23 Facts About Serer people

Serer people originated in the Senegal River valley at the border of Senegal and Mauritania, moved south in the 11th and 12th century, then again in the 15th and 16th centuries as their villages were invaded and they were subjected to religious pressures.

Serer people have been historically noted as a matrilineal ethnic group that long resisted the expansion of Islam, fought against jihads in the 19th century, then opposed the French colonial rule.

Serer people are referred to as Serere, Sereer, Serrere, Serere, Sarer, Kegueme, Seereer and sometimes wrongly "Serre".

Serer people are primarily found in contemporary Senegal, particularly in the west-central part of the country, running from the southern edge of Dakar to the Gambian border.

The Serer people-Ndut are found in southern Cayor and north west of ancient Thies.

Related searches

Serer people are diverse and though they spread throughout the Senegambia region, they are more numerous in places like old Baol, Sine, Saloum and in The Gambia, which was a colony of the Kingdom of Saloum.

The Serer people include the Seex, Serer-Noon, Serer-Ndut, Serer-Njeghene, Serer-Safene, Serer-Niominka, Serer-Palor, and the Serer-Laalaa.

Serer people resisted Islamization and later Wolofization from possibly the 11th century during the Almoravid movement, and migrated south where they intermixed with the Diola people.

Serer people kingdoms included the Kingdom of Sine and the Kingdom of Saloum.

The Kingdom of Baol was originally an old Serer people Kingdom ruled by the Serer people paternal dynasties such as Joof family, the Njie family, etc.

All the kings that ruled Serer people Kingdoms had Serer people surnames, with the exception of the Mboge and Faal paternal dynasties whose reigns are very recent and they did not provide many kings.

The inter-ethnic wars involving the Serer people continued till 1887 when the French colonial forces conquered Senegal.

Serer people have traditionally been a socially stratified society, like many West African ethnic groups with castes.

In other regions where Serer people are found, state JD Fage, Richard Gray and Roland Oliver, the Wolof and Toucouleur peoples introduced the caste system among the Serer people.

Social stratification historically evidenced among the Serer people has been, except for one difference, very similar to those found among Wolof, Fulbe, Toucouleur and Mandinka peoples found in Senegambia.

Previously held view that the Serer people only follow a matrilineal structure is a matter of conjecture.

Hierarchical highest status among the Serer people has been those of hereditary nobles and their relatives, which meant blood links to the Mandinka conquerors.

Serer people was responsible for organising the coronation ceremony and for crowning the Serer kings.

Serer people wrestling crosses ethnic boundaries and is a favourite pastime for Senegalese and Gambians alike.

The Wolof people who migrated to Serer Saloum picked it up from there and spread it to Wolof Kingdoms.

Serer people was expected to dance in ceremonies before the king and liven up the king's mood and the king's subjects.

Historically the Serer people's unwillingness to trade directly during the colonial era was a double edged sword to the Serer language as well as the Cangin languages.

About 200,000 Serer people speak various Cangin languages, such as Ndut and Saafi, which are not closely related to Serer people proper.