Chronicles of al-Sūdān (Taʾrīḫ al-Sūdān)
Gao (Gawgaw, Kawkaw)
Title
The rebellion's leader reaches Gao sounding horns and drum
Short description
Al-Hādī, leader of a rebellion against the askia, reaches Gao with his horns and drum preceding him. A subsequent dialogue reveals that the very fact of bearing those musical instruments was perceived as an aggression (see Gomez, 2018, p. 357).
Text on source
فوصل كاغ ليلة الاثنين رابع ربيع الاوّل وعليه الدرع وبين يديه بوقاته وطبله وغير ذلك فخاف منه اسكيا خوفا عظيما لانه مريض عاجز لا يقدر على العزلة [ص. ١١٩]
English translation
[Al-Hādī] reached Gao the night of Monday 4 Rabīʿ al-Awwal /16 March [1584], wearing a mail coat, and with his horns [būqāt] and drum [ṭabl] preceding him. The askia, sick and powerless, was terrified, and unable to do anything.
Folios/Pages
165
Date
1584 03 16
Observations on the events description
It is worth noticing that horns are mentioned in the plural while the drum is in the singular.
The dots on the map indicate the places where sound and music events were described. They don't represent travel stages.
Participants
Name
Role
Notes
Edit
Delete
Ibn Dāwūd, Muḥammad al-Ḥajj
Viewer
Askia (King)
How to quote
Pintimalli A., "The rebellion's leader reaches Gao sounding horns and drum" (Event description), Echos. Sound Ecosystems in Travelogues. Published 2024 10 04.doi: 10.25430/echos.travels.139
This work is licensed under CC-BY-SA 4.0 
