Countries · Nouakchott
Mauritania
Desert caravan towns, manuscript libraries and an epic sung tradition.
Mauritania joins the Sahara to the Atlantic. Its ancient caravan towns hold family manuscript libraries, and its musicians carry a repertoire built on modes learned over years.
We are collecting with griot families, manuscript keepers and women who hold weaving and dyeing knowledge.
Main languages
Hassaniya Arabic · Pulaar · Soninke · Wolof
Places in focus
Nouakchott · Chinguetti · Oualata · Ouadane
General cultural context; verified records are added community by community.
T'heydinn
The Moorish epic poems, inscribed by UNESCO, preserve family and tribal memory in sung verse.
Ksour of the desert
Ouadane, Chinguetti, Tichitt and Oualata are UNESCO World Heritage towns built for trade and study.
Libraries in houses
Manuscript collections have been kept by families for centuries, and their care is itself inherited knowledge.
Mauritania on the map
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From the archive
Mauritania
From the community
Contributed to Mauritania
Submissions from contributors, published after cultural review.
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Short facts, objects and traditions from the archive. Tap a card to read the full entry and its source.