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Was war und ist heute die Rolle der Griots im alten Afrika? Es besteht darin, über das Leben der Gemeinschaft durch die verschiedenen historischen Begebenheiten zu berichten. So begreift auch Sembene Ousmane seine Bestimmung als Filmemacher. Er soll ein "Griot der modernen Zeiten sein". Diese Rolle als Vertreter der eignen Gemeinschaft in den modernen Medien, wie z. B. dem Kino, entspricht auch Djibril Diop Mambetys Auffassung, jenes Filmemachers aus dem Senegal, der den Film als revolutionäres Vehikel begreift. Aber was wäre der afrikanische Film, fragt sich Signer, hätte man nicht Regisseure wie Idriss Ouadreogo oder die regionale Institution des FESPACO, die jährlich Preise für afrikanische Filmemacher vergibt. Dies bedeutet, dass der afrikanische Film seit der Unabhängigkeit präsenter geworden ist und versucht, selber als Vehikel realer oder fiktionaler Faktenin Afrika zu sein. So verspricht es auch der 1988 gedrehte Film Camp "Thiaroye" von Sembene Ousmane und Thierno Faty Sow, der kolonialgeschichtliche Geschehnisse in Afrika möglichst authentisch zu erzählen.
Gender in Fulani proverbs
(2018)
Presented paper deals with Fulani people of West Africa and with the influence of their way of life on their language. One part of the Fulani people lives nomadic pastoral live, meanwhile another part is sedentary, living in the towns. The authors of the paper pay their attention to the the gender of Fulani proverbs which reflects the way of life of Fulani people.
Until recently the Nigerian Nok Culture had primarily been known for its terracotta sculptures and the existence of iron metallurgy, providing some of the earliest evidence for artistic sculpting and iron working in sub-Saharan Africa. Research was resumed in 2005 to understand the Nok Culture phenomenon, employing a holistic approach in which the sculptures and iron metallurgy remain central, but which likewise covers other archaeological aspects including chronology, settlement patterns, economy, and the environment as key research themes. In the beginning of this endeavour the development of social complexity during the duration of the Nok Culture constituted a focal point. However, after nearly ten years of research and an abundance of new data the initial hypothesis can no longer be maintained. Rather than attributes of social complexity like signs of inequality, hierarchy, nucleation of settlement systems, communal and public monuments, or alternative African versions of complexity discussed in recent years, it has become apparent that the Nok Culture, no matter which concept is followed, developed complexity only in terms of ritual. Relevant information and arguments for the transition of the theoretical background are provided here.
Particularly in savannas, termites are ecosystem engineers and a keystone group in ecology. For the understanding of the savanna vegetation, mound building termites are of particular interest. Due to their special soil chemistry and physical structure, termite mounds often host other plants than the surrounding savanna. As our knowledge of the specific contribution of mound-building termites to overall savanna diversity and ecosystem dynamics doubtlessly is not complete, this paper summarises the state of the art in order to stimulate further research. According to the research interest of the authors, focus is laid on the West African savanna and on the genus Macrotermes.
Although there is an increasing need for data in ecological studies, many datasets are still lost or not sufficiently visible due to a lack of appropriate data archives. With the West African Data and Metadata Repository, we present a secure long-term archive for a data-poor region allowing detailed documentation by metadata following the EML standard and giving data holders the opportunity to define levels of data access and conditions of use. This article gives an overview of structure, functions and content. The repository is online at the URL http://westafricandata.senckenberg.de.
Edible wild plants are an important supplement to the diets and livelihoods of rural households in West Africa. Despite their role in improving diets, mitigating famine periods and generating income there is a lack of extensive information on their uses for broader areas. Based on ethnobotanical records, we investigated wild food plants on the national scale of Burkina Faso, to provide a comprehensive overview of all edible plants, their taxonomy, plant parts and preparations. Our study revealed a relatively high number of 354 edible wild species, representing 66 plant families, with Fabaceae and Poaceae being the most species rich. Almost one third of these species have two to four edible plant parts. The number of species with edible fruits ranked highest, followed by seeds, leaves, starchy underground storage organs and others. Overall, the results underline that wild plant species contribute considerably to nutrition and the database compiled in this study constitutes a good basis for further evaluations of the potential of edible plants in Burkina Faso.
Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) make a major contribution to the livelihoods and diets of rural households in the savanna ecosystems of West Africa. However, land use change and climatic variability might affect their availability in the future. Based on a survey among 227 households in Northern Benin, we investigated local substitution patterns for the seeds of the three socio-economically most important NTFP-species in the region, Vitellaria paradoxa, Adansonia digitata and Parkia biglobosa, being major sources for protein, fat, and micronutrients in local daily diets. Our study compared substitution patterns between, firstly, three income groups, to assess whether a households’ socio-economic status has an influence on the choice of surrogates (low cost vs. more costly options). Secondly, we compared substitution patterns between the five major ethnic groups in the study region (the Fulani, the Bariba, the Ditammarie, the Kabiyé and the Yom). The choice of substitutes differed significantly across income groups. However, the poorest households clearly show to be the most vulnerable: up to 30 % of the sampled households stated they would lack an adequate replacement for the NTFPs in question. Furthermore, ethnic affiliation showed to have a considerable impact on the preferred alternative products due to underlying cultural traditions of plant use. Subsequently, aiming at maintaining – and enhancing – the local supply of V. paradoxa, P. biglobosa and A. digitata in order to secure their contributions to local diets, local land use policy should have a particular focus on their ethnic-conditioned use and particularly the specific requirements of the poorest community members.
This paper summarizes current knowledge about West African pholcids. West Africa is here defined as the area south of 17°N and west of 5°E, including mainly the Upper Guinean subregion of the Guineo-Congolian center of endemism. This includes all of Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo and Benin. An annotated list of the 14 genera and 38 species recorded from this area is given, together with distribution maps and an identification key to genera. Five species are newly described: Anansus atewa sp. nov., Artema bunkpurugu sp. nov., Leptopholcus kintampo sp. nov., Spermophora akwamu sp. nov., and S. ziama sp. nov. The female of Quamtana kitahurira is newly described. Additional new records are given for 16 previously described species, including 33 new country records. Distribution patterns of West African pholcids are discussed, as well as possible explanations for relatively low West African pholcid species diversity as compared to Central and East Africa.
Holzkohlen aus archäologischen Grabungen im Sahel von Burkina Faso belegen die regionale Geschichte der Gehölzvegetation über die letzten 2000 Jahre. Der Bodenbau, den die sesshaft lebende Bevölkerung seit Beginn unserer Zeitrechnung intensiv betreibt, veränderte die Zusammensetzung der Gehölzvegetation vor allem auf den Dünen der Region. Im Vergleich mit der heutigen Vegetation lassen sich zudem klimatische Veränderungen nachweisen. Untersucht wurden über 9000 Fragmente aus sieben verschiedenen archäologischen Grabungen. Sechs Inventare stammen aus Siedlungshügeln. Bei einem Fundplatz handelt es sich um einen Hausgrundriss. Insgesamt wurden 37 Holzkohletypen erkannt und dokumentiert. Die untersuchten Inventare der Siedlungshügel zeigen, dass vor allem die Gehölzvegetation der Dünen und der Galeriewälder zur Brennholzentnahme genutzt wurde. Je nach Lage der Siedlung und dem Schwerpunkt der Wirtschaftsweise können verschiedene Taxa mit höheren Anteilen vertreten sein, möglicherweise zusätzlich verstärkt durch die anthropogene Auswahl von verfügbarem Brennholz. Im Vergleich der Holzkohleinventare lassen sich für die Eisenzeit regionale Entwicklungen erkennen. Die natürlichen Gehölzbestände auf den Dünen, unter anderem aus verschiedenen Akazienarten, wurden, zumindest in der Umgebung der Siedlungen, verdrängt. Stattdessen nahmen aufgrund der selektiven Förderung durch den Menschen die Anteile der Gehölze der Kulturbaumparks, Vitellaria paradoxa und Faidherbia albida zu. Die Landwechselwirtschaft förderte zudem Brachearten insbesondere aus der Familie der Combretaceae. In der späten Eisenzeit nahm Guiera senegalensis zu, die von starker Beweidung der Brachen profitiert. Der Unterwuchs der Galeriewälder an den mares und Wasserläufen wurde mit zunehmender Besiedlungsdauer in der Umgebung der einzelnen Fundplätze aufgelichtet, die Anteile von Combretum micranthum gehen in den Inventaren der einzelnen Siedlungsplätzen jeweils zurück. Klima und Vegetation waren während der Eisenzeit sudano-sahelisch. Auf feuchteres Klima verweisen Vitellaria paradoxa und Detarium microcarpum, die deutlich höhere Niederschläge benötigen, als sie die Region heute erhält. Der hohe Anteil von Taxa, die heute weiter südlich verbreitet sind, belegt zudem den sudanischen Aspekt der Gehölzvegetation. Der Vergleich der anthrakologischen mit den palynologischen und karpologischen Ergebnissen zeigt, dass die Gehölzvegetation sich unter zunehmend arideren Bedingungen in den letzen 2000 Jahren anthropozoogen stark verändert hat. Das Klima scheint aber während der Eisenzeit von 0-1500 AD vergleichsweise stabil gewesen zu sein. Erst danach haben die Niederschläge sich soweit verringert, dass in den letzten 500 Jahren einige sudanische Taxa aus der Region verschwanden, die noch während der Eisenzeit zur regionalen Flora gehört hatten, zum Beispiel Vitellaria paradoxa, Detarium microcarpum und Lannea sp. Der Vergleich der eisenzeitlichen Holzkohleflora mit der rezenten Dynamik der Vegetation und mit der Verbreitung einiger Arten um die Mitte des 20. Jahrhunderts zeigt, dass einige Taxa, wie Terminalia sp. möglicherweise erst in den letzten fünfzig Jahren aus der Region verschwunden sind.
In the last few years, a sharp increase in the number of descriptions of new species of West African cone snails, particularly from the Cabo Verde Archipelago, has taken place. In previous studies, we used mitogenome sequences for reconstructing robust phylogenies, which comprised in total 120 individuals representing the majority of species (69.7%) described from this biogeographical region (except Angolan endemics) and grouped into seven genera within the family Conidae. Here, we add another 12 individuals representing endemic species that were missing in the previous studies. We use the phylogenies to identify monophyletic groups and a genetic divergence threshold (0.2% uncorrected p distance) to determine the number of valid species. As a result, the number of valid West African cone species could be drastically reduced to at least 40%, indicating that some recent poor-quality descriptions loosely based on phenotypic characters prone to convergence such as the shape and color patterns of the shell have contributed substantially to taxonomic inflation. Several previously accepted species with a reduced geographical distribution now become phenotypic forms of the remaining valid species, which increase their distribution ranges. In contrast, several cryptic species are now uncovered and described. For instance, Africonus insulae sp. nov. and Kalloconus canariensis sp. nov. are hereby introduced as new species. A detailed systematic account with illustrations and relevant information is presented. Lectotypes are designated for Conus trochulus and Conus irregularis, and neotypes for Conus crotchii and Conus diminutus. According to our results, it is strongly recommended that any future introduction of new taxa names for cone snails from West Africa should be supported by molecular and/or anatomical rather than exclusively shell morphological data. The taxonomic decisions here taken have direct implications for conservation and will eventually require re-evaluation of the Red List risk status of an important number of species.