Glossary · Term
Kora
The kora is a twenty-one-string harp-lute of the Mandinka and neighbouring peoples of West Africa, played above all by jali (griots), the hereditary musicians and keepers of oral history. Mandinka tradition places its origin in the Kaabu Empire, whose rulers and wars are celebrated in the kora repertoire. Kaabu's warrior aristocracy were not called kora but nyancho.
Cite this entry
- APA
- The Epoch Institute. (2026). Kora. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/kora
- MLA
- “Kora.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/kora. Accessed .
- Chicago
- The Epoch Institute. “Kora.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/kora.
- Harvard
- The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Kora’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/kora (Accessed: ).
Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻