Dassa-Zoumé, also known as Igbo Idaasha or simply Dassa, is a city in central
Benin, on the
Cotonou
Cotonou (; fon, Kútɔ̀nú) is a city in Benin. Its official population count was 679,012 inhabitants in 2012; however, over two million people live in the larger urban area.
The urban area continues to expand, notably toward the west. The ci ...
-to-
Parakou railway and the main north-south highway. It is the capital of
Collines Department. The commune covers an area of , and as of 2013 had a population of 112,118.
Jama'at Islamique Ahmadiyya Benin built its central mosque (Mosquée Moubarqiue) here in 2010, which has a tall 18-meter minaret, just outside the city on the main road towards
Parakou. Jama'at Islamique Ahmadiyya Benin also built a French/English bilingual primary school here, called Ecole Primaire Publique Ahmadiyya.
The indigenous population of Dassa are the
Idaasha. They migrated from the
Egba Egba may refer to:
*Egba people, a clan of the Yoruba people living in western Nigeria
* EGBA, the European Gaming and Betting Association
*Egba United Government, a late 19th century political entity of the Egba people that was located in what is ...
subgroup of western
Yoruba
The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba consti ...
in present-day Nigeria to settle here. The city is known as a place of
pilgrimage; the
Virgin Mary is said to have appeared in the
Grotte Notre-Dame d'Arigbo, around which a
basilica has since been built containing several
shrines.
[Butler, Stuart (2019) ''Bradt Travel Guide - Benin'', pgs. 148-51] The city is also known for its surrounding
forests and hills, many of which contain
Voodoo shrines.
Dassa is also home to a Yoruba
constituent monarchy.
References
Communes of Benin
Populated places in the Collines Department
Communes in Yorubaland
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