The Name of the Tree: A Bantu Tale Retold

This Bantu tale begins with a great draught. The animals travel together across the desert to find food when they come upon a beautiful tree filled with fruit. Sadly the branches are so tall that even the giraffe cannot reach them. The old tortoise tells them that if they say the name of the tree, the fruit will be released, but only the King knows the name. First the gazelle goes to the king because he is the fastest, but on the trip back, he stumbles into a rabbit hole and forgets the name. Next elephant goes, but he too stumbles in the same hole causing him to forget the name. Finally the youngest tortoise goes. The Lion tells him the tree's name is Ungalli. The clever tortoise repeats the name over and over on his journey back to show more the tree, and to all the other animals delight the branches of the tree lower when the tortoise says it's name. show less

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