WHAT WAS THEINDIGÉNAT? THE ‘EMPIRE OF LAW’ IN FRENCH WEST AFRICA

Abstract

ABSTRACTWhat was theindigénat? This article approaches this question via three arguments. First, a study of theindigénat(the regime of administrative sanctions applied to colonial subjects) challenges the idea that French West Africa formed part of an ‘empire of law’. Second, a dynamic spectrum of political statuses developed around theindigénatuntil its abolition in 1946. This spectrum is no less significant than one of its poles alone, that of colonial citizens. Third, theindigénat, its narrative of reform, and its relationship to law, bureaucracy, and authority illuminate the tensions between imperial rhetoric and colonial governance.