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The Tangale people are one of the
ethnic groups An ethnicity or ethnic group is a group of people with shared attributes, which they collectively believe to have, and long-term endogamy. Ethnicities share attributes like language, culture, common sets of ancestry, traditions, society, rel ...
in Northern
Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...
, situated in
Gombe State Gombe State (; ) is a States of Nigeria, state in North East (Nigeria), northeastern Nigeria, bordered to the north and northeast by the states of Borno State, Borno in the vicinity of Gongola River and Lake Dadin Kowa Dam, Dadin Kowa and Yobe S ...
. They speak the Tangale language (Po Tangle) and derived their name from “ Tangal”, a chief of
Billiri Billiri (or Biliri) is one of the 11 Local Government Areas of Gombe State, Nigeria bordered to the north by Akko Local Government Area, south and east by Shongo, andnorthe-East by Kaltungo Local Government Area. It is a historical settleme ...
(Western Tangale) in the present day
Gombe state Gombe State (; ) is a States of Nigeria, state in North East (Nigeria), northeastern Nigeria, bordered to the north and northeast by the states of Borno State, Borno in the vicinity of Gongola River and Lake Dadin Kowa Dam, Dadin Kowa and Yobe S ...
in
Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...
. It is believed that Tangal was instrumental in organizing the clans under his leadership and because of this, the people under him were referred to as the Tangale (as it was customary in many African
communities A community is a Level of analysis, social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place (geography), place, set of Norm (social), norms, culture, religion, values, Convention (norm), customs, or Ide ...
to name a land or
ethnic group An ethnicity or ethnic group is a group of people with shared attributes, which they collectively believe to have, and long-term endogamy. Ethnicities share attributes like language, culture, common sets of ancestry, traditions, society, re ...
after their leader).


History of Settlement

The Tangale people are migrants from Yemen through Egypt and then to the present
Borno State Borno is a States of Nigeria, state in the North East (Nigeria), North-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria. It is bordered by Yobe State, Yobe to the west, Gombe State, Gombe to the southwest, and Adamawa State, Adamawa to the south while its ea ...
. However, due to constant inter-tribal conflicts, they had to keep migrating from one place to another. Eventually, they settled in at least seven different locations before they came to their presently known settlement, four Local Government Areas of Gombe State;
Akko Acre ( ), known in Hebrew as Akko (, ) and in Arabic as Akka (, ), is a city in the coastal plain region of the Northern District of Israel. The city occupies a strategic location, sitting in a natural harbour at the extremity of Haifa Bay on ...
,
Billiri Billiri (or Biliri) is one of the 11 Local Government Areas of Gombe State, Nigeria bordered to the north by Akko Local Government Area, south and east by Shongo, andnorthe-East by Kaltungo Local Government Area. It is a historical settleme ...
,
Kaltungo Kaltungo is one of the 11 Local Governments Area of Gombe State, Nigeria. Its headquarters are in the town of Kaltungo, located in the western part of the Local Government Area on the A345 highway at . Kaltungo LGA covers an area of 881 squar ...
and
Shongom Shongom is a Local Government Area (LGA) of Gombe State, Nigeria. Its headquarters is in the town of Boh in the northern part of the Local Government Area Geography Shongom LGA occupies a total area of 922 square kilometres and has an average ...
. A list of some of those places they settled at include; SanumKude (also known as Big San) near Ngazargamu and Kupto. Kupto was like the Biblical ‘Corinth’; a place where different tribes and groups came together to co-exist and co-habit. At Kupto, the Tangale’s lived together with the Lunguda,
Kare-Kare Kare-kare is a Filipino cuisine featuring a thick savory peanut sauce. It is generally made from a base of stewed oxtail, beef tripe, pork hocks, calves' feet, pig's feet or trotters, various cuts of pork, beef stew meat, and occasiona ...
,
Tera Tera or TERA may refer to: People * Tera Hunter, American professor of history * Tera Patrick (born 1976) American pornographic actress * Tera people, an ethnic group in Gombe State, Nigeria Places * Téra, Niger * Tera, Paphos, Cyprus * ...
,
Waja Waja (also known as Waja Temuga) is a town in northern Ethiopia. Located in the Debubawi Zone of the Tigray Region, south of the city of Alamata, Waja has a latitude and longitude of with an elevation of 1471 meters above sea level. It is one ...
, Bolewa, Songom and other neighbouring tribes. It was from Kupto that they further migrated to find a new shelter; mostly mountainous areas which most felt were safer from the frequent raids and attacks they encountered from marauders.


Culture

The ancient Tangale people were warriors and In the past, adult males were supposed to show their manhood by fighting, and as proof of their courage, they were required to bring the heads of the enemy they had murdered with them upon returning from the battleground. These combat trophies were given to a priest, who placed them under the family's holy tree.


Mai

The Mai is the Traditional head of the Tangale nation. The title has been in use by the Tangale people since ancient times during their periods of migrations to refer to the leader of the moving group. Today two Mai stools exist in Tangaleland; The Mai Tangle who is the traditional head of the Tangale West Chiefdom headquartered in
Billiri Billiri (or Biliri) is one of the 11 Local Government Areas of Gombe State, Nigeria bordered to the north by Akko Local Government Area, south and east by Shongo, andnorthe-East by Kaltungo Local Government Area. It is a historical settleme ...
of Billiri LGA and The Mai Kaltungo whose stool is located in Kaltungo, heading the eastern Tangale people of
Kaltungo Kaltungo is one of the 11 Local Governments Area of Gombe State, Nigeria. Its headquarters are in the town of Kaltungo, located in the western part of the Local Government Area on the A345 highway at . Kaltungo LGA covers an area of 881 squar ...
and
Shongom Shongom is a Local Government Area (LGA) of Gombe State, Nigeria. Its headquarters is in the town of Boh in the northern part of the Local Government Area Geography Shongom LGA occupies a total area of 922 square kilometres and has an average ...
LGAs. Since the year 1295 until 2021, the western Tangale people have ha
15 rulers called Mai Tangle
governing the affairs of their land. After the demise of Mai Abdu Buba Maisheru II, the Governor Muhammad Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe state appointed the current Mai Tangle, Malam Danladi Sanusi-Maiyamba. Sensing the Governor was going to announce Malam Sanusi, the Tangale peopl
took to the street to oppose the move
Aside the Tangale people, other bodies lik
the Middle-Belt Forum
have asked the Governor to respect the choice of the people, but Gov. Inuwa went ahead and announced his choice. However, the Tangale people have since the
refused to recognise Malam Sanusi as their royal head
Their grievance is hung on the fact that he was not their choice. During the election for successor to Maisheru II by the Tangale kingmakers, only three out of 18 contestants secured votes
Dr. Musa Idris Maiyamba got 5 votes
Malam Ahmed Magaji got 2 votes, and Malam Danladi Sanusi also 2 votes. Three years in office, Malam Danladi has not been able to mobilize support, because the people have continually opposed him - they maintain their position of no
recognising him as their ruler


Languages

The native language of the Tangale Tribe is Po Tangale also called Po Mamu by the eastern Tangale people. The language is spoken by a large majority of Tangale people especially among rural dwellers but due to the dominance of Hausa language in Northern Nigeria, most Tangale people are also able to speak Hausa fluently. A good percentage of Tangale people are able to speak and write in English language owing to colonial legacy and a relatively high literacy level.


Cuisine

The Tangale people's cuisine incorporates a large variety of locally produced and readily available plant food materials like corn, sorghum, cowpea, peanuts, bambaranuts and sesame. Tradition Tangale cuisine include; Dipo, Kumbam, Shaka kodo, Ronjo, Kar bayo; prepared with a special type of daddawa (locust beans) called Dwaldin, Robe-robe, Ed mammu, Kwaksak and Shinga. Adau (made from fried and ground sesame seasoned with potash) is especially common among the eastern Tangale people, the consumption of which is a necessary marriage rite. Mutton is a very important part of the Tangale dish as well as a variety of "bush meats". The native drinks of the Tangale people include; Am-shau, Am-dik-dik and Men which is a form of locally brewed beer. Readily available fruits like Enji (pumpkin), Kanje (deleb palm fruit and tender roots), Wulot (black plum), Landondon (blood plum), Kwalak (shea fruit) and La'awe also form a very important part of the meal of the Tangale people.


Religion

The Tangale people were mostly idol/ spirit worshipers before the advent of colonial rule. They had spirits like ''Nanamudo (Mother of Death), and Yamba (the goddess of creation).'' Present-day Tangale people have deserted their traditional idol worship and are now predominantly Christian and a small percentage adhere to Islam and traditional religion.


Festivals

* Pissi Tangale festival * ‘Bai’ Carnival/ Palam Tangle(Dog festival) * Eku festival * Tangra * Wula * Pe Kodok * Pand Kungo


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tangale People Ethnic groups in Nigeria Gombe State Northern State (Sudan)