Yatenga is one of the

provinces of Burkina Faso The regions of Burkina Faso are divided into 45 administrative provinces. These 45 provinces are currently sub-divided into 351 departments or communes. List of provinces by region Here is a list of the provinces, with their capitals in par ...

, located in the Nord Region of the country. In modern Yatenga, the most prominent city is Ouahigouya (also known as Waiguya). This city served as the capital of the kingdom of Yatenga, a powerful kingdom out of the many

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 ...

, but its influence decreased in the century following French colonisation. The city is famed today for being home to the Naba's (traditional kings) compound and the

tomb A tomb ( grc-gre, τύμβος ''tumbos'') is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes. Placing a corpse into a tomb can be called ''immureme ...

of Naba Kango.

History

Kingdom of Yatenga

Yatenge was historically a powerful kingdom in the region. It was founded as a Mossi state along with

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 ...

, Tenkodogo, and Gourma by invaders from neighbouring

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 Tog ...

. Each of the Mossi states (including Yatenga) possessed a strong military that was able to repel attacks from hostile tribes and nations. When the European powers began their scramble for territory in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

in the 19th century,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

brokered a deal making Yatenga a French

protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over most of its in ...

. Following the annexation of the other Mossi states, the area was governed as Upper Volta until the nation's independence on August 5, 1960.

Education

In 2011 the province had 588 primary schools and 57 secondary schools.

Healthcare

In 2011 the province had 60 health and social promotion centres (''Centres de santé et de promotion sociale''), 20 doctors and 207 nurses.

Culture

The Yatenga region is renowned for its unique style of Mossi

mask A mask is an object normally worn on the face, typically for protection, disguise, performance, or entertainment and often they have been employed for rituals and rights. Masks have been used since antiquity for both ceremonial and pra ...

s. They are tall, vertically oriented, and concave-faced. They are considered to be some of the best examples of Mossi art available today. A prominent dance of the Yatenga region is the ''liwaga''.

Departments

Yatenga is divided into 13 departments: * Barga Department * Kaïn Department * Kalsaka Department * Koumbri Department * Kossouka Department * Namissiguima Department * Ouahigouya Department * Oula Department * Rambo Department * Séguénéga Department * Tangaye Department * Thiou Department * Zogoré Department

References

{{Coord, 13, 35, N, 2, 25, W, region:BF_type:adm1st, display=title Provinces of Burkina Faso