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- Permanent Link:
- http://digital.soas.ac.uk/LSMD000295/00001
Notes
- Abstract:
- Muhammad Kijumwa wrote the utenzi to advise his only son, Helewa, on manners, etiquette and how, generally, to show respect for Other people and lead a good life. He called the poem Siraji, meaning ‘taa,’ lamp, to indicate its role in guiding the reader. The utenzi is somewhat unusual in that it does not centre on a religious, historical or mythical subject, or use the Qu’ran or Other Arabic writing as a primary source (although some verses from the Quran are quoted). Instead, in more than 200 stanzas, the author presents his own advice on daily behaviour: how to act while visiting someone’s home (‘do no take the lids off boxes to look inside’), for example, and how to order work from a craftsman (‘don’t tell him “do it for me at once” ‘); he also treats subjects such as relations with the poor and how to choose and behave towards a wife. The utenzi is important as an expression of Kijumwa’s own understanding of the world and of the social milieu of Lamu, in which Kijumwa was a notable and at times rather disreputable figure. Abou Egl (1983) discusses the poem and provides a complete translation. From his work the date of the poem is obtained. A note preceding the poem, contained in the first page of MS 380066, comments on the life of Kijumwa. He wrote poems of all kinds, it says, and was an esteemed scribe and carver, skilled in the art of carving doors and headstones. He had a close association with the liwali Saif bin Salim and friendships with Other important people in Lamu. He made the pilgrimage to Mecca, and he lived for about 80 years. Although it was said that he was a Christian, the note adds, he was buried as a Muslim. The note also describes Kijumwa as clever, quick in his replies and possessed of a fine sense of humour. He was not attentive to his appearance and would wear a kanzu until it became torn without once washing it. Although his work was the carving of doors and so forth, he owned only two tools: ‘tindo’ and ‘tezo,’ or a chisel and an adze. ( en )
- General Note:
- Biographical information: Muhammad Kijumwa was born circa 1855 in Lamu. He was a poet, scribe, peformer calligrapher, carpenter, tailor and sculptor who taught his son, Helewa, the craft of decorative woodcarving. He assisted many Eurpoean scholars of Swahili literature, including William Taylor, Alice Werner, Carl Meinhof, H.E. Lambert, William Hichens, Ernst Dammann and John Williamson, and was a well-known character in Lamu
- General Note:
- Date of Composition: 1927 AD1346
- General Note:
- Languages: Swahili (Arabic script)
- General Note:
- Dialects: KiAmu
- General Note:
- Poetic Form: Utenzi
- General Note:
- Purchased from Dr J. Knappert
- General Note:
- Extent: 25 small pages
- General Note:
- Incipit: Keti hapa sikuliwe, mimi sina illa wewe, likupatalo uyue, babangu alinambia
- General Note:
- See also SOAS University of London manuscript MS 380761
- General Note:
- VIAF (name authority) : Kijuma, Muhammad : URI http://viaf.org/viaf/43775563
- General Note:
- Africa -- Eastern Africa -- Kenya -- Lamu County -- Lamu -- Lamu Island
- General Note:
- Scribe: Faraji Bwana Mkuu
- General Note:
- Publication information: Abou Egl, Mohammad. The life and works of Muhamadi Kijuma. Thesis submitted for the degree of PhD at SOAS, University of London
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 380066 ( SOAS manuscript number )
MS 380066a ( SOAS manuscript number )
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