Guelowar (or Gelwaar in Serer), also spelled Gelwar, Guelwar, Guelware, Gueleware or Gueloware, was a maternal dynasty in the pre-colonial Serer kingdoms of

Sine In mathematics, sine and cosine are trigonometric functions of an angle. The sine and cosine of an acute angle are defined in the context of a right triangle: for the specified angle, its sine is the ratio of the length of the side opposite th ...

and

Saloum The Kingdom of Saloum ( Serer: ''Saluum'' or ''Saalum'') was a Serer kingdom in present-day Senegal and parts of Gambia. The precolonial capital was the city of Kahone. Re-established in 2017, Saloum is now a non-sovereign traditional monarch ...

(in the

Senegambia The Senegambia (other names: Senegambia region or Senegambian zone,Barry, Boubacar, ''Senegambia and the Atlantic Slave Trade'', (Editors: David Anderson, Carolyn Brown; trans. Ayi Kwei Armah; contributors: David Anderson, American Council of Le ...

, but mainly in the western area of present-day

Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...

). They were matrilineally from the

Mandinka Mandinka, Mandika, Mandinkha, Mandinko, or Mandingo may refer to: Media * Mandingo (novel), ''Mandingo'' (novel), a bestselling novel published in 1957 * Mandingo (film), ''Mandingo'' (film), a 1975 film based on the eponymous 1957 novel * ''Man ...

ethnic group, and patrilineally of Serer origin. The offspring of Mandinka women and Serer men became the kings of Sine and Saloum. The dynasty lasted from the mid-14th century to 1969, the year both kings died. The terme "Guelwar",

Anglicised Anglicisation or anglicization is a form of cultural assimilation whereby something non-English becomes assimilated into or influenced by the culture of England. It can be sociocultural, in which a non-English place adopts the English language ...

or Franconised to "Guelwars", is the plural form. The singular is "Kelwar" (in Serer).

History

Origin

The Guelowar family originated from

Kaabu Kaabu (1537–1867), also written Gabu, Ngabou, and N'Gabu, was a federation of Mandinka kingdoms in the Senegambia region centered within modern northeastern Guinea-Bissau, large parts of today's Gambia, and extending into Koussanar, Kou ...

(centered in what is now modern-day

Guinea Bissau Guinea-Bissau, officially the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, is a country in West Africa that covers with an estimated population of 2,026,778. It borders Senegal to its north and Guinea to its southeast. Guinea-Bissau was once part of the kin ...

) in the 14th century. Their oral tradition says that they are descended from Mansa Tiramakan Traore, a 13th century cousin and general of Mansa (king)

Sundiata Keita Sundiata Keita ( Mandinka, Malinke: ; 1217 – c. 1255, N'Ko spelling: ; also known as Manding Diara, Lion of Mali, Sogolon Djata, son of Sogolon, Nare Maghan and Sogo Sogo Simbon Salaba) was a prince and founder of the Mali Empire. He was als ...

Mali Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...

. Mansa Tiramakan Traore (also spelled in many variations: Tiramakan Trawally, Tiramakhan Traore, etc.) had conquered the

Bainuk people The Bainuk people (also called Banyuk, Banun, Banyun, Bainouk, Bainunk, Banyum, Bagnoun, Banhum, Banyung, Ñuñ, Elomay, or Elunay) are an ethnic group that today lives primarily in Senegal as well as in parts of Gambia and Guinea-Bissau. Etymol ...

and killed the last great Bainuk king, King Kikikor, then renamed the country Kaabu before his death in 1265. He was the founder and Mansa of Kaabu. Their oral tradition also says that they are the descendants of Mansa Bala Diakha and Maisata Yembe Kame Guélaware (king and queen of a province of Kaabu). Others say they are descended from the royal branch of Princess Tenemba. The Mandinkas who founded Kaabu married into the noble Bainuk families. The Mandinkas also changed their own names and adopted Bainuk surnames.Ngom, Biram: ''La question Gelwaar et l’histoire du Siin'', Dakar, Université de Dakar, 1987 " Kaabu was governed by the noble paternal ''"Sanneh"'' and ''"Manneh"'' clans (variations : ''Sane'' and ''Mane''), with the noble maternal clans of

Ñaanco The Nyancho (also spelled ''Nyantio'', '' Ñaanco'', ''Nyanthio'' or ''Nyanco'') were a royal maternal dynasty that ruled the West African empire of Kaabu. Origins The Nyancho's legendary origins begin with a Mandinka people, Mandinka woman nam ...

and Guelowar. However, almost all the kings of Kaabu came from the Ñaanco maternal clan. The Guelowars were extended maternal relatives of the Ñaanco and one of their greatest threat to the throne.

Migration to Serer regions

Henry Gravrand reported an oral tradition describing what he called the "Battle of Troubang", a dynastic war between the two maternal royal houses of Ñaanco and Guelowar, an offshoot and relatives of the ''

'' (''Nyanthio'' or ''Nyanco'') maternal dynasty of

, in modern-day

.Fage, J. D., Oliver, Roland Anthony, ''The Cambridge history of Africa'', p282, Cambridge University Press, 1975. Here Gravrand has not noticed that this is actually a description of the 1867 (or 1865)

Battle of Kansala The Battle of Kansala or Turban Keloo ( Mandinka for ''Annihilation war'') was the siege of the capital of the Kaabu federation in 1867 by the Imamate of Futa Jallon, allied with rebellious Fula people from Kaabu itself. The battle, which saw the ...

, although the departure of the Guelowar can probably be explained by a war or a conflict of succession. Whatever the reason, they left Kaabu c 1335. According to oral tradition they were a mixture of

, descendants of Mansa Tiramang Trawally (many variations: Tiramakhan Traore, ''Tira Makhang Trawally'', ''Tiramanghan Trawally'' or ''Tiramang Traore'') of

and the Bainuk nobility, from the patrilineages of ''Sanneh'' and ''Manneh'' (''Sané'' or ''Mané''). The Guelowars migrated to the

Kingdom of Sine The Kingdom of Sine (or Siin in Serer, variations: ''Sin'' or ''Siine'') was a post-classical Serer kingdom along the north bank of the Saloum River delta in modern Senegal. Toponymy and Demonym During the Guelowar Era the region was named a ...

and were granted asylum by The Great Council of Lamanes (the Serer nobility).Ngom, Biram,(

Babacar Sédikh Diouf Babacar Sedikh Diouf or Babacar Sédikh Diouf ( Serer: Babakar Sidiix Juuf, b. 1928Babacar Sedikh Diouf's body of works: Diouf, Babacar Sedikh, ''O maad a sinig : Kumba Ndoofeen fa Maak JUUF (Buka-Cilaas)'', 1853–1871 (PAPF, 1987) n Consortium ...

). ''La question Gelwaar et l’histoire du Siin'', Dakar, Université de Dakar, 1987, 69 p. The marriages between the Serer paternal clans such as Faye and Joof to the Guelwar women created the Serer paternal dynasties and a Guelowar maternal dynasty which replaced the old

Wagadou The Ghana Empire (), also known as simply Ghana, Ghanata, or Wagadu, was an ancient western-Sahelian empire based in the modern-day southeast of Mauritania and western Mali. It is uncertain among historians when Ghana's ruling dynasty began. T ...

maternal dynasty.

Maad a Sinig Maysa Wali Jaxateh Manneh Maad a Sinig Maysa Wali Jaxateh Manneh ( Serer proper : Maysa Waali Maane, many variations : Maysa Waaly Dione, Gravrand, Henry, "La Civilisation Sereer – ''Pangool''", vol.2, Les Nouvelles Editions Africaines du Senegal, (1990), P 344, ...

(many variations in spelling: ''Maissa Wali'', ''Maissa Wally'' also known as ''Maysa Wali Jon'' or ''Maysa Wali Dione'') - (reigned 1350) was the first Guelowar king of Sine post Troubang (1335). Having served for several years as legal advisor to The Great Council of Lamans and assimilated into Serer culture, he was elected and crowned the first Guelowar king of Sine in (1350).Sarr, Alioune, ''"Histoire du Sine-Saloum"'' (Sénégal), (introduction, bibliographie et notes par Charles Becker), in Bulletin de l'IFAN, tome 46, série B, nos 3-4, 1986–1987. p 19 His sisters and nieces were married off to the Serer nobility and the

offspring In biology, offspring are the young creation of living organisms, produced either by sexual reproduction, sexual or asexual reproduction. Collective offspring may be known as a brood or progeny. This can refer to a set of simultaneous offspring ...

of these unions where the kings of Sine and later

(

Maad a Sinig Maad a Sinig (variations : Mad a Sinig, 'Maad Sine, Maat Sine, Bour Sine, Bur Sine, etc.) means king of Sine. The ancient Kingdom of Sine, now part of Senegal, was a pre-colonial Serer kingdom . Their kings were titled ''Maad'' or ''Maad'' (als ...

and

Maad Saloum Maad Saloum (variations :Maad a Saloum, Mad Saloum, Maat Saloum, Bour Saloum, Bur Saloum, etc.) means king of Saloum, in the Serer language. The ancient Kingdom of Saloum now part of present-day Senegal was a pre-colonial Serer kingdom. Their ...

respectively). The mainstream view has been that Mandinka Guelowars of Kaabu conquered and subjugated the

Serer people The Serer people (''Serer language, Serer proper'': Seereer or Sereer) are a West African ethnoreligious groupGastellu, Jean-Marc, ''Petit traité de matrilinarité. L'accumulation dans deux sociétés rurales d'Afrique de l'Ouest'', Cahiers ORST ...

. Serer oral tradition speaks of no military conquest, but a union based on marriage; a marriage between the noble Guelowar maternal clan and the noble Serer paternal clans, the descendants of the old Serer Lamanic class. Almost all the kings of Sine and Saloum bore Serer

surname In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give ...

s not Mandinka. Maysa Wali's paternal descendants did not rule in Sine neither did they rule in Saloum. It was the paternal descendants of the ancient Serer Lamanic class who ruled. Serer language, culture, religion and tradition also prevailed in Sine and Saloum not Mandinka. The Guelowars were incorporated into Serer society and they saw themselves as Serers.Sarr, Alioune: ''Histoire du Sine-Saloum (Sénégal) . Introduction, bibliographie et notes par Charles Becker. Version légèrement remaniée par rapport à celle qui est parue en 1986-87. p 19''Ngom, Biram (

): ''La question Gelwaar et l’histoire du Siin'', Dakar, Université de Dakar, 1987, p 69 Although Wolof culture is also very strong in Saloum, just as Serer culture,

Wolof people The Wolof people () are a Niger-Congo peoples, Niger-Congo ethnic group native to the Senegambia, Senegambia region of West Africa. Senegambia is today split between western Senegal, northwestern the Gambia, Gambia and coastal Mauritania; the Wo ...

were migrants to the Serer

Kingdom of Saloum The Kingdom of Saloum (Serer language, Serer: ''Saluum'' or ''Saalum'') was a Serer people, Serer monarchy, kingdom in present-day Senegal and parts of Gambia. The precolonial capital was the city of Kahone. Re-established in 2017, Saloum is now ...

. The

was ethnically Serer. The Kingdom of Saloum was mixed, but the non-Serer population were migrants.

Senegambian kings from the Guelowar maternal clan

Some of the

Senegambian The Senegambia (other names: Senegambia region or Senegambian zone,Barry, Boubacar, ''Senegambia and the Atlantic Slave Trade'', (Editors: David Anderson, Carolyn Brown; trans. Ayi Kwei Armah; contributors: David Anderson, American Council of Le ...

kings belonging to the Guelowar maternal clan can be found below. ''Maad'' means king in Serer-Sine language.

and

means "king of Sine" and "king of Saloum" respectively. There are many variations in the spelling of ''Maad''. Sometimes it is spelled ''Mad'', ''Maat'', etc. ''Maad'' is also sometimes used interchangeably to refer to the ancient Serer kings – the

Lamane Lamane or laman (also laam or lam) means "master of the land" in the Serer language. The name was also sometimes the title of chiefs or kings of the Serer people of the Senegambia region which includes modern day Senegal and the Gambia. This title ...

s – who were the kings and

landed gentry The landed gentry, or the gentry (sometimes collectively known as the squirearchy), is a largely historical Irish and British social class of landowners who could live entirely from rental income, or at least had a country estate. It is t ...

.Ndiaye, Fata: La Saga du peuple Serere et L'Histoire du Sine. ''Ethiopiques n°54 revue semestrielle de culture négro-africaine'' Nouvelle série volume 7 2e semestre 1991

Kingdom of Sine

* Maad a Sinig Waagaan Tenin Jom Faye * Waagaan Kumbasaanjaan Faye * Laasuk Fanaan Faye * Maad a Sinig Sanmoon Faye * Maad a Sinig Niokhobaye Mane Nyan JoofNiokhobaye Diouf: ''Chronique du royaume du Sine. suivie de Notes sur les traditions orales et les sources écrites concernant le royaume du Sine.'' p 712-733 * Maad a Sinig Guejopal Mane Nyan Joof *

Maad a Sinig Kumba Ndoffene Famak Joof Maad a Signig Kumba Ndoffene Famak Joof ('' Serer:'' Maad a Sinig Kumba Ndoofeen fa Maak Juuf, born circa. 1810 – 23 August 1871) was the King of Sine in modern-day Senegal. The Serer title '' Maad a Sinig'' means king of Sine, that is, ...

, king of

(Reigned: 1853 - 1871) * Maad a Sinig Kumba Ndoffene Fa Ndeb Joof, king of Sine (Reigned: 1898 - 1924) * Maad a Sinig Mbackeh Kodu Njie (M'Backé Mak), king of Sine (Reigned: 1884 - 1885)Klein, Martin A: ''Islam and Imperialism in Senegal Sine-Saloum, 1847-1914.'' Edinburgh University Press (1968), p XV * Maad a Sinig Mahecor Joof, king of Sine (Reigned: 1924- 1969)

Kingdom of Saloum

* Maad Saloum Mbegan Ndour, king of

(Reigned: 1493)Ba, Abdou Bouri. Essai sur l’histoire du Saloum et du Rip. Avant-propos par Charles Becker et Victor Martin. Publié dans le ''Bulletin de l’Institut Fondamental d’Afrique Noire''. pp 10-27 * Maad Saloum Malaotan Joof, king of Saloum (Reigned: 1567) * Maad Saloum Balleh Njugou Ndaw (Ballé Khordia Ndao), king of Saloum (Reigned: 1825 - 1853) * Maad Saloum Bala Adam Njie, king of Saloum (Reigned: 1853 - 1856) * Maad Saloum Kumba N'Dama Mbodj, king of Saloum (Reigned: 1856 - 1859) * Maad Saloum Samba Laobeh Latsouka Faal, king of Saloum (Reigned: 1859 - 1864)

Kingdom of Cayor and Baol

* Damel Makodu Yandeh Mbarou Joof Faal, king of

Baol Baol or Bawol was a kingdom in what is now central Senegal. Founded in the 11th century, it was a vassal of the Jolof Empire before becoming independent in the mid-16th century. The ruler bore the title of Teigne (title), Teigne (or Teeň) and re ...

(

Teign The River Teign is a river in the county of Devon, England. It is long and rises on Dartmoor, becomes an estuary just below Newton Abbot and reaches the English Channel at Teignmouth. Toponymy The river-name ''Teign'' is first attested in an ...

) and of

Cayor The Cayor Kingdom (; ) was from 1549 to 1876 the largest and most powerful kingdom that split off from the Jolof Empire in what is now Senegal. The Cayor Kingdom was located in northern and central Senegal, southeast of Waalo, west of the kingdom ...

(

Damel Damel was the title of the ruler (or king) of the Wolof kingdom of Cayor in what is now northwest Senegal, West Africa. The most well-known ''damel'' is probably Lat Dior Diop (1842–1886) who was killed by the French after decades of resisting t ...

). Reigned: 1832 in Baol, 1860 - 1861 in

. Died in June 1863 at Saloum (the ancestral land of his mother).

Kingdom of Jolof

*Bourba Mbagne Pateh Penda Kumba Ngouille Joof Njie - (Mbagne Paaté Coumba N'Gouye Diouf Ndiaye), king of Jolof (Reigned: 1846). Killed at the Battle of Diakhabour (1846).Ndiaye Leyti, Oumar. ''Le Djoloff et ses Bourba''. (1966) *Bourba Biram Penda Kumba Ngouille Joof Njie - (Birame Penda Coumba N'Gouye Diouf Ndiaye), king of Jolof (Reigned: 1846). Assassinated in 1846.

Rest of Senegambia

*Mama Tamba Jammeh, king of Yilliyassa (in the

Gambia The Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. Geographically, The Gambia is the List of African countries by area, smallest country in continental Africa; it is surrounded by Senegal on all sides except for ...

), descendant of Lingeer Kaasa Mengeh (Kaasa Menge) of Saloum. Around the 17th century, there were three main branches of the Guelowar maternal clan in the Serer kingdoms. They were founded by three sisters. They were

Lingeer Lingeer (also: ''Linger'' or Linguère) was the title given to the mother or sister of a king in the Serer kingdoms of Sine, Saloum, and previously the Kingdom of Baol; and the Wolof kingdoms of Cayor, Jolof, Baol and Waalo in pre-colonial S ...

s (queens or princesses) whose names are used to refer to their maternal descendants. They include: :1. The Keway Begay clan (English spelling in

or ''Keve Bigui'' - French spelling in

) :2. The Horaja Begay clan (''Khoredia Bigui'' in Senegal) :3. The Jogop Begay clan (''Diogop Bigui'' in Senegal) The princes who belonged to these three maternal clans were engaged in several wars in Senegambia, in order to ensure the succession of their maternal clan. The Serer princes belonging to the clans Keway Begay and Jogop Begay were engaged in constant battles.Klein, Martin A: ''Islam and Imperialism in Senegal Sine-Saloum, 1847-1914.'' Edinburgh University Press (1968), pp 45, 75, 105, 157, 173

In popular culture

*''

Guelwaar ''Guelwaar'' is a 1993 French-Senegalese drama film written and directed by Ousmane Sembène. The name is borrowed from the Serer pre-colonial dynasty of Guelowar. The film won The President of the Italian Senate's Gold Medal at the 49th Ven ...

'', a film by

Ousmane Sembène Ousmane Sembène (; 1 January 1923 or 8 January 1923 – 9 June 2007), was a Senegalese film director, producer and writer. The ''Los Angeles Times'' considered him one of the greatest authors of Africa and he has often been called the "father o ...

(1992) which borrows the name.

Notes

{{Serer topics, state=collapsed Serer royalty Serer history Gambian noble families Senegalese noble families Former monarchies of Africa Former countries in Africa Serer families Lingeer