Info For Yous Dagaaba (Dagarti/Dagara) People: Socially Mobile As Well As Xylophone-Playing W African People Renowned For Using Cowries Inwards The Modern Times To Transact Delineate Organisation With Money
The Dagaaba people (Dagarti, LoDagaa" together with "Lobi-Dagarti" or Dagara together with singular Dagao) are an amalgamated socially mobile, hard working agriculturalist together with highly educated Gur-speaking (Mabia) ethnic grouping inwards the West African nations of Ghana, Burkina Faso together with Cote d'Ivoire (Cote D`Ivoire). Due to their social mobility, the Dagaaba or Dagarti tin live found inwards almost every constituent of Ghana, Burkina Faso, together with Ivory Coast. Pockets of the Dagara tin live found inwards 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 dry ground proper, called Dagaabaland. Dagaabaland stretches from the Northwestern corner of Republic of Ghana to the West banks of the Black Volta River inwards Burkina Faso together with inwards 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 together with Cote d'Ivoire together with Upper Volta [now
Burkina Faso]. These people live largely inwards the Northwestern corner of Ghana, spreading
across the border into Upper Volta, correct upwards to the 12 parallel north. They are
concentrated especially about the expanse where longitude 3 westward together with 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 upwards into zones of British and
French influence, they at nowadays live inwards ii different nations, namely Republic of Ghana together with Upper Volta,
non to cite the sprinkling of them cutting off inwards Ivory Coast." Note: Upper Volta is the quondam holler 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 lastly people inwards the modern world to merchandise together with transact commerce amongst precious cowries. Cowries are soundless used as a shape of safety bonds just as people merchandise inwards gold, inwards barter merchandise as good as a shape of bride-price inwards Dagawie (Dagaabaland).
The actual holler of these people is Dagaaba or Lo Dagaa but most outsiders telephone yell upwards them Dagarti. One historian, describing the quondam usage of "Dagarti" to refer to this community yesteryear colonials, writes :
"The holler 'Dagarti' appears to have got been coined yesteryear the firstly Europeans to see the region, from the vernacular root dagaa. Correctly 'Dagari' is the holler of the language, 'Dagaaba' or 'Dagara' that of the people, together with 'Dagaw' or 'Dagawie' that of the land." They are related to the Birifor people together with 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 inwards the fourteenth century CE. They are believed to have got farther migrated to the lower northern constituent of the part inwards the seventeenth century. In his article "Customary Law of the Dagara” of Northern Ghana: Indigenous Rules or a Social Construction," published inwards 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 low-cal fantastic toe Kakube Festival at Nandom
The Dagaaba people amongst total population of over 2 1000000 people have got the larger per centum of its population residing inwards Ghana. They are found inwards Upper West Region of Republic of Ghana together with reside predominantly inwards Lawra, Nadowli, Jirapa, Nandom, Lambussie, Kaleo, Bole, Birifu, Tugu, Daffiama, Wechiau together with Hamile. Large communities are also found inwards the towns of Wa, Bogda, Babile, Tuna, Han together with Nyoli.
Burkina Faso has the 2d highest concentration of Dagaaba people together with they tin live found in Sud-Ouest Region, especially inwards Ioba Province, but also inwards Poni, Bougouriba, Sissili, together with Mouhoun provinces.
In Cote d'Ivoire where at that spot are smaller concentration of Dagaaba; they tin live found inwards the districts of Bonduku together with Buna.
Dagaaba people dancing to gyil (Xylophone) music at Nandom, Upper West Region, Ghana
Among the ethnic groups inwards 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 cypher new, as it has been erroneously claimed yesteryear some historians that it started in the tardily 1890s, when the British colonial management inwards the due north gave impetus to Dagaaba migration yesteryear recruiting labour to piece of work inwards the south. He posited that "Dagaaba migration to southern Republic of Ghana betwixt 1936 together with 1957 was an remove chances – “to reckon the world” together with gain experience. It did non start amongst colonial conquest; it had its roots inwards the precolonial yesteryear – inwards the slave trade, but to a greater extent than especially, inwards the menses next Asante’s defeat of Gonja (18th century) through the Zabarima together with Samorian invasions of the northwest inwards the tardily 19th century. Although the imposition of colonial dominion may have got transformed the nature together with 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 inwards playing indigenous together with folkloric songs. Although the dry ground inhabited yesteryear the Dagarti is far from whatever major city, musicians have got brought the gyil to national together with international audiences. Communicating as performers together with 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 together with i of Ghana`s best Musicians, Batman Samini
Like the Tallensi together with Sisaala, the Dagaaba admit the value together with the tremendous powerfulness of the dry ground (Tengan 1989). The Dagaaba or Dagara farther admit that dry ground belongs solely to the Tengan (Earth Shrine). They also reckon pelting as an indispensable source of life. It is desired together with 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 together with the Tengan. One of these taboos is the Tako daa.
The Dagarti are also known for their whirling "Tigari" trip the low-cal fantastic toe (healing ritual dance) together with Bawa trip the low-cal fantastic toe as good as the Bagre together with the Dyoro Secret Societies.
The Dagaaba shares friendly jokes based on "dog head" amongst their beau 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 together with the Parliamentary Leader during the firstly Republic of Ghana, Cardinal Peter Proeku Dery, an assistant traditional (fetish) priest turned Ghanaian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church, Ambrose P Dery, quondam attorney-General of Republic of Ghana together with Member of Parliament for Lawra, Naa Abeifaa Karbo, traditional ruler, shrewd political leader together with founding fellow member of Northern Peoples Party, Jatoe Kaleo, traditional ruler, shrewd political leader together with founding fellow member of Northern Peoples Party, Peter Tenganabang Nanfuri aka Naa Ansoleh Ganaa II, quondam Inspector General of Police (IGP) inwards Republic of Ghana together with the Paramount Chief of the Jirapa Traditional Area, Bede_Ziedeng, Ghanaian political leader together with the quondam Upper West Regional Minister of Ghana, Professor Edmund Nminyem Delle, renowned dermatologist, shrewd entrepreneur cum political leader together with quondam chairman of opposition Convention Peoples Party (CPP) of the tardily Ghanaian leader Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, Alban Bagbin, Ghanaian politician, quondam Minister of Health inwards the Ghana, quondam minority leader together with the Member of Parliament for Nadowli West, Benjamin Kunbuor, Ghanaian politician, constabulary lecturer, Member of Parliament for Lawra, quondam Minister for Justice together with Attorney General, Minister for Health, Minister for Interior together with currently government minister of Defence, Prof. Adams B. Bodomo, professor of African Studies (African Languages together with Literatures), prolific author together with publisher/editor of Journal of Dagaare studies, etc.
Clusters of Dagaaba
The terms "LoDagaa" together with "Lobi-Dagarti" (or Dagara) are used for a cluster of peoples situated across the frontier of Burkina Faso together with Ghana, originally grouped together yesteryear Labouret, next the usage of Delafosse together with other francophones. In this cluster, Labouret included the "true Lobi" (or those the Birifor telephone yell upwards the "LoWilisi") about Gaoua, who (according to Westermann together with 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; together with 4 smaller groups: the Teguessié, the Dorossié, the Dian, together with the Gan. The Teguessié (or Tégué) speak a linguistic communication of the Kulango Group together with are sometimes thought of as the autochthons; they were Masters of the ground inwards much of the area. The other little groups speak languages related to Lobiri, as do the Padoro together with perchance the Komono; Dian together with 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 utilization of Lobi ("la région Lobi") to concealment 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 together with Dagara Wiili [Oulé]); together with 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 together with the Dagara-Jula inwards her account.
Alban Kingsford Sumani Bagbin, ethnic Dagaaba, Ghanaian politician, quondam Minister of Health inwards the Ghana, quondam minority leader together with the Member of Parliament for Nadowli West.
The problems of ethnic classification inwards this expanse are several. In the firstly 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" inwards the Lawra District of Republic of Ghana at the commencement of the nineteenth century are at nowadays "Dagara." Third, the names themselves oftentimes do non pull distinct ethnic groups. There are many differences inwards custom together with organisation betwixt neighboring settlements, together with these settlements may live referred to yesteryear the ii quasi-directional terms, "Lo" (Lobi, west) together with "Dagaa" (east), to distinguish different practices (for example, the utilization of xylophones). Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 settlement may spot amongst its eastern neighbors on i occasion (as Dagaa) together with amongst its western ones (as Lo) on another. This histrion usage has led Goody to spot a spectrum of peoples, the LoDagaa, who utilization these names for reference to themselves together with others. They are, from westward to east, the truthful Lobi, the Birifor or LoBirifor, the LoPiel (around Nandom) together with the LoSaala (around Lawra), the Dagara (around Dano), the LoWiili (around Birifu), both DagaaWiili (around Tugu), together with the Dagaba or Dagarti. The Wala speak the Dagaba linguistic communication together with constitute a little province that has its origins eastward inwards Dagomba. That province established itself as ruler over the southern Dagaba together with 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 together with the LoSaala are known to francophones as "Dagara" (or Dagara-Lobr), together with they at nowadays by together with large utilization this term rather than "Lobi" for self-reference because they have got been forced to sort out 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 inwards many people's minds amongst the large lip plugs of gourd or metallic that are worn inwards the westward (the easterners wearable lean metallic plugs) together with amongst the stress that the westerners spot on matrilineal inheritance, nearly which modernizers (church, schools, law, some administrators) by together with large experience hostile together with ambivalent.
Dr Benjamin Bewa-Nyog Kunbuor, Ethnic Dagaaba man, Ghanaian politician, constabulary lecturer, Member of Parliament for Lawra, quondam Minister for Justice together with Attorney General, Minister for Health, Minister for Interior together with currently government minister of Defence
Given these contextual, overlapping, together with changing usages yesteryear the peoples themselves, histrion names are rarely satisfactory to dot "tribal" groups, yesteryear which nosotros refer to larger groupings of settlements amongst relatively homogeneous practices. These groups tin live distinguished, roughly from eastward to west, as the Dagaba or Dagarti (around Jirapa); the LoPiel (around Nandom) together with the LoSaala (around Lawra), both "Dagara Lobr" inwards French; the DagaaWiili (around Legmoin together with Tugu) together with the LoWiili (around Birifu), both "Dagara Wiilé" inwards French; the Birifor or LoBirifor (around Batié together with inwards western Gonja); together with the Lobi or LoWiilisi (around Gaoua). There are, inwards addition, the smaller populations of Gan, Dorossié, together with Gian, who speak Lobi languages, together with Teguessié, together with 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 inwards 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 surroundings 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), together with the semen together with eggs of flies together with cats (animals). Seen this way, the human somebody is a configuration of the land, the animal, the spirit, together with the flora together with nosotros owe our lives to a preservation of the residue betwixt us together with these firstly beings. In other words, animals, plants, spirits, together with the dry ground must constantly live negotiated amongst as they have got a closer affinity amongst the divine who oversees everything. That explains why Dagaaba reckon spirituality inwards every creation together with 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 solid 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 together with Bodomo 2001). It is spoken yesteryear nearly 2 1000000 people, mainly inwards Republic of Ghana but also inwards neighbouring regions of West Africa, similar Burkina Faso together with the Ivory Coast. Phonologically speaking, Dagaare together with other Mabia languages, including Moore, Dagbane, Frafra, Kusaal, Mampruli together with Buli, are marked yesteryear a preponderance of consonants together with a scarcity of vowel sounds when compared to Indo-European languages, such as English linguistic communication together with French (Bodomo, forthcoming). One distinctive phonological characteristic is the double joint of some consonants. These include labio-velar
stops similar /gb/ /kp/ together with /ngm/. Such features, rare inwards Indo-European languages, are a mutual characteristic in
many African languages. The labio-velar together with velar sounds are partially complementary, as inwards the alternate
causative/non-causative forms of the verbs k/ kp i, ‘die’ inwards Dagaare. Regular allophones oftentimes involve /d/ together with /r/, together with /g/ together with // across the diverse languages. There may also live limited cases of costless variation as it is betwixt /h/ together with /z/ inwards the Dagaare word, ha a / za a , ‘all’.
Prof. Adams B. Bodomo, professor of African Studies (African Languages together with Literatures), prolific author together with publisher/editor of Journal of Dagaare studies
There is the typological characteristic of vowel harmony inwards Dagaare together with many Mabia languages. Words similar ko go
(‘chair’), bi i ri (‘(‘children’), together with 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 inwards languages similar French together with Norwegian, together with dorsum unrounded vowels are absent inwards these languages, except when phonetically realized inwards particular environments.
Syllabic nasality is also a typological characteristic inwards these languages. These are realized inwards some environments,
most oftentimes as pronouns together with particles; as inwards the instance of the Dagaare 3rd somebody pronoun /N/ as inwards m `ba , (‘my father’), n`zu (‘my head’) together with inwards 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 together with quondam Inspector General of Police (IGP) inwards Republic of Ghana together with the Paramount Chief of the Jirapa Traditional Area inwards his smock sitting inwards the middle. Courtesy FH Communications Bureau
Dagaare together with other Mabia languages primarily have got ii tonal systems, high together with low, (respectively marked
yesteryear sharp together with grave diachritics on the sounds amongst contain them) amongst cases of downstep inwards some of the
languages, i.e. subsequent high tones may non live as high as preceeding ones. These tones serve to express
both lexical together with grammatical oppositions as inwards the Dagaare verbs, da` (‘push’), /da` (‘buy’), together with as inwards the
declarative together with hortative readings of pronouns e.g.u` kuli la yiri / `u` kuli la yiri ((‘He went home/ He should
go home’).
Dagaare, together with its grouping of languages, usually manifest opened upwards syllables. Both CV together with CVC syllables tin be
reconstructed, but it is usually possible to insert a concluding syllable. Thus, the Dagaare verb ‘to leave’, may live realized either as bar` or bar i`. There are also dialectal differences amongst honour to these ii 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 utilization a
prefixal pattern, i.e. cases inwards which nominal inflections occur before, rather than, after the root, Mabia
languages mostly utilization a scheme of shape suffixes. These are typically based on singular/plural alternations.
Most nouns be inwards iii forms: the root, the singular, together with the plural. An illustration is the Dagaare give-and-take for
‘woman/wife’: p)g- (root), p)ga (singular), p) gba (plural), amongst the farther vowel assimilation inwards some
dialects to give us p)g)` together with p)gb).
Another of import typological characteristic within Dagaare together with its grouping of languages is verb morphology. In
most of these languages at that spot is a regular shape of marking perfective together with imperfective aspects yesteryear adding
suffixes to the verbs, as inwards zoe` ‘have run’ together with zoro` ‘running’.
As far as possible, the diverse texts associated amongst the music on this recording are presented amongst tonal
transcriptions. For phrases together with larger chunks of data, nosotros provide interlinear glossings. These glossings
provide interesting insights into the grammatical together with communicative construction of the Dagaare language.
Finally, costless translations follow the glosses to capture salient aspects of the linguistic together with 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 low-cal fantastic toe baawaa s/he cannot perchance live a kid from our town.’)
History
Retinue og Dagaaba chiefs, drummers together with dancers at annual Bong Ngo festival at Jirapa
The Lobi-Dagarti peoples are without whatever overarching tribal organisation or, strictly speaking, whatever territory. They displace non as large units, but as solid 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 eastward of the river, inwards 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 inwards the Wa expanse when the ruling dynasty arrived; the Jãa were sure as shooting settled inwards the Lawra expanse until, attracted yesteryear a sparsely populated part amongst plenty of farmland together with wood make together with nether pressure level from other LoDagaa, mainly from the southward together with southwest (but fifty-fifty from westward of the river), they crossed the Black Volta. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 minority of clans line their origins from other regions.
One of the factors leading to the motion has been the search for to a greater extent than together with amend 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 together with adventurers) inwards their search for slaves, partly for their ain utilization but mainly to furnish the Asante and, through them, the Europeans inwards 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, together with their full general aggressiveness—have been attributed to the effects of such raids. In the tardily twentieth century houses are smaller, the way of clothes is to a greater extent than "European," together with less hostility is displayed.
The establishment of the international boundary has brought nearly a decline inwards east-west migration. The main motion of the Lobi inwards the tardily twentieth century has been of ii kinds. The firstly has been from the Lawra District to the vacant lands southward on the route to Kumasi, which many men have got traveled inwards the dry out flavor as migrant laborers. Settlements that make nutrient for sale inwards the markets have got grown upwards from Wa southward to the northwest of Asante. The 2d movement, commencement inwards 1917, has been eastward across the Black Volta from the francophone territories to Ghana, where at that spot were fewer calls yesteryear the regime on task 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 terminate 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 together with representation.
Settlement
Settlements inwards the expanse consist of named units that are usually centered on a specific parish or ritual expanse of an ground 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 inwards fortress-type compounds amongst 2.5meter-high walls, a apartment roofs, together with entrances reached (at to the lowest degree formerly) yesteryear wooden ladders to the roofs. These houses are some 100 meters apart together with contain an average of xv persons, but they vary inwards 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 together with 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 together with children. Such a solid unit of measurement is established through marriage.
Dagaaba people
Economy
Subsistence together with Commercial Activities. The economic scheme is essentially i of the hoe farming of cereals (sorghum, pennisetum [pearl millet], maize), together amongst some yams, especially inwards the southern areas that are occupied yesteryear migrants. In addition, people grow squashes, peppers, beans (including Bambara beans), groundnuts, together with a footling rice. Some of this make is sold inwards the local markets, especially sorghum inwards the shape of beer. Most compounds also possess a herd of cows, together with some sheep, goats, guinea fowl, together with chickens, which are mainly killed as sacrifices to live distributed.
Dagarti farmers inwards their farm at Jirapa
Industrial Arts together with 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 nearly together with the cheaper Fe tools that it provided have got led to increased production, evidence of which tin live seen inwards the markets. That increment is also truthful for livestock. Along amongst wage task (performed either locally or as migrants), these developments have got increased purchasing power. Whereas footling was imported before except salt, at nowadays large amounts of fabric are brought in, together with other manufactured objects, such as matches, bicycles, transistor radios, together with household utensils, are used inwards considerable quantities. Local arts and crafts production consists of Fe implements, brass bangles together with other ornaments, musical instruments, some wood carvings, together with woven mats.
Today migration—both of the uneducated, seeking piece of work as laborers, together with of the educated, who by together with large piece of work inwards the towns—is frequent. The historic menses of migrants is at nowadays much lower than formerly, together with the duration of their absences is much greater. The outcome is that larger numbers of houses are inhabited yesteryear old men, women, together with children who have got to carry out the agricultural piece of work without the assist they would have got received from the migrants. Thus, the sexual partitioning of task has been altered. The south, however, is commencement 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 inwards the province of Wa), but major north-south merchandise routes of Dyula together with 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 together with non easily noticeable yesteryear the on-looker. For example, although the staple dish amid the Dagaaba is saabo or Sao (called "to" inwards 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 inwards a slightly different way inwards spite of the fact that virtually the same ingredients may live used inwards each case. Meat is non considered an of import food, except inwards 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) together with the transfer of bride wealth/kyeru, the details of what goes on during courtship together with 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 firstly 24-hour interval 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 together with the Jiribale. However, as to what constitutes a bride wealth, these ii 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, together with 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 together with guinea-fowl to the in-laws, together with the pog libie, a total of closed to 20,000 cowries, usually, the same amount that was paid for the girl’s mother. Various rituals accompany the counting together with transfer of bride wealth yesteryear the groom’s solid 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 together with storing of it. In general, the bride wealth received for a miss is used to acquire a married adult woman for a son. Whereas paying the bride wealth of a immature man’s firstly married adult woman is the obligation of his solid unit of measurement elders, if he wishes to go polygamous, he volition by together with large live solely responsible for paying the bride wealth of these subsequent wives.
The diverse rituals performed during the counting together with transfer yesteryear the groom’s relatives as good as those (the rituals) that go on during the counting together with credence of the bride wealth, are tied to the fertility together with 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 together with the bride wealth accepted, together with so whatever infidelity on the constituent of the adult woman could outcome inwards her decease if she does non confess at nowadays together with go through purification rites/rituals.
Domestic Unit
The domestic unit of measurement is by together with large built on agnatic ties, given that wives bring together their husbands at marriage, but amid the Lobi together with Birifor, men do extensive bride-service, together with some immature children may grow upwards 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 together with his sons may farm together for a longer menses amid the groups inwards which patricians dominate. The spot grouping that occupies a chemical compound may consist of several farming groups, together with each farming grouping may live divided into smaller eating groups.
Inheritance
Among the Dagaba together with the Wiili, a man's belongings passes firstly to his total brothers, if they are farming together, together with and so to his sons. Among the LoPiel, the LoSaala, the Birifor, together with the Lobi, dry ground passes inwards the paternal line, whereas movable belongings is transmitted firstly to uterine siblings together with and so to sisters' sons, leading to before splits inwards the domestic groups together with to tensions betwixt a adult man together with his mother's brothers. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 woman's belongings by together with large 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 together with are breast-fed until they tin walk together with talk, when they "become humans" together with are thus entitled to a proper burial (see "Death together with Afterlife"). Later on, they are cared for yesteryear elderberry sisters or relatives, who involve them inwards their play. Boys go off inwards 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 together with pounding cereals. Among the Lobi, girls also seem after cattle, although boys together with girls hand 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 together with the Gan, as good as the Kaleo the peoples of this grouping lacked chieftainship together with telephone 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 inwards its full general structure.
Dagaaba people of Nadowli
From the outside, it mightiness have got appeared amorphous together with non easily susceptible to analysis, for its organisation together with institutions were non defined inwards terms of the total territorial unit of measurement but inwards terms of sub-territorial areas teni (villages) referred to yesteryear Goody as parishes, together with yesteryear Fortes inwards his study of the Tallensi as settlements. The political organisation of each teng (village) exhibited a sure flat of centralization of ascendency amongst a rattling limited vertical structure. The telephone substitution ascendency 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 dry ground (tendaana) inwards sure cases, were theoretically co-equals inwards all deliberations. However, inwards matters that related to the teng together with the dry ground deity (tengan), the tendaana was the concluding authority. Thus depending on the issues involved, the telephone substitution ascendency was either circular amongst its functions based on consultation together with 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 flat together with decentralized at the total societal level. Centralization within the little units provided the useful banking concern check on the abuses or excesses inwards the utilization of centralized political power. On rattling 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 telephone substitution unit. However, these higher flat organizations did non appear to involve the total territorial expanse of the Dagaaba. Yet, taking whatever 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, together with political or legal cooperation. Each of these other units was also separately together with 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 together with the flat of sophistication inwards the native fine art of diplomacy, cooperation or integration betwixt different territorial units was great or little inwards amplitude. The basic philosophy which guided the interaction of all telephone substitution authorities at the larger unit of measurement flat was equality. All constituent 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 together with continues to live the footing 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 together with Conflicts
The main causes of conflict were rights to women together with access to wood products. Within the parish, conflicts of this variety were rare because of kin ties together with honour for the ground shrine. Strong sanctions existed against adultery, theft, together with other delicts, which were settled within together with betwixt local lineages. More recently, local chiefs together with headmen have got exercised supervision on behalf of the government, together with local courts of constabulary have got been established.
Crime together with 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 rattling repulsive together with anti-social deed condemned yesteryear all, including the spirits together with the ancestors who could live invoked whenever necessary to punish a thief severely. Theft is so much looked downwards upon that it is non uncommon to listen 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 together with social cohesion.
In Dagaare, the term iibo signifies the full general normative value scheme roofing established together with accepted norms, principles, practices, procedures which regulation life inwards full general together with disputing inwards particular. It is when a specific conduct is inwards conflict amongst the Dagaaba iibo that i may live characterized as deviant. In low-cal 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 together with creator og the Universe. He is goodness together with omnipotent but has no shrines, so at that spot is no agency of communication amongst him. Mwin agency “sun“, together with Naamwin is sometimes identified amongst sun, sky, or rain. Goody, inwards 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 proceed inwards his primordial role“, says Goody, “our problems would non exist. With his aid, disease, evil, together with misfortune could live banished“.
In addition, Dagaaba strongly believe together with reverence the ‘Mother Earth’ (Tengbane). Tengbane or Mother ground is the 2d most powerful deity after the supreme God, Naangmen. Therefore the Dagao sees the ground or physical surroundings as sacred and divine; that they are born from the earth, live on together with through it, volition live buried inwards it; together with that they volition join the ancestors who, though invisible, are nonetheless located inwards the surroundings amongst other spiritual beings. This is good articulated inwards Bagre narrative, together with 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, together with it is to her womb that nosotros shall render inwards death. Likewise, Kukure (1985:55) sees ground as the ‘controlling agency inwards life, the source of fertility, of prosperity, [and] of survival [. . . .] Moreover the [Earth must give an work organisation 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 do non relate to their surroundings 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, together with the unseen energies of stars, thunder together with lightning. Even though Sagbane is the Father, he is secondary inwards importance to Tengbane during invocatory prayers of Dagaaba. Tengbane comes second to Naangmen. It is also on work organisation human relationship of Sagbane’s secondary spot that His priest, the Saadaana, does non characteristic rattling much inwards Dagaaba daily existence, together with the business office is non found inwards every settlement. It is to Tengbane that daily libations are poured. Tengbane is Goddess, together with the Mother of Bagre; she must not live polluted. When Tengbane is polluted, efforts are initiated to perform the appropriate together with necessary
sacrifices for the restoration of the broken residue betwixt the self, the community, Tengbane, the spirit
world, together with 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 together with others likewise many to enumerate hither that the High Priest of Tengbane, the Tengdaana, holds the highest socio-spiritual together with moral ascendency inwards whatever Dagaaba village. Each settlement of, say, 300 to 1,000 people has an “earth-shrine” (tengbane) together with an earth-priest (tengdaana) which is usually situated inwards a grove inwards a telephone substitution constituent of the settlement. Sacrifices are performed yesteryear an earth-priest together with his assistants, also yesteryear patriclan representatives. In addition, anyone may brand sacrifices to the ground 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 inwards the mediatory role played yesteryear the Tengdaana together with Tengbane betwixt the people together with Naangmen. It must live stressed hither that Dagaaba have got as many Tengbama (plural for Tengbane) together with Tengdaamba (plural for Tengdaana) as at that spot are settlements. This does non inwards anyway dot whatever conflictual relationships amongst the Tengbane. The diverse Tengbama stand upwards for settlement patterns, together with must live seen as parishes of the same Goddess. Each Tengdaana together with so becomes a parish priest, performing the same functions, amongst local variation, to an omnipresent together with omniscient Tengbane
In monastic enjoin to exhibit how of import the higher upwards human relationship is, it is necessary to consider the role of the ancestral spirits inwards the surroundings as narrated inwards Bagre. The ancestral spirits piece of work inwards alliance amongst or against the Kontongbilii, the firstly nonhuman creatures inwards the surroundings to come upwards to the assist of humans. They learn Dagaaba everything nearly survival: how to grow food, hunt, brand weapons, cook, brand beer, together with fifty-fifty start Bagre itself. Kontongbilii, together amongst the ancestral spirits learn the Dagaaba nearly their surroundings through dreams together with visions. For instance, they learn traditional healers nearly 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, together with medicine. Subsequently, to disrespect together with maltreat plants tin live dangerous, because plants do 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 nearly the medicinal together with toxic values of plants from animals (ll.2320-2469). It is from plants that nosotros acquire poisons such as strophanthus for toxicant for arrowheads, together with to care for guinea worm infection. From the same plants nosotros acquire medicine to halt nativity blood, together with facilitate childbirth.
As indicated earlier, Bagre performance coincides inwards most cases amongst Kpangkyaanee (autumn), together with Uonii (Dry Season). With less piece of work on the farms, together with amongst plenty of food, people are inwards a festive mood. Bagre performance also is timed amongst moontide so that inter-clan together with intra-clan socialization is facilitated. Consequently, Bagre calendars start amongst the commencement of harvest, fifty-fifty though novel harvests are forbidden to the initiates until they graduate. The most of import crop’s firstly fruit is the shea, which becomes mature inwards June. In determining when Bagre flavor tin live announced, the elders resort to the legend of the fruitbat. In this legend, the fruitbat, together with other animals together with birds as Bagre elders assist humans inwards their spiritual journey:
"And inwards Bagre,
our elders
are many.’
‘What do you lot hateful yesteryear many?’
‘You saw that
inwards 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
together with the featherless cock.’
(Goody 1972: Bagre Degre-- Dirty Bagre ll. 4550-4579)
At this stage, initiates start their educational activity on the roles played yesteryear the diverse animals inwards Bagre, together with thus inwards human survival. The large fruitbat knows when the firstly shea fruits are mature. By observing its behavior, the elders are able to know the exact fourth dimension to denote the flavor without breaking whatever spiritual taboos. In this case, stuff scientific discipline is of no significance since machines tin only guess time, which would soundless non live accurate taking into consideration the variables of uncertainties inwards nature. But the fruit-bat’s eating habits give the people a fourth dimension precision inwards which to act. The fruit-bat ‘will know the fourth dimension / to fetch the fruit / inwards the night’ (Goody 1972: ll. 4591-93), eats the fruit, leaves the seed for the elders to see, together with and so 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 inwards its powerfulness to know when the rains are due together with to percentage this knowledge amongst humans to allow 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 together with when to halt sowing. Those who turn down to recognize its pedagogy of nature through its music sow inwards vain (Goody 1972: ll. 4611-40). The weather-wise damdamwule is helped yesteryear the n birime (featherless fowl). He or she wakes upwards the people at dawn, during Sieong, to go to their farms. It performs this role yesteryear beating its wings early on inwards the morning. The belibaar knows when Kpangkyaanee is close together with returns ‘from the pelting side / together with flies / where the Sun sets’ (Goody 1972: ll. 4651-53) to warn people to start preparing their barns for harvest, together with the Bagre. It is thus through the migratory movements of this plane that the elders are able to denote the Bagre together with to spot ritual prohibitions on the initiates.
Reenactment of the Hunt at the 2009 Kobine festival inwards Lawra.
The kyaalipio wakes upwards women at dawn during Bagre menses to go together with fetch the H2O used inwards brewing
the beer for the Bagre ceremony (Goody 1972: ll. 4670-88) before it is dingy yesteryear wild boars. Wild
boars are also considered spirit beings associated amongst Bagre. Bagre is a purgatorial journeying to a rebirth
together with hence it has prohibitions that include sexual abstinence for the neophytes, the eating of sure foods,
together with full general leisure. The manful somebody crown-bird calls the Bagre members to acquire upwards from their slumber together with feed
the children at midnight, so that from together with so on they tin start a fast (Goody 1972: ll. 4689-4713). Then
at that spot is the old manful 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 regain of edible bean flowers inwards his farm,
cross checks the accuracy of timing of Bagre amongst the large fruit bat’s regain of shea fruits. Other birds
also business office inwards the service of Bagre Mother, Tengbane, together with Bagre Father, Sagbane.
In add-on to the way inwards which feathered creatures are treated inwards the Bagre ceremony, other animals play of import roles. Some of these animals are spirit animals together with are thus prohibited to Bagre. They include the duo (wild boar), the sienee (porcupine), the sasere (grass-cutter), together with mokpaangoo (bush guinea-fowl).
There are no reasons given inwards the narrative why these are prohibited, but nosotros do non demand to search far for
the reason. These are totemic animals, together with it is non allowed for i to kill a clan totem fauna 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 upwards that plants, animals, insects, together with spirit beings play a rattling important role inwards the Bagre performance. These roles assist to shape the spiritual, moral, intellectual, together with 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, whatever endeavor at commencement the Bagre performance volition live fraught amongst danger (Goody 1972: ll.780-960). Consequently, the shea tree together with its fruits, together with the role the fruit bat plays, cannot live considered purely from a materialist economical perspective, together with 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 inwards the confront of worsening environmental degradation. It is also of import to recognize the spiritual links betwixt the people, the bat, together with the tree. Without this recognition the tree volition live destroyed when its economical importance is no longer rattling relevant, together with its role as protector of the soil volition live terminated.
In addition, the fruitbat’s ambiguous location as a winged mammal, together with as i who sees inwards the night, gives testimony to its importance inwards discovering the firstly fruits of the shea tree. It is carnivorous together with herbivorous, together with hangs upside downwards dissimilar other winged creatures. Thus, it breaks all the boundaries associated amongst animals together with 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 reckon together with start the physical care for of announcing the Bagre. The fruit bat’s activity also helps disperse the seeds of the tree, together with yesteryear that activity it helps to expand the natural vegetation. Thus, the events carried yesteryear the fruit bat, together with all the other animals, insects, together with 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 together with so re-enacted inwards the Bagre performance toward securing human happiness, health, wealth, piety, together with social mobility yesteryear Dagaaba inwards their otherwise harsh surroundings (Goody 1972: ll.922-29).
Dagaare Music
While the music on this recording is the aspect of a distinct ethnolinguistic group, the Dagaaba,
nevertheless, have got had long historical, social, cultural together with 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 together with the Mamprusi. Thus, the musical cultures of the part percentage sure features. For instance,
the main musical instrument of the northwestern constituent of the province is the xylophone, which may live supported by
a drum or a drum ensemble, together with the scales are largely of the hemitonic together with anhemitonic pentatonic types,
that is, 5 banking concern complaint scales that include half-steps together with those that do not.
Music-making amid the Dagaaba, similar other peoples of the region, is an intrinsic constituent of social life.
Certain types of music together with repertories of vocal may live associated amongst particular occasions, cults,
cooperative piece of work groups together with organized labour, historic menses groups, together with rites of passage. For instance, praisesongs
(danno ng) are performed regularly as a tribute to the primary piece other types of music are exclusive
to the rituals together with ceremonies of the regal court, such as an investiture, an assembly inwards 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 assist groups for immature farmers. The "anle e " social trip the low-cal fantastic toe is reserved for females; the fe roo is a
trip the low-cal fantastic toe 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) together with herding.
There are special songs for initiation ceremonies, funerals (kobie), ritual sacrifice, weddings, together with world naming ceremonies that occur vii days after the nativity 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 aspect of private community members, such as the music for the solo bamboo flute (wu le e ), the harp (p 3na a or koriduo inwards Nandom), or the lullaby (bi-ya gleyi e le).
Finally, music is used to welcome together with honour of import guests together with visitors.
The Bawaa Dance
Group dancing is intrinsic to ritual together with ceremony together with is an of import marking of social competence. In
order, then, for an private to participate inwards 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 yell upwards to immature people to brand trip the low-cal fantastic toe together with music together, indeed the term "bawaa " literally means, "young people, come upwards together" (Kobina Saighoe:1984). The bawaa trip the low-cal fantastic toe then, is a favourite
pastime amid the Dagaaba youth. It oftentimes occurs simply as a spontaneous aspect of immature members
of the community when an chance arises. Mostly, however, the bawaa trip the low-cal fantastic toe is incorporated into
diverse celebrations, including: rites of passage marking birth, puberty, spousal human relationship together with death, or to honour
an individual.
The bawaa dancers also brand upwards the chorus which comprises both immature males together with females, including
children. One of the dancers, unremarkably a manful somebody amongst the most science or experience as a dancer or instrumentalist, takes the role of Pb vocalist called the ba wa -ngmaara or the bawa-kye3r3 (‘the cutter’). The dancers are accompanied yesteryear ii xylophonists, i plays a ‘male’ musical instrument (gyil-daa) together with 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 together with 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 wearable 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 inwards other cases.
The telephone yell upwards to trip the low-cal fantastic toe unremarkably begins amongst the clapping of finger cymbals. The ii xylophone players, who
sit down contrary each other amongst the drummer adjacent to them, start piece the crowd gathers about the dance
area. The dancers together with so acquire into the expanse together with shape a circle about the musicians, dancing inwards either an anticlockwise or clockwise direction.
The main constituent of the trip the low-cal fantastic toe consists of an alternation betwixt ii sections. The firstly department is called the See`o during which they perform a vocal inwards telephone yell upwards together with reply 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 low-cal fantastic toe becomes to a greater extent than intense as the dancers
synchronize their steps amongst heavy syncopated accents together with displays of skill. In Accra, a practise 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 inwards the trip the low-cal fantastic toe lawsuit itself,
but who oversees the entire performance. This cycle is repeated whatever number of times for each song, until
such times as the leader signals a novel vocal together with the cycle begins again.
When the dancers exhibit signs of tiring i of the xylophone players gives a signal to terminate the dance. In the
hamlet setting the dancers simply stop, piece inwards Accra a to a greater extent than formal scheme exists whereby the
dancers acquire out the circle inwards a unmarried line. Generally, a performance lasts betwixt xx together with xxx minutes. (click hither for Bawaa dance: http://shelf3d.com/4pOzOarwnZI#Bewaa Dance Of The Dagaaba People.)
Kobine Dance
Kobine is a traditional trip the low-cal fantastic toe together with festival unique to the Lawra expanse of due north western Ghana. The trip the low-cal fantastic toe together with the festival named after it are celebrated inwards September together with Oct to score the terminate of a successful harvest.
Festival.
The festival of Kobine lasts 4 days, amongst the firstly 24-hour interval usually reserved for visiting solid unit of measurement together with friends. The 2d together with 3rd days are the official holidays. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 procession of the solid unit of measurement heads is accompanied yesteryear groups of younger people dressed to stand upwards for hunters together with elephants.
Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 number of speeches are made yesteryear dignitaries together with other guests of honour before the Kobine trip the low-cal fantastic toe contest begins.
Ethnic Dagaaba people performing Kobine trip the low-cal fantastic toe atKobine festival inwards Lawra, Upper West Region
The Kobine music is produced from kuor, a drum musical instrument amongst a base of operations made from a gourd, together with dalar, a smaller drum made from the cervix of a clay pot.
The men usually clothes inwards 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 together with caps are worn. The women clothes similarly to the men, except they by together with large volition wearable a blouse. Both men together with women wearable a band of bells about the ankles to accentuate their rhythmic moves when they dance.
The trip the low-cal fantastic toe itself consists of quick rhythmic moves especially amongst the torso or upper body. At the peak moves menses of the dance, the women volition by together with large cutting inwards together with trip the low-cal fantastic toe inwards forepart of their favorite manful somebody dancer.
Dagaaba Gyil
The Dagaare Xylophone (Gyil)
Dagaare xylophones are unremarkably played inwards pairs, facing each other. The Dagaare xylophones (gyi l, pl. gy ile ) recorded inwards Kogri-Ullo have got 18 keys piece those inwards the Dagaare social clubs inwards Accra have got 17 keys. The keys (gyi l bi `r, lit. "seed") are tied together amongst antelope cover together with mounted over a cover cushion on a wooden frame. Gourd resonators (ko`or, pl. ko`o) graduated inwards size are suspended nether each key. Two or iii holes nearly 2-3cm inwards diameter are bored into each gourd together with covered amongst a spider’s egg instance ( pempenee)
to increment the resonance together with to make a buzzing effect.
The lastly together with 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) nearly 30cm long, covered amongst safe at the head. The tuning of the Dagaare xylophone is pentatonic (anhemitonic) together with has a attain of ii octaves. (further readings: http://www.michaelvercelli.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Vercelli_DMA_Document1.pdf)
The accompanying drums are unremarkably single-headed (gangare ), though a gourd drum (koo`re) usually
reserved for funerals, was used inwards the Accra performances
Death together with Afterlife
There is a full general belief inwards life after death, together with 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 assist 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 together with imbibe from his descendants, especially from those who have got inherited from him.
Additionally, ancestor reverence together with honour for the belief inwards the powerfulness of the ancestors to protect, guide, together with offering showers of approbation to the living, may live considered as the most of import aspects of the human relationship betwixt the living together with their supernatural agents. The ancestors are never dead. They merely
proceed to live inwards the other world of spirits together with serve as media betwixt their relatives together with the spirits together with gods.
Funeral: Death, especially of infants, was frequent. Those who have got non yet been weaned are non mourned inwards 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 together with complex, together with they involve the participation of many people. All funeral rituals amid the Dagaaba involve musicians, mourners together with the assembled villagers together with guests from neighboring villages. The music grouping usually consists of xylophonists, drummers together with singers. The singers improvise, recreate together with reproduce through their songs the history of the solid unit of measurement upwards to the decease that resulted inwards the separation. The theme of the songs is a combination of the deeds together with sorrows of the family. The best vocalist is i who tin stir the maximum flat of grief inwards 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 together with amplified yesteryear the tunes of the xylophones together with the sounds of the drums, moving the community to grieve freely.
Wailing, screaming, groaning, running, jumping, dancing together with singing are all acceptable ways of expressing grief. Shedding of tears is highly recommended together with admired. The kotuodeme are expected to shed a lot of tears together with deport inwards a way that stirs sympathizers to percentage the grief to the fullest yesteryear shedding as many tears as
possible.
The dead person, dressed inwards ceremonial outfit, is seated on a high wooden stool called paala, together with surrounded yesteryear her/his valuable possessions. The stool is constructed from a special variety of tree. The singers, drummers together with xylophonists are usually non far from the corpse together with the entire funeral expanse is marked yesteryear turmoil together with turbulence, as people deed out their grief piece others attempt to command themselves inwards monastic enjoin to calm downwards some of the kotuodeme from fourth dimension to time. The kotuodeme are tagged amongst ropes (much similar leashes) for identification purposes together with for slow command yesteryear people who may want to calm them downwards yesteryear holding on to the rope. The to a greater extent than contributions together with ropes i sent to other kotuodeme inwards the past, the to a greater extent than ropes together with 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 together with 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 concluding 24-hour interval is marked yesteryear the burial of the dead person. There are usually designated grave diggers together with specially trained people who do 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 nearly to end. Renowned witches together with medicine people are especially 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 inwards the middle of the solid unit of measurement chemical compound or inwards forepart of the solid unit of measurement solid rather than inwards the cemetery. This is to hold them closed to the solid unit of measurement who are constantly beingness watched over yesteryear the dead elderberry or ancestor. From fourth dimension to time, libation may live poured together with sacrifices made on the grave. On other informal occasions, the grave may serve as a resting spot for naps together with for relaxing together with chatting. The elders do 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 together with 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 inwards Republic of Ghana before the introduction of the West African Pound and, later, the Cedi, is at nowadays just a vestigial relic inwards virtually all of modern Republic of Ghana except amid the Dagaaba. This newspaper provides an insider's perspective on the economical importance together with on the unique role of the cowrie currency amid the Dagaaba that explains its perpetual presence. Cultural uses do a derived demand for cowries. Government policies outcome inwards debasement of the cedi and, together amongst monetary characteristics of the cowrie, Pb to contest betwixt the cedi together with 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 dry ground proper, called Dagaabaland. Dagaabaland stretches from the Northwestern corner of Republic of Ghana to the West banks of the Black Volta River inwards Burkina Faso together with inwards 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 together with Cote d'Ivoire together with Upper Volta [now
Burkina Faso]. These people live largely inwards the Northwestern corner of Ghana, spreading
across the border into Upper Volta, correct upwards to the 12 parallel north. They are
concentrated especially about the expanse where longitude 3 westward together with 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 upwards into zones of British and
French influence, they at nowadays live inwards ii different nations, namely Republic of Ghana together with Upper Volta,
non to cite the sprinkling of them cutting off inwards Ivory Coast." Note: Upper Volta is the quondam holler 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 lastly people inwards the modern world to merchandise together with transact commerce amongst precious cowries. Cowries are soundless used as a shape of safety bonds just as people merchandise inwards gold, inwards barter merchandise as good as a shape of bride-price inwards Dagawie (Dagaabaland).
The actual holler of these people is Dagaaba or Lo Dagaa but most outsiders telephone yell upwards them Dagarti. One historian, describing the quondam usage of "Dagarti" to refer to this community yesteryear colonials, writes :
"The holler 'Dagarti' appears to have got been coined yesteryear the firstly Europeans to see the region, from the vernacular root dagaa. Correctly 'Dagari' is the holler of the language, 'Dagaaba' or 'Dagara' that of the people, together with 'Dagaw' or 'Dagawie' that of the land." They are related to the Birifor people together with the Dagaare Diola. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 somebody from Dagarti or Dagaaba tribe is known as Dagao.
Dagao adult woman from Bonduku inwards 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 inwards the fourteenth century CE. They are believed to have got farther migrated to the lower northern constituent of the part inwards the seventeenth century. In his article "Customary Law of the Dagara” of Northern Ghana: Indigenous Rules or a Social Construction," published inwards 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 low-cal fantastic toe Kakube Festival at Nandom
The Dagaaba people amongst total population of over 2 1000000 people have got the larger per centum of its population residing inwards Ghana. They are found inwards Upper West Region of Republic of Ghana together with reside predominantly inwards Lawra, Nadowli, Jirapa, Nandom, Lambussie, Kaleo, Bole, Birifu, Tugu, Daffiama, Wechiau together with Hamile. Large communities are also found inwards the towns of Wa, Bogda, Babile, Tuna, Han together with Nyoli.
Burkina Faso has the 2d highest concentration of Dagaaba people together with they tin live found in Sud-Ouest Region, especially inwards Ioba Province, but also inwards Poni, Bougouriba, Sissili, together with Mouhoun provinces.
In Cote d'Ivoire where at that spot are smaller concentration of Dagaaba; they tin live found inwards the districts of Bonduku together with Buna.
Dagaaba people dancing to gyil (Xylophone) music at Nandom, Upper West Region, Ghana
Among the ethnic groups inwards 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 cypher new, as it has been erroneously claimed yesteryear some historians that it started in the tardily 1890s, when the British colonial management inwards the due north gave impetus to Dagaaba migration yesteryear recruiting labour to piece of work inwards the south. He posited that "Dagaaba migration to southern Republic of Ghana betwixt 1936 together with 1957 was an remove chances – “to reckon the world” together with gain experience. It did non start amongst colonial conquest; it had its roots inwards the precolonial yesteryear – inwards the slave trade, but to a greater extent than especially, inwards the menses next Asante’s defeat of Gonja (18th century) through the Zabarima together with Samorian invasions of the northwest inwards the tardily 19th century. Although the imposition of colonial dominion may have got transformed the nature together with 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 inwards playing indigenous together with folkloric songs. Although the dry ground inhabited yesteryear the Dagarti is far from whatever major city, musicians have got brought the gyil to national together with international audiences. Communicating as performers together with 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 together with i of Ghana`s best Musicians, Batman Samini
Like the Tallensi together with Sisaala, the Dagaaba admit the value together with the tremendous powerfulness of the dry ground (Tengan 1989). The Dagaaba or Dagara farther admit that dry ground belongs solely to the Tengan (Earth Shrine). They also reckon pelting as an indispensable source of life. It is desired together with 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 together with the Tengan. One of these taboos is the Tako daa.
The Dagarti are also known for their whirling "Tigari" trip the low-cal fantastic toe (healing ritual dance) together with Bawa trip the low-cal fantastic toe as good as the Bagre together with the Dyoro Secret Societies.
The Dagaaba shares friendly jokes based on "dog head" amongst their beau 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 together with the Parliamentary Leader during the firstly Republic of Ghana, Cardinal Peter Proeku Dery, an assistant traditional (fetish) priest turned Ghanaian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church, Ambrose P Dery, quondam attorney-General of Republic of Ghana together with Member of Parliament for Lawra, Naa Abeifaa Karbo, traditional ruler, shrewd political leader together with founding fellow member of Northern Peoples Party, Jatoe Kaleo, traditional ruler, shrewd political leader together with founding fellow member of Northern Peoples Party, Peter Tenganabang Nanfuri aka Naa Ansoleh Ganaa II, quondam Inspector General of Police (IGP) inwards Republic of Ghana together with the Paramount Chief of the Jirapa Traditional Area, Bede_Ziedeng, Ghanaian political leader together with the quondam Upper West Regional Minister of Ghana, Professor Edmund Nminyem Delle, renowned dermatologist, shrewd entrepreneur cum political leader together with quondam chairman of opposition Convention Peoples Party (CPP) of the tardily Ghanaian leader Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, Alban Bagbin, Ghanaian politician, quondam Minister of Health inwards the Ghana, quondam minority leader together with the Member of Parliament for Nadowli West, Benjamin Kunbuor, Ghanaian politician, constabulary lecturer, Member of Parliament for Lawra, quondam Minister for Justice together with Attorney General, Minister for Health, Minister for Interior together with currently government minister of Defence, Prof. Adams B. Bodomo, professor of African Studies (African Languages together with Literatures), prolific author together with 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 together with charismatic politician, renowned primary of Duori together with the founding fellow member together with leader of the Northern People’s Party (NPP) together with 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 phonation inwards Republic of Ghana when Dr Kwame Nkrumah declared Republic of Ghana as One-Party State. His holler was popularized as "Domocracy."l
Clusters of Dagaaba
The terms "LoDagaa" together with "Lobi-Dagarti" (or Dagara) are used for a cluster of peoples situated across the frontier of Burkina Faso together with Ghana, originally grouped together yesteryear Labouret, next the usage of Delafosse together with other francophones. In this cluster, Labouret included the "true Lobi" (or those the Birifor telephone yell upwards the "LoWilisi") about Gaoua, who (according to Westermann together with 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; together with 4 smaller groups: the Teguessié, the Dorossié, the Dian, together with the Gan. The Teguessié (or Tégué) speak a linguistic communication of the Kulango Group together with are sometimes thought of as the autochthons; they were Masters of the ground inwards much of the area. The other little groups speak languages related to Lobiri, as do the Padoro together with perchance the Komono; Dian together with 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 utilization of Lobi ("la région Lobi") to concealment 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 together with Dagara Wiili [Oulé]); together with 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 together with the Dagara-Jula inwards her account.
Alban Kingsford Sumani Bagbin, ethnic Dagaaba, Ghanaian politician, quondam Minister of Health inwards the Ghana, quondam minority leader together with the Member of Parliament for Nadowli West.
The problems of ethnic classification inwards this expanse are several. In the firstly 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" inwards the Lawra District of Republic of Ghana at the commencement of the nineteenth century are at nowadays "Dagara." Third, the names themselves oftentimes do non pull distinct ethnic groups. There are many differences inwards custom together with organisation betwixt neighboring settlements, together with these settlements may live referred to yesteryear the ii quasi-directional terms, "Lo" (Lobi, west) together with "Dagaa" (east), to distinguish different practices (for example, the utilization of xylophones). Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 settlement may spot amongst its eastern neighbors on i occasion (as Dagaa) together with amongst its western ones (as Lo) on another. This histrion usage has led Goody to spot a spectrum of peoples, the LoDagaa, who utilization these names for reference to themselves together with others. They are, from westward to east, the truthful Lobi, the Birifor or LoBirifor, the LoPiel (around Nandom) together with the LoSaala (around Lawra), the Dagara (around Dano), the LoWiili (around Birifu), both DagaaWiili (around Tugu), together with the Dagaba or Dagarti. The Wala speak the Dagaba linguistic communication together with constitute a little province that has its origins eastward inwards Dagomba. That province established itself as ruler over the southern Dagaba together with 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 together with the LoSaala are known to francophones as "Dagara" (or Dagara-Lobr), together with they at nowadays by together with large utilization this term rather than "Lobi" for self-reference because they have got been forced to sort out 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 inwards many people's minds amongst the large lip plugs of gourd or metallic that are worn inwards the westward (the easterners wearable lean metallic plugs) together with amongst the stress that the westerners spot on matrilineal inheritance, nearly which modernizers (church, schools, law, some administrators) by together with large experience hostile together with ambivalent.
Dr Benjamin Bewa-Nyog Kunbuor, Ethnic Dagaaba man, Ghanaian politician, constabulary lecturer, Member of Parliament for Lawra, quondam Minister for Justice together with Attorney General, Minister for Health, Minister for Interior together with currently government minister of Defence
Given these contextual, overlapping, together with changing usages yesteryear the peoples themselves, histrion names are rarely satisfactory to dot "tribal" groups, yesteryear which nosotros refer to larger groupings of settlements amongst relatively homogeneous practices. These groups tin live distinguished, roughly from eastward to west, as the Dagaba or Dagarti (around Jirapa); the LoPiel (around Nandom) together with the LoSaala (around Lawra), both "Dagara Lobr" inwards French; the DagaaWiili (around Legmoin together with Tugu) together with the LoWiili (around Birifu), both "Dagara Wiilé" inwards French; the Birifor or LoBirifor (around Batié together with inwards western Gonja); together with the Lobi or LoWiilisi (around Gaoua). There are, inwards addition, the smaller populations of Gan, Dorossié, together with Gian, who speak Lobi languages, together with Teguessié, together with 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 inwards 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 surroundings 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), together with the semen together with eggs of flies together with cats (animals). Seen this way, the human somebody is a configuration of the land, the animal, the spirit, together with the flora together with nosotros owe our lives to a preservation of the residue betwixt us together with these firstly beings. In other words, animals, plants, spirits, together with the dry ground must constantly live negotiated amongst as they have got a closer affinity amongst the divine who oversees everything. That explains why Dagaaba reckon spirituality inwards every creation together with 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 solid 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 together with Bodomo 2001). It is spoken yesteryear nearly 2 1000000 people, mainly inwards Republic of Ghana but also inwards neighbouring regions of West Africa, similar Burkina Faso together with the Ivory Coast. Phonologically speaking, Dagaare together with other Mabia languages, including Moore, Dagbane, Frafra, Kusaal, Mampruli together with Buli, are marked yesteryear a preponderance of consonants together with a scarcity of vowel sounds when compared to Indo-European languages, such as English linguistic communication together with French (Bodomo, forthcoming). One distinctive phonological characteristic is the double joint of some consonants. These include labio-velar
stops similar /gb/ /kp/ together with /ngm/. Such features, rare inwards Indo-European languages, are a mutual characteristic in
many African languages. The labio-velar together with velar sounds are partially complementary, as inwards the alternate
causative/non-causative forms of the verbs k/ kp i, ‘die’ inwards Dagaare. Regular allophones oftentimes involve /d/ together with /r/, together with /g/ together with // across the diverse languages. There may also live limited cases of costless variation as it is betwixt /h/ together with /z/ inwards the Dagaare word, ha a / za a , ‘all’.
There is the typological characteristic of vowel harmony inwards Dagaare together with many Mabia languages. Words similar ko go
(‘chair’), bi i ri (‘(‘children’), together with 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 inwards languages similar French together with Norwegian, together with dorsum unrounded vowels are absent inwards these languages, except when phonetically realized inwards particular environments.
Syllabic nasality is also a typological characteristic inwards these languages. These are realized inwards some environments,
most oftentimes as pronouns together with particles; as inwards the instance of the Dagaare 3rd somebody pronoun /N/ as inwards m `ba , (‘my father’), n`zu (‘my head’) together with inwards 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 together with quondam Inspector General of Police (IGP) inwards Republic of Ghana together with the Paramount Chief of the Jirapa Traditional Area inwards his smock sitting inwards the middle. Courtesy FH Communications Bureau
Dagaare together with other Mabia languages primarily have got ii tonal systems, high together with low, (respectively marked
yesteryear sharp together with grave diachritics on the sounds amongst contain them) amongst cases of downstep inwards some of the
languages, i.e. subsequent high tones may non live as high as preceeding ones. These tones serve to express
both lexical together with grammatical oppositions as inwards the Dagaare verbs, da` (‘push’), /da` (‘buy’), together with as inwards the
declarative together with hortative readings of pronouns e.g.u` kuli la yiri / `u` kuli la yiri ((‘He went home/ He should
go home’).
Dagaare, together with its grouping of languages, usually manifest opened upwards syllables. Both CV together with CVC syllables tin be
reconstructed, but it is usually possible to insert a concluding syllable. Thus, the Dagaare verb ‘to leave’, may live realized either as bar` or bar i`. There are also dialectal differences amongst honour to these ii 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 utilization a
prefixal pattern, i.e. cases inwards which nominal inflections occur before, rather than, after the root, Mabia
languages mostly utilization a scheme of shape suffixes. These are typically based on singular/plural alternations.
Most nouns be inwards iii forms: the root, the singular, together with the plural. An illustration is the Dagaare give-and-take for
‘woman/wife’: p)g- (root), p)ga (singular), p) gba (plural), amongst the farther vowel assimilation inwards some
dialects to give us p)g)` together with p)gb).
Bede Ziedeng, Ethnic Dagao together with Ghanaian political leader together with the quondam Upper West Regional Minister of Ghana
Another of import typological characteristic within Dagaare together with its grouping of languages is verb morphology. In
most of these languages at that spot is a regular shape of marking perfective together with imperfective aspects yesteryear adding
suffixes to the verbs, as inwards zoe` ‘have run’ together with zoro` ‘running’.
As far as possible, the diverse texts associated amongst the music on this recording are presented amongst tonal
transcriptions. For phrases together with larger chunks of data, nosotros provide interlinear glossings. These glossings
provide interesting insights into the grammatical together with communicative construction of the Dagaare language.
Finally, costless translations follow the glosses to capture salient aspects of the linguistic together with 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 low-cal fantastic toe baawaa s/he cannot perchance live a kid from our town.’)
Ethnic Dagao, Mr Ambrose Dery, Ghana`s quondam Attorney-Genera together with government minister of Justice together with a quondam Member of Parliament for Lawra
History
The Dagaaba have got occupied their introduce homeland for some iii hundred years. H Labouret, inwards his study of migration inwards this area, suggests that the Dagaaba moved north, from southward of Wa, inwards nearly 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 together with 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 inwards 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 together with dancers at annual Bong Ngo festival at Jirapa
The Lobi-Dagarti peoples are without whatever overarching tribal organisation or, strictly speaking, whatever territory. They displace non as large units, but as solid 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 eastward of the river, inwards 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 inwards the Wa expanse when the ruling dynasty arrived; the Jãa were sure as shooting settled inwards the Lawra expanse until, attracted yesteryear a sparsely populated part amongst plenty of farmland together with wood make together with nether pressure level from other LoDagaa, mainly from the southward together with southwest (but fifty-fifty from westward of the river), they crossed the Black Volta. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 minority of clans line their origins from other regions.
One of the factors leading to the motion has been the search for to a greater extent than together with amend 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 together with adventurers) inwards their search for slaves, partly for their ain utilization but mainly to furnish the Asante and, through them, the Europeans inwards 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, together with their full general aggressiveness—have been attributed to the effects of such raids. In the tardily twentieth century houses are smaller, the way of clothes is to a greater extent than "European," together with less hostility is displayed.
The establishment of the international boundary has brought nearly a decline inwards east-west migration. The main motion of the Lobi inwards the tardily twentieth century has been of ii kinds. The firstly has been from the Lawra District to the vacant lands southward on the route to Kumasi, which many men have got traveled inwards the dry out flavor as migrant laborers. Settlements that make nutrient for sale inwards the markets have got grown upwards from Wa southward to the northwest of Asante. The 2d movement, commencement inwards 1917, has been eastward across the Black Volta from the francophone territories to Ghana, where at that spot were fewer calls yesteryear the regime on task 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 terminate 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 together with representation.
Beautiful Dagaaba miss grinding grain
Settlement
Settlements inwards the expanse consist of named units that are usually centered on a specific parish or ritual expanse of an ground 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 inwards fortress-type compounds amongst 2.5meter-high walls, a apartment roofs, together with entrances reached (at to the lowest degree formerly) yesteryear wooden ladders to the roofs. These houses are some 100 meters apart together with contain an average of xv persons, but they vary inwards 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 together with 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 together with children. Such a solid unit of measurement is established through marriage.
Dagaaba people
Economy
Subsistence together with Commercial Activities. The economic scheme is essentially i of the hoe farming of cereals (sorghum, pennisetum [pearl millet], maize), together amongst some yams, especially inwards the southern areas that are occupied yesteryear migrants. In addition, people grow squashes, peppers, beans (including Bambara beans), groundnuts, together with a footling rice. Some of this make is sold inwards the local markets, especially sorghum inwards the shape of beer. Most compounds also possess a herd of cows, together with some sheep, goats, guinea fowl, together with chickens, which are mainly killed as sacrifices to live distributed.
Dagarti farmers inwards their farm at Jirapa
Industrial Arts together with 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 nearly together with the cheaper Fe tools that it provided have got led to increased production, evidence of which tin live seen inwards the markets. That increment is also truthful for livestock. Along amongst wage task (performed either locally or as migrants), these developments have got increased purchasing power. Whereas footling was imported before except salt, at nowadays large amounts of fabric are brought in, together with other manufactured objects, such as matches, bicycles, transistor radios, together with household utensils, are used inwards considerable quantities. Local arts and crafts production consists of Fe implements, brass bangles together with other ornaments, musical instruments, some wood carvings, together with woven mats.
Today migration—both of the uneducated, seeking piece of work as laborers, together with of the educated, who by together with large piece of work inwards the towns—is frequent. The historic menses of migrants is at nowadays much lower than formerly, together with the duration of their absences is much greater. The outcome is that larger numbers of houses are inhabited yesteryear old men, women, together with children who have got to carry out the agricultural piece of work without the assist they would have got received from the migrants. Thus, the sexual partitioning of task has been altered. The south, however, is commencement 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 inwards the province of Wa), but major north-south merchandise routes of Dyula together with 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 together with non easily noticeable yesteryear the on-looker. For example, although the staple dish amid the Dagaaba is saabo or Sao (called "to" inwards 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 inwards a slightly different way inwards spite of the fact that virtually the same ingredients may live used inwards each case. Meat is non considered an of import food, except inwards 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 together with 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, together with prepared nutrient together with beer.
Dagaaba women of Lawra grinding grain amongst a pestles inwards a huge wooden Mortar
Grinding grain, inwards particular, was a lengthy process. Their workload is at nowadays changing as a outcome of the introduction of wells together with mills. Men carried out the heavy agricultural work, looked after livestock, together with hunted. Both sexes took constituent inwards 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, together with spiritual. The powerfulness to utilization dry ground is invested inwards the Tengdaana (spiritual guardian of the land). The Tengdaana guards the dry ground on behalf of the people, together with mediates amid the people, the ancestors, the spirit world, together with God. He is the High Priest responsible for leading the people inwards prayer inwards times of great need, thanksgiving, purification rituals of the land, together with other spiritual matters. His spot cannot live morally together with spiritually challenged, fifty-fifty though he may lack the political ascendency or the powerfulness of legal coercion to carry out his orders together with interpretations of the divine volition that underpin Dagaaba ‘lesereng’ together with ‘Nabaale Yele’ legal civilization together with customary practise (Yelpaala 1983:367-372, Yelpaala 1992:454-459). Nonetheless, the Tendaana is the only somebody who can, together with who does, sacrifice to the ground Goddess. The Tendaana’s role ensures that amid Dagaaba dry ground ownership is egalitarian, collective, communitarian, together with usufructory (Nsiah- Gyabaah 1994). By extension, he oversees the safety together with sustainability of dry ground utilization amid the people. Accordingly together with ideally, no private traditionally has the moral or political correct or powerfulness to completely invalidate some other person’s entitlement to dry ground use, or to destroy the land’s sustainability
through bad dry ground utilization practices. For this reason, the highest business office of Dagaaba is that of the Tengdaana,
together with non that of the king.
At sure times, dry ground tenure took the shape of a hierarchy of rights distributed within the lineage. At i level, dry ground was "owned" yesteryear the wider patrilineage, together with if whatever dry ground was non beingness farmed, other members had a claim to utilization it. Use rights were exclusive together with to a greater extent than of import where dry ground 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 together with Descent. Across the LoDagaa cluster, roughly from eastward 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 footing of patrilineal descent groups alone. Several of these exogamous units be inwards each parish. These lineages, which line patrilineal relationships betwixt their members, belong to wider named clans, segments of which are found inwards 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, together with all except the Wiili (and formerly fifty-fifty some of the LoWiili) inherit dry ground together with immovables agnatically together with 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 fauna or the eating of foods inwards a particular way. The clans are paired inwards joking relationships, together with their ritual foci are lineage shrines. Among the Lobi and, to some extent, the Birifor, although patrilineal clanship is concealed, it is important inwards landownership together with inwards some ritual affairs, especially inwards the Dyoro initiations. The matriclans, correct across the cluster, are basically 4 inwards number—Some, Da, Hienbe, together with Kambire. The firstly ii together with the lastly ii are paired inwards joking relationships, which are especially of import at funerals. These dispersed matriclans have got particular loci where sacrifices are occasionally performed.
Bewaa grouping performing at the Kobine festival inwards Lawra, Upper West Region.
Kinship Terminology. In a double-descent system, i tin refer to whatever kin either inwards the patrilineal or inwards the matrilineal mode. The patrilineal mode is Omaha, whereas the matrilineal i is Crow. The ascendency 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” together with “sisters” do 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 by together with large know who their existent mothers are together with 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 together with females, inwards reference to a brother’s wife. There is usually a joking human relationship betwixt people together with their brothers’ wives. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 adult woman pretends to live a adult man when dandy jokes amongst the brother’s wife, hence the utilization of “my wife” or n pog, which she may also used inwards everyday linguistic communication exterior the joking context. N pog may also live used yesteryear a gramps inwards reference to a granddaughter together with n seere (my husband) used yesteryear a grandmother inwards reference to a grandson. Grandchildren together with 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 together with wisdom on the footling ones. The higher upwards joking
relationships are different from what exists betwixt all Dagaaba together with i of their neighboring groups - the Frafra - which is referred to as loloroung. The Frafra are lolorobo or joking partners of the Dagaaba together with this has cypher to do amongst the denie or play that exists betwixt kinsmen as exemplified above.
Dagaaba women
Marriage together with Family
Marriage.
Incest taboo is observed inwards 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 duo non to live allowed to proceed amongst their spousal human relationship plans. In other cases, matrilateral cross-cousin marriages are permissible together with encouraged. Among the LoWiili, a woman’s first-born miss is encouraged to marry
(and sometimes, as an infant, betrothed to) her maternal uncle’s boy (i.e. spousal human relationship betwixt the children of a sis together with a brother). This is supposed to strengthen the human relationship betwixt a woman’s patrikin together with 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 together with girls from the woman’s patrikin. These kinds of marriages give parents the peace of heed (knowing who their children are getting married to) together with also assist constitute satisfactory relations betwixt the in-laws.
In the eastern groups, spousal human relationship is strictly virilocal together with is effected yesteryear the transfer of bride-wealth inwards cowries together with afterwards inwards cattle. The transfers pick out spot over time, as the spousal human relationship is consolidated amongst the nativity of children. Traditionally, the groom also had to pick out parties to farm for his inlaws from fourth dimension to time, although amid the educated this practise tends to acquire commuted into a monetary payment. Each spousal human relationship invokes the construction of a novel chamber together with cooking hearth. Among the Birifor together with the Lobi, when a fiancé comes to farm, he may eventually live allowed to pass the nighttime amongst his hereafter married adult woman and, later, to have got her see his ain solid inwards render for farther work. She did non usually reside permanently inwards her husband's solid until after the nativity of their firstly 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 inwards touching amongst one’s patrikin, attention every funeral, visiting the sick, etc., girls are encouraged non to get hitched amongst 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 nearly how far away their sons go to seek spousal human relationship partners. In fact, all the kinsmen of a immature adult man of spousal human relationship historic menses hold their eyes opened upwards for the suitable would-be bride together with may brand suggestions to the immature adult man as to who is available together with ready for spousal human relationship inwards the close yesteryear villages.
In some cases, the selection of a married adult woman together with all spousal human relationship arrangements are made without the in-put of the groom. The groom is supposed to pick out their give-and-take for it, when his kinsmen pick out spot a lady together with 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 together with strong plenty to live a pog kura (female farmer, capable of all performing such activities as sowing, carrying large loads of firewood, giving nativity to as many boys as possible, etc.), together with comes from a solid unit of measurement amongst goodness wellness together with conduct.
Another type of scheme for firstly marriages is elopement, which occurs at the historic menses of puberty. The miss 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 together with forcibly brought to her would-be husband’s home. Although elopement is usually done amongst the girl’s consent, she is expected to resist together with scream the loudest possible
to exhibit that she is up-right, morally, together with 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 commencement of a menses of intensive interaction betwixt the girl’s filial together with conjugal ties, within which the necessary steps are taken to finalize the courtship together with spousal human relationship process.
Other marriages may have got less dramatic beginnings. After a immature adult man declares his involvement inwards a girl, his kinsmen accompany him to introduce his proposal formerly to the kinsmen of the girl. During this menses of courtship, the kinsmen of the immature adult man are expected to shower gifts inwards the shape of pito, cola-nuts together with 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 24-hour interval 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 miss (who carries amongst her a number of accessories including calabashes, bowl/basins together with 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, together with 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 together with guinea-fowl to the in-laws, together with the pog libie, a total of closed to 20,000 cowries, usually, the same amount that was paid for the girl’s mother. Various rituals accompany the counting together with transfer of bride wealth yesteryear the groom’s solid 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 together with storing of it. In general, the bride wealth received for a miss is used to acquire a married adult woman for a son. Whereas paying the bride wealth of a immature man’s firstly married adult woman is the obligation of his solid unit of measurement elders, if he wishes to go polygamous, he volition by together with large live solely responsible for paying the bride wealth of these subsequent wives.
The diverse rituals performed during the counting together with transfer yesteryear the groom’s relatives as good as those (the rituals) that go on during the counting together with credence of the bride wealth, are tied to the fertility together with 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 together with the bride wealth accepted, together with so whatever infidelity on the constituent of the adult woman could outcome inwards her decease if she does non confess at nowadays together with go through purification rites/rituals.
Birth: When it is noticed that a adult woman is pregnant the husband’s manful somebody parent consults a soothsayer (baga) to know who should live asked to “throw water“ at her. She is together with so called out of her hut together with the appropriate somebody “throws water“; from together with so on she together with others may cite the pregnancy.
She gives nativity inwards the chaani or kyaaraa (inner room) of her husband’s house, attended yesteryear old women together with nativity attendants.
A kid may live named at 7 days old; inwards 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 together with so say that ancestor has “come dorsum home“.
Boys are circumcised at a infirmary or yesteryear traditional experts at the historic menses of 1 or 2 weeks. Female genital mutilation was formerly practised betwixt the ages of 5 together with 10 years but was discontinued inwards the 1940s together with 1950s.
Domestic Unit
The domestic unit of measurement is by together with large built on agnatic ties, given that wives bring together their husbands at marriage, but amid the Lobi together with Birifor, men do extensive bride-service, together with some immature children may grow upwards 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 together with his sons may farm together for a longer menses amid the groups inwards which patricians dominate. The spot grouping that occupies a chemical compound may consist of several farming groups, together with each farming grouping may live divided into smaller eating groups.
Inheritance
Among the Dagaba together with the Wiili, a man's belongings passes firstly to his total brothers, if they are farming together, together with and so to his sons. Among the LoPiel, the LoSaala, the Birifor, together with the Lobi, dry ground passes inwards the paternal line, whereas movable belongings is transmitted firstly to uterine siblings together with and so to sisters' sons, leading to before splits inwards the domestic groups together with to tensions betwixt a adult man together with his mother's brothers. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 woman's belongings by together with large goes to her daughters if it is sex-linked, but livestock may go to her sons.
A man’s blood brother or other closed relative may get hitched amongst or attention for his widow, seem after his children, together with inherit his gods together with voodoo toys.
Dagaaba adult woman amongst her ii kids, Jirapa, Upper West Region, Ghana
Young children are looked after yesteryear their mothers together with are breast-fed until they tin walk together with talk, when they "become humans" together with are thus entitled to a proper burial (see "Death together with Afterlife"). Later on, they are cared for yesteryear elderberry sisters or relatives, who involve them inwards their play. Boys go off inwards 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 together with pounding cereals. Among the Lobi, girls also seem after cattle, although boys together with girls hand 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 together with the Gan, as good as the Kaleo the peoples of this grouping lacked chieftainship together with telephone 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 inwards its full general structure.
Dagaaba people of Nadowli
From the outside, it mightiness have got appeared amorphous together with non easily susceptible to analysis, for its organisation together with institutions were non defined inwards terms of the total territorial unit of measurement but inwards terms of sub-territorial areas teni (villages) referred to yesteryear Goody as parishes, together with yesteryear Fortes inwards his study of the Tallensi as settlements. The political organisation of each teng (village) exhibited a sure flat of centralization of ascendency amongst a rattling limited vertical structure. The telephone substitution ascendency 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 dry ground (tendaana) inwards sure cases, were theoretically co-equals inwards all deliberations. However, inwards matters that related to the teng together with the dry ground deity (tengan), the tendaana was the concluding authority. Thus depending on the issues involved, the telephone substitution ascendency was either circular amongst its functions based on consultation together with 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 flat together with decentralized at the total societal level. Centralization within the little units provided the useful banking concern check on the abuses or excesses inwards the utilization of centralized political power. On rattling 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 telephone substitution unit. However, these higher flat organizations did non appear to involve the total territorial expanse of the Dagaaba. Yet, taking whatever 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, together with political or legal cooperation. Each of these other units was also separately together with 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 together with the flat of sophistication inwards the native fine art of diplomacy, cooperation or integration betwixt different territorial units was great or little inwards amplitude. The basic philosophy which guided the interaction of all telephone substitution authorities at the larger unit of measurement flat was equality. All constituent 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 together with continues to live the footing 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 together with Conflicts
The main causes of conflict were rights to women together with access to wood products. Within the parish, conflicts of this variety were rare because of kin ties together with honour for the ground shrine. Strong sanctions existed against adultery, theft, together with other delicts, which were settled within together with betwixt local lineages. More recently, local chiefs together with headmen have got exercised supervision on behalf of the government, together with local courts of constabulary have got been established.
Crime together with 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 rattling repulsive together with anti-social deed condemned yesteryear all, including the spirits together with the ancestors who could live invoked whenever necessary to punish a thief severely. Theft is so much looked downwards upon that it is non uncommon to listen 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 together with social cohesion.
In Dagaare, the term iibo signifies the full general normative value scheme roofing established together with accepted norms, principles, practices, procedures which regulation life inwards full general together with disputing inwards particular. It is when a specific conduct is inwards conflict amongst the Dagaaba iibo that i may live characterized as deviant. In low-cal 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 together with creator og the Universe. He is goodness together with omnipotent but has no shrines, so at that spot is no agency of communication amongst him. Mwin agency “sun“, together with Naamwin is sometimes identified amongst sun, sky, or rain. Goody, inwards 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 proceed inwards his primordial role“, says Goody, “our problems would non exist. With his aid, disease, evil, together with misfortune could live banished“.
In addition, Dagaaba strongly believe together with reverence the ‘Mother Earth’ (Tengbane). Tengbane or Mother ground is the 2d most powerful deity after the supreme God, Naangmen. Therefore the Dagao sees the ground or physical surroundings as sacred and divine; that they are born from the earth, live on together with through it, volition live buried inwards it; together with that they volition join the ancestors who, though invisible, are nonetheless located inwards the surroundings amongst other spiritual beings. This is good articulated inwards Bagre narrative, together with 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, together with it is to her womb that nosotros shall render inwards death. Likewise, Kukure (1985:55) sees ground as the ‘controlling agency inwards life, the source of fertility, of prosperity, [and] of survival [. . . .] Moreover the [Earth must give an work organisation 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 do non relate to their surroundings 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, together with the unseen energies of stars, thunder together with lightning. Even though Sagbane is the Father, he is secondary inwards importance to Tengbane during invocatory prayers of Dagaaba. Tengbane comes second to Naangmen. It is also on work organisation human relationship of Sagbane’s secondary spot that His priest, the Saadaana, does non characteristic rattling much inwards Dagaaba daily existence, together with the business office is non found inwards every settlement. It is to Tengbane that daily libations are poured. Tengbane is Goddess, together with the Mother of Bagre; she must not live polluted. When Tengbane is polluted, efforts are initiated to perform the appropriate together with necessary
sacrifices for the restoration of the broken residue betwixt the self, the community, Tengbane, the spirit
world, together with 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 together with others likewise many to enumerate hither that the High Priest of Tengbane, the Tengdaana, holds the highest socio-spiritual together with moral ascendency inwards whatever Dagaaba village. Each settlement of, say, 300 to 1,000 people has an “earth-shrine” (tengbane) together with an earth-priest (tengdaana) which is usually situated inwards a grove inwards a telephone substitution constituent of the settlement. Sacrifices are performed yesteryear an earth-priest together with his assistants, also yesteryear patriclan representatives. In addition, anyone may brand sacrifices to the ground 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 inwards the mediatory role played yesteryear the Tengdaana together with Tengbane betwixt the people together with Naangmen. It must live stressed hither that Dagaaba have got as many Tengbama (plural for Tengbane) together with Tengdaamba (plural for Tengdaana) as at that spot are settlements. This does non inwards anyway dot whatever conflictual relationships amongst the Tengbane. The diverse Tengbama stand upwards for settlement patterns, together with must live seen as parishes of the same Goddess. Each Tengdaana together with so becomes a parish priest, performing the same functions, amongst local variation, to an omnipresent together with 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 together with farming.
Dagaaba ancestral shrine wooden carvings
The Dagaaba spiritual realm is also inhabited yesteryear spirits, both ancestral together with pre-human. For instance, the Kongtongbilii, what Goody (1972) translates as ‘beings of the wild’, be within both the spiritual together with environmental consciousness of Dagaaba. There are also the diverse deities who have got been delegated territorial ascendency yesteryear Nangmen inwards the universe. It is Kongtongbilii together with these other spiritual beings together with deities who assist humans to brand spiritual journeys dorsum to Nangmen together with His married adult woman inwards the heaven to consort amongst them nearly the pregnant of life together with death. In monastic enjoin to brand that journey, Dagaaba firstly invoke Tengbane, together with so the ancestors, together with other lesser spirits. Together, they assist 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 inwards human shape, together with every deceased adult man who left a boy to succeed him is commemorated inwards this way. They are kept inwards the cattle byre, which is thus the most sacred room inwards the house. Their jurisdiction extends to lineage kin, together with inwards 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 fauna sacrifice at the commencement together with terminate of the farming flavor together with when whatever calamity threatens the community.
The soothsayer (baga) is appointed at nativity together with initiated when he is old plenty to pick out upwards the duties
Christianity
Dagaabaland, especially inwards 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 inwards the wheel after a Pontifical High Mass at Dio Padre Misericordioso, Vatican.
Since the 1930s, volume conversions to Catholicism have got taken place, commencement amid the LoPiel population about Dissin. The pioneer missionaries, Frs Remigius McCoy together with Arthur Paquet (both White Fathers from Canada) together with Brother Basilid Koot (from Holland) began piece of work at Jirapa inwards 1929. The handling they gave for yaws together with other prevalent diseases created immediate interest. Within 10 months at that spot were ii catechumens, together with despite some persecution the number grew quickly.
Then inwards 1932 the rains failed. Apr to July, usually the pump of the rainy season, were dry. The ancestors were repeatedly invoked, together with countless sacrifices were offered to the traditional gods, but to no avail. At last, on 24 July, the people of Jirapa turned to the footling Catholic mission, promising generous payment if the God of the Catholic Fathers could succeed where their ain priests had failed. In A curt history of the Catholic Church inwards 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 together with would assist them. He took them into the church building together with all prayed together. The next night, on July 25th, clouds gathered inwards the heaven over Jirapa and, for the firstly fourth dimension inwards months, pelting roughshod inwards torrents. The people were so happy that they ran out of their houses together with sang together with danced amongst joy, letting the pelting soak them through.
Ghana Archbishop Peter Poreku Dery (in red) is carried yesteryear aides to live elevated to primal yesteryear Pope Benedict XVI during a ceremony at the Vatican March 24, 2006. He was an ethnic Dagaaba man
The adjacent 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 volume conversion had ever before taken spot inwards Africa.
A four-year catechumenate was established, together with 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), together with at Ko together with Daffiama (1952). In 1959 the Dagaaba expanse was created a diocese, amongst the spot of the bishop inwards Wa. There are at nowadays xvi parishes, nearly all Dagaare-speaking, but hardly inwards Wa East together with Wa West Districts.
As the numbers grew, iii orders of sisters together with ii orders of brothers sent missionaries.
The firstly Dagao priest was ordained inwards 1951; yesteryear 1959 at that spot were six, together with inwards 1984 at that spot were inwards the Wa diocese no less than 53 African priests, 98 sisters, together with 17 brothers, compared amongst only 8 missionary priests, 17 sisters, together with 23 brothers. Fr McCoy, aged 89 when this volume was published inwards 1986, continued to piece of work actively at Jirapa together with becane a legend inwards his lifetime. He died Worship together with church building life tends to live based on large church building buildings inwards the main towns, to which people come upwards 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 inwards Accra), amongst seating for 2,000. Even on weekdays the early on morning time volume is attended yesteryear over 100, together with the church building is comfortably total on Sundays.
The 14 Dagaare-speaking parishes in all probability 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 yell upwards themselves Catholics, though non total members.
Cardinal Dery, ethnic Dagao from Republic of Ghana inwards a wheel chair as Cardinal O`Malley ascension to concealment him.
Whatever questions i may have got nearly the depth of private commitment to Christ, at that spot is no dubiety that 50 years of Catholic activity together with a rattling large investment of money together with personnel have got made a large impact on the Dagaaba way of life. Already inwards the mid-60s the anthropologist Jack Goody found Catholic influence had significantly reduced involvement inwards the Bagre initiation ceremonies inwards the expanse southward 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 Dominicus as a 24-hour interval of rest.
Why have got the Dagaaba moved into the Catholic church building inwards such numbers? Clearly a similar investment of personnel together with money inwards 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 rattling high together with was strictly observed. Their feel of hospitality together with generosity was superb. They never practised human sacrifices, together with they feared God’s curse on those who did so. In short, they are a people of natural goodness amongst deep honour for their elders together with parents, together with a profound feel of worship which they consider a duty towards the ancestors together with the “Naabilengmen”, the “god of the kid of man”. These qualities together with many to a greater extent than made a goodness soil, a people already prepared to pick out the Good News “en masse”.
A missionary priest made the next points inwards addition: 1) it was slow to interpret traditional sacrifice into the sacrifice of the mass, together with prayer to ancestors into veneration of saints; 2) it was slow to interpret the strict morality of the Dagaaba into the 10 commandments; 3) the Dagaaba are non a proud, dominant tribe but a humble together with hard-working i –- nosotros preach goodness tidings to the poor, together with the under-dog tends to respond to a greater extent than quickly; 4) the firstly missionaries, amongst their medical together with educational work, lived rattling closed 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 whatever other expressions of Christianity existed!
Indeed it was non till 1954 that some other church, the Baptist Mid-Missions, started piece of work inwards Wa together with ii years later inwards Lawra. By 1986 at that spot was a growing church building of 85 members together with 4 times as many regular attenders. Though the Baptists had only one-half a dozen churches amid the Dagaaba they seriously took upwards the challenge of literacy together with Bible translation work.
The Methodists, who came to Wa nearly the same fourth dimension as the Baptists, had a pastor at Lawra yesteryear 1986 together with ii other congregations inwards the Dagaaba expanse amongst a total membership of nearly 50.
Religious Practitioners. Practically every adult is an officiant at some shrine or another, but the main figure is the Master of the ground (tengdaana). Some individuals develop special reputations as diviners (baga). All are involved inwards sacrifices to the ancestors, to the beings of the wild, together with to medicine shrines.
Another powerful religious leader according to Bagre surreptitious society functions, is the damdamwule amid Dagaaba. The damdamwule`s sole life depends on rain-fed agricultural practices,is inwards its powerfulness to know when the rains are due together with to percentage this knowledge amongst humans to allow 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 together with when to halt sowing. Those who turn down to recognize its pedagogy of nature through its music sow inwards vain (Goody 1972: ll. 4611-40).
The weather-wise damdamwule is helped yesteryear the n birime (featherless fowl). He or she wakes upwards the people at dawn, during Sieong, to go to their farms. It performs this role yesteryear beating its wings early on inwards the morning. The belibaar knows when Kpangkyaanee is close together with returns ‘from the pelting side / together with flies / where the Sun sets’ (Goody 1972: ll. 4651-53) to warn people to start preparing their barns for harvest, together with the Bagre. It is thus through the migratory movements of this plane that the elders are able to denote the Bagre together with to spot ritual prohibitions on the initiates.
Ceremonies
Annual ceremonies are performed at household shrines, especially at the terminate of the farming season. It is toward this fourth dimension that, amid the telephone substitution groups, neighbors trip the low-cal fantastic toe inwards 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 inwards the hunt also elicited special ritual performances, as did killing someone inwards war, whether friend or enemy.
Birth together with spousal human relationship were accompanied yesteryear footling ceremonial. Death together with burial, on the other hand, were occasions; the funeral ceremonies, which resulted inwards redistribution of the belongings of the dead (including sexual rights) together with the creation of an ancestor shrine (if at that spot were offspring), lasted for many months together with brought mourners from far together with wide.
The major ceremonial sequences, however, were those associated amongst surreptitious societies: the Bagre inwards the eastward together with the Dyoro inwards 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 together with where the principal rites of initiation pick out place. Indeed, the ritual reenacts the long-ago migration of the patrician together with so preserves a footling of its history. In the ceremony, which takes spot every vii years, the initiates are killed off together with revived.
Bagre Rite of Passage Initiation: Bagre provides voluntary entry into Dagaaba initiation rites of passage. As a medium inwards which a costless association of neophytes that are called yesteryear the spirit tin together with are willing to journeying inwards together with amongst the spirit, Bagre is divided into ii complementary denominations: Bag-Degre (Dirty Bagre) together with Bag-Kaang (Oily Bagre), together with only i of each type is located inwards 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 yell upwards for wellness reasons, others for prosperity, others to acquire a married adult woman or husband, children, or to go a instructor inwards the association. Thus, at that spot are spiritual, social, political, psychological together with emotional reasons for a somebody to go an initiate.
Through Bagre, nosotros are sensitized to Dagaaba views of their environment. The natural surroundings for
Dagaaba, as embedded inwards Bagre narrative together with observances, is a spiritual realm inhabited yesteryear spirits, both
ancestral together with pre-human. For instance, the Kongtongbilii, what Goody (1972) translates as ‘beings of the
wild’, be within both the spiritual together with environmental consciousness of Dagaaba. There are also the
diverse deities who have got been delegated territorial ascendency yesteryear Nangmen inwards the universe. It is Kongtongbilii together with these other spiritual beings together with deities who assist humans to brand spiritual journeys dorsum to Nangmen together with His married adult woman inwards the heaven to consort amongst them nearly the pregnant of life together with death. In monastic enjoin to brand that journey, Dagaaba firstly invoke Tengbane, together with so the ancestors, together with other lesser spirits. Together, they assist 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 ii interact to ensure harmony inwards the surroundings is dramatized inwards Bagre narrative. First, the Father of Bagre sends pelting from the sky, which falls together with impregnates the Mother of Bagre, Earth. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 tree is born together with becomes the highway to Nangmen’s residence. But inwards monastic enjoin for humans to achieve Nangmen’s residence to remove hold palaver, they demand the assist of other creatures. So amongst the assist of Badare (Spider), they climb the tree to Nangmen’s house. This is how the Bagre narrative captures it.
He began to acquire upwards A slender tree
together with when he’d done so, is brought forth.
he spoke again, It is the earth’s child
greeting the ground 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 together with climb upwards quickly
of great importance. To God’s house.
ground together with rain, He grasped the tree
the pelting is manful somebody but he couldn’t climb it
together with the ground is female. And roughshod on his back.
When the fourth dimension comes, Then the spider
reckon the rain; galloped over
its penis rises With his feet flying
together with bursts forth. And said that
See the earth, [... ]
a fully grown maiden, ATo God’s house
who is nearly to bear. We’ll climb.
(Goody 1972: Bag-Kaang, ll.443-502)
Badare’s importance as a civilization hero inwards Dagaaba environmental together with salvation thought is suggested here.
Human fragility inwards the interventionist role of animals animals, insects, plants, together with 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 inwards God’s solid is startlingly unnerving. Worse soundless for humans, God’s palace is populated yesteryear insects, plants, together with animals: the dog, the lion, the hippo, the elephant, the duiker, the tomcat,
the fly, the spider, together with the leopard, to cite a few. This shows the gulf betwixt humans together with their creator. Consequently, humans demand to build a sensitive together with meaningful human relationship amongst the nonhuman beings of the environment.
In Bagre narrative, Nangmen together with his married adult woman dramatize the acts of procreation to the human manful somebody elderberry fauna characters. Later on, when Nangmen together with his married adult woman give the adult man a wife, together amongst a child, together with they render to Earth, the adult man soundless does non know how babies are made. The firstly ground woman, sent yesteryear Nangmen to ground learns the deed of sexual intercourse from the boa constructors. Her learning is both observational together with participatory, together with she later teaches her married adult man the mystery of the deed of procreation (Goody 1972: ll.1951-2219). Similarly, the importance of animals inwards human survival is reenacted inwards Bagre through the story of the buffalo adult woman together with the hunter.
Subsequently, Dagaaba Bagre initiation schooling, hunters are taught to kill for food, to kill mostly the manful somebody together with old woman somebody animals, together with to leave of absence the immature together with their mothers alone. Unfortunately, the cash nexus economic scheme that has been imposed on Dagaaba during the colonial menses has since confused all that environmental way of living. However, colonialism has non completely eroded Dagaaba environmental thought together with pedagogy, cheers to submerged Dagaaba environmental consciousness exemplified inwards their deep-seated beliefs inwards the presence of the ancestors together with other spiritual entities inwards their environment. This ensures that they do non willfully degrade their environment, less they loose contact amongst the spirit world, together with subsequently, lose the protection together with mode of sustenance that the surroundings soundless gives to them (Somé 1998: 54-55).In monastic enjoin to exhibit how of import the higher upwards human relationship is, it is necessary to consider the role of the ancestral spirits inwards the surroundings as narrated inwards Bagre. The ancestral spirits piece of work inwards alliance amongst or against the Kontongbilii, the firstly nonhuman creatures inwards the surroundings to come upwards to the assist of humans. They learn Dagaaba everything nearly survival: how to grow food, hunt, brand weapons, cook, brand beer, together with fifty-fifty start Bagre itself. Kontongbilii, together amongst the ancestral spirits learn the Dagaaba nearly their surroundings through dreams together with visions. For instance, they learn traditional healers nearly 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, together with medicine. Subsequently, to disrespect together with maltreat plants tin live dangerous, because plants do 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 nearly the medicinal together with toxic values of plants from animals (ll.2320-2469). It is from plants that nosotros acquire poisons such as strophanthus for toxicant for arrowheads, together with to care for guinea worm infection. From the same plants nosotros acquire medicine to halt nativity blood, together with facilitate childbirth.
As indicated earlier, Bagre performance coincides inwards most cases amongst Kpangkyaanee (autumn), together with Uonii (Dry Season). With less piece of work on the farms, together with amongst plenty of food, people are inwards a festive mood. Bagre performance also is timed amongst moontide so that inter-clan together with intra-clan socialization is facilitated. Consequently, Bagre calendars start amongst the commencement of harvest, fifty-fifty though novel harvests are forbidden to the initiates until they graduate. The most of import crop’s firstly fruit is the shea, which becomes mature inwards June. In determining when Bagre flavor tin live announced, the elders resort to the legend of the fruitbat. In this legend, the fruitbat, together with other animals together with birds as Bagre elders assist humans inwards their spiritual journey:
"And inwards Bagre,
our elders
are many.’
‘What do you lot hateful yesteryear many?’
‘You saw that
inwards 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
together with the featherless cock.’
(Goody 1972: Bagre Degre-- Dirty Bagre ll. 4550-4579)
At this stage, initiates start their educational activity on the roles played yesteryear the diverse animals inwards Bagre, together with thus inwards human survival. The large fruitbat knows when the firstly shea fruits are mature. By observing its behavior, the elders are able to know the exact fourth dimension to denote the flavor without breaking whatever spiritual taboos. In this case, stuff scientific discipline is of no significance since machines tin only guess time, which would soundless non live accurate taking into consideration the variables of uncertainties inwards nature. But the fruit-bat’s eating habits give the people a fourth dimension precision inwards which to act. The fruit-bat ‘will know the fourth dimension / to fetch the fruit / inwards the night’ (Goody 1972: ll. 4591-93), eats the fruit, leaves the seed for the elders to see, together with and so 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 inwards its powerfulness to know when the rains are due together with to percentage this knowledge amongst humans to allow 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 together with when to halt sowing. Those who turn down to recognize its pedagogy of nature through its music sow inwards vain (Goody 1972: ll. 4611-40). The weather-wise damdamwule is helped yesteryear the n birime (featherless fowl). He or she wakes upwards the people at dawn, during Sieong, to go to their farms. It performs this role yesteryear beating its wings early on inwards the morning. The belibaar knows when Kpangkyaanee is close together with returns ‘from the pelting side / together with flies / where the Sun sets’ (Goody 1972: ll. 4651-53) to warn people to start preparing their barns for harvest, together with the Bagre. It is thus through the migratory movements of this plane that the elders are able to denote the Bagre together with to spot ritual prohibitions on the initiates.
Reenactment of the Hunt at the 2009 Kobine festival inwards Lawra.
The kyaalipio wakes upwards women at dawn during Bagre menses to go together with fetch the H2O used inwards brewing
the beer for the Bagre ceremony (Goody 1972: ll. 4670-88) before it is dingy yesteryear wild boars. Wild
boars are also considered spirit beings associated amongst Bagre. Bagre is a purgatorial journeying to a rebirth
together with hence it has prohibitions that include sexual abstinence for the neophytes, the eating of sure foods,
together with full general leisure. The manful somebody crown-bird calls the Bagre members to acquire upwards from their slumber together with feed
the children at midnight, so that from together with so on they tin start a fast (Goody 1972: ll. 4689-4713). Then
at that spot is the old manful 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 regain of edible bean flowers inwards his farm,
cross checks the accuracy of timing of Bagre amongst the large fruit bat’s regain of shea fruits. Other birds
also business office inwards the service of Bagre Mother, Tengbane, together with Bagre Father, Sagbane.
In add-on to the way inwards which feathered creatures are treated inwards the Bagre ceremony, other animals play of import roles. Some of these animals are spirit animals together with are thus prohibited to Bagre. They include the duo (wild boar), the sienee (porcupine), the sasere (grass-cutter), together with mokpaangoo (bush guinea-fowl).
There are no reasons given inwards the narrative why these are prohibited, but nosotros do non demand to search far for
the reason. These are totemic animals, together with it is non allowed for i to kill a clan totem fauna 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 upwards that plants, animals, insects, together with spirit beings play a rattling important role inwards the Bagre performance. These roles assist to shape the spiritual, moral, intellectual, together with 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, whatever endeavor at commencement the Bagre performance volition live fraught amongst danger (Goody 1972: ll.780-960). Consequently, the shea tree together with its fruits, together with the role the fruit bat plays, cannot live considered purely from a materialist economical perspective, together with 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 inwards the confront of worsening environmental degradation. It is also of import to recognize the spiritual links betwixt the people, the bat, together with the tree. Without this recognition the tree volition live destroyed when its economical importance is no longer rattling relevant, together with its role as protector of the soil volition live terminated.
In addition, the fruitbat’s ambiguous location as a winged mammal, together with as i who sees inwards the night, gives testimony to its importance inwards discovering the firstly fruits of the shea tree. It is carnivorous together with herbivorous, together with hangs upside downwards dissimilar other winged creatures. Thus, it breaks all the boundaries associated amongst animals together with 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 reckon together with start the physical care for of announcing the Bagre. The fruit bat’s activity also helps disperse the seeds of the tree, together with yesteryear that activity it helps to expand the natural vegetation. Thus, the events carried yesteryear the fruit bat, together with all the other animals, insects, together with 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 together with so re-enacted inwards the Bagre performance toward securing human happiness, health, wealth, piety, together with social mobility yesteryear Dagaaba inwards their otherwise harsh surroundings (Goody 1972: ll.922-29).
Batman Samini, instrumentalist together with award-winner at 2006 MOBO Awards is a Dagao
Dagaare Music
While the music on this recording is the aspect of a distinct ethnolinguistic group, the Dagaaba,
nevertheless, have got had long historical, social, cultural together with 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 together with the Mamprusi. Thus, the musical cultures of the part percentage sure features. For instance,
the main musical instrument of the northwestern constituent of the province is the xylophone, which may live supported by
a drum or a drum ensemble, together with the scales are largely of the hemitonic together with anhemitonic pentatonic types,
that is, 5 banking concern complaint scales that include half-steps together with those that do not.
Music-making amid the Dagaaba, similar other peoples of the region, is an intrinsic constituent of social life.
Certain types of music together with repertories of vocal may live associated amongst particular occasions, cults,
cooperative piece of work groups together with organized labour, historic menses groups, together with rites of passage. For instance, praisesongs
(danno ng) are performed regularly as a tribute to the primary piece other types of music are exclusive
to the rituals together with ceremonies of the regal court, such as an investiture, an assembly inwards 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 assist groups for immature farmers. The "anle e " social trip the low-cal fantastic toe is reserved for females; the fe roo is a
trip the low-cal fantastic toe 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) together with herding.
There are special songs for initiation ceremonies, funerals (kobie), ritual sacrifice, weddings, together with world naming ceremonies that occur vii days after the nativity 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 aspect of private community members, such as the music for the solo bamboo flute (wu le e ), the harp (p 3na a or koriduo inwards Nandom), or the lullaby (bi-ya gleyi e le).
Finally, music is used to welcome together with honour of import guests together with visitors.
The Bawaa Dance
Group dancing is intrinsic to ritual together with ceremony together with is an of import marking of social competence. In
order, then, for an private to participate inwards 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 yell upwards to immature people to brand trip the low-cal fantastic toe together with music together, indeed the term "bawaa " literally means, "young people, come upwards together" (Kobina Saighoe:1984). The bawaa trip the low-cal fantastic toe then, is a favourite
pastime amid the Dagaaba youth. It oftentimes occurs simply as a spontaneous aspect of immature members
of the community when an chance arises. Mostly, however, the bawaa trip the low-cal fantastic toe is incorporated into
diverse celebrations, including: rites of passage marking birth, puberty, spousal human relationship together with death, or to honour
an individual.
The bawaa dancers also brand upwards the chorus which comprises both immature males together with females, including
children. One of the dancers, unremarkably a manful somebody amongst the most science or experience as a dancer or instrumentalist, takes the role of Pb vocalist called the ba wa -ngmaara or the bawa-kye3r3 (‘the cutter’). The dancers are accompanied yesteryear ii xylophonists, i plays a ‘male’ musical instrument (gyil-daa) together with 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 together with 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 wearable 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 inwards other cases.
The telephone yell upwards to trip the low-cal fantastic toe unremarkably begins amongst the clapping of finger cymbals. The ii xylophone players, who
sit down contrary each other amongst the drummer adjacent to them, start piece the crowd gathers about the dance
area. The dancers together with so acquire into the expanse together with shape a circle about the musicians, dancing inwards either an anticlockwise or clockwise direction.
The main constituent of the trip the low-cal fantastic toe consists of an alternation betwixt ii sections. The firstly department is called the See`o during which they perform a vocal inwards telephone yell upwards together with reply 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 low-cal fantastic toe becomes to a greater extent than intense as the dancers
synchronize their steps amongst heavy syncopated accents together with displays of skill. In Accra, a practise 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 inwards the trip the low-cal fantastic toe lawsuit itself,
but who oversees the entire performance. This cycle is repeated whatever number of times for each song, until
such times as the leader signals a novel vocal together with the cycle begins again.
When the dancers exhibit signs of tiring i of the xylophone players gives a signal to terminate the dance. In the
hamlet setting the dancers simply stop, piece inwards Accra a to a greater extent than formal scheme exists whereby the
dancers acquire out the circle inwards a unmarried line. Generally, a performance lasts betwixt xx together with xxx 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 low-cal fantastic toe together with festival unique to the Lawra expanse of due north western Ghana. The trip the low-cal fantastic toe together with the festival named after it are celebrated inwards September together with Oct to score the terminate of a successful harvest.
Festival.
The festival of Kobine lasts 4 days, amongst the firstly 24-hour interval usually reserved for visiting solid unit of measurement together with friends. The 2d together with 3rd days are the official holidays. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 procession of the solid unit of measurement heads is accompanied yesteryear groups of younger people dressed to stand upwards for hunters together with elephants.
Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 number of speeches are made yesteryear dignitaries together with other guests of honour before the Kobine trip the low-cal fantastic toe contest begins.
Ethnic Dagaaba people performing Kobine trip the low-cal fantastic toe atKobine festival inwards Lawra, Upper West Region
The Kobine music is produced from kuor, a drum musical instrument amongst a base of operations made from a gourd, together with dalar, a smaller drum made from the cervix of a clay pot.
The men usually clothes inwards 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 together with caps are worn. The women clothes similarly to the men, except they by together with large volition wearable a blouse. Both men together with women wearable a band of bells about the ankles to accentuate their rhythmic moves when they dance.
The trip the low-cal fantastic toe itself consists of quick rhythmic moves especially amongst the torso or upper body. At the peak moves menses of the dance, the women volition by together with large cutting inwards together with trip the low-cal fantastic toe inwards forepart of their favorite manful somebody dancer.
Dagaaba Gyil
The Dagaare Xylophone (Gyil)
Dagaare xylophones are unremarkably played inwards pairs, facing each other. The Dagaare xylophones (gyi l, pl. gy ile ) recorded inwards Kogri-Ullo have got 18 keys piece those inwards the Dagaare social clubs inwards Accra have got 17 keys. The keys (gyi l bi `r, lit. "seed") are tied together amongst antelope cover together with mounted over a cover cushion on a wooden frame. Gourd resonators (ko`or, pl. ko`o) graduated inwards size are suspended nether each key. Two or iii holes nearly 2-3cm inwards diameter are bored into each gourd together with covered amongst a spider’s egg instance ( pempenee)
to increment the resonance together with to make a buzzing effect.
The lastly together with 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) nearly 30cm long, covered amongst safe at the head. The tuning of the Dagaare xylophone is pentatonic (anhemitonic) together with has a attain of ii octaves. (further readings: http://www.michaelvercelli.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Vercelli_DMA_Document1.pdf)
The accompanying drums are unremarkably single-headed (gangare ), though a gourd drum (koo`re) usually
reserved for funerals, was used inwards the Accra performances
Death together with Afterlife
There is a full general belief inwards life after death, together with 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 assist 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 together with imbibe from his descendants, especially from those who have got inherited from him.
Additionally, ancestor reverence together with honour for the belief inwards the powerfulness of the ancestors to protect, guide, together with offering showers of approbation to the living, may live considered as the most of import aspects of the human relationship betwixt the living together with their supernatural agents. The ancestors are never dead. They merely
proceed to live inwards the other world of spirits together with serve as media betwixt their relatives together with the spirits together with gods.
Funeral: Death, especially of infants, was frequent. Those who have got non yet been weaned are non mourned inwards 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 together with complex, together with they involve the participation of many people. All funeral rituals amid the Dagaaba involve musicians, mourners together with the assembled villagers together with guests from neighboring villages. The music grouping usually consists of xylophonists, drummers together with singers. The singers improvise, recreate together with reproduce through their songs the history of the solid unit of measurement upwards to the decease that resulted inwards the separation. The theme of the songs is a combination of the deeds together with sorrows of the family. The best vocalist is i who tin stir the maximum flat of grief inwards 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 together with amplified yesteryear the tunes of the xylophones together with the sounds of the drums, moving the community to grieve freely.
Wailing, screaming, groaning, running, jumping, dancing together with singing are all acceptable ways of expressing grief. Shedding of tears is highly recommended together with admired. The kotuodeme are expected to shed a lot of tears together with deport inwards a way that stirs sympathizers to percentage the grief to the fullest yesteryear shedding as many tears as
possible.
The dead person, dressed inwards ceremonial outfit, is seated on a high wooden stool called paala, together with surrounded yesteryear her/his valuable possessions. The stool is constructed from a special variety of tree. The singers, drummers together with xylophonists are usually non far from the corpse together with the entire funeral expanse is marked yesteryear turmoil together with turbulence, as people deed out their grief piece others attempt to command themselves inwards monastic enjoin to calm downwards some of the kotuodeme from fourth dimension to time. The kotuodeme are tagged amongst ropes (much similar leashes) for identification purposes together with for slow command yesteryear people who may want to calm them downwards yesteryear holding on to the rope. The to a greater extent than contributions together with ropes i sent to other kotuodeme inwards the past, the to a greater extent than ropes together with 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 together with 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 concluding 24-hour interval is marked yesteryear the burial of the dead person. There are usually designated grave diggers together with specially trained people who do 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 nearly to end. Renowned witches together with medicine people are especially 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 inwards the middle of the solid unit of measurement chemical compound or inwards forepart of the solid unit of measurement solid rather than inwards the cemetery. This is to hold them closed to the solid unit of measurement who are constantly beingness watched over yesteryear the dead elderberry or ancestor. From fourth dimension to time, libation may live poured together with sacrifices made on the grave. On other informal occasions, the grave may serve as a resting spot for naps together with for relaxing together with chatting. The elders do 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 together with 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 inwards Republic of Ghana before the introduction of the West African Pound and, later, the Cedi, is at nowadays just a vestigial relic inwards virtually all of modern Republic of Ghana except amid the Dagaaba. This newspaper provides an insider's perspective on the economical importance together with on the unique role of the cowrie currency amid the Dagaaba that explains its perpetual presence. Cultural uses do a derived demand for cowries. Government policies outcome inwards debasement of the cedi and, together amongst monetary characteristics of the cowrie, Pb to contest betwixt the cedi together with the cowrie.
Chief Simon Diedong Dombo (SD Dombo), ethnic Dagaaba/Dagarti man, i of the Ghana`s earliest most celebrated together with charismatic politician, renowned primary of Duori together with the founding fellow member together with leader of the Northern People’s Party (NPP) together with 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 phonation inwards Republic of Ghana when Dr Kwame Nkrumah declared Republic of Ghana as One-Party State. His holler was popularized as "Domocracy."l
Clusters of Dagaaba
The terms "LoDagaa" together with "Lobi-Dagarti" (or Dagara) are used for a cluster of peoples situated across the frontier of Burkina Faso together with Ghana, originally grouped together yesteryear Labouret, next the usage of Delafosse together with other francophones. In this cluster, Labouret included the "true Lobi" (or those the Birifor telephone yell upwards the "LoWilisi") about Gaoua, who (according to Westermann together with 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; together with 4 smaller groups: the Teguessié, the Dorossié, the Dian, together with the Gan. The Teguessié (or Tégué) speak a linguistic communication of the Kulango Group together with are sometimes thought of as the autochthons; they were Masters of the ground inwards much of the area. The other little groups speak languages related to Lobiri, as do the Padoro together with perchance the Komono; Dian together with 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 utilization of Lobi ("la région Lobi") to concealment 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 together with Dagara Wiili [Oulé]); together with 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 together with the Dagara-Jula inwards her account.
Alban Kingsford Sumani Bagbin, ethnic Dagaaba, Ghanaian politician, quondam Minister of Health inwards the Ghana, quondam minority leader together with the Member of Parliament for Nadowli West.
The problems of ethnic classification inwards this expanse are several. In the firstly 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" inwards the Lawra District of Republic of Ghana at the commencement of the nineteenth century are at nowadays "Dagara." Third, the names themselves oftentimes do non pull distinct ethnic groups. There are many differences inwards custom together with organisation betwixt neighboring settlements, together with these settlements may live referred to yesteryear the ii quasi-directional terms, "Lo" (Lobi, west) together with "Dagaa" (east), to distinguish different practices (for example, the utilization of xylophones). Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 settlement may spot amongst its eastern neighbors on i occasion (as Dagaa) together with amongst its western ones (as Lo) on another. This histrion usage has led Goody to spot a spectrum of peoples, the LoDagaa, who utilization these names for reference to themselves together with others. They are, from westward to east, the truthful Lobi, the Birifor or LoBirifor, the LoPiel (around Nandom) together with the LoSaala (around Lawra), the Dagara (around Dano), the LoWiili (around Birifu), both DagaaWiili (around Tugu), together with the Dagaba or Dagarti. The Wala speak the Dagaba linguistic communication together with constitute a little province that has its origins eastward inwards Dagomba. That province established itself as ruler over the southern Dagaba together with 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 together with the LoSaala are known to francophones as "Dagara" (or Dagara-Lobr), together with they at nowadays by together with large utilization this term rather than "Lobi" for self-reference because they have got been forced to sort out 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 inwards many people's minds amongst the large lip plugs of gourd or metallic that are worn inwards the westward (the easterners wearable lean metallic plugs) together with amongst the stress that the westerners spot on matrilineal inheritance, nearly which modernizers (church, schools, law, some administrators) by together with large experience hostile together with ambivalent.
Dr Benjamin Bewa-Nyog Kunbuor, Ethnic Dagaaba man, Ghanaian politician, constabulary lecturer, Member of Parliament for Lawra, quondam Minister for Justice together with Attorney General, Minister for Health, Minister for Interior together with currently government minister of Defence
Given these contextual, overlapping, together with changing usages yesteryear the peoples themselves, histrion names are rarely satisfactory to dot "tribal" groups, yesteryear which nosotros refer to larger groupings of settlements amongst relatively homogeneous practices. These groups tin live distinguished, roughly from eastward to west, as the Dagaba or Dagarti (around Jirapa); the LoPiel (around Nandom) together with the LoSaala (around Lawra), both "Dagara Lobr" inwards French; the DagaaWiili (around Legmoin together with Tugu) together with the LoWiili (around Birifu), both "Dagara Wiilé" inwards French; the Birifor or LoBirifor (around Batié together with inwards western Gonja); together with the Lobi or LoWiilisi (around Gaoua). There are, inwards addition, the smaller populations of Gan, Dorossié, together with Gian, who speak Lobi languages, together with Teguessié, together with 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 inwards 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 surroundings 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), together with the semen together with eggs of flies together with cats (animals). Seen this way, the human somebody is a configuration of the land, the animal, the spirit, together with the flora together with nosotros owe our lives to a preservation of the residue betwixt us together with these firstly beings. In other words, animals, plants, spirits, together with the dry ground must constantly live negotiated amongst as they have got a closer affinity amongst the divine who oversees everything. That explains why Dagaaba reckon spirituality inwards every creation together with 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 solid 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 together with Bodomo 2001). It is spoken yesteryear nearly 2 1000000 people, mainly inwards Republic of Ghana but also inwards neighbouring regions of West Africa, similar Burkina Faso together with the Ivory Coast. Phonologically speaking, Dagaare together with other Mabia languages, including Moore, Dagbane, Frafra, Kusaal, Mampruli together with Buli, are marked yesteryear a preponderance of consonants together with a scarcity of vowel sounds when compared to Indo-European languages, such as English linguistic communication together with French (Bodomo, forthcoming). One distinctive phonological characteristic is the double joint of some consonants. These include labio-velar
stops similar /gb/ /kp/ together with /ngm/. Such features, rare inwards Indo-European languages, are a mutual characteristic in
many African languages. The labio-velar together with velar sounds are partially complementary, as inwards the alternate
causative/non-causative forms of the verbs k/ kp i, ‘die’ inwards Dagaare. Regular allophones oftentimes involve /d/ together with /r/, together with /g/ together with // across the diverse languages. There may also live limited cases of costless variation as it is betwixt /h/ together with /z/ inwards the Dagaare word, ha a / za a , ‘all’.
There is the typological characteristic of vowel harmony inwards Dagaare together with many Mabia languages. Words similar ko go
(‘chair’), bi i ri (‘(‘children’), together with 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 inwards languages similar French together with Norwegian, together with dorsum unrounded vowels are absent inwards these languages, except when phonetically realized inwards particular environments.
Syllabic nasality is also a typological characteristic inwards these languages. These are realized inwards some environments,
most oftentimes as pronouns together with particles; as inwards the instance of the Dagaare 3rd somebody pronoun /N/ as inwards m `ba , (‘my father’), n`zu (‘my head’) together with inwards 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 together with quondam Inspector General of Police (IGP) inwards Republic of Ghana together with the Paramount Chief of the Jirapa Traditional Area inwards his smock sitting inwards the middle. Courtesy FH Communications Bureau
Dagaare together with other Mabia languages primarily have got ii tonal systems, high together with low, (respectively marked
yesteryear sharp together with grave diachritics on the sounds amongst contain them) amongst cases of downstep inwards some of the
languages, i.e. subsequent high tones may non live as high as preceeding ones. These tones serve to express
both lexical together with grammatical oppositions as inwards the Dagaare verbs, da` (‘push’), /da` (‘buy’), together with as inwards the
declarative together with hortative readings of pronouns e.g.u` kuli la yiri / `u` kuli la yiri ((‘He went home/ He should
go home’).
Dagaare, together with its grouping of languages, usually manifest opened upwards syllables. Both CV together with CVC syllables tin be
reconstructed, but it is usually possible to insert a concluding syllable. Thus, the Dagaare verb ‘to leave’, may live realized either as bar` or bar i`. There are also dialectal differences amongst honour to these ii 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 utilization a
prefixal pattern, i.e. cases inwards which nominal inflections occur before, rather than, after the root, Mabia
languages mostly utilization a scheme of shape suffixes. These are typically based on singular/plural alternations.
Most nouns be inwards iii forms: the root, the singular, together with the plural. An illustration is the Dagaare give-and-take for
‘woman/wife’: p)g- (root), p)ga (singular), p) gba (plural), amongst the farther vowel assimilation inwards some
dialects to give us p)g)` together with p)gb).
Bede Ziedeng, Ethnic Dagao together with Ghanaian political leader together with the quondam Upper West Regional Minister of Ghana
Another of import typological characteristic within Dagaare together with its grouping of languages is verb morphology. In
most of these languages at that spot is a regular shape of marking perfective together with imperfective aspects yesteryear adding
suffixes to the verbs, as inwards zoe` ‘have run’ together with zoro` ‘running’.
As far as possible, the diverse texts associated amongst the music on this recording are presented amongst tonal
transcriptions. For phrases together with larger chunks of data, nosotros provide interlinear glossings. These glossings
provide interesting insights into the grammatical together with communicative construction of the Dagaare language.
Finally, costless translations follow the glosses to capture salient aspects of the linguistic together with 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 low-cal fantastic toe baawaa s/he cannot perchance live a kid from our town.’)
Ethnic Dagao, Mr Ambrose Dery, Ghana`s quondam Attorney-Genera together with government minister of Justice together with a quondam Member of Parliament for Lawra
History
The Dagaaba have got occupied their introduce homeland for some iii hundred years. H Labouret, inwards his study of migration inwards this area, suggests that the Dagaaba moved north, from southward of Wa, inwards nearly 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 together with 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 inwards 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 together with dancers at annual Bong Ngo festival at Jirapa
The Lobi-Dagarti peoples are without whatever overarching tribal organisation or, strictly speaking, whatever territory. They displace non as large units, but as solid 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 eastward of the river, inwards 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 inwards the Wa expanse when the ruling dynasty arrived; the Jãa were sure as shooting settled inwards the Lawra expanse until, attracted yesteryear a sparsely populated part amongst plenty of farmland together with wood make together with nether pressure level from other LoDagaa, mainly from the southward together with southwest (but fifty-fifty from westward of the river), they crossed the Black Volta. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 minority of clans line their origins from other regions.
One of the factors leading to the motion has been the search for to a greater extent than together with amend 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 together with adventurers) inwards their search for slaves, partly for their ain utilization but mainly to furnish the Asante and, through them, the Europeans inwards 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, together with their full general aggressiveness—have been attributed to the effects of such raids. In the tardily twentieth century houses are smaller, the way of clothes is to a greater extent than "European," together with less hostility is displayed.
The establishment of the international boundary has brought nearly a decline inwards east-west migration. The main motion of the Lobi inwards the tardily twentieth century has been of ii kinds. The firstly has been from the Lawra District to the vacant lands southward on the route to Kumasi, which many men have got traveled inwards the dry out flavor as migrant laborers. Settlements that make nutrient for sale inwards the markets have got grown upwards from Wa southward to the northwest of Asante. The 2d movement, commencement inwards 1917, has been eastward across the Black Volta from the francophone territories to Ghana, where at that spot were fewer calls yesteryear the regime on task 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 terminate 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 together with representation.
Beautiful Dagaaba miss grinding grain
Settlement
Settlements inwards the expanse consist of named units that are usually centered on a specific parish or ritual expanse of an ground 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 inwards fortress-type compounds amongst 2.5meter-high walls, a apartment roofs, together with entrances reached (at to the lowest degree formerly) yesteryear wooden ladders to the roofs. These houses are some 100 meters apart together with contain an average of xv persons, but they vary inwards 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 together with 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 together with children. Such a solid unit of measurement is established through marriage.
Dagaaba people
Economy
Subsistence together with Commercial Activities. The economic scheme is essentially i of the hoe farming of cereals (sorghum, pennisetum [pearl millet], maize), together amongst some yams, especially inwards the southern areas that are occupied yesteryear migrants. In addition, people grow squashes, peppers, beans (including Bambara beans), groundnuts, together with a footling rice. Some of this make is sold inwards the local markets, especially sorghum inwards the shape of beer. Most compounds also possess a herd of cows, together with some sheep, goats, guinea fowl, together with chickens, which are mainly killed as sacrifices to live distributed.
Dagarti farmers inwards their farm at Jirapa
Industrial Arts together with 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 nearly together with the cheaper Fe tools that it provided have got led to increased production, evidence of which tin live seen inwards the markets. That increment is also truthful for livestock. Along amongst wage task (performed either locally or as migrants), these developments have got increased purchasing power. Whereas footling was imported before except salt, at nowadays large amounts of fabric are brought in, together with other manufactured objects, such as matches, bicycles, transistor radios, together with household utensils, are used inwards considerable quantities. Local arts and crafts production consists of Fe implements, brass bangles together with other ornaments, musical instruments, some wood carvings, together with woven mats.
Today migration—both of the uneducated, seeking piece of work as laborers, together with of the educated, who by together with large piece of work inwards the towns—is frequent. The historic menses of migrants is at nowadays much lower than formerly, together with the duration of their absences is much greater. The outcome is that larger numbers of houses are inhabited yesteryear old men, women, together with children who have got to carry out the agricultural piece of work without the assist they would have got received from the migrants. Thus, the sexual partitioning of task has been altered. The south, however, is commencement 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 inwards the province of Wa), but major north-south merchandise routes of Dyula together with 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 together with non easily noticeable yesteryear the on-looker. For example, although the staple dish amid the Dagaaba is saabo or Sao (called "to" inwards 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 inwards a slightly different way inwards spite of the fact that virtually the same ingredients may live used inwards each case. Meat is non considered an of import food, except inwards 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 together with 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, together with prepared nutrient together with beer.
Dagaaba women of Lawra grinding grain amongst a pestles inwards a huge wooden Mortar
Grinding grain, inwards particular, was a lengthy process. Their workload is at nowadays changing as a outcome of the introduction of wells together with mills. Men carried out the heavy agricultural work, looked after livestock, together with hunted. Both sexes took constituent inwards 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, together with spiritual. The powerfulness to utilization dry ground is invested inwards the Tengdaana (spiritual guardian of the land). The Tengdaana guards the dry ground on behalf of the people, together with mediates amid the people, the ancestors, the spirit world, together with God. He is the High Priest responsible for leading the people inwards prayer inwards times of great need, thanksgiving, purification rituals of the land, together with other spiritual matters. His spot cannot live morally together with spiritually challenged, fifty-fifty though he may lack the political ascendency or the powerfulness of legal coercion to carry out his orders together with interpretations of the divine volition that underpin Dagaaba ‘lesereng’ together with ‘Nabaale Yele’ legal civilization together with customary practise (Yelpaala 1983:367-372, Yelpaala 1992:454-459). Nonetheless, the Tendaana is the only somebody who can, together with who does, sacrifice to the ground Goddess. The Tendaana’s role ensures that amid Dagaaba dry ground ownership is egalitarian, collective, communitarian, together with usufructory (Nsiah- Gyabaah 1994). By extension, he oversees the safety together with sustainability of dry ground utilization amid the people. Accordingly together with ideally, no private traditionally has the moral or political correct or powerfulness to completely invalidate some other person’s entitlement to dry ground use, or to destroy the land’s sustainability
through bad dry ground utilization practices. For this reason, the highest business office of Dagaaba is that of the Tengdaana,
together with non that of the king.
At sure times, dry ground tenure took the shape of a hierarchy of rights distributed within the lineage. At i level, dry ground was "owned" yesteryear the wider patrilineage, together with if whatever dry ground was non beingness farmed, other members had a claim to utilization it. Use rights were exclusive together with to a greater extent than of import where dry ground 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 together with Descent. Across the LoDagaa cluster, roughly from eastward 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 footing of patrilineal descent groups alone. Several of these exogamous units be inwards each parish. These lineages, which line patrilineal relationships betwixt their members, belong to wider named clans, segments of which are found inwards 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, together with all except the Wiili (and formerly fifty-fifty some of the LoWiili) inherit dry ground together with immovables agnatically together with 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 fauna or the eating of foods inwards a particular way. The clans are paired inwards joking relationships, together with their ritual foci are lineage shrines. Among the Lobi and, to some extent, the Birifor, although patrilineal clanship is concealed, it is important inwards landownership together with inwards some ritual affairs, especially inwards the Dyoro initiations. The matriclans, correct across the cluster, are basically 4 inwards number—Some, Da, Hienbe, together with Kambire. The firstly ii together with the lastly ii are paired inwards joking relationships, which are especially of import at funerals. These dispersed matriclans have got particular loci where sacrifices are occasionally performed.
Bewaa grouping performing at the Kobine festival inwards Lawra, Upper West Region.
Kinship Terminology. In a double-descent system, i tin refer to whatever kin either inwards the patrilineal or inwards the matrilineal mode. The patrilineal mode is Omaha, whereas the matrilineal i is Crow. The ascendency 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” together with “sisters” do 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 by together with large know who their existent mothers are together with 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 together with females, inwards reference to a brother’s wife. There is usually a joking human relationship betwixt people together with their brothers’ wives. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 adult woman pretends to live a adult man when dandy jokes amongst the brother’s wife, hence the utilization of “my wife” or n pog, which she may also used inwards everyday linguistic communication exterior the joking context. N pog may also live used yesteryear a gramps inwards reference to a granddaughter together with n seere (my husband) used yesteryear a grandmother inwards reference to a grandson. Grandchildren together with 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 together with wisdom on the footling ones. The higher upwards joking
relationships are different from what exists betwixt all Dagaaba together with i of their neighboring groups - the Frafra - which is referred to as loloroung. The Frafra are lolorobo or joking partners of the Dagaaba together with this has cypher to do amongst the denie or play that exists betwixt kinsmen as exemplified above.
Dagaaba women
Marriage together with Family
Marriage.
Incest taboo is observed inwards 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 duo non to live allowed to proceed amongst their spousal human relationship plans. In other cases, matrilateral cross-cousin marriages are permissible together with encouraged. Among the LoWiili, a woman’s first-born miss is encouraged to marry
(and sometimes, as an infant, betrothed to) her maternal uncle’s boy (i.e. spousal human relationship betwixt the children of a sis together with a brother). This is supposed to strengthen the human relationship betwixt a woman’s patrikin together with 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 together with girls from the woman’s patrikin. These kinds of marriages give parents the peace of heed (knowing who their children are getting married to) together with also assist constitute satisfactory relations betwixt the in-laws.
In the eastern groups, spousal human relationship is strictly virilocal together with is effected yesteryear the transfer of bride-wealth inwards cowries together with afterwards inwards cattle. The transfers pick out spot over time, as the spousal human relationship is consolidated amongst the nativity of children. Traditionally, the groom also had to pick out parties to farm for his inlaws from fourth dimension to time, although amid the educated this practise tends to acquire commuted into a monetary payment. Each spousal human relationship invokes the construction of a novel chamber together with cooking hearth. Among the Birifor together with the Lobi, when a fiancé comes to farm, he may eventually live allowed to pass the nighttime amongst his hereafter married adult woman and, later, to have got her see his ain solid inwards render for farther work. She did non usually reside permanently inwards her husband's solid until after the nativity of their firstly 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 inwards touching amongst one’s patrikin, attention every funeral, visiting the sick, etc., girls are encouraged non to get hitched amongst 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 nearly how far away their sons go to seek spousal human relationship partners. In fact, all the kinsmen of a immature adult man of spousal human relationship historic menses hold their eyes opened upwards for the suitable would-be bride together with may brand suggestions to the immature adult man as to who is available together with ready for spousal human relationship inwards the close yesteryear villages.
In some cases, the selection of a married adult woman together with all spousal human relationship arrangements are made without the in-put of the groom. The groom is supposed to pick out their give-and-take for it, when his kinsmen pick out spot a lady together with 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 together with strong plenty to live a pog kura (female farmer, capable of all performing such activities as sowing, carrying large loads of firewood, giving nativity to as many boys as possible, etc.), together with comes from a solid unit of measurement amongst goodness wellness together with conduct.
Another type of scheme for firstly marriages is elopement, which occurs at the historic menses of puberty. The miss 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 together with forcibly brought to her would-be husband’s home. Although elopement is usually done amongst the girl’s consent, she is expected to resist together with scream the loudest possible
to exhibit that she is up-right, morally, together with 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 commencement of a menses of intensive interaction betwixt the girl’s filial together with conjugal ties, within which the necessary steps are taken to finalize the courtship together with spousal human relationship process.
Other marriages may have got less dramatic beginnings. After a immature adult man declares his involvement inwards a girl, his kinsmen accompany him to introduce his proposal formerly to the kinsmen of the girl. During this menses of courtship, the kinsmen of the immature adult man are expected to shower gifts inwards the shape of pito, cola-nuts together with 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 24-hour interval 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 miss (who carries amongst her a number of accessories including calabashes, bowl/basins together with 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, together with 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 together with guinea-fowl to the in-laws, together with the pog libie, a total of closed to 20,000 cowries, usually, the same amount that was paid for the girl’s mother. Various rituals accompany the counting together with transfer of bride wealth yesteryear the groom’s solid 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 together with storing of it. In general, the bride wealth received for a miss is used to acquire a married adult woman for a son. Whereas paying the bride wealth of a immature man’s firstly married adult woman is the obligation of his solid unit of measurement elders, if he wishes to go polygamous, he volition by together with large live solely responsible for paying the bride wealth of these subsequent wives.
The diverse rituals performed during the counting together with transfer yesteryear the groom’s relatives as good as those (the rituals) that go on during the counting together with credence of the bride wealth, are tied to the fertility together with 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 together with the bride wealth accepted, together with so whatever infidelity on the constituent of the adult woman could outcome inwards her decease if she does non confess at nowadays together with go through purification rites/rituals.
Birth: When it is noticed that a adult woman is pregnant the husband’s manful somebody parent consults a soothsayer (baga) to know who should live asked to “throw water“ at her. She is together with so called out of her hut together with the appropriate somebody “throws water“; from together with so on she together with others may cite the pregnancy.
She gives nativity inwards the chaani or kyaaraa (inner room) of her husband’s house, attended yesteryear old women together with nativity attendants.
A kid may live named at 7 days old; inwards 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 together with so say that ancestor has “come dorsum home“.
Boys are circumcised at a infirmary or yesteryear traditional experts at the historic menses of 1 or 2 weeks. Female genital mutilation was formerly practised betwixt the ages of 5 together with 10 years but was discontinued inwards the 1940s together with 1950s.
Domestic Unit
The domestic unit of measurement is by together with large built on agnatic ties, given that wives bring together their husbands at marriage, but amid the Lobi together with Birifor, men do extensive bride-service, together with some immature children may grow upwards 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 together with his sons may farm together for a longer menses amid the groups inwards which patricians dominate. The spot grouping that occupies a chemical compound may consist of several farming groups, together with each farming grouping may live divided into smaller eating groups.
Inheritance
Among the Dagaba together with the Wiili, a man's belongings passes firstly to his total brothers, if they are farming together, together with and so to his sons. Among the LoPiel, the LoSaala, the Birifor, together with the Lobi, dry ground passes inwards the paternal line, whereas movable belongings is transmitted firstly to uterine siblings together with and so to sisters' sons, leading to before splits inwards the domestic groups together with to tensions betwixt a adult man together with his mother's brothers. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 woman's belongings by together with large goes to her daughters if it is sex-linked, but livestock may go to her sons.
A man’s blood brother or other closed relative may get hitched amongst or attention for his widow, seem after his children, together with inherit his gods together with voodoo toys.
Dagaaba adult woman amongst her ii kids, Jirapa, Upper West Region, Ghana
Young children are looked after yesteryear their mothers together with are breast-fed until they tin walk together with talk, when they "become humans" together with are thus entitled to a proper burial (see "Death together with Afterlife"). Later on, they are cared for yesteryear elderberry sisters or relatives, who involve them inwards their play. Boys go off inwards 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 together with pounding cereals. Among the Lobi, girls also seem after cattle, although boys together with girls hand 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 together with the Gan, as good as the Kaleo the peoples of this grouping lacked chieftainship together with telephone 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 inwards its full general structure.
Dagaaba people of Nadowli
From the outside, it mightiness have got appeared amorphous together with non easily susceptible to analysis, for its organisation together with institutions were non defined inwards terms of the total territorial unit of measurement but inwards terms of sub-territorial areas teni (villages) referred to yesteryear Goody as parishes, together with yesteryear Fortes inwards his study of the Tallensi as settlements. The political organisation of each teng (village) exhibited a sure flat of centralization of ascendency amongst a rattling limited vertical structure. The telephone substitution ascendency 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 dry ground (tendaana) inwards sure cases, were theoretically co-equals inwards all deliberations. However, inwards matters that related to the teng together with the dry ground deity (tengan), the tendaana was the concluding authority. Thus depending on the issues involved, the telephone substitution ascendency was either circular amongst its functions based on consultation together with 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 flat together with decentralized at the total societal level. Centralization within the little units provided the useful banking concern check on the abuses or excesses inwards the utilization of centralized political power. On rattling 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 telephone substitution unit. However, these higher flat organizations did non appear to involve the total territorial expanse of the Dagaaba. Yet, taking whatever 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, together with political or legal cooperation. Each of these other units was also separately together with 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 together with the flat of sophistication inwards the native fine art of diplomacy, cooperation or integration betwixt different territorial units was great or little inwards amplitude. The basic philosophy which guided the interaction of all telephone substitution authorities at the larger unit of measurement flat was equality. All constituent 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 together with continues to live the footing 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 together with Conflicts
The main causes of conflict were rights to women together with access to wood products. Within the parish, conflicts of this variety were rare because of kin ties together with honour for the ground shrine. Strong sanctions existed against adultery, theft, together with other delicts, which were settled within together with betwixt local lineages. More recently, local chiefs together with headmen have got exercised supervision on behalf of the government, together with local courts of constabulary have got been established.
Crime together with 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 rattling repulsive together with anti-social deed condemned yesteryear all, including the spirits together with the ancestors who could live invoked whenever necessary to punish a thief severely. Theft is so much looked downwards upon that it is non uncommon to listen 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 together with social cohesion.
In Dagaare, the term iibo signifies the full general normative value scheme roofing established together with accepted norms, principles, practices, procedures which regulation life inwards full general together with disputing inwards particular. It is when a specific conduct is inwards conflict amongst the Dagaaba iibo that i may live characterized as deviant. In low-cal 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 together with creator og the Universe. He is goodness together with omnipotent but has no shrines, so at that spot is no agency of communication amongst him. Mwin agency “sun“, together with Naamwin is sometimes identified amongst sun, sky, or rain. Goody, inwards 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 proceed inwards his primordial role“, says Goody, “our problems would non exist. With his aid, disease, evil, together with misfortune could live banished“.
In addition, Dagaaba strongly believe together with reverence the ‘Mother Earth’ (Tengbane). Tengbane or Mother ground is the 2d most powerful deity after the supreme God, Naangmen. Therefore the Dagao sees the ground or physical surroundings as sacred and divine; that they are born from the earth, live on together with through it, volition live buried inwards it; together with that they volition join the ancestors who, though invisible, are nonetheless located inwards the surroundings amongst other spiritual beings. This is good articulated inwards Bagre narrative, together with 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, together with it is to her womb that nosotros shall render inwards death. Likewise, Kukure (1985:55) sees ground as the ‘controlling agency inwards life, the source of fertility, of prosperity, [and] of survival [. . . .] Moreover the [Earth must give an work organisation 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 do non relate to their surroundings 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, together with the unseen energies of stars, thunder together with lightning. Even though Sagbane is the Father, he is secondary inwards importance to Tengbane during invocatory prayers of Dagaaba. Tengbane comes second to Naangmen. It is also on work organisation human relationship of Sagbane’s secondary spot that His priest, the Saadaana, does non characteristic rattling much inwards Dagaaba daily existence, together with the business office is non found inwards every settlement. It is to Tengbane that daily libations are poured. Tengbane is Goddess, together with the Mother of Bagre; she must not live polluted. When Tengbane is polluted, efforts are initiated to perform the appropriate together with necessary
sacrifices for the restoration of the broken residue betwixt the self, the community, Tengbane, the spirit
world, together with 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 together with others likewise many to enumerate hither that the High Priest of Tengbane, the Tengdaana, holds the highest socio-spiritual together with moral ascendency inwards whatever Dagaaba village. Each settlement of, say, 300 to 1,000 people has an “earth-shrine” (tengbane) together with an earth-priest (tengdaana) which is usually situated inwards a grove inwards a telephone substitution constituent of the settlement. Sacrifices are performed yesteryear an earth-priest together with his assistants, also yesteryear patriclan representatives. In addition, anyone may brand sacrifices to the ground 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 inwards the mediatory role played yesteryear the Tengdaana together with Tengbane betwixt the people together with Naangmen. It must live stressed hither that Dagaaba have got as many Tengbama (plural for Tengbane) together with Tengdaamba (plural for Tengdaana) as at that spot are settlements. This does non inwards anyway dot whatever conflictual relationships amongst the Tengbane. The diverse Tengbama stand upwards for settlement patterns, together with must live seen as parishes of the same Goddess. Each Tengdaana together with so becomes a parish priest, performing the same functions, amongst local variation, to an omnipresent together with 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 together with farming.
Dagaaba ancestral shrine wooden carvings
The Dagaaba spiritual realm is also inhabited yesteryear spirits, both ancestral together with pre-human. For instance, the Kongtongbilii, what Goody (1972) translates as ‘beings of the wild’, be within both the spiritual together with environmental consciousness of Dagaaba. There are also the diverse deities who have got been delegated territorial ascendency yesteryear Nangmen inwards the universe. It is Kongtongbilii together with these other spiritual beings together with deities who assist humans to brand spiritual journeys dorsum to Nangmen together with His married adult woman inwards the heaven to consort amongst them nearly the pregnant of life together with death. In monastic enjoin to brand that journey, Dagaaba firstly invoke Tengbane, together with so the ancestors, together with other lesser spirits. Together, they assist 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 inwards human shape, together with every deceased adult man who left a boy to succeed him is commemorated inwards this way. They are kept inwards the cattle byre, which is thus the most sacred room inwards the house. Their jurisdiction extends to lineage kin, together with inwards 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 fauna sacrifice at the commencement together with terminate of the farming flavor together with when whatever calamity threatens the community.
The soothsayer (baga) is appointed at nativity together with initiated when he is old plenty to pick out upwards the duties
Christianity
Dagaabaland, especially inwards 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 inwards the wheel after a Pontifical High Mass at Dio Padre Misericordioso, Vatican.
Since the 1930s, volume conversions to Catholicism have got taken place, commencement amid the LoPiel population about Dissin. The pioneer missionaries, Frs Remigius McCoy together with Arthur Paquet (both White Fathers from Canada) together with Brother Basilid Koot (from Holland) began piece of work at Jirapa inwards 1929. The handling they gave for yaws together with other prevalent diseases created immediate interest. Within 10 months at that spot were ii catechumens, together with despite some persecution the number grew quickly.
Then inwards 1932 the rains failed. Apr to July, usually the pump of the rainy season, were dry. The ancestors were repeatedly invoked, together with countless sacrifices were offered to the traditional gods, but to no avail. At last, on 24 July, the people of Jirapa turned to the footling Catholic mission, promising generous payment if the God of the Catholic Fathers could succeed where their ain priests had failed. In A curt history of the Catholic Church inwards 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 together with would assist them. He took them into the church building together with all prayed together. The next night, on July 25th, clouds gathered inwards the heaven over Jirapa and, for the firstly fourth dimension inwards months, pelting roughshod inwards torrents. The people were so happy that they ran out of their houses together with sang together with danced amongst joy, letting the pelting soak them through.
Ghana Archbishop Peter Poreku Dery (in red) is carried yesteryear aides to live elevated to primal yesteryear Pope Benedict XVI during a ceremony at the Vatican March 24, 2006. He was an ethnic Dagaaba man
The adjacent 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 volume conversion had ever before taken spot inwards Africa.
A four-year catechumenate was established, together with 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), together with at Ko together with Daffiama (1952). In 1959 the Dagaaba expanse was created a diocese, amongst the spot of the bishop inwards Wa. There are at nowadays xvi parishes, nearly all Dagaare-speaking, but hardly inwards Wa East together with Wa West Districts.
As the numbers grew, iii orders of sisters together with ii orders of brothers sent missionaries.
The firstly Dagao priest was ordained inwards 1951; yesteryear 1959 at that spot were six, together with inwards 1984 at that spot were inwards the Wa diocese no less than 53 African priests, 98 sisters, together with 17 brothers, compared amongst only 8 missionary priests, 17 sisters, together with 23 brothers. Fr McCoy, aged 89 when this volume was published inwards 1986, continued to piece of work actively at Jirapa together with becane a legend inwards his lifetime. He died Worship together with church building life tends to live based on large church building buildings inwards the main towns, to which people come upwards 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 inwards Accra), amongst seating for 2,000. Even on weekdays the early on morning time volume is attended yesteryear over 100, together with the church building is comfortably total on Sundays.
The 14 Dagaare-speaking parishes in all probability 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 yell upwards themselves Catholics, though non total members.
Cardinal Dery, ethnic Dagao from Republic of Ghana inwards a wheel chair as Cardinal O`Malley ascension to concealment him.
Whatever questions i may have got nearly the depth of private commitment to Christ, at that spot is no dubiety that 50 years of Catholic activity together with a rattling large investment of money together with personnel have got made a large impact on the Dagaaba way of life. Already inwards the mid-60s the anthropologist Jack Goody found Catholic influence had significantly reduced involvement inwards the Bagre initiation ceremonies inwards the expanse southward 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 Dominicus as a 24-hour interval of rest.
Why have got the Dagaaba moved into the Catholic church building inwards such numbers? Clearly a similar investment of personnel together with money inwards 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 rattling high together with was strictly observed. Their feel of hospitality together with generosity was superb. They never practised human sacrifices, together with they feared God’s curse on those who did so. In short, they are a people of natural goodness amongst deep honour for their elders together with parents, together with a profound feel of worship which they consider a duty towards the ancestors together with the “Naabilengmen”, the “god of the kid of man”. These qualities together with many to a greater extent than made a goodness soil, a people already prepared to pick out the Good News “en masse”.
A missionary priest made the next points inwards addition: 1) it was slow to interpret traditional sacrifice into the sacrifice of the mass, together with prayer to ancestors into veneration of saints; 2) it was slow to interpret the strict morality of the Dagaaba into the 10 commandments; 3) the Dagaaba are non a proud, dominant tribe but a humble together with hard-working i –- nosotros preach goodness tidings to the poor, together with the under-dog tends to respond to a greater extent than quickly; 4) the firstly missionaries, amongst their medical together with educational work, lived rattling closed 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 whatever other expressions of Christianity existed!
Indeed it was non till 1954 that some other church, the Baptist Mid-Missions, started piece of work inwards Wa together with ii years later inwards Lawra. By 1986 at that spot was a growing church building of 85 members together with 4 times as many regular attenders. Though the Baptists had only one-half a dozen churches amid the Dagaaba they seriously took upwards the challenge of literacy together with Bible translation work.
The Methodists, who came to Wa nearly the same fourth dimension as the Baptists, had a pastor at Lawra yesteryear 1986 together with ii other congregations inwards the Dagaaba expanse amongst a total membership of nearly 50.
Religious Practitioners. Practically every adult is an officiant at some shrine or another, but the main figure is the Master of the ground (tengdaana). Some individuals develop special reputations as diviners (baga). All are involved inwards sacrifices to the ancestors, to the beings of the wild, together with to medicine shrines.
Another powerful religious leader according to Bagre surreptitious society functions, is the damdamwule amid Dagaaba. The damdamwule`s sole life depends on rain-fed agricultural practices,is inwards its powerfulness to know when the rains are due together with to percentage this knowledge amongst humans to allow 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 together with when to halt sowing. Those who turn down to recognize its pedagogy of nature through its music sow inwards vain (Goody 1972: ll. 4611-40).
The weather-wise damdamwule is helped yesteryear the n birime (featherless fowl). He or she wakes upwards the people at dawn, during Sieong, to go to their farms. It performs this role yesteryear beating its wings early on inwards the morning. The belibaar knows when Kpangkyaanee is close together with returns ‘from the pelting side / together with flies / where the Sun sets’ (Goody 1972: ll. 4651-53) to warn people to start preparing their barns for harvest, together with the Bagre. It is thus through the migratory movements of this plane that the elders are able to denote the Bagre together with to spot ritual prohibitions on the initiates.
Ceremonies
Annual ceremonies are performed at household shrines, especially at the terminate of the farming season. It is toward this fourth dimension that, amid the telephone substitution groups, neighbors trip the low-cal fantastic toe inwards 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 inwards the hunt also elicited special ritual performances, as did killing someone inwards war, whether friend or enemy.
Birth together with spousal human relationship were accompanied yesteryear footling ceremonial. Death together with burial, on the other hand, were occasions; the funeral ceremonies, which resulted inwards redistribution of the belongings of the dead (including sexual rights) together with the creation of an ancestor shrine (if at that spot were offspring), lasted for many months together with brought mourners from far together with wide.
The major ceremonial sequences, however, were those associated amongst surreptitious societies: the Bagre inwards the eastward together with the Dyoro inwards 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 together with where the principal rites of initiation pick out place. Indeed, the ritual reenacts the long-ago migration of the patrician together with so preserves a footling of its history. In the ceremony, which takes spot every vii years, the initiates are killed off together with revived.
Bagre Rite of Passage Initiation: Bagre provides voluntary entry into Dagaaba initiation rites of passage. As a medium inwards which a costless association of neophytes that are called yesteryear the spirit tin together with are willing to journeying inwards together with amongst the spirit, Bagre is divided into ii complementary denominations: Bag-Degre (Dirty Bagre) together with Bag-Kaang (Oily Bagre), together with only i of each type is located inwards 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 yell upwards for wellness reasons, others for prosperity, others to acquire a married adult woman or husband, children, or to go a instructor inwards the association. Thus, at that spot are spiritual, social, political, psychological together with emotional reasons for a somebody to go an initiate.
Through Bagre, nosotros are sensitized to Dagaaba views of their environment. The natural surroundings for
Dagaaba, as embedded inwards Bagre narrative together with observances, is a spiritual realm inhabited yesteryear spirits, both
ancestral together with pre-human. For instance, the Kongtongbilii, what Goody (1972) translates as ‘beings of the
wild’, be within both the spiritual together with environmental consciousness of Dagaaba. There are also the
diverse deities who have got been delegated territorial ascendency yesteryear Nangmen inwards the universe. It is Kongtongbilii together with these other spiritual beings together with deities who assist humans to brand spiritual journeys dorsum to Nangmen together with His married adult woman inwards the heaven to consort amongst them nearly the pregnant of life together with death. In monastic enjoin to brand that journey, Dagaaba firstly invoke Tengbane, together with so the ancestors, together with other lesser spirits. Together, they assist 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 ii interact to ensure harmony inwards the surroundings is dramatized inwards Bagre narrative. First, the Father of Bagre sends pelting from the sky, which falls together with impregnates the Mother of Bagre, Earth. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 tree is born together with becomes the highway to Nangmen’s residence. But inwards monastic enjoin for humans to achieve Nangmen’s residence to remove hold palaver, they demand the assist of other creatures. So amongst the assist of Badare (Spider), they climb the tree to Nangmen’s house. This is how the Bagre narrative captures it.
He began to acquire upwards A slender tree
together with when he’d done so, is brought forth.
he spoke again, It is the earth’s child
greeting the ground 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 together with climb upwards quickly
of great importance. To God’s house.
ground together with rain, He grasped the tree
the pelting is manful somebody but he couldn’t climb it
together with the ground is female. And roughshod on his back.
When the fourth dimension comes, Then the spider
reckon the rain; galloped over
its penis rises With his feet flying
together with bursts forth. And said that
See the earth, [... ]
a fully grown maiden, ATo God’s house
who is nearly to bear. We’ll climb.
(Goody 1972: Bag-Kaang, ll.443-502)
Badare’s importance as a civilization hero inwards Dagaaba environmental together with salvation thought is suggested here.
Human fragility inwards the interventionist role of animals animals, insects, plants, together with 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 inwards God’s solid is startlingly unnerving. Worse soundless for humans, God’s palace is populated yesteryear insects, plants, together with animals: the dog, the lion, the hippo, the elephant, the duiker, the tomcat,
the fly, the spider, together with the leopard, to cite a few. This shows the gulf betwixt humans together with their creator. Consequently, humans demand to build a sensitive together with meaningful human relationship amongst the nonhuman beings of the environment.
In Bagre narrative, Nangmen together with his married adult woman dramatize the acts of procreation to the human manful somebody elderberry fauna characters. Later on, when Nangmen together with his married adult woman give the adult man a wife, together amongst a child, together with they render to Earth, the adult man soundless does non know how babies are made. The firstly ground woman, sent yesteryear Nangmen to ground learns the deed of sexual intercourse from the boa constructors. Her learning is both observational together with participatory, together with she later teaches her married adult man the mystery of the deed of procreation (Goody 1972: ll.1951-2219). Similarly, the importance of animals inwards human survival is reenacted inwards Bagre through the story of the buffalo adult woman together with the hunter.
Subsequently, Dagaaba Bagre initiation schooling, hunters are taught to kill for food, to kill mostly the manful somebody together with old woman somebody animals, together with to leave of absence the immature together with their mothers alone. Unfortunately, the cash nexus economic scheme that has been imposed on Dagaaba during the colonial menses has since confused all that environmental way of living. However, colonialism has non completely eroded Dagaaba environmental thought together with pedagogy, cheers to submerged Dagaaba environmental consciousness exemplified inwards their deep-seated beliefs inwards the presence of the ancestors together with other spiritual entities inwards their environment. This ensures that they do non willfully degrade their environment, less they loose contact amongst the spirit world, together with subsequently, lose the protection together with mode of sustenance that the surroundings soundless gives to them (Somé 1998: 54-55).In monastic enjoin to exhibit how of import the higher upwards human relationship is, it is necessary to consider the role of the ancestral spirits inwards the surroundings as narrated inwards Bagre. The ancestral spirits piece of work inwards alliance amongst or against the Kontongbilii, the firstly nonhuman creatures inwards the surroundings to come upwards to the assist of humans. They learn Dagaaba everything nearly survival: how to grow food, hunt, brand weapons, cook, brand beer, together with fifty-fifty start Bagre itself. Kontongbilii, together amongst the ancestral spirits learn the Dagaaba nearly their surroundings through dreams together with visions. For instance, they learn traditional healers nearly 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, together with medicine. Subsequently, to disrespect together with maltreat plants tin live dangerous, because plants do 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 nearly the medicinal together with toxic values of plants from animals (ll.2320-2469). It is from plants that nosotros acquire poisons such as strophanthus for toxicant for arrowheads, together with to care for guinea worm infection. From the same plants nosotros acquire medicine to halt nativity blood, together with facilitate childbirth.
As indicated earlier, Bagre performance coincides inwards most cases amongst Kpangkyaanee (autumn), together with Uonii (Dry Season). With less piece of work on the farms, together with amongst plenty of food, people are inwards a festive mood. Bagre performance also is timed amongst moontide so that inter-clan together with intra-clan socialization is facilitated. Consequently, Bagre calendars start amongst the commencement of harvest, fifty-fifty though novel harvests are forbidden to the initiates until they graduate. The most of import crop’s firstly fruit is the shea, which becomes mature inwards June. In determining when Bagre flavor tin live announced, the elders resort to the legend of the fruitbat. In this legend, the fruitbat, together with other animals together with birds as Bagre elders assist humans inwards their spiritual journey:
"And inwards Bagre,
our elders
are many.’
‘What do you lot hateful yesteryear many?’
‘You saw that
inwards 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
together with the featherless cock.’
(Goody 1972: Bagre Degre-- Dirty Bagre ll. 4550-4579)
At this stage, initiates start their educational activity on the roles played yesteryear the diverse animals inwards Bagre, together with thus inwards human survival. The large fruitbat knows when the firstly shea fruits are mature. By observing its behavior, the elders are able to know the exact fourth dimension to denote the flavor without breaking whatever spiritual taboos. In this case, stuff scientific discipline is of no significance since machines tin only guess time, which would soundless non live accurate taking into consideration the variables of uncertainties inwards nature. But the fruit-bat’s eating habits give the people a fourth dimension precision inwards which to act. The fruit-bat ‘will know the fourth dimension / to fetch the fruit / inwards the night’ (Goody 1972: ll. 4591-93), eats the fruit, leaves the seed for the elders to see, together with and so 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 inwards its powerfulness to know when the rains are due together with to percentage this knowledge amongst humans to allow 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 together with when to halt sowing. Those who turn down to recognize its pedagogy of nature through its music sow inwards vain (Goody 1972: ll. 4611-40). The weather-wise damdamwule is helped yesteryear the n birime (featherless fowl). He or she wakes upwards the people at dawn, during Sieong, to go to their farms. It performs this role yesteryear beating its wings early on inwards the morning. The belibaar knows when Kpangkyaanee is close together with returns ‘from the pelting side / together with flies / where the Sun sets’ (Goody 1972: ll. 4651-53) to warn people to start preparing their barns for harvest, together with the Bagre. It is thus through the migratory movements of this plane that the elders are able to denote the Bagre together with to spot ritual prohibitions on the initiates.
Reenactment of the Hunt at the 2009 Kobine festival inwards Lawra.
The kyaalipio wakes upwards women at dawn during Bagre menses to go together with fetch the H2O used inwards brewing
the beer for the Bagre ceremony (Goody 1972: ll. 4670-88) before it is dingy yesteryear wild boars. Wild
boars are also considered spirit beings associated amongst Bagre. Bagre is a purgatorial journeying to a rebirth
together with hence it has prohibitions that include sexual abstinence for the neophytes, the eating of sure foods,
together with full general leisure. The manful somebody crown-bird calls the Bagre members to acquire upwards from their slumber together with feed
the children at midnight, so that from together with so on they tin start a fast (Goody 1972: ll. 4689-4713). Then
at that spot is the old manful 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 regain of edible bean flowers inwards his farm,
cross checks the accuracy of timing of Bagre amongst the large fruit bat’s regain of shea fruits. Other birds
also business office inwards the service of Bagre Mother, Tengbane, together with Bagre Father, Sagbane.
In add-on to the way inwards which feathered creatures are treated inwards the Bagre ceremony, other animals play of import roles. Some of these animals are spirit animals together with are thus prohibited to Bagre. They include the duo (wild boar), the sienee (porcupine), the sasere (grass-cutter), together with mokpaangoo (bush guinea-fowl).
There are no reasons given inwards the narrative why these are prohibited, but nosotros do non demand to search far for
the reason. These are totemic animals, together with it is non allowed for i to kill a clan totem fauna 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 upwards that plants, animals, insects, together with spirit beings play a rattling important role inwards the Bagre performance. These roles assist to shape the spiritual, moral, intellectual, together with 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, whatever endeavor at commencement the Bagre performance volition live fraught amongst danger (Goody 1972: ll.780-960). Consequently, the shea tree together with its fruits, together with the role the fruit bat plays, cannot live considered purely from a materialist economical perspective, together with 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 inwards the confront of worsening environmental degradation. It is also of import to recognize the spiritual links betwixt the people, the bat, together with the tree. Without this recognition the tree volition live destroyed when its economical importance is no longer rattling relevant, together with its role as protector of the soil volition live terminated.
In addition, the fruitbat’s ambiguous location as a winged mammal, together with as i who sees inwards the night, gives testimony to its importance inwards discovering the firstly fruits of the shea tree. It is carnivorous together with herbivorous, together with hangs upside downwards dissimilar other winged creatures. Thus, it breaks all the boundaries associated amongst animals together with 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 reckon together with start the physical care for of announcing the Bagre. The fruit bat’s activity also helps disperse the seeds of the tree, together with yesteryear that activity it helps to expand the natural vegetation. Thus, the events carried yesteryear the fruit bat, together with all the other animals, insects, together with 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 together with so re-enacted inwards the Bagre performance toward securing human happiness, health, wealth, piety, together with social mobility yesteryear Dagaaba inwards their otherwise harsh surroundings (Goody 1972: ll.922-29).
Batman Samini, instrumentalist together with award-winner at 2006 MOBO Awards is a Dagao
Dagaare Music
While the music on this recording is the aspect of a distinct ethnolinguistic group, the Dagaaba,
nevertheless, have got had long historical, social, cultural together with 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 together with the Mamprusi. Thus, the musical cultures of the part percentage sure features. For instance,
the main musical instrument of the northwestern constituent of the province is the xylophone, which may live supported by
a drum or a drum ensemble, together with the scales are largely of the hemitonic together with anhemitonic pentatonic types,
that is, 5 banking concern complaint scales that include half-steps together with those that do not.
Music-making amid the Dagaaba, similar other peoples of the region, is an intrinsic constituent of social life.
Certain types of music together with repertories of vocal may live associated amongst particular occasions, cults,
cooperative piece of work groups together with organized labour, historic menses groups, together with rites of passage. For instance, praisesongs
(danno ng) are performed regularly as a tribute to the primary piece other types of music are exclusive
to the rituals together with ceremonies of the regal court, such as an investiture, an assembly inwards 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 assist groups for immature farmers. The "anle e " social trip the low-cal fantastic toe is reserved for females; the fe roo is a
trip the low-cal fantastic toe 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) together with herding.
There are special songs for initiation ceremonies, funerals (kobie), ritual sacrifice, weddings, together with world naming ceremonies that occur vii days after the nativity 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 aspect of private community members, such as the music for the solo bamboo flute (wu le e ), the harp (p 3na a or koriduo inwards Nandom), or the lullaby (bi-ya gleyi e le).
Finally, music is used to welcome together with honour of import guests together with visitors.
The Bawaa Dance
Group dancing is intrinsic to ritual together with ceremony together with is an of import marking of social competence. In
order, then, for an private to participate inwards 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 yell upwards to immature people to brand trip the low-cal fantastic toe together with music together, indeed the term "bawaa " literally means, "young people, come upwards together" (Kobina Saighoe:1984). The bawaa trip the low-cal fantastic toe then, is a favourite
pastime amid the Dagaaba youth. It oftentimes occurs simply as a spontaneous aspect of immature members
of the community when an chance arises. Mostly, however, the bawaa trip the low-cal fantastic toe is incorporated into
diverse celebrations, including: rites of passage marking birth, puberty, spousal human relationship together with death, or to honour
an individual.
The bawaa dancers also brand upwards the chorus which comprises both immature males together with females, including
children. One of the dancers, unremarkably a manful somebody amongst the most science or experience as a dancer or instrumentalist, takes the role of Pb vocalist called the ba wa -ngmaara or the bawa-kye3r3 (‘the cutter’). The dancers are accompanied yesteryear ii xylophonists, i plays a ‘male’ musical instrument (gyil-daa) together with 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 together with 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 wearable 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 inwards other cases.
The telephone yell upwards to trip the low-cal fantastic toe unremarkably begins amongst the clapping of finger cymbals. The ii xylophone players, who
sit down contrary each other amongst the drummer adjacent to them, start piece the crowd gathers about the dance
area. The dancers together with so acquire into the expanse together with shape a circle about the musicians, dancing inwards either an anticlockwise or clockwise direction.
The main constituent of the trip the low-cal fantastic toe consists of an alternation betwixt ii sections. The firstly department is called the See`o during which they perform a vocal inwards telephone yell upwards together with reply 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 low-cal fantastic toe becomes to a greater extent than intense as the dancers
synchronize their steps amongst heavy syncopated accents together with displays of skill. In Accra, a practise 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 inwards the trip the low-cal fantastic toe lawsuit itself,
but who oversees the entire performance. This cycle is repeated whatever number of times for each song, until
such times as the leader signals a novel vocal together with the cycle begins again.
When the dancers exhibit signs of tiring i of the xylophone players gives a signal to terminate the dance. In the
hamlet setting the dancers simply stop, piece inwards Accra a to a greater extent than formal scheme exists whereby the
dancers acquire out the circle inwards a unmarried line. Generally, a performance lasts betwixt xx together with xxx 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 low-cal fantastic toe together with festival unique to the Lawra expanse of due north western Ghana. The trip the low-cal fantastic toe together with the festival named after it are celebrated inwards September together with Oct to score the terminate of a successful harvest.
Festival.
The festival of Kobine lasts 4 days, amongst the firstly 24-hour interval usually reserved for visiting solid unit of measurement together with friends. The 2d together with 3rd days are the official holidays. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 procession of the solid unit of measurement heads is accompanied yesteryear groups of younger people dressed to stand upwards for hunters together with elephants.
Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 number of speeches are made yesteryear dignitaries together with other guests of honour before the Kobine trip the low-cal fantastic toe contest begins.
Ethnic Dagaaba people performing Kobine trip the low-cal fantastic toe atKobine festival inwards Lawra, Upper West Region
The Kobine music is produced from kuor, a drum musical instrument amongst a base of operations made from a gourd, together with dalar, a smaller drum made from the cervix of a clay pot.
The men usually clothes inwards 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 together with caps are worn. The women clothes similarly to the men, except they by together with large volition wearable a blouse. Both men together with women wearable a band of bells about the ankles to accentuate their rhythmic moves when they dance.
The trip the low-cal fantastic toe itself consists of quick rhythmic moves especially amongst the torso or upper body. At the peak moves menses of the dance, the women volition by together with large cutting inwards together with trip the low-cal fantastic toe inwards forepart of their favorite manful somebody dancer.
Dagaaba Gyil
The Dagaare Xylophone (Gyil)
Dagaare xylophones are unremarkably played inwards pairs, facing each other. The Dagaare xylophones (gyi l, pl. gy ile ) recorded inwards Kogri-Ullo have got 18 keys piece those inwards the Dagaare social clubs inwards Accra have got 17 keys. The keys (gyi l bi `r, lit. "seed") are tied together amongst antelope cover together with mounted over a cover cushion on a wooden frame. Gourd resonators (ko`or, pl. ko`o) graduated inwards size are suspended nether each key. Two or iii holes nearly 2-3cm inwards diameter are bored into each gourd together with covered amongst a spider’s egg instance ( pempenee)
to increment the resonance together with to make a buzzing effect.
The lastly together with 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) nearly 30cm long, covered amongst safe at the head. The tuning of the Dagaare xylophone is pentatonic (anhemitonic) together with has a attain of ii octaves. (further readings: http://www.michaelvercelli.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Vercelli_DMA_Document1.pdf)
The accompanying drums are unremarkably single-headed (gangare ), though a gourd drum (koo`re) usually
reserved for funerals, was used inwards the Accra performances
Death together with Afterlife
There is a full general belief inwards life after death, together with 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 assist 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 together with imbibe from his descendants, especially from those who have got inherited from him.
Additionally, ancestor reverence together with honour for the belief inwards the powerfulness of the ancestors to protect, guide, together with offering showers of approbation to the living, may live considered as the most of import aspects of the human relationship betwixt the living together with their supernatural agents. The ancestors are never dead. They merely
proceed to live inwards the other world of spirits together with serve as media betwixt their relatives together with the spirits together with gods.
Funeral: Death, especially of infants, was frequent. Those who have got non yet been weaned are non mourned inwards 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 together with complex, together with they involve the participation of many people. All funeral rituals amid the Dagaaba involve musicians, mourners together with the assembled villagers together with guests from neighboring villages. The music grouping usually consists of xylophonists, drummers together with singers. The singers improvise, recreate together with reproduce through their songs the history of the solid unit of measurement upwards to the decease that resulted inwards the separation. The theme of the songs is a combination of the deeds together with sorrows of the family. The best vocalist is i who tin stir the maximum flat of grief inwards 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 together with amplified yesteryear the tunes of the xylophones together with the sounds of the drums, moving the community to grieve freely.
Wailing, screaming, groaning, running, jumping, dancing together with singing are all acceptable ways of expressing grief. Shedding of tears is highly recommended together with admired. The kotuodeme are expected to shed a lot of tears together with deport inwards a way that stirs sympathizers to percentage the grief to the fullest yesteryear shedding as many tears as
possible.
The dead person, dressed inwards ceremonial outfit, is seated on a high wooden stool called paala, together with surrounded yesteryear her/his valuable possessions. The stool is constructed from a special variety of tree. The singers, drummers together with xylophonists are usually non far from the corpse together with the entire funeral expanse is marked yesteryear turmoil together with turbulence, as people deed out their grief piece others attempt to command themselves inwards monastic enjoin to calm downwards some of the kotuodeme from fourth dimension to time. The kotuodeme are tagged amongst ropes (much similar leashes) for identification purposes together with for slow command yesteryear people who may want to calm them downwards yesteryear holding on to the rope. The to a greater extent than contributions together with ropes i sent to other kotuodeme inwards the past, the to a greater extent than ropes together with 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 together with 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 concluding 24-hour interval is marked yesteryear the burial of the dead person. There are usually designated grave diggers together with specially trained people who do 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 nearly to end. Renowned witches together with medicine people are especially 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 inwards the middle of the solid unit of measurement chemical compound or inwards forepart of the solid unit of measurement solid rather than inwards the cemetery. This is to hold them closed to the solid unit of measurement who are constantly beingness watched over yesteryear the dead elderberry or ancestor. From fourth dimension to time, libation may live poured together with sacrifices made on the grave. On other informal occasions, the grave may serve as a resting spot for naps together with for relaxing together with chatting. The elders do 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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