Innehåller bibliografi och index

Introduction: Manjani, dance of the initiate -- Lamban, dance of the Jali: Mandinka history and the origin of dance systems -- Mande and the emergence of a distinct cultural system -- Kankouran, dance of the masquerade: the particulars of Mandinka dance -- Form and Mandinka dance movements -- Deciphering Mandinka dance systems -- Mandinka dance: yesterday, today, and tomorrow -- Dundunba, strength and endurance: historical cataclysms and dance survivals -- Slavery in Africa and its influence on dance systems -- Foreign religions, colonialism, modernity, and dance -- Sofa, warrior dance: Mandinka dance and cultural decolonization -- Fodéba, Touré, identity, and dance -- Conclusion: Soli, rite of passage; where do we go from here?

The field of history is founded on the interrogation of written documents from the past. However, culture is the center of life in Africa. As a result, in the past - and to a degree in the present - the process for documenting events in Africa was not written, it was performed. History Dances: Chronicling the History of Traditional Mandinka Dance argues that a wealth of information is housed within traditional Mandinka dance and, consequently, the dances can be used as an African-derived primary source for writing African history. Ofosuwa M. Abiola highlights the overall value of studying Mandinka dance history specifically, and African dance history generally, as well as addressing the issue of scarcity with regard to primary sources for writing African history. History Dances proves to be a vital read for both undergraduate students and scholars in the fields of dance history, African history, performance studies, and cultural anthropology