About The Gnawa

The truth is, every new person you ask about the history of the Gnawi will tell you a different story. The music is not an oral history, but a cycle of praises to a host of saints, including Moses. History is passed down verbally from one Ma'alem to the next generation. The information I give here is a of collection of the most popular histories I've heard. Click HERE to hear an MP3 of traditional Gnawa Music

The oldest ancestors of Gnawa Spirituality are the Soudani, who have travelled the Sahara in camel caravans for thousands of years as traders. As a means of surviving the harsh desert conditions during their extensive journies, they developed a method of transcedence which includes dance, incense, food and music.

Gnawa are also the decendents of slaves trafficked from West Africa - specifically Guinea and Ghana (some people say the name "Gnawa" is a combination of these 2 countries names) to Muslim North Africa. These North African slaves found and fused the Soudani transcendentalism with Yoruba, Sufism, the Old Testament and Islamic spiritualities, resulting in a traditional healing spirituality, GNAUA or GNAWA, which is manifested through the healing Lila Ceremony.

The primary instrument of the Gnawa is the sintir (also called guimbre and hahjouj), a 3-stringed bass lute covered by a camel-skin head, which doubles as a drum. The Ma'alem, or master musician, will always play sintir and sing lead vocals. He is joined by several Qraqb (metal castanet) players who sing the chorus, and often put down their castanets to perform polyrhythmic handclaps, and dance. In a full Lila ceremony, a priestess will lead the dance. During the ceremony, people may go into trance and - as in Haitian Vodou - their bodies will be inhabited by the saint who is being called by the music. The Lila cycles through a series of colors - red, blue, light blue, yellow, white, black. Several saints are associated with each color. Incense is used throughout the ceremony, and in many cases an animal will be sacrificed before the ceremony begins.

Gnawi currently live and practice in Northern African countries, including Morocco, Tunis, and Algeria. There are different sects, each featuring their own Ma'alems and styles. Each June there is a very popular festval of Gnawa music in Essouiera, Morocco, which features Ma'alems from all over North Africa. The festival also features Gnawa fusion ensembles from other parts of the world.

For a more detailed exploration of the Gnawa, please visit Rodrigo Dorfman's site:

The Cyber Gnawas

Other Gnawa links:

Gnawa Festival - Essoueira, Morocco - Association Sidi Mimoun

Writings about, and music of the Gnawa

Jaoui Picture credit: Rodrigo Dorfman