The Wodaabe people are a nomadic group who find their home in the sandy, windswept margins of the Sahara Desert in modern-day Niger. A subgroup of the Fulani, their tall, lean bodies, light skin and wavy hair contrast starkly to other African groups surrounding them. Culturally similar to the Fulani, they nevertheless retain important and interesting distinctions.

Location

The Wodaabe roam the semi-arid regions of southwestern Niger and northern Nigeria. They live in the "bush," where the landscape consists of gently rolling sand-swept plains, dusted with green in the rainy season and dotted by a few small trees. Despite the apparent isolation, people, camels, donkeys, sheep and goats appear out of nowhere! Visiting Wodaabe in the bush is not easy. The groups move about and are hard to find since their tracks disappear in the blowing sand. 

History

The Wodaabe are a subgroup of the large Fulani people and thus share much of the same history. Some Wodaabe prefer to be called the Bororo. The Fulani first emerged as a distinct people group in the eleventh century in the Sénégambia Valley. Over the next 400 years, they journeyed east and south of the Sahara, which had become an inhospitable desert. Bringing Islam with them, they culturally influenced and sometimes conquered existing West African societies, including the loosely knit Hausa states of northern Nigeria and southern Niger. The Fulani and their religion of Islam have had a powerful influence on West Africa for a millennium. 

Culture

Most Wodaabe are cattle herders and traders. Unlike some Fulani who have settled in towns over time, the Wodaabe remain nomadic, roaming between villages and wells in a constant search for water and grazing land. They trade dairy products as well as a uniquely woven and dyed fabric that brings a high price in markets across West Africa and around the world. 

Once you find the Wodaabe in the shifting sands, initial greetings can take at least five minutes (the Wodaabe are the masters of greetings!) followed by the tea ceremony on some mats in the shade. The sweet strong tea is greatly refreshing after a hot trip. A Wodaabe man carries his tea set and materials everywhere with him in a special leather pouch and may stop for tea at least three times a day.

Daily life for the Wodaabe is rich and simple. Their cows are their livelihood and pride, so they spend their days finding water and grazing for the herds. Home may be a grass hut (some have no shelter at all), surrounded by a fence of thorny branches. The cooking fire and the donkeys are tended by the women, and goats and sheep are tended by the children. The men tend the cows and camels.

Wodaabe Food: The Wodaabe diet, which varies somewhat during the year, reflects their nomadic lifestyle. During the rainy season, the Wodaabe mainly consume milk from their cows. (They would never drink the milk of their goats!) But during the long dry months of the year, millet is the main staple. Peanuts and spices are mixed into sauces to add flavor to the millet. The Wodaabe eat the meat of their sheep and goats, but only on special occasions when friends visit or during special ceremonies.

Wodaabe Arts: The Wodaabe are most famous for their beautiful dyed cloth which brings a high price in west African markets as well as internationally. The women perform intricate embroidery and also practice the art of carving ornate designs into calabash gourds.

Another artistic distinction of Wodaabe society is the elaborate dancing performed by the men during certain festivals, the most popular of which is the Geerewol. This competitive dancing between men of different lineages can last up to seven days and is a challenge of endurance as well as beauty. Beauty is demonstrated by the men’s costumes, make-up, body paintings and tattoos. It is important that the women see the whites of the dancer’s teeth and eyeballs, which means the men grimace and roll their eyes to accentuate their features.

Religion 

The family of the groom gives a bride price to the bride's family and then they are married. A bride stays with her husband until she becomes pregnant after which she returns to her mother's home, where she will remain for the next three to four years. She will deliver the baby at her mother's home and then she becomes a boofeydo which literally means, "someone who has committed an error." During the time of being a boofeydo, she is not permitted to see or speak with her husband. It is a cultural sin for him to express any interest in her or the newborn child. After two to three years, her mother will release her to visit her husband, but she still will not be permitted to live with him or bring the child with her until the woman's mother can purchase everything that is needed for her home. Once these items are purchased, she is allowed to go and live with her husband, taking her child with her.

SIM Involvement

SIM missionaries currently share the message of Jesus' love with the Wodaabe of Niger. It is SIM's desire to see Wodaabe men and women transformed by the power of God, growing in their relationship with Him, worshiping Him in a way appropriate to their culture, and sharing their new faith with others. 

SIM is looking for more workers to serve the Wodaabe people, to live among them and share the good news of Jesus' love. Pray that the Lord would raise up workers to accomplish the task of evangelism and to disciple new Wodaabe Christians.

Scripture Availability

SIM praises God for an ongoing, coordinated effort to translate the Bible into all of the Fulfulde dialects across West Africa, including the one for the Wodaabe. With so many dialects, it's difficult for all Fulani groups to read and understand the same Scripture translation. Pray for accurate translations to be completed soon in all the Fulfulde dialects.