Wolof is a language of Senegal, The Gambia, and Mauritania, and the native language of the Wolof people. Like the neighbouring languages Serer and Fula, it belongs to the Senegambian branch of the Niger–Congo language family. Unlike most other languages of Sub-Saharan Africa, Wolof is not a tonal language.

Wolof originated as the language of the Lebou people.^[1][2] It is the most widely spoken language in Senegal, spoken natively by the Wolof people (40% of the population) but also by most other Senegalese as a second language. Wolof dialects vary geographically and between rural and urban areas. "Dakar-Wolof", for instance, is an urban mixture of Wolof, French, and Arabic.

"Wolof" is the standard spelling, and may refer to the Wolof people or to Wolof culture. Older French publications may use the spelling Ouolof, and some English publications Wollof, predominantly referring to (anglophone) Gambian Wolof. Prior to the 20th century, the forms Volof and Olof were used.

Wolof words in English are believed to include yam, from Wolof nyami "to eat food", nyam in Barbadian English ^[3] meaning to eat (also compare Seychellois nyanmnyanm, also meaning to eat ^[4] ), and hip or hep, as hip cat, from Wolof hepikat "one who has his eyes open" or "one who is aware".^[5]

Geographical distribution[link]

States of the Wolof Empire

Advert in Wolof in Parcelles Assainies, Dakar (Sénégal)

Wolof is spoken by more than 10 million people and about 40 percent (approximately 5 million people) of Senegal's population speak Wolof as their native language. Increased mobility, and especially the growth of the capital Dakar, created the need for a common language: today, an additional 40 percent of the population speak Wolof as a second or acquired language. In the whole region from Dakar to Saint-Louis, and also west and southwest of Kaolack, Wolof is spoken by the vast majority of the people. Typically when various ethnic groups in Senegal come together in cities and towns, they speak Wolof. It is therefore spoken in almost every regional and departmental capital in Senegal. Nevertheless, the official language of Senegal is French.

As stated above, great care should be taken when forming an opinion based on the figures prescribed here. These figures are misleading because other tribes who have been Wolofized and speak the Wolof language are added to this figure when in fact they are not Wolofs at all.^[6] Furthermore, not only is Serer and Fula just like Wolof etc. recognised and taught in schools, not everyone speaks or understands Wolof. There are Serers, Fulas, Mandinkas, Jolas etc. who cannot speak or understand Wolof. Moreover, not only Wolof people live in cities and towns. There are cities and towns which are predominantly Serers just as there are cities and towns which are predominantly Wolofs. Furthermore, there are Wolof villages just as there are Serer villages.

In the Gambia, about three percent of the population speak Wolof as a first language, but Wolof has a disproportionate influence because of its prevalence in Banjul, the Gambia's capital, where 25 percent of the population use it as a first language. In Serrekunda, the Gambia's largest town, although only a tiny minority are ethnic Wolofs, approximately 10 percent of the population speaks and/or understands Wolof. The official language of the Gambia is English; Mandinka (40 percent), Wolof (7 percent) and Fula (15 percent) are as yet not used in formal education.

In Mauritania, about seven percent (approximately 185,000 people) of the population speak Wolof. There, the language is used only around the southern coastal regions. Mauritania's official language is Arabic; French is used as a lingua franca in addition to Wolof and Arabic.

Classification[link]

Wolof is one of the Senegambian languages, which are characterized by consonant mutation. It is often said to be closely related to Fulani due to a misreading by Wilson (1989) of the data in Sapir (1971) that has long been used to classify the Atlantic languages. However, Segerer (2009, 2010) confirms Sapir's findings that Wolof is not close to Fulani; he finds the closest relatives of Wolof are several obscure languages along the Casamance River.^[7]

Example phrases[link]

This paragraph uses the exact orthography developed by the CLAD institute, which can be found in Arame Fal's dictionary (see bibliography below). For the literal translation, please note that Wolof does not have tenses in the sense of the Indo-European languages; rather, Wolof marks aspect and focus of an action. The literal translation given in the table below is an exact word-by-word translation in the original word order, where the meanings of the individual words are separated by dashes.

To listen to the pronunciation of some Wolof words, click here

It should be noted that the "Wolof words" prescribed in this table mostly derived from the Serer language, which the Wolofs have borrowed and adopted. This borrowing is understandable since the Serers are the ancestors of the Wolofs.^[8] Example of borrowed words include (but are not limited to):

• Def
• Naka
• Maa
• Ngi
• Fi
• Rekk
• Demee
• Fan
• La
• Mu...^{[9][10][11][12][13]}

Few words are definitely borrowed and corrupted from the Fula language "Jërë" (Jërëjëf) and the word "loppitaan" is obviously borrowed from the French word "L’hôpital".

Orthography and pronunciation[link]

Note: Phonetic transcriptions are printed between brackets [] following the rules of the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA).

The Latin-based orthography of Wolof in Senegal was set by government decrees between 1971 and 1985. The language institute "Centre de linguistique appliquée de Dakar" (CLAD) is widely acknowledged as an authority when it comes to spelling rules for Wolof.

Wolof is most often written in this orthography, in which phonemes have a clear one-to-one correspondence to graphemes.

(A traditional Arabic-based transcription of Wolof called Wolofal dates back to the pre-colonial period and is still used by many people.)

The first syllable of words is stressed; long vowels are pronounced with more time, but are not automatically stressed, as they are in English.

Vowels[link]

Wolof adds diacritic marks to the vowel letters to distinguish between open and closed vowels. Example: "o" [ɔ] is open like Received Pronunciation "often", "ó" [o] is closed similar to the o-sound in English "most" (but without the w-sound at the end). Similarly, "e" [ɛ] is open like English "get", while "é" [e] is closed similar to the sound of "a" in English "gate" (but without the y-sound at the end).

Single vowels are short, geminated vowels are long, so Wolof "o" [ɔ] is short and pronounced like "ou" in Received Pronuciation "sought", but Wolof "oo" [ɔ:] is long and pronounced like the "aw" in Received Pronunciation "sawed". If a closed vowel is long, the diacritic symbol is usually written only above the first vowel, e.g. "óo", but some sources deviate from this CLAD standard and set it above both vowels, e.g. "óó".

The letter "a" is pronounced [ɐ], similar to the vowel in Received Pronunciation "cup", while the letter "à" is pronounced [a], like a sound intermediate between the vowels in "cat" and "father" or like the sound of "i" in "ride" without the y-sound at the end. "aa" [a:] is the long counterpart of "à", not "a", which is always short.

The very common Wolof letter "ë" is pronounced [ə], like "a" in English "sofa".

Consonants[link]

The characters (U+014B) Latin small letter eng "ŋ" and (U+014A) Latin capital letter eng "Ŋ" are used in the Wolof alphabet. They are pronounced [ŋ], like "ng" in English "hang".

The characters (U+00F1) Latin small letter n with tilde "ñ" and (U+00D1) Latin capital letter n with tilde "Ñ" are also used. They are pronounced [ɲ] like the same letter in Spanish "señor".

"c" [c] is between "t" in English (of England) "fortune" and "ch" in English "choose", while "j" [ɟ] is between "d" in English (of England) "duke" and "j" in "June". "x" [χ] is like "ch" in German "Bach", while "q" [q] is like "c" in English "cool". "g" [ɡ] is always like "g" in English "garden", and "s" [s] is always like "s" in English "stop". "w" [w] is as in "wind" and "y" [j] as in "yellow".

Grammar[link]

Notable characteristics[link]

Pronoun conjugation instead of verbal conjugation[link]

In Wolof, verbs are unchangeable words which cannot be conjugated. To express different tenses or aspects of an action, the personal pronouns are conjugated - not the verbs. Therefore, the term temporal pronoun has become established for this part of speech.

Example: The verb dem means "to go" and cannot be changed; the temporal pronoun maa ngi means "I/me, here and now"; the temporal pronoun dinaa means "I am soon / I will soon / I will be soon". With that, the following sentences can be built now: Maa ngi dem. "I am going (here and now)." - Dinaa dem. "I will go (soon)."

Conjugation with respect to aspect instead of tense[link]

In Wolof, tenses like present tense, past tense, and future tense are just of secondary importance, they even play almost no role. Of crucial importance is the aspect of an action from the speaker's point of view. The most important distinction is whether an action is perfective, i.e., finished, or imperfective, i.e., still going on, from the speaker's point of view, regardless whether the action itself takes place in the past, present, or future. Other aspects indicate whether an action takes place regularly, whether an action will take place for sure, and whether an action wants to emphasize the role of the subject, predicate, or object of the sentence. As a result, conjugation is not done by tenses, but by aspects. Nevertheless, the term temporal pronoun became usual for these conjugated pronouns, although aspect pronoun might be a better term.

Example: The verb dem means "to go"; the temporal pronoun naa means "I already/definitely", the temporal pronoun dinaa means "I am soon / I will soon / I will be soon"; the temporal pronoun damay means "I (am) regularly/usually". Now the following sentences can be constructed: Dem naa. "I go already / I have already gone." - Dinaa dem. "I will go soon / I am just going to go." - Damay dem. "I usually/regularly/normally go."

If the speaker absolutely wants to express that an action took place in the past, this is not done by conjugation, but by adding the suffix -(w)oon to the verb (in a sentence, the temporal pronoun is still used in a conjugated form along with the past marker).

Example: Demoon naa Ndakaaru. "I already went to Dakar."

Action verbs versus static verbs and adjectives[link]

This section is empty. You can help by adding to it.

Consonant harmony[link]

This section is empty. You can help by adding to it.

Gender[link]

Wolof lacks gender-specific pronouns: there is one word encompassing the English 'he', 'she', and 'it'. The descriptors bu góor (male / masculine) or bu jigéen (female / feminine) are often added to words like xarit, 'friend', and rakk, 'younger sibling' to indicate the person's gender.

It should be noted that the word "góor" ("goor" or "gor") originated from the Serer language. These words originated from the Serer words "o koor" or "goor" which means "man". "O kor" or "gor" also from the Serer language, means "husband". It is from this the Serer word "gorie" ("honour" or "honourable") comes. All these words and their derivatives are used by other Senegambians including the Wolof, but they all originated from the language of the Serer people.^[9]

For the most part, Wolof does not have noun concord ("agreement") classes as in Bantu or Romance languages. But the markers of noun definiteness (usually called "definite articles" in grammatical terminology) do agree with the noun they modify. There are at least ten articles in Wolof, some of them indicating a singular noun, others a plural noun. In "City Wolof" (the type of Wolof spoken in big cities like Dakar), the article -bi is often used as a generic article when the actual article is not known.

Any loan noun from French or English uses –bi –- butik-bi, xarit-bi, 'the boutique, the friend'

Most Arabic or religious terms use –ji -- jumma-ji, jigéen-ji, 'the mosque, the girl'

Nouns referring to persons typically use -ki -- nit-ki, nit-ñi, 'the person, the people'

Miscellaneous articles: si, gi, wi, mi, li, yi.

Numerals[link]

Cardinal numbers[link]

The Wolof numeral system is based on the numbers "5" and "10". It is extremely regular in formation, comparable to Chinese. Example: benn "one", juróom "five", juróom-benn "six" (literally, "five-one"), fukk "ten", fukk ak juróom benn "sixteen" (literally, "ten and five one"), ñett-fukk "thirty" (literally, "three-ten"). Alternatively, "thirty" is fanweer, which is roughly the number of days in a lunar month (literally "fan" is day and "weer" is moon.)

Ordinal numbers[link]

Ordinal numbers (first, second, third, etc.) are formed by adding the ending –éélu (pronounced ay-lu) to the cardinal number.

For example two is ñaar and second is ñaaréélu

The one exception to this system is “first”, which is bu njëk (or the adapted French word premier: përëmye)

Personal pronouns[link]

Temporal pronouns[link]

Conjugation of the temporal pronouns[link]

Note that many of the words stated in this table are borrowed from Serer, including:

• Maa
• Laa
• Laay
• Lay
• Yaa
• Yaay
• Ngay^[9]

Words such as “dafa” and “dina” are obviously borrowed from Arabic

In urban Wolof it is common to use the forms of the 3rd person plural also for the 1st person plural.

It is also important to note that the verb follows certain temporal pronouns and precedes others.

Literature[link]

The New Testament was translated into Wolof and published in 1987, second edition 2004, and in 2008 with some minor typographical corrections.^[14]

The 1994 song '7 seconds' by Youssou N'Dour and Neneh Cherry is partially sung in Wolof.

References[link]

1. ^ Falola, Toyin; Salm, Steven J. Urbanization and African cultures. Carolina Academic Press, 2005. ISBN 0-89089-558-9. p 280
2. ^ Ngom, Fallou. Wolof. Lincom, 2003. ISBN 3-89586-845-0. p 2
3. ^ Frank A. Collymore, Notes for a Glossary of Words and Phrases of Barbadian Dialect, Advocate Company, Bridgetown, 1970.
4. ^ Danielle D'Offay & Guy Lionet, Diksyonner Kreol-Franse / Dictionnaire Créole Seychellois - Français, Helmut Buske Verlag, Hamburg, 1982. In all fairness, the word might as easily be from Peul / Fula nyamde, "to eat".
5. ^ Holloway, Joseph E. The Impact of African Languages on American English. Slavery in America. Retrieved on 2006.10.05.
6. ^ African Sensus Analysis Project (ACAP). University of Pennsylvania. Ethnic Diversity and Assimilation in Senegal: Evidence from the 1988 Census by Pieere Ngom, Aliou Gaye and Ibrahima Sarr. 2000
7. ^ Such as Kobiana and Banyum. Guillaume Segerer & Florian Lionnet 2010. "'Isolates' in 'Atlantic'". Language Isolates in Africa workshop, Lyon, Dec. 4
8. ^ Senegambian Ethnic Groups: Common Origins and Cultural Affinities Factors and Forces of National Unity, Peace and Stability. By Alhaji Ebou Momar Taal. 2010.
9. ^ ^{a b c} Diktioneer Seereer-Angeleey (Serer–English Dictionary). Peace Corps – Senegal. First Edition, May 2010. Compiled by PCVs Bethany Arnold, Chris Carpenter, Guy Pledger, and Jack Brown.
10. ^ CRETOIS, RP Léonce (1973). Dictionnaire sereer-français (différents dialectes ) 48- Tome 1 AC. Dakar : Centre de Linguistique Appliquée de Dakar.
11. ^ Faye, Waly (1979). Etude morphosyntaxique du sereer singandum: parler de Jaxaaw et de Ňaaxar. Grenoble III.
12. ^ FIONA, Mc Laughlin (1995). Consonant Mutation in Sereer-Siin. In Studies in Afircan Linguistics, volume 23, Number 3. 1992-94, Los Angeles: University of California.
13. ^ Léopold Sédar Senghor (1943). Les classes nominales en wolof et les substantifs à initiales nasales. Journal de la société des Africanistes.
14. ^ Biblewolof.com

Bibliography[link]

Linguistics

• Omar Ka: Wolof Phonology and Morphology. University Press of America, Lanham, Maryland, 1994, ISBN 0-8191-9288-0.
• Mamadou Cissé: « Graphical borrowing and African realities » in Revue du Musée National d'Ethnologie d'Osaka, Japan, June 2000.
• Mamadou Cissé: "Revisiter "La grammaire de la langue wolof" d'A. Kobes (1869), ou étude critique d'un pan de l'histoire de la grammaire du wolof.", in Sudlangues Sudlangues.sn, February 2005
• Leigh Swigart: Two codes or one? The insiders’ view and the description of codeswitching in Dakar, in Carol M. Eastman, Codeswitching. Clevedon/Philadelphia: Multilingual Matters, ISBN 1-85359-167-X.
• Fiona McLaughlin: Dakar Wolof and the configuration of an urban identity, Journal of African Cultural Studies 14/2, 2001, p. 153-172
• Gabriele Aïscha Bichler: Bejo, Curay und Bin-bim? Die Sprache und Kultur der Wolof im Senegal (mit angeschlossenem Lehrbuch Wolof), Europäische Hochschulschriften Band 90, Peter Lang Verlagsgruppe, Frankfurt am Main, Germany 2003, ISBN 3-631-39815-8.

Grammar

• Pathé Diagne: Grammaire de Wolof Moderne. Présence Africaine, Paris, France, 1971.
• Pape Amadou Gaye: Wolof - An Audio-Aural Approach. United States Peace Corps, 1980.
• Amar Samb: Initiation a la Grammaire Wolof. Institut Fondamental d'Afrique Noire, Université de Dakar, Ifan-Dakar, Sénegal, 1983.
• Michael Franke: Kauderwelsch, Wolof für den Senegal - Wort für Wort. Reise Know-How Verlag, Bielefeld, Germany 2002, ISBN 3-89416-280-5.
• Michael Franke, Jean Léopold Diouf, Konstantin Pozdniakov: Le wolof de poche - Kit de conversation (Phrasebook/grammar with 1 CD). Assimil, Chennevières-sur-Marne, France, 2004 ISBN 978-2-7005-4020-8.
• Jean-Léopold Diouf, Marina Yaguello: J'apprends le Wolof - Damay jàng wolof (1 textbook with 4 audio cassettes). Karthala, Paris, France 1991, ISBN 2-86537-287-1.
• Michel Malherbe, Cheikh Sall: Parlons Wolof - Langue et culture. L'Harmattan, Paris, France 1989, ISBN 2-7384-0383-2 (this book uses a simplified orthography which is not compliant with the CLAD standards; a CD is available).
• Jean-Léopold Diouf: Grammaire du wolof contemporain. Karthala, Paris, France 2003, ISBN 2-84586-267-9.
• Fallou Ngom: Wolof. Verlag LINCOM, Munich, Germany 2003, ISBN 3-89586-616-4.
• Sana Camara: Wolof Lexicon and Grammar, NALRC Press, 2006, ISBN 978-1-59703-012-0.

Dictionary

• Diouf, Jean-Leopold:Dictionaire wolof-français et français-wolof,Karthala,2003
• Mamadou Cissé: Dictionnaire Français-Wolof, L’Asiathèque, Paris, 1998, ISBN 2-911053-43-5
• Arame Fal, Rosine Santos, Jean Léonce Doneux: Dictionnaire wolof-français (suivi d'un index français-wolof). Karthala, Paris, France 1990, ISBN 2-86537-233-2.
• Pamela Munro, Dieynaba Gaye: Ay Baati Wolof - A Wolof Dictionary. UCLA Occasional Papers in Linguistics, No. 19, Los Angeles, California, 1997.
• Peace Corps The Gambia: Wollof-English Dictionary, PO Box 582, Banjul, The Gambia, 1995 (no ISBN, available as PDF file via the internet; this book refers solely to the dialect spoken in the Gambia and does not use the standard orthography of CLAD).
• Nyima Kantorek: Wolof Dictionary & Phrasebook, Hippocrene Books, 2005, ISBN 0-7818-1086-8 (this book refers predominantly to the dialect spoken in the Gambia and does not use the standard orthography of CLAD).
• Sana Camara: Wolof Lexicon and Grammar, NALRC Press, 2006, ISBN 978-1-59703-012-0.

Official documents

• Government of Senegal, Décret n° 71-566 du 21 mai 1971 relatif à la transcription des langues nationales, modifié par décret n° 72-702 du 16 juin 1972.
• Government of Senegal, Décrets n° 75-1026 du 10 octobre 1975 et n° 85-1232 du 20 novembre 1985 relatifs à l'orthographe et à la séparation des mots en wolof.
• Government of Senegal, Décret n° 2005-992 du 21 octobre 2005 relatif à l'orthographe et à la séparation des mots en wolof.

External links[link]

	Languages portal
	Africa portal

Wolof language edition of Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

• Wolof Language Resources
• Ethnologue Site on the Wolof Language
• An Annotated Guide to Learning the Wolof Language
• Yahoo group about Wolof (in English and German)
• Wolof Online
• Wolof English Dictionary (this dictionary mixes Senagalese and Gambian variants without notice, and does not use a standard orthography)
• A French-Wolof-French dictionary partially available at Google Books.
• Firicat.com (an online Wolof to English translator; you can add your own words to this dictionary; refers almost exclusively to the Gambian variants and does not use a standard orthography)
• PanAfrican L10n page on Wolof
• OSAD spécialisée dans l’éducation non formelle et l’édition des ouvrages en langues nationales
• JangaWolof.wordpress.com (A blog about the Wolof language and culture)
• xLingua - Online-Dictionary German-Wolof/Wolof-German, 2009

Wolof

Notable Wolof: Abdoulaye Wade, Djibril Diop Mambéty
Total population
6,207,083[citation needed]
Regions with significant populations
Senegal 5,689,710 [1]  The Gambia 287,658 [1]  Mauritania 229,715
Languages
Wolof French (Senegal and Mauritania), English (The Gambia), Hassānīya Arabic (Mauritania)
Religion
Sunni Islam (90%), Animism (6%), Christianity (2%)[2]
Related ethnic groups
Lebou Serer

Locator map for Wolof ethnic distribution. Note that this shows areas of traditional concentration of Wolof communities. Distribution of self-identified Wolof people is wider, populations are intermixed, and use of Wolof language has come to be near universal in Senegal.

A Wolof young man, The Gambia

The Wolof are an ethnic group found in Senegal, The Gambia, and Mauritania.

In Senegal, the Wolof form an ethnic plurality with about 43.3% of the population are Wolofs.^[3] Note however that, this figure is somewhat misleading because other tribes who have been Wolofized and speak the Wolof language are added to this figure while they are not originally Wolofs.^[4]

In The Gambia, about 16% of the population are Wolof. Here, they are a minority, where the Mandinka are the plurality with 42% of the population, yet Wolof language and culture have a disproportionate influence because of their prevalence in Banjul, The Gambia's capital, where majority of the population are Wolof.^[5]

In Mauritania, about 8% of the population are Wolof. They live largely in the southern coastal region of the country.

Orthography[link]

In older French publications the spelling "Ouolof" is often used instead of "Wolof". In some English publications, predominantly those referring to Gambian Wolof, the spelling "Wollof" is used, because this spelling will induce native English speakers to pronounce the term correctly as a Wolof speaker.^[6] In publications of the 19th century and before the spelling "Volof" and "Olof" can also be found. Rarely used are also the spellings "Jolof", "Jollof" and "Dyolof". - The term "Wolof" itself may also refer to the Wolof language or to things originating from Wolof culture or tradition.

It is thought the Wolof people originated from a Baffouri population in the Sahara before it became hostile to farming due to desertification. As the environment deteriorated some of them drifted into the Senegalese areas of Futa Toro and modern-day south eastern Mauritania. With the Arab conquests of around 640 AD they were forced to move into north and east Senegal where over time villages developed into autonomous states such as Baol, Kayor, Saloum, Dimar, Walo and Sine the overall ruling state being that of Jolof who came together voluntarily to form the Jolof Empire.

Legend has it that in Walo the fishermen from several villages argued vehemently over firewood which lay along the edge of a lake at Mengen. Just before matters developed into violence a mysterious person called Ndyadyane Ndyaye (Njanjan Njie) arose from the lake and shared out the firewood fairly among the men and promptly vanished much to their bafflement. The decision was made to try and catch him so they feigned another argument and when he appeared he was caught. When Mansa Wali Jon the ruler of Sine, who was himself endowed with supernatural powers, heard about the strange goings on in Mengen he shouted "Ndyadyane Ndyaye" which is an expression of utter amazement. This name was given to the strange visitor (actual name: Amadu Bubakar Ibn Muhammed). He became the first ruler of the new empire with the title Burba Jolof and other states voluntarily pledged allegiance to him. Thus the new empire arose around 300 AD in the Senegambia valley which stretched from the Gambia River and encompassed most of modern-day Senegal.

Historical state[link]

The Wolof Empire was a medieval West African state that ruled parts of Senegal and The Gambia from approximately 1350 to 1890. While only ever consolidated into a single state structure for part of this time, the tradition of governance, caste, and culture of the Wolof dominate the history of north-central Senegal for much of the last 800 years. Its final demise at the hands of French colonial forces in the 1870s-1890s also marks the beginning of the formation of Senegal as a unified state.

By the end of the 15th century, the Wolof states of Jolof, Kayor, Baol and Walo had become united in a federation with Jolof as the metropolitan power. The position of king was held by the Burba Wolof and the rulers of the other component states owed loyalty to him while being allowed local sovereignty in internal state matters. Saloum and Sine were later brought within the union. Before they became involved in trading with the Portuguese merchants on the coast, the Wolof people enjoyed the benefits of long established trading and cultural ties with the Western Sudanese empires and had also benefited from trading with Futa Toro and the Berbers from North Africa. Through these early trading links and organisation the Wolof states grew wealthy and had formidable strength.

Culture[link]

The Wolof people’s traditional culture and practices have survived the colonial era and are a strong element of the Senegalese culture .

Language[link]

"Wolof" is the name of the native language of the Wolof people. At least 50% of Senegal's population are native speakers of Wolof. Members of neighboring groups are often bilingual and can understand Wolof. Wolof culture and language have an enormous influence, especially in urban areas. Wolof is strongly linked to Serer and Fulani in structure with minor Arabic influence.

Religion[link]

The vast majority of the Wolof people are Sufi Muslims. The Senegalese Sufi Muslim brotherhoods, appearing in Wolof communities in the 19th century, grew tremendously in the 20th. Their leaders, or marabouts, exercise a huge cultural and political influence amongst most Muslim communities, most notably the leader of the Mouride brotherhood, Serigne Cheikh Maty Leye Mbacké. The Islam of the Wolof is very tolerant and puts an emphasis on meditation and spirituality.

Wolof ceremonial traditions[link]

Ceremonies such as weddings, funerals, and baptisms, while not unique, have traditional elements distinctive to the Wolof. Many aspects of these traditional ceremonies have merged and been modified through the 20th century.

Weddings[link]

Prior to traditional Wolof wedding ceremonies, the parents of the groom-to-be sends elders to the girl's parents with kola nuts and money to ask for her hand in marriage. The girl's parents consult their daughter and either consent to or reject the proposal.^[7]. If accepted, the parents of the bride to be distribute the kola nuts among the family and neighbours. This distribution is an informal way of announcing the impending wedding. In more traditional practices, the family of the groom-to-be paid the girl's bride price in the form of money. This tradition, where surviving, has been modernized and dowry is paid in money, cars or even houses. After the completion of the groom's obligations, the two families set a wedding day. Before the wedding day, the groom's family gives a party to welcome their daughter-in-law and to prepare her to live with her new family. The imam and elders advise the groom with the presence of some representatives of the bride's parents.

Weddings traditionally take place at the groom's home. Parents receive guests with food and drink (but not alcohol), while guests bring gifts of money, rice, drinks, ships, sugar, or spices. After the ceremony people feast and dance with guests hiring a griot (praise-singer) and giving further gifts to the groom's parents.

Notable Wolof people[link]

This section requires expansion.

• Abdoulaye Wade

Bibliography[link]

• Cissé, Mamadou (2004). Dictionnaire Français-Wolof. Paris: L’Asiathèque. ISBN 2-911053-43-5. 
• Cissé, Mamadou (1994). Contes wolof modernes. Paris: L’Harmattan. ISBN 2-7384-3016-3. 
• Malherbe, Michel; Sall, Cheikh (1989). Parlons Wolof – Langue et culture. Paris: L'Harmattan. ISBN 2-7384-0383-2. 
• Bichler, Gabriele Aïscha (2003). Bejo, Curay und Bin-bim? Die Sprache und Kultur der Wolof im Senegal (mit angeschlossenem Lehrbuch Wolof). Europäische Hochschulschriften. 90. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang Verlagsgruppe. ISBN 3-631-39815-8. 
• Fal, Arame; Santos, Rosine; Doneux, Jean Léonce (1990). Dictionnaire wolof-français (suivi d'un index français-wolof). Paris: Karthala. ISBN 2-86537-233-2. 
• Goetz, Rolf (1996). Senegal – Gambia: Praktischer Reiseführer an die Westküste Afrikas. Frankfurt am Main: Verlag Peter Meyer Reiseführer. ISBN 3-922057-09-8. 

References[link]

External links[link]

• Info page about the Wolof people
• Yahoo group about Wolof (English) (German)

Al-Hasan al-Mujtabā الحسن المجتبى Imam of Twelver Shi'a Islam
A modern depiction by a Shi'a artist
Rank	2nd Twelver/Zaydi/Mustaali Imām
Name	Hasan ibn ‘Alī
Kunya	Abu Muhammad[1]
Birth	15th Ramadhān 3 AH[2] ≈ March 1, 625 C.E.
Death	7th[3] or 28th[4] Safar 50 AH ≈ March 6, 670 C.E.
Birthplace	Madīnah[2]
Buried	Jannatul Baqī‘, Madīnah
Life Duration	Before Imāmate: 37 years (3 - 40 AH) - 8 years with his grandfather Muhammad - 8 years with his mother Fātimah - 37 years with his father ‘Alī Imāmate: 10 years (40 - 50 AH)
Titles	al-Mujtabā[5] (Arabic for The Chosen) as-Sibt[5] (Arabic for The Grandson) Sayyidu Shabābi Ahlil Jannah[6] (Arabic for Leader of the Youth of Paradise) az-Zakī[5] (Arabic for The Pure) at-Taqī[5] (Arabic for The Pious) as-Sayyid[5] (Arabic for The Master) İkinci Ali (Turkish for Second Ali)
Spouse(s)	Um Kulthum bint Alfadhl bin Al-Abbas bin Abdulmuttalib bin Hashim Khawla bint Mandhoor bin Zaban bin Syar bin Amro Um Basheer bint Abi Mas'ud Ju'da bint Al-Ash'ath bin Qays Ma'di Karb Alkindi Um Ishaq bint Talha bin Ubaydillah bin Uthman Al-Taymi Zainab bint Sabee' bin Abdullah Baqliya Dhamya' Safia
Father	‘Alī ibn Abī Talib
Mother	Fātimah bint Muhammad
Children	Qāsim, Fātimah, Abu Bakr, Zayd, Abdullah, Talha, Maymūnah, Al-Hasan al-Muthana, Umm al-Husayn.[3]
Ali · Hasan · Husayn al-Sajjad · al-Baqir · al-Sadiq al-Kadhim · al-Rida · al-Taqi al-Hadi · al-Askari · al-Mahdi

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Al-Hasan ibn ‘Alī ibn Abī Tālib (Arabic: الحسن بن علي بن أبي طالب‎)‎ ( born March 1, 625 CE (Ramadhān 15th, 3 AH) – died 669CE (Safar 7th^[7] or 28th, 50 AH) aged 47)^[8] is an important figure in Islam, the son of Fatimah the daughter of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, and of the fourth Caliph Ali ibn Abi Talib.^[9] Hasan is a member of the Ahl al-Bayt and Ahl al-Kisa. He briefly succeeded his father Ali ibn Abi Talib as the righteous Caliph following the latter's death, before retiring to Madinah and entering into an agreement with the first Umayyad ruler, Muawiyah ibn Abi Sufyan, who assumed the Caliphate. Both Sunni and Shia Muslims regard Hasan as a martyr.

Birth and family life[link]

According to Shia^[10] and Sunni^[11] sources, Muhammad, upon the birth of his grandson in 3 AH, was ordered by the archangel Gabriel to name him Hasan - a name not used in the pre-Islamic period.^[12] Muhammad also honoured his grandson by reciting the Adhān in his right ear,^[13] the Iqāmah in his left ear,^[13] shaving his head,^[14] and sacrificing a ram for the sake of his birth.^[15]

He married nine women:^[16]

1. Um Kulthum bint Alfadhl bin Al-Abbas bin Abdulmuttalib bin Hashim
2. Khawla bint Mandhoor bin Zaban bin Syar bin Amro
3. Um Basheer bint Abi Mas'ud
4. Ju'da bint Al-Ash'ath bin Qays Ma'di Karb Alkindi
5. Um Ishaq bint Talha bin Ubaydillah bin Uthman Al-Taymi
6. Zainab bint Sabee' bin Abdullah
7. Baqliya
8. Dhamya'
9. Safia

Early life[link]

As a growing youth Hasan saw his father on the battlefield defending Islam as well as preaching to a vast congregation of believers on the occasion of hajj and as a missionary of Islam to Yemen before retreating to a passive role in the matters of the state during the period of the first three caliphs after the death of his grandfather, Muhammad. Hasan and his younger brother, Husayn ibn Ali, are believed to have been greatly beloved by their grandfather Muhammad as numerous hadiths affirm^{[citation needed]}. There are also hadiths that state that Hasan and Husayn are the Masters of the youth in paradise and that Hasan and his brother Hussein are imams "whether they sit or stand". Hasan is one of five persons included in the Hadith of the Cloak. He is said to have been the first of the Prophet's family to enter Yemeni Kisa after Muhammad and to have walked hand in hand with Muhammad as a child to testify to the truth of Islam at Mubahila.

In Medina when Muhammad was sitting with his companions and Hasan, who was still a child, was playing between his hands, Muhammad is said to have gazed at Hasan and said to his companions "This (grand)son of mine is a delight, and may God place in his hands the reconciliation of two great groups of believers (mu'minun)."^{[citation needed]}

When the third caliph was murdered by demonstrators in his palace in Mad'mah Ali was elected to lead the Muslims. Hasan assisted his father: he went to Kufa and raised an army against the dissenting Muslims, then participated actively in the battles of Basra, Siffin and Nahrawan alongside his father, demonstrating skill both as a soldier and a leader. He travelled to Mecca with Ammar ibn Yasir to summon armies to fight against the army accompanying Aisha.^[6]

Caliphate[link]

The Shia view is that Ali’s right to the caliphate was usurped and his family abused by Abu Bakr but Ali, Hasan and his younger brother Husayn ibn Ali valued the Muslim community's stability above their own rights, even going to defend the third caliph Uthman before Ali himself received the caliphate.

Upon the death of Ali in Kufa a new caliph had to be elected. According to Ali's appointment before his death the choice was restricted to Hasan and his younger brother Husayn. The latter did not claim the caliphate so Kufi Muslims gave their allegiance (bay'ah) to Hasan without dispute.^[17] Most caliph chronologies do not include Hasan ibn Ali among the Rashidun Caliphs. However, many Sunni Muslim historians, such as Suyuti, Ibn al-Arabi, and Ibn Kathir accept Hasan ibn Ali as the last such caliph.^

Suyuti in The Khalifas who took the right way page 9 and History of the Caliphs Vol 12

Ibn al-Arabi in his Sharh Sunan al-Tirmidhi 9:68-69 ref

Ibn Kathir in The Beginning and the End Vol 6 page 249-250

Muawiyah ibn Abi Sufyan, who had a long-running dispute with Ali, summoned the commanders of his forces in Syria, Palestine, and Transjordan to join him in preparation for battle. He first attempted to negotiate with Hasan, sending him letters asking him to give up his caliphate, believing he could thus avoid killing fellow Muslims and avoid lingering questions regarding his legitimacy should he kill Hasan outright. Most historians say that large sums of money and promises of vast properties and governorships of provinces were offered to commanders of Hassan's army who left him,one of which was ubaydallah ibn al abbas,the commander of Imam Hassan army and that Muawiyah was not interested in the functions of preaching piety or theology but in expanding his sphere of influence in the territories already conquered by the Muslims and in further conquests to the north and north west of Syria.

Negotiations failed and Muawiyah decided to march against Hasan's army of forty thousand^[18] with his own army, claimed to have numbered sixty thousand fighters.^[19] The two armies faced each other near Sabat. Hasan is said to have given a sermon in which he proclaimed his hatred of schism and appealed to his men to follow his orders even if they did not agree with them. Some of the troops, taking this as a sign that Hasan was preparing to give up battle, rebelled and attacked him. Hasan was wounded but loyal soldiers surrounded him and managed to kill the mutineers. One commander, Ubayd-Allah ibn Abbas, deserted him and joined Muawiyah’s forces.

The two armies fought a few inconclusive skirmishes. Hasan was distressed, understanding that the engagement of Muslims in a battle against each other would mean a loss of many: Muawiyah also had his concerns about being forced into a battle and sent two men from the Banu Quraish to negotiate a settlement.^[20] Shia scholars^[who?] quote hadith from later Shia Imams to the effect that Hassan lacked the support to fight and win and so ceded power to Muawiya, signing an agreement that he would return the caliphate at his death. According to Shia scholars Hasan stipulated that the caliphate should be returned to him if he was still alive after Muawiyah's death, otherwise it should be given to his younger brother.^[21] According to Sunni scholars^[who?] Hasan stipulated that Muawiyah should follow the Qur'an and the Sunnah, allow a parliament (shura) as regards the caliphate after his death and refrain from any acts of revenge. Muawiyah accepted the conditions attached to the peace treaty;

1. the enforced public cursing of Ali, e.g. during prayers, should be abandoned
2. Muawiyah should not use tax money for his own private needs
3. there should be peace: followers of Hasan should be given security and their rights^[22]

Muawiyah proceeded to Kufa and demanded that the Muslims there pledge allegiance to him as caliph. He also asked Hasan to join him and support him in the fight against the rebellious Kharijites. Hasan is claimed to have written to him in response: "I have abandoned the fight against you, even though it was my legal right, for the sake of peace and reconciliation of the Muslim congregation (ummah). Do you think that I shall then fight together with you?"^[23]

Muawiyah did not comply with the terms of the treaty, saying to the people of Kufa, “do you think I have taken power to teach you? No, I have taken power and if any one of you tries to disagree with me he shall pay the costly price of the loss of his head.” He carried out his ambition of keeping the power in his family by nominating his son Yazid as caliph after him. But the decision stirred widespread agitation, particularly amidst prominent personalities such as Hussain, Abdul-Rahman ibn Abu Bakr, Abdullah ibn Umar, Abdullah ibn Al-Zubayr and others.

Retirement to Medina[link]

Hasan returned to Medina. According to Persian Shia historians^[who?], Marwan ibn al-Hakam, the personal secretary to the third caliph Uthman ibn Affan who had fought against Ali during the Battle of Bassorah, was now the governor of Medina. Hasan lacked his moral support and had a hard time during his stay there after the peace treaty, with taunts and abuse from some of Muawiyah's followers and the anger of his supporters for having relinquished the caliphate.

On the other hand, Sunni historians^[24] see the treaty as conferring great benefits on the Muslim Empire in years to come. Hasan has been quoted as commenting:

"If Muawiyah was the rightful successor to the caliphate, he has received it. And if I had that right, I, too, have passed it on to him; so the matter ends there."^[25]

He donated all his belongings completely twice in his lifetime. Also, he divided his property between himself and the poor people equally three times .^[26]

Death[link]

Hasan ibn Ali died in Medina either on Safar 7th or 28th, 50 AH. He is buried at the famous Jannatul Baqee‘ cemetery across from the Masjid al-Nabawi (Mosque of the Prophet). According to historians, Muawiyah wished to pass the caliphate to his own son Yazid, and saw Hasan as an obstacle. He secretly contacted one of Hasan's wives, Ja'da bint al-Ash'ath ibn Qays, and incited her to poison her husband. Ja'da did as Muawiyah suggested, giving her husband poison mixed with honey.^{[27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34]} Madelung^[35] notes other traditions suggesting that Hasan may have been poisoned by another wife, the daughter of Suhayl ibn Amr, or perhaps by one his servants and also cites the early historians (Baladhuri, Waqidi, etc.). Madelung believed that Hasan was poisoned and that the famous early Islamic historian al-Tabari suppressed the tale out of concern for the faith of the common people.^[36]

Shia Muslims believe that Ja'da was promised gold and marriage to Yazid. Seduced by the promise of wealth and power, she poisoned her husband, and then hastened to the court of Muawiyah in Damascus to receive her reward. Muawiyah reneged on his promises and married her to another man.^[37]

Hasan had asked for his body to be taken to the prophet's grave, so that he could pay his last respect, and then to be buried near his grandmother Fatima bint Asad. This caused armed opposition. As the funeral proceeded towards the grave of Muhammad some Umayyads mounted on horses obstructed it. Aisha bint Abu Bakr appeared, riding a mule and shouting that the grave of Muhammad was in her house and she would not allow the grandson of Khadijah binte Khuwaylid to be buried beside Muhammad. A shower of arrows fell on the coffin. Husayn, fulfilling the last wish of his brother, turned the procession of the funeral towards Jannat al-Baqi, the general graveyard of Medina, where he was buried. According to one version Marwan asked Muhammad's wife Aisha also to allow his relative Uthman ibn Affan to be buried beside the Prophet if Hasan were to be buried there, but Aisha refused Marwan's request and did not allow anyone else to be buried beside Muhammad.

After Hasan's death his Iraqi followers wrote to Husayn pledging allegiance and proposing to remove Muawiya. However, Husayn refused, choosing to abide by the treaty between Hassan ibn Ali and Muawiyah, which could not be broken at that time.

The shrine of Hasan's tomb was destroyed by 20th century Salafi Saudis.^[7] It was narrated that Abu’l-Hayaaj al-Asadi said: ‘Ali ibn Abi Taalib said to me: “Shall I not send you on the same mission as the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) sent me? Do not leave any statue without erasing it, and do not leave any raised grave without leveling it.” (Narrated by Muslim, 969).

Timeline[link]

See also[link]

• Twelve Imams
• Shi'a Islam

Notes[link]

• ^ 1: Sahih Bukhari: [8][9][10]
• ^ 2: Suyuti in The Khalifas who took the right way page 9 and History of the Caliphs Vol 12

Ibn al-Arabi in his Sharh Sunan al-Tirmidhi ref

Ibn Kathir in The Beginning and the End Vol 6 page 249-250

• ^ 3: [11]
• ^ 4: [12]

References[link]

Constructs such as ibid., loc. cit. and idem are discouraged by Wikipedia's style guide for footnotes, as they are easily broken. Please improve this article by replacing them with named references (quick guide), or an abbreviated title. (May 2010)

Madelung, Wilferd (1997). The Succession to Muhammad: A Study of the Early Caliphate. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-64696-0. 

Hasan Reza Ansari, Kulti, India

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Hasan ibn Ali

• Hasan ibn 'Ali In Encyclopædia Britannica
• Hasan ibn 'Ali by Wilferd Madelung , In Encyclopædia Iranica
• Kitab al Irshad, by Sheikh al Mufid, translated by I.K.A Howard, pp. 279 - 289