Sunjata: A West African Epic of the Mande PeoplesDavid C. Conrad, Djanka Tassey Condé A pillar of the West African oral tradition for centuries, this epic traces the adventures and achievements of the Mande hero, Sunjata, as he liberates his people from Sumaworo Kanté, the sorcerer king of Soso, and establishes the great medieval empire of Mali. David Conrad conveys the strong narrative thrust of the Sunjata epic in his presentation of substantial excerpts from his translation of a performance by Djanka Tassey Condé. Readers approaching the epic for the first time will appreciate the translation's highly readable, poetic English as well as Conrad's informative Introduction and notes. Scholars will find the familiar heroes and heroines taking on new dimensions, secondary characters gaining increased prominence, and previously unknown figures emerging from obscurity. "Thanks to his careful editing and translating of Condé's narrative, Conrad offers a highly readable version of the epic that is about a third of its original length. The translation communicates not only the poetic qualities and the essential events of the Sunjata legend but also the master bard's performance values. Thus, this rendering will fascinate those who already know the story and culture and those coming to the epic for the first time. Conrad provides an excellent introduction to Mande oral tradition, the role of the griot, and the Manding belief system. Though he makes no claim for this as the complete scholarly edition, he does provide helpful scholarly notes, a glossary, and a good bibliography. . . . Summing up: Highly recommended." --L. W. Yoder, CHOICE |
Other editions - View all
Sunjata: A West African Epic of the Mande Peoples David Conrad,Djanka Tassey Condé Limited preview - 2004 |
Sunjata: A West African Epic of the Mande Peoples David C. Conrad,Djanka Tassey Condé No preview available - 2004 |
Common terms and phrases
Abdu Karimi Abdu Kassimu ancestor arrived bala Bamana Baoulé bards battle brought child co-wives Condé woman council hall Dakajalan dalilu Dankaran Tuman Danmansa Wulanni descendants Dň Kamissa Dň ni Kiri Donsamogo Diarra Dunun episodes Fadama Fakoli Faran Tunkara fonio genies give Guinea heard hunters husband Jata jeli jeliw Jinna Maghan Jolofin Mansa Kalabi kamalenw Kamanjan Kamara Karamogo Keleya Konkon kill the buffalo Kolonkan Koroma Kosiya Kanté legacy lineage Ma'an Sunjata Maghan Konfara Mali Empire Mamadi Mamadi Condé Mande languages Manden Bori Maninka Manjan Bereté married mother Naaaam Naamu narrative narrator Negeboriya omitted passage oral tradition Sansamba Sagado Sansun Bereté Sharifu Simbon sired sister Sitafa Diawara So'olon Jamori So'olon Ma'an Sogolon Condé Sogolon Wulen Condé Somono sorcery Soso Sumaworo Sunjata epic Sunjata's father Tabon Tassey Condé tell Tenenba Condé things told took town Tunku Manyan Diawara Turama'an wife women Wulanba Yerelenko younger brother
Popular passages
Page xvii - Strangers arriving in distant towns or villages form immediate connections with 'related' families and find comfort and security with their hosts. When elders meet in village council, the ancestral spirits are felt to be present because, according to tradition, it was they who established the relative statuses of everyone present, as well as the administrative protocols to be followed and the values underpinning every decision. It is no exaggeration to say that, regardless of gender, the ancestors...
Page xiv - Mande peoples are found in a much larger portion of subSaharan West Africa, speaking various related languages and dialects of the Mande family of languages. Mande-speaking peoples include the Maninka of northeastern Guinea and southern Mali, the Bamana of Mali, the Mandinka of Senegambia and Guinea-Bissau, and the Dyula of northern Cote d'lvoire. There are...
Page xvii - Manding societies all matters involving family, clan, and ethnic kinship are of supreme importance. People are identified by their jamu, which is the family name or patronymic associated with one or more famous ancestors who are remembered for important deeds that are alleged to have occurred around the beginning of the 1 3th century.
Page xvi - ... tradition in search of useful clues. Such endeavors require thorough knowledge of all aspects of the culture, including the social and spiritual values underlying the deeply ingrained sense of a shared history expressed through oral epic.
Page xvii - When strangers meet, they quickly learn each other's jamuw or patronymics, thus establishing their relative places in the cultural landscape. Travelers meeting far from home soon establish relationships through their jamuw because of links that are believed to have formed between their ancestors during encounters that are described in the epic narrative. Strangers arriving in distant towns or villages establish immediate connections with "related" families and find comfort and security with their...
Page xvi - Manding oral sources in the belief that they can yield evidence that has at least a reasonable degree of historical probability, with many years spent scrutinizing every available version of the tradition in search of useful clues.