Dahomey
Benin's prior name
Dahomey was a West African kingdom from the 17th to 19th centuries, located in present-day Benin.
Known for its powerful monarchy, military prowess, and female warrior regiment (the "Amazons"), Dahomey was a major participant in the Atlantic slave trade.
The name persisted when France colonized the region and remained after independence in 1960, until the country was renamed Benin in 1975.
Legendary all-woman fighters
- dynastySuccessive family rulers
- palacesGrand royal residences
- throneCeremonial chair for sovereigns
- royalOf monarchs
monarchy · succession · conquest · expansion · tribute · courtyards · regalia · military
Western European republic
- protectorateGuarded semi-autonomous territory
- conquestDefeating and seizing control
- resistanceCapacity to withstand force
- annexationAbsorbing territory into jurisdiction
subjugation · missionaries · assimilation · occupation · treaties · pacification · exploitation
State with elected leaders
- independenceFreedom from external control
- YorubaNigerian people and language
- FrancophoneFrench language user
- nationalismDevotion to one's country
rename · 1975 · postcolonial
Amazons
Legendary all-woman fighters
royal · monarchy · succession · conquest · expansion · tribute · courtyards · regalia · military · sovereignty
France
Western European republic
- protectorateGuarded semi-autonomous territory
- conquestDefeating and seizing control
- resistanceCapacity to withstand force
annexation · subjugation · missionaries · assimilation · occupation · treaties · pacification · exploitation
republic
State with elected leaders
- independenceFreedom from external control
- YorubaNigerian people and language
- FrancophoneFrench language user
nationalism · rename · 1975 · postcolonial
ancestors
Those from whom one descends
- divinationForetelling through mystical means
- ritualsCeremonial repeated practices
- pantheonAll gods of a religion
ceremonies · shrines · priests · offerings · spirits · Legba · mythology · sacred · oracle · possession