Pricey Publicity, Refutable Reputations. Jeliw and the Economics of Honour in Mali

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Periodical article

Title:	Pricey Publicity, Refutable Reputations. Jeliw and the Economics of Honour in Mali
Author:	Schulz, Dorothea E.
Year:	1999
Periodical:	Paideuma
Volume:	45
Pages:	275-292
Language:	English
Geographic term:	Mali
Subjects:	honour social inequality traditional music praise poetry (form) Peoples of Africa (Ethnic Groups) Religion and Witchcraft Architecture and the Arts
External link:	https://www.jstor.org/stable/40341774
Abstract:	Drawing on 22 months of fieldwork conducted in Mali between June 1992 and February 1996, the author shows how people find innovative ways to achieve honourability in a new, urban setting where the acquisition of honour involves both more risks and more gains than in the more close-knit setting of rural communities. She examines the intricate procedures of honour acquisition in Mali, and how the sources of honourability and prestige change over time. Analysis focuses on one particular instance of honour acquisition: encounters, in the presence of a larger audience, between wealthy, influential members of Malian society and praise singers, the so-called 'jeliw'. Discussion focuses on praise singers of the societies of southern Mali, where most people speak either Bamana or Maninka. Bibliogr., notes, ref.