The Antelope Deceived by the Tortoise’s Relay

Overview

In Rattray’s fable The Tortoise and the Antelope, the antelope challenges the tortoise to run beside him. The tortoise accepts, then privately calls on companions for help. He arranges them in a long line reaching the plain agreed upon for the race. The antelope begins at full speed, apparently treating the contest as a test between two runners rather than a relay of concealed assistants.

After running some distance, the antelope calls to the tortoise and receives an answer from far ahead, claiming to have passed long before. He starts running again and calls once more, only to receive the same answer. The complete ending says simply that the antelope has to give up. It does not add a death, a forfeited prize or a later discovery of the trick. Rattray’s separate note compares the story with the Hare and Tortoise while also calling it original; that is the translator’s comparison, not proof of either independent origin or a documented borrowing. The antelope has no personal name or specified species.

Origins & earliest records

Rattray attributes the collection’s material generally to Central Angoniland; no individual teller is identified for this selected fable. Hetherwick’s preface describes Rattray’s African Lakes Corporation employment and language study. These are colonial collection circumstances, not a precise modern-country origin for each narrative.

Records & interpretation

Complete Chinyanja witness, printed pp. 53; complete English translation, pp. 131–132; full notes to the numbered fable, pp. 214. All selected original pages viewed; English understood, Chinyanja not independently translated.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

1. 01

   Some Folk-Lore Stories and Songs in Chinyanja, with English Translation and Notes

   R. Sutherland Rattray, recorder and English translator; introductory preface by Alexander Hetherwick · 1907

   Complete original Chinyanja narrative, literal English translation, relevant notes and both prefaces retained.

Family & connections

A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

1. Original historical bilingual Chinyanja/English collectionRattray 1907, complete fable and notes, English pp. 131–132Research access: 2026-10-18

Image credits

AI interpretation of the antelope in the arranged relay race; exact species and setting unspecified.

Original AI interpretation of a particular Chinyanja fable. Animal species, colours, horns or tail shape, pottery and landscape imagined; no authenticated community iconography, wildlife record, ritual practice or modern national origin claimed.