Bwanawasi in African tradition
In Lee Haring’s account of Bwanali Said’s performance, Bwanawasi is facing execution by a king. Left in a sack on shore, he hears a herdsman pass and persuades him to take his place. Bwanawasi returns to the palace with a story: the king of the sea has invited the court to a wedding feast.
At a reef, Bwanawasi calls the sound of the waves an orchestra. The king and his company lean over, then jump into the water one by one. The king’s daughter is left behind. Bwanawasi lets her choose between marrying him and rejoining her family; she agrees, and the pair return to the palace. Haring relates the escape and feast as part of Bwanali Said’s Mayotte performance.
SourceFolktales of Mayotte, an African Island: Bwanawasi’s final sea-wedding trick, Haring’s account of Bwanali Said, printed pp. 21-22
The quick answers
Who is Bwanawasi?
Bwanawasi is an African hero.
The myths of Bwanawasi
1 myth, with sources recorded for each.
Bwanawasi’s Final Sea-Wedding Trick
In Bwanali Said’s performance as recorded by Lee Haring, Bwanawasi arrives in a village where the king recognises him and orders him placed in a sack and cast into the sea. The water is low, so the king’s servants leave him on the sand. Hearing a herdsman pass with his animals, Bwanawasi calls out as if refusing to marry the king’s daughter. The herdsman lets him out and climbs into the sack instead. Bwanawasi closes it and leaves with the herd.
He returns to the palace and tells the king that the ruler of the sea is holding a grand marriage feast and has invited the whole court. Bwanawasi asks them to tie stones to their feet so they can descend quickly. At a reef he has the company lean over to hear the sea’s sound, which he calls an orchestra. They jump into the water one after another. The king’s daughter is left behind; Bwanawasi gives her the choice to marry him or join her family. She agrees, and Haring’s account says they return to the palace and live together with many children.
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MythSource. (October 2, 2026). Bwanawasi. https://www.mythsource.com/figures/bwanawasi
"Bwanawasi." MythSource, Oct. 2, 2026, www.mythsource.com/figures/bwanawasi.
"Bwanawasi." MythSource. Last modified October 2, 2026. https://www.mythsource.com/figures/bwanawasi.
Source details
- Folktales of Mayotte, an African Island. Lee Haring, author; Muzidalifa and Asani Yusuf, narrators of the Mkolo account; Bwanali Said, narrator of the Bwanawasi account; the Mronabeja storyteller, narrator of the Farananomby account. Open Book Publishers, 2023. DOI 10.11647/OBP.0315. Source edition · Licence: CC BY-NC 4.0. MythSource's accounts are noncommercial adaptations in original wording, not source quotations. Source illustrations, scans and recordings are not reproduced.
The mythology summaries and identity fields on this page are grounded in the sources listed above. The appearance table records candidates separately; only confirmed connections are presented as modern retellings in Overview.