Info For Y'all Dagaaba (Dagarti/Dagara) People: Socially Mobile As Well As Xylophone-Playing Westward African People Renowned For Using Cowries Inward The Modern Times To Transact Trace Of Piece Of Occupation Organisation Amongst Money
The Dagaaba people (Dagarti, LoDagaa" too "Lobi-Dagarti" or Dagara too singular Dagao) are an amalgamated socially mobile, hard working agriculturalist too highly educated Gur-speaking (Mabia) ethnic grouping inward the West African nations of Ghana, Burkina Faso too Republic of Cote d'Ivoire (Cote D`Ivoire). Due to their social mobility, the Dagaaba or Dagarti tin live found inward almost every constituent of Ghana, Burkina Faso, too Ivory Coast. Pockets of the Dagara tin live found inward other West African countries.
Dagaaba people of Jirapa celebrating their Bong Ngo festival. Courtesy http://adbarnes17.blogspot.com/
The concentration of their settlement is found on their the world proper, called Dagaabaland. Dagaabaland stretches from the Northwestern corner of Republic of Ghana to the West banks of the Black Volta River inward Burkina Faso too inward the Ivory Coast. Kuukure (1985:23) aptly describes the location of the Dagaaba as follows:
"The Dagarti people... live on both sides of the Black Volta River, which at that dot forms
the boundary betwixt the Republic of Republic of Ghana too Republic of Cote d'Ivoire too Upper Volta [now
Burkina Faso]. These people live largely inward the Northwestern corner of Ghana, spreading
across the border into Upper Volta, correct upwardly to the 12 parallel north. They are
concentrated peculiarly about the expanse where longitude 3 westward too latitude xi north
cross. But they lean out along the Volta, practically astride longitude 3 west, southward to
latitude l0 north. As a outcome of colonisation, which split them upwardly into zones of British and
French influence, they at nowadays live inward 2 different nations, namely Republic of Ghana too Upper Volta,
non to cite the sprinkling of them cutting off inward Ivory Coast." Note: Upper Volta is the onetime yell of Burkina Faso.
Dagaaba dancers at their annual Bong Ngo festival at Jirapa, Upper West Region, Ghana. Courtesy http://adbarnes17.blogspot.com/
The Dagaaba (Dagarti/Dagao) are renowned for beingness the in conclusion people inward the modern world to merchandise too transact commerce amongst precious cowries. Cowries are soundless used as a shape of safety bonds just as people merchandise inward gold, inward barter merchandise as good as a shape of bride-price inward Dagawie (Dagaabaland).
The actual yell of these people is Dagaaba or Lo Dagaa but most outsiders telephone telephone them Dagarti. One historian, describing the onetime usage of "Dagarti" to refer to this community yesteryear colonials, writes :
"The yell 'Dagarti' appears to have got been coined yesteryear the initiative off Europeans to see the region, from the vernacular root dagaa. Correctly 'Dagari' is the yell of the language, 'Dagaaba' or 'Dagara' that of the people, too 'Dagaw' or 'Dagawie' that of the land." They are related to the Birifor people too the Dagaare Diola. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 somebody from Dagarti or Dagaaba tribe is known as Dagao.
Historically, the origins of Dagaaba people has been a complex mystery to tackle. However, the evidence of oral tradition is that the Dagaaba are an outgrowth of the Mole-Dagbani grouping (either Mossi or Dagomba) which migrated to the semi-arid Sahel part inward the fourteenth century CE. They are believed to have got farther migrated to the lower northern constituent of the part inward the seventeenth century. In his article "Customary Law of the Dagara” of Northern Ghana: Indigenous Rules or a Social Construction," published inward 2002 edition of Journal of Dagaare Studies, Vol 2, Dr Benjamin Kunbuor quoting other sources posited that "The dominant thesis has it that the Dagara are a rebel grouping that migrated away from the autocratic dominion of Dagbon, nether the legendary Na Nyanse (see Tuurey, 1982; Lentz, 1997).
Dagaaba people performing Bewaa trip the lite fantastic Kakube Festival at Nandom
The Dagaaba people amongst total population of over 2 i chiliad 1000 people have got the larger percent of its population residing inward Ghana. They are found inward Upper West Region of Republic of Ghana too reside predominantly inward Lawra, Nadowli, Jirapa, Nandom, Lambussie, Kaleo, Bole, Birifu, Tugu, Daffiama, Wechiau too Hamile. Large communities are also found inward the towns of Wa, Bogda, Babile, Tuna, Han too Nyoli.
Burkina Faso has the 2d highest concentration of Dagaaba people too they tin live found in Sud-Ouest Region, especially inward Ioba Province, but also inward Poni, Bougouriba, Sissili, too Mouhoun provinces.
In Republic of Cote d'Ivoire where at that spot are smaller concentration of Dagaaba; they tin live found inward the districts of Bonduku too Buna.
Dagaaba people dancing to gyil (Xylophone) music at Nandom, Upper West Region, Ghana
Among the ethnic groups inward Northern Ghana, the Dagaaba or Dagarti are number i ethnic grouping known for their social mobility from the North to the South long before British colonization of Gold Coast (Ghana). There is a saying/proverb amid the Dagaaba that "ka biε ba yor, u kun bang dunia (lit. if a kid does non travel, he/she volition non know the world). In his piece of work published in Nordic Journal of African Studies 17(1): 1–19 (2008) entitled "”Ka Biε Ba Yor": Labor Migration amid the Dagaaba of the Upper West Region of Ghana, 1936– 1957" Gariba B. Abdul-Korah asserted that Dagaaba migration to the Southern Republic of Ghana was zippo new, as it has been erroneously claimed yesteryear some historians that it started in the tardily 1890s, when the British colonial direction inward the northward gave impetus to Dagaaba migration yesteryear recruiting labour to piece of work inward the south. He posited that "Dagaaba migration to southern Republic of Ghana betwixt 1936 too 1957 was an peril – “to view the world” too gain experience. It did non commence amongst colonial conquest; it had its roots inward the precolonial yesteryear – inward the slave trade, but to a greater extent than especially, inward the catamenia next Asante’s defeat of Gonja (18th century) through the Zabarima too Samorian invasions of the northwest inward the tardily 19th century. Although the imposition of colonial dominion may have got transformed the nature too pattern of migration, Dagaaba migration to southern Republic of Ghana during the colonial period, was non new."
The Dagaaba (Dagarti) are famous for steadily gained popularity of the gyil (xylophone) used inward playing indigenous too folkloric songs. Although the the world inhabited yesteryear the Dagarti is far from whatsoever major city, musicians have got brought the gyil to national too international audiences. Communicating as performers too teachers across cultural divides is oftentimes challenging. In recent times i of their contemporary Hiplife music creative somebody is "Batman Samini aka Emmanuel Andrew Samini, the MOBO Awards 2006 winner from Ghana.
Dagarti adult man too i of Ghana`s best Musicians, Batman Samini
Like the Tallensi too Sisaala, the Dagaaba admit the value too the tremendous powerfulness of the the world (Tengan 1989). The Dagaaba or Dagara farther admit that the world belongs solely to the Tengan (Earth Shrine). They also view pelting as an indispensable source of life. It is desired too accorded great respect. As amongst the Sisaala, the Dagara are subsistence farmers who depend primarily on rainfed agriculture (Tengan 1989). From this province of affairs of dependence on rainfed agriculture emerge many taboos connected amongst the land, the pelting too the Tengan. One of these taboos is the Tako daa.
The Dagarti are also known for their whirling "Tigari" trip the lite fantastic (healing ritual dance) too Bawa trip the lite fantastic as good as the Bagre too the Dyoro Secret Societies.
The Dagaaba shares friendly jokes based on "dog head" amongst their immature adult man Mabia group, the Frafra people.
Ethnic Dagaaba dancer
The Dagaaba people have got produced some prominent people for Republic of Ghana as a nation. The listing include Chief Simon_Diedong_Dombo, a King, politician, instructor too the Parliamentary Leader during the initiative off Republic of Ghana, Cardinal Peter Proeku Dery, an assistant traditional (fetish) priest turned Ghanaian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church, Ambrose P Dery, onetime attorney-General of Republic of Ghana too Member of Parliament for Lawra, Naa Abeifaa Karbo, traditional ruler, sharp political leader too founding fellow member of Northern Peoples Party, Jatoe Kaleo, traditional ruler, sharp political leader too founding fellow member of Northern Peoples Party, Peter Tenganabang Nanfuri aka Naa Ansoleh Ganaa II, onetime Inspector General of Police (IGP) inward Republic of Ghana too the Paramount Chief of the Jirapa Traditional Area, Bede_Ziedeng, Ghanaian political leader too the onetime Upper West Regional Minister of Ghana, Professor Edmund Nminyem Delle, renowned dermatologist, sharp entrepreneur cum political leader too onetime chairman of opposition Convention Peoples Party (CPP) of the tardily Ghanaian leader Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, Alban Bagbin, Ghanaian politician, onetime Minister of Health inward the Ghana, onetime minority leader too the Member of Parliament for Nadowli West, Benjamin Kunbuor, Ghanaian politician, police force lecturer, Member of Parliament for Lawra, onetime Minister for Justice too Attorney General, Minister for Health, Minister for Interior too currently government minister of Defence, Prof. Adams B. Bodomo, professor of African Studies (African Languages too Literatures), prolific author too publisher/editor of Journal of Dagaare studies, etc.
Clusters of Dagaaba
The terms "LoDagaa" too "Lobi-Dagarti" (or Dagara) are used for a cluster of peoples situated across the frontier of Burkina Faso too Ghana, originally grouped together yesteryear Labouret, next the usage of Delafosse too other francophones. In this cluster, Labouret included the "true Lobi" (or those the Birifor telephone telephone the "LoWilisi") about Gaoua, who (according to Westermann too Bryan 1952) speak a Dogon-type linguistic communication (the inclusion of Dogon is disputed); the Birifor (or LoBirifor) to their east, who speak Dagara, a Mole-Dagbane language; too 4 smaller groups: the Teguessié, the Dorossié, the Dian, too the Gan. The Teguessié (or Tégué) speak a linguistic communication of the Kulango Group too are sometimes thought of as the autochthons; they were Masters of the world inward much of the area. The other little groups speak languages related to Lobiri, as make the Padoro too perhaps the Komono; Dian too Lobiri (in the east) are to a greater extent than closely related, as is the western group.
Dagaaba women
Subsequently, Père (1988) adopted the francophone usage of Lobi ("la région Lobi") to screen the peoples of the Gaoua District of Burkina Faso, including non only the Jãa (Dian); the Gaàn (Gan); the Teésé (Teguessié); the Dòcsè (or Dorossié, but also the Kùlãgo [Kulango]); the Dagara (divided into Dagara Lobr too Dagara Wiili [Oulé]); too the Pwa (formerly known as the Pugula or Pougouli), who speak a Grusi language. Indeed, because she is dealing amongst the region, she also includes the Wala too the Dagara-Jula inward her account.
Alban Kingsford Sumani Bagbin, ethnic Dagaaba, Ghanaian politician, onetime Minister of Health inward the Ghana, onetime minority leader too the Member of Parliament for Nadowli West.
The problems of ethnic classification inward this expanse are several. In the initiative off place, names differ, depending on whether they are used yesteryear francophones or yesteryear anglophones. The Lobi described yesteryear Rattray (1932) include the Birifor as good as the Dagara of Labouret. Second, the names have got changed over time. People who were known as "Lobi" inward the Lawra District of Republic of Ghana at the outset of the nineteenth century are at nowadays "Dagara." Third, the names themselves oftentimes make non pull distinct ethnic groups. There are many differences inward custom too organisation betwixt neighboring settlements, too these settlements may live referred to yesteryear the 2 quasi-directional terms, "Lo" (Lobi, west) too "Dagaa" (east), to distinguish different practices (for example, the usage of xylophones). Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 settlement may spot amongst its eastern neighbors on i occasion (as Dagaa) too amongst its western ones (as Lo) on another. This role participant usage has led Goody to spot a spectrum of peoples, the LoDagaa, who usage these names for reference to themselves too others. They are, from westward to east, the truthful Lobi, the Birifor or LoBirifor, the LoPiel (around Nandom) too the LoSaala (around Lawra), the Dagara (around Dano), the LoWiili (around Birifu), both DagaaWiili (around Tugu), too the Dagaba or Dagarti. The Wala speak the Dagaba linguistic communication too constitute a little province that has its origins eastward inward Dagomba. That province established itself as ruler over the southern Dagaba too some Grusi-speaking peoples. In the west, a branch of the ruling dynasty extended across the Black Volta to Buna, where they adapted the local Kulango language. The LoPiel too the LoSaala are known to francophones as "Dagara" (or Dagara-Lobr), too they at nowadays to a greater extent than oftentimes than non usage this term rather than "Lobi" for self-reference because they have got been forced to assort themselves unambiguously for administrative purposes. That alter is widespread because "Dagara" is oftentimes a to a greater extent than prestigious term than "Lobi." The latter is associated inward many people's minds amongst the large lip plugs of gourd or metallic that are worn inward the westward (the easterners apparel lean metallic plugs) too amongst the stress that the westerners spot on matrilineal inheritance, nigh which modernizers (church, schools, law, some administrators) to a greater extent than oftentimes than non experience hostile too ambivalent.
Dr Benjamin Bewa-Nyog Kunbuor, Ethnic Dagaaba man, Ghanaian politician, police force lecturer, Member of Parliament for Lawra, onetime Minister for Justice too Attorney General, Minister for Health, Minister for Interior too currently government minister of Defence
Given these contextual, overlapping, too changing usages yesteryear the peoples themselves, role participant names are rarely satisfactory to signal "tribal" groups, yesteryear which nosotros refer to larger groupings of settlements amongst relatively homogeneous practices. These groups tin live distinguished, roughly from due east to west, as the Dagaba or Dagarti (around Jirapa); the LoPiel (around Nandom) too the LoSaala (around Lawra), both "Dagara Lobr" inward French; the DagaaWiili (around Legmoin too Tugu) too the LoWiili (around Birifu), both "Dagara Wiilé" inward French; the Birifor or LoBirifor (around Batié too inward western Gonja); too the Lobi or LoWiilisi (around Gaoua). There are, inward addition, the smaller populations of Gan, Dorossié, too Gian, who speak Lobi languages, too Teguessié, too who speak Kulango. These groups tin live collectively designated as the LoDagaa or Lobi-Dagarti cluster, at that spot beingness no argue to exclude the other Dagara-speaking peoples i time the Birifor have got been included amid the Lobi.
Dagaaba kids coming from the farm inward photo-shot amongst Kirstin, fellow member of Vetinarians Without Borders, at Nadowli, Upper West Region, Ghana. Courtesy http://vwbvsfstudentghana2010.blogspot.com/
Dagaaba Creation Story/Myth
The Dagaaba creation story tin live found in Bagre performance that demonstrates the spiritual importance of the environs to Dagaaba. According to Dannabang Kuwabong "Bagre informs us that humans were created from a combination of the soil (earth), okra (plants), God’s saliva (water), too the semen too eggs of flies too cats (animals). Seen this way, the human somebody is a configuration of the land, the animal, the spirit, too the flora too nosotros owe our lives to a preservation of the residuum betwixt us too these initiative off beings. In other words, animals, plants, spirits, too the the world must constantly live negotiated amongst as they have got a closer affinity amongst the divine who oversees everything. That explains why Dagaaba view spirituality inward every creation too situation."
Dagao adult man from Burkina Faso
Language
The Dagaaba speaks the Dagaare language ((also spelled Dagare, Dagari, Dagarti, Dagaran or, Dagao), which belongs to the Oti-Volta grouping of the Gur branch of the Niger-Congo linguistic communication spot unit of measurement (Swadesh 1966, Bendor-Samuel1971:144, Naden 1989).
Dagaare is a two-toned linguistic communication also referred to as Mabia subgroup of the branch of the Niger-Congo linguistic communication of West Africa. (Bodomo 1997, Bodomo 2000, Anttila too Bodomo 2001). It is spoken yesteryear nigh 2 i chiliad 1000 people, mainly inward Republic of Ghana but also inward neighbouring regions of West Africa, similar Burkina Faso too the Ivory Coast. Phonologically speaking, Dagaare too other Mabia languages, including Moore, Dagbane, Frafra, Kusaal, Mampruli too Buli, are marked yesteryear a preponderance of consonants too a scarcity of vowel sounds when compared to Indo-European languages, such as English linguistic communication too French (Bodomo, forthcoming). One distinctive phonological characteristic is the double joint of some consonants. These include labio-velar
stops similar /gb/ /kp/ too /ngm/. Such features, rare inward Indo-European languages, are a mutual characteristic in
many African languages. The labio-velar too velar sounds are partially complementary, as inward the alternate
causative/non-causative forms of the verbs k/ kp i, ‘die’ inward Dagaare. Regular allophones oftentimes involve /d/ too /r/, too /g/ too // across the diverse languages. There may also live limited cases of gratis variation as it is betwixt /h/ too /z/ inward the Dagaare word, ha a / za a , ‘all’.
Prof. Adams B. Bodomo, professor of African Studies (African Languages too Literatures), prolific author too publisher/editor of Journal of Dagaare studies
There is the typological characteristic of vowel harmony inward Dagaare too many Mabia languages. Words similar ko go
(‘chair’), bi i ri (‘(‘children’), too tu u ro (‘digging’) are pronounced amongst tense or advanced natural language root vowels, piece words similar k)b) (‘bones’), biiri (‘to brew “pito” the 2d day’), tuur) (‘insulting’) are pronounced amongst lax or unadvanced natural language root vowels. Front rounded vowels, found inward languages similar French too Norwegian, too dorsum unrounded vowels are absent inward these languages, except when phonetically realized inward particular environments.
Syllabic nasality is also a typological characteristic inward these languages. These are realized inward some environments,
most oftentimes as pronouns too particles; as inward the instance of the Dagaare 3rd somebody pronoun /N/ as inward m `ba , (‘my father’), n`zu (‘my head’) too inward the Dagaare particle, -N which is a cliticized shape of the polarity
marker, la.
Peter Tenganabang Nanfuri aka Naa Ansoleh Ganaa II, Ethnic Dagarti adult man too onetime Inspector General of Police (IGP) inward Republic of Ghana too the Paramount Chief of the Jirapa Traditional Area inward his smock sitting inward the middle. Courtesy FH Communications Bureau
Dagaare too other Mabia languages primarily have got 2 tonal systems, high too low, (respectively marked
yesteryear sharp too grave diachritics on the sounds amongst contain them) amongst cases of downstep inward some of the
languages, i.e. subsequent high tones may non live as high as preceeding ones. These tones serve to express
both lexical too grammatical oppositions as inward the Dagaare verbs, da` (‘push’), /da` (‘buy’), too as inward the
declarative too hortative readings of pronouns e.g.u` kuli la yiri / `u` kuli la yiri ((‘He went home/ He should
go home’).
Dagaare, too its grouping of languages, usually manifest opened upwardly syllables. Both CV too CVC syllables tin be
reconstructed, but it is usually possible to insert a in conclusion syllable. Thus, the Dagaare verb ‘to leave’, may live realized either as bar` or bar i`. There are also dialectal differences amongst abide by to these 2 forms.
.An of import typological characteristic of these languages is the scheme of substantive classes. Noun class
manifestation is a mutual characteristic for Niger-Congo languages, but piece most of these languages usage a
prefixal pattern, i.e. cases inward which nominal inflections occur before, rather than, after the root, Mabia
languages mostly usage a scheme of grade suffixes. These are typically based on singular/plural alternations.
Most nouns be inward 3 forms: the root, the singular, too the plural. An instance is the Dagaare give-and-take for
‘woman/wife’: p)g- (root), p)ga (singular), p) gba (plural), amongst the farther vowel assimilation inward some
dialects to give us p)g)` too p)gb).
Another of import typological characteristic within Dagaare too its grouping of languages is verb morphology. In
most of these languages at that spot is a regular shape of marking perfective too imperfective aspects yesteryear adding
suffixes to the verbs, as inward zoe` ‘have run’ too zoro` ‘running’.
As far as possible, the diverse texts associated amongst the music on this recording are presented amongst tonal
transcriptions. For phrases too larger chunks of data, nosotros provide interlinear glossings. These glossings
provide interesting insights into the grammatical too communicative construction of the Dagaare language.
Finally, gratis translations follow the glosses to capture salient aspects of the linguistic too cultural meaning
behind these texts. This linguistic information transcription is an of import aspect for the analysis and
interpretation of the music texts. The next is an illustration:
Ka` Ne3` bi`eng wa` b)ng ba`waa tenee` paal`ong bi`e naa
COMP person Child. FOC NEG know ba`waa 1. PL area kid NEG
(‘If a kid doesn’t know how to trip the lite fantastic baawaa s/he cannot perhaps live a kid from our town.’)
History
Retinue og Dagaaba chiefs, drummers too dancers at annual Bong Ngo festival at Jirapa
The Lobi-Dagarti peoples are without whatsoever overarching tribal organisation or, strictly speaking, whatsoever territory. They displace non as large units, but as spot unit of measurement groups, sometimes into other ethnic areas, where they may live absorbed into the local population. Most of the groups to the westward of the Black Volta claim to have got been formerly settled to the due east of the river, inward what is at nowadays Ghana. From the eighteenth century on, they have got moved across the river. There appear to have got been Lobi as good as Dagaba inward the Wa expanse when the ruling dynasty arrived; the Jãa were for sure settled inward the Lawra expanse until, attracted yesteryear a sparsely populated part amongst plenty of farmland too wood make too nether force per unit of measurement area from other LoDagaa, mainly from the due south too southwest (but fifty-fifty from westward of the river), they crossed the Black Volta. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 minority of clans describe their origins from other regions.
One of the factors leading to the motion has been the search for to a greater extent than too improve land, next before hunting expeditions. Another factor has been the raids mounted yesteryear the states of the part (as good as yesteryear the occasional freebooters too adventurers) inward their search for slaves, partly for their ain usage but mainly to provide the Asante and, through them, the Europeans inward the south. The invaders on horseback terrified the inhabitants, who sometimes retaliated amongst poisoned arrows. Mainly, however, they fled, using the larger rivers. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 number of characteristics—their dispersed settlements of fortress-type houses, the women's lip plugs, their rejection of cloth, too their full general aggressiveness—have been attributed to the effects of such raids. In the tardily twentieth century houses are smaller, the mode of clothes is to a greater extent than "European," too less hostility is displayed.
The establishment of the international boundary has brought nigh a decline inward east-west migration. The main motion of the Lobi inward the tardily twentieth century has been of 2 kinds. The initiative off has been from the Lawra District to the vacant lands southward on the route to Kumasi, which many men have got traveled inward the dry out flavor as migrant laborers. Settlements that make nutrient for sale inward the markets have got grown upwardly from Wa due south to the northwest of Asante. The 2d movement, outset inward 1917, has been eastward across the Black Volta from the francophone territories to Ghana, where at that spot were fewer calls yesteryear the authorities on project services. Many Birifor moved into the sparsely populated lands of western Gonja, which had been decimated as a outcome of Samori's wars at the destination of the nineteenth century. These migrants have got proved to live much to a greater extent than aggressive, market-oriented farmers than their hosts, amongst whom at that spot has been some conflict over taxes too representation.
Settlement
Settlements inward the expanse consist of named units that are usually centered on a specific parish or ritual expanse of an world shrine. Among the Dagaaba, most houses are made of mud and/or cement amongst either thatched, laterite or aluminum roofs. These settlements are inhabited yesteryear members of several exogamous lineages housed inward fortress-type compounds amongst 2.5meter-high walls, a apartment roofs, too entrances reached (at to the lowest degree formerly) yesteryear wooden ladders to the roofs. These houses are some 100 meters apart too contain an average of xv persons, but they vary inward size, depending on the province of the developmental cycle of the domestic group. Around the walls lies the chemical compound farm, which is fertilized yesteryear human detritus too is used yesteryear the women to flora their soup vegetables. It is adjoined yesteryear spot farms; bush farms prevarication much farther away. The settlements consist of some 250 to 750 inhabitants.
Each of these compounds is inhabited by, amid others, an unproblematic family, consisting of a man, his married adult woman or wives too children. Such a spot unit of measurement is established through marriage.
Dagaaba people
Economy
Subsistence too Commercial Activities. The economic scheme is essentially i of the hoe farming of cereals (sorghum, pennisetum [pearl millet], maize), together amongst some yams, especially inward the southern areas that are occupied yesteryear migrants. In addition, people grow squashes, peppers, beans (including Bambara beans), groundnuts, too a petty rice. Some of this make is sold inward the local markets, especially sorghum inward the shape of beer. Most compounds also possess a herd of cows, too some sheep, goats, guinea fowl, too chickens, which are mainly killed as sacrifices to live distributed.
Dagarti farmers inward their farm at Jirapa
Industrial Arts too Trade. Lobi women make a sure amount of gold, which finds its way into the hands of Dyula traders. Associated amongst before golden workings, it has been suggested, are the ruins of stone houses. Since the advent of colonial rule, the relative peace that it brought nigh too the cheaper atomic number 26 tools that it provided have got led to increased production, evidence of which tin live seen inward the markets. That increment is also truthful for livestock. Along amongst wage project (performed either locally or as migrants), these developments have got increased purchasing power. Whereas petty was imported before except salt, at nowadays large amounts of fabric are brought in, too other manufactured objects, such as matches, bicycles, transistor radios, too household utensils, are used inward considerable quantities. Local arts and crafts production consists of atomic number 26 implements, brass bangles too other ornaments, musical instruments, some wood carvings, too woven mats.
Today migration—both of the uneducated, seeking piece of work as laborers, too of the educated, who to a greater extent than oftentimes than non piece of work inward the towns—is frequent. The historic catamenia of migrants is at nowadays much lower than formerly, too the duration of their absences is much greater. The outcome is that larger numbers of houses are inhabited yesteryear old men, women, too children who have got to carry out the agricultural piece of work without the aid they would have got received from the migrants. Thus, the sexual sectionalization of project has been altered. The south, however, is outset to lose some of its attraction as the international economic scheme affects the recruitment of labor, potential recruits are frightened yesteryear tales of AIDS.
The LoDagaa (including the Lobi) were non themselves traders (except inward the province of Wa), but major north-south merchandise routes of Dyula too Hausa merchants ran through the expanse from the wood to the Sahel.
Food
Some of the differences that be betwixt the Dagaare-speaking communities are somehow subtle too non easily noticeable yesteryear the on-looker. For example, although the staple dish amid the Dagaaba is saabo or Sao (called "to" inward many other African languages), the constitution/texture of this millet, sorghum or maize-based repast may vary from i community to the other. In addition, the soup that is eaten amongst the saabo may live prepared inward a slightly different mode inward spite of the fact that virtually the same ingredients may live used inward each case. Meat is non considered an of import food, except inward special meals for instance at funerals. Apart from these occasions, only guinea fowl are slaughtered for regular consumption.
Although all marriages amid the Dagaaba involve courtship (pog bo) too the transfer of bride wealth/kyeru, the details of what goes on during courtship too what constitutes the bride wealth vary from i community to the other. For example, Goody (1967), reported that amid the LoWiili, the bride wealth is non accepted on the initiative off twenty-four hours it is presented. It is only on the 3rd occasion that the bride wealth is finally accepted as beingness the accurate amount required. This is non the instance amid other communities similar the Sapaare too the Jiribale. However, as to what constitutes a bride wealth, these 2 communities tend to differ. For example, the amount of bride wealth required for a married adult woman from Sapaare volition live insufficient to obtain a married adult woman from a Jiribale community.
Bridewealth: In general, bride wealth amid the Dagaaba usually involves some amount of cowries, cash, too livestock. The proportions of these diverse items may vary but volition almost e'er involve a number of cowries. The cowries and/or cash portion is referred to as the pog libie. Among the LoWiili, the bride wealth consists of a cock too guinea-fowl to the in-laws, too the pog libie, a amount of just about 20,000 cowries, usually, the same amount that was paid for the girl’s mother. Various rituals accompany the counting too transfer of bride wealth yesteryear the groom’s spot unit of measurement to the bride’s agnatic home. Once the patrikin of the bride have the bride wealth, they also perform a number of rituals during the counting, distribution too storing of it. In general, the bride wealth received for a immature adult woman is used to acquire a married adult woman for a son. Whereas paying the bride wealth of a immature man’s initiative off married adult woman is the obligation of his spot unit of measurement elders, if he wishes to go polygamous, he volition to a greater extent than oftentimes than non live solely responsible for paying the bride wealth of these subsequent wives.
The diverse rituals performed during the counting too transfer yesteryear the groom’s relatives as good as those (the rituals) that go on during the counting too credence of the bride wealth, are tied to the fertility too fidelity of the bride. If some of the rituals are non good done, the adult woman could have got difficulty bearing children during the marriage. It is also believed that i time those rituals have got been performed too the bride wealth accepted, too then whatsoever infidelity on the constituent of the adult woman could outcome inward her decease if she does non confess similar a shot too go through purification rites/rituals.
Domestic Unit
The domestic unit of measurement is to a greater extent than oftentimes than non built on agnatic ties, given that wives bring together their husbands at marriage, but amid the Lobi too Birifor, men make extensive bride-service, too some immature children may grow upwardly amongst their mother's brothers before their woman parent leaves for her husband's house. In most cases, the farming grouping is small. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 adult man too his sons may farm together for a longer catamenia amid the groups inward which patricians dominate. The spot grouping that occupies a chemical compound may consist of several farming groups, too each farming grouping may live divided into smaller eating groups.
Inheritance
Among the Dagaba too the Wiili, a man's belongings passes initiative off to his total brothers, if they are farming together, too and then to his sons. Among the LoPiel, the LoSaala, the Birifor, too the Lobi, the world passes inward the paternal line, whereas movable belongings is transmitted initiative off to uterine siblings too and then to sisters' sons, leading to before splits inward the domestic groups too to tensions betwixt a adult man too his mother's brothers. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 woman's belongings to a greater extent than oftentimes than non goes to her daughters if it is sex-linked, but livestock may go to her sons.
Socialization
Young children are looked after yesteryear their mothers too are breast-fed until they tin walk too talk, when they "become humans" too are thus entitled to a proper burial (see "Death too Afterlife"). Later on, they are cared for yesteryear elderberry sisters or relatives, who involve them inward their play. Boys go off inward groups to herd cattle, whereas girls play to a greater extent than domestic games about the compound, helping their mothers from fourth dimension to fourth dimension yesteryear fetching H2O or grinding too pounding cereals. Among the Lobi, girls also appear after cattle, although boys too girls plough over this responsibleness to their juniors when they are initiated into the Dyoro society.
Dagaaba women of Nandom dancing
Sociopolitical Organization
Political Organization. Except for the Wala too the Gan, as good as the Kaleo the peoples of this grouping lacked chieftainship too substitution political organisation until the coming of colonial rule. Inferring from Yelpaala’s (1992) article, the political organisation of the Dagaaba was, until the imposition of colonialism, decentralized inward its full general structure.
Dagaaba people of Nadowli
From the outside, it powerfulness have got appeared amorphous too non easily susceptible to analysis, for its organisation too institutions were non defined inward terms of the total territorial unit of measurement but inward terms of sub-territorial areas teni (villages) referred to yesteryear Goody as parishes, too yesteryear Fortes inward his study of the Tallensi as settlements. The political organisation of each teng (village) exhibited a sure grade of centralization of authorisation amongst a really limited vertical structure. The substitution authorisation was cross-hauled from the elders (ninbere) of different kin-based groups within the territorial area. This body was the basic establishment dealing amongst most issues of full general community interest. All elders amongst the exception of the custodians of the the world (tendaana) inward sure cases, were theoretically co-equals inward all deliberations. However, inward matters that related to the teng too the the world deity (tengan), the tendaana was the in conclusion authority. Thus depending on the issues involved, the substitution authorisation was either circular amongst its functions based on consultation too consensus, or unidirectional, from the tendaana downwards to the repose of society.
In every hamlet (teng), this basic construction to a greater extent than or less replicated itself. Each teng however, enjoyed an independent autonomous existence from the others. Therefore, the society was at the same fourth dimension centralized at the unit of measurement plane too decentralized at the total societal level. Centralization within the little units provided the useful cheque on the abuses or excesses inward the usage of centralized political power. On really of import and
broader cultural or extraterritorial issues involving non-Dagaaba, such as warfare or resistance against slave raiding, these centralized institutions would coordinate, cooperate or deliberate as a larger substitution unit. However, these higher plane organizations did non appear to involve the total territorial expanse of the Dagaaba. Yet, taking whatsoever territorial unit of measurement as a starting point, that unit of measurement was linked separately to all other contiguous units yesteryear a chain of mutual culture, mutual descent, too political or legal cooperation. Each of these other units was also separately too similarly linked to yet other contiguous territorial units until the chain of interlocking linkages involve the entire Dagawie. Depending on the issues at stake, contiguity, consanguinity, historical ties too the plane of sophistication inward the native fine art of diplomacy, cooperation or integration betwixt different territorial units was great or little inward amplitude. The basic philosophy which guided the interaction of all substitution authorities at the larger unit of measurement plane was equality. All factor units functioned as co-equals, for the Dagaaba say that doo bii pog ba gangna o to (i.e., no adult man or adult woman is superior to their peer). This then, has been too continues to live the ground of egalitarian thought amid the Dagaaba, what is called the traditional level. Within the national political structure, Dagaaba political thought, similar all other traditional systems, is relegated to an inferior status.
Social Control too Conflicts
The main causes of conflict were rights to women too access to wood products. Within the parish, conflicts of this form were rare because of kin ties too abide by for the world shrine. Strong sanctions existed against adultery, theft, too other delicts, which were settled within too betwixt local lineages. More recently, local chiefs too headmen have got exercised supervision on behalf of the government, too local courts of police force have got been established.
Crime too penalization are just as much issues of politics as they of religion. Until recently, theft was a rare occurrence amid the Dagaaba. It was taken as a really repulsive too anti-social deed condemned yesteryear all, including the spirits too the ancestors who could live invoked whenever necessary to punish a thief severely. Theft is so much looked downwardly upon that it is non uncommon to hear a somebody trying to evidence her/his integrity, say that (s)he does non steal or rob - N ba zuuro, n ba faara. In a society where houses have got virtually no door panels nor to locks, at that spot is understandably a full general demand for trust too social cohesion.
In Dagaare, the term iibo signifies the full general normative value scheme roofing established too accepted norms, principles, practices, procedures which regulation life inward full general too disputing inward particular. It is when a specific conduct is inward conflict amongst the Dagaaba iibo that i may live characterized as deviant. In lite of this concept of iibo, therefore, the Dagaaba may live viewed as a unified group, vis-á-vis other non-Dagaaba, including their neighbors.
Dagaagba women of Nadowli at their Nadowli Womens meeting
Religious Belief
Dagaaba have got strong believe in Naangmen (older spelling Naamwin), supreme God too creator og the Universe. He is goodness too omnipotent but has no shrines, so at that spot is no agency of communication amongst him. Mwin agency “sun“, too Naamwin is sometimes identified amongst sun, sky, or rain. Goody, inward The myth of the Bagre, maintains that God’s practical alienation from his universe is thought of yesteryear the Dagaaba as a business office of the work of evil. “If he were to go on inward his primordial role“, says Goody, “our problems would non exist. With his aid, disease, evil, too misfortune could live banished“.
In addition, Dagaaba strongly believe too reverence the ‘Mother Earth’ (Tengbane). Tengbane or Mother world is the 2d most powerful deity after the supreme God, Naangmen. Therefore the Dagao sees the world or physical environs as sacred and divine; that they are born from the earth, live on too through it, volition live buried inward it; too that they volition join the ancestors who, though invisible, are nonetheless located inward the environs amongst other spiritual beings. This is good articulated inward Bagre narrative, too shows that as our Mother, nosotros owe our life to Earth. It is from her thorax that the milk of sustenance is drawn, whether it is water, food, soil, wood, or herbal medicine, too it is to her womb that nosotros shall render inward death. Likewise, Kukure (1985:55) sees world as the ‘controlling agency inward life, the source of fertility, of prosperity, [and] of survival [. . . .] Moreover the [Earth must give an concern human relationship of all that takes spot on [her] surface. [She] reports to God the actions of the living, non only of humans, but also of beasts. Hence, the somebody who is on goodness terms amongst the [Earth] (and ancestors) is also on goodness terms amongst God.’ This belief scheme has generated a conceptual frame in which the Dagaaba make non relate to their environs through an ideology of domination, but rather through responsive negotiation.
In relation to the Tengbane, Dagaaba also have got the Sagbane (Father Sky). But dissimilar the Tengbane who is
responsible for many things that brand human life what it is, Sagbane is responsible for rain, sunshine, and moonlight, too the unseen energies of stars, thunder too lightning. Even though Sagbane is the Father, he is secondary inward importance to Tengbane during invocatory prayers of Dagaaba. Tengbane comes second to Naangmen. It is also on concern human relationship of Sagbane’s secondary spot that His priest, the Saadaana, does non characteristic really much inward Dagaaba daily existence, too the business office is non found inward every settlement. It is to Tengbane that daily libations are poured. Tengbane is Goddess, too the Mother of Bagre; she must not live polluted. When Tengbane is polluted, efforts are initiated to perform the appropriate too necessary
sacrifices for the restoration of the broken residuum betwixt the self, the community, Tengbane, the spirit
world, too finally amongst Nangmen. Because Tengbane covers the earth’s surface, it becomes the universal
altar upon which humans, represented yesteryear Dagaaba, gather to pray for rain, cure to epidemics, victory in
wars, goodness harvests, or the settlement of a novel village. It is to Tengbane that immigrants are taken for
induction into the clan. It is for these reasons too others likewise many to enumerate hither that the High Priest of Tengbane, the Tengdaana, holds the highest socio-spiritual too moral authorisation inward whatsoever Dagaaba village. Each settlement of, say, 300 to 1,000 people has an “earth-shrine” (tengbane) too an earth-priest (tengdaana) which is usually situated inward a grove inward a substitution constituent of the settlement. Sacrifices are performed yesteryear an earth-priest too his assistants, also yesteryear patriclan representatives. In addition, anyone may brand sacrifices to the world simply yesteryear edifice a little mound yesteryear the path leading to the shrine.
Certain prohibitions are linked amongst the earth-shrine; for instance large sacrifices must live made if people shed i another’s blood, or if someone commits suicide. It is also a serious offence to have got sexual activity out-of-doorsThe complex cosmological human relationship Dagaaba have got amongst Tengbane is reflected inward the mediatory role played yesteryear the Tengdaana too Tengbane betwixt the people too Naangmen. It must live stressed hither that Dagaaba have got as many Tengbama (plural for Tengbane) too Tengdaamba (plural for Tengdaana) as at that spot are settlements. This does non inward anyway signal whatsoever conflictual relationships amongst the Tengbane. The diverse Tengbama stand upwardly for settlement patterns, too must live seen as parishes of the same Goddess. Each Tengdaana too then becomes a parish priest, performing the same functions, amongst local variation, to an omnipresent too omniscient Tengbane
In monastic tell to exhibit how of import the higher upwardly human relationship is, it is necessary to consider the role of the ancestral spirits inward the environs as narrated inward Bagre. The ancestral spirits piece of work inward alliance amongst or against the Kontongbilii, the initiative off nonhuman creatures inward the environs to come upwardly to the assistance of humans. They learn Dagaaba everything nigh survival: how to grow food, hunt, brand weapons, cook, brand beer, too fifty-fifty start Bagre itself. Kontongbilii, together amongst the ancestral spirits learn the Dagaaba nigh their environs through dreams too visions. For instance, they learn traditional healers nigh the importance of sure plants as sources of medicine. Hence, Dagaaba perceive plants as living beings amongst spirits of their own. Plants also provide humans amongst food, fuel, too medicine. Subsequently, to disrespect too maltreat plants tin live dangerous, because plants make strike dorsum amongst diseases. For instance, a somebody who indiscriminately destroys woodlots tin live sick from what is called ‘tree bite.’ Animals, the Bagre narrative tells us, learn nigh the medicinal too toxic values of plants from animals (ll.2320-2469). It is from plants that nosotros acquire poisons such as strophanthus for toxicant for arrowheads, too to care for guinea worm infection. From the same plants nosotros acquire medicine to halt nascence blood, too facilitate childbirth.
As indicated earlier, Bagre performance coincides inward most cases amongst Kpangkyaanee (autumn), too Uonii (Dry Season). With less piece of work on the farms, too amongst plenty of food, people are inward a festive mood. Bagre performance also is timed amongst moontide so that inter-clan too intra-clan socialization is facilitated. Consequently, Bagre calendars commence amongst the outset of harvest, fifty-fifty though novel harvests are forbidden to the initiates until they graduate. The most of import crop’s initiative off fruit is the shea, which becomes mature inward June. In determining when Bagre flavor tin live announced, the elders resort to the legend of the fruitbat. In this legend, the fruitbat, too other animals too birds as Bagre elders aid humans inward their spiritual journey:
"And inward Bagre,
our elders
are many.’
‘What make you lot hateful yesteryear many?’
‘You saw that
inward Bagre
at that spot was the large fruit-bat.
He’s our Bagre
elder.
The belibaar bird
is i of our Bagre creatures.
The kyaalipio bird
is i of our Bagre creatures.
The large frog
is i of our Bagre creatures.
The damdamwule bird
is i of our Bagre creatures.
The crown bird
is i of our Bagre creatures.’
‘What’s an elder?’
‘I tell you,
all winged creatures
too the featherless cock.’
(Goody 1972: Bagre Degre-- Dirty Bagre ll. 4550-4579)
At this stage, initiates commence their pedagogy on the roles played yesteryear the diverse animals inward Bagre, too thus inward human survival. The large fruitbat knows when the initiative off shea fruits are mature. By observing its behavior, the elders are able to know the exact fourth dimension to denote the flavor without breaking whatsoever spiritual taboos. In this case, stuff scientific discipline is of no significance since machines tin only gauge time, which would soundless non live accurate taking into consideration the variables of uncertainties inward nature. But the fruit-bat’s eating habits give the people a fourth dimension precision inward which to act. The fruit-bat ‘will know the fourth dimension / to fetch the fruit / inward the night’ (Goody 1972: ll. 4591-93), eats the fruit, leaves the seed for the elders to see, too and then they volition initiate their preparations for the Bagre.
The role of the damdamwule amid Dagaaba, whose sole life depends on rain-fed agricultural practices, is inward its powerfulness to know when the rains are due too to portion this knowledge amongst humans to permit them know that Sieong is here. The damdamwule also acts as an agricultural extension officer, telling the people through its song, when to sow what too when to halt sowing. Those who pass upwardly to recognize its pedagogy of nature through its music sow inward vain (Goody 1972: ll. 4611-40). The weather-wise damdamwule is helped yesteryear the n birime (featherless fowl). He or she wakes upwardly the people at dawn, during Sieong, to go to their farms. It performs this role yesteryear beating its wings early on inward the morning. The belibaar knows when Kpangkyaanee is close too returns ‘from the pelting side / too flies / where the Sun sets’ (Goody 1972: ll. 4651-53) to warn people to commence preparing their barns for harvest, too the Bagre. It is thus through the migratory movements of this plane that the elders are able to denote the Bagre too to spot ritual prohibitions on the initiates.
Reenactment of the Hunt at the 2009 Kobine festival inward Lawra.
The kyaalipio wakes upwardly women at dawn during Bagre catamenia to go too fetch the H2O used inward brewing
the beer for the Bagre ceremony (Goody 1972: ll. 4670-88) before it is muddy yesteryear wild boars. Wild
boars are also considered spirit beings associated amongst Bagre. Bagre is a purgatorial journeying to a rebirth
too hence it has prohibitions that include sexual abstinence for the neophytes, the eating of sure foods,
too full general leisure. The virile somebody crown-bird calls the Bagre members to acquire upwardly from their slumber too feed
the children at midnight, so that from too then on they tin commence a fast (Goody 1972: ll. 4689-4713). Then
at that spot is the old virile somebody guinea fowl who tells of the flowering of beans. This way, the elders are able to
denote the arrival of Bagre. In a way, the old guinea cock’s uncovering of edible bean flowers inward his farm,
cross checks the accuracy of timing of Bagre amongst the large fruit bat’s uncovering of shea fruits. Other birds
also business office inward the service of Bagre Mother, Tengbane, too Bagre Father, Sagbane.
In add-on to the way inward which feathered creatures are treated inward the Bagre ceremony, other animals play of import roles. Some of these animals are spirit animals too are thus prohibited to Bagre. They include the duo (wild boar), the sienee (porcupine), the sasere (grass-cutter), too mokpaangoo (bush guinea-fowl).
There are no reasons given inward the narrative why these are prohibited, but nosotros make non demand to search far for
the reason. These are totemic animals, too it is non allowed for i to kill a clan totem animate beingness nether any
circumstance. In contrast to the prohibited animals, at that spot are sure animals that are regarded as fit offering to the Bagre deity. They include, korenga (partridge), soangaa (rabbit/hare), kyie (squirrel), walaa (antelope). Reasons for selecting these as acceptable to the Bagre are uncertain.
It is clear from what I have got said higher upwardly that plants, animals, insects, too spirit beings play a really important role inward the Bagre performance. These roles aid to shape the spiritual, moral, intellectual, too cultural characters of Dagaaba youth. They also initiate the construction of a positive environmental consciousness amid them. For instance, unless the ceremony of the shea butter is performed, whatsoever elbow grease at outset the Bagre performance volition live fraught amongst danger (Goody 1972: ll.780-960). Consequently, the shea tree too its fruits, too the role the fruit bat plays, cannot live considered purely from a materialist economical perspective, too cultural backwardness. Yes, the shea tree has a lot of economical importance to the Dagaaba. But its ritual importance is what has ensured its survival inward the human face upwardly of worsening environmental degradation. It is also of import to recognize the spiritual links betwixt the people, the bat, too the tree. Without this recognition the tree volition live destroyed when its economical importance is no longer really relevant, too its role as protector of the soil volition live terminated.
In addition, the fruitbat’s ambiguous location as a winged mammal, too as i who sees inward the night, gives testimony to its importance inward discovering the initiative off fruits of the shea tree. It is carnivorous too herbivorous, too hangs upside downwardly dissimilar other winged creatures. Thus, it breaks all the boundaries associated amongst animals too birds. For this reason, it is the eldest amid the non-human elders of the Bagre. The fruit bat throws the seed of the shea fruit into the farms of humans. This enables the elders to view too commence the physical care for of announcing the Bagre. The fruit bat’s activity also helps disperse the seeds of the tree, too yesteryear that activity it helps to expand the natural vegetation. Thus, the events carried yesteryear the fruit bat, too all the other animals, insects, too birds displace humans toward a revelatory recognition of their total dependence on these other creatures. This dependence yesteryear humans on non-human subjects is what is too then re-enacted inward the Bagre performance toward securing human happiness, health, wealth, piety, too social mobility yesteryear Dagaaba inward their otherwise harsh environs (Goody 1972: ll.922-29).
Dagaare Music
While the music on this recording is the facial expression of a distinct ethnolinguistic group, the Dagaaba,
nevertheless, have got had long historical, social, cultural too linguistic ties amongst other peoples of the northern
parts of Ghana, such as the Sisaala, the Waala, the Dagomba, the Frafra, the Kasena, the Builsa, the Kusaasi too the Mamprusi. Thus, the musical cultures of the part portion sure features. For instance,
the main musical instrument of the northwestern constituent of the the world is the xylophone, which may live supported by
a drum or a drum ensemble, too the scales are largely of the hemitonic too anhemitonic pentatonic types,
that is, 5 banker's complaint scales that include half-steps too those that make not.
Music-making amid the Dagaaba, similar other peoples of the region, is an intrinsic constituent of social life.
Certain types of music too repertories of vocal may live associated amongst particular occasions, cults,
cooperative piece of work groups too organized labour, historic catamenia groups, too rites of passage. For instance, praisesongs
(danno ng) are performed regularly as a tribute to the master copy piece other types of music are exclusive
to the rituals too ceremonies of the imperial court, such as an investiture, an assembly inward the courtroom or
audience chamber, or a funeral. Particular types of music are identified amongst the religious cult called Bagre which holds an annual festival; or amongst traditional associations, such as the kp 3ta a , which comprises
reciprocal aid groups for immature farmers. The "anle e " social trip the lite fantastic is reserved for females; the fe roo is a
trip the lite fantastic performed yesteryear the youth; piece the "se3gaana a" is danced mainly yesteryear the elderly There are warrior
songs (zoore yi e le), as good as songs for farming, grinding, pounding, floor-beating, plastering, hunting
(waaron g yi e le) too herding.
There are special songs for initiation ceremonies, funerals (kobie), ritual sacrifice, weddings, too populace naming ceremonies that occur 7 days after the nascence of a kid (referred to as ‘outdooring’). On some occasions, sure types of music may live prohibited, for instance, the ba wa a is non performed when a fellow member of the community is seriously sick or when someone has died. Music may also occur as the spontaneous facial expression of private community members, such as the music for the solo bamboo flute (wu le e ), the harp (p 3na a or koriduo inward Nandom), or the lullaby (bi-ya gleyi e le).
Finally, music is used to welcome too honour of import guests too visitors.
The Bawaa Dance
Group dancing is intrinsic to ritual too ceremony too is an of import marking of social competence. In
order, then, for an private to participate inward a ritual he or she must live able to dance. Group dancing is
also an of import way of maintaining community solidarity. As a Dagaare vocal says: ‘If one’s kid does
non know how to dance, it does non belong to the community’.
The bawaa is a telephone telephone to immature people to brand trip the lite fantastic too music together, indeed the term "bawaa " literally means, "young people, come upwardly together" (Kobina Saighoe:1984). The bawaa trip the lite fantastic then, is a favourite
pastime amid the Dagaaba youth. It oftentimes occurs simply as a spontaneous facial expression of immature members
of the community when an chance arises. Mostly, however, the bawaa trip the lite fantastic is incorporated into
diverse celebrations, including: rites of passage marking birth, puberty, union too death, or to honour
an individual.
The bawaa dancers also brand upwardly the chorus which comprises both immature males too females, including
children. One of the dancers, commonly a virile somebody amongst the most science or experience as a dancer or instrumentalist, takes the role of Pb vocalizer called the ba wa -ngmaara or the bawa-kye3r3 (‘the cutter’). The dancers are accompanied yesteryear 2 xylophonists, i plays a ‘male’ musical instrument (gyil-daa) too the other plays a ‘female’ musical instrument (gyil-nyanngaa), and a drummer who plays a single-headed drum (ganggaa).
The leader of the dance-chorus decides when i vocal ends too when a novel i begins. The chorus,
called bawa-sagereba (or sagra: singular ‘one who agrees’), responds to the calls from the leader. The
dancers apparel metallic leg jingles (kyeem e), beaded girdles (l ebie ), metallic finger cymbals (pe ra a pl. perre ) and
sometimes metallic wrist jingles. Uniforms are sometimes worn yesteryear the dancers but this may non live so inward other cases.
The telephone telephone to trip the lite fantastic commonly begins amongst the clapping of finger cymbals. The 2 xylophone players, who
sit down reverse each other amongst the drummer side yesteryear side to them, commence piece the crowd gathers about the dance
area. The dancers too then acquire inward the expanse too shape a circle about the musicians, dancing inward either an anticlockwise or clockwise direction.
The main constituent of the trip the lite fantastic consists of an alternation betwixt 2 sections. The initiative off department is called the See`o during which they perform a vocal inward telephone telephone too answer fashion. This is followed yesteryear a to a greater extent than intense
department called a` emmo` (‘to spot in’). During this section, the trip the lite fantastic becomes to a greater extent than intense as the dancers
synchronize their steps amongst heavy syncopated accents too displays of skill. In Accra, a exercise has
developed whereby individuals or pairs acquire out the circle for competitive displays of skill. The whole dance
ceremony oftentimes has a ‘director’ called the bawaa-naa who does non participate inward the trip the lite fantastic lawsuit itself,
but who oversees the entire performance. This cycle is repeated whatsoever number of times for each song, until
such times as the leader signals a novel vocal too the cycle begins again.
When the dancers exhibit signs of tiring i of the xylophone players gives a signal to destination the dance. In the
hamlet setting the dancers simply stop, piece inward Accra a to a greater extent than formal organisation exists whereby the
dancers acquire out the circle inward a unmarried line. Generally, a performance lasts betwixt 20 too 30 minutes. (click hither for Bawaa dance: http://shelf3d.com/4pOzOarwnZI#Bewaa Dance Of The Dagaaba People.)
Kobine Dance
Kobine is a traditional trip the lite fantastic too festival unique to the Lawra expanse of northward western Ghana. The trip the lite fantastic too the festival named after it are celebrated inward September too Oct to grade the destination of a successful harvest.
Festival.
The festival of Kobine lasts 4 days, amongst the initiative off twenty-four hours usually reserved for visiting spot unit of measurement too friends. The 2d too 3rd days are the official holidays. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 procession of the spot unit of measurement heads is accompanied yesteryear groups of younger people dressed to stand upwardly for hunters too elephants.
Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 number of speeches are made yesteryear dignitaries too other guests of honour before the Kobine trip the lite fantastic contest begins.
Ethnic Dagaaba people performing Kobine trip the lite fantastic atKobine festival inward Lawra, Upper West Region
The Kobine music is produced from kuor, a drum musical instrument amongst a base of operations made from a gourd, too dalar, a smaller drum made from the cervix of a clay pot.
The men usually clothes inward beautifully decorated skirts, but are usually bare-chested to demonstrate their masculinity as good as their flexibility piece they dance. Other ornaments such as headgear too caps are worn. The women clothes similarly to the men, except they to a greater extent than oftentimes than non volition apparel a blouse. Both men too women apparel a band of bells about the ankles to accentuate their rhythmic moves when they dance.
The trip the lite fantastic itself consists of quick rhythmic moves especially amongst the torso or upper body. At the peak moves catamenia of the dance, the women volition to a greater extent than oftentimes than non cutting inward too trip the lite fantastic inward forepart of their favorite virile somebody dancer.
Dagaaba Gyil
The Dagaare Xylophone (Gyil)
Dagaare xylophones are commonly played inward pairs, facing each other. The Dagaare xylophones (gyi l, pl. gy ile ) recorded inward Kogri-Ullo have got 18 keys piece those inward the Dagaare social clubs inward Accra have got 17 keys. The keys (gyi l bi `r, lit. "seed") are tied together amongst antelope enshroud too mounted over a enshroud cushion on a wooden frame. Gourd resonators (ko`or, pl. ko`o) graduated inward size are suspended nether each key. Two or 3 holes nigh 2-3cm inward diameter are bored into each gourd too covered amongst a spider’s egg instance ( pempenee)
to increment the resonance too to make a buzzing effect.
The in conclusion too lowest key (za` ngbaal) does non have got a resonator as it is used for playing a repeated rhythmic ostinato (kpaaroo) The other keys are played amongst a wooden beater (gyildoo`le) nigh 30cm long, covered amongst prophylactic at the head. The tuning of the Dagaare xylophone is pentatonic (anhemitonic) too has a arrive at of 2 octaves. (further readings: http://www.michaelvercelli.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Vercelli_DMA_Document1.pdf)
The accompanying drums are commonly single-headed (gangare ), though a gourd drum (koo`re) usually
reserved for funerals, was used inward the Accra performances
Death too Afterlife
There is a full general belief inward life after death, too funeral ceremonies are the agency yesteryear which the actual
passage of a human beingness from the Land of the Living (tengzu) to the Land of Dead (dapaarewie) is effected. The dead go across the river of decease amongst the assistance of a ferryman; during the trip, those who have got led evil lives may live punished for their misdeeds. In the course of study of the serial of funeral ceremonies, a dead adult man also becomes an ancestor, amongst a shrine that volition thereafter have regular offerings of nutrient too imbibe from his descendants, especially from those who have got inherited from him.
Additionally, ancestor reverence too abide by for the belief inward the powerfulness of the ancestors to protect, guide, too offering showers of approbation to the living, may live considered as the most of import aspects of the human relationship betwixt the living too their supernatural agents. The ancestors are never dead. They merely
go on to live inward the other world of spirits too serve as media betwixt their relatives too the spirits too gods.
Funeral: Death, peculiarly of infants, was frequent. Those who have got non yet been weaned are non mourned inward the usual way, except yesteryear their mothers, because they are deemed to live wandering spirits, rather than humans. Precautions are taken against their render to this earth.
For all others, however, the funeral rites are long too complex, too they involve the participation of many people. All funeral rituals amid the Dagaaba involve musicians, mourners too the assembled villagers too guests from neighboring villages. The music grouping usually consists of xylophonists, drummers too singers. The singers improvise, recreate too reproduce through their songs the history of the spot unit of measurement upwardly to the decease that resulted inward the separation. The theme of the songs is a combination of the deeds too sorrows of the family. The best vocalizer is i who tin stir the maximum plane of grief inward the chief-mourners (kotuodeme, the closest relatives of the diseased) yesteryear his alternative of words. The effect of the words of the singers is echoed too amplified yesteryear the tunes of the xylophones too the sounds of the drums, moving the community to grieve freely.
Wailing, screaming, groaning, running, jumping, dancing too singing are all acceptable ways of expressing grief. Shedding of tears is highly recommended too admired. The kotuodeme are expected to shed a lot of tears too bear inward a way that stirs sympathizers to portion the grief to the fullest yesteryear shedding as many tears as
possible.
The dead person, dressed inward ceremonial outfit, is seated on a high wooden stool called paala, too surrounded yesteryear her/his valuable possessions. The stool is constructed from a special form of tree. The singers, drummers too xylophonists are usually non far from the corpse too the entire funeral expanse is marked yesteryear turmoil too turbulence, as people deed out their grief piece others assay to command themselves inward monastic tell to calm downwardly some of the kotuodeme from fourth dimension to time. The kotuodeme are tagged amongst ropes (much similar leashes) for identification purposes too for slowly command yesteryear people who may want to calm them downwardly yesteryear holding on to the rope. The to a greater extent than contributions too ropes i sent to other kotuodeme inward the past, the to a greater extent than ropes too contributions i is probable to have when i becomes a kotuosobo (singular for kotuodeme).
Reciprocity is the guiding regulation here. Although many people are probable to halt yesteryear at a funeral before continuing their daily business, the to a greater extent than funerals the deceased too kotuodeme attended, the to a greater extent than probable the funeral volition live crowded yesteryear sympathizers from all walks of life. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 well-attended funeral is an indication that the household has a high social reputation.
The length of funerals varies betwixt i to 5 days. The in conclusion twenty-four hours is marked yesteryear the burial of the dead person. There are usually designated grave diggers too specially trained people who make the actual burying, for it is believed the dead is capable of preventing i from exiting the grave i time the burial physical care for is nigh to end. Renowned witches too medicine people are peculiarly notorious for challenging the under-takers. In such instances, only as toughened witches or medicine people who have got been trained to bury the dead volition live entrusted amongst the chore at hand.
Highly respected elders are usually buried inward the middle of the spot unit of measurement chemical compound or inward forepart of the spot unit of measurement solid rather than inward the cemetery. This is to hold them unopen to the spot unit of measurement who are constantly beingness watched over yesteryear the dead elderberry or ancestor. From fourth dimension to time, libation may live poured too sacrifices made on the grave. On other informal occasions, the grave may serve as a resting spot for naps too for relaxing too chatting. The elders make non play an of import only after their death, but also piece they are alive.
Sources:http://www.linguistics.hku.hk/staff/Bodomo/JDS/2004/JDS2004_Kuwabong.pdf
http://www.linguistics.hku.hk/staff/Bodomo/JDS/JDS2002_Alenuma.pdf
http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3458001518.html
Economic too Sociocultural Aspects of Cowrie Currency of the Dagaaba of Northwestern Republic of Ghana Aspects
EMMANUEL YIRIDOE
University of Guelph, Canada
The cowrie currency, the dominant medium of substitution inward Republic of Ghana before the introduction of the West African Pound and, later, the Cedi, is at nowadays only a vestigial relic inward virtually all of modern Republic of Ghana except amid the Dagaaba. This newspaper provides an insider's perspective on the economical importance too on the unique role of the cowrie currency amid the Dagaaba that explains its perpetual presence. Cultural uses create a derived demand for cowries. Government policies outcome inward debasement of the cedi and, together amongst monetary characteristics of the cowrie, Pb to contest betwixt the cedi too the cowrie.
Dagaaba people of Jirapa celebrating their Bong Ngo festival. Courtesy http://adbarnes17.blogspot.com/
The concentration of their settlement is found on their the world proper, called Dagaabaland. Dagaabaland stretches from the Northwestern corner of Republic of Ghana to the West banks of the Black Volta River inward Burkina Faso too inward the Ivory Coast. Kuukure (1985:23) aptly describes the location of the Dagaaba as follows:
"The Dagarti people... live on both sides of the Black Volta River, which at that dot forms
the boundary betwixt the Republic of Republic of Ghana too Republic of Cote d'Ivoire too Upper Volta [now
Burkina Faso]. These people live largely inward the Northwestern corner of Ghana, spreading
across the border into Upper Volta, correct upwardly to the 12 parallel north. They are
concentrated peculiarly about the expanse where longitude 3 westward too latitude xi north
cross. But they lean out along the Volta, practically astride longitude 3 west, southward to
latitude l0 north. As a outcome of colonisation, which split them upwardly into zones of British and
French influence, they at nowadays live inward 2 different nations, namely Republic of Ghana too Upper Volta,
non to cite the sprinkling of them cutting off inward Ivory Coast." Note: Upper Volta is the onetime yell of Burkina Faso.
Dagaaba dancers at their annual Bong Ngo festival at Jirapa, Upper West Region, Ghana. Courtesy http://adbarnes17.blogspot.com/
The Dagaaba (Dagarti/Dagao) are renowned for beingness the in conclusion people inward the modern world to merchandise too transact commerce amongst precious cowries. Cowries are soundless used as a shape of safety bonds just as people merchandise inward gold, inward barter merchandise as good as a shape of bride-price inward Dagawie (Dagaabaland).
The actual yell of these people is Dagaaba or Lo Dagaa but most outsiders telephone telephone them Dagarti. One historian, describing the onetime usage of "Dagarti" to refer to this community yesteryear colonials, writes :
"The yell 'Dagarti' appears to have got been coined yesteryear the initiative off Europeans to see the region, from the vernacular root dagaa. Correctly 'Dagari' is the yell of the language, 'Dagaaba' or 'Dagara' that of the people, too 'Dagaw' or 'Dagawie' that of the land." They are related to the Birifor people too the Dagaare Diola. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 somebody from Dagarti or Dagaaba tribe is known as Dagao.
Dagao adult woman from Bonduku inward Ivory Coast
Historically, the origins of Dagaaba people has been a complex mystery to tackle. However, the evidence of oral tradition is that the Dagaaba are an outgrowth of the Mole-Dagbani grouping (either Mossi or Dagomba) which migrated to the semi-arid Sahel part inward the fourteenth century CE. They are believed to have got farther migrated to the lower northern constituent of the part inward the seventeenth century. In his article "Customary Law of the Dagara” of Northern Ghana: Indigenous Rules or a Social Construction," published inward 2002 edition of Journal of Dagaare Studies, Vol 2, Dr Benjamin Kunbuor quoting other sources posited that "The dominant thesis has it that the Dagara are a rebel grouping that migrated away from the autocratic dominion of Dagbon, nether the legendary Na Nyanse (see Tuurey, 1982; Lentz, 1997).
Dagaaba people performing Bewaa trip the lite fantastic Kakube Festival at Nandom
The Dagaaba people amongst total population of over 2 i chiliad 1000 people have got the larger percent of its population residing inward Ghana. They are found inward Upper West Region of Republic of Ghana too reside predominantly inward Lawra, Nadowli, Jirapa, Nandom, Lambussie, Kaleo, Bole, Birifu, Tugu, Daffiama, Wechiau too Hamile. Large communities are also found inward the towns of Wa, Bogda, Babile, Tuna, Han too Nyoli.
Burkina Faso has the 2d highest concentration of Dagaaba people too they tin live found in Sud-Ouest Region, especially inward Ioba Province, but also inward Poni, Bougouriba, Sissili, too Mouhoun provinces.
In Republic of Cote d'Ivoire where at that spot are smaller concentration of Dagaaba; they tin live found inward the districts of Bonduku too Buna.
Dagaaba people dancing to gyil (Xylophone) music at Nandom, Upper West Region, Ghana
Among the ethnic groups inward Northern Ghana, the Dagaaba or Dagarti are number i ethnic grouping known for their social mobility from the North to the South long before British colonization of Gold Coast (Ghana). There is a saying/proverb amid the Dagaaba that "ka biε ba yor, u kun bang dunia (lit. if a kid does non travel, he/she volition non know the world). In his piece of work published in Nordic Journal of African Studies 17(1): 1–19 (2008) entitled "”Ka Biε Ba Yor": Labor Migration amid the Dagaaba of the Upper West Region of Ghana, 1936– 1957" Gariba B. Abdul-Korah asserted that Dagaaba migration to the Southern Republic of Ghana was zippo new, as it has been erroneously claimed yesteryear some historians that it started in the tardily 1890s, when the British colonial direction inward the northward gave impetus to Dagaaba migration yesteryear recruiting labour to piece of work inward the south. He posited that "Dagaaba migration to southern Republic of Ghana betwixt 1936 too 1957 was an peril – “to view the world” too gain experience. It did non commence amongst colonial conquest; it had its roots inward the precolonial yesteryear – inward the slave trade, but to a greater extent than especially, inward the catamenia next Asante’s defeat of Gonja (18th century) through the Zabarima too Samorian invasions of the northwest inward the tardily 19th century. Although the imposition of colonial dominion may have got transformed the nature too pattern of migration, Dagaaba migration to southern Republic of Ghana during the colonial period, was non new."
The Dagaaba (Dagarti) are famous for steadily gained popularity of the gyil (xylophone) used inward playing indigenous too folkloric songs. Although the the world inhabited yesteryear the Dagarti is far from whatsoever major city, musicians have got brought the gyil to national too international audiences. Communicating as performers too teachers across cultural divides is oftentimes challenging. In recent times i of their contemporary Hiplife music creative somebody is "Batman Samini aka Emmanuel Andrew Samini, the MOBO Awards 2006 winner from Ghana.
Dagarti adult man too i of Ghana`s best Musicians, Batman Samini
Like the Tallensi too Sisaala, the Dagaaba admit the value too the tremendous powerfulness of the the world (Tengan 1989). The Dagaaba or Dagara farther admit that the world belongs solely to the Tengan (Earth Shrine). They also view pelting as an indispensable source of life. It is desired too accorded great respect. As amongst the Sisaala, the Dagara are subsistence farmers who depend primarily on rainfed agriculture (Tengan 1989). From this province of affairs of dependence on rainfed agriculture emerge many taboos connected amongst the land, the pelting too the Tengan. One of these taboos is the Tako daa.
The Dagarti are also known for their whirling "Tigari" trip the lite fantastic (healing ritual dance) too Bawa trip the lite fantastic as good as the Bagre too the Dyoro Secret Societies.
The Dagaaba shares friendly jokes based on "dog head" amongst their immature adult man Mabia group, the Frafra people.
Ethnic Dagaaba dancer
The Dagaaba people have got produced some prominent people for Republic of Ghana as a nation. The listing include Chief Simon_Diedong_Dombo, a King, politician, instructor too the Parliamentary Leader during the initiative off Republic of Ghana, Cardinal Peter Proeku Dery, an assistant traditional (fetish) priest turned Ghanaian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church, Ambrose P Dery, onetime attorney-General of Republic of Ghana too Member of Parliament for Lawra, Naa Abeifaa Karbo, traditional ruler, sharp political leader too founding fellow member of Northern Peoples Party, Jatoe Kaleo, traditional ruler, sharp political leader too founding fellow member of Northern Peoples Party, Peter Tenganabang Nanfuri aka Naa Ansoleh Ganaa II, onetime Inspector General of Police (IGP) inward Republic of Ghana too the Paramount Chief of the Jirapa Traditional Area, Bede_Ziedeng, Ghanaian political leader too the onetime Upper West Regional Minister of Ghana, Professor Edmund Nminyem Delle, renowned dermatologist, sharp entrepreneur cum political leader too onetime chairman of opposition Convention Peoples Party (CPP) of the tardily Ghanaian leader Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, Alban Bagbin, Ghanaian politician, onetime Minister of Health inward the Ghana, onetime minority leader too the Member of Parliament for Nadowli West, Benjamin Kunbuor, Ghanaian politician, police force lecturer, Member of Parliament for Lawra, onetime Minister for Justice too Attorney General, Minister for Health, Minister for Interior too currently government minister of Defence, Prof. Adams B. Bodomo, professor of African Studies (African Languages too Literatures), prolific author too publisher/editor of Journal of Dagaare studies, etc.
Chief Simon Diedong Dombo (SD Dombo), ethnic Dagaaba/Dagarti man, i of the Ghana`s earliest most celebrated too charismatic politician, renowned master copy of Duori too the founding fellow member too leader of the Northern People’s Party (NPP) too Pogress Party (UP), which off-shot is the Ghana`s biggest opposition party,New Patriotic Party (NPP). Dombo was one-time the only lone vociferous opposition vocalism inward Republic of Ghana when Dr Kwame Nkrumah declared Republic of Ghana as One-Party State. His yell was popularized as "Domocracy."l
Clusters of Dagaaba
The terms "LoDagaa" too "Lobi-Dagarti" (or Dagara) are used for a cluster of peoples situated across the frontier of Burkina Faso too Ghana, originally grouped together yesteryear Labouret, next the usage of Delafosse too other francophones. In this cluster, Labouret included the "true Lobi" (or those the Birifor telephone telephone the "LoWilisi") about Gaoua, who (according to Westermann too Bryan 1952) speak a Dogon-type linguistic communication (the inclusion of Dogon is disputed); the Birifor (or LoBirifor) to their east, who speak Dagara, a Mole-Dagbane language; too 4 smaller groups: the Teguessié, the Dorossié, the Dian, too the Gan. The Teguessié (or Tégué) speak a linguistic communication of the Kulango Group too are sometimes thought of as the autochthons; they were Masters of the world inward much of the area. The other little groups speak languages related to Lobiri, as make the Padoro too perhaps the Komono; Dian too Lobiri (in the east) are to a greater extent than closely related, as is the western group.
Dagaaba women
Subsequently, Père (1988) adopted the francophone usage of Lobi ("la région Lobi") to screen the peoples of the Gaoua District of Burkina Faso, including non only the Jãa (Dian); the Gaàn (Gan); the Teésé (Teguessié); the Dòcsè (or Dorossié, but also the Kùlãgo [Kulango]); the Dagara (divided into Dagara Lobr too Dagara Wiili [Oulé]); too the Pwa (formerly known as the Pugula or Pougouli), who speak a Grusi language. Indeed, because she is dealing amongst the region, she also includes the Wala too the Dagara-Jula inward her account.
Alban Kingsford Sumani Bagbin, ethnic Dagaaba, Ghanaian politician, onetime Minister of Health inward the Ghana, onetime minority leader too the Member of Parliament for Nadowli West.
The problems of ethnic classification inward this expanse are several. In the initiative off place, names differ, depending on whether they are used yesteryear francophones or yesteryear anglophones. The Lobi described yesteryear Rattray (1932) include the Birifor as good as the Dagara of Labouret. Second, the names have got changed over time. People who were known as "Lobi" inward the Lawra District of Republic of Ghana at the outset of the nineteenth century are at nowadays "Dagara." Third, the names themselves oftentimes make non pull distinct ethnic groups. There are many differences inward custom too organisation betwixt neighboring settlements, too these settlements may live referred to yesteryear the 2 quasi-directional terms, "Lo" (Lobi, west) too "Dagaa" (east), to distinguish different practices (for example, the usage of xylophones). Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 settlement may spot amongst its eastern neighbors on i occasion (as Dagaa) too amongst its western ones (as Lo) on another. This role participant usage has led Goody to spot a spectrum of peoples, the LoDagaa, who usage these names for reference to themselves too others. They are, from westward to east, the truthful Lobi, the Birifor or LoBirifor, the LoPiel (around Nandom) too the LoSaala (around Lawra), the Dagara (around Dano), the LoWiili (around Birifu), both DagaaWiili (around Tugu), too the Dagaba or Dagarti. The Wala speak the Dagaba linguistic communication too constitute a little province that has its origins eastward inward Dagomba. That province established itself as ruler over the southern Dagaba too some Grusi-speaking peoples. In the west, a branch of the ruling dynasty extended across the Black Volta to Buna, where they adapted the local Kulango language. The LoPiel too the LoSaala are known to francophones as "Dagara" (or Dagara-Lobr), too they at nowadays to a greater extent than oftentimes than non usage this term rather than "Lobi" for self-reference because they have got been forced to assort themselves unambiguously for administrative purposes. That alter is widespread because "Dagara" is oftentimes a to a greater extent than prestigious term than "Lobi." The latter is associated inward many people's minds amongst the large lip plugs of gourd or metallic that are worn inward the westward (the easterners apparel lean metallic plugs) too amongst the stress that the westerners spot on matrilineal inheritance, nigh which modernizers (church, schools, law, some administrators) to a greater extent than oftentimes than non experience hostile too ambivalent.
Dr Benjamin Bewa-Nyog Kunbuor, Ethnic Dagaaba man, Ghanaian politician, police force lecturer, Member of Parliament for Lawra, onetime Minister for Justice too Attorney General, Minister for Health, Minister for Interior too currently government minister of Defence
Given these contextual, overlapping, too changing usages yesteryear the peoples themselves, role participant names are rarely satisfactory to signal "tribal" groups, yesteryear which nosotros refer to larger groupings of settlements amongst relatively homogeneous practices. These groups tin live distinguished, roughly from due east to west, as the Dagaba or Dagarti (around Jirapa); the LoPiel (around Nandom) too the LoSaala (around Lawra), both "Dagara Lobr" inward French; the DagaaWiili (around Legmoin too Tugu) too the LoWiili (around Birifu), both "Dagara Wiilé" inward French; the Birifor or LoBirifor (around Batié too inward western Gonja); too the Lobi or LoWiilisi (around Gaoua). There are, inward addition, the smaller populations of Gan, Dorossié, too Gian, who speak Lobi languages, too Teguessié, too who speak Kulango. These groups tin live collectively designated as the LoDagaa or Lobi-Dagarti cluster, at that spot beingness no argue to exclude the other Dagara-speaking peoples i time the Birifor have got been included amid the Lobi.
Dagaaba kids coming from the farm inward photo-shot amongst Kirstin, fellow member of Vetinarians Without Borders, at Nadowli, Upper West Region, Ghana. Courtesy http://vwbvsfstudentghana2010.blogspot.com/
Dagaaba Creation Story/Myth
The Dagaaba creation story tin live found in Bagre performance that demonstrates the spiritual importance of the environs to Dagaaba. According to Dannabang Kuwabong "Bagre informs us that humans were created from a combination of the soil (earth), okra (plants), God’s saliva (water), too the semen too eggs of flies too cats (animals). Seen this way, the human somebody is a configuration of the land, the animal, the spirit, too the flora too nosotros owe our lives to a preservation of the residuum betwixt us too these initiative off beings. In other words, animals, plants, spirits, too the the world must constantly live negotiated amongst as they have got a closer affinity amongst the divine who oversees everything. That explains why Dagaaba view spirituality inward every creation too situation."
Dagao adult man from Burkina Faso
Language
The Dagaaba speaks the Dagaare language ((also spelled Dagare, Dagari, Dagarti, Dagaran or, Dagao), which belongs to the Oti-Volta grouping of the Gur branch of the Niger-Congo linguistic communication spot unit of measurement (Swadesh 1966, Bendor-Samuel1971:144, Naden 1989).
Ethnic Dagao Cardinal Peter Poreku Dery.
Dagaare is a two-toned linguistic communication also referred to as Mabia subgroup of the branch of the Niger-Congo linguistic communication of West Africa. (Bodomo 1997, Bodomo 2000, Anttila too Bodomo 2001). It is spoken yesteryear nigh 2 i chiliad 1000 people, mainly inward Republic of Ghana but also inward neighbouring regions of West Africa, similar Burkina Faso too the Ivory Coast. Phonologically speaking, Dagaare too other Mabia languages, including Moore, Dagbane, Frafra, Kusaal, Mampruli too Buli, are marked yesteryear a preponderance of consonants too a scarcity of vowel sounds when compared to Indo-European languages, such as English linguistic communication too French (Bodomo, forthcoming). One distinctive phonological characteristic is the double joint of some consonants. These include labio-velar
stops similar /gb/ /kp/ too /ngm/. Such features, rare inward Indo-European languages, are a mutual characteristic in
many African languages. The labio-velar too velar sounds are partially complementary, as inward the alternate
causative/non-causative forms of the verbs k/ kp i, ‘die’ inward Dagaare. Regular allophones oftentimes involve /d/ too /r/, too /g/ too // across the diverse languages. There may also live limited cases of gratis variation as it is betwixt /h/ too /z/ inward the Dagaare word, ha a / za a , ‘all’.
There is the typological characteristic of vowel harmony inward Dagaare too many Mabia languages. Words similar ko go
(‘chair’), bi i ri (‘(‘children’), too tu u ro (‘digging’) are pronounced amongst tense or advanced natural language root vowels, piece words similar k)b) (‘bones’), biiri (‘to brew “pito” the 2d day’), tuur) (‘insulting’) are pronounced amongst lax or unadvanced natural language root vowels. Front rounded vowels, found inward languages similar French too Norwegian, too dorsum unrounded vowels are absent inward these languages, except when phonetically realized inward particular environments.
Syllabic nasality is also a typological characteristic inward these languages. These are realized inward some environments,
most oftentimes as pronouns too particles; as inward the instance of the Dagaare 3rd somebody pronoun /N/ as inward m `ba , (‘my father’), n`zu (‘my head’) too inward the Dagaare particle, -N which is a cliticized shape of the polarity
marker, la.
Peter Tenganabang Nanfuri aka Naa Ansoleh Ganaa II, Ethnic Dagarti adult man too onetime Inspector General of Police (IGP) inward Republic of Ghana too the Paramount Chief of the Jirapa Traditional Area inward his smock sitting inward the middle. Courtesy FH Communications Bureau
Dagaare too other Mabia languages primarily have got 2 tonal systems, high too low, (respectively marked
yesteryear sharp too grave diachritics on the sounds amongst contain them) amongst cases of downstep inward some of the
languages, i.e. subsequent high tones may non live as high as preceeding ones. These tones serve to express
both lexical too grammatical oppositions as inward the Dagaare verbs, da` (‘push’), /da` (‘buy’), too as inward the
declarative too hortative readings of pronouns e.g.u` kuli la yiri / `u` kuli la yiri ((‘He went home/ He should
go home’).
Dagaare, too its grouping of languages, usually manifest opened upwardly syllables. Both CV too CVC syllables tin be
reconstructed, but it is usually possible to insert a in conclusion syllable. Thus, the Dagaare verb ‘to leave’, may live realized either as bar` or bar i`. There are also dialectal differences amongst abide by to these 2 forms.
.An of import typological characteristic of these languages is the scheme of substantive classes. Noun class
manifestation is a mutual characteristic for Niger-Congo languages, but piece most of these languages usage a
prefixal pattern, i.e. cases inward which nominal inflections occur before, rather than, after the root, Mabia
languages mostly usage a scheme of grade suffixes. These are typically based on singular/plural alternations.
Most nouns be inward 3 forms: the root, the singular, too the plural. An instance is the Dagaare give-and-take for
‘woman/wife’: p)g- (root), p)ga (singular), p) gba (plural), amongst the farther vowel assimilation inward some
dialects to give us p)g)` too p)gb).
Bede Ziedeng, Ethnic Dagao too Ghanaian political leader too the onetime Upper West Regional Minister of Ghana
Another of import typological characteristic within Dagaare too its grouping of languages is verb morphology. In
most of these languages at that spot is a regular shape of marking perfective too imperfective aspects yesteryear adding
suffixes to the verbs, as inward zoe` ‘have run’ too zoro` ‘running’.
As far as possible, the diverse texts associated amongst the music on this recording are presented amongst tonal
transcriptions. For phrases too larger chunks of data, nosotros provide interlinear glossings. These glossings
provide interesting insights into the grammatical too communicative construction of the Dagaare language.
Finally, gratis translations follow the glosses to capture salient aspects of the linguistic too cultural meaning
behind these texts. This linguistic information transcription is an of import aspect for the analysis and
interpretation of the music texts. The next is an illustration:
Ka` Ne3` bi`eng wa` b)ng ba`waa tenee` paal`ong bi`e naa
COMP person Child. FOC NEG know ba`waa 1. PL area kid NEG
(‘If a kid doesn’t know how to trip the lite fantastic baawaa s/he cannot perhaps live a kid from our town.’)
Ethnic Dagao, Mr Ambrose Dery, Ghana`s onetime Attorney-Genera too government minister of Justice too a onetime Member of Parliament for Lawra
History
The Dagaaba have got occupied their introduce homeland for some 3 hundred years. H Labouret, inward his study of migration inward this area, suggests that the Dagaaba moved north, from due south of Wa, inward nigh 1680; G Tuurey (1982) holds that the Dagaaba were originally a grouping which split away from the Dagomba. See also Herbert (1976). Bodomo suggests that the Dagaaba, Mossi, Dagomba, Kusasi, Farefare, Mamprusi too others are direct descended from a mutual ancestor ethnolinguistic group, the Mabia.
In his article "Customary Law of the Dagara” of Northern Ghana: Indigenous Rules or a Social Construction," published inward 2002 edition of Journal of Dagaare Studies, Vol 2, Dr Benjamin Kunbuor quoting other sources posited that "The dominant thesis has it that the Dagara are a rebel grouping that migrated away from the autocratic dominion of Dagbon, nether the legendary Na Nyanse (see Tuurey, 1982; Lentz, 1997).Retinue og Dagaaba chiefs, drummers too dancers at annual Bong Ngo festival at Jirapa
The Lobi-Dagarti peoples are without whatsoever overarching tribal organisation or, strictly speaking, whatsoever territory. They displace non as large units, but as spot unit of measurement groups, sometimes into other ethnic areas, where they may live absorbed into the local population. Most of the groups to the westward of the Black Volta claim to have got been formerly settled to the due east of the river, inward what is at nowadays Ghana. From the eighteenth century on, they have got moved across the river. There appear to have got been Lobi as good as Dagaba inward the Wa expanse when the ruling dynasty arrived; the Jãa were for sure settled inward the Lawra expanse until, attracted yesteryear a sparsely populated part amongst plenty of farmland too wood make too nether force per unit of measurement area from other LoDagaa, mainly from the due south too southwest (but fifty-fifty from westward of the river), they crossed the Black Volta. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 minority of clans describe their origins from other regions.
One of the factors leading to the motion has been the search for to a greater extent than too improve land, next before hunting expeditions. Another factor has been the raids mounted yesteryear the states of the part (as good as yesteryear the occasional freebooters too adventurers) inward their search for slaves, partly for their ain usage but mainly to provide the Asante and, through them, the Europeans inward the south. The invaders on horseback terrified the inhabitants, who sometimes retaliated amongst poisoned arrows. Mainly, however, they fled, using the larger rivers. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 number of characteristics—their dispersed settlements of fortress-type houses, the women's lip plugs, their rejection of cloth, too their full general aggressiveness—have been attributed to the effects of such raids. In the tardily twentieth century houses are smaller, the mode of clothes is to a greater extent than "European," too less hostility is displayed.
The establishment of the international boundary has brought nigh a decline inward east-west migration. The main motion of the Lobi inward the tardily twentieth century has been of 2 kinds. The initiative off has been from the Lawra District to the vacant lands southward on the route to Kumasi, which many men have got traveled inward the dry out flavor as migrant laborers. Settlements that make nutrient for sale inward the markets have got grown upwardly from Wa due south to the northwest of Asante. The 2d movement, outset inward 1917, has been eastward across the Black Volta from the francophone territories to Ghana, where at that spot were fewer calls yesteryear the authorities on project services. Many Birifor moved into the sparsely populated lands of western Gonja, which had been decimated as a outcome of Samori's wars at the destination of the nineteenth century. These migrants have got proved to live much to a greater extent than aggressive, market-oriented farmers than their hosts, amongst whom at that spot has been some conflict over taxes too representation.
Beautiful Dagaaba immature adult woman grinding grain
Settlement
Settlements inward the expanse consist of named units that are usually centered on a specific parish or ritual expanse of an world shrine. Among the Dagaaba, most houses are made of mud and/or cement amongst either thatched, laterite or aluminum roofs. These settlements are inhabited yesteryear members of several exogamous lineages housed inward fortress-type compounds amongst 2.5meter-high walls, a apartment roofs, too entrances reached (at to the lowest degree formerly) yesteryear wooden ladders to the roofs. These houses are some 100 meters apart too contain an average of xv persons, but they vary inward size, depending on the province of the developmental cycle of the domestic group. Around the walls lies the chemical compound farm, which is fertilized yesteryear human detritus too is used yesteryear the women to flora their soup vegetables. It is adjoined yesteryear spot farms; bush farms prevarication much farther away. The settlements consist of some 250 to 750 inhabitants.
Each of these compounds is inhabited by, amid others, an unproblematic family, consisting of a man, his married adult woman or wives too children. Such a spot unit of measurement is established through marriage.
Dagaaba people
Economy
Subsistence too Commercial Activities. The economic scheme is essentially i of the hoe farming of cereals (sorghum, pennisetum [pearl millet], maize), together amongst some yams, especially inward the southern areas that are occupied yesteryear migrants. In addition, people grow squashes, peppers, beans (including Bambara beans), groundnuts, too a petty rice. Some of this make is sold inward the local markets, especially sorghum inward the shape of beer. Most compounds also possess a herd of cows, too some sheep, goats, guinea fowl, too chickens, which are mainly killed as sacrifices to live distributed.
Dagarti farmers inward their farm at Jirapa
Industrial Arts too Trade. Lobi women make a sure amount of gold, which finds its way into the hands of Dyula traders. Associated amongst before golden workings, it has been suggested, are the ruins of stone houses. Since the advent of colonial rule, the relative peace that it brought nigh too the cheaper atomic number 26 tools that it provided have got led to increased production, evidence of which tin live seen inward the markets. That increment is also truthful for livestock. Along amongst wage project (performed either locally or as migrants), these developments have got increased purchasing power. Whereas petty was imported before except salt, at nowadays large amounts of fabric are brought in, too other manufactured objects, such as matches, bicycles, transistor radios, too household utensils, are used inward considerable quantities. Local arts and crafts production consists of atomic number 26 implements, brass bangles too other ornaments, musical instruments, some wood carvings, too woven mats.
Today migration—both of the uneducated, seeking piece of work as laborers, too of the educated, who to a greater extent than oftentimes than non piece of work inward the towns—is frequent. The historic catamenia of migrants is at nowadays much lower than formerly, too the duration of their absences is much greater. The outcome is that larger numbers of houses are inhabited yesteryear old men, women, too children who have got to carry out the agricultural piece of work without the aid they would have got received from the migrants. Thus, the sexual sectionalization of project has been altered. The south, however, is outset to lose some of its attraction as the international economic scheme affects the recruitment of labor, potential recruits are frightened yesteryear tales of AIDS.
The LoDagaa (including the Lobi) were non themselves traders (except inward the province of Wa), but major north-south merchandise routes of Dyula too Hausa merchants ran through the expanse from the wood to the Sahel.
Food
Some of the differences that be betwixt the Dagaare-speaking communities are somehow subtle too non easily noticeable yesteryear the on-looker. For example, although the staple dish amid the Dagaaba is saabo or Sao (called "to" inward many other African languages), the constitution/texture of this millet, sorghum or maize-based repast may vary from i community to the other. In addition, the soup that is eaten amongst the saabo may live prepared inward a slightly different mode inward spite of the fact that virtually the same ingredients may live used inward each case. Meat is non considered an of import food, except inward special meals for instance at funerals. Apart from these occasions, only guinea fowl are slaughtered for regular consumption.
Division of Labor
Farming was mostly done yesteryear men, but women helped amongst the planting too the harvesting. In some places, women would organize men to farm for a friend yesteryear brewing plenty of beer. Women cultivated soup vegetables, collected wood produce, carried loads, gathered firewood, fetched water, extracted oil, too prepared nutrient too beer.
Dagaaba women of Lawra grinding grain amongst a pestles inward a huge wooden Mortar
Grinding grain, inward particular, was a lengthy process. Their workload is at nowadays changing as a outcome of the introduction of wells too mills. Men carried out the heavy agricultural work, looked after livestock, too hunted. Both sexes took constituent inward solid edifice during the dry out season.
Land Tenure
Dagaaba traditional ethics of belongings ownership is that no private tin actually ain land. Land ownership is communitarian, custodial, too spiritual. The powerfulness to usage the world is invested inward the Tengdaana (spiritual guardian of the land). The Tengdaana guards the the world on behalf of the people, too mediates amid the people, the ancestors, the spirit world, too God. He is the High Priest responsible for leading the people inward prayer inward times of great need, thanksgiving, purification rituals of the land, too other spiritual matters. His spot cannot live morally too spiritually challenged, fifty-fifty though he may lack the political authorisation or the powerfulness of legal coercion to carry out his orders too interpretations of the divine volition that underpin Dagaaba ‘lesereng’ too ‘Nabaale Yele’ legal civilisation too customary exercise (Yelpaala 1983:367-372, Yelpaala 1992:454-459). Nonetheless, the Tendaana is the only somebody who can, too who does, sacrifice to the world Goddess. The Tendaana’s role ensures that amid Dagaaba the world ownership is egalitarian, collective, communitarian, too usufructory (Nsiah- Gyabaah 1994). By extension, he oversees the safety too sustainability of the world usage amid the people. Accordingly too ideally, no private traditionally has the moral or political correct or powerfulness to completely invalidate some other person’s entitlement to the world use, or to destroy the land’s sustainability
through bad the world usage practices. For this reason, the highest business office of Dagaaba is that of the Tengdaana,
too non that of the king.
At sure times, the world tenure took the shape of a hierarchy of rights distributed within the lineage. At i level, the world was "owned" yesteryear the wider patrilineage, too if whatsoever the world was non beingness farmed, other members had a claim to usage it. Use rights were exclusive too to a greater extent than of import where the world was scarce or especially valuable (because of water). Where population density was low, it sufficed to approach the local Master of the Earth, who would perform a simple sacrifice.
Kinship
Kin Groups too Descent. Across the LoDagaa cluster, roughly from due east to west, at that spot is an increasing emphasis on the role of matrilineal descent groups. In the east, the Dagaba are organized on the ground of patrilineal descent groups alone. Several of these exogamous units be inward each parish. These lineages, which describe patrilineal relationships betwixt their members, belong to wider named clans, segments of which are found inward widely dispersed settlements, fifty-fifty those of different "ethnic" groups, roughly tracing out lines of migration. Groups to the westward also have got matrilineal clans, too all except the Wiili (and formerly fifty-fifty some of the LoWiili) inherit the world too immovables agnatically too inherit movables (wealth, cattle) through the uterine line. Hence, the patricians are locally based, but the matriclans are dispersed. These groups are thus variants of classic double-descent systems.
Patrilineal clans are numerous, each amongst its ain prohibitions, oftentimes against the killing of a totemic animate beingness or the eating of foods inward a particular way. The clans are paired inward joking relationships, too their ritual foci are lineage shrines. Among the Lobi and, to some extent, the Birifor, although patrilineal clanship is concealed, it is important inward landownership too inward some ritual affairs, especially inward the Dyoro initiations. The matriclans, correct across the cluster, are basically 4 inward number—Some, Da, Hienbe, too Kambire. The initiative off 2 too the in conclusion 2 are paired inward joking relationships, which are peculiarly of import at funerals. These dispersed matriclans have got particular loci where sacrifices are occasionally performed.
Bewaa grouping performing at the Kobine festival inward Lawra, Upper West Region.
Kinship Terminology. In a double-descent system, i tin refer to whatsoever kin either inward the patrilineal or inward the matrilineal mode. The patrilineal mode is Omaha, whereas the matrilineal i is Crow. The ascendance of these different modes depends upon the strength of the relevant groups. Kinship terms tin live confusing to the casual observer of the Dagaaba. The terms “brothers” too “sisters” make non only refer to people i shares parents amongst but also to all cousins. There is no Dagaare equivalent of the term “cousin”. Similarly, wives of males of the same descent may refer to each other’s children as “daughters” or “sons”. There is no such give-and-take as “step-child” although children to a greater extent than oftentimes than non know who their existent mothers are too women may sometimes care for step-children differently from the way they care for their ain children.
Another confusing term is n pog, my wife, used yesteryear both males too females, inward reference to a brother’s wife. There is usually a joking human relationship betwixt people too their brothers’ wives. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 adult woman pretends to live a adult man when slap-up jokes amongst the brother’s wife, hence the usage of “my wife” or n pog, which she may also used inward everyday linguistic communication exterior the joking context. N pog may also live used yesteryear a granddaddy inward reference to a granddaughter too n seere (my husband) used yesteryear a grandmother inward reference to a grandson. Grandchildren too grandparents usually have got a joking human relationship that facilitates a special type of bonding, making it easier for the old ones to impart their knowledge too wisdom on the petty ones. The higher upwardly joking
relationships are different from what exists betwixt all Dagaaba too i of their neighboring groups - the Frafra - which is referred to as loloroung. The Frafra are lolorobo or joking partners of the Dagaaba too this has zippo to make amongst the denie or play that exists betwixt kinsmen as exemplified above.
Dagaaba women
Marriage too Family
Marriage.
Incest taboo is observed inward all the Dagaare-speaking communities of West Africa. In some cases, the slightest indication of a blood relationship, no affair how distant, is plenty argue for a prospective dyad non to live allowed to proceed amongst their union plans. In other cases, matrilateral cross-cousin marriages are permissible too encouraged. Among the LoWiili, a woman’s first-born immature adult woman is encouraged to marry
(and sometimes, as an infant, betrothed to) her maternal uncle’s boy (i.e. union betwixt the children of a sis too a brother). This is supposed to strengthen the human relationship betwixt a woman’s patrikin too her husband’s kin, who are at nowadays her kin due to the marriage. Such matrilateral cross cousin marriages may also involve a woman’s sons too girls from the woman’s patrikin. These kinds of marriages give parents the peace of take away heed (knowing who their children are getting married to) too also aid constitute satisfactory relations betwixt the in-laws.
In the eastern groups, union is strictly virilocal too is effected yesteryear the transfer of bride-wealth inward cowries too after inward cattle. The transfers select spot over time, as the union is consolidated amongst the nascence of children. Traditionally, the groom also had to convey parties to farm for his inlaws from fourth dimension to time, although amid the educated this exercise tends to acquire commuted into a monetary payment. Each union invokes the construction of a novel sleeping accommodation too cooking hearth. Among the Birifor too the Lobi, when a fiancé comes to farm, he may eventually live allowed to pass the nighttime amongst his time to come married adult woman and, later, to have got her see his ain solid inward render for farther work. She did non usually reside permanently inward her husband's solid until after the nascence of their initiative off child. Until decease or divorce, she lives away from the main body of her agnatic kin. Due to the full general lack of transportation, the demand to hold inward touching amongst one’s patrikin, attention every funeral, visiting the sick, etc., girls are encouraged non to wed to men from villages that are non a walking distance (seven miles or less may live considered as the preferred distance) away from
their agnatic home. Similarly, since in-laws are expected to attend each other’s relatives’ funeral ceremonies, parents are particular nigh how far away their sons go to seek union partners. In fact, all the kinsmen of a immature adult man of union historic catamenia hold their eyes opened upwardly for the suitable would-be bride too may brand suggestions to the immature adult man as to who is available too ready for union inward the close yesteryear villages.
In some cases, the selection of a married adult woman too all union arrangements are made without the in-put of the groom. The groom is supposed to select their give-and-take for it, when his kinsmen convey spot a lady too say, “this is the best adult woman for you”. According to the Dagaaba elders, an ideal bride is i that is hard-working, physically fit too strong plenty to live a pog kura (female farmer, capable of all performing such activities as sowing, carrying large loads of firewood, giving nascence to as many boys as possible, etc.), too comes from a spot unit of measurement amongst goodness wellness too conduct.
Another type of organisation for initiative off marriages is elopement, which occurs at the historic catamenia of puberty. The immature adult woman is persuaded to leave of absence amongst her admirer to his spot or she may live seized yesteryear his kinsmen/colleagues at a dance, marketplace place, or piece sleeping at nighttime too forcibly brought to her would-be husband’s home. Although elopement is usually done amongst the girl’s consent, she is expected to resist too scream the loudest possible
to exhibit that she is up-right, morally, too non a bitch. Similarly, although some of the girl’s relatives may have got been aware of the programme to elope, they may limited anger publicly. The resistance to elopement marks the outset of a catamenia of intensive interaction betwixt the girl’s filial too conjugal ties, within which the necessary steps are taken to finalize the courtship too union process.
Other marriages may have got less dramatic beginnings. After a immature adult man declares his involvement inward a girl, his kinsmen accompany him to introduce his proposal formerly to the kinsmen of the girl. During this catamenia of courtship, the kinsmen of the immature adult man are expected to shower gifts inward the shape of pito, cola-nuts too money on their in-laws each fourth dimension they brand a trip to the girl’s village. When both parties are satisfied with
the way issues have got handled during the courtship period, a twenty-four hours is fixed for the bride wealth (kyeru) to live brought to the girl’s family. After the transfer of bride wealth has taken place, the immature adult woman (who carries amongst her a number of accessories including calabashes, bowl/basins too baskets) is accompanied yesteryear her kinsmen to her husband’s home. This is known as pog bielle.
Bridewealth: In general, bride wealth amid the Dagaaba usually involves some amount of cowries, cash, too livestock. The proportions of these diverse items may vary but volition almost e'er involve a number of cowries. The cowries and/or cash portion is referred to as the pog libie. Among the LoWiili, the bride wealth consists of a cock too guinea-fowl to the in-laws, too the pog libie, a amount of just about 20,000 cowries, usually, the same amount that was paid for the girl’s mother. Various rituals accompany the counting too transfer of bride wealth yesteryear the groom’s spot unit of measurement to the bride’s agnatic home. Once the patrikin of the bride have the bride wealth, they also perform a number of rituals during the counting, distribution too storing of it. In general, the bride wealth received for a immature adult woman is used to acquire a married adult woman for a son. Whereas paying the bride wealth of a immature man’s initiative off married adult woman is the obligation of his spot unit of measurement elders, if he wishes to go polygamous, he volition to a greater extent than oftentimes than non live solely responsible for paying the bride wealth of these subsequent wives.
The diverse rituals performed during the counting too transfer yesteryear the groom’s relatives as good as those (the rituals) that go on during the counting too credence of the bride wealth, are tied to the fertility too fidelity of the bride. If some of the rituals are non good done, the adult woman could have got difficulty bearing children during the marriage. It is also believed that i time those rituals have got been performed too the bride wealth accepted, too then whatsoever infidelity on the constituent of the adult woman could outcome inward her decease if she does non confess similar a shot too go through purification rites/rituals.
Birth: When it is noticed that a adult woman is pregnant the husband’s virile somebody parent consults a soothsayer (baga) to know who should live asked to “throw water“ at her. She is too then called out of her hut too the appropriate somebody “throws water“; from too then on she too others may cite the pregnancy.
She gives nascence inward the chaani or kyaaraa (inner room) of her husband’s house, attended yesteryear old women too nascence attendants.
A kid may live named at 7 days old; inward the instance of a kid who cries a lot the soothsayer may tell the chemical compound caput that an ancestor wishes to live the child’s segeraa; a segeraa must have got died amongst white hair. People may too then say that ancestor has “come dorsum home“.
Boys are circumcised at a infirmary or yesteryear traditional experts at the historic catamenia of 1 or 2 weeks. Female genital mutilation was formerly practised betwixt the ages of 5 too 10 years but was discontinued inward the 1940s too 1950s.
Domestic Unit
The domestic unit of measurement is to a greater extent than oftentimes than non built on agnatic ties, given that wives bring together their husbands at marriage, but amid the Lobi too Birifor, men make extensive bride-service, too some immature children may grow upwardly amongst their mother's brothers before their woman parent leaves for her husband's house. In most cases, the farming grouping is small. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 adult man too his sons may farm together for a longer catamenia amid the groups inward which patricians dominate. The spot grouping that occupies a chemical compound may consist of several farming groups, too each farming grouping may live divided into smaller eating groups.
Inheritance
Among the Dagaba too the Wiili, a man's belongings passes initiative off to his total brothers, if they are farming together, too and then to his sons. Among the LoPiel, the LoSaala, the Birifor, too the Lobi, the world passes inward the paternal line, whereas movable belongings is transmitted initiative off to uterine siblings too and then to sisters' sons, leading to before splits inward the domestic groups too to tensions betwixt a adult man too his mother's brothers. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 woman's belongings to a greater extent than oftentimes than non goes to her daughters if it is sex-linked, but livestock may go to her sons.
A man’s blood brother or other unopen relative may wed or tending for his widow, appear after his children, too inherit his gods too voodoo toys.
Dagaaba adult woman amongst her 2 kids, Jirapa, Upper West Region, Ghana
Young children are looked after yesteryear their mothers too are breast-fed until they tin walk too talk, when they "become humans" too are thus entitled to a proper burial (see "Death too Afterlife"). Later on, they are cared for yesteryear elderberry sisters or relatives, who involve them inward their play. Boys go off inward groups to herd cattle, whereas girls play to a greater extent than domestic games about the compound, helping their mothers from fourth dimension to fourth dimension yesteryear fetching H2O or grinding too pounding cereals. Among the Lobi, girls also appear after cattle, although boys too girls plough over this responsibleness to their juniors when they are initiated into the Dyoro society.
Dagaaba women of Nandom dancing
Sociopolitical Organization
Political Organization. Except for the Wala too the Gan, as good as the Kaleo the peoples of this grouping lacked chieftainship too substitution political organisation until the coming of colonial rule. Inferring from Yelpaala’s (1992) article, the political organisation of the Dagaaba was, until the imposition of colonialism, decentralized inward its full general structure.
Dagaaba people of Nadowli
From the outside, it powerfulness have got appeared amorphous too non easily susceptible to analysis, for its organisation too institutions were non defined inward terms of the total territorial unit of measurement but inward terms of sub-territorial areas teni (villages) referred to yesteryear Goody as parishes, too yesteryear Fortes inward his study of the Tallensi as settlements. The political organisation of each teng (village) exhibited a sure grade of centralization of authorisation amongst a really limited vertical structure. The substitution authorisation was cross-hauled from the elders (ninbere) of different kin-based groups within the territorial area. This body was the basic establishment dealing amongst most issues of full general community interest. All elders amongst the exception of the custodians of the the world (tendaana) inward sure cases, were theoretically co-equals inward all deliberations. However, inward matters that related to the teng too the the world deity (tengan), the tendaana was the in conclusion authority. Thus depending on the issues involved, the substitution authorisation was either circular amongst its functions based on consultation too consensus, or unidirectional, from the tendaana downwards to the repose of society.
In every hamlet (teng), this basic construction to a greater extent than or less replicated itself. Each teng however, enjoyed an independent autonomous existence from the others. Therefore, the society was at the same fourth dimension centralized at the unit of measurement plane too decentralized at the total societal level. Centralization within the little units provided the useful cheque on the abuses or excesses inward the usage of centralized political power. On really of import and
broader cultural or extraterritorial issues involving non-Dagaaba, such as warfare or resistance against slave raiding, these centralized institutions would coordinate, cooperate or deliberate as a larger substitution unit. However, these higher plane organizations did non appear to involve the total territorial expanse of the Dagaaba. Yet, taking whatsoever territorial unit of measurement as a starting point, that unit of measurement was linked separately to all other contiguous units yesteryear a chain of mutual culture, mutual descent, too political or legal cooperation. Each of these other units was also separately too similarly linked to yet other contiguous territorial units until the chain of interlocking linkages involve the entire Dagawie. Depending on the issues at stake, contiguity, consanguinity, historical ties too the plane of sophistication inward the native fine art of diplomacy, cooperation or integration betwixt different territorial units was great or little inward amplitude. The basic philosophy which guided the interaction of all substitution authorities at the larger unit of measurement plane was equality. All factor units functioned as co-equals, for the Dagaaba say that doo bii pog ba gangna o to (i.e., no adult man or adult woman is superior to their peer). This then, has been too continues to live the ground of egalitarian thought amid the Dagaaba, what is called the traditional level. Within the national political structure, Dagaaba political thought, similar all other traditional systems, is relegated to an inferior status.
Social Control too Conflicts
The main causes of conflict were rights to women too access to wood products. Within the parish, conflicts of this form were rare because of kin ties too abide by for the world shrine. Strong sanctions existed against adultery, theft, too other delicts, which were settled within too betwixt local lineages. More recently, local chiefs too headmen have got exercised supervision on behalf of the government, too local courts of police force have got been established.
Crime too penalization are just as much issues of politics as they of religion. Until recently, theft was a rare occurrence amid the Dagaaba. It was taken as a really repulsive too anti-social deed condemned yesteryear all, including the spirits too the ancestors who could live invoked whenever necessary to punish a thief severely. Theft is so much looked downwardly upon that it is non uncommon to hear a somebody trying to evidence her/his integrity, say that (s)he does non steal or rob - N ba zuuro, n ba faara. In a society where houses have got virtually no door panels nor to locks, at that spot is understandably a full general demand for trust too social cohesion.
In Dagaare, the term iibo signifies the full general normative value scheme roofing established too accepted norms, principles, practices, procedures which regulation life inward full general too disputing inward particular. It is when a specific conduct is inward conflict amongst the Dagaaba iibo that i may live characterized as deviant. In lite of this concept of iibo, therefore, the Dagaaba may live viewed as a unified group, vis-á-vis other non-Dagaaba, including their neighbors.
Dagaagba women of Nadowli at their Nadowli Womens meeting
Religious Belief
Dagaaba have got strong believe in Naangmen (older spelling Naamwin), supreme God too creator og the Universe. He is goodness too omnipotent but has no shrines, so at that spot is no agency of communication amongst him. Mwin agency “sun“, too Naamwin is sometimes identified amongst sun, sky, or rain. Goody, inward The myth of the Bagre, maintains that God’s practical alienation from his universe is thought of yesteryear the Dagaaba as a business office of the work of evil. “If he were to go on inward his primordial role“, says Goody, “our problems would non exist. With his aid, disease, evil, too misfortune could live banished“.
In addition, Dagaaba strongly believe too reverence the ‘Mother Earth’ (Tengbane). Tengbane or Mother world is the 2d most powerful deity after the supreme God, Naangmen. Therefore the Dagao sees the world or physical environs as sacred and divine; that they are born from the earth, live on too through it, volition live buried inward it; too that they volition join the ancestors who, though invisible, are nonetheless located inward the environs amongst other spiritual beings. This is good articulated inward Bagre narrative, too shows that as our Mother, nosotros owe our life to Earth. It is from her thorax that the milk of sustenance is drawn, whether it is water, food, soil, wood, or herbal medicine, too it is to her womb that nosotros shall render inward death. Likewise, Kukure (1985:55) sees world as the ‘controlling agency inward life, the source of fertility, of prosperity, [and] of survival [. . . .] Moreover the [Earth must give an concern human relationship of all that takes spot on [her] surface. [She] reports to God the actions of the living, non only of humans, but also of beasts. Hence, the somebody who is on goodness terms amongst the [Earth] (and ancestors) is also on goodness terms amongst God.’ This belief scheme has generated a conceptual frame in which the Dagaaba make non relate to their environs through an ideology of domination, but rather through responsive negotiation.
Dagaaba earth-priest (tengdaana)
responsible for many things that brand human life what it is, Sagbane is responsible for rain, sunshine, and moonlight, too the unseen energies of stars, thunder too lightning. Even though Sagbane is the Father, he is secondary inward importance to Tengbane during invocatory prayers of Dagaaba. Tengbane comes second to Naangmen. It is also on concern human relationship of Sagbane’s secondary spot that His priest, the Saadaana, does non characteristic really much inward Dagaaba daily existence, too the business office is non found inward every settlement. It is to Tengbane that daily libations are poured. Tengbane is Goddess, too the Mother of Bagre; she must not live polluted. When Tengbane is polluted, efforts are initiated to perform the appropriate too necessary
sacrifices for the restoration of the broken residuum betwixt the self, the community, Tengbane, the spirit
world, too finally amongst Nangmen. Because Tengbane covers the earth’s surface, it becomes the universal
altar upon which humans, represented yesteryear Dagaaba, gather to pray for rain, cure to epidemics, victory in
wars, goodness harvests, or the settlement of a novel village. It is to Tengbane that immigrants are taken for
induction into the clan. It is for these reasons too others likewise many to enumerate hither that the High Priest of Tengbane, the Tengdaana, holds the highest socio-spiritual too moral authorisation inward whatsoever Dagaaba village. Each settlement of, say, 300 to 1,000 people has an “earth-shrine” (tengbane) too an earth-priest (tengdaana) which is usually situated inward a grove inward a substitution constituent of the settlement. Sacrifices are performed yesteryear an earth-priest too his assistants, also yesteryear patriclan representatives. In addition, anyone may brand sacrifices to the world simply yesteryear edifice a little mound yesteryear the path leading to the shrine.
Dagaaba “earth-shrine” (tengbane)
Certain prohibitions are linked amongst the earth-shrine; for instance large sacrifices must live made if people shed i another’s blood, or if someone commits suicide. It is also a serious offence to have got sexual activity out-of-doorsThe complex cosmological human relationship Dagaaba have got amongst Tengbane is reflected inward the mediatory role played yesteryear the Tengdaana too Tengbane betwixt the people too Naangmen. It must live stressed hither that Dagaaba have got as many Tengbama (plural for Tengbane) too Tengdaamba (plural for Tengdaana) as at that spot are settlements. This does non inward anyway signal whatsoever conflictual relationships amongst the Tengbane. The diverse Tengbama stand upwardly for settlement patterns, too must live seen as parishes of the same Goddess. Each Tengdaana too then becomes a parish priest, performing the same functions, amongst local variation, to an omnipresent too omniscient Tengbane
Lesser spiritual powers include ngmimi or weni. Saa ngmin is the pelting god (saa agency rain); Bo wen is the Bagre god who looks after the granary too farming.
Dagaaba ancestral shrine wooden carvings
The Dagaaba spiritual realm is also inhabited yesteryear spirits, both ancestral too pre-human. For instance, the Kongtongbilii, what Goody (1972) translates as ‘beings of the wild’, be within both the spiritual too environmental consciousness of Dagaaba. There are also the diverse deities who have got been delegated territorial authorisation yesteryear Nangmen inward the universe. It is Kongtongbilii too these other spiritual beings too deities who aid humans to brand spiritual journeys dorsum to Nangmen too His married adult woman inward the heaven to consort amongst them nigh the pregnant of life too death. In monastic tell to brand that journey, Dagaaba initiative off invoke Tengbane, too then the ancestors, too other lesser spirits. Together, they aid them clarify their vision for the journey.
Medicine shrines (tiib), made for instance of dried sticks, may live placed at a solid entrance. They are acquired as a remedy for sickness or some other problem.
Dagaaba shrine
Ancestor shrines are sticks carved roughly inward human shape, too every deceased adult man who left a boy to succeed him is commemorated inward this way. They are kept inward the cattle byre, which is thus the most sacred room inward the house. Their jurisdiction extends to lineage kin, too inward some ways also to matrilineal descendants; all of import events are reported to them. When a adult woman dies her shrine is carried dorsum yesteryear her clan sisters to her birth-place.
The ancestors are invoked amongst animate beingness sacrifice at the outset too destination of the farming flavor too when whatsoever calamity threatens the community.
The soothsayer (baga) is appointed at nascence too initiated when he is old plenty to select upwardly the duties
Christianity
Dagaabaland, especially inward northern Republic of Ghana is the Vatican of Ghana. Despite the fact that over 55% of Dagaaba are traditional African faith practitioners, the remaining population are unrepentant Roman Catholics.
Ethnic Dagao Cardinal Peter Poreku Dery inward the wheel after a Pontifical High Mass at Dio Padre Misericordioso, Vatican.
Since the 1930s, majority conversions to Catholicism have got taken place, outset amid the LoPiel population about Dissin. The pioneer missionaries, Frs Remigius McCoy too Arthur Paquet (both White Fathers from Canada) too Brother Basilid Koot (from Holland) began piece of work at Jirapa inward 1929. The handling they gave for yaws too other prevalent diseases created immediate interest. Within 10 months at that spot were 2 catechumens, too despite some persecution the number grew quickly.
Then inward 1932 the rains failed. Apr to July, usually the pump of the rainy season, were dry. The ancestors were repeatedly invoked, too countless sacrifices were offered to the traditional gods, but to no avail. At last, on 24 July, the people of Jirapa turned to the petty Catholic mission, promising generous payment if the God of the Catholic Fathers could succeed where their ain priests had failed. In A brusque history of the Catholic Church inward Ghana, Helene Pfann describes what happened: "Father McCoy told them that God wanted no presents. He only wanted them to believe that he loved them too would aid them. He took them into the church building too all prayed together. The next night, on July 25th, clouds gathered inward the heaven over Jirapa and, for the initiative off fourth dimension inward months, pelting roughshod inward torrents. The people were so happy that they ran out of their houses too sang too danced amongst joy, letting the pelting soak them through.
Ghana Archbishop Peter Poreku Dery (in red) is carried yesteryear aides to live elevated to fundamental yesteryear Pope Benedict XVI during a ceremony at the Vatican March 24, 2006. He was an ethnic Dagaaba man
The side yesteryear side morning time a crowd of Dagaaba, all demanding to go Christians, besieged the Mission House . . That rainy flavor 25,000 Dagaaba became adherents. No similar majority conversion had ever before taken spot inward Africa.
A four-year catechumenate was established, too the Fathers started on the daunting chore of teaching this vast novel community. Following the speedy growth of the piece of work at Jirapa novel parishes were opened at Kaleo (1932), Nandom (1933), too at Ko too Daffiama (1952). In 1959 the Dagaaba expanse was created a diocese, amongst the spot of the bishop inward Wa. There are at nowadays xvi parishes, nearly all Dagaare-speaking, but hardly inward Wa East too Wa West Districts.
As the numbers grew, 3 orders of sisters too 2 orders of brothers sent missionaries.
The initiative off Dagao priest was ordained inward 1951; yesteryear 1959 at that spot were six, too inward 1984 at that spot were inward the Wa diocese no less than 53 African priests, 98 sisters, too 17 brothers, compared amongst only 8 missionary priests, 17 sisters, too 23 brothers. Fr McCoy, aged 89 when this volume was published inward 1986, continued to piece of work actively at Jirapa too becane a legend inward his lifetime. He died Worship too church building life tends to live based on large church building buildings inward the main towns, to which people come upwardly from the surrounding villages. For instance Ko, a little town some 10 km off the Nandom road, has a church building 75 metres long (said to live longer than the longest church building inward Accra), amongst seating for 2,000. Even on weekdays the early on morning time majority is attended yesteryear over 100, too the church building is comfortably total on Sundays.
The 14 Dagaare-speaking parishes in all likelihood have got a total adult membership exceeding 40,000, which is over xv per cent of the local population. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 farther 10 per cent would telephone telephone themselves Catholics, though non total members.
Cardinal Dery, ethnic Dagao from Republic of Ghana inward a wheel chair as Cardinal O`Malley rising to encompass him.
Whatever questions i may have got nigh the depth of private commitment to Christ, at that spot is no dubiety that 50 years of Catholic activity too a really large investment of money too personnel have got made a large impact on the Dagaaba way of life. Already inward the mid-60s the anthropologist Jack Goody found Catholic influence had significantly reduced involvement inward the Bagre initiation ceremonies inward the expanse due south of Lawra. Polygamy may non have got been eliminated fifty-fifty amid Catholics, but it has been greatly reduced. Early on at that spot was a battle for the correct to care for Lord's Day as a twenty-four hours of rest.
Why have got the Dagaaba moved into the Catholic church building inward such numbers? Clearly a similar investment of personnel too money inward other areas has yielded much smaller results.
Cardinal Archbishhop Peter Dery, himself i of the early on Dagaaba converts, explains why his people so readily became Christians:
They are goodness farmers . . . Their moral code was really high too was strictly observed. Their feel of hospitality too generosity was superb. They never practised human sacrifices, too they feared God’s curse on those who did so. In short, they are a people of natural goodness amongst deep abide by for their elders too parents, too a profound feel of worship which they consider a duty towards the ancestors too the “Naabilengmen”, the “god of the kid of man”. These qualities too many to a greater extent than made a goodness soil, a people already prepared to have got the Good News “en masse”.
A missionary priest made the next points inward addition: 1) it was slowly to interpret traditional sacrifice into the sacrifice of the mass, too prayer to ancestors into veneration of saints; 2) it was slowly to interpret the strict morality of the Dagaaba into the 10 commandments; 3) the Dagaaba are non a proud, dominant tribe but a humble too hard-working i –- nosotros preach goodness word to the poor, too the under-dog tends to respond to a greater extent than quickly; 4) the initiative off missionaries, amongst their medical too educational work, lived really unopen to the people.
Other churches: Adams Bodomo has said that Dagao is i of the most heavily Catholic parts of the world exterior of Rome. Until he left the expanse for college he was unaware that whatsoever other expressions of Christianity existed!
Indeed it was non till 1954 that some other church, the Baptist Mid-Missions, started piece of work inward Wa too 2 years later inward Lawra. By 1986 at that spot was a growing church building of 85 members too 4 times as many regular attenders. Though the Baptists had only one-half a dozen churches amid the Dagaaba they seriously took upwardly the challenge of literacy too Bible translation work.
The Methodists, who came to Wa nigh the same fourth dimension as the Baptists, had a pastor at Lawra yesteryear 1986 too 2 other congregations inward the Dagaaba expanse amongst a total membership of nigh 50.
Religious Practitioners. Practically every adult is an officiant at some shrine or another, but the main figure is the Master of the world (tengdaana). Some individuals develop special reputations as diviners (baga). All are involved inward sacrifices to the ancestors, to the beings of the wild, too to medicine shrines.
Another powerful religious leader according to Bagre clandestine society functions, is the damdamwule amid Dagaaba. The damdamwule`s sole life depends on rain-fed agricultural practices,is inward its powerfulness to know when the rains are due too to portion this knowledge amongst humans to permit them know that Sieong is here. The damdamwule also acts as an agricultural extension officer, telling the people through its song, when to sow what too when to halt sowing. Those who pass upwardly to recognize its pedagogy of nature through its music sow inward vain (Goody 1972: ll. 4611-40).
The weather-wise damdamwule is helped yesteryear the n birime (featherless fowl). He or she wakes upwardly the people at dawn, during Sieong, to go to their farms. It performs this role yesteryear beating its wings early on inward the morning. The belibaar knows when Kpangkyaanee is close too returns ‘from the pelting side / too flies / where the Sun sets’ (Goody 1972: ll. 4651-53) to warn people to commence preparing their barns for harvest, too the Bagre. It is thus through the migratory movements of this plane that the elders are able to denote the Bagre too to spot ritual prohibitions on the initiates.
Ceremonies
Annual ceremonies are performed at household shrines, especially at the destination of the farming season. It is toward this fourth dimension that, amid the substitution groups, neighbors trip the lite fantastic inward the marketplace to celebrate the flowering of the guinea corn. Not long afterward, lineages perform special sacrifices to clan deities, a fourth dimension when they also toxicant their arrows. Traditionally, success inward the hunt also elicited special ritual performances, as did killing someone inward war, whether friend or enemy.
Birth too union were accompanied yesteryear petty ceremonial. Death too burial, on the other hand, were occasions; the funeral ceremonies, which resulted inward redistribution of the belongings of the dead (including sexual rights) too the creation of an ancestor shrine (if at that spot were offspring), lasted for many months too brought mourners from far too wide.
The major ceremonial sequences, however, were those associated amongst clandestine societies: the Bagre inward the due east too the Dyoro inward the west. The Bagre is performed yesteryear lineages when they have got sufficient neophytes (and plenty grain) to carry out a performance, amongst the participation of their neighbors as officiants. During the course of study of the long sequence of rites, the neophytes are placed nether a serial of taboos, from which they are gradually released. The rites are accompanied yesteryear an extensive recitation concerning the creation of culture. The Dyoro ceremony involves a see yesteryear patrilineages to special centers, where the ancestors lived before reaching the banks of the Black Volta too where the principal rites of initiation select place. Indeed, the ritual reenacts the long-ago migration of the patrician too so preserves a petty of its history. In the ceremony, which takes spot every 7 years, the initiates are killed off too revived.
Bagre Rite of Passage Initiation: Bagre provides voluntary entry into Dagaaba initiation rites of passage. As a medium inward which a gratis association of neophytes that are called yesteryear the spirit tin too are willing to journeying inward too amongst the spirit, Bagre is divided into 2 complementary denominations: Bag-Degre (Dirty Bagre) too Bag-Kaang (Oily Bagre), too only i of each type is located inward a particular parish. The initiates of the Bag-Degre are usually painted amongst white stripes of ashes to exhibit their states of impurity, piece initiates of the Bag-Kaang are anointed amongst Shea butter. There are several reasons why a somebody may go an initiate, or live seized yesteryear the Bagre Ngmen. Some respond the telephone telephone for wellness reasons, others for prosperity, others to acquire a married adult woman or husband, children, or to go a instructor inward the association. Thus, at that spot are spiritual, social, political, psychological too emotional reasons for a somebody to go an initiate.
Through Bagre, nosotros are sensitized to Dagaaba views of their environment. The natural environs for
Dagaaba, as embedded inward Bagre narrative too observances, is a spiritual realm inhabited yesteryear spirits, both
ancestral too pre-human. For instance, the Kongtongbilii, what Goody (1972) translates as ‘beings of the
wild’, be within both the spiritual too environmental consciousness of Dagaaba. There are also the
diverse deities who have got been delegated territorial authorisation yesteryear Nangmen inward the universe. It is Kongtongbilii too these other spiritual beings too deities who aid humans to brand spiritual journeys dorsum to Nangmen too His married adult woman inward the heaven to consort amongst them nigh the pregnant of life too death. In monastic tell to brand that journey, Dagaaba initiative off invoke Tengbane, too then the ancestors, too other lesser spirits. Together, they aid them clarify their vision for the journey.
According to Bagre narrative Tengbane is Mother of Bagre, Sagbane is considered as Father of Bagre. How the 2 interact to ensure harmony inward the environs is dramatized inward Bagre narrative. First, the Father of Bagre sends pelting from the sky, which falls too impregnates the Mother of Bagre, Earth. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 tree is born too becomes the highway to Nangmen’s residence. But inward monastic tell for humans to achieve Nangmen’s residence to take away hold palaver, they demand the aid of other creatures. So amongst the aid of Badare (Spider), they climb the tree to Nangmen’s house. This is how the Bagre narrative captures it.
He began to acquire upwardly A slender tree
too when he’d done so, is brought forth.
he spoke again, It is the earth’s child
greeting the world shrine, that is born.
greeting god, [. . . ]
greeting the ancestors, And he was told
greeting the bein gs. That the slender tree,
When he’d done this, he must grasp
he saw something too climb upwardly quickly
of great importance. To God’s house.
world too rain, He grasped the tree
the pelting is virile somebody but he couldn’t climb it
too the ground is female. And roughshod on his back.
When the fourth dimension comes, Then the spider
view the rain; galloped over
its penis rises With his feet flying
too bursts forth. And said that
See the earth, [... ]
a fully grown maiden, ATo God’s house
who is nigh to bear. We’ll climb.
(Goody 1972: Bag-Kaang, ll.443-502)
Badare’s importance as a civilisation hero inward Dagaaba environmental too salvation thought is suggested here.
Human fragility inward the interventionist role of animals animals, insects, plants, too invisible spirits is stressed. As
Bagre performance elucidates, humanity is precariously peripheral to the centre of God’s creation as the
absence of human residents inward God’s solid is startlingly unnerving. Worse soundless for humans, God’s palace is populated yesteryear insects, plants, too animals: the dog, the lion, the hippo, the elephant, the duiker, the tomcat,
the fly, the spider, too the leopard, to cite a few. This shows the gulf betwixt humans too their creator. Consequently, humans demand to create a sensitive too meaningful human relationship amongst the nonhuman beings of the environment.
In Bagre narrative, Nangmen too his married adult woman dramatize the acts of procreation to the human virile somebody elderberry animate beingness characters. Later on, when Nangmen too his married adult woman give the adult man a wife, together amongst a child, too they render to Earth, the adult man soundless does non know how babies are made. The initiative off ground woman, sent yesteryear Nangmen to ground learns the deed of sexual intercourse from the boa constructors. Her learning is both observational too participatory, too she later teaches her hubby the mystery of the deed of procreation (Goody 1972: ll.1951-2219). Similarly, the importance of animals inward human survival is reenacted inward Bagre through the story of the buffalo adult woman too the hunter.
Subsequently, Dagaaba Bagre initiation schooling, hunters are taught to kill for food, to kill mostly the virile somebody too old woman somebody animals, too to leave of absence the immature too their mothers alone. Unfortunately, the cash nexus economic scheme that has been imposed on Dagaaba during the colonial catamenia has since confused all that environmental way of living. However, colonialism has non completely eroded Dagaaba environmental thought too pedagogy, thank you lot to submerged Dagaaba environmental consciousness exemplified inward their deep-seated beliefs inward the presence of the ancestors too other spiritual entities inward their environment. This ensures that they make non willfully degrade their environment, less they loose contact amongst the spirit world, too subsequently, lose the protection too mode of sustenance that the environs soundless gives to them (Somé 1998: 54-55).In monastic tell to exhibit how of import the higher upwardly human relationship is, it is necessary to consider the role of the ancestral spirits inward the environs as narrated inward Bagre. The ancestral spirits piece of work inward alliance amongst or against the Kontongbilii, the initiative off nonhuman creatures inward the environs to come upwardly to the assistance of humans. They learn Dagaaba everything nigh survival: how to grow food, hunt, brand weapons, cook, brand beer, too fifty-fifty start Bagre itself. Kontongbilii, together amongst the ancestral spirits learn the Dagaaba nigh their environs through dreams too visions. For instance, they learn traditional healers nigh the importance of sure plants as sources of medicine. Hence, Dagaaba perceive plants as living beings amongst spirits of their own. Plants also provide humans amongst food, fuel, too medicine. Subsequently, to disrespect too maltreat plants tin live dangerous, because plants make strike dorsum amongst diseases. For instance, a somebody who indiscriminately destroys woodlots tin live sick from what is called ‘tree bite.’ Animals, the Bagre narrative tells us, learn nigh the medicinal too toxic values of plants from animals (ll.2320-2469). It is from plants that nosotros acquire poisons such as strophanthus for toxicant for arrowheads, too to care for guinea worm infection. From the same plants nosotros acquire medicine to halt nascence blood, too facilitate childbirth.
As indicated earlier, Bagre performance coincides inward most cases amongst Kpangkyaanee (autumn), too Uonii (Dry Season). With less piece of work on the farms, too amongst plenty of food, people are inward a festive mood. Bagre performance also is timed amongst moontide so that inter-clan too intra-clan socialization is facilitated. Consequently, Bagre calendars commence amongst the outset of harvest, fifty-fifty though novel harvests are forbidden to the initiates until they graduate. The most of import crop’s initiative off fruit is the shea, which becomes mature inward June. In determining when Bagre flavor tin live announced, the elders resort to the legend of the fruitbat. In this legend, the fruitbat, too other animals too birds as Bagre elders aid humans inward their spiritual journey:
"And inward Bagre,
our elders
are many.’
‘What make you lot hateful yesteryear many?’
‘You saw that
inward Bagre
at that spot was the large fruit-bat.
He’s our Bagre
elder.
The belibaar bird
is i of our Bagre creatures.
The kyaalipio bird
is i of our Bagre creatures.
The large frog
is i of our Bagre creatures.
The damdamwule bird
is i of our Bagre creatures.
The crown bird
is i of our Bagre creatures.’
‘What’s an elder?’
‘I tell you,
all winged creatures
too the featherless cock.’
(Goody 1972: Bagre Degre-- Dirty Bagre ll. 4550-4579)
At this stage, initiates commence their pedagogy on the roles played yesteryear the diverse animals inward Bagre, too thus inward human survival. The large fruitbat knows when the initiative off shea fruits are mature. By observing its behavior, the elders are able to know the exact fourth dimension to denote the flavor without breaking whatsoever spiritual taboos. In this case, stuff scientific discipline is of no significance since machines tin only gauge time, which would soundless non live accurate taking into consideration the variables of uncertainties inward nature. But the fruit-bat’s eating habits give the people a fourth dimension precision inward which to act. The fruit-bat ‘will know the fourth dimension / to fetch the fruit / inward the night’ (Goody 1972: ll. 4591-93), eats the fruit, leaves the seed for the elders to see, too and then they volition initiate their preparations for the Bagre.
The role of the damdamwule amid Dagaaba, whose sole life depends on rain-fed agricultural practices, is inward its powerfulness to know when the rains are due too to portion this knowledge amongst humans to permit them know that Sieong is here. The damdamwule also acts as an agricultural extension officer, telling the people through its song, when to sow what too when to halt sowing. Those who pass upwardly to recognize its pedagogy of nature through its music sow inward vain (Goody 1972: ll. 4611-40). The weather-wise damdamwule is helped yesteryear the n birime (featherless fowl). He or she wakes upwardly the people at dawn, during Sieong, to go to their farms. It performs this role yesteryear beating its wings early on inward the morning. The belibaar knows when Kpangkyaanee is close too returns ‘from the pelting side / too flies / where the Sun sets’ (Goody 1972: ll. 4651-53) to warn people to commence preparing their barns for harvest, too the Bagre. It is thus through the migratory movements of this plane that the elders are able to denote the Bagre too to spot ritual prohibitions on the initiates.
Reenactment of the Hunt at the 2009 Kobine festival inward Lawra.
The kyaalipio wakes upwardly women at dawn during Bagre catamenia to go too fetch the H2O used inward brewing
the beer for the Bagre ceremony (Goody 1972: ll. 4670-88) before it is muddy yesteryear wild boars. Wild
boars are also considered spirit beings associated amongst Bagre. Bagre is a purgatorial journeying to a rebirth
too hence it has prohibitions that include sexual abstinence for the neophytes, the eating of sure foods,
too full general leisure. The virile somebody crown-bird calls the Bagre members to acquire upwardly from their slumber too feed
the children at midnight, so that from too then on they tin commence a fast (Goody 1972: ll. 4689-4713). Then
at that spot is the old virile somebody guinea fowl who tells of the flowering of beans. This way, the elders are able to
denote the arrival of Bagre. In a way, the old guinea cock’s uncovering of edible bean flowers inward his farm,
cross checks the accuracy of timing of Bagre amongst the large fruit bat’s uncovering of shea fruits. Other birds
also business office inward the service of Bagre Mother, Tengbane, too Bagre Father, Sagbane.
In add-on to the way inward which feathered creatures are treated inward the Bagre ceremony, other animals play of import roles. Some of these animals are spirit animals too are thus prohibited to Bagre. They include the duo (wild boar), the sienee (porcupine), the sasere (grass-cutter), too mokpaangoo (bush guinea-fowl).
There are no reasons given inward the narrative why these are prohibited, but nosotros make non demand to search far for
the reason. These are totemic animals, too it is non allowed for i to kill a clan totem animate beingness nether any
circumstance. In contrast to the prohibited animals, at that spot are sure animals that are regarded as fit offering to the Bagre deity. They include, korenga (partridge), soangaa (rabbit/hare), kyie (squirrel), walaa (antelope). Reasons for selecting these as acceptable to the Bagre are uncertain.
It is clear from what I have got said higher upwardly that plants, animals, insects, too spirit beings play a really important role inward the Bagre performance. These roles aid to shape the spiritual, moral, intellectual, too cultural characters of Dagaaba youth. They also initiate the construction of a positive environmental consciousness amid them. For instance, unless the ceremony of the shea butter is performed, whatsoever elbow grease at outset the Bagre performance volition live fraught amongst danger (Goody 1972: ll.780-960). Consequently, the shea tree too its fruits, too the role the fruit bat plays, cannot live considered purely from a materialist economical perspective, too cultural backwardness. Yes, the shea tree has a lot of economical importance to the Dagaaba. But its ritual importance is what has ensured its survival inward the human face upwardly of worsening environmental degradation. It is also of import to recognize the spiritual links betwixt the people, the bat, too the tree. Without this recognition the tree volition live destroyed when its economical importance is no longer really relevant, too its role as protector of the soil volition live terminated.
In addition, the fruitbat’s ambiguous location as a winged mammal, too as i who sees inward the night, gives testimony to its importance inward discovering the initiative off fruits of the shea tree. It is carnivorous too herbivorous, too hangs upside downwardly dissimilar other winged creatures. Thus, it breaks all the boundaries associated amongst animals too birds. For this reason, it is the eldest amid the non-human elders of the Bagre. The fruit bat throws the seed of the shea fruit into the farms of humans. This enables the elders to view too commence the physical care for of announcing the Bagre. The fruit bat’s activity also helps disperse the seeds of the tree, too yesteryear that activity it helps to expand the natural vegetation. Thus, the events carried yesteryear the fruit bat, too all the other animals, insects, too birds displace humans toward a revelatory recognition of their total dependence on these other creatures. This dependence yesteryear humans on non-human subjects is what is too then re-enacted inward the Bagre performance toward securing human happiness, health, wealth, piety, too social mobility yesteryear Dagaaba inward their otherwise harsh environs (Goody 1972: ll.922-29).
Batman Samini, instrumentalist too award-winner at 2006 MOBO Awards is a Dagao
Dagaare Music
While the music on this recording is the facial expression of a distinct ethnolinguistic group, the Dagaaba,
nevertheless, have got had long historical, social, cultural too linguistic ties amongst other peoples of the northern
parts of Ghana, such as the Sisaala, the Waala, the Dagomba, the Frafra, the Kasena, the Builsa, the Kusaasi too the Mamprusi. Thus, the musical cultures of the part portion sure features. For instance,
the main musical instrument of the northwestern constituent of the the world is the xylophone, which may live supported by
a drum or a drum ensemble, too the scales are largely of the hemitonic too anhemitonic pentatonic types,
that is, 5 banker's complaint scales that include half-steps too those that make not.
Music-making amid the Dagaaba, similar other peoples of the region, is an intrinsic constituent of social life.
Certain types of music too repertories of vocal may live associated amongst particular occasions, cults,
cooperative piece of work groups too organized labour, historic catamenia groups, too rites of passage. For instance, praisesongs
(danno ng) are performed regularly as a tribute to the master copy piece other types of music are exclusive
to the rituals too ceremonies of the imperial court, such as an investiture, an assembly inward the courtroom or
audience chamber, or a funeral. Particular types of music are identified amongst the religious cult called Bagre which holds an annual festival; or amongst traditional associations, such as the kp 3ta a , which comprises
reciprocal aid groups for immature farmers. The "anle e " social trip the lite fantastic is reserved for females; the fe roo is a
trip the lite fantastic performed yesteryear the youth; piece the "se3gaana a" is danced mainly yesteryear the elderly There are warrior
songs (zoore yi e le), as good as songs for farming, grinding, pounding, floor-beating, plastering, hunting
(waaron g yi e le) too herding.
There are special songs for initiation ceremonies, funerals (kobie), ritual sacrifice, weddings, too populace naming ceremonies that occur 7 days after the nascence of a kid (referred to as ‘outdooring’). On some occasions, sure types of music may live prohibited, for instance, the ba wa a is non performed when a fellow member of the community is seriously sick or when someone has died. Music may also occur as the spontaneous facial expression of private community members, such as the music for the solo bamboo flute (wu le e ), the harp (p 3na a or koriduo inward Nandom), or the lullaby (bi-ya gleyi e le).
Finally, music is used to welcome too honour of import guests too visitors.
The Bawaa Dance
Group dancing is intrinsic to ritual too ceremony too is an of import marking of social competence. In
order, then, for an private to participate inward a ritual he or she must live able to dance. Group dancing is
also an of import way of maintaining community solidarity. As a Dagaare vocal says: ‘If one’s kid does
non know how to dance, it does non belong to the community’.
The bawaa is a telephone telephone to immature people to brand trip the lite fantastic too music together, indeed the term "bawaa " literally means, "young people, come upwardly together" (Kobina Saighoe:1984). The bawaa trip the lite fantastic then, is a favourite
pastime amid the Dagaaba youth. It oftentimes occurs simply as a spontaneous facial expression of immature members
of the community when an chance arises. Mostly, however, the bawaa trip the lite fantastic is incorporated into
diverse celebrations, including: rites of passage marking birth, puberty, union too death, or to honour
an individual.
The bawaa dancers also brand upwardly the chorus which comprises both immature males too females, including
children. One of the dancers, commonly a virile somebody amongst the most science or experience as a dancer or instrumentalist, takes the role of Pb vocalizer called the ba wa -ngmaara or the bawa-kye3r3 (‘the cutter’). The dancers are accompanied yesteryear 2 xylophonists, i plays a ‘male’ musical instrument (gyil-daa) too the other plays a ‘female’ musical instrument (gyil-nyanngaa), and a drummer who plays a single-headed drum (ganggaa).
The leader of the dance-chorus decides when i vocal ends too when a novel i begins. The chorus,
called bawa-sagereba (or sagra: singular ‘one who agrees’), responds to the calls from the leader. The
dancers apparel metallic leg jingles (kyeem e), beaded girdles (l ebie ), metallic finger cymbals (pe ra a pl. perre ) and
sometimes metallic wrist jingles. Uniforms are sometimes worn yesteryear the dancers but this may non live so inward other cases.
The telephone telephone to trip the lite fantastic commonly begins amongst the clapping of finger cymbals. The 2 xylophone players, who
sit down reverse each other amongst the drummer side yesteryear side to them, commence piece the crowd gathers about the dance
area. The dancers too then acquire inward the expanse too shape a circle about the musicians, dancing inward either an anticlockwise or clockwise direction.
The main constituent of the trip the lite fantastic consists of an alternation betwixt 2 sections. The initiative off department is called the See`o during which they perform a vocal inward telephone telephone too answer fashion. This is followed yesteryear a to a greater extent than intense
department called a` emmo` (‘to spot in’). During this section, the trip the lite fantastic becomes to a greater extent than intense as the dancers
synchronize their steps amongst heavy syncopated accents too displays of skill. In Accra, a exercise has
developed whereby individuals or pairs acquire out the circle for competitive displays of skill. The whole dance
ceremony oftentimes has a ‘director’ called the bawaa-naa who does non participate inward the trip the lite fantastic lawsuit itself,
but who oversees the entire performance. This cycle is repeated whatsoever number of times for each song, until
such times as the leader signals a novel vocal too the cycle begins again.
When the dancers exhibit signs of tiring i of the xylophone players gives a signal to destination the dance. In the
hamlet setting the dancers simply stop, piece inward Accra a to a greater extent than formal organisation exists whereby the
dancers acquire out the circle inward a unmarried line. Generally, a performance lasts betwixt 20 too 30 minutes. (click hither for Bawaa dance: http://shelf3d.com/4pOzOarwnZI#Bewaa Dance Of The Dagaaba People.)
Dagaaba (Dagarti) dancers from Jirapa
Kobine is a traditional trip the lite fantastic too festival unique to the Lawra expanse of northward western Ghana. The trip the lite fantastic too the festival named after it are celebrated inward September too Oct to grade the destination of a successful harvest.
Festival.
The festival of Kobine lasts 4 days, amongst the initiative off twenty-four hours usually reserved for visiting spot unit of measurement too friends. The 2d too 3rd days are the official holidays. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 procession of the spot unit of measurement heads is accompanied yesteryear groups of younger people dressed to stand upwardly for hunters too elephants.
Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 number of speeches are made yesteryear dignitaries too other guests of honour before the Kobine trip the lite fantastic contest begins.
Ethnic Dagaaba people performing Kobine trip the lite fantastic atKobine festival inward Lawra, Upper West Region
The Kobine music is produced from kuor, a drum musical instrument amongst a base of operations made from a gourd, too dalar, a smaller drum made from the cervix of a clay pot.
The men usually clothes inward beautifully decorated skirts, but are usually bare-chested to demonstrate their masculinity as good as their flexibility piece they dance. Other ornaments such as headgear too caps are worn. The women clothes similarly to the men, except they to a greater extent than oftentimes than non volition apparel a blouse. Both men too women apparel a band of bells about the ankles to accentuate their rhythmic moves when they dance.
The trip the lite fantastic itself consists of quick rhythmic moves especially amongst the torso or upper body. At the peak moves catamenia of the dance, the women volition to a greater extent than oftentimes than non cutting inward too trip the lite fantastic inward forepart of their favorite virile somebody dancer.
Dagaaba Gyil
The Dagaare Xylophone (Gyil)
Dagaare xylophones are commonly played inward pairs, facing each other. The Dagaare xylophones (gyi l, pl. gy ile ) recorded inward Kogri-Ullo have got 18 keys piece those inward the Dagaare social clubs inward Accra have got 17 keys. The keys (gyi l bi `r, lit. "seed") are tied together amongst antelope enshroud too mounted over a enshroud cushion on a wooden frame. Gourd resonators (ko`or, pl. ko`o) graduated inward size are suspended nether each key. Two or 3 holes nigh 2-3cm inward diameter are bored into each gourd too covered amongst a spider’s egg instance ( pempenee)
to increment the resonance too to make a buzzing effect.
The in conclusion too lowest key (za` ngbaal) does non have got a resonator as it is used for playing a repeated rhythmic ostinato (kpaaroo) The other keys are played amongst a wooden beater (gyildoo`le) nigh 30cm long, covered amongst prophylactic at the head. The tuning of the Dagaare xylophone is pentatonic (anhemitonic) too has a arrive at of 2 octaves. (further readings: http://www.michaelvercelli.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Vercelli_DMA_Document1.pdf)
The accompanying drums are commonly single-headed (gangare ), though a gourd drum (koo`re) usually
reserved for funerals, was used inward the Accra performances
Death too Afterlife
There is a full general belief inward life after death, too funeral ceremonies are the agency yesteryear which the actual
passage of a human beingness from the Land of the Living (tengzu) to the Land of Dead (dapaarewie) is effected. The dead go across the river of decease amongst the assistance of a ferryman; during the trip, those who have got led evil lives may live punished for their misdeeds. In the course of study of the serial of funeral ceremonies, a dead adult man also becomes an ancestor, amongst a shrine that volition thereafter have regular offerings of nutrient too imbibe from his descendants, especially from those who have got inherited from him.
Additionally, ancestor reverence too abide by for the belief inward the powerfulness of the ancestors to protect, guide, too offering showers of approbation to the living, may live considered as the most of import aspects of the human relationship betwixt the living too their supernatural agents. The ancestors are never dead. They merely
go on to live inward the other world of spirits too serve as media betwixt their relatives too the spirits too gods.
Funeral: Death, peculiarly of infants, was frequent. Those who have got non yet been weaned are non mourned inward the usual way, except yesteryear their mothers, because they are deemed to live wandering spirits, rather than humans. Precautions are taken against their render to this earth.
For all others, however, the funeral rites are long too complex, too they involve the participation of many people. All funeral rituals amid the Dagaaba involve musicians, mourners too the assembled villagers too guests from neighboring villages. The music grouping usually consists of xylophonists, drummers too singers. The singers improvise, recreate too reproduce through their songs the history of the spot unit of measurement upwardly to the decease that resulted inward the separation. The theme of the songs is a combination of the deeds too sorrows of the family. The best vocalizer is i who tin stir the maximum plane of grief inward the chief-mourners (kotuodeme, the closest relatives of the diseased) yesteryear his alternative of words. The effect of the words of the singers is echoed too amplified yesteryear the tunes of the xylophones too the sounds of the drums, moving the community to grieve freely.
Wailing, screaming, groaning, running, jumping, dancing too singing are all acceptable ways of expressing grief. Shedding of tears is highly recommended too admired. The kotuodeme are expected to shed a lot of tears too bear inward a way that stirs sympathizers to portion the grief to the fullest yesteryear shedding as many tears as
possible.
The dead person, dressed inward ceremonial outfit, is seated on a high wooden stool called paala, too surrounded yesteryear her/his valuable possessions. The stool is constructed from a special form of tree. The singers, drummers too xylophonists are usually non far from the corpse too the entire funeral expanse is marked yesteryear turmoil too turbulence, as people deed out their grief piece others assay to command themselves inward monastic tell to calm downwardly some of the kotuodeme from fourth dimension to time. The kotuodeme are tagged amongst ropes (much similar leashes) for identification purposes too for slowly command yesteryear people who may want to calm them downwardly yesteryear holding on to the rope. The to a greater extent than contributions too ropes i sent to other kotuodeme inward the past, the to a greater extent than ropes too contributions i is probable to have when i becomes a kotuosobo (singular for kotuodeme).
Reciprocity is the guiding regulation here. Although many people are probable to halt yesteryear at a funeral before continuing their daily business, the to a greater extent than funerals the deceased too kotuodeme attended, the to a greater extent than probable the funeral volition live crowded yesteryear sympathizers from all walks of life. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 well-attended funeral is an indication that the household has a high social reputation.
The length of funerals varies betwixt i to 5 days. The in conclusion twenty-four hours is marked yesteryear the burial of the dead person. There are usually designated grave diggers too specially trained people who make the actual burying, for it is believed the dead is capable of preventing i from exiting the grave i time the burial physical care for is nigh to end. Renowned witches too medicine people are peculiarly notorious for challenging the under-takers. In such instances, only as toughened witches or medicine people who have got been trained to bury the dead volition live entrusted amongst the chore at hand.
Highly respected elders are usually buried inward the middle of the spot unit of measurement chemical compound or inward forepart of the spot unit of measurement solid rather than inward the cemetery. This is to hold them unopen to the spot unit of measurement who are constantly beingness watched over yesteryear the dead elderberry or ancestor. From fourth dimension to time, libation may live poured too sacrifices made on the grave. On other informal occasions, the grave may serve as a resting spot for naps too for relaxing too chatting. The elders make non play an of import only after their death, but also piece they are alive.
Sources:http://www.linguistics.hku.hk/staff/Bodomo/JDS/2004/JDS2004_Kuwabong.pdf
http://www.linguistics.hku.hk/staff/Bodomo/JDS/JDS2002_Alenuma.pdf
http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3458001518.html
Economic too Sociocultural Aspects of Cowrie Currency of the Dagaaba of Northwestern Republic of Ghana Aspects
EMMANUEL YIRIDOE
University of Guelph, Canada
The cowrie currency, the dominant medium of substitution inward Republic of Ghana before the introduction of the West African Pound and, later, the Cedi, is at nowadays only a vestigial relic inward virtually all of modern Republic of Ghana except amid the Dagaaba. This newspaper provides an insider's perspective on the economical importance too on the unique role of the cowrie currency amid the Dagaaba that explains its perpetual presence. Cultural uses create a derived demand for cowries. Government policies outcome inward debasement of the cedi and, together amongst monetary characteristics of the cowrie, Pb to contest betwixt the cedi too the cowrie.
Chief Simon Diedong Dombo (SD Dombo), ethnic Dagaaba/Dagarti man, i of the Ghana`s earliest most celebrated too charismatic politician, renowned master copy of Duori too the founding fellow member too leader of the Northern People’s Party (NPP) too Pogress Party (UP), which off-shot is the Ghana`s biggest opposition party,New Patriotic Party (NPP). Dombo was one-time the only lone vociferous opposition vocalism inward Republic of Ghana when Dr Kwame Nkrumah declared Republic of Ghana as One-Party State. His yell was popularized as "Domocracy."l
Clusters of Dagaaba
The terms "LoDagaa" too "Lobi-Dagarti" (or Dagara) are used for a cluster of peoples situated across the frontier of Burkina Faso too Ghana, originally grouped together yesteryear Labouret, next the usage of Delafosse too other francophones. In this cluster, Labouret included the "true Lobi" (or those the Birifor telephone telephone the "LoWilisi") about Gaoua, who (according to Westermann too Bryan 1952) speak a Dogon-type linguistic communication (the inclusion of Dogon is disputed); the Birifor (or LoBirifor) to their east, who speak Dagara, a Mole-Dagbane language; too 4 smaller groups: the Teguessié, the Dorossié, the Dian, too the Gan. The Teguessié (or Tégué) speak a linguistic communication of the Kulango Group too are sometimes thought of as the autochthons; they were Masters of the world inward much of the area. The other little groups speak languages related to Lobiri, as make the Padoro too perhaps the Komono; Dian too Lobiri (in the east) are to a greater extent than closely related, as is the western group.
Dagaaba women
Subsequently, Père (1988) adopted the francophone usage of Lobi ("la région Lobi") to screen the peoples of the Gaoua District of Burkina Faso, including non only the Jãa (Dian); the Gaàn (Gan); the Teésé (Teguessié); the Dòcsè (or Dorossié, but also the Kùlãgo [Kulango]); the Dagara (divided into Dagara Lobr too Dagara Wiili [Oulé]); too the Pwa (formerly known as the Pugula or Pougouli), who speak a Grusi language. Indeed, because she is dealing amongst the region, she also includes the Wala too the Dagara-Jula inward her account.
Alban Kingsford Sumani Bagbin, ethnic Dagaaba, Ghanaian politician, onetime Minister of Health inward the Ghana, onetime minority leader too the Member of Parliament for Nadowli West.
The problems of ethnic classification inward this expanse are several. In the initiative off place, names differ, depending on whether they are used yesteryear francophones or yesteryear anglophones. The Lobi described yesteryear Rattray (1932) include the Birifor as good as the Dagara of Labouret. Second, the names have got changed over time. People who were known as "Lobi" inward the Lawra District of Republic of Ghana at the outset of the nineteenth century are at nowadays "Dagara." Third, the names themselves oftentimes make non pull distinct ethnic groups. There are many differences inward custom too organisation betwixt neighboring settlements, too these settlements may live referred to yesteryear the 2 quasi-directional terms, "Lo" (Lobi, west) too "Dagaa" (east), to distinguish different practices (for example, the usage of xylophones). Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 settlement may spot amongst its eastern neighbors on i occasion (as Dagaa) too amongst its western ones (as Lo) on another. This role participant usage has led Goody to spot a spectrum of peoples, the LoDagaa, who usage these names for reference to themselves too others. They are, from westward to east, the truthful Lobi, the Birifor or LoBirifor, the LoPiel (around Nandom) too the LoSaala (around Lawra), the Dagara (around Dano), the LoWiili (around Birifu), both DagaaWiili (around Tugu), too the Dagaba or Dagarti. The Wala speak the Dagaba linguistic communication too constitute a little province that has its origins eastward inward Dagomba. That province established itself as ruler over the southern Dagaba too some Grusi-speaking peoples. In the west, a branch of the ruling dynasty extended across the Black Volta to Buna, where they adapted the local Kulango language. The LoPiel too the LoSaala are known to francophones as "Dagara" (or Dagara-Lobr), too they at nowadays to a greater extent than oftentimes than non usage this term rather than "Lobi" for self-reference because they have got been forced to assort themselves unambiguously for administrative purposes. That alter is widespread because "Dagara" is oftentimes a to a greater extent than prestigious term than "Lobi." The latter is associated inward many people's minds amongst the large lip plugs of gourd or metallic that are worn inward the westward (the easterners apparel lean metallic plugs) too amongst the stress that the westerners spot on matrilineal inheritance, nigh which modernizers (church, schools, law, some administrators) to a greater extent than oftentimes than non experience hostile too ambivalent.
Dr Benjamin Bewa-Nyog Kunbuor, Ethnic Dagaaba man, Ghanaian politician, police force lecturer, Member of Parliament for Lawra, onetime Minister for Justice too Attorney General, Minister for Health, Minister for Interior too currently government minister of Defence
Given these contextual, overlapping, too changing usages yesteryear the peoples themselves, role participant names are rarely satisfactory to signal "tribal" groups, yesteryear which nosotros refer to larger groupings of settlements amongst relatively homogeneous practices. These groups tin live distinguished, roughly from due east to west, as the Dagaba or Dagarti (around Jirapa); the LoPiel (around Nandom) too the LoSaala (around Lawra), both "Dagara Lobr" inward French; the DagaaWiili (around Legmoin too Tugu) too the LoWiili (around Birifu), both "Dagara Wiilé" inward French; the Birifor or LoBirifor (around Batié too inward western Gonja); too the Lobi or LoWiilisi (around Gaoua). There are, inward addition, the smaller populations of Gan, Dorossié, too Gian, who speak Lobi languages, too Teguessié, too who speak Kulango. These groups tin live collectively designated as the LoDagaa or Lobi-Dagarti cluster, at that spot beingness no argue to exclude the other Dagara-speaking peoples i time the Birifor have got been included amid the Lobi.
Dagaaba kids coming from the farm inward photo-shot amongst Kirstin, fellow member of Vetinarians Without Borders, at Nadowli, Upper West Region, Ghana. Courtesy http://vwbvsfstudentghana2010.blogspot.com/
Dagaaba Creation Story/Myth
The Dagaaba creation story tin live found in Bagre performance that demonstrates the spiritual importance of the environs to Dagaaba. According to Dannabang Kuwabong "Bagre informs us that humans were created from a combination of the soil (earth), okra (plants), God’s saliva (water), too the semen too eggs of flies too cats (animals). Seen this way, the human somebody is a configuration of the land, the animal, the spirit, too the flora too nosotros owe our lives to a preservation of the residuum betwixt us too these initiative off beings. In other words, animals, plants, spirits, too the the world must constantly live negotiated amongst as they have got a closer affinity amongst the divine who oversees everything. That explains why Dagaaba view spirituality inward every creation too situation."
Dagao adult man from Burkina Faso
Language
The Dagaaba speaks the Dagaare language ((also spelled Dagare, Dagari, Dagarti, Dagaran or, Dagao), which belongs to the Oti-Volta grouping of the Gur branch of the Niger-Congo linguistic communication spot unit of measurement (Swadesh 1966, Bendor-Samuel1971:144, Naden 1989).
Ethnic Dagao Cardinal Peter Poreku Dery.
Dagaare is a two-toned linguistic communication also referred to as Mabia subgroup of the branch of the Niger-Congo linguistic communication of West Africa. (Bodomo 1997, Bodomo 2000, Anttila too Bodomo 2001). It is spoken yesteryear nigh 2 i chiliad 1000 people, mainly inward Republic of Ghana but also inward neighbouring regions of West Africa, similar Burkina Faso too the Ivory Coast. Phonologically speaking, Dagaare too other Mabia languages, including Moore, Dagbane, Frafra, Kusaal, Mampruli too Buli, are marked yesteryear a preponderance of consonants too a scarcity of vowel sounds when compared to Indo-European languages, such as English linguistic communication too French (Bodomo, forthcoming). One distinctive phonological characteristic is the double joint of some consonants. These include labio-velar
stops similar /gb/ /kp/ too /ngm/. Such features, rare inward Indo-European languages, are a mutual characteristic in
many African languages. The labio-velar too velar sounds are partially complementary, as inward the alternate
causative/non-causative forms of the verbs k/ kp i, ‘die’ inward Dagaare. Regular allophones oftentimes involve /d/ too /r/, too /g/ too // across the diverse languages. There may also live limited cases of gratis variation as it is betwixt /h/ too /z/ inward the Dagaare word, ha a / za a , ‘all’.
There is the typological characteristic of vowel harmony inward Dagaare too many Mabia languages. Words similar ko go
(‘chair’), bi i ri (‘(‘children’), too tu u ro (‘digging’) are pronounced amongst tense or advanced natural language root vowels, piece words similar k)b) (‘bones’), biiri (‘to brew “pito” the 2d day’), tuur) (‘insulting’) are pronounced amongst lax or unadvanced natural language root vowels. Front rounded vowels, found inward languages similar French too Norwegian, too dorsum unrounded vowels are absent inward these languages, except when phonetically realized inward particular environments.
Syllabic nasality is also a typological characteristic inward these languages. These are realized inward some environments,
most oftentimes as pronouns too particles; as inward the instance of the Dagaare 3rd somebody pronoun /N/ as inward m `ba , (‘my father’), n`zu (‘my head’) too inward the Dagaare particle, -N which is a cliticized shape of the polarity
marker, la.
Peter Tenganabang Nanfuri aka Naa Ansoleh Ganaa II, Ethnic Dagarti adult man too onetime Inspector General of Police (IGP) inward Republic of Ghana too the Paramount Chief of the Jirapa Traditional Area inward his smock sitting inward the middle. Courtesy FH Communications Bureau
Dagaare too other Mabia languages primarily have got 2 tonal systems, high too low, (respectively marked
yesteryear sharp too grave diachritics on the sounds amongst contain them) amongst cases of downstep inward some of the
languages, i.e. subsequent high tones may non live as high as preceeding ones. These tones serve to express
both lexical too grammatical oppositions as inward the Dagaare verbs, da` (‘push’), /da` (‘buy’), too as inward the
declarative too hortative readings of pronouns e.g.u` kuli la yiri / `u` kuli la yiri ((‘He went home/ He should
go home’).
Dagaare, too its grouping of languages, usually manifest opened upwardly syllables. Both CV too CVC syllables tin be
reconstructed, but it is usually possible to insert a in conclusion syllable. Thus, the Dagaare verb ‘to leave’, may live realized either as bar` or bar i`. There are also dialectal differences amongst abide by to these 2 forms.
.An of import typological characteristic of these languages is the scheme of substantive classes. Noun class
manifestation is a mutual characteristic for Niger-Congo languages, but piece most of these languages usage a
prefixal pattern, i.e. cases inward which nominal inflections occur before, rather than, after the root, Mabia
languages mostly usage a scheme of grade suffixes. These are typically based on singular/plural alternations.
Most nouns be inward 3 forms: the root, the singular, too the plural. An instance is the Dagaare give-and-take for
‘woman/wife’: p)g- (root), p)ga (singular), p) gba (plural), amongst the farther vowel assimilation inward some
dialects to give us p)g)` too p)gb).
Bede Ziedeng, Ethnic Dagao too Ghanaian political leader too the onetime Upper West Regional Minister of Ghana
Another of import typological characteristic within Dagaare too its grouping of languages is verb morphology. In
most of these languages at that spot is a regular shape of marking perfective too imperfective aspects yesteryear adding
suffixes to the verbs, as inward zoe` ‘have run’ too zoro` ‘running’.
As far as possible, the diverse texts associated amongst the music on this recording are presented amongst tonal
transcriptions. For phrases too larger chunks of data, nosotros provide interlinear glossings. These glossings
provide interesting insights into the grammatical too communicative construction of the Dagaare language.
Finally, gratis translations follow the glosses to capture salient aspects of the linguistic too cultural meaning
behind these texts. This linguistic information transcription is an of import aspect for the analysis and
interpretation of the music texts. The next is an illustration:
Ka` Ne3` bi`eng wa` b)ng ba`waa tenee` paal`ong bi`e naa
COMP person Child. FOC NEG know ba`waa 1. PL area kid NEG
(‘If a kid doesn’t know how to trip the lite fantastic baawaa s/he cannot perhaps live a kid from our town.’)
Ethnic Dagao, Mr Ambrose Dery, Ghana`s onetime Attorney-Genera too government minister of Justice too a onetime Member of Parliament for Lawra
History
The Dagaaba have got occupied their introduce homeland for some 3 hundred years. H Labouret, inward his study of migration inward this area, suggests that the Dagaaba moved north, from due south of Wa, inward nigh 1680; G Tuurey (1982) holds that the Dagaaba were originally a grouping which split away from the Dagomba. See also Herbert (1976). Bodomo suggests that the Dagaaba, Mossi, Dagomba, Kusasi, Farefare, Mamprusi too others are direct descended from a mutual ancestor ethnolinguistic group, the Mabia.
In his article "Customary Law of the Dagara” of Northern Ghana: Indigenous Rules or a Social Construction," published inward 2002 edition of Journal of Dagaare Studies, Vol 2, Dr Benjamin Kunbuor quoting other sources posited that "The dominant thesis has it that the Dagara are a rebel grouping that migrated away from the autocratic dominion of Dagbon, nether the legendary Na Nyanse (see Tuurey, 1982; Lentz, 1997).Retinue og Dagaaba chiefs, drummers too dancers at annual Bong Ngo festival at Jirapa
The Lobi-Dagarti peoples are without whatsoever overarching tribal organisation or, strictly speaking, whatsoever territory. They displace non as large units, but as spot unit of measurement groups, sometimes into other ethnic areas, where they may live absorbed into the local population. Most of the groups to the westward of the Black Volta claim to have got been formerly settled to the due east of the river, inward what is at nowadays Ghana. From the eighteenth century on, they have got moved across the river. There appear to have got been Lobi as good as Dagaba inward the Wa expanse when the ruling dynasty arrived; the Jãa were for sure settled inward the Lawra expanse until, attracted yesteryear a sparsely populated part amongst plenty of farmland too wood make too nether force per unit of measurement area from other LoDagaa, mainly from the due south too southwest (but fifty-fifty from westward of the river), they crossed the Black Volta. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 minority of clans describe their origins from other regions.
One of the factors leading to the motion has been the search for to a greater extent than too improve land, next before hunting expeditions. Another factor has been the raids mounted yesteryear the states of the part (as good as yesteryear the occasional freebooters too adventurers) inward their search for slaves, partly for their ain usage but mainly to provide the Asante and, through them, the Europeans inward the south. The invaders on horseback terrified the inhabitants, who sometimes retaliated amongst poisoned arrows. Mainly, however, they fled, using the larger rivers. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 number of characteristics—their dispersed settlements of fortress-type houses, the women's lip plugs, their rejection of cloth, too their full general aggressiveness—have been attributed to the effects of such raids. In the tardily twentieth century houses are smaller, the mode of clothes is to a greater extent than "European," too less hostility is displayed.
The establishment of the international boundary has brought nigh a decline inward east-west migration. The main motion of the Lobi inward the tardily twentieth century has been of 2 kinds. The initiative off has been from the Lawra District to the vacant lands southward on the route to Kumasi, which many men have got traveled inward the dry out flavor as migrant laborers. Settlements that make nutrient for sale inward the markets have got grown upwardly from Wa due south to the northwest of Asante. The 2d movement, outset inward 1917, has been eastward across the Black Volta from the francophone territories to Ghana, where at that spot were fewer calls yesteryear the authorities on project services. Many Birifor moved into the sparsely populated lands of western Gonja, which had been decimated as a outcome of Samori's wars at the destination of the nineteenth century. These migrants have got proved to live much to a greater extent than aggressive, market-oriented farmers than their hosts, amongst whom at that spot has been some conflict over taxes too representation.
Beautiful Dagaaba immature adult woman grinding grain
Settlement
Settlements inward the expanse consist of named units that are usually centered on a specific parish or ritual expanse of an world shrine. Among the Dagaaba, most houses are made of mud and/or cement amongst either thatched, laterite or aluminum roofs. These settlements are inhabited yesteryear members of several exogamous lineages housed inward fortress-type compounds amongst 2.5meter-high walls, a apartment roofs, too entrances reached (at to the lowest degree formerly) yesteryear wooden ladders to the roofs. These houses are some 100 meters apart too contain an average of xv persons, but they vary inward size, depending on the province of the developmental cycle of the domestic group. Around the walls lies the chemical compound farm, which is fertilized yesteryear human detritus too is used yesteryear the women to flora their soup vegetables. It is adjoined yesteryear spot farms; bush farms prevarication much farther away. The settlements consist of some 250 to 750 inhabitants.
Each of these compounds is inhabited by, amid others, an unproblematic family, consisting of a man, his married adult woman or wives too children. Such a spot unit of measurement is established through marriage.
Dagaaba people
Economy
Subsistence too Commercial Activities. The economic scheme is essentially i of the hoe farming of cereals (sorghum, pennisetum [pearl millet], maize), together amongst some yams, especially inward the southern areas that are occupied yesteryear migrants. In addition, people grow squashes, peppers, beans (including Bambara beans), groundnuts, too a petty rice. Some of this make is sold inward the local markets, especially sorghum inward the shape of beer. Most compounds also possess a herd of cows, too some sheep, goats, guinea fowl, too chickens, which are mainly killed as sacrifices to live distributed.
Dagarti farmers inward their farm at Jirapa
Industrial Arts too Trade. Lobi women make a sure amount of gold, which finds its way into the hands of Dyula traders. Associated amongst before golden workings, it has been suggested, are the ruins of stone houses. Since the advent of colonial rule, the relative peace that it brought nigh too the cheaper atomic number 26 tools that it provided have got led to increased production, evidence of which tin live seen inward the markets. That increment is also truthful for livestock. Along amongst wage project (performed either locally or as migrants), these developments have got increased purchasing power. Whereas petty was imported before except salt, at nowadays large amounts of fabric are brought in, too other manufactured objects, such as matches, bicycles, transistor radios, too household utensils, are used inward considerable quantities. Local arts and crafts production consists of atomic number 26 implements, brass bangles too other ornaments, musical instruments, some wood carvings, too woven mats.
Today migration—both of the uneducated, seeking piece of work as laborers, too of the educated, who to a greater extent than oftentimes than non piece of work inward the towns—is frequent. The historic catamenia of migrants is at nowadays much lower than formerly, too the duration of their absences is much greater. The outcome is that larger numbers of houses are inhabited yesteryear old men, women, too children who have got to carry out the agricultural piece of work without the aid they would have got received from the migrants. Thus, the sexual sectionalization of project has been altered. The south, however, is outset to lose some of its attraction as the international economic scheme affects the recruitment of labor, potential recruits are frightened yesteryear tales of AIDS.
The LoDagaa (including the Lobi) were non themselves traders (except inward the province of Wa), but major north-south merchandise routes of Dyula too Hausa merchants ran through the expanse from the wood to the Sahel.
Food
Some of the differences that be betwixt the Dagaare-speaking communities are somehow subtle too non easily noticeable yesteryear the on-looker. For example, although the staple dish amid the Dagaaba is saabo or Sao (called "to" inward many other African languages), the constitution/texture of this millet, sorghum or maize-based repast may vary from i community to the other. In addition, the soup that is eaten amongst the saabo may live prepared inward a slightly different mode inward spite of the fact that virtually the same ingredients may live used inward each case. Meat is non considered an of import food, except inward special meals for instance at funerals. Apart from these occasions, only guinea fowl are slaughtered for regular consumption.
Division of Labor
Farming was mostly done yesteryear men, but women helped amongst the planting too the harvesting. In some places, women would organize men to farm for a friend yesteryear brewing plenty of beer. Women cultivated soup vegetables, collected wood produce, carried loads, gathered firewood, fetched water, extracted oil, too prepared nutrient too beer.
Dagaaba women of Lawra grinding grain amongst a pestles inward a huge wooden Mortar
Grinding grain, inward particular, was a lengthy process. Their workload is at nowadays changing as a outcome of the introduction of wells too mills. Men carried out the heavy agricultural work, looked after livestock, too hunted. Both sexes took constituent inward solid edifice during the dry out season.
Land Tenure
Dagaaba traditional ethics of belongings ownership is that no private tin actually ain land. Land ownership is communitarian, custodial, too spiritual. The powerfulness to usage the world is invested inward the Tengdaana (spiritual guardian of the land). The Tengdaana guards the the world on behalf of the people, too mediates amid the people, the ancestors, the spirit world, too God. He is the High Priest responsible for leading the people inward prayer inward times of great need, thanksgiving, purification rituals of the land, too other spiritual matters. His spot cannot live morally too spiritually challenged, fifty-fifty though he may lack the political authorisation or the powerfulness of legal coercion to carry out his orders too interpretations of the divine volition that underpin Dagaaba ‘lesereng’ too ‘Nabaale Yele’ legal civilisation too customary exercise (Yelpaala 1983:367-372, Yelpaala 1992:454-459). Nonetheless, the Tendaana is the only somebody who can, too who does, sacrifice to the world Goddess. The Tendaana’s role ensures that amid Dagaaba the world ownership is egalitarian, collective, communitarian, too usufructory (Nsiah- Gyabaah 1994). By extension, he oversees the safety too sustainability of the world usage amid the people. Accordingly too ideally, no private traditionally has the moral or political correct or powerfulness to completely invalidate some other person’s entitlement to the world use, or to destroy the land’s sustainability
through bad the world usage practices. For this reason, the highest business office of Dagaaba is that of the Tengdaana,
too non that of the king.
At sure times, the world tenure took the shape of a hierarchy of rights distributed within the lineage. At i level, the world was "owned" yesteryear the wider patrilineage, too if whatsoever the world was non beingness farmed, other members had a claim to usage it. Use rights were exclusive too to a greater extent than of import where the world was scarce or especially valuable (because of water). Where population density was low, it sufficed to approach the local Master of the Earth, who would perform a simple sacrifice.
Kinship
Kin Groups too Descent. Across the LoDagaa cluster, roughly from due east to west, at that spot is an increasing emphasis on the role of matrilineal descent groups. In the east, the Dagaba are organized on the ground of patrilineal descent groups alone. Several of these exogamous units be inward each parish. These lineages, which describe patrilineal relationships betwixt their members, belong to wider named clans, segments of which are found inward widely dispersed settlements, fifty-fifty those of different "ethnic" groups, roughly tracing out lines of migration. Groups to the westward also have got matrilineal clans, too all except the Wiili (and formerly fifty-fifty some of the LoWiili) inherit the world too immovables agnatically too inherit movables (wealth, cattle) through the uterine line. Hence, the patricians are locally based, but the matriclans are dispersed. These groups are thus variants of classic double-descent systems.
Patrilineal clans are numerous, each amongst its ain prohibitions, oftentimes against the killing of a totemic animate beingness or the eating of foods inward a particular way. The clans are paired inward joking relationships, too their ritual foci are lineage shrines. Among the Lobi and, to some extent, the Birifor, although patrilineal clanship is concealed, it is important inward landownership too inward some ritual affairs, especially inward the Dyoro initiations. The matriclans, correct across the cluster, are basically 4 inward number—Some, Da, Hienbe, too Kambire. The initiative off 2 too the in conclusion 2 are paired inward joking relationships, which are peculiarly of import at funerals. These dispersed matriclans have got particular loci where sacrifices are occasionally performed.
Bewaa grouping performing at the Kobine festival inward Lawra, Upper West Region.
Kinship Terminology. In a double-descent system, i tin refer to whatsoever kin either inward the patrilineal or inward the matrilineal mode. The patrilineal mode is Omaha, whereas the matrilineal i is Crow. The ascendance of these different modes depends upon the strength of the relevant groups. Kinship terms tin live confusing to the casual observer of the Dagaaba. The terms “brothers” too “sisters” make non only refer to people i shares parents amongst but also to all cousins. There is no Dagaare equivalent of the term “cousin”. Similarly, wives of males of the same descent may refer to each other’s children as “daughters” or “sons”. There is no such give-and-take as “step-child” although children to a greater extent than oftentimes than non know who their existent mothers are too women may sometimes care for step-children differently from the way they care for their ain children.
Another confusing term is n pog, my wife, used yesteryear both males too females, inward reference to a brother’s wife. There is usually a joking human relationship betwixt people too their brothers’ wives. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 adult woman pretends to live a adult man when slap-up jokes amongst the brother’s wife, hence the usage of “my wife” or n pog, which she may also used inward everyday linguistic communication exterior the joking context. N pog may also live used yesteryear a granddaddy inward reference to a granddaughter too n seere (my husband) used yesteryear a grandmother inward reference to a grandson. Grandchildren too grandparents usually have got a joking human relationship that facilitates a special type of bonding, making it easier for the old ones to impart their knowledge too wisdom on the petty ones. The higher upwardly joking
relationships are different from what exists betwixt all Dagaaba too i of their neighboring groups - the Frafra - which is referred to as loloroung. The Frafra are lolorobo or joking partners of the Dagaaba too this has zippo to make amongst the denie or play that exists betwixt kinsmen as exemplified above.
Dagaaba women
Marriage too Family
Marriage.
Incest taboo is observed inward all the Dagaare-speaking communities of West Africa. In some cases, the slightest indication of a blood relationship, no affair how distant, is plenty argue for a prospective dyad non to live allowed to proceed amongst their union plans. In other cases, matrilateral cross-cousin marriages are permissible too encouraged. Among the LoWiili, a woman’s first-born immature adult woman is encouraged to marry
(and sometimes, as an infant, betrothed to) her maternal uncle’s boy (i.e. union betwixt the children of a sis too a brother). This is supposed to strengthen the human relationship betwixt a woman’s patrikin too her husband’s kin, who are at nowadays her kin due to the marriage. Such matrilateral cross cousin marriages may also involve a woman’s sons too girls from the woman’s patrikin. These kinds of marriages give parents the peace of take away heed (knowing who their children are getting married to) too also aid constitute satisfactory relations betwixt the in-laws.
In the eastern groups, union is strictly virilocal too is effected yesteryear the transfer of bride-wealth inward cowries too after inward cattle. The transfers select spot over time, as the union is consolidated amongst the nascence of children. Traditionally, the groom also had to convey parties to farm for his inlaws from fourth dimension to time, although amid the educated this exercise tends to acquire commuted into a monetary payment. Each union invokes the construction of a novel sleeping accommodation too cooking hearth. Among the Birifor too the Lobi, when a fiancé comes to farm, he may eventually live allowed to pass the nighttime amongst his time to come married adult woman and, later, to have got her see his ain solid inward render for farther work. She did non usually reside permanently inward her husband's solid until after the nascence of their initiative off child. Until decease or divorce, she lives away from the main body of her agnatic kin. Due to the full general lack of transportation, the demand to hold inward touching amongst one’s patrikin, attention every funeral, visiting the sick, etc., girls are encouraged non to wed to men from villages that are non a walking distance (seven miles or less may live considered as the preferred distance) away from
their agnatic home. Similarly, since in-laws are expected to attend each other’s relatives’ funeral ceremonies, parents are particular nigh how far away their sons go to seek union partners. In fact, all the kinsmen of a immature adult man of union historic catamenia hold their eyes opened upwardly for the suitable would-be bride too may brand suggestions to the immature adult man as to who is available too ready for union inward the close yesteryear villages.
In some cases, the selection of a married adult woman too all union arrangements are made without the in-put of the groom. The groom is supposed to select their give-and-take for it, when his kinsmen convey spot a lady too say, “this is the best adult woman for you”. According to the Dagaaba elders, an ideal bride is i that is hard-working, physically fit too strong plenty to live a pog kura (female farmer, capable of all performing such activities as sowing, carrying large loads of firewood, giving nascence to as many boys as possible, etc.), too comes from a spot unit of measurement amongst goodness wellness too conduct.
Another type of organisation for initiative off marriages is elopement, which occurs at the historic catamenia of puberty. The immature adult woman is persuaded to leave of absence amongst her admirer to his spot or she may live seized yesteryear his kinsmen/colleagues at a dance, marketplace place, or piece sleeping at nighttime too forcibly brought to her would-be husband’s home. Although elopement is usually done amongst the girl’s consent, she is expected to resist too scream the loudest possible
to exhibit that she is up-right, morally, too non a bitch. Similarly, although some of the girl’s relatives may have got been aware of the programme to elope, they may limited anger publicly. The resistance to elopement marks the outset of a catamenia of intensive interaction betwixt the girl’s filial too conjugal ties, within which the necessary steps are taken to finalize the courtship too union process.
Other marriages may have got less dramatic beginnings. After a immature adult man declares his involvement inward a girl, his kinsmen accompany him to introduce his proposal formerly to the kinsmen of the girl. During this catamenia of courtship, the kinsmen of the immature adult man are expected to shower gifts inward the shape of pito, cola-nuts too money on their in-laws each fourth dimension they brand a trip to the girl’s village. When both parties are satisfied with
the way issues have got handled during the courtship period, a twenty-four hours is fixed for the bride wealth (kyeru) to live brought to the girl’s family. After the transfer of bride wealth has taken place, the immature adult woman (who carries amongst her a number of accessories including calabashes, bowl/basins too baskets) is accompanied yesteryear her kinsmen to her husband’s home. This is known as pog bielle.
Bridewealth: In general, bride wealth amid the Dagaaba usually involves some amount of cowries, cash, too livestock. The proportions of these diverse items may vary but volition almost e'er involve a number of cowries. The cowries and/or cash portion is referred to as the pog libie. Among the LoWiili, the bride wealth consists of a cock too guinea-fowl to the in-laws, too the pog libie, a amount of just about 20,000 cowries, usually, the same amount that was paid for the girl’s mother. Various rituals accompany the counting too transfer of bride wealth yesteryear the groom’s spot unit of measurement to the bride’s agnatic home. Once the patrikin of the bride have the bride wealth, they also perform a number of rituals during the counting, distribution too storing of it. In general, the bride wealth received for a immature adult woman is used to acquire a married adult woman for a son. Whereas paying the bride wealth of a immature man’s initiative off married adult woman is the obligation of his spot unit of measurement elders, if he wishes to go polygamous, he volition to a greater extent than oftentimes than non live solely responsible for paying the bride wealth of these subsequent wives.
The diverse rituals performed during the counting too transfer yesteryear the groom’s relatives as good as those (the rituals) that go on during the counting too credence of the bride wealth, are tied to the fertility too fidelity of the bride. If some of the rituals are non good done, the adult woman could have got difficulty bearing children during the marriage. It is also believed that i time those rituals have got been performed too the bride wealth accepted, too then whatsoever infidelity on the constituent of the adult woman could outcome inward her decease if she does non confess similar a shot too go through purification rites/rituals.
Birth: When it is noticed that a adult woman is pregnant the husband’s virile somebody parent consults a soothsayer (baga) to know who should live asked to “throw water“ at her. She is too then called out of her hut too the appropriate somebody “throws water“; from too then on she too others may cite the pregnancy.
She gives nascence inward the chaani or kyaaraa (inner room) of her husband’s house, attended yesteryear old women too nascence attendants.
A kid may live named at 7 days old; inward the instance of a kid who cries a lot the soothsayer may tell the chemical compound caput that an ancestor wishes to live the child’s segeraa; a segeraa must have got died amongst white hair. People may too then say that ancestor has “come dorsum home“.
Boys are circumcised at a infirmary or yesteryear traditional experts at the historic catamenia of 1 or 2 weeks. Female genital mutilation was formerly practised betwixt the ages of 5 too 10 years but was discontinued inward the 1940s too 1950s.
Domestic Unit
The domestic unit of measurement is to a greater extent than oftentimes than non built on agnatic ties, given that wives bring together their husbands at marriage, but amid the Lobi too Birifor, men make extensive bride-service, too some immature children may grow upwardly amongst their mother's brothers before their woman parent leaves for her husband's house. In most cases, the farming grouping is small. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 adult man too his sons may farm together for a longer catamenia amid the groups inward which patricians dominate. The spot grouping that occupies a chemical compound may consist of several farming groups, too each farming grouping may live divided into smaller eating groups.
Inheritance
Among the Dagaba too the Wiili, a man's belongings passes initiative off to his total brothers, if they are farming together, too and then to his sons. Among the LoPiel, the LoSaala, the Birifor, too the Lobi, the world passes inward the paternal line, whereas movable belongings is transmitted initiative off to uterine siblings too and then to sisters' sons, leading to before splits inward the domestic groups too to tensions betwixt a adult man too his mother's brothers. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 woman's belongings to a greater extent than oftentimes than non goes to her daughters if it is sex-linked, but livestock may go to her sons.
A man’s blood brother or other unopen relative may wed or tending for his widow, appear after his children, too inherit his gods too voodoo toys.
Dagaaba adult woman amongst her 2 kids, Jirapa, Upper West Region, Ghana
Young children are looked after yesteryear their mothers too are breast-fed until they tin walk too talk, when they "become humans" too are thus entitled to a proper burial (see "Death too Afterlife"). Later on, they are cared for yesteryear elderberry sisters or relatives, who involve them inward their play. Boys go off inward groups to herd cattle, whereas girls play to a greater extent than domestic games about the compound, helping their mothers from fourth dimension to fourth dimension yesteryear fetching H2O or grinding too pounding cereals. Among the Lobi, girls also appear after cattle, although boys too girls plough over this responsibleness to their juniors when they are initiated into the Dyoro society.
Dagaaba women of Nandom dancing
Sociopolitical Organization
Political Organization. Except for the Wala too the Gan, as good as the Kaleo the peoples of this grouping lacked chieftainship too substitution political organisation until the coming of colonial rule. Inferring from Yelpaala’s (1992) article, the political organisation of the Dagaaba was, until the imposition of colonialism, decentralized inward its full general structure.
Dagaaba people of Nadowli
From the outside, it powerfulness have got appeared amorphous too non easily susceptible to analysis, for its organisation too institutions were non defined inward terms of the total territorial unit of measurement but inward terms of sub-territorial areas teni (villages) referred to yesteryear Goody as parishes, too yesteryear Fortes inward his study of the Tallensi as settlements. The political organisation of each teng (village) exhibited a sure grade of centralization of authorisation amongst a really limited vertical structure. The substitution authorisation was cross-hauled from the elders (ninbere) of different kin-based groups within the territorial area. This body was the basic establishment dealing amongst most issues of full general community interest. All elders amongst the exception of the custodians of the the world (tendaana) inward sure cases, were theoretically co-equals inward all deliberations. However, inward matters that related to the teng too the the world deity (tengan), the tendaana was the in conclusion authority. Thus depending on the issues involved, the substitution authorisation was either circular amongst its functions based on consultation too consensus, or unidirectional, from the tendaana downwards to the repose of society.
In every hamlet (teng), this basic construction to a greater extent than or less replicated itself. Each teng however, enjoyed an independent autonomous existence from the others. Therefore, the society was at the same fourth dimension centralized at the unit of measurement plane too decentralized at the total societal level. Centralization within the little units provided the useful cheque on the abuses or excesses inward the usage of centralized political power. On really of import and
broader cultural or extraterritorial issues involving non-Dagaaba, such as warfare or resistance against slave raiding, these centralized institutions would coordinate, cooperate or deliberate as a larger substitution unit. However, these higher plane organizations did non appear to involve the total territorial expanse of the Dagaaba. Yet, taking whatsoever territorial unit of measurement as a starting point, that unit of measurement was linked separately to all other contiguous units yesteryear a chain of mutual culture, mutual descent, too political or legal cooperation. Each of these other units was also separately too similarly linked to yet other contiguous territorial units until the chain of interlocking linkages involve the entire Dagawie. Depending on the issues at stake, contiguity, consanguinity, historical ties too the plane of sophistication inward the native fine art of diplomacy, cooperation or integration betwixt different territorial units was great or little inward amplitude. The basic philosophy which guided the interaction of all substitution authorities at the larger unit of measurement plane was equality. All factor units functioned as co-equals, for the Dagaaba say that doo bii pog ba gangna o to (i.e., no adult man or adult woman is superior to their peer). This then, has been too continues to live the ground of egalitarian thought amid the Dagaaba, what is called the traditional level. Within the national political structure, Dagaaba political thought, similar all other traditional systems, is relegated to an inferior status.
Social Control too Conflicts
The main causes of conflict were rights to women too access to wood products. Within the parish, conflicts of this form were rare because of kin ties too abide by for the world shrine. Strong sanctions existed against adultery, theft, too other delicts, which were settled within too betwixt local lineages. More recently, local chiefs too headmen have got exercised supervision on behalf of the government, too local courts of police force have got been established.
Crime too penalization are just as much issues of politics as they of religion. Until recently, theft was a rare occurrence amid the Dagaaba. It was taken as a really repulsive too anti-social deed condemned yesteryear all, including the spirits too the ancestors who could live invoked whenever necessary to punish a thief severely. Theft is so much looked downwardly upon that it is non uncommon to hear a somebody trying to evidence her/his integrity, say that (s)he does non steal or rob - N ba zuuro, n ba faara. In a society where houses have got virtually no door panels nor to locks, at that spot is understandably a full general demand for trust too social cohesion.
In Dagaare, the term iibo signifies the full general normative value scheme roofing established too accepted norms, principles, practices, procedures which regulation life inward full general too disputing inward particular. It is when a specific conduct is inward conflict amongst the Dagaaba iibo that i may live characterized as deviant. In lite of this concept of iibo, therefore, the Dagaaba may live viewed as a unified group, vis-á-vis other non-Dagaaba, including their neighbors.
Dagaagba women of Nadowli at their Nadowli Womens meeting
Religious Belief
Dagaaba have got strong believe in Naangmen (older spelling Naamwin), supreme God too creator og the Universe. He is goodness too omnipotent but has no shrines, so at that spot is no agency of communication amongst him. Mwin agency “sun“, too Naamwin is sometimes identified amongst sun, sky, or rain. Goody, inward The myth of the Bagre, maintains that God’s practical alienation from his universe is thought of yesteryear the Dagaaba as a business office of the work of evil. “If he were to go on inward his primordial role“, says Goody, “our problems would non exist. With his aid, disease, evil, too misfortune could live banished“.
In addition, Dagaaba strongly believe too reverence the ‘Mother Earth’ (Tengbane). Tengbane or Mother world is the 2d most powerful deity after the supreme God, Naangmen. Therefore the Dagao sees the world or physical environs as sacred and divine; that they are born from the earth, live on too through it, volition live buried inward it; too that they volition join the ancestors who, though invisible, are nonetheless located inward the environs amongst other spiritual beings. This is good articulated inward Bagre narrative, too shows that as our Mother, nosotros owe our life to Earth. It is from her thorax that the milk of sustenance is drawn, whether it is water, food, soil, wood, or herbal medicine, too it is to her womb that nosotros shall render inward death. Likewise, Kukure (1985:55) sees world as the ‘controlling agency inward life, the source of fertility, of prosperity, [and] of survival [. . . .] Moreover the [Earth must give an concern human relationship of all that takes spot on [her] surface. [She] reports to God the actions of the living, non only of humans, but also of beasts. Hence, the somebody who is on goodness terms amongst the [Earth] (and ancestors) is also on goodness terms amongst God.’ This belief scheme has generated a conceptual frame in which the Dagaaba make non relate to their environs through an ideology of domination, but rather through responsive negotiation.
Dagaaba earth-priest (tengdaana)
responsible for many things that brand human life what it is, Sagbane is responsible for rain, sunshine, and moonlight, too the unseen energies of stars, thunder too lightning. Even though Sagbane is the Father, he is secondary inward importance to Tengbane during invocatory prayers of Dagaaba. Tengbane comes second to Naangmen. It is also on concern human relationship of Sagbane’s secondary spot that His priest, the Saadaana, does non characteristic really much inward Dagaaba daily existence, too the business office is non found inward every settlement. It is to Tengbane that daily libations are poured. Tengbane is Goddess, too the Mother of Bagre; she must not live polluted. When Tengbane is polluted, efforts are initiated to perform the appropriate too necessary
sacrifices for the restoration of the broken residuum betwixt the self, the community, Tengbane, the spirit
world, too finally amongst Nangmen. Because Tengbane covers the earth’s surface, it becomes the universal
altar upon which humans, represented yesteryear Dagaaba, gather to pray for rain, cure to epidemics, victory in
wars, goodness harvests, or the settlement of a novel village. It is to Tengbane that immigrants are taken for
induction into the clan. It is for these reasons too others likewise many to enumerate hither that the High Priest of Tengbane, the Tengdaana, holds the highest socio-spiritual too moral authorisation inward whatsoever Dagaaba village. Each settlement of, say, 300 to 1,000 people has an “earth-shrine” (tengbane) too an earth-priest (tengdaana) which is usually situated inward a grove inward a substitution constituent of the settlement. Sacrifices are performed yesteryear an earth-priest too his assistants, also yesteryear patriclan representatives. In addition, anyone may brand sacrifices to the world simply yesteryear edifice a little mound yesteryear the path leading to the shrine.
Dagaaba “earth-shrine” (tengbane)
Certain prohibitions are linked amongst the earth-shrine; for instance large sacrifices must live made if people shed i another’s blood, or if someone commits suicide. It is also a serious offence to have got sexual activity out-of-doorsThe complex cosmological human relationship Dagaaba have got amongst Tengbane is reflected inward the mediatory role played yesteryear the Tengdaana too Tengbane betwixt the people too Naangmen. It must live stressed hither that Dagaaba have got as many Tengbama (plural for Tengbane) too Tengdaamba (plural for Tengdaana) as at that spot are settlements. This does non inward anyway signal whatsoever conflictual relationships amongst the Tengbane. The diverse Tengbama stand upwardly for settlement patterns, too must live seen as parishes of the same Goddess. Each Tengdaana too then becomes a parish priest, performing the same functions, amongst local variation, to an omnipresent too omniscient Tengbane
Lesser spiritual powers include ngmimi or weni. Saa ngmin is the pelting god (saa agency rain); Bo wen is the Bagre god who looks after the granary too farming.
Dagaaba ancestral shrine wooden carvings
The Dagaaba spiritual realm is also inhabited yesteryear spirits, both ancestral too pre-human. For instance, the Kongtongbilii, what Goody (1972) translates as ‘beings of the wild’, be within both the spiritual too environmental consciousness of Dagaaba. There are also the diverse deities who have got been delegated territorial authorisation yesteryear Nangmen inward the universe. It is Kongtongbilii too these other spiritual beings too deities who aid humans to brand spiritual journeys dorsum to Nangmen too His married adult woman inward the heaven to consort amongst them nigh the pregnant of life too death. In monastic tell to brand that journey, Dagaaba initiative off invoke Tengbane, too then the ancestors, too other lesser spirits. Together, they aid them clarify their vision for the journey.
Medicine shrines (tiib), made for instance of dried sticks, may live placed at a solid entrance. They are acquired as a remedy for sickness or some other problem.
Dagaaba shrine
Ancestor shrines are sticks carved roughly inward human shape, too every deceased adult man who left a boy to succeed him is commemorated inward this way. They are kept inward the cattle byre, which is thus the most sacred room inward the house. Their jurisdiction extends to lineage kin, too inward some ways also to matrilineal descendants; all of import events are reported to them. When a adult woman dies her shrine is carried dorsum yesteryear her clan sisters to her birth-place.
The ancestors are invoked amongst animate beingness sacrifice at the outset too destination of the farming flavor too when whatsoever calamity threatens the community.
The soothsayer (baga) is appointed at nascence too initiated when he is old plenty to select upwardly the duties
Christianity
Dagaabaland, especially inward northern Republic of Ghana is the Vatican of Ghana. Despite the fact that over 55% of Dagaaba are traditional African faith practitioners, the remaining population are unrepentant Roman Catholics.
Ethnic Dagao Cardinal Peter Poreku Dery inward the wheel after a Pontifical High Mass at Dio Padre Misericordioso, Vatican.
Since the 1930s, majority conversions to Catholicism have got taken place, outset amid the LoPiel population about Dissin. The pioneer missionaries, Frs Remigius McCoy too Arthur Paquet (both White Fathers from Canada) too Brother Basilid Koot (from Holland) began piece of work at Jirapa inward 1929. The handling they gave for yaws too other prevalent diseases created immediate interest. Within 10 months at that spot were 2 catechumens, too despite some persecution the number grew quickly.
Then inward 1932 the rains failed. Apr to July, usually the pump of the rainy season, were dry. The ancestors were repeatedly invoked, too countless sacrifices were offered to the traditional gods, but to no avail. At last, on 24 July, the people of Jirapa turned to the petty Catholic mission, promising generous payment if the God of the Catholic Fathers could succeed where their ain priests had failed. In A brusque history of the Catholic Church inward Ghana, Helene Pfann describes what happened: "Father McCoy told them that God wanted no presents. He only wanted them to believe that he loved them too would aid them. He took them into the church building too all prayed together. The next night, on July 25th, clouds gathered inward the heaven over Jirapa and, for the initiative off fourth dimension inward months, pelting roughshod inward torrents. The people were so happy that they ran out of their houses too sang too danced amongst joy, letting the pelting soak them through.
Ghana Archbishop Peter Poreku Dery (in red) is carried yesteryear aides to live elevated to fundamental yesteryear Pope Benedict XVI during a ceremony at the Vatican March 24, 2006. He was an ethnic Dagaaba man
The side yesteryear side morning time a crowd of Dagaaba, all demanding to go Christians, besieged the Mission House . . That rainy flavor 25,000 Dagaaba became adherents. No similar majority conversion had ever before taken spot inward Africa.
A four-year catechumenate was established, too the Fathers started on the daunting chore of teaching this vast novel community. Following the speedy growth of the piece of work at Jirapa novel parishes were opened at Kaleo (1932), Nandom (1933), too at Ko too Daffiama (1952). In 1959 the Dagaaba expanse was created a diocese, amongst the spot of the bishop inward Wa. There are at nowadays xvi parishes, nearly all Dagaare-speaking, but hardly inward Wa East too Wa West Districts.
As the numbers grew, 3 orders of sisters too 2 orders of brothers sent missionaries.
The initiative off Dagao priest was ordained inward 1951; yesteryear 1959 at that spot were six, too inward 1984 at that spot were inward the Wa diocese no less than 53 African priests, 98 sisters, too 17 brothers, compared amongst only 8 missionary priests, 17 sisters, too 23 brothers. Fr McCoy, aged 89 when this volume was published inward 1986, continued to piece of work actively at Jirapa too becane a legend inward his lifetime. He died Worship too church building life tends to live based on large church building buildings inward the main towns, to which people come upwardly from the surrounding villages. For instance Ko, a little town some 10 km off the Nandom road, has a church building 75 metres long (said to live longer than the longest church building inward Accra), amongst seating for 2,000. Even on weekdays the early on morning time majority is attended yesteryear over 100, too the church building is comfortably total on Sundays.
The 14 Dagaare-speaking parishes in all likelihood have got a total adult membership exceeding 40,000, which is over xv per cent of the local population. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 farther 10 per cent would telephone telephone themselves Catholics, though non total members.
Cardinal Dery, ethnic Dagao from Republic of Ghana inward a wheel chair as Cardinal O`Malley rising to encompass him.
Whatever questions i may have got nigh the depth of private commitment to Christ, at that spot is no dubiety that 50 years of Catholic activity too a really large investment of money too personnel have got made a large impact on the Dagaaba way of life. Already inward the mid-60s the anthropologist Jack Goody found Catholic influence had significantly reduced involvement inward the Bagre initiation ceremonies inward the expanse due south of Lawra. Polygamy may non have got been eliminated fifty-fifty amid Catholics, but it has been greatly reduced. Early on at that spot was a battle for the correct to care for Lord's Day as a twenty-four hours of rest.
Why have got the Dagaaba moved into the Catholic church building inward such numbers? Clearly a similar investment of personnel too money inward other areas has yielded much smaller results.
Cardinal Archbishhop Peter Dery, himself i of the early on Dagaaba converts, explains why his people so readily became Christians:
They are goodness farmers . . . Their moral code was really high too was strictly observed. Their feel of hospitality too generosity was superb. They never practised human sacrifices, too they feared God’s curse on those who did so. In short, they are a people of natural goodness amongst deep abide by for their elders too parents, too a profound feel of worship which they consider a duty towards the ancestors too the “Naabilengmen”, the “god of the kid of man”. These qualities too many to a greater extent than made a goodness soil, a people already prepared to have got the Good News “en masse”.
A missionary priest made the next points inward addition: 1) it was slowly to interpret traditional sacrifice into the sacrifice of the mass, too prayer to ancestors into veneration of saints; 2) it was slowly to interpret the strict morality of the Dagaaba into the 10 commandments; 3) the Dagaaba are non a proud, dominant tribe but a humble too hard-working i –- nosotros preach goodness word to the poor, too the under-dog tends to respond to a greater extent than quickly; 4) the initiative off missionaries, amongst their medical too educational work, lived really unopen to the people.
Other churches: Adams Bodomo has said that Dagao is i of the most heavily Catholic parts of the world exterior of Rome. Until he left the expanse for college he was unaware that whatsoever other expressions of Christianity existed!
Indeed it was non till 1954 that some other church, the Baptist Mid-Missions, started piece of work inward Wa too 2 years later inward Lawra. By 1986 at that spot was a growing church building of 85 members too 4 times as many regular attenders. Though the Baptists had only one-half a dozen churches amid the Dagaaba they seriously took upwardly the challenge of literacy too Bible translation work.
The Methodists, who came to Wa nigh the same fourth dimension as the Baptists, had a pastor at Lawra yesteryear 1986 too 2 other congregations inward the Dagaaba expanse amongst a total membership of nigh 50.
Religious Practitioners. Practically every adult is an officiant at some shrine or another, but the main figure is the Master of the world (tengdaana). Some individuals develop special reputations as diviners (baga). All are involved inward sacrifices to the ancestors, to the beings of the wild, too to medicine shrines.
Another powerful religious leader according to Bagre clandestine society functions, is the damdamwule amid Dagaaba. The damdamwule`s sole life depends on rain-fed agricultural practices,is inward its powerfulness to know when the rains are due too to portion this knowledge amongst humans to permit them know that Sieong is here. The damdamwule also acts as an agricultural extension officer, telling the people through its song, when to sow what too when to halt sowing. Those who pass upwardly to recognize its pedagogy of nature through its music sow inward vain (Goody 1972: ll. 4611-40).
The weather-wise damdamwule is helped yesteryear the n birime (featherless fowl). He or she wakes upwardly the people at dawn, during Sieong, to go to their farms. It performs this role yesteryear beating its wings early on inward the morning. The belibaar knows when Kpangkyaanee is close too returns ‘from the pelting side / too flies / where the Sun sets’ (Goody 1972: ll. 4651-53) to warn people to commence preparing their barns for harvest, too the Bagre. It is thus through the migratory movements of this plane that the elders are able to denote the Bagre too to spot ritual prohibitions on the initiates.
Ceremonies
Annual ceremonies are performed at household shrines, especially at the destination of the farming season. It is toward this fourth dimension that, amid the substitution groups, neighbors trip the lite fantastic inward the marketplace to celebrate the flowering of the guinea corn. Not long afterward, lineages perform special sacrifices to clan deities, a fourth dimension when they also toxicant their arrows. Traditionally, success inward the hunt also elicited special ritual performances, as did killing someone inward war, whether friend or enemy.
Birth too union were accompanied yesteryear petty ceremonial. Death too burial, on the other hand, were occasions; the funeral ceremonies, which resulted inward redistribution of the belongings of the dead (including sexual rights) too the creation of an ancestor shrine (if at that spot were offspring), lasted for many months too brought mourners from far too wide.
The major ceremonial sequences, however, were those associated amongst clandestine societies: the Bagre inward the due east too the Dyoro inward the west. The Bagre is performed yesteryear lineages when they have got sufficient neophytes (and plenty grain) to carry out a performance, amongst the participation of their neighbors as officiants. During the course of study of the long sequence of rites, the neophytes are placed nether a serial of taboos, from which they are gradually released. The rites are accompanied yesteryear an extensive recitation concerning the creation of culture. The Dyoro ceremony involves a see yesteryear patrilineages to special centers, where the ancestors lived before reaching the banks of the Black Volta too where the principal rites of initiation select place. Indeed, the ritual reenacts the long-ago migration of the patrician too so preserves a petty of its history. In the ceremony, which takes spot every 7 years, the initiates are killed off too revived.
Bagre Rite of Passage Initiation: Bagre provides voluntary entry into Dagaaba initiation rites of passage. As a medium inward which a gratis association of neophytes that are called yesteryear the spirit tin too are willing to journeying inward too amongst the spirit, Bagre is divided into 2 complementary denominations: Bag-Degre (Dirty Bagre) too Bag-Kaang (Oily Bagre), too only i of each type is located inward a particular parish. The initiates of the Bag-Degre are usually painted amongst white stripes of ashes to exhibit their states of impurity, piece initiates of the Bag-Kaang are anointed amongst Shea butter. There are several reasons why a somebody may go an initiate, or live seized yesteryear the Bagre Ngmen. Some respond the telephone telephone for wellness reasons, others for prosperity, others to acquire a married adult woman or husband, children, or to go a instructor inward the association. Thus, at that spot are spiritual, social, political, psychological too emotional reasons for a somebody to go an initiate.
Through Bagre, nosotros are sensitized to Dagaaba views of their environment. The natural environs for
Dagaaba, as embedded inward Bagre narrative too observances, is a spiritual realm inhabited yesteryear spirits, both
ancestral too pre-human. For instance, the Kongtongbilii, what Goody (1972) translates as ‘beings of the
wild’, be within both the spiritual too environmental consciousness of Dagaaba. There are also the
diverse deities who have got been delegated territorial authorisation yesteryear Nangmen inward the universe. It is Kongtongbilii too these other spiritual beings too deities who aid humans to brand spiritual journeys dorsum to Nangmen too His married adult woman inward the heaven to consort amongst them nigh the pregnant of life too death. In monastic tell to brand that journey, Dagaaba initiative off invoke Tengbane, too then the ancestors, too other lesser spirits. Together, they aid them clarify their vision for the journey.
According to Bagre narrative Tengbane is Mother of Bagre, Sagbane is considered as Father of Bagre. How the 2 interact to ensure harmony inward the environs is dramatized inward Bagre narrative. First, the Father of Bagre sends pelting from the sky, which falls too impregnates the Mother of Bagre, Earth. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 tree is born too becomes the highway to Nangmen’s residence. But inward monastic tell for humans to achieve Nangmen’s residence to take away hold palaver, they demand the aid of other creatures. So amongst the aid of Badare (Spider), they climb the tree to Nangmen’s house. This is how the Bagre narrative captures it.
He began to acquire upwardly A slender tree
too when he’d done so, is brought forth.
he spoke again, It is the earth’s child
greeting the world shrine, that is born.
greeting god, [. . . ]
greeting the ancestors, And he was told
greeting the bein gs. That the slender tree,
When he’d done this, he must grasp
he saw something too climb upwardly quickly
of great importance. To God’s house.
world too rain, He grasped the tree
the pelting is virile somebody but he couldn’t climb it
too the ground is female. And roughshod on his back.
When the fourth dimension comes, Then the spider
view the rain; galloped over
its penis rises With his feet flying
too bursts forth. And said that
See the earth, [... ]
a fully grown maiden, ATo God’s house
who is nigh to bear. We’ll climb.
(Goody 1972: Bag-Kaang, ll.443-502)
Badare’s importance as a civilisation hero inward Dagaaba environmental too salvation thought is suggested here.
Human fragility inward the interventionist role of animals animals, insects, plants, too invisible spirits is stressed. As
Bagre performance elucidates, humanity is precariously peripheral to the centre of God’s creation as the
absence of human residents inward God’s solid is startlingly unnerving. Worse soundless for humans, God’s palace is populated yesteryear insects, plants, too animals: the dog, the lion, the hippo, the elephant, the duiker, the tomcat,
the fly, the spider, too the leopard, to cite a few. This shows the gulf betwixt humans too their creator. Consequently, humans demand to create a sensitive too meaningful human relationship amongst the nonhuman beings of the environment.
In Bagre narrative, Nangmen too his married adult woman dramatize the acts of procreation to the human virile somebody elderberry animate beingness characters. Later on, when Nangmen too his married adult woman give the adult man a wife, together amongst a child, too they render to Earth, the adult man soundless does non know how babies are made. The initiative off ground woman, sent yesteryear Nangmen to ground learns the deed of sexual intercourse from the boa constructors. Her learning is both observational too participatory, too she later teaches her hubby the mystery of the deed of procreation (Goody 1972: ll.1951-2219). Similarly, the importance of animals inward human survival is reenacted inward Bagre through the story of the buffalo adult woman too the hunter.
Subsequently, Dagaaba Bagre initiation schooling, hunters are taught to kill for food, to kill mostly the virile somebody too old woman somebody animals, too to leave of absence the immature too their mothers alone. Unfortunately, the cash nexus economic scheme that has been imposed on Dagaaba during the colonial catamenia has since confused all that environmental way of living. However, colonialism has non completely eroded Dagaaba environmental thought too pedagogy, thank you lot to submerged Dagaaba environmental consciousness exemplified inward their deep-seated beliefs inward the presence of the ancestors too other spiritual entities inward their environment. This ensures that they make non willfully degrade their environment, less they loose contact amongst the spirit world, too subsequently, lose the protection too mode of sustenance that the environs soundless gives to them (Somé 1998: 54-55).In monastic tell to exhibit how of import the higher upwardly human relationship is, it is necessary to consider the role of the ancestral spirits inward the environs as narrated inward Bagre. The ancestral spirits piece of work inward alliance amongst or against the Kontongbilii, the initiative off nonhuman creatures inward the environs to come upwardly to the assistance of humans. They learn Dagaaba everything nigh survival: how to grow food, hunt, brand weapons, cook, brand beer, too fifty-fifty start Bagre itself. Kontongbilii, together amongst the ancestral spirits learn the Dagaaba nigh their environs through dreams too visions. For instance, they learn traditional healers nigh the importance of sure plants as sources of medicine. Hence, Dagaaba perceive plants as living beings amongst spirits of their own. Plants also provide humans amongst food, fuel, too medicine. Subsequently, to disrespect too maltreat plants tin live dangerous, because plants make strike dorsum amongst diseases. For instance, a somebody who indiscriminately destroys woodlots tin live sick from what is called ‘tree bite.’ Animals, the Bagre narrative tells us, learn nigh the medicinal too toxic values of plants from animals (ll.2320-2469). It is from plants that nosotros acquire poisons such as strophanthus for toxicant for arrowheads, too to care for guinea worm infection. From the same plants nosotros acquire medicine to halt nascence blood, too facilitate childbirth.
As indicated earlier, Bagre performance coincides inward most cases amongst Kpangkyaanee (autumn), too Uonii (Dry Season). With less piece of work on the farms, too amongst plenty of food, people are inward a festive mood. Bagre performance also is timed amongst moontide so that inter-clan too intra-clan socialization is facilitated. Consequently, Bagre calendars commence amongst the outset of harvest, fifty-fifty though novel harvests are forbidden to the initiates until they graduate. The most of import crop’s initiative off fruit is the shea, which becomes mature inward June. In determining when Bagre flavor tin live announced, the elders resort to the legend of the fruitbat. In this legend, the fruitbat, too other animals too birds as Bagre elders aid humans inward their spiritual journey:
"And inward Bagre,
our elders
are many.’
‘What make you lot hateful yesteryear many?’
‘You saw that
inward Bagre
at that spot was the large fruit-bat.
He’s our Bagre
elder.
The belibaar bird
is i of our Bagre creatures.
The kyaalipio bird
is i of our Bagre creatures.
The large frog
is i of our Bagre creatures.
The damdamwule bird
is i of our Bagre creatures.
The crown bird
is i of our Bagre creatures.’
‘What’s an elder?’
‘I tell you,
all winged creatures
too the featherless cock.’
(Goody 1972: Bagre Degre-- Dirty Bagre ll. 4550-4579)
At this stage, initiates commence their pedagogy on the roles played yesteryear the diverse animals inward Bagre, too thus inward human survival. The large fruitbat knows when the initiative off shea fruits are mature. By observing its behavior, the elders are able to know the exact fourth dimension to denote the flavor without breaking whatsoever spiritual taboos. In this case, stuff scientific discipline is of no significance since machines tin only gauge time, which would soundless non live accurate taking into consideration the variables of uncertainties inward nature. But the fruit-bat’s eating habits give the people a fourth dimension precision inward which to act. The fruit-bat ‘will know the fourth dimension / to fetch the fruit / inward the night’ (Goody 1972: ll. 4591-93), eats the fruit, leaves the seed for the elders to see, too and then they volition initiate their preparations for the Bagre.
The role of the damdamwule amid Dagaaba, whose sole life depends on rain-fed agricultural practices, is inward its powerfulness to know when the rains are due too to portion this knowledge amongst humans to permit them know that Sieong is here. The damdamwule also acts as an agricultural extension officer, telling the people through its song, when to sow what too when to halt sowing. Those who pass upwardly to recognize its pedagogy of nature through its music sow inward vain (Goody 1972: ll. 4611-40). The weather-wise damdamwule is helped yesteryear the n birime (featherless fowl). He or she wakes upwardly the people at dawn, during Sieong, to go to their farms. It performs this role yesteryear beating its wings early on inward the morning. The belibaar knows when Kpangkyaanee is close too returns ‘from the pelting side / too flies / where the Sun sets’ (Goody 1972: ll. 4651-53) to warn people to commence preparing their barns for harvest, too the Bagre. It is thus through the migratory movements of this plane that the elders are able to denote the Bagre too to spot ritual prohibitions on the initiates.
Reenactment of the Hunt at the 2009 Kobine festival inward Lawra.
The kyaalipio wakes upwardly women at dawn during Bagre catamenia to go too fetch the H2O used inward brewing
the beer for the Bagre ceremony (Goody 1972: ll. 4670-88) before it is muddy yesteryear wild boars. Wild
boars are also considered spirit beings associated amongst Bagre. Bagre is a purgatorial journeying to a rebirth
too hence it has prohibitions that include sexual abstinence for the neophytes, the eating of sure foods,
too full general leisure. The virile somebody crown-bird calls the Bagre members to acquire upwardly from their slumber too feed
the children at midnight, so that from too then on they tin commence a fast (Goody 1972: ll. 4689-4713). Then
at that spot is the old virile somebody guinea fowl who tells of the flowering of beans. This way, the elders are able to
denote the arrival of Bagre. In a way, the old guinea cock’s uncovering of edible bean flowers inward his farm,
cross checks the accuracy of timing of Bagre amongst the large fruit bat’s uncovering of shea fruits. Other birds
also business office inward the service of Bagre Mother, Tengbane, too Bagre Father, Sagbane.
In add-on to the way inward which feathered creatures are treated inward the Bagre ceremony, other animals play of import roles. Some of these animals are spirit animals too are thus prohibited to Bagre. They include the duo (wild boar), the sienee (porcupine), the sasere (grass-cutter), too mokpaangoo (bush guinea-fowl).
There are no reasons given inward the narrative why these are prohibited, but nosotros make non demand to search far for
the reason. These are totemic animals, too it is non allowed for i to kill a clan totem animate beingness nether any
circumstance. In contrast to the prohibited animals, at that spot are sure animals that are regarded as fit offering to the Bagre deity. They include, korenga (partridge), soangaa (rabbit/hare), kyie (squirrel), walaa (antelope). Reasons for selecting these as acceptable to the Bagre are uncertain.
It is clear from what I have got said higher upwardly that plants, animals, insects, too spirit beings play a really important role inward the Bagre performance. These roles aid to shape the spiritual, moral, intellectual, too cultural characters of Dagaaba youth. They also initiate the construction of a positive environmental consciousness amid them. For instance, unless the ceremony of the shea butter is performed, whatsoever elbow grease at outset the Bagre performance volition live fraught amongst danger (Goody 1972: ll.780-960). Consequently, the shea tree too its fruits, too the role the fruit bat plays, cannot live considered purely from a materialist economical perspective, too cultural backwardness. Yes, the shea tree has a lot of economical importance to the Dagaaba. But its ritual importance is what has ensured its survival inward the human face upwardly of worsening environmental degradation. It is also of import to recognize the spiritual links betwixt the people, the bat, too the tree. Without this recognition the tree volition live destroyed when its economical importance is no longer really relevant, too its role as protector of the soil volition live terminated.
In addition, the fruitbat’s ambiguous location as a winged mammal, too as i who sees inward the night, gives testimony to its importance inward discovering the initiative off fruits of the shea tree. It is carnivorous too herbivorous, too hangs upside downwardly dissimilar other winged creatures. Thus, it breaks all the boundaries associated amongst animals too birds. For this reason, it is the eldest amid the non-human elders of the Bagre. The fruit bat throws the seed of the shea fruit into the farms of humans. This enables the elders to view too commence the physical care for of announcing the Bagre. The fruit bat’s activity also helps disperse the seeds of the tree, too yesteryear that activity it helps to expand the natural vegetation. Thus, the events carried yesteryear the fruit bat, too all the other animals, insects, too birds displace humans toward a revelatory recognition of their total dependence on these other creatures. This dependence yesteryear humans on non-human subjects is what is too then re-enacted inward the Bagre performance toward securing human happiness, health, wealth, piety, too social mobility yesteryear Dagaaba inward their otherwise harsh environs (Goody 1972: ll.922-29).
Batman Samini, instrumentalist too award-winner at 2006 MOBO Awards is a Dagao
Dagaare Music
While the music on this recording is the facial expression of a distinct ethnolinguistic group, the Dagaaba,
nevertheless, have got had long historical, social, cultural too linguistic ties amongst other peoples of the northern
parts of Ghana, such as the Sisaala, the Waala, the Dagomba, the Frafra, the Kasena, the Builsa, the Kusaasi too the Mamprusi. Thus, the musical cultures of the part portion sure features. For instance,
the main musical instrument of the northwestern constituent of the the world is the xylophone, which may live supported by
a drum or a drum ensemble, too the scales are largely of the hemitonic too anhemitonic pentatonic types,
that is, 5 banker's complaint scales that include half-steps too those that make not.
Music-making amid the Dagaaba, similar other peoples of the region, is an intrinsic constituent of social life.
Certain types of music too repertories of vocal may live associated amongst particular occasions, cults,
cooperative piece of work groups too organized labour, historic catamenia groups, too rites of passage. For instance, praisesongs
(danno ng) are performed regularly as a tribute to the master copy piece other types of music are exclusive
to the rituals too ceremonies of the imperial court, such as an investiture, an assembly inward the courtroom or
audience chamber, or a funeral. Particular types of music are identified amongst the religious cult called Bagre which holds an annual festival; or amongst traditional associations, such as the kp 3ta a , which comprises
reciprocal aid groups for immature farmers. The "anle e " social trip the lite fantastic is reserved for females; the fe roo is a
trip the lite fantastic performed yesteryear the youth; piece the "se3gaana a" is danced mainly yesteryear the elderly There are warrior
songs (zoore yi e le), as good as songs for farming, grinding, pounding, floor-beating, plastering, hunting
(waaron g yi e le) too herding.
There are special songs for initiation ceremonies, funerals (kobie), ritual sacrifice, weddings, too populace naming ceremonies that occur 7 days after the nascence of a kid (referred to as ‘outdooring’). On some occasions, sure types of music may live prohibited, for instance, the ba wa a is non performed when a fellow member of the community is seriously sick or when someone has died. Music may also occur as the spontaneous facial expression of private community members, such as the music for the solo bamboo flute (wu le e ), the harp (p 3na a or koriduo inward Nandom), or the lullaby (bi-ya gleyi e le).
Finally, music is used to welcome too honour of import guests too visitors.
The Bawaa Dance
Group dancing is intrinsic to ritual too ceremony too is an of import marking of social competence. In
order, then, for an private to participate inward a ritual he or she must live able to dance. Group dancing is
also an of import way of maintaining community solidarity. As a Dagaare vocal says: ‘If one’s kid does
non know how to dance, it does non belong to the community’.
The bawaa is a telephone telephone to immature people to brand trip the lite fantastic too music together, indeed the term "bawaa " literally means, "young people, come upwardly together" (Kobina Saighoe:1984). The bawaa trip the lite fantastic then, is a favourite
pastime amid the Dagaaba youth. It oftentimes occurs simply as a spontaneous facial expression of immature members
of the community when an chance arises. Mostly, however, the bawaa trip the lite fantastic is incorporated into
diverse celebrations, including: rites of passage marking birth, puberty, union too death, or to honour
an individual.
The bawaa dancers also brand upwardly the chorus which comprises both immature males too females, including
children. One of the dancers, commonly a virile somebody amongst the most science or experience as a dancer or instrumentalist, takes the role of Pb vocalizer called the ba wa -ngmaara or the bawa-kye3r3 (‘the cutter’). The dancers are accompanied yesteryear 2 xylophonists, i plays a ‘male’ musical instrument (gyil-daa) too the other plays a ‘female’ musical instrument (gyil-nyanngaa), and a drummer who plays a single-headed drum (ganggaa).
The leader of the dance-chorus decides when i vocal ends too when a novel i begins. The chorus,
called bawa-sagereba (or sagra: singular ‘one who agrees’), responds to the calls from the leader. The
dancers apparel metallic leg jingles (kyeem e), beaded girdles (l ebie ), metallic finger cymbals (pe ra a pl. perre ) and
sometimes metallic wrist jingles. Uniforms are sometimes worn yesteryear the dancers but this may non live so inward other cases.
The telephone telephone to trip the lite fantastic commonly begins amongst the clapping of finger cymbals. The 2 xylophone players, who
sit down reverse each other amongst the drummer side yesteryear side to them, commence piece the crowd gathers about the dance
area. The dancers too then acquire inward the expanse too shape a circle about the musicians, dancing inward either an anticlockwise or clockwise direction.
The main constituent of the trip the lite fantastic consists of an alternation betwixt 2 sections. The initiative off department is called the See`o during which they perform a vocal inward telephone telephone too answer fashion. This is followed yesteryear a to a greater extent than intense
department called a` emmo` (‘to spot in’). During this section, the trip the lite fantastic becomes to a greater extent than intense as the dancers
synchronize their steps amongst heavy syncopated accents too displays of skill. In Accra, a exercise has
developed whereby individuals or pairs acquire out the circle for competitive displays of skill. The whole dance
ceremony oftentimes has a ‘director’ called the bawaa-naa who does non participate inward the trip the lite fantastic lawsuit itself,
but who oversees the entire performance. This cycle is repeated whatsoever number of times for each song, until
such times as the leader signals a novel vocal too the cycle begins again.
When the dancers exhibit signs of tiring i of the xylophone players gives a signal to destination the dance. In the
hamlet setting the dancers simply stop, piece inward Accra a to a greater extent than formal organisation exists whereby the
dancers acquire out the circle inward a unmarried line. Generally, a performance lasts betwixt 20 too 30 minutes. (click hither for Bawaa dance: http://shelf3d.com/4pOzOarwnZI#Bewaa Dance Of The Dagaaba People.)
Dagaaba (Dagarti) dancers from Jirapa
Kobine is a traditional trip the lite fantastic too festival unique to the Lawra expanse of northward western Ghana. The trip the lite fantastic too the festival named after it are celebrated inward September too Oct to grade the destination of a successful harvest.
Festival.
The festival of Kobine lasts 4 days, amongst the initiative off twenty-four hours usually reserved for visiting spot unit of measurement too friends. The 2d too 3rd days are the official holidays. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 procession of the spot unit of measurement heads is accompanied yesteryear groups of younger people dressed to stand upwardly for hunters too elephants.
Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 number of speeches are made yesteryear dignitaries too other guests of honour before the Kobine trip the lite fantastic contest begins.
Ethnic Dagaaba people performing Kobine trip the lite fantastic atKobine festival inward Lawra, Upper West Region
The Kobine music is produced from kuor, a drum musical instrument amongst a base of operations made from a gourd, too dalar, a smaller drum made from the cervix of a clay pot.
The men usually clothes inward beautifully decorated skirts, but are usually bare-chested to demonstrate their masculinity as good as their flexibility piece they dance. Other ornaments such as headgear too caps are worn. The women clothes similarly to the men, except they to a greater extent than oftentimes than non volition apparel a blouse. Both men too women apparel a band of bells about the ankles to accentuate their rhythmic moves when they dance.
The trip the lite fantastic itself consists of quick rhythmic moves especially amongst the torso or upper body. At the peak moves catamenia of the dance, the women volition to a greater extent than oftentimes than non cutting inward too trip the lite fantastic inward forepart of their favorite virile somebody dancer.
Dagaaba Gyil
The Dagaare Xylophone (Gyil)
Dagaare xylophones are commonly played inward pairs, facing each other. The Dagaare xylophones (gyi l, pl. gy ile ) recorded inward Kogri-Ullo have got 18 keys piece those inward the Dagaare social clubs inward Accra have got 17 keys. The keys (gyi l bi `r, lit. "seed") are tied together amongst antelope enshroud too mounted over a enshroud cushion on a wooden frame. Gourd resonators (ko`or, pl. ko`o) graduated inward size are suspended nether each key. Two or 3 holes nigh 2-3cm inward diameter are bored into each gourd too covered amongst a spider’s egg instance ( pempenee)
to increment the resonance too to make a buzzing effect.
The in conclusion too lowest key (za` ngbaal) does non have got a resonator as it is used for playing a repeated rhythmic ostinato (kpaaroo) The other keys are played amongst a wooden beater (gyildoo`le) nigh 30cm long, covered amongst prophylactic at the head. The tuning of the Dagaare xylophone is pentatonic (anhemitonic) too has a arrive at of 2 octaves. (further readings: http://www.michaelvercelli.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Vercelli_DMA_Document1.pdf)
The accompanying drums are commonly single-headed (gangare ), though a gourd drum (koo`re) usually
reserved for funerals, was used inward the Accra performances
Death too Afterlife
There is a full general belief inward life after death, too funeral ceremonies are the agency yesteryear which the actual
passage of a human beingness from the Land of the Living (tengzu) to the Land of Dead (dapaarewie) is effected. The dead go across the river of decease amongst the assistance of a ferryman; during the trip, those who have got led evil lives may live punished for their misdeeds. In the course of study of the serial of funeral ceremonies, a dead adult man also becomes an ancestor, amongst a shrine that volition thereafter have regular offerings of nutrient too imbibe from his descendants, especially from those who have got inherited from him.
Additionally, ancestor reverence too abide by for the belief inward the powerfulness of the ancestors to protect, guide, too offering showers of approbation to the living, may live considered as the most of import aspects of the human relationship betwixt the living too their supernatural agents. The ancestors are never dead. They merely
go on to live inward the other world of spirits too serve as media betwixt their relatives too the spirits too gods.
Funeral: Death, peculiarly of infants, was frequent. Those who have got non yet been weaned are non mourned inward the usual way, except yesteryear their mothers, because they are deemed to live wandering spirits, rather than humans. Precautions are taken against their render to this earth.
For all others, however, the funeral rites are long too complex, too they involve the participation of many people. All funeral rituals amid the Dagaaba involve musicians, mourners too the assembled villagers too guests from neighboring villages. The music grouping usually consists of xylophonists, drummers too singers. The singers improvise, recreate too reproduce through their songs the history of the spot unit of measurement upwardly to the decease that resulted inward the separation. The theme of the songs is a combination of the deeds too sorrows of the family. The best vocalizer is i who tin stir the maximum plane of grief inward the chief-mourners (kotuodeme, the closest relatives of the diseased) yesteryear his alternative of words. The effect of the words of the singers is echoed too amplified yesteryear the tunes of the xylophones too the sounds of the drums, moving the community to grieve freely.
Wailing, screaming, groaning, running, jumping, dancing too singing are all acceptable ways of expressing grief. Shedding of tears is highly recommended too admired. The kotuodeme are expected to shed a lot of tears too bear inward a way that stirs sympathizers to portion the grief to the fullest yesteryear shedding as many tears as
possible.
The dead person, dressed inward ceremonial outfit, is seated on a high wooden stool called paala, too surrounded yesteryear her/his valuable possessions. The stool is constructed from a special form of tree. The singers, drummers too xylophonists are usually non far from the corpse too the entire funeral expanse is marked yesteryear turmoil too turbulence, as people deed out their grief piece others assay to command themselves inward monastic tell to calm downwardly some of the kotuodeme from fourth dimension to time. The kotuodeme are tagged amongst ropes (much similar leashes) for identification purposes too for slowly command yesteryear people who may want to calm them downwardly yesteryear holding on to the rope. The to a greater extent than contributions too ropes i sent to other kotuodeme inward the past, the to a greater extent than ropes too contributions i is probable to have when i becomes a kotuosobo (singular for kotuodeme).
Reciprocity is the guiding regulation here. Although many people are probable to halt yesteryear at a funeral before continuing their daily business, the to a greater extent than funerals the deceased too kotuodeme attended, the to a greater extent than probable the funeral volition live crowded yesteryear sympathizers from all walks of life. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 well-attended funeral is an indication that the household has a high social reputation.
The length of funerals varies betwixt i to 5 days. The in conclusion twenty-four hours is marked yesteryear the burial of the dead person. There are usually designated grave diggers too specially trained people who make the actual burying, for it is believed the dead is capable of preventing i from exiting the grave i time the burial physical care for is nigh to end. Renowned witches too medicine people are peculiarly notorious for challenging the under-takers. In such instances, only as toughened witches or medicine people who have got been trained to bury the dead volition live entrusted amongst the chore at hand.
Highly respected elders are usually buried inward the middle of the spot unit of measurement chemical compound or inward forepart of the spot unit of measurement solid rather than inward the cemetery. This is to hold them unopen to the spot unit of measurement who are constantly beingness watched over yesteryear the dead elderberry or ancestor. From fourth dimension to time, libation may live poured too sacrifices made on the grave. On other informal occasions, the grave may serve as a resting spot for naps too for relaxing too chatting. The elders make non play an of import only after their death, but also piece they are alive.
Sources:http://www.linguistics.hku.hk/staff/Bodomo/JDS/2004/JDS2004_Kuwabong.pdf
http://www.linguistics.hku.hk/staff/Bodomo/JDS/JDS2002_Alenuma.pdf
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