Introduction

Abstract

Introduction Ryan Thomas Skinner (bio) Djibril Tamsir Niane’s Soundjata ou l’épopée mandingue (1960) is, without a doubt, one of the most important texts published in African studies in the twentieth century. To the readers of this journal, the book is also arguably one of the most important modern publications of any kind. The breadth and depth of Soundjata’s influence—on Mande studies, African studies, and the human-istic enterprise more generally—cannot be overstated. In the wake of Niane’s recent passing (1932–2021), and in light of Soundjata’s long published lifespan, now entering its seventh decade, it is an opportune time to pay homage to and reflect on the significance and substance of Niane’s seminal work and influential life. Published on the cusp of African independence from European colonial rule, Soundjata is profoundly, indeed foundationally, postcolonial. The text presents an archetypal story of triumph over adversity in terms of both the character arc of its main protagonist, Sunjata Keita—from outcast to emperor—and the society that this singular Mande Mansa is destined to establish, turning a modest kingdom into a mighty empire. To Pan-Africanists and anticolonial activists alike, then as now, Niane’s text is equal parts revelatory and revolutionary, revealing a historic precedent for modern aspirations for African renaissance and unity. Soundjata also makes a full-throated case for the historical and cultural value of oral traditions, and the art of the griot (jeliya) in particular. In the face of obscurantist and injurious colonial “myths,” to paraphrase Herskovits, “of the African past,” Soundjata makes a rich and uplifting case for the status, identity, and importance of griots (jeliw) and their societal role as the guardians and purveyors of Mande society’s collective memory. African history prior to [End Page 7] colonial rule is not, in other words, a shameful blank slate to be filled in by “civilization,” but a vivid tapestry born of cultures that run deep and live on. In the hands of present-day readers, and in university and college classrooms the world over, Soundjata may be further understood as emphatically decolonial. Racist and dehumanizing “ideas of Africa,” anchored in age-old stereotypes and prejudices, give way to the existential drama of the Mande epic with its myriad lessons for human being, belonging, and becoming, from intercultural communication and community formation to confronting and overcoming hardship, loss, and injustice. Eurocentric epistemologies, insisting on the sanctity of the written word and positivist inquiry, are reminded in no uncertain terms (Mamadou Kouyaté, whose spoken words the book translates, interprets, and narrativizes, pulls no punches) that other domains of knowledge, rooted in the verbal art and expressive culture of the Belen Tigi (Master of the Word), are possible. In short, when meditating on the legacy and importance of Soundjata at sixty (1960–2020) and beyond, there is much—in the panegyric spirt of jeliya—to praise. As postcolonial as it is decolonial, as rooted in tradition as it is modern in outlook, Soundjata has stood the test of time to become a contemporary classic. However, this is hardly the end of the story, as this collection of essays attests. Niane’s work continues to inspire interest and invite inquiry. Read together, the authors of the following papers ask: • What kind of “classic” is Soundiata? Is it literature, orature, scholarship, or some combination of these? • How did the text come about? What regional and historical precedents are there for such work? Who were the chief informants and intellectual peers that made Niane’s research and writing possible? • What critical lenses might we apply to the contemporary study of Soundiata? What are the epistemological pitfalls and challenges of presenting “legend” or “myth” as “history,” using a texted language with essential ties to verbal art? • How might the postcolonial drama of D.T. Niane’s own personal and professional life inform our understanding of his scholarship and legacy? In other words, having noted the enduring significance of Niane’s Soundiata, the following essays invite us to pan out and zoom in, assessing the context of the book’s provenance, its intertextuality and interdisciplinarity, the complex field of its analysis and interpretation, and the...