kingdom · West Africa

Kingdom of Buna

1600 CE – 1896 CE (approx.) · capital Bouna

Kingdom of north-eastern Ivory Coast, founded by a Dagomba-linked dynasty over the Kulango and known for its Muslim scholarly community.

Origins

Buna traditions say the kingdom was founded around 1600 by Bunkani, a prince linked to the Kingdom of Dagbon, who imposed his rule over the Kulango farmers of the upper Comoe and Black Volta region. The town of Bouna became its capital.

Rule and society

The king ruled over Kulango villages whose earth-priests kept their religious role. Muslim Dyula traders and scholars settled in Bouna, which became a centre of Islamic learning on the routes between the Niger bend and the Akan goldfields. Buna was at times a tributary of the Ashanti Empire.

Decline and legacy

In 1896 the forces of Samori Ture sacked Bouna. The French took control shortly afterwards, and Buna became part of French Ivory Coast. A king of Bouna remains a traditional ruler.

Few sources survive for this state; details are uncertain.

Connections (1)

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Kingdom of Buna. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-buna
MLA
“Kingdom of Buna.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-buna. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Kingdom of Buna.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-buna.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Kingdom of Buna’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-buna (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻