The Baoulé heartland — masks, markets, and central savanna
Bouaké is Côte d'Ivoire's second-largest city and the cultural capital of the Baoulé people — one of the Akan groups who migrated south from what is now Ghana in the 18th century. The city's central market is one of the most active in the country, trading in kente-style woven cloth, carved masks, and agricultural produce from the surrounding savanna villages. Bouaké is the commercial and transport hub for the country's centre-north.
The Baoulé under Queen Pokou established their kingdom in this region after migrating from the Ashanti confederation around 1730. According to tradition, Pokou sacrificed her own child to allow her people to cross a great river during the flight from Ashanti — 'Baoulé' means 'the child is dead' in remembrance. French colonial forces took control in the 1890s, and Bouaké became a key administrative centre. The city was at the centre of the First Ivorian Civil War (2002–2007), which divided the country along a north-south line that passed directly through it.