The African kingdom of Dahomey ruled the
lands of modern day Benin in the 1600 and 1700s. The kingdom was known for
slave trading and its military culture. Their elite soldier corps were called Ahose
(Our Mothers in the local Fon
language) and consisted of only female fighters. Sir
Richard Burton nicknamed the Dahomey “Black Sparta.” In an average year the ruling kings were making $400,000 selling around 20,000 local peoples into the Portuguese
slave trade.
One
traditional custom of the Dahomey was to never venture into water. In the
1600’s the Tofinu people, trying to escape the rule of the empire, canoed miles
out on the local Lake of Nokoué and built stilt houses. The population has now grown to 40,000 and
is called Ganvié
village (the name meaning those who have
finally found peace). Mud has been stacked in the shallow lake to create
land. Today, the people make money from fish farming and tourism.
Fisherman building walls of grass to attract and trap fish.
The village has one Mosque and one Church
Children and the founder of Ganvié
