View source for Epic of Silâmaka and Poullôri

The '''epic of Silâmaka and Poullôri''' (or Silammaka and Puluru) is an African [[Epic poetry|epic]] transmitted by [[oral tradition]], mostly in the languages [[Fula language|Fula]] and [[Bambara language|Bambara]], and always accompanied with music. It relates the adventures of two heroes, Silâmaka and Poullôri, who are bound by friendship. 

This epic is likely grounded on actual events, or at least historical characters, from late 18th or early 19th centuries, in the [[Fula people|Fula]] chiefdoms of [[Macina, Mali|Macina]] ‒ then part of the [[Bamana kingdom]] of [[Ségou]].<ref name="Dupire1974">[[Marguerite Dupire]], 1974, [http://www.persee.fr/web/revues/home/prescript/article/hom_0439-4216_1974_num_14_2_367456 Review of ''Silâmaka et Poullôri. Récit épique peul raconté par Tinguedji'' de Christiane Seydou], in ''Persée'' vol. 14 {{Numero|2}}, 1974, pp.146-147.</ref>

== Synopsis ==
The version of the Malian [[griot]] Marabal Samburu, transcribed by {{ill|Lilyan Kesteloot|fr}} in 1968, narrates the following main events.<ref>According to the summary given by Daniel P. Biebuyck, "The African Heroic Epic", in Felix J. Oinas (ed.), 1978, pp.340-341, itself based on the version of Marabal Samburu transcribed by Kesteloot (1968).</ref>

Hammadi, a [[Fula people|Fula]] chief, is a vassal of the king of the [[Bamana kingdom]] of [[Ségou]], {{ill|Da Diarra|fr|lt=Da Monzon Diarra}}. Hammadi's son is Silâmaka, whose best friend is Poullôri, himself the son of Baba, Hammadi's domestic slave. At just forty days old, Silâmaka already shows exceptional endurance and bravery.

Silâmaka and Poullôri grow up. As an adult, Silâmaka is challenged by a woman to prove his temerity at the expense of Da Monzon himself. Silâmaka goes to consult a [[geomancer]] on a way to become invulnerable. He learns that, to do this, he must capture alive the sacred serpent ''galamani'' that prowls in the woods, in order to mark it with signs, surround it with leather and make a belt. Silâmaka goes into the forest mounted on his white horse, ''Soperekagne''; and, with the help of Poullôri, he succeeds where many valiant warriors have failed: he captures the serpent and makes the belt. His fame spreads across the Fula villages.

The next episode pits Silâmaka against Hambodédio, a general allied with Da Monzon. Hambodédio insults Silâmaka's friend and the latter challenges him to single combat. Silâmaka is victorious; Hambodédio asks his forgiveness and the hero grants him his life.

The following year, when Da Monzon and his men come to collect tribute in the Fula villages, Silâmaka hides the villagers' gold and publicly insults Da Monzon. The latter sends his warriors against him, but they are all repelled. A warlord of Da Monzon, Fularadio, assaults Silâmaka and the latter must first retreat to his native village. But Silâmaka attacks again and, during a new battle which pits him against Fularadio and his five hundred horsemen, he kills Fularadio. Da Monzon sends other troops, who are massacred in vain. Silâmaka begins to doubt the validity of his actions and the deaths he has caused. He consults a [[Fortune-telling|soothsayer]], who predicts that he will soon die a glorious death.

For his part, Da Monzon and his allies develop a powerful magic capable of defeating Silâmaka. Sensing his end approaching, Silâmaka sends Poullôri to Hambodédio to tell him that after his death, it will be his turn to reign. This is followed by the battle between Silâmaka and Da Monzon's troops. Finally, a young uncircumcised [[albino]] warrior manages to wound Silâmaka with an arrow dipped in the crushed bones of a black ox. Silâmaka dies of his wound. His body is brought back to his native village at the moment when Poullôri returns after having transmitted the message to Hambodédio. Poullôri mourns his deceased friend.

{{ill|Da Diarra|fr|lt=Da Monzon}} then attacks the village with new troops. Armed with his friend's enchanted [[lance]], Poullôri flees on horseback with his sons and those of Silâmaka. He divides his pursuers into two groups, one that pursues him, the other that he chases in turn. When night falls, they all disappear, never to reappear: according to legend, they all went up to heaven.

After the disappearance of Silâmaka and Poullôri, Hambodédio takes charge of the region. He obtains from Da Monzon that the region of [[Macina (Mali)|Macina]], former domain of Silâmaka, is not reduced to captivity.

==Musical aspects==
In the culture of the [[Fula people|Fula]], music plays a primordial role in the epic. The ''mâbo'' (griot) plays for each character a tune called the ''noddol'' (literally "the call") on his ''hoddu'' (instrument resembling a [[lute]]). The ''noddol'' is in a way the theme or the musical signature of an epic character, so that listeners who have already heard the themes can recognize which character is going to be discussed from the music even before the ''mâbo'' has mentioned it. Each epic has its own ''noddol'' that the ''mâbo'' plays at the beginning of the session to announce the story.<ref>Chevrier (2005), p.198, referring to Seydou (1972).</ref> In the epic of Silâmaka and Poullôri, there is practically no passage that is simply spoken, without being accompanied by music.<ref>Chevrier (2005), p.199.</ref>

== Editions and translations ==
The first partial French translations of the epic were published by Gilbert Vieillard. In 1927, Vieillard listened to some episodes of the epic related by Gouro Ahmadou, a griot from Wouro-Guéladio in Niger, and he heard a second version in 1928 related by Samba Gaoulo Foûtanké. In 1931, he published an adaptation of Gouro Ahmadou's version.<ref>Gilbert Vieillard, Récits peuls du Macina et du Kounari, ''Bulletin du Comité d'études historiques et scientifiques de l'Afrique Occidentale Française'', n°XIV, 1931, pp.146 sqq.</ref><ref name="Seydou72-intro">Seydou (1972), Introduction.</ref>

In 1968, [[Amadou Hampaté Bâ]] collected a long excerpt from the epic from the griot Mâbal Sambourou in the region of [[Macina (Mali)|Macina]] in Mali and {{ill|Lilyan Kesteloot|fr}} published the translation in the journal ''L'Homme'' the same year.<ref name="Seydou72-intro"/> 

In 1972, Christiane Seydou published the translation of two episodes of the epic: the revolt of Silâmaka against Amirou, chief of Sâ, and the theft of the oxen of Amirou Goundaka (also called Hambodêdio).<ref name="Dupire1974"/> This version published by Seydou was related to him by the griot Boubâcar Tinguidji (sometimes spelled Tinguedji).<ref>Chevrier (2005), p.210.</ref> The book comes with recordings showing the speech and music of the epic, and stored on three 45 rpm floppy vinyl disks inserted in the book. These excerpts were digitized in the 2010s by the {{illm|Centre de recherche en ethnomusicologie|fr}}, and made available on its online archive.<ref>[http://archives.crem-cnrs.fr/archives/collections/CNRSMH_E_1979_012_001/ “Collection: Silâmaka et Poullôri], récit épique peul raconté par Tinguidji [3 disques souples encartés]” on the archive of ''Centre de recherche en ethnomusicologie''.</ref> 

In 1977, Yero Dooro Jallo published a version of the epic in [[Fula language|Fula]], ''Silaamaka e Pullooru''.

== Analysis ==
The epic of Silâmaka and Poullôri contains many marvelous or hyperbolic episodes, but largely refers to a real historical context: the struggle of the Fulani chiefs to shake off the yoke of the [[Bamana kingdom]] at the end of the 17th and the beginning of the 18th century. At that time, each ''ardo'' (traditional Fulani chief) owed allegiance to the Bambara king of Ségou and paid him each year the ''dissongo'', or "honey price", a tax that could amount to several kilos of gold that was used to fund the preparation of [[mead]], a drink highly prized by Bambara chiefs and notables. Unpopular, this tax sparked several revolts under the reign of Ngolo Diara in the second half of the 18th century.<ref name="Chev2005-208"/>

[[Maurice Delafosse]] indicates in his genealogy collected from the griots of the [[Diallo]] clan<ref name=":0" /> that Silâmaka whose name means "the saber",<ref name=":0" /> would be the son of Aissa and Hamadi Dikko called Gourori, Ardo<ref>An ''ardo'' is a clan chief and it is a title that can be assimilated to that of king, e.g. [[Koli Tenguella|Koli Tengella Ba]], first king of Fouta (Ardo) of the Yallabes dynasty</ref> of the Diallo clan who reigned from 1801 to 1810 over the Macina and who was deposed in 1810 by [[Seku Amadu]] of the Bari clan.<ref name=":0">''Upper Senegal-Niger'', The Country, the peoples, the languages, the History, the civilizations, volume II: ''History'', 1912. Republished by Maisonneuve & Larose in 1972.</ref> Born between the end of the {{CURRENTCENTURY}}th century and the beginning of the {{CURRENTCENTURY}}th century, Silâmaka could not be identified with a historical figure, but he appears as the symbol of the pride and honor of the Fula in the face of the combined effects of the [[Bambara people|Bambara]] domination of the time<ref name="Chev2005-208">Chevrier (2005), p.208-209.</ref><ref>Expansion of the [[Bamana kingdom]] of [[Ségou]] of [[Monzon Diarra]].</ref> and the fratricidal war launched against the animist Fula of Macina by [[Seku Amadu]].<ref>[[Jihad]] launched against the Ardos, [[Fula people|Fula]] chiefs [[Animism|animists]] of Macina by [[Seku Amadu|Seku Amadu of the Bari clan]].</ref> The warrior couple formed by Silâmaka and Poullôri, united by bonds of virile friendship and honor, recalls the pairs of heroes of European epics like Roland and Olivier in the [[song of Roland]].<ref name="Chev2005-208"/>

== References ==
=== Recordings, transcriptions, translations ===
* [[Amadou Hampâté Bâ]] & {{ill|Lilyan Kesteloot|fr}}, « Les épopées de l'Ouest africain ». ''Abbia'', n°14-15, 1966, pp.165-205.
* Jacques Chevrier, ''L'Arbre à palabres. Essai sur les contes et récits traditionnels d'Afrique noire'', Paris, Hatier, coll. « Monde noir », 2005 (1st édition : 1986).
* Vincent Hecquet, [http://etudesafricaines.revues.org/14052 Littératures orales africaines], ''Cahiers d'études africaines'', No.&nbsp;195, 2009.
* {{ill|Lilyan Kesteloot|fr}}, Une épopée peule : Silamaka. ''L'Homme'', n°8, 1968, pp.5-36. (Transcribes and translates the version of the Fulani griot Marabal Samburu, recorded in the region of [[Macina (Mali)|Macina]] in Mali.)
* Christiane Seydou (ed.), ''Silâmaka et Poullôri. Récit épique peul raconté par Tinguedji'', Paris, Armand Colin, coll. Classiques africains {{numéro|13}}, 1972. Book accompanied with a map, and three 45rpm vinyl records. [https://www.webpulaaku.site/defte/christiane_seydou/silamaka_poullori/tdm.html Online presentation.]
* (in [[Fula language|Fula]]) Yero Dooro Jallo, 1977. ''Silaamaka e Pullooru'', Dakar. [https://books.google.com/books?id=ysQiAQAAMAAJ Google books]
* Gilbert Vieillard, Récits peuls du Macina et du Kounari, ''Bulletin du Comité d'études historiques et scientifiques de l'Afrique Occidentale Française'', n°XIV, 1931, pp.146 ff.

=== Academic studies ===
* Daniel P. Biebuyck, The African heroic epic, in Felix J. Oinas (ed.), ''Heroic Epic and Saga. An Introduction to the World's Great Folk Epics'', Bloomington—Londres, Indiana University Press, 1978, pp.336-367.
* Jean-Pierre Martin, Remarques sur les couples d'amis dans l'épopée, ''Éthiopiques'', {{numéro|84}}, 2010, [http://ethiopiques.refer.sn/spip.php?article1730 read online].

== External links ==
* [https://www.webpulaaku.site/defte/christiane_seydou/silamaka_poullori/tdm.html Introduction to the Seydou edition (1972) online on Webpulaaku].
* [http://archives.crem-cnrs.fr/archives/collections/CNRSMH_E_1979_012_001/ Recordings of excerpts from the epic accompanying the 1972 edition by Christiane Seydou], digitized and available online on the sound archive of the {{illm|Centre de recherche en ethnomusicologie|fr}}. 

== Notes ==
{{Reflist}}

[[Category:Malian literature]]