Temne people

Not to be confused with Temne language.

Temne
Temne children in Kabala in 1968
Total population
2,225,811[citation needed]
Regions with significant populations
 Sierra Leone2,220,211[1]
Languages
Temne, English, Krio
Religion
Islam 90% • Christianity 10% [citation needed]
Related ethnic groups
Baga people, Landuma people, Nalu people

The Temne, also called Atemne, Témené, Temné, Téminè, Temeni, Thaimne, Themne, Thimni, Timené, Timné, Timmani, or Timni, are a West African ethnic group.[2][3][4] They are predominantly found in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone.[4] Some Temne are also found in Guinea.[5] The Temne constitute the largest ethnic group in Sierra Leone, at 35.5% of the total population, which is slightly bigger than the Mende people at 31.2%.[1] They speak Temne, which belongs to the Mel branch of the Niger–Congo languages.[6]

The Temne people migrated from the Futa Jallon region of Guinea, who left their original settlements to escape Fula jihads in the 15th century, and migrated south before settling between the Kolenté and Rokel River area of Sierra Leone.[3][5] They initially practiced their traditional religion before Islam was adopted through contact with Muslim traders from neighboring ethnic groups. Though most Temne converted to Islam over time, Some have continued with their traditional religion.[5]

The Temne are traditionally farmers, growing rice, cassava, millet and kola nut. Their cash crops include peanuts and tobacco.[5] Some Temne are fisherman, artisans and traders. Temne society is patrilineal. It has featured a decentralized political system with village chiefs and an endogamous hierarchical social stratification.[7][8] The Temne were one of the ethnic groups that were victims of slave capture and trading across the sub-Saharan and across the Atlantic into European colonies.[9][10]

  1. ^ a b "Sierra Leone 2015 Population and Housing Census National Analytical Report" (PDF). Statistics Sierra Leone. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  2. ^ "Temné (Peuple d'Afrique)".
  3. ^ a b John A. Shoup (2011). Ethnic Groups of Africa and the Middle East: An Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. pp. 286–287. ISBN 978-1-59884-362-0.
  4. ^ a b Temne people, Encyclopædia Britannica
  5. ^ a b c d Anthony Appiah; Henry Louis Gates (2010). Encyclopedia of Africa. Oxford University Press. pp. 465–466. ISBN 978-0-19-533770-9.
  6. ^ Temne Language, Ethnologue
  7. ^ Tal Tamari (1991). "The Development of Caste Systems in West Africa". The Journal of African History. 32 (2). Cambridge University Press: 221–250. doi:10.1017/s0021853700025718. JSTOR 182616. S2CID 162509491.
  8. ^ Dorjahn, Vernon R. (1959). "The Organization and Functions of the Ragbenle Society of the Temne". Africa. 29 (2). Cambridge University Press: 156–170. doi:10.2307/1157518. JSTOR 1157518. S2CID 143989484.
  9. ^ Alexander Keese (2015). Ethnicity and the Colonial State. BRILL Academic. pp. 158–167. ISBN 978-90-04-30735-3.
  10. ^ Sylviane A. Diouf (2003). Fighting the Slave Trade: West African Strategies. Ohio University Press. pp. 133–136. ISBN 978-0-8214-1517-7.