HAUSA CULTURE

                  

The Hausa tribe is one of the three prominent ethinic groups in Nigeria. It is also one of the largest tribes in
west Africa.
The Hausa people are found in various parts of west Africa. The Hausa tibe is diverse but culturally homogeneous people based primarily in the sahelian and Sudanian areas of northern Nigeria and south eastern Niger, with significant numbers also living in parts of Cameroon,Cote d`Ivoire,Chad,Togo,Ghana,and Sudan. The greatest population of the Hausas are found in North-Western Nigeria, an area commonly known as the "Hausaland",followed by the ones,residing in the adjoining Southern Niger. Most of the town and cities in Northern Nigeria are predominantly occupied by the Hausa people, since the stone age to the present age. These cities and town include Kano city,Kastina,Abuja,Bauchi,Birnin kebbi,Lafia,Makurdi,Sokoto,Suleja,Yola,Zaria,etc.
The Hausa people have very unique cultural practices, most of which have stood the test of time. Their cultural practices have been sustained over time as a result of the strong natie systems of governmentthey have unlike their counterparts who had to submit easily to the rulership of the colonial masters.

RELIGION.
Most of the Hausas practice the Islamic religion. The worship was brought down to them by traders from North Africa,Mali,Borno,and Guinea. In the course of trading, almost all of them embraced this religion and since then, they have been holding tenaciously to it. They hold their worship sessions in the mosque and have the practice of praying five times a day. They believe in the existence of the supreme God whom they call Allah. Followers of Islam are known as moslemes or muslims and their practices are based on the teachings of the prophet Mohammed. In Islam, its important to note that there is strict adherence to the custom of separating men from women in almost all situations.

LANGUAGE.
The Hausa language has more first-language speakers, than any other language in sub-saharan Africa. It has an estimated 35 million first-language speakers and 215 million second-language speakers.
The main Hausa-speaking area is Northern Nigeria and Niger. Hausa is also widely spoken in Northern Cameroon,Chad,Sudan among and Ivory coast among Fulani,Tuareg,Kanari,Gur, and other Afro-Asiatic speaking groups. Hausa is written in Arabic characters, and about one-fourth of Hausa words come from Arabic. Most Hausa speakers, regardless of ethnic-affilliation are muslims in non-Hausa areas.
There are also large Hausa communities in every major west African city in neighbourhoods called Zangos or Zongos, meaning "camel-caravan camp" in Hausa (denoting the trading origins of these communities).

DISHES.
The Hausa are very rich when it comes to food. The most common food that the Hausa people prepare consists of grains such as sorghum, millet, rice, or maize, which are ground into flour for a variety of different kinds of dishes. This food is popularly known as Tuwo in the Hausa language. Usually breakfast consists of cake made from ground beans and fried, known as kosai or made from wheat flour soacked for a day, fried and served with sugar, known as funkaso. Both of these cakes can be served with porridge and sugar known as kunu or koko. Lunch or dinner usually feature a heavy porridge with soup and stew known as tuwo da miya. The stew and soup are usually prepared with ground or chopped tomatoes, onions and a local pepper sauce called daddawa.
The most famous of all Hausa food is most likely suya, a spicy shish kebas like skewered meat which is a popular food item in various parts of Nigeria and enjoyed as a delicacy in much of west Africa.

DRESSING.
The Hausas are known for their elaborate dressing. They have a resrticted dress code related to their religious beliefs. The men are easily recogniized because of their elaborate dress which is a large flowing gown known as Babban riga and a robe called jalabia and juanni. Men also wear colourfu embriodered caps known as hulu.
The women  can be identified by wrappers called Zani, made with colourful cloth atampa, accompanied by a matching blouse, head tie and shawel.

MARRIAGE.
The Hausa traditional marriage is mostly based on Islamic rites, and not as time consuming or expensive as the Igbo and Yoruba traditional ceremonies. Early and polygamous marriage is very common and normal with the Hausa culture.
The process leading to marriage is slightly similar to other regions in Nigeria. In the Hausa culture of Nigeria, the typical practice is initiated when the family, close family friends of the groom(not necessarily including his parents) the to-be grooms guardian go to visit the family of the bride. Its all men affair and thats usually referred to as Na gani ni which literally means "I like what i see". The grooms family goes with a basket of a few things including fruits and kola nuts. This is for the acceptance or rejection by the brides father after which according to tradition it is permissible for the man and woman to see each other.
The man and woman communicates with one another, share likes and dislikes basically, if the girl feels comfortable with marrying the man, she gives her consent. She communicates with her parents who in turn activates the Gaisuwa meaning (greetings to their in-laws to-be). The gaisuwa is a formal form of approval from the family of the bride to the groom.

HAUSA BRIDE

Marriage is marked by bride price given by the grooms family to the bride, and a dowry for the bride provided by her family. After the gaisuwa the dowry bidding begins. They usually try to keep it as low as possible since they believe that a low dowry attracts more blessings. The payment of dowry is known as sadaki, after which the sarana follows, that is the act of fixing the wedding date. Then the wedding, called fatihah comes, followed by the reception known as walima. These two events are organised depending on the decision of the two families involved.