|
|
- Permanent Link:
- http://digital.soas.ac.uk/LSMD000240/00001
Material Information
- Title:
- Mashairi ya Bwana Malenga al-Kilifiy (MS 53507d)
- Series Title:
- Hichens Collection : History of Swahili Literature
- Creator:
- Bwana Malenga ( Author, Primary )
- Publication Date:
- circa 1930 AD (circa 1349 A.H.)
- Language:
- Swahili
- Materials:
- Paper ( medium )
- Technique:
- Handwritten and typescript manuscript : Typescript in black ink; corrections on the side with pencils
Notes
- Abstract:
- The term Kala, in Arabic, means ‘He said’, and here it refers to what Bwana Malenga said in a poetic form (shairi). Here we find a collection of 13 very short poems by Bwana Malenga, a poet who lived in Pate during the 15th or 16th century. Unfortunately, we have no further information on his life and works. We assume that his poems were probably collected by Rev. Taylor, with the help of Mwalimu Sikujua. The letter T that appears at the top left corner of each page, seems to confirm this supposition, as well as the fact that Taylor was very interested in old Kimvita and spent a considerable time in Mombasa. As in many poems in Swahili, here too we find an interesting use of metaphors. In the first poem, for instance, the last line in each stanza reads ‘fisi limejinamia maiti amekwangikwa (ameangikwa)’, which implies that ‘even if you manage to achieve a goal it may not be that you have achieved everything’ (lit. translation: ‘The hyena crouched where the corpse has been hanged’ meaning ‘the hyena is sad because the dead body is not reachable’). The second poem tells of the power of the people of Mombasa and warn that one must be careful in interacting with them. This is a common representation of the people of Mombasa, found in many poems by Muyaka bin Haji. Many of the short poems are accompanied by an English translation. The poems use a very old form of Kimvita, the dialect of Mombasa. The town itself is referred to, in the old dialect, as Kongowea. The following errors have been noted, in the use of language: In the first poem, Stanza 1, kipande 1, ‘ujiwamable’ should be ‘ukawambile’ In Stanza 1, kipande 3, the correction with pencil that reads ‘hamna jambo’ should be ‘hapana jambo’. In the third poem, Stanza 1, kipande 1, the word ‘mbi’ is an example of very old Kimvita meaning ‘bad’; in modern Kimvita ‘mbaya’ is used instead. In the fifth poem, Stanza 1, kipande 2, ‘kisiwa’ should be ‘kisima’. In Kipande 3, the word ‘mbali’ has been wrongly corrected and glossed in pencil, as ‘pale’ however, ‘mtu mbali’ is correct and means ‘a foreigner’. ( en )
- General Note:
- Biographical information: Little is known about Bwana Malenga. The word Malenga literally means a good poet, however used without Bwana. Therefore, the name of this author could be an euphemism.
- General Note:
- Date of Composition is unknown
- General Note:
- Languages: Swahili (Roman script)
- General Note:
- Dialects: KiMvita
- General Note:
- Poetic Form: Shairi
- General Note:
- Purchased from Kegan Paul, 6 October 1948
- General Note:
- Incipit: Ndiani hima ungile, risala ya kongowea, wenende ujiwambale, mambo yametekelea
- General Note:
- Africa -- Eastern Africa -- Kenya -- Mombasa County -- Mombasa
Record Information
- Source Institution:
- SOAS University of London
- Holding Location:
- Archives and Special Collections
- Rights Management:
- This item may be in the public domain. Its status has yet to be assessed.
- Resource Identifier:
- MS 53507 ( SOAS manuscript number )
MS 53507d ( SOAS manuscript number )
|
|
