The Mythological Africans AFRI Grant is still accepting applications from unpublished African writers aged 55 and over. AFRI fellows will receive up to $300 to review and retell 2-3 folktales from their people. The results will be published in an anthology.

Applications close June 30th!

In this week’s episode, we get a mouthful of Àkàrà-related folklore starting with Nigerian Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka’s fond memories from his autobiography “Ake: The Years of Childhood”. Listen to the end to learn two fun and cool facts about Acarajé the Afro-Brazil equivalent of Àkàrà!

In this Yoruba wedding song, Àkàrà is used as a metaphor for the good things of life – and what is better than living long enough to see your children well married?

A Preta do Acarajé or The Black Beauty Who Sells Acarajé is an immensely popular folk song by Dorival Caymmi a Brazilian singer-songwriter, actor, artist and founder of Brazil’s Bossa Nova movement. It has been performed by superstars like Carmen Miranda, Maria Bethania and Gal Costa.

Meanwhile, if this episode has awakened an Ijapa-like hunger for Àkàrà in you, check out these recipes:

* How to make Àkàrà (Nigerian Edition)

* How To Make The Best Nigerian Àkàrà (In case you are not sure)

* How to Make Accra Beans (Cameroon Edition)

And if you must have them all,

* How to Make Accra Banana

References

* da Costa Lima, Vivaldo. "The ethno-scenology and ethnoculinary of the acarajé." VIBRANT-Vibrant Virtual Brazilian Anthropology 7.2 (2010): 236-248.

* Harris, Jessica B.. The Africa Cookbook: Tastes of a Continent. United Kingdom, Simon & Schuster, 1998. p86

* Kubik, Gerhard. "Alo: Yoruba story songs (Excerpts from material collected in Nigeria)." African Music: Journal of the International Library of African Music 4.2 (1968): 10-32.

* Ogunbiyi, Maryam, Omoniyi Afolabi, and Michael R. Anderson. "The Influence of Yoruba Religion and Gastronomy on the Yoruba Diaspora of Cuba and Brazil: A Transnational Analysis." University of Texas at Austin (2016).

* Omoniyi, Bolaji Omotayo. "Symbolic Representations Of Yoruba Culture In Selected Indigenous Wedding Music Among Ekiti People Of South-West, Nigeria." Journal Of Nigerian Music Education (Jonmed) 14 (2022).

* Owomoyela, Oyekan. Yoruba Trickster Tales. United Kingdom, University of Nebraska Press, 1997. pp 41-46

* Soyinka, Wole. Aké: the years of childhood. Vintage, 1989. pp 153 - 154

Sound Effects

* A Preta Do Acarajé, performed by Carmen Miranda and Dorival Caymmi. Lyrics and essay about the song.

* Kuto Market Abeokuta, Ogun State by Neighborhood Waka

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