Hamallayya or Hamallism is a Sufiṭarīqah (order, path) originating in West Africa as an outgrowth from and reaction against the
Tijaniyyah
The Tijāniyyah ( ar, الطريقة التجانية, Al-Ṭarīqah al-Tijāniyyah, The Tijānī Path) is a Sufi tariqa (order, path), originating in the Maghreb but now more widespread in West Africa, particularly in Senegal, The Gambia, ...
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, since the 11th century, is a symbol depicting the head of a black moor.
Origin
The precise origin of the Moor's head is a subject of controversy. But the most likely explanation is that it is derived from the heraldic war flag ...
and
Fulani
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. ...
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
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 F ...
(1886–1943) in what was then
French Soudan
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
, modern
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 ...
. 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 and Mali.
Doctrine
Hammallist doctrinal changes from Tijaniyyah ritual included the removal of some recited references to the Prophet, rejecting
Qur'an
The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , s ...
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. 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 (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to ...
Niger
)
, official_languages =
, languages_type = National languagesTierno Bokar Salif Tall, grand nephew of the precolonial military and political leader of the Tijaniyya Jihad stateEl-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 Belgian First Division B side Virton. Born in France, he represented France as a youth international before switching to Mali at senior l ...
in Mauretania. Other notable adherents included
Tierno Bokar
Tierno Bokar ( ff, Cerno Bokar), full name Tierno Bokar Saalif Tall (1875 – 1939), was a Malian mystic, Sufi sage, and a Muslim spiritual teacher of the early twentieth century famous for his message of religious tolerance and universal love. ...
, the teacher and spiritual leader of
Amadou Hampate Ba
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 fun ...
.
In Burkina Faso, Hamallism was especially present in the
Fulbe
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 ...
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, 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: ''Imuhaɣ/Imušaɣ/Imašeɣăn/Imajeɣăn'') are a large Berber ethnic group that principally inhabit the Sahara in a vast area stretching from far southwestern Libya to southern Alg ...
servile cast communities, called Bellah. Followers still numbered 50,000 in Mali by the 1970s.