West African Religious Tourism in Fez, Morocco

Founded by the Ahmed al-Tijani, the Tijaniyya Sufi order is no doubt one of the largest Sufi orders in the modern world. Its following runs into the tens of million, the overwhelming majority of which are West Africans. Born in Algeria, Ahmed al-Tijani, settled in Fez Morocco in the late 18th century where he died and was buried. His shrine is a site of ritual and pilgrimage for Tijanis all over the world. Hundreds of people gather daily to perform Sufi rituals and seek blessing at the pilgrimage site. Notable is the fact that West African pilgrims routinely outnumber worshipers from Morocco or other parts of the world. The pilgrimage to the shrine of Ahmed Al-Tijani in Fez, which began during the lifetime of Tijani, has now been institutionalized, and West Africans have been performing the pilgrimage to Fez consistently from the 19th to the 21th century. While some pilgrims travel on their own, many join organized trips. Travel agents, tour operators and Tijani shaykhs offer full packages to Senegalese, Malian and Nigerian pilgrims. A West African community has settled permanently in Fez to offer hospitality services to pilgrims. Through an exploration of the multifaceted connections between the Tijani of West Africa and North Africa (spiritual matrimonial, intellectual) this paper will challenge the notion that West Africa is an Islamic periphery by highlighting the central role West Africa plays in the Tijaniyya Sufi order, demographically, intellectually, historically, culturally, and otherwise. This paper will also contribute to international migration literature, and particularly the literature on transnationalism by exploring historical connections between North and West Africa that preceded the rise of the nation state.