Dakarkari people also known as Lena are one of the ethnics group in

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

with approximate population of 136, 000. They are mainly found in

Zuru Zuru is a Local Government Area in Kebbi State, Nigeria. Its headquarters is in the town of Zuru. It is also the Headquarters of Zuru Emirate. The Emirate comprises four local government areas, namely: Wasagu/Danko, Fakai, Sakaba and Zuru. It ha ...

Donko-Wasagu, and

Sakaba Sakaba is a Local Government Area in Kebbi State, Nigeria. Its headquarters are in the town of Dirindaji. It has an area of 1,260 km and a population of 89,937 at the 2006 census. The postal code A postal code (also known locally in va ...

Local Government Areas of

Kebbi State Kebbi state ( ha, Jihar Kebbi; Fulfulde: Leydi Kebbi 𞤤𞤫𞤴𞤣𞤭 𞤳𞤫𞤦𞥆𞤭) is a state in the northwestern Nigeria, Kebbi state is bordered east and north of Sokoto and Zamfara states, and to the south by Niger state while ...

(formally part of

Sokoto state Sokoto State (Hausa: Jihar Sokoto Fula: Leydi Sokoto 𞤤𞤫𞤴𞤣𞤭 𞤧𞤮𞥅𞤳𞤮𞥅𞤼𞤮𞥅) is one of the 36 states of Nigeria, located in the extreme northwest of the country on the national border with the Niger, Republic o ...

) and some other local governments in

Niger state Niger is a state in the North Central region of Nigeria and the largest state in the country. Niger state has three political zones, zone A,B and C. The state's capital is at Minna. Other major cities are Bida, Kontagora and Suleja. It was fo ...

Rijau Rijau is a Local Government Areas of Nigeria, Local Government Area in Niger State, Nigeria. Its headquarters are in the town of Rijau. It has an area of 3,196 km and a population of 176,053 at the 2006 census. The postal code of the area is ...

and Mariga. They are divided into different sub-groups which are Bangawa kafawa, Kelawa, Lilawa. Today, they can be found in Kebu, Roma, Dogo, Isgogo, Dabai, Rikoto, Peni, Zuru, Manga, Senchi, Ushe, Tadurga, Diri, Ribah, Conoko and Rade.

Origin

The Dakarkari people originated from Kebbi kingdom up till the eighteenth century. The Dakarkaris were the foot soldiers of the kingdom from which their name was derived; daakaaree which means infantryman in

Hausa language Hausa (; /; Ajami: ) is a Chadic language spoken by the Hausa people in the northern half of Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon, Benin and Togo, and the southern half of Niger, Chad and Sudan, with significant minorities in Ivory Coast. Hausa is a member ...

. However, after the fall of Kebbi Kingdom they moved further south where they could farm undisturbed.

Marriage tradition

The marriage tradition of the Dakarkari people is a distinct tradition in the Northern part of the country. No other tribe has a similar marriage tradition. In the tradition, a man must be initiated into Golmo at U'hola annual festival before he can marry. Whoever is not initiated is not considered as a responsible person and cannot be given wife.{{Cite web , date=2017-02-05 , title=Zuru: Where every male must farm for 7 years before marriage , url=https://dailytrust.com/zuru-where-every-male-must-farm-for-7-years-before-marriage , access-date=2022-06-03 , website=Daily Trust , language=en Also, it is expected of future the son in law to work on the farm of his father-in-law to be for a period of seven years with reference to what

Moses Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu (Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pro ...

did in the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

Military recognition

The Dakarkari people are mainly found in the Nigeria Military Force. This is associated with their courage and braveness that have been learnt during the initiation in golmo culture.

Festival

The U'hola Festival is an annual festival that is used to commemorate the favour of their God on their harvest. It is also used to celebrate the graduation of suitors (Yadato) who have served their respective father in-laws in (Golmo).

References

Kebbi State Niger State Ethnic groups in Nigeria