Secret society of the Kôrêdugaw, the rite of wisdom in Mali

Overview

The secret society of the Kôrêdugaw is a rite of wisdom central to the cultural identity of the Bambara, Malinké, Senufo and Samogo peoples of Mali. Initiates dress in ragged coats adorned with red bean necklaces and a large quantity of miscellaneous items. They provoke laughter with behaviour characterized by gluttony, caustic humour and wit, but also possess great intelligence and wisdom. The society educates, trains and prepares children to cope with life and to deal with social problems. Its members also act as social mediators and play key roles in festivals and many other occasions. The Kôrêdugaw are also herbalists and traditional therapists whose knowledge of plants is used to cure illnesses, ward off bad luck, treat childless women and impart blessings. They symbolize generosity, tolerance, inoffensiveness and mastery of knowledge, embodying the rules of conduct that they...

This record is imported from the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage public dataset as discovery metadata. ARED has not independently verified community authority, access protocols or local naming beyond the source record.

Community and Authority

Communities: Mali
Languages: Not specified in UNESCO dataset
Cultural territories: Mali
Countries: Mali

How the System Works

Music, Performance and Oral Literature Language, Story and Memory Health, Healing and Care Ceremony, Spirituality and Cosmology Ways of Knowing and Knowledge Transmission

Sources and Evidence

Imported from UNESCO DataHub dataset ich001. Field-level provenance is retained in the record metadata.

UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage ListsDataset

Open original source record

Field-Level Provenance

title: UNESCO DataHub field title_en
preferredTitle: UNESCO DataHub field title_fr
summary: UNESCO DataHub field description_en
type: UNESCO DataHub fields type_of_element_en and type_acronym
countries: UNESCO DataHub field countries, ISO codes resolved with ISO-3166 regional metadata
categories: ARED category inference from UNESCO concepts_primary_names, concepts_secondary_names and title
relationships: UNESCO concepts_primary_names, concepts_secondary_names, type fields and World Heritage links
sourceUrl: UNESCO DataHub field http_url_en
rights: UNESCO DataHub dataset metadata license and license_url

Original Source Metadata

uuidfcd41664-1c77-416f-a947-a5714206ac6d

ich_public_ref520

inscription_year2011

title_enSecret society of the Kôrêdugaw, the rite of wisdom in Mali

title_frLa société secrète des Kôrêdugaw, rite de sagesse du Mali

type_of_element_enUrgent Safeguarding List

type_acronymUSL

countriesML

http_url_enhttps://ich.unesco.org/en/USL/00520

concepts_primary_namesInitiation rites, Spiritual knowledge, Wisdom

concepts_secondary_namesCostumes, Dance, Death, Humour (literary), Intelligence, Jewelry, Life cycle, Moral education, Multiethnic societies, Religious practice, Ritual items, Satire, Secret society, Traditional medicine, Vocal music

main_image_urlhttps://ich.unesco.org/img/photo/thumb/03764-LRG.jpg

main_image_caption_enNot supplied

main_image_copyright2010 DNPC

main_image_authorEquipe de recherche et de documentation de la DNPC

videoshttps://www.youtube-nocookie.com/v/83cfnzauzEI

images[object Object], [object Object], [object Object]

Why This Record Is Credible

This public record is connected to 1 source and has been labelled Source Supported. ARED separates evidence sources from cultural authority so users can see both provenance and review limits.

Cultural Access

Use this as public discovery metadata only. It does not replace community authority or local access protocols.

Relationships

Initiation rites Spiritual knowledge Wisdom Costumes Dance Death Humour (literary)Intelligence Jewelry Life cycle Moral education UNESCO urgent safeguarding list

Review and Corrections

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