Baïla is a village in the rural community of Suelle, Sindian,

Bignona Bignona is a town with commune status located in the Ziguinchor Region of Senegal ( Casamance). It briefly appears in the 2004 Spanish movie '' Binta and the Great Idea.'' Its population in 2023 was 28,642. Notable people * Landing Savané, p ...

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History

Boukout, a Jola

rite of passage A rite of passage is a ceremony or ritual of the passage which occurs when an individual leaves one group to enter another. It involves a significant change of social status, status in society. In cultural anthropology the term is the Anglicisa ...

, took place in Baïla for the first time in 1971, but it was 36 years before it was held there again. On August 4, 2007, thousands of people gathered for the occasion. In 2002, the French commune of Houdan committed to providing Baïla with humanitarian aid, both economically and culturally.

Administration

Baïla is one of 16 villages in Suelle.

Geography

The village is located approximately from

and from

on the N5 road that leads to

Banjul Banjul (, (US) and ), officially the City of Banjul, is the capital city of The Gambia. It is the centre of the eponymous administrative division which is home to an estimated 400,000 residents, making it The Gambia's largest and most densely ...

The Gambia The Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. Geographically, The Gambia is the List of African countries by area, smallest country in continental Africa; it is surrounded by Senegal on all sides except for ...

. The nearest towns are Tilaye, Belaye, Diakoye, Diatang, Kaparan, and Diegoun.

Population

According to PEPAM (Water and Sanitation Program for the Millennium), there are 1287 people and 179 households in Baïla. Most of the population is Jola, specifically Jola Fogny, a subgroup within the ethnicity. Pierre Goudiaby Atepa, an architect, was born in Baïla.

Flora

In Baïla, there is a kapok tree—a common name for fibre-producing trees of the

Malvaceae Malvaceae (), or the mallows, is a family of flowering plants estimated to contain 244 genera with 4225 known species. Well-known members of economic importance include Theobroma cacao, cacao, Cola (plant), cola, cotton, okra, Hibiscus sabdariffa, ...

family—considered sacred by the population, which is 14 centuries old.

External links

Maps, weather and airports for Baila

Baïla on the PEPAM website

Introduction to Baïla: A piece of history revisited by thousands of young people in Jola country
Populated places in the Bignona department Arrondissement of Sindian {{Bignona Department