July 7, 2022
If you are interested in gaining a deeper understanding of Swahili, then taking a dive into East African literature is going to be beneficial. As you can learn a lot about the Swahili language and culture through the writings of its authors. Here are 5 Famous Swahili novels to kickstart your interest in Swahili literature.
Siku Njema is possibly the most famous Swahili novel there is. Ken Walibora’s debut novel, Siku Njema is a riveting story of a boy, Msanifu Kombo, who travels from Tanzania to Kenya in search of his mysterious father following the death of his mother. All that Msanifu Kombo is armed with is his writer father’s pseudonym – Amuj Isokum. Is a name, a pen name no less, enough to find a man who does not want to be found?
The novel’s title, Siku Njema, translates to “A Good Day” and as it suggests, readers cannot wait for the good day when the character they are made to cherish successfully completes his near-impossible mission. Will he though? A series of obstacles keep the father at bay and readers in suspense, glued as they wish Msanifu Kombo the best.
The suspense and the unfathomable hurdles the little boy has to surmount in his quest cements the novel as an extremely interesting read and one of the most famous Swahili novels.
Z. Burhani’s Mwisho wa Kosa is another famous Swahili novel. Burhani’s main theme is the cultural interaction between Africa and the West. The text’s critique of the characters’ thoughtless aping of Western culture cements the novel’s position in the list of famous Swahili novels.
Monika, the main character, is a transformed person when she returns home after studying abroad. The welcoming celebration held to receive her irritates her. She derides everything in her hometown. Every interaction with her family and friends is a commentary on how superiorly different life in Europe is.
Monika’s failure to adjust back to her old life and her inability to meet her family’s and community’s expectations drive the story through which Burhani critiques Africans’ worship of Western culture. In a disapproving tone, the author turns readers against the main character and with suspense keeps them glued wondering when Monika’s erring will end. Mwisho wa Kosa means “An Error’s End.”
Written in easy Swahili, Salamu Kutoka Kuzimu “Greetings from Purgatory” is a page-turner full of chilling murders that grip readers’ attention from the first to the very last page. The never-ending suspense makes the novel interesting and earns it a place in the list of famous Swahili novels.
The crime investigative novel takes readers into an underground meeting room in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania’s capital, where a scientific murder against the main character, Joram Kiango, is being plotted. A faceless personality known as Proper is at the heart of this ghastly scheme. You will not put this famous Swahili novel down before you find out if police Inspector Kombora will act on the message he receives from purgatory to stop the narcissistic Proper.
Utengano “Separation” opens with a scandalous scene in which the main character, Kazija, who is a prostitute, contemplates her great hatred for men. It is the paradox of her hatred for men and her lifestyle that earns the text a place in the list of famous Swahili novels. Driven by this hatred and aided by her profession, Kazija plots and executes revenge against a wealthy entitled chauvinistic man leading to the downfall of his household and concomitantly untold embarrassment.
Kimathi got his education degree to teach Swahili at the University of Nairobi and taught Swahili language and literature at a high school there for three years before coming to the US for graduate studies. He has worked as a translator and editor for the last few years as well as teaching Swahili language and African cultural studies classes at the University of Wisconsin, Madison.