Nsongo
Mongo · demigod · Mongo traditional religion; continuing · Recorded classification
Nsongo is the twin sister and constant companion of Lianja, born with him from their mother Mbombe and described as shining like the sun. In the epic she is at once his sister, his consort and his counsellor, a co-leader of the migration who repeatedly urges reconciliation and peace amid the conflicts the people face, for instance with the malevolent Sau-Sau. So central is she that the epic itself is named jointly after the pair, Nsong'a Lianja. Modern scholarship treats her, alongside her mother Mbombe, as a principal carrier of the heroic feminine in the African epic tradition.
Parentage
Domains
- mediation and peace
- solar radiance
Powers
- to urge reconciliation and counsel peace among the people
Epithets
- Nsongo'a LianjaMukenge, K. (2018). 'L'héroïsme de la femme dans l'épopée africaine... Nsongo'a Lianja: l'épopée nationale des Nkundo.' Literator 39(1). (secondary)
Relations
- twin sibling: LianjaNsongo is born together with Lianja from Mbombe and accompanies him as sister, consort and counsellor throughout the epic.Scheub, H. (2000). A Dictionary of African Mythology: The Mythmaker as Storyteller. Oxford: Oxford University Press. (secondary)
Sources
- Nsongo is the radiant twin sister and consort of the hero Lianja, co-leader and peace-maker of the Mongo migration in the Nsong'a Lianja epic.: Scheub, H. (2000). A Dictionary of African Mythology: The Mythmaker as Storyteller. Oxford: Oxford University Press. (secondary); Mukenge, K. (2018). 'L'héroïsme de la femme dans l'épopée africaine... Nsongo'a Lianja: l'épopée nationale des Nkundo.' Literator 39(1). (secondary)