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Mauritania
Index
Maures trace their ancestry to Arab-Berber origins, although
many have intermarried among African populations over the
centuries. Maures occupy scattered areas across West Africa from
southern Morocco to Gambia and from the Atlantic Ocean to Mali.
The greatest concentration of this group is in Mauritania, which
took its name from this dominant segment of its population.
Maure society's complex social relationships are based on
rigid hierarchical social and ethnic divisions. Social
distinctions reflect the interplay of heritage, occupation, and
race. Broadly speaking, Maures distinguish between free and
servile status on the one hand and between nobles, tributaries,
artisans, and slaves on the other hand. Non-Maure populations,
termed "black Africans" in this context, are not included in this
ranking system.
Two strata, the warriors (hassani) and the religious
leaders (zawaya), dominate Maure society. The latter are
also known as
marabouts (see Glossary),
a term applied by the
French. These two groups constitute the Maure nobility. They are
more Arab than Berber and have intermarried little with black
African populations. Tributary vassals (zenaga) are below
the hassani and zawya in status but nevertheless
are considered among the elite. They are descendants of Berbers
conquered by Arabs, and their Hassaniya Arabic dialect shows a
greater Berber influence. Although these three social strata are
termed "white" Maures (bidan), the zenaga have
intermarried with other groups to a greater degree than have the
hassani and zawaya.
Craftsmen and artisans in Maure society are described as
members of "castes" because they form closed groups whose members
tend to intermarry and socialize only among themselves. Bards or
entertainers, called ighyuwa in Mauritania and
griots elsewhere in West Africa, are also considered to be
members of a caste. At the bottom of the social order are the socalled "black" Maures, previously the servile stratum within
Maure society.
Myths of origin are used to reinforce perceptions of social
status and justify elements of this elaborate system of
stratification. Craftsmen and musicians in Maure society are said
to be of Semitic (Arab) rather than Berber or African ancestry.
Imraguen fishermen, a caste group living in the vicinity of
Nouadhibou, are thought to be descended from the Bafour, the
aboriginal black population who migrated south ahead of the
expanding desert. Small hunting groups are considered to be the
remnants of an earlier Saharan people and may be of Berber
origin.
Data as of June 1988
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