kingdom · West Africa

Kingdom of Sine

1350 CE – 1891 CE (approx.) · capital Diakhao

Serer kingdom of west-central Senegal, ruled by the Guelowar dynasty and long a stronghold of Serer religion against Muslim jihad.

Origins

Serer tradition holds that around 1350 the Guelowar, a maternal lineage of Mandinka origin from Kaabu, came to the Serer country and married into its old landholding families. Maysa Wali, remembered as the first Guelowar king, founded the line of rulers titled Maad a Sinig. The royal seat was later fixed at Diakhao.

Rule and society

The king ruled with a council of great chiefs and with the Lingeer, the queen mother or royal sister. Serer religion, with its saltigue priests and rain rites, remained central, and Sine resisted conversion. The economy rested on millet, cattle and later groundnuts. In 1867 its army defeated and killed the jihadist Maba Diakhou Ba at Fandane-Thiouthioune.

Decline and legacy

Sine became a French protectorate and was absorbed into the colony of French Senegal in 1891. Kings continued as colonial chiefs; the last, Mahecor Diouf, died in 1969, after which independent Senegal ended the monarchy.

Connections (2)

  • Kingdom of Sine was a vassal of Jolof Empire1350 CE – 1549 CE
  • Kingdom of Sine was a protectorate of French Empire1891 CE – 1960 CE

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Kingdom of Sine. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-sine
MLA
“Kingdom of Sine.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-sine. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Kingdom of Sine.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-sine.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Kingdom of Sine’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-sine (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻