Religion

The religious make up of Cote d’Ivoire is predominately native religions, Christianity, and Islam. However, other religious groups are present in small numbers. Every statistic I saw for division of religious groups within Ivory Coast produced different numbers thus I have opted to omit any set statistics. Some feel that the statics are flawed in part to religious minorities being afraid to admit their religious affiliation to poll takers.

 Hinduism has seen a surge in Western Africa in recent years. According to Desh Kapoor, many Africans see Hinduism as consistent with the pagan beliefs, yet appealing due to foreign sense and brightness of the idols.  Another thing that many African converts to Hinduism have found appealing is that there have not been any significant missionary efforts. This means people have come to the religion on their own accord instead seeing outsiders imposing their belief system upon the region which is significant after the centuries of Islamic and Christian mission efforts in the region.

Other religions have significantly small presence such as Behia, Buddhism.

The African grown religions are predominately pagan in nature. As many villages and people groups are present are as many religious views are espoused within the local religions. This has led many westerners to call them local cults, however many view calling the local religions cults as derogatory. Significant within the local religions are animal sacrifices, sacred dances and music.

http://multiculturalbusiness.wikifoundry.com/page/Religion+and+Social+Beliefs+In+Ivory+Coast

About a thousand years ago Muslim invaders occupied much of this region of Africa. They left behind their religious practices which have been passed down to what is thought to be about a quarter of the population of Cote d’Ivoire. The followers of Islam tend to dress conservatively, practice the seven pillars like other Muslims from around the world. Some segments of Islamic followers with Cote d’Ivoire have experienced persecution at the hands of Christians and followers of local religions due to their being religious minorities.

http://www.placesonline.com/africa/ivory_coast/travel_guide.asp

Though churches were built for traders and foreign dignitaries during the period of European exploitation, it was not until the 1800s that Christian mission efforts true began within the region. While some regions were very enthusiastic to explore and embrace Christianity, many others view it with suspicion to this day due to the nations experiences with European traders. When my grandparents Ronald Gene and Bette Burrows served in Cote d’Ivoire as medical missionaries they were well liked by the locals. However, many would accept medical treatment with gratitude but not consider converting due to their tight local religions.

 

http://www.acn-aed-ca.org/category/ivory-coast/

Kapoor, Dash. Hinduism growing in Africa without Proselytizing. September 28, 2013. Accessed May 26, 2015

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/drishtikone/2013/09/hinduism-growing-in-africa-without-proselytizing/

Buddhanet’s World Buddest Directory. Ivory Coast. 1992 - 2015, Buddha Dharma Education Association Inc / BuddhaNet. Accessed May 25, 2015

http://www.buddhanet.info/wbd/country.php?country_id=31

Lewis, Martin. Religious Complexity in Ivory Coast. April 26, 2011. Accessed May 26, 2015

http://www.geocurrents.info/cultural-geography/religious-complexity-in-ivory-coast

Backes, Reinhard. Ivory Coast- Promoting Reconciliation.  Aid to the Churches in Need. October 6^th, 2014. Accessed May 26^th, 2015

http://www.acn-aed-ca.org/category/ivory-coast/

Money Money Money

The currency of a nation is always an interesting view into the countries culture and history.

The currency of Cote d'Ivore is the franc, naturally from the french.


As I spoke of in the last post the thousand franc note shows the carving of ceremonial masks. Also many of the various notes show women, symbol of strength in their community and fertility.


Another common symbol on the currency are African elephants- paying homage to their name. This thousand franc coin also pays homage to archaeological research and the modern elephants mammoth ancestor.


This collection is cool because it depicts on the right side wild life of the region and on the left both the ceremonial mask as well as key industries and infrastructures.

African Banknotes:West African CFA Francs Banknotes Set. December 16th 2013. Accessed May 25th 2015.
http://africanbanknotes.blogspot.com/2013/12/west-african-cfa-francs-banknotes-set.html

Funny Ivory Coast Currency
www.thechive.com

Ivory Coast 1000 Franc note
www.banknotes.com

Arts

My grandparents- Ronald Gene and Bette Burrows spent their last mission years of service in Cote d'Ivore. My grandmother spoke of going to villages where they were warmly welcomed and showered with gifts. Almost always they would break out in song in the dialect local to their region. When singing was done in French it often was to do with Christian themes.

 As we learned in the class lecture, the songs of West Africa often depict stories and the history of the region. Unfortunately my grandparents did not learn much of the 78 local dialects so they were unable to fully appreciate the music. My grandmother said of attending church in Ivory Coast that there was nothing like the music listen to their rich African voices sing praise to God.  In the villages they visited however the locals would bring out their large drums; they would dance for hours, and wears masks. 

Though my grandparents did display a mask on their mission display in churches, they chose to not display one in their house due to the pagan implications. The masks of Ivory Coast are considered their primary form of art. They are believed to depict spirit and the dance and song melded with wearing the mask is believed to communicate and influence the spirits. Many of these masks are ornate and breathe taking, carved from local timbers and made out of one piece of wood. One of the primary gifts they would bestow upon my grandfather was the title of Chief for the day. And an African chieftain must be gowned appropriately. My grandparents brought back about a dozen chieftain gowns which had been gifted to them from various villages and in appreciation for their medical work. The textiles are strong, beautiful, and many lovely details were all woven in by hand. Of the grandchildren I have the honor of display one of these on my bedroom wall, a constant reminder of my Grandparents legacy and the African people of Cote d’Ivore.

Bibliography

There are so many resources available on the art and culture of Ivory Coast, these are only a few I looked into but thought might be interesting to share.

On the masks of Ivory Coast

Our Africa. Arts and Crafts. Accessed May 19, 2015

http://www.our-africa.org/ivory-coast/arts-and-crafts

Lotus Masks. The Ivory Coast & West African masks. 2015. Accessed May 18, 2015

http://www.lotusmasks.com/category/african-ivory-coast-masks.html

Music

Our Africa. Local Music. Accessed May 19, 2015

http://www.our-africa.org/ivory-coast/local-music

Kakou, Gem. Louanges adorations HD "Louez l'Eternel". November 7, 2016. Accessed May 18, 2015

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mG9ovBsTcs&list=PL357A91D8E5D13E4E

LionofIsrael. Meiway - Awane - ivory coast bete music. March 10^th, 2013. Accessed May 20, 2015

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJFPlx246MY

General

Africa Guide. Ivory Coast (Cote d'Ivoire) People and Culture. 2015. Acessed May 19^th2015

http://www.africaguide.com/country/ivoryc/culture.htm

A lil more info

According to Google the coordinates for Yamoussoukro the capital city are 6.8167° N, 5.2833° W

And Abijan the largest city 5.3167° N, 4.0333° W

The current population is approximately 25 million people.

As my initial post noted, the lack of harbors affected the history by pulling trade through middle men in Ghana for much of the regions history.

Famous Wonders lists the Ivory Coasts as a good place to visit for its tropics and diversity in natural landscape from flat lands to mountainous regions.

The regions long history of political and religious conflict has left much of the nation in poverty and lacking basic medical and daily necessities. Though efforts have been made by Christian missionaries for many decades, these needs persist.

Coco beans which are used to produce our beloved chocolate were brought to the region from the West Indies. It is not now one of the nations top exports.

Ivory Coast History and Politics. Our Africa. Accessed May 14, 2015

http://www.our-africa.org/ivory-coast/history-politics

Shelly, Fred. Nation Shapes: The Story behind the World's Borders. Copyright 2013 ABC-CLIO, LLC

Ivory Coast. Famous Wonders. Copyright 2011. Accessed May 14, 2015

http://famouswonders.com/africa/ivory-coast/

Ivory Coast aka Cote d'Ivoire

The Republic of Cote d'Ivoire lies on the western coast of Africa. The nation is covered in jungle or African wet and is host to a rich history and culture. 

Not a huge nation geographically, it covers less than 125 thousands miles, yet this is more than substantial enough to support  major cities like Abijan which is the largest and Yamoussoukro the capital city. 

Cote d'Ivoire received its name of its profitable trade of ivory. Going back to before the Roman republic trade was established along the coast bringing ivory from African elephants, gold, spices, and slaves. The earliest known inhabitants are lost to history, only the trade from their land remembered. Records indicate that between 1000 to 1500 years ago Islamic traders established themselves in the region. Neighboring Ghana played a strong influence as inhabitants spread through the region in the 1600s.

Europeans did not reconnect closely with Cote d’Ivoire until the 1800s due to lack of good harbors. This trade led to some devastating consequences. Fred Shelly said in his book Nation Shapes: the Story Behind the Worlds Boarders that there was vast over hunting of elephants and slave trade first pulled resources through Ghana and eventually came directly into the territory as resources were drained. To this day despite great conservation efforts the African Elephant in this region of Africa has gone from plenteous to endangered. Many of the enslaved, if they survived the trip to the ports and ship ride made their way to rice, sugar, and cotton plantations in the New World.

The French succeeded in controlling the nation, giving its French name and most used language. Through politics the citizens became independent on August 7^th 1960. This was due a large to the service and sacrifice of over 40 thousand soldiers from Cote d’Ivoire who served in the French army during World War 2.

"Ivory Coast - PRE-EUROPEAN PERIOD." Ivory Coast - PRE-EUROPEAN PERIOD. Accessed May 15, 2015. http://countrystudies.us/ivory-coast/4.htm.

Ivory Coast History and Politics. Our Africa. Accessed May 14, 2015

http://www.our-africa.org/ivory-coast/history-politics

Shelly, Fred. Nation Shapes: The Story behind the World's Borders. Copyright 2013 ABC-CLIO, LLC

Côte d’Ivoire gains independence from France. South African History Online. Accessed May 14, 2015.

 http://www.sahistory.org.za/dated-event/c%C3%A3%C2%83%C3%A2%C2%B4te-d%C3%A3%C2%A2%C3%A2%C2%82%C2%AC%C3%A2%C2%84%C2%A2ivoire-gains-independence-france