HISTORY OF BIANOU FESTIVAL THAT TAKES PLACE ANNUALLY IN AGADEZ, NIGER REPUBLIC
By Rabiu Muhammad (Abu Hidaya)
+2348065025820
Traditionally, the people of Agadez, Niger Republic celebrate a festival called Bianou festival every year. They invite people from all over the world, including international journalist, organizations and agencies that have concern with culture and traditions of the people.
WHAT IS BIANOU FESTIVAL?
Bianou is a festival of Azbinawa tribe from Niger Republic. The festival commence from 17 of Zhul-hijja (12th month of the Islamic calendar) to Muharram (The first month of the Islamic calendar). But the two most important days of the festival are the 9th and 10th days of the month of Muharram. The festival was initiated by their forefathers.
HISTORY OF BIANOU FESTIVAL
Bianou festival started from time immemorial. Frankly, no one can specifically tell the exact year the festival began in Agadez. The genesis behind the festival is to imitate or dramatize how the people of Madina received Prophet Muhammad (SAW) with joy and welcoming songs when he migrated from Mecca to Madina. Other people do believe that it's just a traditional ceremony done for merriment, cultural preservation and display to show out how brave the youth of Agadez are.
Other source said the actual meaning of the word 'Bianou' is to dance throughout the night till morning brakes. This is a brief history of Bianou festival.
MARECEN ADO (The Evening of adornment)
Marecen Ado is a day by which girls and women come out in the evening, well adorned with beautiful and expensive clothe. Before the evening of the day, different forms of sumptuous foods made from wheat are cooked in the various houses. Some people preserve the meat of the head and the backbone of the ram they slaughter during the Eid-el-Kabir festival for the special food cooked during Marecen Ado.
At the evening, the boys and Tambari (the leader of the festival) will also come out. Drumming, singing and dancing commence. They will be dancing at the same time moving to one hill called 'The Hill of Bianou'. This festival comes a day before the day of Bianou Festival. And it's in the same evening that men go to the forest to spend the whole night there.
KWANAN DAJI (SPENDING NIGHT IN THE FOREST)
As mentioned earlier, Bianou Festival commence on 17th of the 12th month of the Islamic Calendar, but the 2 major days of the festival are the 9 and 10th days of the first month of the Islamic Calendar. Also the major events are 3 in number.
1. Maraicen Ado (The Evening of Adornment)
2. The day of Bianou Festival
3. The day of finishing the festival/ the visit of the hill of blacksmiths.
According to their tradition, the men that desire to spend their night in the forest will go straight into the forest immediately after the evening of adornment. Spending night in the forest is part of the preparation of the great Bianou Festival. The name of the forest is Alasnis Forest which is five kilometers away from the city of Agadez. The forest contains a lot of palm trees and some huts of the people that live there.
ACTIVITIES PERFORM IN THE FOREST
The people that spend the night in the forest are categorized into two i.e. people of the east and west. When you enter into the forest you will firstly come across the people of the west before the east. The activities perform in the forest include cooking, which is sponsored by the committee that organizes the festival. Some other people go along with their foods from home. They light a fire, sit around it and chitchat throughout the night. Nowadays some other people will remain in the town, put on lights and engage in merriment before they retire to their beds in the mid of the night.
In the early morning, the men that spend their night in the forest will take their breakfast and go straight back to their towns. The people of the west are the first to set back home before those of the east. The genesis of spending the night in the forest is to remember the arrival of the Holy Prophet into Madina. The people from the forest will wear some traditional clothes and set into the town beating tambourines and singing. The people of the town will come out to welcome them holding some branches of palm tree exactly like how Prophet Muhammad was welcomed when he arrive Madina from Mecca.
THE DAY OF BIANOU FESTIVAL
This is the second and the most important day among the days of the festival. It is the day everybody wears his best clothes and cooks a very sumptuous food to express his joy. The people move out in mass, holding branches of palm trees to welcome the men that spend their night in the forest. It is in the same day that people move round the city. Before reaching the town, some religious clerics stop them to perform some prayers. After the prayers, the people will enter into the town beating tambourines and singing. They will be visiting the houses of some influential persons where they receive gift of foods and drinks.
After going round the town, they also visit the palace of the emir (Sultan) of Agadez to pay him homage. The Sultan will address them before they move into the town to enjoy merriment. Cultural display, singing and dancing are all enjoyed during the merriment. The merriment ends at the evening of the day.
THE FINAL DAY/DAY OF VISITING THE HILL OF THE BLACKSMITHS
This is the last day of the festival. It is the third day among the three consecutive days of the Bianou festival. Some people also called it the day of completing the year. It's not all the people that participate in the activities of the day. The youth are the ones that participate much in the day. It involves visiting the hill of the blacksmiths. The genesis behind the visit is that the blacksmiths of Agadez once laid a complaint to the Sultan of Agadez that people are not visiting them to celebrate the Bianou with them because they are at the eastern outskirt of the town. As the result of their complaint, the Sultan directed the people to always visit them and perform the ceremony with them. But before going to the hill of the blacksmiths, the people will firstly go round the town for display. People also come out to praise the men that will embark on the mission. After the display, the youth will there after go straight to the hills of the blacksmiths for the ceremony. That is the final day of the festival. That is also the same day people of the east and the west perform Randayya (dancing and fashion competition).
Agadez is the largest region in Niger Republic. It has a land area of 634,209 kilometers which is equivalent to 52% of the total land area of the country. The popular Tenere and Bilma desert are all part of the area. Ayir area which has many hills is also part of Agadez. Majority of the people of Agadez belong to Azbinawa tribe. The other minority tribes living there are Tubawa, Fulani and Hausa. The major business of the people of the area was initially a trade in dates and salt. Their economy was improved in the year of 1990 due to tourism and mining of uranium in one town called Arlit. These increased the income of the country by 20%.
Few years back, they suffered the problems of rebellion and drought which led the economy of the region into recession. But the economy is now coming back into normalcy due to the increase in tourism and trade in the region. The hospitality of the people and their attractive sites for tourism always attract people from different countries to visit the region.
There are many historical places like Agadez central mosque, Tafadak, Tchirro, Arlit and Bagazam rock which are all wonderful.
(C) Rabi'u Muhammad Abu Hidaya
2018
HISTORY OF BIANOU FESTIVAL IN AGADEZ, NIGER REPUBLIC
