DAMBA FESTIVAL
Chiefs and people from Ghana's Northern, Savanna, North East, and Upper West regions participate in the Damba celebration. Damba is a Dagbani name, Damma is a Mampruli name, and Jingbenti is a Waali name. The event takes place in the Dagomba lunar month of Damba, which corresponds to Rabia al-Awwal, the third month of the Islamic calendar. Damba is commemorated to commemorate the birth and name of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, although the celebration's actual substance is a glorification of the chieftaincy rather than specific Islamic symbolism. The Gonjas in the Savanna region also commemorate the Damba. The celebration is usually held during a certain month for the Gonjas. The Somo Damba, the Naa Damba, and the "Belkulsi" are the three sessions of the festival.
The festival is a time when most people buy new clothes and gifts since everyone wants to look their best. Females wear traditional hand woven cloth wrapped around their waists and expensive jewelry, while guys wear colorful, hand woven smocks suited for dancing.
It is also a time for eating, exchanging gifts, musket firing, and the display of warrior dance and battle feats, as well as replication of war motifs. It also acts as a training ground for the youth, with the goal of culminating in a show of bravery and magnificence.
While people celebrate chieftaincy, there is a show of riding skills. Indeed, through solemn processions, Chiefs present themselves to the people in gorgeous regalia. People flock to the festival grounds or palaces to shower praises, show respect, dance, entertain, express sympathies, love, accord respect, and show off their finery while listening to oral history and listening to praise singers sing to the paramount leaders or king and subjects.
Young people assemble at the chief's palace for dance rehearsals for the first 10 days or nights after the appearance of the new crescent (moon) of Damba month (on the Dagbon calendar). Every night, they are summoned to the palace by the sound of drums.
This is an opportunity for young people to learn from the elders how to perform their dance traditions. Women may gather during this occasion to sing praises to the chiefs for their exploits, enticement, and bravery while staying at the palace for ten nights.
The second section of the festival takes place on Damba's 11th day. The Muslim chiefs and their followers arrive to the palace early in the morning to witness the slaughter of a bull in accordance with Islamic ritual. Those in attendance create a circle around the bull and walk or jump three times over it. Verses from the Holy Quran are recited throughout this workout. The bull is slain, and the meat is divided to those who wish to feast.
The Chief is nowhere to be found in the morning. The ceremonies, however, are overseen by a state elder in charge of the Damba festival/festivities (Somo Damba) on this particular day. People congregate at the palace late in the afternoon in response to drumming. After a large throng has assembled, the Ya-Naa (Paramount Chief) is escorted out by his elders. As the musketeers fire their rifles and praise singers shout appellations, he goes slowly. The chief is seated atop a pile of animal skins draped in lovely oriented carpets.
Everyone must get permission from the chief to dance, and the chief pays the drummers and Gonje (stringed musical instrument) players. The audience donates or showers money and calculated accolades on the dancers and musicians once they are on the dance floor. The Chief, in fact, is the last to dance, and he exits in the same manner that he entered, putting the evening's activities to a close on the 11th day of Damba. The "Naa Damba" is commemorated on the 17th. It is the most important of the festival days, with dancing and, in particular, processions, such as the twilight procession.
In Naa Damba, everyone wants to make it grand, which includes feasting, homage, and excitement. It is also commemorated in the same way as the 11th, with rice harvesting in the morning and dancing in the evening. The goodbye Damba, also known as "Belkusi," falls on the 18th day. The highest-ranking sub chief will lead other low-ranking sectional chiefs and elders in thanking the sectional chiefs, building up to the climax, when the people, chiefs, and others gather at the "Yaa Naa" or village or town chief's palace.
They'll go from house to house greeting sectional heads and mobilizing people on matters like peace, development, fund raising, and resource mobilization, among other things. Politicians, non-governmental organizations, corporations, and affluent individuals are contacted for assistance.
Most chiefs and the wealthy of society ride their horses to the durbar grounds to display their culture, values, and heritage for adoration, tourism, education, and advocacy. While the farewell and thankfulness continue late into the night, they demonstrate horseback riding and dance skills. The chief of Yendi, "Balogu," is the last to be acknowledged, whereas "Zohi Naa" is the first.
As a result, the Damba at Yendi, the Ya-Naa's is exquisite. The historical and cultural legacy of the region is on exhibit for public education, tourism, and enjoyment. On the 11th and 17th days of celebrations at the Chief's palace, there is Night Damba. By 12 p.m., chiefs, elders, drummers, and the people have gathered and will dance till dawn. Women of Dagbon sing homage to the chiefs late at night, while drumming and dancing continue till dawn.
Damba festival is a thanksgiving celebration as well as a time for family to get together and interact. It can also be used to audit and evaluate the past as well as plan for the future. This is the time of year when Dagbamba who live outside of Dagbon return to Dagbon for the celebrations.