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Mandinka people |
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This article or section includes a list of references or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. You can improve this article by introducing more precise citations where appropriate. (February 2008) |
| The Mandinka or Mandingo |
|---|
      ],    |
| Some notable West Africans from the Mandinka ethnic group: Samory Touré, Sekou Touré, Lansana Kouyaté, Sekou Conneh, Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, Salif Keita, Modibo Sidibé, Toumani Diabaté, Salomon Kalou, Fodé Mansaré, Kolo Touré, Mohamed Sissoko |
| Total population |
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11 million [1] |
| Regions with significant populations |
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| Languages |
| Mandinka language |
| Religion |
| Islam |
| Related ethnic groups |
| Western Mandé: esp Dyoula, Khassonké, Bambara people |
The Mandinka (also known as Mandingo or Malinke) are one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa with a population estimated at eleven million [7]. A Mandén people, they are the descendants of the great Empire of Mali, which rose to power under the rule of the great Mandinka king Sundiata Keita.
The Mandinka live primarily in West Africa, particulaly in the The Gambia, Guinea, Mali, Sierra Leone, Cote d'Ivoire, Senegal, Burkina Faso, Liberia, Guinea Bissau and even small communities in the central African nation of Chad. Although widespread, Mandinkas do not form the largest ethnic group in any of the countries they live except The Gambia.
Mandinkas speak the Mandinka language which is similar to Bambara or Soninke. The Mandinka language is spoken in nine African nations by approximately eleven million people. The language has no written script, but a rich oral tradition. Closely related peoples include all the western Mandé, and most specially the Dyoula people, whom are sometimes clasified as a subgroup of the Mandinka, especially in Cote D'Ivoire and the Kong highlands of Burkina Faso.
Through a series of conflicts, primarily with the Fula led Kingdom of Fouta Djallon about half of the Mandinka population were converted from indegenous beliefs to Islam. Today, over 99% of Mandinka are muslim. During the 16th and 17th and 18th century as many as a third of the Mandinka population were shipped to the Americas as slaves through capture in conflict.
The Mandinka migrated west from the Niger River basin in search of better agricultural lands and more opportunities for conquest. During this expansion, they established their rule from modern day Gambia to Guinea. They were probably one of the original groups that inhabited the ancient city of Djenné-Jeno. The Mandes founded the empire of Kaabu, comprising 20 small kingdoms. Some upper-class or urban Mandinkas converted to Islam during the reign of the great Mansa Musa(1320-1358AD).
The majority of the Mandinka were still animists at the beginning of the 18th century. Through a series of conflicts, primarially with the Fula led Kingdom of Fouta Djallon and amongst sub states of the Kaabu Empire, about half of the Senegambian Mandinka were converted to Islam while as many as third where sold into slavery to Americas, through capture in conflict. Today, the majority of Mandinka are Muslim. A significant part of the African-Americans in North America decended from Mandinka people. 1
In eastern areas (northern Cote d'Ivoire, Burkina Faso and Southern Mali), Mandinka communities are often built around long distance trade routes. These people, often called Dyoula, (after the Mandé word for "merchant"), built communities in trading centers, spaced along trade routes, and near mining and agricultural centers, beginning during the Mali Empire. These merchant networks formed the lynchpin of trade between the desertside upper Niger River cities (Djenne and Timbuktu, for example), highland production areas (the goldfields of Bambouk or agricultural center of Kankan), and the coast. This last link became more important with the advent of Portuguese and other European trading posts in the 17th century, and much of the overland trade connecting the coast and interior (including the African slave trade) was controlled by Dyoula merchants.
Mandinka are rural subsistence farmers who rely on groundnuts, rice, millet, and small scale husbandry for their livelihood. The oldest male is the head of the family and marriages are commonly arranged. Small mud houses with thatch or tin roofs make up their villages which are organized on the basis of the clan groups.
In the rainy season, men plant peanuts as their main cash crop; peanuts are also a staple of the Mandinka diet. Men also plant millet (coos) and corn, mostly for family consumption. Women work in the rice fields, tending the plants by hand. This is an extremely labor intensive and physically demanding work. Only about 50% of the rice consumption needs are met by local planting; the rest is imported from Asia and the United States.
While farming is the predominant profession among the Mandinka, men also work as tailors, butchers, taxi drivers, woodworkers, metal workers, soldiers, nurses, and extension workers for aid agencies. However, most women, probably 95%, remain in the home as wives and mothers.
Mandinka culture is rich in tradition, music, and spiritual ritual. Mandinkas continue a long oral history tradition through stories, songs and proverbs. In rural areas, western education's impact is minimal; the literacy rate in Roman script among these Mandinka is quite low. However, more than half the adult population can read the local Arabic script; small Qur'anic schools for children where this is taught are quite more common. Mandinka children are given their name on the seventh day of after birth, and their children are almost always named after very important person in their family.
The Mandinka have a rich oral history that is passed down through praise singers or griots. This passing down of oral history through music has made music one of the most distinctive traits of the Mandinka. They have long been known for their drumming and also for their unique musical instrument, the kora. The kora is a twenty-one string harp-like instrument made out of a gourd covered with cow skin. The strings are made of fishing line. It is played to accompany a griot's singing or simply on its own.
Most Mandinkas live in family-related compounds in traditional rural villages. Mandinka villages are fairly autonomous and self-ruled, being led by a council of upper class elders and a chief who functions as a first among equals.
Marriages are traditionally arranged by family members rather than either the bride or groom. This practice is particularly prevalent in the rural areas. Kola nuts, a bitter nut from a tree, are formally sent by the suitor's family to the male elders of the bride-to-be, and if accepted, the courtship begins.
Polygamy has been practiced among the Mandinka since pre-Islamic days. A Mandinka man is legally allowed to have up to four wives, as long as he is able to care for each of them equally. . Mandinka believe the crowning glory of any woman is the ability to produce children, especially sons. The first wife has authority over any subsequent wives. The husband has complete control over his wives and is responsible for feeding and clothing them. He also helps the wives' parents when necessary. Wives are expected to live together in harmony, at least superficially. They share work responsibilities of the compound, cooking, laundry, etc.
Usually associated with the physical act of circumcision, the Mandinka practice a rite of passage which marks the beginning of adulthood for their children. Children, ranging in age from four to fourteen, are circumcised (boys) or mutilated (girls) separately. In years past, the children spent up to a year in the bush, but that has been reduced now to coincide with their physical healing time, between three and four weeks. This group of children form a special, internal bond, one which remains throughout life.
During this time, they learn about their adult social responsibilities and rules of behavior. They learn secret songs which teach them what it is to be a Mandinka. These songs teach them how they are to relate to members of the opposite sex, including their parents, their siblings, their relatives, and eventually their spouses, as well as their elders and their peers. They are cared for and taught by elders of the same sex; these persons become their life-long sponsors, a very special relationship.
Great preparation is made in the village or compound for the return of the children. A huge celebration marks the return of these new adults to their families. The children are given new clothes and treated with new respect by their elders. Boys and girls are honored with a dance.
As a result of these traditional teachings, in marriage a woman's loyalty remains to her parents and her family; a man's to his.
Today, over 99% of Mandinka are muslim.23 who follow the teachings of Mohammad, the holy prophet of Islam, and the Qu'ran, the holy book of Islam. Mandinkas will recite chapters of the Qu'ran in Arabic. For the Mandinka Muslim, God's power resides in the utterance of the words, not in the understanding of the language, as few Mandinkas actually understand the Arabic language.
Most Mandinka practice a mix of Islam and traditional superstitious practices. They live fearfully in a world dominated by evil spirits and witches. These spirits can be controlled only through the power of a marabou, who knows the protective formulas. No important decision is made without first consulting the marabout. Marabouts, who have Islamic training, write Qu'ranic verses on slips of paper and sew them into leather pouches; these are then sold and worn as protective amulets by men, women, and children.
Mandinka Muslims are convinced ( this is not peculiar to mandinka muslims only as it is a belief shared by all muslims) the Bible has become corrupted because it contradicts the Qu'ran, and the sayings of Mohammad. The few Mandinkas who have converted to Christianity are viewed as traitors to Mandinka society, to their heritage, and to their ancestors. Often they are driven from their compounds and villages, rejected by their families. Like many muslims, most Mandinkas will pray at least five times every day, the Islamic obligatory. Praying in a group signifies the solidarity of Islam. Complete strangers will stand shoulder-to-shoulder, praying together in a line. So long as you are able to say the prayers correctly, and do" the prayers correctly. According to the Mandinkas you are never a stranger in Islam.
According to "the Kora" (2002) 4 (2002), “the Kora (CORE-uh) has become the hallmark of traditional Mandinka musicians.” Kora (2002) 4 describes that the kora with its 21 strings is made from half a calabash, “covered with cowshed fastened on by decorative tacks.” The kora has sound holes in the side which are used to store coins offered to the praise singers, in appreciation of their performance. The praise singers are called “jalibaa” in Mandinka. "The Kora" (2002) 4 says that “as the kora is played, it begins to take on a life of its own and it is believed that the singer and the instrument become one.” According to "the Kora" (2002) 4, the kora was traditionally used as “storage for historical facts, to memorize the genealogy of patron families and sing their praises, to act as messengers and intermediaries in disputes between families, to serve as guardians of traditional culture, and to entertain.” Today, however, the kora is losing its importance. "The Kora" (2002) 4 says that although it is a skill passed down from father to son, it is primarily used to entertain people, most especially tourists.
One well-known Mandinka outside Africa is Kunta Kinte, a main figure in Alex Haley's book Roots and a subsequent TV mini-series. Haley claimed he was descended from Kinte, though this familial link has been criticized by many professional historians and at least one genealogist as highly improbable (see D. Wright's The World And A Very Small Place). Martin R. Delany, a radical 19th century abolitionist in the United States, was of partial Mandinka descent.
Mr. T, of American television fame, once claimed that his distinctive hairstyle was modeled after a Mandinka warrior that he saw in National Geographic magazine.5
Yankuba Touray Gambia's Minister for Fisheries and Water Resources
Lamin kaba Bajo, Gambia's Ambassador to Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
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