Yennenga was a legendary princess, considered the mother of the
Mossi people of
Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the ...
.
She was a famous warrior precious for her father,
Naa Gbewaa Na Gbewa (also known as Nedega or Kulu Gbagha) is, traditionally, the founder of the Kingdom of Dagbon, in what is now northern Ghana
Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the ...
or Nedega, the founder of the kingdom of
Dagbon
The Kingdom of Dagbon is one of the oldest and most organised traditional kingdoms in Ghana founded by the Dagomba people (Dagbamba) in the 11th century. During its rise, it comprised, at various points, the Northern, Upper West, Upper East and ...
, now in present day Ghana. But the princess aspired to another destiny and decided to leave the kingdom. On the run with her horse, she meets a young hunter, Rialé with whom she had a child called
Ouedraogo
Ouédraogo (also spelled Wedraogo or Ouidiraogo) was the son of Yennenga and progenitor of the Mossi Kingdoms. He founded the kingdom of Tenkodogo. His three sons were Rawa, Diaba Lompo Diaba Lompo was a 13th-century ruler, and the founder of th ...
. Ouedraogo is a famous last name in Burkina Faso and means "male horse" in honor to the horse which leads the princess to Rialé. Yennenga or her son Ouedraogo are considered the founder of the
Mossi Kingdoms
The Mossi Kingdoms, sometimes referred to as the Mossi Empire, were a group of powerful kingdoms in modern-day Burkina Faso which dominated the region of the upper Volta river for hundreds of years. The largest Mossi kingdoms was that of Ouagad ...
. There are different versions about the escape of the princess.
Biography
Yennenga was a princess of Burkina Faso, who lived over 900 years ago, the daughter of the king Nedega and the queen Napoko. Nedega was an early 12th-century king of the
Dagbon
The Kingdom of Dagbon is one of the oldest and most organised traditional kingdoms in Ghana founded by the Dagomba people (Dagbamba) in the 11th century. During its rise, it comprised, at various points, the Northern, Upper West, Upper East and ...
Kingdom in what is now northern
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 ...
.
[
] Her father raised her to be a skilled hunter and fighter. She was beautiful (her name, Yennenga, means "the slim" referring to her beauty) and became a cultural icon, a woman with a strong character and an independent mind and beloved princess who from the age of 14, fought in battle for her father against the neighbouring
Malinké
The Mandinka or Malinke are a West African ethnic group primarily found in southern Mali, the Gambia and eastern Guinea. Numbering about 11 million, they are the largest subgroup of the Mandé peoples and one of the largest ethnic-linguistic g ...
s.
Skilled with
javelin
A javelin is a light spear designed primarily to be thrown, historically as a ranged weapon, but today predominantly for sport. The javelin is almost always thrown by hand, unlike the sling, bow, and crossbow, which launch projectiles with th ...
s,
spear
A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with fire hardened spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fasten ...
s and
bows, she was an excellent horsewoman and commanded her own
battalion
A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...
.
Yennenga was such an important fighter that when she reached a marriageable age, her father refused to choose a husband for her or allow her to marry.
[
] To express her unhappiness to her father, Yennenga planted a field of wheat. When the crop grew, she let it rot. She explained to her father that was how she felt, being unable to marry.
Nedega failed to be moved by this gesture and locked his daughter up.
One of the king's horsemen helped Yennenga, disguised as a man, escape on her stallion.
Attacked by Malinkés, her companion was killed, and Yennenga was left alone.
She continued to ride north. One night, when she was exhausted from crossing a river, Yennenga's stallion took her into a forest.
She met and befriended a solitary
elephant
Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae an ...
hunter called Riale.
When he saw through Yennenga's disguise, they fell in love.
Yennenga and Riale had a son they named
Ouedraogo
Ouédraogo (also spelled Wedraogo or Ouidiraogo) was the son of Yennenga and progenitor of the Mossi Kingdoms. He founded the kingdom of Tenkodogo. His three sons were Rawa, Diaba Lompo Diaba Lompo was a 13th-century ruler, and the founder of th ...
, which means "stallion" and is now a common name in Burkina Faso.
Ouedrago visited his grandfather King Nadega, who has been searching for Princess Yennenga over the years. On discovering his daughter was still alive, King Nadega arranged for a feast as well as sent delegates to retrieve his beloved daughter back home. Princess Yennenga together with Raile returned to the Dagomba kingdom with open arms from her father; who ensured that his grandson Ouedraogo received the best of trainings. He was also gifted with cavalry, cattle and other goods which was used to set up Mossi kingdom. Ouedraogo founded the
Mossi Kingdom.
Legacy
Yennenga is considered by the
Mossi to be the mother of their empire and many statues of her can be found in the capital city of Burkina Faso,
Ouagadougou
Ouagadougou ( , , ) is the capital and largest city of Burkina Faso and the administrative, communications, cultural, and economic centre of the nation. It is also the country's largest city, with a population of 2,415,266 in 2019. The city's n ...
.
A statue of a golden stallion, called the Étalon de Yennenga, is awarded as the first prize in the biennial
Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou
The Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou (Festival panafricain du cinéma et de la télévision de Ouagadougou or FESPACO) is a film festival in Burkina Faso, held biennially in Ouagadougou, where the organization is based. It ...
(FESPACO).
The
national football team is nicknamed "Les Étalons" ("the Stallions") in reference to Yennenga's stallion. Since 2017, a project of a new city is in progress near Ouagadougou and will be called Yennenga.
Literature and film
* ''La fille de la Volta''
* ''LOOFO''
[Thenortonbrothers.com - Feature film, 2014 "The cryptoanarchist faction NARODVOLYA of a small group of haphazard reactionaries, one of which is only known for her alias: Yennenga, a reference to the African princess. Contrary to her unpredictable outbursts and traumatizing torturous techniques, she and Loofo eventually develop feelings for each other."]
References
{{Reflist
12th-century births
12th-century deaths
12th-century women
African women in war
Burkinabé royalty
Burkinabé women
Ghanaian royalty
Mythological princesses
Women in 12th-century warfare
12th-century Burkinabé people