Wednesday, July 6, 2022

2022: Sere - Seza'i

 


Sere-Burlay Sise
Sere-Burlay Sise (d. 1859).   Dyula (of Guinea) revolutionary leader.  He was the son of Mori-Ule Sise who initiated the revolution of the Dyula Muslim traders among the Mandinka of the Guinea interior.  Sere-Burlay carved out his own state near Gundo around 1849.  When he tried to force Islam upon his subject peoples, he was killed during a massive revolt.  The great Dyula leader Samori Toure received his military training in Sere-Burlay’s army.
Sise, Sere-Burlay see Sere-Burlay Sise


Serer
Serer (Serere) (Sereer).  Agricultural people who inhabit an area south and west of Dakar, the capital of Senegal.  There are also a few Serer villages in Gambia.

The Serer are the third largest ethnic group in Senegal, and also present in Gambia and Mauritania. The Serer heartland is in the southwest of modern Senegal, running from the southern edge of the Cap-Vert peninsula south and east to the Gambian border. Pre-colonial Serer states included the Kingdom of Sine and Kingdom of Saloum. About one in seven Senegalese is of Serer ethnicity, most famously the first President of Senegal, Léopold Sédar Senghor, and the second president of Senegal, Abdou Diouf. While traditionally speakers of the Serer language, most Senegalese—Serer people included—now learn Wolof as a first language.  Serer people are closely related to their Wolof, Mandinka Malinke, and—to a lesser extent—Fula neighbors. Some people of Toucouleur ethnicity trace their ancestry to equal parts Fula and Serer cultures.

Of all the people living north of the Gambia River, the Serer resisted Islam the most vigorously.  Both Serer kings kept marabouts at court to handle correspondence, make amulets and pray for their royal masters.  In Saalum, two marabout families received enough land as a reward for these services that they formed major provincial commands.  In each case the provincial chiefs were clerics and the population was solidly Muslim.  From 1861 to the French conquest in 1887, Siin and Saalum found their existence threatened by a jihad led by Ma Ba Jaxoo, a Muslim from the neighboring Manding state of Badibu.  Ma Ba was killed when he tried to invade Siin in 1867, but Saalum was almost destroyed by the jihad.  

One result of the jihad and the way in which colonization and the extension of cash crop cultivation took place was the traditional order broke down more quickly in Saalum.  By the beginning of World War I, the Wolof areas were heavily Muslim and the Serer about 40 percent.  In Siin, the traditional order proved more resilient.  The French felt it wise to operate through the chiefs Catholic missions were kept out, in part because the Serer blamed an early mission (founded in 1848) for the French invasions of 1859 and 1861.

Traditional religion remained dominant in Siin until after World War II.  At this point, there were important Christian and Muslim communities among the Serer.  Young Serer men were working in the cities in increasing numbers; many were also going to school.  Modern transportation and communications were breaking down the isolation of the village.  The result was a rapid process of conversion, which in the 1950s and 1960s moved heavily in favor of Islam.  

Today, most Serer have converted, although many still continue their earlier religious practices.  Over four-fifths of the converts have chosen Islam.  A major factor in Muslim success has been the assimilation of Serer in the city to the dominant culture.  The Serer have a reputation for being more lax in their practice of Islam than the Wolof or Tukulor.

Some of the more notable Serer are:

Bour Sine Coumba Ndoffene Famak Diouf, King of the ancient Kingdom of Sine. Died in November 1871. He and his army defeated the and killed Maba Jabou Ba [Bah] at the Battle of Somb.

Bour Sine Coumba Ndoffene Fandeb Diouf, King of Sine. Extremely powerful and influenctial during the colonial days. Although an animist like his ancestors, he was the only Senegambian King or leader that spoke up for Amadou Bamba when the French accused Amadou Bamba Mbackeh of piling weapons in order to attack the French.

Léopold Sédar Senghor, Senegal's first president,

Youssou N'dour, the most famous and successful African singer and export over the decades. Although people think he is Wolof because he tends to sing in Wolof, the surname N'dour just like his ancestors were Serer,

El Hadji Diouf, Footballer and twice winner of the African gold Boot,

Yande Codou Sene, a popular singer of the traditional Serer style who Youssou N'dour considers a great inspiration,

The second Senegalese president and current Secretary-General of La Francophonie, Abdou Diouf, and

Blaise Diagne (son of a Serer) who was a Senegalese political leader, the first black African elected to the French National Assembly, and mayor of Dakar,



Serere see Serer
Sereer see Serer


Seth
Seth (in Arabic, Shith or Shiyth -- "Placed" or "Appointed").  The biblical personage is mentioned in Muslim tradition.  The Sabaeans of Harran had several writings attributed to him, and the Druzes always associate him with Adam.

In Islam, Seth is seen as a prophet. Although he is not explicitly mentioned in the Qur'an, Muslims believe that Seth was the son of Adam, and continued to preach the message after him.

Seth, in the Book of Genesis of the Hebrew Bible, is the third listed son of Adam and Eve and brother of Cain and Abel, who are the only other of their children mentioned by name. According to Genesis 4:25, Seth was born after the slaying of Abel by Cain, and Eve believed God had appointed him as replacement for Abel, whom Cain had killed.



Shith see Seth
Shiyth see Seth
The Placed One see Seth
The Appointed One see Seth


Seveners
Seveners (in Arabic, Sab‘iyya).  See Isma‘iliyya.

 


Seven-Imam Shi‘i
Seven-Imam Shi‘i.  See Isma'iliyya. 


seyyid
seyyid.  See sayyid.


Seyyida Salima
Seyyida Salima.  See Ruete, Emily.


Seyyid Sa'id ibn Sultan
Seyyid Sa'id ibn Sultan (Sayyid Sa'id).  See Sa‘id ibn Sultan.


Seza’i, Shaykh Hasan
Seza’i, Shaykh Hasan (Shaykh Hasan Seza’i) (d.1738).  Turkish poet.  His work is of a mystical and allegorical nature and remarkable for the beauty of the language.
Shaykh Hasan Seza’i see Seza’i, Shaykh Hasan



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