Magajiya

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Magajiya is the title of an important female public official in the traditional home states of northern Nigeria and Niger .

In the oral tradition of Daura , the name also refers to the legendary founder and later queen of the city of Daura . The great importance of the Magajiya for the traditional state is expressed by the fact that it was able to initiate the procedure for the removal of the king. During the great festival processions, the king goes to the house of the Magajiya on the second day of the celebration to greet them there. He turns her this honor in memory of their ancestor founded the city, later the snake slayer bayajidda married and thus ancestress was the "seven real Hausa" (with the exception of Biram / Garun Gabas-ta).

In addition, Magajiya is the title of the plenipotentiary who looks after the prostitutes in many house towns . This function is related to her role as a priestess of the Bori obsession cult. It is noticeable that the great female goddess of the cult also bears the name Magajiya. Among the numerous spirits of the cult, she is the leader of the “white” or “Hausa” deities. The official and the deity Magajiya stand in contrast to Inna , who is to be regarded as the leader and most important goddess of the "pagan" or Azna deities.

literature

  • Dierk Lange: Ancient Kingdoms of West Africa. Dettelbach 2004 (pp. 215-238).
  • Guy Nicolas: Dynamique sociale au sein d'une société hausa. Paris 1975 (pp. 162-164).
  • Michael G. Smith: The Affairs of Daura. Berkeley 1978 (pp. 257-258).
  • Michael G. Smith: Government in Kano: 1350-1950. Boulder 1997 (p. 93).