The Fula first arrived in what is now Futa Toro during the reign of the
Wagadu Empire, fleeing the increasingly arid
Adrar and
Hodh regions. Nomadic pastoralists, they mixed with the earlier proto-
Serer and
Wolof fishing and farming populations. Known as
Takrur at the time, it became wealthy on the trans-Saharan trade, particularly after the
Almoravid capture of
Aoudaghost stifled competing commercial centers. A target for conquerors, however, Futa Toro was conquered or vassalized sequentially by the Wagadu, the
Sosso Empire, the
Mali Empire, and the
Jolof Empire. The Almamyate of Futa Toro later became the prime recruiting ground for the
jihads of
Toucouleur conqueror al-Hajj
Umar Tall and anti-colonial rebel al-Hajj
Mahmadu Lamine. Despite resistance, the Futa Toro was firmly in the hands of
French Colonial forces moving from modern
Senegal by 1900. Upon independence, the southern bank of the Senegal River where Futa Toro was and is located has remained in Senegal. The north bank along the border with Mauritania is called
Chemama and is a part of
Mauritania.
Provinces Historically the western part was called Toro, and the central portion includes Bosea, Yirlabe Hebbyabe, Law and Hailabe provinces. The eastern Futa includes Ngenar and Damga provinces. During the height of Fula power in the region from the 11th to the 17th centuries, Futa Toro included the plains up to the
Tagant and
Assaba plateaus. The valley of the
Gorgol river on the north bank, with the royal capital of Takrur, was the heartland. Beginning in the 17th century, however, Futa Toro shrank as the Sahara dried and
Berber and
Hassani attacks intensified. ==See also==