Larabanga ( ar, لارابانجا) is a village in

West Gonja district West Gonja Municipal Assembly is one of the seven districts in Savannah Region, Ghana. Originally created as an ordinary district assembly on 23 December 1988 when it was known as West Gonja District, until the southern part of the district was ...

, a

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

in northwestern Northern Region of

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

. It is known for its whitewashed adobe

Sahelian The Sahel (; ar, ساحل ' , "coast, shore") is a region in North Africa. It is defined as the ecoclimatic and biogeographic realm of transition between the Sahara to the north and the Sudanian savanna to the south. Having a hot semi-arid cli ...

mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...

, said to date from 1421, and which, having been built at the height of the

trans-Saharan trade Trans-Saharan trade requires travel across the Sahara between sub-Saharan Africa and North Africa. While existing from prehistoric times, the peak of trade extended from the 8th century until the early 17th century. The Sahara once had a very d ...

, is reputed to be Ghana's oldest

and houses a copy of the

Qur'an The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , sing. ...

almost as old.West Gonja District
The village is also known for its Mystic Stone, for its patterned vernacular architecture, and as the entrance to the Mole National Park.

Legend of the Mystic Stone

During British rule, there was a road that was laid near the Larabanga Mosque. A stone was removed during the process to make way for the road. The next day, the stone was found again on the same place it was displaced from. The stone was again removed and the same thing happened the next day. Later, the officials decided to build the road around the stone and it became known as the Mystic Stone. Mystic Stone near Larabanga Mosque Ghana

Mystic Stone near Larabanga Mosque Ghana

External links and sources

Touring Ghana - Northern Region

geocities.com: Larabanga website
Populated places in the Northern Region (Ghana) {{NorthernRegionGH-geo-stub