Griot is the generic name given to the members of a particular ‘caste’ of men, who have performed a wide variety of functions within traditional West African society. At one and the same time official story-teller, historian, musician, poet, and praisesinger, the griot continues to play an important ceremonial role at all the significant events in the life of the community: births, marriages, funerals, and so on. In pre-literate societies the importance of the oral tradition cannot be overestimated, and the essential function of the griots was to ensure the passage from generation to generation of a poeticized account of the people's history, its myths, and the genealogies of its celebrated individuals and families. The griots have thus come to be known as ‘the guardians of the word’ (see Camara Laye's Le Maître de la parole). Their performances, generally accompanied by music, rely on highly developed mnemonic techniques and often make use of a stylized and poetic linguistic register. In traditional societies the griots were highly respected members of the community, but colonization and the social upheavals which have followed in its wake have dramatically altered their status. As West Africa has become literate, the griots have lost much of their raison d'être.
[Patrick Corcoran]
