The historical autonomy of the religious community of Medina Gounass in Senegal represents an alternative geographic territory to that of colonial and postcolonial states. The borderland location of Medina Gounass allowed the town to detach itself from colonial and independent Senegal, creating parallel governmental structures and imposing a particular interpretation of Islamic law. While in certain facets this autonomy was limited, the community was able to distance itself through immigration, cross-border religious ties, and smuggling. Glovsky’s analysis of the history of Medina Gounass offers a case study for the multiplicity of geographical and territorial entities in colonial and postcolonial Africa.

塞内加尔麦地那古纳斯宗教社区的历史自治代表了殖民和后殖民国家的替代地理领土。麦地那古纳斯的边境位置使该镇与殖民和独立的塞内加尔分离，创建了平行的政府结构并强加了对伊斯兰法律的特殊解释。虽然在某些方面这种自主权是有限的，但社区能够通过移民、跨境宗教联系和走私来与自己保持距离。格洛夫斯基对麦地那古纳斯历史的分析为殖民和后殖民非洲的地理和领土实体的多样性提供了一个案例研究。