Manding's Islamic Scholarly Register: An Initial Look

As part of my work in the Ajami Lab, I am currently working to analyze and contextualize the existence and emergence of Manding's scholarly Islamic register. Manding is a West African trade language spoken by tens of millions of people. From one perspective, it is well documented. There are a range of linguistic grammars and dictionaries that describe both the four major varieties--Bambara, Jula, Maninka and Mandinka--as well as smaller local dialects. While such studies are essential, t..