9th century • 800 AD: John Trimingham lists states on the Senegal:"800 States on the Senegal: Sanghana (Serer), Takrur, Silla, and Galam (Soninke)." Many of the Serer village and town names they have founded still survives today. • 850 AD: A state centered around
Takrur may have developed at this time, either as an influx of
Fulani from the east settled in the Senegal valley. or according to
John Donnelly Fage formed through the interaction of Berbers from the Sahara and "Negro agricultural peoples" who were "essentially Serer".
11th century • Early 11th century: According to Serer tradition
Lamane Jegan Joof founded
Tukar (part of present-day
Senegal). • 1030:
War Jabi usurped the throne of
Takrur following a revolution and made himself King of Takrur. • 1035: Around this time,
War Jabi the revolutionist converted to Islam and introduced
forced conversion of his subjects as well as
Sharia law with the guidance of his
Almoravid allies,
Abdallah ibn Yasin in particular. Much of his
religious persecution was directed at the
Serer people who refused to submit to
Islam as well as the Serer
Lamanic class, the guardians of
Serer religion and holders of economic and political power (see
Persecution of the Serers). From this point to 1042, the Serers of Takrur became the subject of persecution and jihads by the African converts to Islam such as the
Fula and
Toucouleurs with their Almoravid allies. Despite their strong resistance, the Serers were eventually defeated by the powerful Muslim coalition forces of the Almoravids. This era marks the exodus of the Serers of Takrur. Those who survived the wars and refused to convert migrated southwards to what later became known as the Serer Kingdoms of
Sine,
Saloum and previously
Baol, rather than convert to Islam. In the south, they were granted asylum by their distant Serer relatives, endorsed by
the Great Council of Lamanes, the highest
court in Serer country. Trimingham notes that, Takrur was the first in the region to adopt Islam but lost completely its Serer identity. War Jabi died in 1040 and was succeeded by his son Leb (or Labi), also a major ally of the Almoravids. Leb is reported to have been fighting for the Almoravids in 1056 probably as a result of the subjugation of Takrur by the Almoravids in 1042 and a well enforced Sharia law.
13th century • c. 1235 :
Mansa Jolofing (the Serer king of
Jolof) ransacked the caravan of gold sent by
Sundiata Keita for the purchase of horses in Jolof. After this,
Mansa Sundiata sent his general and cousin
Tiramakhan Traore to Jolof to assassinate the Mansa Jolofing. • c. 1285/7: Lamane Jaw on the throne of
Jolof. During his reign,
Mansa Sakoura (the
Mansa of
Imperial Mali) launched an expedition in
Senegal (c. 1285), conquered Jolof and reduced Lamane Jaw to a mere provincial chief. • c. 1290:
Maad Ndaah Njemeh Joof, ancestor of the
Joof dynasty of Sine and Saloum succeeded to the throne of
Laah in
Baol.
14th century • 1350–1400: The
Kingdom of Sine renamed. The Guelowar period starts from 1350.
Maad a Sinig Maysa Wali Jaxateh Manneh elected first Guelowar king to ever rule in one of the Serer countries (Kingdom of Sine). Nominated and elected by the Serers of Sine and the Great Council of Lamanes whose Council he served as legal adviser for 15 years and gave his sisters and nieces to in marriage. Maysa Wali ruled in 1350–1370. The marriages between the descendants of the ancient Serer Lamanic class and the Guelowar women created the Serer paternal dynasties and the Guelowar maternal dynasty which lasted for over 600 years. Some members of the Serer nobility were opposed to the nomination and election of Maysa Wali, in particular
Lamane Pangha Yaya Sarr (many variations: Penga Yaye Sarr, etc.), because Maysa Wali did not have a Serer father nor a Serer mother in spite of his assimilation into Serer culture, long service to the Great Council and coming from royalty himself. None of
Maad a Sinig Maysa Wali's descendants ruled in any of the Serer kingdoms after him. The children and descendants of the Serer men and Guelowar women became Serers with loyalty to
Serer religion, the
Serer people, the Serer countries, culture and language, and all ties with Kaabu were severed. In this period, the old Serer paternal dynasties survived but the old
Wagadou maternal dynasty collapsed in Sine and later Saloum, except in Baol and other places. The Guelowar period is the last of Serer
dynastic periodization • 1360 : Oral tradition reports that Ndiadiane Ndiaye (also called Bourba Jolof Njajaan Njie) founded the
Jolof Empire, an empire founded by a voluntary
confederation of states.
John Donnelly Fage suggests although dates in the early 13th century (and others say 12th century) are usually ascribed to this king and the founding of the empire, a more likely scenario is "that the rise of the empire was associated with the growth of Wolof power at the expense of the ancient Sudanese state of Takrur, and that this was essentially a fourteenth-century development." Maad a Sinig Maysa Wali was said to be instrumental in the founding of this empire, nominating Njajaan Njie to lead the Jolof Empire and called for the other states join this confederacy under Njajaan which they did according to the epics of Njajaan and Maysa Wali. The
Maad a Sinig thus took the
Kingdom of Sine to this confederacy. Though the establishment of this empire was voluntary, its disestablishment was not, resulting in the
Battle of Danki in 1549. This era marks the deterioration of the
Mali Empire as it began to loose some of its former vassal states. Although it did not collapse completely, Imperial Mali was not as powerful as it once was.
15th century • 1446: The
Portuguese slave trader Nuno Tristão and his party attempted a
slave raiding expedition in Serer territory. They all succumbed to Serer
poisoned arrows except five young Portuguese (or less). One of them was left to charter their
caravel back to
Portugal. Nuno was amongst those killed. • 1455: the
Venetian slave trader and chronicler
Alvise Cadamosto having bought
Wolof slaves in
Cayor, decided to stop his ship at the Serer community living on the border of Wolof Cayor. Alvise wrote how these Serer community looked menacing and unwelcoming. He then went on to say that, after seeing their ship approaching, this Serer community stood guard at the beach. The captain of the ship gave the order for no one to come off the ship and the ship was parked further away from the beach. Alvise Cadamosto sent his Wolof interpreter to go and negotiate slave terms with this Serer community whilst he (Alvise) and his Portuguese party remained in the ship. The Wolof interpreter was killed on the spot by these Serers for bringing slave traders into their territory. None of Alvise's party came off, instead, the ship departed and headed towards the
Gambia. Alvise also corrupted the Kingdom of Sine by calling it the Kingdom of
Barbaçim and the Serer people of Sine as
Barbacins among other names which many Europeans of this era referred to the Serer people as in their old maps (See:
Kingdom of Sine). • 1493:
Maad Saloum Mbegan Ndour, King of
Saloum succeeded to the throne.
16th century • 1549: The
Battle of Danki, Amary Ngoneh Sobel Faal assisted by his first cousin Prince
Manguinak Joof (var : Manguinak Diouf, a member of the old Joof dynasty of Baol), both nephews of
Teigne Njuko Njie (the last member of the Serer paternal dynasty to rule
Baol), defeated the King of
Jolof Lele Fuuli Faak Njie and disestablished the Jolof Empire. Lele Fuuli was killed at Danki. Amari Ngoneh united the old Baol and
Cayor temporarily, Manguinak Joof was honoured with the title
Ber Jak of Cayor (equivalent of
Prime Minister). With the disestablishment of the Jolof Empire, member States of the confederacy such as the
Kingdom of Sine,
Kingdom of Saloum,
Waalo, Baol, etc., returned to independent States. The Faal family are not Serers. The
Njie (or
Ndiaye) and
Joof family are. • 1567:
Maad Saloum Malawtan Joof, the longest reigning King of Saloum (45 years on the throne) succeeded to the throne. ==Early modern period==