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Overview
Sabwiza is a handsome hunter killed by his younger brother during an elephant hunt. As he prepares to shoot an elephant, the brother shoots him in the neck. The murderer returns to the village and announces the death, prompting communal mourning. Looking skyward, the villagers see Sabwiza walking on a cloud towards his village in the sky, carrying his fly-whisk. He then disappears. This public apparition follows the murder rather than preventing it.
The younger brother succeeds to Sabwiza’s village and possessions and marries his widow. Sabwiza subsequently appears while the brother is with her and when he eats. The visits fill the brother with fear; at night he cannot sleep. Eventually the younger brother dies too. The tale does not describe a final physical blow from the apparition or state a medical cause for the death. Jacottet labels the legend as coming from the Ma-Totela, although he publishes it within his Louyi-language collection. Its stated provenance is retained separately from the language and from other brother-murder stories cited in his notes.
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
LV, Sabwiza and his younger brother, pp. 131–132, whole murder, cloud apparition, inheritance and haunting; footnote explicitly identifies Totela provenance.
- 02
Jacottet Textes Louyi: Sabwiza and his younger brother
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.
- Sabwiza’s jealous younger brother kills him during an elephant hunt, then announces his death. Villagers see Sabwiza crossing a cloud toward his heavenly settlement with a fly-whisk. The younger brother inherits his residence and possessions and marries his widow. Sabwiza subsequently appears during their life together and at meals, leaving the murderer frightened and sleepless. The younger brother eventually dies; the account does not explicitly narrate an attack by Sabwiza as the cause.
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.