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82-586: The Dahomey Amazons ( Fon : Agojie , Agoji , Mino , or Minon ) were a Fon all-female military regiment of the Kingdom of Dahomey (in today's Benin , West Africa) that existed from the 17th century until the late 19th century. They were the only female army in modern history. They were named Amazons by Western Europeans who encountered them, due to the story of the female warriors of Amazons in Greek mythology . The emergence of an all-female military regiment

164-536: A downstep . Rising tones (low–high) simplify to high after high (without triggering downstep) and to low before high. Hwevísatɔ́, /xʷèví-sà-tɔ́ [xʷèvísáꜜtɔ́‖ fish-sell-agent é é é s/he ko kò kó PERF hɔ xɔ̀ ꜜxɔ̂ buy asón àsɔ̃́ àsɔ̃́ crab we. wè/ wê‖] two Hwevísatɔ́, é ko hɔ asón we. /xʷèví-sà-tɔ́ é kò xɔ̀ àsɔ̃́ wè/ [xʷèvísáꜜtɔ́‖ é kó ꜜxɔ̂ àsɔ̃́ wê‖] fish-sell-agent s/he PERF buy crab two "The fishmonger, she bought two crabs." In Ouidah ,

246-399: A mino counterpart. In one mid-19th-century account by an English observer, it was documented that the women who had three stripes of whitewash around each leg were honoured with marks of distinction. The women's army consisted of a number of regiments: huntresses, riflewomen, reapers, archers and gunners. Each regiment had different uniforms, weapons and commanders. In the latter period,

328-538: A capacity of 800,000 tons per year and produces hydrodeoxygenated NEXBTL biodiesel from palm oil imported from Malaysia and Indonesia. Significant amounts of palm oil exports to Europe are converted to biodiesel (as of early 2018: Indonesia: 40%, Malaysia 30%). In 2014, almost half of all the palm oil in Europe was burned as car and truck fuel. As of 2018, one-half of Europe's palm oil imports were used for biodiesel. Use of palm oil as biodiesel generates three times

410-767: A carcinogen). Reports of indigenous peoples and communities in Indonesia, indicate losing farmland and traditionally significant land due to palm oil industry expansion. In 2017, there were over 650 different land disputes between palm oil plantations and indigenous land owners. Indigenous communities also expressed concern over the loss of natural resources, such as wild rubber, reed, and adat forests (communal forests). Indigenous communities have made some ground when it comes to land disputes, either through protest or legal means. Other concerns when it comes to indigenous communities being impacted include lack of government oversight on palm oil plantations, political corruption, or

492-462: A cheap substitute for butter or hydrogenated vegetable oils in uses where solid fat is desirable, such as the making of pastry dough and baked goods. Palm oil is used in West African cuisine such as egusi soup and okra soup . Palm oil is sometimes used as a minor ingredient in calf milk replacer. Palm oil is pervasively used in personal care and cleaning products, and it provides

574-513: A highly sought-after commodity by British traders for use as an industrial lubricant for machinery during Britain's Industrial Revolution . Palm oil formed the basis of soap products, such as Lever Brothers ' (now Unilever ) " Sunlight " soap, and the American Palmolive brand. By around 1870, palm oil constituted the primary export of some West African countries, which often led to oppressive labor practices, as highlighted in

656-477: A lot of palm nut species, which may become an important contributor to the agriculture of the region. Although Ghana has multiple palm species, ranging from local palm nuts to other species locally called agric, it was only marketed locally and to neighboring countries. Production is now expanding as major investment funds are purchasing plantations, because Ghana is considered a major growth area for palm oil. Kenya 's domestic production of edible oils covers about

738-626: A military unit with decidedly superior weaponry and a longer bayonet, however, the Dahomey Mino could not prevail. During a battle with French soldiers at Adegon on October 6, 1892, during the second war, the bulk of the Mino corps were wiped out in a matter of hours in hand-to-hand combat after the French engaged them with a bayonet charge. The Dahomey lost 86 regulars and 417 Dahomey Mino, with nearly all of those deaths being inflicted by bayonets;

820-556: A parade and reviewing of the troops, and the troops swearing of an oath to the king. The celebrations on the 27th day of the Annual Customs consisted of a mock battle in which the Agojie attacked a "fort" and "captured" the slaves within, a custom recorded by the priest Francesco Borghero in his diaries. The women soldiers were rigorously trained in pain, endurance and speed. Once training was completed they were given uniforms. By

902-462: A quarter of the burned area. The widespread deforestation and other environmental destruction in Indonesia, much of which is caused by palm oil production has often been described by academics as an ecocide . Environmental groups such as Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth oppose the use of palm oil biofuels, claiming that the deforestation caused by oil palm plantations is more damaging for

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984-499: A region accounts for 52.5 million metric tons (57.9 million short tons) of palm oil production, about 85% of the world total and more than 90% of global exports. Indonesia accounts for 52% of world exports. Malaysian exports total 38%. The biggest consumers of palm oil are India, the European Union, and China, with the three consuming nearly 50% of world exports. Thailand's Department of Internal Trade (DIT) usually sets

1066-605: A rising or falling tone is realized as a mid tone. For example, mǐ 'we, you', phonemically high-tone /bĩ́/ but phonetically rising because of the voiced consonant, is generally mid-tone [mĩ̄] in Ouidah. The Fon alphabet is based on the Latin alphabet, with the addition of the letters Ɖ/ɖ , Ɛ/ɛ , and Ɔ/ɔ , and the digraphs gb, hw, kp, ny, and xw. Tones are marked as follows: Tones are fully marked in reference books, but not always marked in other writing. The tone marking

1148-478: A study from the Environmental, Science and Policy, Colombia has the potential to produce sustainable palm oil without causing deforestation . In addition, palm oil and other crops provide a productive alternative for illegal crops, like coca . Ecuador aims to help palm oil producers switch to sustainable methods and achieve RSPO certification under initiatives to develop greener industries. Ghana has

1230-539: A third of its annual demand, estimated at 380,000 metric tons (420,000 short tons). The rest is imported at a cost of around US$ 140 million a year, making edible oil the country's second most important import after petroleum. Since 1993 a new hybrid variety of cold-tolerant, high-yielding oil palm has been promoted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in western Kenya. As well as alleviating

1312-653: A threat to edible palm oil supplies. According to a 2009 study published in the Environmental Science and Policy journal, palm oil biodiesel might increase the demand for palm oil in the future, resulting in the expansion of palm oil production, and therefore an increased supply of food. One report indicated numerous allegations of human rights violations in the production of palm oil in Indonesia and Malaysia, including exposure to hazardous pesticides , child labor , rape and sexual abuse , and unsafe carrying loads. These incidents may receive no response by

1394-422: Is a common cooking ingredient in the tropical belt of Africa, Southeast Asia and parts of Brazil. Its use in the commercial food industry in other parts of the world is widespread because of its lower cost and the high oxidative stability ( saturation ) of the refined product when used for frying. One source reported that humans consumed an average 17 pounds (7.7 kg) of palm oil per person in 2015. Palm oil

1476-472: Is a mixture of water, crude palm oil, and fibers from the palm fruit. A minimum degree of processing is required to obtain the oil. The mixture is first passed through a filter to remove the solids, then separated by density to remove the water. Density treatment can also act as a basic form of degumming, provided that the fruit is steamed before milling to hydrolyze the gum, at a cost of also losing some triglycerides to hydrolysis. The result of basic processing

1558-413: Is a source of Vitamin A and Vitamin E. Crude PO can be refined to remove its non-triglyceride components. RBD PO is also known as white palm oil . It can be further fractionated using the different melting points of its components. The part with a higher melting point, which crystalizes out as a solid earlier, is called palm stearin . It consists of mostly saturated fats. The remaining liquid part

1640-520: Is a tradition where he merely organized pre-existing groups into a corps, and another were the gbeto themselves offered to serve the king. Houegbadja's daughter Queen Hangbe (ruling from 1716 to 1718) established a female bodyguard. European merchants recorded their presence. According to tradition, her brother and successor King Agaja successfully used them in Dahomey's defeat of the neighbouring kingdom of Savi in 1727. The group of female warriors

1722-477: Is applied to wounds for its supposed antimicrobial effects, research does not confirm its effectiveness. In 2023–2024, world production of palm oil was 77.3 million tonnes , led by Indonesia with 57% of the total. The annual production of palm oil is projected to reach 240 million tonnes by 2050. During the 2022 food crises instigated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and crop failures in other parts of

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1804-495: Is called palm olein . It is also possible to fractionate at a different point of processing, even with crude palm oil. RBD PO, or "palm shortening ", is extensively used in food manufacture. It is valued for its low polyunsaturated fat content, which offers high stability against rancidity and allows it to replace hydrogenated fats in a variety of baked and fried products. The highly saturated nature of palm oil renders it solid at room temperature in temperate regions, making it

1886-833: Is called FFR. It uses phrases from Jehovah's Witnesses sermons as well as other biblical phrases as the research corpus to train a Natural Language Processing (NLP) neural net model. Palm oil Palm oil is an edible vegetable oil derived from the mesocarp (reddish pulp) of the fruit of oil palms . The oil is used in food manufacturing, in beauty products, and as biofuel . Palm oil accounted for about 36% of global oils produced from oil crops in 2014. Palm oils are easier to stabilize and maintain quality of flavor and consistency in ultra-processed foods , so they are frequently favored by food manufacturers. Globally, humans consumed an average of 7.7 kg (17 lb) of palm oil per person in 2015. Demand has also increased for other uses, such as cosmetics and biofuels, encouraging

1968-460: Is called a "crude palm oil" or a " red palm oil ", referring to its intense color due to the high carotenoid content. Red palm oil is a traditional cooking oil in West Africa. The free fatty acids within provide a "bite" to the flavor. The triglyceride part is around 50% saturated fat —considerably less than palm kernel oil —and 40% monounsaturated fat and 10% polyunsaturated fat . It

2050-596: Is created through a process called transesterification . Palm oil biodiesel is often blended with other fuels to create palm oil biodiesel blends. Palm oil biodiesel meets the European EN 14214 standard for biodiesels. Hydrodeoxygenated biodiesel is produced by direct hydrogenolysis of the fat into alkanes and propane. The world's largest palm oil biodiesel plant is the €550 million Finnish-operated Neste Oil biodiesel plant in Singapore , which opened in 2011 with

2132-402: Is much more efficient than other oils in terms of land and water usage; however, deforestation causes more biodiversity loss than switching to other oils. The biggest global producers of palm oil are Indonesia, who produced 60% of it in 2022, followed by Malaysia, Thailand, and Nigeria. Indonesia produces biodiesel primarily from palm oil. Humans used oil palms as far back as 5,000 years. In

2214-451: Is nasalized (to [ŋʷ] ) before nasal vowels, and may assimilate to [ɥ] before /i/ . /l/ is sometimes also nasalized. The only consonant clusters in Fon have /l/ or /j/ as the second consonant. After (post)alveolars, /l/ is optionally realized as [ɾ] : klɔ́ 'to wash', wlí 'to catch', jlò [d͡ʒlò] ~ [d͡ʒɾò] 'to want'. Fon has two phonemic tones : high and low. High

2296-682: Is not red), and in saturated fat content: palm mesocarp oil is 49% saturated, while palm kernel oil and coconut oil are 81% and 86% saturated fats, respectively. However, crude red palm oil that has been refined, neutralized, bleached and deodorized, a common commodity called RBD (refined, bleached, and deodorized) palm oil, does not contain carotenoids. Many industrial food applications of palm oil use fractionated components of palm oil (often listed as "modified palm oil") whose saturation levels can reach 90%; these "modified" palm oils can become highly saturated, but are not necessarily hydrogenated . The oil palm produces bunches containing many fruits with

2378-404: Is often replaced by /f/ in the latter, as in cɔ́fù 'shop'. Several of the voiced occlusives occur only before oral vowels, and the homorganic nasal stops occur only before nasal vowels, which indicates that [b] [m] and [ɖ] [n] are allophones . [ɲ] is in free variation with [j̃] and so Fong can be argued to have no phonemic nasal consonants, a pattern rather common in West Africa. /w/

2460-575: Is phonemic, and the actual pronunciation may be different according to the syllable's environment. Speakers in Benin also use a distinct script called Gbékoun that was invented by Togbédji Adigbè. It has 24 consonants and 9 vowels, as it is intended to transcribe all the languages of Benin. From the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Radio programs in Fon are broadcast on ORTB channels. Television programs in Fon are shown on

2542-430: Is produced when processing oil palm, including oil palm shells and oil palm fruit bunches, can also be used to produce energy. This waste material can be converted into pellets that can be used as a biofuel. Additionally, palm oil that has been used to fry foods can be converted into methyl esters for biodiesel. The used cooking oil is chemically treated to create a biodiesel similar to petroleum diesel. Although palm oil

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2624-409: Is realized as rising (low–high) after a voiced consonant. Basic disyllabic words have all four possibilities: high–high, high–low, low–high, and low–low. In longer phonological words , such as verb and noun phrases, a high tone tends to persist until the final syllable, which, if it has a phonemic low tone, becomes falling (high–low). Low tones disappear between high tones, but their effect remains as

2706-588: Is still produced by women for domestic use. The FAO additionally states that peasants in Benin practice agroecology . They harvest palm fruit from small farms and the palm oil is mostly used for local consumption. Cameroon had a production project underway initiated by Herakles Farms in the United States. However, the project was halted under the pressure of civil society organizations in Cameroon. Before

2788-503: Is the world's second largest producer of palm oil, producing 19.7 million tonnes in 2023-24. In 1992, in response to concerns about deforestation , the Government of Malaysia pledged to limit the expansion of palm oil plantations by retaining a minimum of half the nation's land as forest cover . As of 2023-24, Nigeria was the fifth-largest producer, with 1.5 million tonnes. Both small- and large-scale producers participate in

2870-461: Is traditionally, and still industrially, produced by milling the fruits of oil palm. Besides milling, palm oil is produced by cold-pressing the fruit of the oil palm since the 1990s. This type of artisanal palm oil is usually not further refined, so they keep the natural red color. It is bottled for use as a cooking oil , in addition to other uses such as being blended into mayonnaise and vegetable oil . The result of milling or cold-pressing

2952-534: The Egba of Abeokuta arguing instead to raid smaller, less defended tribes. This set them at odds with their male military colleagues, who supported a full-on assault of Abeokuta. Civilian council members who allied with the Agojie also advocated for stronger commercial relations with Britain, favouring the trade of palm oil above that of slaves. Apart from the council, the Annual Customs of Dahomey included

3034-468: The Indochinese tiger . Forests have been cleared in parts of Indonesia and Malaysia to make space for oil-palm monoculture . This has significant impacts on the local ecosystems leading to deforestation and biodiversity loss . For example, these processes have resulted in significant acreage losses of the natural habitat of the three surviving species of orangutan . One species in particular,

3116-513: The La Beninoise satellite TV channel. French used to be the only language of education in Benin , but in the second decade of the twenty-first century, the government is experimenting with teaching some subjects in Benin schools in the country's local languages, among them Fon. There is an effort to create a machine translator for Fon (to and from French), by Bonaventure Dossou (from Benin) and Chris Emezue (from Nigeria). Their project

3198-609: The Mino were recruited from among the ahosi ("king's wives"), of which there were often hundreds. Some women in Fon society became soldiers voluntarily, while others were involuntarily enrolled if their husbands or fathers complained to the king about their behaviour. Membership among the Mino was supposed to hone any aggressive character traits for the purpose of war. During their membership they were not allowed to have children or be part of married life (though they were legally married to

3280-932: The Sumatran orangutan , has been listed as critically endangered because of habitat loss due to palm oil cultivation. In addition to environmental concerns, palm oil development in regions that produce it has also led to significant social conflict . Regions with fast growing palm oil production have experienced significant violations of indigenous land rights, influxes of illegal immigrant labor and labor practices, and other alleged related human rights violations. The palm oil industry has had both positive and negative impacts on workers, indigenous peoples and residents of palm oil producing communities. Palm oil production provides employment opportunities, and has been shown to improve infrastructure , social services and reduce poverty. However, in some cases, oil palm plantations have developed lands without consultation or compensation of

3362-573: The Dahomean female warriors were armed with Winchester rifles , clubs and knives. Units were under female command. An 1851 published translation of a war chant of the women claims the warriors would chant: "[a]s the blacksmith takes an iron bar and by fire changes its fashion so have we changed our nature. We are no longer women, we are men." The Agojie battles consisted mainly within Africa against various kingdoms and tribes. During that time period it

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3444-539: The Eastern Gbe languages. Hounkpati B Christophe Capo groups Agbome , Kpase, Gun , Maxi and Weme (Ouémé) in the Fon dialect cluster, although other clusterings are suggested. Standard Fon is the primary target of language planning efforts in Benin, although separate efforts exists for Gun , Gen , and other languages of the country. Fon has seven oral vowel phonemes and five nasal vowel phonemes. /p/ occurs only in linguistic mimesis and loanwords but

3526-606: The French in 1892. Nawi died in November 1979, aged well over 100. Dahomey Mino are mentioned in the sci-fi novel Robur the Conqueror (1886) by Jules Verne (Chapter XV: A skirmish in Dahomey). Dahomey Mino were represented in the 1987 film Cobra Verde by German director Werner Herzog . Ghezo's Mino play a significant role in the 1971 novel Flash for Freedom! by George MacDonald Fraser . The warriors are also

3608-762: The French lines. By the end of the Second Franco-Dahomean War , special units of the Mino were being assigned specifically to target French officers. After several battles, the French prevailed in the Second Franco-Dahomean War and put an end to the independent Dahomean kingdom. French soldiers, particularly of the French Foreign Legion , were impressed by the boldness of the Amazons and later wrote about their "incredible courage and audacity" in combat. Against

3690-490: The French lost six soldiers. The troops were disbanded when the kingdom became a French protectorate in 1894. Oral tradition states that some surviving Mino secretly remained in Abomey afterwards, where they quietly assassinated a number of French officers. Other stories say the women pledged their services in protection of Agoli-Agbo , the brother of Béhanzin, disguising themselves as his wives in order to guard him. Some of

3772-487: The account of Abina Mansah's life. However, this was overtaken by cocoa in the 1880s with the introduction of colonial European cocoa plantations. Palm oil is naturally reddish in color because of a high beta-carotene content. It is not to be confused with palm kernel oil derived from the kernel of the same fruit or coconut oil derived from the kernel of the coconut palm ( Cocos nucifera ). The differences are in color (raw palm kernel oil lacks carotenoids and

3854-458: The army, increasing its budget and formalizing its structure from ceremonial to a serious military. While European narratives refer to the women soldiers as "Amazons", they called themselves ahosi (king's wives) or Mino (our mothers). Ghezo recruited both men and women as soldiers from foreign captives. Female soldiers were also recruited from free Dahomean women, with some enrolled from as young as eight years of age. Other accounts indicate that

3936-400: The army. The formation of a female-only army unit was a retaliation and maneuver around the forced tribute of male slaves to Oyo each year. King Houegbadja (who ruled from 1645 to 1685), the third King of Dahomey, is said to have originally started the group which would later become the Mino as a corps of elephant hunters called the gbeto . The gbeto may even predate Houegbadja, as there

4018-687: The carbon emissions as using fossil fuel, and, for example, "biodiesel made from Indonesian palm oil makes the global carbon problem worse, not better." There are pressures for increased oil palm production from Indonesian palm-based biodiesel programs. The biodiesel currently contains a 30:70 palm oil to conventional diesel ratio (known as B30) at the gas pumps. The Indonesian government is aiming to produce 100% palm oil biodiesel (or B100) to transition out of using conventional diesel. The Indonesian government has estimated it would need to establish approximately 15 million hectares of oil palm plantations to meet these future demands. The organic waste matter that

4100-529: The company or police, or are left unreported because victims fear retaliation from their abuser. Pesticides used by palm oil plantations include paraquat , which has been banned in Europe over links to Parkinson's disease , and glyphosate , which has been involved in a US class-action lawsuit regarding cancer (the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) classified glyphosate as causing serious eye damage but did not find evidence implicating it as

4182-542: The country's deficit of edible oils while providing an important cash crop, it is claimed to have environmental benefits in the region, because it does not compete against food crops or native vegetation and it provides stabilisation for the soil. Palm oil was introduced to British Burma (now Myanmar) in the 1920s. Beginning in the 1970s, smaller-scale palm oil plantations were developed in Tanintharyi Region , and Mon , Kayin , and Rakhine States . In 1999,

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4264-523: The economic benefits, Non-governmental organisations (NGOs), such as Nature Tropicale , claim biofuels will compete with domestic food production in some existing prime agricultural sites. Other areas comprise peat land , whose drainage would have a deleterious environmental impact . They are also concerned genetically modified plants will be introduced into the region, jeopardizing the current premium paid for their non-GM crops. According to recent article by National Geographic , most palm oil in Benin

4346-414: The fleshy mesocarp enclosing a kernel that is covered by a very hard shell. The FAO considers palm oil (coming from the pulp) and palm kernels to be primary products. The oil extraction rate from a bunch varies from 17 to 27% for palm oil, and from 4 to 10% for palm kernels. Along with coconut oil, palm oil is one of the few highly saturated vegetable fats and is semisolid at room temperature. Palm oil

4428-420: The foaming agent in nearly every soap, shampoo, or detergent. Around 70% of personal care products including soap, shampoo, makeup, and lotion, contain ingredients derived from palm oil. However, there are more than 200 different names for these palm oil ingredients and only 10% of them include the word "palm". Palm oil is used to produce both methyl ester and hydrodeoxygenated biodiesel . Palm oil methyl ester

4510-544: The fortress of the Mahee at Attahapahms. However, it was at the hands of their long-standing enemy Abeokuta that they suffered crushing defeat, resulting in many casualties. The European encroachment into West Africa gained pace during the latter half of the 19th century, and in 1890 King Béhanzin started fighting French forces in the course of the First Franco-Dahomean War . European observers noted that

4592-543: The growth of palm oil plantations in tropical countries. The use of palm oil has attracted the concern of environmental and human right groups . The palm oil industry is a significant contributor to deforestation in the tropics where palms are grown and has been cited as a factor in social problems due to allegations of human rights violations among growers. In 2018, a report by the International Union for Conservation of Nature acknowledged that palm oil

4674-804: The indigenous people inhabiting the land, resulting in social conflict. The use of illegal immigrants in Malaysia has also raised concerns about working conditions within the palm oil industry. Some social initiatives use palm oil cultivation as part of poverty alleviation strategies. Examples include the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation's hybrid oil palm project in Western Kenya, which improves incomes and diets of local populations, and Malaysia's Federal Land Development Authority and Federal Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation Authority, which both support rural development. The use of palm oil in

4756-719: The industry. In much of the Niger Delta , palm oil is commonoly referred to as "red oil" (or red gold) to distinguish it from the "black oil" ( crude oil ) which dominates production. Thailand is the world's third largest producer of crude palm oil, producing 3.6 million tonnes in 2023-24. Nearly all of Thai production is consumed locally. Almost 85% of palm plantations and extraction mills are in south Thailand. At year-end 2016, 4.7 to 5.8 million rai (750,000 to 930,000 hectares; 1,900,000 to 2,300,000 acres) were planted in oil palms, employing 300,000 farmers, mostly on small landholdings of 20 rai (3.2 hectares; 7.9 acres). ASEAN as

4838-506: The king). Many of them were virgins. The regiment had a semi-sacred status, which was intertwined with the Fon belief in Vodun . Oral Dahomean tradition holds that, upon recruitment, the Amazons were subjected to female genital mutilation . The Mino trained with intense physical exercise. They learned survival skills and indifference to pain and death, storming acacia -thorn defences in military exercises and executing prisoners. Discipline

4920-431: The lacking of enforcement on laws meant to protect indigenous lands. In countries such as Guatemala, palm oil plantations have significant leverage within the local justice system, leading local police to disregard land claims, going as far as using force to break up protests, and even murdering local leaders. While only 5% of the world's vegetable oil farmland is used for palm plantations, palm cultivation produces 38% of

5002-461: The late 1800s, archaeologists discovered a substance that they concluded was originally palm oil in a tomb at Abydos dating back to 3,000 BCE. Palm oil from Elaeis guineensis has long been recognized in West and Central African countries, used widely as a cooking oil . European merchants trading with West Africa occasionally purchased palm oil for use as a cooking oil in Europe. Palm oil became

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5084-592: The main focus and written about in Layon Gray 's stage play The Dahomey Warriors . The Dora Milaje , warriors and bodyguards of the Marvel Comics character Black Panther , are partially based on the Dahomey Mino. In Age of Empires II: The African Kingdoms and Age of Empires III: The African Royals there is a female unit named Gbeto that is influenced by and named after Dahomey Mino. In

5166-492: The members of the Dahomey Mino after they were disbanded, in effect continuing the tradition. They never saw combat. Around 2019, Lupita Nyong'o interviewed one of these who was still alive, for the TV documentary Warrior Women with Lupita Nyong'o . The last survivor of the Dahomey Mino is thought to have been a woman named Nawi. In a 1978 interview in the village of Kinta, a Beninese historian met Nawi, who claimed to have fought

5248-629: The memory of the women soldiers of the Kingdom of Dahomey alive." "The Last Amazon of Dahomey" is a play in the Booker Prize -winning novel of 2019 called Girl, Woman, Other , by Bernardine Evaristo . The Ahosi are featured in the 2021 graphic novel Wake: The Hidden History of Women-Led Slave Revolts by Rebecca Hall and Hugo Martinez. The Dahomey Mino are the subject of the 2022 American film The Woman King , directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood . Dahomey Amazons are represented as Minos in

5330-528: The mid-19th century, they numbered between 1,000 and 6,000 women, about a third of the entire Dahomey army, according to reports written by visitors. The reports also noted that the women soldiers were consistently judged to be superior to the male soldiers in effectiveness and bravery in battle. The women soldiers were said to be structured in parallel with the army as a whole, with a centre wing (the king's bodyguards) flanked on both sides, each under separate commanders. Some accounts note that each male soldier had

5412-438: The natural environment, including deforestation , loss of natural habitats, and greenhouse gas emissions which have threatened critically endangered species , such as the orangutan and Sumatran tiger . Slash-and-burn techniques are still used to create new plantations across palm oil producing countries. From January to September 2019, 857,000 hectares of land was burned in Indonesia; peatlands accounted for more than

5494-542: The novel Sister Mother Warrior by Vanessa Riley (William Morrow, July 12, 2022). Mortal Kombat 1 has the Umgadi, which are references to the Dahomey Minos. Fon language In Benin , French is the official language, and Fon and other indigenous languages, including Yom and Yoruba , are classified as national languages. The standardized Fon language is part of the Fon cluster of languages inside

5576-575: The price of crude palm oil and refined palm oil Thai farmers have a relatively low yield compared to those in Malaysia and Indonesia. Thai palm oil crops yield 4–17% oil compared to around 20% in competing countries. In addition, Indonesian and Malaysian oil palm plantations are 10 times the size of Thai plantations. Palm is native to the wetlands of western Africa, and south Benin already hosts many palm plantations. Its 'Agricultural Revival Programme' has identified many thousands of hectares of land as suitable for new oil palm export plantations. In spite of

5658-486: The production of biodiesel has led to concerns that the need for fuel is being placed ahead of the need for food, leading to malnutrition in developing nations. This is known as the food versus fuel debate. According to a 2008 report published in the Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews , palm oil was determined to be a sustainable source of both food and biofuel, and the production of palm oil biodiesel does not pose

5740-614: The project was halted, Herakles left the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil early in negotiations. The project has been controversial due to opposition from villagers and the location of the project in a sensitive region for biodiversity. In 2018, total palm oil production in Colombia reached 1.6 million metric tons (1.8 million short tons), representing some 8% of national agricultural GDP and benefiting mainly smallholders (65% of Colombia's palm oil sector). According to

5822-663: The ruling military junta, the State Peace and Development Council , initiated the large-scale development of such plantations, especially in Tanintharyi, the southernmost region of Myanmar. As of 2019, over 401,814 ha of palm oil concessions have been awarded to 44 companies. 60% of the awarded concessions consist of forests and native vegetation, and some concessions overlap with national parks, including Tanintharyi and Lenya National Parks , which have seen deforestation and threaten conservation efforts for endemic species like

5904-539: The story of the Mino in connection with European colonial rule in Africa and ends with their legacy for the present-day Republic of Benin : "In addition to the imprint that they have left on the collective memory , the women soldiers bequeathed to the Republic of Benin dances that are performed to this day in Abomey, songs and legends. There are many women soldiers in the Benin Armed Forces today. They keep

5986-673: The video game Empire: Total War you can recruit Dahomey Mino units if you have conquered certain regions in North Africa. In the Lovecraft Country episode "I Am", Hippolyta is transported to a world where she becomes a Dahomey Mino. In 2015, UNESCO published the comic novel The Women Soldiers of Dahomey as part of their UNESCO Series on Women in African History. As an artistic and visual interpretation intended for private or public use in classrooms, it tells

6068-474: The women "handled admirably" in hand-to-hand combat, but fired their flintlocks from the hip rather than firing from the shoulder. The Mino participated in one major battle: Cotonou, where thousands of Dahomeans (including many Mino ) charged the French lines and engaged the defenders in hand-to-hand combat. The Mino were decisively crushed, with several hundred Dahomey troops being gunned down. Reportedly, 129 Dahomey fighters were killed in melee combat within

6150-715: The women married and had children, while others remained single. According to a historian who traced the lives of almost two dozen former Mino, all the women displayed difficulties adjusting to life as retired warriors, often struggling to find new roles in their communities that gave them a sense of pride comparable to their former lives. Many displayed a tendency to start fights or arguments that frightened their neighbours and relatives. Between 1934 and 1942, several British travellers in Abomey recorded encounters with former Mino, then old women who spun cotton or idled around courtyards. An unknown number of women are said to have trained with

6232-534: The world due to extreme weather caused by climate change , the Indonesian government banned exports of palm oil. This combined with a reduced harvest in Malaysia greatly increased global prices, while reducing availability causing ripple effects in the global supply chain. On 23 May 2022, the Indonesian government reopened trading hoping to balance supplies. Indonesia is the world's largest producer of palm oil, producing 44 million tonnes in 2023-24. Malaysia

6314-438: The world's total vegetable oil supply. In terms of oil yield, a palm plantation is 10 times more productive than soybean , sunflower or rapeseed cultivation because the palm fruit and kernel both provide usable oil. Palm oil has garnered criticism from environmentalists due to the environmental importance of where it is grown. However, it is indisputably more efficient in comparison to other oil-producing plants. In 2016, it

6396-414: Was customary that once an enemy was defeated they would be killed or enslaved. Many African tribes participated in this and Dahomey was no exception. They would often enslave their enemies and sell them to European slave traders in exchange for weaponry for battle. As early as 1728, under the direction of King Agaja, the Dahomean army conquered the kingdoms of Whydah, and Popos. In 1840, they helped to capture

6478-496: Was emphasised. Serving in the Mino offered women the opportunity to "rise to positions of command and influence" in an environment structured for individual empowerment. The Mino were also wealthy and held high status. The Mino took a prominent role in the Grand Council, debating the policy of the kingdom. From the 1840s to 1870s (when the opposing party collapsed), the majority of Mino generally supported peace with

6560-526: Was found that palm oil farms produce around 4.17 metric tons of oil per hectare. By contrast other oils, such as sunflower, soybean, or peanut only produce 0.56, 0.39, and 0.16 metric tons respectively per hectare. Palm oil is the most sustainable vegetable oil in terms of yield, requiring one-ninth of land used by other vegetable oil crops. In the future, laboratory-grown microbes might achieve higher yields per unit of land at comparable prices. However, palm oil cultivation has been criticized for its impact on

6642-433: Was referred to as Mino , meaning "Our Mothers" in the Fon language , by the male army of Dahomey. Other sources contest the claim that King Agaja's older sister Queen Hangbe was the ruler to establish the units, some even going so far as to question whether or not Queen Hangbe actually existed. From the time of King Ghezo (ruling from 1818 to 1858), Dahomey became increasingly militaristic. Ghezo placed great importance on

6724-482: Was the result of Dahomey's male population facing high casualties in the increasingly frequent violence and warfare with neighbouring West African states. This led to Dahomey being one of the leading states in the slave trade with the Oyo Empire , which used slaves for commodity exchange in West Africa until the slave trade in the region ended. The lack of men likely led the kings of Dahomey to recruit women into

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