Hamallism
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Hamallayya or Hamallism is a
Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...
ṭarīqah (order, path) originating in West Africa as an outgrowth from and reaction against the
Tijaniyyah The Tijjani order () is a Sufi Tariqa, order of Sunni Islam named after Ahmad al-Tijani. It originated in Algeria but now more widespread in Maghreb, West Africa, particularly in Senegal, The Gambia, Gambia, Mauritania, Mali, Guinea, Niger, ...
brotherhood. It was founded at the beginning of the 20th century by a mystic Muhammad ben Amadu (d. 1909) of
Maure A Moor's head, also known as a Maure, since the 11th century, is a symbol depicting the head of a black moor. The term moor came to define anyone who was African and Muslim. Origin The precise origin of the Moor's head as a heraldic symbol is ...
and
Fulani The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people are an ethnic group in Sahara, Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. Inhabiting many countries, they live mainly in West Africa and northern parts of Central Africa, South Sudan, Darfur, ...
background, as reform movement of Tijaniyyah practice. Stressing opposition to hierarchy and downplaying the importance of education, the movement spread in the 1920s by Amadu's disciple
Shaykh Sheikh ( , , , , ''shuyūkh'' ) is an honorific title in the Arabic language, literally meaning "elder (administrative title), elder". It commonly designates a tribal chief or a Muslim ulama, scholar. Though this title generally refers to me ...
Hamahullah bin Muhammad bin Umar Shaykh Shekna Ahmeda Hamahullah ben Muhammad ben Seydina Umar (born 1882) was a Sufi Muslim religious leader, born in French Soudan (modern Mali) and died in France after being arrested and sent into exile in 1933 by the colonial government of Fren ...
(1886–1943) in what was then French Soudan, modern
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 ...
. It first took root amongst
Wolof Wolof or Wollof may refer to: * Wolof people, an ethnic group found in Senegal, Gambia, and Mauritania * Wolof language, a language spoken in Senegal, Gambia, and Mauritania * The Wolof or Jolof Empire, a medieval West African successor of the Mal ...
traders living in Nioro, but soon spread to servile caste Muslims in
Mauretania Mauretania (; ) is the Latin name for a region in the ancient Maghreb. It extended from central present-day Algeria to the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, encompassing northern present-day Morocco, and from the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean in the ...
and Mali.


Doctrine

Hammallist doctrinal changes from Tijaniyyah ritual included the removal of some recited references to the Prophet, rejecting
Qur'an The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation directly from God ('' Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which consist of individual verses ('). Besides ...
ic study, and the shouting of prayers in group worship. Hammallists tended to stress traditional West African ritual and the rejection of traditional hierarchies, including gender, age, and caste distinctions.John R. Hinnells (ed). ''A New Dictionary of Religions''. (1995)


Opposition and growth

Opposed to what it saw as the hierarchy of the then dominant Tijaniyyah order, Hamallism grew into a social protest movement, especially from poor or slave communities and opposed both the wealthy among African and the colonial government of
French West Africa French West Africa (, ) was a federation of eight French colonial empires#Second French colonial empire, French colonial territories in West Africa: Colonial Mauritania, Mauritania, French Senegal, Senegal, French Sudan (now Mali), French Guin ...
. From the 1920s to the 1940s, periodic flareups of Hamallist attributed protest and violence occurred in what is today Mali, Mauritania,
Burkina Faso Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa, bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Ivory Coast to the southwest. It covers an area of 274,223 km2 (105,87 ...
,
Côte d'Ivoire Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest city and ...
, and
Niger Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state Geography of Niger#Political geography, bordered by Libya to the Libya–Niger border, north-east, Chad to the Chad–Niger border, east ...
, and were suppressed by both the French authorities, and local Tijaniyyah leaders. Among the prominent converts to Hamallism were
Tierno Bokar Salif Tall Tierno Bokar (An honorific title meaning "master" ().), full name Tierno Bokar Saalif Tall (1875 – 1939), was a Malian Sufi mystic and a Muslim spiritual teacher of the early twentieth century famous for his message of religious tolerance and u ...
, grand nephew of the precolonial military and political leader of the Tijaniyya Jihad state El-Hadj Umar Tall, in Mali; and
Yacouba Sylla Yacouba Sylla (born 29 November 1990) is a professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for club Châteauroux. Born in France, he represented France as a youth international before switching to Mali at senior level. Club career ...
in Mauretania. Other notable adherents included Tierno Bokar, the teacher and spiritual leader of Amadou Hampate Ba. In Burkina Faso, Hamallism was especially present in the
Fulbe The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people are an ethnic group in Sahara, Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. Inhabiting many countries, they live mainly in West Africa and northern parts of Central Africa, South Sudan, Darfur, ...
Rimaibe (servile caste) communities into the 1950s.


Suppression and survival

Hamahullah bin Muhammad bin Umar was exiled by French authorities from Nioro to Mauretania in 1933 following clashes between his followers and local leaders,''UNESCO General History of Africa'', Vol. VIII: Africa Since 1935. Ali A. Mazrui, Christophe Wondji, Unesco International Scientific Committee for the Drafting of a General History of Africa, eds. University of California Press, (1999) pp.70-73 then to Côte d'Ivoire and finally France, but the movement survived his death in exile. The movement was eventually made illegal in
French West Africa French West Africa (, ) was a federation of eight French colonial empires#Second French colonial empire, French colonial territories in West Africa: Colonial Mauritania, Mauritania, French Senegal, Senegal, French Sudan (now Mali), French Guin ...
, but continued, especially among the rural poor. It remains a political and religious force in parts of eastern Mali and western Niger, where it took root in traditional
Tuareg The Tuareg people (; also spelled Twareg or Touareg; endonym, depending on variety: ''Imuhaɣ'', ''Imušaɣ'', ''Imašeɣăn'' or ''Imajeɣăn'') are a large Berber ethnic group, traditionally nomadic pastoralists, who principally inhabit th ...
servile cast communities, called Bellah. Followers still numbered 50,000 in Mali by the 1970s.


References

*Samuel Decalo. ''Historical Dictionary of Niger'' (3rd ed.). Scarecrow Press, Boston & Folkestone, (1997) p. 158 *Christopher Harrison. ''France and Islam in West Africa, 1860-1960''. Cambridge University Press, (2003) passim, but especially pp. 137–183. {{Islam in Senegal Sufi orders Islam in Senegal French West Africa Islam in Niger Islam in Mali Islam in Burkina Faso Islam in Mauritania Sufism in Africa