Baule (people)

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Baule mask

The Baule ( French Baoulé ) are an Akan people in the Ivory Coast .

There they make up the largest ethnic group in the country with a number of around 2,130,000 and a percentage of 23 percent. They are traditionally followers of the Akan religion , and recently there have also been an increasing number of Sunni Muslims.

The Baule way of life is traditionally shaped by agriculture - and the main cultivation area of ​​the people is between the Comoé and Bandama rivers , an area mixed with forest and desert. The most important cultivated products of the people are kola nuts , yams , cocoa and corn .

They have also developed their own types of weapons, of which the Baule ax , the Baule wooden sword , the Baule knife and the Baule alignment sword are particularly noteworthy.

history

The origin of the Baule has not been clearly established. According to the popular myth, it was a group of Ashanti who moved from what is now Ghana to the west of what is now Ivory Coast as a result of a controversy for the succession to the throne . They were led by Queen Abla Poku . She sacrificed a child on the impassable Comoé river and the water then split and allowed her people to pass through. After their establishment, the Baule split into various subgroups. This myth is associated with a war of succession to the throne that took place among the Ashanti between 1725 and 1750. The area in Ivory Coast where the Baule settled was sparsely populated by the Senufo and Guro . Both ethnic groups are considered sources for the Baule art genres. The truth of the myth of origin, which was first published by Maurice Delafosse in 1900, cannot be confirmed by archaeological finds or written sources and is therefore questioned. Delafosse himself distanced himself in 1914 from the uncritical adoption of the myth. Susan Mullin Vogel assumes an ancient Baule population in Ivory Coast. The oral tradition, linguistic references and forms in art would point to the culture of the Mamla during the 18th century and earlier. These are still present as a subgroup of the Baule.

The Baule fought the longest battle against the French colonizers in West Africa.

society

The Baule society is shaped by the difference between village and wilderness, which is central to their cosmology. During the second half of the 20th century, this symbolic system decreased in importance. Many Baule moved from the country to the cities in order to escape the obligations to the ghosts and the traditional rules. The relatives who stayed in the country usually take care of the ghosts of those who moved away.

Man and woman are central categories of the Baule, but they also recognize that they are not pure categories. They externalize the other gender as a spouse from the spirit world, the blolo , to whom a figure is sometimes offered as a seat. This approach to sexuality among the Baule is probably also the reason why they do not perform cliterodectomies and circumcisions.

The Baule society is characterized by great individuality.

art

The art of the Baule belongs to the western canon of African art. Above all, their relative naturalism and the skills of the artists were appreciated by European and American audiences, while their subtle rhythm and beauty now more suit the taste of collectors. Masks and figures are the most important works of art at the Baule, but everyday objects were also designed by artists.

literature

  • Susan Mullin Vogel: Baule. African Art Western Eyes. New Haven 1997, ISBN 0-300-07317-8 .
  • Timothy C. Weiskel: French Colonial Rule and the Baule Peoples. Resistance and Collaboration. 1889-1911. Oxford 1980, ISBN 0-19-822715-9 .

Web links

Commons : Baoule people  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Arelis Rodríguez: La francofonía y el mundo francófono. January 2007. Retrieved May 12, 2009 .
  2. ^ Tribal african art, Baule (Baoule, Bawule). Retrieved May 12, 2009 .
  3. ↑ Baule. Ikuska Libros, accessed May 12, 2009 .
  4. ↑ a b Susan Mullin Vogel: Baule. African Art Western Eyes. New Haven 1997, ISBN 0-300-07317-8 , p. 34.
  5. ↑ a b Susan Mullin Vogel: Baule. African Art Western Eyes. New Haven 1997, ISBN 0-300-07317-8 , p. 35.
  6. ↑ Susan Mullin Vogel: Baule. African Art Western Eyes. New Haven 1997, ISBN 0-300-07317-8 , p. 40.
  7. ↑ Susan Mullin Vogel: Baule. African Art Western Eyes. New Haven 1997, ISBN 0-300-07317-8 , p. 47.
  8. ↑ a b Susan Mullin Vogel: Baule. African Art Western Eyes. New Haven 1997, ISBN 0-300-07317-8 , p. 49.
  9. ↑ Susan Mullin Vogel: Baule. African Art Western Eyes. New Haven 1997, ISBN 0-300-07317-8 , pp. 266f.
  10. ↑ Susan Mullin Vogel: Baule. African Art Western Eyes. New Haven 1997, ISBN 0-300-07317-8 , p. 26.
  11. ↑ Susan Mullin Vogel: Baule. African Art Western Eyes. New Haven 1997, ISBN 0-300-07317-8 , p. 29.