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Historical Memory Matters: Mobilizing the Past in the Boko Haram and Katiba Macina Conflicts
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 19 December 2025
Abstract
Both armed groups and civilians have evoked historical memory in the Katiba Macina and Boko Haram related conflicts. Although not a cause of the conflicts, historical memory informs the perceptions and choices of both fighters and civilians. Based on interviews with members of the armed groups and local civilians, the authors demonstrate that how an individual perceives their own positionality within society and how they perceive their ancestors’ positionality affects how that person reacted to the armed groups’ evocation of historical memory, how they interpreted the source of greater threat, and their own self-protection strategies.
Résumé
Les groupes armés ainsi que les acteurs civils ont fait référence à la mémoire historique dans le cadre des conflits associés à la Katiba Macina et à Boko Haram. Bien qu’elle ne constitue pas une cause des conflits, la mémoire historique éclaire les perceptions comme les choix des combattants et des civils. À travers des entretiens menés avec des membres de groupes armés ainsi que des civils locaux, les auteurs illustrent que la manière dont un individu appréhende sa propre positionalité au sein de la société, de même que celle de ses ancêtres, influence sa réaction face à l’évocation de la mémoire historique par les groupes armés. Cela affecte également son interprétation de la source de la menace la plus significative et ses propres stratégies d’autoprotection.
Resumo
Nos conflitos relacionados com os grupos militantes islâmicos Katiba Macina e Boko Haram, a memória histórica foi evocada quer pelos elementos armados quer pelos civis. Embora não seja a causa dos conflitos, a memória histórica condiciona as perceções e as escolhas tanto dos combatentes como dos civis. Com base em entrevistas realizadas a membros dos grupos armados e a civis locais, os autores do presente artigo demonstram que a forma como um indivíduo perceciona a sua própria posição na sociedade e a forma como perceciona a posição dos seus antepassados afetam a forma como reage à evocação da memória histórica feita pelos grupos armados, a forma como interpreta a fonte de maior ameaça e as suas próprias estratégias de autoproteção.
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- © The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of African Studies Association
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