African Folktales

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Malian Folktales

Traditional folktales from Malian (Mali), passed down through generations in West African Folktales.

a sacred baobab tree in a Malian village with people gathered around listening Mali folktale

The Talking Baobab Tree

by Elizabeth Fabowale

African Folktales·Malian Folktales·West African Folktales

In the heart of Mali where the red earth meets the wide open sky and the winds carry whispers of ancient songs there stood a baobab tree unlike any other. Its trunk was enormous wider than a house and its branches stretched upward like arms reaching to embrace the heavens. The people of a nearby village often came to rest

animals in the Malian savannah rejecting a greedy hyena who wanted to be king Mali folktale

African Folktales·Malian Folktales·West African Folktales

The Hyena Who Wanted to Be King

Long ago in the dry but fertile lands of the Sahel, the animals lived together in fragile peace. The sun burned hot above the golden grasses, and the nights carried winds that whispered old secrets across the plains. The animals had no king, and though they lived by instinct and

buffalo and a woman in the Malian savannah at sunset - Mali folktale

The Buffalo Woman of Mali

Long ago in the vast savannah lands of Mali where the grasses

a hare tricking a lion near a water pool in the Malian savannah Mali folktale

The Cunning Hare and the Mighty Lion

In the sunlit savannahs of Mali, where tall grasses sway like golden

Dogon villagers under the starry sky with Nommo spirit beings descending, inspired by Mali folklore

The Dogon and the Stars

African Folktales·Malian Folktales·West African Folktales

In the cliffs of Bandiagara where stone rises like towers against the sky and villages cling to the earth like ancient nests the Dogon people keep stories as old

a sacred river in Mali with villagers standing by the riverbank Mali folktale

The River Spirit of the Niger

African Folktales·Malian Folktales·West African Folktales

Long ago, when the sun rose golden over the plains of Mali and the Niger River wound like a shining ribbon across the land, the people knew that the

twin hunters battling a giant serpent in the Malian savannah Mali folktale

The Twin Hunters of the Savannah

African Folktales·Malian Folktales·West African Folktales

Long ago in the wide open savannah of Mali, where the tall grasses waved like golden seas under the wind, there lived twin brothers who were known across the

Mandé blacksmith forging iron with sacred fire - Mali folktale

The Blacksmith and the Sacred Fire

African Folktales·Malian Folktales·West African Folktales

In the ancient days of Mali, when the world was still new and the people were learning how to shape their lives, the blacksmith was unlike any other man.

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