rdfs:comment
| - Dabuda is a mancala game played by the Afar, a people living mainly in the Afar Region of Ethiopia as well as northern Djibouti and at a smaller scale in the southern point of Eritrea. Most Afars are nomadic pastoralists, raising goats, sheep, and cattle in the desert. Their total population is estimated to be over 5,000,000. The game is played by both men and boys. It was first described by Richard Pankhurst in 1971 as Dabuda I (long board) and Dabuda II (short board). Wealthy players used wooden boards, while children just dug holes in the ground.
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abstract
| - Dabuda is a mancala game played by the Afar, a people living mainly in the Afar Region of Ethiopia as well as northern Djibouti and at a smaller scale in the southern point of Eritrea. Most Afars are nomadic pastoralists, raising goats, sheep, and cattle in the desert. Their total population is estimated to be over 5,000,000. The game is played by both men and boys. It was first described by Richard Pankhurst in 1971 as Dabuda I (long board) and Dabuda II (short board). He wrote that these games besides being a common pastime and an exercise to sharpen the wits were played in several distinct circumstances: (1) Before going to war two Afar men, one symbolising the Afar cause and the other personifying an Issa Somali or other enemy , would play together, and three consecutive victories by either player would be taken as an augury for the outcome of the forthcoming armed struggle. (2) Before an expedition rival Afar warriors might likewise play between themselves to obtain an augury as to who would be the more successful in defeating the enemy, capturing prisoners and so forth. (3) When two Afars, perhaps even chiefs, disliked each other, and they would find in it a convenient opportunity for veiled insults and recriminations. Wealthy players used wooden boards, while children just dug holes in the ground.
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