A griot (; ;
Manding: jali or jeli (in
N'Ko
N'Ko () is a script devised by Solomana Kante in 1949, as a modern writing system for the Mandé languages of West Africa. The term ''N'Ko'', which means ''I say'' in all Mandé languages, is also used for the Mandé literary standard written i ...
: , ''djeli'' or ''djéli'' in French spelling);
Serer: kevel or kewel / okawul;
Wolof: gewel) is a
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, M ...
n historian, storyteller, praise singer, poet, and/or musician.
The griot is a repository of
oral tradition
Oral tradition, or oral lore, is a form of human communication wherein knowledge, art, ideas and cultural material is received, preserved, and transmitted orally from one generation to another. Vansina, Jan: ''Oral Tradition as History'' (1985) ...
and is often seen as a leader due to their position as an advisor to
royal personages. As a result of the former of these two functions, they are sometimes called
bards. They also act as
mediators in disputes.
Occurrence and naming
Many griots today live in many parts of West Africa and are present among the
Mande peoples (
Mandinka or
Malinké
The Mandinka or Malinke are a West African ethnic group primarily found in southern Mali, the Gambia and eastern Guinea. Numbering about 11 million, they are the largest subgroup of the Mandé peoples and one of the largest ethnic-linguistic g ...
,
Bambara,
Soninke etc.),
Fulɓe
The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people ( ff, Fulɓe, ; french: Peul, links=no; ha, Fulani or Hilani; pt, Fula, links=no; wo, Pël; bm, Fulaw) are one of the largest ethnic groups in the Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region ...
(
Fula
Fula may refer to:
*Fula people (or Fulani, Fulɓe)
*Fula language (or Pulaar, Fulfulde, Fulani)
**The Fula variety known as the Pulaar language
**The Fula variety known as the Pular language
**The Fula variety known as Maasina Fulfulde
*Al-Fula ...
),
Hausa
Hausa may refer to:
* Hausa people, an ethnic group of West Africa
* Hausa language, spoken in West Africa
* Hausa Kingdoms, a historical collection of Hausa city-states
* Hausa (horse) or Dongola horse, an African breed of riding horse
See also
...
,
Songhai,
Tukulóor,
Wolof,
Serer,
Unesco
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
. Regional Office for Education in Africa, ''Educafrica, Numéro 11'', (ed. Unesco, Regional Office for Education in Africa, 1984), p. 110[Hale, Thomas Albert, ''Griots and Griottes: Masters of Words and Music'', Indiana University Press (1998), p. 176, ] Mossi,
Dagomba,
Mauritanian Arabs, and many other smaller groups. There are other griots who have left their home country for another such as the United States or France and still maintain their role as griots.
The word may derive from the
French transliteration ''"''guiriot''"'' of the
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
word ''"''criado''"'', or the masculine singular term for "servant." Griots are more predominant in the northern portions of West Africa.
In African languages, griots are referred to by a number of names: jeli in northern Mande areas, jali in southern Mande areas, guewel in
Wolof, kevel or kewel or okawul in
Serer,
gawlo in
Pulaar (Fula), iggawen in
Hassaniyan, arokin in
Yoruba
The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute ...
, and diari or gesere in
Soninke.
Terms: "griot" and "jali"
The
Manding term ''jeliya'' (meaning "musicianhood") sometimes refers to the knowledge of griots, indicating the
hereditary nature of the class. ''Jali'' comes from the
root word ''jali'' or ''djali'' (blood). This is also the title given to griots in regions within the former
Mali Empire. Though the term "griot" is more common in English, some, such as poet
Bakari Sumano, prefer the term ''jeli''.
Role
Griots are an ethnic group, which have the main responsibility for keeping stories of the individual tribes and families alive in the
oral tradition
Oral tradition, or oral lore, is a form of human communication wherein knowledge, art, ideas and cultural material is received, preserved, and transmitted orally from one generation to another. Vansina, Jan: ''Oral Tradition as History'' (1985) ...
, with the narrative accompanied by a musical instrument. They are an essential part of many West African events such as weddings where they sing and share family history of the bride and groom. It is also their role settle disputes and act as
mediator in case of conflicts. Respect for and familiarity with the Griot meant that they could approach both parties without being attacked, and initiate peace negotiations between the hostile parties.
Griots form an
endogamous
Endogamy is the practice of marrying within a specific social group, religious denomination, caste, or ethnic group, rejecting those from others as unsuitable for marriage or other close personal relationships.
Endogamy is common in many cultu ...
caste, meaning that most of them only marry fellow griots and those who are not griots do not typically perform the same functions that griots perform.
Francis Bebey writes about the griot in ''African Music, A People's Art'':
"The West African griot is a troubadour, the counterpart of the medieval European minstrel... The griot knows everything that is going on... He is a living archive of the people's traditions... The virtuoso talents of the griots command universal admiration. This virtuosity is the culmination of long years of study and hard work under the tuition of a teacher who is often a father or uncle. The profession is by no means a male prerogative. There are many women griots whose talents as singers and musicians are equally remarkable."
In the Mali Empire
The
Mali Empire (
Malinke Empire), at its height in the middle of the 14th century, extended from
central Africa
Central Africa is a subregion of the African continent comprising various countries according to different definitions. Angola, Burundi, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of the Congo ...
(today's
Chad and
Niger
)
, official_languages =
, languages_type = National languages[Mali
Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mal ...](_blank)
and
Senegal
Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...
). The empire was founded by
Sundiata Keita, whose exploits remain celebrated in Mali today. In the ''
Epic of Sundiata
''Sunjata'' [] (also referred to as ''Sundiata'' or ''Son-Jara'') is an epic poem of the Malinke people that tells the story of the hero Sundiata Keita (died 1255), the founder of the Mali Empire. The epic is an instance of oral tradition, goin ...
'',
Naré Maghann Konaté offered his son
Sundiata Keita a griot,
Balla Fasséké, to advise him in his reign. Balla Fasséké is considered the founder of the
Kouyaté line of griots that exists to this day.
Each
aristocratic
Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'.
At the time of the word' ...
family of griots accompanied a higher-ranked family of warrior-kings or emperors, called ''jatigi''. In traditional culture, no griot can be without a ''jatigi'', and no ''jatigi'' can be without a griot. However, the ''jatigi'' can loan his griot to another jatigi.
Most villages also had their own griot, who told tales of births, deaths, marriages, battles, hunts, affairs, and many other things.
In Mande society
In many
Mande societies, the ''jeli'' was a historian, advisor, arbitrator, praise singer (patronage), and storyteller. They essentially served as history books, preserving ancient stories and traditions through song. Their tradition was passed down through generations. The name ''jeli'' means "blood" in
Manika language. They were believed to have deep connections to spiritual, social, or political powers. Speech was believed to have power in its capacity to recreate history and relationships.
Despite the authority of griots and the perceived power of their songs, griots are not treated as positively in West Africa as we may imagine. Thomas A. Hale wrote, "Another
eason for ambivalence towards griots Eason is a surname.
The name comes from Aythe where the first recorded spelling of the family name is that of Aythe Filius Thome which was dated circa 1630, in the "Baillie of Stratherne". Aythe ''filius'' Thome received a charter of the lands of F ...
is an ancient tradition that marks them as a separate people categorized all too simplistically as members of a 'caste', a term that has come under increasing attack as a distortion of the social structure in the region. In the worst case, that difference meant burial for griots in trees rather than in the ground in order to avoid polluting the earth (Conrad and Frank 1995:4-7). Although these traditions are changing, griots and people of griot heritage still find it difficult to marry outside of their social group." This discrimination is now deemed illegal.
Musical instruments used by griots
In addition to being singers and social commentators, griots are often skilled instrumentalists. Their instruments include the
kora, the
khalam
Xalam (in Serer, or khalam in Wolof) is a traditional stringed musical instrument from West Africa with 1-5 strings.
The xalam is commonly played in Mali, Gambia, Senegal, Niger, Northern Nigeria, Northern Ghana, Burkina Faso, Mauritania, and ...
(or
xalam
Xalam (in Serer, or khalam in Wolof) is a traditional stringed musical instrument from West Africa with 1-5 strings.
The xalam is commonly played in Mali, Gambia, Senegal, Niger, Northern Nigeria, Northern Ghana, Burkina Faso, Mauritania, and ...
), the
goje
The goje (the Hausa name for the instrument) is one of the many names for a variety of one or two-stringed fiddles from West Africa, almost exclusively played by ethnic groups inhabiting the Sahel and Sudan sparsely vegetated grassland belts lea ...
(or n'ko in the Mandinka language), the
balafon
The balafon is a gourd-resonated xylophone, a type of struck idiophone. It is closely associated with the neighbouring Mandé, Senoufo and Gur peoples of West Africa, particularly the Guinean branch of the Mandinka ethnic group, but is now f ...
, the
junjung
A junjung (or variously ''jung-jung'', ''gungun'', ''dyoung-dyoung'' etc.) is the royal war drum of the Serer people in Senegal and the Gambia. It was played on the way to the battlefield, on special state occasions as well as on Serer religio ...
, and the
ngoni.
The kora is a long-necked
lute-like instrument with 21 strings. The xalam is a variation of the kora, and usually consists of fewer than five strings. Both have
gourd
Gourds include the fruits of some flowering plant species in the family Cucurbitaceae, particularly ''Cucurbita'' and '' Lagenaria''. The term refers to a number of species and subspecies, many with hard shells, and some without. One of the ear ...
bodies that act as
resonator
A resonator is a device or system that exhibits resonance or resonant behavior. That is, it naturally oscillates with greater amplitude at some frequencies, called resonant frequencies, than at other frequencies. The oscillations in a resonator ...
. The ngoni is also similar to these two instruments, with five or six strings. The balafon is a wooden
xylophone
The xylophone (; ) is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars struck by mallets. Like the glockenspiel (which uses metal bars), the xylophone essentially consists of a set of tuned wooden keys arranged in ...
, while the goje is a stringed instrument played with a
bow, much like a
fiddle.
According to the ''
Encyclopædia Britannica
The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various t ...
'': "West African plucked lutes such as the ''konting'', ''khalam'', and the ''nkoni'' (which was noted by Ibn Baṭṭūṭah in 1353) may have originated in ancient Egypt. The ''khalam'' is claimed to be the ancestor of the banjo. Another long-necked lute is the ''ramkie'' of South Africa."
Griots also wrote stories that children enjoyed listening to. These stories were passed down to their children.
Griots in present day
Today, performing is one of the most common functions of a griot. Their range of exposure has widened, and many griots now travel internationally to sing and play the kora or other instruments.
Bakari Sumano, head of the Association of
Bamako
Bamako ( bm, ߓߡߊ߬ߞߐ߬ ''Bàmakɔ̌'', ff, 𞤄𞤢𞤥𞤢𞤳𞤮 ''Bamako'') is the capital and largest city of Mali, with a 2009 population of 1,810,366 and an estimated 2022 population of 2.81 million. It is located on the Niger Rive ...
Griots in
Mali
Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mal ...
from 1994 to 2003, was an internationally known advocate for the significance of the griot in West African society.
In popular culture
Film and theater
*In the 2018
Marvel Studios movie ''
Black Panther'' and its 2022 sequel ''
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever'', Princess
Shuri creates an
artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence (AI) is intelligence—perceiving, synthesizing, and inferring information—demonstrated by machines, as opposed to intelligence displayed by animals and humans. Example tasks in which this is done include speech r ...
assistant named Griot that is voiced by
Trevor Noah
Trevor Noah (born 20 February 1984) is a South African-born comedian, writer, producer, political commentator, actor, and former television host. He was the host of ''The Daily Show'', an American late-night talk show and satirical news progra ...
.
*
Camille Yarbrough
Camille Yarbrough (born January 8, 1938) is an American musician, dancer, actress, poet, activist, television producer, and author.
She is best known for the song "Take Yo' Praise", which Fatboy Slim sampled in his 1998 track "Praise You". "Ta ...
wrote a play called ''Tales and Tunes of an'' ''African American Griot'' that was performed at
La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club in 1973.
*In ''
Guimba the Tyrant'' (1995), a
Mali
Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mal ...
an film directed by
Cheick Oumar Sissoko
Cheick Oumar Sissoko (born 1945 in San, Mali) is a Malian film director and politician.
Biography
As a student in Paris, Cheick Oumar Sissoko obtained a DEA in African History and Sociology and a diploma in History and Cinema from the Ecole ...
, the village griot is a storyteller and provides
comic relief
Comic relief is the inclusion of a humorous character, scene, or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious work, often to relieve tension.
Definition
Comic relief usually means a releasing of emotional or other tension resulting from a comic epis ...
.
*''I was born as a Djeli'' (2007) is a French
documentary written by Gwenaelle de Kergommeaux and Olivier Janin and directed by Cédric Condom.
*''
Night of the Kings
''Night of the Kings'' (french: La Nuit des rois) is a feature drama/fantasy film directed by Philippe Lacôte and released in 2020. The film is produced by Delphine Jaquet (Banshee Films, France), Yanick Letourneau (Peripheria, Canada), Ernes ...
'' (2020) is an
Ivory Coast film directed by Philippe Lacôte which pays tribute to the tradition of the griot.
*In the Senegalese short film ''
Borom Sarret
''Borom Sarret'' or ''The Wagoner'' () is a 1963 film by Senegalese director Ousmane Sembène, the first film over which he had full control. It is often called the first film (or first narrative film) made in Africa by an African; the first "pro ...
'' (1963), written and directed by
Ousmane Sembène
Ousmane Sembène (; 1 January 1923 or 8 January 1923 – 9 June 2007), often credited in the French style as Sembène Ousmane in articles and reference works, was a Senegalese film director, producer and writer. The ''Los Angeles Times'' consider ...
and widely considered the first film made by a Black African in Africa, the protagonist gives his earnings to a griot for a momentary escape from the harsh reality of poverty.
Music
* "Griot" is the name of an instrumental track on
Jon Hassell
Jon Hassell (March 22, 1937 – June 26, 2021) was an American trumpet player and composer. He was best known for developing the concept of "Fourth World" music, which describes a "unified primitive/futurist sound" combining elements of various ...
and
Brian Eno's 1980 album ''
Possible Musics''.
*"The Griot" is a track written and arranged by
Armand Sabal-Lecco
Armand Sabal-Lecco is a Cameroonian bass guitarist, composer and multi-instrumentalist best known for playing bass-guitar on Paul Simon's The Rhythm of the Saint's tour in 1989. Sabal-Lecco has worked with Paul Simon, the Brecker Brothers, Herbi ...
on
John Patitucci
John Patitucci (born December 22, 1959) is an American jazz bassist and composer.
Biography
John James Patitucci was born in Brooklyn, New York. When he was 12, he bought his first bass and decided on his career. He listened to bass parts in R ...
's 1993 album ''
Another World''.
*''
Innercity Griots
''Innercity Griots'' is the second studio album by American hip hop group Freestyle Fellowship. It was released on April 28, 1993 on 4th & B'way Records and distributed through Island Records.
Critical reception
Nathan Bush of AllMusic gave the ...
'' (1993) is the second album by Los Angeles
hip hop group
Freestyle Fellowship
Freestyle Fellowship is an American hip hop group from Los Angeles, California. It consists of Aceyalone, Myka 9, P.E.A.C.E., and Self Jupiter. The group was a prominent part of the Good Life Cafe collective, and are part of the Project Blowed co ...
, released through
4th & B'way Records
4th & B'way Records (pronounced and spelled out completely as Fourth and Broadway Records in the UK) is a US-based subsidiary of Island Records that specialised in street-oriented music such as hip hop. Established in 1984, it was the flagshi ...
. The group consists of four emcees:
Aceyalone
Edwin Maximilian "Eddie" Hayes, Jr. (born September 30, 1970), better known by his stage name Aceyalone, is an American rapper from Los Angeles, California, United States. He is a member of Freestyle Fellowship, Haiku D'Etat and The A-Team. He is ...
, P.E.A.C.E.,
Mikah 9
Michael Lafayette Troy (born January 15, 1969), better known by his stage name Myka 9, is a rapper from Los Angeles, California. He is a member of Freestyle Fellowship, Haiku d'Etat and Magic Heart Genies. Known for years as Mikah Nine, he chang ...
, and
Self Jupiter. They received worldwide acclaim with this second project. Released during the
gangsta
Gangsta may refer to:
Urban culture
* Gangsta rap, a subgenre of hip hop music that evolved from hardcore hip hop and purports to reflect urban crime and the violent lifestyles of inner-city youths
* Gangster, a member of a gang
* Hip hop fashi ...
era of
West Coast hip hop
West Coast hip hop is a regional genre of hip hop music that encompasses any artists or music that originated in the West Coast region of the United States. West Coast hip hop began to dominate from a radio play and sales standpoint during the e ...
, ''Innercity Griots'', along with albums such as
The Pharcyde
The Pharcyde (currently known as The Far Side) is an American alternative hip hop group, formed in 1989, from South Central Los Angeles. The original four members of the group are Imani (Emandu Wilcox), Slimkid3 (Trevant Hardson), Bootie Brown ...
's ''
Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde
''Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde'' is the debut album by American hip hop collective The Pharcyde, released on November 24, 1992, through the Delicious Vinyl and EastWest labels. The album was produced by former group member J-Swift, and feat ...
'' and
Del tha Funkee Homosapien
Teren Delvon Jones (born August 12, 1972), better known by his stage name Del the Funky Homosapien (sometimes stylized as Del tha Funkee Homosapien) or Sir DZL, is an American rapper.
Music career 1988–1997: Early life and beginnings
Born in O ...
's ''
I Wish My Brother George Was Here
''I Wish My Brother George Was Here'' is the debut solo studio album by American hip hop musician Del the Funky Homosapien. It was released by Elektra Records in 1991. It peaked at number 24 on the ''Billboard'' Heatseekers Albums chart, as well a ...
'', established an era of
alternative hip hop in
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
.
*"Tale of a Griot" is the 15th song on the album ''
Unforeseen Shadows'' by American hip hop artist
Illogic
Jawhar Glass (born January 18, 1980), better known by his stage name Illogic, is an American indie hip hop artist from Columbus, Ohio.Mills, BradIllogic Biography, Allmusic, retrieved 2011-06-05 He has collaborated with many artists—particu ...
on 1 January 2000.
* "Griot" is the first song on the album ''Rubber Orchestras'' by Trinidadian poet and musician
Anthony Joseph
Anthony Joseph (born 12 November 1966 in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago) is a British/Trinidadian poet, novelist, musician and academic.
Biography
Joseph was born in Port of Spain, Trinidad, where he was raised by his grandparents. He b ...
and
The Spasm Band.
*''
From Filthy Tongue of Gods and Griots'' is the second studio album by New Jersey experimental hip-hop outfit
Dälek
Dälek () (stylized in all lowercase) is an American experimental hip hop group formed in Newark, New Jersey in 1998. The group's current lineup consists of MC dälek (vocals and producer) and Mike Manteca (aka Mike Mare) (electronics and prod ...
(2002).
*''
The Griot's Footsteps'' (
Antilles
The Antilles (; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Antiy; es, Antillas; french: Antilles; nl, Antillen; ht, Antiy; pap, Antias; Jamaican Patois: ''Antiliiz'') is an archipelago bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the south and west, the Gulf of Mex ...
/
Verve Records) is an album by
cornetist
The cornet (, ) is a brass instrument similar to the trumpet but distinguished from it by its conical bore, more compact shape, and mellower tone quality. The most common cornet is a transposing instrument in B, though there is also a sopra ...
and composer
Graham Haynes
Graham Haynes (born September 16, 1960 in Brooklyn, New York) is an American cornetist, trumpeter and composer. The son of jazz drummer Roy Haynes, Graham is known for his work in nu jazz, fusing jazz with elements of hip hop and electronic music ...
.
* "The Soul Of The Griot" is a track on the
Jamael Dean's 2020 album ''Ished Tree''.
Literature
*
Alex Haley's 1976 novel ''
Roots
A root is the part of a plant, generally underground, that anchors the plant body, and absorbs and stores water and nutrients.
Root or roots may also refer to:
Art, entertainment, and media
* ''The Root'' (magazine), an online magazine focusing ...
'' references a griot who passed down his family history through the oral tradition. When Haley traces his history, passing from his previous generation through the slave time, back to Africa, he thought there should be griots telling his history and the history of his ancestor, known in the family as "The African", who was captured in the bushes as he was seeking timber to make a
talking drum
The talking drum is an hourglass-shaped drum from West Africa, whose pitch can be regulated to mimic the tone and prosody of human speech. It has two drumheads connected by leather tension cords, which allow the player to change the pitc ...
. When Haley arrived in Africa to do research for his book, he believed he had found griots telling his history. Through them, he learned the ancestor's identity:
Kunta Kinte
Kunta Kinte ( – ; ) is a character in the 1976 novel '' Roots: The Saga of an American Family'' by American author Alex Haley. Kunta Kinte was based on one of Haley's ancestors, a Gambian man who was born around 1750, enslaved, and taken to ...
. Since he first heard the story from his grandmother and then from his older cousin, he believed that these family members were griots themselves until someone put the story to writing. He later learned that his cousin had died within an hour of his arrival at the village. This story also illustrates the complexities of
oral tradition
Oral tradition, or oral lore, is a form of human communication wherein knowledge, art, ideas and cultural material is received, preserved, and transmitted orally from one generation to another. Vansina, Jan: ''Oral Tradition as History'' (1985) ...
, particularly when approached without expert knowledge. In 1981, it was shown by Donald Wright that the story of Kunta Kinte had been manufactured by a well-wisher. Following the publication of ''Roots'', this story was being told in multiple versions with various embellishments.
*In
Lawrence Hill
Lawrence Hill (born January 24, 1957) is a Canadian novelist, essayist, and memoirist. He is known for his 2007 novel '' The Book of Negroes,'' inspired by the Black Loyalists given freedom and resettled in Nova Scotia by the British after the ...
's novel
''The Book of Negroes'' (2007), the main character Aminata Diallo becomes a jeli.
*The
Ivorian writer
Ahmadou Kourouma
Ahmadou Kourouma (24 November 1927 – 11 December 2003) was an Ivorian novelist.
Life
The eldest son of a distinguished Malinké family, Ahmadou Kourouma was born in 1927 in Boundiali, Côte d'Ivoire. Raised by his uncle, he initially pursue ...
's novel ''Waiting for the Wild Beasts to Vote'' takes the form of a praise-song by the Sora, the griot, Bingo to the president-dictator of the fictitious République du Golfe. His final novel, ''Allah is not Obliged'', prominently features a griot.
*In
Paule Marshall
Paule Marshall (April 9, 1929 – August 12, 2019) was an American writer, best known for her 1959 debut novel '' Brown Girl, Brownstones''. In 1992, at the age of 63, Marshall was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship grant.
Life and career
Marshall wa ...
's ''
Praisesong for the Widow'' (1983), the protagonist Avatara (Avey) takes on some characteristics of a griot, particularly in her commitment to passing on her aunt's oral story of the
Igbo Landing to her grandchildren. In this story, Africans brought to the
Sea Islands
The Sea Islands are a chain of tidal and barrier islands on the Atlantic Ocean coast of the Southeastern United States. Numbering over 100, they are located between the mouths of the Santee and St. Johns Rivers along the coast of South Caroli ...
to be enslaved turned around and walked back to Africa over the water.
* Malian novelist
Massa Makan Diabaté
Massa Makan Diabaté (June 12, 1938 – January 27, 1988) was a Malian historian, author, and playwright.
Biography
Born in 1938 in Kita, Massa Makan Diabaté was the descendant of a long line of West African poets (griots). His uncle, Kélé ...
was a descendant and critic of the griot tradition. Though Diabaté argued that griots "no longer exist" in the classic sense, he believed the tradition could be salvaged through literature. His fiction and plays blend traditional
Mandinka storytelling and
idiom with
Western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
literary forms.
Visual art
* Beninese artist
Pélagie Gbaguidi refers to herself as a contemporary griot, and works to unveil suppressed colonial and post-colonial West African histories with her art.
* Neo-expressionist artist
Jean-Michel Basquiat produced a series of paintings in 1984 which prominently feature griots, including '
Flexible
Flexible may refer to:
Science and technology
* Power cord, a flexible electrical cable.
** Flexible cable, an Electrical cable as used on electrical appliances
* Flexible electronics
* Flexible response
* Flexible-fuel vehicle
* Flexible rake re ...
', 'Gold Griot', and '
Sabado por la Noche'.
Notable griots
Burkina Faso
*
Sotigui Kouyaté
Sotigui Kouyaté (19 July 1936 – 17 April 2010) was one of the first Malian, Burkinabé actors. He was the father of film director Dani Kouyaté, of the storyteller Hassane Kassi Kouyaté and of the actor Mabô Kouyaté
and was a member of th ...
*
Dani Kouyate
Dani may refer to:
People
* Dani people, a people living in the central highlands of West Papua
* Dani (surname), a surname
* Danes (Germanic tribe), a tribe in southern Scandinavia
* Dani (footballer, born 1951) (Daniel Ruiz-Bazán Justa), Spa ...
*
Baba Kienou
*
Amadou Kienou
Amadou is a spongy material derived from ''Fomes fomentarius'' and similar fungi that grow on the bark of coniferous and angiosperm trees, and have the appearance of a horse's hoof (thus the name "hoof fungus"). It is also known as the "tinder f ...
Côte d'Ivoire
*
Tiken Jah Fakoly
Doumbia Moussa Fakoly (born June 23, 1968 in Odienné), better known by his stage name Tiken Jah Fakoly (), is an Ivorian reggae singer and songwriter.
Early life
Doumbia Moussa Fakoly was born on 23 June 1968 in Odienné, Kabadougou Region, nor ...
(
Odienné)
Gambia
*
Lamin Saho
*
Foday Musa Suso
Foday Musa Suso (born 9 December 1953, in Sarre Hamadi, Wuli District, in the Upper River Division of The Gambia) is a Gambian musician and composer. He is a member of the Mandinka ethnic group, and is a griot. Griots are the oral historians ...
*
Malamini Jobarteh
*
Yan Kuba Saho
*
Papa Susso
Alhaji Papa Susso (Suntu) is a griot or jeli, master kora player, and director of the Koriya Musa Center for Research in Oral Tradition. He was born 29 September 1947, in the village of Sotuma Sere in the Upper River Division of The Republic of ...
*
Musa Ngum
Musa Ngum (or Musa Afia Ngum, also spelled as "Moussa Ngom"; born 1953 in Fatoto, Kantora District in the Upper River Division, The Gambia; died 11 October 2015 at the Dantec Hospital ( Fr.: ''Hôpital Aristide Le Dantec''), Dakar, Senegal) was a ...
*
Bai Konte
*
Amadu Bansang Jobarteh
*
Dembo Konte Dembo is a surname, and may refer to:
* António Dembo, Angolan leader of UNITA
* Fennis Dembo, American basketball player
* Isaac Dembo, Russian-Jewish physician
* Leonard Dembo, Zimbabwean guitar-band musician
* Richard Dembo, French directo ...
*
Jaliba Kuyateh
Jaliba Kuyateh is a Gambian musician. He is known internationally as the "King of Kora." His music mixes traditional kora beats with modern pop music and is often referred to as "kora pop". Kuyateh is a former school teacher, a resident of Brikama, ...
*
Jali Nyama Suso
Jali Nyama Suso (circa 1925–1991) was a kora player from Gambia. He had a program on Radio Gambia for 20 years. He had his first album in 1971 while he was teaching at the University of Washington. In the 1980s he toured in England, France, Ge ...
*
Alhaji Dodou Nying Koliyandeh[Sonko-Godwin, Patience, ''Trade in the Senegambia Region: From the 12th to the Early 20th Century'', Sunrise Publishers, 2004, ]
Ghana
* Osei Korankye
Guinea
*
Ba Cissoko
*
Djeli Moussa Diawara or Jali Musa Jawara
*
Mory Kante Mory is the name or part of the name of three communes of France:
* Mory, Pas-de-Calais in the Pas-de-Calais ''département''
* Mory-Montcrux in the Oise ''département''
* Mitry-Mory in the Seine-et-Marne ''département''
Mory is also the name of t ...
*
N'Faly Kouyate
Guinea Bissau
* Nino Galissa
* Buli Galissa
Mali
*
Abdoulaye Diabaté
*
Baba Sissoko
*
Ballaké Sissoko
Ballaké Sissoko (born 1968) is a Malian player of the kora. He has worked with Toumani Diabaté and Taj Mahal, and is a member of the group 3MA with Driss El Maloumi and Rajery.
Biography
Ballaké's father, Djelimady Sissoko, was a notable mus ...
*
Bako Dagnon
*
Balla Tounkara Balla Tounkara is a kora player and singer from Mali.
He was born in Mali into a family of ''griot''s, who traditionally played music to the kings of the Malian Empire in their royal court. He started to learn the kora as a child.
Tounkara has r ...
*
Cheick Hamala Diabaté
*
Djelimady Tounkara
Djelimady Tounkara is a Malian musician and one of the foremost guitarists in Africa.
Life and career
Born in the culturally rich town of Kita, west of the Malian capital, Bamako, Djelimady grew up surrounded with traditional music played by mem ...
*
Habib Koité
Habib Koité ( bm, , Habib Kuwatɛ, born 1958 in Thiès, Senegal) is a Malian musician, singer, songwriter and griot based in Mali. His band, Bamada, was a supergroup of West African musicians, which included Kélétigui Diabaté on balafon ...
*
Mamadou Diabaté
Mamadou Diabaté (born 1975) is a Malian musician known for his work with the kora. He began playing quite early in his life, became known as a musician in the area of Mali in which he lived, and has since moved to the United States, recording s ...
* Sara M'Bodji
*
Sidiki Diabaté
*
Bassekou Kouyaté
*
Toumani Diabaté
Toumani Diabaté ( ; born 10 August 1965) is a Malian kora player. In addition to performing the traditional music of Mali, he has also been involved in cross-cultural collaborations with flamenco, blues, jazz, and other international styles. ...
* Babani Konkistatu ne
Mauritania
*
Dimi Mint Abba
*
Malouma
Malouma Mint El Meidah ( ar, المعلومة منت الميداح, al-Maʿlūma Mint al-Maydāḥ), also simply Maalouma or Malouma (; born October 1, 1960), is a Mauritanian singer, songwriter and politician. Raised in the south-west of the ...
*
Noura Mint Seymali
Noura Mint Seymali is a Mauritanian griot, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist.
Early life
Noura Mint Seymali was born in Mauritania to parents Dimi Mint Abba and Seymali Ould Ahmed Vall. Both parents were important musical figures in Mauri ...
Nigeria
*
Dan Maraya Jos
*
Muhamman Shata
Alhaji (Dr) Mamman Shata (born in 1900 in Musawa, Katsina State, Nigeria, died on 18 June 1999) was a Nigerian singer.
He was a well-known griot/musician among the Hausa people of West Africa. His vocals were often accompanied by talking drums, ...
Niger
*
Etran Finatawa
*
Yacouba Moumouni
Yacouba Moumouni is a Nigerien singer and flautist. As the leader of the jazz-ethnic
An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other grou ...
Senegal
*
Ablaye Cissoko
*
Baaba Maal
Baaba Maal ( ff, 𞤄𞤢𞥄𞤦𞤢 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤, italics=no, born 13 June 1953) is a Senegalese singer and guitarist born in Podor, on the Senegal River. In addition to acoustic guitar, he also plays percussion. He has released several al ...
*
Nuru Kane
*
Mansour Seck
Mansour Seck is a Senegalese singer and musician born in Podor, in the north of the country. Best known for his collaboration with lifelong friend Baaba Maal, he has also toured and released several solo albums. He is blind.
Biography
Seck was ...
*
Youssou N'Dour
Youssou N'Dour (, wo, Yuusu Nduur; also known as Youssou Madjiguène Ndour; born 1 October 1959) is a Senegalese singer, songwriter, musician, composer, occasional actor, businessman, and politician. In 2004, ''Rolling Stone'' magazine describe ...
*
Coumba Gawlo Seck
*
Thione Seck
Thione Ballago Seck (March 12, 1955 – March 14, 2021) was a Senegalese singer and songwriter in the mbalakh genre. Seck came from a family of griot singers from the Wolof people of Senegal. He first performed with Orchestre Baobab, but he lat ...
*
Aby Ngana Diop Aby or ABY may refer to:
Places
* Aby, Ivory Coast
* Aby Lagoon, a lagoon in Ivory Coast
* Abyy or Aby, Sakha Republic, Russia
** Aby Lowland
* Aby, Lincolnshire, a village in England, UK
* Åby, Norrköping Municipality, Sweden
* Åby, Växjö ...
*
Ndèye Diarra Guèye
*
Kadialy Kouyate
*
Yande Codou Sene
See also
References
Further reading
*Charry, Eric S. (2000). ''Mande Music: Traditional and Modern Music of the Maninka and Mandinka of Western Africa''. Chicago Studies in Ethnomusicology; includes
audio CD
Compact Disc Digital Audio (CDDA or CD-DA), also known as Digital Audio Compact Disc or simply as Audio CD, is the standard format for audio compact discs. The standard is defined in the ''Red Book'', one of a series of Rainbow Books (named ...
. Chicago:
University of Chicago Press
The University of Chicago Press is the largest and one of the oldest university presses in the United States. It is operated by the University of Chicago and publishes a wide variety of academic titles, including ''The Chicago Manual of Style'', ...
.
*Hale, Thomas A. (1998). ''Griots and Griottes: Masters of Words and Music''. Bloomington, Indiana:
Indiana University Press.
*Hoffman, Barbara G. (2001). ''Griots at War: Conflict, Conciliation and Caste in Mande''. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press.
*
*Suso, Foday Musa, Philip Glass, Pharoah Sanders, Matthew Kopka, Iris Brooks (1996). ''Jali Kunda: Griots of West Africa and Beyond''. Ellipsis Arts.
*
External links
African griot imagesCatherine Lavender, 2000
Catherine A. Salmons, 2004
The Ancient Craft of Jaliyaa(film notes)
''The Griot''documentary by
Volker GoetzeThe Grio News(
The Grio
TheGrio, styled as thegrio, is an American television network and website with news, opinion, entertainment and video content geared toward Black Americans.
The website originally launched in June 2009 as a division of NBC News, it became a di ...
is African-American news from
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
)
Jeliya(the art of Jeli, or being a griot)
*
Oral poets
Occupations in music
Gambian culture
Ghanaian culture
Guinean culture
Ivorian culture
Malian culture
Nigerian culture
Senegalese culture
West Africa
Culture of the African diaspora
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