Xxx The Parrot : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XXX THE PARROT THERE was a grey parrot which knew how to speak and had the habit of correcting anybody who did not tell the truth. p. 57 The parrot was the pet of an untruthful woman, and she found the bird's habit so inconvenient, that she at length...
Xxv The Staff Of Oranyan : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next p. 46 XXV THE STAFF OF ORANYAN ORANYAN, a brave and warlike King, founded the city of Oyo. As it was necessary for him to lead an expedition to a distant part of his kingdom, he left his son in charge of the capital during his absence. But the King was away...
Xl Tortoise And The Rain : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous XL TORTOISE AND THE RAIN TORTOISE and a Cloud once made the following agreement: Whenever Tortoise very much desired fine weather, he was to stand outside his house and call: "Pass! Pass!" and then the Cloud would roll away p. 85 and allow the sun to shine...
Xxxiii Tortoise And Mr. Fly : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XXXIII TORTOISE AND MR. FLY ONCE Tortoise and his family fell on hard times and had nothing to eat, but they noticed that their neighbour, Mr. Fly, seemed to be very prosperous and feasted every night. Tortoise was curious to know how he obtained so much...
Xvi The Three Magicians : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XVI THE THREE MAGICIANS A CERTAIN King had engaged in a series of wars, during which he employed three magicians or medicine-men to make charms for him, so that he might destroy his enemies. At the end of the war these three magicians came to the King...
Title Page : Sacred-Texts African Index Next YORUBA LEGENDS BY M. I. OGUMEFU, B.A. LONDON THE SHELDON PRESS NORTHUMBERLAND AVENUE, W.C. 2 Next
Xvii Isokun And The Baby : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next p. 31 XVII ISOKUN AND THE BABY A CERTAIN King Dekun had a wife named Isokun who bore him no children, on which account there was great unhappiness in the palace. One day Isokun disappeared and was absent for many weeks, and though search was made, no trace...
V Why Women Have Long Hair : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next V WHY WOMEN HAVE LONG HAIR TWO women quarrelled, and one of them went out secretly at night and dug a deep pit in the middle of the path leading from her enemy's house to the village well. Early next morning, when all were going to the well for water with...
Xviii The Twin Brothers : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next p. 33 XVIII THE TWIN BROTHERS A CERTAIN Yoruba King, Ajaka, had a favourite wife of whom he was very fond; but, alas for his hopes! she gave birth to twins. At that time it was the universal custom to destroy twins immediately at birth, and the mother with...
Vi Why People Cry long Live The King When : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next VI WHY PEOPLE CRY "LONG LIVE THE KING!" WHEN THUNDER FOLLOWS LIGHTNING KING SANGO was acquainted with many deadly charms, and he once happened to discover a preparation by which he could attract lightning. He foolishly decided to try the effect of the charm...
Xv The Voices Of Birds : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XV THE VOICES OF BIRDS A MAGICIAN once passed through a grove in the forest where a great many brown birds fluttered from tree to tree and filled the air with songs. For a long time he sat and listened, enraptured by their beautiful melodies, but in the end...
Xxxvii Tortoise And Crab : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XXXVII TORTOISE AND CRAB EVERYONE knows that Tortoise and Crab are enemies. One morning on the seashore they decided to fight to see which was the stronger, but, as both of them are protected by a hard shell, neither could succeed in injuring the other...
Xx Another Story Of Leopard's Spots : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XX ANOTHER STORY OF LEOPARD'S SPOTS ACCORDING to another story, Leopard once had a very dark skin. He was prowling one day in a beautiful compound, when he noticed a little hut in which a lady was taking her bath. Round and round the hut Leopard walked...
Xxxv The Three Deaths Of Tortoise : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next p. 73 XXXV THE THREE DEATHS OF TORTOISE TORTOISE had many enemies, and they plotted together to kill him. One night when Tortoise was asleep in his hut, they set fire to it, and as they saw the flames leaping up, they said to one another: "He cannot escape...
Ii How Tribal Marks Came To Be Used : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next II HOW TRIBAL MARKS CAME TO BE USED A CERTAIN King named Sango sent two slaves to a distant country on an important mission. In due course they returned, and he found that one slave had achieved successfully what he had been sent to do, while the other had...
Xii The Leopard Man : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next p. 18 XII THE LEOPARD-MAN A HANDSOME stranger once came into a certain village and strolled about among the people in mysterious silence. All the maidens admired him and wished that he would choose one of them for his bride. But he said nothing, and at last...
Xxxviii Tortoise And Pigeon : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XXXVIII TORTOISE AND PIGEON TORTOISE and Pigeon were often seen walking together, but unfortunately Tortoise treated his friend rather badly, and often played tricks on him. Pigeon never complained, and put up with everything in a good-humoured way. Once...
Xxix The Cooking Pot : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next p. 55 XXIX THE COOKING-POT A MAN once brought home to his wife a very old cooking-pot, and told her to use it every day when preparing the evening meal. The woman was not pleased at the idea of using such a battered vessel, and feared that her friends would...
Xxiv Oluronbi : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XXIV OLURONBI IN a certain village no children had been born for many years, and the people were greatly distressed. p. 44 At last all the women of the village went together into the forest, to the magic tree, the Iroko, and implored the spirit of the tree...
Xxvii The Secret Of The Fishing Baskets : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XXVII THE SECRET OF THE FISHING-BASKETS ACROSS a certain river a poor fisherman set a row of stakes, and on each stake was fastened a basket in which he hoped to trap the fishes as they swam down the river. But his luck was very bad, and every p. 50 evening...
Xi The Bat : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next p. 17 XI THE BAT THE Bat is half a bird and half a rodent, and lives partly on the earth and partly in the air, but both rats and birds shun him, and this is why: The rats, his cousins, were once fighting a great battle with the birds, and Bat fought...
Xxxix Tortoise And The Whip Tree : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XXXIX TORTOISE AND THE WHIP-TREE THERE was a famine in the land, and everyone longed for food. Each day Tortoise went into the forest to see if he could p. 81 find anything to eat, but in the evenings he came home discouraged with only a few herbs...
Xxxii Tortoise And The King : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next p. 65 XXXII TORTOISE AND THE KING ONE year the Elephant had done a great deal of damage, breaking down the trees, drinking up the water in a time of scarcity, and eating the first tender crops from the fields. The King's hunters tried in vain to destroy him...
Ix Orisa Oko : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next p. 12 IX ORISA OKO ORISA OKO was a poor hunter, solitary save for his fife and his dog. If ever he lost his way out in the fields or the forest, he would begin to play some plaintive melody on his fife, and the sounds would lead the faithful dog to his side...
Xxviii The Ten Goldsmiths : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XXVIII THE TEN GOLDSMITHS A GOLDSMITH in a small village had ten sons, to all of whom he taught his trade. In time they became skilful craftsmen, p. 52 and when the old man was dying he called the ten around him and addressed them thus: "My sons, in this...
Untitled : Sacred-Texts African Yoruba Legends by M. I. Ogumefu, B.A. [London, 1929] Title Page PREFACE CONTENTS I THE KINGDOM OF THE YORUBAS II HOW TRIBAL MARKS CAME TO BE USED III AKITI THE HUNTER IV SONS OF STICKS V WHY WOMEN HAVE LONG HAIR VI WHY PEOPLE CRY "LONG LIVE THE KING!" WHEN THUNDER FOLLOWS...
Xxii Ole And The Ants : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XXII OLE AND THE ANTS THERE was a certain lazy and disagreeable man whom everyone called "Ole," or "Lazy one." He liked to profit by the work of others, and was also very inquisitive about other people's affairs. Once he saw that the ants had begun building...
Xxvi The Elephant's Trunk : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next p. 48 XXVI THE ELEPHANT'S TRUNK NOW it is a matter of common knowledge that Elephant has a long trunk, which he uses both as a nose and as a sort of hand--a very useful trunk indeed. But he was once without it, and had a very ordinary short snout like other...
Xxiii The Boa Constrictor : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XXIII THE BOA-CONSTRICTOR OGUNFUNMINIRE, the famous hunter, lived to such a great age that he was no longer able to go into the forest and chase the deer and the leopard. Life had no other pleasure for him than hunting, so he went to a magician and asked...
Iii Akiti The Hunter : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next III AKITI THE HUNTER A FAMOUS hunter and wrestler named Akiti boasted that he was stronger than any other man or animal. He had easily overcome a giant, a leopard, a lion, a wolf, and p. 4 a boa-constrictor, and as nobody else opposed his claim, he called...
Xxxvi Tortoise And The Cock : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next p. 75 XXXVI TORTOISE AND THE COCK ONE day Tortoise and Nyanribo felt very hungry, but they could not afford to buy food, and while they were discussing what might be done, Tortoise heard a cock crowing, and it gave him an idea. He went to the cock and said:...
Xiv The Ants And The Treasure : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XIV THE ANTS AND THE TREASURE THERE once was a poor man who was very kind to animals and birds. However little he had, he always spared a few grains of p. 22 corn, or a few beans, for his parrot, and he was in the habit of spreading on the ground every...
Xxi The Head : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XXI THE HEAD THERE is a certain country where the inhabitants have heads but no bodies. The Heads move about by jumping along the ground, but they never go very far. One of the Heads desired to see the world, so he set out one morning secretly. When he had...
I The Kingdom Of The Yorubas : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next p. 1 YORUBA LEGENDS I THE KINGDOM OF THE YORUBAS THE ancient King Oduduwa had a great many grandchildren, and on his death he divided among them all his possessions. But his youngest grandson, Oranyan, was at that time away hunting, and when he returned...
Viii The Iroko Tree : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next p. 11 VIII THE IROKO TREE IN the forest there is a giant tree called by the Yorubas the "Iroko," which is shunned by all people, for in it lives the spirit of an old man who prowls about at night with a little torch and frightens travellers. Anyone who sees...
Preface : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next p. iii PREFACE IN modern times we have begun paying close attention to folklore--old tales, not invented by one man, but belonging to the whole people; not written down, but told by parents to their children, and so handed on for hundreds of years...
Iv Sons Of Sticks : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next IV SONS OF STICKS A GREAT King sent his various sons to rule over different parts of his kingdom, and all were satisfied but one, the youngest and most ambitious, who returned to his father after some time with the complaint that his territory was much too...
Xix How Leopard Got His Spots : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XIX HOW LEOPARD GOT HIS SPOTS AT one time the Leopard was coloured like a lion, and he had no dark markings; but he was pursued by Akiti, the renowned hunter, and feared that he might be slain. To avoid this he ate the roots of a certain magic plant, which...
Xxxi The Ghost Catcher : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next p. 59 XXXI THE GHOST-CATCHER KING ABIPA took a fancy to remove his whole court to a new capital, and for this purpose he decided to build a town on a certain hill which pleased him. His nobles, however, did not at all desire the change, and some of them met...
Xxxiv Erin And Erinomi : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XXXIV ERIN AND ERINOMI (THE LAND- AND WATER-ELEPHANTS) TORTOISE was always fond of making mischief between harmless people. One day as he walked along the river-bank he came upon the Elephant and said to him: "The Hippo is boasting that you are only...
X Moremi : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next X MOREMI A NOBLEMAN of Ile-Ife had a beautiful and virtuous wife named Moremi, and a handsome young son, Ela. The country of the Ifes was at that time subject to fierce raids by a tribe called the Igbos, who were of such an uncanny appearance in battle th...
Vii The Olofin And The Mice : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next VII THE OLOFIN AND THE MICE A FAMOUS Olofin, or Yoruba King, was once imprisoned by his enemies in a hut without any door or roof-opening, and left to die of starvation. As he sat gloomily on the ground, the Olofin saw a little mouse running across the hut...
Xiii The Water Bird : Sacred-Texts African Index Previous Next XIII THE WATER-BIRD THE water-bird always stands on one leg, and this is why: A water-bird once, in search of food, swallowed the King of the crabs, and the whole tribe of crabs were so enraged that they swore they would have their revenge. "We will find...
