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Halima (circa. 1820-1900) was employed by David Livingstone as his cook on on his final expeditions.

LIFE

Halima's exact date of birth is unknown. We know little of her life until she comes into contact with David Livingstone around 1870 in Manyema++ Tanzania (Western) on his Zambezi expedition. (At least three women had attached themselves to the party in Manyema - Halima, from Katombe's country, married to Amoda, Mochosi, Susi's wife and Ntaoéka.)

Livingstone's expedition leader took a fancy to her when they met at one of their stops in Tanzania. Halima was the slave of an Arab merchant. David Livingston persuaded the Arab merchant to part with her to keep his expedition leader happy. Halima becomes the wife of Amoda (Susi's freind) Amoda (Amoda the expedition leader) and was said to be an abusive man.

David Livingstone In his journal, he talks about how she is 'the best spoke in the wheel'; she's a good soul with an honest heart and she has an outrageous tongue”. In one incident there was a big fight, Halima left but soon came back. David was very happy to have her back, he said” She was always very attentive and clever never stole” She is the best spoke in the wheel, I gave her a warm cloth for the cold by the way of assuring her that I have no grudge against her. I shall free her and buy her a house & garden at Zanzibar when we get there” Halima always looked after David. She always had a sack of flour especially prepared for Livingstone”

Henry Morton Stanley recalls (In his book How I found Livingstone) an encounter with "Halima, the female cook of the Doctor’s establishment was in a state of the greatest excitement. She had been peeking her head out of the cookhouse to make sure that there were really two white men sitting down in the veranda when there used to be only one, who would not, because he could not, eat anything: and she had been considerably exercised in her mind about this fact. She was afraid the Doctor did not properly appreciate her culinary abilities: but now she was amazed at the extraordinary quantity of the food eaten and was in a state of delightful excitement. (Reference from “How I found Livingstone page 471”)

(At least three women had attached themselves to the party in Manyema - Halima, from Katombe's country, married to Amoda, Mochosi, Susi's wife and Ntaoéka.)

++Manyema / Manyuema: Also known as Maniema. Not an actual tribe, but rather a term used by Livingstone and other explorers to refer collectively to the inhabitants of Manyema, a region in eastern Congo roughly bordering the Lomami River to the west, Katanga to the south, Lakes Tanganyika and Kivu to the east, and the territory of Stanley Falls to the north (Cornet 1955:10). ”( https://www.cbc.ca/radio/writersandcompany/zimbabwe-s-petina-gappah-casts-new-light-on-david-livingstone-s-search-for-the-source-of-the-nile-1.5561416 )