Selim Aga

Who was Selim Aga?

Selim Aga, a native of Sudan who was abducted by slave traders when he was eight years of age, was brought to Scotland in 1836, and raised and educated as a free man. Selim wrote an autobiography of his life as a slave, accompanied by his poetic Ode to Britain and printed in Aberdeen in 1846. He regularly lectured in Great Britain on the African topics, and in 1857 left with William Balfour Baikie for an expedition of the Niger River. Later he accompanied John Hawley Glover and Richard Francis Burton on their African expeditions. In late 1860s Selim relocated to Liberia, probably aspiring for presidency; he was killed by Grebo insurgents in 1875.