Fula (Fulbe)

The Fula (Fulbe) are a large ethnic and linguistic group found throughout West Africa, but principally in the Sahel from Sudan to Senegal. They are often referred to by different names according to other proximate ethnic and linguistic groups. For example, in Senegal, the Wolof speakers often [Page 275]refer to the Fulbe as Peul. Yet in Nigeria, the Hausa call them Fulani, and the Mandinka in Guinea and Sierra Leone give them the name Malinke.

Among the major Fulbe social groups are Fulbe Jaawambe (powerful), Fulbe Ladde (nomadic herders), and Fulbe wuro (urban). Other Fulbe groups consist of those in Southern Darfur in Sudan and those in Northern Darfur in the same country. They are pastoral or semipastoral, meaning that they may migrate after the harvest. Those living in Northern Darfur tend to be more inclined to become teachers and intellectuals. They have a strong tradition of mastering the Koran and practicing a strict discipline of Islam. Most of the politicians and professional among the Fulbe in Darfur tend to be from the Northern area.

The Fulbe groups, due to their economical and geographic changes, speak Fulfulde or Arabic. Although some can recall portions of the era of religious passion (late 19th century), religion was never as intense or as high a priority among the Fulbe as some other groups that had adopted Islam.

They believe they descend from Ukba, who was a soldier knowledgeable in the Arabic culture and a devout follower of Islam. According to oral traditions, some of the Fulbe group maintains that Ukba intermarried with African women from several ethnic groups and that the resulting children became the Fulbe. This story is probably based on the fact that, during the expansions of the Arabic culture in Africa from the 7th to the 14th centuries, many African women had children for Arab soldiers.

There is no evidence, however, that Ukba ever went to some parts of Africa where the Fulbe are found. It is possible that the Fulbe could have migrated to those parts, but Ukba may well be a mythical figure that is derived from the fact that many African people accepted Islam as a religion and one of the ways to explain this acceptance was to claim that the father of the people was a soldier who knew the Arabic culture very well. Although some people see them as nomadic people, it is not exactly the case for all of the Fulbe because now they are resident in numerous countries, including Central African Republic, Chad, Senegal, and the Sudan.

Although it is difficult for anyone to say what the original ethnic religion of the people was, it must be accepted that the women who were said to have married Ukba came from some other ethnic groups (they were not Arabs) and hence from some religious tradition before they met Ukba. They were not without religion; they were without Islam, and the names of the groups from which they came have been lost.