mwani

The Ma – Loango (for mwani, “lord” of Loango), the great despot who ruled as far as the Congo River, who used to eat in one house, drink in another, and put to death man or beast that saw him feeding, is a thing of the past.

Two Trips to Gorilla Land and the Cataracts of the Congo 2003

The Ma-Loango (for mwani, "lord" of Loango), the great despot who ruled as far as the Congo River, who used to eat in one house, drink in another, and put to death man or beast that saw him feeding, is a thing of the past.

Two Trips to Gorilla Land and the Cataracts of the Congo Volume 2 Richard Francis Burton 1855

A king (mwani) headed a princely aristocracy (ganwa) that owned most of the land and required a tribute, or tax, from local farmers and herders.

unknown title 2009

A king (mwani) headed a princely aristocracy (ganwa) that owned most of the land and required a tribute, or tax, from local farmers and herders.

unknown title 2009

“mwani,” who had been sick for many years, implored the aid of heaven, and he invited the son of the moon to visit him.

Five Weeks in a Balloon 2003

“Beneath him extended a country generally destitute of cultivation; only here and there some ravines seemed under tillage; the surface, dotted with peaks of medium height, grew flat as it approached the lake; barley-fields took the place of rice-plantations, and there, too, could be seen growing the species of plantain from which the wine of the country is drawn, and mwani, the wild plant which supplies a substitute for coffee.

Five Weeks in a Balloon 2003