Timeless African folktales retold for a new generation
The River Maiden
In the heart of Yorubaland, where the Oṣun River winds like a silver snake through forests and farms, stood the village of Olódò. The people lived by the river’s gifts. It watered their yam fields, filled their pots with tilapia, and carried canoes laden with palm oil to far-off markets.
The Cannibal Woman
Long ago, in a Somali village, there lived a terrifying woman who
The Man Who Never Lied
Once upon a time in the lands of Kenya, there lived a
The Man, the Buffalo, and the Gift of Spears: Anuak Folktale from Ethiopia
Long, long ago, when the world was fresh and unspoiled, God shaped the earth with His hands. He carved the winding rivers and stretched the green forests across the
How Monkey Outwitted Wolf with Music in Kenya
In a small clearing in the heart of the Kenyan forest, Monkey’s home had grown barren. The bulbs, wild yams, termites, and insects that had once fed him and
Clever Jackal Story from Kenya
“Hawu, hawu, hawu, my children,” began Gogo one evening as her grandchildren gathered around her. “Cleverness is a very important gift to own. It has helped Nogwaja escape the
Pride Humbled by Destiny: An Ethiopian Folktale
The story begins in the household of a chief, a man of authority and power. Among his wives was one who became pregnant. One day, she stepped into the
The Hunter and His Dogs
The tale begins in a small compound where a hunter lived with his two wives. The first was called Little Loved One, Njidangel, and the second was Little Hated
The River Crossing and the Hippopotamus
In a quiet village along the banks of a wide river, there lived a woman who needed to make her way across the waters. The river was deep and
The Greedy Husband
In the highlands of Ethiopia, where the terraced fields meet the horizon and the air carries the fragrance of roasted grain and burning wood, there once lived a woman
The Cattle Carried Away by the Wind
Long ago, in the rolling highlands of Ethiopia, there lived a man of great wealth. His fortune was not measured in gold or jewels but in living treasure: vast
Fatuma: The Son Who Was Changed into a Girl
In the highlands of Ethiopia, where the morning mist often clings to the rugged escarpments and the call of herders echoes across the valleys, there lived a woman blessed
Penda Who Could Not Be Shamed
Long ago, in the highlands of Ethiopia where the mountains rise like ancient guardians and the valleys breathe with green, there lived a woman who gave birth to a
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