Back to stories list
UTom, umthengisi webhanana
Tom the banana seller
Tom le vendeur de bananes
Humphreys Odunga
Zablon Alex Nguku
Nokuthula Bernelee Dyonase
The audio for this story is currently not available.
UTom uphethe ingobozi yeebhanana ezivuthiweyo.
Tom carries a tray of ripe bananas.
Tom transporte un plateau de bananes mûres.
UTom uya emarikeni uyothengisa iibhanana.
Tom goes to the market to sell bananas.
Tom va au marché pour vendre des bananes.
Abantu abasemarikeni bathenga iziqhamo.
People at the market are buying fruit.
Les gens au marché achètent des fruits.
Kodwa akukho mntu ozithengayo iibhanana zikaTom.
Bakhetha ukuthenga iziqhamo ebafazini.
But no one is buying
Tom’s bananas.
They prefer to buy fruit from women.
Mais personne n’achète les bananes de Tom. Ils préfèrent acheter leurs fruits des femmes.
“Ekuhlaleni, ngabafazi bodwa abathengisa iziqhamo,” batsho abantu. “Yindoda enjani na le?” bayabuza abantu.
“In our community, only women sell fruit,” people say. “What kind of a man is this?” people ask.
« Dans notre communauté, seulement les femmes vendent des fruits, » disent les gens. « Quelle sorte d’homme est celui-ci ? » demandent les gens.
Kodwa uTom akancami.
Uyakhwaza, “Thengani iibhanana zam! Thengani iibhanana zam ezinencasa ezivuthiweyo!”
But Tom does not give up.
He calls, “Buy my bananas!
Buy my sweet ripe bananas!”
Mais Tom ne démissionne pas. Il crie, « Achetez mes bananes ! Achetez mes bananes mûres et sucrées ! »
Omnye umfazi uthatha ipakethi yeebhanana engobozini. Ujonga iibhanana ngononophelo.
One woman picks up a bunch of bananas from the tray.
She looks at the bananas carefully.
Une femme choisit un régime de bananes du plateau. Elle inspecte les bananes soigneusement.
Lo mfazi uthenga iibhanana.
The woman buys the bananas.
La femme achète les bananes.
Abantu abaninzi beza esitendini. Bathenga iibhanana zikaTom bazitye.
More people come to the stall.
They buy Tom’s bananas and eat them.
D’autres personnes viennent au stand. Elles achètent les bananes de Tom et les mangent.
Msinyane, ingobozi ayinanto. UTom ubala imali ayenzileyo.
Soon, the tray is empty.
Tom counts the money he earned.
Bientôt, le plateau est vide. Tom compte l’argent qu’il a gagné.
Aze uTom athenge isepha, iswekile, nesonka. Ufaka izinto engobozini yakhe.
Then Tom buys soap, sugar, and bread.
He puts the things in his tray.
Ensuite, Tom achète du savon, du sucre et du pain. Il met les choses sur son plateau.
UTom ungcekelela ingobozi entlokweni yakhe agoduke.
Tom balances the tray on his head and goes home.
Tom balance le plateau sur sa tête et rentre chez lui.
Written by: Humphreys Odunga
Illustrated by: Zablon Alex Nguku
Translated by: Nokuthula Bernelee Dyonase
