The Bellowing Bulls Shall Seek Each Other Out: Dagbaŋ Praise Names as Epithets, Narratives and History

Abdulai Salifu Asuro and Ibra

Abstract

Oral narratives feature prominently in the daily activities of African societies. These often foreground future happenings. Epic song collapses time, linking past, present, and future events. Our main interest is the historical,linguistic and poetic aspects of the praise song of Naa Abdulai Yaakuba (Naɣbiɛɣu), who reigned from 1849 to 1876.This work is both ethnopoetic and ethnographic in nature, combining an inquiry into the genre of royal praise-naming,the nuances of language that goes to the making of this lore. Using ethnographic and secondary sources the paper ties history, song and performance to the daily lives of the Dagbamba of Ghana. An epic battle gives birth to this performance.