The Kouyate family is a dynasty of griots that is native to West Africa. It has been prominent since the 13th century, when its founder took part in the founding of the Mali Empire.
According to the Epic of Sundiata, Balla Fasséké was assigned to serve as a griot by King Nare Maghann Konate to his son Prince Sundiata Keita in the latter's youth. He then went on to aid the prince in his subsequent quest to liberate his homeland from the despotic rule of the Sosso monarch King Soumaoro Kantè. He advised him during the war, telling him tales of the glory of his ancestors, and aided him in establishing a powerful state after the war's conclusion.[1] Balla Fasséké then became the founder of the Kouyate family thereafter.[2][3]
Griots were the "present" each king gave his successor; they were the aristocratic oral historians that attended kings, recording and recalling the legacies of kings and kingdoms. Griots are said to have existed "since time immemorial".[4] Kouyates in particular have served as griots for the Keita dynasty since the 13th century.[5] The Kouyates guard customs, and their knowledge is authoritative amongst Malinkes.[5] Keitas have to provide amenities to Kouyates, who in turn should not hesitate to ask for Keita help.[5] The word Kouyate translates as "There is a secret between you and me".[5][6] The family relic the Sosso Bala, a balafon that Sundiata is said to have given Balla Fasséké after the latter stole it from Kanté, is still played every year by the family's leader.[7][8][9][10][11]
Mamadou Kouyaté (performer) & Djibril Tamsir Niane (novelization): Soundjata ou l'Epopée Mandingue (Paris: Présence Africaine, 1960). Trans. G.D. Pickett: Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali, London: Longmans, 1965
January 01, 1970
kouyate, family, dynasty, griots, that, native, west, africa, been, prominent, since, 13th, century, when, founder, took, part, founding, mali, empire, kouyatecurrent, regionwest, africaplace, originmali, empirefounded13th, centuryfounderballa, fassékétitlesli. The Kouyate family is a dynasty of griots that is native to West Africa It has been prominent since the 13th century when its founder took part in the founding of the Mali Empire KouyateCurrent regionWest AfricaPlace of originMali EmpireFounded13th centuryFounderBalla FassekeTitlesList Belen Tigui of the Mali EmpireConnected familiesKeita royal family Contents 1 History 2 Members 3 References 4 SourcesHistory editAccording to the Epic of Sundiata Balla Fasseke was assigned to serve as a griot by King Nare Maghann Konate to his son Prince Sundiata Keita in the latter s youth He then went on to aid the prince in his subsequent quest to liberate his homeland from the despotic rule of the Sosso monarch King Soumaoro Kante He advised him during the war telling him tales of the glory of his ancestors and aided him in establishing a powerful state after the war s conclusion 1 Balla Fasseke then became the founder of the Kouyate family thereafter 2 3 Griots were the present each king gave his successor they were the aristocratic oral historians that attended kings recording and recalling the legacies of kings and kingdoms Griots are said to have existed since time immemorial 4 Kouyates in particular have served as griots for the Keita dynasty since the 13th century 5 The Kouyates guard customs and their knowledge is authoritative amongst Malinkes 5 Keitas have to provide amenities to Kouyates who in turn should not hesitate to ask for Keita help 5 The word Kouyate translates as There is a secret between you and me 5 6 The family relic the Sosso Bala a balafon that Sundiata is said to have given Balla Fasseke after the latter stole it from Kante is still played every year by the family s leader 7 8 9 10 11 Members editBalla Fasseke Bassekou Kouyate Dani Kouyate Kandia Kouyate N Faly Kouyate Sotigui KouyateReferences edit Epic of Sundjata Archived from the original on 2009 03 28 Retrieved 2022 08 04 Balla Kouyate s family have played this ancient instrument for 800 years wbur org Niane Djibril Tamsir 2006 Sundiata an epic of old Mali Internet Archive Harlow England Pearson p 18 ISBN 978 1 4058 4942 5 D T Niane Sundiata An Epic of old Mali Pearson Longman 2006 pp 1 4 a b c d Gugler 2003 p 38 Sotigui Kouyate obituary theguardian com Balla Kouyate montanafolkfestival com Tamari Tal 1991 The Development Of Caste Systems In West Africa The Journal of African History Volume 32 Number 2 pp 221 250 Preserving the Sosso Bala Archived 2016 03 03 at the Wayback Machine Jumbie Records a charity record to raise funds for preserving this instrument Alexander Leslie M amp Rucker W C eds Encyclopedia of African American History Vol 1 pp 109 110 Ed Senghor Leopold Sedar Ethiopiques Issues 21 24 Grande Imprimerie Africaine 1980 p 79 Sources editGugler Josef 2003 African Film Re Imagining a Continent Bloomington Indiana Indiana University Press ISBN 0 253 21643 5 OCLC 52520253 Mamadou Kouyate performer amp Djibril Tamsir Niane novelization Soundjata ou l Epopee Mandingue Paris Presence Africaine 1960 Trans G D Pickett Sundiata An Epic of Old Mali London Longmans 1965 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Kouyate family amp oldid 1135146126, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
