Mion is largely a rural area with a population of 81,812 (GSS, 2013). Dagombas constitute the largest ethnic group followed by Konkombas. Other ethnic groups include Akan and Moshie. The main religious groupings are Moslems, Christians and Traditionalists. More than half of the population of the district practice Islam. The rest are largely adherents of Traditional religion, Christianity and other smaller religious groups. The most important traditional festivals in the district are the Damba and Bugum (Fire festival).

Damba festival, which is also celebrated by most of the Muslim dominated ethnic groups in Northern Ghana, is to remember the birth and naming ceremony of the Holy Prophet Mohammed. It is celebrated in the Dagomba lunar month of Damba, corresponding to the third month of the Islamic calendar, Rabia al-Awwal. Damba festival is a twin festive namely; “Somo” Damba and “Naa” Damba. “Somo” Damba is celebrated to commemorate the birth of the prophet and Naa-Damba is held to mark his naming ceremony. Approaching the months named, Chiefs, elders and family heads not forgetting the local folk are always on the lookout for the moon of Damba.

It is therefore common to see people raising their heads towards the sky each evening desperately awaiting the moon to shoot up. The Bugum festival (Fire Festival) is the first Dagomba festival in the year. It is celebrated in the first month of the Dagomba lunar year, the Bugum “goli” (the month of fire), and is celebrated on the ninth day of the month.

The origin of the festival dates back to the time the Prophet Noah landed his Ark on Mount Ararat. According to Dagomba traditions, when the Ark of Noah landed at the end of the floods the passengers lit torches to first of all find their way around and secondly to find the son of Prophet Noah who failed to enter the Ark when it set out with the believers. To buttress their claim of the origin of the Bugum Festival, the Dagombas further claim that they are descendants of the Aad, a prehistoric Arabethnic group that succeeded Noah and his people.

Ethnicity

Ethnicity refers to the ethnic group that a person belonged to. This information is collected only from Ghanaians by birth and Ghanaians with dual nationality. The classification of ethnic groups in Ghana is that officially provided by the Bureau of Ghana Languages and which has been in use since the 1960 census.