A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.
Overview
During his search for Maholia, the prince reaches a marula tree laden with yellow fruit. When he eats some, a deep voice asks what he wants. He says that he seeks the Shining Princess and asks whether he is travelling correctly. The tree tells him to continue until he comes to a large fig tree. The first guide provides a destination rather than magically transporting him.
The next tree stands by a stream, with red figs growing even on its roots and dense foliage giving deep shade. The prince rests there and repeats his question. It directs him to a big river and a forest beyond, where he will find the princess. The speaking ox later crosses that river with him, and Maholia is found in the forest. This grouped profile retains the two successive tree guides without inventing independent names, a shared spirit inhabitant or a power of flight for either tree.
Origins & earliest records
Sarah F. Bourhill and Beatrice L. Drake collected and arranged the English children’s retelling. No individual episode narrator is named. Preface community claims and chapter labels are retained as evidence about the publication, not substituted for current community self-description.
Records & interpretation
Complete IV. The Story of the Shining Princess, printed pp. 32–42, read through the ending; title, preface and chapter label checked.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
Fairy Tales from South Africa
IV. The Story of the Shining Princess, pp. 32–42; published English literary arrangement for children.
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.
Located primary passages
Specific passages supporting details in this entry, grouped by their published witness.
Primary source witness
Sarah F. Bourhill (Mrs. E. J. Bourhill) and Beatrice L. Drake (Mrs. J. B. Drake), Fairy Tales from South Africa, London: Macmillan, 1908; selected original title page and complete headed tales in PG75833. Arranged for children; introduction pp.v–xi attributes principally Swazi, also Zulu and border-region contributions, with Shining Princess attributed to Mapoch. Individual narrators for these selected tales unnamed. Historical colonial framing is not current community consensus.
- After the searching prince eats fruit, a voice from a marula directs him to a large fig tree. This is a specific speaking tree in a tale, not a general description of all marulas or a separately named tree spirit.
- The fig directs him beyond a large river into a forest where the princess lives. The fairy ox then handles the water crossing. Neither tree is shown walking, changing form or personally transporting the prince.
Selected historical arrangement, not unmediated original-language oral testimony. Individual contributor not named; no separate manuscript inspected. Original facsimile not visually inspected in this batch.
References
Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.
- Collected historical tale in an English literary retellingBourhill and Drake — IV. The Story of the Shining PrincessResearch access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.