Marabout

Others may be wandering holy men who survive on alms or as spiritual directors of Muslim religious communities, often as muršid ("guide") of Sufi orders.

Muslim Sufi brotherhoods were one of the main organizing forms of Islam in precolonial West Africa, and with the spread of Sufism into the area, the marabout's role combined with local practices throughout Senegambia, the Niger River Valley, and the Futa Jallon.

The term marabout was also adopted by French colonial officials, and applied to most any imam, Muslim teacher, or secular leader who appealed to the Islamic tradition.

Older, North African-based Sufi brotherhoods such as the Tijaniyyah and the Qadiriyyah base their structures on respect for teachers and religious leaders who, south of the Sahara, often are called marabouts.

[2] The recent diaspora of West Africans (to Paris in particular) has brought this tradition to Europe and North America, where some marabouts advertise their services as fortune tellers.

Their advanced knowledge of the Quran and esteemed reputation have often allowed them to act as traders, priests, judges, or magicians in conjunction with their roles of community religious leaders.

[6] Additionally, because of their ability to read and write, village chiefs would frequently appoint marabouts as secretaries or advisers as a means to communicate with neighboring rulers.

[6] The marabouts' expanding influence in politics paired with their unique allegiance of the Muslim community eventually posed a real threat to the chiefs who had appointed them.

After three decades of war and conflict, the warrior marabouts were gradually ousted from the Wolof states as French colonists began to take a tighter hold on the region.

Although multiple Khalife-Général have issued 'ndiggël politique' in support of a presidential candidate in previous elections, several marabouts of the "grandson" generation openly rejected the command by voting for the opposition instead.

[10] In 1997, a rural council of Touba Mosquée in Senegal issued a set of new taxes meant to fund an ambitions development project in the holy city.

Declining economic performance in Senegal may lead to more taxes in the future, which means political actors may have to adjust or fundamentally alter their clientelist relationships with marabouts and Khalife-Général.