When a person dies, it is the duty of the aunt, or wayo to inform the family that death has occurred. She stands outside and takes some thatching grass from the roof then fills a large calabash with clean water. If the deceased is male she removes three stalks of grass and if female she…
Anek Sapphira is 75 years old and was born in Palabek, in Acholiland. During the loneliness she experienced as a new wife far away from home, she learned to play the adungu. She found her passion for music leading her to make her first adungu, with which she serenaded her husband after work. Mego Anek…
Ododo na moni yo! There lived a warrior called Okeny. Not only was he famed for his strength, but he was a great hunter too. He had a faithful dog called Akera who was the fastest dog ever known. One morning Okeny went out to hunt and left Akera at home. When he reached the…
Ododo na moni bah! I’m going to tell you a fable about Apwoya the Rabbit and all the animals of the wild. Once upon a time, there was an election, and Langoko the Chameleon had been chosen to be the leader of all the animals. And so the Chameleon was tasked with calling all…
Once upon a time, there were four girls who lived in the same compound. But one of the girls was lazy. In fact she was possibly the laziest known person. Whenever her colleagues were doing their chores, she would is still be at play. And when her friends were done with their work for the…
Once there were three girls who went to a dance. On the way to the dance, they came across a luxuriant bush of achuga berries. They agreed to pick some before proceeding to the dance. However, to make it more exciting, one of them suggested that they pick only the juiciest berries with their eyes…
Once upon a time, there were two young men: Ocen who was a good herdsman and Opio who disdained anything to do with herding. One day as they were with the cattle still in the pasture, a great storm began to brew in the deep of the savannah. Gusts of wind blew into the sky…
This is the tale of Lapene. She was the daughter of a grand and respectable lady whose name we no longer remember. Lapene was one of three daughters. But her life was blighted by having been born with a growth on the side of her belly. This growth, called tolo, was so bad that she…
There was once a lady who had a daughter she named Lapogo. Lapogo had a friend called Kila. In the ancient days, when a grand dame had no husband, all the children in the area were free to take shelter at her house. So Lapogo brought Kila home and Kila slept in their house. Unknown…
A woman once went to the drying beds to dry some mash for her brew. She spread the mash and the delicious aroma of roast grain filled the air. Nearby, unknown to the woman, was a secret lair of tortoises who all looked the same. One of the tortoises caught the delicious scent of the…