This book is based on an articulate oral rendition of the history of the Haayre by Aamadu Baa Digi, a griot at the court of Dalla. It was made at the request of two anthropologists, Mirjam de Bruijn and Han van Dijk, with permission of the then ruling leader. This fascinating part of history of this lesser known region would have sunk into oblivion, had it not been recorded in 1991, two years before Aamadu Baa Digi passed away. The kings that have ruled over the Haayre in Mali are all descendants of its first king Alu Maana, hence Malians call this region the Haayre of Alu Maana. The word haayre 'rock, mountain' is from Fulfulde, the language of the FulBe majority in this region and it refers to the rocky mountains that dominate the landscape.