Kingdom of Sine Siin | |
|---|---|
| ca. 1335 | |
 Map of Sine (ca. 1850) | |
| Status | Non-sovereign monarchy withinSenegal |
| Capital | Diakhao |
| Common languages | Serer |
| Religion | Serer religion |
| Government | Absolute monarchy, thenconstitutional monarchy from 2019 – present |
| Maad a Sinig,Lamane | |
| Historical era | Medieval |
• Established | ca. 1335 |
• Abolition of the monarchy | 1969 |
• Restoration of the monarchy | 2019 |
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TheKingdom of Sine (orSiin inSerer, variations:Sin orSiine) was apost-classicalSerer kingdom along the north bank of theSaloum Riverdelta in modernSenegal.[1]
During the Guelowar Era the region was named after Sine-o-Méo Manneh (Serer proper: Siin o Meo Maane), sister of Maysa Wali Manneh.[2] The inhabitants are calledSiin-Siin orSine-Sine (a common structure fordemonyms in Senegal, e.g.Bawol-Bawol andSaloum-Saloum /Saluum-Saluum, inhabitants ofBaol andSaloum respectively).
Portuguese explorers in the 15th century referred to Sine as the kingdom ofBarbaçim, a corruption of 'Bur-ba-Sine' (Wolof for 'King of Sine'), and its people asBarbacins (a term frequently extended by early writers toSerer people generally, while others insisted thatSerreos andBarbacins were completely distinct peoples.) Old European maps frequently denote theSaloum River as the "River of Barbacins/Barbecins".[3]Alvise Cadamosto, a 15th-centuryVenetian navigator, slave trader, and chronicler, mistakenly distinguished between the"Sereri" (Serer people) and the"Barbacini", which seems to indicate that he was referring to two different people when in fact, the Kingdom of Sine was a Serer Kingdom.[4]
The history of Sine, which has been inhabited by the Serer people for centuries, can be divided into three main periods.[5]
The diverse peoples grouped under the termSerer include the Serer Seex (pronouncedSeh orSeeh), subgroups with various dialects ofSerer proper, and theCangin speaking Serers, all of whom historically have moved acrossSenegambia.[6] According to historian Dennis Galvan, "The oral historical record, written accounts by early Arab and European explorers, and physical anthropological evidence suggest that the various Serer peoples migrated south from theFuta Tooro region (Senegal River valley) beginning around the eleventh century, whenIslam first came across the Sahara."[7]
KingWar Jabi ofTakrur first institutedSharia law and persecuted any of his subjects who refused to abandontheir traditional beliefs in favour of Islam.[8][9][10] In response, some began migrating south and west.[11][12] Over generations these people, possiblyPulaar speaking herders originally, moved through Wolof areas and entered the Siin and Saluum river valleys. This lengthy period of Wolof-Serer contact has left historians unsure of the origins of shared "terminology, institutions, political structures, and practices."[13] This migration was the process by which the Serer coalesced into a coherent ethnic group, separate from the Fula and the Wolof.[14]
Thelamanes, in particular, who were the guardians of Serer spirituality, leaders and the landowning class, put up a strong resistance to conversion partly to preserve their religion, but also to preserve their assets and power from the centralizing tendencies of the state.[15] In some early Arab sources, the termlamlam became associated with "non-believers" in the region, which may have been a corruption of the Serer titleLamaan.[16] In summarizing the influence of Serer culture,history, religion and tradition on the Senegambia region in his paper "Vestiges historiques, trémoins matériels du passé clans les pays Sereer" (1993), historian and author Professor Charles Becker writes that:
At the time of the Serer lamans, Sine was not called Sine. Instead, the roughly 60 villages were divided into states ruled by lamans, namely: Njafaj; Ña-UI; Joral; Ngohe-Pofin; Hiréna (west of Sine at thePetite Côte); and Singandum — which covers the two banks of the Sine valley.[18][19]
Niokhobaye Diouf notes that, just before the Guelowar's arrival in Sine, there were three notable rulers using the Serer titlelaman:[20]
The Wagadou were century maternal dynasty ofSoninke origin, descended from theGhana Empire,[21] that ruled much of modern-day Senegal by marrying into Serer lamanic families.[22][23][24] Some of the notable Serer lamanic families included the Sarr family, theJoof family, the Ngom family, etc. These lamanic families formed a great council (the Great Council of Lamanes) to settle disputes. It was similar to a higher court where the lamanes sat to hear disputes brought in front of them so they could pass judgement. It was the last resort if a lamane from another part of Serer country could not decide on a case brought before him or the complainant was not satisfied with the judgment.[25][26][27] This Council would elect one of their own as head of the Council.
._19th_Century._Jung-Jung_From_The_Kingdom_of_Sine_(in_modern_day_Senegal).jpg)
The actual foundation date of the Kingdom of Sine is unclear, but in the 13th or 14th centuryMandinka migrants entered the area from the southeast. They were led by amatrilinial clan known as theGelwar. FatherHenry Gravrand reports an oral tradition that oneMaad a Sinig Maysa Wali Jaxateh Manneh fled with his family fromKaabu following a battle in 1335 which he calls the Battle of Troubang, "troubang" meaning "genocide" ; "to wipe out"; or "to annihilate" a family, clan, or people.[28][29] Charles Becker pointed out that Gravrand actually described the 1867 (or 1865)Battle of Kansala, although he as well asSenegalese historiansBabacar Sedikh Diouf and Biram Ngom agree that theGuelowar dynasty, offshoots of theÑaanco dynasty of Kaabu, had lost a dynastic struggle there, forcing them to seek refuge in Sine.[30][29]
NearNiakhar, they encountered the Serer, the Council agreed to grant them asylum,[30] and they joined to create a Gelwaar-led state with its capital at or near a lamanic estate atMbissel.[31][32][33] Under the Serer–Guelowar alliance, Serer men from the noble families of Sine and later Saloum, married Guelowar women and the offsprings of those unions ruled as kings. The children of such unions and their descendants identified as Serer, spoke the Serer language, and followedSerer religion and customs.[34][31][35]
Serer oral history says that after Maysa Waliassimilated into Serer culture and served as legal advisor to thelaman council of electors for atime, he was chosen by the lamans and people to rule.[36] He served as King of Sine from c. 1350-1370. Lamaan Jame Ngom of Faajaal, a member of the Ngom family and head of the council, was the one who crowned Maysa Wali, and spoke the proclamation words or crowning speech to him so he could repeat it during his coronation ceremony. He was renowned for organisingSerer wrestling tournaments in his country (Faajaal). It was through those tournaments that the patriarch of theFaye family, the "great Serer wrestler"Boukar Djillakh Faye demonstrated his skills and was given the hand of a princess in marriage.[37][38]
The end of the Lamanic period led to a waning of the power and influence of the Lamanes, although the positions did not disappear.[20][39][34][31] Lamanic families pre-Guelowar had real powers and wealth, were heads of their states, and were the custodians ofSerer spirituality (A ƭat Roog). After the Guelowar they kept their wealth and titles but were merely provincial chiefs. However, due to their connection toSerer religion, they did maintain some power, and could dethrone a reigning monarch if threatened.[40][41][42]
According to legend, Maysa Wali elected the legendaryNdiadiane Ndiaye (Serer proper:Njaajaan Njaay) in c. 1360 as first Emperor of theJolof Empire. He was the first king of modern Senegal to voluntarily gave his allegiance to Ndiadiane Ndiaye and asked others to do so, thereby making Sine a vassal of the Jolof Empire.[43] Oral traditions hold that the Jolof Empire was not an empire founded by conquest, but through a voluntaryconfederacy of states.[44] More likely, however, Jolof grew by a process of conquest. In some Serer dialects 'Njaajan Njaay' can be translated as 'catastrophe', indicating what impact his rule may have had on the Serer people.[45]
Serer oral tradition says that Sine never paid tribute to Ndiadiane Ndiaye nor any of his descendants, that the Jolof Empire never subjugated the kingdom, and Ndiadiane Ndiaye himself received his name from the mouth of Maysa Waly.[46][43] The historianSylviane Diouf, however, states that "Each vassal kingdom—Walo, Takrur, Kayor, Baol, Sine, Salum, Wuli, and Niani—recognized the hegemony of Jolof and paid tribute."[47]
The Serer Kingdoms of Sine andSaloum were the first to leave the Jolof Empire, at least twenty-nine years before the famousBattle of Danki in 1549, which saw the other kingdoms gained their independence from Jolof.[44][48]
Mbegane Ndour was the king of Sine around the turn of the 16th century (approx. 1495-1514[citation needed]). Lilyan Kesteloot and Anja Veirman advanced the claim that, Mbegane defeated theTakrurimarabout Moussa Eli Bana Sall, who at that time reigned overSaloum, by poisoning him with a viper.[49] The authors then went on to claim that, Mbegane Ndour was born of the matrilineal royal clan, but out of wedlock and with a relatively unimportant father. His marriage, they claim, with a princess and priestess ofBaol propped up his legitimacy as well as helping him conquer Saloum.[49]
Like most of their subjects in the 19th century, the SererKings of Sine andSaloum continued to followSerer religion. On 18 July 1867, the prolific 19th century Senegalese Muslim cleric, jihadist, and slave trader[50][51][52]Maba Diakhou Bâ was defeated atThe Battle of Fandane-Thiouthioune fighting against the King of SineMaad a Sinig Kumba Ndoffene fa Maak Joof when he tried to launch jihad in Sine, but failed. Maba and his allied forces suffered a severe defeat, and he was killed in that battle.[53][54]
The rulers of Sine retained their title (Maad a Sinig) throughout the colonial period and did not lose official recognition until 1969 after the death ofMaad a Sinig Mahecor Joof.[55]
In 2019, the Serer people of Sine decided to reinstate their monarchy, andMaad a Sinig Niokhobaye Fatou Diène Diouf was crowned King of Sine (Maad a Sinig) on 8 February 2019 atDiakhao, the precolonial capital of Sine. He belongsthe Royal House of Semou Njekeh Joof via the branch of Maad a Sinig Semou Maak Joof, and a member of theGuelowar matrilineage through his motherLingeer Fatou Diène.[56][57][58][59] Since Sine is now part of independent Senegal, Niokhobaye Diouf is aconstitutional monarch with no official powers. His role is simply ceremonial and diplomatic. He does however, have influence and has been able to utilise the old pleasant cousinship between theSerer andJola people by liaising with the King ofOussouye (Maan Sibiloumbaye Diédhiou) to help effect economic and cultural development, as well as bring about peace inCasamance, following decades long of theCasamance conflict.[60][58][59]
The economic base of Sine was agriculture and fishing.Millet and other crops were grown. Sine was very reluctant to growgroundnut for the French market, in spite of French colonial directives. It was less dependent on groundnut than other states. Deeply rooted in Serer conservatism andSerer religion, for several decades during the 19th century, the Serer farmers refused to grow it or when they did, they ensured that their farming cycle was not only limited to groundnut production. Theirreligious philosophy of preserving theecosystem affected groundnut production in Sine. Even after mass production was later adopted, succession struggles in the late 19th century between theroyal houses hampered production. However, the Kingdom of Sine was less susceptible to hunger and indebtedness, a legacy which continued right up to the lastabsolute monarch of Sine –Maad a Sinig Mahecor Joof. It was very common for people from other states to migrate to the Serer kingdoms of Sine andSaloum in search of a better life. The inhabitants of Sine (the"Sine-Sine") rarely migrated.[61]
Some of the king's government (or the political structure of Sine) include: theLamanes (provincial chiefs and title holders, not to be confused with the ancient SererLamanes); theheir apparents such as theBuumi,Thilas andLoul (in that order); the GreatFarba Kaba (chief of the army); theFarba Binda (minister of finance, the police and the royal palace) and the GreatJaraff (the king's advisor and head of the noble council of electors responsible for electing the kings from the royal family).[62][63]
The following list gives a condensed version of the political structure of Sine:[63]
Maad a Sinig (king of Sine)
