Griot

Origins

The caste of the griots was born then developed in a context where did not exist historically nor the writing (except for the monks), even less the radio and television. The griot is thus regarded as being in particular the agent of the oral tradition. The griotic families are specialized either in history of the country and genealogy, or in art of public speaking, or in practice musical. The independent groups of griots or transfer traditional are called djéli in country mandingue, guéwël in country wolof and gawlo at Toucouleurs. The development of this article insists on the case of the " djéli".

The griot and the djéliya

The term malinké djéliya means “transmission by blood”, it indicates the griotism, the science with which the griot is provided, is reserved for a group of men and women linked by the blood ties.

Djéliya has as a root the word malinké djéli which means “blood” and which is also the name given to the griots in the countries which delimit old the Empire of Mali or Mandingue.

The djéli and birth of an empire

the empire of Mandingue extended, with its apogee, in the middle of the 13th century, of central Africa (Chad, Niger) in sub-Saharan West Africa (Mali, Senegal). Its apogee corresponds to the reign of the emperor Sundjata Keïta whose glorious exploits do not cease being commemorated still nowadays. Naré Maghann Konaté, to its death, had offered to his/her Sundjata son - that the prediction of the hunter-wizards announced like future chief of the empire - a griot, Balla Fasséké, which was to be used to him as support and to accompany it in its reign.

Balla Fasséké is regarded as the first griot, it gave rise to the line of the griots Kouyaté whose activity continues still nowadays.

Each family of djéli accompanies a family by king-warriors, whom one names diatigui . It is not djéli without diatigui, it is not diatigui without djéli, both are indissociable and one is not worth anything without the other. However the diatigui can agree “to lend” its djéli to another diatigui.

The empire of Mandingue was organized as castes, each caste corresponded to a profession or an artisanal activity, taking part in the cohesion and the unit of the company. The blacksmiths, the shoe-makers, the farmers, the tisserands, the hunters, the griots constitutaient the principal castes of the company mandingue.

“One does not become griot, one is born griot by particular bonds”

The blood ties are crowned.

Any child is initiated as of his more young age with the techniques and the knowledge of his caste. They are the old ones which trains the young people.

To be griot, it is thus to belong to the caste of the djélis (“blood”), caste who can be identified by family name: Kouyaté, Diabaté, Drama, Niakaté, Soumano… It is not possible to pass from a caste to another. Moreover, the marriages exogames are prohibited. The djéli, carrying the knowledge and the mysteries, can marry only members of their caste in order to safeguard the djéliya and to preserve the identity of the djélis.

A child (girl or boy), born (E) in a family of djéli, receives the specific instruction to his caste, an instruction which is established according to new seven year old stages each one, each pillar corresponding to a stage of the life.

Nowadays, because of Rural migration, of the emigration and universalization, many is the children of griots who are unaware of all the artistic practices and knowledge of their ancestors. In addition, it is possible that members belonging to other castes achieve functions of griots but these cannot be comparable with the griots. He is thus of Salif Keïta (descendant of Sundjata Keita, caste of the kings).

Who are the griots?

One counts three “families” of griots.

The nyamakala are those which do not have a totem or of interdict, so they are feared. In addition, close to the capacity, they cause admiration. They are the holders of the word, the song and the music. They are attached to a diatigui (noble) and only sing to rent their Master. Finally they are the only ones with being able and duty to say what the people think, and what must make the king. The djéli are nyamakala.

The finims are the laudatory ones, they praise the merits of such person to earn money. These griots has only the word.

The niakaniakadjeli have the same functions that the griots but do not bear a family name of griots.

Funerary rites

With the Senegal, certain ethnos groups - in particular the Sérères and the Lébous - did not bury their griots, but deposited them inside the hollow trunks of large Baobab S, a habit which continued until the 20th century.

The Belgian anthropologist Guy Thilmans has, the first, carried out systematic excavations in the country in order to collect such remainders. It gathered 140 craniums and of many bones which it within the framework of the Department of Physical anthropology of the French Institut of Black Africa studied, transformed in the interval into fundamental Institut of Black Africa. This investigation provided the foundations of osteometric anthropology.

Place des griots in the contemporary culture

The figure of the griot also plays a leading role in several novels of the Man from the Ivory Coast Ahmadou Kourouma. It also inspired the Senegalese Birago Diop as of its first writings.

In 2003, the French singer Pierre Vassiliu recorded CD with Senegalese griots.

In the film Guimba, a tyrant, one time (1995), realized by the Malian Cheick Oumar Sissoko, the voice of the narrator is that of the griot village.

One could see with the end of the year 2004 Sotigui Kouyaté illustrating itself in a theatrical adaptation of the novel of Amadou Hampâté Bâ Thierno Bokar . The djéli is moulted as an actor of theater or cinema (the realizer Dani Kouyaté), adapting its mission to modern technologies.

List musical artists and groups griots

Abdoulaye Diabaté (Mali)
Alpha Oulare (Guinea)
Amadu Bansang Jobarteh (Gambia)
Ba Cissoko (Guinea)
Baba Sissoko (Mali)
Badenya the Brothers Coulibaly (Burkina Faso)
Balled Kouyate (Mali)
Sotigui Kouyaté (Burkina Faso)
Balla Tounkara (Mali)
Dembo Jobarteh (Gambia)
Djelimady Tounkara (Mali)
Djimo Kouyaté ( Senegal)
El Hadj Djeli Sory Kouyate (Guinea)
Musa Foday Suso (Gambia)
Kasse Mady Diabate (Mali)
Lamin Saho (Gambia)
Malamini Jobarteh (Gambia)
Mory Kanté (Guinea)
Faly Kouyate (Guinea)
Ndiaga Mbaye (Senegal)
National Instrumental Unit off Guinea (Guinea)
Dad Susso (Gambia)
Pope Kanouté (Senegal)
Prince Diabaté (Guinea)
Salieu Suso (Gambia)
Seikou Susso (Gambia)
Sherrifo Konteh (Gambia)
Soum Bill (Ivory Coast)
Old Diop (Senegal)
Yacouba Sissoko (Mali)
Aboubacar Kouyaté (Mali)

See too

Bakary Soumano (1934-2003), former chief of the griots of Mali.
Hassane Kassi Kouyaté
Djado Sekou, famous a griot Zarma of the Niger.
Djoliba Badjé, famous a griot Zarma of the Niger.

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