The Dogon Tribe of Mali

The Dogon are an ethnic group living in central plateau region of Mali, south of Niger
in the region of Mopti. It is more known for their mythology, their mask dance, wood carvings and the unique architecture them.

The Country of the Dogon, consisting of 700 villages along the cliffs of Bandiagara, a sandstone cliff that criss the main area of the Dogon. The old villages in the Dogon, like embroidered on the rock, the location chosen centuries earlier than the previous race of Telem, trying to avoid the Islamisation.

Today although theoretically part of the population are Muslims, but animistic religious ceremonies and cults still are key elements of culture and cohesion between villages. The most important ceremony of the Dogon, the Sigui, every 60 years. A long procession of men dancing under our
Masks, begins and ends in the village Youga Dogorou, passing through all the villages, a trip that lasts few months to years. The last such ceremony began in 1967 and ended in 1973 and the next one
starting in 2027.

The Dogon, are one of the many ethnic groups in Africa to which the practice of female genital mutilation. Before circumcision, Both men and women are considered "neutral" (The foreskin is considered "feminine", while the clitoris "Masculine") and marks both the "restoration" of sex and the end of childhood. Practice has been passed from generation to generation and is also a reason to
celebrate the abundance of gifts, good food and nice clothes for the children who will attend the ceremony.

Each community Dogon, which can also be an extended family (called guinna, and can numbering hundreds of members), headed by the oldest man. Men may marry up to four women, but most have
one, while the divorce is a rare and serious issue requires the participation of the entire village.
The main occupation of Dogon is agriculture. Grow millet, rice, tobacco and onions are dry elaborate and sold on the market Bamaco. Impressive example of the special architectural are the granaries; the male barn is building with a sharp roof protects the millet and other foods by rats. The female on the other hand, is a similar building used by the women of the family for personal property; jewelery, clothes, food and money after the earnings-related the goods are their own and able to
stores in the bread basket.

The Togu na, a building only for men, consisting by columns, elaborately decorated with animist symbols and a low ceiling so no one can stand standing, which prevents the violent outbursts when spirits worse. There, men will meet companionship, relaxation, although the male Dogon, unlike women, have fewer hobbies and sufficient leisure. This part, however, forbidden for women, animals and children.

Similarly, space for women only, banned for men, is the small house found on the outer side of the villages; overtaken by other, made usually by the women of the village, the houses in during their period. Those days women Dogon, are not allowed to stay in their own homes with their family… Even though is strange for a visitor to understand that"Isolation" of women, for Dogon women is a pleasant
week. Life for these women begins early in the morning; fields with the men in striking canary (a
procedure is repeated every day and looks like ceremony. Women hit the canary of the day for
family, every three, a common wood "mortar", which requires synchronization of movements as in dance). In manufacture of household utensils of wood or gourds, the care of animals ... to continue to
housework. So it is a break for them, a opportunity for leisure time, relax and chat
company. Impression on visitors, they and their children; "tied" on the backs of their mothers, take part in all daily activities of the community, uncomplaining and without protests ...

Prohibited places but there are other villages. Gated usually by stones, small sections at the ends roads, "fetish" hardly recognizable as something by special guests, not be tampered with by
foreigners but also locals. Maintenance and repair damage to their homes and warehouses, are part of everyday life in the villages of Dogon. Made of clay, the raw material which is Soil, straw and cow manure, these houses, perfectly aligned with the landscape to ensure Ideal tenants at the time temperatures. The baobab, “tree of life” is considered sacred by the Dogon after all, they are useful; will fix ropes paddy, small instruments and utensils by fruits, medicinal ointments leaves, while and raw, heal from malaria, asthma, the headaches, and even toothache. The fruit tree, rich in vitamins have twice the rate of potassium from milk, and is why many scientists now argue that the baobab is the tree that save Africa from malnutrition.

Talking about the Dogon, should not neglect their relationship with Sirius, (sigu tolo "Star sigui») and his partner, Sirius II. The astronomical information we have from tradition,
verified the 20th century, making scientists wonder came by this knowledge. The name of the Series B in the language of the Dogon, is PO-Tolo · «Star of small grains and might be refers to the seed-up, but it is also a way to describe the smallness of the star. A small, heavy, white star in 1920 will be mapped and officially · a "white dwarf, a star with the three main properties: small, heavy, white!
In a spectacular physical environment consists of three distinct topographical regions: the plain, the cliffs and the plateau, the clay villages Dogon, allowing the visitor contact with harmony ...