Lamba people
The Lama are an ethnic group in Benin, Togo and Ghana, which also Lamba, Lima or Namba (or similar writing and language variants) are called. They are part of the indigenous ( autochthonous ), so-called " paläonigritischen " original inhabitants of the northern and central Togo and neighboring Ghana and Benin territories.
The Lama are related culturally to the Kabre ( Kabiye ) that colonize north-east of its core area, the region around Lama - Kara.
Geographical distribution
In Togo, a population of about 182,000 Lama, whose core settlement area lies primarily in the prefectures Kande and Doufelgou. A large part of the remaining Togolese Lama lives in the prefectures Sotouboua, Ogou, and Haho.
In Benin, about 82,000 Lama who live mainly in the province Atakora in various towns of the sub-prefecture Boukombe and in the Donga Province in the subprefectures Djougou and Bassila live.
In Ghana, approximately 2,200 Lama live in an area that the Togolese city Bassari (9 ° 16 ' N, 0 ° 47' O9.26072777777780.78931388888889 ) begins about 100 km south-west, extending towards Yendi to Tamale and further back and to about south-east of Tamale extends.
Social structure
The Lama have put about 60 to 65% of the population in the historic Kingdom Kotokoli and had here in colonial times the natives Clan Status ( clans aborigènes ), they also possess today. Within the previous Kotokoli Territory the Lama are organized in at least seven different clans, including the Koli, Kozi, Bogom, dewars, Baro, and Kobu Uruma belong. Probably the Akima, these include, and sometimes the Lambu and Sando be mitgenannt at this point. A clan at the Lama defines itself as exogamous patrilineal Maximallineage in genealogical sense.
Outside the borders of the former Kotokoli can be found north of Lama - Kara in the Losso of Binkoudjiba a strain of the llama, which is formed by the local representatives of the clans Koli, Nayur and Nafale.
Furthermore, one finds in the territory of the former kingdom Bassari with the Kisitikpiu or Bisibi a group of lamas who had once fled from Sansanne mango as a result of the murder of a pregnant woman and in connection therewith, subsequent slaughter. You are in the territory of the historic Kingdom Bassari with the population of working Tyambe - Bassari.
In Kabou (9 ° 27 'N, 0 ° 49' O9.4553250.81839444444444 ) whose population is otherwise expected to loading Tapumbe - Bassari, representatives of the Lama clan Koli, Nadju, Bisibi and Usiboli find strong in more or less mixing with foreign family associations.
While there are immigrant foreign groups which provide for the Kotokoli and in Bassari country the political rule since at least the 18th century, is the religious rule, provided it complies with the Erdkult in combination, in the lama - settlement areas completely in the hands the lama, as they are the ones who see themselves as the true owner of the ground on which they had already settled before the other groups in the 17th century or later immigrated here. On the religious level exists in the next Kotokoli and Bassari country, as elsewhere in West Africa, a pronounced Clantotemismus.