The Dogon are a people group living along the Cliff of Bandiagara in Mali. They are known for their colourful, masked dances and ceremonies, monumental architecture and a complex way of life.
It is a community in which polygamy is a central element. Families are extended and usually consist of one man, his wives, their children, and if alive, his mother and father.
The word “ginu” stands for “the house and its immediate surroundings” (sleeping huts, granaries and a stable). These all stand in a circle around a courtyard.
The personal houses have flat roofs, unlike the granaries with their pointed roofs. The Dogon has four different granaries: two for men and two for women.
The female granaries have a door in the middle and the different compartments are small. In these granaries they keep their personal belongings, the baobab leaves and beans they use daily to prepare their sauces. No man will and should ever enter these barns.
However, men own one tall granary, consisting of two floors with two small doors for storing millet and sorghum. The second male granary is more special: it has a small door at the bottom that is just big enough to enter and consists of two tiers. This is where the old men sleep, this gives them status and respect from their fellows.
