ZARMA PEOPLE OF NIGER

 

Short History

The Zarma tribe belongs to a larger West African people group known as the Songhai. The two groups treat each other as cousins and frequently intermarry. Some of the Zarma live in the southwestern part of Niger, while others occupy northern Nigeria along the Niger River Valley. Their language, Zarma, is a Songhai dialect from the Nilo-Saharan linguistic family.

Today, the Zarma people are the second largest ethnic group in Niger. They are known as honest and hard-working by the neighboring people. The Zarma living in Niger inhabit an area that consists mainly of sandy plateaus and thin soils. It is a savanna region where temperatures are hot for much of the year. This climatic condition is a sharp contrast to the fertile, lush river valleys occupied by many of the Zarma in Nigeria. The Zarma would have come from Macina and Egypt. Their host land is Zarmaganda. They adopted the language of Songhai, then descended further south in search of fertile land. This adoption is how they now constitute the vast majority of the districts of Niamey, Boboye, and Dosso. They also constitute significant groupings in the arrondissements of Filingué, Tillabéry, Say, and Gaya, where they even extend over the north of Benin. In Niger, buffalo, elephants, antelopes, crocodiles, and hippopotamuses can be found throughout the area.

What Are Their Lives Like?

The Zarma were great warriors in the pre-colonial era, but today they are mostly farmers. They quickly adapt to new agricultural techniques and practice small farming with their staple crop being millet. Cowpeas, sorrel, and nuts are grown in large quantities, such as guavas, mangoes, bananas, and citrus fruits. Vegetables such as tomatoes, carrots, lettuce, okra, and potatoes are also cultivated on smaller plots or vegetable gardens. Since individual farms are worked only by family members, many children are desired. Their civilization is marked by a tolerant Islamism that knew how to respect certain animist practices attached to a very ancient background of spirituality inspired by the cults of the land and the ancestors. The traditional habitat consists of round huts often made entirely of straw. The head of the household distributes fields to each of the family members for cultivation. In addition to farming, the Zarma raises chickens and some cattle, although the cattle are usually only slaughtered and eaten during religious ceremonies and festivals.

The windi (household) is the basic social unit among the Zarma, combining reproduction, consumption, and production within itself. A typical village house is either round with mud walls or is rectangular with walls made of sun-dried mud bricks. Most houses have straw-thatched roofs. The oldest man is the head of the house. When a man has more than one wife, each wife has a separate dwelling for her and her children.

Zarma children are timid. A shyness expression is expected when they are having conversations with elders, and they tend to look down when called because of respect, and the children do not speak while the older ones are speaking. By the age of six, children are expected to know the difference between right and wrong. They begin doing light work in preparation for their future role as adults. Boys’ responsibilities include attending to the farm animals. The girls help their mothers care for the younger children, pound millet, and sell food in the village.

Some of the Zarma have become skilled merchants, frequently traveling to distant markets along the Guinea coast. In those regions, the word Zarma has become synonymous with “cloth trader.” Others have become skilled craftsmen, such as potters, weavers, or basket-makers. Others are (Yammayze) after the rainy season they go to Cote d ‘İvoire, Ghana Nigeria, Benin to look for money. The women are known for making colorful mats and covers from palm leaves