A griot; one of a class of musicians/storytellers of West Africa. Jelis usually accompany themselves on the kora, a type of harp/lute found in the Gambia, Senegal,
Mali, Guinea, and Mauritania, or on the xalam, a one- to
five-stringed
small lutelike or banjolike plucked string instrument. The female counterpart to a jeli is called jelimuso.