The Tenda or Tanda are an ethnolinguistic group living in the southern Senegal, northeastern Guinea-Bissau, and northern Guinea, comprising the Bassari, the Konyagui, the Bedik, and the Badiaranke.
Etymology
Tenda is the Mandinka word for a landing place or wharf, reflecting the Tenda region's historic importance as a river crossing.
History
The Tenda historically occupied much of what is now southeastern Senegal. In particular, the stretch of the Gambia river between the Nieriko and Niokolo Koba was not navigable by water but offered many excellent fords. It was a preferred crossing place for caravans plying the trade routes that linked Kaabu, the Futa Jallon, the states of Senegambia, the gold fields of Bambouk and Bure, and the great Niger river cities such as Djenné.
The area was a major source of slaves from the 1670s to the 1730s.
Languages
The Tenda languages are a part of the Senegambian language family.
References
- Mane, Daouda (2021). "La Question des Origines et de l'Emergence de l'Etat de Kaabu". In Fall, Mamadou; Fall, Rokhaya; Mane, Mamadou (eds.). Bipolarisation du Senegal du XVIe - XVIIe siecle (in French). Dakar: HGS Editions. pp. 237–283.
- ^ Galloway, Winifred (1975). A History of Wuli from the Thirteenth to the Nineteenth Century (History PhD). University of Indiana.
Sources
- Traditions et changements dans les populations tenda : colloque international : Kédougou (Sénégal Oriental), 9-16 février 1978, Centre de recherches anthropologiques, Musée de l'homme, Paris, 1978, p. 17 (in French)
