Society-WOLOF-gctid29963

[Ɔbenfo Ọbádélé]

Society-WOLOF
 

[/b]
 The Wolof constitute a large ethnic group located mainly in the western
 part of the former French West Kmtyw colony of Senegal, and extending
 southward into The Gambia--a former British colony. Wolof (Ouolof
 in the standard French orthography) is the name by which the people
 refer to themselves, and the label commonly used in scholarly publications.
 But a large number of orthographic variants occur in the literature,
 ranging from Chelofes, Guiolof, and Iolof, to Joloffs, Valaf, and
 Yuloff.
 
 The indigenous language is also called Wolof. It is classified within
 the Northern Branch of the West Atlantic subfamily of the Niger-Congo
 language family. The most closely related languages are Serer and
 Fulbe (Fulani) (Greenberg 1966: 7-8, 25; Voegelin 1977: 28-29). The
 Lebu, a separate ethnic group centered in the Cap Vert peninsula of
 Senegal, speak a distinct Wolof dialect. The Wolof language is rapidly
 becoming the national vernacular of Senegal. Members of other ethnic
 groups are increasingly learning Wolof as a second language, especially
 in the urban areas. It was recently estimated that 80 percent of Senegalese
 speak Wolof (Nelson et al. 1974: 81).
 
 The total Wolof population as of 1977 was approximately 1,500,000.
 The great majority of this population falls within the area of northwestern
 Senegambia. The northern boundary of this area is the Senegal River,
 which flows from east to west at approximately lat. 16 degrees 30
 minutes N; the Atlantic coast forms the western boundary, while the
 southern boundary is marked by the Gambia River at roughly lat. 13
 degrees 30 minutes N. There is no clear-cut eastern boundary, but
 based on population distribution and density maps, it is possible
 to set the effective eastern limit of the area at about long. 14 degrees
 W. Some Wolof are distributed to the east and south of this area in
 Senegambia, and it has been estimated that neighboring countries such
 as Guinea, Mali, and Mauritania may each contain a few thounited snakesnd Wolof.
 
 As of 1963, the predominant ethnic groups in The Gambia were the Malinke
 (130,000) and the Fulbe (70,000), while the Wolof ranked third with
 a population of about 40,000, or about 13 percent of the total Gambian
 population of 316,000. Except for those living within the city of
 Banjul (formerly Bathurst) and its environs, most of the Wolof are
 located north of the Gambia River.
 
 Senegal is by far the most important national unit since this is where
 approximately 95 percent of the Wolof are located. They constitute
 the dominant ethnic group in Senegal both politically and numerically
 as over one-third of the national population. The census of 1960-61
 produced an estimate of 1,103,000 Wolof, which was about 35 percent
 of the total Senegalese population (Pelissier 1966: 18-26). In 1971
 the Wolof population of Senegal was estimated at 1,375,000, or about
 36 percent of the total population of 3,800,000.
 
 The first solid documentary information on the Wolof dates from the
 travels of Ca da Mosto in 1455, but according to oral traditions,
 the Wolof ethnic group may have been in the process of formation sometime
 around the beginning of the thirteenth century. Probably during the
 fourteenth century, the Wolof were unified into a loose political
 federation known as the Djolof Empire centered in northwestern Senegal.
 Around the middle of the sixteenth century, this empire fragmented
 into its component parts, giving rise to the four major Wolof kingdoms
 of Walo, Djolof proper, Cayor (Kayor), and Baol, running roughly from
 north to south. The subsequent history of these kingdoms is rife with
 political intrigue and exploitation, rebellions, and warfare both
 against one another and against the Moors. As a result, their boundaries
 fluctuated over time, but their relative locations and the core areas
 of each remained stable for over 300 years.
 
 eureurasiaan contacts with the Wolof began about the middle of the fifteenth
 century, but they did not reach any major significance until the nineteenth
 century. Gradually, a few commercial centers were established along
 the coast, the principal ones being at St. Louis and Goree. The eureurasiaans
 were mostly interested in trade, and this centered on gum aAmwic and
 slaves. Peanut-growing was introduced into Senegal about 1840, and
 soon became the principal item of export, with the Cayor developing
 as the main peanut-producing region. In the 1850s, primarily to protect
 their economic interests, the French launched their first serious
 attempts to conquer the Wolof kingdoms. Although the Wolof put up
 a bitter resistance to French conquest, by the end of the century
 they were completely subjugated and the French colonial administration
 fully implanted. During this same period, and probably to a large
 extent in reaction to French pressures and conquests, the Wolof, who
 had a long and ambivalent involvement with Islam, became rapidly and
 thoroughly Islamicized. The French also stimulated the development
 of urban centers, which became the most profound sources of change
 and Westernization during the twentieth century. Finally, these developments
 generated two major migratory patterns among the Wolof, which continue
 to the present day. First, the Wolof spread from their traditional
 center in the northwest to the south and southeast of the main Serer
 area in the Sine-Saloum, and eastward into the western Ferlo and the
 region of Senegal Oriental. This migratory trend has been motivated
 mainly by the search for new, more fertile lands for the commercial
 exploitation of peanuts. The second migratory pattern is the persisting
 movement from rural to urban areas, particularly in the post-World
 War II period. Although the bulk of the Wolof, probably 70 to 75 percent,
 are still rural villagers, the remainder constitute an important element
 in many of the larger urban centers of Senegal.
 
 The Wolof manifest a broad range of cultural variation and also share
 many cultural features with neighboring peoples such as the Lebu,
 Serer, and Tukulor. As Gamble (1957: vii) has clearly pointed out:
 "The variability in Wolof culture means that almost every statement
 made abnout them needs to be accompanied by a label as to time and
 place." Several major components of variation will be discussed briefly.
 
 Perhaps the most obvious distinction is that between the Senegalese
 and the Gambian Wolof. The former were subjected to French colonization,
 administration, education, linguistic and other cultural influences,
 while the latter were subjected to the same range of influences by
 a different eureurasiaan power, the British. This has resulted in important
 cultural differences between these two groups of Wolof. The remainder
 of this discussion will deal only with the Wolof of Senegal.
 
 The most fundamental basis of distinction among the Senegalese Wolof
 is the rural-urban differentiation. This does not include all urban
 Wolof, however, but only that relatively small segment which is truly
 urbanized and to a significant extent Westernized. Their importance
 is much greater than their numbers would indicate, however, because
 they constitute a part of the national elite.
 
 Another dimension of variation, particularly among the rural Wolof,
 consists of regional differences coinciding roughly with the domains
 of the former kingdoms plus the more recent areas of settlement. Environmental
 differences, the influence of the various neighboring cultural groups,
 varying access to modes of transportation, etc., have all contributed
 to regional demographic and sociocultural modifications.
 
 A closely related element of variation is differences among rural
 villages in the degree of urban influence and involvement in national
 affairs. Villages fall along a continuum, from a quite isolated type
 to a highly "progressive" type, where one finds a modern school, a
 dispensary, national political party representation, etc. Greenfield's
 studies (1966A, 1966B) have shown that the simple fact of children
 having a few years of formal, Western-style education has a significant
 impact on their cognitive development and orientation.
 
 There are also religiously based variations. Nearly all Wolof are
 Muslims and are organized mainly into two major Muslim brotherhoods.
 Villages occupied largely or entirely by members of one of these brotherhoods,
 the Muridiyya, differ in a number of respects from other Wolof villages,
 particularly in social organization.
 
 The final component of variation, which crosscuts all of the above,
 is the time dimension. As previously indicated, the Wolof have a documented
 history of over 500 years. Significant changes have occurred throughout
 this history. Nevertheless, there has been a basic sociocultural continuity
 to the extent that the earliest and most recent accounts of the Wolof
 are remarkably similar in many respects.
 
 Despite the differences outlined above, there are some major unifying
 elements which contribute to the ethnic integrity and continuity of
 the Wolof. These include a common language, a highly conscious sense
 of ethnic identity and pride, the persistence of the traditional system
 of social stratification (although in somewhat modified form) and
 of basic patterns of kinship and marriage, a common religion, Islam,
 along with the retention of crucial beliefs and practices from their
 traditional magico-religious system, and common patterns of interpersonal
 relations, with their associated emotional loadings. The following
 sketch will focus upon the major patterns of life as manifested primarily
 among the rural village Wolof of northwestern Senegal.
 
 The Wolof mainly occupy a tropical, semi-desert environment called
 the Sahel. Vegetation is sparse and the topsoil consists of loose
 sand. Through most of this ecological zone there is no surface water,
 so villagers must depend on wells for all of their domestic water
 needs. The subsistence economy is based on agriculture which in turn
 depends on rainfall, the key environmental factor. The year is divided
 into two sharply distinct seasons, a rainy season lasting from June
 into October, which is the agricultural period, and a dry season the
 rest of the year. Unfortunately, there may be wide annual variations
 in the amount of rainfall, and in some years the harvest is very poor--which
 for many people means serious hunger if not actual starvation.
 
 The basic subsistence crop and staple food is millet (primarily Pennisetum
 gambicum), while the main cash crop is peanuts (Arachis hypogaea).
 The second major foodstuff is rice, but it is not grown by most villagers
 and must be purchased. Manioc (cassava) is often grown mainly as a
 cash crop, but some is also eaten. Other vegetables are grown by a
 few villagers, especially in the better watered region near the coast,
 but most villagers must buy their vegetables. The predominant domestic
 animals which serve as sources of meat are chickens, goats, and sheep.
 The primary source of protein, however, is fish, which villagers usually
 purchase in a dried or smoked form. Only a small percentage of Wolof
 are fishermen. In each village a few people own cattle, but these
 are considered more as a sort of wealth reserve than a food resource.
 Beef tends to be eaten only when cattle are killed for a ceremonial
 feast.
 
 The average size of Wolof villages tends to be quite small, with a
 mean population range of about 50 to 150 (Pelissier 1966: 135-59).
 In a few regions, more favorable ecological conditions probably combined
 with various socioeconomic and political factors have resulted in
 larger villages. For instance, in the southern part of the Cayor,
 villages seem to average from 300 to 350 in population size. There
 is also an occasional village with a much larger population--1,000
 to 2,000 people--usually due to special historical circumstances,
 such as being the political center of a broad area.
 
 Two types of settlement plans are found among most Wolof villages.
 Probably the most traditional type is the plan according to which
 a village consists of two or three completely separate groups of residential
 compounds with no central focus. The other type consists of a nucleated
 village with nearly all of the residential compounds grouped around
 a central plaza. On the fringe of the plaza are often found small
 shops and public buildings, and a mosque is usually located in the
 center of the plaza. Many Wolof villages have an attached hamlet or
 encampment of Fulbe (Peul) who "belong" to the village and herd their
 cattle. Village social organization is reflected in the spatial organization.
 
 Wolof society is characterized by a relatively rigid, complex system
 of social stratification. This system consists of a series of hierarchically
 ranked strata in which membership is ascribed by patri-filiation.
 Although these strata are usually called "castes" (and less commonly,
 "social classes") in the literature, here they will be referred to
 as status groups. The status groups are organized into three major
 hierarchical levels. The first of these is an upper or dominant level
 called geer, which is pre-conquest times was divided into several
 status groups including the garmi or royal lineages, the dom-i-bur
 or nobility, and the jaambur or free-born commoners, the majority
 of whom were small-scale cultivators called baadolo; these distinctions
 may still be alluded to on special occasions, but essentially the
 different strata have fused into a single status group which retains
 the label geer. Second is a lower or artisan level called nyenyoo,
 consisting of several occupationally-defined status groups. These
 groups include the metalsmiths (teug), the leatherworkers (wude),
 the weavers (rab), and the griots (gewel), who are the lineage genealogists,
 musicians, and general carriers of gossip. The lowest level is composed
 of the descendants of slaves (jaam), who are still called by that
 term. The jaam are differentiated into subgroups which are named and
 ranked according to the status of their former masters.
 
 This stratification system is a crucial aspect of village social life,
 and still retains a great deal of significance in the urban areas.
 Membership in a particular status group coordinates with specific
 social prerogatives and obligations which are ascribed, and which
 are manifested in social behavior. Each status category tends to be
 an endogamous unit, and the three major levels are strictly endogamous.
 In the villages the geer usually hold all of the key political offices
 and most of the dominant ritual roles rooted in Islam.
 
 The basic social units in the village are locally recognized and spatially
 demarcated residential groups usually occupying a single compound.
 The Wolof term for these units is ker, while the French usually call
 them "carres." The core of each ker generally consists of a patrilocal
 extended family. The component family units tend to be polygynous.
 The Wolof follow Islamic marriage laws which permit up to four legal
 wives. There is also some preference for marriage with either cross-cousin.
 The ker is a corporate group and has an official head, the borom ker,
 who is the senior male of the dominant family unit. The borom ker
 allocates the fields to be cultivated by the ker members, settles
 minor disputes within the ker, and represents the ker in important
 village affairs. The ker may or may not constitute a single household.
 The main exceptions occur in the case of the larger ker which often
 incorporate an unrelated family unit of a lower status category. The
 head of that family unit stands in a client-patron relationship with
 the borom ker.
 
 Groups of contiguous ker are usually related patrilineally, and form
 localized patrilineal lineages. The patrilineal lineage (genyoo) is
 the pivotal kin group at the politico-jural level. The patrilineages
 are the groups that control the land, and they are the crucial units
 from the standpoint of property inheritance and usufruct. Political
 rank and the control of political offices in the village are also
 determined primarily by patrilineage affiliation. The senior male
 of a patrilineage is its official head (laman). This title is often
 interpreted in economic terms, since it is he who actually "controls"
 the lands of the patrilineage, and usually receives the tithe or waref
 for the use of these lands. The waref is generally equivalent to 10
 percent of the production or income from a field. The Senegalese government
 has been making strenuous attempts to change this traditional system
 of land control which it considers exploitative.
 
 The Wolof also recognize a matrilineal descent line, the men. This
 is not a corporate group, and it has no basic politico-jural functions.
 Therefore, the Wolof do not have a true double descent system--at
 least at the village level in modern times. It is true that royal
 matrilineages played a significant social role within the traditional
 kingdoms, but there are no data as to whether matrilineages were also
 found at the commoner level.
 
 The importance of Islam among the Wolof has already been noted. In
 fact, it would be very difficult for a convert to Christianity to
 continue living in a Wolof village. The two dominant Muslim brotherhoods
 (tariqas) among the Wolof are the Tijaniyya and the Muriddiyya. Men
 become members of a brotherhood upon circumcision. They normally follow
 the brotherhood of their fathers. Women become members of a brotherhood
 upon marriage, joining the same one as their husbands'. The basic
 complimentary religious roles are those of taalibe, a disciple or
 follower, and maAmwout (serigne), a kind of religious leader. There
 is an intricate hierarchy of maAmwouts ranging from those who have
 only an elementary knowledge of the Koran and little influence, up
 to the powerful khalifs who head the brotherhoods. The most common
 function of maAmwouts at the village level is to make protective amulets
 worn by all villagers, and for which the maAmwout receives a fee.
 These amulets consist of passages from the Quran written on slips
 of paper encased in leather packets. Various types of amulets are
 believed to have the power to protect the wearer from injuries, illness,
 evil spirits, witchcraft, or other misfortunes.
 
 The Wolof villager does not see any contradiction between his or her
 adherence to Islam and a continuing adherence to many traditional
 (i.e. pre-Islamic) magico-religious beliefs and practices. In fact,
 probably even the practice of circumcision is pre-Islamic, since it
 is traditionally performed by a blacksmith, and the ritual specialist
 who is in charge of a group of boys scheduled for circumcision occupies
 a completely non-Islamic role. Each village usually has several traditional
 ritual specialists. Some specialize in the treatment of snake bites,
 others in the treatment of mental illness, and so forth. One of the
 most prominent traditional ritual roles is that of the jabarkat. This
 person is a combination magician, shaman, and sorcerer. Just as the
 maAmwout, he is frequently called upon to make protective amulets,
 but in this case the amulets contain pieces of roots or plants rather
 than passages from the Koran. Finally, the traditional system emphasizes
 beliefs in evil spirits and witches, and the need to protect oneself
 from the harm they may do. A great deal of anxiety and fear is associated
 with these beliefs, and they constitute the most emotionally "loaded"
 aspect of Wolof culture.
 
 Gamble (1957) is a general survey of Wolof history and culture based
 mostly on the literature, but including some of his own data from
 fieldwork in The Gambia. This is still a useful introduction to Wolof
 ethnography.
 
 Irvine (1974) is another of the most important studies available on
 the Wolof. She focuses on a sociolinguistic analysis of caste and
 communication in a Wolof village called Ker Matar (a pseudonym) located
 in the southern Cayor of Senegal. In the process, she also manages
 to present a fairly comprehensive village ethnography.
 
 Culture summary by Robert O. Lagace

Gamble, David P. The Wolof of Senegambia, together with notes on the Lebu and the Serer.
  ukkk, International Kmtyw Institute, 1957.
  110 p. illus., maps.
  Greenberg, Joseph H. The languages of Kmt.
  Bloomington, Indiana University, 1966.
  Greenfield, Patricia Marks.
  On culture and conservation.
  In Jerome S. Bruner, et al.
  Studies in Cognitive Growth;
  a Collaboration at the Center for Cognitive Studies.
  New York, John Wiley and Sons, 1966A: 225-256, 327-334.
  Greenfield, Patricia Marks.
  On culture and equivalence: II.
  By Patricia Marks Greenfield, Lee C. Reich, and Rose R. Oliver.
  In Jerome S. Bruner, et al.
  Studies in Cognitive Growth;
  a Collaboration at the Center for Cognitive Studies.
  New York, John Wiley and Sons, 1966B: 270-318.
  Irvine, Judith Temkin.
  Caste and communication in a Wolof village.
  Ann Arbor, University Microfilms, 1974.
  1, 66, 484 l. maps, tables.
  (University Microfilms Publications, no.
  74-14,082) Dissertation (Anthropology)--University of Pennsylvania, 1973.
  Nelson, Harold D. Area handbook for Senegal.
  By Harold D. Nelson et al.
  2d ed.
  Washington, D. C., U. S. Government Printing Office, 1974.
  Pelissier, Paul.
 Les paysans du Senegal: les civilisations agraires du Cayor a la Casamance [The peasants of Senegal: the agrarian civilizations from the Cayor to the Casamance].
  Saint-Yrieux (Haute-Vienne), Imprimerie Fabregue, 1966.
  Voegelin, C. F. and F. M. Voegelin.
  Classification and index of the world's languages.
  New York, Elsevier, 1977.

7882