Nordiska Afrikainstitutet. Uppsala, Sweden. 2001. 110 p.
Many thanks to Dr. Bernhard Helander at The Institute of Cultural Anthropology, Uppsala University' Sweden, for his sharp and excellent critique of an earlier version of the text to this book. The author also expresses her gratitude to Dr. Diouldé Laya, CELHTO, Niamey, and Dr. Mamoudou Badjika Djingui from the University of N'gaoundéré, Cameroon, for correcting the transcription of Fulfulde words. I am grateful to Dr. Jean Boutrais, ORSTOM-MAA in Paris, and to the Head of the Publication Department at Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, Mr. Karl-Eric Ericson, for their valuable comments on an earlier version. Warm thanks to Mrs. Adiam Kubrom at Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, for artistic photo layout, and to Mrs. Solveig Hauser, Sonja Johansson and Boel Näslund for patient text layout. Thanks to Wolfgang Zellner from Helsinki University for help with the maps. Also thanks to Mrs. Elaine Almén and Mr. Peter Colenbrander, who corrected the English text.
The author is grateful to I.R.S.H. (Institut de Recherche en Sciences Humaines) at the University of Niamey, Niger, and its successive directors: Dr. Diouldé Laya, Dr. Djibo Hamani'Dr. Boubé Gado, Dr. Sidikou Harouna, and Dr. Maïkorema Zakari, for supporting my research on Manga, Ful6e and Woɗaaɓe. My colleagues in sociology at I.R.S.H., Drs. Inoussa Ousseini, Michel Keïta and Marthe Diarra and my teacher in social anthropology in Denmark, Dr. Klaus Ferdinand, have all helped my research on nomads in Niger. Thanks to Dr. Marguerite Dupire in Paris for sharing her knowledge of the Wodaabe with me and for letting me use the wonderful Photo 47, and to Kristín Loftsdóttir, Iceland, for lending me Photo 69. The Préfet's and Sous-Préfet's and many other authorities in Maïné-Soroa, Diffa and N'Guigmi, Niger Republic, have been supportive during all the years, and I owe thern many thanks.
But most of all I thank the Woɗaaɓe people of Niger, Nigeria and Chad, who during 32 years helped and inspired me to write this book, especially the Chief Laamiɗo Bello of the Suudu Suka'el, Siiganko'en subgroup, and my family of 16 persons in the house of Gorjo ɓii Rima:
for their big hearts and generosity towards this Danish woman and her sons. Also thanks to:
for hospitality and friendship over many years.
I am grateful to Dr. hon. causa Eugenio Barba of I.S.T.A. (International School of Theatre Anthropology) and actress Roberta Carreri of Odin Teatret in Holstebro, Denmark, for inspiring me in my cross-cultural studies of theatre and performance in human society. To my sons Jakob and Simon Bovin I owe many thanks for often joining me in my fieldwork (despite malaria, thirst and heat) in the bush of Niger, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, and on the bottom of “Lake” Chad, between 1974 and 1989, when they were from 2 to 16 years old.
For financial support I thank Statens Humanistiske Forskningsråd (The State Research Council for the Humanities) in Denmark and DANIDAs Forskningsråd RUF (The Council for Development Research), Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Nordic Africa Institute in Uppsala, Sweden, for generously supporting my research in Niger, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon and Chad.
Uppsala, October 2000
For Gorjo ɓii Rima,
his children and grandchildren and
great-grandchildren etc., of the Suudu
Suka'el clan, Siiganko'en subclan, and
for Jakob and Simon who shared life in
the bush with me and learned
“munyal”, patience.
