Culture of Ivory Coast

thumb|right|200px|Senegalese griot, 1890 thumb|200px|A Hausa people|Hausa griot performs at [[Diffa, Niger, playing a (Xalam).]]

Zaouli or Zawli is a traditional dance of the Guro people (who speak the Guro language) of central Ivory Coast. It is performed by a single masked and costumed dancer, accompanied by musicians.

thumb|right|200px|The Wassoulou region of West Africa

languages of a geographic region

The Sasabonsam, or sometimes Asanbosam, or asasabonsam, is a vampire-like folkloric being from the Akan people. It belongs to the folklore of the Akan of southern Ghana, as well as Côte d'Ivoire, Togo and 18th century Jamaica from enslaved Akan. It is said to have iron teeth and long hair and lives in trees, attacking from above. In the forests of West Africa, there were rules of renewal, and the Sasabonsam would enforce these rules. They take up territory in the trees in the forests, where they live and feed on people that wander into their home. It becomes a territorial aspect for them. Whil

writing system

In the spiritual practices of the Ashanti people and Akan people, the sunsum is one's spirit. The sunsum is what connects the body (honam) to the soul (kra). The sunsum can be transmitted in a variety of ways, including from father to son during conception. This power is used to protect the carriers of this spirit. When a man dies, the sunsum returns to the metaphorical house of the father in wait to be reincarnated in the next son born of the men of that family.

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'''''' is a Baoulé-language term from Ivory Coast meaning "queen of beauty", which refers to women who have plump and curvaceous bodies featuring large buttocks, prominent breasts and wide hips. An is characterized by having buttocks that are visibly fuller and plumper compared to the rest of her body, so that her body resembles a distinctive "guitar shape". Ivorian photographer Joana Choumali describes as "beautiful women of impressive dimensions: a face with fine features, large breasts, a well-defined waist and, above all, big buttocks".

thumb|right|260px|A traditional hunter (in this case, a Bambara people|Bambara in [[Mali), showing the distinctive brown hunting suit and gris-gris amulets worn around the neck.]] The Dozo (also spelled Donzo or Donso, Bambara for hunter, pl. donsow) are traditional hunters in northern Côte d'Ivoire, southeast Mali, and Burkina Faso, and members of a co-fraternity containing initiated hunters and sons of Dozo, called a Donzo Ton. Not an ethnic group, the Dozo are drawn mostly from Mandé-speaking groups (including the Dyula-speaking communities), but are also found among Dogon, and most other e

The word Ivoirité (; sometimes translated into English as Ivoirity) entered the social and political lexicon of Ivory Coast during the presidency of Henri Konan Bédié (1993–1999). It was used as a descriptor of the purported intrinsic characteristics of an indigenous Ivorian, in contrast to immigrants. During Bedie's presidency, ethnic tensions rose sharply, with growing attacks on foreign workers and a widening rift between the country's predominantly Muslim north and mainly Christian south.

Mapouka (or macouka,"la danse du fessier", or "the dance of the behind"), also known as Chura, or Baikoko in Southern Africa, is a modernized version of a traditional dance from the Dabou area of southeast Côte d'Ivoire originating from the Ahizi, Alladian, Dida and Avikam people; it is also especially popular in Tanzania. Mapouka entered the music scene in 1991 following the 1990s creation of zouglou music and the importation of foreign music genres such as dancehall and hip hop, and grew in popularity, especially among the youth.

Abusua is the name in Akan culture for a group of people that share common maternal ancestry governed by seven major ancient abosom (deities). The Abusua line is considered to be passed through the mother's blood (). There are several Abusua that transcend the different ethnic subgroups outside of the ancient seven. People of the same Abusua share a common ancestor somewhere within their bloodline, which may go back as far as thousands of years. It is a taboo to marry someone from the same Abusua. The different Abusua are the Agona (parrot), the Aduana (dog), the Asenie (bat), Oyoko (falcon/h

An obayifo is a vampire/witch-like mythological creature from West Africa coming from the folklore of the Ashanti. In Ashanti folklore, obayifo are very common and may inhabit the bodies of any man or woman. They are described as having shifty eyes and being obsessed with food. When travelling at night they are said to emit a phosphorescent light from their armpits and anus. The obayifo is known as a similar entity to the asiman by the Dahomey people, a creature that can shapeshift and fly, turning itself into a ball of light and hunting for prey in the night sky.

pattern of human activity and symbolism associated with Ivory Coast and its people

The Ntoro is the spiritual-genetic aspect of the father which the Akan people believe is passed on to his children. These 12 Ntoro are considered inherited deities (spirits) who govern guide and protect their 12 clans patrilineally. The Akan believe that the Ntoro does not die with the father. Instead, it is passed down to the man's children, or if the children are not alive, to his nephews and nieces. The father's Ntoro represents the being of the child until the child comes of age. At this point the Ntoro along with the Sunsum and Kra explains how one interacts in the world. The Ntoro is thu