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Downloaded From Form and meaning in Fulfulde: a morphophonological study of Maasinankoore Breedveld, J.O. Citation Breedveld, J. O. (1995, May 30). Form and meaning in Fulfulde: a morphophonological study of Maasinankoore. CNWS/LDS Publications. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/1887/68663 Version: Not Applicable (or Unknown) Licence agreement concerning inclusion of doctoral thesis in the License: Institutional Repository of the University of Leiden Downloaded from: https://hdl.handle.net/1887/68663 Note: To cite this publication please use the final published version (if applicable). Cover Page The handle http://hdl.handle.net/1887/68663 holds various files of this Leiden University dissertation. Author: Breedveld, J.O. Title: Form and meaning in Fulfulde: a morphophonological study of Maasinankoore Issue Date: 1995-05-30 Chapter one Introduction 1. 1 THE LANGUAGE AND ITS SPEAKERS Fulfulde is the language of the Fulbe spelt Ful6e in the Fulfulde orthography. Like all generalizations this claim needs some modification because there is a variety of terms for the language (Arnott 1970a: 1) and there is no clear definition for the people. The two language internal names for the language are Pulaar, which is used in Senegal and Mauritania, and Fulfulde, which is used in Mali and further eastwards. As the data of this thesis are mainly collected in Mali the term Fulfulde is used as a cover term for the whole dialect continuum (see section 1.2). The main problem, however, lies in the fact that the concept of Fulbe is difficult to describe. There is no clear definition of the term Fulbe or its singular Pullo. The most readily provided definitions are circular: "Fulbe are people who call themselves Fulbe", or "Fulbe are people who are called Fulbe". Even with these definitions problems arise about whom to include, because it is not everybody who calls him or herself a Pullo who is considered to be a Pullo by others (see Nicolas 1981, Schilder 1994). Language cannot be used as the sole criterion for defining the Fulbe because in some areas people who call themselves Fulbe and are generally referred to by others as Fulbe have been assimilated into other dominant groups (like the Bambara in Southern Mali, the Hausa in Nigeria) and they no longer speak Fulfulde. By contrast, Fulfulde must of course be said to be the property of all people for whom it is the mother tongue. Yet, there are a number of social and "ethnic" groups which have been assimilated into the Fulbe society and whose members are not considered to be Fulbe even though their mother tongue is Fulfulde, e.g. the Se66e (also named Sorogo or Bozo). It is therefore more correct to say that Fulfulde is the language of the Fulbe society, or pulaaku. 1.1.1 PULAAKU All Fulfulde speaking people use the terms Pullo, Fulbe, and pulaaku (or pulaagu). The meanings of the terms Pullo and Fulbe are hardly investigated, but it is difficult to find a study about the Fulbe which does not mention the word pulaaku. Different authors, however, use different translations, which might be related to regional differences or the fact that they performed their investigation amongst different social groups. Linguistic literature Noye (1989: 125) describing the dialect of Jamaare (Diamare) in Cameroon translates pulaaku as the physical appearance and the moral code of the Fulbe ("type physique peul; code moral peul"). For Nigeria, Taylor (1932:59) translates pulaaku as Fulaniry. Zoubko (1980:404) translates pulaaku as the total of characteristic qualities of the Fulbe ("ensemble de qualites caracteristiques des Peuls"). She does not indicate a particular 2 Introduction dialect as her source. Mohamadou (1985:87), describing Aadamaawa, translates pulaaku both as that which is characteristic of the Fulbe and as the Fulbe culture ("caracteristique de ce qui est peul", "culture peule"). Fagerberg, in her language course of the Maasina dialect (1984, part II:52), translates puilaaku as "the Fulbe way, the characteristics and behaviour of Fulbe". Anthropological literature In the anthropological literature, the term pulaaku has often been described as the (ideal) behaviour which is said to be typical of the Fulbe, or the ideology of the Fulbe. Such a description is given by Bocquene (1981:235) who describes pulaaku as a moral code of honour, and by Dupire (1962, 1970, 1981) who translates pulaaku as the way to behave in "Peul" ("la maniere de se comporter en Peul"). She writes: Le pulaaku c'est a la fois la coutume et un ensemble de qualites dont certains sont pronees par bien d'autres societes africaines - resignation (munyal), intelligence (hakkillo), courage (cuusal) - mais dont l'une semble a l'origine lie a un temperament introverti et a des conditions de vie pastorale particuliers: la retenue ou la reserve (semteende). (Dupire 1970: 189)* Kirk-Greene (1986:41-42) decided to change Taylor's "uglier" term Fulaniry (which he wrongly quotes as Fulanity) to the more acceptable Fulaniness and describes pulaaku as "characteristics of the Fulbe". Riesman (1977: 128) writes "that the term has a meaning which obliges [us] to put the accent on the social: pulaaku means not only the qualities appropriate to a Fulani but also and at the same time the group of Fulani men possessing these qualities". He thus emphasizes two aspects in the meaning of the word pulaaku: "the men and their manner of being". Both linguists and anthropologists seem to construe their own definition, whereby the linguists show a preference for occasional translation equivalents and the anthropologists make an effort to fill in the often artificial translations provided by the linguists. Recently, Fulbe identity has become a controversial topic in the anthropological literature. For example Bierschenk (1992:514) wonders whether it is possible to transpose explanations of terms related to the Fulbe culture like pulaaku which were formulated for a particular geographic, social and historical situation (e.g. North Benin) to another situation. He argues that this would imply that something which can be described as "Fulbe culture" exists independent of time, place and social circumstances, rendering individual empirical research of local "culture" superfluous. My investigation in Maasina where pulaaku is defined in a way different from the way in which it is defined in other Fulfulde speaking areas confirms this point. * Pulaaku is at the same time the customs and the set of qualities some of which are also valued by several other African societies - resignation (munyal), intelligence (hakkillo), courage (cuusal) - but of which one of these seems to be primarily linked to an introverted temperament and to the particular conditions of pastoral life: restraint or reservedness (s.emteende). Language and speakers 3 Pulaaku in Maasina The descriptions of pulaaku which I came across during my fieldwork in Maasina are different from the general understanding of the concept pulaaku in the literature. All suggestions of a meaning referring to a special behaviour, special appearance, or a moral code associated with the word pulaaku were categorically denied by Fulfulde speakers in Maasina, the majority of whom opt for a description of pulaaku as "the Fulbe society". The definition provided by the Malian linguists working for MAPE (1983a: 16): Fulbe community ("communaute peul") summarizes the following descriptions which were given to me by members of different social groups within the Fulbe society in Maasina: pullo 6aleejo: Fulbe society ("societe peul") jaawancfo: Fulbe ethnic group, the Fulbe milieu ("l'ethnie peul, le milieu peul") diimaajo: all the Fulbe together ("!'ensemble de tous les peuls") pullo bocf eejo: all those who speak Fulfulde, and in particular all the Fulbe ("les gens qui parlent peul en gros, en particulier les peuls") The term pulaaku clearly refers only to the Fulbe society. It is not used to refer to the moral codes or the value systems which exist within this society. These notions are indicated with other words like ndimu 'nobility', teddeengal 'respect, honour', yaage 'restraint', gacce 'reservedness, shame', munyal 'patience', kulol 'fear, respect', semte 'embarrassment, shame'. All descriptions of pulaaku in Maasina refer to the 'Fulbe society'. However, a Fulfulde speaker's definition of who the Fulbe are appears to be dependent on the social group to which he/she belongs. The different social categories of the Fulbe society are defined according to the occupations which are associated with these groups. The Fulfulde society in Maasina includes the following social groups (cf. Gallais 1984: 127-137, GREFUL 1993): moodibo I moodibaa6e clergy, Koran teachers pullo 6aleejo / ful6e 6alee6e elite, sedentary pullo bocf eejo / ful6e wocf ee6e herdsmen, nomadic or semi-nomadic jaawancfo / jaawam6e tradesmen, diplomats nyeenyo / nyeey6e craftsmen, praise singers: maa ho / maabuu6e weavers sakke / sakkee6e leather workers baylo / waylu6e blacksmiths labbo / law6e wood workers diimaajo / riimay 6e agricultural labourers cecfcfo / se66e fishermen (Soro go) The most strict definitions of Pullo or Fulbe are mostly given by the sedentary elite (fu16e 6alee6e 'black Fulbe') who consider themselves and the nomadic herdsmen (ful6e wocfee6e 'red Fulbe') to be the only true or pure Fulbe. They have tried to consolidate and appropriate the name Fulbe for themselves only, in order to emphasize their supremacy and their prominent leading role in the Fulbe society. A pullo 6aleejo provided the following 4 Introduction definition: a true Pullo is someone who belongs to the offspring of one of the four brothers who are the mythological forefathers of the Fulbe. The family name is an indication of such a bloodline. According to the story told by this informant, these brothers were born in Tokror. The eldest brother Iisa is the ancestor of the Jallu6e whose family name can be Jallo, Dikko, Jah, Kelli, and Jall. The second brother Yahaya is the forefather of the Wuru6e or Baa6e called Ba, Boli, or Jagayete.
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