almamas

Almamas is an English-language plural form sometimes used for almamy, a title borne by Muslim leaders in parts of West Africa. The word almamy (also spelled almamis, al-mamy) derives from the Arabic al-imam, meaning "the imam," and came to denote rulers who combined religious and political authority within theocratic or reformist states established by Muslim communities, notably among Fulani (Fulbe) groups.

The title was prominent during the 18th and 19th centuries in a series of jihads and state formations across the Sahel and western Sudan, including Futa Jallon (in present-day Guinea), Futa Toro (on the Senegal-Mauritania border), and the Massina (Macina) Empire in central Mali. Holders of the title acted as imams, legal arbiters, military leaders, and heads of state; their legitimacy rested on Islamic learning, piety, and often approval from clerical councils or aristocratic factions.

Usage and succession practices varied by polity: some almamis were chosen by consultative assemblies, while others established hereditary or dynastic control. The authority of almamis declined with the expansion of European colonial powers in the late 19th century, though the title and its memory persist in regional histories, oral traditions, and local honorifics. In contemporary scholarship the term is used to discuss the intersection of religion, governance, and anti-slavery reform movements in West African history.