[imhotep1906]

Hutuapo (peace)

I am well. I appreciate the follow-up. I have managed to get some information on TENKA in the name TENKA-MENIN. I apologize for not being clear and stating he was an Akan. I am aware that ancient Wagadu (Ghana) is not the modern Ghana.

The variant TUNKA-MANIN is interesting on so many levels. TUNKA can be rendered TUNKA or TIMKA or DINGA and it means CHIEF in Soninke. The word GHANA is actually a Soninke term that means CHIEF/KING/LEADER. Al-Bakri associated the title of the king with the whole nation and that's how Wagadu became GHANA. Ghana coming from the Malinke words GANA or KANA meaning CHIEF.

What is not clear is the word MANIN. I have been finding the word AMEN in various different forms all across west Africa and I wonder if this is another variant. Soninke language belongs to the greater Niger-Kongo languages and it would share some base words and concepts with its sister languages.

In the Akan and in the i-Kami (KM.T) language we find AMEN written as MIN or MN or MEN at times. The word EN in Twi according to O. Kwame Osei means "of" and the term MANIN could mean AMEN OF (Of Amen). I am not sure if EN or IN means "of" in Soninke as it does in its cousin the Akan languages.

If this is true, then his full name could be rendered Chief or Priest of Amen as we know the Kings, Chiefs are priests of any African nation. But I may be way off as the IN seems to be a postposition word.

Either way, I have a feeling that the words MANSA and MANIN are of the same root and meaning. But if this is the case then MANSA means KING and you would have in TUNKA MANIN to mean KING KING if the word MANIN also means KING or LEADER or RULER of some sort.

I find TUNKA interesting because in the KiKongo the word N'KWA MAVANGA refers to Mature Leadership (a ruler, leader, specialist). As we know NKWA means LIFE or VITALITY in the Bantu and Kwa languages. But this term N'KWA among the KiKongo is another word for NGANGA as we know is a Master, Specialist, Leader, or Powerful Person. The word NKWA consist of two dimunitive morphemes K(a) and WA. K(a) is usually always associated with FIRE in African languages and fire is a sign of VITALITY and LIFE. WA is a passive suffix which indicates that the subject is being acted upon by an agent. So K(a)WA is another name for a person, a living fire.

As we know the King is supposed to represent the vitality of the nation and the term TUNKA could represent that concept. NKA or NKWA would render the same meaning. Or you could simply say KA.

I need to find out what the TU prefix stands for in the Soninke language. Maybe it functions just like TU in Bantu. We know the written language in KiKongo is SONA but you often hear it as TUSONA. It may be similar.

So some more investigation is needed.

And no I don't speak KiKongo, but I am trying to learn.