Aribinda

Aribinda lies on the dry Sahelian plain of northern Burkina Faso, among seasonal grasses, scattered trees and scarce water. Its compact settlement controlled fields and pasture rather than a river crossing or fortified height.

Local traditions connect it to Songhay migrants from Tendirma on the Niger, later joined by Kurumba from Yatenga and Mossi from Boulsa. The Mossi ultimately held the chiefship, while the mixed population was generally called Kurumba. The hill of Wasa remains part of its origin traditions.

Millet and sorghum grew on the surrounding sandy and clay soils, and cattle supplied manure and wealth. From the fourteenth through eighteenth centuries Aribinda remained a small cultivated territory. Homes clustered near wells while herders maintained seasonal camps beyond the fields, keeping the settled area small and dependent on exchange.