Kintu (novel)

Last updated
Kintu
Kintu-Kwani.jpg
First edition
Author Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi
Country Uganda
LanguageEnglish
Publisher Kwani Trust, Nairobi, Kenya
Publication date
2014
Media typePrint (hardback and paperback)
Pages442
ISBN 978-9966-1598-9-2

Kintu is a novel by Ugandan author Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi. [1] [2] [3] It was her doctoral novel, initially titled The Kintu Saga. It was shortlisted [4] and won the Kwani? Manuscript Project in 2013. [5] It was published by Kwani Trust in 2014 under the title Kintu. [6]

Contents

Kintu is based on the Baganda history and focuses on generational curses, transgression, Baganda mythology and sexism that is engraved underneath each chapter of the book. [7]

Plot

In 1754, Kintu Kidda, Ppookino of Buddu Province, in the kingdom of Buganda, sets out on a journey to the capital where he is to pledge allegiance to the new kabaka of the realm. Along the way, a rash action in a moment of anger unleashes a curse that will plague his family for generations. Time passes and the nation of Uganda is born. Through colonial occupation and the turbulent early years of independence, Kintu’s heirs survive the loss of their land, the denigration of their culture and the ravages of war. But the story of their ancestor and his twin wives Nnakato and Babirye endures. So too does the curse. [8] Kintu’s descendants seek to break the burden of the curse and to reconcile the inheritance of tradition and the modern world that is their future. The novel explores the power of a curse in African society and the myth and power that surrounds twins. It describes how the princes of Buganda fought and killed one another for the throne and the role of the Queen Mothers in this power play. [9]

The book starts with a prologue about Kamu Kintu, who is brutally murdered by a mob in Bwaise, a suburb of Kampala, at dawn, on Monday, 5 January 2004. The novel then takes you back to 1750, to the beginning of the curse in the old kingdom of Buganda. Kintu follows the misfortunes of the Kintu clan more than 250 years ago, blending Ganda oral tradition, forms of myth, folktale and history with biblical elements. The novel explores ideas of transgression, curse and perpetuity, looking back at the history of the Buganda kingdom and tracing the birth of modern Uganda. [10] [11] [12]

Awards and recognition

Related Research Articles

Buganda Kingdom

Buganda is a Bantu kingdom within Uganda. The kingdom of the Baganda, Buganda is the largest of the traditional kingdoms in present-day East Africa, consisting of Uganda's Central Region, including the Ugandan capital Kampala. The 6 million Baganda make up the largest Ugandan region, representing approximately 16.9% of Uganda's population.

Sir Edward Frederick William David Walugembe Mutebi Luwangula Mutesa II was Kabaka of the Kingdom of Buganda in Uganda from 22 November 1939 until his death. He was the thirty-fifth Kabaka of Buganda and the first President of Uganda. The foreign press often referred to him as King Freddie, a name rarely used in Uganda.

Kabaka of Buganda

Kabaka is the title of the king of the Kingdom of Buganda. According to the traditions of the Baganda they are ruled by two kings, one spiritual and the other secular.

Kato Kintu Kakulukuku was the first kabaka (king) of the Kingdom of Buganda. "Kintu" is an adopted by-name, chosen for Kintu, the name of the first person on earth in Buganda mythology. Kato Kintu gave himself the name "Kintu" to associate himself with the "father of all people", and he may have renamed his wife, from Nantuttululu to Nambi, because that was Kintu's wife's name.

Kintu is a Bugandan mythological figure. It may also refer to:

Kwani? is a leading African literary magazine based in Kenya that has been called "undoubtedly the most influential journal to have emerged from sub-Saharan Africa", although that tribute might more accurately go to Transition Magazine, which was founded in Kampala, Uganda, in 1961. The magazine grew out of a series of conversations that took place among a group of Nairobi-based writers in the early 2000s. Its founding editor, Binyavanga Wainaina, spearheaded the project shortly after winning the 2002 Caine Prize for African Writing. The first print issue of the magazine was published in 2003. Kwani? has been called "the most renowned literary journal in sub-Saharan Africa". It is produced by the Kwani Trust, which is "dedicated to nurturing and developing Kenya’s and Africa’s intellectual, creative and imagination resources through strategic literary interventions".

Kintu is a mythological figure who appears in a creation myth of the Uganda people of Buganda, Uganda. According to this legend, Kintu was the first person on earth and the first man to wander the plains of Uganda alone. He is also known as God or the father of all people who created the first kingdoms.

History of Buganda

The history of Buganda is that of the Buganda kingdom of the Baganda people, the largest of the traditional kingdoms in present-day Uganda.

Baganda

The Ganda people, or Baganda, are a Bantu ethnic group native to Buganda, a subnational kingdom within Uganda. Traditionally composed of 52 clans, the Baganda are the largest ethnic group in Uganda, comprising 16.5 percent of the population at the time of the 2014 census.

The Donald Windham Sandy M. Campbell Literature Prizes is an American literary award which offers prizes in four categories: fiction, nonfiction, poetry and drama. The award was established at Yale University in 2011 with the first prizes presented in 2013. Administered by the Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library, the award recognizes English language writers from anywhere in the world. The mission of the award is to call attention to literary achievement and provide writers the opportunity to focus on their work independent of financial concerns. Eight prizes are awarded annually.

Zukiswa Wanner

Zukiswa Wanner is a South African journalist, novelist and editor born in Zambia and now based in Kenya. Since 2006, when she published her first book, her novels have been shortlisted for awards including the South African Literary Awards (SALA) and the Commonwealth Writers' Prize. In 2015, she won the K Sello Duiker Memorial Literary Award for London Cape Town Joburg (2014). In 2014 Wanner was named on the Africa39 list of 39 Sub-Saharan African writers aged under 40 with potential and talent to define trends in African literature. In 2020 she was awarded the Goethe Medal alongside Ian McEwan and Elvira Espejo Ayca, making Wanner the first African woman to win the award.

9mobile Prize for Literature

The 9mobile Prize for Literature was created by Etisalat Nigeria in 2013, and is the first ever pan-African prize celebrating first-time African writers of published fiction books. Awarded annually, the prize aims to serve as a platform for the discovery of new creative talent out of the continent and invariably promote the burgeoning publishing industry in Africa. The winner receives a cash prize of £15,000 in addition to a fellowship at the University of East Anglia.

Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi is a Ugandan novelist and short story writer. Her doctoral novel, The Kintu Saga, was shortlisted and won the Kwani? Manuscript Project in 2013. It was published by Kwani Trust in 2014 under the title Kintu. Her short story collection, "Manchester Happened", was published in 2019. She was shortlisted for the 2014 Commonwealth Short Story Prize for her story "Let's Tell This Story Properly", and emerged Regional Winner, Africa region. She was the Overall Winner of the 2014 Commonwealth Short Story Prize. She was longlisted for the 2014 Etisalat Prize for Literature. She is a lecturer in Creative Writing at Lancaster University. In 2018 she was awarded a Windham-Campbell Prize in the fiction category. In 2021, her novel The First Woman won the Jhalak Prize.

Abubakar Adam Ibrahim Nigerian novelist, journalist

Abubakar Adam Ibrahim is a Nigerian creative writer and journalist. He was described by German broadcaster Deutsche Welle as a northern Nigerian "literary provocateur" amidst the international acclaim his award-winning novel Season of Crimson Blossoms received in 2016.

<i>Bakwa</i> (magazine)

Bakwa is an online magazine of literary and cultural criticism based in Yaoundé, Cameroon, that covers international cultural issues and has a penchant for fiction and creative non-fiction by Cameroonian writers. Notable contributors include: Imbolo Mbue, Ntone Edjabe, Anna Jäger, Kangsen Feka Wakai, Jeremy Klemin, Serubiri Moses, Minna Salami, Jack Little, Emmanuel Iduma, Bwesigye bwa Mwesigire and Johnnie MacViban. Bakwa has been described as "an eclectic, intelligent take on the dynamic cultural scenes often missed by mainstream, western media".

Ayobami Adebayo Nigerian writer (born 1988)

Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀ is a Nigerian writer. Her 2017 debut novel, Stay With Me, won the 9mobile Prize for Literature and the Prix Les Afriques. She was awarded the Future Awards Africa Prize for Arts and Culture in 2017.

Yewande Omotoso is a South African-based novelist, architect and designer, who was born in Barbados and grew up in Nigeria. She is the daughter of Nigerian writer Kole Omotoso, and the sister of film maker Akin Omotoso. She currently lives in Johannesburg. Her two published novels have earned her considerable attention, including winning the South African Literary Award for First-Time Published Author, being shortlisted for the South African Sunday Times Fiction Prize, the M-Net Literary Awards 2012, and the 2013 Etisalat Prize for Literature, and being longlisted for the 2017 Bailey's Women's Prize for Fiction.

Nambi (mythology) Figure in Ugandan mythology

Nambi is the daughter of Mugulu, also known as Ggulu in some versions of Ugandan mythology. In the Ugandan creation myth, it is Nambi and her younger sister who discover Kintu, the first man. Nambi helps Kintu throughout his journey and trials, and eventually becomes his wife and mother of his children.

References

  1. "Jennifer Makumbi's novel evokes marvels during writivism week". Newvision.co.ug. 20 June 2014. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  2. Kingwa Kamencu (7 April 2014). "Ugandan writer who turns established script on its head". Daily Nation. Kenya. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  3. Diane Ninsiiba (1 December 2015). "Interview with 2014 Commonwealth Short Story Prize Winner Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi". AfricaBookClub.com. Retrieved 3 January 2015.
  4. "Interview with Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi, shortlisted for her novel The Kintu Saga", kwani.org. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  5. 1 2 "Winner: Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi, The Kintu Saga", kwani.org. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  6. "Kwani Trust launch award-winning writer Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi's debut novel Kintu", kwani.org, 16 June 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2014.
  7. Serpell, Namwali (12 September 2017). "The Great Africanstein Novel". The New York Review of Books. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
  8. "KINTU by Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi". Africa Writes. July 2014. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  9. Bamuturaki Musinguzi (2 August 2014). "Jennifer Makumbi's tale of Kintu". The East African. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  10. Beatrice Lamwaka (28 June 2014). "Jennifer Makumbi narrates the Ugandan story in Kintu". Sunday Monitor. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  11. Nyana Kakoma (12 November 2014). "Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi's 'Kintu' Made Me Want to Tell Our Stories". Africa in Words. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  12. Bwesigye bwa Mwesigire (9 December 2014). "Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi's". Music & Literature. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  13. 2014 Etisalat Prize for Literature announces longlist, news24.com.ng. Retrieved 7 November 2014.