Wakanda (Comics)

First Appearance: Fantastic Four #52, 1966

Created by: Stan Lee and Jack Kirby

Official Name: Kingdom of Wakanda

Population: 6,000,000

Capital City: Central Wakanda

Places of Interest: Black Warrior Creek, Central Wakanda Palace, Chams of the Chilling Mist, Crystal Forest, Domain of the White Gorillas, Jabari Village, Mount Kanda, Mount Wakanda, N’Jadaka Village, Panther Island, Paradise Forest, Pirahna Cove, Primitive Peaks, Ressurection Altar, River of Grace and Wisdom, Serpent Valley, T’chaka Path, Techno Jungle, Torment Forest, Tranquility Temple, Twisted Visons Lake, Vibranium Mound, Warrior Falls, Woods of Solitude, Central Wakandan Elementary school, The Wakandan School for Alternative Studies.

Government: Absolute Monarchy

Languages: Wakandan, Yoruba, Hausa, English; Afroasiatic, Nilo-Saharan, Niger-Congo , Khoe, Austronesian, Indo-European

Currency: Wakandan Dollar

Major Resources: Vibranium, Uranium, Coal, Diamonds, Aeronautics, Aircraft Manufacture

Background: Thousands of years ago a giant meteor fell to earth and crashed in Africa. The nation which sprung up around the crash site came to be known as Wakanda. The meteor contained the metal Vibranium which can mutate those exposed to it into creatures resembling demons. For this reason, the mound is sealed and accessible only to qualified personnel. The first Black Panther was known as Bashenga.

History

In modern times Wakanda is known as the most technologically advanced nation in the Marvel universe being hundreds if not thousands of years ahead of the most thriving technological meccas of today. They have found cures for such diseases as Cancer and Aids among others. The culture of Wakanda is based around the worship of the Panther God/Bast. In the past, other gods have worshiped most notably the sacred white Gorilla but that has since been outlawed.

In Addition to the technologically advanced central Wakanda capital, there also exists about eighteen other tribes called the marsh tribes. These tribes are tied together with the main monarchy by the Dora Milaje. It is also in central Wakanda that the precious metal Vibranium can be found.

Trade

Wakanda is one of the few nations in the world not part of the U.N while being completely self-sufficient not needing to trade beyond their borders for food, clothing or technology. What little is traded with the outside world is processed Vibranium.

Source [Marvel Atlas #2 of 2 (2008)]

Note: Vibranium, The Heart Shaped Herb and the Soul Shaped herb are all only found in Wakanda

~PLACES OF INTEREST~

The Wakandan School for Alternative Studies

The Wakandan School for Alternative Studies is a school located in the African nation of Wakandan which was apparently founded by the reigning queen Shuri. It is the Wakandan answer to America’s Jean Grey School for higher learning. It trains Wakandan’s with extra normal abilities in the use of their powers. During the Infinity event, the school made its debut in “Infinity: The Hunt #1“. Known students include Block, Asha, and Bull. It was destroyed when Wakanda was attacked by the invading forces of Thanos and his Black Order between Infinity #1 and Infinity #4.

The Necropolis

The original Wakandan capital where Bast hid knowledge from Anubis (The heart of the Egyptian god, Amun-Ra), this is where Bashenga was christened as the first “Black Panther”. Necropolis first appeared in [Fantastic Four #607]. The architecture is very reminiscent of ancient Egypt and Greece. Hieroglyphics are prominent on all structures.  There is a central throne room where Bast often appears. Other notable locations include the dungeon where Black Swan and Terrax are kept. There is a landing strip large enough for multiple ships to land at the top of the structure. There also appears to be a stadium-like structure with a throne where Black Swan gave advice to the Illuminati. The Necropolis is the base of operations for the Illuminati gathered by the Black Panther and also houses the weapons necessary to destroy a planet during Incursion events. During the “Infinity Event” Thanos and Corvus infiltrated the site searching for the Infinity Gem of time [Infinity #4].

The Central Wakandan Elementary school

The Central Wakandan Elementary school first appeared in A+X #3 where T’challa had to cancel the annual camping trip as a result f increment weather apparently caused by Storm presence in the upper atmosphere. It was also the site of T’challa meeting new potential wives sent from all across Africa when news of his annulled marriage to Storm became pubic knowledge.

Warrior Falls

Wakandas most famous waterfalls. Site of battles between T’challa and Killmonger. It is also where Killmonger was killed, T’challa was defeated and first appeared during Jungle Action #6, 1973. According to T’challa the falls are a work of wonder even though he has been all across the world and into other dimensions. The cascading waters of Warrior falls still inspire awe.

N’Jadaka Village

Home of Erik Killmonger who was born N’jadaka. It first appeared in Jungle Action #11, 1973.

When Killmonger returned to Wakanda after years in America he took control of his village and made them a force to be reckoned with by supplying advanced weaponry. Under Killmonger they tried to gain complete independence from central Wakanda and T’challa. Their rebellion leads to T’challa invading their village where he fought Lord Karnaj.  After their forces were defeated their advanced weaponry was confiscated but T’challa allowed them to keep their changed name and continue to exist.

Serpent Valley

First appearing in Jungle Action #13, 1973.

Serpent Valley is home to live Dinosaurs resulting from deviant experiments that occurred there thousands of years ago. It is a place where sunlight never penetrates because of the dense cloud coverage. The land is humid and heated by some unknown inner source. It is perhaps this heat that has attracted not just dinosaurs but many reptiles to the area.  Killmonger passed through the valley in hopes of using the dinosaurs found there in his attack on central Wakanda. This never came to pass but Soloman Prey later put that plan into effect when he tried to defeat T’challa/Black Panther.

Wall of Knowledge

Located below Wakanda linking Necropolis to the new Wakandan capital. It first appeared in [Fantastic Four #607]. It is suggested that the well located right in front of the wall was the original housing spot of the heart of Amen Ra and where Bashenga was made the guardian of this knowledge by Bast. The wall is made of solid stone in the shape of the Egyptian god Amen-Ra.

Techno Organic Jungle

Created by T’challa/Black Panther after his travels across the world. He managed to merge technology and the organics of a jungle to create a benevolent techno-organic virus that allows nature and machines to live in harmony. It first appeared during the Black Panther limited series of 1988 #4. T’challa used the techno organics of the forest to battle the panther god Bast who was angry with him.

The Red Rock

A lone rock formation nearby the Wakandan School for Alternative studies. It first appeared in [Infinity: The Hunt #3, 2013]. According to Blocks two hundred years ago an invasion attempt was made on Wakanda and this was the site at which they held the invading forces off. It is said that Wakandan warriors slew thousands of the invading horde which forever stained the rocks red. When Wakanda was attacked by Thanos forces it was here that Blocks, Asha, and Bull retreated by order of their queen.

Mena Ngai/The great mound

First Appearance: Fantastic Four #53 (August 1966)

Long ago, a small African tribe in what would later be known as Wakanda witnessed a bright light in the sky. The light crashed to the Earth, leaving a large rock made from a mysterious metal. Over time, the tribe mined the ore known as Vibranium and learned of its amazing energy-absorbing properties. The great mound was the small nation’s source of vibranium and became one of their most sacred guarded secrets.

The events depicted in Black Panther #7 were retconned by Avengers (Vol. 8) #4, which place the meteor’s impact at 1,000,000 years ago.

Intergalactic Empire of Wakanda

First AppearanceMarvel Legacy #1(September 2017)

The Intergalactic Empire of Wakanda was started by a group of Alpha Flight explorers who were sent by T’Challa to search for the origin of the Mena Ngai. While exploring the Vega System, the explorers’ travels took them through a temporal anomaly into the past, where they established an empire named after their homeland. It was built over the next two thousand years and came to span five galaxies beginning with the Benhazin System and expanding into T’Chaka’s Reach, which was taken from the Rigellians by force. The Wakandans then moved into the S’Yaan Expanse, wiping out its original inhabitants without mercy, before taking the Matrix of Mamadou from the Kronans, Klyntar, and Shadow People, though not without considerable losses. Finally, Nehanda’s Lattice was added to the empire, the dominant Teku-Maza enslaved like the Kronans before them and forced to work in the Vibranium mines