enemies." It
would appear to be a religion of spite, not of love and kindness, though there are glimmer
ings of a search after "a hand to guide and protect," as in the prayer given below and also
in the action taken when removing a village.
As a corollary of this system of ancestor worship, there is no real priesthood. A man
asks for favors for himself; the head of a family petitions a deceased father or some more
remote ancestor of greater importance; the headman intercedes on behalf of the village
with the spirit of a predecessor; a chief takes the place of high priest on the occasion of a
tribal supplication to a former ruler, though he may be replaced by some one of his wise
men who acts as intermediary.
Some form of sacrifice is offered with the prayer, and often some omen is sought as a
sign that the prayer is granted. For this purpose, flour made from millet called mbepesi
(nsembe, Chin.) is commonly used. The word mbepesi probably includes any sacrificial
offerings.
A man leaving his village on some expedition and wishing to be assured of safe conduct
will procure some millet flour. Going quietly into his house, he squats down in one corner
and gently sifts the flour through his hand so that it falls on the floor in the form of a little
cone, repeating as he does so, his prayer for safe conduct beginning and ending with the
word chonde! please!
"Chonde! chonde! wa-ku-mulungu ambuje mlangusye meso gangu niliwone
"Please, please! those at above ancestor clear eyes mine that I may see
litala, ngaiche 'chenene kunguja, chonde! chonde! chooooonde! "
the path, may I arrive well where I go, please, please, please! "
He then covers the cone of flour with a basket. On the morrow, he will uncover it to see
what has happened. According as the cone has remained intact or has fallen to one side
or the other, the omen indicates whether or not the journey should be undertaken, the
reaction being caused by the spirits to whom his supplication was addressed.
Again, there may have occurred much sickness in a village and the people conclude that
the pest has come to remind them that they have not been attentive to their deceased chief.
" His grave-house in the village has been allowed to fall into decay," and so on. They will
decide that his spirit must be propitiated. The grave-house is rebuilt, a pot is sunk in
the ground, and beer is poured in, and round about heaps of flour are placed. Prayer is
made to the chief at whose grave they are worshipping, supplicating him in person and
"all others who are with you at Mlungu," asking that he will no longer cause ill to befall
the village.
When a village is moved, the beer-pot from the grave of the old chief is taken to the
new village and a ceremony similar to that just described takes place, with the prayer that
he will come to the new village and continue to exercise his benevolent care over its people.
In 1880 when there was a threatened famine on account of long drought in Zomba dis
trict, Malemya decided that supplication for rain must be made to the spirits of his illustri
ous predecessors. Kasonga, one of Malemya's wise men, acted as high priest. A large amount
of beer was brewed and the night before the ceremony, twenty sheep and fifty goats were
slaughtered. Plates of the meat, of rice and porridge were then placed on the ground round
the grave-house of the old Malemya, and pots of beer set into the ground at intervals. At
the head of the grave, little heaps of mbepesi flour were arranged. This flour had been pre
pared by such of Malemya's wives as were not near a menstrual period. The following
morning, a fence was built round the grave, outside which all the people collected, while
beyond them again was a second fence. Kasonga, accompanied by an assistant then ap
peared, and amid absolute silence entered the inner enclosure. He addressed to the old
Malemya, at whose grave they were all assembled, a prayer for rain. He then repeated the
prayer, invoking the aid of all the past line of chiefs down to the reigning Malemya, re
peating their names. Returning to the outer enclosure, he again uttered the prayers, all
the assembled multitude repeating them after him while lying face down, resting on their
knees and elbows, at intervals swaying their bodies from side to side and clapping their
hands. Kasonga then ordered all to go and bathe, men and women separately. As they
returned from the stream, rain began to fall.
Intercession on behalf of the sick may be made, especially by anyone who is likely to
be accused of causing the illness by witchcraft.1 The man standing with arms outstretched,
downwards and a little in front of his body, the hands supine, takes some water in his
mouth and discharges it in a stream on the ground, (probably as a sign of purification of his
tongue), and then invoking "all the spirits above," asks that they will intercede to restore
health to the sick man and bear witness to his own innocence of any wish to do the sick man
injury. Ku-pesya is the word meaning to offer sacrifice and prayer.
Harvesting and hunting are occasions when sacrifices may be offered. It was formerly
the custom for the chief to determine the day on which harvesting of millet should begin.
On the day appointed, a big drum was beaten in the village and word passed round; then
everyone would go down to his garden, gather a head of millet, and bring it back to the
village where it was all handed over to the chief's headwife. After drying and threshing,
a little of the grain was laid at the grave of an old chief by one of the reigning chief's ad
visers, the remainder being again distributed to all the people gathered together in the
village meeting-place, who ate it raw. After this ceremony, harvesting began.
In passing through a millet garden, if a child asks his mother to give him some to eat,
she plucks a bunch or two and reverently laying one at the foot of a msoro tree for the
spirits or at the base of some other tree, if she cannot see a msoro, she gives the rest to the
child.
When a hunting expedition makes its first killing, part of the flesh of the animal is laid
at the base of a tree as a thank offering to the spirits and in anticipation of further favors
to be conferred. All such offerings are supposed by the natives to be partaken of by the
spirits, though they are well aware that they do not actually diminish in quantity. There
is an interesting point in this connection: any man who has acted as mbilo (undertaker)
to some well-known man may appropriate these offerings. In the case of the hunting offer
ing, he will run round the tree, saying, "I am a hyaena, the spirits will not mind me," and
will then take part of the flesh-offering and eat it.
In the same way, a mbilo may drink from a grave beer-pot after three days, when the
spirits are supposed to have taken what they want.
With the exception of the msoro tree above mentioned (ndima, Chin.), and possibly
another called nsila-nyama (Chin.), which is never used as firewood and which is supposed
to be used by msawi, I do not think there are any sacred trees properly so-called. Miss
Werner supposes that many of the big trees (often a species of Ficus) in villages are sacred.2
The truth is, I believe, simply that a village is made naturally round a big tree which con
veniently offers its shade for the village meeting place. The spirits of deceased chiefs may
1 Vide supra, p. 297. * The natives of British Central Africa, op. cit., p. 62.
be supposed to live in such trees. They are convenient natural objects for them to occupy,
in fact practically the only ones to be found in villages. Trees may secondarily, therefore,
be looked upon as in some degree sacred. About such trees strings or pieces of calico may
be placed as an offering to the spirits of the departed. But the Yao do not erect little huts
in their vicinity, hung about with strips of calico as is the custom among the Anyanja.
Macdonald 1 mentions the spirits in connection with Soche and other hills round
Blantyre and supposes them to be the spirits of the places themselves. This I think is un
likely; they would probably turn out to be spirits bearing the names of long departed
Anyanja chiefs whom the immigrant Amangoche Yao venerated just " to be on the safe
side," since they had come and taken the country which long ago belonged to the former
tribe. When approaching or passing any spot held to be the dwelling place of spirits, salu
tation is made by clapping the hands.
Spirits of the departed may enter into animals or may take the form of animals,
commonly lions and sometimes large snakes (python), but this belief is not so general
among the Yao as among other tribes, in my opinion. An animal which is so possessed is
called lisyuka, from ku-syuka, " to be transformed."
Apart from this habitation of inanimate objects above mentioned by msimu, there is
nothing that points to a belief in Animism among the Yao, so far as I know. Neither hills,
rocks, streams, lakes, nor trees have their own spirits, nor are they endowed by the native
mind with life.
Deceased persons appear to the living in dreams, the native apparently believing that
the deceased appears in his material body.
They believe also in revelation of wishes of the deceased through the medium of the
living. The spirit of the deceased is supposed to enter into the medium. The medium, I
am informed, is always a woman, never a man. From the descriptions of some of these
revelation seances, there can be no doubt that they are manifestations of la grande hystdrie.
The medium works herself up into a frenzy of excitement and in her delirium gives out the
name of the deceased, the voice which speaks being that of the spirit within her. She rolls
on the ground and foams at the mouth, uttering the word of revelation which is generally
to the effect that some deceased chief's spirit is feeling aggrieved at the neglect of his
tomb; the voice may go on to say that certain practices are forbidden, or demand that cer
tain rites be observed by the people. The spirits which possess her are generally spoken of
as masoka, a word which, though sometimes used as equivalent to msimu, usually seems to
have rather a sinister significance. Insane persons are called masoka and are thought to be
possessed by a spirit, and vapor baths with exorcism may be practiced for their cure. In
the case of the death of anyone who is possessed, in answer to my interrogation, I have
been told that both the spirit which has entered into the man and his own msimu leave
his body.
1 Op. cit., vol. 1, p. 70. r
As an example of another kind of intermediary may be mentioned a woman called
Bimbi Chikasowa, who, though an Anyanja, was well known among the Yao of Zomba.
She was consulted on many occasions about the future, about rain, or the prevention of
disease. She was a woman of quiet ways and greatly respected; she had no fixed abode
but was received everywhere and given food and shelter. She would sometimes disappear
from the district and travel to far distant places. A son, born to her when a young woman,
was lately a patient under my care, a man of about forty-eight. On one occasion she was
consulted about an epidemic of ulcers among the people near Zomba. She asked all the
people from the villages to go down to Lake Shirwa and to take a white fowl with them.
When they had all collected, she appeared, carrying in each hand a little gourd containing
mbepesi flour, and a small open basket on her head. She took the fowl in one hand and then
proceeded to walk into the water, saying she would have to go to a little hill on an island
in the lake called Chidia Mpiri and that she would come back in three days. She then
walked on into the water and disappeared below its surface. In three days time, she
returned to the village and said that the women must give up dancing the chiponda
dance for twelve months and all would be well.
On other occasions she usually worked along similar lines. Consulted as to whether or
not some sick person would recover, she always answered with the same formula, if she
thought he would die, " The house is prepared for him and medicine would avail nothing! "
There are certain other supernatural persons or spirits to which reference must be made.
ChimelarTnesi has been mentioned above. Manunu, a word which Hetherwick translates
as " madness, idiocy," 1 really refers to the delusions and hallucinations which form part
of the perceptions of the insane. The word also has the meaning of obsession, phobia, and
intuition; thus the natives say of an ox about to be slaughtered that shows signs of realizing
the approaching evil, " it has manunu." On the other hand, they say the hartebeest is a
foolish animal that does not know what to do when hunted: " it has manunu, it is a deluded
animal." Again, the baboon and the crow " have manunu"; they are possessed of senses
or faculties which warn them of the approach of any enemies before they can be seen or
heard; they cannot be stalked. In all these cases, the crowd of hallucinatory men pursuing
some melancholic, the rats of the delirium tremens patient, and that which appears to warn
the crow or the baboon, are all manunu and are, I think, supposed by the natives to have
some kind of materialistic form.
Ndodocha: when the wasawi 2 do not wish immediately to devour the body of a deceased
person which they have raised from the grave, they cut off the arms and legs at the elbows
and knees and insert medicine into the stumps; these living-dead are then compelled by
the wasawi to live in caves and hollow ant hills during the day and to follow them at night
in their travels, " like a herd of goats," to be eaten as required. The ndondocha may be
heard as they wander along in the night, making sounds like a cat's mew. A woman will
1 Yao language, op. cit., p. 220. * Vide supra, p. 293.
never leave any food outside at night, not even the chaff from the grain she has been
pounding, lest these most miserable of beings be attracted by it.
Chitowe is a word common to several tribes and among them appears to have various
shades of meaning. Among the Wayao, the itowe are " the little people " of the leprechaun
order. They rob the gardens and cause rot among the pumpkins; their little footprints
can be seen where they have passed hither and thither; fruits and vegetables that they
touch will become bitter. To prevent these disasters, the Yao, at the time when their
crops are ripening, place different kinds of vegetables at cross-roads, hoping thereby to
satisfy the itowe and prevent them coming into the gardens. As far as I am aware, the itowe
have nothing to do with famine and are in no way connected with Mtanga, to be mentioned
below, as Macdonald believed.1 The chitowe is variously said to be " like a man but rather
like an animal." He has two legs but goes on all fours.
The Yao describe another legendary race of " little people " who used to live in this
country and who may still be met with, — " who knows? " They were of a very small
stature, grew long beards, were very touchy, quarrelsome, and fierce, and carried spears.
When anybody met one, he was immediately asked: " Mumbonele kwapif", " From how
far did you see me? " and it was always well to pretend to have seen the little man
coming a long way off and make him believe he was considered quite a big person; if you
said " Hullo, I have only just spotted you! ", he would immediately spear you. They
are commonly supposed to dwell on the tops of high mountains and are iron workers.
They are called the Mumbonele kwapi.
There is no relation as far as I know between these two classes of " little people," but
I think these stories go to uphold the theory recently reiterated by Hastings Guilford in
his Hunterian Lecture (1914) that folk-lore fables of hobgoblins, etc., have a basis in fact.
He believes that dwarl races at one time were to be found, possibly over a very wide area
of the globe. In this country, I think it may be that one sees the transition from historical
facts to true fairy stories.
The Anyanja have the same legend about these " little people," the mwandi onerakuti
(" where-did-you-see-me "); it is indeed not only wide-spread throughout this country,
(the Ahenga and Ankonde in North Nyasa district speak of the mwandioneranku who ask
the same question), but there is a very similar legend among the Akikuyu in British East
Africa.2
The chitowe is doubtless the chiruwi of the Anyanja, mentioned in Scott's dictionary,3 as
Miss Werner4 has supposed, for one finds that among the Anyanja at the southern end of
the Protectorate, the chitowe is described as having only one side to his body so that he
is invisible when viewed from the off side, thus resembling the chiruwe who has one half of
his body made of wax.
1 Op. cit., vol. 1, p. 71. • M. W. H. Beech, 'Pre-Bantu occupants of East Africa,' (Man, London, 1915, p. 40-41).
* Op. cit., p. 97. * British Central Africa, op. cit., p. 59.
Luembe Mtanga is the prophet of famine, a man of great height who stalks the round of
the country, stepping from hill-top to hill-top along " the fairy way," the " Mlira wa
Luembe Mtanga," which is supposed to run right around Nyasaland and never to cross a
river, starting and ending somewhere near the junction of the Shire1 with the Zambesi river.
As he goes, he can be seen from a hundred miles away. He carries the lulimba instrument
and plays as he walks, singing:
" Kulira nayo isugugu kutiga sonje matendeu namiaka sola! "
" You cry out (in trouble) with the midges therefore I must call up the wasps, this season of famine! "
which might be rendered, " You people grumble about small troubles, so I will teach you
to know better by inflicting great ones." When he is seen, there will be famine.
It will be convenient here to allude briefly to some of the beliefs connected with mete
orological phenomena, as some of them have a bearing on native religious beliefs. The
remarks made under this heading for the Anyanja hold good for the Yao. The morning
and evening stars are called Namieleka and Namapalasya, the good cook and the bad cook.
They are looked upon as the two wives of the moon, one of whom feeds him so well that
he grows fat, the other who does not, so he wastes away. The constellation of the Pleiades
is called Ilimila; the Milky Way, Lichinga usiku, " the watcher of the night," when high
in the heavens, dawn is near. When shooting stars are seen, natives exclaim "msagala
mbujo! " Msagala is a many-pointed arrow. Eclipses are recognized but no explanation is
vouchsafed. Thunder is supposed to be the noise of rain falling in the heavens before it
reaches the earth. The rain is sometimes supposed to be the condensing steam from an
enormous pot of water boiling over a furnace fire in heaven. The lightning is conceived
as a lizard-like animal which dwells in the clouds and darts out from behind them and comes
to earth and breaks up trees and may kill a man. Mica is supposed by the Yao to be its
excrement. The animal is called Njasi, and is the same as Mpambe of the Achipeta who
consider the mica to be the broken egg-shell of the lightning dragons' eggs. There is a
large red compound lily, a species of Haemanthus also called Njasi, which is in some way
connected with the lightning. No Yao child would ever touch this flower. Children are
always advised never to seek shelter under a big tree but always to make for a bamboo
thicket, for if the lightning strikes the bamboo and splits it, it will get caught inside the
hollow stem.
Gales of wind are said to emanate from a plant called Changula. It is described as hav
ing one process like an elephant's trunk and others like two fingers. It is found on the tops
of very high mountains, growing alone and surrounded by bare rock. This plant is used by
medicine men to gain supernatural powers. Changula is also the name of a parasitic plant
on the charcoal trees in Nyasaland.
The world is taken by the natives as they find it; to them no explanation for its being
is necessary. So far as I can find out, there is no idea among the Yao of a Creator. The
origin of mankind is explained in a story given elsewhere; Mulungu takes no part, nor is
the supernatural even invoked in explanation.
The religion of the Yao may then be summed up as ancestor worship plus an ill-defined,
uncertain belief in a supreme being. Their religion is not animistic. There are certain
spirits of evil, demons, fairies and supernatural beings and animals which, however, do not
play any real part in their religious beliefs.
Native Sayings. Natives are very fond of sayings, many of which are of the same
nature as our own proverbs. The meaning of many of them is, however, not always self-
evident but depends on some little story with a moral.
The following are some of those which I have collected among the Yao near Zomba:
1. Akamwile likarribale! (or lipuku!)
He caught a fish, (a mouse!)
An expression meaning " He slipped down." The variations being used when wet or when
dry under foot.
2. Ulamba vli m'meso!
Cunning is in the eyes (evident).
An expression meaning " Look out; some one is after us! "
Kalvlu chenjera!
Rabbit be clever!
This is a Mang'anja equivalent to the above.
3. Changapikana wachitdechde mwiponda!
A thing that did not listen they cooked in among the herbs!
An insect which had not listened to advice about the dangers of sitting on herbs used as
vegetables, was gathered up by a woman and cooked with them.
An expression used with the sense "If you do not take advice and anything happens to
you, it will be your own fault."
4. Miela vli m'mapikanilo!
Medicine is in the ears!
Meaning " You are forewarned; it is your own look out! "
5. Nangalamuche wamlechele chikalakasa!
Mr Would-Be-Clever they left with the skull!
Ku-kalamuka, to be clever (to show off); an expression made to a newcomer who un
bidden joins in a discussion. It has reference to the following story and means that any
one joining a party unbidden may find himself in an awkward situation. Some strangers
came to a village, and after being given food and quarters, all retired for the night. One of
them, however, Mr. Would-Be-Clever, hearing something going on outside crept out of
the house to find out what was happening. Seeing some people playing at catch-ball, he
joined in the game, unasked. Next moment, the ball came in his direction and catching it
in the moonlight, he suddenly found himself grasping a bleached human skull, while every
one else had vanished. There he had to stand frightened as he was till the morning, when
he was found in this ridiculous predicament.
6. Tungawe watisisye majani gasyene!
Mr. If-We-Were-You let escape the baboons of the owner (himself) .
Ningawe, meaning " if I were you " is also used.
This expression signifies " A man cannot serve two masters " or " He who tries to
please everybody will please none," as is explained in the following story: Mr. Tungawe
and another man had their gardens adjacent to one another but the latter's was next to
the forest and the baboons used to come and ravage his crops. He therefore consulted a
medicine man who gave him medicine to put all over the garden, which would cause all
the baboons who came to the garden to die. " But," said the medicine man, " you must
promise to bring me the Mtalya! " (the little baboon which acts as sentinel and guide).
The man did as he was told with the medicine and in the morning found all the baboons
dead in the garden; so picking up the body of the Mtalya, he was just going off with it to
the medicine man, when Mr. Tungawe in the next garden who had been a witness of the
good wrought by the medicine, said, " If I were you I should not take the little Mtalya,
but the biggest baboon to give to the medicine man," so after hesitating, he picked up
the biggest baboon to take instead of the little one. Immediately, it and its fellows came
to life again and ran away into the forest!
7. Mkokoya wa wawile wanache njusi!
While they delayed, the children singed the serval cat!
This expression has the meaning, " If you do not do a thing at once, you may be too late! "
and has reference to another story. Some youths out hunting killed an animal which they
did not recognize, so one of them went back to the village where he found the old men all
chatting and told them they had killed an animal they did not know. The old men said,
" We will come and see it", but they went on chatting until a second message came. Still
they said, "Yes, we are just coming," but they did not go; so the boys not knowing any
better, instead of removing the skin, which is of value, with the hair on, singed all the
hair off which was their custom with some animals, so that eventually, when the old men
arrived they found they had lost a valuable skin. Another saying with the same meaning
is: Mkokoya wawelechele wanache pa ugono, "By delaying she gave birth to a child on the
mat."
8. Angulola lyuwa wasokanechele!
(He who said), "I look at the sun", he went astray! [Cf. Johnny-head-in-the-air.]
Che nguusya waiche ku musi!
Mr. The-One-Who-Asks arrived at the village!
An expression intimating that a man who is cocksure about doing a thing may come to
grief, whereas the man who takes the trouble to get information gains his object.
9. M'lwesi mwangalengvla mvriwa!
In the moonlight you cannot cut out a thorn !
A free English translation of this saying would be, "There is a proper time for doing every
thing." It involves the implication that doing a thing at the wrong time may result in
evil.
10. Apakamwa wavlesye ambuje woo!
Mr Mouth hurt master his!
An expression intimating that careless speech may bring a man into trouble: the mouth
is looked upon as the slave of the body. The expression has reference to a story which
points a moral against smoking hemp. There was once upon a time a big chief who had a
headman (Apakamwa) to whom he entrusted all his messages. One day, the chief brewed
beer for hoeing and the big drum was beaten to call all the people together, and thus, the
chief leading, they all went to the gardens, but the headman who used to smoke hemp
lingered behind and in coming later, while crossing an open glade between the village
and the gardens, he saw a human skull beside the path. Half intoxicated with the hemp,
he kicked it, saying " Who killed you? " The skull answered, " Apakamwa! " The man
was frightened and so kicked it again; then going off to the chief, he related what had
happened. The chief and all the people returned with the headman to the place where the
skull was and the headman, kicking the skull, asked again who had killed him, but no
answer came, and so with a second interrogation. Then the chief had the headman bound
and said, " What you say cannot be trusted. You waste our time with your untruths,"
and he had him killed.
11. Kola Iidasi ngasisaga Iwembe!
Having baldness you must not hide the razor!
An expression meaning " If you have no further use for a thing yourself, do not throw it
away; it may be useful to others! "
12. Lelo lelo mlamba wapilile!
Today today the mlamba was blackened!
A saying meaning " he who hurries will not do best! " Lelo, today; lehlelo here has the
meaning " in a hurry." Mlamba is the name of a small jet black bird. The story goes that
when all the birds were being painted, the mlamba bird was very impatient and coming up
to the painter, said, " I must be done today; I am in a hurry." The painter said it would
take longer but acting on mlamba's persistent cries to be done quickly, he just took up a
brush and painted him black all over. The following is sometimes added :
Kwembecheya wanda wapatile mawala (or ilemba)!
Being patient the wanda bird came by spots (or marks on its head).
13. Chembogo, waiile nganga mbisi!

Chembogo, they ate guinea-fowl raw!
An expression depending for its meaning on the story given below, used by a husband to
his wife or by one woman to another, intimating that the woman has delegated her work
to some one else and is not looking after things properly. A man killed a guinea-fowl and
gave it to his wife to cook. She, however, gave it to her servant, Chembogo, to cook in the
house while she sat doing nothing on the veranda, calling from time to time to know
whether it was cooking well, to which always came answer in the affirmative, " eh." When
the meal of porridge was ready in the evening, and she went to get the guinea-fowl from
the pot in the kitchen, she found that it lay in the pot in cold water as her servant had only
put one handful of grass to make the fire under the pot and then left it.
14. Ku-m'midika sungula akanagone!
By holding a torch aloft (to see if the hare was asleep) before it had lain down!
An expression used to a man who by precipitate action without due caution loses that
which he seeks to gain as in the following case: If a man seeks a girl in marriage whom he
wants to take to live with him far away in his own village, instead of himself settling in her
village according to custom, he must not let this be known or he would be refused.
15. Walosisye mtiko!
(Your wife) she is showing the porridge stick!
An expression used to a man who is homesick.
16. Mtau wa kidombela!
(He has or you have) the perseverance of a suitor!
An expression used to anyone who keeps on asking for something and is a nuisance.
17. Mbepesi kupakalaga ku meso ni ku ndungu kwakwe!
The flour (ought) to be painted on the forehead and on the back of the head also!
Mbepesi is the offering of millet flour to the departed spirits, or as here, the sacrificial
flour used by the chief to smear the front and back of the head of each boy at the end of
the initiation ceremonies. The meaning of the expression is that " one should not only
look forward to the good things of the future but also remember all the help that has been
given one in the past."
18. Mkaujauja wam'somile mpamba pe tako!
He who comes and goes and comes again they shot him with an arrow in the buttocks!
Of which the sense is " a man may do wrong once but if he continues to do so, he will
suffer for it."
19. Ligiduwe lyamlile ulidu!
The pig was made a scapegoat (on account of) the gleanings!
A pig who was found picking up the remnants of a crop in a field which had been robbed,
was thought to be the thief and killed.
20. Wawilile galausya rribani!
He was " let in " badly over the fish-sticks!
A man had put a lot of fish on spits to roast round the fire. While he went to get some
more firewood, a thief came and took all the fish. A stranger then approached and was
examining one of the sticks, saying, "There must have been a very nice fat fish on this
stick," when the owner returned and immediately accused the innocent stranger of stealing
his fish. A native coming across a corpse will run away, using the above expression; for if
he reports the matter, he may be the first to be accused.
21. Sungvla wa wdechde (mwanache) mu uwilo!
The impotent man had born to him a child in a joke!
A native man who is impotent is very much looked down on and he is the laughing
stock of the village. He is constantly made fun of by the women. The story goes that such
a man when being chaffed, said, "All right, let me have the prettiest girl in the village,"
and they said, " All right, old sungula, you can do her no harm." But it came to pass that
she became pregnant and the women were disgraced. The meaning of the expression is :
what is done as a joke may become a reality.
22. Mowa winji ng'omba sya nyama unandi!
Days many, hairs of an animal few!
There are more days than there are hairs in an animal's coat! If A has done a good
turn to B, and B behaves badly to A, A will remonstrate, using the above expression, mean
ing, " You may want my help again some day, but I shall then refuse and you will suffer."
23. Chilambo changalinga mdkono!
The (country) earth cannot (be) measured in cubits!
Meaning, " You never know when you may want return for your good deeds.
24. Kusowela kusalasya, kusuka kvlijimiya! or kuponya pa moto!
To be generous (is) to save up, to be stingy (is) to deny oneself! or to throw in the fire!
Kindness returns to the doer.
25. Uwili ukoto, ujika wangalikunda kunyuma!
Two-ness (is) good, oneness he cannot rub the back!
Ku-kunda = to rub the back of another person while bathing, a thing a native appre
ciates very much. An expression often used with the meaning, " There is safety in num
bers," ( winji iskoto!)
26. Kvlagaga ukusivlitawilila!
Being in a state of poverty, one must not hang (oneself) !
Kiirlaga = to be poor, to be in trouble. Do not give up hope.
27. Kusichilaga kajangalile kwiwogo!
Having become rich one must jump for joy in the dark corner of the house.
Meaning " Though you are prosperous at the moment, do not make a show; all these
things may pass away quickly," or Kusichila ukasiujangalila pasa! " One should not
rejoice openly."
28. Walile masuku pa mtwe!
They have eaten masuku fruit on the head!
The intimate of a household who betrays the friendship of the husband by culpable
intimacy with his wife is said " to eat masuku fruit with the wife over the head of the
husband." (Cf. French, faire cocu.)
29. Mpamba wa kuulolela wangakawa kuichila m'meso!
The arrow he is watching, it does not take long to reach the eye!
A man who looks on and does not take steps to stop an ill at the beginning will suffer
heavily in the end.
30. Mwangamwisye liganga!
You kept me holding a stone!
You are late in your appointment; you have kept me waiting.
31. Likule pilikumila mbinji (or mbindimbi) likulitika!
The jackal when he swallows mbinji fruit is confident; (i.e. a jackal knows he can void the
seeds of this fruit).
Likulitika has the sense of when jumping over a stream, the jumper is sure of landing
on the opposite bank. The expression used of a man means that he feels pretty sure to get
through with what he is doing. (Note: lions in contradistinction to jackals are said to
eat masuku but always to expel the seeds from the mouth, as the seeds are sharp-pointed
and very irritating. I have myself seen a man die from perforation of the bowel by these
seeds.)
32. (Akwete) mpache mpache walichinji!
(He has) smearing smearing of the bat!
Reference is made here to the habits of the bat which often makes a meal of figs and
then flying to other trees, leaves its droppings under them also so that one might take
them to be fig trees, too. The saying refers to a man who manages to involve a lot of
others in his own trouble.
33. Mapwisa akulapa sajo!
The marsh -mongoose they (people) admire (its) footprints!
The mapwisa is a small rodent whose footprints may be seen all over the gardens in the
morning, but seldom the animal itself. The meaning of the saying is, "If you are going to
steal, it does not matter if you leave your footprints, but do not hang about and get caught ! "
34. Ndende chenene wamkoleche matumbo!
Mr I-Must-Do-Well they on him hanged the entrails!
Well meaning people often get into trouble! This refers to a story of a man who had
a great friend in another village who died. Hearing he was dead, he went to the village
and found all the relatives mourning the dead man. To show his friendship, he commenced
wailing and went into the house and lay down by the corpse among the chief mourners,
though not one of them; later, he fell asleep. While asleep, evil spirits (msam) came and
cut open the corpse and removing the liver, they took out the entrails and hung them
about the sleeping man's neck, and smeared his hands with blood. In the morning, the
mourners found the man in this condition and to avenge what they supposed to be his
desecration of their dead, they killed him. The interpretation put upon this story and
the meaning of the saying is that " however well intentioned you may be, you should not
transgress custom."
35. Nguku ja chilendo ideu chikuni!
The fowl of strangeness long tail!
A newcomer in the fowl-yard is pecked at by the other fowls and if it had a long tail,
this would be noticed. In the same way, " If you are a stranger in a place, anything you
do will be remarked; therefore your conduct should be exemplary."
36. Nkambaka manyi ga Chikolo!
Do not smear me with the excrement of Chikolo!
This is a woman's saying, meaning, " I don't want to be dragged into your quarrel! "
Chikolo is an interesting word. It is a girl's name used as Polly is used in English in speak
ing to any girl child whose name you do not know: " Come here, Polly, and show me^the
parson's house." For Tommy used in the same way, the Yao says Manganya.
37. Nakoma akupinda anasi!
The beer basket he deals in a neighbor!
Nakoma is a small flat basket with ornamented rim. The meaning of the phrase is:
" one's neighbors are not always disinterested."
38. Ajivrile mandanda!
He has stolen eggs!
This is an expression used of anyone who has hiccough. It is said that he is so surprised
at being thus accused that the hiccough stops.
39. AmwcM, ichimugwaga apile ndundi ku nyuma!
You girl, (with) expectation he burnt blistering to the back!
In a native house, the man and woman he side by side on a mat between the fire and
hut wall, the man next the fire, facing it when sleeping. When he wishes to enjoy marital
relations, he turns towards the woman and lies on his side with his back to the fire. The
saying refers to the uxorious husband whose advances are refused by his wife, but he per
sists until his back is blistered by the heat of the fire. The saying intimates that it is no
good going on wanting a thing refused you; you only suffer for it.
40. Gonera Iwala mtukuta!
Lying on the rock, heat!
This is a slang expression which in full would read, " It is nice and warm lying on a
rock in the sun, but it is not so comfortable as being in bed in company with your wife;
you can go on waiting but you won't get anything." This might even be said to a dog,
watching as a dog will, every morsel of food lifted to its master's mouth.
41. Kulupilila mesi ga mbisu!
To have hopes of water for maggots!
It is a custom before lying down to sleep on the floor mat, to take it up and pour boil
ing water on the earth floor to kill any blood-sucking maggots (Congo floor-maggot,
Anchmeromyia). If you see a pot cooking on the fire, you naturally think there is food
being prepared but you may be disappointed; it may only be the pot for heating the water
to kill the maggots. The saying is thus used to a man who has made an assignation and
is disappointed but goes on waiting.
42. Kuluma upeu!
To bite cockroach-like!
The cockroach is described by natives as going up to what it will eat, remaining quiet
for some moments, and then suddenly taking a bite. This is said of a man who comes up
to you smiling and then hits you a hard blow.
Among the Yao as among other tribes that I have previously mentioned,1 signs of
salutation to a superior are made by clapping the hands or patting the breast or buttock
with one hand, at the same time crouching down. A woman will go off the path and kneel,
looking away from a superior passing along the roadway.
A person going by the door of a hut where others are sitting, will say "Kumlango
kunol At the door here." Passing behind anyone, he will say "Kvr-nyu "ma! At the back!"
Meeting anyone on a path, a man will simply say, " Icho, here," adding perhaps, " Ku-
chele! all is well ! " A chief or headman on returning to his village after a journey, is greeted
by the women with trilling of the tongue (Ku-luluta).
Man and wife do not greet each other in the morning. The wife rises first and draws
water and places it in the hut for the husband's use but nothing may be said.
When a visitor is entertained and a chicken cooked for a repast, the " pope's nose " is
always for the visitor. The right hand only is used in dipping into the common pot. A
man of small importance, though replete, will go on making pretence of eating at a common
meal by taking very small amounts so that his superior shall finish first, and rise and go
away before him.
I may here add the words used by the Yao for the sounds made by various animals;
they are interesting to compare with those of other languages:
1 ' Notes on some tribes of British Central Africa,' op. cit., p. 291-292.
The dog woo woo! (as in boot).
The cat nyao!
The cock kokoliliko!
The hen kuku ku!
The duck kwa kwa kwa!
The cow moo!
The sheep bee! (as in better).
The goat mee!
The dove coo coo!
The lion ng'wnang'u!
Among the Yao, abuse and obscene language are rare; expressions which appear in
other languages all the world over are only used on great provocation and commonly with
dire results. This, too, is opposed to the ways of neighboring tribes, the Anyanja and
Angoni, who freely make use of such expressions as " Nyini ya mako! " and " Nkongo wa
mako!" "The pudenda of your mother! Clitoris of your mother!"
The following exclamations of abuse and expressions of obscenity will be seen to follow
very closely upon those in other countries.
1. Mwisichana! (to a girl or woman), rnbalah! (to a boy or man) means you are a person
who has not been to your Unyago, and therefore " you are without manners! "
2. Mwana mkongwe! an expression to a child meaning " you little wretch," " you nasty
little thing! "
3. Akulila kusi ligasa! he eats with the back of his hand, he is uncircumcised, i.e. " he
is a dirty person! "
4. A man with big ears is hailed "look at your ears like a lemur! " (Likomba, a lemur).
A Yao woman seldom or never sneers at or uses bad language to a man nor the con
verse; the woman, however, is not behindhand in the art of bitter complaining and nagging.
Pulling down the lower eyelid with the finger accompanying some exclamation has
exactly the same significance as in European countries, " I am not so green as I look! "
Ku-sonya is to make a sound like " pish" with the mouth, and is a great insult, for
which a man will fight.
Screwing of the lips to one side as in the action to get rid of the sour skin of a fruit,
ku-mun "g'unya is an expression of contemptuous disgust.
The similarity to European ways is again seen in swearing or taking oath. A Yao
swears by the spirits of his ancestors or by a chief:
" Chirisi cha Malemya! "
" (By) the grave of Malemya!"
or he may indirectly name some ancestor:

" Ngvlumbila lipanga! " or " Ngvlumbila lisimba! "
" I swear by the spear! " " I swear by the lion! "
meaning I swear by the spirits of him who was killed with a spear (or by a lion), referring
to some one well known to have in such wise met his end, or again :
" Ngulumbila kumala kwa wandu! "
" I swear by the finish of (all) men! "
an equivalent to swearing by the day of judgment; or again a man may swear by his own
death:
" Litaka linyinjile m'mapikanilo! "
" Earth may it enter (my) ears! "
or he will intimate that his throat should be cut by drawing his finger across the neck, if
he does not speak the truth.
There is a gibe around Zomba in swearing. A man saying, "I swear so and so," is
asked, " By whose grave-house? Msati wa chenif " The man who is in reality only bluffing
will say, " Chekoma! By Chekoma's grave! " Chekoma a small headman near Zomba of
whom much fun is made.
Native stories. The fables or stories found among the Zomba Yao are many of them
variations of well known tales, and have been collected to some extent by others. I only
propose to add here free translations of a few I do not remember to have read elsewhere.
The Hare and the Elephant

The elephant made a big garden and planted sugar-cane. When it had grown, he asked
all the other animals to come and partake of it with him. When they had all assembled,
the buffalo, the eland, and all the other antelopes, the zebra and all the smaller animals,
the elephant invited them to eat. He made one condition, however, anyone who, having
chewed the sugar-cane, made a sucking sound as he swallowed the juice before spitting
out the fibrous part would be killed (ku-jonga, Chin, kiir"yonda, to suck, making the
sound " schlech ").
So the animals all sat in a long line and the buffalo started chewing his piece of sugar
cane, but when he tried to get all the juice out of his piece, he went "schlech!" so the ele
phant twisted his head till he was dead, and then picking him up, threw the carcass aside.
The same fate followed for the eland, for all the antelopes and the lion, so that the other
animals became afraid and would not volunteer to eat the sugar-cane but went away and
the carcasses of the dead animals were buried. The elephant then appointed another day
and invited the animals to come again and try.
That day, the hare came and made salutation by clapping to the elephant who demanded
what he wanted, so the hare replied, " I have come to eat sugar-cane." " You know my
rule," said the elephant. "Yes," said the hare, "I know your rule but I want some sugar
cane." So he was given some while all the other animals looked on to see what would
happen. " Please," said the hare to the elephant, " may I have the outside part stripped
off, as I have not got strong teeth? " This was done for him and he started munching
some pieces of sugar-cane as he sat on a stone with the rest of the cane beside him, while
the elephant watched. "Did you kill the buffalo just for saying ' schlech ' ?" said the hare,
as he sucked the juice from the fibre. " Yes," answered the elephant. The hare pondered
awhile as he chewed up some more cane. "Did you kill the eland for saying 'schlech'?"
again asked the hare. " Yes," answered the elephant, as the hare each time spat out the
sucked-dry fibre. With each mouthful the hare asked about another animal until he had
finished all his sugar-cane.
Thus the elephant, seeing that the hare had finished and had not once made a sucking
noise as he swallowed the juice, said, "You are a wonderful animal" and he gave him
half his garden and they have been friends ever since.
This is one of the many stories illustrating the hare's supposed cleverness and cunning.
The Hawk and the Cock

How the birds of prey came to ravage the fowls
At one time, all the eagles and hawks used to be afraid of fowls. The cock inspired them
with awe; they thought with his crest of red horns, he must be very dangerous. One day
after talking it over, they decided to send their little brother, the Katotola (the smallest
of the hawks) to investigate matters. So Katotola flew down to the earth as an ambassador
of peace to interview the cock who was strutting about with his family. He explained to
the cock that the eagle, Kapungu, their king, wished to be on friendly terms with the cock
but that they were afraid of his crown of red horns. The cock answered that it was not
made of horn but was quite soft; " Come and feel it," said he, " it is nothing to be afraid
of." Katotola was frightened, but when the cock repeated the invitation, Katotola did so.
He was surprised to find it soft and evidently nothing to be afraid of. The cock accepted
the eagle's message of friendliness, so Katotola said good-bye and prepared to fly away.
Just then, he spied one of the cock's daughters and no longer being afraid, he darted down
and picked her up and bore her away to the presence of the eagle to whom he related how
the cock was nobody to be frightened of, saying, " See here, I have carried off one of his
daughters." So all the eagles and hawks saw that the fowls and their cock were a weak
tribe and they could easily make war on them and carry off their children.
The Pig and the Baboon

How once friends, they parted, the baboon staying on the tops of the hills, the pig
going down into the plains
Long ago, the pig and the baboon used to live together on the hill-sides. One day, it
was very cold and a cutting wind was blowing. As the pig and the baboon sat on a rock
in the sun trying to get warm, the baboon turned to the pig and said, " This wind is enough
to wear the end of one's nose to a blunt point." " Yes," answered the pig, " it's really
enough to blow the hairs off one's buttocks and leave a bare, dry patch." " Look here,"
said the baboon getting cross, " you are not to make personal remarks "! "I did nothing
of the kind," retorted the pig, " but you were rude to me first." This started a quarrel
and they came to the conclusion that neither cared for the other's company. So they
parted and the baboon went up on to the rocky top of the hill, while the pig went down
to the plains.
The Cock and the Crocodile

" Kokoliliko! Che Ngwena ambusanga! "
" Cock-a-doodle-do, the crocodile is my friend! "
When the reptiles heard the cock giving voice, one morning, they were much annoyed,
saying, " What is the cock that he takes in vain the name of our King! " and they made a
case about it, and all the birds and reptiles came to attend the case, and the crocodile and
the cock were also present.
After the reptiles had made their charge against the cock, the eagle Kapungu, king of
the birds, spoke, saying, " This is a matter of clan relationship. Can the cock claim the
crocodile as his ambusanga? What is the crocodile? What is the cock? We must get to the
bottom of the question. Is it not from an egg that each comes? " To which the crocodile
answered, " You speak truly but we had never thought of it before; we are friends," and
then he swore that inasmuch as men killed his brother the cock, he would kill men, and
from that day to this, he is man's enemy.
Note : This is an interesting story with its reference to clan relationship. The native
seems to forget, however, that a crocodile will devour fowls along with most other things,
including his own brother.
The Tortoise and the Baboon

Why the baboon has no tail
Once upon a time, the tortoise made friends with the eagle and invited him to come and
pay a visit. So one day the eagle alighted at the tortoise's home and was there entertained
and fed. When leaving, he asked the tortoise to return the call but the tortoise having
explained that he could never walk to the eagle's place of abode, it was decided that the
eagle should then and there carry him. So the tortoise asked the eagle to wait for a few
minutes and he went into his house and got a bag. Into the bag the tortoise crept, asking
the eagle to fasten up the bag and tie it to his leg and thus fly with him to his home. Ar
rived there, the eagle gave his guest fish to eat and the next day when the tortoise wished
to leave, he received some fish to take with him. This was put in the bag fastened up with
a long piece of string, the other end of which the tortoise tied round his neck. Saying good
bye to the eagle he asked him to toss him down from the tree so that he could reach the
ground and walk home. On reaching the ground, he started off for home with the bag trail
ing by the string behind him. On the way, he met some baboons, one of whom seeing the
bag ran and took it, saying it was his find and belonged to him. The tortoise naturally
argued the point and they decided to go to the elephant to have the dispute settled. After
hearing the evidence of both sides, the elephant gave his verdict in favor of the baboon.
" The baboon had found the bag and therefore it must belong to him. If it had belonged
to the tortoise, he would have been carrying it on his shoulders." So the tortoise had to go
home without his bag of fish. After a few days, he thought out a plan of revenge. Going
to a place where he knew the baboons often met, he dug a hole under a stone and getting
into the hole, he lay in wait. Presently the baboons arrived and one came to sit on the
stone. Creeping out of his hole, the tortoise laid hold of the baboon's tail, calling out,
" I have found a chikoti (whip)." The baboon immediately replied that it was his tail.
" No," said the tortoise, " I have found it trailing on the ground. Finding is keeping;
anyway we will go to the elephant about it." So they went again to the elephant who
upheld the tortoise, and ordered the baboon to cut off his tail and so the baboon lost his
tail.
The Snake and the Partridge
Once upon a time, there was a partridge who lived in the grass on the plain. One day
a bush fire spread towards the place where he was feeding and he decided that he must fly
to a place of safety. As he was taking his little run preparing to fly, a snake called to him,
saying, " I can find no hole to get into and I am afraid I shall be burnt. Let me coil my
self about your neck and you could thus carry me to a spot which is already burnt." The
partridge agreed and with the snake wound round his neck, he flew away and alighted on
a place over which the fire had already passed. " Now," said he, " would you mind un
winding yourself from my neck? " But the snake answered, " What am I going to eat
here in this burnt place? " and tightening his coils, he strangled the partridge.
There is a saying apropos of this story:
" Ndende 'chenene wauUje angwale! "
"I may do well killed partridge!"
and one in Chinyanja:
" Ukome unapa nkwale! "
"Kindness killed the partridge! "
Ndende 'chenene and ukonze have the meaning " the wish to do a kindness; Misplaced
kindness is fraught with danger! "
The Hare, the Leopard, and the Bushbuck

Once upon a time, a man hoed his garden and planted it with beans. When the crop
grew, he was much troubled by the animals from the forest which came and damaged his
beans, so he set a snare to catch them by the leg. One day, a leopard came that way and
got caught in the trap. After a time as he lay there unable to move, he spied a bushbuck
with his mate and four young ones and called to him to come and help him. The bush-
buck, when he saw the leopard in the trap, took pity on him and undoing the rope, set
him free. Said the leopard, " I have been here three days and am famished. You have
been very kind to me. Will you extend your kindness and take me to your home and
give me food? I am very much indebted to you, and to show my gratitude, I will remain
with you." So the bushbuck assented and led the leopard to his home where beans were
cooked and put before the leopard to satisfy his hunger. But the leopard refused them,
saying that he did not eat beans. So some fowls were killed and cooked and given to him
to eat. Every day he was given fowls to eat until none were left and the same thing hap
pened with the goats. So when there was no more flesh for the leopard's food, they cooked
some beans for him. Then the leopard again explained how greatly he was indebted to his
benefactor, the bushbuck, and that he would like to show his gratitude by staying with him
but that he really could not eat beans and asked the bushbuck to give him one of his chil
dren. The bushbuck did not like to refuse, so one of his little ones was killed and given
to the leopard who ate him. Next day, the leopard asked for and received another child
and so on until all had been sacrificed and only the bushbuck and his wife remained. The
leopard demanded the wife and the poor bushbuck, not knowing how to get out of it, had
to give the leopard his own wife to be eaten. When the leopard again felt hunger, he said
to the bushbuck, "Well, now you have been very kind to me and given me all you have
but you still remain. I think I will have to eat you, too." But the bushbuck being now
really frightened, made off into the forest chased by the leopard. After running for three
days, the bushbuck met a buffalo who asked him, " Why are you running so fast with a
leopard running after you? " So the whole story was told and the buffalo's advice asked
in the matter, to which he answered, "Well I don't think that you can do anything except
continue your kindness and give yourself up to the leopard." But the bushbuck ran on
again and meeting the elephant the same question was put to the bushbuck and in answer
to the story, he received the same advice as the buffalo had given. So with nearly all the
animals of the forest until he met the hare who, after listening to the bushbuck's story,
offered to act as judge in the case. So when the leopard came up, the hare told him he
would like to see how the whole thing had come about from the moment he got caught in
the trap. All then repaired to the place where the snare was. "Now," said the hare setting
the trap, " will you just show me how you got caught? Of course if you are trapped, I will
free you again." So the leopard stepped on the trap and was immediately caught by the
leg. " Ah," said the hare, " that is the way it happened, is it?" with which he went off,
taking the bushbuck with him, leaving the leopard now to die of hunger. Later, some one
came along and finding the leopard in the snare, killed him.
The Hake and the Hyaenas

Once upon a time, a hare went to seek work with a lion and agreed to attend to the
drying of the meat the lion killed. One day, when the lion was away hunting and the hare
was busy attending to his work of drying the meat, some hyaenas came by and seeing the
meat asked the hare to give them some, but the hare refused, saying it was not his own but
belonged to the lion his master. So the hyaenas just went and took and ate of the meat,
and made off. This went on every day and the hare becoming much distressed about it,
decided to try and trap the hyaenas, so he dug a game-pit and having put pointed stakes
in the bottom, he covered it up with grass. In the afternoon, he went out for the daily
supply of firewood, and on his return he was dismayed to find that the lion, his master, had
fallen into the game-pit and been killed. After this, he abandoned the pit and thought of
another idea to defeat the hyaenas and avenge the death of his master. He got the lion
out of the pit and carefully removing the skin, he dried it and stuffed it with grass and
fixed up the stuffed body in the forest close by, and attaching one end of a rope about its
neck, he carried the other end to the place near by, where he went on with his work of
drying meat. Presently the hyaenas came along and as usual asked for meat. The hare
this day invited them to come and take what they wanted. Pretending to be friendly, the
hare remarked how well one of them would look with a nice piece of rope tied round his
neck, like a necklace, and the hyaena's vanity being touched, he allowed the hare to fasten
the rope round his neck. Now this was the rope to the other end of which was attached
the stuffed lion, and when the next moment, the hare called out that the lion was coming
back and the hyaenas started to run away, they found that the lion followed them. Wher
ever they stopped to get breath, there he was still on their tracks, so they decided to run
for a hole they knew where they could hide from the lion. After they had been in the hole
sometime, one of them peeped out, but there was the lion waiting at the mouth of the hole.
Day by day they got more hungry but every time they peeped out, they always saw the
lion waiting for them, and so it happened that they grew weaker and weaker and eventu
ally died of starvation.
The Hare, the Elephant, and the Hippopotamus

The hare challenged the elephant to a tug-of-war, the understanding being that if the
elephant pulled the hare over, the hare would pay, but that if he did not succeed in pulling
the hare over, then the hare should receive the wager. To this the elephant agreed, and
away went the hare to the hippopotamus and made a similar proposal to which the hippo
in turn assented. On the day appointed for the contest, the hare handed one end of a long
rope to the elephant and arranged with him that he, the hare, should signal a blast on a
horn when they were to begin pulling, the second blast to be the signal for the end of the
contest. The hare then trotted off with the other end of the rope and found the hippo,
with whom he made a similar arrangement. Then, taking up a position midway, he blew
on the horn and the elephant and the hippo started pulling against each other, each igno
rant of his opponent. Neither could pull the other over, for they were both equally strong.
So the hare blew a second blast on his horn, and going to the elephant received the ac
knowledgment of his defeat and the wager, after which he went to the hippo who was
also defeated, and so received his second wager.
The Story of the Dzimwe

Once upon a time there was a woman and she was with child. One day she wanted
some meat to eat and asked the Dzimwe to give her some. The Dzimwe agreed to give
her some meat if she would give him her child when it was born. To this the woman as
sented and received the meat. In due course the child was born but the woman thought
no more about the Dzimwe until one day she met him and was reminded of her promise.
So the woman arranged with Dzimwe to send her child to the garden to gather pumpkins
so that he could catch him. The child's name was Kalikalanje which means " he who frys
himself in a pan." The Dzimwe went down to the garden, changed himself into a pumpkin,
and waited for the boy's coming. Presently Kalikalanje arrived and looking at the pump
kins, said, " I only gather one that dances," so the Dzimwe in the form of a pumpkin started
dancing about and the boy ran away calling out, " No! really I don't gather pumpkins
that dance." A few days later, the Dzimwe sought out the woman and related how he had
been duped, so the woman proposed to tie the Dzimwe up in a bundle of grass in the forest
which she would then send her son out to get. Kalikalanje, sent out by his mother for a
bundle of grass, came across the bundle containing the Dzimwe, and remarked that he only
took bundles of grass that danced. And when the bundle started dancing, the boy ran
away, calling out that he did not really take bundles of grass that danced. So the Dzimwe
a second time was frustrated. Again he went to the boy's mother and asked her, saying,
" You promised me the child, you must make some other plan to deliver the boy into my
hands." This time she hit upon the idea of sending the boy to another village to play
niengo (a kind of game of nine-pins), and told Dzimwe that he would be able to recognize
her son as she would shave his head and give him a piece of red cloth to wear. So Kali
kalanje went to play njengo with the boys in another village, but arriving early, he got them
all to shave their heads and tearing up his piece of red cloth, he gave each boy a piece to
wear. When the Dzimwe arrived, he was again baffled as he did not know which was the
boy he ought to have. Once more he met the woman and explained how her plan had mis
carried, so she suggested that she should send her son out hunting in the forest and the
Dzimwe could catch him there. So the youth went out hunting and he took his four dogs
with him, including his dog, Mawalayenje. As he went through the forest, he suddenly
came upon the Dzimwe, so he climbed up a tree. " Ah," said the Dzimwe, " I have got
you at last! " and commenced to cut down the tree. Then Kalikalanje called to one of his
dogs to attack the Dzimwe and the dog rushed in at him but fell dead, killed by the wind
passed from the bowel of the Dzimwe. The same fate fell to two more dogs. Then Kali-
kalanje called his dog, Mawalanyenje to attack the Dzimwe. Mawalanyenje flew at the
Dzimwe, making wind at the same time as his enemy, and was unhurt. He bit and bit
at the Dzimwe till he killed him. Then Kalikalanje came down from the tree and got
medicine and his three dead dogs were brought to life again, and he was not molested
further.
Note. This story in only an incomplete form is given by Hind in his First Yao
Reader and I have therefore thought it worth while repeating it in extenso. Miss Werner1
has referred to Dzimwe but seems very doubtful of the meaning of the word. It occurs
only in the story given above, common to both Wayao and Anyanja, and simply refers to a
fabulous personality, one of whose attributes was the ability to change into various forms.
Scott in his dictionary,2 mentions a Chinyanja word, Dzimwe, an elephant, so called because
of its large belly filled with masses of unchewed food.
Naltjmbalapa, the Night-jab

One day when the night-jar was strolling along, he met some guinea-fowls and approach
ing their leader, he said, " I envy you when I see you going along accompanied by many
of your people. I should be very glad if you would help me by giving me medicine to make
me also a chief among others." So the guinea-fowl said, " That is all right, but you must
come at the proper time when I am at home." In the evening, the night-jar went to the
guinea-fowl and the guinea-fowl gave him some medicine and told him, " Take this medi
cine. You must then get some animals' dung and mix the medicine with a basketful of it.
Choose a nice site and sprinkle it all over with this. Then build your own hut there. The
rules about this medicine are as follows: If any people come to stay with you and do any
damage to your crops, don't abuse them; speak gently." " All right," said the night-jar,
and went away to follow out the instructions. When this was all done, one evening some
one came and clapping hands at the door, called to the owner. The night-jar went outside
and found a man with his wife and children. They had come to settle down with him.
(He was going to be a chief among men!) So he told them to come in. After a few minutes,
others came, and then all night others arrived until the house was full and others camped
outside. Within two days, there was a big village. Then the night-jar went back and re
ported to the guinea-fowl. The guinea-fowl again bade him keep to the rules. Then the
people made a big garden for the night-jar and planted cassava and many other things and
they were all quite happy. One day, all the people came together and said they were going
to make a bigger garden for their chief, the night ,jar. The children went too, and played in
one of the cassava gardens. One of them dug up some roots and chewed them and the night
jar passing and noticing this, was very cross and began abusing the children and their
1 British Central Africa, p. 233. » Op. cit., p. 139.
mothers. When they heard the abuse, everybody stopped hoeing, put their hoes on their
shoulders and with their wives and children went away, till no one was left in the village,
except the night-jar and his wife. " I don't know what I am going to do. I must run to the
guinea-fowl and see if he can put this affair right," said he. He reported to the guinea-
fowl all that had happened. Then the guinea-fowl said, " You have broken the rules. It
is too late; it is finished and I cannot give you medicine to call them back. It is your own
fault." The night-jar said, " I think you can help me. Give me medicine to make me in
visible. If you do not, the people may come back and kill me." " For that I will give you
medicine," said the guinea-fowl. " Now, after you and your wife rub yourselves with the
medicine, as you sit together a man can walk past you and not see you." So they got
the medicine and went home and used it. And that is why you cannot see the night-jar
now as he sits on the road when you pass.
The Story of the Hornbill (Lipomombo)

Once upon a time, there was a man named Lipomombo. He lived in a village but would
not conform to the customs of the people. This the people did not like. Especially did
they take exception to his refusal to attend the last rites for the dead. Once again he was
asked to pay homage to the dead and accompany the funeral procession of a fellow villager
to the grave, but he refused as usual. Soon after, his own child died, but no one came to
offer help in preparing the body or in carrying it to the burial ground. Not knowing what
to do, he tied the body up and put it upon his head and so left the house to search for
the burial place. "Ku malembe kwaf Where are the graves?" he asked the first man he
met. " I don't know," was the reply. He wandered on, putting the same question " Ku
malembe kwa, kwa, kwaf " to everyone he met but no one apparently knew. So he wandered
on until the body became rotten and ran down his nose and dripped off the end. He has
been wandering ever since with the last piece stuck on his nose, always searching for the
graveyard and asking " Ku malembe kwa, kwa, kwaf " and all his descendants do the same.
Moral : Conform to the customs of your race. (Note the beak of the Hornbill and its
call.)
The Story of the Young Man Testing the Advice Given to Him
by His Father
There was once an old man and he was dying, so he called his son to him and said,
" I am dying, but before I go, there are three things I wish you to beware of doing: Firstly,
do not tell your wife your private affairs; secondly, do not make friends with a policeman;
thirdly, do not borrow money from a poor man but from a rich man." Having uttered
these warnings, the old man died. No sooner was the burial over than the son thought
over his father's words and deciding to try and see whether there was wisdom in them, he
went along to a poor man he knew and borrowed sixpence and to a rich man and bor
rowed a sovereign and thence home. Saying nothing about the money, he left his house
the following morning and bought a goat. Waiting in the bush till dark, he killed it and
then bound up the carcass in some grass and carried it to his hut. Arrived there, he excitedly
told his wife he had killed a man and wanted to bury the corpse which he had brought with
him, under the floor of the hut. So the woman brought a hoe and together they dug a hole
in the middle of the floor and having deposited the body in it, the earth was filled in and
the woman replastered the floor with mud, and made her cooking fire over the spot. " Now,"
said the young man to himself, " my father told me not to tell my wife any of my private
affairs and not to borrow money from a poor man. Both these I have done. One thing
remains; I must find a policeman to make friends with." Going out, he met two policemen,
so he said to one of them, " I should like to be friends with you, come to my house "; and
the policeman agreed and went with the man to his house and a fowl was killed for them
to eat. He introduced the policeman to his wife as his friend and she started cooking
porridge. When it was ready, she brought it outside to the two men who were sitting on
the veranda of the house with water to wash their hands and they commenced eating.
Then the man called his wife back, saying the porridge was not well cooked — " It is
only fit for dogs! " — and struck his wife a blow. The woman immediately appealed to the
policeman to protect her, saying her husband would kill her as he had killed a man, a short
time before. So the policeman arrested the man and took him away to the magistrate. The
magistrate sent the police back with the man to the village to find the body of the murdered
man. Its resting place was pointed out by the woman and after digging, they found the
body tied up in the grass. All said, " It is just as the woman stated!" and they began
striking the man and made him carry the body back to the magistrate. On the way, they
met the poor man, who on seeing his debtor cried out, " Where are you going, where is my
sixpence? " " I am going to the magistrate. I am supposed to have murdered a man,"
he replied. " Where is my sixpence? You will get hanged and I shall be the loser! "
yelled the poor man. " Wait a bit, I may not be killed," said the man, " I may be able
to pay you back presently." " No you won't, you will be hanged," was the reply and the
poor man hit him as he passed. Later, the party met the rich man and the accused called
to him, " I am in trouble and don't know when I may be able to repay you your loan ";
but the rich man answered, saying, " Never mind about that now. I am sorry you are in
trouble." When they came before the magistrate and the man put down his load, it was
opened and the body of the goat disclosed. Then the magistrate asked the man what it
was all about. So the man related his story, telling the magistrate how he had wanted to
test his father's advice, and how it had all proved to be good advice.
Note: The story as given here is doubtless an adaptation of an older story to present
day conditions. I have not been able to get any more original form.
About the Greedy Man (Jtja Mlume Juaktjsusukwa)

Once upon a time, there was a man and he went and set a trap and caught an mbendu
(genet cat). So he brought it back to his home and singed the fur off and partly roasted
it, and then hung it up from the roof inside his hut without telling his wife to cook it. It
was in the summer time. One day his wife said, " I am tired of gathering herbs to cook for
your relish. What about the animal hanging up there? Shall I not cook it?" The husband
replied that not for anything would he have it cooked. " I am going to keep it till we get
our new crops in," he said. So the woman said nothing and time passed and the little
animal got as dry as a bone. One day when the man and the woman had gone to hoe in their
garden, the mbendu came to life again and jumping down, found the basket where the
woman kept her clothes and beads; opening it, he took them out and dressed up in them.
Thus arrayed he went out of the hut and came to the place where some women were pound
ing grain; so he began to sing and danced to them. His song was:
" Achamburriba'wo kutuwa'ko misi jose leche leche, mbwi! jukutu! jukutu! "
" The women (who were) pounding there pounding sticks all they have left! "
and he told the women to sing the chorus " Nanchalamanda! " (Mbwi is the word used to
indicate the sound and action of a short hop on both feet like a bird or some steps in a
dance. Jukutu similarly has reference to the movements of the buttocks in dancing.
Nanchalamanda means " very dry," referring to the mbendu and the treatment he had
suffered.) So they all danced together, but when he judged the people would be going back
to the house, he escaped and ran back to the house and putting away the clothes and beads
in the basket, he went back to his position hanging from the roof. This went on for several
days and many of the boys and girls in the village used to go to the pounding place to see
mbendu dance. One day the child of the man who had caught the mbendu recognized the
cloth he was wearing as belonging to his mother and noticed him go back to their house.
So he went and told his mother and father who, when they looked into the basket, noticed
that the things inside had been disarranged and that the cloth was dirty. So they said
they must find out what was going on, and next day, pretending to go to their garden, they
hid themselves. Presently mbendu came down, put on the cloth and beads and went out
of the house to dance as usual. When the man and his wife appeared, he ran away to the
house, threw off the cloth and hung himself up to the roof, but he had not quite shrivelled
up dry again when they came in and discovered him. When mbendu saw that he was found
out, he jumped down and ran away, this time quite free into the fields, so the woman
reviled her husband for saving up the animal in greedy fashion so long.
Note: When telling these and other stories, there is a regular formula with which the
narrator prefaces his discourse. The story-teller begins:
" Lokote lokote kasdo to! "
" Picking up picking up a little basket full!"
to which the listeners exclaim

"Lakataa!"
"Overflows!"
At the completion of each sentence in the story, one of his listeners will exclaim, " Go! "
When he has finished his story, he says,
" Ajokole katolo katakununga pamtwe pakomere, umbo chiponji! "
" Take off the fire, the little mouse lest it be singed, by the head it is very hard, the hair (is) in a
lump! "
During the intervals of a long story, one of the listeners may break in and sing some little
song, such as the song of the mbendu in the story of the greedy man, thus giving the story
teller a rest.
The house and household utensils. The Yao house does not differ greatly from the
Nyanja habitation which I have already described elsewhere.1 The accompanying figure
(PI. XIV, fig. 15) gives the circular plan of a hut with a veranda partly open and partly
enclosed to form a room. The central pole of the hut is indicated, the hearth (H), the
position of the sleeping mats (M), and the place where the water pots are kept (P). The
bed may be a bamboo platform supported by forked sticks a foot above the ground (usang-
wali), or a dais of mud, over which is spread the sleeping-mat, ugono. (PI. XIV, fig. 14.)
Seats, chitengu, are made of logs of wood with conveniently placed branches acting as legs.
I have seen a symmetrically carved log with shaped legs all in one piece, which suggested
by its form and by the presence of a button on the midline of the under surface that it was
made in the imitation of an animal. Plank seats with peg legs are now sometimes seen.
Wooden pegs are driven into the wall and serve to hang odd articles upon.
The hearth is simply a shallow depression in the mud floor, around which are placed
three large stones to support the cooking pots. Sometimes a canopy is built over the
hearth, consisting of four upright poles supporting a platform made of reeds and grass,
upon which millet and other seed grains are often stored. From this platform ligulu (tsanja,
Chin.), the gourd containing the supply of salt is often hung. The seed grain tied up in
little bundles is suspended from the ligulu where it becomes very dry and smoked, without
any ill effect to the next year's crop. (PI. XIV, fig. 16.) Four pronged branches of trees
are often stuck in the ground with a string tied around the prongs, and used as holders for
gourds, salt bottles, etc.; this device is called lipanda (phanda, Chin.). (PI. XIV, fig. 10.)
The smaller utensils include the porridge stirring stick mtiko (Yao and Chin.) (PI. XIV,
fig. 12), several wooden spoons chikowi (chipanda or namalawa, Chin.), (PI. XIV, figs. 11,
13), a number of gourds of various shapes and sizes used as ladles and drinking vessels,
1 ' Notes on some tribes of British Central Africa,' op. cit., p. 326-328.
and the baskets and pots. A wooden dish rribisi may be seen occasionally, but of late years,
this has been generally replaced by enameled articles.
Around the entire hut, or simply enclosing a yard behind it, there is often a fence about
five feet high. In the enclosure thus formed, many household duties are performed, such
as the pounding and sifting of grain. The grain store ngokwe often stands in this yard with
the pigeon-loft and possibly a hen-house or goat kraal; these are sometimes found in the
open space at the front of the house. If a grain store is built within the hut itself, it is then
known as mbungu. Near the pigeon-loft will be seen a pole with prongs supporting an old
pot with water for the pigeons to drink. In a tree in the bush nearby, there may stand a
beehive, consisting of a bark cylinder. Similar cylinders are sometimes used as pigeon-
houses.
The large pots for brewing beer are usually set in the yard or on the back veranda,
together with a basket of split bamboo for carrying fowls, chitektele (Yao and Chin.).
Gourds. Gourds are grown in the village for use as vessels of various kinds. Different
shapes serve different purposes; names are given them according to use rather than shape,
though these more or less coincide. Ladles for water or beer, msomalo or mgao (nsomero or
chiko, Chin.) are usually long-handled gourds (PI. XIV, figs. 7, 8, 9). Drinking vessels for
beer, etc. chipanda and a specially large one, mtumba are usually of the shape illustrated
in Plate XIV, fig. 1 ; sometimes they are like fig. 5, but this shape is more commonly used
for water. Lipache, the type illustrated by fig. 2, is also used for drinking or for holding
gruel. Oil flasks, chisasi (tsupa, Chin.), are usually of the double-bellied type (figs. 4 and 6).
Salt bottles, chitumba (chiguru, Chin.), are similar to oil flasks. Rattles, sanje, used at
dances etc., are also made from gourds, often from those with tuberosities (fig 3). Other
uses for gourds include pipes, snuff-boxes, enema funnels, and resonators for musical
instruments.
Pottery. The art of pot-making appears to have been known to the Yao for a very
considerable period. There is no history relating to its introduction among them. The
art is in the hands of the Yao women. As among all Nyasaland tribes, a particular kind of
clay is used and no admixture with any binding substance is made. The pots are simply
moulded by hand from base to brim and, without the aid of any wheel or other device,
wonderful symmetry is attained.
After drying, the pots are fired by being set on their bases on the ground and a wood fire
is made round and above them. They are then sprinkled with an infusion of the nywenywe
or ntumbi tree, a head of millet being used for the purpose, after which the pots are set
upon a fire and millet husks are thrown into them and allowed so to be incinerated. These
customs, a kind of christening of the pots, " insure their turning out well."
No glaze of any kind is used, but they are sometimes colored red by boiling with a pig
ment called ngama, prepared from a red sediment found in sluggish streams. The prepara
tion of ngama is in the hands of men and women who make a trade of it, such as a man called
Njusi near Zomba. Sometimes pots are also rubbed all over the outside or in patterns with
munyu, a natural graphite.
Patterns of a simple character, often of the herring bone order, are commonly graved
about the neck of the pots with the aid of a stick of bamboo. There is considerable variety
in the size and shape of the pots made. As with gourds, the pot takes its name from the
use to which it is put and not from the shape or size. All pots have rounded bottoms; none
have a flattened base or standard.
The following varieties of pots may be mentioned :
1. Litereko, large pots for beer-making. These are usually roughly made and seldom
have any decoration on them; they stand about two feet high and are wide-mouthed
(Pl. XV, figs. 1, 4).
2. Luulo (ntsuko, Chin.) : water-pots. These are usually well moulded and well finished
pots, full bellied with broad base and a certain amount of neck. They are practically
always decorated and often colored. They are about twelve inches high and twelve inches
across the broadest diameter (PI. XV, figs. 8, 9, 10).
3. Chiulugo (nthalo, Chin.): cooking pots used for cooking the flour porridge, ugali.
These are wide, open-mouthed pots six to ten inches high, with belly and more or less
straight sides (PI. XV, figs. 5, 6, 7). This name also applies to the cooking vessel for medic
inal concoctions.
4. Chijungu (mpika, Chin.) : smaller pots of the same type as 3, used for cooking beans,
fish, green stuff, and the relish mboga (ndiwo, Chin.) (PI. XV, fig. 3).
5. Mtala (nkate, Chin.) : the bath water pot. The smallest pot used for heating water
to bathe the husband after sexual intercourse bears the same name. It is found among
both the Anyanja and the Wayao (PI. XV, fig. 2).
6. Mbale (Yao and Chin.) : the plate, a shallow, wide-open vessel.
Baskets. The basket work of the Yao is all of one type and is done by the men. All
baskets are made of plaited strips of bamboo, the free edges of the strips being bound be
tween thicker pieces of the same wood forming the rim, the binding being done with the
stem of a creeper. They are made in various shapes and sizes. Some are rendered water
proof and used as beer mugs. The following types of basket are in use:
1. Chiselo (lichero, Chin.): a circular, open basket, shallow and wide, six to ten inches
in diameter; it is used as a food dish or to measure flour, etc. Chitunga (nsengwa, Chin.),
a rather larger one of the same shape, often decorated with beads is used to carry flour,
while a still larger basket called chipeta is commonly used by the women for winnowing
out the chaff from the partly pounded maize (PI. XVI, figs. 11, 15).
2. Lukalala and chitunda (in Chin., both are called ntanga): deep baskets usually
about as deep as they are broad; the bottom is approximately square, but the rim is cir
cular. Chitundu is about six inches high and six inches in diameter; lukalala is about a
foot in all dimensions. These large baskets are used for carrying any food-stuffs in bulk,
e.g. grain and pumpkins (PI. XVI, fig. 16).
3. Mtungwi: this large double basket one half of which fits over the other like a cover,
is now very common among the Yao; it was copied from the Swahili lijamanda. The
body is made in the same way as the other baskets, but each half has a broad rim of wood
which is always cut profusely into patterns (PI. XVI, fig. 13, and PI. XVII).
4. Chinumbi: the beer mug, a small hemispherical basket rendered waterproof by
smearing with a sticky substance prepared from the pounded stem of the mposa tree or
from the root of the nguna plant mixed with charcoal (PI. XVI, fig. 12).
5. Lisungulo (kape, Chin.) : the beer strainer made in the shape of chitunga, but the
strips of bamboo forming the warp and the weft are of different thicknesses, so that spaces
are left for the fluid to run through (PI. XVI, fig. 14).
Mats. In years gone by the Yao made a rough kind of plaited matting of split reeds
called chipondo; it is not seen today. Another type of mat seldom used today is the lichika
(chika, Chin.), made of a number of reeds of equal length bound together by several rows
of interlacing string (PI. XVI. fig. 7). Reeds are also used to make the ugono (mpasa,
Chin.) (PI. XVI, fig. 10). When dry they are split and fastened out with the smooth sur
faces all on one side. A number of reeds so flattened lying side by side are then sewed
together with native string, and form a clean, smooth mat for sitting or sleeping.
Mats made of plaited strips of sun-dried palm leaf are now in common use, the art of
making them, I believe, having been introduced from the coast. Large mats of this kind
called liambi are used in the chief's courtyard (PI. XVI, fig. 9). Smaller ones called mkeka,
or by the old people ndanga, made from the leaf of the wild date palm, are used for sleeping
(PI. XVI, fig. 6). Since the advent of the European, mat making has become an important
industry, and liambi and mkeka are to be found in every European house.
A still finer kind of mat, circular in plan and stained in patterns, has lately been in
troduced by the Swahili. Red and black dyes are generally used ; the red is either ngama,1
or a stain called mchesulo prepared from the bark of a tree called mseche; the black dye is
made from the root of a vine, likwanya (chiteze, Chin.), the itch bean.
The matting made of these strips of palm leaf is in the form of a ribbon from three to
six inches wide, according to the fineness of the strips. The ribbon of matting is sewed
into the form of a cylinder by plaiting the edges of the ribbon together in a large spiral.
This cylinder of matting is then cut down one side and laid flat, and the cut edges finished
off with a plaited mat border (PI. XVI, fig. 8). It will be seen that, owing to the way they
are made, these mats are never quite rectangular. The ribbon of matting used for the cir
cular mats is narrower still and sewed round and round in a flat spiral fashion.
Cloth. The Yao in years gone by made a woven cloth, but the art has long since died
out, and I have never seen a piece of native-made cloth. I imagine, inasmuch as bark-
cloth is still worn by the poorer people, that the native-made woven cloth was only worn
by the few, probably the chiefs. The older cloth was undoubtedly bark-cloth, worn, as I
have said, to this day, and also appearing as the proper dress in all ceremonies. Clothing
nowadays, among the majority, consists of calico of various kinds brought in by traders
and further referred to under Dress.
Bark-cloth, liwondo (chiwondo, Chin.) is made by the men. A piece of bark about two feet
by one is cut from the living tree ; the outside portions are removed and the whole piece,
after being well scraped, is soaked in water. When partly softened, it is removed and ham
mered out with a wooden mallet ; the process is repeated till the piece of bark is soft enough
to enable it to be wrung in the hands, thus further loosening the fibres. The soaking, ham
mering, wringing, and pulling are continued till a piece of cloth three by five feet is obtained.
This is sun-dried and yields a soft, pliable, and warm material. Several pieces may be
sewed together to make a large sheet. Bark-cloth is sometimes stained black by soaking
it in a kind of thick mud found on the plains. The mallet consists of a piece of hard wood
with serrations on its face, held in a split stick handle; it is called mkomero. A log of wood
with a flattened surface, called mkongwa, plays the part of the anvil, the man who is using
the mallet usually sitting on one end of the log.
Skins. The Yao are unacquainted with the art of tanning. Skins are prepared only by
drying, and then softened by hammering with stones. They are not employed as articles of
clothing but the larger ones are used to sit upon, the skins of the leopard and the lion being
reserved for chiefs. Others are used to make bags to carry flour, for powder pouches, and
to cover guns. The blacksmith's bellows are made of goat's skin.
String, lukonji (chingwe, Chin.) : Two kinds of string are made, one from flax, the
other from the inner part of the bark of the baobab tree. Fishing nets are made from the
former, game nets from the latter.
Metals and metal working. The only metal ever obtained from the ore by the Wayao
was iron, and it is probable that they learned this from the Anguru and Anyanja. The
industry is now nearly dead since the introduction of trade articles. A few blacksmiths
still ply their trade, but their work is restricted to the manufacture of knives, spear-heads,
and razors. Hoes are no longer made. The hoe blade supplied by traders is in the form of
the old native-made article, which had in turn displaced the older hoeing-stick. The black
smith deals with his mass of metal by hammering it with stones. He provides himself with
bellows, a small iron hammer, and a rudimentary kind of tongs. He is called wachipala.
Stone. The only important uses for stones among the Yao are for supporting the
cooking pots on the fire, for heating water in some medicinal preparations, and for grinding
millet. For this last purpose, a large, flat stone, inclined at an angle, is set up in some con
venient spot, often on the veranda, and the grain is ground by means of a smaller stone
held in the hands.
The flour pestle and mortar. Maize flour is prepared by pounding the grain in a
big wooden mortar, by means of a wooden pestle, consisting of a pole some five feet long
and four inches in diameter with round ends. The mortar consists of a tree trunk about
two feet high and fifteen inches in diameter, hollowed out from above for about two-thirds
of its length. Many are made with a kind of base or stand, and some have roughly carved
bosses on the outside; these are called " the breasts," doubtless emblematical of women,
a large part of whose life is spent in preparing flour (PI. XV, fig. 15).
The fire-stick. Matches are becoming more widespread year by year and soon the
knowledge of how to make fire with a fire drill will be lost. The method employed among
the Yao is as follows: a flat surface is cut on a piece of partly rotted wood. In the middle
of this a small depression is made, and on one side of the piece of wood a groove is cut lead
ing from the flat cut surface. The piece of wood is held firmly on the ground by one per
son with a piece of old scorched cloth or some charred sticks at the base of the groove.
A second person, by rolling a stick of hard wood rapidly between his hands with the point
directed against the depression on the flat surface in which a little sand has been placed,
drills a hole into it. The heat developed is sufficient to cause the powdered rotten wood
to start smouldering. This is then turned out on the cloth, which is gently waved in the
air till it catches fire (PI. XV, fig. 16).
Boats. With the exception of a small coracle-like vessel, likungwa, made of rough bark
and used for crossing streams, the Yao have no boats. The dug-out canoes which they
use at the present day are made for them by the Anyanja. In addition to the bark boat,
they use a kind of raft made from the pith tree, bungwa.
Tobacco. The use of tobacco in some form is universal among the tribes of Nyasa-
land and the Yao are no exception. The method of use varies among the different peoples;
smoking, chewing, and snuffing are all practiced, but while the Anyanja is essentially a
pipe-smoker, the Yao takes snuff, although I think only lately he has also taken up smok
ing and chewing. A short time ago, a Yao who chewed would have been laughed at. The
Anyanja do not chew but take snuff to a certain extent; the Angoni who do not smoke
or chew are inveterate snuff-takers; the Atumbuka, Atonga, Asenga, and Ankonde are
pipe-smokers and in lesser degree snuff-takers.
Tobacco is called sona (Jodia. Chin.). It is prepared by sun-curing the leaf, which is
then rolled up into a twist and allowed to dry further. The common tobacco pipe consists
of a clay bowl, often ornamented, and a reed stem; it was formerly called chilongo, but is
now known as kalio (PI. XV, fig. 11). For hemp, chamba, the Yao use a water pipe called
ndundu (ngunda, Chin.) ; this consists of a bamboo water container from which projects a
reed stem surmounted by a clay bowl (PI. XV, fig. 13). The word ndundu is also used for
a tobacco pipe.
When tobacco is chewed, a little lime paste swakala made from snail shells is put in
the mouth " to bring out the flavor," a small clay jar being used to carry the swakala.
Both the Wayao and the Anyanja prepare snuff by grinding the broken-up tobacco leaves
with a stone in a potsherd; the powder is then turned out into another sherd and warmed
over a fire. A few drops of a preparation called magadi is added for flavor. Magadi is
made by boiling down the solution obtained by straining a decoction of water and the
ashes of banana leaves; it contains, of course, some of the inorganic salts from the banana
leaves. Without this addition, snuff is said to lack its proper aroma. The Angoni do not
warm their snuff, but add a magadi made in a similar way from cow dung.
Food stuffs. According to the general supposition, the native lives on a very monoto
nous diet, with a great excess of carbohydrates to the exclusion of proteids and fats. While
it is certainly true that he does not consider that he has been fed without his " whack"
of flour (maize, millet, rice or cassava), still he feels that his meal is a poor one if it does
not also include some secondary dish, such as beans, fish, or green vegetables cooked like
spinach.
The grains chiefly grown and used by the Yao are maize, millet, and a certain amount
of rice.
Millets (sorghum): Mapemba, a tall variety, eight feet high, which is harvested late;
Mapemba ga mnunji, a hairy variety; Lisembeleka, a short kind, five feet high, which ma
tures early; Mbalwe, characterized by the fact that the ripe grains will fall when the plant
is shaken, and by a rather bitter taste; Nandonji, a variety six feet high which ripens
quickly; Kapile, a shorter variety with a bitter taste but, according to the natives, a
pleasant smell. (It makes good beer.)
Eleusins: Liwanje, about four feet high with very small grains; Chindumba, used for
making a very strong beer; Msundi, a variety eight feet high. Cyprus grasses: Usanje;
there are two varieties, Kaumbata, which curls up and is used for making strong beer, and
another kind which is not curly.
Maizes: A number of varieties of the species Zea mays are grown by the Yao: Chisowa,
a black-grained variety; Namgalale, red maize; Liwanje, the seeds of which are large,
white, and dented; Nsachinya, with grains flattened on the free surface; Kanjelenjele, a
dwarf maize about four feet high.
Rice (Oryza sativa): Mpunga (generic name Likoti), a large-grained variety; Singano,
with very long grains; Lingwindimba, red rice; Mbungala, characterized by the strong,
not unpleasant odor it gives out when being cooked.
Cassava: Chinangwa is grown everywhere, but the Yao do not prepare flour from it,
preferring to eat it raw at odd times. There are several varieties; Chingangwa cha chimera,
white cassava; Chinangwa cha mbwani, a brown variety; Liwaga, a bitter species (Manihot
utilissima) which produces a very large root; Chilasi and KamTanye, varieties of Manihot
aipi, the former characterized by its long, tapering leaves, while the latter is a dwarf variety
with a big root.
Beans: there are a number of species of beans grown: Mberemende (Cajunus indicus),
ngunde (Vigna catiang), mbweso (Phaseolus mungo), mbwanda, (Phaseolus sp.), ntambahodo,
(Phaseolus sp.), ngondomalui, and a ground bean njama (Voamdzia subterranea).
Peas, sawawa (Pisum sativum), are grown in abundance. There are two other varieties;
mtesa (groundnuts), and chimbuwira.
Sweet potatoes: mbatata (Ipomeae sativa), of which the natives are very fond; they
distinguish a red and a white variety, mbatata syanjejeu and mbatata syasiswera.
The tuber-like root of a bush called nyumbu is also eaten, likewise the young under
ground shoots of a palm tree. The leaves of the sweet potato and the leaves of many wild
growing plants are collected by the women and cooked like spinach; the flowers of pump
kins are used in a similar way. Of fruits eaten, the banana, ligombo, takes first place. A
very large number of species of Eumusa are grown, including makumbuka, mbingo, sukali,
nasiri sungusye, kabutu a dwarf banana, lisigwa a wild banana, and mlanya, the plantain.
The paw-paw is found all over the district. There are several varieties of pumpkin,
lyungu, including mbonda, chindondoli, and a very large species called mtwe wa ngwena,
" the crocodile's head." Varieties of cucumbers include lingaka and kalitungule.
A large number of wild fruits are eaten, among them figs, lukuju (Ficus), lisuku (Uapaca),
chitili and liungo, the fruits of two species of Landolphia, matonga or Kaffir oranges (a
species of Strychnos), chikundu, the fruits of Hyphaene (palms), makwakwa (Myrianthus)
a wild tree belonging to the mulberry family, and others, ndawa, makangandembo, ndondo-
woko, chingulungulu, chindogolya, malembe, likwenda, etc. The seeds from the heads of
bulrushes (Typha) are mashed up and eaten.
All fish are eaten except the nyanga, which always causes urticaria.
The flesh of all the antelopes, of oxen, sheep and goats is eaten greedily; only bushbuck
is avoided by some people as it is said to cause a skin eruption. Elephant is shunned by
many on account of its rough skin, also rhinoceros because of the ulcers which it often has
on its body, and hippopotamus on account of the marks on its back which are thought to
be akin to leprosy. People eating the flesh of these animals are supposed often to sicken
with leprosy, the pachydermatous skin, the ulceration or anaesthetic depigmented patches
of that disease being reproduced, as the case may be. Few will eat pig or warthog on account
of the digging habits of these animals. It is thought they may sometimes grub up bodies
from graves. These flesh taboos may be due to Mohammedan influence. The lion, hyaena,
and fox no one would touch, as they are supposed to be connected with usawi,1 but the
heart of the lion might be eaten to acquire courage. Few will touch leopard flesh, but
Kasongo's descendants do so. All will eat of the flesh of the serval cat but very few of
the common wild cat. The rock rabbit, ngangawira (mbira, Chin.), is refused by most
Yao as it is a "beast without shame," having no tail to hide what should in decency be
hid. Very few will partake of the baboon, but monkey is acceptable to many. A few reject
porcupine, supposing they will break out in spots, while the zebra may cause stripes, and
none will touch the skunk. No one eats sunje, a mouse that is believed to die if it crosses
a path. All kinds of rats are eaten, but the shrew-rat and cane-rat only by boys. Snakes
no one will touch. With the exception of carrion birds such as the crow and the hawk, most
birds are considered fit to eat. The hornbill is not eaten, as it is supposed to carry part
of a corpse on its nose.1 Fowls form a regular article of diet, but some taboos in this
connection are mentioned elsewhere.
Eggs are eaten only by children and old people; that is, by those outside the child
propagating age. Milk is never consumed in any form. They say, " What a disgusting
habit, to suck the juice of an animal while it is still alive! "
Pregnant women will not eat certain things lest the child be born with some deformity,
such as the snout of a pig, or the white stripes of a zebra.
Art and decoration. Sculpture can hardly be said to be an art known to the Yao.
The only piece of stone work I have ever seen was a granite boulder, on the surface of which
cup-holes had been made for the game of Bau (Pl. IV, fig. 4).
Of late years, individuals here and there have begun carving wooden figures of men and
animals. The Yao, of course, make no idols. It is uncertain exactly how long it is since
any of these people started producing wooden figures. I should think that this art has
sprung up within the past twelve or thirteen years, that is to say, since there has been a
market for them among European residents. In the first place only natives and some of
the common animals, the eland and leopard, were represented; since then, many animals
and Europeans have been copied. The native is extraordinarily clever in reproducing
characteristic features in dress, etc., so that a Portuguese is easily distinguished from an
Englishman. The little models in ivory of animals and native household objects, made
by the Swahili people on Lake Nyasa, have never been copied by the Yao. Neither do
they make clay images of men and cattle as do the Zulu-descended Angoni and cattle-
keeping Wankonde. No native would allow any wooden figure to remain in his house for
fear of ill luck; the women especially would look askance at them, fearing some misfortune
in their next pregnancy. Little wooden figures of birds, however, are sometimes seen affixed
to the point of the hut roof.
The making of carved figures,then, is of recent introduction, or rather is a recent event
in the evolution of the Yao, as they were not taught but self-inspired in the work.
The ability to make representations of objects by drawing appears in the same way to
originate spontaneously here and there as a sport. Natives with a talent for drawing are
found among all the tribes, and among the Yao, it is said, there have always been some
who have been able to draw. Naturally enough, their reproductions are made on the walls
of their houses, and their subjects are generally animals of the forest, sometimes men and
houses, or some other object of particular interest2 (Pl. VIII, fig. 1). I also give sketches
of some other drawings I have noted (Pl. XVIII) ; the line figure of a man at Makanjila's
1 Cf. A. Werner, ' A Native Painting from Nyasaland,' (Jour. Afric. Soc, London 1909, vol. 8, no. 30, p. 190-
192).
(fig. 14), and an antelope from Mposa's in Zomba district (fig. 11), also two birds at Pikani's
which I should think represent a fowl and a crow (figs. 12, 13). It is interesting to compare
these attempts which show a natural feeling for shape, with others, the work of an Angoni
youth in touch with a European mission station, who depicts the missionary, his donkey,
his dog, and a chair but with little or no sense of form. Note the dots above the animals'
backs which represent their feet seen from the other side (PI. XVIII, figs. 16-18).
The models of animals and other objects made in relief on the ground at Lupanda, and
of animals in grass and bamboo at Chiputu, are referred to under Initiation Ceremonies.
Decoration is limited to the making of patterns of geometric design on many house
hold articles. The graving of pots is mentioned under Pottery: gourd vessels sometimes
have lines and triangles cut on the surface; ivory knife handles may have concentric cir
cles graven on them, the same being true of ivory nose-rings and necklaces. Spear handles
and walking sticks, snuff-boxes, pipes, the head-rest and the necks of musical instruments
too, are commonly engraved with designs. The wooden rim of the mtungwi basket is
always so treated. A series of these designs from baskets is reproduced (PI. XVII). Oc
casionally geometric patterns are painted on the walls of huts. The best example I have
seen is shown in the photograph which represents a Mohammedan mosque in South Nyasa
district. This, I think, gives the key to the origin of these geometric patterns, namely,
Swahili influence among the Yao (PI. IV, fig. 1).
Personal ornamentation. The skin color admired most among the Yao is a rich
brown and is likened to the color of the milliped, lijongolo. A very black skin is not liked
and a man is said to be " as black as a crow." Very light colored skins are equally distaste
ful to some and considered to resemble the color of a roasted crab. The hair should be jet
black. Young men anoint their heads with a decoction of namaUnga pods in boiling oil to
make the hair black and lustrous. When the hair is turning white, a substance made of the
charred roots of a plant called chisinje is put on to make it black.
Natives recognize that some among them have red hairs on their heads or in their
beards, and such a man is called matwana, matwana being the name of a caterpillar which
lives on the mtwana tree and is covered with long red hairs.
The old men used to wear wigs, chisindi, made of knotted string blackened and oiled
to look like hair; the women wore one called chikwao. These were used to disguise greyness
or baldness.
The women sometimes let the hair grow long and then thread beads on wisps of it.
This fashion is called chitunga. The large red bead, chitalaka, is now used for the purpose.
This fashion was adopted by the old women and those in charge of the Chiputu ceremony.
Strings of beads threaded on the hair falling down round the head are called lilombola or
malombola (plur.). Women sometimes thread beads on the crest of hair called nchacha.
Ordinarily the hair is periodically shaved or sometimes cut with a knife, but the process is
painful and therefore unpopular.
Shaving is a rite practiced in mourning.1 Some old men and women, especially medicine
men, make a practice of never cutting the hair and never washing it (Pl. VII, fig. 3). One
occasionally sees lunatics with very long hair in the villages.
The Yao do not follow the Angoni practice of tying up into tags the hair which has been
allowed to grow long with palm leaf string, but they sometimes tie up a single wisp and
make it up with medicine; this is called luchonibi or njombi (plur.).
The scalp may be shaved in various fashions. Among men, it is quite common to trim
the hair on the forehead, ku-sijilila; they must not, however, trim the hair behind (Pl.
XVIII, fig. 2). Women, on the contrary, trim both in front and back; a man doing so
would be laughed at. A woman for the ceremony of Litiwo shaves the front hair a little
higher still, but she must be careful not to do so at other times, otherwise she would make
herself a laughing stock (Pl. XVIII, fig. 10). The hair is sometimes shaved on either side
of the midline in front, in imitation of temporal baldness; both baldness and this method
of shaving are called masweswe (Pl. XVIII, fig. 4). Or again, among old Yao men the
crown is shaved; this and natural baldness are called lulasi (Pl. XVIII, fig. 5). It is a
fashion much affected by old men and great annoyance is caused them by any young
upstart who does the same. Other methods include for men mpita, " a rat's path," an antero
posterior median line shaved (PL XVIII, fig. 9) ; ingoiongondinje, two shaved lines made
from back to front on either side of the head (Pl. XVIII, fig. 3) ; for men and women,
ligundaliwiU, " the garden is (dead) overgrown ", one lateral half of the head shaved
(Pl. XVIII, fig. 7) ; for men, nchacha a crest of hair left along the mid-line, both sides of the
head being shaved (Pl. XVIII, fig. 8); mwesi (chilemba cha mwesi), " the moon," a crescent
shaped area shaved on one or both sides of the head (Pl. XVIII, fig. 6).
The eyebrows and eyelashes are always left to grow normally among the Yao.
The Yao man used to take great pride in his beard; it was the object of a good deal of
washing and combing. It grew to considerable length and was not cut or trimmed, but the
hair growing down low over the throat was shaved, as was also the hair immediately below
the mouth on the under lip and the moustache, as it was thought to get in the way when
drinking. The whiskers were allowed to grow like the beard.
Hair on the chin or upper lip of a woman is rarely seen and on account of its rarity is
much prized. Such hairs have a monetary value for making medicines, a single hair being
sold for eight yards of calico or two shillings. Body hair is considered to be a sign of strength ;
on the chest, it is known as changalama (ku-changalama, to be strong). Body hair includ
ing hair on the back is by no means as rare as has been supposed. Sir H. H. Johnston
says that he has never seen it,2 a statement which shows lack of observation. The hair on
the forearms and thighs is called cheuje or chembembe; Hetherwick translates this word,8
I think wrongly, as hair on the body. Body hair is never removed in any way. A man named
Katumbisi (" the little vulture ") of Ulumba had a very large amount of body hair; he was
likened to a baboon and was a source of much interest to the children who saw him.
1 Vide supra, p. 244. • British Central Africa, op. cit., p. 398. " Op. cit., p. 111.
The hair of the axilla is always removed in men and women, usually by shaving but
sometimes in the case of women it is dealt with as in the case of the pubic hair. A man
with unshaven axillae would be laughed at and referred to as " a man carrying a fowl in
his armpit." The axillary hairs are called mandenga ga mungwapa (ngwapa, the armpit).
The pubic hair, mandenga, is removed by both men and women; in men by shaving, in
women sometimes by shaving, but preferably by plucking out after the application of a
medicine called mesamandenga (ku-mesa, to pluck a fowl), which renders the operation
easy. It is prepared from the juice which exudes from the bruised bark of the mesa-mandenga
tree. There is a woman at Malemya's who has never grown any axillary or pubic hair;
she is called "the rogue elephant"; a rogue elephant has no tusks. It may be noted
in passing that the woman has borne children.
A few men have the hair round the anus shaved. Such a service can only be asked of
a man's closest intimate, such as a brother-in-law.
I have dealt with tattooing among the Yao in an article, as yet unpublished, on tattooing
among the natives of Nyasaland.
The teeth among the Yao proper are never mutilated in any way, though the Aman-
goche go in for small file marks at the cutting edges of the incisors.
The old Yao women, of whom some may still be seen, used to pierce the upper Up and
wear a circular disc of wood often two inches in diameter in the hole; this is called lupelele
(Pl. VII, fig. 4). The disc was often made of lead and sometimes of ivory. The lead might
be hollowed out on the upper surface; it was then called lupelele lua utuli. The disc caused
a considerable projection of the upper lip which was much admired. A man, on the other
hand, with protruding lips would be nicknamed " the warthog," namanyindu, and con
sidered ill favored.
This lupelele fashion has gone out and of later years the chipini or disc worn in the
left ala of the nose has become more and more fashionable (Pl. II, fig. 2). Originally the
chipini consisted of a small disc of lead not larger than a three-penny piece, which lay on
the outer surface of the ala, held in place by a stem, luchinji, which pierced the ala and
passed into the nostril. Now the fashion is to wear a very large disc, often an inch in diam
eter, which itself occupies a hole in the substance of the ala of the nose; it may be flat-
topped and called chipini cha utenga (" mushroom "), or the upper surface may often be
concave, in which case it is called chipini cha utuli (Utuli, a grain mortar). These disks
are made of lead and are sometimes called lidini, a recent word and doubtless a corruption
of " lead." Others are made of ivory, which may bear some geometric pattern on the exposed
surface. A chipini used to cost a fowl.
Among Yao men and women, the lobule of the ear is often pierced but nothing is worn
in the hole except possibly a stalk of grass.
Combs for use and for ornament are worn in the hair by both men and women. The
ordinary comb without decoration is called likwembeya; it is made of a number of pieces
of bamboo fastened together at one end on the flat side by binding with string, the free ends
being sharpened to form the teeth of the comb. If the fastened end is ornamented with
beads sewed on in patterns, the comb is called lisamulo (ku-samula, to comb). Lisamulo lia
chinyambata from ku-nyambata, to be sticky, is the name of a small comb worn purely
for ornament. On either side of the base of this comb, pieces of wood variously shaped are
glued with the sticky juice from the root of the chinyambata tree. In this way, a sort of
inlay is produced. Pieces of tin cans are sometimes substituted for wood. Women occa
sionally wear in their hair the small chisondo knife used for tattooing and shaving.
The native takes readily to perfumes of European introduction, but previously he was
not an entire stranger to the use of such essences. Mboka, the bulbous root of a kind of grass
which grows near water, contains some aromatic principle which has a pleasant odor. The
stem is bent around and fixed into the bulb; this is then covered with beads and slung
around the neck. Mkungusa, the Mlanje cedar, is also used, as well as the fruit of a shrub
called chiungwa. These substances are scraped into the castor oil used for anointing, and
give it a pleasant odor.
No pigments are used on the body. As a sign of great rejoicing, the head and face and
perhaps the whole body are covered with ashes, but the natives do not even paint the face
with flour on ceremonial occasions.
Bands of beadwork are worn around the head, either as a simple band or a band finished
off with a bunch in one spot, or with a tassel. Finger rings are worn made of ivory, eland
hoof and horn, lead, and iron wire. There is also a great variety of bracelets and anklets,
a list of which is given below.
Chigombe: made of plaited grass, worn chiefly by little girls and women who cannot
afford more expensive bracelets. As many as half a dozen may be worn on the wrist.
Likangala (p1. makangala) : single circles of solid brass, one half to three quarters of
an inch in diameter, worn by women usually as anklets, one or two on each limb. They
may still be seen on some of the old women, but as they cause much discomfort, they have
gone out of fashion. A man used to be very proud to see his wife adorned with so much
wealth and she was content to be so hobbled by her vanity. The hammering up and pulling
open of the likangala circle in order to remove it cost a fowl.
Chikungu: a brass bracelet of small calibre; ikungu (p1.) signifies a spiral cylinder made
from the same thick brass wire covering the entire forearm.
Likwinjili: like chikungu of thin brass or iron wire, worn on arms and ankles.
Ching'anda: a bracelet of fine brass wire wound round a circular core. All the brass
comes from the coast.
Likosa: a large ivory bracelet worn by men and women.
Ukanga: (" stiff tail hairs of an animal"), the bracelet made of the tail hairs of the ele
phant or the gnu.
Licheka: the bracelet made from elephant hoof.
Chipiligo: (ku-piliga, to roll round), a bracelet made of beads wound on a bark-cloth
core.
Chipa: the same, but the beads cover a double core so that the bracelet is wider.
Msaku: a circular hollow cylinder of beadwork which lies flat as a bracelet.
Necklaces are much prized by the women. All the children, too, if possible, are provided
with some kind or another, even though it be only a piece of string. They are generally
made of beads; charms and their ornamental imitations are also worn as necklaces. Some
names refer to the pattern of the beadwork, others refer to the length or fashion of the neck
lace.
Chikupa is a necklace which hangs down in front to the level of the breasts; it does not
go under the arms, as Hetherwick states.1 It consists of three, four, or five strings of beads
in rows, arranged in a pattern.
Anguyeje: hangs down as far as the ankles. The word Anguyeje means "chase me!"
Chinganga is made of a single string of beads, but hangs as low as chikupa. Chikupa
is of more than one string and various colored beads enter into its composition, often in
litawala pattern.
Chipote: consists of a single string of beads of one color tied tightly round the neck
without tassel or bunch.
Chikansauka is worn like chinganga, but beads of more than one color are used.
Chitemangu resembles chikupa, only more strings of beads are used.
Mapunda: a solid cord of bark cloth covered with beads of one color, either dark blue
or white, worn round the neck crossing on the chest and under the armpits; the cords are
as thick as the finger. These are worn especially by girls after Chiputu.
Chimwembe: a cord of beads as in mapunda, but worn round the neck only. The neck
lace consists of perhaps six strings of beads, the first of which is worn close to the neck,
while each succeeding string hangs lower and more loosely.
Chigoti or chikolija: made of three plaited strands of beads, generally white.
Nkokoliko: a necklace with a tassel, usually consisting of two large red beads.
Mlalu (" a striped snake ") : made of four strings of beads, each row being of one color.
Mchila wekoswe (" the rat's tail ") : like mlalu consisting of two, three or four strings
of beads.
Chuma cha msaku (msaku, " bag ") : a hollow cylinder of bead work usually of blue and
white, worn as a necklace. Chuma is the Chiyao word for beads; in Chinyanja, it means
wealth.
Litawala is a word referring to the pattern of the beadwork, so called from the resem
blance to the eyes of the cane-rat; in litawala, white beads are arranged in rosettes round
a series of larger black beads in a band.
Most women and many children wear beads round the waist. They are supposed to be
very attractive to men. The prostitute wears more than anyone else, for the same reason
1 Op. cit., p. 117.
that she is tattooed more profusely on the buttocks and legs. The circlet of beads was
formerly made like mapunda with a bark-cloth core, called rrUumbo or mbule (ku-wula,
to slip off), referring to the mbule being slipped off over the legs. The fashion now is to
wear single strings of beads; each string is of one color but all the strings are different and
perhaps number a dozen or more.
Lipamba: a bead belt three-inches wide, worn by Yao women near Lake Nyasa. A
bead apron, lisejere, is also worn by them but not near Zomba (PI. VI, fig. 2).
A woman removes her beads when she is " unclean," that is: (a) during the menstrual
period, (6) during the period of mourning for a near relative when coitus is forbidden, (c) be
fore the birth of a child and afterwards until such time as she may resume intercourse with
her husband.
A large variety of beads has long been used by the Yao. There are some rarely seen
now which were much prized in years gone by, while others are of quite recent introduc
tion. There is no evidence that they themselves made beads and there are few which are
probably not of European manufacture.
Clothing. The Yao used bark-cloth before the introduction of woven materials. The
older people may still be seen in it and it is used in most of the ceremonies. At one time,
they also used to weave a cloth called likamambo from a native cotton plant. This has been
given up since the introduction of imported materials.
For the method of wearing cloth, see PI. II, fig. 2. The very poorest people wear only
a strip of calico round the pudenda, held in position by a string round the waist hanging
long behind and in front; this is called mthethe. Yao women, when menstruating, wear
under this a little piece of cloth called likumbi; it is only worn at this time and not always
as in certain other tribes.
Warfare. Fighting has naturally played a large part in the life of the Yao as among
other African tribes, but at no time were these people a trained fighting race. Warfare was
of a desultory character consisting mostly of raids by one feudal chief upon another. A
party of men belonging to a chief at enmity with another, meeting some of his followers
would challenge them, " Alumbe, who are you for? " The name of the rival chief in answer
was the sign for battle to begin. A fake answer would never be given to gain an advantage.
When about to throw a spear, the thrower calls to his adversary.
The Yao have possessed guns for a long time. Going out to fight, the Yao used to
leap from one foot to the other, and spin their guns around in their hands. They made
their own stocks for the rifles. They also used to make a small, cast-iron cannon about
three feet long, called kambula, "a little nose." It was carried in the arms and was touched
off by a torch. Drums called sonjo were taken into battle. There is an old war drum
at Malemya's village, taken in 1895 by the old Malemya from a Mang'anja chief called
Mkulumbo who lived near Lake Chiuta. Since then, this drum has always gone into battle
with Malemya. Around it his men would dance and anyone who had killed a man in battle
would run up to it and spit upon it in salutation.
Both before and after the introduction of guns, the Yao used spears, lipanga, and bows,
ukunje. The spear is a five foot long throwing spear with metal head and wooden shaft.
No shield was used. Bows and arrows are made from the wood of the teza or pimbinyolo
tree. The string is made of tendon. A double-bellied bow called ukunje wa mbama was
sometimes used, but, I believe, originally came from the Anyanja. The arrows, mpamba,
have a metal arrow-head, and were often poisoned with kombe.
Hunting. The same weapons are used in hunting: the gun, the spear, and the bow
and arrow. Smaller bows and arrows made with bamboo or reed shaft are also employed
for shooting birds; one of the arrows has a blunt wooden head and serves to stun the bird.
From the Anyanja, the Yao learned the use of a harpoon for spearing the hippopota
mus. The harpoon is a heavy spear-head of iron about eighteen inches long, attached to
a rope and float. From the Anyanja, also, was learned the use of the falling block with
spear for killing hippo.
Elephants are caught in staked pits, and the larger antelopes are similarly trapped in
pits with the sides sloping inwards towards the bottom, so that as the animal falls lower
and lower with expiration, it is eventually suffocated.
Small buck are driven by dogs into nets set for long distances in the forest, and then
speared or shot. Traps are also set for these smaller antelope and for many other small
animals, rodents, etc. Birds are shot or trapped. Bird-lime is also employed. It is prepared
from the juices of a number of trees by pounding the vegetable matter in water; the sticky
mass so made is applied to sticks or poles. The sticks are placed near drinking places so
that the birds alighting to take water become entangled. The poles are affixed to trees so
that they appear to be the topmost boughs; this the native does, recognising the common
habit of birds to sit on the very top of trees. The strength of the bird-lime is made accord
ing to the size of the bird he wishes to catch.
Fishing. I am not sure how far the Yao is a natural fisherman. Not long ago he used
only a many-pronged spear to catch his fish. Since then, he has acquired from the Anyanja
the knowledge of making fish-traps and nets, and of using the fish poison. When the Yao
came to live and intermarry among the Anyanja, there was one practice of the latter which
they would not adopt and which caused a good deal of ill-feeling. A Mang'anja man com
ing home after fishing always used to prepare the fish and, leaving some ready to cook, he
cooked others for his wife, bringing her water at the same time to wash her hands. After
eating her own fish, she cooked the rest for her husband. A Yao would never cook for his
wife.
Traps. The following is a list of some of the traps I have found in use among the Yao.
The sketches will serve to explain their mechanism better than a lengthy description. Some
are very ingeniously made, and most recall similar traps made in other parts of the world.
1. Lukonji lua litawala, a trap for the cane-rat (PI. XIX, fig. 1).
2. Lukonji lua mbindi, a trap for sharp-toothed gnawing animals, so called from
mbindi, a joint (of bamboo) which slides down the string next to the noose so that the cap
tured animal cannot bite or gnaw through the string (PI. IV, fig. 3; PI. XIX, fig. 2).
3. Lukonji lua malende or chitawa, a trap for water-rats (PI. XX, fig. 7).
4. Lukonji lua ngwale, a trap for the partridge (Pl. XX, fig. 3).
5. Chijumba cha ijuni, " the house for birds," also used to trap small animals (Pl. XX,
fig. 2).
6. Lukonji lua lukosi, a trap for the neck (of guinea fowl) (Pl. XX, fig. 4).
7. Lukonji lua chiliwata, a trap for the tread (of the guineafowl); ku-liwata: to put
the foot down, to tread. The string square is about 8X4 inches (Pl. XXI, fig. 8).
8. Liwano, a trap made of split bamboo. A bird going to pick up the grain is caught
by the head when the trap is released by the string which the trapper pulls (Pl. XXI,
fig. 3).
9. Luau lua ijuni or nyau, a bird-trap made of netting on a hinged frame-work, oper
ated by a string (Pl. XXI, fig. 4).
10. Liliwa, a falling stone trap for mice. Rats are said to pull off the trap with their
tails and are never caught (Pl. XXI, fig. 1).
10a. The same trap set for catching birds (Pl. XXI, fig. 2).
11. Maleleya: (lelele = hanging loose), a noose for small birds, set on trees (Pl. XX,
fig. 1).
12. Fowl thieves use a very simple contrivance consisting of two grains of maize threaded
on one end of a piece of string some six inches long, at the other end of which is attached
a leaf folded up into the form of a cone. The fowl, enticed by the maize, swallows the two
grains and the attached string, so that the cone is drawn over its head; it is then help
less and is easily picked up by the thief, who has only to pull on the string to remove the
leaf.
13. Chigwenembe, a hollow cylinder of wood with noose activated by a wooden spring,
for catching rats (Pl. XXI, fig. 5).
14. Chipoto, a similar trap made of bark, for mice.
15. Lilesa: a plaited bamboo cone into which a rat forces its head to get at the bait,
but finds, when it tries to withdraw, that it is caught by sharpened pieces of bamboo pro
jecting backwards into the cone (Pl. XX, fig. 6).
16. Mkungwi, a fish-trap of the same design, from the Anyanja (Pl. XX, fig. 5).
17. Msipu, a fish-trap on the lobster-pot principle, often set in gaps in a fence built
across a stream, copied from the Anyanja trap called mono (Pl. XXI, fig. 7).
18. Njisi, also I think from the Anyanja, consists of a long basket-work, extinguisher
like arrangement which is clapped down over a swarm of small fish; the hand is intro
duced through an aperture in one side and the fish removed (Pl. XXI, fig. 6).
Amusements. Among the natives of east central Africa, the chief form of amusement,
apart from dancing, might be said to be sitting and chatting; it is interesting to note that
there is a word to express " sitting up all night talking." Often the younger members of
the community will gather about one of the older men and listen to his stories of travel or
fighting in the old days, and some men gain quite a reputation as raconteurs. Or again
riddle asking is indulged in to pass the time. Women and girls do not assist at these sittings.
Among the Yao youth, wrestling, ku-lingana (from ku-linga, to try), is practiced
with a fixed grip and no leg-work; the victor always accentuates his victory by hitting the
man who is down, and pummelling his face with his fist or a stone.
A ball game, played originally with a ball of native rubber from which it derives its
name, mpila, is a great favorite among boys. A dozen or more are divided into sides but all
mixed up together. The ball is then thrown into the air to a member of the same side, any
of the opposite side jumping into the air to try and catch it, accompanied by the clapping
of hands to time.
" Hide-and-seek," chijuwajuwa, and " touch," chao or chaolele (chipum, Chin.), are
played by boys.
Chinusya: toward the end of the ball game, when it is decided to finish, each boy as
he catches the ball puts it to his nose to smell (ku-nusya, to smell). He is then " out."
At the end of a game of " touch " played in the water, when one touches another, he jumps
out of the water, puts his cloth up to his nose " to smell," and is then " out." His cloth
may be thrown to him to "smell " while still in the water, after which he gets out without
hurry. The object is not to be the last " in." I am unable to explain this custom.
Knuckle-bones is played by girls, mdodo, from "do!" the exclamation made when catch
ing anything.
Mchombwa: the Board and Counter game is played in nearly every Yao village. Dr.
Sanderson 1 has given a very complete account of a number of the games played by the
several tribes in Nyasaland and I need add nothing to his explanation of the methods of
playing.
Similar games are widespread throughout Africa and are well known on the West Coast
under the name mancala. The several games are played, either simply with holes in the
ground and small stones, or with a board and a kind of seed procured from Zanzibar. The
board is called mchombwa and the pebbles or seeds or other convenient " counters " njombwa.
Dr. Sanderson uses this word as the name of one of the games. The Angoni call the
counters mambe. The holes in the board or in the ground (PI. XXII, fig. 11) are called
iputa (sing. chiputa) from ku-puta, to strike, beat, or put down with a thud, to " plank
down," and refers to the way the counters are " planked down " in the holes on the board
when playing. The large container at the end of the board is simply to hold the counters
out of play and is called nyumba, " the house," or lisimbo, " the hole." The counters are
1 Meridith G. Sanderson, ' Native games of Central Africa,' (Journ. Anth. Inst., 1913, vol. 43, p. 726-736).
called komo; makomo or namkomo, the words given by Dr. Sanderson, are not known to the
Yao in this district. There is a simple game played among the Anyanja children and there
fore called chiana (childish or for children), but the common game played is more diffi
cult as shown by Dr. Sanderson. Mchombwa is being partly displaced by a Swahili variety
called bau, or often by the Yao, ubau (PI. IV, fig. 4). I may here also point out that the
words msuwa and nsolo, which Dr. Sanderson uses for the Manyanja and Angoni varieties
of the game, are often replaced by mfuwa and tsoro.
Yao children play at keeping house in little grass structures, made near the village or in
the fields, while their parents work. Children who can only toddle may be seen practicing
dancing the steps of their elders. The boys play with miniature bows and arrows made of
a kind of grass, sewe, and make a toy dart-tube, uti (PI. XXII, fig. 5). Little dug-out canoes
eighteen inches long are made for them to sail in pools.
Among the lads in a village, games of fighting are much indulged in; two sides are op
posed and their weapons are of various kinds. Sometimes each is armed with a length of
bamboo, into the hollow end of which sand and pebbles are put, representing powder and
shot. This end of the bamboo is then rapidly swung in the direction of the "enemy "
and will discharge the sand and pebbles into the face of the opponent. This is called uti ja
msanga (" gun for sand "). The boys are sometimes armed with maize cobs for throwing
at each other.
Chinene is another form of fighting. Armed with a collection of small stones, each
flicks his stone at the enemy with very good aim, using the fore-finger of the right hand to
propel the stone, the index of the left hand acting as trigger and the left thumb as the spring.
The name comes from nel the sound of the whizzing stone as it goes through the air.
In a pool opposing sides fight with rudimentary syringes made of bamboo, driving
streams of water into each other's faces. This is called ipierere, from the sound of the
stream of water, or uti ja mesi (" gun for water "). In the water they also play chitwinyi-
chisya, (ku-iwinyichisya, to press down). Boys are ranged on two sides; each tries to
" collar " one of the opposing side and put him down into the water, holding him down
between his legs. An old water trick is for a boy to go down to the bottom and there
squat with his face turned upwards, the mouth stretched wide open by the fingers; viewed
from the surface the face looked flat and very grotesque. There is also diving for cassava,
chitiwilila (Jcu-tiwilila, to dive for).
A kind of skipping, called chiwewe, from we! we! the sound of the rope as it goes round
in the air, is a great favorite. A man with a heavy rope about fifteen feet long, with a bundle
of grass at the free end enclosing a lump of heavy wood or stone, swings it round and round
his head. The faster it goes, the higher it will fly out, while the boys in turn run in and
jump over it. Sometimes a boy is caught by the rope and gets a nasty blow, occasionally
resulting in a broken limb.
Taking advantage of the natural inquisitiveness of youth, a favorite trick for making
money is for a man to appear in a village making pretence of having a peep-show, some
thing contained in a covered basket or in a cloth. On payment of some small amount, the
youth is allowed to peep in, maybe only to see a dead mouse; finding he had been " done,"
he of course bursts out laughing and, anxious that all his companions should also be "done,"
he does not " give it away " and so the peep-show man makes quite a good living.
Yao girls play with dolls of two kinds, lilele, made from little gourd-like fruits called
litonga, and others called mwanache, " a child," made from maize cobs. These dolls they
carry about on their backs as mothers do their children. Lilele is made of three of these
little spherical fruits glued together with beeswax; on the one which represents the head,
seed, red and blue, of the ulangaiye tree are cemented in rows to represent hair, and often
beads, as in the nchacha method of hair-dressing. One sees similar dolls made for the chil
dren of other tribes. Thus, among Mombera's Angoni, a doll called mwana, "a child,''
is made in a dumb-bell form of two small spherical gourds joined by a bundle of sticks
bound together with string and wax; on the head-piece string is cemented to represent
hair. Their children also play with little clay images of cattle and men, a custom they have
preserved from their old Zulu ancestors but foreign to the Yao. The Ankonde children
have carved wooden dolls not seen in any other tribe. Mwanache is made from a maize-
cob by shredding the papery coverings of the cob; on these shreds are threaded white
and red varieties of maize to represent beads, or the shreds are plaited into a number of
tags to represent hair.
Latterly, the children have taken to making hoops and show considerable skill in
driving them with a piece of bent reed (PI. XXII, fig. 8), while the older boys make two-
wheeled representations of bicycles with a very clever imitation of all the parts of the
machine.
The whipping-top, nangulya or nangwape (nguli, Chin.), is found among the boys' toys.
It is made of a conical piece of wood with a flat top and no metal peg. It is started spinning
by pulling off the string wound round the top. The whip consists of a piece of string fas
tened to the end of a stick. Sometimes tops of large size are used, and two boys whip them
from opposite sides (PI. XXII, fig. 6).
A game called chiputa is played by youths; it takes its name from ku-puta, to strike,
and refers to the action of striking with a finger the hand in which a bean is guessed to be.
A spiral is drawn with the finger in the sand with a central point to represent a village, and
a tail-piece prolonged on one side to a second point which represents a slave-market on the
coast. Along the line, a number of other points are demarcated to represent sleeping places
en route. At the village, two white beans are put to represent the two players and with
each is a smaller brown bean to represent his slave. At the slave-market are placed a variety
of beans to represent trade-goods, calico, beads, etc. Each of the two players in turn
shakes a single bean in his closed hands and then closes the hands, separating them at the
same time so that the bean is contained in one hand; the other player has to guess in which
the bean lies and this he does by striking with the finger the hand in which he imagines
the bean to be. If the striker guesses correctly, he moves his man and his slave to the first
sleeping-place. It is then his turn to hide the bean. So it goes on till one or the other arrives
at the slave-market. Here he barters his slave for trade-goods and returns in the same way;
whoever gets home first wins, and the loser is said " to have died on the road," a not uncom
mon event in the old days. It is interesting to note that cheating is sometimes attempted
by palming beans between the fingers, so that in the hand guessed, the bean is palmed be
tween the fingers, and, in the other hand, a bean is released from between the fingers into
the palm.
Njengo (rmkwa, Chin.): a kind of ninepins, which takes its name from the object
which is thrown to knock down the ninepins. The game is played by youths and men,
equal numbers sitting in two parallel rows fronting each other on the ground, the two rows
composed of a dozen or more persons, a few yards apart. Each person has set up in front
of him on the ground a maize cob from which the grain has been stripped, or each may
have a number of them, perhaps six. In the former case, the cobs are perhaps two feet
apart, in the latter only a few inches. Each player is provided with several njengo, from
six to twenty-four in number. The njengo is a piece from the side of a gourd, slightly con
cavo-convex and circular in plan, with the edge often cut into serrations. A piece of reed is
fixed through a hole in the centre, projecting an inch or an inch and a half from the convex
surface, thus forming a kind of teetotum, two or three inches in diameter (PI. XXII, fig. 9).
It is held between the thumb and second finger by the foot-piece; by a sharp movement of
the fingers, it can be spun out of the hand and, at the same time, jerked forward by another
sharp movement at the wrist. At a given signal, the players on both sides start
launching forth their little tops which spin away towards the maize cobs of the opposing
side, the object being to knock them down. When there are many on a side, each with
a number of cobs, many fall with the first onslaught, but as fewer and fewer remain, it be
comes more difficult, and players try to show their skill by aiming at the cobs farthest
away from them, along the opposite line. The game goes on till only one cob is left stand
ing; then, if a player of the opposite side knocks it down, he puts one of his own up again,
and the side which had the one remaining puts one up, and so the game may go on. When
they are tired of playing, they say, "Kwende tunusye," " We must finish the game," literally
" Come on, we must smell." 1 A knife is then stuck in the ground on either side, the blade
pointing to the opposite side, and each man, when he has hit the knife of the opposing side
with his njengo, is considered to have shown his skill, and goes off. The last man remaining
is laughed at as being a fool at the game. If a headman is playing, he makes sure of hav
ing his try first, so that he will not be left in to the last. The game has a great fascination
for the natives and it is said of Malemya, the uncle of the present chief (1913), that he was
so enthusiastic a player that if anyone wanted to make a joke at his expense, he would
snap his fingers, imitating the action of throwing the njengo.
Chipalapaso: a Mang'anja game now played by the Yao which takes its name from
kupalapasa, to scratch as a fowl does looking for food. The words used in the game are all
Chinyanja. A number of beans, perhaps twenty, are put down in a row at intervals on the
ground. One player manipulates the beans, while the other has his back turned so that he
cannot see. The first player calls, " Chipalapaso chipalapaso ! " the second answers, " Mwana
kkanga (child of a guinearfowl)." The first then says "Nanga apa\ (What about here?)",
pointing to the first bean; the second player answers " Tolanil (Pick it up!)." At the second
round, the first player having picked up the first bean, points to the place where it was and
repeats his cry, but at the words, "Nanga apa," the second player has to say, " Palibe!
(There is none)." Then he comes to the second bean and says, " Nanga apa " and the
second player, knowing that he has come to the second bean, answers, "Tolani!" When
three, four, or five beans have been picked up, the first player asks three, four, or five times,
" Nanga apa? " and the second player to each question should answer, " Palibe! " and then,
when the first player points to a bean and not to a blank, the second player should know
that he has come to a bean and answer, " Tolani! " instead of " Palibe! " When played
quickly, it is not altogether easy to answer correctly, as the end of the line of beans is ap
proached.
Chiputa cha mnyala (to strike with the hand) is played with four pebbles or beans.
Starting with two in each hand, the fists are closed and then making similar movements
of throwing from each hand, two are thrown from one hand, or one from each as the case
may be, as a sleight-of-hand. One of the two thrown on the ground is then taken up in
each hand, and the guesser has to say in which the three are. This he indicates by striking
the hand with one of his fingers. This game has many variations.
Chitatatata: a game of jumping from a big rock over a fire. Before jumping, the boys
sing, " Chitatatata chitatatata eeh! "
Chindonandona (ku-tona, to pinch): each of a number of boys loosely pinches hold
of the skin of the back of the hand of his neighbor, one hand above the other. They then
sing:
" Chindonandona chindonandona, asikitvle! "
" Pinch Pinch, cut asunder! "
At the word asikitule, everyone should break away while digging his nails into the hand
beneath his. Some one of them is sure to have had his attention distracted and forget to
pinch hard, while he himself receives a pinch hard enough to make him jump.
Running races, each boy hums a note: — " urn . . . m," each one in a different key.
Anyone changing his note is disqualified.
Ipowo: a number of stems of a reedlike grass with long joints, or small millet stalks are
bound together by their upper ends. The free ends are heated in a fire, then banged down
on a stone. They explode with a noise like the sound of a gun. The boys send them off, one
after the other, imitating fighting, or sometimes bang them down on some one's head. They
go off, making the sound ipowo!
Small boys or girls among themselves play a clapping game called pyajila. One sings:
" Pyajila pyajila, pyajila pyajila, pyajila pyajila, juanyere manyi'jo pa mlango pa' mao!
" Sweep sweep sweep sweep sweep sweep the one who has passed excrement the at the door
at his mother's,
Nagombe, kamo, kawili! " etc.,
let him clap once, twice! "etc.
They all clap together at the word " once," " twice," and so on. No one knows how
many times they are going to be called on to clap, and some one is sure to clap when no
word is given and so is caught and made fun of, as the one who has misbehaved.
Ldkwata (ku-kwata, to clap) : simple clapping when pleased with anything is commonly
indulged in, mostly by women and girls.
Little girls play at making little pots. This is called gumbaiwiga, (ku-gumba chiwiga,
to model a pot). They also play at pounding grain, called chindichi, " learning to keep
time," the word itself being an imitation of the sounds. Five or six pound in one mortar;
in between strokes, they throw the wooden pestles up in the air, catching them again to
time.
" Jviapikule katvli jo! ajomsawi jo akuloga! "
" The one who upsets little mortar the! that one witch is bewitching! "
This is the song of a game played by little girls. One sits in the middle with a singwa on
her head, to represent a grain mortar, while the others form a ring round her holding hands.
As they sing, the circle at one point swings in, and one of the girls passes in front of the one
sitting down, her back to her all the time, the hands passing over her head. This they do
one after the other very quickly and anyone who touches the girl in the middle, " who
knocks down the mortar," takes the place of the girl in the middle.
" Asonowangu Asonowangu njakati mho! "
" Our wives, our wives, cutting off (interjection) I"
is the song of a game played by a lot of boys together or a lot of girls together; they do not
join with one another. Two opposing groups are formed of equal numbers. Each is led by
one of the older children and behind him is the rest of the group, each holding on to the
cloth of the one in front. The followers of each leader represent his wives. The two parties
then sing and maneuver for the leader to get at the tail of the other group and " collar "
a wife or two from his opponent. It becomes very exciting. As they go faster and faster,
some of the tail may get swung off and captured by the other side before they can again
join their own.
Trapping and catching of animals is pursued with great glee by small boys. They
make many of the traps, particularly the two kinds of liliwa, chipoto, chijumba, chitawa,
liwano, and nyau. Lilesa is set in rat runs and the rats are driven into them (Pl. XX, fig. 6).
Digging-out rats is a favorite amusement for the boys and brings meat to the pot. May
is the best month for this sport. They are adepts at recognizing burrows which have rats
inside. Digging is commenced at one entry to the rat-warren, the escape holes being closed
with tufts of grass. As they get nearer the rat chambers, they smell the earth and so know
when they are quite close to the rats. A bunch of grass is then put in this hole, lighted, and
kept aglow by blowing on it. One of the rats will try to bolt and is knocked on the head.
His head is then squashed to kill him effectually, and the skin of the tail of the first rat is
always pulled off for luck, " so that they may catch many." They will try to guess how
many there are going to be, " ten and ten and five and two! " Each rat when caught is
buried under some earth, so that the hawks will not swoop down and carry it off. When
they have finished one warren, one of the party is appointed to carry all the rats. He ties
a string round his waist, and the rats are slipped underneath it and so secured. They then
go on to another; the carrier will bear the whole catch for the day and may, before they have
finished, have several strings of rats round his body, one above the other.
Digging-out crabs, kur-kopa ngala, is another favorite amusement for children ; (ku-kopa
is to dig up anything like mud which makes a squelching sound). Crabs are never eaten
with flour, but always with masete, the grain husks, " crabs and brown-bread! "
Youths and girls fish with a rod, line, wire hook, and worm, ku-loposya somba, to pull
up fish. They also catch fish, using the fish poison, mtutu. Birds are killed with a bow and
a blunt-pointed wooden arrow.
A small boy, seeing a girl or a younger boy with a cob of maize and wanting it himself,
will say, " Let me make a path to the coast! " He will then remove, say a couple of rows
of maize grains for himself, much to the interest of the owner; or "Let me make ilemba"
(ilemba is a shaved band on the scalp), or " Let me make the crab's eyes! " when two
solitary grains are left, surrounded by a simple ring of other grains, as the girl's portion.
Children are taught a little saying about their fingers which reminds one of the "This
little pig went to market " of one's infancy. Starting with the little finger, they say:
" Akaka kangateka kangateka!"
" This little one (is) the one which cannot draw water!"
Pointing to the ring finger,
" Kankulugwe njunyundo! "
"This little one's brother (is) the one that picks the nose!"
To the middle finger,
" Njunyundo mmala wandu! "
" (The brother of) the one that picks the nose (is) the one who finishes men!"
To the index
" Lukongolo Iwa ng'ombe Iwa kwendda mwilambo! "
" (This one is) the leg of an ox which walks on the plain !"
To the thumb: ., „, „
Chamsano
" The fifth "
Cat's Cradles are known as chitagau, " the spider's web " (PI. XXIII). The position
of the string on the hands is as in Position I of Miss Haddon's book and this is followed by
Opening A, given by the same author.1 (PI. XXIII, figs. 1, 2.) Three methods of arriving
at the same figure, which is called "the net," are shown here (PI. XXIII). Variety C is
followed by the making of a knot, figured in C 13, known as " the child." There are prob
ably a number of other forms made by natives, but these, which I saw one of my women
patients make, will serve as an example.
Musical Instruments. The number of instruments proper to the Yao appears to be
small, indeed probably only two in number, the mangolongondo and the chityatya, with
perhaps the three holed flute, chitoliro.
The former is constructed on the principle of a xylophone; it consists of two trunks of
banana trees laid on the ground and held in position by stakes. They are not quite parallel
but approach each other somewhat at one end, being from one to two feet apart; on these
rest cross-wise a number of pieces of wood of varying thickness and length, kept in posi
tion by pegs driven into the banana trunks on each side of each billet. These are struck
with sticks by a single player, or by two persons sitting on opposite sides of the instru
ment. Another variety is found in which the pieces of wood, which may have holes
bored in them to effect differences in sound, are arranged over a hole scooped in the ground
(Pl.V,fig.l).
The chityatya consists of a piece of plank hollowed out to form a resonator on which are
fixed a number of keys of bamboo or metal of different lengths. These are arranged across
a bridge, and the free ends are set in vibration by twanging with the fingers.
The instrument now most commonly seen is the sesse which was introduced, I think,
from the coast about 1890 to 1900. It is a type of guitar.
An instrument played by women — and this again is of recent introduction among
the Yao — is the mkangala, which consists simply of a stick of wood about a yard long
to which is affixed a single string. One end is held between the teeth, the other in the hand;
it is twanged by being struck with the thumb and finger of the other hand close to the mouth,
which is opened to different degrees, and gives a variety of notes resembling those of a
jews' harp.
The ching'wenyeng'wenye and drums are referred to under Dancing.
1 Kathleen Haddon, Cat's cradles from many lands, New York, 1901.
Women stick on a small spit a pretty green and white beetle, one of the Cetoniidae.
The free end of the spit is then held between the teeth. At different positions on the stick,
the buzzing of the impaled insect gives rise to different notes. The beetle is named ching-
wanguwangu or chiwauwau (nangalire, Chin.). The wing-covers of another beetle, mateche-
teche, a Lamellicorn, are used by women for the making of a musical instrument. The
wing-covers of some twenty of these insects are threaded on a string arranged round the
shoulders and feet of the player as she sits on the ground. The string on each side, as it
passes from the shoulder to the foot of the same side, is plucked by the fingers of the opposite
hand, different notes being obtained by different degrees of tension put on the string by
pressure with the feet. The wing-covers give a buzzing quality to the notes which all
natives like.
Mention should also be made of the horn, lipenga, commonly made of a long piece of
reed or bamboo with a trumpet-shaped end, made out of a portion of a gourd. Antelope
horns are also used. The horn is blown on journeys.
Dancing. Dancing among the Yao, as among many other peoples, is the outcome of
the pleasure experienced in rhythmical movements. The first accompaniment was prob
ably the clapping of hands to mark time, followed by some exclamatory sounds more or less
prolonged and occurring at regular intervals. Later, there was probably some refrain and,
later still, drums were added to mark time, and songs formed an additional accompani
ment. I believe that, here, dancing has always been an expression of pleasure and happiness
and has been secondarily introduced at many ceremonies. In the majority of cases, such
ceremonies were occasions of joy, the only exception being at funerals, but there I think
their introduction was rather as a means of passing the time and avoiding silent brooding
than as any real part of the rite.
The names given to various dances indicate their time or rhythm, and are, therefore,
comparable to our own words, waltz, two-step, etc. There may be a number of airs for
each time, and many sets of words to each air. The time may be given by clapping only, or
by the addition of drums. Anyone acquainted with these dances, hearing drumming in
the distance, can at once recognize the dance that is going on.
The drums which are used at dances (Pl. XXII), are made of a hollowed-out log of
wood with a skin tambour stretched over the mouth of the drum and fixed by wooden pegs.
On the tambour is smeared a layer of beeswax. The tambour is tightened by warming
over a fire, so that the correct note is obtained; a fire is always kept burning close to the
spot where drums are being played.
Likuti: a drum shaped somewhat like a native flour mortar, three to six feet high with
the tambour one to two feet in diameter. The drum usually lies on the ground, the player
sitting on the barrel of the drum, or he may have it suspended from him by a cord, the body
of the drum dragging on the ground between his legs. It is played with both hands and
gives a deep, resonant note, " ti, ti, ti! " (Pl. XXII, figs. 12, 15).
Nhyatiya: like likuti, but played in a different way, giving the sound " tya tya tya! "
Mchoso: the same as likuti, but with a higher pitched note. This can be produced by
heating the likuti drum over a fire.
Chichoma or lingaka: a small drum eight to ten inches high, held in the hands by strings
on either side, in the same way as a concertina, and pressed against the chest while being
played with the fingers. It may be alternately pressed firmly and lightly against the chest,
giving variety in timbre. The base which rests against the body is cut down into a kind
of foot-piece (PI. XXII, fig. 13).
Chinganga: a small drum eight to ten inches high, rather goblet-shaped with stem and
base, the circumference about equal to the height. It is beaten with two sticks, " ngan-
ganga nganga! " (PI. XXII, fig. 17).
Chiminingo: the same drum played with two sticks, " mini, mini, mini! "
Ndimbe: a small three legged drum about the same size as chinganga. It can be carried
in one hand and played with the other. It is used with one stick or more, in place of chin
ganga and chiminingo (PI. XXII, fig. 16).
Msiwu: an old drum not now used. It varied in size from one to four feet long, was
suspended from the neck, and played at both ends (PI. XXII, fig. 14).
It is very difficult to give any idea of the time and different sounds the drums give.
People learn them by repeating the sounds the drums make thus: Nde din de ntepite
nde din de mini mini ntiyd ntiyd, etc. Several drums, often six or more, are played together,
each contributing its element of sound. They are often played very fast, but the time kept
is most exact.
Dances are ordinarily performed by everyone in a village, but there is always a leader.
Or again, there are trained bands of dancers who earn their living by attending ceremonies
or any festive occasion. In a few cases, the dances are only danced by professional dancers.
A short account is given below of many of the Yao dances.
Likwata: (ku-kwata, to clap the hands). No drums are employed, but the time is kept by
clapping. In some villages, drums have lately been introduced. It is a common dance in
a village on any moonlight night, just for amusement. Women and girls take part. Stand
ing in a circle, they sing and clap, while any who wish, go into the circle, perhaps a dozen
at a time, and dance their shuffling steps. A song which is included under likwata, is a rep
resentation of the dung-beetles (scarab) rolling the little balls of dung to their nesting
places. The women shuffle backwards or forwards, like the beetles, one pushing and one
going backwards pulling. As they dance, they sing :
" Litono, tuti tuti! "
" (oh little) dung-beetle, push push! "
Refrain:
" Likututa manyi! "
"It is rolling dung!"
Chindimba: the chindimba songs are the favorites among all the older people. They
have been in late years partly replaced by others, but, at the present time, there is a tendency
to return to them; they are staid in tone and the dance is sedate. Chindimba is always
played at mournings. While the whole company sits around in a circle with the drums at
one side, a couple of people do the dancing in the middle. The drums used are a chinganga,
two ichoma, and a likuti. With the commencement of drumming, a man well known for
his songs steps out into the middle and begins singing; he is followed by another man
or maybe a woman who sings a second part; the two singers are generally people who
have found that they sing well together. Two such people will be welcomed, and they may
sing many songs, while any young upstarts who do not sing well together, will be given to
understand that their performance does not meet with approval. People have their favorite
songs, and there may be much heart-burning if an old man finds some one else singing a song
that he considers especially his own. As they sing, they dance their peculiar shuffling steps.
(The words of some of these songs are given later.)
Salapa: an Anguru dance sometimes danced by the Yao. It resembles chindimba in
that all sit singing and clapping while, one at a time, men dance in the open space to time
given by bamboo sticks knocked together. The songs are all hunting songs.
It is impossible to describe the steps used in all the dances; for each dance, they differ,
of course, and except by a cinematograph film, they cannot be reproduced. The movements
of the feet are ordinary stepping motions or patting of the ground with the feet, the actual
excursions being very small, so that in most cases it is impossible to devise any means of
making out the steps. To enable them to perform these steps, they commonly dance with
the knees bent, the buttocks protruded behind, and the back arched. In some cases, this
attitude is extreme.
There is a larger series of dances which, to the uninitiated spectator, appear to resemble
each other very closely. The general plan of the dance is as follows. The drums are placed
in the middle; around them in a circle are the dancers and outside these, the onlookers.
The circle may be thirty or forty strong, composed of men only or of men and women as
the case may be. Commonly, the ring of dancers is divided into two halves, each half
being headed by a leader who sings the song, all joining in the refrain, while the onlookers
do the clapping. When the drums begin, they all walk round in a circle, but at a given signal,
one of the drums gives out a new time, and the whole circle starts dancing with short,
shuffling movements already described, usually progressing in the circle, sometimes going
backwards, sometimes facing the drums or turning right around in the line.
Mkomaula is a dance of, I believe, recent introduction which has replaced to some ex
tent chindimba, much to the disgust of the older people who dislike the innovation. They
shake their heads and say, " Chilambo chimasile!" " The world is finished." The drums used
are likuti, ntiyatiya, mchoso, and chinganga. It is danced by men and youths only.
Njeula or, as it was known some years ago, mgumbuli, is danced like mkomaula, but the
steps are accompanied by movements of the shoulders which form the feature of the dance.
Performers may go into the middle and do ku-punila (see mkonde).
Mlawanda resembled njeula; it is an old dance not seen now.
Chibonde is a dance for youths, the characteristic feature being that, at intervals, they
squat down on their heels and spin round very fast, with frog-like movements (Pl. III,
% 1).
Mkonde is a favorite dance for men and women; drums, likuti, ntiyatiya, mchoso,
chiminingo, and several lingaka. The dancers commence by going round in a circle, and then,
facing the drums, they all continue their steps without moving from their places, while a
few go out into the circle and dance in the open space about the drums. Two men go out
from one side and are met by two women from the other side. Men love to carry their
knives in their hands on these occasions, properly the large knife with an ivory handle
called msinjo; a man would go miles to borrow such a knife from a friend, for the dance.
The women often carry rattles in their hands. After dancing in the middle for a time,
they will severally withdraw to the circle, to be followed by others. A man dancing out
into the middle, may go up to any woman in the circle or among the onlookers, and by
touching her on the shoulder with his knife, invite her to come out and dance. In the middle
of the ring, he may embrace her, after which each retires to his place. To make this em
brace is called ku-punila; the man folds the woman to his breast. It is very gently done
with a certain air of gallantry, and there was formerly no objectionable element in it. A
man does not extend this embrace to his wife or to any near relatives. Ku-punila occurs
in other dances: chibonde, chilewe, mlenjesa, njeula, mbasula, masambala, chibilo, lichipi,
and liyaya, and in sekwe.
Chilewe: the drums used are chiminingo and mchoso. It is danced by young men and
women; as in other dances, a ring is formed, the men on one side, the women on the other.
The song is usually started by two men on one side and answered by two women on the
opposite side. When the song is well under way, the drums are signalled and all start danc
ing in a circle. Movement in all dances is counter-clockwise. After circling round, the
dancers come to a stand-still, while men and women go out into the middle and dance
a kind of quick heel-and-toe step, followed by ku-punila.
In the intervals of dancing, the girls and boys often play at sekwe. They may stand or
sit in a ring. One of the boys standing in the middle sings, " Sekwe sekwe, sekwe sewke,
sekwe! " with an accompaniment of clapping by the ring of youths, but no drums. He then
goes up to any girl sitting in the ring and asks her whom she wants; she names some one
who is then called out, and the girl and boy dance up and down together, embrace (ku-pu
nila), and return to their places. Another girl is then asked. Sometimes the girls will take
up the song, and ask the boys to choose. It is like a kind of " kiss in the ring."
There is another kind of dance for boys and girls. They are arranged in rows opposite
one another, some paces apart. The boys grasp a long pole and bending forward, dance up
to the row of girls, singing, " Anambereka mbereka!" refrain, "Mapereka!" (ku-pereka, to
give). Leaving the pole at the girls' feet, they retreat, after which the girls take it up
and advance to the boys in the same way.
Chibiro is danced rather like mkomaida. A group of men dancers go round in a circle,
and within this circle may be a line of women dancing to the same time but with rather
different steps than the men. This I have seen danced by a trained band of dancers, but
onlookers join in. A man may lead a woman into the middle and embrace her. There is
a tendency among these trained dancers to forsake the old time stately embrace for some
thing which is not so unobjectionable.
Lichipi is a new dance, but one that is well-liked. The drums are as in mkomaula. Men,
women, and young people dance in a circle followed by entry into the middle, and ku-punila.
Mbasula is danced by men on one side and women on the other side of a circle, to drums
mchoso, ndimbe and mangaka. Any of them may dance out into the middle after going
round in a circle.
Liyaya is an old dance for the older men and women. Like mbasula, the steps are slower
and are characterized by side-to-side movements.
Mtukunya: drums, likuti, chinganga, and a mchoso drum called mbitiku, because it is
so played as to give the sound "mMHku!" It is danced by men in a crowd. While the feet
do little, shuffling steps, the buttocks are jerked out backwards and forwards.
Chandamali: a dance of recent introduction resembles utuli.1
There are three dances which are danced by special dancers.
MUnjesa: the same as the mtseche of the Anyanja,2 generally danced by four men who
wear a kind of kilt made of strips of palm-leaf, and rattles, masewe, on their legs. They
may also wear the liungu, a headdress made of the tail-feathers, unga, of the chiunga bird :
it is like a broad hat-brim without a crown, the feathers projecting radially. The mbande,
a piece of a shell which comes from the Zanzibar coast is also often worn (PI. III, fig. 2).
The drums which give the time are chiminingo, played very rapidly indeed. The steps are
incredibly fast, with greater excursions than in the other dances, and usually end up with
a jump into the air and a pose with grimacing. A circle is formed round them by the young
people who, in the intervals, walk round singing and clapping. The dancers may call out
any girl for the embrace.
Msanja: danced by two or three pairs of men who wear the palm-leaf kilt, matambwa,
and a broad, bark-cloth belt called chamba. When the drums start, these dancers walk
round the circle of onlookers, and get the song going, and the clapping to time; then with
a signal to the drummers, they start dancing alternately an extremely rapid dance with
rattles in the hands, msanja, and a kind of dance-du-ventre, chamba. The drums employed
are mchoso, ntiyatiya, and chiminingo. The rapid dancing is too exhausting to last more
than a few seconds. This is always danced at Lupanda.
1 Cf. Stannus, "Notes on some tribes of British Central Africa," op. cit., p. 334. * Ibid.
Ching'wenyeng'wenye: A soloist dances about, playing a single-string viol with a bow

as he sings. His songs are all about people, village episodes full of personalities and many
witticisms. Kondoni of Malemya's was a well known performer (PI. I).
Songs. The following are some of the Chindimba songs:
1st voice. Kutumbila asyene nyumba achalendo agone kwapif

To be angry the owner of the house strangers they sleep where?
2d voice. Kutumbila asyene nyumba Che Nkoleka tinjiwa.
To be angry the owner of the house (Mr.) Nkoleka I shall die.
1st voice. Kumbusya unami walakwe,
To ask me to answer lies you.
2d voice. Kumbusya unami Che Mwenye,
To ask me to answer lies master,
1st voice. Alamu tinyaule iyoyo,
Brother-in-law I will go thus,
2d voice. Alamu tinyaule iyoyo.
1st voice. Awala wanache apite mchikwawa.
There (go) the children they go on all fours.
2d voice. Oh lelo'jo tinjiwa.
Oh today I shall die.
Chorus. Kutumbila asyene nyumba!
The burden of the song is: We see we are not wanted here; better we went away!
2
1st voice. Ah lijani'wo hole kole kupoka takapocheje lelo'jo!
Ah baboon these jumping jumping to enjoy he is going to enjoy today!
2d voice. Ah lijani'wooo! kupoka takapocheje mwanache!
Ah the baboon these to enjoy he is going to enjoy child!
Chorus. Kulya mbande sya nyumu!
to eat (seed) pods of dryness!
" Seed pods of dryness " is also referred to in a story of the baboon. When he is
dozing at night sitting on a tree, he hears a seed-pod in the neighborhood crack, and wish
ing to mark the spot, so that he may go and eat the seed in the morning, he stretches out
one arm in this direction and goes to sleep again, to be awakened by the sound of another
cracking pod; whereupon he puts out another limb to mark that spot. Presently, he has
all but one limb including his tail set out as sign-posts. Half awake he starts to put out
the one remaining limb, and falls off the tree.
1st voice. Atindili mbatata nganga yelele eja wakalakwe,

potatoes guinea fowl eeh! thank you you,
2d voice. Atindili mbatata akundenda atiyana'wo mwanja.
potatoes they are calling me Atiyana there is going away home;
Chorus. Kwende, akakulile!
Remove the hoe from its handle!
The name of any person may be introduced into these songs, sometimes the name of a
member of the village or of some person well known in the district. To introduce a name
thus is kurlumba. Eja! is an exclamation of thanks; when receiving anything, both hands
are held out, and the words eja, eja, eja! or nanga, nanga! are uttered.
1st voice. Makolowele 'galile sombe apalapala nganapanda ngwamba.

The millet have eaten locusts yon place did not plant not.
2d voice. 'Galile sombe apalapala nganapanda mpunga, atati, ngwamba!
Have eaten locust yon place did not plant rice, father, not!
2d voice. Apalapala nganapanda mpunga, atati, ngwamba!
1st voice. Apalapala nganapanda mpunga, atati, ngwamba!
Chorus. Makolowele, galile sombe!
Makolowele: after the first crop of millet has been taken in, the stalks are cut off near
the ground and the roots allowed to remain in the soil. Next season, they again sprout
and yield a second crop. This second year growth is makolowele.
1st voice. Masimba m'chingwamba chilo chilo chiloo chilo chilo!

Lions in the palm-trees at night, etc.
2d voice. Masimba m'chingwamba, kwimba likwata Atiyana! Tinjiwa chilo chilo etc.
Lions in the palm-trees to sing likwata Atiyana! I shall die tonight, tonight, etc.
Chorus. Masimba m'chingwamba!
Likwata is the name of a dance, Atiyana is a woman's name. Cf. " Let us eat,
drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die."
6
1st voice. Ndandee, ndande, ndandee! Repeat.
Teasing, teasing, teasing!
2d voice. Nakolaga chitanda tanda, nandande'ne, ngwaula!
If you have teasing teasing, me tease me, I am going away!
Chorus. Ndendeee!
1st voice. Wakwambaga'wala awano! akalakatanda

The one whom we were talking about, here he is! that thing which happened some-
mtondowo!
time ago, the day after tomorrow!
2d voice. Atiyana mwanja akalakatanda, mbite!
(a name) is going that thing which happened some time ago, I am off!
Chorus. Kioapa njete wana unami'wala!'
You give salt who has lies (lied to) you!
The meaning of this is: " If a man comes along who has done you an ill in the past and
is just as likely to do so again, should you be inclined to reward his lies by giving him
hospitality? Better to go away and leave him alone."
8
1st voice (male). Kapelele'ko kwende, akajosyeee!
The little lip ring that, come and wash it! Repeat.
2d voice. Kapelele'ko, wanganya , kwende akajosye lelo!
The little lip ring that, yon folk over there, come and wash them today!
1st refrain. Katakutenda msoma!
Lest it turn into bumble-bee honey!
1st voice (female). Ambi ndeu syoof
What about beard your? Refrain.
2d voice. Ambi ndeu syoo atati?
What about beard your father? Refrain.
2d refrain. Sitakutenda maleule!
Lest it turn into maleule! (part of a maize cob) .
9
1st voice. Achimkulila eeeh! ndandof
Why are you crying eh ! the cause?
2d voice. Tingawiche kumangwao'ko!
I will take her to her own home there!
Chorus. Kumajela nguja!
I am going to look for hoes!
This refers to a troublesome wife, Let her go back to her mother and the husband
will go about his own business."
10
1st voice (woman). Ukandendaga usakaliu ni ngatiji chikulupile'cho!
If I were not discouraged then I would have been still trusting! Repeat.
2d voice (man). Ukandendanga usakaliu ni ngatiji'ne katobwa! katobwa!
If I were not discouraged then I should have been saying beer! beer!
Katobwa katobwa katobwa achame!
Beer, beer, beer, dear me!
H. S. STANNUS— WAYAO PLATE I
GBING" WEXYENG" WENYE dancer
HELIOTYPE CO. BOSTON

H. S. STANNUS—WAYAO PLATE II
Yao natives
HELIOTYPE CO. B08TQN

H. S. STANNUS-WAYAO PLATE III
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HEUOTYPE CO. BOSTON

H. S. STANNUS—WAYAO PLATE IV
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H. S. STANNUS—WAYAO PLATE V
1. Musical instrument, the magolongondo,

PLAYED BY YAO YOUTHS
2. A YAO AS A NATIVE
SERVANT
8. Specimen of scarification
(Yao woman)
HEUOTYPE CO. BOSTON

H. S. STANNUS—WAYAO PLATE VI
1. A Yao girl 2. Yao girl wearing bead apron
3. Two Yao girls wearing trade cloth 4. A young Yao woman

H. S. STANNUS—WAYAO PLATE VII
I 1. Yao man wearing hbadcloth

coast fashion
i 2. THK SAME IN PROFILE
8. An old native who has allowed 4. An old woman, showing the mpehlr
HIS hair to grow long worn in the upper lip

H. S. STANNUS—WAYAO PLATE VIII
1. Native painting on the outside of a hut wall

i
2. A Yao native
'
B
/• >^j^"
3. Machinga Yao youth 4. Masaninga Yao youth, showing low

growth of hair on the forehead
HEUOTYPE CO. BOSTON

H. S. STANNUS — WAYAO PLATE IX
Distribution of the Yao in Nyasaland

H. S. STANNUS — WAYAO PLATE X
A*
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1.2, ChI.W VNDAXQ'UNGA; 3, LVPANDA POSTS; 4, SKETCH PLAN OF LVPANDAf 5.6, INYAGO FIGURES
r
HELIOTYPE CO. BOSTOH
PLATE XI
H. S. STANNUS — WAYAO
HELIOTYPE OO. BOSTON

H. S. STANNUS — WAYAO PLATE XII
HtYAGO FIGURES

H. S. STANNUS — WAYAO PLATE XIII
1SYAOO FIGURES

PLATE XIV
11
13
bo
10
_y£_
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14
15
1.9, Gourd vessels: 10.13, Wooden utensils; 14, Bed; 15 Hu

T plan; 16, Hearth with ligulu
HELIOTYPE OO. BOSTON

H. S. STANNUS — WAYAO PLATE XV
10
11 12
13
14
15 16
1-10. Pottery; 11-14, Pipes; 15, Grain mortar; l(i. Fire drill
HEUOTYPE CO. BOSTON

PLATE XVI
fefeffi
k^j__ ill
I Lix,
11
12
10
14 15
13
16
1-5, Diviners eit; 6-10, Mats; 11-16, Baseets

H. S. STANNUS — WAYAO PLATE XVII
r 3
iiniiiimi
111 1 111 It II II 1 1111 11
wm
m
PLATE XVIII
10
1"10, Hairdressing; 11-18, Nativ E DRAWINGS
HEUOTYPE CO. BOSTON

H. S. STANNUS — WAYAO PLATE XIX
GROUNO LEVEL/
1. Trap for the cane.rat; 2. Trap for gnawing animals

H. S. STANNUS — WAYAO PLATE XX
1-8, Bird traps; 4, Trap for guinea fowl; 5, Fish-trap; 6, Rat trap; 7. Trap for the water-rat
HELIOTYPE Oo. BOSTON

H. S. STANNUS — WAYAO PLATE XXI
1, 2, 5, Traps for rats and mice: 8, 4, Bird traps: (j, 7. Fish traps; K, Trap for guinea fowl

H. S. STANNUS — WAYAO PLATE XXII
<
11
10
iWWAmuM'iHUBv
taw
14
12
15
16
1, Cupping horn; 2, Surgical enife; 8, Splint; 4, Enema funnel; 5"11, Children's toys; 12-17, Drums

I
H. S. STANNUS — WAYAO PLATE XXIII
\^v^rt
Cat1s cradle

NOTE ON PREHISTORIC COLLECTIONS FROM NORTHWEST
AFRICA IN THE FEABODY MUSEUM OF
HARVARD UNIVERSITY
CHARLES PEABODY, Ph.D.
Except for the Egyptian field and neighboring regions, Africa is not well represented
in the prehistoric collections in America; further, many of the Egyptian series belong —
along with those from Palestine and Syria — in a geographical section Mediterranean
rather than Continental in character.
In the autumn of 1920 the Peabody Museum of Harvard University acquired by gift,
exchange, and purchase three African collections, each of a certain importance, namely:
the de Zeltner collection from the Upper Senegal, the Reygasse series from southeastern
Algeria, and the Bourlon collection from the northern Sahara.
The first is due to the researches of Franz de Zeltner, long a resident of the district, in
prehistoric stations at and near Kayes on the Upper Senegal River. The most striking
specimens of the collection, which, despite the absence of pottery, is almost certainly
neolithic, are a series of discs1 in schist, flaked, not polished, four or five inches in diameter;
in size, and superficially in appearance, they recall the discs of which seven thousand were
found by W. K. Moorehead in the course of the Hopewell excavations in Ohio. Like them,
they are of unexplained use and have given rise to many theories. The African discs are
certainly, however, not stored (or "Arsenal") material. Made of the same dark schist are
numerous rough celts and picks, unpolished; many of them carry a transverse platform
or plane opposite to the end destined for service. Further researches as to " Platform "
implements will be fruitful.2 In addition to these, there are in the collection hundreds
of flint flakes such as may be found on any work-site; a large proportion bear marks of
use as scrapers or knives, with, however, an almost total absence of "Spokeshaves," and
of reverse chipping, so common in Egypt.
All are a gift from Franz de Zeltner; he has provided a list of forty or fifty sites, and a
detailed map.
The Reygasse series represents a cross-section of the discoveries made by Maurice
Reygasse, a member of the French Administration at Tebessa (Constantine).8 His exca
vations have added much to our knowledge of African prehistoric archaeology; he has
found and determined Mousterian and Solutrian stations of which the latter are represented
1 F. de Zeltner, ' Les schistes taillSs de Nioro,' (L'Anthropologic, Paris, 1913, vol. 24, p. 17-23).
* Mention should be made of the work in this regard of W. G. Clarke, Honorary Secretary of the Prehistoric
Society of East Anglia.
* Maurice Reygasse, ' Etudes de palethnologie Maghrtbine,' (L'Anthropologie, Paris, 1916, vol. 27, p. 351-368).
373
in the collection by eight " Laurel-Leaf " shapes, flaked on both faces; there is also an
excellent series of flints of " Aurignacian Technique," almost certainly of Aurignacian date.
With the possible exception of the collections in the American Museum of Natural
History in New York, it is believed that these two groups are the only ones of their kind in
America.
The third collection is a part of that gathered by M. J. Bourlon 1 from the region of
the Sahara south of Morocco and Algeria; epochs from the earliest palaeolithic to the neo
lithic are represented abundantly. The most striking specimens are trapezoidal flaked
axes of red quartzite of Acheulian industry, " Fist-axes " of large size in chalcedony, and
tanged quartzite projectile points believed to be Mousterian. There are many neolithic
arrow-points of clear flint, and a group of beads in ostrich egg-shell.
It would seem that a valuable field of research is open in these regions of Africa: sur
face sites, shell-heaps and caves abound, rock-paintings add to the interest, and there is
no reason to suppose that results interesting to somatologists may not be forthcoming in
greater number from the mountains and plains of the Atlas and the Sahara.
1 Mobilized, and captain in the French army, he died in the service of his country.
PRINTED AT
THE HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS
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The Folk-Literature of The Galla of Southern Abyssinia

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HARVARD AFRICAN STUDIES

VARIA AFRICANA III

E. A. HOOTON, Ph.D., B.Litt.

RUTH OTIS SAWTELL

THE AFRICAN DEPARTMENT OF THE

COPYRIGHT. 1922. BY THE

INDIANA UNIVERSITY LIBRART

PRINTED AT THE HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS

ENRICO CERULLI, Ph.D.

INDEX OF PROPER NAMES 215

PHONETIC VALUE OF THE CHARACTERS1

1 Over Ambassa Abba Somie, 2 Gdllo, the lion, roars.

1 Jules Borelli, Ethiopie mendionale, Paris, 1890, p. 433.

1 O my father Bakarie! 2 O my ancestor Yamugie! 3 Where can I go? 4 All woes

15 abbdkd, IAmmi.4a yd"bbdk6 Tudddda

yd Gadd"dd Yambi fdqtn immoroddi

yd Adami, guyd gdfd"rbi wdl gubba 6ibsi

mand"mbaini isin kdfird

b) The Conquest of the Galla Kingdoms by Menilek n.

1 BIrru Nagaw6, 2 brother-in-law of Gobana! 3 O eagle of Cab6, 4 O hyena of Wareg6.

dbbdn bokku dubbatird qilh'essi gabbabatird

45 Santdmd Metu bdta 60 Tdsdmmdn slid duttudd

55 rardn b&temmo jjirtt Idkkd ndtt"ergifaU

25 abbdtte Giydrgis jjedtra §&n GimmA gabbarbra

C. THE ITALO-ABYSSINIAN WAR (1896)

II. WAR AND HUNTING SONGS

Hdrfa! is a war-cry which usually precedes the boasting-songs. It may be compared

Wdq "arfasd fakkdta lotin gadi dabatb

III. LOVE SONGS

1 O Sula (daughter) of Sule (daughter) of Gil6, whose brother is Sora, 2 send to me

Aydnikbudddd gdndd Kumsd Mori

15 dn si dukkdn didimd fidlallikotif isd

IV. NUPTIAL SONGS

durbte yd"ridkd $b6balbald

The Cradle Song of the Little Boy

VI. FESTIVE AND RELIGIOUS SONGS

(Head of the wdddg'a): 1 O wonder! O wonder!

humba humbd yd Wdq 5 dagatti nu"nbusinl

robi Ufa gai diddibi qallildd

SONGS OF THE CARAVANS

adu bosd bird sirbi

adit, kottu kottu uU ddddbatd

abbd fardd dollie 5 sombd guddd §ald bal

I. Prose Works on Historical Subjects

Dubbi motumma Guma.

Chronicle of the Kingdom of Guma.

Gaw6 Onco (ruling in 1841; died in June, 1879)

Abba Digga Abba Gubir Abba, Foggf (last king)

«^J 'Q^J <^i <V <^ <^> >e i«

<SS <SS <^> <SS <^ <o

=> 2 2 S <& "8

^ ^3 ^ <QJ <^> <5J

<N CO o "* 00 <N CO o •<£ 00 <N CO o •* 65-68 ,-72 o

(11.) See song 142.

III. Texts of Magic and Prophetic Literature

IV. Humorous Prose (Hdsa)

1 Montandon, op. cit., p. 65. * Ibid., p. 202.

INDEX OF PROPER NAMES

BMddo,l. BuSl Garbd (Galla king, father of Rds Wdrannd),