Bakel, Senegal
Encyclopedia
Bakel is a town of approximately 15,000 inhabitants located in the eastern part of Senegal
, West Africa. The town is located along the Sénégal River
, 65 kilometres (40.4 mi) from the Malian border and linked by canoe ferry to the town of Gouray, Mauritania. It is one of the three departmental capitals in the region of Tambacounda
, the other two being Tambacounda and Kedougou
, located near the Guinea
n border. Bakel is predominantly known for its French Fort and as the home of Rene Caille, the first Western explorer to successfully visit Timbuktu
. It was also the area where the Mauritanian crisis occurred, a dispute over grazing rights that led to a war between Senegal and Mauritania in 1989. As a result of this conflict, many people around the area moved abroad or emigrated to Senegal.
The majority of the population belong to the Soninke
-speaking ethnic group, a dialect of the larger Mandagne-Mandinke language family. There is also a substantial Pulaar (Fula
) speaking minority as well as a significant amount of Bambara
and Wolof
(or Oulof) speakers. While most people learn and speak French in school, they prefer to use local dialects in everyday conversation. A large permanent market serves the department's inhabitants along with a weekly "Lumo" (similar to a flea market). Most inhabitants are subsistence farmers and herders, while the people in town are employed in informal businesses that range from carpentry, masonry and transportation of goods to selling fruit and produce on the street. Due to its location in the Sahel
, the area is semi-arid with little vegetation outside of the rainy season. Various hills surround the town, which are known locally as "little mountains."
Bakel is also the site of a study of annual flow volumes of the Senegal river from 1904 to 1990 which showed a dramatic reduction in the river's volume especially in the past twenty years.
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
, West Africa. The town is located along the Sénégal River
Sénégal River
The Sénégal River is a long river in West Africa that forms the border between Senegal and Mauritania.The Sénégal's headwaters are the Semefé and Bafing rivers which both originate in Guinea; they form a small part of the Guinean-Malian border before coming together at Bafoulabé in Mali...
, 65 kilometres (40.4 mi) from the Malian border and linked by canoe ferry to the town of Gouray, Mauritania. It is one of the three departmental capitals in the region of Tambacounda
Tambacounda
Tambacounda is the largest city in eastern Senegal, southeast of Dakar, and is the Regional capital of the province of the same name. Its estimated population in 2007 was 78,800.-Geography:...
, the other two being Tambacounda and Kedougou
Kédougou
Kédougou is a town in southeastern Senegal at 12.56 degrees N. latitude and 12.21 degrees W, longitude and at an elevation of 547 feet above sea level. Founded by the Diahanké people, Kédougou means the "Land of Man". The town lies on the N7 road and the River Gambia amid the Pays Bassari hills...
, located near the Guinea
Guinea
Guinea , officially the Republic of Guinea , is a country in West Africa. Formerly known as French Guinea , it is today sometimes called Guinea-Conakry to distinguish it from its neighbour Guinea-Bissau. Guinea is divided into eight administrative regions and subdivided into thirty-three prefectures...
n border. Bakel is predominantly known for its French Fort and as the home of Rene Caille, the first Western explorer to successfully visit Timbuktu
Timbuktu
Timbuktu , formerly also spelled Timbuctoo, is a town in the West African nation of Mali situated north of the River Niger on the southern edge of the Sahara Desert. The town is the capital of the Timbuktu Region, one of the eight administrative regions of Mali...
. It was also the area where the Mauritanian crisis occurred, a dispute over grazing rights that led to a war between Senegal and Mauritania in 1989. As a result of this conflict, many people around the area moved abroad or emigrated to Senegal.
The majority of the population belong to the Soninke
Soninke language
The Soninke language is a Mande language spoken by the Soninke people of West Africa. The language has an estimated 1,096,795 speakers, primarily located in Mali, and also in Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, The Gambia, Mauritania, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea and Ghana...
-speaking ethnic group, a dialect of the larger Mandagne-Mandinke language family. There is also a substantial Pulaar (Fula
Fula language
The Fula or Fulani language is a language of West Africa. It is spoken as a first language by the and related groups from Senegambia and Guinea to Cameroon and Sudan...
) speaking minority as well as a significant amount of Bambara
Bambara language
Bambara, more correctly known as Bamanankan , its designation in the language itself , is a language spoken in Mali by as many as six million people...
and Wolof
Wolof language
Wolof is a language spoken in Senegal, The Gambia, and Mauritania, and is the native language of the Wolof people. Like the neighbouring languages Serer and Fula, it belongs to the Atlantic branch of the Niger–Congo language family...
(or Oulof) speakers. While most people learn and speak French in school, they prefer to use local dialects in everyday conversation. A large permanent market serves the department's inhabitants along with a weekly "Lumo" (similar to a flea market). Most inhabitants are subsistence farmers and herders, while the people in town are employed in informal businesses that range from carpentry, masonry and transportation of goods to selling fruit and produce on the street. Due to its location in the Sahel
Sahel
The Sahel is the ecoclimatic and biogeographic zone of transition between the Sahara desert in the North and the Sudanian Savannas in the south.It stretches across the North African continent between the Atlantic Ocean and the Red Sea....
, the area is semi-arid with little vegetation outside of the rainy season. Various hills surround the town, which are known locally as "little mountains."
Bakel is also the site of a study of annual flow volumes of the Senegal river from 1904 to 1990 which showed a dramatic reduction in the river's volume especially in the past twenty years.