Traditions of Sub-Saharan Africa
Naming ceremonies, initiation, kente and the harvest yam, Timkat and Ethiopian coffee. 167 traditions on EveryParampara so far.
Countries
🇦🇴 Angola 6🇧🇯 Benin 8🇧🇼 Botswana 6🇧🇫 Burkina Faso 5🇧🇮 Burundi 2🇨🇲 Cameroon 7🇨🇻 Cape Verde 3🇨🇫 Central African Republic 0🇹🇩 Chad 0🇰🇲 Comoros 0🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo 5🇩🇯 Djibouti 1🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea 0🇪🇷 Eritrea 11🇸🇿 Eswatini 3🇪🇹 Ethiopia 34🇬🇦 Gabon 3🇬🇲 Gambia 5🇬🇭 Ghana 26🇬🇳 Guinea 2🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau 1🇨🇮 Ivory Coast 4🇰🇪 Kenya 15🇱🇸 Lesotho 4🇱🇷 Liberia 1🇲🇬 Madagascar 14🇲🇼 Malawi 7🇲🇱 Mali 9🇲🇺 Mauritius 15🇲🇿 Mozambique 4🇳🇦 Namibia 2🇳🇪 Niger 7🇳🇬 Nigeria 34🇨🇬 Republic of the Congo 2🇷🇼 Rwanda 3🇸🇹 São Tomé and Príncipe 0🇸🇳 Senegal 10🇸🇨 Seychelles 2🇸🇱 Sierra Leone 1🇸🇴 Somalia 4🇿🇦 South Africa 30🇸🇸 South Sudan 1🇹🇿 Tanzania 13🇹🇬 Togo 8🇺🇬 Uganda 7🇿🇲 Zambia 9🇿🇼 Zimbabwe 8
On the calendar
🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the CongoKuba textiles
Elaborate raffia cloths from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, known for their complex geometric embroidery and velvCraft
🇳🇪 Agadez, NigerAgadez Crosstanaghilt
A silver pendant cast by Tuareg blacksmiths in Niger, worn as jewelry and a symbol of protection.Dress
🇺🇬 Uganda and 4 moreBarkcloth
Cloth beaten from tree bark across Africa, Asia and the PacificCraft
🇬🇭 Ntɔnso, Ghana and 1 moreAdinkra symbols
Symbols of the Akan people, stamped on cloth, each one carrying a proverbCraft
🇱🇸 LesothoMokorotlo
A conical straw hat that serves as the national symbol of Lesotho and a key element of Basotho traditional dress.Dress
🇲🇱 San, Mali and 1 moreBògòlanfinibɔgɔlanfini
A handmade Malian cotton textile dyed with iron-rich mud, worn for protection and identity.Dress
🇺🇬 UgandaGomesi
A floor-length, brightly coloured dress tied with a sash, worn by women in UgandaDress
🇳🇬 Kano, NigeriaKofar Mata Dye Pits
Hand-dyed indigo cloth from centuries-old earthen pits in the heart of KanoCraft
🇰🇪 Kenya and 5 moreKitenge
A printed cloth tied at the waist or chest, worn as a wrap, head cover or baby slingDress
🇬🇭 Bonwire, Ghana and 1 moreKente clothNwentoma
Hand-woven Ghanaian cloth of silk and cotton strips, worn for ceremonies and graduationsDress
🇳🇬 Lagos, Nigeria and 2 moreAso ebiAsọ-Ẹbí
Matching cloth worn by family and friends at Yoruba weddings, funerals and partiesDress
🇲🇬 MadagascarLamba
A rectangular cloth wrapped around the body, worn across Madagascar and at burialsDress
🇸🇴 Somalia and 1 moreDirac
A long Somali dress for weddings and celebrations, worn with an underskirt and shawlDress
🇳🇬 Nigeria and 1 moreAso Olona
A patterned Yoruba cloth, woven with symbols and worn as a mark of rank and identityDress
🇹🇿 Tanzania and 4 moreKanga
A colourful printed cotton wrap bearing proverbs, worn across East AfricaDress
🇳🇬 Nigeria and 1 moreOkpu Aguokpu agụ
A knitted wool cap from southeastern Nigeria, historically worn by warriors to display status and now used in ceremoniesDress
🇿🇦 South AfricaIsidwaba
A knee-length leather skirt of cowhide or goatskin, worn by married Zulu womenDress
🇳🇬 Nigeria and 2 moreGeleGèlè
A voluminous sculpted headwrap worn by Yoruba women for gatherings and daily lifeDress
🇿🇦 South Africa and 2 moreMadiba shirt
A loose batik-print shirt that Mandela wore to formal occasionsDress
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Adinkra symbols: Bosomba Amosah other versions=, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kofar Mata Dye Pits: Solasly, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Mokorotlo: Vanellus Foto, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Barkcloth: Hiart, CC0, source
- Kitenge: Fanny Schertzer, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Bògòlanfini: BluesyPete, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kuba textiles: Hiart, CC0, source
- Agadez Cross: Amadouibrahim2, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kente cloth: ZSM, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Gomesi: sarahemcc, CC BY 2.0, source
- Aso ebi: SUPREME LACE, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Dirac: Farah Omar, CC BY 2.0, source
- Aso Olona: Oramfe, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kanga: Petr Berka ( Petrberka ), Public domain, source
- Lamba: Lemurbaby at English Wikipedia, CC BY 3.0, source
- Isidwaba: USBSMG1, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Gele: Royalesignature, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Okpu Agu: Justice kelechi achinefu, CC0, source