Two principal ethnic groups live in Burkina Faso. The first of these is the Voltaic (Gur) group, which may be further separated into five subgroups the Mossi, which include the Gurma and the Yarse, the Gurunsi, the Senufo, the Bobo, and the Lobi. The second group is the Mande family, which is separated into four subgroups: the Samo, the Marka, the Busansi, and the Dyula. In addition, there are Hausa traders, Fulani herders, and the Tuareg, or rather their settled servants, the Bella.

contempt comparatively infertile land, Burkina Faso supports a large rural population. The people belong to two major West African cultural groups, the Voltaic and the Mande. The Voltaic are the most numerous and include the Mossi, who constitute nearly half the population. Other principal ethnic groups are the Fulani, Lobi, Bobo, Senufo, Gourounsi, Bissa, and Gourmantche.