Banjo Ancestors: North African Lutes: The Guinbri & Gombri

SHLOMO PESTCOE שלמה פּסטקאָ

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North African Lutes: The Guinbri & Gombri

Now let's take a look at the guinbri of the Gnawa and the gombri of the Sudan Tunis, two North African communities of the descendants of the slaves brought across the Sahara from West Africa.

The Gnawa

The Gnawa (also Gnaoua) are at once a distinct ethnic community and a Muslim religious order made up of descendants of West African slaves and mercenaries. They're primarily found in Morocco and Algeria and have a unique language and culture called Soudania or Gnawi.

(Soudan or Sudan is not a reference to the modern-day country of Sudan but rather a generic Arabic term for black African peoples and cultures. Black Africa-- from Dar-Fur in the present Republic of Sudan to the countries below the Sahara-- was once known in Arabic as Bilad al-Sudan, literally, "The Land of the Blacks.")

The term Gnawa is something of a mystery in and of itself. A lot of theories abound as to the word's origins and what it signifies. To my mind, the best explanation I've come across is that it's a reference to the Soninke empire of Wagadugu, known to Arabs and Europeans as "The Kingdom of Ghana." The term Ghana, Soninke for "War Chief," was actually the hereditary title of the rulers of this West African empire, much like Caesar in ancient Rome. The Ghana Empire (c.300-1100 CE), not to be confused with the modern country of the same name, encompassed territories within present-day southern Mauritania, northern Senegal and Mali.

Starting in the 11th century, slaves and mercenaries from West Africa were brought to North Africa. Apparently, many came from Ancient Ghana, mostly likely after it fell under the Almoravid sphere of influence sometime after 1075. (The Almoravid Dynasty, c.1056-1147, were the Amazigh Muslim rulers of Morocco and Algeria who, in 1086, conquered most of Spain to create the Moorish empire.) The original communities of slaves and mercenaries from Ancient Ghana were augmented with the importation in subsequent waves of enslaved and indentured West Africans from the Niger River basin, the most significant being in 1591 when Moroccan forces invaded and defeated the Songhai Empire (c.1464-1591) carrying off thousands to a life of servitude in North Africa.

-- Shlomo Pestcoe

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* Banjo Roots: Banjo Beginnings *

* Banjo Roots: West Africa *

* The Ekonting: A Link to the Banjo's West African Heritage *