Tijan, Thank you for this great piece.Has he publish any work ? if so can you please give details,I have never heard of him. For Freedom Saiks >From: Tejan Nyang <[log in to unmask]> >Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list ><[log in to unmask]> >To: [log in to unmask] >Subject: TRIBUT TO DR LAMIN MBYE >Date: Mon, 30 Jan 2006 01:16:36 -0800 > >http://www.utexas.edu/conferences/africa/ads/940.html > >Remembering, Professor Lamin Mbye was a dedicated son >of Africa with Pan-Africanist scholarship and roots, >who passed away a year ago on July 30, 2005. This >obituary has been produced and sent by Professors >Sulayman S. Nyang (Howard University) and A.B. >Assensoh (Indiana University-Bloomington), as family >members, friends and his students are observing a year >of Dr. Mbye's death. > > Dr. Lamin Mbye, 70, was a Pan-Africanist >historian. He was a full professor of History and >Social Sciences (with an emphasis on African history) >until July 2004 on the beautiful campus of University >of Maryland at Eastern Shore (UMES). He died at 1.30 >PM in the Peninsula Hospital, Salisbury, Maryland on >Friday, July 30, 2004. He has rested in the Lord for a >year now! > >Gambian Family Background: Dr. Mbye came out of two >prominent Banjul families whose roots go back to >pre-colonial areas now called Senegal. The son of >Gambian trader and political figure Abdou Wally Mbye >and Fatou Jagne of Banjul, Dr. Lamin Mbye belonged to >the third generation of Wolof who settled in the >nation's capital since the end of the Sonnike-Marabout >Wars. On his father's side, he could trace his >ancestry back to the Mbyeens of Cayor and Walo. Then, >on his mother's side, he was part of the large >descendants of the Saloum-Saloum Jagne family that is >linked by marriage to Sait Mati, the son of Maba Jahu >Bah, the celebrated Muslim warrior of 19th Century >Senegambia. Dr. Mbye was linked to the Nyang clan >because of the interlocking networks of families and >clans that become more and more intricate and complex >over time. The grandson, on his father's side, of Awa >Nyang, the sister of Sulayman Nyang, the grand >patriarch of the Nyang clan in Banjul and beyond, Dr. >Mbye is connected to the Tivaoune branch of the >Tijanniyya order by way of Safiatou Nyang. He named >his first son after his father, Abdou Wally Mbye and >his second son after Shaykh Habib Sy, a brother to >Shaykh Abdul Aziz Sy of the Tijanniyya order in >Senegal. His first child, Neneh (a Duke >University-educated Lawyer) is named after a favorite >wife of his father, who showered love and affection on >Dr. Mbye throughout his life. > Dr. Mbye was a product of the triple >heritage that Kwame Nkrumah identified in his book, >"Consciencism" and Professor Ali Mazrui has, >subsequently,popularized in his well-known >documentary, "The Africans." During his early years in >the Gambia he went to both Quranic and Western >missionary schools. From the former he acquired the >much needed knowledge to live as a Muslim and from the >latter he gained mastery of the English language and >British culture as exported into this part of the >empire. Throughout his life in and out of the Gambia >he demonstrated evidence of command of the knowledge >and subtleties of Wolof culture which he imbibed at >the feet of his father and other elders. He was >clearly one of the most knowledgeable masters of the >social geography of Wolof and Gambian society. His >vast knowledge about the ways and manners of >Senegambian society was always placed at the disposal >of fellow country men and women. In this respect, he >was very much like his late uncle, Honorable Alieu >Badara Njie, the peripathetic Gambian Foreign Minister >and onetime Vice-President to Sir Dawda Jawara. It was >Honorable Alieu Badara Njie, who informed former >President Jawara on the intricacies of family and clan >realities in the Gambia. So effective was the late >Honorable Njie that one Amirul Hajj told me during my >diplomatic stint in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia that Njie was >in many ways a master of Wolof genealogies and served >the former Gambian leader as faithfully as Sayyidina >Abu Bakr did to the Holy Prophet Muhammad. > Being very much a mirror image of his >father, who was one of the leaders of Banjul society >that enjoyed social standing and prestige in African >and European circles of colonial Gambia, Dr. Mbye >respected and valued Wolof culture and traditions. >Like his father who combined commercial trading in the >Gambian hinterland and public service through his >membership in the colonial legislative council, Dr. >Mbye obtained his first degree in the University of >Wales in Swansea and his doctoral degree from >Birmingham University. There was also another >significant thread in the life of Dr. Mbye that points >to his fidelity to his father's sense of family life >and culture. His dedication to family and friend is >proverbial. Those who know him well could testify to >the devotion his wife Hajja Isatou Mbye showed >throughout his life. It was his wife who stood by him >through thick and thin. During the last ten years of >his life he faced many health problems and what kept >him going were his unflagging faith in God and the >reassuring presence of his loving wife. > > Colonial and Post-Colonial Services: >During his tenure in both the colonial and post >colonial civil service he held responsible positions. >After his graduation from high school in the late >fifties he worked for the government until he obtained >a scholarship to do college work in the United >Kingdom. Upon his return to the Gambia in 1969, the >Civil Service Commission appointed him as the head of >the Information Department where he supervised many of >the young Gambians working as journalists in the >Gambia News Bulletin and as broadcasters in the newly >created Radio Gambia. Dr. Mbye will later serve as >Administrative Officer in various capacities before he >was seconded to serve in 1976 as the Director of >Administration in the Organization of Islamic >Conference (OIC) in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. During the >first two years of the Reagan Administration Dr. Mbye >joined the African diplomats posted to Washington. He >served as ambassador for several years before he >resigned in 1986 to take employment with the >University of Maryland at Eastern Shore, mostly >because of his passion for teaching African history. > > Dr. Mbye was a strong Muslim, who >believed that Islam has a positive and empowering role >in modern societies, including Africa. Always holding >firmly to the rope of God (or Allah) and determined to >make a difference in the lives of his family and >friends, he never strayed away from the Islam he >inherited from the Sufi masters of the Tijanniyya >order. He had family members, friends and dedicated >students all over the world, including his beloved >Africa, and those of us who knew him will always >remember him with love and affection. > >* Many thanks to Professor Nyang, who provided most of >the information used in this appreciation! > > DeleteReplyForwardSpamMove... > >__________________________________________________ >Do You Yahoo!? >Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around >http://mail.yahoo.com > >いいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいい >To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L >Web interface >at: http://listserv.icors.org/archives/gambia-l.html > >To Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: >http://listserv.icors.org/SCRIPTS/WA-ICORS.EXE?S1=gambia-l >To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to: >[log in to unmask] >いいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいい _________________________________________________________________ Are you using the latest version of MSN Messenger? Download MSN Messenger 7.5 today! http://messenger.msn.co.uk いいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいい To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://listserv.icors.org/archives/gambia-l.html To Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: http://listserv.icors.org/SCRIPTS/WA-ICORS.EXE?S1=gambia-l To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to: [log in to unmask] いいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいい