Senegal

The westernmost country in Africa, situated on the Atlantic coast south of Mauritania, Senegal has contained a majority Muslim population since the 10th century. Approximately 94% of the populace are practitioners of Islam, with around 4% of the population reporting as Catholic or Protestant Christians. The remaining 2% or so of Senegalese practice some form of animism or traditional African religion. There is also a good deal of syncretism evident in both Islamic and Christian practices, and many ethnic groups engage in some form of ancestor worship.

Islam was introduced to Senegal by Arab and Berber traders in the 10th century who intermittently invaded the country looking for converts. The nation's colonial history began with the Portuguese, who set up a lucrative slave and gold trade on the coast in 1444. The French would establish settlements in 1638, and those settlements would serve as a launching point for most of the French activities in West Africa. Senegal was declared a permanent possession of the French government in 1840, and this led to the abolition of slavery in the country. Major wars against the colonial powers post–World War II helped precipitate the decolonization process, which resulted in Senegal merging with French Sudan into the independent Mali Federation. Soon after the merge occurred in 1959, however, the countries announced their individual independence, and Senegal was declared an independent nation in 1960. The first president of Senegal, poet president Léopold Sédar Senghor, was a Roman Catholic who was able to develop strong ties with the Sufi Muslim brotherhoods that continued to play a significant role in the country's governance into the 21st century. The three principal Sufi brotherhoods to which a majority of the population belong are the Murīdiyya, the Tijaniyya, and the Qadiriyya, with the Tijaniyya claiming dominance among the three.

Senegal is exceptional because its diverse ethnic groups and religions coexist in peace. It has not been without conflict, however, and the anti-Moor protests of the 1980s resulted in the mass exodus of the group in 1989. At the beginning of the 21st century, a separatist movement that began in 1982 in the forest area of Casamance continues. The movement is both ethnic and religious in character; the Diola population, who seek separation, are less Islamic than the majority Wolof ethnic group, which comprises the bulk of citizens in the northern part of the nation.

The Senegalese government actively supports the religion of its populace, maintaining a fund to support religious festivals and the revitalization of places of worship, and sponsors the annual hajj pilgrimage for hundreds of Senegalese Muslims and annual journeys to the Holy See for its Catholic citizens. There was a noted growth in the popularity of religious schools at the end of the 20th century, and the government allowed up to 4 hours of religious education in its public schools. The steps the government takes to create an environment that is respectful of all religions has created a society that boasts of peace and harmony amid many other societies that have succumbed to ethnic strife.

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