tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13177437.post7764477383016009792..comments2024-03-23T01:31:13.502+01:00Comments on Jabal al-Lughat: Languages of TimbuktuLameen Souag الأمين سواقhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00773164776222840428noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13177437.post-32096807182656168692013-02-18T17:08:32.517+01:002013-02-18T17:08:32.517+01:00Interesting bits of historical info there; you men...Interesting bits of historical info there; you mentioned "the Kunta shifting their identities and languages", AFAIK the origins of the Kunta aren't very clear, I read in a Sufi book that they were descendents of the Sheikh Ahmed El Bekkai (who came from Nul-Lamta (present-day Akka, Morocco) and that their name (Kunta) comes from the tribe of their mother who originated in the region of Ouarzazate...Not sure about the accuracy of this versionAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13177437.post-23543558485363628482013-02-05T09:06:41.690+01:002013-02-05T09:06:41.690+01:00Those were scare quotes, intended to indicate that...Those were scare quotes, intended to indicate that the concepts of "black" and "white" are a bit problematic, especially in the Saharan context, where they blend into one another more than most places. But yeah, the potential ambiguity is a problem.Lameen Souag الأمين سواقhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00773164776222840428noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13177437.post-47410237758751124952013-02-05T03:04:54.745+01:002013-02-05T03:04:54.745+01:00I followed the last link to your post and nowhere ...I followed the last link to your post and nowhere was it mentioned in the story that Black Malians considered Touregs and Arabs "white"--or that they looted their shops because they thought they were "white." If this is your interpretation, why did you insert "white" in quotation marks along with an anchor text? It gives the reader the impression that you were quoting directly from the news story. <br /><br />In any case, America classifies Arabs and North Africans as "white." Plus, Arabs and Touaregs consider--and refer to-- themselves "white" when they relate with darker-skinned (West) Africans. For instance, in my presence in Nigeria 10 years ago, a Toureg female beggar who was told to wash the dishes to earn the money she was beseeching from her would-be black benefactor retorted that it was unthinkable that a "white" woman like her would be asked to wash the dishes for a "black" person.Farooq A. Kperogihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13257188893371334162noreply@blogger.com