[2][3][4] John Donnelly Fage suggests that Takrur was formed through the interaction of Berbers from the Sahara and "Negro agricultural peoples" who were "essentially Serer".

[6] Regardless, the region has been an ethnic melting pot from the earliest traceable periods up to the present, although Fula have come to dominate in more recent centuries.

[11] A Soninke clan under Mamadu Sumaare, originally from Wagadu, conquered Takrur in the 9th or 10th century, establishing the Manna dynasty and gradually melding into the local culture.

[16] He died in 1041 and was succeeded by his son, Lebi ibn War Jabi, who would go on to start an alliance with the newly established Almoravid Dynasty to counter the power of the Ghana Empire.

[27][28] The lamanic class, whose role also included the safeguarding of traditional Serer spirituality, are believed to have been at the forefront of resisting Islamization, partly to preserve their religion, but also their power and wealth as landowners.

[29] It was common for early Arab writers such as Al Bakri to refer to "non-believers" of Islam in their works as lamlam, lemlem, or damdam which may be a corruption of the Serer title lamaan.

[34] Around 1286, the Mali Empire conquered Takrur and put it under a military dictatorship ruled by farba (governors), remembered locally as the Tonjon dynasty.

[40] Koli Tengella, a Fula warlord native to Takrur but coming from Futa Jallon, conquered the area in 1521 and set up the Denanke dynasty.

Takrur was a trading centre, where gold from the Bambuk region,[42]: 44  salt from the Awlil,[43] and Sahel grain were exchanged for wool, copper, beads, and jewelry.

[45] Takruri was a term, like Bilad el-Sudan, that was used to refer to all people of West African ancestry,[46] and is still in use as such in the Middle East, with some corruption, as in Takruni, pl.