Godala

The Godala or Gudāla is a Berber tribe in Western Africa that lived along the Atlantic coast[1] in present-day Mauritania[2] and participated in the Saharan salt trade[3] and the salt mines of Ijiil. The Godala may be linked to or the same as the ancient Gaetuli tribe of Berbers.[4]

According to a 1985 study of West African history,[5] the area along both sides of the mouth of the Senegal River was controlled by the Godala group of Berbers. They mined the Awlil salt deposits along the coast just north of the mouth of the Senegal, and controlled a coastal trade route that linked southern Morocco. Godala territory bordered that of Takrur, and Godala caravans traded salt mined at Awlil along the north bank of the Senegal.[5]

History

Researchers believe that the Gudala are the remnants of the Gaetuli.[6] The Gudala are attested in Mauretania Caesariensis in an ancient inscription in Cherchell.[7] During the reign of Numidian king Jugurtha, the Gudala lived south of Numidia, they obeyed the leadership of Jugurtha and trained under him.[8] It is believed that the Gudala revolted against Roman rule and fought against Juba II, the Gaetuli who revolted against Juba II occupied the southern slopes of the Aures mountains.[9][10] In general, the Gudala settled in the Sahara since the ancient times and their branches were spread to the south across the right bank of the Senegal river, it is almost certain they were present there in the 7th century AD.[10] The Gudala formed part of the Almoravid tribes.

Guezula

The Godala are also known as the Guezula. Today, there are only two small fractions of the Godala left, each with only a few families who bear this name, one in Tiris and the other in Brakna Region.[11]

References

  1. ^ Ki-Zerbo, Joseph (1997-01-01). Africa from the Twelfth to the Sixteenth Century. University of California Press. p. 62. ISBN 9780520066991.
  2. ^ Niane, Djibril Tamsir; Africa, Unesco International Scientific Committee for the Drafting of a General History of (1984-01-01). Vol. IV: Africa from the Twelfth to the Sixteenth Century. Heineman. p. 154. ISBN 9789231017100.
  3. ^ Niane, Djibril Tamsir; Africa, Unesco International Scientific Committee for the Drafting of a General History of (1984-01-01). Africa from the Twelfth to the Sixteenth Century. UNESCO. p. 154. ISBN 9789231017100.
  4. ^ Africanus, Leo; Brown, Robert; Pory, John (2010-06-03). The History and Description of Africa: And of the Notable Things Therein Contained. Cambridge University Press. p. 366. ISBN 9781108012898.
  5. ^ a b "Western Africa to c1860 A.D. A provisuanal historical schema based on climate periods" (PDF). Retrieved 12 August 2016.
  6. ^ ولد الحسين, الناني (2007). محمد حجي (ed.). صحراء الملثمين وعلاقاتها بشمال وغرب إفريقيا من منتصف القرن 2هـ/8م إلى نهاية القرن 5هـ/11م (PDF). بيروت: دار المدار الإسلامي. p. 576. ISBN 9959293866.
  7. ^ Corpus inscriptionum Latinarum. Germany: Apud G. Reimerum. 1894. Retrieved 2026-02-04.
  8. ^ Fanṭar, Muḥammad (1970). يغرطة من ملوك شمال إفريقيا وأبطالها. Tunisia: الدار التونسية. p. 216. Retrieved 2026-02-04. سقطت إذن مدينة تالة وداستها الكتائب الرومانية واحترق قصر الملك، أما يوغرطة فقد توغل في الصحراء واتصل بقبائل بني جدالة كما أسلفناه، وبنو جدالة بدو لا يعرفون شيئاً عن الحضارة بل كانوا يجهلون عن الرومان حتى الاسم… لقد عرف يوغرطة كيف يخاطب بني جدالة فأحبوه وامتثلوا أوامره، فأخذ يدربهم على طرق القتال المنظم حتى أحسنوا كل ما تقتضيه الجندية.
  9. ^ Cunliffe, Barry (2023). Facing the Sea of Sand: The Sahara and the Peoples of Northern Africa. United Kingdom: OUP Oxford. p. 284.
  10. ^ a b Al-Nani 2007.
  11. ^ Camps, G. (1999-09-01). "Gudâla/Guezula". pp. 3223–3224. ISSN 1015-7344. Retrieved 2020-03-25.

Sources

  • General History of Africa: Africa from the twelfth to the sixteenth century edited by D. T. Niane, UNESCO, 1984 - 751 pages, (found on Google books) link
  • UNESCO General History of Africa, Vol. IV, Abridged Edition: Africa from the Twelfth to the Sixteenth Century. By Joseph Ki-Zerbo, (found on Google books) University of California Press, May 10, 1998 - 277 pages, p62 link
  • WESTERN AFRICA TO c1860 A.D. A PROVISIONAL HISTORICAL SCHEMA BASED ON CLIMATE PERIODS by George E. Brooks, Indiana University African Studies Program, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, August, 1985 [1]
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