Power, Prayer and Production - The Jola of Casamance, Senegal - Chapter 1: The power of the spirit-shrines

Aug 2, 2026

Power, Prayer and Production examines how power relations among three Jola communities in Casamance, Senegal shape agricultural organization across age, gender, kinship, and class. It compares Sambujat’s non-Islamized wet-rice monocropping with Jipalom’s Islamization and cash-crop adoption, and Fatiya’s Mandingized, hierarchical social relations and their effects on labor division and cropping systems. The study also addresses larger themes including Islamization, women’s labor, and the introduction of cash cropping within Senegal’s political economy.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages284

Reading Time11 h 56 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction: Ideology and Agrarian Change

The problem

The setting

The approach

The organization

PART I: THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF SAMBUJAT

Chapter 1: The power of the spirit-shrines

Chapter 2: Rice fields and labor relationships

PART II: AT THE CROSSROADS: THE KUJAMAAT JOLA OF JIPALOM

Chapter 3: Islamization and the introduction of a cash crop

Chapter 4: The impact on social and productive relations

PART III: MANDING MODELS AND FATIYA MORES

Chapter 5: Ideology and legitimation

Chapter 6: Social relations of production re-structured

The Jola(Diola)areintensive wet-rice cultivators in the Lower Casamance region ofSenegal.In this study,the author examines the reasons behind startling contrasts inthe organization of agricultural tasks among three Jola communities located withina 45kilometer radius from Ziguinchor.In Sambujat,situated in the non-Islamisizedregion south of the river,wet rice is a monocropcultivated by both men and women.In Jipalom,in the Kajamutay region north of the River,Islam and cash croppinghave been adopted;and in Fatiya,in the so-called “Mandingized”region of theKalunay,social relations have become hierarchical and this has had profoundeffects on the cropping system and on the division of labor. The author examines the shift of power relations over time,and their effects onthe way in which production has been organized by age and gender,kin and class.Larger issues dealt with are Islamization,women's labor,and the introduction ofcash cropping.A concluding section places the history of Jola labor relations withinthe context of the political economy of Senegal. Cambridge Studies in Social and Cultural Anthropology Editors:Ernest Gellner,Jack Goody,Stephen Gudeman,Michael Herzfeld,Jonathan Parry 82 Power,Prayer and Production A list of books in the series will be found at the end of the volume The Jola of Casamance,Senegal OLGA F.LINARESSmithsonian Tropical Research Institute CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS Cambridge New York Port ChesterMelbourne Sydney CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS Cambridge,New York,Melbourne,Madrid,Cape Town,Singapore,São Paulo Cambridge University PressThe Edinburgh Building,Cambridge CB28RU,UK Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press,New York www.cambridge.org Information on this title:www.cambridge.org/9780521401326 ◎ Cambridge University Press 1992 This publication is in copyright.Subject to statutory exceptionand to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements,no reproduction of any part may take place without the writtenpermission of Cambridge University Press. First published 1992 This digitally printed version 2007 A catalogue recordfor this publication is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication data Linares,Olga F. Power,prayer,and production:the Jola of Casamance,Senegal/Olga F.Linares. p.cm.-(Cambridge studies in social and culturalanthropology;82) Includes bibliographical references and index.ISBN0521401321(hardback) 1.Diola(African people)-Agriculture.2.Diola(African people)-Economic conditions.3.Diola(African people)-Politicsand government.4.Rice-Senegal-Casamance.5.Casamance(Senegal)-Economic conditions.6.Casamance(Senegal)-Socialconditions.7.Casamance(Senegal)-Religious life and customs. I.Title.II.Series.DT549.45.D56L55 1992966.3-dc20 90-26070 CIP ISBN 978-0-521-40132-6 hardback ISBN 978-0-521-04035-8 paperback For Afo and Ajien,who lived a long life.And for Bana and Benji,who died young. Contents List of illustrationspage xiiList of tablesXVAcknowledgementsxviNote on orthographyxviii INTRODUCTION:IDEOLOGY AND AGRARIAN CHANGE 1 The problem3The setting5The approach7The organization10 PART I:THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF SAMBUJAT13Chapter 1:The power of the spirit-shrines15The people and their rice-growing system17Ideational aspects of“power”:the spirit-shrines23The authority of elders28Waxing and waning powers:the “priest-king”or ai and the chief38Women's"strength”:the Sihun shrines45 Chapter 2:Rice fields and labor relationships52Huteendukay,the labor shrine53Marriage and the formation of the conjugal family unit54The conjugal family and the gender division of labor58Cooperative patterns:the “extended”family or buaju unit61Associative work:the hank,the elders,and the village65Female associations69The role of religion in the palm-produce trade71 Conclusions to Part I PART II:AT THE CROSSROADS:THE KUJAMAAT JOLAOF JIPALOM 81 Chapter 3:Islamiz

FAQs

Which Jola communities does the study compare, and where are they located?

The study compares three Jola communities within a 45-kilometer radius from Ziguinchor: Sambujat south of the river, Jipalom north of the river, and Fatiya in the Kalunay region.

How does Islamization affect agricultural production in Jipalom?

In Jipalom, Islam and cash cropping have been adopted, changing social and productive relations and reshaping land access and labor organization.

What main factors explain differences in labor division and cropping systems across the communities?

Differences arise from shifting power relations over time, influenced by ideology, religion, and changing social hierarchies, which in turn affect women’s labor and the organization of productive activities.

Aug 2, 2026

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