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Where
small subgroup of the larger Fulani ethnic group living in many parts of West and Central Africa, stretching from Senegal to The Sudan. -
Festival
At the end of September, just after the rainy season and before spreading out in small family bands, clans of the nomadic Wodaabe tribe gather collectively to celebrate their traditional Gerewol Festival. -
Activities during festivals
It is a time to socialize, hold tribal meetings, baptize babies, barter over dowries, or help each other out if needed. But above all, it is an opportunity for the young to meet, date, mate, and marry. -
The People
They are nomadic cattle herders, always on the move in search of greener pastures, and usually not staying longer than a few days in one given place. They are particularly famous for their annual Gerewol Festival -
The Gerewol Ritual
an extravagant display of beauty contests and courtship rituals in which hypnotic chant and dance, and elaborate attire and make-up are the key ingredients for attracting the admiration and affection of potential love mates. -
Face PAiNt
The men paint their faces yellow (color of joy and happiness) or red (color of power and strength, important themes in their warrior dances) with clay and extracts from desert plants, and add dotted patterns on their cheeks, chins, and foreheads. -
The girls
The girls on the community dress in much more modest clothes often in black —, their ears decorated with large earrings of brass or silver up to eight in each ear, their hair braided at both sides and a sculpted bun on their forehead, and their faces tattoed with geometric patterns to ward off evil spirits, they gossip, giggle, dance, clap, and sing together in anticipation of the evening’s performances. -
Dancing and Chanting
Suddenly, a lineup of young men forms in the large open field. With their arms interlinked, and stretched on their toes to show as tall as possible, they chant mesmerizing songs, move shoulder to shoulder forward and backward, stamp their feet, clap their hands, and ring bells attached to their ankles. -
Their Beliefs
Although the tribe follows Muslim rituals and prayers, many of their old beliefs and customs are still preserved. Men and women never sit on a mat together, and they also eat separately. the rules about showing love are pretty strict, men and women never talk, look each other in the eye, or show tender feelings for each other during daylight. -
After the festival
Soon after the festivities are over, the Wodaabe clans disperse for another year of roaming the savanna, their donkeys and zebus packed with their scarce belongings, their small children on top. Just-married women will now follow their new husbands and their clans, and pregnant women will temporarily live with their mothers again.
