Kaabu y Fulaadu: Historias polifónicas y pasados plurales

In this paper I consider some of the issues that arise from using multiple and diverse

sources to study the past through a musical metaphor. I explore three possible relationships between sources in increasing level of conceptual difficulty (unison, con

sonance, dissonance) and argue that dissonances should not be ignored or sidelined. Instead, a focus on dissonance can often reveal flaws in our conceptual tools

and highlight multidimensional processes and historical tensions that lead to more

accurate, complex, and richer understandings of the past, as well as a better appreciation of how it is used in the present.

Finally, I argue that it is important to be aware of our privileges as ‘writers of history’ with capacity to choose what voices are given greater prominence in this process, and which are silenced or sidelined; and I suggest a series of measures to mitigate this imbalance.

Casamance (Senegal. Africa). Oral history. Archaeology. Multiple memory. Participatory methodologies.