, the Batakari) by warrior leaders probably originated in the Muslim areas of northern Ghana, where the Batakari was collected. They are adorned with small leather type charms sown around tightly folded papers containing written Islamic phrases or geometric diagrams: the charms are believed to have the power to protect the wearer from harm. Similar decorated tunics are worn by hunters in Mall to the north. The use by hunters is probably an older custom; and it may explain the addition of animal elements such as the horns bound in leather and the use of civet cat skin to cover some of the charms. Animal materials add the powers of the bush and its dangerous and stealthy animal spirits to the protective powers of the Islamic charms. The Batakari is fashioned of indigo-dyed, striped, men's-weave cloth made of narrow strips sown together. .
While Patrick R. McNaughton offers us important view on the shirts that Mande hunters wear, it also offers important insight on the collective culture, religion, as well as hunters' habits and lifestyles. While the Mall Empire is spoken of (Thirteenth Century AD) in connection to the Mande Empire and civilization, so is the area of northern Ghana which was largely Muslim. As to the stages of Islam's advance in the empire of Ghana, the truth about when Islam first came to Ghana, and what form it took there is hard to come by. What evidence there is is patchy and often contradictory. Unfortunately, much the same has to do with traditional African garb vis -vis warriors and hunters. The Batakari shirt is probably the best example that we have come across, and it is a tunic like shirt which covers virtually all of the body. .
The Sahara and the west and central Sudan from the 17th Century. By that date it is known that an Islamic presence was definitely established in Ghana. The sources from which these fragments of information come are the writings of Arabic authors from the 28th Century on.
