Tutsis fled and created exile communities outside Rwanda in Uganda and Tanzania. During the reign of Aamadu Aamadu, the grandson of Sheeku Aamadu, internal contradictions weakened the emirate until it became easy prey for the forces of the Futanke, which subsequently overthrew the Maasina Emirate, in 1862. It is common to see Fulani women hawking milk products in characteristic beautifully decorated calabashes balanced on their heads. TUTSI (ABATUTSI) PEOPLE: THE TALL, STYLISH NILOTIC AND INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE OF RWANDA AND BURUNDI, Posted on January 27, 2014 by Unknown The Tutsi or Abatutsi are Nilo-Hamitic but Bantu-speaking people living in the Central African countries of Rwanda, Burundi, and the northeastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Women wear long robes with flowery shawls. The number and the distribution of the grazing reserves in Nigeria range from insufficient to severely insufficient for Fulani livestock. (2015), found that the Sudanese Fulani have largely ancestry from Niger-Kordofanian and Nilo-Saharan (Sudanic) speaking groups, with lower amounts of West-Eurasian ancestry. Fulani communities are sometimes grouped and named based on the areas they occupy. Gacaca courts eventually tried more than a million (Nyseth Brehm, Uggen, and Gasanabo 2016), which led President Kagame to suggest that all Hutu bear responsibility and should apologise (Benda 2017, 13). They are also known as the Fulbe or Peuls and in the Middle Ages (covering the 5 th to the 15 th century of the Common Era) were very reliant on cattle herding. [67][68] Many of the captors and perpetrators of raids providing sources for the European slave merchants were also Fulani. But Fulani, who set up London-based Sistah Space in 2015, says her clients tend to face additional pressures. They are descendants of Fula-owned slaves. He concludes that the modern Fulani people began in the northern Senegambian region. Though very high, these figures are representative of many other emirates of the Sokoto Caliphate, of which Adamawa formed a part. Fulani Expel BIg Oil Companies from Niger Delta (BP, Shell & Chevron). Procedimientos. Despite these expectations, grazing reserves are not within the reach of about three-quarters of the nomadic Fulani in Nigeria, who number in the millions, and about sixty per cent of migrant pastoralists who use the existing grazing reserves keep to the same reserves every year. During the dry season, the characteristically hemisphere-shaped domed houses are supported by compact millet stalk pillars, and by reed mats held together and tied against wood poles, in the wet or rainy season. The reference to tribal warfare, or even ethnic conflict, In 1493, Askia Muhammad I led the Fulani people from western Sudan, and over time gained control of much that was previously Songhai empire, removing Sonni Baru who had attempted to protect the interests of pastoralists. However, Fornarino et al. Many sedentary Fulani, who frequently have become sedentary as a result of the depletion of their herds, also own cattle, but they rely principally on cultivation. Paul Riesman, an American ethnographer who resided among the Jelgooji Fulbe of Burkina Faso in the 1980s, states that the Fule are tall, slim, and light-skinned; they have thin straight noses, and their hair tends to be long and curly. The widely accepted theory for the origin of present-day zebu cattle in West Africa is that they came from the westward spread of the early zebu populations in East Africa through the Sudan. [23] Overt discrimination from the colonial period was continued by different Rwandan and Burundian governments, including identity cards that distinguished Tutsi and Hutu. What happened. [21], A significant proportion of the Fula a third, or an estimated 7 to 10 million[22] are pastoralists, and their ethnic group has the largest nomadic pastoral community in the world. Most of the slaves who came from Senegal belonged to Fula and Mandinga peoples. [87], Fulani in Nigeria have often requested for the development of exclusive grazing reserves, to curb conflicts. They defined "Tutsi" as anyone owning more than ten cows (a sign of wealth) or with the physical features of a longer thin nose, high cheekbones, and being over six feet tall, all of which are common descriptions associated with the Tutsi. Here, we provide new insight into the genetic history of populations living in the Sudanese region of East Africa by analysing nine ethnic groups belonging to three African linguistic families:. So you get off the plane and immediately start trying to figure out who is who. Published by on 7 czerwca 2022. Other breeds of zebu are found mainly in the drier regions. [54], Over time, the Fule empire split among the later descendants and developed into many emirates. [12] A good number also carry West-Eurasian mtDNA lineages, particularly M1a, K1a; but also J1 and R0.[12][13]. Some of their dairy products are exchanged at markets for cereal foods; cattle are rarely killed for meat. Zaghareet or ululation is a popular form of vocal music formed by rapidly moving the tongue sideways and making a sharp, high sound. [citation needed], There appears to be considerable resistance to the forced acceptance of Islam by these emirates. Some of these Banyarwanda are descendants of people that lived long before colonial rule in Rutshuru and in Masisi on what is currently Congolese territory. The Tutsi are a people who live in Rwanda, Burundi, and the northeastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Discussions among government officials, traditional rulers, and Fulani leaders on the welfare of the pastoralists have always centred on requests and pledges for protecting grazing spaces and cattle passages. [48] The wars were not merely between Fula people and other ethnic groups, but also internecine between the pastoral and sedentary Fulani, where sometimes they worked in cohesion, and other times the Muslim Fulani leaders attacked the nomadic Fulani as infidels. [18][42] Speculations about their origins started in the era of European conquest and colonization. Most Fula in the countryside spend long times alone on foot, and can be seen frequently parading with their cattle throughout the west African hinterland, moving their herds in search of water and better pasture. The Fula, Fulani, or Fule people (Fula: Fule, ; French: Peul; Hausa: Fulani or Hilani; Portuguese: Fula; Wolof: Pl; Bambara: Fulaw) are an ethnic group in Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. Belgian policies wavered and flip-flopped considerably during this period leading up to independence of Burundi and Rwanda. Their body conformation resembles the zebu cattle of eastern Africa. [citation needed]. On special occasions they eat meat such as goat or beef. Ngozi Fulani, 61, founded Sistah Space, the only domestic abuse charity in the UK that caters specifically for women and girls of African and Caribbean heritage. Tutsi, also called Batusi, Tussi, Watusi, or Watutsi, ethnic group of probable Nilotic origin, whose members live within Rwanda and Burundi. THE UNKNOWN GENOCIDE OF THE BLACK GIANTS. They in turn often oppressed the Tutsi, who fled the country. The Griots or Awlube recite the history of the people, places and events of the community. However, DNA studies suggest that their ancestry is not very different to that of Bantu peoples (and of course they speak a Bantu language), and they don't have much genetic input from the African Horn region. Finding themselves cut off from their kinsmen by the other communities now occupying the fertile Senegal valley, they gradually adopted the language of their new neighbours. Today, some major Fulani towns include: Lab, Pita, Mamou, and Dalaba in Guinea; Kaedi, Matam and Podor, Kolda in Senegal and Mauritania; Bandiagara, Mopti, Dori, Gorom-Gorom, and Djibo in Mali and Burkina Faso, on the bend of the Niger; and Birnin Kebbi, Katsina, Gombe, Yola, Digil, Jalingo, Bauchi, Misau, Central to the Fulani people's lifestyle is a code of behavior known as pulaaku (Fulfulde: ) or laawol Fule ( ) literally meaning the "Fulani pathways" which are passed on by each generation as high moral values of the Fulbe, which enable them to maintain their identity across boundaries and changes of lifestyle. tutsi and fulani [email protected]. The women decorate their house with woven mats and paint the floor with white and black clay, braid their hair with very intricate patterns, and dress up for their husbands and loved ones. We buy houses. Although within each region, there are even further divisions and sub-groupings as well. Signup for our newsletter to get notified about our next ride. [11] Essentially viewed as what makes a person Fulani, or "Fulaniness", pulaaku includes: There are no particular outfits for all Fulani sub-groups; dressing and clothing accessories such as ornaments mostly depend on the particular region. Fula people adopted Islam early. This habbanaya is a highly prized animal. [106], During this period of constant movement of people and animals within Africa, some of these sanga cattle probably intermixed with the short-horned, thoracic-humped cattle to produce the thoracic-humped sanga. When it is time to move, the houses are easily disassembled and loaded onto donkeys, horses or camels for transport. This state of affairs is in no one's interests except the regime's. International Institute of African Languages and Cultures, Africa, Volume 76, (Oxford University Press., 2006), pg 135. International Commission of Inquiry for Burundi (2002), Last edited on 28 February 2023, at 19:00, "The Levant versus the Horn of Africa: Evidence for Bidirectional Corridors of Human Migrations", "Mitochondrial and Y-chromosome diversity of the Tharus (Nepal): a reservoir of genetic variation", "African Genetic Diversity: Implications for Human Demographic History, Modern Human Origins, and Complex Disease Mapping", http://www.sciencemag.org/content/suppl/2009/04/30/1172257.DC1/Tishkoff.SOM.pdf, Preventing Genocide in Burundi Lessons from International Diplomacy, The Benefits of the English Language for Individuals and Societies: Quantitative Indicators from Cameroon, Nigeria, Rwanda, Bangladesh and Pakistan, The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (the status and judgments of all cases before the ICTR are available here), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tutsi&oldid=1142141242, 1.7 million (14% of the total population), 12 million (9%15% of the total population), This page was last edited on 28 February 2023, at 19:00. doi:10.1017/9781108562423.002. Futa Bundu, sometimes called Bondu and located in Senegal and Faleme rivers confluence, became a centre for the rise of West Africa-wide Fula empire and influence in 17th century. They occupied the dominant positions in the sharply stratified society and constituted the ruling class.[5]. After the Muslim Fule victory, other ethnic groups who had resisted the jihad were deprived of their rights to land except for a small piece for their subsistence and were reduced to servitude. (1976). Typically, Fule belonging to the same affinity bloc tend to cluster together in culture, customs, and dialectal variety. Upon the success recorded in the 1804 Fulani War of Usman dan Fodio, who is claimed to be partly Arab and partly Fulani, many Arabs and Fule subsequently joined the ruling classes of the Northern Nigerian Emirate. [92], The Fulani believe that the expansion of the grazing reserves will boost livestock population, lessen the difficulty of herding, reduce seasonal migration, and enhance the interaction among farmers, pastoralists, and rural dwellers. The well-known Senegalese Fula musician Baaba Maal sings in Pulaar on his recordings. The Fulani and the Tutsi are examples of such groups of Africans. Most 18th century Fulani, Senegalese and Tutsi rose to an average height of 7ft 2 ". The Fulani speak a Niger-Congo language. Liberated African Origins and the Nineteenth-Century Slave Trade. One which resembles Spaniards, and another which resembles Poles. Among the Fulani , for instance, an ethnic group found in many West African countries, clans are associated with castes. [citation needed], Its founder, El Hadj Umar Tall an Islamic reformer originating from the Fuuta Tooro on the banks of the Senegal River, died fighting against rebels shortly after his forces defeated the Maasina Emirate. ekonomibyggnad skogsbruk; google earth engine phenology In general, the Tutsi appear to share a close genetic kinship with neighboring Bantu populations, particularly the Hutus. The first eugenic operation was eliminating these specimens by syphilis murder, wars, defertilization, and outright inciting racial division with shorter tribes. [47] Settled and nomadic Fulani became political and warring entities, armed with horses and equipment of war from the north. The rate of intermarriage between the two groups was traditionally very high, and relations were amicable until the 20th century. When all the cattle are back, they are judged by a panel, which decides whose animals are the "fattest". Niamey, Institut de Recherche en Sciences Humaines du Niger, This page was last edited on 20 February 2023, at 14:59. This mass grave was discovered on the outskirts of Rwanda's capital Kigali. Men. [citation needed], The noblemen consisted of the ruling class of political overlords and Islamic clerics, as well as the pastoral Fulbe populations, who helped them come to power. The semi-nomadic Fulani can either be Fule families who happen to settle down temporarily at particular times of the year or Fule families who do not "browse" around past their immediate surroundings, and even though they possess livestock, they do not wander away from a fixed or settled homestead not too far away, they are basically "in-betweeners".[39]. In just three months, an estimated 800,000 people were massacred in the Rwandan genocide of 1994. They are a Bantu-speaking ethnic group and the second largest of three main ethnic groups in Rwanda and Burundi (the other two being the largest Bantu ethnic group Hutu and the Pygmy group of the Twa). These so-called "Benue-Fulani" reduced the frequency with which they moved from place to place. Tutsi, prije watussi, etnika grupa prvenstveno iz Ruande, Burundija i Ugande.Uglavnom se bave stoarstvom i vode isto podrijetlo s Banyamulenge narodom koji je nastanjen u istonom dijeli DR Konga. The Tutsi have a small amount of other genes that point to the past absorption of a cushtic group but that is poorly understood. Originally the White Fulani were indigenous to north Nigeria, southeast Niger and northeast Cameroon, owned by both Fulani and Hausa people. [48], The Songhai Empire rulers had converted to Sunni Islam in the 11th-century and were a major trading partner of the Middle East and North Africa. Various estimates put the figure between 25[19][20] and 30 million people worldwide. The Tutsi, also called the Watutsi, Watusi, Wahinda, Abatutsi, or Wahima, inhabit Rwanda and Burundi with significant communities in the DRC, Uganda, and Tanzania. Further east of this area, Fulani communities become predominantly nomadic, and exist at less organized social systems. Contemporary genetic studies note that the Tutsis are mostly of Bantu extraction, but they exhibit more Nilo-Saharan paternal . In place of the grouse against the Tutsi by the Hutu of a ploy to dominate power in Rwanda and the propagation of bitter memories of the oppressive rule of the Mwami, the Tutsi [5], Historically, the Tutsi were pastoralists and filled the ranks of the warriors' caste. [54], For some time, groups of Fulbe had been dominant in parts of the delta, thereby creating a complex hierarchy dating back through several waves of conquest. The main nuclei of Fule power were the polities in the Senegal River Valley, the Fuuta Jallon mountains, in Guinea, the Inland Delta of the Niger in Mali (Maasina), the north of Nigeria and the Adamawa Plateau in Cameroon. Are the Tutsis possibly related with the Peul people, which are mostly found in West Africa? Their long hair is put into five long braids that either hang or are sometimes looped on the sides. The notable European admixture fraction in the Fulani coupled with the high frequencies of the LP T-13910 allele suggests the possibility of adaptive gene flow into the Fulani gene pool". The definition of "Tutsi" people have changed through time and location. The nomad Pulli Fule lost all freedom of movement, and thus, began to settle en-masse. The Tutsi formed the traditional aristocratic minority in both countries, constituting about 9 percent and 14 percent of the population, respectively. The RPF had experience in organized irregular warfare from the Ugandan Bush War, and got much support from the government of Uganda. The social structure of the pastoral Fulani is egalitarian, in marked contrast to that of other Muslim groups, such as the Hausa, and to most sedentary Fulani. The Fulani, as a result of their constant wandering of the past, can be seen in every climatic zone and habitat of West Africa, from the deserts of the north, to the derived savannah and forests of the south. 'Hima' is the name of a sub-group of the Tutsi, but also a separate ethnic group in Ankole, Uganda. exceeded in its horror the genocide by the Hutus against the Tutsis in Rwanda ten years earlier". In Nigeria, Cameroon and Niger, men wear a hat that tapers off at three angular tips, known as a noppiire. Omissions? Once the calf is weaned it is retained and the cow is returned to its owner. Only 8.1% of their mtDNA clades were associated with West Eurasian or Afro-Asiatic groups (J1b, U5, H, and V). [citation needed], The newly formed imamate was mostly located mainly in present-day Guinea, but also spanned parts of modern-day Guinea Bissau, Senegal, and Sierra Leone. However, the royal burial customs of the latter kingdoms are quite similar to those practiced by the former Cushitic Sidama states in the southern Gibe region of Ethiopia. The recipient buys special treats and invites his neighbors for this event in which the habbanaya is given a name. [112], The paternal lineages of the Fula/Fule/Fulani tend to vary depending on geographic location. The Wodaabe traditionally eat millet, milk and meat as staples. Tutsi. Despite its power and omnipresence, the hegemony of the emirate was constantly threatened. This partly reflected internal Belgian domestic politics, in which the discrimination against the Hutu majority came to be regarded as similar to oppression within Belgium stemming from the Flemish-Walloon conflict, and the democratization and empowerment of the Hutu was seen as a just response to the Tutsi domination. Long ago Fulani tribes and clans used to fight over cattle and grazing rights. There are three writing systems used to write this language: an Arabic derived one called Ajami, a Latin derived system with 6 sets, and a native phonetic-faithful system called Adlam recently invented in 1989; the third one is the most increasingly popular not only learnt by hundreds of thousands of people among the diaspora worldwide but has also apps and computer programs created to assist in the script's adoption.[103]. This is most notably the case in northern Nigeria, where perhaps half of the Fulani have adopted the Hausa language and culture and where, as a result of a series of holy wars (180410) purporting to purify Islam, they established an empire, instituting themselves as a ruling aristocracy. In the past, most people had arranged marriages with people of the same social class. (2009) report that unpublished data indicates that one Tutsi individual from Rwanda carries the India-associated mtDNA haplogroup R7. Just like the core Hausa/Fulani's of today,the Rwandan Tutsi's dominated the helm of politics in Rwanda. [112] Another study in 2020 by Priehodov et al., suggest an older date for the introduction of one variant of the LP allele in the Sahel, about ~8.5 ka. The truly Fulani instruments are the one-string viola of the Fulani (nianioru), the flute, the two to five string lute hoddu or molo, and the buuba and bawdi set of drums. Tutsi, Hutu, and Twa; but the vast majority of those killed were Tutsi. Though most Fula now live in towns or villages, a large proportion of the population is still either fully nomadic, or semi-nomadic in nature. The Tutsi king was sustaining his authority on powerful Hutu who controlled large amounts of territory. The Tutsi minority had a much stronger pastoral element to their economy. Inicio Quines somos? [citation needed]. Welmers explained that the Niger-Congo homeland was in the vicinity of the upper Nile valley, not Niger Basin.The archaeological evidence supports this view, indicating that only in the past 3 ky did people begin to occupy the Niger Basin. Both the Tutsi and Hutu had been the traditional governing elite, but both colonial powers allowed only the Tutsi to be educated and to participate in the colonial government. The Rwandan genocide was a systematic campaign by the Hutu ethnic majority aimed at wiping out each and every member of the minority Tutsi group. This caste system, however, wasn't as elaborate in places like northern Nigeria, Eastern Niger or Cameroon. The Western Fulbe in countries like Mali, Senegal and Mauritania use indigo inks around the mouth, resulting in a blackening around the lips and gums. [48][53] The Fulani raided and violently disrupted the trade routes that accounted for the economic prosperity of older African kingdoms, and thus began their rise. Music is extremely important to the village life cycle, with field cultivation, harvest and winnowing of millet performed to the rhythm of the songs and drums. The Red Fulani cattle, which are called the Jafun French: Djafoun in Nigeria and Cameroon, and Fellata in Chad, as well as other names such as the M'Bororo, Red Bororo, or Bodaadi, another subspecies is the Sokoto Gudali and the Adamawa Gudali or simply Gudali, which means "horned and short legged" in the Hausa language. The freedom for pastoralists to move around was curtailed to ensure the smooth functioning of other production activities, such as cereal cultivation and, in the case of Maasina, of fishing activities. The West-Eurasian ancestry among Fulani was estimated to a mean average of 21,4% among the 53 samples from Ziniar in Burkina Faso. It is central to Fulbe identity and revered as a drink or in one of its various processed forms, such as yoghurt and cheese. Rinoplastia; Blefaroplastia The smaller animals don't have to swim, but are lifted into pirogues. In between these big centres there were numerous small polities dominated by the Fule in the central Gourma of present-day Mali and the north and west of Burkina Faso (Jelgoji, Boboola, Dori, Liptako), northern Benin (Borgu), the Sene-Gambia, northern Senegal (Bundu), and the southern and western parts of present-day Niger (Dallol Bosso, Birni N'konni). Tutsi and Hutu families are patrilineal (surnames are passed down from male to male). The information has been carefully selected and compiled from UNHCR's global network of field . Formal and discrete social divisions were consequently imposed upon ambiguous biological distinctions. dadelbollar utan havregryn. Both men and women wear a characteristic white or black cotton fabric gown, adorned with intricate blue, red and green thread embroidery work, with styles differing according to region and sex. [115] Bukov et al. They belong to castes but are free people. They decorate themselves with necklaces, earrings, nose rings and anklets.[105]. The total Tutsi population is estimated at 2.5 million. Hutu extremists accused all Tutsis of supporting the rebels operating outside the country. Tutsi is one of the tallest African tribes. Alternate titles: Foulah, Fulbe, Fule, Peul. In the wetter areas of Fouta Djallon and Casamance, the dwarf N'Dama is more common, as they are highly resistant to trypanosomiasis and other conditions directly associated with high humidity. From the 16th to 20th centuries many Fulani communities settled in the highlands of the Jos Plateau, the Western High Plateau of Bamenda, and Adamawa Plateau of Nigeria and the Cameroons. Below is a list of the main Fule groups. The terms Fallata, Fallatah, or Fellata are of Arabic origins, and are often the ethnonyms by which Fulani people are identified by in parts of Chad and Sudan. [118][119], According to Tishkoff et al. [18] The four major castes, states Martin Kich, in their order of status are "nobility, traders, tradesmen (such as blacksmith) and descendants of slaves". Such languages include French, Hausa, Bambara, Wolof, and Arabic. Entertainment is the role of certain casts. [65][66] Some of the most common names found on the Registry of Liberated Africans were Fulani in origin. Wealth is counted by how large the herd of cattle is. (2002), around 90% of Fulani individuals from Burkina Faso carried haplotype 24, which corresponds with the E-M2 (E1b1a) that is common in West Africa. They spread eastwards towards Garoua and Rey Bouba, and southwards towards the Faro River, to the foot of the Mambilla Plateau, which they would later ascend in subsequent years. The cattle are driven into the river, and each herder, with no help from others, loudly encourages the animals to move forward as he stands or swims between them, holding on to the horns of the bulls. forces affiliates. and other Tutsi leaders felt there was a vast Hutu conspiracy to eliminate them once and for all. Rwanda was ruled as a colony by Germany (from 1897 to 1916) and by Belgium (from 1922 to 1961). [citation needed], The Sokoto Caliphate was by far the largest and most successful legacy of Fulani power in Western Africa. The Fulani people, numbering about 38 million, are found mostly in the western part of Africa. After years of fighting, the Rwandan government launched a . The social categories are thus real, but there is little if any detectable genetic differentiation between Hutu and Tutsi. They also occupy positions in major international institutions, such as the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, Amina J. Mohammed; the 74th President of the United Nations General Assembly, Tijjani Muhammad-Bande; and the Secretary-General of OPEC, Mohammed Sanusi Barkindo. This emirate was, in fact, a federal state of nine provinces: Timbo, Fugumbaa, uuriya, Koyin, Kollaae, Keebaali, Labe, Fode-Hajji, and Timbi. . The language of the Fulani is "Pulaar" , which is also the language of the Toucouleurs. They took care of cattle as well as farmed the land that was allocated to them for their food needs. [citation needed], Traditionally, nomadic Fula live in domed houses known as a bukkaru or suudu hudo, literally "grass house". [49], The Fulani, after being the first group of people in West Africa to convert to Islam, became active in supporting Islamic theology and ideology from centres such as Timbuktu. However, some young Tutsis in the city are experimenting with Western dating and clubbing. In most of these communities, the Fulani are usually perceived as a ruling class. Refworld contains a vast collection of reports relating to situations in countries of origin, policy documents and positions, and documents relating to international and national legal frameworks. The Sokoto Caliphate included several emirates, the largest of which was Adamawa, although the Kano Emirate was the most populated. Fulani music is as varied as its people. By the end of the 18th century, Fulani settlements were dotted all over the Benue River valley and its tributaries. Under their holy king, Tutsi culture traditionally revolved around administering justice and government. They are the largest nomadic ethnic group in the world and inhabit several territories over an area larger in size than the continental United States. In recent times, the Nigerian senate and other lawmakers have been bitterly divided in attempts to pass bills on grazing lands and migration "corridors" for Fulani herdsmen. The Fulani men are less involved in the production of crafts such as pottery, iron-working, and dyeing, unlike males from neighbouring ethnic groups around them. [17] Later, Belgium took control in 1916 during World War I. Fula are primarily known to be pastoralists, but are also traders in some areas. It developed from a revolt by Islamic Fule against their oppression by the pagan Pulli ( or , non-Islamic Fule), and the Jallonke (the original Mande inhabitants of the Fuuta-Jallon), during the first half of the 18th century. The remainder belonged to haplotype 42/haplogroup E-M132. The remainder belonged to E-M215 subclades, including 34.62% E-M78 and 27.2% E-V22. All Senegalese and Mauritanians who speak the language natively are known as the Halpulaar () or Haalpulaar'en (), which means "speakers of Pulaar" ("hal" is the root of the Pulaar verb haalugol , meaning "to speak").