Continent: Africa
Country: Nigeria
Region: Lagos State, Epe Local Government Area
Language Macrofamily: Niger-Congo
Contrasts Encoded:
Depth of Encoding:
Content (Other):
Specialization: Males from Ayan lineage only
Productivity: Can convey all messages
Summary:
Bata is a large, double-headed, hourglass-shaped drum that serves as a musical surrogate for the Yoruba. It can only be played by trained male drummers from the Ayan lineage and can only be understood by those who have received training. It is typically used in festivals or religious contexts and conveys proverbs, praises, songs, and other expressions. It is still frequently used during special occasions in Yoruba culture.
Bibliography:
Beier, U. (1954). The Talking Drums of the Yoruba. In T. A. Sebeok & J. Umiker-Sebeok (Eds.), Speech Surrogates: Drum and Whistle Systems. 1976. (pp. 690–692). De Gruyter Mouton. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110804423-004
Laoye, H. H. (1954). Yoruba Drums. In T. A. Sebeok & J. Umiker-Sebeok (Eds.), Speech Surrogates: Drum and Whistle Systems. 1976. (pp. 705–707). De Gruyter Mouton. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110804423-006
Villepastour, A. (2010). Ancient text messages of the Yorùbá bàtá drum: Cracking the code. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.
Current Status: Still practiced
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