Mamonyohe

Overview

In the first Monyohe account, his mother discovers Senkepeng beside a fountain, hidden under river-carried asparagus plants with her musical bow projecting outside. She welcomes the girl as a daughter-in-law and brings her to the household. Mamonyohe directs the preparation and delivery of enormous meals to the unseen roof-dwelling son. She assigns Senkepeng a sleeping place in his hut and keeps the domestic work going until the bride grows thin and leaves. When Monyohe pursues her, his mother follows carrying a black ox hide.

After the village kills the serpent, Mamonyohe collects its remains and burns them in another ox hide. She gathers the ashes into the hide brought from home, takes them to a pool and walks around the water. Her son returns as a beautiful man. Senkepeng rejoices, the couple goes to her parents and the marriage is completed. The water restoration belongs to XVIII; it is distinct from the concealed-pot restoration narrated in XIX.

In XIX she warns the bride to avoid smoke, then follows when that rule is broken and her son pursues the girl home. Mamonyohe finds him in a dog kennel and reduces him to ashes, carefully separating his remains from the wood ash. Enclosed beneath a pot, the bundle eventually moves and the covering opens itself to reveal a young man. She tells him to love the wife through whom he became human. Her later decision to wean their child causes a renewed family dispute; the wife’s escort kills Monyohe and kills Mamonyohe when she comes to fetch him. This version therefore ends with the restorer’s own death, rather than an indefinitely repeated revival.

Origins & earliest records

Jacottet prints these related contributions as separate numbered tales in Se-Suto with literal English translations. Introduction xxii distinguishes dictation, friends’ collections and a few Sekese texts, but no individual narrator is assigned in these inspected episodes. His theories of ancient common origins remain editorial comparisons rather than first attestation dates.

Records & interpretation

Jacottet (1908), complete XVIII Monyohe pp. 126–135; XIX Monyohe pp. 134–139; XX Maliane pp. 140–147; XXI Monyohe pp. 148–153. English text on even pages, with facing Se-Suto and explanatory notes; introduction xxii on collection and translation.

Selected bibliography

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

1. 01

   The Treasury of Ba-suto Lore, vol. I

   Édouard Jacottet, collector and literal translator; J. C. Smith, English text assistance · 1908

   Jacottet (1908), complete XVIII Monyohe pp. 126–135; XIX Monyohe pp. 134–139; XX Maliane pp. 140–147; XXI Monyohe pp. 148–153. English text on even pages, with facing Se-Suto and explanatory notes; introduction xxii on collection and translation.

2. 02

   The Treasury of Ba-suto Lore, volume I

   Unnamed Sesotho narrative contributor; Édouard Jacottet, editor and translator; J. C. Smith, English text correction · 1908

   The Treasury of Ba-suto Lore, volume I, Morija: Sesuto Book Depot; London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co., 1908, actual title-page OCR. Full preface and collection/translation statement introductionxxii independently read, alongside complete complete chaptersXVIII–XXIpp126–153 and notes; selected historical witness only.

Family, evolution & connections

Mamonyohe, Monyohe and the unnamed child — XIX

XIX only, English pp. 134–138.

Explicit mother–son link, followed by the son’s stated child with Senkepeng. Monyohe’s father and the baby’s name and sex are unstated. XIX’s later deaths remain separate from XVIII’s marriage ending. XVIII’s song has an uncertain translation; its apparent “child of my sister” address is not used as an aunt–nephew pedigree. No original-version claim from the collector’s comparative notes is adopted.

Located primary passages

Specific passages supporting details in this entry, grouped by their published witness.

References

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

1. Collected Se-Suto texts with literal English translation and notesJacottet — complete Monyohe and Maliane accountsResearch access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.