Griot
A griot (pronounced GREE-oh) is a traditional West African storyteller, historian, poet, musician, and diplomat, highly regarded within their communities for their role in preserving and sharing the oral history and culture of their people. This hereditary position is often passed down through generations, allowing griots to maintain the social fabric of their societies by imparting tales, offering advice, and mediating disputes using lessons from the past. Griots typically begin their training at a young age and master a wide repertoire of stories and songs, incorporating their own experiences into these narratives to keep them relevant. They are skilled musicians who play instruments such as the kora and ngoni, and their performances often blend traditional and contemporary music styles.
Although the role of griots diminished with the advent of modern education and writing, they continue to be important cultural figures in countries like Mali, Senegal, and Gambia, where they are seen as the "memory" of their communities. The storytelling tradition they uphold differs from written historical accounts, as griots adapt and expand their narratives over time. Griots have also influenced modern art forms, including jazz and rap, highlighting their enduring legacy in both traditional and contemporary contexts. The loss of a griot is metaphorically compared to "the burning down of a library," underscoring their vital role in preserving knowledge and cultural heritage.
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Griot
A griot (GREE-oh) is a West African troubadour-historian, storyteller, poet, diplomat, or musician. Griots are revered among society, and some are considered divine healers, medicine men, or conduits between the living and the dead. The position is heredity and passed down from generation to generation. Traveling from place to place, these skilled performers keep the oral history and traditions of their people alive, offering their audience social commentary, current events, local history, gossip, and music. Griots also dispense advice to kings and tribal leaders and mediate tribal disputes. Some griots become leaders due to their accumulated wisdom and knowledge.
Background
Storytellers, griots are masters at drawing inspiration from tales of the past and applying them to situations in the present. They might do this to settle village dispute, using age-old lessons as instruments of peace.
While the first known use of term griot was in 1820, the origination of griots is a subject of debate. According to some scholars, griots originated during the Mande Empire of Mali during the thirteenth century. However, others believe that they first appeared in the fifteenth century in the Mandinka Empire of Mali. Since African history was usually oral and passed down from generation to generation, it is difficult to pinpoint the time of their genesis.
In the twenty-first century, griots are found in Gambia, Ghana, Mali, Mauritania, Senegal, Niger, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, and Côte d’Ivoire. They are called by various names, including, but not limited to jali, jeli, guewel, and diari, depending on the geographic area. Because they recall the past, they are considered the “memory” of their people. However, once more modern education, including writing, was introduced into Africa, the role of the griot was greatly diminished. As entertainers, though, their popularity became widespread over the years. In the twenty-first century, griot music groups have formed, playing everything from rock to jazz to blues.
Overview
Griots live across much of West Africa, with a higher concentration of them in the northern portion of the region. These skilled storytellers are often also accomplished musicians, often playing the kora, an instrument with twenty-one strings that fuses characteristics of the lute and the harp. Griots are also known to play various other instruments, both traditional and modern. They make use of the balafon (a type of xylophone), ngoni (an instrument similar to a lute), and, of course, their voice. Some historians believe that the ngoni became the inspiration for the banjo when it made the trip to the Americas with enslaved Africans.
Typically, training for young people born into a griot family begins around the age of eight and is completed by age eighteen. Both males and females may train to become griots.
Through listening and memorization, griots in training must learn the knowledge, stories, and repertoire of their people. Some must master hundreds of songs and stories that comprise their heritage. Griots must also learn to weave their own experiences, characters, and details into traditional songs and stories to ensure that they will endure and remain relevant as generations pass. After passing their final test, which requires them to prove their mastery at music and storytelling, new griots are given a musical instrument. However, some prefer to construct their own instrument and pass it down through the generations. Griots tend to marry within their own ranks, making them what is called an endogamous caste.
Griots were important members of society before the development of technology; they served as the keepers and dispensers of tribal knowledge, historical events, lineage, births, deaths, and marriages. When a griot dies, members of their people liken it to the “burning down of a library,” referring to the sadness of the loss of the person’s accumulated knowledge and wisdom.
One of the most notable stories told by griots is that of Sunjata, the founder of the Mali Empire. This story has several adaptations, and some historians believe that if all the details were culled together for Sunjata, the tale would take days to recount. Lyrics from Sunjata have even been worked into the Mali national anthem. Those of Mande descent may hear their ancestors’ names during a telling of Sunjata. The griot style differs from Greek classics like the Iliad and the Odyssey, in that griots add to their stories and songs over the years, whereas Greek tales and lore have remained the same. Griots have also taken a place in popular culture. To write his 1976 novel Roots, Alex Haley learned the history of his own family in Africa before they were enclaved from a griot named Fofana. While some criticized the validity of Haley’s sources, Haley explained that history in Africa, in many cases, was recorded orally.
Other examples of griots in popular culture include American jazz musician Graham Haynes’ production of an album called The Griot’s Footsteps, and artists Jon Hassell and Brian Eno’s inclusion of a song titled “Griot” on their 1980 album, Possible Musics. Modern-day rap music may have also descended from griot storytelling. World-renowned performer and musician Toumane Diabate of Mali comes from seventy generations of griots.
It is because of griots that the history of western Africa has survived throughout the centuries. Those performing in West Africa in the twenty-first century often refer to themselves as modern-day griots.
Bibliography
Abdul-Fattah, Hakimah. “How Griots Tell Legendary Epics through Stories and Songs in West Africa.” Metropolitan Museum of Art, 20 Apr. 2020, www.metmuseum.org/perspectives/articles/2020/4/sahel-sunjata-stories-songs. Accessed 22 July 2022.
Johnson, Elizabeth Ofosuah. “The Centuries-Old History of the Griots of West Africa Who Were Much More Than Storytellers.” Face2Face Africa, 3 July 2018, face2faceafrica.com/article/the-centuries-old-history-of-the-griots-of-west-africa-who-were-much-more-than-storytellers. Accessed 17 July 2022.
“Mali’s Storytellers: Why Griots’ Indispensable Conflict-Resolution Skills Are at Risk Now.” America’s Black Holocaust Museum, 2022, www.abhmuseum.org/malis-storytellers-why-griots-indispensable-conflict-resolution-skills-are-at-risk-now/. Accessed 17 July 2022.
Okoh, Lize. “What Is a Griot and Why Are They Important?” Culture Trip, 24 May 2018, theculturetrip.com/africa/mali/articles/what-is-a-griot-and-why-are-they-important/. Accessed 17 July 2022.
“Origin of the Word Griot.” Baba the Storyteller, babathestoryteller.com/the-ancient-craft-of-jaliyaa/origin-of-the-word-griot/. Accessed 17 July 2022.
Ukwendu, Jeanne Egbosiuba. “Griot—A West African Tradition.” BellaOnline, 2022, www.bellaonline.com/articles/art19696.asp. Accessed 17 July 2022.
“West African Griot.” DailyOM, 2022, www.dailyom.com/cgi-bin/display/articledisplay.cgi?aid=279. Accessed 17 July 2022.
“What Is a Griot?” America’s Black Holocaust Museum, 2022, www.abhmuseum.org/about/what-is-griot/. Accessed 17 July 2022.