Genealogy of the Keïta – an Umarian account of Sunjata

Abstract

Abstract Introduction to, analysis of and text of Diakite's account of the Sunjata epic, written in Arabic at Nioro in 1891 and first published in French translation in 1929. The complex origins of this Sunjata account in Islamic Nioro at the start of European colonial control are explored, including the French military's desire for traditional narratives to guide their choice of local intermediaries, and the Islamic elite's own creation and maintenance of historical narratives that melded Umarian conquest to traditional narratives curated by Nioro's previous ruling dynasties.