The Bimoba/Grouma ethnic group has a rich history.Wars of expansion and conquest affected us badly.We went through turbulent times than any ethnic group in Africa.This explains why we are scattered and today we are found in many countries such as Togo, Burkina Faso,Niger,Mali,Cote de'voir,Benin and Ghana.
History has it that we were originally from the Mali empire.We later became part of the Songhai empire after it gained independent from Mali in 1439.
Our forefathers took part in the struggle for Independence from the Mali empire.The new state beeing the Songhai empire became the state that dominated in the Western Sahel in the 15th and 16th century.It was one of the largest State in Africa with its capital at Gao.
The ethnic groups in the new state that is the Songhai state were Fulani,Madinka,Soninka,Buzu,Gourma(Moab).All this ethnic groups practice Islam and African traditional religion.The Songhai ethnic group later took advantage of their majority and elitism and established the Soni dynasty which was led by Soni Ali.Soni Ali ruled Songhai empire from 1465--1475.
And then fierce battle ensued among members of the rulling family which which led the defeat of Soni Ali's dynasty and the emergence of the Askiya dynasty in 1493.The Askiya dynasty ruled to 1591.
At that time, the Gourma (Moab) people occupied the Songhai Region with their capital called Djene which
literally means we are back in Gourma/Moar.
The region was vibrant with economic activities and as a result the capital Djene became Cosmopolitan in Songhai.This attracted the attention of the rulling family who waged serious war against the Grouma/Moab people for about 15 years.The Gourma's in Songhai were finally captured in 1475 and its people beeing the Gourma's/Moab scattered in the Western Sahel.
Since then, the Gourma's/ Moab people have not been able to group themselves together again.Further exacerbated the issue was the scramble of Africa where the colonial powers partitioned Africa and created artificial boundaries which further divide Gourma/Moab people the more.
That is why you can see a Gourma/Moba man in Burkina Faso calling himself Father"Fada" Gouma because they towed the Roman Catholic line.The White managed to changed them from Islam.Our Gourma/Moab brothers in Togo will say they are Moab, but the language itself is *Moar.
Whilst our Gourma/ Moab brothers in Ghana will say they are Bimoba that is *BRITISH MOBA (B--Moba)
They are our brothers in North East and Upper East Region today.
Each of us towed a different line of civilization imposed on us.We are the most fragmented and disintegrated ethnic group in West Africa.
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