A white man, it is said, met Snake upon whom a large stone had fallen and covered her so that she could not rise. The White Man lifted the stone off Snake, but when he had done so, she wanted to bite him. The White Man said, “Stop! let us both go first to some…
Tag: James A. Honey
Top 5 Stories about “The Hare”
In folk and fairy tales around the world the hare is portrayed as a cunning and clever character. Sometimes, as far as I know, especially in African stories, his wittiness is mixed with a vicious deceitfulness (like in “The hare and the quail” or “Sympathy killed Mr. Kapangula” on malamusi.com. Without further ado, here are…
THE STORY OF HARE (South-African Folk-Tales, 1910) by James A. Honey
Once upon a time the animals made a kraal and put some fat in it. They agreed that one of their number should remain to be the keeper of the gate. The first one that was appointed was the coney (imbila). He agreed to take charge, and all the others went away. In a short…
Top 5 Most Cunning Lies in Fairy and Folk Tales
Lies and liars have always been an important theme in fairy tales and every tradition has got it’s own takes on the morality of lies. There are countless portrays of liars in fairy and folk tales. Therefore fairy tales provide us with a lot of insight into the world’s cultures. There are so many tales that…
JACKAL’S BRIDE (South-African Folk-Tales, 1910) by James A. Honey
Jackal, it is said, married Hyena, and carried off a cow belonging to the ants, to slaughter her for the wedding; and when he had slaughtered her, he put the cowskin over his bride; and when he had fixed a pole (on which to hang the flesh), he placed on the top of the pole…
LION’S SHARE (South-African Folk-Tales, 1910) by James A. Honey
Lion and Jackal went together a-hunting. They shot with arrows. Lion shot first, but his arrow fell short of its aim; but Jackal hit the game, and joyfully cried out, “It has hit.” Lion looked at him with his two large eyes; Jackal, however, did not lose his countenance, but said, “No, uncle, I mean…