The M}}tis of Senegal Urban Life and Politics in French West Africa [Paperback]

The M?tis of Senegal is a history of politics and society among an influential group of mixed-race people who settled in coastal Africa under French colonialism. Hilary Jones describes how the m?tis carved out a niche as middleman traders for European merchants. As the colonial presence spread, the m?tis entered into politics and began to assert their position as local elites and power brokers against French rule. Many of the descendants of these traders continue to wield influence in contemporary Senegal. Joness nuanced portrait of m?tis ascendency examines the influence of family connections, marriage negotiations, and inheritance laws from both male and female perspectives.

The m?tis (mixed-ancestry community of Saint-Louis has played an important role in Senegal's history. The most prominent descended from signares, successful female entrepreneurs and high-status 'companions' of European men. Historian Jones . . . rescues the m?tis from lingering voluptuary associations, exploring their 18th-century origins and how they created a distinct communty identity. . . . Recommended.

Introduction: Urban Life, Politics, and French Colonialism
1. Signares, Habitants, and Grumets in the Making of Saint Louis
2. M?tis Society and Transformations in the Colonial Economy (1820-1870)
3. Religion, Marriage, and Material Culture
4. Education, Association, and an Independent Press
5. From Outpost to Empire
6. Electoral Politics and the M?tis (1870-1890)
7. Urban Politics and the Limits of Republicanism (1890-1920)
Conclusion
Appendix: Family Histories
Notes
Bibliography
Index

[T]his is an immensely successful first book, and we can only hope that Jones will delve deeper into some of these topics in her future work.

Hilary Jones is Assistant Professor of History at the University of Maryland, College Park.

[This] book brings welcome new emphasis to family and gender dynamics, as viewed, for example, through the material life of l“*