Nouna

Nouna
Nouna Catholic Church
Nouna Location within Burkina Faso, French West Africa
Coordinates: 12°44′N 3°52′W / 12.733°N 3.867°W / 12.733; -3.867
Country	Burkina Faso
Region	Boucle du Mouhoun Region
Province	Kossi Province
Department	Nouna Department
Time zone	GMT (UTC+0)

Nouna is a town of about 20,000 inhabitants located in the Province of Kossi in Burkina Faso. It is the capital of the Province. Nouna is a fairly developed town that boasts electricity, running water, land-line telephones, and cellular phones. It also has a high school, bank, post office, mayor's office, and several hotels.

According to the legend, the town of Nouna was founded by an elder of the Dafin ethnic group, who having spotted a water source in the wilderness, exclaimed "N'nouna diara!" (I am happy!), and that is how the place came to be called "Nouna".

Nouna is located on the line of separation between Samo (or Samogo) territory to the east and Dafin territory to the west. Its inhabitants are mostly Dafin, with a sizable minority of Samo, Bobo, and Fulani (French: Peul or Peulh; Fula: Fulɓe). There are also some Mossi (the majority tribe in the country) and a few other minorities. The dominant language is the Dioula language, which belongs to the same family as the Dafin.

Nouna's main street, which runs through the town from east to west, goes to the second largest city in the country, Bobo-Dioulasso, in both directions.

Coordinates: 12°44′N 3°52′W / 12.733°N 3.867°W / 12.733; -3.867