Bwa people
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The Bwa is an African society that is native to
Burkina Faso Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the ...
. This society has an approximate population of over 300,000 persons. The Bwa people live in a number of individualized communities. They have no central government, and rely on their community standards. They are most known for their scarification and elaborate plank masks.


History

In the 18th century, Bwa lands were occupied by the
Bamana Bambara or Bambarra may refer to: * Bambara people, an ethnic group, primarily in Mali ** Bambara language, their language, a Manding language ** Bamana Empire, a state that flourished in present-day Mali (1640s–1861) * ''Bambara'' (beetle), a ...
empire who made the Bwa pay taxes. The places left unconquered were raided by the Bamana, which led to a weakening of the Bwa social and political systems. In the 19th century, the Bamana declined and the area was dominated by the
Fulani The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people ( ff, Fulɓe, ; french: Peul, links=no; ha, Fulani or Hilani; pt, Fula, links=no; wo, Pël; bm, Fulaw) are one of the largest ethnic groups in the Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. ...
who raided and enslaved the Bwa and stole their
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 animals ...
.Roy & Wheelock, p.50 The end of the 19th century brought French mercenaries who used the Fulani to help control the area. The Bwa traditions of storing crops for use in lean years were undermined by the crippling taxation systems of the French and they suffered further from
famine A famine is a widespread scarcity of food, caused by several factors including war, natural disasters, crop failure, Demographic trap, population imbalance, widespread poverty, an Financial crisis, economic catastrophe or government policies. Th ...
from 1911–1913. The French demanded military recruits from the Bwa and in 1915, the Bwa revolted., starting the
Volta-Bani War The Volta-Bani War was an anti-colonial rebellion which took place in French West Africa (specifically, the areas of modern Burkina Faso and Mali) between 1915 and 1917. It was a war between an indigenous African force drawn from a heterogeneous ...
. This war lasted about a year and ended with the destruction of many Bwa villages. Due to these events, the Bwa turned to their neighboring people, the
Nuna Nuna is the name of a series of manned solar powered race cars that have won the World Solar Challenge in Australia seven times: in 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2013, 2015 and 2017. The vehicles are built by students who are part of the "Brunel Sol ...
. Admiring what they believed to be continuous blessings, the Bwa wanted to adopt some
Nuna Nuna is the name of a series of manned solar powered race cars that have won the World Solar Challenge in Australia seven times: in 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2013, 2015 and 2017. The vehicles are built by students who are part of the "Brunel Sol ...
customs in attempt to please the Nuna God. Obliging, the Nuna taught the Bwa some of their customs and practices. From this, the Bwa purchased the rights to use, wear, and carve wooden masks, their costumes, and the songs and dances that go with them.


Regional Identification

The Bwa live in central Burkina Faso and south-east Mali, between Mali's
Bani River The Bani River is the principal tributary of the Niger River in Mali. The river is formed from the confluence of the Baoulé and Bagoé rivers some east of Bamako and it merges with the Niger near Mopti. Its length is about . Geography The ...
and the Mouhoun River (
Black Volta The Black Volta or Mouhoun is a river that flows through Burkina Faso for approximately 1,352 km (840 mi) to the White Volta in Dagbon, Ghana, the upper end of Lake Volta. The source of the Black Volta is in the Cascades Region of Burki ...
) in Burkina Faso. Their total population is approximately 300,000. The major towns occupied by the Bwa are
HoundĂ© HoundĂ© is a city located in the province of Tuy (of which it is the capital) in the Hauts-Bassins Region of Burkina Faso. It is situated about 100 km east by northeast of Bobo-Dioulasso along the trunk road Route nationale N1 to Ouagadou ...
, Boni, Bagassi,
Dossi Dossi is an Italian surname. It may refer to: * Dosso Dossi (c. 1490–1542) - painter *Battista Dossi (c. 1490–1548) - painter ::Dosso and Battista are occasionally referred to as the Dossi brothers *Tommaso Dossi (1678–1730) - painter *Carlo ...
and Pa. Early
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
an explorers to the area called the Bwa "Bobo", confusing them with their neighbours the
Bobo people The Bobo are a Mande ethnic group living primarily in Burkina Faso, with some living north in Mali. Bobo is also a shortened name of the second-largest city in Burkina Faso, Bobo-Dioulasso. Background In much of the literature on African art, ...
. Although the two groups share religion and culture, they are ethnically distinct. The confusion led to alternative names for the Bwa including Bobo Oule, or Eastern Bobo. In Jula, Bobo Oule means "Red Bobo". This distinguishes the Bwa from the Bobo who are called the "Black Bobo". The White Bobo, ''Bobo Gbe'', are also Bwa. The southern Bwa became known by their neighbours as ''Nieniegue'' meaning "scarred Bwa" as a result of the tradition of
scarification Scarification involves scratching, etching, burning/branding, or superficially cutting designs, pictures, or words into the skin as a permanent body modification or body art. The body modification can take roughly 6–12 months to heal. In the p ...
of their faces and bodies. This practice is no longer commonplace and so the term is also in decline.


Society and politics


Economy

There are three professional castes within the Bwa society: the farmers, the musicians, and the blacksmiths. Farming has been a constant way of life for the Bwa. It is their primary source of income with their most successful crop being cotton. Besides cotton, though, the Bwa are known to harvest certain grains such as
millet Millets () are a highly varied group of small-seeded grasses, widely grown around the world as cereal crops or grains for fodder and human food. Most species generally referred to as millets belong to the tribe Paniceae, but some millets al ...
,
rice Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima ''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...
,
sorghum ''Sorghum'' () is a genus of about 25 species of flowering plants in the grass family (Poaceae). Some of these species are grown as cereals for human consumption and some in pastures for animals. One species is grown for grain, while many othe ...
, yams, and
peanut The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible Seed, seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, important to both small ...
s. These crops along with other grains and various fruits are used for both nutritional and medicinal purposes. Music is integral to the Bwa's traditional ceremonies and rituals. While they do use drums, the Bwa are known to craft and play flutes carved from wood. Blacksmiths in the Bwa society work mostly with bronze to craft masks, figures, utensils, and jewelry. These works can be bought and sold, used for personal use, and/or are utilized during rituals.


Politics

Bwa villages are autonomous and they do not recognise any outside political authority. They are led by a council of male elders who make all the major decisions.


Culture


Language

The Bwa speak
Bwa languages The Bwa languages (Bwamu, Bomu) are a branch of the Gur languages spoken by over half a million Bwa people of Burkina Faso and Mali. The Bwa people, and their languages, are one of several called Bobo in Bambara. The Bwa are distinguished as ...
, a closely related group of
Gur languages The Gur languages, also known as Central Gur or Mabia, belong to the Niger–Congo languages. They are spoken in the Sahelian and savanna regions of West Africa, namely: in most areas of Burkina Faso, and in south-central Mali, northeastern Iv ...
of the Niger–Congo family. Some speak Jula ( Dioula) for trading and communication with outsiders, and French is also used.


Religion and mythology

The creator deity of the Bwa is known as Wuro, a god who designed the earth with the intention of establishing balance. Wuro was said to be hurt by a human, and in return, he decided to send his eldest son Dwo to act as the communication line between him and the people. Wuro had three sons: Dwo, the god of rebirth, Soxo, the god of the wilderness, and Kwere, the lightning god. Two and his significance is heavily depicted in the Boni Bwa's ceremonial leaf masks.
Animism Animism (from Latin: ' meaning 'breath, Soul, spirit, life') is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct Spirituality, spiritual essence. Potentially, animism perceives all things—Animal, animals, Plant, plants, Ro ...
is the main religious belief practiced by the Bwa. In fact, the art work that the Bwa are known for is primarily used for animist practices—specifically that of Nuna origin.


Denominations

Nuna practices still hold firm in the Bwa culture. In relation, there is a group called the Cult of Do (or Dwo). They are led by the village's eldest male member, the Labie (also known as the earth priest.) With that being said, they have also adopted both Islam and
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
as a result of their prior invasions.


Practices

While the Bwa are famous for their masks, it is the purpose behind the pieces that provides the real significance. Using these masks, along with scepters and diverse body adornments, the Bwa will dance and perform these items in representation of different spirits. Those Bwa members who have gone through initiation—a process of transitioning from a child to an adult member of society—are grouped together in age grades. During ceremonies, they adorn and praise the masks that are being performed as a group. It is also important to note that these mask performances are not gender specific. Women are very much a part of these events just as much as their male counterparts.


Tools

The Bwa use various divination sculptures and carvings to carry out significant ceremonies and practices. While sculpted figures are a rare art of the Bwa's, the pieces would be used for events such as divination ceremonies, fertility rituals, and offered sacrifices.


Art


Masks


= Style

= The Bwa masks are usually black and white; additional colors are subject to individual carvers and their styles. Animal depictions are a common attribute of the works. Plank Masks are the most known style of masks for this society. they are vertically shaped and attached to a disk-like base. Decoration is subject to change, but it mostly comes down to zigzags, squares, and circles. The Bwa also make horizontal and heterogenous masks. Heterogenous masks have an ovoid head with round and/or diamond eyes. Sometimes, the artist will choose to add on designs such as crescents or human figures.


= Use

= The Bwa are well known for their use of traditional tribal masks. There are several types of masks produced by the Bwa that are used in traditional rituals. In particular the Southern Bwa are known for their tall plank masks, known as ''nwantantay'', and tend to use wood to make their masks.
This is a result of their adoption of Nuna religion and their traditions of using wooden masks. The religion associated with wooden masks is focused on the spirit Lanle, whose power is manifested through the wooden masks. Nwantantay can also be made of polychrome by the blacksmiths. Built in horizontal shapes, these masks can represent different animals and have specific designs. For example, a butterfly mask would have concentric circles, while a hawk mask would have a plain white surface. these masks are worn for female entertainment. The northern Bwa use leaf masks more than wooden ones.
These leaf masks frequently represent Dwo in religious ceremonies.Roy & Wheelock, p.53 The masks also represent the bush spirits including snake, serpents,
monkey Monkey is a common name that may refer to most mammals of the infraorder Simiiformes, also known as the simians. Traditionally, all animals in the group now known as simians are counted as monkeys except the apes, which constitutes an incomple ...
s, buffalo and
hawk Hawks are bird of prey, birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. They are widely distributed and are found on all continents except Antarctica. * The subfamily Accipitrinae includes goshawks, sparrowhawks, sharp-shinned hawks and others. Th ...
s. Mask performances generally take place in the dry season between February and May.


Bronzeworks

Blacksmiths are also known to make utensils and body adornments for their people. These pieces, much like the masks, tend to represent animals and their attributes associated with them. For example, a blacksmith may use a hyena to show stupidity or a bush cow to symbolize strength. The most common depictions are of the double chameleon and the hornbill. The chameleon would be mostly used by women who want to have children but cannot.


Instruments

Flutes are used daily. They are usually played in sets of 5 to 9 pieces. By playing short diverse patterns in an interlocking form, the musicians tell a story. It is a form of communication—reproducing the speech of tonal languages. They are commonly accompanied by dances.


References


Notes


Bibliography

** Bacquart, Jean-Baptiste (1998). ''The Tribal Arts of Africa''. Thames and Hudson. ** Decalo, Samuel (1994). ''Burkina Faso: World Bibliographical Series, Volume 169.''Clio Press. ** Dagan, Esther A (1997). ''The Spirits Dance in Africa Evolution, Transformation, and Continuity in Sub-Sahara''. Galerie Amrad African Arts Publications. ** Engberg-Pedersen, Lars (2003). ''Endangering Development: Politics, Projects, and Environment in Burkina Faso''. Praeger Publishers. ** LaGamma, Alisa (2002). ''Genesis: Ideas of Origin in African Sculpture''. Metropolitan Museum of Art. ** Roy, Christopher D.; Thomas G. B. Wheelock (2007). ''Land of the Flying Masks: Art and Culture in Burkina Faso''. Prestel Verlag. ** ''Traditional Sculpture from Upper Volta: an Exhibition of Objects from New York Museums and Private Collections: the African-American Institute, October 24, 1978-March 24, 1979''. The Institute. {{Authority control Ethnic groups in Burkina Faso Ethnic groups in Mali