| Bala Faseke Kuyatè | Also called Dòka the Cat, he is Son-Jara's griot, whom Dankaran Tuman "takes" by sending him on a mission. |
| Caress-of-Hot-Fire | Daughter of Dankaran Tuman, sent to marry Sumamuru and brought out of Sumamuru's camp by Fa-Koli. |
| Dan Mansa Wulanba | Older of the Tarawere brothers, he suggests having a captured jinn read signs for them instead of killing him. |
| Dan Mansa Wulandin | The younger of the Tarawere brothers, he seizes a jinn and suggests killing it. |
| Dankaran Tuman | Son of Saman Berete who is slightly older than Son-Jara. He becomes king when Fata Magan the Handsome dies. |
| Dòka the Cat | Also called Bala Faseke Kuyatè, he is Son-Jara's griot, whom Sumamuru forces to serve him. |
| Du Kamisa | Sister of Leader-of-the-People and aunt of Magan Jata Kòndè of Du. When her nephew mistreats and disowns her, she turns herself into a wild buffalo. |
| Fa-Digi Sisoko | Griot whose version of The Epic of Son-Jara appears in the Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces |
| Fa-Koli | Nephew of Sumamuru who defects and joins Son-Jara's army after his uncle takes away his only wife. |
| Fata Magan the Handsome | Father of Son-Jara who marries Sugulun of the Warts because of the prophecy that her son will rule the Manden. |
| Saman Berete | First wife of Fata Magan the Handsome and mother of Dankaran Tuman. She resents Son-Jara and his mother and trys to prevent Son-Jara from achieving his destiny. |
| Sasagalò the Tall | The boatman to whom Son-Jara's mother had given a silver bracelet |
| Son-Jara | Hero of the epic, the Lion-Born-of-the Cat. Founder of the Mali empire. |
| Sugulun Kòndè | Son-Jara's mother, also known as "Sugulun of the Warts" |
| Sugulun Kulunkan | Son-Jara's full sister, briefly one of the wives of Sumamuru |
| Sumamuru Kantè | The fierce tyrant who takes rule of the Manden from Dankaran Tuman |
Tarawere brothers | Dan Mansa Wulanba and Dan Mansa Wulandin, the hunter brothers who bring Sugulun Kòndè to Fata Magan the Handsome |
| Tura Magan | The general who digs his grave and lies in it to convince Son-Jara to stop leading his own army after he is king. |
