Who Are The Wolofs?
The Wolof are a very dark skinned, tall regal looking people who are very ethnocentric. They are found in Senegal, Gambia and Mauritania. They make up 44% of the population of Senegal, 16% in the Gambia and 8% in Mauritania.
Although the Mandinka are 42% of Gambia's population, the Wolof language is spoken by most people, particularly in the capital Banjul. Wolof is the language of the Wolof people and and majority of non Wolof Senegalese speak Wolof.
Overall, there are about 10 million Wolof speakers in Senegal, Gambia and Mauritania. Though still primarily an agrarian society, living in small villages, they hold disproportionate share of important positions in government and commerce. Wolofs are known to have played a very important role in the slave. As a result, some of the most important slave ports are in Senegal
The Wolof are famous for their hospitality. Called “teranga”, hospitality is one of the central values of their culture and which any westerner living with them needs to emulate or risk been branded as a greedy person.
Majority of Wolofs are Muslims. Most of them are Sufis. About 90% of Wolofs are Muslims, 6% traditional African religion and 2% Christians. The Islam of the Wolof is very tolerant and emphasizes meditation and spirituality. Since the Wolof embraced Islam in the 10th century, it has been inseparable from Wolof culture. However, Wolof society is by far freer than most Muslim communities. Women are free to appear in public.
One important feature of Wolof Islam is that it is centered around membership of one of the three main brotherhoods. About 30% belong to the Mourides, about 60% to the Tijaniya and 10% to the Qadiriyes. During the French colonial rule, the Brotherhoods were the means through which the Sufi form of Islam was spread.
These Brotherhoods center around submission to spiritual guides or Marabouts. These guides then become the guarantors of salvation and the channel through which God's blessings flow.
Though orthodox Islam occupies a central place amongst Wolof's, “traditional” Islam, a syncretic mix of Sufi Islam and traditional African religion predominates .
Many of the pre-existing African religious practices have been given an Islamic dress. It is in traditional Islam where people deal with important issues of life, health, death and advancement in life.
The Wolof has been more affected by the West than other Senegalese ethnic groups, but they have the most highly developed sense of national unity than other groups in Senegal. In 1946, the Wolof of Senegal were awarded French citizenship and many Wolofs own homes in France.
They are a major element of the civil service and play an important part in the political life of the country. They are highly urbanized and are dominant in such cities such as Dakar and St. Louis. They also dominate the retail trade in Senegal.
Culturally, clothing is very important to the Wolof who are class conscious. To a Wolof, what you wear says a lot about you. The Wolof are known to be trend setters in West Africa. They are driven by the need to maintain appearances, even if it means accumulating huge debts.
The Wolof are also well known for the tradition of storytelling, which is done by griots who have kept West African history alive for thousands of years through words and music.
The griot profession is handed down from generation to generation and gives voice to generations of West African society. The family unit is also very important to the Wolof.
Many Wolof are also polygamous, but polygamy doesn't have to be considered natural to many of the Wolof who soon after obtaining a second wife, are divorced from their first.
There has been a long running insurgency in Senegal's Casmance region against supposedly Wolof domination. Since independence, most of Senegal's presidents have been Wolof.
The election in 2012 of Macky Sall, a Tukolor, broke the trend. Some prominent Wolof include former Presidents Abdoulaye Wade and Abdou Diouf and writer Cheikh Anta Diop.
***Dr. Leonard Madu is President of the African Caribbean Institute of Nashville and African Chamber of Commerce. He is also a Fox TV foreign affairs analyst and writes from Nashville, TN.***