Translated African Language Novels

Except for the list of Amharic texts, the below is a crowd-sourced list of novels written in African langauges but translated into English; Aaron Bady hosted the conversation on Facebook that lead to this list–he is compiling a more thorough one for publication. 

East African Langauge Novels

Gebreyesus Hailu The Conscript (Tigrinya) trans. Ghirmai Negash (easily available from Ohio Univ. Press)

Afäwarq Gäbrä Iyäsus wrote the novel Ləbb Wälläd Tarik (A Heart [better “Intellect”]-born Story), published in Rome in 1908, widely considered the first novel in Amharic, about Waḥəd and his sister Ṭobiya (Admassu 2003, Afevork Ghevre Jesus 1958). Untranslated so far as I know.

Mäkᵂännən Ǝndalkaččäw wrote the short story ˁAläm Wärätäñña (The World of the Floaters/Unstable People) in 1948, about the tribulations of the woman Yayne Abäba, published in a collection titled Bitwoded: Three Plays. Fiction. (Asmara: Office Grafica dell’ Corriere Eritreo, 1955. Translated in this collection by K.M. Simon as The City of the Poor (actually, it probably is a short novel) (Balashova 2007). I have a copy.

Ḥadis ˁAlämayyyäehu wrote the novel Fəqər əskä Mäqabər (Love to the Grave), published in 1966, probably the most widely read and loved Amharic novel. It was translated into English by David Appleyard (unpublished) and by the Washington based translator, Sisay Ayenew as Love unto Crypt (unfortunately, a bad translation, as the English title suggests)

Sahle Sellassie Shinega’s Village (Chaha) 

Ben Mtobwa Dar es Salaam by Night (Kiswahili)

Aldin Mutembei The Dry Stump (Kiswahili: "Kisiki Kikavu")

James Mbotela Uhuru wa watumwa (Kiswahili)

Aniceti Kitereza Mr. Myombekere and His Wife… (Kikerewe, Kiswahili)

Grace Ogot The Strange Bride (Dhuluo)

West African Language Novels

D. O. Fagunwa Forest of a Thousand Daemons (Yoruba) trans. by Wole Soyinka 

D. O. Fagunwa Expedition to the Mount of Thought (Yoruba) 

D.O. Fagunwa. In the Forest of Olodumare trans. from the Yoruba of Igbo by Wole Soyinka 

D.O. Fagunwa. Olodumare as Forest of God (Igbo) trans. by Gabriel Ajadi 

D.O. Fagunwa The Mysteries of God (a translation from the Yoruba of Adiitu Olodumare by Olu Obafemi). 

I.B.Thomas The Life Story of Me, Segilola (Yoruba)

Pita Nwana Omenuko (Igbo)

Okot p'Bitek White Teeth (Acoli)

Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Shaihu Umar (Hausa)

Muhammadu Bello Gand’oki (Hausa)

Ado Ahmad Gidan Dabino The Soul of My Heart (Hausa)

Balaraba Yakubu Sin Is a Puppy That Follows You Home (Hausa)

Abubakar Imam Ruwan Bagaja: the Water of Cure (Hausa)

Southern African Language Novels

A.C. Jordan The Wrath of the Ancestors (Xhosa)

Enoch S Guma Nomalizo or the things of this life are sheer vanity (Xhosa)

Thomas Mofolo Chaka (Sesotho)

Thomas Mofolo Traveller to the East (Sesotho) 

John L Dube The Bodyservant of Shaka (Zulu: Jeqe) 

Sibusiso Nyembezi The Rich Man of Pietermaritzburg (Zulu)

Solomon Mutswairo Feso (1957, Shona)

Wellingtone Kusema’s Dzimbabwedande (Shona)