West African Village Life 3

The Compound
African villages may be very small, as few as fifty or seventy-five people, perhaps just a couple of large families. But large or small, villages are usually formed of a number of compounds in close proximity. A compound is most likely composed of the dwellings of the members of an extended family, grouped around a central open space where cooking and socializing take place. Other small buildings will be for food storage.



Note the variety of structures and roofing styles. Although this technology uses only natural matierials, their use is sophisticated and complex. Let us look at the variety of roofs found in these compounds photographed in Plateau State, Nigeria.



The house on the left is an Aten house. On the right is a Fula dwelling. The Fula house in this picture actually uses two kinds of thatching, grass and palm. The walls of both houses are made of mud.



Note the careful knitting of the seam at the top of the thatch on this roof.



Food storage huts may have roof top entrances so they can be filled from the top.



One of many thatching materials, this grass has been gathered and bound into sheaves for future use as roofing.



Photos on this page were taken by the author in Plateau State, Nigeria, during 1986.

Click here to read West African Village Life 4