The Biafada people is an ethnic group of

Guinea-Bissau Guinea-Bissau ( ; pt, Guiné-Bissau; ff, italic=no, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫 𞤄𞤭𞤧𞤢𞥄𞤱𞤮, Gine-Bisaawo, script=Adlm; Mandinka: ''Gine-Bisawo''), officially the Republic of Guinea-Bissau ( pt, República da Guiné-Bissau, links=no ), ...

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...

and Gambia. This group is often considered as a subgroup of the Tenda people. They are also known as Biafara, Beafada, Biafar, Bidyola, Dfola, Dyola, Fada, and Yola.

Demography

In Guinea Bissau, the Biafada are divided into four groups. A small group lives on the north bank of the

Geba River The Geba is a river of West Africa that rises in the northernmost area of Guinea in the Fouta Djallon highlands, passes through southern Senegal, and reaches the Atlantic Ocean in Guinea-Bissau. It is about in total length. In Senegal, the r ...

and speaks the Gool

dialect The term dialect (from Latin , , from the Ancient Greek word , 'discourse', from , 'through' and , 'I speak') can refer to either of two distinctly different types of linguistic phenomena: One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a ...

. Two large groups reside in

Quinara Region Quinara is a region in central Guinea-Bissau and its capital is Fulacunda. There has not been any local administration since the civil war of 1998-99 and all the social services are done by organs of civil society and other government agencies. I ...

, the southwestern part of the country, and they speak the Bubwas and

Guinala Guinala or Quinara was an important Biafada kingdom in pre-colonial Guinea-Bissau situated between the Geba and Rio Grande de Buba rivers. The main port town, also called Guinala, was located on a tributary of the Buba, with the capital Bruco (o ...

dialects. The fourth group live in the southern province of

Tombali Tombali is a town located in the Tombali Region of Guinea-Bissau Guinea-Bissau ( ; pt, Guiné-Bissau; ff, italic=no, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫 𞤄𞤭𞤧𞤢𞥄𞤱𞤮, Gine-Bisaawo, script=Adlm; Mandinka: ''Gine-Bisawo''), officially the Repu ...

, on the border with

Guinea Conakry Guinea ( ),, fuf, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫, italic=no, Gine, wo, Gine, nqo, ߖߌ߬ߣߍ߫, bm, Gine officially the Republic of Guinea (french: République de Guinée), is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the we ...

, and speaks the dialect Bagandada.The Joshuaproject: Biafada people
Retrieved March 5, 2013, to 02: 18 pm.

History

They were once grouped into three kingdoms: Biguda, Guinala and Bissege.ORIGEN EN AFRICA DE ALGUNOS APELLIDOS
(in Spanish: African origin of some surnames). Retrieved in March 05, 2013, to 12:39 pm The Biafada speak the Biafada language, which belongs to the Niger-Congo languages family.

Economy

Like most West Africans, the Biafada are farmers. The staple crops for these people are cassava and rice. However, due to

globalization Globalization, or globalisation (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English; American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), see spelling differences), is the process of foreign relation ...

, they also raise other crops that originated in other parts of the world: maize, squash, melons, potatoes, peppers and tomatoes. Devoted to

livestock Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animal ...

, the Biafadas raise sheep and goats for meat, as they do not drink milk from those animals. This reduces the importance of the hunting.

Culture

A ceremony celebrates as each child prepares to enter puberty. One characteristic of these ceremonies is the practice of

circumcision Circumcision is a procedure that removes the foreskin from the human penis. In the most common form of the operation, the foreskin is extended with forceps, then a circumcision device may be placed, after which the foreskin is excised. Top ...

. Normally, this applies to males, but sometimes also to females. In more conservative families it is forbidden for a woman to become pregnant outside of marriage. If this happens, the woman and the man are subject to heavy punishment known as "di minjer justisa" (literally:' justice for women"). This was banned by Guinea Bissau in the 1970s. However, actually,

Polygamy Crimes Polygamy (from Late Greek (') "state of marriage to many spouses") is the practice of marriage, marrying multiple spouses. When a man is married to more than one wife at the same time, sociologists call this polygyny. When a woman is ...

is common. The majority of Biafadas are Sunni Muslims. However, some are Catholics or

animists Animism (from Latin: ' meaning 'breath, spirit, life') is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct spiritual essence. Potentially, animism perceives all things—animals, plants, rocks, rivers, weather systems, hu ...

who believe that objects have spirits. The Biafadas mix Islam with animistic rites. About a dozen Biafada are Protestants, most resident in Biafada. Other Biafadas are Catholics in the capital.

References

{{authority control Ethnic groups in Senegal Ethnic groups in the Gambia Ethnic groups in Guinea-Bissau