Shifting sedentism in the Upper Casamance (Senegal)

Bibliographic Data

ID6041950
AuthorsSirio Canós-Donnay (0000-0003-0747-8640, University College London, corresponding author), Sirio Canós Donnay (Institute of Archaeology, University College London, 31–34 Gordon Square, London, WCIH 0PY, United Kingdom)
Year2016
Volume51
Issue4
Pages453-468
Publication date2016-10-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAzania Archaeological Research in Africa (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0067-270X • E-ISSN: 1945-5534
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/0067270x.2016.1249588
OpenAlexW2560662250
LanguageEN
Citations received10
References cited12

The Upper Casamance is a region that has witnessed dramatic socio-political developments in the last millennium, including its conquest by the Mali Empire and a prominent role in the Atlantic trade, but which until now had never been archaeologically studied. Two seasons of fieldwork undertaken in 2013 revealed a landscape of shallow, short-lived sites at odds with the large permanent towns described by historical accounts and oral traditions. This article argues that the key to reconciling these two sets of evidence lies in a very particular settlement pattern — one of ‘shifting sedentism’ — by which villages and towns regularly shifted a few hundred metres, while keeping the name, identity, and institutions of the community intact. Combining data from ethnographic observations, written historical sources, oral traditions, surface survey and excavation, the paper reviews the importance of shifting sedentism in the Upper Casamance's history, as well as its wider archaeological implications

Ancient history · Archaeology · Geography · Prehistory · Aging, Elder Care, and Social Issues · Agriculture and Rural Development Research · French Urban and Social Studies · History

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