Loron initiation

Loron children between the ages of 7 and 14 are taken to the Black Volta river in Burkina Faso to be initiated into the tribe.

Over the years we have become aware of many of the activities that take place, but as they are supposed to remain secret, and some of the things they do are quite personal and inappropriate to blog about, we do not feel free to elaborate on them very much.

It is a very frightening time for the children. If a child dies during the initiation, his parents are not allowed to mourn but must pretend that the child never existed. When the children return to their village they are dressed in shells and feather headdress, and are considered to be now fully human, entitled to play a full part in the tribe.