This page provides downloadable files of Bole tales and other traditional verbal arts in Bole with line by line English translations. Sound files are available for some by request.

• The First Publications in Bole (publications from the NORLA)
• Traditional customs of marriage and birth (2002)
• Dindi Bo Pikka, Yaka (folktales by a storyteller in from Potiskum, Yobe State, 2000)
• Dindi Bo Pikka, Yagana Amma Mazawun (folktales by a storyteller from Mazawun, Yobe State, 2003)
• Komno Bo Bolewa (proverbs, riddles, tongue twisters, superstitions, and songs, 2004)
• Labar ga Komno Bo Bole (original prose, customs, tongue twisters, superstitions, 2007)
• Aru Bo Bole (bole songs, 2009)
• Stories and other texts from Fika Secondary School (2000)
• Miscellaneous other stories and narratives

The First Publications in Bole

The first publications in Bole were three small books that were published the the Northern Region Literacy Agency (NORLA), located in Zariya and associated with the Gaskiya Corporation, which was the main publisher of books in Hausa for many years. These Bole books were published in the mid-1950's together with similar books for perhaps a dozen northern Nigerian languages. The were designed for adult literacy classes as a way to disseminate information to people in their native languages.

	Goggo Ngoza Karatu Bo Pikka [The Way to Learn to Read Bole] This is a primer in Bole showing how to read Bole by teaching the alphabet and breaking words down syllabically. Download a scan of the entire primer.
	Goggo Ngoza Komno [The Way to Learn Calculating] This book instructs the user in practical arithmetic with examples from the sorts of transactions that the typical farmer would use. Download a scan of the entire book.
	Rubutu Wakita [Writing a Letter] This book instructs the user in how to construct a letter and how to use the post office. The sample letters between family members, friends, and the like are interesting cultural documents from the period. Download a scan of the entire book.

Traditional Marriage and Birth Customs These are texts from Al'adun Aure da Haihuwa a Al'ummun Yobe [Hausa: Customs of Marriage and Birth among Yobe Peoples], a collection published in Potiskum in 2002 by the Yobe Languages Research Project. The collection comprises descriptions of marriage and birth practices among five Yobe groups: Bade, Bole, Karekare, Ngamo, and Ngizim. Click on the links below for the Bole texts with line by line English translation. An audio recording of a reading of the texts can be obtained by sending an e-mail to schuh@humnet.ucla.edu.

Talube Kaibono Kuyanga Bolewa [Customs of Marriage of a New Bride of the Boles]

Talube Leyi Kuyanga Bolewa [Traditional Birth Customs for a New Mother of the Boles]

The tales here were narrated by Yaka, a well known story teller of Potiskum who is now in her 90's. Her actual name is Amina Kakkaba. These tales were recorded in the early 1990's by Abubakar Garba in Potiskum and transcribed by Alhaji Maina Gimba. They appear in DINDI BO PIKKA ko gama Yaka ["Tales in Bole" by Yaka], published in 2000 in Potiskum under the aegis of the Fika Development Association (FIDA). A reproduction of the cover is to the left. This is the first work of original Bole literature ever published (the only other publications in Bole being a set of adult literacy manuals from the 1950's, seen just above on this page). Click here to open a page where you can hear the original sound files as well as a short video clip of Yaka telling a story. Depending on the speed of your internet connection, it may take a while to open.

Anin Koyi Godom [The Possessors of Many Heads]: A woman bears ten children, all but one being monsters with multiple heads. The trouble starts when the wife of the only "normal" one wants to visit her husband's family.

Da Mbormi [Sister Ebony]: A girl, deceived by her friends into eating all the ebony fruits she had collected, is sent by her mother back to the bush to collect more. Therein begins an adventure which ends with the girl escaping partying hyenas and delivering the fruits.

An Ngondol [An Ngondol]: A child reaches four years and refuses to descend from his mother's back. She figures out a way to get him to get on a hyena's back, who has trouble getting rid of him.

Kulti ga Zonge [A Hare and a Hyena]: A hyena takes affront when a hare makes fun of his appearance, and the hyena takes him to court.

Zonge ga Ada [The Hyena and the Dog]: The hyena and the dog start by raising their families together, but as usual the greedy and not very smart hyena ends up the loser.

Lawo ga Kuredi [A Girl and a Snake]: A girl refuses to marry a man with any blemishes, but when a snake transforms himself into a perfect man and she marries him, her troubles start.

Ani Ndolinka ga Ani Kud'ad'i [The Well-loved Wife and the Disliked Wife]: The disliked wife is given insufficient food by her husband, but she discovers a way to get all sorts of good things at the house of Mother Death. The well-liked wife, on seeing the good things, wants some too.

Manshi ga Uwwato [An Old Woman and her Goats]: An old woman with a herd of goats is intimidated into giving them one-by-one to a hyena. The lion helps her out of her difficulty (the "Magnificent Seven Minus Six"!).

Ibilisa ga Da Zonge [The Devil and Zonge ("Desert Date")]: The devil comes all dressed up and Da Zonge foolishly marries him. After he eats her sister, she decides it was a bad idea and has her family help destroy him.

Memu ga Dande Oshi Kossu Kunum [A Man and Three Goat Kids]: A man discovers a goat and her three kids in the bush and brings them home. It turns out to have been a very bad idea!

Zonge ga Aiki [A Hyena and a Squirrel]: A classic tale for the Yobe area, starting when a gluttonous hyena and the trickster squirrel bear gifts on a visit to the king. This version of the tale has not appeared in print.

DINDI BO PIKKA ko gama Yagana Amma Mazawun The tales in this collection were narrated by Yagana Amma Mazawun sometime in the 1990's and recorded and transcribed by Malam Baba Ali of Potiskum, Yobe State, Nigeria. They were published in 2003 by the Yobe Languages Research Project in Potiskum (printed by Ajami Press, Potiskum).

Dindi Da Zonde [The Tale of Sister Zonde]: The impetuous Da Zonde marries a good-looking man who turns out to be an evil man-eating spirit in disguise. Her two sisters come to visit her, each with different outcomes.

Dindi Am Mara [The Tale of the Farmer]: A farmer is the victim of a snake who crawls into his belly. He is given a ruse to have a heron pull the snake out, after which a series of events showing thanklessness follow.

Dindi Ngarngaza [The Story of Ngarngaza]: A girl marries a bishop bird who turns out to be a king, who is so rich that he uses strips of meat as toilet paper on his son, Ngarngaza. This upsets the grandmother, who extracts vengeance.

Dindi An Dasa [The Tale of the Jealous Man]: A young man vows to sleep with the wife of an overly jealous husband. When caught by the husband, the wife and the paramour manage a ruse to extract themselves.

Dindi An Shila Ga Monduni [The Tale of a Miser and His Wife]: A man an his wife move far into the bush to avoid sharing any of their food. A young man devises a way to get food from them.

Dindi Zonge Bonguru Bo Memu [The Tale of a Hyena that Turned into a Person]: A girl marries a handsome young man who is actually a transformed hyena. When his mother-in-law falls ill, he sings an ominous song at her doorway that the wife finds out about.

Dindi Lawo ga Molleto Bolou [The Tale of a Girl and her Two Younger Sisters]: A girl marries a man who turns out to be a spirit. The girls from his village play a strange game. Her two sisters come to visit, but when they join in the game, the results are different.

Dindi Kungurum Koyi [The Tale of the Skull]: A man and a woman discover a skull in their travels. The skull speaks to them and turns out to be a demanding guest. The man and woman use various schemes to try to rid themselves of him.

Dindi Am Mara Ga Mbole [The Tale of the Farmer and the Dove]: A farmer has a dispute with a dove, who agrees to reward him for not slaughtering her. The farmer's wives react in different ways to his interactions with the dove, with effects on his fate.

Dindi Monde Bolou Ga Dandesu [The Story of Two Women and their Daughters]: When a co-wife dies and leaves her daughter behind, the living co-wife favors her own daughter over the orphan. The orphan cries about her problem at her mother's grave with supernatural results.

KOMNO BO BOLEWA collected by Alhaji Maina Gimba Madu Bah Malam Baba Ali

Komno Bo Bolewa is a collection of proverbs, riddles, tongue twisters, superstitions, and song texts assembled by Alhaji Maina Gimba, Madu Bah, and Malam Baba Ali and published by the Yobe Languages Research Project in 2004 (printed by Ajami Press, Potiskum).

Mbosa ga Mbosa [Proverbs]: Bole with English translations and, for some, interpretative comments.

Dindi Botto-Botto [Riddles]: Bole with English translations and some interpretative comments with the answers.

Dabila Mbosa [Tongue Twisters]

Shampi [Superstitions]

Aru [Songs]

"Aru Jakkutu"

"Aru Kona"

LABAR GA KOMNO BO BOLE Malam Baba Ali, Ajiya A. Idris, Madu Bah

This is collection, published in 2007 by the Yobe Languages Research Project (printed by Ajami Press, Potiskum) that includes both modern and traditional elements.

Labar Kadija Zangaya [The Story of Kadija of Zangaya], written by Malam Baba Ali: This work represents a milestone for Yobe State Languages. In Western literary terms, it would be categorized as a short story. It is the first work in original prose writing (as opposed to folk literature, oral history, description of customs, and the like) in any of the languages indigenous to Yobe State. It deals with some traditional topics, but the form and style are modern.

Kosai Magajin Nama [Hausa: Bean Cakes, Successor of Meat], written by Ajiya A. Idris: Not exactly a folktale, this story gives the origin of the phrase "kosai magajin nama".

Gompo Kula [Calabash Game], written by Madu Bah: This is a description of a traditional courtship game between young people, sometimes leading to marriage.

Dabila Mosa [Tongue Twisters], collected by Madu Bah: This adds to those already published in 2004 in Komno Bo Bolewa.

Shampi [Superstitions/Beliefs], collected by Madu Bah. This adds to those already published in 2004 in Komno Bo Bolewa.

Aru Bo Bole compiled by Alhaji Maina Gimba Malam Baba Ali Madu Bah

This is a collection of Bole songs with commentary on the occasions when they are sung, the background under which the songs were composed, and the meanings of selected lines. Both songs and commentary have facing English translation. Click here or on the picture above to download a pdf file of the book.

For an outsider, the content seems extremely allusive, disconnected, and hard to understand. The accompanying commentaries should help to some extent.

A CD with audio recordings of all the songs can obtained from schuh@humnet.ucla.edu for $5.00 US, €5.00, £5.00 UK to cover materials and mailing. You may order through PayPal. Use your existing account or create an account to transfer payment to schuh@humnet.ucla.edu.

The contents are as follows:

ARU BO BOLE [Songs in the Bole Language]: Introduction to the book

ARU BOLE IN PIKKA [Bole Songs of Fika] (Fika is the large native Bole town in Yobe State)

Alkama Da’ande Pikka (the singer's name)

Ni Kina Tishi [I Can't Eat]

Dim bana le? [How Does it Concern Me?]

Kona [name of a song "style"--see a full paper on Kona]

Maji ga Maina Kura [Magaji and Maina Kura]

Sawura Elennan Labar [A Kite Has Brought Me News]

Goro Kaka Zangaya

Juma a Ndako [Friday is Coming]

Bungano ye Bunga ga Wara [My Boyfriend is a Young Man in Wara]

Zabiya Jergete [Zabiya Jergete]

Aru Durshe [Grinding Song]

Ya Maryama Pikka

Lawo Ar Rawu [A Girl Who Braids]

Kona [name of a song "style"--see a full paper on Kona]

Goro Maryo Guduwi

Yarima d'an Sarki [Yarima son of Sarki]

Yakura Iya Zangaya

Aru Osso ga in Jakkutu [Songs for Grinding and for Jakkutu (a type of dance)]

Yagana Aba

Kona [name of a song "style"--see a full paper on Kona]

Awwa Ya Gana [a woman's name] 

Hajja Fatume Ciroma

Ba Ka I Dara Yawi [If You Make Your Wealth with Chickens]

Da Dingi Dingi [Da Dingi Dingi]

Janna ga Kad'i [Paradise Outside]

Ni Wani Sa [I Didn't Get Him]

ARU BOLE IN NGARA [Bole Songs from Ngara] (Ngara is a town on the Gongola River, the southern boundary of Yobe State; the dialect is slightly different from that of Fika)

Yagana Daso Ngara

Ni Nguru Ati Pullu [I Have Become an Object of Abuse]

Porantun Sunno [They Spoke My Name]

Bano Ndi ga Garu [My Elder Brother Has Gone to the City]

GOMPO DANDE [Children's Games]

Baba Ai Bono [Daddy, Oh My Father]

In Towwani In Towwani Sa [Should I Praise Him, Should I not Praise Him]

Baya Da Jija [Slave Sister Dija]

Lelo ga Njonnini [Everyone Has His Twin]

Gompo Duji [Game of the Owl]

Borom Aiki [Escape Hole of the Squirrel]

The texts here were written in Bole by third year students at the Fika Boys Secondary School.

Labar Kushi Gando ga Ko Gusho Danissi (Daniski) [The Story of the Reclining Baobab on Daniski Hill], written by Ado Madu: This is a version of the well-known legend of a baobab tree on Daniski Hill, the traditional original settlement site of the Bole people in this area, which would at times recline and at other times become erect. The site was viewed as miraculous and became a place of pilgrimage.

Zonge ga Aiki [The Hyena and the Squirrel], written by Mustapha Hassan: Another tale in which the squirrel tricks the hyena, this time to get some food from a trap.

NARRATIVES AND CONVERSATIONS IN BOLE by various storytellers and others These are miscellaneous stories and other narratives collected by Alhaji Maina Gimba and Russell Schuh in Yobe State between 2000 and 2009. Click on the links to download PDF files with English translation.

Tales

Memu Mod'i ga Monduni [A Man and His Wife], narrated by Ladi Adamu Dala in Fika, August 10, 2000. Video of narration available on request from schuh@humnet.ucla.edu.

Maina ga Yadikkoni ga Moleni [A Prince, his Stepmother, and his Little Sister], narrated by Abubakar Ba'aba Kalli in Fika, August 10, 2000. Video of narration available on request from schuh@humnet.ucla.edu.

Conversations

Kele Bo Pikka [Greeting in Bole]: Two men meeting in the street, greeting each other, and discussing various matters such as their farms and highway robbers. The conversation is 3:45 long and the video is 17.6 MB. Video of the conversation available on request from schuh@humnet.ucla.edu.

Lawo Masidi [The Mosque Girl]: A short conversation in Bole with some children outside the main mosque in Fika. The link opens a page with the video and a link to the transcript.

Bani Ajiyan Goru [Compound of the District Head]: Videotaped in 2000 in Potiskum, this is a tour through a traditional large family compound, in this case, the compound of the late Alhaji Sulaiman Gimba, District Head (Ajiya in Bole, Hakimi in Hausa) of Potiskum.