Frafra Culture

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HISTORY OF FRAFRA PEOPLE Frafra people of Ghana have several alternate names such as Farefare, Gurenne, Gurune, Nankani. Frafra is an imperialist expression given to a group or subgroup of ethnic groups living in northern part of Ghana and their language. The larger portion of Gurunsi people occupy both Southern Burkina Faso and Northern Ghana. The name Frafra was derived from the greeting “Ya Fara-Fara’, in the local dialect, which means, “How is your suffering (work)”? The Europeans who could not understand nor speak the indigenous language (Gurunne), hence, they decided to name the people of the region by the word, “Frafra”. The Frafra people are thought to have come from the Gur-language family of the Oti-Volta River. The native land of…show more content…
POLITICAL Frafra societies is mainly dominated by farmers without social or political hierarchical divisions neither are they are divided among occupational groups since most of them simply till the land and engage in occasional hunting. In the past, the Frafras had no internal system of chiefs, and all crucial decisions were made by a council of elders consisting of the oldest members of each of the village lineages. Religious leaders do maintain some political control, determining the agricultural pattern and parceling out land for cultivation. However, in modern times, the Frafras have enskinned their own chiefs and now have Bolga Naba, Bongo Na. This is a legacy of Mamprusi peoples’ invasion of Gurunsi land which led to the implantation and imposition of Mamprusi chief over the Frafras before the Frafra kept them at…show more content…
Adaa-Kuya festival was introduced several years ago among the people of Bolgatanga and Zuarungu in Upper East Region which literally means “abundance of food” in the native language. The significance of the festival is to thank God, divinities and the ancestral spirits for their protection, guidance and blessings for fruitful harvest during the farming season. The festival is held normally between January and February every year. The method of celebration is through various sacrifices followed by drumming and dancing. The peak of the celebration is a public gathering bringing together chiefs, elders, government officials, dancers and singing groups from the neighboring villages in the Frafra traditional
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