Dalaba
Encyclopedia
Dalaba is a town
and sub-prefecture
in the Dalaba Prefecture
in the Mamou Region
of Guinea
.
It was once home to a sanatorium
, and to Miriam Makeba
, who last visited the town in 1988, when she came to see her niece, N'Tombi Makeba, who lived in Miriam's house (a round building dating to the French colonial period, but using the same form as traditional homes in the region) for a number of years in the 1980s. The town is also known for its local strawberries
.
The town of Dalaba is the highest (in altitude) town in Guinea. It is approximately 200 km by air from the capital Conakry
and about 280km by road. The inhabitants of Dalaba are mostly Fula
.
The market day in Dalaba is Sunday.
The women of Dalaba dye cotton damask fabric a rich-hued indigo
in detailed tie-dyed patterns.
species in the vicinity of Dalaba in the early 1900s. That area was known as the Chevalier arboretum, but is now called the Barry Gassimou garden.
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
and sub-prefecture
Sub-prefectures of Guinea
The Communes of Guinea or sub prefectures known in French as sous-prefectures are the third-level administrative divisions in Guinea...
in the Dalaba Prefecture
Dalaba Prefecture
Dalaba is a prefecture located in the Mamou Region of Guinea. The capital is Dalaba. The prefecture covers an area of 4,400 km.² and has an estimated population of 155,000.-Sub-prefectures:The prefecture is divided administratively into sub-prefectures:...
in the Mamou Region
Mamou Region
The Mamou Region is located in central Guinea. It is bordered by the country of Sierra Leone and the Guinean regions of Faranah, Labé, and Kindia.Mamou Region's prefectures include:*Dalaba Prefecture*Mamou Prefecture*Pita Prefecture...
of Guinea
Guinea
Guinea , officially the Republic of Guinea , is a country in West Africa. Formerly known as French Guinea , it is today sometimes called Guinea-Conakry to distinguish it from its neighbour Guinea-Bissau. Guinea is divided into eight administrative regions and subdivided into thirty-three prefectures...
.
It was once home to a sanatorium
Sanatorium
A sanatorium is a medical facility for long-term illness, most typically associated with treatment of tuberculosis before antibiotics...
, and to Miriam Makeba
Miriam Makeba
Miriam Makeba , nicknamed Mama Africa, was a Grammy Award winning South African singer and civil rights activist....
, who last visited the town in 1988, when she came to see her niece, N'Tombi Makeba, who lived in Miriam's house (a round building dating to the French colonial period, but using the same form as traditional homes in the region) for a number of years in the 1980s. The town is also known for its local strawberries
Strawberry
Fragaria is a genus of flowering plants in the rose family, Rosaceae, commonly known as strawberries for their edible fruits. Although it is commonly thought that strawberries get their name from straw being used as a mulch in cultivating the plants, the etymology of the word is uncertain. There...
.
The town of Dalaba is the highest (in altitude) town in Guinea. It is approximately 200 km by air from the capital Conakry
Conakry
Conakry is the capital and largest city of Guinea. Conakry is a port city on the Atlantic Ocean and serves as the economic, financial and cultural centre of Guinea with a 2009 population of 1,548,500...
and about 280km by road. The inhabitants of Dalaba are mostly Fula
Fula people
Fula people or Fulani or Fulbe are an ethnic group spread over many countries, predominantly in West Africa, but found also in Central Africa and Sudanese North Africa...
.
The market day in Dalaba is Sunday.
The women of Dalaba dye cotton damask fabric a rich-hued indigo
Indigo
Indigo is a color named after the purple dye derived from the plant Indigofera tinctoria and related species. The color is placed on the electromagnetic spectrum between about 420 and 450 nm in wavelength, placing it between blue and violet...
in detailed tie-dyed patterns.
Climate
Like the rest of the Futa Jalon region of which it is part, Dalaba's climate is moderated by the altitude. It was a popular retreat area for French during the colonial period largely for that reason. It is said locally that there was snowfall in Dalaba once in the 1930s.History
The French botanist Auguste Chevalier experimented with the planting of certain pinePine
Pines are trees in the genus Pinus ,in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Etymology:...
species in the vicinity of Dalaba in the early 1900s. That area was known as the Chevalier arboretum, but is now called the Barry Gassimou garden.