Kahone

The town and commune of Kahone, near Kaolack, Senegal, is primarily agricultural but is participating in industrial development plans, and in increased tourism based on its ancient culture. Kahone is the royal seat of the Serer Kingdom of Saloum which has ruled there since the XV-Century. (Kahone was originally a far more important town than Kaolack, but the roles have been reversed in recent years, and Kahone has been reduced to a sub-prefecture of Kaolack.) There is a mosque and a Catholic mission. An annual royal festival is celebrated in which the OMaad (king), Djaraaf (prime minister) and other dignitaries meet to decide kingdom issues and hold pageants celebrating the history of Saloum and the Serer people. There are numerous ancient tombs in the vicinity, and large burial mounds implanted with baobab trees. Kahone is routinely involved in many administrative territorial disputes with neighboring communes, always emphasizing its earlier importance.