This is an accepted version of this page Abdul Rahman Ibrahima ibn Sori (Arabic: عبد الرحمن ابراهيم سوري; 1762 – July 6, 1829) was a Fula prince and Amir (commander) from the Fouta Djallon region of Guinea, West Africa, who was captured and sold to slave traders and transported to the United States in 1788.

Abdul Rahman studied in a madrasahs at Djenné[6] and Timbuktu, speaking at least four African languages, Bambara, Fula, Mandinka and Yalunka, in addition to Arabic.

In 1788 he was given command of 2000 cavalry troops for a campaign against the 'Hebohs',[4] who had been harassing the European ships that carried out the Fulani trade in war-captive slaves and the crops to sustain them during the Middle Passage.

[10][11] The captive Abdul Rahman was taken to the Gambia River and there sold onto the slave ship Africa,[4][12] reportedly for "two bottles of rum, eight hands of tobacco, two flasks of powder, and a few muskets".

[11][18] Following this intervention, in 1828 Thomas Foster agreed to the release Abdul Rahman without payment, transferring the man to Marschalk and his wife, who then manumitted him,[19] with the stipulation that he be sent to Africa by the government.

[17] Before leaving the United States, Abdul Rahman and his wife went on a 10-month tour of various northern cities to solicit donations through the press, personal appearances, the American Colonization Society, and politicians to be used to free his family in Natchez.

[11] He often dressed in Moorish garb to give an Oriental impression that would separate himself, as a Moor, from the typical black African slaves, and presented himself in a manner that would appeal to his individual audiences, telling merchants he would establish new trade, promising missionaries that he would evangelize for them, and pledging support for their Liberia colony when speaking to the American Colonization Society.

[24][25] He, along with 30 other Harriet passengers, died within months of their arrival amidst a yellow fever epidemic decimating the region,[26] on July 6, 1829,[27] aged about 67, never seeing Fouta Djallon or his children again.

[citation needed] In 2007, Andrea Kalin directed Prince Among Slaves, a film portraying the life of Abdul Rahman, based on an earlier biography of the same name by Terry Alford, narrated by Mos Def and produced for and aired on PBS.