Was this German silver mine really defended by two Roman forts and a line of "spike defenses? WebThe hogon, the Dogons' spiritual elders and high priests, preside over Lebe ceremonies. Blood alliances frequently were contracted between the Dogon and other groups such as the Bozo. The funerary ceremonies of the Dogon consist of two parts: the initial rites, which take place immediately following death and continue for about a week, and the more elaborate dama rites that terminate the mourning period after an indeterminate period of time. His saliva is the source of the life-giving humidity, and his foot must not touch the earth directly or the ground will dry up. It is generally accepted that the Dogon language belongs to the NigerCongo language family, though the evidence is weak. Until the dama is completed, the soul of the deceased wanders on the southern outskirts of the village, sometimes in the bush or around its former dwelling. Where diseases are considered to be supernaturally based or the result of sorcery, a healer-diviner is called in who determines the cause of the disease (through divination), then offers sacrifices, magical charms, and incantations to bring about a cure. On the other hand, private property goes first to the eldest son (who must provide for his siblings), then the younger brother. During the danyim, masqueraders perform dances every morning and evening for any period up to six days, depending on that village's practice. [15] These jihadic expeditions formed themselves to force the Dogon to abandon their traditional religious beliefs for Islam. For instance, in one of their most important rituals, the women praise the men, the men thank the women, the young express appreciation for the old, and the old recognize the contributions of the young. After initiation, he wears a red cap, and a pearl bracelet. Monogamy is the major form of marriage, although nonsororal polygyny with a limit of two wives is permitted. Although Temple fails to prove its antiquity, the evidence for the recent acquisition of the information is still entirely circumstantial. 35 Issue 2. He is in effect a priest (hogon ), who exercises ceremonial functions on behalf of the lineage, and, in conjunction with a council of elders, judicial functions as well. Every Dogon village or clan has its own totem. Explanation. Paris: ditions Domat-Montchrestien, F. Loviton. Dogon society is organized by a patrilineal kinship system. Domestic Unit. WebThe Hogon is the spiritual and political leader of the village. Marriages are endogamous in that the people are limited to marry only persons within their clan and within their caste.[29]. Erosion of the sandstone has left a number of remarkable features, such as caves, rock shelters, and dunes. Demography. Because each style has its own formatting nuances that evolve over time and not all information is available for every reference entry or article, Encyclopedia.com cannot guarantee each citation it generates. Archaeologists have been able to take a closer look at one of the United Kingdoms most famous shipwrecks. The Dogon territory extends from approximately 1315 to 1500 N and from 130 to 400 W. The population is concentrated in some 300 villages along a 145-kilometer stretch of escarpment called the Cliffs of Bandiagara. They have been linked to the Mande subfamily but also to Gur. 150,000-Year-Old Pipes Baffle Scientists in China: Out of Place in Time? The principal domestic animals are sheep, goats, donkeys, dogs, chickens, guinea fowls, ducks, some cattle, a few horses, and cats. It is truly one of the most impressive regions in Sub-Saharan Africa . [20] The religion embraced many aspects of nature which are found in other traditional African religions. Universit de Paris, Travaux et Mmoires de l'Institut d'Ethnologie, 33. Cite this article Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography. Expert Answer Introduction. (2008). WebThe Hogon must live alone in his house. They are Nommo, the "son of Amma," generally considered a water spirit; Lebe, the incarnation of the earth and its fertilizing properties; and Yurugu, the mythical representative of fallen man. Each district had its own recognized war leaders. Dogon door with stylized figures (Wegmann, M/ CC BY 3.0 ). It is thus mysterious that there are so few references to the planets in ancient literature. Dogon village along the Bandiagara escarpment. [11] Other oral histories place the origin of the Dogon to the west beyond the river Niger, or tell of the Dogon coming from the east. In a polygynous marriage, the wives reside in separate houses within the husband's compound. Therefore, that information is unavailable for most Encyclopedia.com content. After being chosen, a hogon must pass through several months without washing or shaving. The designation "Naga" is applied to the numerous Indo-Mongoloid tribes living in the hill country at the, Chin In the shadowy world of ancient warfare, one weapon stood out as a true marvel: Greek fire. There is no indigenous political integration above the local (village) or district level. Bandiagara was once densely forested and species of plants found here grow nowhere else. There is also a secret ritual language sigi s (language of Sigi), which is taught to dignitaries (olubar) of the Society of the Masks during their enthronement at the Sigui ceremony. During this time, new masks are carved and dedicated to their ancestors. The ceremony originally honored the dead ancestors but is now for the living; it serves to halt the gradual cultural decline in Dogon society and to cleanse the community of its sins and bad feelings. The district headman is also head of his lineage and occupies the "great house" (ginna) of that kin group. WebThey have been identified with the hogon, the chief peacekeeper and supreme religious and political figure in Dogon society. Other authors have argued that previous 20th-century European visitors to the Dogon are a far more plausible source of such information and dispute whether Griaule's account accurately describes Dogon myths at all. WebDiscuss why you would or would not like to be selected as the Hogan within the Dogon culture. "The Nummo foresaw that the original rule of twin births was bound to disappear, and that errors might result comparable to those of the jackal, whose birth was single. Large mock battles are performed in order to help chase the spirit, known as the nyama, from the deceased's body and village, and towards the path to the afterlife (Davis, 68). (2003), Wanono, Nadine & Renaudeau, Michel (1996), Hochstetler, J. Lee, Durieux, J. The problem of "twin births" versus "single births", or androgyny versus single-sexed beings, was said to contribute to a disorder at the beginning of time. Dogons originated for the first time from the West bank of Niger around 1490 He is elected from among the oldest men of the dominant lineage of the village. Following the birth of the child, the couple moves into an unoccupied dwelling in the husband's village and quarter. WebIn this short article, the authors present a brief and clear-cut account of the relationship between the Dogon cosmogony and their social organization in terms of a discussion of With the settlement origins dating back at least 8,000 years, it is one of the worlds oldest continuously inhabited cities in the Not many people know of the Gambia. The Dogon are a wonderful and unique culture. The Dogon attribute illness to a variety of causes, such as the weakening of the vital life force (nyama), the creation of a state of impurity in the individual through the influences of evil spirits, violation of a taboo or prohibition, and sorcery. The orbit cycle takes 50 years. Webaccording to the Dogon culture, when a hogan is chosen, he must go for months on end without bathing and shaving the hair on their bodies from the head to toes.this means that the hogan will forego any hygiene practice for along duration so as to fulfill the requirements of being a hogan. Social Control. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). https://www.encyclopedia.com/humanities/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/dogon, Beierle, John "Dogon They were one of the last people in West Africa to lose their independence and come under French rule.[18]. Then, two things happened: either Chaos or Gaia created the universe as we know it, or Ouranos and Tethys gave birth to the first beings. The human story begins in Africa. Women are forbidden from joining and prohibited from learning sigi so. In traditional Dogon society, land was transmitted within the family group (ginna, or lineage), and was considered inalienable property. Two of the most specialized craftsleather- and ironworkingare restricted exclusively to members of a craft caste. Beierle, John "Dogon The masqueraders dance on the rooftops of the deceased's compound, throughout the village, and in the area of fields around the village (Davis, 68). Les dogon. Therefore, be sure to refer to those guidelines when editing your bibliography or works cited list. Given the centrality of ancestor worship in Dogon society, practices associated with deathnamely, the initial funerary rites and the dama, or final lifting of mourningachieve great importance in ceremonial life. It was held once every sixty years and allegedly celebrated the white dwarf star, Sirius B. Industrial Arts. Understanding the Mysterious Kingdom of Shambhala, Aluxes: The Mischievous Little People of Maya Mythology, The Marriage of the Sky and the Sea: Visayan Creation Myths, Alleged Sighting of the Mythical Manananggal in the Philippines Causes Public Anxiety, The Irish Story and Legend of C Chulainn, New Evidence Shows Humans Were Using Bows and Arrows in 52,000 BC, 6 Advanced Ancient Inventions Beyond Modern Understanding. "[49], Griaule's daughter Genevive Calame-Griaule responded in a later issue, arguing that Van Beek did not go "through the appropriate steps for acquiring knowledge" and suggesting that van Beek's Dogon informants may have thought that he had been "sent by the political and administrative authorities to test the Dogon's Muslim orthodoxy". The principal ceremonies center around agriculture and death. The population numbers between 400,000 and 800,000. An enlarged family can count up to a hundred persons and is called guinna. Articulo-Journal of Urban Research, (4), Available at: https://journals.openedition.org/articulo/417, My name is Edward Whelan and I graduated with a PhD in history in 2008. Identification. He wears white clothes and nobody is allowed to touch him. He is responsible for the creation of three other subordinate beings, the worship of which is the basis of several totemic cults. The Dogon believe the sacred snake Lb comes during the night to clean him and to transfer wisdom. However, the gender is deliberately ambiguous, and it may be intended to represent a nommo a mythological hermaphroditic ancestor. While the castes are correlated to profession, membership is determined by birth. There are at least five distinct groups of dialects. Each Dogon village, or enlarged family, is headed by one male elder. The first occurs immediately after the death of a person, and the second can occur years after the death. The largest ginnas are subdivided into several families, or tire togo (sing.). The Satimbe mask represents the women ancestors, who are said to have discovered the purpose of the masks by guiding the spirits of the deceased into the afterlife (Davis, 74). Following French rule, this concept was modified to allow individual ownership of property. "hogon | African religious leader | Britannica", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hogon&oldid=1122616271, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 18 November 2022, at 14:57. Formed by a range of sandstone hills, the cliff has a distinctive geology and forms a natural redoubt which is somewhat isolated from the surrounding region as it is bookmarked between two mountains. He wears white clothes and nobody is allowed to touch him. Or, were the Romans protecting something even more valuable than silver? The hogon is always a man. 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