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Appendix 1: Commonly
Used Titles

Amenekal. Tuareg leader.

Askia. Royal title used in the Songhai Empire.

Caliph. Successor or community leader; head of an Islamic state. Originally vice-regent of God, then leaders of the umma, or Muslim world, after the death of Muhammad.

Emir/Amir. Prince, also military commander; a general; an independent ruler or chieftain.

Imam. Prayer leader; elder of a mosque. With a lowercase i, it implies no special spiritual training beyond sufficient education to lead a congregation in prayers or deliver a sermon on Fridays; with an uppercase 7, a direct descendant of Fatima and Ali in the Shiite tradition.

Khalif. Special representative, especially of a religious order.

Mansa. Royal title used in the Malian Empire.

Moulay. Respectful form of address for a leader.

Qadi. Judge in a sharia court; title for a male member of the sultan's council; a Muslim jurist.

Sharif (also spelled sherif). Direct descendant of the prophet Muhammad.

Sheikh. Leader of a religious brotherhood; leader of an Arab village or family; a venerable patriarch.

Sidi. Respectful title for a male, up from mister but a little down from sir; also a saint. It is an informal version of the word sayyidi, which literally means "my master." It can be used with a first name, a last name, or both, or can be used alone.

Sultan. Ruler of a Muslim country, especially the former Ottoman Empire; several historic meanings.

Ulema. Holy men or just learned men, a collective term.