History in Mauritania

Mauritania’s early history reflects major environmental change in the Sahara. During wetter periods, communities settled, farmed and moved through areas that later became arid. El Beyyed preserves Lower Paleolithic evidence dated roughly 700,000 to 100,000 BCE. Sites such as Aghouiyitt, El Ghallaouiya, Amogjar and Tinchmart contain rock art and evidence connected with movement across the Sahara. The Dhar Tichitt-Oualata-Nema area shows long-term settlement and agricultural development that preceded more complex societies. From antiquity into the early medieval period, Sanhaja groups, including the Lamtouna, Gdalla and Massoufa, connected the Adrar and Tagant with wider Saharan and Sahelian networks. Salt from Idjil and Awlil, gold, livestock and manufactured goods moved through places such as Tegdaoust, also known as Awdaghust. Wagadou, often identified with the Ghana polity, developed from around the fourth century through Soninke networks in the wider region. Its relationship with Sanhaja groups was complex. The claim that an Almoravid conquest destroyed Ghana around 1076 remains disputed and should not be presented as settled fact. Islamization developed over a long period from approximately the eighth century onward. The Almoravid movement expanded across the Sahara into the Maghreb and al-Andalus during the eleventh and twelfth centuries. Medieval towns such as Ouadane, Chinguetti, Tichitt and Oualata grew along caravan, pilgrimage and learning routes. Their ksour were historic fortified settlements, while mosques, mahadras, mausoleums and manuscript libraries supported religious study and scholarship. Chinguetti became a regional centre of Islamic learning, with manuscripts covering law, theology, language and natural sciences. Medieval influence zones crossed regions that do not match modern national borders. From the fifteenth century, European coastal trade connected the Atlantic coast with wider commercial systems. Portugal and Spain were active in the region, and Dutch traders became involved in the gum arabic trade from 1638. Trarza and Brakna were linked to the Senegal River and Atlantic economies. From the late sixteenth century, emirates and tribal power structures developed alongside Sanhaja, Arab and Sahelian connections. Hassaniya Arabic became a major language of communication. The later shift of trade routes reduced the importance of several caravan towns. Social hierarchy, slavery and systems of dependence form important historical themes and require careful distinction between past structures, later emancipation and present-day consequences. French expansion reached the territory during the 1900s. France established Mauritania as a colony within Afrique Occidentale Française in 1920 and made it a territoire d’outre-mer in 1946. Colonial administration combined strategic aims, including a connection between the Maghreb and French West Africa, with control of trade and territory. Mauritania gained autonomy on 28 November 1958, adopted a constitution on 22 March 1959 and became independent on 28 November 1960. Nouakchott was developed as the new capital. State-building brought together nomadic, ksour, river-valley and coastal regions, but the modern name Mauritania should not be confused with the ancient Roman province of Mauretania. After independence, Mokhtar Ould Daddah led a one-party system from 1960 to 1978. Mauritania entered the Western Sahara conflict after the Madrid Declaration of 14 November 1975 and withdrew in 1979; the conflict’s legitimacy and interpretation remain contested. Military rule followed the coup of 10 July 1978, with further power changes in 1979 and 1980. Maaouya Ould Sid’Ahmed Taya ruled from 1984 to 2005. The 1991 constitution introduced a formal framework for multiparty politics, while executive and military continuity remained significant. The Senegal-Mauritania conflict of 1989–1991 involved expulsions, returns and disputes connected with Arab-African identity. Coups in 2005 and 2008 led to transitions, the Dakar Agreement and elections in 2007 and 2009. In 2019, power passed peacefully between two elected presidents for the first time. Mohamed Ould Ghazouani was re-elected on 29 June 2024 with 56.12 percent of the vote. Research in Mauritanian history uses the National Library, manuscript libraries, family collections, archaeological projects, heritage institutions, the University of Nouakchott, state archives, colonial records, UNESCO and ICOMOS documentation, and oral-history interviews. The Ministry of Culture, Arts, Communication and Relations with Parliament, the Institut Mauritanien de Recherche et de Formation dans le domaine du Patrimoine, the National Museum and the Conseil National du Patrimoine Culturel are relevant institutional reference points. Access differs by collection: the National Library offers general reading, researcher and manuscript services, while rare manuscripts may remain in private or family custody and require case-by-case permission. Law 2019-024 of 14 May 2019 replaced Law 2005-046 and provides the current heritage-law framework identified in the research material. It covers historical, archaeological and prehistoric objects, sites, manuscripts and archives. Archaeological work, excavation, export and physical changes to protected sites can require authorization. Unauthorized removal, destruction or export of heritage material creates legal and practical risks. There is no single nationwide history fee or standard processing period; research may involve travel, copying, digitization, permission and project costs. Source criticism should compare provenance, dating, language, ownership and political context, especially where early history, Ghana and Almoravid interpretations, colonial records, modern borders, Western Sahara and identity-related memories are contested.