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Becoming Walata: A History of Saharan Social Formation and Transformation
Product Description Studies Saharan commercial entrepot from its earliest accounts to the present. Cleveland traces the history of Walata's changing identities over the last millennium and then focuses on the 18th and 19th century. Originally a Mande agricultural settlement on the periphery of Old Ghana, Walata became involved in trade and attracted settlers from the desert and savanna. In the 14th century Walata became a cosmopolitan town dominted by Berbers, but in the 17th and 18th centuries nomadic Arabs sedentarized in Walata and transformed it again. By the 19th century all the town's free families claimed Arab descent. So, what became of the Mande of old Walata? The scholariy Mande families began to disappear in the mid-17th century, but their disapperance was largely a social illusion. The Arabs who acquired power in Walata did so by assimilating the elite Mande and Berber amilies. Becoming Walata reclaims the southern Sahara as an integral part of West Africa and reveals the 'Black' African contribution to Walata's history, even as it emphasizes the socially constructed quality of ethnic and racial categories.
The footsteps of history. Walata and the empire of Ghana.
The Empire of Ghana is the earliest political organisation known to us south of the Sahara. Its origins in the eighth century are attributed to a Soninke tribe that emerged from Walata at the beginning of our era. The empire covered what is now south-east Mauritania, south-west Mali and northern Senegal, prospering with the trade in gold and salt until it was invaded by the Muslim Almoravid Berbers in 1078. There is a route along which we can get to discover interesting footprints left by this ancient civilisation in and around Walata.
We land in Nouackchott, the capital of Mauritania, and head for Djouf, the first oasis on the symbolic Road of Hope. From there we are in reach of Kiffa and Tamchaket, which look down on us from a dune. In fact, this spot acts as a distribution point for our visits to the ruins of Awdagost, a historic city which lay on the route taken by the caravans crossing the desert between Timbuktu and Siyilmasa. From the ruins of this city we go on to the little palm grove at Togba, an oasis of cool where we freshen up and recover our strength for the onward journey to Walata.
Walata is a city that needs a few days to itself. We will be seduced by the warmth of its inhabitants and see the great beauty and cultural wealth that have earned it its listing as a World Heritage site by UNESCO. After a few days, when we leave behind us the red houses of Walata with their spectacular decoration, we shall continue to go deeper into the remains of the Empire of Ghana with a visit to its former capital of Koumbi Saleh, which we reach from Timbedra. Here we will be struck by the extent of its archaeological site and its mosque, restored after the excavations between 1972 and 1981.
Of course, a complete tour like this one has to include at least one excursion to places of great natural and historical wealth like Akreijit, Tichitt or Titdjitdja. Undoubtedly, the magical sight of these places will make us want to come back here time and again.
GET TO KNOW WALATA The legendary lands of Walata offer scraps of history at each step. Go back in time and steep yourself in the magical atmosphere of this ancient and exciting culture of the desert at the same time as you enjoy the hospitality of its people. We assure you it will not be easy to forget the gift of their hospitality.
WALATA OFFERS YOU Try to imagine the colours of the sunset reflected in the dunes of the desert and set this wonderful landscape around the skyline of red adobe houses. This is the striking image that will welcome you to Walata when you arrive in the city at its magic moment. And this is just the start of everything you will experience in this part of Mauritania.
Oualata or Walata (Arabic: ولاته) (also Biru in 17th century chronicles)[2] is a small oasis town in south east Mauritania that was important in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries as the southern terminus of a trans-Saharan trade route. It is a World Heritage Site.
History Oualata is believed to have been first settled by an agro-pastoral people akin to the Mandé Soninke who lived along the rocky promontories of the Tichitt-Oualata and Tagant cliffs of Mauritania. There, they built what are among the oldest stone settlements on the African continent.
The town originally formed part of the Ghana Empire and grew wealthy through trade. At the beginning of the thirteenth century Oualata replaced Aoudaghost as the principal southern terminus for the trans-Saharan trade and developed into an important commercial and religious centre. By the fourteenth century the city had become part of the Mali Empire.
An important trans-Saharan route began at Sijilmasa and passed through Taghaza with its salt mines and ended at Oualata. The Moslem traveller Ibn Battuta used this route in 1352 on his way to the city of Mali, the capital of the Mali Empire. On leaving Sijilmasa his caravan took 25 days to reach Taghaza where they stayed for 10 days. The caravan stopped again for 3 days at the oasis of Tasarahla (probably Bir al-Ksaib) to prepare for the last and most difficult 10 day leg of the journey. From Tasarahla a scout was sent ahead to Oualata to arrange for a party to bring water a distance of four days travel to meet the thirsty caravan. Altogether, the caravan took two months to cross the desert.
Ibn Battuta found the inhabitants of Oualata were Moslem and were mainly Massufa. He was surprised by the great respect and independence that women enjoyed. He only gives a brief description of the town itself: "My stay at Iwalatan (Oualata) lasted about fifty days; and I was shown honour and entertained by its inhabitants. It is an excessively hot place, and boasts a few small date-palms, in the shade of which they sow watermelons. Its water comes from underground waterbeds at that point, and there is plenty of mutton to be had."
From the second half of the fourteenth century Timbuktu gradually replaced Oualata as the southern terminus of the trans-Sahara route and Oualata declined in importance. The Arab diplomat, traveller and author Leo Africanus who visited the region in 1509-1510 gives a description in his book Descrittione dell’Africa: "Walata Kingdom: This is a small kingdom, and of mediocre condition compared to the other kingdoms of the blacks. In fact, the only inhabited places are three large villages and some huts spread about among the palm groves."
The old town covers an area of about 600 m by 300 m, some of it now in ruins. The sandstone buildings are coated with banco and some are decorated with geometric designs. The mosque now lies on the eastern edge of the town but in earlier times may have been surrounded by other buildings. The French historian, Raymond Mauny, estimated that in the middle ages the town would have accommodated between 2000 and 3000 inhabitants. Today, Oualata is home to a manuscript museum, and is known for its highly decorative vernacular architecture. It was made UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996 together with Ouadane, Chinguetti and Tichitt.
Trade routes of the Western Sahara c. 1000-1500. Goldfields are indicated by light brown shading.
View of the town looking in a southeasterly direction
QUOTE- Ibn Battuta mentions the well built homes, city planning and water preservation systems in the city of Oualata, a crucial CITY in the trans-Saharan trade. ...
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