Archaeological findings throughout the area indicate that Senegal
was inhabited in prehistoric times and has been continuously occupied by
various ethnic groups. Some kingdoms were created around the 7th century with
distant ties to the Ghana empire. Eastern Senegal was once part of the Empire of Ghana. Islam was introduced in Senegal during the 8th and 9th centuries
by Berber merchants from the north. They peacefully converted the Toucouleurs and
Sarakholles who in turn propagated it. Later on, in the 11th century, the Almoravids, with the
help of the Toucouleurs, used jihad and military force for conversion. This
movement faced resistance from ethnicities of traditional religion, the Serers
in particular. Eventually, Berbers won a
peaceful conversion among the Wolof with
the intervention of leaders such as Cheikh Ahmadou Bamba, El Hadj Malick Sy,
and Seydina Limamou Laye who brought their followers with them. They saw Islam as a way to unite and fight
against colonial power. The populations
were getting weary of repeated jihads and forced colonization. In the 13th and 14th centuries, the area came
under the influence of the empires to the east; the Jolof Empire of
Senegal was also founded during this time. In the Senegambia region, between
1300 and 1900, close to one-third of the population was enslaved, typically as
a result of captives taken in warfare. In
the 14th century the Djolof kingdom became a powerful empire having united
Cayor, and the kingdoms
In the mid-15th century, the Portuguese landed on the Senegal
coastline, followed by traders representing other countries, including the
French. Various European powers—Portugal,
the Netherlands, and Great Britain—competed for trade in the area from the 15th
century onward. In 1677, France gained control of what had become a minor slave trade departure
point—the island of Gorée next to modern Dakar, used as a base to purchase
slaves from the warring chiefdoms on the mainland. European missionaries introduced Christianity
to Senegal and the Casamance in the 19th century. It was only in the 1850s that
the French began to expand onto the Senegalese mainland (thay had abolished
slavery and promoted abolitionist doctrine). French colonists progressively invaded and
took over all kingdoms except Sine and Saloum under governor Louis Faidherbe.
On 4 April 1959 Senegal and the French Sudan merged
to form the Mali
Federation, which became fully independent on 20 June 1960, as a result of
the independence and the transfer of power agreement signed with France on 4
April 1960. Due to internal political difficulties, the Federation broke up on
20 August, when Senegal and French Sudan (renamed the Republic of Mali) each proclaimed independence. Léopold Senghor was
proclaimed Senegal's first president in September 1960. Senghor was a very
well-read man, educated in France. He was a poet, a philosopher and personally
drafted the Senegalese national anthem, "Pincez tous vos koras, frappez
les balafons". Pro-African, he advocated a brand of African socialism. In 1980, President Senghor decided to retire
from politics. The next year, he transferred power in 1981 to his handpicked
successor, Abdou Diouf. Mamadou Dia ran for reelection in 1983 against
Diouf but lost. Senghor moved to France, where he died at the age of 96.
Senegal joined with the Gambia to
form the nominal confederation of Senegambia on 1 February 1982. However, the
union was dissolved in 1989. Despite peace talks, a southern separatist group (the MFDC) in the Casamance region
has clashed sporadically with government forces since 1982 in the Casamance conflict. In the early 21st century,
violence has subsided and President Macky Sall held
talks with rebels in Rome in December 2012.
Senegal has had a long history of participating in international
peacekeeping. Abdou Diouf was president
between 1981 and 2000. He encouraged broader political participation, reduced
government involvement in the economy, and widened Senegal's diplomatic
engagements, particularly with other developing nations. Domestic politics on
occasion spilled over into street violence, border tensions, and a violent
separatist movement in the southern region of the Casamance. Nevertheless,
Senegal's commitment to democracy and human rights strengthened. Abdou Diouf
served four terms as president. In the
presidential election of 1999, opposition leader Abdoulaye
Wade defeated Diouf in an election deemed free and fair by
international observers. Senegal experienced its second peaceful transition of
power, and its first from one political party to another. On 30 December 2004
President Wade announced that he would sign a peace treaty with the separatist
group in the Casamance region.
The Senegalese landscape consists mainly of the rolling
sandy plains of the western Sahel which rise to foothills in the southeast. Here is also
found Senegal's highest point, an otherwise unnamed feature near Nepen Diakha at
584 m. The northern border is formed by the Senegal River,
other rivers include the Gambia and Casamance
Rivers. The capital Dakar lies on the Cap-Vert peninsula,
the westernmost point of continental Africa.
The Cape Verde islands lie some 560 kilometres
off the Senegalese coast, but Cap-Vert ("Cape Green") is a maritime
placemark, set at the foot of "Les Mammelles", a 105-metre cliff
resting at one end of the Cap-Vert peninsula onto which is settled Senegal's
capital Dakar, and 1 kilometre south of the "Pointe des Almadies",
the westernmost point in Africa.
The local climate is tropical with
well-defined dry and humid seasons that result from northeast winter winds and
southwest summer winds. The dry season (December to April) is dominated by hot,
dry, harmattan wind. Dakar's annual rainfall of about 600 mm
occurs between June and October when maximum temperatures average 30
°C and minimums 24.2 °C; December to February maximum temperatures
average 25.7 °C and minimums 18 °C. Interior temperatures are higher than along
the coast (for example, average daily temperatures in Kaolack and Tambacounda
for May are 30 °C and 32.7 °C respectively, compared to
Dakar's 23.2 °C and rainfall increases substantially farther south,
exceeding 1,500 mm annually in some areas. In the far interior of the
country, in the region of Tambacounda, particularly on the border of Mali,
temperatures can reach as high as 54 °C.
The main industries include food
processing, mining, cement, artificial fertilizer, chemical, textiles, refining imported
petroleum, and tourism. Exports include fish, chemicals,
cotton, fabrics, groundnuts, and calcium
phosphate. The principal foreign market is India at 26.7 percent of
exports (as of 1998). Other foreign markets include the United States, Italy and the United
Kingdom. Senegal has a population of
over 12.5 million, about 42 percent
of whom live in rural areas. Density in these areas varies from about 77
inhabitants per square kilometre in the west-central region to 2 per square
kilometers in the arid eastern section. According
to the World Refugee Survey 2008, published by the U.S. Committee for
Refugees and Immigrants, Senegal has a population of refugees and
asylum seekers numbering approximately 23,800 in 2007. The majority of this
population (20,200) is from Mauritania.
Refugees live in N'dioum, Dodel, and small settlements along
the Senegal River valley.
Senegal has a wide variety of ethnic groups and, as in
most West African countries, several languages are widely spoken. The Wolofare
the largest single ethnic group in Senegal at 43 percent; the Fula[ and Toucouleur (also
known as Halpulaar'en,
literally "Pulaar-speakers")
(24%) are the second biggest group, followed by the Serer (14.7%),
then others such as Jola (4%), Mandinka (3%),Maures or
(Naarkajors), Soninke, Bassari and
many smaller communities (9%). About
50,000 Europeans (mostly French) and Lebanese as well as smaller numbers of
Mauritanians and Moroccans reside in Senegal, mainly in the cities. The
majority of Lebanese work in commerce. Also located primarily in urban
settings are small Vietnamese communities as
well as a growing number of Chinese immigrant traders, each numbering
perhaps a few hundred people. There are
also tens of thousands of Mauritanian refugees in Senegal, primarily
in the country's north. French is
the official language, used regularly by a minority of Senegalese educated in a
system styled upon the colonial-era schools of French origin (Koranic schools
are even more popular, but Arabic is not widely spoken outside of this context
of recitation). Most people also speak their own ethnic language while,
especially in Dakar, Wolof is the lingua franca. Pulaar is
spoken by the Fulas and Toucouleur. The Serer
language is widely spoken by both Serers and non-Serers
(including president Sall, whose mother and wife are Serers); so are the Cangin
languages, whose speakers are ethnically Serers. Portuguese
Creole is a prominent minority language in Ziguinchor,
regional capital of the Casamance, where some residents speak Kriol, primarily spoken in Guinea-Bissau.
Cape Verdeans speak their native creole, Cape Verdean Creole, and standard Portuguese. French, the only official language in the
country, is facing a backlash as a consequence of a rising Senegalese
linguistic nationalist movement, which supports the integration of Wolof, the
common vernacular language of the country, into the national constitution.
Islam is the predominant religion in the
country. Islam is practiced by approximately 94 percent of the country's
population; the Christian community, at 5 percent of the population,
includes Roman Catholics and diverse Protestant denominations.
One percent have animist beliefs, particularly in the southeastern region
of the country. Some Serer people follow
the Serer religion.
Islamic communities in Senegal are generally organized around one of
several Islamic Sufi
orders or brotherhoods, headed by a khalif (xaliifain Wolof,
from Arabic khalīfa), who is usually a direct
descendant of the group’s founder. The two largest and most prominent Sufi
orders in Senegal are the Tijaniyya, whose largest sub-groups are based in the cities
of Tivaouane and
Kaolack,
and the Murīdiyya
(Murid), based in the city of Touba. The Halpulaar (Pulaar-speakers), composed of Fula people,
a widespread group found along the Sahel from Chad to Senegal, and Toucouleurs,
represent 23.8 percent of the population.
Historically, they were the first to become Muslim. Many of
the Toucouleurs, or sedentary Halpulaar of the Senegal River Valley in the
north, converted to Islam around a millennium ago and later contributed to
Islam's propagation throughout Senegal. Success was gained among the Wolofs,
but repulsed by the Serers.
Most communities south of the Senegal River Valley,
however, were not thoroughly Islamized.
The Serer people stood out as one of this group, who spent over one thousand
years resisting Islamization (see Serer history (medieval era to
present)). Although many Serers are Christians or Muslim, their conversion
to Islam in particular is very recent, who converted on their own free will
rather than by force, although force had been tried centuries earlier
unsuccessfully (see the Battle of Fandane-Thiouthioune). The spread of formal Quranic school
(called daara in Wolof) during the colonial period increased largely
through the effort of the Tijaniyya. In Murid communities, which place more emphasis on
the work ethic than on literary Quranic studies, the term daara often
applies to work groups devoted to working for a religious leader. Other Islamic
groups include the much older Qādiriyya order
and the Senegalese Laayeen order, which is prominent among the coastal Lebu.
Today, most Senegalese children study at daaras for several years,
memorizing as much of the Qur'an as they can. Some of them continue their
religious studies at informal Arabic schools (majlis) or at the growing number
of private Arabic schools and publicly funded Franco-Arabic schools. A modern
messianic sect in Islam, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is also
present in the country. Small Roman
Catholic communities are mainly found in coastal Serer, Jola, Mankanya and
Balant populations, and in eastern Senegal among the Bassari and Coniagui. The
Protestant churches are mainly attended by immigrants but during the second
half of the 20th century Protestant churches led by Senegalese leaders from
different ethnic groups have evolved. In Dakar Catholic and Protestant rites
are practiced by the Lebanese, Cape Verdean, European, and American immigrant
populations, and among certain Africans of other countries as well as by the
Senegalese themselves. Although Islam is Senegal's majority religion, Senegal's
first president, Léopold Sédar Senghor, was a Catholic
Serer.
Senegal is known across Africa for its musical heritage,
due to the popularity of mbalax, which originated from the Serer percussive tradition especially the Njuup, it has been
popularized by Youssou N'Dour and others. Sabar drumming is
especially popular. The sabar is mostly used in special celebrations like
weddings. Another instrument, the tama,
is used in more ethnic groups. Other popular international renown Senegalese
musicians are Ismael Lô, Cheikh Lô, Orchestra
Baobab, Baaba Maal, Akon Thione Seck,
Viviane, Titi,Papiss Cisse,
and Pape Diouf. Senegal is well known for the West African
tradition of storytelling, which is done by griots, who have kept West
African history alive for thousands of years through words and music.
The griot profession is passed down generation to generation and
requires years of training and apprenticeship in genealogy, history and
music. Griots give voice to generations of West African society.
Articles 21 and 22 of the Constitution adopted in January
2001 guarantee access to education for all children. Education is compulsory and free up to the
age of 16. The Ministry of Labor has
indicated that the public school system is unable to cope with the number of
children that must enroll each year. Illiteracy is
high, particularly among women. The net
primary enrollment rate was 69 percent in 2005. Public expenditure on education
was 5.4 percent of the 2002–2005 GDP.
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