A people of rice farmers and cattle keepers who governed themselves by households, elders and age-grades and refused chiefs; in the sixteenth century they held the country between the Cacheu and the Geba.
Placed here by back-projection; their position in 1200 is not known.
Who holds it
- Title
- Elders and age-grades; no chiefs
- Since
- Not known
- Confidence
- low
The Balanta were known to the Portuguese in the sixteenth century as a people without kings between the Cacheu and the Geba; nothing is recorded for 1200.
How things stand that morning
Not known; presumably self-governing.
Customs
Age-grade organisation; household and village autonomy; no chiefs (later evidence).
Assemblies
Councils of elders (later evidence).
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Later Portuguese and ethnographic evidence only.
On the map: Back-projected from the sixteenth century.
Sources and studies
- Researcher's knowledge of the Portuguese sources (Almada 1594) and Guinea-Bissau ethnography; no web source read for this record
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.