Balancing Written History with Oral Tradition

By balancing written history with the African oral tradition, this book conceptualizes the integrations among diverse peoples of Africa and specifically among the Songhoy people. Drawing from a number of academic disciplines and original research that documents the oral and literate traditions of the Songhoy people, Hassimi Oumarou Maiga offers a unique interpretation of indigenous Songhoy-African perspectives on African history, culture and education from antiquity to the present day and from continental Africa to the worldwide African Diaspora. In explaining the cosmology, philosophy, values and process of indigenous, non-Muslim education, this book also corrects and balances the perception of the Songhoy as a wholly Muslim society. The legacy of the Songhoy Empire, Maiga argues, is as a model of African integration through its administrative and political organization, which remains relevant even today. This book is an essential addition for scholars and students of African history.

Dr. Hassimi Oumarou Maïga holds a Presidential appointment as Distinguished Research Professor of Education at the University of Bamako, Mali. His published books and numerous scholarly articles include: "When the Language of Education is Not the Language of Culture," Notes on Classical Songhoy Education and socialization: The World of Women and Childrearing Practices, and La Contribution Socio-culturelle du Peuple Songhoy en Afrique.

Introduction 1. A Long Journey from East Africa to West Africa 2. The Empires of Ghana and Mali 3. Gao: From its Origins to the City of the Askyas 4. Diverse Sociocultural Aspects of the City of Gao 5. From the Age of Kingdoms to the Age of Empires 6. From the Empire Age to the Bureaucratic Age: The Askya Dynasty 7. Invasions and European Domination 8. Traditional Songhoy Society 9. The Songhoy Oral Tradition: Riddles & Story Telling 10. Songhoy Writing Traditions 11. Religion, Belief and Spirituality 12. The Legacy of the Songhoy People 13. Selected African Contributions to the Development of the New World and France 14. A Legacy of African Integration 15. Towards Pan African Integration. Postface. Afterword. Appendix A: Map of the Ghana Empire. Appendix B: Map of the Mali Empire. Appendix C: The Empire of Gao at Its Height. Appendix D: The Empires of Ghana, Mali and Songhoy