Fada N'gourma, also written Fada-Ngourma or Noungu, is a city and an important market town in eastern

Burkina Faso Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa, bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Ivory Coast to the southwest. It covers an area of 274,223 km2 (105,87 ...

, lying east of

Ouagadougou Ouagadougou or Wagadugu (, , , ) is the capital city of Burkina Faso, and the administrative, communications, cultural and economic centre of the nation. It is also the List of cities in Burkina Faso#Largest cities, country's largest city, wi ...

, in the Gourmantché area. It is the capital of the Est Region and

Gourma Province Gourma is one of the 45 provinces of Burkina Faso, in Est Region. The capital of Gourma is Fada N’Gourma. The population of Gourma was 437,242 in 2019. Departments Gourma is divided into 6 departments: See also *Regions of Burkina Faso *Pr ...

, and is also the seat of the king of the Gurma and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Fada N'Gourma. It is primarily known for its

blanket A blanket is a swath of soft textile, cloth large enough either to cover or to enfold most of the user's body and thick enough to keep the body warm by trapping radiant body heat that otherwise would be lost through Thermal conduction, condu ...

and

carpet A carpet is a textile floor covering typically consisting of an upper layer of Pile (textile), pile attached to a backing. The pile was traditionally made from wool, but since the 20th century synthetic fiber, synthetic fibres such as polyprop ...

manufacturing as well as

honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several species of bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of pl ...

production.

Etymology

In Hausa, ''Fada N'gourma'' means "residence of the chief of Gourma", or "place where one pays the tax".Historical Dictionary of Burkina Faso, by Lawrence Rupley, Lamissa Bangali, Boureima Diamitani, 2013, Third edition, Scarecrow Press, Inc.

History

The town was founded by Diaba Lompo as Bingo at the beginning of the 13th century. In the 16th and 17th centuries it was the capital of a Gourmantché state that frequently warred with the

Songhai Empire The Songhai Empire was a state located in the western part of the Sahel during the 15th and 16th centuries. At its peak, it was one of the largest African empires in history. The state is known by its historiographical name, derived from its lar ...

. The French arrived at the town in January 1895 and the local Gurma ruler accepted French protection.

Climate

Fada N'gourma has a

tropical savanna climate Tropical savanna climate or tropical wet and dry climate is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification categories ''Aw'' (for a dry "winter") and ''As'' (for a dry "summer"). The driest month has less than ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

''Aw'').

Health

The city features both state and private health facilities. The city is the site of a Regional Hospital Center, the reference hospital for the East region.

International relations

Organizations

The following international organizations have offices in Fada N'gourma: * Action Against Hunger * Helvetas Swiss Intercooperation * Initiative: Eau * Îles de Paix

Sister cities

Fada N'Gourma is twinned with: *

Épernay Épernay () is a Communes of France, commune in the Marne (department), Marne Departments of France, department of northern France, 130 km north-east of Paris on the mainline railway to Strasbourg. The town sits on the left bank of the Marne ...

, France *

Great Barrington, Massachusetts Great Barrington is a New England town, town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 7,172 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Bot ...

, United States *

Tamale A tamale, in Spanish language, Spanish , is a traditional Mesoamerican dish made of ''masa'', a dough made from nixtamalization, nixtamalized maize, corn, which is steaming, steamed in a corn husk or Banana leaf, banana leaves. The wrapping ...

, Ghana

Gallery

File:Fada N Gourma 2.JPG, Main street in Fada N'gourma File:Bienenstoecke Fada Bild1067.jpg, Beehives in Fada N'gourma File:Markt Fada NGourma MS 10181.jpg, Market in Fada N'gourma

Notes

References

{{Coord, 12, 03, N, 0, 22, E, display=title Populated places in the Est Region (Burkina Faso)