Ndiadiane Ndiaye

Ndiadiane Ndiaye, frequently spelled Njaajan Njaay or Njai in English, was the semi-legendary founder of the Jolof Empire.

The story of Ndiadiaye Ndiaye is recorded in the oral histories of the Wolof and Serer peoples. As such, there are many different versions, some of which conflict. All or nearly all of the recorded versions share a few basic points, notably that Ndiaye was originally from Futa Toro; that he fled his home when his mother remarried, living in the Senegal river or on an island; that he was captured or lured by the people of Waalo and, after displaying his wisdom, made their king; and that he founded the Ndiaye dynasty that ruled Jolof until the 19th century. Ndiaye remains an important folk hero in Senegal today

Dating
Scholars disagree on the dates of Ndiadiane Ndiaye's reign. Dates in the early 13th century are often ascribed to him and the founding of the empire, but John Donnelly Fage claimed that a more likely scenario is "that the rise of the empire was associated with the growth of Wolof power at the expense of the ancient Sudanese state of Takrur, and that this was essentially a fourteenth-century development." Senegalese historian Alioune Sarr dated the beginning of his reign to c 1360. The kings lists of Waalo and Jolof also point to a date in the second half of the 14th century. Historian Jean Boulegue adjusted these same lists using early written sources to estimate a date around 1300.

Family background
Ndiaye's family background varies across the different versions of the legend. Sallah writes: "Some say that Njajan was the son of Abu Darday, an Almoravid conqueror who came from Mecca to preach Islam in Senegal ... Some say that Ndiadiane Ndiaye was a mysterious person of Fulani origin. Others say he was a Serer prince." Most, as reported by James Searing, claim that he was "the first and only son of a noble and saintly 'Arab' father Abu Darday and a 'Tukuler' woman, Fatoumatu Sall". Some oral histories equate Abu Darday, Ndiaye's father, with Abu Bakr ibn Umar. This is likely a later invention to give the Ndiaye dynasty an Islamic origin, as Abu Bakr ibn Umar died at least a hundred years before Ndiaye ruled and Ndiaye is never mentioned in Arabic sources.

Sereer traditions maintain that Ndiadiane Ndiaye was of Fulani origin with no arabo-berber affiliations whatsoever. Some of these further advance that his father was Lamane Boukar Ndiaye, a Serer from Waalo, and his mother Fatoumata Sall was the daughter of the Lamtoro Ambraham Sall of Takrur. The name 'Abu Bakr' would have arisen as a corruption of the Serer name 'Boukar'.

The Wolof people originated in part from the mixing of Serer, Toucouleur and other peoples, and so contemporary ethnic and linguistic labels may have had very different meanings, or no meaning at all, in Ndiaye's time. This is reflected in the epic by Ndiaye's Pulaar origins, despite which his legend has become thoroughly 'wolofized'. James Searing adds that "In all versions of the myth, Njaajaan Njaay speaks his first words in Pulaar rather than Wolof, emphasizing once again his character as a stranger of noble origins."

Legend
The legend of Ndiadiane Ndiaye begins when his father dies and his mother remarries with a Mandinka slave, Mbarik Bo. This match so enfuriated and ashamed Ndiaye that he jumped into the Senegal River near his home in the Bakel area and began an aquatic life. Endowed with superhuman qualities, he made his way downstream to the area that would become the Kingdom of Waalo, living in the river or on an island.

At this time, Waalo was divided into villages ruled by separate kings using the Serer title Lamane, some of whom were engaged in a dispute over a wood near a prominent lake. This almost led to bloodshed among the rulers but was stopped by the mysterious appearance of a stranger from the lake. The stranger divided the wood fairly and disappeared, leaving the people in awe. Other versions have Ndiaye emerging from the water to fairly divide a disputed catch of fish. In both versions, the people then feigned a second dispute and kidnapped the stranger when he returned. Ndiaye initially refused to speak, but was eventually coaxed out of silence by a woman, Bate Boye. When these events were reported to the ruler of the Sine,Maad a Sinig Maysa Wali, he is reported to have exclaimed "lahi ndiadiane!" in his native Serer language in amazement. A great magician, Maysa Wali foresaw the Ndiaye family's great future, and advised the people to take him as their first king, which they did. In some versions, all the rulers between the Senegal River and the Gambia River voluntarily submitted to him.

Ndiaye ruled wisely for 16 years over Waalo when his half brother, Barka Bo or Mbodj, who had heard of his success, came to join him. Ndiaye wanted no part of this son of a slave, and so left for Jolof. His fame preceded him, and so he was welcomed there, founding the Jolof Empire when the rulers of the region voluntarily submitted to him.

Historicity
The epic of Ndiadiane Ndiaye dramatizes the 14th century rise of the Wolof at the expense of Takrur and the Mali Empire. Senegalese historian Bara Ndiaye, among others, hypothesizes that Ndiadiane, a prince of Takrur, was a member of a powerful clan descending from War Jabi, also known as War Jaay, the first Takrur king to adopt Islam. His supposed role was unifier, then, condenses several centuries of the Ndiaye clan's increasing political influence into one character. The idea that all the kings of the region came to pay homage to Ndiaye willingly is obviously fictitious, as king lists from Cayor and Baol show that they existed independent of Jolof.

The epic highlights Ndiaye's role as the unifier of previously divided people and the creator of relatively democratic governance institutions. Fearing writes that "Most versions of the myth explain how the new dynasty superimposed itself upon a preexisting social structure dominated by the Laman, Wolof elders who claimed 'ownership' of the land as the descendants of the founders of village communities. The laman retained many of their functions under the new monarchical order, becoming a kind of lesser nobility within the new state, and serving as electors when the time came to choose a new king from the Njaay dynasty."

The Rao archaeological site, near the ancient village of Mboyu-Gar where Ndiaye first appeared in Waalo, dates to the period between 1300 and 1350, and could be linked to the foundation of Jolof.

Legacy
Ndiaye remains an important folk hero in Senegal today. An important part of the coronation ceremonies in Waalo and Jolof was the royal bath, known as xulixuli taken as Ndaseew, where Ndiaye first emerged from the river.

Ndiadiane Ndiaye is today seen as the ancestor of most of the peoples of Senegal. Wolof oral traditions hold that the Wolof language was created at Ndiaye's court by mixing the diverse languages of the empire including Fula, Serer, and Mandinka.