kaskara terminology

Iain · 30th November 2011, 11:37 PM

I thought I might share some of angles I've been looking into as to where the term kaskara comes from, why we use it and if it really covers a type of sword accurately. More or less I think I can present a clear picture for readers on a topic that has been raised on and off in these forums for quite some time. I've hinted at some of this in past threads but I'd like to lay it out a little more clearly. I have to thank Jim for asking a question in the last few days that jogged my memory about some of this and got me looking into it again.

The term in English publications seems to crop up first in Burton's “Book of the Sword” (1884) then in Stone's glossary of arms and armour in 1934.

Generally speaking the term is associated with a sword type in the Sudan and Somali by Arabic speakers who locally term it saif. So the question of course is, why and how does kaskara enter into the picture.

In Stone's glossary the entry contains a telling detail. He labels the kaskara the sword of the Bagirmi – a medium sized kingdom near lake Chad. Where did Stone source this from?

Burton gives no description or illustration of the form as he is discussing in most general terms the swords of the region and merely uses the term in relation to Bagirmi, likely because both Barth and Dixon Denham had visited the kingdom and the area was known.

But the likely reason Burton picked up on the term is a German language publication by the famous explorer Heinrich Barth - "Sammlung und bearbeitung central-afrikanischer vokabularien" from 1862. Barth personally travelled in the regions around lake Chad and took extensive linguistic notes.

In the language of the Bagirmi sword is “kaskara” and we find the root in the Kanuri language. The Kanuri being the dominate group in the area and the founders of the Bornu empire. In Kanuri the term is “kasagar”. For example in a sentence:

“djigei kam su gotse, kannu bago kasagar tsegarin?”
how can one take iron, and beat it into a sword without fire ?

This phrase is taken from "Grammar of the Bórnu or Kanuri language" by Koelle published in 1854.

In fact variations on the word are found among many of the tribal groups in the area like Ngizim in northern Nigeria.

But it seems the Kanuri at least were users of the takouba form (although keeping in mind the local term becomes kasagar). I have shown this in previous threads with photos from the Dikwa emirate – a successor state to the Bornu kingdom. This is to be excepted in my opinion given the historical connections with other takouba users like the Tuareg and Hausa.

However Bivar in “Nigerian Panoply” (1964) notes that the kaskara form can be encountered in the regions of the former Bornu empire. So, where did this sword transmit from?

The first place the term is tied to the form is in Stone.

In my opinion the likely candidates to explain all this are the Shuwa or Baggara Arabs. A nomadic group with long standing connections to the Sultans of Fur (including land grants). Fur was of course an ancient kingdom and the area was well connected with Egypt and the Mamluk influence we can see in the kaskara form, incidentally the local term for sword in the Fur language should be “seer”. The Baggara Arabs have a massive range that extends down into northern Nigeria and Cameroon. They are well known in the areas of Bornu and the Bagirmi kingdoms. Here is a Shuwa horseman photographed in 1910:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...7onn%C3%A9.jpg

During the Mahdist war Baggara Arabs in fact provided a large percentage of the Mahdist forces. The second in command to the Mahdi was in fact a Baggara - Abdallahi ibn Muhammad. Many Baggara Arabs moved to the regions of Omdurman and the central Sudan. It is quite possible other Muslims in the area speaking a Chadic language with kaskara or a variation of the term, also answered the Mahdi's call.

In any case, the term has little bearing on the sword except to perhaps illustrate the range of the form just as takouba is simply a term for sword and not a definition of the form.

I think we collectors can run the risk of misusing a single term to cover a wide ranging form while not taking into account regional linguistics for classification. However, at this point, due to Stone, the term is pretty much stuck in the collecting lexicon as much as I would like to see most 'kaskara' labeled saif.

Comments and discussion welcome.

30th November 2011, 11:37 PM	#1
Iain Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Olomouc Posts: 1,680	kaskara terminology I thought I might share some of angles I've been looking into as to where the term kaskara comes from, why we use it and if it really covers a type of sword accurately. More or less I think I can present a clear picture for readers on a topic that has been raised on and off in these forums for quite some time. I've hinted at some of this in past threads but I'd like to lay it out a little more clearly. I have to thank Jim for asking a question in the last few days that jogged my memory about some of this and got me looking into it again. The term in English publications seems to crop up first in Burton's “Book of the Sword” (1884) then in Stone's glossary of arms and armour in 1934. Generally speaking the term is associated with a sword type in the Sudan and Somali by Arabic speakers who locally term it saif. So the question of course is, why and how does kaskara enter into the picture. In Stone's glossary the entry contains a telling detail. He labels the kaskara the sword of the Bagirmi – a medium sized kingdom near lake Chad. Where did Stone source this from? Burton gives no description or illustration of the form as he is discussing in most general terms the swords of the region and merely uses the term in relation to Bagirmi, likely because both Barth and Dixon Denham had visited the kingdom and the area was known. But the likely reason Burton picked up on the term is a German language publication by the famous explorer Heinrich Barth - "Sammlung und bearbeitung central-afrikanischer vokabularien" from 1862. Barth personally travelled in the regions around lake Chad and took extensive linguistic notes. In the language of the Bagirmi sword is “kaskara” and we find the root in the Kanuri language. The Kanuri being the dominate group in the area and the founders of the Bornu empire. In Kanuri the term is “kasagar”. For example in a sentence: “djigei kam su gotse, kannu bago kasagar tsegarin?” how can one take iron, and beat it into a sword without fire ? This phrase is taken from "Grammar of the Bórnu or Kanuri language" by Koelle published in 1854. In fact variations on the word are found among many of the tribal groups in the area like Ngizim in northern Nigeria. But it seems the Kanuri at least were users of the takouba form (although keeping in mind the local term becomes kasagar). I have shown this in previous threads with photos from the Dikwa emirate – a successor state to the Bornu kingdom. This is to be excepted in my opinion given the historical connections with other takouba users like the Tuareg and Hausa. However Bivar in “Nigerian Panoply” (1964) notes that the kaskara form can be encountered in the regions of the former Bornu empire. So, where did this sword transmit from? The first place the term is tied to the form is in Stone. In my opinion the likely candidates to explain all this are the Shuwa or Baggara Arabs. A nomadic group with long standing connections to the Sultans of Fur (including land grants). Fur was of course an ancient kingdom and the area was well connected with Egypt and the Mamluk influence we can see in the kaskara form, incidentally the local term for sword in the Fur language should be “seer”. The Baggara Arabs have a massive range that extends down into northern Nigeria and Cameroon. They are well known in the areas of Bornu and the Bagirmi kingdoms. Here is a Shuwa horseman photographed in 1910: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...7onn%C3%A9.jpg During the Mahdist war Baggara Arabs in fact provided a large percentage of the Mahdist forces. The second in command to the Mahdi was in fact a Baggara - Abdallahi ibn Muhammad. Many Baggara Arabs moved to the regions of Omdurman and the central Sudan. It is quite possible other Muslims in the area speaking a Chadic language with kaskara or a variation of the term, also answered the Mahdi's call. In any case, the term has little bearing on the sword except to perhaps illustrate the range of the form just as takouba is simply a term for sword and not a definition of the form. I think we collectors can run the risk of misusing a single term to cover a wide ranging form while not taking into account regional linguistics for classification. However, at this point, due to Stone, the term is pretty much stuck in the collecting lexicon as much as I would like to see most 'kaskara' labeled saif. Comments and discussion welcome.