paper

Evidence

"The earliest manuscripts, dated through watermarks in paper, with occurrences of ȁ8ajamĩ are, for example, JRL MS 780[825], ff 13a–35b, BL MS Or. 6743, ff 126a–133b, and 155a–163b, BULAC MS.ARA.359, and MS EAP 1042/1/1"

Remarks

Watermarks found in the paper are used as diagnostic material evidence to establish chronological considerations for the corpus of manuscripts across Greater Senegambia (p. 159, 161). This physical evidence allows for the dating of specific scribal practices, such as the introduction of the 'ajami' label for Soninke glosses, which is traced back to at least the beginning of the 19th century through specific examples like JRL MS 780[825] and BULAC MS.ARA.359 (p. 161). Earlier manuscripts exist (e.g., from the 16th or 18th centuries) but these often lack the specific vernacular marking conventions seen in later paper samples (p. 161).