Queen Ginga Mbandi: identity link between Angola and Brazil

Abstract

Ginga Mbandi Kakombe was the most notable Angolan queen. This woman of unique personality managed the kingdoms of Ndongo and Matamba during the period in which her territories were being invaded by Portuguese troops, between 1623 and 1663. In this complex and difficult context, the reign of war should use different devices to remain in power and maintain the sovereignty of their native land. She was a monarch with a relevant role during the 17th century, leaving her figure in the memory of the ambundu and all the people from whom her heroic name was present. In Brazil, Queen Ginga occupies a prominent place in Afro-Brazilian cultural events, but her subjects, who came here, endeavored to take her cultural bag in honor of the sovereign who faced the Portuguese and honored their people. In this work, we seek to illuminate the figure of Queen Ginga through her representations in history and literature, therefore, the method used was comparative literature. We justify this investigation because of the need to demonstrate that the Angolans were effective protagonists in their own history and also helped build Brazil that we know today. The purpose of this investigation, therefore, is to present the Queen Ginga Mbandi Kakombe as an element of identity and convergence to Angola and Brazil, demonstrating that two countries are brothers .