Soouad Khalil | Libya

Undoubtedly, patterns of hegemony and adaptation have occurred in the cultured expression of religious life in Africa, particularly during the dominance of Arabic religious and poetic literature. Traditional African intellectuals have long adhered to expressing themselves in Arabic poetry or jurisprudence for centuries, as the sacredness of religious expression was intricately linked to artistic creation across the Islamic world—what can be referred to as Arab-Islamic globalization.

In this context, the spread of Sufism and its various orders, particularly the connections with Morocco rather than the Arab East, may have propelled African expression towards independence. This independence manifested through movements such as the Muridiyya, Tijaniyya, and Fudiya (named after Usman dan Fodio), all of which gained unique popular appeal, resulting in the creation of texts and forms of expression found in cultural centers like the Cheikh Anta Diop Institute in Senegal, as well as libraries in Timbuktu and Zanzibar.

Thus, we can say that the committees of the Organization of African Unity have named their cultural centers as hubs for languages and oral heritage simultaneously. I believe this focus has extended into the field of history, as evidenced by some local fatwas that exhibit popular adaptations, which we documented in the book “Heritage of African Languages in Arabic Script (Ajami),” published by the Arab Cultural Center in 2005.

This interplay of cultural elements underscores the dynamic relationship between Arab and African cultures, reflecting a rich tapestry of shared heritage and mutual influence that continues to evolve today.

First: The Richness of African Heritage Written in Arabic Script

In this book, the reader finds a treasure trove of African manuscripts written in Arabic script, known as “Ajami.” Some of these manuscripts are presented directly to highlight the richness of this heritage in its contexts, responding to the editor’s desire to draw attention to its importance.

The hope is that African and Arab organizations, or even UNESCO, will sponsor these sources, collect them, and rescue what can be salvaged from a heritage that confirms the traditions of writing in many African languages using Arabic script before they were written in Latin several centuries later.

In this unique volume, which is currently considered the only one of its kind, there are texts in eight African languages written in Arabic script: Majhi, Swahili, Hausa, Wolof, Manding, Bambara, and Tamacheq.

This linguistic diversity reflects the rich cultural heritage that connects Arabs and Africans, and emphasizes the importance of preserving and exploring these manuscripts as part of a shared cultural identity.

Popular Texts on Heritage and Cultural Relations

Among these texts, there are popular writings of great value concerning the origins of the Antimoro people (Malagasy) and their relationship with the Arab world from southern Arabia and Egypt. These texts illustrate how the Marinid kingdoms emerged as completely independent entities, focusing on forming local ruling elites closely linked to Arab education, involving traders and migrants, without implying any dependency on the broader Arab culture.

Also noteworthy in this book is a popular text about the origins of the Hausa people, linking them to local interactions extending from Borno and Arawa to Kano, without any involvement of Arabs or Islam in their foundational formation. Their connection to Muslims occurs through emissaries who are traders and religious figures. The new kingdoms adopt the call to Islam in the dialogue of the Hausa people throughout West Africa, and the text connects them to the East (such as Abu Bakr al-Siddiq and Amr ibn al-As) and to the Maghreb (through Abd al-Karim al-Maghili) over transitions estimated to span several centuries, expressed in short sentences that possess their own beauty in popular storytelling.

These texts demonstrate how local cultures were able to shape their own identities even amid external influences, reflecting the richness of Arab and African cultural heritage and its diverse interactions.

Popular Texts Reflecting Cultural Heritage

In other texts, recorded through a well-known author but bearing a noticeable popular character, we find a poetic text in Swahili (Inkashefi) considered a type of elegy for ruins from the early 19th century. This text addresses the attack of herders from within the continent on the Sultanate of Pani on the eastern African coast, which led to the destruction of this region that represented a shared African and Arab cultural renaissance.

The text clearly expresses all of this through the richness of the poem, filled with popular beliefs, such as forest spirits, sea dangers, degrees of hell, and the names of God.

On the other side of the continent, we find the manuscript of Al-Akhdhari in Manding language, cited in one of the most famous popular books, “Flowers of the Gardens in the History of the Blacks,” which dates back to the early 19th century and is widespread in West Africa. This book is filled with popular texts written in local dialects, some of which have been translated into Arabic script and even into the Arabic language.

These texts demonstrate how African and Arab cultural heritage intertwines deeply, reflecting the experiences and beliefs of peoples through various literary forms.

Second: The Importance of Popular Manuscripts in Understanding African Heritage

Arabic-script manuscripts are not the only important source for understanding the origins of African peoples before and during their contact with Arabs, in peaceful, non-aggressive contexts. Famous popular epics in regions like West Africa, such as the epic of Emperor Sundiata, the founder of the Manding Kingdom in West Africa (later the Mali Empire), are considered powerful popular texts that strongly respond to prevailing narratives about the destruction of Ghana and the rise of Mali.

The official culture and the popular narrative of Manding history, known as Sundiata or sometimes as Sundiata, unfold in the prevailing dialects. In the regions of Guinea, Senegal, and present-day Mali, we find the epic of the Manding people recorded by a popular storyteller (the griot) through a well-known Guinean scholar, Djibril Tamsir Niane. This narrative is a true epic by the standards of famous folk epics and may help reveal many aspects of African heritage in relation to Arab religious heritage, without implying the dominance some speak of.

In the first part of the text, the storyteller says, “Listen, O children of Manding, and children of the Black people. I tell you about Sundiata, the father of the luminous land, and the land of the savanna, the great ancestor, and the lord of a hundred victorious kings.” Manding was an area for the kings of the Bambara, who are known today as the Maninka. They were not indigenous people but came from the East. Bilali Bounama (Bilal), the first ancestor of the Keita family and the faithful servant of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), had seven sons; the eldest son left the holy city and settled in Manding.

Moreover, the son of one of them was the first Black prince to go to Mecca for pilgrimage. On his return, he was robbed by desert bandits, but he was a just man. He prayed to God, and the jinn appeared to him, acknowledging him as king, and he returned to Manding after seven years.

Thus, the epic continues for over a hundred pages, recounting the adventures of building the great Sundiata Kingdom (Mali), without revealing conflicts with Arabs and Muslims, but occasionally addressing clashes with the Tuareg and desert bandits.

The Influence of the Hilali Epic in African Epics

Some may wish to point out the influence of the Hilali epic in such African epics, but the Hilali itself is no longer merely an Arab ethnic artifact; rather, its traces are disseminated as a human text across two continents, from the Arabian Peninsula to the far reaches of West Africa and Southern Europe.

Since the narrative styles of both Arab and African traditions suggest many ideas about mutual popular relationships, I refer the reader to numerous tales from the Hausa heritage translated into Arabic by the esteemed Dr. Mustafa Hijazi Al-Sayed. These tales directly lead the reader to the thematic similarities between texts like “The Healing Water” and the style of “One Thousand and One Nights.” Although the author is known, this does not negate the excessive popularity of these narratives, which reveals a rich reservoir of folk storytelling that encourages its popular authors to reproduce it under their names, a common practice among folklorists and cultural scholars. This underscores the necessity of caring for and collecting this heritage for fruitful African and Arab studies.

Third: How Popular Literature Reflects Arab-Afro Relationships

How do such forms of popular literature on the Arab side portray the standards of conflict or reconciliation between the African and Arab blocs, represented in major Arab popular epics and folk tales? Undoubtedly, we cannot adopt a defensive stance or overlook the facts preserved in the texts of this heritage. However, we draw attention to the fact that in-depth reading can lead us to the essence of the texts, rather than just their surface.

As we have discovered in African texts, there is often a lack of credibility in what is conveyed by official culture. We can also find reflections of a different spirit of reconciliation in Arabic texts, contrary to the images of blacks and slaves that are often portrayed in cultural narratives of battles.

The Example of Antarah ibn Shaddad: The Conflict between Identity and Freedom

If we look at a text like the epic of Antarah ibn Shaddad, that great Arab poet and knight of Banu Abs, we find that his poems are recorded among the famous seven Mu’allaqāt on the curtains of the Kaaba. He himself is the black slave from the black race, which was considered at the lowest ranks of Arab society before Islam. He tended the camels for the large Arab family in the tribe, and his father, the lord, refused to acknowledge his paternity for a long time because he was born of a slave woman.

Antarah’s black skin was an obstacle to changing his status, despite his heroic acts defending his tribe. Even here, he faced Arab arrogance that discriminated based on color and race. However, the events of the narrative soon develop to position Antarah as a leader alongside the Arabs against the Romans and the Persians, leading the knights of the tribe who had previously not recognized him.

When Antarah withdraws from defending them in protest, he emphasizes his demand for freedom while asserting his responsibilities. With his victory, his status in the tribe is confirmed, as is his recognition in Arabia through the hanging of his poems among the famous Mu’allaqāt.

During his leadership, he affirms his principles by liberating a Coptic knight (the “den of the beast”) whom Antarah captured on the borders of Syria; he freed him and continued to care for his family after his death. Additionally, the narrative takes him to invade Abyssinia, where he discovers that his mother, the slave woman, is the sister of the King of the Abyssinians.

This epic illustrates how issues of identity and freedom can intertwine in complex historical contexts, and how popular figures can reflect social and cultural struggles within their societies.

The Spirit of Tolerance in Antarah’s Epic and the Conflict of Intolerance in the Epic of Sayf ibn Dhi Yazan

In contrast to the spirit of tolerance presented in the epic of Antarah, which arises from internal social development, the scent of regional conflict, if we may say so, imposes a different spirit of Arab intolerance in the epic of Sayf ibn Dhi Yazan. This popular narrative, with its international character, addresses the battles of this knightly leader from Yemen, who wields his sword against the Crusaders in the Levant and the Abyssinians in the Horn of Africa.

Despite claims of its origins predating the heavenly religions, the weakness of the region during the Mamluk rule from the 13th to the 16th century makes the poetic legend wander through times and places in search of a defensive spirit to save the “Book of the Nile,” which is located in Abyssinia, or the attempts of the Abyssinians to save the Copts in Egypt. This reflects the atmosphere of European Crusades against the Arabs more than it reflects battles that were not as intense with the Abyssinians during the Persian-Roman conflict.

This highlights the notion of compensating for Arab victories here in contrast to Arab failures in the north. Although the epic also presents social dimensions and worthy myths for analysis, I believe that the beginning of the Arab conflict against the Abyssinians in the southern peninsula and on the lands of Yemen and Najran caused the initial influx of Abyssinian captives who worked in agriculture in the Arabian Peninsula, thereby imposing the image of black slaves in the Arab heritage in general.

Nonetheless, the social and dialectical approach to understanding events in such epics, along with others before and after, can greatly benefit social and Arab-African studies.

The Need for a Nuanced Understanding of Arab-African Literature

We do not need to reiterate that much of the written Arab literature, such as Al-Haj’s books defending the merits of Sudan over the white populations or Ibn Khaldun’s complex portrayals, largely reflects popular images and perceptions that are open to analysis through various methodological approaches, not just historical ones.

On the other hand, these popular texts that are open to analysis should not become a source of renewed tensions between peoples according to new policies aimed at promoting fragmentation and division. This can only be achieved through the engagement of Arab and African scientific institutions in recognized projects for preserving African and Arab heritage in supported centers dedicated to studying folk heritage, Arabic-script manuscripts, and the oral and written social history that accurately preserves the history of peoples.

In light of the above, it becomes clear that the interaction between Arab and African cultures was not merely a product of colonialism or domination; rather, it was shaped over centuries through popular, religious, and intellectual exchanges, which is reflected in oral and written texts, in epics and myths, as well as in legal rulings and religious studies. This shared heritage, sometimes preserved in Arabic script and sometimes in local dialects, presents a deeper and fairer image of inter-people relations, free from prevailing historical stereotypes.

The Importance of Studying and Analyzing Texts

Studying and analyzing these texts through a critical social approach not only contributes to correcting the historical narrative but also enhances the spirit of understanding and rapprochement between peoples. It opens new avenues for Arab-African cultural cooperation based on mutual respect and awareness of shared roots.

From this perspective, there is an urgent need for genuine institutional support from academic and cultural entities, both Arab and African, to protect this heritage, document it, and pass it on to future generations as an invaluable civilizational bridge. (Concludes) 

Click here for Part-1

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Souad Khalil, hailing from Libya, is a writer, poet, and translator. She has been writing on culture, literature and other general topics.

The post Arab and African Heritage Confluence-2 first appeared on Sindh Courier.

Souad Khalil | Libya

Popular heritage is a true mirror that reflects the identity and collective memory of peoples. It represents the essence of life experiences, beliefs, customs, and arts that generations have inherited over the ages. Through this heritage, societies remain connected to their roots despite the rapid transformations of time.

In both the Arab and African worlds, popular heritage showcases a rich diversity in cultural expressions, reflecting the multiplicity of environments, languages, and beliefs. At the same time, it reveals a deep unity in human values, such as generosity, heroism, and a sense of belonging to the land and community. Folk tales, proverbs, dances, traditional crafts, and other forms of expression form bridges of communication between Arab and African peoples, embodying a shared spirit despite apparent differences.

In this article, we will highlight the importance of popular heritage, ways to preserve it, and its role in enhancing identity and cultural unity in the face of globalization.

Popular heritage, as defined, encompasses the collection of customs, traditions, knowledge, and arts passed down from generation to generation informally. It reflects the lifestyle and beliefs of people in their local environments. This heritage is characterized by the diversity of its elements, which include stories and legends, folk proverbs, songs and dances, traditional music, clothing, food, handicrafts, and even daily rituals such as weddings and religious occasions.

In both Arab and African cultures, popular heritage appears as a vast reservoir of wisdom and human experience, where each dance or folk proverb carries a story that expresses social realities and establishes collective identity.

This is the widely recognized definition of popular heritage. However, in a study written by Helmy Shaarawi on the diversity and unity in Arab and African cultures.

“And due to the length of this study, we will divide it into two articles for those interested.”

He begins with a reflection on how humanity had barely recovered from the specter of the Cold War and the threat of weapons of mass destruction before facing the horrors of renewed regional conflicts. While we may have exaggerated the ideological dimensions of the former, we are once again suffering from a scale of disruption in dealing with the ideal cultural references, ignoring their potential for accepting the “Other” while respecting their diversity.

Moreover, we often push our policies toward forms of exchange and unity through this very diversity, instead of viewing diversity as a form of fragmentation and division. It is noteworthy how much is written about the dialogue of cultures and civilizations at a time when mechanisms and narratives of conflict and tension are being exported.

In this context, it may be easier for us to trace forms of tension back to the dynamics between the North and South or the complications of central hegemony. However, this is not the focus of our discussion here. Instead, we will adopt a more optimistic approach to examining cultural relations within the South-South framework, as I am confident that the future of humanity will ultimately be shaped in this arena.

The potential for encounter at different cultural levels, particularly in the realm of popular culture, is crucial. If we explore some elements of this culture with deeper understanding and goodwill, we may avoid being trapped in the hellish culture wars that are currently unfolding. This serves as the introduction to Helmy Shaarawi’s research.

First: Globalization and Major Cultures

One of the most significant effects of the centrality of globalization is the refusal to accept human diversity. The center of Western culture, which we have known to be linked to modernization or change by European standards, has shifted. This shift is also connected to the export of Orientalist and colonial anthropological narratives, which have often shaped judgments about our heritage and cultural elements. As a result, we now find ourselves within the framework of American centrality, which seeks not dialogue but imposes the inevitability of Americanizing the world.

Consequently, we remain in a strenuous struggle and a state of confrontation rather than in dialogue or consensus. Within the concept of Western culture, at least, discussions of modernization and the roles of the middle classes have taken place. National culture and popular heritage emerged as unifying and dialogical elements, whether under the framework of the nation-state or in the context of movements such as the Arab, African, Islamic, Slavic, or Indian unions, among others.

This was a period when powerful forces confronted the negation of national cultures and the severance from national histories, as attempted by certain well-known colonial schools. In this atmosphere, culture defended national unity or opposed Western influences, with a liberatory stance confronting conservative ones.

Amid these dynamics, elements of conflict sometimes emerged between certain intermediate cultures—if we may call them that—and surrounding subcultures. For instance, the issues surrounding Arab culture in relation to some African cultures or the challenges faced by Swahili and Hausa cultures with their neighboring cultures, and so on.

The waves of national challenges that emerged after World War II were able, to some extent, to confront the Western globalization of modernization. Although they did not contradict the projects of the nation-state during that period, we can identify major propositions put forth by this revitalization movement in its engagements with Western culture—sometimes against it and at other times against the North.

The concept of popular heritage and popular culture evolved significantly beyond the frameworks of anthropology and Orientalism. The centers of this heritage multiplied across the Arab world and Africa in direct response to the established centers of anthropological studies. Regional and international conferences were held based on the principles of national cultures, culminating in UNESCO’s involvement, which elevated this issue to the forefront during the National Cultural Policies Conference in Mexico in 1982. This event prompted a French minister to address cultural imperialism, much to the astonishment of a representative from the Third World.

We also witnessed a development in the discourse surrounding national languages, particularly African ones, in response to the marginalization of these languages by major European languages. The series of African language conferences held on the continent marked the beginning of efforts by the Organization of African Unity in the cultural field, resulting from a wave of recognition that national languages should be considered working languages in several countries that had gained independence (such as Swahili in East Africa, Hausa, Wolof, and Fulani in West Africa, and Arabic in the Maghreb, among others).

As a result, important centers for African heritage languages were established across the continent (in Zanzibar, Libreville, Congo, Niger, etc.). This was also supported by UNESCO, reflecting a clear acknowledgment from Africans of the need for cultural development within the framework of the ongoing scientific dialogue surrounding these issues.

It is no coincidence that the cultural field became one of the primary elements around which Arab-African cooperation revolved. The first cultural dialogue seminars regarding Arab-African relations were held in Khartoum and Sharjah in 1976, prior to the establishment of the Arab Bank for Africa and various technical and financial cooperation funds. I recall the intense discussions in Sharjah about the issues in these relations, from representations of Blackness in Arab literature and arts to the history of the slave trade, and even regarding European educational books that persisted until that time.

Perhaps it was this serious dialogue, which transitioned to Amman, Dakar in 1982-1983, Rabat, Cairo, and Cape Town in 1996, that led to the publication of the General History of Africa, financed by Arab-African contributions from the early 1980s. This dialogue also prompted the Arab Organization for Education, Culture, and Science (ALECSO) to seriously collaborate with the Organization of African Unity in establishing cultural agreements, the most significant being the agreement for the establishment of the African-Arab Cultural Institute (AACI), which was signed in 1984, although it did not commence operations in Bamako until 2002.

I liked this documentary study and wanted to share it with readers for its detailed information and dates. We will not stray from our topic about African and Arab heritage and their connection. I just wanted to highlight globalization and how North-South forums have emerged, sponsored by prominent national figures like the late Julius Nyerere and Ahmed Ben Bella. Additionally, Arab-European dialogue forums and the European-Arab-African trilateral dialogue have all aimed to achieve a new global system that respects the rights of Southern countries in development while serving the rights of their cultures in expression

Tensions in Arab-African Cultures

We can begin by stating that popular culture has succeeded where official culture has largely failed in fostering Arab-African relations. At the level of official culture, we still find echoes of historical and contemporary tensions between Arab and African cultures reflected in various forms of intellectual production on both sides.

In this context, we can observe the fields of history, media, and political thought, which are marked by hegemony and mutual perceptions. In the field of history and media, the African perspective often portrays the arrival of Islam in Africa as an Arab or Moroccan invasion, imposing religion and language, and sometimes enforcing certain social conditions and sectarian divisions.

There are prominent scholars, such as the renowned anthropologist Kwesi Prah, who consider Hebrew to be an African language. This topic has sparked significant debate, particularly since the establishment of the Organization of African Unity and has intensified during the drafting of the more recent constitution of the African Union.

Similarly, historical narratives often depict the destruction of African kingdoms by Arab Muslims, notably the destruction of the Ghana Empire to pave the way for the establishment of a pro-Arab and Islamic state, namely the Mali Empire, between the 11th and 13th centuries. Some argue that ancient history emphasizes the kings of Mali, such as Mansa Musa, who generously contributed wealth to the Islamic world, while glossing over others.

As for the issue of the slave trade, it is a topic that warrants considerable discussion. Arabs have faced accusations and vilification that at times surpass the criticisms leveled against the transatlantic slave trade. This criticism has persisted even during celebrations marking two hundred years since the prohibition of the slave trade. Much has been written about the Atlantic slave trade and its destruction of African communities and economies, as well as the dire conditions faced by slaves in the Americas. Nevertheless, this did not prevent the African side from holding a special conference in Cape Town in 2002 focused on the Arab slave trade from the establishment of the Arab state until the rise of Ottoman Islamic authority. The studies presented at this important conference provided both aggressive and objective assessments of the phenomenon, but we did not find the same level of objective explanation and analysis.

Regarding the image of Arabs in history books and educational materials for African generations, as well as in African media—both of which were established during the colonial period—there is much to observe; however, we do not wish to delve deeply into these details here. The methodological issue faced by this topic is the nature of the Arab cultural stance toward African narratives. Modern historians have often struggled to maintain the objectivity necessary to present a scientific analysis in collaboration with their African counterparts. Instead, they have taken a noticeably defensive stance throughout.

Additionally, it can be objectively noted that much of the Arab literature in history and literature continues to insist on addressing elements of these topics while adopting a defensive view aligned with the notion of a civilizing mission, particularly regarding the spread of Islam and Arab culture in Africa. This often reminds African thinkers of the legacy of European writings about the “civilizing burden” of the white man.

As for the spread of the Arabic language and its legitimacy in the continent, Arab researchers have not treated it as a social reality for the peoples living in the continent, who have mingled with other peoples on the same land. This has turned the sociology of language into studies of cultural hegemony.

The reality is that this study is extensive and contains historical points and references that illustrate the relationship of heritage and the convergence of Arabs and Africans. We will now transition to the next section of the study, which discusses representations of reconciliation in popular culture. (Continues)

Read: Eastern Influence on the Western Literature

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Souad Khalil, hailing from Libya, is a writer, poet, and translator. She has been writing on culture, literature and other general topics.

The post Arab and African Heritage Confluence first appeared on Sindh Courier.