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Mauritania, [a] formally the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, [b] is a sovereign country in Northwest Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Western Sahara to the north and northwest, Algeria to the northeast , Mali to the east and southeast , and Senegal to the southwest .
French colonial influence (Mauritania was a colony until 1960) has also played a role in influencing the cuisine of the relatively isolated land. [1] Alcohol is prohibited in the Muslim faith and its sale is largely limited to hotels. [2] [1] Mint tea is widely consumed [1] and poured from height to create foam. [3] Traditionally, meals are ...
The T'heydin is an oral tradition that is handed down the generations through the imitation of the musical talents of the ancestors and is performed on festive occasions with musical accompaniment. The griots live in all regions of Mauritania, although some regions are better known for their griot families.
Pages in category "Culture of Mauritania" The following 8 pages are in this category, out of 8 total. This list may not reflect recent changes. K. Kiffa beads;
The Tichitt Tradition of eastern Mauritania dates from 2200 BCE [3] [10] to 200 BCE. [11] [12] Tichitt culture, at Dhar Néma, Dhar Tagant, Dhar Tichitt, and Dhar Walata, included a four-tiered hierarchical social structure, farming of cereals, metallurgy, numerous funerary tombs, and a rock art tradition. [13]
Founded in the 11th and 12th centuries to serve the caravans crossing the Sahara, these trading and religious centres became focal points of Islamic culture. They have managed to preserve an urban fabric that evolved between the 12th and 16th centuries. Typically, houses with patios crowd along narrow streets around a mosque with a square minaret.
The music of Mauritania comes predominantly from the country's largest ethnic group: the Moors. In Moorish society musicians occupy the lowest caste, iggawin. Musicians from this caste used song to praise successful warriors as well as their patrons. Iggawin also had the traditional role of messengers, spreading news between villages.
Berbers moved south to Mauritania beginning in the 3rd century, followed by Arabs in the late 7th century, subjugating and assimilating Mauritania's original inhabitants. From the 8th through the 15th century, black kingdoms of the western Sudan, such as Ghana, Mali, and Songhai, brought their political culture from the south. [6]