Dan and Gouro cultures of western Côte d'Ivoire share numerous culture traits in common with the Kru peoples to their south, but they speak languages related to that of the Mandé to their north. Their traditional political organization was not complex, resembling the villages of the southwest more than the highly centralized polities of the Mandé. Because of their cultural eclecticism, the Dan, Gouro, and smaller, related groups of westcentral Côte d'Ivoire are sometimes classified as Southern Mandé or "Peripheral Mandé," a label they would reject. They made up slightly less than 8 percent of the total population in the late 1980s.

Data as of November 1988

NOTE: The information regarding Cote d'Ivoire on this page is re-published from The Library of Congress Country Studies and the CIA World Factbook. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Cote d'Ivoire The Southern Mandé information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Cote d'Ivoire The Southern Mandé should be addressed to the Library of Congress and the CIA.