Continuity and Change in Modern Senegalese Society

By

Dr. Maimouna Barro

Associate Director

Center for African Studies

University of Illinois

Map of Africa

Map of West Africa

West African countriesBenin (French)

Burkina Faso (French)Cape Verde (Portuguese)

Côte d'Ivoire (French)Gambia (English)Ghana (English)Guinea (French)

Guinea-Bissau (Portuguese)Liberia (English)

Mali (French)Mauritania (French)

Niger (French)Nigeria (English)Senegal (French)

Sierra Leone (English)Togo (French)

Map of senegal

Facts about Senegal

• Facts about the country• Population: Over 11 million people• Area: 76,000 square miles • Major Ethnic groups: Wolof (43.7%), Pulaar

(23%), Serer(14%), Joola • (3.7%), Mandinka (3.%), Soninke (1.1%)• Official Language: French• Religions: Muslims (94%), Christians (5%),

Indigenous (1%)• Major Cities: Dakar (capital city), Thies, Kaolack,

Saint-Louis

III-Historical Background

A. Pre-colonial Senegal and West Africa: The Heritage of Islam

•The Trans-Saharan Trade: Islam in West Africa in the 8th Century

•The progressive Islamization of chiefdoms and large political units

•The 19th Century Jihads and the promotion of Literacy and Sufism

Ouadane Mosque, Mauritania

Chinguetti Mosque, Mauritania

Agadez Mosque, Niger

Dingeray Mosque, Timbuktu

The Heritage of Islam

The Heritage of Islam

The Heritage of Islam

When Timbuktu Was the Paris of Islamic Intellectuals in Africa

The Heritage of Islam

B. The Atlantic Slave Trade

• Trans-Atlantic Exports by Region 1650-1900

• Region Number of Slaves %• Senegambia 479,900 4.7• Upper Guinea 411,200 4.0• Windward Coast 183,200 1.8• Gold Coast 1,035,600 10.0• Blight Of Benin 2,016,200 19.7• Blight Of Biafra 1,463,700 14.3• West Central 4,179,500 40.8• South East 470,900 4.6• Total 1 0,240,200

» Source:Lovejoy, P. Transformations In slavery, 2000.

Goree Island

Goree Island, the door of no return(Senegal)

C. The Colonial Era (1885-1945)

• French colonization: A system of political, economic and cultural domination

• French Imperialism and Islam

• The Road to independence (1960): The role of Senegal’s elite

Saint-Louis, Senegal (former capital of French West Africa)

Le pont Faidherbe

Signare de Saint louis, Senegal

IV- Government and Politics

• A long tradition of Democracy and Stability

• The 2000 Elections and the New Terrain of Alternance or Soppi

• Islam and Politics: The role of the Sufi orders

II-Modern Senegalese Society: Continuity and Change

• A homogenous and tolerant society

• A society between resistance and change

• Senegalese Islam: The place of brotherhoods

II-Modern Senegalese Society: Continuity and Change

• The Senegalese Intelligentsia

• Popular Culture and the Arts

• The Role and Status of women

The Tivaoune Mosque, Senegal

Touba Mosque, Senegal

The Niassene Mosque, Kaolack

III- The Challenges of a Dependent Economy

• Agriculture: A declining economic sector

• Fishing: A promising Sector

• Tourism: A strategic Sector

Dakar, La Porte du Troisième Millénaire (The Gate to the 21st Century)

Dakar, Senegal’s Capital city

Conclusion: Senegal in the New Global Era

PCCI Call Center, Dakar

Key Senegalese values

• Teranga=Hospitality

• Tegin=Respect

• Yarr= Politeness

Useful Internet Resources• http://www.codesria.org/• http://www.warc-croa.org/• http://www.au-senegal.com/art_en/musee.htm• http://www.ucad.sn/• http://www.ugb.sn/accueil.htm• http://www.aodl.org/ifan.php• http://www.seneweb.com• African Languages at UIUC

(http://www.afrst.uiuc.edu/SCALI07.htm)