Damba festival

Damba festival Festival de Damba Damba chuɣu
Diasporan Chiefs seated during World Damba Festival, in Germany.
Genre	festivals
Frequency	Annually
Venue	Ghana
Country	Ghana
Participants	1,000,000
Activity	Song Rehearsals (Yila Bohambu) Smock Show (Binchera Damba) Shinkaafa Gahimbu Somo Damba Naa Damba Farewell Procession (Belkulsi)
Leader	Yaa Naa

The Damba festival is the largest festival in Ghana, celebrated by the peoples of the Northern, Savanna, North East, Upper East and Upper West Regions of Ghana.^[1] In recent times, Damba has become a multinational festival, attracting visitors from all over the world. The festival is annually celebrated in Germany, USA, and UK.^[2][3][4]

The name Damba is in Dagbani. Other variations include Damma in Mampruli and Jingbenti in Waali. The festival is celebrated in the month of Damba, the third month of Dagomba calendar. The purpose of the festival is to celebrate the rich heritage, history and chieftaincy of Dagbon and related kingdoms. Dagbon is the birthplace of centralized kingdoms, chieftaincy and royalty in both Ghana and Burkina Faso. The month of Damba also corresponds to the third month of the Islamic calendar, Rabia al-Awwal. Damba was first celebrated to mark the birth and naming of Muhammad, but the purpose of celebration has largely changed to glorify heritage and chieftaincy. Damba has also been adopted by the Gonjas of the Savanna region. The Gonjas have specific months in which they celebrate the festival. The festival is categorized into three sessions; the Somo Damba, the Naa Damba (King) and the Belkulsi (farewell procession).