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

Overview

The boy is sent to his maternal uncle to fetch medicine for his mother. He eats it on the way back and tells her that there was none. He becomes pregnant and, while herding with his younger brother, uses a supposed visit to his bird traps as an excuse to go to the mountain. There he gives birth, clothes the child and leaves him in a cave.

On subsequent mornings he saves cow’s milk in a horn before taking the cattle out. Leaving his younger brother with the herd, he visits the cave. His address calls the child Nkolobe; his breast then swells and he suckles him. The repeated visits arouse his brother’s suspicion. The younger boy follows secretly, observes the feeding and tells their mother, who goes with others to the cave and brings the child home.

The parent returns to find the cave empty and weeps throughout the day. At home he first attributes his tears to smoke, but remains sorrowful the following evening. His mother asks whether he is crying for his child, shows him the rescued infant and asks how he obtained him. He acknowledges eating the medicine from his uncle. The tale ends with this explanation and reunion, without a further punishment. The collector’s note calls the boy Nkolobe while the narrative address uses that name for the baby, so this profile identifies the parent by his role rather than silently resolving the inconsistency.

Medicine-induced narrative pregnancyHidden mountain birthSwelling breast and sucklingYounger brother discovers secretFamily reunion
01

Origins & earliest records

Jacottet presents this tale in parallel Se-Suto and English with comparative notes. No individual contributor is identified in the inspected episode; the publication date is not a first oral attestation.

02

Records & interpretation

XXIX, Nkolobe, complete bilingual pp. 196–201; English pp. 196, 198, 200. Birth and suckling pp. 196–198; removal from cave and family recognition pp. 198–200. Naming inconsistency and song variant noted p. 196.

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 translator; J. C. Smith, English text assistance · 1908

    XXIX, Nkolobe, complete bilingual pp. 196–201; English pp. 196, 198, 200. Birth and suckling pp. 196–198; removal from cave and family recognition pp. 198–200. Naming inconsistency and song variant noted p. 196.

  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/London, 1908, actual title-page OCR. Full preface and introduction xxii method statement read; complete XXVII–XXIX, bilingual pp.184–201, English narratives and all explanatory notes independently read. Facing Sesotho placement inspected without independent translation.

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.

The Treasury of Ba-suto Lore, vol. I

The Treasury of Ba-suto Lore, volume I, Morija/London, 1908, actual title-page OCR. Full preface and introduction xxii method statement read; complete XXVII–XXIX, bilingual pp.184–201, English narratives and all explanatory notes independently read. Facing Sesotho placement inspected without independent translation.

  1. A herd-boy bears and nurses a hidden infant, then discovers that his family has brought the child home.

    XXIX, Nkolobe, complete bilingual pp.196–201; pregnancy and birth p.196, nursing/discovery p.198, family recognition p.200; naming note pp.196–197

The unnamed child-bearing boy and the infant addressed as Nkolobe are not forced into one securely named identity: the editor’s note calls the boy Nkolobe, while the narrative addresses the infant that way; another song uses Kakatsitsi. No reproductive or medical claim outside fiction, recipe or nursing formula copied. Family retrieval is not an infant death ending. Specific teller not assigned from volume-level names; English correction by J. C. Smith credited.

References

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

  1. Collected Se-Suto text with English translation and notesJacottet — complete selected bilingual taleResearch access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

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

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