The Kingdom of Saloum

Vers 1494 – 1969 · Kahone

Saloum is a Serer kingdom in western Senegal, born from the breakup of the Jolof Empire, of which it was first a vassal. According to oral tradition, the Maad Saloum Mbégan Ndour gave it its name around 1494; the country had previously been called Mbey. The Guelwar dynasty ruled over Sine and Saloum, two independent kingdoms on either side of the Saloum River, together called Sine-Saloum. Its capital was Kahone. Nearly fifty kings succeeded one another from the 15th century to 1969; Fodé N’Gouye Diouf (1935–1969) was the last. In the 19th and 20th centuries Kahone was eclipsed by the neighbouring town of Kaolack. In the 19th century Saloum was also the setting of the movement of Maba Diakhou Bâ, almamy of the Rip, who fell at Fandane-Thiouthioune in July 1867.

Sources

• Cairn — Monarchies et royautés, ch. VII « Royautés d’ethnies et de provinces »
• Persée — M. Klein, Islam and Imperialism in Senegal : Sine-Saloum, 1847-1914 (compte rendu, 1968)
• Persée — J. Boulègue, Les anciens royaumes wolof : le Grand Jolof (compte rendu, 1990)

Kingdom fact sheet : Le royaume du Saloum.

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