Those Who Came Before Us
Those Who Came Before Us is an immersive journey into African history, oral traditions, and the pre-colonial kingdoms of the Great Lakes. From Buganda and Bunyoro to the mysteries of the Bachwezi and the spirits of Lake Victoria, each episode blends history and myth to reveal the emotional and spiritual world of East Africa. Together, we hold a lantern to the darkness of the past. So that the stories, fears, and ambitions of those who came before us are never forgotten.
New episodes explore African mythology, Buganda history, and the hidden worlds of pre-colonial East Africa.
Those Who Came Before Us
A Spirit World Pretending to Be a Lake: The Serpent Spirits of Lake Victoria in African Mythology
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The world’s second-largest freshwater lake is more than a body of water. It is a boundary. For those who lived along its shores in East Africa, Lake Victoria was shaped by unseen presence—spirits, serpents, and forces that governed life, death, and survival.
In this episode, we explore Lukwata and the serpent world beneath the waters. These were not just myths, but part of a spiritual system that shaped fear, respect, ritual, and everyday life in Buganda and the wider Great Lakes region.
This is part of an ongoing series on African mythology, spirituality, and the pre-colonial kingdoms of East Africa.
Sources
Kenny, Michael G. “The Powers of Lake Victoria.” Anthropos 72, no. 5/6 (1977): 717–33.
McGrath, Andy. Beasts of the World. United States: Hangar 1 Publishing, 2022.
Schoenbrun, David L.. The Names of the Python: Belonging in East Africa, 900 to 1930. United States: University of Wisconsin Press, 2021.
Speke, John Hanning. Journal of the Discovery of the Source of the Nile. 2nd ed. Edinburgh and London: William Blackwood and Sons, 1863.