Many myths and legends surround the Kalanoro, the small forest spirits of Madagascar. The ethnic groups of the Betsimisaraka, the Sakalava, and the Bara are said to be early humans similar to the legendary Vazimba. The Tanala call them Fahasivy. Kalanoro is particularly small, not even one meter tall. Despite their small size, they are unusually strong. Kalanoro wear their …
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A Malagasy legend tells that there were times when the trees could still walk. At that time there was also a large lake whose water was so clear and calm that it lay there like a mirror. Whenever they passed the lake, the baobabs stopped. They became sad when they saw their own appearance reflected in the water. The other …
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Many centuries ago, in the times of the Vazimba, there existed the Zazavavindrano, the daughters of water. One of them was Ranoro. This is her story. One day, a young man from the Betsileo ran to the Mamba River in the central highlands of Madagascar. The man’s name was Andriambodilova. In the middle of the river, he spotted a beautiful …
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As a traveller in Madagascar, you will hear about fadys sooner or later. Fady is the Malagasy word for taboo and probably derives from the Indonesian “pady”. But taboo is not the only meaning of this word, it is also used to call something sacred. Fadys are rules that concern situations as well as people, animals, locations or a certain …
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Once upon a time, long ago, a young king and his wife lived on the west coast of Madagascar, in Menabe. This king loved to speak before his people and to give Kabarys. One day, during one of his Kabarys, a baby started crying. When it wouldn’t stop and the mother couldn’t calm the baby, the king got angry. How …
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No other animal in Madagascar has as many myths and fairy tales as the Aye-Aye (Daubentonia madagascariensis). Throughout the northern half of Madagascar, it is fady, which means taboo. Unfortunately, this fady does not mean that the animals are not touched by Madagascans, as with chameleons, for example. Instead, many inhabitants of Madagascar believe that the encounter with an aye-aye …
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Once upon a time in a small village in Madagascar, a Bezanozano man (a tribe living in the east of the country) prepared a small basket. He asked his little son Koto to come with him and together they wandered deep into the jungle to find honey. After a few hours they found a bee hive on a high rosewood …
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Have you ever been to a vast place where you could not walk normally? This is a story about a strange, magical and beautiful place. It was somewhen before the 16th century when some people took a boat and traveled on the sea. After a few days, they arrived on a highland with an amazing large beach. They called the …
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The Lake of Crocodiles is located in northern Madagascar between the cities of Antsiranana (Diego Suarez) and Ambilobe. The next town west of the lake is called Anivorano North, is accessible via the RN6 and belongs to the Antsiranana region. The lake itself is actually called Antagnavo, is of volcanic origin and is known for its countless crocodiles (Crocodilus niloticus …
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