2011/10/19 by Tara F. Deubel · 1 citation
Arts and Humanities · Social Sciences · #African Studies and Geopolitics #African history and culture analysis #Language, Linguistics, Cultural Analysis
paper · doi:10.1080/13629387.2011.610591
openalex publication_date 2011/10/19 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/29
The oral poetic tradition in Hassaniya Arabic emerged as a distinct trans-Saharan genre in present-day Mauritania in the pre-colonial era, fusing stylistic features of classical Arabic poetry with the musical heritage and griot1 The term ‘griot’ is commonly used in French and English as a name for the bards found in different ethnic groups throughout northwest Africa (cf. Hale 1998). traditions of neighbouring sub-Saharan cultures. As a popular musical art performed in a colloquial dialect, Hassani poetry is accessible to a range of social classes, and mastery of composition signifies linguistic prowess and social prestige. Drawing on ethnographic research with male and female Sahrawi poets in 2006–07, this article traces the roots of oral poetry in Hassaniya-speaking communities in northwest Africa and discusses recent shifts in modes of transmission, performance contexts, and poetic content. While the proliferation of new media has decreased the apprenticeship of younger poets, Hassani poetry has maintained an active following among mixed age groups. In the context of the protracted international conflict over the Western Sahara, the genre has gained new visibility as part of larger national projects to promote Sahrawi cultural heritage and advance opposing political agendas. Examples from Sahrawi poets in southern Morocco, Western Sahara,2 The Western Sahara territory extends from Tah to the Mauritanian border at Lagouera. It has been under dispute between Morocco and the Polisario Front since Spain terminated its colonial rule of the former Spanish Sahara in 1975. The Kingdom of Morocco annexed the territory in 1975 and has governed it since that time and refers to it as the southern provinces or the Moroccan Sahara. Since 1964, Western Sahara has been classified as a non-self-governing territory by the United Nations (Shelley 2004 Shelley, T. 2004. Endgame in the western Sahara: what future for Africa's last colony?, New York: Zed Books. [Crossref] , [Google Scholar]). In congruence with current U.N. usage, the term Western Sahara is used here. and refugee camps in Algeria demonstrate how the genre serves as a discursive strategy in critiquing modern urban culture, employing social capital, and supporting the political rhetoric of nationalist movements.