Trindade, Solano; Tati, Miécio. Zumbi of Palmares, the Malungo (translation and critical introduction by Ananya Jahanara Kabir & Francesca Negro) RASILIANA: Journal for Brazilian Studies. ISSN 2245-4373. Double Issue Vol. 8 Nos. 1-2 (2019). - 343 - Zumbi of Palmares, the Malungo [Zumbi dos Palmares Malungo] Solano Trindade & Miécio Tati Translation and critical introduction by Ananya Jahanara Kabir 1 Francesca Negro 2 Zumbi dos palmares malungo is an unpublished and unedited play in three acts, which dramatizes Afro-Brazilian memory and agency through the iconic maroon figure of Brazil, Zumbi, his life in the maroon enclave of Palmares, and his death in battle against the colonial authorities and subsequent apotheosis. Written in Portuguese and cast in a classical mould with recognizable structuring elements drawn from Greek tragedy, it is equally infused with Afro-Atlantic lexis and cultural practices that cover quotidian, performative, and sacred realms. Hence land cultivation, culinary traditions, Afro-Brazilian dance and percussive practices, and invocations to and appearances of Yoruba religious divinities all animate the play, bestowing on it an astonishing richness of cultural texture. While in themselves elements worthy of investigation, this evident literary quality and density of ethnographic detail are not the only reasons we bring this hitherto-unknown play into the scholarly spotlight. Our investigations establish Zumbi dos Palmares malungo as the earliest dramatic depiction of Zumbi as Afro-Brazilian protagonist by an Afro-Brazilian dramaturge. In this introduction to the first translation into English of this valuable document, we present the reasons behind our claim. We also survey the play’s three-act structure, its thematic focus and lexis, its relevance to Brazilian cultural politics, its place within African diasporic mobilizations of marronage as resistance to capitalism, and of 1 Professor of English Literature, Department of English, King's College London. 2 Visiting Lecturer, Centre of Comparative Studies, University of Lisbon.