Abdul Bokar Kan (died 1891) was the de facto ruler of the upper part of the

Imamate of Futa Toro The Imamate of Futa Toro () (1776-1861) was a West African theocratic monarchy of the Fula-speaking people (''Fulɓe'' and Toucouleurs) in the middle valley of the Senegal River. The region is known as Futa Toro. Origins Futa Toro is a strip ...

in the late nineteenth century. This included parts of what are now

Mauritania Mauritania (; ar, موريتانيا, ', french: Mauritanie; Berber: ''Agawej'' or ''Cengit''; Pulaar: ''Moritani''; Wolof: ''Gànnaar''; Soninke:), officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania ( ar, الجمهورية الإسلامية ...

and

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 � ...

along both banks of the

Senegal River ,french: Fleuve Sénégal) , name_etymology = , image = Senegal River Saint Louis.jpg , image_size = , image_caption = Fishermen on the bank of the Senegal River estuary at the outskirts of Saint-Louis, Senegal ...

. After his death, the French colonial powers took full control of the territory. Abdul Bokar Kan was the head of the Booseya clan of Futa Toro. He formed an alliance with Muhammad wul Hayba, the head of the Awlād A'li of the Gorgol region. The ''

almami Almami ( ar, المامي; Also: Almamy, Almaami) was the regnal title of Tukulor monarchs from the eighteenth century through the first half of the twentieth century. It is derived from the Arabic Al-Imam, meaning "the leader", and it has since ...

'' of Futa Toro at that time was Abdul Boubakar, but his power was nominal. In June 1864 the Moors and Booseya Fula collaborated in plundering trade barges that had become stranded near Saldé, drawing savage French reprisals against both groups. After Amadu Toro died, the lower part of Futa Toro was safe for French river traffic. Abdul Bokar Kan was the de facto ruler of the upper Futa. He had eliminated Tierno Brahin, one of his rivals, in 1869. The Wan family, led by Ibra Almami, rivalled his power in the lower part of Futa Toro, but in the upper part he had gained full power. The French generally encouraged Abdul Bokar Kan and other Futa Toro strongmen when they attacked caravans in the region, since they hoped that would discourage migration away from the region to

Kaarta Kaarta, or Ka'arta, was a short-lived Bambara kingdom in what is today the western half of Mali. As Bitòn Coulibaly tightened his control over Ségou, capital of his newly founded Bambara Empire, a faction of Ségou Bambara dissatisfied with h ...

. Under growing pressure from the French colonial power in Senegambia, Abdul Bokar Kan did what he could to protect his land, income and power in Futa Toro through diplomatic means. In 1890 the French military embarked on a campaign to eliminate the last remaining autonomous states. Abdul Bokar fled, but was assassinated by the Moors. Abdul Bokar died in Mauritania in August 1891.

Notes and references

Notes Citations Sources * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bokar Kan, Abdul Year of birth missing 1891 deaths Fula people