EP 92: Ghana- The Squirrel and the Spider; Why We See Ants Carrying Bundles as Big as Themselves

09/08/21 • 11 min

6 Listeners

This week we have two stories from WH Barker's West African Folk-Tales.

In the first one, Anansi takes squirrel to court and uses logic to get what is not his. Too bad he isn't the only one with those skills.

In the second story, Anansi tries to get a little rain, but instead goes big and ends up killing a man. For this he is punished by having to carry a heavy box with him everywhere. But Anansi is always tricky.

Music: Osei Kwame Korankye - sings praise song with seperewa from the Ghana 2013 project creative commons

Sound effects: Youtube Jungle Night Atmosphere Creative Commons

Narrator: Dustin Steichmann

Podcast Shoutout: The Scam Kings Podcast Kershelle brings you stories from around the world of financial crimes that often end in murder or great suffering. Be careful out there!

Listener Shoutout: Rose C the Haitian Mama -Mamalyfe. Rose C not only has her own podcast, but she has been a consistent booster of other independent podcasters. She is active on instagram and in various podcasting forums. Having her listen and give feedback on the stories has been amazing. Thank you, Rose C.

Photo credit: "Cuvette spider, U, face_2012-12-12-14.30.23 ZS PMax" by Sam Droege is marked with CC PDM 1.0

This week we have two stories from WH Barker's West African Folk-Tales.

In the first one, Anansi takes squirrel to court and uses logic to get what is not his. Too bad he isn't the only one with those skills.

Music: Osei Kwame Korankye - sings praise song with seperewa from the Ghana 2013 project creative commons

Sound effects: Youtube Jungle Night Atmosphere Creative Commons

Narrator: Dustin Steichmann

Podcast Shoutout: The Scam Kings Podcast Kershelle brings you stories from around the world of financial crimes that often end in murder or great suffering. Be careful out there!

Photo credit: "Cuvette spider, U, face_2012-12-12-14.30.23 ZS PMax" by Sam Droege is marked with CC PDM 1.0

Previous Episode

EP 91: Korea- The King of the Flowers

3 Recommendations

This is the story of a Korean king being reminded to take care of his country instead of being distracted by Cinnamon Rose. The great kind Shinmun is distracted by the court ladies and is given an allegory all about the King of the Flowers, known as the Peony. When the king hears the story, he is able to figure out that the real meaning is that he needs to get his own things in order. Of course the temptress is to blame instead of the King, but hopefully the king takes some of the blame.

Source: Korean Fairy Tales (W.E. Griffis 1922)

Music: 기악합주 신뱃놀이_우리전통음악연구원 민속악 '깊은울림'

Narrator: Dustin Steichmann

Sound FX: Muju Stream- Dustin Steichmann

Podcast Shoutout: Bewilderbeasts Join Melissa every Monday as she dives deep into the weirdest, funniest, sciency-est ways in which animals intersect at humanity. Let's meet the Canadian cat who solved a murder and advanced forensic technology. How did fish farts nearly cause bombs to fly between Russia and Sweden? How did a pigeon save 194 soldiers in wartime? Why are honey bees trained to find unexploded landmines in Croatia? Let's go!

Listener Shoutout: Rajasthan literally means "The Land of Kings".

Photo Credit: "Jar with Peony Sprays LACMA M.2004.7.23" by Fæ is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Next Episode

EP 93: India- Princess Soorthie & The Snake's Bride

4 Recommendations

In the first story, the Princess Soorthie is tricked by her older sister into thinking that her new husband is a toad. She calls off the wedding. The former fiance decides to have a grand procession past her place, just to show her what she was missing out on. She realizes her mistake too late and tries to sneak out to meet up with him. Instead she is kidnapped and suffers a terrible fate.

In the second story, Sukkia lives with her step mother Dukhia (the one who causes pain). One day, Sukkia is out in the forest and an enchanted snake asks her to marry him. Dukhia says it is okay, as long as he can fill up her house with silver. He does so and they are married. There is one trick to living with a magic snake husband, you must never ask his name. So what does step mom do? you can see where this is going.

Source: Folk-Tales of Bengal retold by Rev. Lal Behari Day (1912) Public Domain

Music: Khana Udaana Nand Laini ( खाणा - उडाणा नंद लैणी ) by Gambhari Devi ( गंभरी देवी - Veteran Folk Singer) Creative Commons

Narrator: Dustin Steichmann

Sound Effects: Late night crickets- Dustin Steichmann

Podcast Shoutout: Giraffe's Eggs Here we recall African legends, myths, folk and fairytales, both in English and in French.
Ici, on se rappelle des légendes africaines, mythes, fables et contes de fées, en français et en anglais.

Listener shoutout: Columbus, Ohio Columbus originated as numerous Native American settlements on the banks of the Scioto River. Franklinton, now a city neighborhood, was the first white settlement, laid out in 1797. The city was founded in 1812, at the confluence of the Scioto and Olentangy rivers, and laid out to become the state capital.

Thank you, and goodnight.