According to Haleys research, Kunta Kinte was a real historical figure who was 17 when he was captured and taken to America as a slave aboard the ship Lord Ligonier in 1767. Roots traces the lives of Kinte and his descendants down to Haley himself, Kintes great-great-great-great-grandson.
Is Kunta Kinte a true story?
Haley said that his account of Kunta's life in Roots was a mixture of fact and fiction. The extent to which Kunta Kinte is based on fact is disputed. Kunta Kinte's life story also figured in two US-made television series based on the book: the original 1977 TV miniseries Roots, and a 2016 remake of the same name.
Is Kunta Kinte related to Alex Haley?
Kunta Kinte became the inspiration for, and lead character in one of the world’s bestselling novels, Roots: The Saga of an American Family, written by African-American author Alex Haley, a alleged descendant of Kunta Kinte. The book was adapted into a popular television series.
What is Behold Kunta Kinte?
Behold, a 1990 statue by Patrick Morelli depicting Kinte, was dedicated to Martin Luther King Jr. and stands in front of King's Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. Kunta Kinte has inspired a reggae riddim of the same name. This started off life as a track called Beware Of Your Enemies released from Jamaica 's Channel One.
Is Kunta Kinte still alive?
In 1822, Kunta dies of a broken heart. Kunta was a warrior, he was enslaved and travled across the world and lived to start a new family in America. The Kinte dynasty will be asembled for many years. Kunta will always be a Mandinka Warrior.
Are there any descendants of Kunta Kinte?
Lamin Jatta, a direct descendant of Kunta Kinte, recently visited the Kunta Kinte – Alex Haley Memorial in Maryland, USA for the very first time. He was overcome with emotion at visiting the spot his relative first arrived in the United States to be sold into slavery.
Is the story of Roots a true story?
As a historical novel, Roots' essential narrative echoed the experience of many African slaves and their families – but it is now widely agreed to be a novel and a work of imagination and invention.
What was Kunta Kinte real name in Roots?
Kunta Kinte Played by Malachi Kirby Kunta Kinte, “the African,” member of the highly respected Kinte clan of the Mandinka people of Gambia.
Was the Kunta Kinte plaque found?
Two months later a replacement plaque was installed. While extensive search efforts were made to find the original plaque, including dredging the waters along the dock area, it has never been found. The plaque visitors see today is the 1981 replacement plaque.
How old was Kizzy when she had Chicken George?
In 1831, during the time of Nat Turner's rebellion, Kizzy, aged 51, now a grandmother of two, warns George, who earned the nickname "Chicken George," and has a successful career of cockfighting, that he can't trust Massa Lea as his friend because he is a "toubob".
Is Chicken George a real person?
Portrait Of George Lea: The Real “Chicken George” American Folk Figure. He was prominently featured as “Chicken George” in author Alex Haley's critically acclaimed book “Roots” (1976).
Where is Kunta Kinte buried?
Author Alex Haley and actor LeVar Burton visit the grave of Haley's ancestor, the slave Kunte Kinte, in Spottsylvania County, Virginia.
How old was Kunta Kinte when he was captured?
17Also known as 'the slave who fought back', Kunta Kinte's story starts in 1767 when he was captured in the surrounding forests of his home village at the age of 17, sold into slavery and taken to America.
Who cut off Kunta Kinte's foot?
After being recaptured during the last of his four escape attempts, the slave catchers gave him a choice: he would be castrated or have his right foot cut off. He chose to have his foot cut off, and the men cut off the front half of his right foot.
How were slaves captured in Africa?
The capture and sale of enslaved Africans Most of the Africans who were enslaved were captured in battles or were kidnapped, though some were sold into slavery for debt or as punishment. The captives were marched to the coast, often enduring long journeys of weeks or even months, shackled to one another.
Why was Kunta Kinte whipped?
Night one of History's remake of “Roots” closes with one of the most iconic scenes from the original miniseries, in which Kunta Kinte (Malachi Kirby in the remake, LeVar Burton in the original) is whipped for refusing to use his slave name, Toby.
Who is related to Kunta Kinte?
Kunta KinteLeVar Burton as Kunta Kinte in the TV miniseries RootsIn-universe informationFamilyOmoro (father) Binta (mother) Belle (wife) Kizzy (daughter) George (grandson) Tom (great-grandson)
Where is Kunta Kinte buried?
Author Alex Haley and actor LeVar Burton visit the grave of Haley's ancestor, the slave Kunte Kinte, in Spottsylvania County, Virginia.
How old was Kunta Kinte when he was captured?
17Also known as 'the slave who fought back', Kunta Kinte's story starts in 1767 when he was captured in the surrounding forests of his home village at the age of 17, sold into slavery and taken to America.
How old was Kizzy in Roots?
She perpetuates the dreams and teachings of her father in the rearing of her son. Young Kizzy (Age 15) Featured in Night 2 is played by E'myri Lee Crutchfield.
Where is the Kunta Kinte Heritage Festival held?
There is an annual Kunta Kinte Heritage Festival held in Maryland.
Where did the Kinte come from?
He described them as a family in which the men were blacksmiths, descended from a marabout named Kairaba Kunta Kinte, originally from Mauritania. Haley quoted Fofana as telling him: "About the time the king's soldiers came, the eldest of these four sons, Kunta, went away from this village to chop wood and was never seen again."
What was Kunta's family?
He was raised in a Muslim family . In 1767, while Kunta was searching for wood to make a drum for his younger brother, four men chased him, surrounded him, and took him captive. Kunta awoke to find himself blindfolded, gagged, bound, and a prisoner.
Why is Chicken George called Chicken George?
George spent his life with the tag "Chicken George", because of his assigned duties of tending to his master's cockfighting birds . In the novel, Kizzy never learns her parents' fate.
Was Kunta Kinte a real person?
However, despite the inconsistencies with Haley's chronology, Kunta Kinte was probably a real person. According to historian John Thornton, director of the African American Studies program at Boston University (who served as a historical advisor to the 2016 remake of Roots ), the historical Kunta Kinte was indeed from the town of Jufureh, which was then part of the Kingdom of Niumi, and was from a Muslim Jula family which had moved there a generation before his birth. He came from a family of merchants who were involved in all matters of commerce, including the slave trade. He was sold into slavery around 1767. It is remarkable that he was sold into slavery given his family's social status as middle class merchants, as well as the ongoing debate at the time regarding whether it was permissible to sell Muslims as slaves to Christians, and him being sold into slavery possibly had something to do with inter-factional disputes among the Jula or traders, as well as the dispute Kingdom of Niumi had with a British trading post at the time, during which the two sides seized hostages.
Who played Kunta Kinte in Roots?
In the 2016 miniseries, he is portrayed by Malachi Kirby.
Who is Kunta Kinte?
1750 – c. 1822; / ˈkuːntɑː ˈkɪnteɪ / KOON-tah KIN-tay) is a character in the 1976 novel Roots: The Saga of an American Family by American author Alex Haley. According to Haley, Kunta Kinte was based on one of his ancestors: a Gambian man who was born in 1750, enslaved and taken to America and who died in 1822.
Where does Kunta Kinte come from?
Kunta Kinte is a protagonist in Alex Haley’s novel Roots: The Saga of an American Family. Written in 1976, Haley’s novel follows Kunta Kinte from his capture by white slavers in Gambia to his life as a slave in the United States. Notable events in Kunta Kinte’s life are his slave-naming as “Toby,” which becomes a great struggle between him and his white master, and the amputations of half of his foot as punishment for an escape attempt. Kunta Kinte ’s daughter, Kizzy, later succeeds her father as the novel’s main character.
What is the name of the African slave in Roots?
Kunta Kinte is a fictional African slave taken to 18th-century America in the novel and adapted TV series Roots. Based on the character and his experience, Kunta Kinte is also used as a derogatory name for an African person who has recently immigrated to a new place.
Why is Kunta Kinte used?
As a slur, Kunta Kinte is used by bigots to characterize an African person, especially if they are a recent emigrant. British soap-opera Coronation Street notably drew fire in 2016 for racism after a character referenced Kunta Kinte when joking about the roots of hair.
What is the line in Kunta Kinte?
Kunta Kinte memes humorously compare African-American culture to the antebellum setting of the novel and miniseries, especially repeating the famous line “Your name is Toby!” when a white master tries in vain to force Kunta Kinte to acknowledge his slave name.
What is the most powerful scene in Roots?
Kunta Kinte's obstinance, even while under the whip, is the most powerful scene in ‘Roots,’ the television miniseries that enthralled the nation in 1977. And that same scene may be even more powerful in the remake being shown on the History Channel Memorial Day.
Who played Kunta Kinte in Roots?
The popularity of Haley’s novel led to the production of Roots, a TV miniseries in 1977. In this series, Kunta Kinte is portrayed by LeVar Burton and, as an adult, John Amos; in the 2016 remake, he is played by Malachi Kirby.
Who is Kunta Kinte's daughter?
Kunta Kinte ’s daughter, Kizzy, later succeeds her father as the novel’s main character. Alex Haley claims that Kunta Kinte was a real person, and that he is Kunta Kinte ’s great-great-great-great grandson.
What is the island called that was the holding ground for captured slaves before they were shipped to America?
Once known as James Island, Kunta Kinte Island was a holding ground for captured slaves before they were shipped to America. The island is named for its most famous slave, who was later immortalized in the book (and then mini-series) Roots.
What was the show Kinte about?
The show is credited by some as invoking a change in American attitudes to slavery -- a turning point in the post-civil rights struggle. PHOTO: CNN. Kinte is said to have been captured in Juffureh, a village across from Kunta Kinte Island, and transported to America on a boat called the Lord Ligonier.
What did Kinte choose to do after his fourth attempt at escape?
After his fourth attempt at escape, the slave catchers gave him a choice: Be castrated, or lose half a foot. Kinte chose the latter (a fortunate choice for the descendants who would later immortalize him).
Why was the Gambian River important to the slave trade?
Because the Gambian river runs like an artery from the Atlantic into Africa, it was a crucial passageway for the slave trade. At its height, an estimated one in six West Africans slaves came from this area.
What river was used to transport slaves?
PHOTO: CNN. For hundreds of years, the Gambian river was one of the major arteries for the capture and transport of slaves. At the height of the slave trade, a sixth of West African slaves came from this region. PHOTO: CNN.
How many viewers did the Kinte miniseries have?
Regardless, Kinte’s story hit a nerve on both the West African and American coast. The mini-series based on his life attracted a record-breaking 170 million viewers, and is credited by some as invoking a change in American attitudes to slavery – a turning point in the post-civil rights struggle.
Who plays Kinte in Roots?
Last month, A&E Networks announced it will reboot Roots, with Laurence Fishburne playing Haley and LeVar Burton – who played Kinte in the original series – co-producing. Lamin Jatta, supposedly a ninth-generation descendent of Kinte, is working as a series advisor.
Overview
Biography in Roots novel
According to the book Roots, Kunta Kinte was born circa 1750 in the Mandinka village of Jufureh, in the Gambia. He was raised in a Muslim family. In 1767, while Kunta was searching for wood to make a drum for his younger brother, four men chased him, surrounded him, and took him captive. Kunta awoke to find himself blindfolded, gagged, bound, and a prisoner. He and others were put on the slave ship the Lord Ligonier for a four-month Middle Passage voyage to North America.
In popular culture
Kunta Kinte has inspired a reggae riddim of the same name. This started off life as a track called Beware Of Your Enemies released from Jamaica's Channel One. A dub version, put out in 1976 by Channel One house band The Revolutionaries became a sound system anthem for many years on dubplate, and inspired a UK version produced by Mad Professor in 1981. It has also inspired jungle covers.
See also
• Kunta Kinteh Island in the Gambia
• List of slaves
External links
• The Kunta Kinte-Alex Haley Foundation