essay
The Fon of Dahomey
African worlds • London • Published In 1954 • Pages: 210-234
By: Mercier, P. (Paul).
AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
This article provides broad summary of Dahomey culture and history. It is an essay in interpretation, focusing on key features of Dahomey life in the pre-colonial period as described in historical accounts. The main theme concerns uncovering important links between Dahomey concepts of power (as reflected in organization of the monarchial system) and dynamics of traditional religion (as revealed in the multiplication of gods, cults, and myths).
- SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
- Cultural identity and pride
- Historical reconstruction
- Form and rules of government
- General character of religion
- Spirits and gods
- Chief executive
- Territorial hierarchy
- Congregations
- Cult of the dead
- Prayers and sacrifices
- Animism
- Organized ceremonial
- Taxation and public income
- Acculturation and culture contact
- cultureCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
- Fon
- HRAF PubDateThe date HRAF published the document
- 2016
- RegionThe area the document pertains to
- Africa
- Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
- Western Africa
- Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
- essay
- Evaluation
- Creator TypeThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
- Anthropologist
- Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
- 4: Excellent Secondary Data
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
- Teferi Abate Adem ; 2014
- Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
- not specified
- Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
- 1708-1950
- Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
- Benin (Dahomey)
- NotesAdditional notes
- By P. Mercier
- Includes bibliographical references
- LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
- a 54005828
- LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
- Fon (African people)