Massa Makan Diabaté

Massa Makan Diabaté (1938 – January 27, 1988) was a Malian historian, author, and playwright.

Born in 1938 in Kita, Massa Makan Diabaté was the descendant of a long line of West African poets (griots). His uncle, Kélé Monson Diabaté, was considered a master griot, and Massa Makan Diabaté once said that he owed much to his uncle's teaching: "I am what Kèlè Monson wanted me to be when he initiated me into the Malinké oral tradition. And I’ll say that I betrayed him by writing novels. I’m the child of Kélé Monson, but a traitorous child." Diabaté began training as a griot at the age of seven, though his training would later be interrupted to allow him to study in Guinea. He eventually moved to Paris, where he studied history, sociology, and political science before working for a number of international organisations such as UNICEF or UNESCO.

Returning to Mali, Diabaté settled into an administrative post in Bamako. His early works Janjon et autres chants populaires du Mali (Janjon and other popular songs of Mali, 1970), Kala Jata (1970), and L'aigle et l'épervier ou la geste du Soundjata (The Eagle and the Sparrowhawk or the Gesture of Soundjata, 1975), were French-language versions of Malinké epics and folktales. In 1971, Janjon was awarded the Grand prix littéraire d'Afrique noire, bringing Diabaté his first international recognition. His trilogy of novels Le lieutenant, Le coiffeur, and Le boucher de Kouta (The Lieutenant, The Barber, and The Butcher of Kouta, 1979–1982) won the 1987 Grand prix international de la Fondation Léopold Sédar Senghor.

Massa Makan Diabaté died in Bamako on January 27, 1988. The Malian government has named two high schools after him, one in Bamako and the other in his home region of Kayes.

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