A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.
Overview
Mouenda-ndjangola lives on an island with his mother, father and wife. When he wants to visit herdsmen on the other bank, his mother enables the crossing. He steals cattle despite the herdsmen’s mockery of his single leg. At the ford he calls for her help; she strikes the water, which parts so that the cattle can pass onto the island. He succeeds again with her help. The source’s address Nganga-mu-Kasubila may be her name or praise-name according to Jacottet, rather than an unequivocally established personal name.
After slaughtering a stolen ox, the son gives his mother only its feet while his wife eats the meat. Resenting this treatment, the mother refuses his next request and asks why the wife who shared the meat cannot make the crossing. He answers that his wife does not know how to divide the river. The mother later enables another outward journey, but after further theft she refuses his call at the return ford. The herdsmen reach him and kill him. This Louyi account does not say she revives him afterwards. Its mother-assisted crossing is distinct from the wife’s role in the Subiya variant compared in Jacottet’s note.
Origins & earliest records
Jacottet’s 1901 Textes Louyi prints original-language tales with French translations. Introduction pp. i–ii distinguishes Kaboukou’s 1895 dictation from material supplied by Akaende and Maroumo in June–July 1900. It says individual assignments depend on contents markers; the inspected narrative heading does not independently identify this tale’s teller, so its individual attribution remains unconfirmed.
Records & interpretation
Complete selected French text and surrounding notes read. Unexplained mechanisms remain unexplained; neighbouring tales and collector hypotheses do not supply extra actions.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
Études sur les langues du Haut-Zambèze, III: Textes Louyi
XLVIII, Mouenda-ndjangola, pp. 121–123, full mother-assisted crossing and fatal refusal; Nganga-mu-Kasubila explained cautiously in note122.
- 02
Jacottet Textes Louyi: Mouenda-ndjangola: his river-parting mother
Édouard Jacottet, Études sur les langues du Haut-Zambèze, third part: Textes Louyi, Paris: Ernest Leroux,1901. Title and complete introduction independently read; misleading catalogue1869 date rejected. French translation with Louyi originals. Introduction names Kaboukou(1895), Akaende and Maroumo(1900), but retained contents omit promised tale-level initials, so individual attribution for these selections remains unresolved.
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.
Études sur les langues du Haut-Zambèze, III: Textes Louyi
Édouard Jacottet, Études sur les langues du Haut-Zambèze, third part: Textes Louyi, Paris: Ernest Leroux,1901. Title and complete introduction independently read; misleading catalogue1869 date rejected. French translation with Louyi originals. Introduction names Kaboukou(1895), Akaende and Maroumo(1900), but retained contents omit promised tale-level initials, so individual attribution for these selections remains unresolved.
- Mouenda-ndjangola lives on an island with his parents and wife. His mother opens the river for cattle raids by striking its waters. He defeats mocking herdsmen and drives their cattle through the crossing. When his mother receives only feet while his wife takes the meat, she protests and refuses assistance. She later allows another outward crossing, but refuses his return; pursuing herdsmen capture and kill him. The name or praise-name Nganga-mu-Kasubila is offered as a tentative gloss, not a securely established personal identity.
Historical French rendering only; Louyi original not independently translated. Printed-page locators from retained original OCR, not individually visually collated in this batch. No whole-volume reading, universal regional identity, ritual reproduction or new quotation claimed.
References
Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.
- Digitized primary collected textJacottet — Louyi leopard marriageResearch access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.