Page 114 - Empires of Medieval West Africa

t h e s onghay p eople

be removed from their homelands because they would be more produc-
tive if left where they were.

The Medieval hierarchy
According to the descriptions written in the 17th-century Timbuktu
chronicles, Songhay society in the 15th and 16th centuries was domi-
nated by men. Men of the Songhay ruling class had multiple wives and
concubines. This could result in one man having hundreds of children.
Askia Muhammad the Great is thought to have had as many as 471
children.
When older brothers died, younger brothers inherited their goods
and their wives. When the father died, the oldest son inherited leader-
ship of the family.
There were several levels of social status in Songhay that were
dependent on a person’s birth. During the days of the Askias, the
royal family and other aristocrats were considered to be of noble
birth. The royal family ruled the empire and occupied the most
powerful positions of government. Local nobility carried out
administrative functions at the intermediate and lower levels of
government.
One step below nobles in the social hierarchy were the free-
men, ordinary citizens who were not born into slavery. Among the
freemen were the Muslim clerics, who had all positions of religious
authority.
There was also a class of people who specialized in arts and crafts
such as ironworking, woodworking, pottery, weaving, dying cloth,
and masonry (stone cutting). The gesere who played music and nar-
rated traditional legends were among these occupational specialists.
In the days of the Askias of Songhay, the chief gesere had the title
gesere-dunka.
At the bottom of the social hierarchy were slaves who had been
taken captive during wars, acquired in trade, or born into slavery. The
condition and status of slaves varied widely. A fierce warrior captured
in battle would be highly valued and might rise to become an officer
in the Songhay army. Another member of the slave classes might sim-
ply be a farmer who was in a defeated clan. He might have to pay an
annual fee in the form of goods and services.

113