Banjo Ancestors: The Origin of West African Lutes

SHLOMO PESTCOE שלמה פּסטקאָ

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The Origin of West African Lutes

There's scant information in the historical and archaeological record as to when, how or where the banjo's ancestors first made their appearance in West Africa. There is no documentation of plucked lutes in this region until 1337, when Arab historian al-'Umarī (1301-1349) in his work, Masālik al absār fī mamālik al amsār, (Pathways of Vision in the Realms of the Metropolises) describes the fabulous wealth and majesty of the Mali Empire (c.800-1550), considered then to be one of the richest kingdoms in the known world. Drawing on reports from contemporary Arab travelers and traders, al-'Umarī wrote: "When the king of this kingdom [Mali] comes in from a journey, a jitr [parasol] and a standard are held over his head as he rides, and drums are beaten and tunbūr and trumpets, well made of horn, are played in front of him."

The word tunbūr is an Arabic term which is generally taken to mean a long neck plucked lute, tanbūr. However, the word tunbūr was originally used to denote the lyre, a harp-like string instrument on which the strings run upwards from the body (resonating sound chamber) to a horizontal yoke suspended between two parallel arms. Since lyres are not found in West Africa-- they're common to eastern and northeastern Africa, as well as southern Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia and the coastal regions of the Arabian Peninsula-- the conventional wisdom is that al-'Umarī was referring to plucked lutes.

Ibn Battūta of Morocco (1304-1369), the first foreign visitor to Mali to leave us a first-hand account of his visit, wrote in the memoir of his journey in 1352 a detailed description of the royal court of Mansa Sulayman, who ruled from 1341 to 1358 and was the brother of the renowned Mansa Musa. According to Ibn Battūta, when the mansa-- the Mande term for supreme ruler-- went into the palace yard for a royal audience: "The sultan is preceded by his musicians, who carry gold and silver guimbris, and behind him come three hundred armed slaves." Many scholars contend that Ibn Battūta's term guimbri is, in fact, a reference to lutes because it's commonly used in Morocco, Ibn Battūta's homeland, as a name for the teardrop-shaped lute played by Amazigh (Berber) and Jbala Arab musicians. The word is akin to guinbri (also sintir and hajhui), the most common name for the plucked lute of the Gnawa, a North African Islamic community comprised primarily of descendants of slaves and mercenaries brought to Morocco and Algeria from West Africa.

Clearly, the emergence of lutes in West Africa must predate these references. The question is-- when?

Lute-type string instruments probably came to West Africa from across the Sahara around the same time as the introduction of Islam, which was probably in the 10th century of the Common Era (CE). The Soninke empire of Wagadu (c.300-1100 CE), better known as The Kingdom of Ghana, based in the southern region of present-day Mauritania, northern Senegal, and southeastern Mali, clearly was the epicenter of the trans-Saharan cross-cultural exchange and development that led to the emergence of the plucked lute in West Africa. Its successor, the Mande Kingdom of Mali (c. 1235-1500), proved to the crucible for the creation of jaliya, the griot musical tradition.

In terms of lute ancestors, some scholars propose that the West African plucked lutes are descended from those of Pharonic Egypt. Others contend that it was the other way around, that sub-Sahara West Africa was the actual source of the ancient Egyptian lutes.

Needless to say, this is the subject of much heated debate.

The Amazigh-- Agents of Transmission

My own take on this is that the ancient Egyptian lutes were, in fact, the ancestors of the West African lutes... albeit, by a bit of a circuitous route. Here's how I see it: At some point, lost in the mists of history, the ancient Egyptian lutes were adopted and adapted by the neighboring Amazigh (Berbers), the indigenous people of Tamazgha-- North Africa west of Egypt which is nowadays referred to by the Arabic term Maghreb. And it was the various Amazigh tribes who transmitted the plucked lute concept and lute-type instruments throughout North Africa and, subsequently, to West Africa, by way of present-day Mauritania and the Sahara.

My line of reasoning is as follows:

The earliest archaeological evidence we have of lute family instruments comes from the Uruk Period (c.4500-3100 BCE) of Ancient Sumer in Mesopotamia. Likewise, the archaeological record indicates that lutes were probably introduced into Egypt during the reign of the Hyksos (c.1640-1540 BCE), nomadic Semites from ancient Canaan and Syria. This being the case, it stands to reason that the route for the transmission of lutes into Africa must begin in the Middle East and go through Egypt, rather than the other way around.

The Amazigh, the majority population of ancient Libya, were definitely known to the ancient Egyptians both as neighbors, trading partners, and, from time to time, serious foes. During the period of Pharonic Egypt's Middle Kingdom (c. 2200-1700 BCE), the eastern Amazigh tribes of Libya, called Lebu by their Egyptian neighbors, became vassals of the pharaohs. There were Amazigh settlements in Egypt and many Amazigh served as mercenaries in the Egyptian military, several rising to great prominence in Egyptian society. Around 945 BCE, an Amazigh official became Pharaoh Sheshonq I, founder of the 22nd Dynasty (c. 945-730 BCE), the first of the two "Libyan Dynasties." There are still Amazigh communities in modern-day Egypt, the most prominent being the Zenatiya of the Siwa oasis who speak Siwi, an Amazigh language, rather than Arabic.

Of all of ancient Egypt's neighbors, it's only the various Amazigh peoples which have an extant tradition of plucked lutes that most likely pre-dates the Arab conquest of North Africa (647- 945 CE). Take for example the Nubians, the descendants of the ancient black African people who lived in what's now southern Egypt and northern Sudan and created the Nile kingdoms of Kush (c.1550-590 BCE), Napata (c. 590-270 BCE), and Meroe (c. 270 BCE - 350 CE). Prior to the recent introduction of the Arab oud by modern Nubian musician Hamza el-Din, the Nubians did not have plucked lutes in their traditional musical culture. The lyre, which is played by both modern Egyptians and Nubians in rural Egypt, is the only string instrument which had a counterpart in ancient Egypt.

With the introduction of domesticated dromedary camels into North Africa by the Romans around 200 CE, the nomadic Amazigh tribes began a gradual switch from a horse and oxen-based transportation system to a camel-based one. By their masterful use of the "ships of the desert," the Amazigh-- especially the Kel Tamashek (Tuareg)-- dominated the trans-Saharan trade routes between the Magrheb and West Africa for centuries.

We know that it was primarily the Amazigh Moors (the Arabs didn't achieve hegemony in Mauritania until 1674) and Kel Tamashek who introduced Islam into West Africa. Prior to the rise of the Almoravid Dynasty in Mauritania (c.1062-1150), which waged jihad against Ancient Ghana in 1076, the Amazigh Moors and Kel Tamashek were the neighboring black African kingdom's main trading partners in the trans-Sahara trade.

In terms of musical culture, this is borne out by the fact that throughout the Islamic sphere of influence, from the Maghreb to East Asia, musical instruments of Arab, Persian, and Turkish origin were adopted by the various peoples and adapted for incorporation into the given local tradition.

West Africa is the one notable exception.

The plucked lutes found here bear no relationship to the oud, bozuk, baglama, saz, tar, and so on. The instruments they bear evident kinship to are the Moorish tidinit and the Kel Tamashek teharden. This is especially true of the wooden-bodied griot lutes, they are pretty much identical to the tidinit and teharden, in terms of physiology and playing techniques, as well as the fact that they are exclusively played by the male members of specific castes. Likewise, we can see that the West African bowed lutes-- the many different kinds of folk fiddles found throughout the region, such as the Mandinka/Soninke ngime, the FulBe riti, the Hausa goge, and the Dagbamba goonji, to name but a few-- are totally unlike the various models of rebab, rabab or kemençe found throughout the Islamic world. Yet, they bear a strong family resemblance to the Kel Tamashek imzad.

-- Shlomo Pestcoe

Next: The First West African Lutes: Gourd-Bodied?

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³Home³Bio³Shlomo Sez³Shlomo on MySpace³Sufferin' Succotash³Gillygaloo³

³Yummie³Musical Styles³Instruments³Features³News³Contact³Links³

³ Banjo Roots: From Africa to the New World ³

³ Banjo Ancestors: The Lutes of West Africa ³

³ The Akonting: A West African Ancestor of the Banjo ³