African Folklore: An Encyclopedia - Marshalls University

African Americans 741
associated with the wilderness (entim) that lies outside domestic space and beyond
civilized norms of everyday Maasai cultural life. Human stories often portray human
foibles and predicaments against the backdrop of Maasai social patterns and conflict with
generic opponents.
The Shepherd Boy
A shepherd boy used to soothe a goat that did not like its kid, encouraging it to nurse.
One day he was taken by warriors, who had come to steal the livestock he tended. Later,
he saw warriors from his own home and arranged to meet them when he was soothing the
goat. He prepared a big gourd of milk for them to drink. Because he was watched by a
suspicious woman, he gave instructions to his comrades indirectly, by singing a song to
the goat he was soothing, explaining to the woman that this was how it was done where
he came from. Then the warriors jumped over the gate and killed everyone except those
who had been kind to the boy, and retrieved their cattle and sheep (Kipury 1983, 115–
118).
In some human-based stories, specific animals interact with humans as dramatic
agents, these often being birds of character, whose stereotypic attributes define their roles
in folklore (Galaty 1998).
The Girl Who Married a Crow
A disgusting bird disguised himself as a person and married a girl, despite her misgivings
and apprehensions. Out of sight of her home, the Crow threatened to eat her and went to
fetch wood. She sung a lament which was heard by her brother, her former lover, and
several others, who gave her a club and hid nearby. Crow was struck and crushed to
death, and the girl returned to marry her lover (Hollis 1905, 198–201; Kipury 1983, 59–
60)
Here, Crow plays the role often attributed to monsters or ogres.
Old Sayialel and Eagle
Ole Sayialel was killed in a raid, but after being left by his comrades he was revived by
Eagle’s beating wings. His lover mourned his supposed death and refused to marry
anyone else. When, upon returning, Ole Sayialel killed one of his own fat he-goats for
Eagle, the herders ran to report the loss and described the warrior. Ole Sayialel sung a
praise song to Eagle. His lover, hearing it, suspected it was Ole Sayialel, and dressed in
her finery to receive him (Kipury 1983, 93–95).
In contrast, Eagle here is a quasi-divine agent, a helper, even a savior. The final
example represents one of the few cases in which the fable and story are mixed, with
human destiny intersecting the cohort of the usual fabulous animals.