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Sufism in West Africa
Author(s) -
Seesemann Rüdiger
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
religion compass
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.113
H-Index - 1
ISSN - 1749-8171
DOI - 10.1111/j.1749-8171.2010.00241.x
Subject(s) - sufism , islam , colonialism , subject (documents) , ancient history , perception , history , ethnic group , psychology , anthropology , sociology , archaeology , neuroscience , library science , computer science
Sufism had a decisive influence on the development and spread of Islam in West Africa. Although it has been the subject of a considerable number of academic works, Sufism in West Africa remains understudied and often misunderstood. French and British colonial views of Islam had a lasting impact on the perception of Sufism in Africa, resulting in its depreciation as a kind of “popular” Islam of the ignorant masses. A closer look at eminent West African Sufi leaders and their movements, including the Qadiriyya, the Tijaniyya, and the Muridiyya, reveals that Sufism articulated itself in a variety of ways over the past three centuries, and that it continues to be a formidable spiritual, intellectual, and social force in many countries in the Western parts of the African continent.