Muviro, chief of the Waziri, is a character in the

Tarzan Tarzan (John Clayton, Viscount Greystoke) is a fictional character, a feral child raised in the African jungle by the Mangani great apes; he later experiences civilization, only to reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adventurer. Creat ...

saga created by

Edgar Rice Burroughs Edgar Rice Burroughs (September 1, 1875 – March 19, 1950) was an American writer, best known for his prolific output in the adventure, science fiction, and fantasy genres. Best known for creating the characters Tarzan (who appeared in ...

Character

Muviro is depicted as a somewhat elderly warrior of the Waziri, wise, brave and respected, and a good friend of Tarzan. He serves as the sub-chief of the tribe under Tarzan. He has two known relatives; Wasimbu, a son, and Buira, a daughter.

In the Tarzan novels

The character of Muviro emerges gradually in the novels. The Waziri tribe itself first appears in ''

The Return of Tarzan ''The Return of Tarzan'' is a novel by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, the second in his Tarzan (book series), series of twenty-four books about the title character Tarzan. The story was first published in the pulp magazine ''New Story Mag ...

'', the second book, and while Muviro is not named in that novel, he can be presumed to be among the numerous anonymous warriors mentioned. The first actual reference to him may occur in ''

The Son of Tarzan ''The Son of Tarzan'' is a novel by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, the fourth in his series of twenty-four books about the title character Tarzan. It was written between January 21 and May 11, 1915, and first published in the magazine ...

'', the fourth book, in which a "Muviri" appears as a minor character, stated to be a follower of Tarzan who had known him in "the old days." The first unambiguous occurrence of the name Muviro is in ''

Tarzan the Untamed ''Tarzan the Untamed'' is a book by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, the seventh in his series of twenty-four books about the title character Tarzan. It was originally published as two separate stories serialized in different pulp magazine ...

'', the seventh book, in which he is mentioned as the father of Wasimbu, a Waziri warrior crucified by the Germans during their World War I destruction of Tarzan's African estate. Muviro's earliest appearance in person (at least under that name) is in ''

Tarzan and the Golden Lion ''Tarzan and the Golden Lion'' is an adventure novel by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, the ninth in his series of twenty-four books about the title character Tarzan. The story was first published as a seven part serial in ''Argosy All-St ...

'', the ninth book, as one of the members of the tribe welcoming Tarzan's family back to the estate at the end of the war. Subsequent appearances include book 12, ''

Tarzan and the Lost Empire ''Tarzan and the Lost Empire'' is a novel by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, the twelfth in his series of twenty-four books about the title character Tarzan. The story was first published as a serial in '' Blue Book Magazine'' from October ...

'', the first book to give his title as sub-chief,Burroughs, Edgar Rice. ''Tarzan and the Lost Empire'', chapter 1: "'Something is coming, Bwana,' said Muviro, sub-chief of the Waziri." book 13, ''

Tarzan at the Earth's Core ''Tarzan at the Earth's Core'' is a novel by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, serialized in September 1929 to March 1930, the thirteenth in his series of twenty-four books about the title character Tarzan and the fourth in his series set ...

'', in which he and some of his warriors accompany the Ape Man to the subterranean realm of

Pellucidar Pellucidar is the fictional internal surface of a Hollow Earth invented by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs for a series of action adventure stories. In a crossover event, Tarzan, who was also created by Burroughs, visits Pellucidar. The ...

, book 14, ''

Tarzan the Invincible ''Tarzan the Invincible'' is a novel by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, the fourteenth in his series of twenty-four books about the title character Tarzan. The novel was originally serialized in the magazine '' Blue Book'' from October, ...

'', book 15, ''

Tarzan Triumphant ''Tarzan Triumphant'' is a novel by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, the fifteenth in his series of twenty-four books about the title character Tarzan. The novel was originally serialized in the magazine ''Blue Book'' from October, 1931 t ...

'', book 19, '' Tarzan's Quest'', in which his search for his lost daughter Buira forms an important sub-plot to the main action, book 21, ''

Tarzan the Magnificent ''Tarzan the Magnificent'' is a 1960 British Eastmancolor film, the follow-up to ''Tarzan's Greatest Adventure'' (1959) and the twenty-third film of the ''Tarzan'' film series that began with 1932's '' Tarzan the Ape Man''. Its plot bears no re ...

'', and the short story "Tarzan and the Champion," collected in book 24, '' Tarzan and the Castaways''. Muviro and his warrior band also appear in ''

Back to the Stone Age ''Back to the Stone Age'' is a novel by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, the fifth in his series set in the lost world of Pellucidar. It first appeared as a six-part serial in '' Argosy Weekly'' from January 9 to February 13, 1937, under ...

'', a non-Tarzan sequel to ''Tarzan at the Earth's Core'' set during the sojourn in Pellucidar.

In other media

Muviro is featured in Tarzan comic books and comic strips in a role identical to his portrayal in Burrough's Tarzan books. In the 2001

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

series of animated cartoons '' The Legend of Tarzan'', Muviro is recast as a villainous Waziri warrior. Serving the chief's son Basuli, he is secretly jealous of him, as well as hostile to outsiders, particularly Tarzan and his friends. When Basuli and Tarzan go on a quest to obtain an eagle's feather from a mountain in preparation for Basuli to wed and to become the next chief, Muviro plots to kill them both so that he himself can be chief. He engineers incidents causing several delays in the duo's journey; felling a tree into a river they are crossing, stampeding a herd of rhinos after them, and starting a rock slide as they near the mountain. He is exposed by Tarzan after his third attempt, and fights Basuli, who defeats and banishes him from the tribe for his treachery. Muviro is last seen walking away into the mist with an angry face, implying he may return for revenge. In the

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

movie '' The Legend of Tarzan'', Muviro, portrayed by Yule Masiteng, is chief of the Kuba, a tribe the young

Jane Porter Jane Porter (3 December 1775 – 24 May 1850) was an English historical novelist, dramatist and literary figure. Her bestselling novels, '' Thaddeus of Warsaw'' (1803) and ''The Scottish Chiefs'' (1810) are seen as among the earliest historical ...

's father had served as a missionary, and to which she had brought the severely injured Tarzan after he had saved her from an ape attack. In the film, Muviro is a benevolent elder, as in the novels, as well as an educated, literate man fluent in several languages. He welcomes the now married Tarzan and Jane back to the Kuba village after their long absence in England, but is subsequently killed in a raid by

Léon Rom Léon Auguste Théophile Rom (2 April 1859 – 30 January 1924) was a Belgian military officer and colonial administrator. His role in atrocities in the Congo Free State have led some to speculate that Rom served as an inspiration for the charact ...

and his mercenaries.

References

{{Tarzan Tarzan characters Fictional kings Fictional princes Fictional tribal chiefs Literary characters introduced in 1913 Fictional African people Black people in comics