Index

Abdou (Guinean marketer), 69, 74–76, 78, 90n3
Abidjan, 155
Adey, Peter, 7
affiliation, 15, 42, 50, 128
affinity, 40, 64, 66, 126, 142, 148–50; exchange and, 104; identity and, 42, 45, 49; in-law negotiation and, 59; pursuit of relations and, 50; return encounters and, 84–86
Africa, 151; faraway hometowns and, 104. See also West Africa
African Frontier, 34
Agha, Asif, 130
Aissa, 98–102, 104–8, 111–12; asu Ñooge, 103
Aissatou, 93–96, 100–104; Baby Aissa and, 98–102, 104–8
“aŋ a jeyaaka ɗo” routine (“you, you’re not from here”), 106, 136
Angola, 76, 150
Anthropocene era, 162
Arabic, 99, 102, 112
architecture, 145
articulation, 79–81, 83–84, 86–89; Ebola epidemic and, 121, 124; exchange and, 103, 106; “four years in a towel” interaction and, 74–78; of garandaaru, 7; infrastructure as, 20; market and, 142, 149, 151; migration and, 19; mobility and, 15–18, 68–71; pursuit of relations and, 67n2; site making and, 136–39
artisanal miners, 35, 37, 79, 143; as racialized category, 41n3
autocthony, 35, 37, 44
autonomy, 2–3, 21, 42–43, 162
aventuriers, 17, 72, 80

baiting, 156–59
Bakhtin, M. M., 139n1
baptism, 84; rebaptism and, 57
Bas, 52; Diallos and, 56; joking relationship and, 53
Bassari people, 55, 108–10
Basso, Keith, 120
Bateson, Gregory, 3
Bauman, Richard, 13
Baylo, 86, 88
becoming somebody, 18. See also success
biopower, 60, 64
birth certificates, 33, 60, 63, 65
birth registries, 49, 60
blessings, 92, 101–2, 115, 148, 152–56, 161; Koranic blessings and, 99, 111–13; salt blessings and, 107, 109
blind man and child metaphor, 1–4
Blommaert, Jan, 14
body posture, 88, 102
Boers, 163
borders, 35, 40, 44, 49, 73, 108; conservation and, 139n2; crossing of, 22–24, 44, 129–30, 138; Ebola epidemic and, 121–25; gendarmes and, 125–28; ID cards and, 60–63; Kédougou market and, 142–43; liminal space and, 133–35; linguistic practices and, 117–20; mobility and, 4, 7, 11–12, 14, 18–21; ritual and, 93, 105; site making and, 136–39; sociality and, 129–33
Borrow John, 163
Bouba, Neene, 106
Boubs, 80–82
boundaries, 63, 101, 107, 124, 130, 133; linguistic practices and, 118, 121; migration and, 12–13; nature-culture and, 9, 25–26, 122; social change and, 34–35
Bourdieu, Pierre, 123
Brazzaville, Congo, 55
bribery, 130
Buggenhagen, Beth, 94, 104
built environment, 2, 11, 48, 131, 138, 146
Buubu Ñooge (Trash Owl), 93, 101–4; witches and, 115n2. See also Aissatou

Cairo, Egypt, 144–45
Canary Islands, 17
capillary social networks, 62, 95
Cartesianism, 10, 13, 119–20, 136;
representational spaces and, 120
caste, 52, 66; Fulɓe and, 41n2; patronymics and, 44
cell networks, 82, 134, 164
census, 33, 35–36
channels, 3, 9–10; of communication, 26, 107, 145; of materiality, 98, 113, 117, 144; strangers and, 161n1
Chappatte, André, 72, 74, 133
chiefs, 93, 96
chronotopes, 13, 55, 139n1, 149
Cissé, Hadji, 138, 141
Clark, Gracia, 8, 145
Clarsen, Georgine, 162
clé (French loan word), 80–81
client relation. See also kiliyans (clients) cloth, 104
clout, 74, 79, 141, 156
Comaroff, Jean, 163
Comaroff, John, 163
coming-of-age ceremony, 62
communication, channels of, 3, 9–10, 26, 107, 145, 161n1
community, 15, 37, 40, 104, 115–16, 163–64; articulation of mobility and, 70–72, 75, 77–78, 80–81, 85, 87; borders and, 121–22, 132, 136, 138–39; care in, 2; dispersal of, 42, 91–92, 105; distribution and, 28, 115; identity and, 31–34, 42–44, 48, 50–51, 55; Kédougou market and, 142, 148, 150; local construction of, 7; managing presence and, 20; migrants and, 8; naming ceremonies and, 91–94, 96–97; participation and, 48, 50–51, 57, 61, 64, 67; ritual and, 104–8, 111–13; space and, 6–7
Congo, 17; joking relationship and, 55; trade networks and, 150
connections to place, 80–83
conquest of intelligibility, 64
construction techniques, 113–14, 116n7
contested encounters, 69, 78
cousinage (joking relationship), 51, 148. See also joking relationship; sanakuyaagal (joking relationship)
COVID-19 pandemic, 35, 165
“creating a scene,” 102
creativity, 13, 15, 18–21, 48–51, 64–67, 164; articulation and, 70, 72, 74, 85; identity and, 45, 59; infrastructure and, 142, 146; interaction and, 126–27; participation and, 91, 94; people as infrastructure concept and, 9; ritual and, 104–5; social labor and, 94; social negotiation and, 54–55
Creswell, Tim, 7
cultural practice, 32–34, 44–45, 119, 130, 136; articulating mobility and, 72, 79–81, 86; nature-culture boundaries and, 9, 25–26, 122; power and, 162–63; pristine forms of, 32
cyclical mobility, 37, 43, 50–51, 71, 97; rural areas and, 105; transnationalism and, 71–72

Dakar, Senegal, 46, 60, 63–64, 76, 104–5, 107; borders and, 118–19, 121, 132, 137; Kédougou market and, 143; labor and, 28–29; social change and, 37–39; traffic jams in, 132
Dakar-Bamako international highway, 37, 60, 95, 118–19, 131, 143
Daouda, 80–81
d’Avignon, Robyn, 41n3
deep history, 34, 50, 111, 156
deictic expressions, 12
De León, Jason, 24–25
de Saussure, Ferdinand, 10
Diallo, Diao, 29–30, 53
Diallo, Djiby, 142, 149–50, 153, 158–60
Diallo, Mamadou, 22, 110; hometown and, 138; joking relationship and, 53–54; models of movement and, 131; mountain path sociality and, 134–35; name play and, 58; Pular and, 52; success and, 137; Taabe and, 27, 29–30; teasing and, 136; transportation and, 132
Diallo, Rune, 5, 30, 98, 100, 102–3, 115; gifts and, 115n1; renaming and, 103; return encounters and, 84–88; signs of being from Guinea and, 128
Diallos, 57–58; Bas and, 55, 158; joking relationship and, 53; Ka and, 55
dialogic storytelling, 78–79, 87
Didi (Taabe boy), 4–5, 7
difference, 44, 123, 136
differently abled people, 2
disease, 121, 165. See also Ebola epidemic
dispersed communities, 42, 91–92, 105, 107. See also community
disrespect, 130
distributed communities, 28, 31, 115. See also community
dividuals, 3
domestic space, 48, 59, 115, 119, 148–49; naming ceremonies and, 91, 94, 96
Dougnon, Isaie, 43
Drogba, 81–83
“Dubai, this guy went to” routine, 159–60
Duke (Dakar migrant), 46–47, 51, 126

Ebola epidemic, 18, 20, 29, 121–25, 142, 150; borders and, 40, 49, 60, 118, 130–31, 133; materiality and, 165; police and, 125–29; site making and, 138–39
Economic Community of West African States, 67n5
economic opportunity, 32–34, 45–46, 81, 95, 159–60; hardship and, 164; marketplaces and, 141, 143; mining boom and, 37–38, 40
elders, 56, 59, 92, 96, 99–102
Elyachar, Julia, 10, 144
embodied practice, 2, 18, 25, 88, 111, 155; borders and, 117, 122–23, 129, 137–39; “four years in a towel” exchange and, 75–76; infrastructure of language and, 9–10; mobility and, 72–73; reenactment and, 102; relational routines and, 50, 52–53, 69–70
English, 137
enlightenment, 162
enregisterment, 130
entextualization, 74
epistemics, 123–24
esiraaɓe (in-lawship), 11, 59, 85, 148–49
esirayaagal (senior in-law), 49
ethnic solidarity, 142
Europe, 26, 43, 159; colonialism and, 163; faraway hometowns and, 104; migrants and, 16–17
everyday interactions, 18, 121, 156
exchange, 41, 73, 82, 148, 152, 157–61; articulation and, 84, 86, 88–89; borders and, 118, 125–26, 131, 136, 139; identity and, 33, 44, 51–54; infrastructure and, 142–45, 147; interaction and, 26; language of infrastructure and, 10–12; linguistic forms of, 2, 68, 128, 161, 164; materiality and, 91–92, 94, 155; migration and, 20–21; mobility and, 164; presence and, 96–98, 100, 104–7, 113–15; things and, 89n1; wealth and, 154–56
experience, 84; representation and, 68–69
exploration, 162–63

Fabian, Johannes, 163
face-to-face interactions, 17, 52, 57, 67, 139; entanglement and, 165; Goffman and, 161n2; linguistic practices and, 123, 131–33; media and, 164
fantasies, 16, 19, 69
fictive kinship, 85
folkloric studies, 13
fonio, 28
forodu (without papers), 61–62, 65
Forrest, George, 163
Foucault, Michel, 64
“four years in a towel” encounter, 74–78
Fouta Djallon mountain range, 22–24, 128–29
France, 72
French language, 43, 113, 119, 140, 148; clé loan word from, 80–81; cosmopolitanism and, 137; “four years in a towel” encounter and, 75–76; linguistic racism and, 115n4; Pular and, 115n3; relational routines and, 46–47, 51, 58, 61; Senegalese sound patterns and, 109
Fula, 67n4
Fulɓe Fouta, 27, 29, 52–53, 142; caste and, 41n2; economic opportunity and, 142; as plural form, 67n4; return encounters and, 85
Fulfulde variety, 52
futurity, 11
futuuɓe in-laws, 93, 95

Gaibazzi, Paolo, 91
Gambia, 156
garandaaru (demon, spirit), 4–7, 24
Gaudio, Rudolph, 9, 116n6
gaze, 88
gendarmes (police), 125–29, 138
gender, 119
gentrification, 9
gesture, 88, 130
Ghana, 8, 67, 145
gifts, 15, 30, 51, 83–84, 136, 161; Kédougou market and, 147, 152, 154, 156–57; neldaari and, 159; presence and, 104–8, 110–11, 113, 115; ritual and, 92, 94–98, 100, 103; teasing nicknames and, 115n1
Goffman, Erving, 47; creating a scene and, 102; face-to-face interactions and, 161n2; risk and, 156
gold, 46, 95, 131; mining boom and, 18, 38–39, 105, 141, 143; ritual objects and, 41n4
goreyaagal (peer), 49
greetings, 1, 21, 25, 115, 146–48, 164–66; articulation and, 74, 82–84, 86, 88; awkwardness and, 83; borders and, 123, 126–27, 129–31, 133, 137; exchange and, 154, 157, 160; gifts and, 105–8; relational routines and, 46, 51, 53, 56, 70
griots, 41n2, 52
Guinea, 29, 37, 40, 93, 96; articulation, 73–74, 76; borders and, 118, 130–31, 133–34, 138–39; Ebola epidemic and, 121–25, 131, 142, 150; gendarmes and, 125–29; Kédougou market and, 142–43, 150, 153, 156; migration and, 17–18, 20; relational routines and, 54, 60, 64, 68. See also Senegal-Guinea border
Guinea-Conakry region, 93
gundagol (slipping away tactic), 134
Guyer, Jane, 155

habitus, 123
Hassaniya, 76
“here and there” expression, 12
Hodo village, 110–12
hometowns, 68–69, 134, 136, 154; articulation and, 72, 80, 83–84, 86, 89; identity and, 31–34, 51, 59, 62; Mamadou Diallo and, 138; patronyms and, 56; ritual and, 94–95, 104–5
honorifics, 11, 50, 102, 149. See also in-laws
hoore fello plateau, 134–35
horizontal capillary power, 62
hospitality, 34, 48, 50, 59, 86, 163; food and, 153; Kédougou market and, 148–49, 153–54; performance and, 161
host-strangers, 70
Hottentots, 163

identity, 12, 31–35, 40, 42–44, 126, 148; local construction of, 7; name-based keys to, 44; nationality and, 64; relational routines and, 47–49, 51–55, 57–61, 65–66; representation and, 15–16, 19; self-presentation and, 50
identity cards, 42, 49, 60–64, 125, 127, 129; biometric documentation and, 67n5; football player ages and, 67n6; joking relationship and, 65–67; social change and, 35
idiom, 19, 75, 126, 142, 148–49, 152–53; host-strangers and, 70; identity and, 42, 45–46; kinship and, 85; pursuit of relations and, 49; relationality and, 34, 48, 149, 152, 157; relational routines and, 48–50, 55–56, 59, 64, 66, 70; sanaku and, 52
imaginaries, 16–17, 19, 69; linguistic signs and, 118
“imagining travels together” interactions, 87 imams, 93, 98
in-betweenness, 71
Indigenous peoples, 162–63
individuality, 3, 98; perspectives to mobility and, 69. See also dividuals
individual narratives, 19, 68, 89
infrastructure, 61, 112–16, 118, 120–21; architecture and, 145; discursive forms of, 9; Kédougou market and, 142–43, 146–47, 152, 154; language as, 61, 117–18, 120, 142, 154, 157; materiality and, 2, 11, 94, 112, 144; mobility and, 13, 20, 48, 165; presence and, 92, 94, 103, 106–7; representation and, 14–15; space and, 8–11; symbolism and, 117
Ingold, Tim, 6, 119, 163
in-laws, 98, 115, 126, 131, 140, 164; baiting and, 158; futuuɓe and, 93, 95; in-law talk and, 11, 21, 48, 148–49, 153; joking relationship and, 142; negotiating affinity and, 59; relational routines and, 33, 48–50, 59; return encounters and, 86–88; two categories of, 85. See also pursuit of relations (jokkere enɗaŋ); relation
interaction, 42–43, 91, 96, 101, 103, 109;
articulation and, 75, 78–80, 83, 86–89; borders and, 118, 125–29, 131–34, 138–39; contested encounters of, 69; contexts of, 52, 60, 64, 79, 88, 129; dynamics of, 42, 66, 87, 89, 127; Ebola epidemic and, 121–25; exchange and, 26; identity and, 45, 47–48, 50, 52, 55, 57–61; idioms and, 19; Kédougou market and, 142–43, 145–47, 149–52, 156–61; language and, 4; migration and, 12, 14–18; mobility and, 2, 10, 20–21, 70–73, 163–66; multimodal dimensions of, 88; perspective and, 42, 48; relational routines and, 63–69; routines of, 49–50, 59, 166
interdiscurvity, 124–25
interpretation, 14, 17, 20; awkward greetings and, 83
intersubjectivity, 11; technology and, 45
intimacies of exclusion, 13
Irvine, Judith, 10, 32, 41, 52, 123, 136
Islam, 111–12, 155–56. See also blessings

Jaja, 38–40
Jakobson, Roman, 161n3
jammooje (teasing nicknames), 73–74, 78
jammoore (taboo names), 64, 73–75, 78, 147, 157
Jane Goodall Institute, 139n2
Jango (old man), 111
jibinande (birth certificates), 63
joking relationship, 40, 52–54, 59–62, 70, 126, 128; cousins and, 142; ethnic identification and, 55; identity and, 34–35, 42, 44–45, 47–51, 55–59, 62–66; in-law talk and, 148–49; Kédougou market and, 157–58; levels of, 67n3

Ka family name, 55
Kantés, 52–53, 57–58
Kaolack, Senegal, 127
Keane, Webb, 10
Kédougou City, 11, 23, 28–29, 106–10, 143; borders and, 118, 125, 131, 136; exchange and, 92, 105, 107–10; identity and, 32, 37–39, 54, 58, 60; Taabe and, 28–29, 32
Kédougou market, 17, 21, 55, 73, 80, 144; baiting and, 154–56; kola nuts and, 141–42, 150–54, 157–61
Kédougou region, 52, 55–59, 95, 105, 115–16; border crossings and, 23; borders and, 118–21, 123–25, 127, 129, 131–33, 136–39; founding a field station in, 20; identity cards and, 60, 62, 64; Kédougou–Bamako road and, 146; marketplaces and, 21; migration and, 1, 6, 11, 17–18, 20–21; mobility and, 45–46, 49, 68, 73, 106–9, 111–14; social change and, 32–35, 37–40; Taabe and, 27–28, 32–34, 80, 82
Keita, Sumanguru, 52
Keita, Sundiata, 52
Keitas, 52–53, 57
kele (girlfriend), 80–81
keyniraabe (in-laws younger than spouse), 85
kiliyans (clients), 151–52, 154–55
kinship, 70–72, 84–86, 88–89, 111, 114, 116;
borders and, 126, 129; idioms and, 85; Kédougou market and, 142–43, 148, 150–51, 153; migration and, 14–15, 19; mobility and, 44–45, 47–48, 50–51, 107, 132, 163; negotiation and, 31; personhood and, 41n2; relational routines and, 56, 58, 66–67; ritual and, 95–96, 98, 105; social change and, 33–34
Kleinman, Julie, 9, 143
knowledge, 23, 41, 94, 147; articulation and, 81, 84; biopower and, 60; borders and, 123, 126, 129, 137; “four years in a towel” encounter and, 76–77; identity and, 43–44; mobility and, 69, 72, 162
kola nut market, 56, 73, 141–42, 147, 150–54, 157–61; channels of communication and, 161n1; exchange and, 96, 98, 100, 103–4, 108, 111–12; materiality and, 91–95; mobility and, 1, 11; wealth and, 154–56
Kopytoff, Igor, 34
Koran, 113, 155
Koranic blessings, 99, 111–13, 153–54, 156. See also blessings
Koranic schools, 31

Laabi, Guinea, 124, 129
labor, 59, 66, 100, 114, 116; Dakar and, 28–29;
Kédougou market and, 143–45, 148; mobility and, 71, 73; phaticity and, 10, 144–45; social change and, 38–39; social forms of, 15, 33, 50–51, 94
landlord-stranger network, 50
land management, 35
landscape, 39, 49, 66, 108, 133; Ingold and, 119; Kédougou and, 141, 148, 152; mobility and, 6, 11–13, 18, 163
language, 8, 16–20, 142, 154, 157; connecting places through, 80–83; as core component of mobility, 7; ideologies of, 108; as infrastructure, 61, 92, 94, 106, 139, 157; interactions and, 4; Jakobson on, 161n3; language-as-place and, 12; linguistic practice and, 117–18, 120; materiality of, 18, 112, 160; meaning and, 2; mobility and, 8–11, 13–15, 25, 27; mobility constituted of, 40; movement and, 24; representation and, 120; successful migration and, 12. See also interaction; linguistic practice; verbal art
Larkin, Brian, 10
Lefebvre, Henri, 120
Leye (merchant), 74–76
life cycle rituals, 33, 51, 72, 84, 95–96; gifts and, 104–5, 108
liminality, 62, 65, 118, 121, 133–35, 141
linguistic anthropology, 12–13, 15, 115, 122, 139, 157
linguistic practice, 43, 45, 48, 50, 106–9, 112–15; articulation and, 68, 73–76, 80–81, 83, 86, 89; borders and, 25, 117–21, 128–31, 133, 136–39; Ebola epidemic and, 121–25; exchanges and, 68, 91, 128, 144–45, 161, 164; identity and, 32–33, 52, 59; Kédougou and, 27; Kédougou market and, 142, 144–45, 148, 150, 154–55, 157–58; mobility and, 2–4, 12–14, 20, 69–72, 162, 164–65; ritual and, 91, 94, 98, 100, 103; space and, 6, 8–11
LiPuma, Edward, 3
locality, 80, 85, 90–92, 151, 161, 163; borders and, 118–19, 124, 127–28, 130–34, 136, 138–139; “four years in a towel” encounter and, 74, 76–77; identity and, 7, 51, 58–59, 62–63; migration and, 4, 8; politics of location and, 117; presence and, 94, 96–97, 107, 110, 115; slavery and, 90n3; social change and, 35, 37, 39, 41; transnationalism and, 87

Mali, 17; Dakar-Bamako highway and, 131; Empire of, 44, 52; griots and, 52; jammoore and, 74; transportation and, 133
Maliville, 23, 26
Mande language, 44
Mansa (migrant), 77
Mar (Serer merchant), 54
Mariama, 126, 128
Mariwuro, 34, 84, 86–87; return encounters and, 84, 86
market economy, 39
markets, 35, 37, 39, 46, 73–75, 80; blind man metaphor and, 1–2, 4; borders and, 116, 125–26, 128, 131, 134, 137; exchange and, 95–96, 107, 114; joking relationship and, 48, 51, 54–55; migration and, 20–21; relational routines and, 48, 59, 61, 68. See also Kédougou market
Massey, Doreen, 119
materiality, 35, 39, 43, 72, 76, 116; borders and, 121–22, 124, 129–30; channels of, 98, 113, 117, 144; communication and, 3; exchange and, 91–92, 94–95, 104–5, 114, 155–57, 160; fixity and, 116n6; immaterial concepts and, 7; infrastructures and, 112, 144–45; infrastructures of language and, 9–12; language and, 17–18, 20; mobility and, 162–64; process and, 118; relational routines and, 48, 61, 67; representation and, 120; viral transmission and, 165
Mathias, Jeremy, 63
Maty, 100–101
Mauritania, 17, 68, 74–78, 83, 90; “four years in a towel” encounter and, 74; slavery and, 90n3
mboggegol (extreme exhaustion), 22
meaning, 14–16, 74, 111, 121, 140; contested encounters and, 78; description and, 2; dual forms of, 15, 19, 69; infrastructure of language and, 11–12; inherited theories of making, 89; making of, 19, 89; of mobility, 85; relational routines and, 67, 69–72; return encounters and, 84–86, 88; time symbolic with, 7
media, 10, 164
medical anthropology, 20, 121
Melly, Caroline, 17, 132
meticulousness, 152
Middle East, 159
Middle Guinea, 27
migration, 9, 11–15, 26, 40, 42, 116; articulating mobility and, 79–81, 83, 89; exchange and, 156–57, 159–61; “four years in a towel” and, 74–78; infrastructure and, 146–47; intra–Africa and, 150; Kédougou market and, 141–45; kola nut market and, 150–54; local communities and, 8, 20–21; migratory misadventures, 74–75, 147–48; mobility and, 71–73, 164–65; presence and, 91–93, 96–97, 104–7, 112–15; relationality and, 4; relational routines and, 45–48, 50–51, 54–56, 59–61, 66, 68–70; renters and, 116n7; representation and, 16–19; return encounters and, 84–88; social change and, 33–34, 37; sociality and, 6. See also borders; mobility; movement
mining, 37, 41, 46, 95, 143; artisanal form of, 35, 37, 79, 143; intertwined forms of, 41n3; mining boom and, 29, 35–40, 118, 141; pic-à-pel mining and, 39–40; as racialized category, 41n3
mobility, 24–27, 83, 85, 89, 108–9, 162–66; approaches to, 21n2; articulations of, 71–73, 75, 77–81; assumptions about, 1; blind man metaphor and, 1–4; borders and, 117–18, 120–23, 125, 129, 131–34, 137–39; constitutive elements of, 40; contexts of, 19, 42, 45, 92; ID cards and, 61, 66–67; identity and, 31–35, 42–45, 47–51; joking relationship and, 56–60; Kédougou and, 27; Kédougou market and, 142, 146, 152–53, 158, 161; labor and, 28; language and, 24; language as infrastructure and, 8–11; meaning and, 2; migration and, 11–13, 19–21; naming ceremonies and, 91–94, 96–97; perspective and, 68–69; relationality and, 4, 6; representation and, 14–18; return encounters and, 84, 87–88; ritual and, 103–7, 111–14; social change and, 37, 40; social relation and, 26; space and, 5–9; studies of, 7, 16, 19, 69; verbal art and, 12–16. See also verbal art
Mol, Annemarie, 121
monetization, 39
motility, 7, 21n1, 162
Mouride brotherhood, 112
movement, 35, 40, 43, 88, 91, 107; blind man metaphor and, 2–4; borders and, 25, 117–18, 130–31, 134, 138; identity and, 43; Kédougou market and, 142, 145, 147; language and, 24; migration and, 12, 14, 16, 18–19, 21; mobility as study of, 7, 162; relational routines and, 50, 60, 69; socialized pathways of, 6; social relation and, 26; space and, 6–8, 10; Taabe and, 24, 26, 32
Mueggler, Eric, 163
multiparty interactions, 18–19, 50, 69, 73, 89; return encounters and, 88; storytelling and, 70
mussiɓe (idiom), 56

names, 30, 40, 49, 58, 90; last name significance and, 44; name-based connection and, 43, 106; namesakes and, 100, 103, 106–7; places and, 2; play with, 56–59; saying one’s name and, 45–48; women’s adoption of, 43. See also identity; namesakes; naming ceremonies
namesakes, 30, 40, 49, 58, 90; naming ceremony and, 100, 103, 106–7; symbolism and, 30; taboo and, 90n2
naming ceremonies, 20, 61, 112, 114, 160; Baby Aissa and, 100–101, 103–6, 108; ritual of, 91–98
narrative, 78–79, 85, 89, 92, 124, 163; decline and, 31; entextualization and, 74; identity and, 43, 45, 53, 55; mobility and, 8, 12–13, 17, 19, 68–71; place names and, 120
nature-culture boundaries, 9, 25–26, 122
Naxi communities, 163
needi (disrespectful), 130, 139n3
negotiation, 21, 47, 85, 113, 126, 164; creativity and, 54–55; kinship and, 31; self-presentation and, 26
neldaari (host gifts), 107, 159
neoliberalism, 45
nicknames, 81, 90, 147, 148, 157; gifts and, 115n1; joking relationship and, 58, 64; payment access to, 90n2; teasing and, 18, 73–74, 115. See also names; namesakes; relation
North America, 159; faraway hometowns and, 104
Nouakchott, Mauritania, 17, 68, 75–76

obfuscation, 123–24
ɔkwansu (narrative), 8
Oniyan, 109

Paper Road, The (Mueggler), 163
participation, 96–98, 100, 103, 110–13, 115; gifts and, 104–8; participant frameworks and, 98, 146; ritual and, 91–95
pathways, 60–61, 107, 115, 146, 154; borders and, 121, 134; family networks and, 31; forging of, 9, 20, 91–92; mobility and, 6, 33; relational geographies and, 30; train stations as, 9
patron-client relation, 153. See also kiliyans (clients)
patronyms, 44, 52–53, 55
payment, 90, 90n3
Peace Corps, 23, 27, 38, 58, 150; borders and, 121, 133, 139; familiarity with volunteers and, 73
people as infrastructure, 9, 146
performance, 33, 42, 78, 80, 123, 129; gifts and, 106–7; hospitality and, 161; Kédougou market and, 142, 147–48, 150, 153, 157–58, 161; linguistics of, 59, 94, 112, 137–39; of meticulousness, 152; mobility and, 12, 15, 18, 20; relational routines and, 48, 50–55, 67, 70; renaming and, 102; ritual and, 93, 98, 101–4
Perrino, Sabina, 13, 113
personhood, 18–19, 30, 41, 43, 118, 127–28; autonomy and, 3; identification and, 127; kinship relation and, 41n2; mobility and, 6–7; social recognition and, 42
perspective, 2, 68–69
phaticity, 157–58, 161n3; baiting and, 157–58; labor and, 10, 144–45; negative qualities and, 161n4
physical experience, 2
pic-à-pel mining, 39–40
place, 5, 9, 11–12, 14, 16, 18–21; connections to, 80–83; gender and, 119; material properties of, 9; naming and, 1–2; narrative recitation and, 120; site making and, 135–38
police, 125–29, 138; ramsassages by, 60–61
political economy, 10
power, 35, 42, 79; biopower and, 60; exchange and, 92, 101, 106, 112–13; exploration and, 162–63; identity and, 62, 64–65; linguistic practices and, 117, 119; mobility and, 13–15, 21; social meaning and, 7
Pratt, Mary Louise, 163
prayer, 147, 155–56
pronouns, 86
Prophet Muhammad, 99
proxemics, 123
Pular, 22, 27, 75–76, 140; Arabic incantations and, 99; base-five counting and, 46, 66, 66n1; borders and, 127, 134, 137; connecting to place and, 80–83; forodu and, 61; “four years in a towel” encounter and, 75; French and, 115n3; Fulɓe as plural form in, 67n4; Kédougou market and, 148, 156; presence and, 106, 108–10, 113, 115; relationship routines and, 46–47, 51–52, 54, 56, 61, 66–67; respect and, 140n4; ritual and, 93, 99–100, 102; Serers and, 47, 51–54
Pular Fouta variety, 52
Pullo-Serer ethnic identification, 51–54
pursuit of relations (jokkere enɗaŋ), 19, 33, 42, 49–50, 67n2; articulation and, 67n2; relational routines and, 49. See also relation

Radcliffe Brown, A. R., 54
ramsassages (roundups), 60–61
ratification, 43, 62, 73, 107, 112; “four years in a towel” and, 77–78; Kédougou market and, 152, 157, 161; ritual and, 90, 98, 100, 103–4
rebirth, 58
reciprocity, 26, 74, 133, 136; exchange and, 96–97, 106–7, 113; joking relationship and, 50–51, 59; Kédougou market and, 148, 150, 152, 154, 161
redistribution, 37, 96–97, 107, 116, 142–43, 147; networks for, 142
reenactment, 20, 101–4
referentialism, 12, 15–16, 79, 152; baiting and, 157; ideology of, 7, 15, 120
refugees, 13–14, 70
regularization, 63, 141, 152–54
relation, 6, 40–42, 71, 116–17, 148, 154; articulation and, 69–79, 83–86, 88–89; borders and, 119–21, 124–28, 130–33, 136, 138–39; building of, 47, 145, 160; dividualism and, 3; exchange and, 110–11, 113–14; geographies of, 30; gifts and, 104–8; identity and, 31–35, 44–45, 60, 64;
idiom and, 34, 48, 149, 152, 157; joking relationship and, 64–67; Kédougou market and, 142, 144–45, 148–49, 151–55, 158–60; maintaining of, 31; mobility and, 1–4, 8, 11–12, 14–16, 18–19, 162–65; negotiation and, 21, 47, 85, 113, 126, 164; oases of, 26; personhood and, 7; privilege and, 51, 106, 152; relationship routines and, 47–49, 56–60; ritual and, 94, 96, 100; routines and, 51, 53, 55, 57
remittances, 72, 107
representation, 70–72, 84, 92, 103, 132, 150; articulation and, 15–19, 75, 78, 80, 88–89; border crossings and, 25; experience and, 68–69; imaginaries and, 69; language and, 69, 106, 120; space and, 120; technologies of, 8
respect, 129–31, 137, 140; Pular word for, 140n4
return encounters, 83–85, 87–89; in-laws and, 86, 88
ritual, 41, 51, 61, 72, 79, 104–5; deprecatory storytelling as, 22; gold and, 41n4; initiation ceremonies and, 31; Kédougou market and, 141, 150, 152, 154; materiality and, 91–95; mobility and, 20, 33–34, 84; participation and, 96–98; presence and, 99–103, 111–15; redistribution and, 96–97; shaving as, 98–101; trading important items and, 153
routines, 45–49, 56–60; joking relationship and, 64–67; language of, 50, 70, 138, 158; of relation, 51–55, 61–63, 67–70
rural areas, 61, 71, 80, 85, 125, 136; cyclical mobility and, 105, 164; identity and, 32–33; ritual and, 96, 105–6, 108; rural-urban axis and, 31

sadaka (gift, sacrifice), 110–11, 113
Sadio (Guinean marketer), 74–75, 77
Sahara, 44
Sahel, 44, 52; strangers as guests in, 58
Salam (Pular mason), 110, 113
Sall, Macky, 37, 64, 138
salt, 109, 111–13. See also blessings
Samba (tailor’s apprentice), 39–40
sanaku (joking cousin), 49, 51–52, 55, 57; rebaptism and, 57
sanakuyaagal (joking relationship), 47, 49, 51, 148. See also joking relationship
sans papiers (without papers), 61–62
saving strategies, 156
scientific spirit, 163
Scott, James C., 63
self, 2–3; distancing of, 132; identity and, 50; negotiation and, 26; presentation of, 50, 57, 60, 64–66, 73, 83
self-sufficiency, 26
semiology, 10. See also signs
sendugol (distribution), 97
Senegal, 23, 29, 58–60, 73–76, 81–84, 90; borders and, 118, 130–31, 133–34, 136, 138–39; coastal region of, 27, 35, 37, 47, 149; Ebola epidemic and, 20, 121–25, 128–30; exchange and, 107, 110–12, 114–15; French sound patterns and, 109; identity cards and, 60, 63–64, 67; Irvine work on, 10; Kédougou market and, 143, 155; migration and, 4–5, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18; mobility and, 165; ritual and, 94, 100, 104–5; social change and, 33, 37–38; southeastern region of, 22, 40, 49, 51–52, 109, 142; transnationalism and, 104. See also Senegal-Guinea border
Senegal-Guinea border, 40, 73, 118, 130, 138; crossing and, 23; Ebola epidemic and, 121, 124–25; mobility and, 4, 14, 20; nature-culture boundaries and, 25; Taabe and, 27. See also borders; Ebola epidemic
Serers, 47, 51, 53–54
settler-colonialism, 162
settler societies, 162
sharing and hoarding strategy, 156
shatter zone, 49, 60, 138
shaving ritual, 98–101
Shipton, Parker, 156
signs, 10, 14, 118, 129; difference and, 123; imaginaries and, 118; imagined figures and, 118; non-verbal symbols and, 120
Silverstein, Michael, 161n3
Simone, Abdou Maliq, 9–10, 145, 155
site making, 135–39
slavery, 90n3
social action, 69–72, 78–80, 88–89, 132, 139; mobility and, 8, 12–13, 16–17, 20
social capital, 70
social change, 34–35, 37–41; language as infrastructure and, 9
social connectivity, 47–48
social formations, 4, 10, 31–32
social identification, 35, 47, 50, 57
social idioms, 42, 45–46, 50, 55, 64, 126; Kédougou market and, 148, 157. See also idiom
sociality, 26, 33, 74, 82, 126, 143; borders and, 129–30; centuries old routines of, 45; liminal spaces and, 133–35; mobility and, 1, 165; relationship routines and, 5, 67
social labor, 15, 33, 50–51, 94
social masks, 43
social networks, 25, 74, 88–90, 116–17, 131; articulation and, 15–17, 69–74, 78–81; being stationary and, 7; blind man metaphor and, 1–4; borders and, 120, 129–34, 136, 138–39; connections and, 42, 45, 47–48, 62, 144; constitution of, 71, 85; contested encounters and, 69; contexts of, 14, 47, 97, 109; Ebola epidemic and, 121–25; exchange and, 91–92, 106–9, 111; gendarmes and, 125–29; identity and, 31–35, 42–46, 52–56, 59–62; infrastructure and, 9, 11, 20, 142–46; Kédougou market and, 141–44, 148, 151, 153, 155–58, 160; landscape and, 26, 49, 148; mapping of, 163; mobility and, 6, 162–66; negotiation and, 26, 33, 48, 54, 126, 129; practice and, 45, 59, 69, 120, 166; process and, 44, 71, 138; pursuit of relations and, 67n2; relationship routines and, 50, 52, 54–58, 64–67; remittances and, 72; representation and, 14–18; return encounters and, 83, 85; ritual and, 94–97, 99, 104–5; social change and, 37–41; space and, 5–9
social site differentiation, 136–38
social structure, 19, 48, 54, 66
South Africa, 163
space, 42–43, 72, 82, 110, 161; Bakhtin and, 139n1; borders and, 124–25, 129; constituted space and, 118, 120; as cultural production, 119; domesticity and, 11, 48, 59, 91, 119, 148–49; Kédougou market and, 144, 146, 148–49, 152, 154, 157–58; language as infrastructure and, 8–11; liminal forms of, 133–35; linguistic practices and, 117–21; migrants distributed across, 8; mobility and, 1, 6, 16, 18–20, 106–7, 163; relationship routines and, 48, 59–62, 69; ritual and, 91, 94, 98; site making and, 135–38; social relation across, 26; temporality and, 88; verbal art and, 13–15
Spain, 88
Spanish, 86, 137
standing, 91
statecraft, 19, 33, 49, 127
status, 99
Stoller, Paul, 14
storytelling, 20–22, 30, 33, 77–78, 84, 124; dialogic form of, 78–79; multiparty forms of, 70
stranger-guests, 58
Strathern, Marilyn, 3
success, 12–15, 17, 33, 40, 48; clout and, 79; “four years in a towel” encounter and, 75. See also wealth
surveillance, 19–20, 23, 35, 49, 60
symbolism, 111, 137, 144–45, 157, 161; infrastructure of language and, 9, 117; namesakes and, 30; non-verbal forms of, 120; verbal art and, 12

Taabe, 22, 26–30, 72, 110, 139, 161; aliases for, 40n1; borders and, 131, 133–34, 136–37; community and, 31–34; connection to place and, 80–82; Ebola epidemic and, 121, 123–24, 128–29; gifts and, 104–8; identity cards and, 62–65; mobility and, 4–5, 11, 50, 60, 113–14; naming ceremonies and, 92–96; ritual and, 93–97, 100, 103–5; Usu’s return to, 83–85
taboo, 64, 74, 78, 90, 157
takanɓe hosts, 93, 95, 100
Takkopellel, 23, 63, 82, 137, 139; crossing borders and, 121, 125, 127–28, 132–33
Talla, Goro, 30
Tambacounda, Senegal, 131
tanagol (generational teasing), 49, 59
teasing, 24, 33, 73, 78, 81, 106–7; gifts and, 115n1; in-law talk and, 148–50; joking relationship and, 47, 50, 52–53, 59, 62; mobility and, 11, 18, 20–21; nicknames and, 18, 73, 74, 115, 148; reenactment and, 101–4; ritual and, 91, 93, 101–4
technology, 2; communication and, 3; infrastructure of language and, 9–11; intersubjectivity and, 45; and representation, 8; statecraft and, 19; transportation and, 133
teddungal (respect), 140n4
Tehranian, John, 63
teknonyms, 58
temporality, 88
territorialization, 42, 117
Thierno, 152–53
“this guy went to Dubai” routine, 159–60
time, 1–2
tokora (namesake), 49, 100, 106. See also namesakes
trade networks, 43, 94, 150
trajectories, 6, 71, 83, 143, 156–57
transnationalism, 31–32, 71–72, 85, 87, 104, 112; cyclical mobility and, 71–72; locality and, 87; Mouride Brotherhood and, 112; return encounters and, 85; Senegalese women, 104
transportation, 129–33
Trash Owl (Buubu Ñooge), 92–93, 101–4; witches and, 115n2. See also Aissatou
truth value, 17, 23, 124
tunga (migration to a foreign place), 72

Umar (Diallo relation), 62
United States, 16, 38, 41, 72; migrants and, 16; southern border of, 24–25
urban anthropology, 9; rural-urban axis and, 31
Usu, 83–85, 87; in-laws and, 86, 88

value, 2, 13, 120, 137; exchange and, 94, 106; judgments of, 7; markets and, 144, 155; mobility and, 164–65
verbal art, 1, 10, 12–18, 33, 35, 139; identity and, 42; maintaining relation and, 31; market and, 142, 148, 154, 160; mobility and, 165–66; nature-culture boundaries and, 26; presence and, 91, 94, 105–6, 113; relational routines and, 45, 48–51, 67, 74; representation and, 15, 18. See also articulation; mobility
viral transmission, 165
vom Bruck, Gabriele, 43

Ware, Rudolph, 111–12
water, 23–26
wayfinding, 6, 163
wealth, 21, 37, 71–72, 77, 79, 159; market and, 143, 151, 154–56; “wealth in people” and, 51. See also success
West Africa, 25–28, 30, 43–45; articulation and, 70–71, 74, 79–80, 82, 85; blind man metaphor in, 2–4; borders and, 121, 126, 138–39; Europe and, 26; gifts and, 105–7; identity and, 31–35; joking relationship and, 47–48, 50, 52; markets and, 143, 148, 153, 155–56, 159; migration and, 7, 9–10, 14–15, 17–19; mobility and, 164–65; naming ceremonies and, 91, 94–96; relational routines and, 55–59, 61, 64, 66–67; ritual and, 99–100, 109, 111–13, 115; social change and, 37, 41
Western Apache people, 120
Whitehouse, Bruce, 17, 55, 151
Wolf-Meyer, Matthew, 3
Wolof, 46, 82–83, 125, 127–28; “four years in a towel” encounter and, 74–76
Wuro, Jom, 29, 33–35, 63

Yemeni women, 43
Yoro, 82–83
“you, you’re not from here” routine (“aŋ a jeyaaka ɗo”), 106, 108
youth language socialization, 8

Zuckerman, Charles H. P., 161n4

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