Nangbani is a village in the Bassar Prefecture in the Kara Region of north-western Togo.Maplandia world gazetteer
Etymology and settlement history A local oral interpretation derives the name “Nangbani” from the Ncam expression “N’nan ugbani”, understood as “the fields cultivated by the Tem (Kotokoli)”. In Ncam ethnographic terminology, the Tem language is referred to as “nnam”. This interpretation of the full place name, however, has not yet been established in a published linguistic study and is therefore best regarded as a local traditional etymology. The historical relationship between Nangbani and Tem ironworkers is documented independently of this etymology. Anthropologist Stéphan Dugast records a group of blacksmiths originating from the neighbouring Kotokoli country who settled in the Nangbani quarter around the time of the German arrival. Before settling there, the group reported living at Dawdê, about thirty kilometres from Bassar, on the trade route used by Hausa merchants travelling toward Salaga.Stéphan Dugast, “La pince et le soufflet : deux techniques de forge traditionnelles au Nord-Togo”, ORSTOM, pp. 30–31.
Ncam metallurgical terminology also preserves the word “ucaa” for “blacksmith”. A local interpretation consequently associates the name Tchadoumpou (Caadumpu), one of Nangbani’s old Nataka settlements, with the blacksmithing tradition of the locality. The linguistic meaning of “ucaa” is documented, although the complete derivation of the place name Tchadoumpou from this term has not yet been established in published linguistic literature.Gbandi Adouna, “Les procédés de création du lexique lithique”, 2023, p. 437.
Historical studies nevertheless identify Nangbani, particularly the settlements of Tchadoumpou and Ouboudoumpou, among the old population centres of the Bassar country. Nangbani is also listed, together with Kibédipou and Dikpakparé, among the localities associated with the Nataka clan, which traditionally holds the Bassar chieftaincy.
Anthropologist Stéphan Dugast also documents Nataka groups of Tchadoumpou and Ouboudoumpou in Nangbani. His study notes that some of these groups practised iron smelting and acquired metallurgical techniques through contacts with neighbouring Bisiib communities.
Contemporary institutional sources continue to identify Nangbani-Tchadoumpou as part of the wider Nataka community of Bassar, alongside Kibédipou and several other quarters traditionally associated with the clan.
Etymology
Political significance Nangbani, particularly the Nataka communities of Tchadoumpou and Obridumpou (Ouboudoumpou), occupies an important ritual position in the traditional political organization of Bassar. Historical and anthropological studies identify Nangbani-Tchadoumpou and Ouboudoumpou among the old settlements of the Bassar country and among the communities associated with the chiefly Nataka clan.
Philip L. de Barros, drawing on the ethnographic research of Stéphan Dugast, states that Tchadoumpou and Obridumpou-Nangbani alternate in performing the installation of the Bassar chief. Tchadoumpou alone performs the ritual reenactment of the original capture of the chief, a ceremony associated with the historical reorganization of the Bassar chiefdom.
The Bassar chief is traditionally selected from the Nataka clan and exercises authority with the assistance of a council of elders. The installation rituals emphasize the relationship between the chief, the Nataka clan and the sacred landscape associated with Dikré.
Movements of Bassar-origin clans also contributed to the settlement of neighbouring regions. Historical and travel literature on Tchamba records the incorporation of several clans of Bassar origin into the population of the town and surrounding area. A local cultural history of Tchamba specifically identifies Abiwa as having been founded by Nata originating from Bassar.
Ethnolinguistic distinctions The Bassar of Togo, the Bassari of Senegal and Guinea, and the Bassa or Basaa of Cameroon have similar ethnonyms, but their languages belong to distinct branches of the Niger–Congo language family.
Bassar of Togo The Bassar of northern Togo speak Ncam (also spelled Ncàm, Ntcham or Bassar). The language is spoken mainly in Togo and neighbouring Ghana and is classified among the Gur languages. Linguistic descriptions identify it more specifically with the Gurma group.
The Bassar country is centred on the present-day town of Bassar and surrounding communities in northern Togo. Historical and anthropological studies describe its population as the product of long-term interaction between several clans and communities rather than as a single homogeneous migratory group.
Bassari of Senegal and Guinea The Bassari of southeastern Senegal and northern Guinea form a distinct West African ethnolinguistic group. They call themselves Bëliyan and refer to their language as Oniyan. Oniyan, also known as Basari or Bassari, belongs to the Tenda group of Atlantic languages.
The language is spoken principally in the border region between southeastern Senegal and northern Guinea, particularly around the Kédougou area and the northern approaches to the Fouta Djallon.
Bassa of Cameroon The Bassa or Basaa of Cameroon constitute another distinct ethnolinguistic population. Their language, Basaá, is a Bantu language, conventionally classified as A43. It is spoken mainly in the Centre, Littoral and neighbouring areas of southern Cameroon.
Linguistic descriptions identify Basaá as a Narrow Bantu language whose grammatical structure includes the noun-class and verbal systems characteristic of Bantu languages.
Comparison Although the names Bassar, Bassari and Bassa are similar, the three populations are treated separately in linguistic scholarship: Ncam is classified among the Gur languages, Oniyan among the Atlantic languages, and Basaá among the Bantu languages.
Ironwork Nangbani is one of the principal surviving centres of the ancient Bassar iron industry. The M’Pampou 1 and M’Pampou 2 sites contain an exceptional concentration of furnaces, with nearly one hundred structures still wholly or partially preserved. The sites were extensively studied by American archaeologist Philip de Barros, who also initiated conservation measures at Nangbani in the early 2000s.UNESCO World Heritage Centre, “Sites de la métallurgie ancienne du fer de Bassar”, Tentative List, Ref. 6603.Pakou Harena et al., “Patrimoine à venir : l’archéologie comme vecteur du développement durable (le cas de la région Bassar, Nord-Togo)”, Journal de la Recherche Scientifique de l’Université de Lomé, Special Issue, 2019, 21(2), pp. 93–123.
The wider Bassar metallurgical tradition is considerably older. Archaeological research led by Philip de Barros and collaborators has identified Early Iron Age production at sites such as BAS-252 (Dekpassanware) and BAS-273, with the earliest known phases of iron production in the Bassar region dating to approximately the fifth century BCE.Philip L. de Barros, Louise Iles, Lesley D. Frame and David Killick, “The Early Iron Metallurgy of Bassar, Togo: furnaces, metallurgical remains and iron objects”, Azania: Archaeological Research in Africa, 55(1), 2020, pp. 3–43.
Oral traditions concerning distant origins Among the Bassar of Togo, the Nataka clan occupies an important place in the traditional political organization. Historical and anthropological studies describe it as the chiefly clan of Bassar. Philip de Barros notes that the Nataka clan claims an origin in the sacred forest of Dikri (Dikré), northwest of Bassar, while other studies emphasize the composite character of the clan and the diversity of the groups incorporated into it.
The Bassari of Senegal and Guinea are historically documented in the mountainous border region between the two countries, particularly in the foothills of the Fouta Djallon.
The Bassa of Cameroon form a distinct Central African population, historically documented mainly in the central and southern parts of Cameroon.
Natakamani was a ruler of the ancient Kingdom of Kush during the Meroitic period, associated with monuments in the region of Meroë and Gebel Barkal.
The Nataka clan of Bassar The Nataka are the chiefly clan traditionally associated with the political organization of Bassar. Historical and anthropological studies identify Nataka lineages at Kibédipou, Dikpakparé and Nangbani. The clan is described as internally composite, having incorporated groups of different historical origins.
Philip L. de Barros describes the Nataka as the largest and politically most important clan of Bassar. According to traditions recorded in the anthropological literature, the clan claims an origin in the sacred forest of Dikri (also written Dikre), about five kilometres north-west of Bassar.
De Barros reports that oral traditions collected at Nangbani-Tchadoumpou, Obridumpu, Kibédipou, Wadandé-Kuwadimpu and Bukpassiba state that their ancestors left Dikri under the leadership of Bangaraku. These movements took place in a period marked by slave raiding and insecurity in the region. Kibédipou subsequently became associated with the residence of the Bassar chief, while Nangbani and several other settlements formed part of the new settlement pattern around Bassar.
The same studies document the ritual importance of Tchadoumpou and Obridumpu in Nangbani. The two groups traditionally alternate in aspects of the installation of the Bassar chief, while Tchadoumpou performs a ritual recalling the original acquisition of chiefly authority.
Nataka groups from Tchadoumpou and Ouboudoumpou are also documented in studies of iron production in Nangbani. Stéphan Dugast, citing earlier research by Bruno Martinelli, notes that these Nataka groups learned iron-smelting techniques from neighbouring Bisiib metallurgists.
The continuing existence of the Nataka collectivity is also documented by the Togolese Press Agency, which lists among it the communities of Kébédipou, Nangbani-Tchadoumpou, Tchassidoumpou, Kouwadoumpou, Kitangbaou, Oussakaré, Wadandé and Kakoundi.
Tradition concerning Natakamani Natakamani was a ruler of the ancient Kingdom of Kush during the Meroitic period, around the first century CE. His reign is attested by inscriptions and monuments in present-day Sudan, including sites associated with the Meroitic kingdom.
Gebel Barkal and the surrounding archaeological sites formed part of the Napatan and later Meroitic cultural landscape of the Kingdom of Kush.
Customary land tenure and territorial traditions Historical studies describe the Bassar country as an area occupied at an early period by several clans and lineages. Among the settlements identified as ancient are Dikpakparé, Bikpassiba, Kankoundi, Kibédipou, Nangbani (Tchadoumpou and Ouboudoumpou), Langondi, Tabalé and Bidjomambé.
The neighbouring Tem country was subsequently shaped by several waves of migration. Historical research records the arrival of the Mola from the Gulmu region and their settlement at Tabalo, in the Malfakassa area. According to the traditions collected by researchers, Tem groups were already present in the area when the Mola arrived. The Mola later dispersed from Tabalo toward the surrounding plains and participated in the foundation of several political communities. More recent historical research likewise describes the Mola as migrants from the Gulmu who settled at Tabalo and became linguistically integrated into the Tem population.
Other clans associated with the formation of Tem political communities also had links with the Bassar country. Roger Adjeoda identifies the Nintchè, Sando and Tyéda among the clans involved in the creation of the federations of Kemini, Kolina-Bo and Bulohu. Other historical studies identify the Nintchè as a group of hunters and record movements of clans from the Bassar area into the Tem country.