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45-520: Dagomba may refer to: Dagomba people , an ethnic group of Northern Ghana Dagomba language (Dagbani), a Gur language spoken in Ghana "Dagomba", a song by Sorcerer, published in the music video game Just Dance 2 Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Dagomba . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change

90-470: A close family bond refer to each other as Mabia (mother's child), signifying the importance of the mother. Motherland is termed Mayili and fatherland is termed Bayili. There is no English equivalent of Mabihili. In Dagomba society, there are several gods (singular: wuni, plural: wuna). The chief (Naa) of all these gods is Naawuni. Each city has a shrine (buɣli). For example, the shrine of the People of Tolon

135-466: Is Jaagbo, and that of Nyankpala is Wonoyili. There are many soothsayers (baɣa) whom people consult for prophesies and solutions to their problems. The inheritance of many soothsaying is through a maternal brother. Many Christian evangelical groups have launched failed campaigns to convert the Dagomba. However, the Dagomba continue practising its traditional religion and Islam. The arrival of Islam to

180-516: Is a Gur language and all tribes who celebrate the festivals are Gur: Mamprusi , Nanumba , Gonja , Waala and Chakosi/Anufo. One may argue that because they are among the Gur people that they adopted the festival. When the people are celebrating Bugum Chugu, they dance ziem even to this very day. Ziem is a dance for the tindaamba. It is older than any other dance in Dagbon. It is played with gungong, which

225-567: Is about six hundred years old. Bugum Chugu was celebrated before the arrival of the Islam. Now, the festival is celebrated by both Muslims, Christians and Traditionalists alike. The celebration of the festival starts on the ninth day of Bugum Goli. Normally, except essential services such as fetching of water, grinding of flour, sale of meat and taking care of the sick, no work is allowed to be done on any Dagomba festival day. So on this day everyone (men, women and children) stays at home. The men start

270-529: Is chieftaincy. Their system of chieftaincy is very hierarchical, with the Yaa Naa , or paramount King, at its head and a tiered system of rulers below him. In Dagbon, chiefs traditionally sit on a stack of skins. The people of Ghana's Dagbon Kingdom celebrate a number of festivals. Festivals held in Dagbon include the Bugum festival (fire festival), Damba , and Kpini (festival of Guinea fowl). Additionally, there

315-563: Is led a little distance from where the crowd is gathered to cast away his lit-up torch. He moves back into the palace as the multitude of people yell and chant in a war-like manner amidst the deafening sound of the tom-tom and drums. There is usually a spot at the outskirts of the town where the multitude of people move to for the celebration of the Bugum Festival. Everybody holds high his or her burning torch. To prevent drops of fire from falling onto their clothes and burning them, many of

360-513: Is older than any instrument in Dagbon. The people also play ziem when they are going to war. It is played when there is a communal labor. They again play ziem when a tindana 'land priest' dies. The early kings quickly adopted the playing of ziem during the installation and death of Yaan Naa and chiefs to make them acceptable to the aboriginal Dagbamba. In the olden days not all villages had the gungong, because of that villages which were closer to each other used to meet in one village where they celebrate

405-709: Is prominent as it has given birth to Ghana's first female minister, and Africa's first female cabinet minister. Historically, its noble daughter, Yennenga , is regarded as the "mother" of the Mossi kingdoms, a people who constitute nearly half of the nation of Burkina Faso . The Gundo Naa is the head of all female chiefs, and the Zosimli Naa enhances collaboration between cities of Dagbon and sister cities. The Dagombas established several schools prior to European arrivals in Africa. A later but more known institution

450-619: Is the Chimsi festival and Konyuri chuɣu (Festival of Breaking the Fast). Bugum Festival also known as the Fire festival is an occasion where families gather for communal celebrations, rituals, and joy at the Fire festival in order to honor their ancestors, ask for blessings, and ward off evil spirits. Many different ethnic groups in Northern Ghana celebrate this festival. Most attendees of

495-515: Is the University of Moliyili , established in 1700. Moliyili had a hierarchical scholastic system similar to what is found in modern universities. The Dagomba have a writing system, the Dagbani script, which uses a modified Arabic alphabet but Dagbani syntax. The archival manuscripts have been lost, but many transferred to Denmark. After joining Gold Coast as a protectorate (not colony ),

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540-459: Is the first Dagomba festival in the year. It is celebrated in the first month of the Dagomba lunar year, the Bugum Goli (the month of fire), and is celebrated on the ninth day of the month. The festival is celebrated to remember the "lost son of a king" during ancient Dagbon . The origin of the Bugum Festival dates back to the time when one king lost his dear son. The name of the king and

585-557: Is the founder of the Dagbon Kingdom. Earlier Dagombas prior to Naa Gbewaa lived in decentralized states. Gbewaa, and his descendants , centralized the kingdom. The decentralized states were headed by the Tindaamba. Today, the Tindaamba still preserve the ancient Dagbon traditions that have been passed through the ages, leading traditional religious acts and solving problems of their constituents. The Tindaamba are not appointed by

630-797: The Kingdom of Dagbon . They are historically related to the Mossi people of Burkina Faso. The Mossi Kingdoms were founded by Yennenga , a daughter of Naa Gbewaa. The Mohi/Mossi have their homeland in central Burkina Faso . Aside the Mossi, the Dagombas are the founders of the Bouna state of the Ivory Coast , and the Dagaaba states of Upper West Region of Ghana. The homeland of the Dagomba, Dagbon , covers about 20,000 km in area. Naa Gbewaa

675-489: The Yaa Naa or king of Dagbon (literally translated as "King of Absolute Power") is a collection of lion and cow skins. Thus, the Dagbon or its political system is often called the Yendi Skin (not throne or crown or stool). Another characteristic of the Dagomba is that their houses are arranged in a certain order, where the chief or elderly man has his hut built in the centre. One of the major features of Dagomba society

720-446: The Yaa Naa , they are chosen by an oracle. Inheritance is both patrilineal and matrilineal. Royalty in Dagbon is complex as it has evolved through the centuries. Dagomba are one of the ethnic groups with a sophisticated oral tradition woven around drums and other musical instruments. Thus, Dagbon history has been passed down meticulously via oral tradition, with drummers as professional griots known as Lunsi. According to oral tradition,

765-590: The Aad, a prehistoric Arab tribe that succeeded Noah and his people. This version of the festival's origin is problematic for several reasons. First, such a festival is not celebrated by the Muslim world. Second, the Mamprusi who are related to the Dagomba through their common ancestor Naa Gbewa believe in the traditional story. Finally, Dagbamba (Dagomba) do not originate from Aad and had nothing to do with Arabs. Dagbani

810-532: The Bugum Chugu and danced Ziem. Even now, it is still happening. Bugum Chugu is a typical traditional festival celebrated with traditional and local tools such as torches and the celebrants dress like warriors and they often carry cudgels and cutlasses along. They play and dance ziem as they celebrate the festival. On the night of the festival, people gather in mosques for prayers. Walgu is then shared among participants and children who drink it for blessings for

855-722: The Dagbon Traditional Kingdom is the Ya-Na, whose court and administrative capital is at Yendi . Dagbon as a kingdom has never been subjugated until it was incorporated as a territory of the Gold Coast government. The Dagbon Kingdom has traditional administrative responsibilities hitherto acephalous groups like the Konkomba, Bimoba, Chekosi, Basaari, Chamba, Wala, Gurusi and Zantasi. The Dagombas have cordial and respectful relationships to these groups. The seat of

900-542: The Dagomba brought prosperity, whiles, Christianity was brought by Europeans, who burnt their cities and displaced its people. Today, the Dagomba have provided free lands to many Christian missionaries to undertake their activities. While Islamic schools do not mandate students to worship or visit mosques, Christian schools makes worship compulsory for all students, even for members of the Dagbon Traditional Religion and Islam. The Dagombas celebrate

945-472: The Dagomba people into a kingdom. Chiefs who are descendants of Gbewaa are the Nanima (singular: Naa) and aboriginal chiefs are the Tindaamba (singular: Tindana). Other important chiefs such the chiefs of Tolon, Kumbungu and Gulkpeɣu (Tamale) may not be descendants of Gbewaa. The homeland of the Dagombas is called Dagbon and covers about 20,000 km in area. The territories of Dagbon was decentralised until

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990-453: The Dagombas adopted the Greek and Latin alphabets. Women are held in high regard, and children fear the displeasure and wrath of the mother. Brothers protect the dignity of sisters at all cost. The Dagombas are one of the few peoples in Africa to have female chiefs who possess regal lands and rule over male subjects. Closest family bonds are termed "Mabihili". Both males and females in such

1035-639: The Damba, Bugum (fire festival) and the Islamic Eid festivals. The largest settlement of the Dagomba is Tamale , Ghana's third populous and the Northern Region's capital. The Mossi and Dagomba states are among the great West African medieval empires. Beginning in the 12th century, they eventually ruled the lands of the entire northern Volta basin , which today includes all of northern Ghana and Burkina Faso. During their second northern expansion,

1080-853: The Great Unification by the Nanima. The Dagomba share close bonds with related people whose lands were also unified. This include the Mamprusi , Nanumba, Gonja , Mossi , Gurunsi (in particular the Frafra and Kusasi peoples), the Wala people and Ligbi. The area constitutes fourteen administrative districts in present-day Ghana. These are the Tamale Metropolitan, Yendi , Savelugu and Sagnerigu municipals, and Tolon , Kumbungu , Nanton , Gushegu , Karaga , Zabzugu , Saboba , Sang , Tatale and Cheriponi districts. The king of

1125-489: The Mossi invasion reached eastern Maasina and Lake Débo c. 1400, Benka in c. 1433 and Walata in 1477-83 (these empires were in present-day Mali ). According to Illiasu (1971) in his work The Origins of the Mossi-Dagomba states , the second period of the Mossi-Dagomba success came to an end with the restoration of Imperial Songhai power towards the close of the 15th century. Although the Mossi-Dagomba states have

1170-448: The boys take them to the homes of the recipients. As the afternoon approaches most house owners kill fowl, guinea-fowl, goats or sheep to feast on. The feast is done both in the afternoon and in the evening. Homes that cannot afford animals or fowl may buy meat from the butchers. The most common soup for supper on the night of the festival is made from the leaves of a tree called puhuga (Tamaridus Indica). Even though every home cooks food for

1215-426: The celebrators wet their clothes. Except for a few girls who are daredevils, women are hardly seen in the crowd. They usually stay in their homes or at the outside of the palace until the crowd returns. Then they join in the closing chants and dance for the evening. The people hold not only their torches but also swords, cutlasses , knives, bows, arrows and cudgels . The mood of the people is war-like. The atmosphere

1260-402: The children he went out with could not remember. The king quickly assembled his warriors and told them what had transpired. The warriors were instructed to look for the son. Because it was at night and dark, the people lit torches in search of him. Finally they found him under a tree deeply asleep. They sent him to his parents who were desperately waiting for his arrival. The parents thought that

1305-434: The day and the night, everybody distributes food to friends and relatives. There is so much food for the day that not even half of it would be eaten. After eating the evening meal, morsels and pieces of meat are cut and placed on the short walls in the house. This food is said to be for the dead ancestors of the person who put it there. The food is also said to be for God. The people make their vows and declarations while placing

1350-423: The day moving round each other's homes to say good morning and Happy New Year. Everyone is heard saying "Ni ti yuun palli" (literally and our new year ). After a brief exchange of the new year greetings, people sit at home and engage in normal conversation. The young boys look for dry grass to prepare long torches for distribution to their grandparents, grand aunts, grand uncles and maternal uncles. After preparation,

1395-420: The evening, the parents (king and wife) did not see him. The king thought he was with the mother and the mother also thought the child was with the father. After supper that the mother called on the king to take the child to bed. It was at that moment that they found that the child was not with any of them. The king ordered his subjects to go round the neighborhood in search for the son. They did not find him. Even,

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1440-579: The festival states that it dates back to the time the Prophet Noah landed his Ark on Mount Arafat . According to this tradition, when the Ark of Noah landed at the end of the floods the passengers lit torches to 1) find their way around and 2) to find the son of prophet Noah who failed to enter the Ark when it set out with the believers. To buttress this claim of the origin of the Bugum Festival, some Muslim Dagombas further claim that they are descendants of

1485-430: The festivity are both Muslims and non-Muslims. Muslims celebrate the fire festival, known as Bugum, to commemorate the arrival of Prophet Noah's (Nuhu) Ark following the flood. During the night, bundles of grass are utilized as torches to celebrate. Since the celebration brings in a new year, some non-Muslims use this time to give sacrifices to God and their ancestors. Bugum Chugu The Buɣim Chuɣu (Fire Festival)

1530-454: The food on the walls. They ask God to give them a long life, or a husband, or children or any other thing. They vow to do or abstain from some action. The actual ceremony for the festival starts after the evening meal. The drum beater comes to the palace to sound the drum. He, through the drumming, summons the tom-tom beaters and the Elders of the state the in palace. As they arrive one after

1575-461: The king or the chief used to be the first to lite the fire with his torch. The chief did not go far and dropped his torch and returned home. The people continued the practice and used to go to the evil tree and threw their torches on it. While marching to the evil tree, they played and danced ziem, a dance for the tindaamba 'land priests'. The people used to and still dress as warriors when celebrating Bugum Chugu in Dagbon. An alternate origin story of

1620-813: The late 1600s, King Zanjina , became the first ruler to practise Islam. The reign of Zanjina ushered in an era of greater prosperity. Many learning centres were established and scholarship became an important part of tradition. In 1700, the University Moliyili was established, but was later abandoned during European colonization. The Dagomba resisted European Colonization even after Germany burnt down and occupied its capital, Yendi, located in Eastern Dagbon (Naya). The Dagomba are one of few African people who reserve royal titles for women . Dagomba women rule, ascend to royal positions with male subjects, and own regal lands. The impact of its women

1665-416: The link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dagomba&oldid=975592174 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Language and nationality disambiguation pages Dagomba people In

1710-578: The middle of the twentieth century caused entire communities to embrace the Islamic religion en masse . Inheritance in the Dagomba people is largely patrilineal, however, inheritance of certain Tindaamba is matrilineal. There are also female rulers with male subordinates, such as the Gundo Naa and the Kpatu Naa. The Gundo Naa has vast land and head all female royals of Dagbon. Important festivals include

1755-464: The new year. On the morning after the celebration, prayers are again said at various chief palaces and prophecies are said about the upcoming year. Prophecies include possibility of bumper harvest, drought, fires, births, diseases and deaths. Islam became a state religion in Dagbon by Naa Zanjina . However, there is evidence of Islam in Dagbon prior to Naa Zangina. For example, the Larabanga mosque

1800-625: The oldest festivals in Ghana, including the Fire Festival , which existed prior to the formation of the Kingdom of Dagbon . Other festivals include the Damba Festival , Guinea Fowl (Kpini Chuɣu) Festival and Yam Festival (Nyuli Dibu), Konyuri Chuɣu (Eid Al-Fitr), Chimsi Chuɣu (Eid AL-Adha). Other minor localized festivals that are celebrated included the Market Festival (Daa Chuɣu) by the people of Tolon. The Dagomba founded

1845-420: The other, the commoners also come along. When everybody is gathered outside the palace, the Elders of state led by a wulana, the chief linguist, enter the chief's court to invite him outside. Some of the Elders lead the way and the chief follows. The rest of the elders follow the chief. Before the chief comes out, everybody is ready with his or her torch of grass. The chief is the first to light his torch. The chief

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1890-481: The political history of Dagbon has its origin in the life story of a legend called Tohazie (translated as "red hunter"). Dagombas practise both Islam and the Dagbon Traditional Religion. Islam was brought to the region by Soninke (known as Wangara by Ghanaians) traders between the 12th and 15th centuries. Since the time of Naa Zanjina, Islam has been the state religion and Islam seems to be growing rapidly ever since. The reformist activities of Afa Ajura in

1935-534: The said son are no longer known. It is thought that the event took place before the unification of Dagbon by Naa Gbewaa . Naa Gbewaa and his descendants started chieftaincy in Dagbon , Gmamprugu , Nanung , Wala , Mossi , Bouna , etc. The story has it that a child went out to play with his colleagues and as they played, he became tired and went and laid down under a tree. He soon fell asleep. The other children forgot of him and went home when they finished playing. In

1980-483: The same grandfather (Naa Gbewa), the Dagomba are traditionally regarded as "senior" to the Mossi states of Ouagadougou, Yatenga and Fada N'Gourma. The Dagombas have inhabited Northern for thousands of years. Some members of the ruling class descended from Naa Gbewaa , whose ancestors migrated from around the areas of Lake Chad after the break up of the Ghana Empire at the end of the 13th Century. Gbewaa unified

2025-432: The tree stole the child and hid him. They therefore considered the tree an evil tree and threw the torches they were carrying on that tree and shamed it. The community at that time regarded that particular tree as an evil tree and many feared it. The king decreed that the event should be marked yearly to commemorate the event. Every year they assembled in front of the king's palace to celebrate the festival. When they set fire,

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