Bianou
Bianou (other spelling: Bianu ) is an annual Islamic folk festival in the Nigerien city of Agadez .
According to tradition, the first Bianou was a festival of joy after the end of the flood . The festival begins seven days after the Islamic festival of sacrifice and lasts for 23 days. The youth of the eastern part (Yan Gabass) and the western part (Yan Yamma) of the old town of Agadez each elect a leader of the celebrations, called Tambari , who is confirmed by the Sultan and who is assigned two assistants (called Girima and Agolla ) to organize .
At the center of the folk festival that takes place across the city is dance in public places. The dancers from both halves of the city are accompanied by small Tobol orchestras. They move through town in the late afternoon. If the two groups meet, they have dance and music competitions. On the 9th of Muharram , on the “Night of Beauty” ( maratche-n-ado ), the whole population walks through the streets in costumes. The young people and dancers spend the “Night of Beauty” in the palm gardens of the suburb of Alarcess . The next day they return to town in a carnival-like procession, swinging palm fronds. The last three days of Bianou, which are now beginning, are the climax of the celebrations.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Aboubacar Adamou: Agadez et sa region. Contribution à l'étude du Sahel et du Sahara nigériens (= Études Nigériennes . No. 44). IFAN, Paris 1979, pp. 198-201.
- ↑ Jolijn Geels: Niger . Bradt, Chalfont St Peter 2006, ISBN 1-84162-152-8 , p. 174.