Dagbon Kingdom
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| Total population | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| (931,000 (2012 est)) | |||||
| Regions with significant populations | |||||
| Northern Ghana | |||||
| Languages | |||||
| Dagbani, Mòoré, Hausa | |||||
| Religion | |||||
| Sunni Islam, with several Christian minorites. | |||||
| Related ethnic groups | |||||
| Mossi, Mamprusi, Frafra, Gurunsi, other Gur peoples | |||||
| People | Dagomba |
|---|---|
| Language | Dagbani |
| Country | Dagbon |
The Dagombas are ethnic group of Northern Ghana and they number about 825,736 (2002). They inhabit the Northern Region of the Northern Ghana in the sparse savanna region below the sahelian belt, known as the Sudan. They speak the Dagbani language which belongs to the More-Dagbani sub-group of Gur languages. There are around 1 million speakers of the Dagbani. The Dagomba are historically related to the Mossi. The More/Mossi now have their homeland in present-day Burkina Faso. The homeland of the Dagomba is called Dagbon and covers about 20,000 km2 in area.
Na Gbewa is regarded as the founder of Dagbon. Dagomba are one of the ethnic groups with a sophisticated oral tradition woven around drums and other musical instruments. Thus most of its history, until quite recently, has been passed down via oral tradition with drummers as professional griots. According to oral tradition, the political history of Dagbon has its genesis in the lifestory of a legend called Tohazie (translated as "red hunter").
Dagomba culture is heavily influenced by Islam, brought to the region by Soninke (known as Wangara by Ghanaians) traders between the 12th to 15th centuries. Since the time of Naa Zangina, Islam has been the state religion and Islam seems to be growing rapidly ever since. The reformist activities of Afa Anjura in the middle of the twentieth century caused entire communities to embrace the Islamic religion en masse. Inheritance is patrilineal. Important festivals include the Damba, Bugum (fire festival) and the Islamic Eid festivals. The main settlement of Dagombas is Tamale, which also serves as the Northern Regional capital.
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