L’Histoire des Bandjougousi d’après Djèmory Kouyaté de Nyagassola (Guinée)

This volume deals with the subject of how the era that bridges the foundation of their society by Sunjata to their present-day society, called Manding, is remembered. Oral accounts on this era are rare as they demand from the narrator an advanced understanding of regional history and the relationships between competing ruling lineages.

The acclaimed griot Djèmory Kouyaté (d. 2019) performed this account in Naréna (present-day Mali), thus offering a unique insight into griots’ storytelling strategies and diplomatic skills, because Djèmory’s account can be compared with earlier recordings of him made in Nyagassola (present-day Guinée), a town ruled by a rival lineage to the Bandjougousi from Naréna. L’Histoire des Bandjougousi is therefore an important source for West African historiography.