Qadiri Community of Buh Kunta

By Maria Grosz-Ngate and Toba Diagne Haїdara

The Murids and the Senegalo-Mauritanian Zone, ca. 1880-1920

The Murids and the Senegalo-Mauritanian Zone, ca. 1880-1920
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This map shows the areas where Shaykh Amadu Bamba Mbacke attracted followers in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born in Mbacke-Baol, Amadu Bamba laid the foundation for a religious and economic community in eastern Baol in the 1880s. He established the village of Touba at a site where he says that the archangel Gabriel appeared to him. Perceived as a threat to French interests, he was arrested by the colonial government in 1895 and sent into exile in Gabon.  He was allowed to return to Senegal in 1902 but was arrested and deported again in 1903, this time to western Mauritania. Amadu Bamba's community of followers grew in his absence under the leadership of dedicated relatives and disciples. He received permission to settle in Cheyene (Jolof) in 1907 and then in Diourbel (Baol) in 1912. He was kept under house arrest in Diourbel until his death in 1927. Although Shaykh Bamba's repeated requests to move to nearby Touba were denied, he was buried in Touba. Touba became the spiritual capital of the Murids. Now one of the largest cities in Senegal, thousands of followers regularly come to pray in its vast mosque, constructed of imported marble, and the surrounding courtyard, tiled with travertine, and tens of thousands stream to Touba during the annual pilgrimage.

Courtesy of David Robinson ()
The Murids and the Senegalo-Mauritanian Zone, ca. 1880-1920
The Murids and the Senegalo-Mauritanian Zone, ca. 1880-1920
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Courtesy of David Robinson

Related Essay:
Development of a Religious Community
Creator: Robinson, David
Description: This map shows the areas where Shaykh Amadu Bamba Mbacke attracted followers in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born in Mbacke-Baol, Amadu Bamba laid the foundation for a religious and economic community in eastern Baol in the 1880s. He established the village of Touba at a site where he says that the archangel Gabriel appeared to him. Perceived as a threat to French interests, he was arrested by the colonial government in 1895 and sent into exile in Gabon.  He was allowed to return to Senegal in 1902 but was arrested and deported again in 1903, this time to western Mauritania. Amadu Bamba's community of followers grew in his absence under the leadership of dedicated relatives and disciples. He received permission to settle in Cheyene (Jolof) in 1907 and then in Diourbel (Baol) in 1912. He was kept under house arrest in Diourbel until his death in 1927. Although Shaykh Bamba's repeated requests to move to nearby Touba were denied, he was buried in Touba. Touba became the spiritual capital of the Murids. Now one of the largest cities in Senegal, thousands of followers regularly come to pray in its vast mosque, constructed of imported marble, and the surrounding courtyard, tiled with travertine, and tens of thousands stream to Touba during the annual pilgrimage.
Date: 2000
Date Range: 2000-2009
Location: Senegal
Format: Image
Language: English
Rights Management: For educational use only.
Contributing Institution: Maria Grosz-Ngate; Matrix: The Center for Humane Arts, Letters, and Social Sciences Online at Michigan State University
Digitizer: Maria Grosz-Ngaté
Source: Robinson, David. 2000. Paths of Accommodation: Muslim Societies and French Colonial Authorities in Senegal and Mauritania, 1880-1920. Map 11.1, p.219. Athens, OH: Ohio University Press.