Father Henry Gravrand (France, 1921 – Abbey ofLatrun,Palestine, 11 July 2003[1]) was a FrenchCatholic missionary to Africa and ananthropologist who has written extensively onSerer religion andculture. He was one of the leading pioneers ofinterfaith dialog and believed thatAfrican religion was the "'first covenant between God and man".[1] His works about theSerer people are cited by other historians and scholars writing onSerer history, religion and culture, for instanceMartin A. Klein,[2] Charles Becker,[3]Alioune Sarr,Marguerite Dupire,[4]Issa Laye Thiaw,[5] etc. Papa Massène Sene argues that his approach lacks scientific rigor and include fundamental linguistic and historical errors.[6] Alioune Sarr noted that Gravrand reported an oral tradition describing what he called the "Battle of Troubang", a dynastic war between the two maternal royal houses of Ñaanco and theGuelowar, an off-shot and relatives of theÑaanco (Nyanthio orNyanco) maternal dynasty ofKaabu, in modern-dayGuinea Bissau.[7][8] According to Charles Becker, Gravrand is confusing a description of the 1867 (or 1865)Battle of Kansala.[9]
Firstmissionary of theCongregation of Holy Spirit, Gravrand arrived inSenegal on 28 December 1948[10] and lived there for 40 years in theSine area (the western part of the country). In Sine, he founded a mission and oversaw theevangelization of some of the Serer community, but also studied the history, religion and culture of theSerer people and became one of the leading scholars ofSerer religion and culture.[11][12]
In 1955, Gravrand created the Union of farmers of Sine, affiliated to theFrench Confederation of Christian Workers (CFTC), which gave the farmers training enabling them to defend their own interests.[13]
"Rites d'initiation et vie en société chez les Sérères du Sénégal", Afrique Documents, no.52, July–August 1960, pp. 129–144
"Visage africain de l'Église : une expérience au Sénégal", Orante, Paris, 1961, p. 287.
"À la rencontre des religions africaines", Ancora, Rome, 1969
"LeLup Serer comparé auNdoep desLebou : psychothérapie des possédés", Congrès international des Africanistes, deuxième session, Dakar, [11–22 December 1967],Présence africaine, Paris, 1972, pp. 237–243
"Le symbolisme Serer", Psychopathologie Africaine, vol. IX, no. 2, 1973, pp. 237–266
"Le Gabou dans les traditions orales du Ngabou", Éthiopiques (revue), no. 28, October 1981[1]Archived 31 August 2011 at theWayback Machine
"L’héritage spirituel Sereer : valeur traditionnelle d'hier, d'aujourd'hui et de demain", Éthiopiques (revue), no. 31, 3e trimestre 1982[2]Archived 1 September 2011 at theWayback Machine
La civilisation sereer, vol. I, "Cosaan", Nouvelles éditions africaines, Dakar, 1983
"Rites et symboles sereer face au sacré, Médiations africaines du sacré : célébration crematories et langage religieux", actes du 3e colloque international du ERA, Kinshasa [16–22 February 1986], Faculté de théologie catholique de Kinshasa, 1987, pp 125–143
La civilisation sereer, vol. II, "Pangool", Nouvelles éditions africaines, Dakar, 1990
"Fils de Saint-Bernard en Afrique : une fondation au Cameroun, 1950–1990", Beauchesne, Paris, 1990, p. 181
^Klein, Martin A., "Islam and Imperialism in Senegal Sine-Saloum, 1847–1914",Edinburgh University Press (1968), pp x, 12–13, 92, 244, 248, 271
^Crétois, Léonce; & Becker, Charles; "Le vocabulaire sereer de la faune", (Editor: Charles Becker), Centre de linguistique appliquée de Dakar (1983), p. 24
^Dupire, Marguerite, "Sagesse sereer : essais sur la pensée sereer ndut", Karthala, Paris, 1994, pp. 7, 91, 111, 118–119, 142, 153,ISBN2-86537-487-4
^Thiaw, Issa Laye, "La femme Seereer", Sénégal, 2005, Sociétés africaines et diaspora, Edition L'harmattan, pp. 40, 125–6, 260,ISBN2-7475-8907-2
^Innes, Gordon, Suso, Bamba, Kanute, Banna, Kanute, Dembo,""Sunjata: three Mandinka versions", p. 128, Psychology Press, 1974.ISBN0-7286-0003-X
^Fage, J. D., Oliver, Roland Anthony,"The Cambridge history of Africa", p. 282, Cambridge University Press, 1975.ISBN0-521-20413-5
^Sarr, Alioune,Histoire du Sine-Saloum (Sénégal) Introduction, bibliographie et notes par Charles Becker. 1986–87, p. 19
^(in French)Joseph Roger de Benoist,Histoire de l'Église catholique auSénégal du milieu du XVe siècle à l'aube du troisième millénaire, Karthala, Paris, 2008, pp. 384–385
^Henry Gravrand. La Civilisation Sereer – Pangool. Published by Les Nouvelles Editions Africaines du Senegal. 1990.ISBN2-7236-1055-1
^(in English) Martin A. Klein. Islam and Imperialism in Senegal Sine-Saloum, 1847–1914, Edinburgh at the University Press (1968). p x
Joseph Roger de Benoist,Histoire de l'Église catholique auSénégal du milieu du XVe siècle à l'aube du troisième millénaire, Karthala, Paris, 2008, p. 581 [several references]
Jean-Paul Bourdier and Trinh T. Minh-ha, "Drawings from African dwellings",Indiana University Press, Bloomington, 1996. [in]JSTOR by Peter Mark (Review)
