Awoulaba
{{Short description|Woman epitomising West African beauty standards}}
{{multiple image
| align = right
| total_width = 420
| image_gap = 5
| image1 = Awoulabas_et_masques_passeports_(1).jpg
| caption1 = {{Lang|bci|Awoulaba}} figurines in Ivory Coast
| image2 = Beauty of an African Woman.jpg
| caption2 = {{Lang|bci|Awoulaba}} statue in Ivory Coast
}}
{{Lang|bci|Awoulaba}} is a Baoulé-language term from Ivory Coast meaning "queen of beauty", which refers to women who have plump and curvaceous bodies featuring large buttocks and wide hips. An {{Lang|bci|Awoulaba}} is characterized by having buttocks that are visibly fuller and plumper compared to the rest of her body, so that her body resembles a distinctive "guitar shape".{{cite book |last=de Sairigné|first=Guillemette|author-link= |date= 5 May 2004|title=La beauté en plus |url= |location= |publisher=Fayard |page= |isbn=9782213656786}}{{cite web |url=https://afropunk.com/2015/10/feature-the-awoulabataille-fine-photo-project-by-photographer-joana-choumali/ |title=Feature: The 'Awoulaba/Taille Fine' Photo Project, by Photographer Joana Choumali |date=October 13, 2015 |website= |publisher=Afropunk |access-date=August 17, 2021 |quote=}} Ivorian photographer Joana Choumali describes {{Lang|bci|Awoulaba}} as "beautiful women of impressive dimensions: a face with fine features, large breasts, a well-defined waist and, above all, big buttocks".{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.hamajimagazine.com/joana-choumali-bodies-in-various-states/|title=Joana Choumali met les corps dans tous leurs états|date=29 May 2018|magazine=Hamaji|lang=fr|trans-title=Joana Choumali shows the Body in all its Forms}}{{cite web |title=" Awoulaba/Taille fine " de l'Ivoirienne Juana CHOUMALI |url=https://phenixwebtv.com/2018/03/23/awoulaba-taille-fine-de-livoirienne-juana-choumali/ |website=Phenixwebtv.com |language=fr-FR |date=23 March 2018}}
Since 2011, locally manufactured mannequins depicting the {{Lang|bci|Awoulaba}} body shape have become a familiar sight throughout numerous clothing shops in Abidjan, Ivory Coast and they are distinguished from foreign imported mannequins that depict slim women (described as Taille Fine, meaning "thin waist").
Miss Awoulaba
{{Infobox recurring event
|name = Miss Awoulaba
|native_name =
|native_name_lang =
|logo =
|logo_alt =
|logo_caption =
|logo_size =
|image = Larissa Aka 03.jpg
|image_size = frameless
|alt =
|caption = Contestant for an {{Lang|bci|Awoulaba}} beauty pageant
|status = Active
|genre = Beauty pageant
|date =
|begins =
|ends =
|frequency = Annual
|venue =
|location = Abidjan
|coordinates =
|country = Ivory Coast
|years_active =
|first =
|founder_name =
|last =
|prev =
|next =
|participants =
|attendance =
|capacity =
|area =
|budget =
|activity =
|leader_name =
|patron =
|organised =
|filing =
|people =
|member =
|sponsor =
|website =
|footnotes =
}}
Miss Awoulaba is a beauty pageant that started in Abidjan, Ivory Coast during the early 1980s which was stated to reward "physical harmony and natural charm, with an inclination for women with prominent posteriors"{{cite journal |last1=Nyamnjoh |first1=FB |date=2005 |title=Fishing in Troubled Waters: Disquettes and Thiofs in Dakar|journal=Africa |volume= 75|issue= 3|pages=295–324|doi=10.3366/afr.2005.75.3.295 |s2cid=6557519 |access-date=|citeseerx=10.1.1.461.7562}} and to showcase "authentic African beauty".{{cite book |last=Akindes |first=Simon |url=https://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:nai:diva-202 |title=Playing with Identities in Contemporary Music in Africa |publisher=Nordic Africa Institute |year=2002 |isbn=9789171064967 |pages=99–100 |chapter=Playing it 'Loud and Straight': Reggae, Zouglou, Mapouka and Youth Insubordination in Côte d'Ivoire}}{{cite book |last=Sherrow |first=Victoria |author-link= |date=2006 |title=Encyclopedia of Hair: A Cultural History|url= |location= |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |page= |isbn=9780313331459}} Miss Awoulaba was organized as an alternative to Miss Cote d'Ivoire (Miss Ivory Coast), which was accused of favoring Western beauty features.{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/gallery/2016/jun/06/connoisseurs-of-the-curve-ivory-coasts-mannequin-makers-in-pictures |title=Connoisseurs of the curve: Ivory Coast's mannequin makers - in pictures|date=June 6, 2016 |work=The Guardian|access-date=August 17, 2021 |quote=}} The women of Miss Awoulaba have curvier bodies compared to women of most Western beauty pageants and they are required to wear thick, black hair along with traditional hairstyles and clothing.
=Prizes=
First Lady Dominique Folloroux-Ouattara of Ivory Coast offered a cash prize of 5.5 million CFA francs to be shared among the top three winners of the 2015 competition and 1.5 million to the top three winners of the 2017 competition. The top winner of the 2019 competition was promised a Citroën C4 vehicle from Al Moustapha Toure, president of the Collective of Economic Operators of Côte d'Ivoire (COECI).{{Cite web|url=https://www.koaci.com/article/2019/08/01/cote-divoire/culture/cote-divoire-pour-le-concours-awoulaba-2019-une-voiture-offerte-a-la-laureate_133565.html|title=Côte d'Ivoire: Pour le concours Awoulaba 2019, une voiture offerte à la lauréate|date=1 August 2019|website=KOACI|language=fr|trans-title=Ivory Coast: Car offered to the Winner of the Awoulaba 2019 Competition}} Mayor Jean-Marc Yacé of Cocody offered 4 million CFA francs to be divided among the top three winners of the 2019 competition.{{Cite web|url=https://news.abidjan.net/articles/656630/preselection-awoulaba-cocody-2019-le-maire-jean-marc-yace-offre-4-millions-de-francs-cfa|title=Présélection Awoulaba Cocody 2019 : Le maire Jean-Marc Yacé offre 4 millions de francs Cfa|website=Abidjan.net News|date=6 May 2019|language=fr|trans-title=2019 AWOULABA Awoulaba screening: Mayor Jean-Marc Yacé offers 4 million CFA francs}}
=Winners=
- 1999: Bouah Opportune
- 2000: Idah Corneille
- 2001: Diaye Judith
- 2002: Kouamé Adjoua Félicia
- 2007: Dogo Gbaza Roselyne
- 2013: Marie Flore Ozoua Ourigbalé
- 2014: Doukouré Sagnon Millenne
- 2015: Laeticia Ines Kouakou Oussou
- 2016: Tatiana Ahoua Beugré
- 2017: Lehi Marcelle Okobe
- 2018: Stephanie Tapé Lou
- 2019: Yomb Josée Carène
- 2021: Tatiana Marie Alloua Yankey
- 2022: Mafata Bérété
- 2023: Aboya Koua Constance
- 2024: Kouachi Apo Ruth
Beauty industry
[[File:Market stand in Ivory Coast.png|thumb|upright=1.5|
Market stand in Abidjan, Ivory Coast selling "Awoulaba" buttocks-enlargement products]]
The beauty industry of Ivory Coast provides "Awoulaba" products for women desiring to enlarge their buttocks.{{cite journal |last1=Diabate |first1=Naminata |title=On Visuals and Selling the Promise of Sexual Plaisir and Pleasure in Abidjan |journal=African Studies Review |date=December 2022 |volume=65 |issue=4 |pages=863–885 |doi=10.1017/asr.2022.118 |s2cid=252958311 |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/african-studies-review/article/on-visuals-and-selling-the-promise-of-sexual-plaisir-and-pleasure-in-abidjan/5EBED6EE0432D10994E291C9360E2422 |language=en |issn=0002-0206|doi-access=free }} Similar products such as creams and pills that are advertised as enhancing the buttocks exist in other West African countries.{{cite news |title=Ivory Coast's middle class is fueling a boom in the buttock enhancement business |url=https://qz.com/africa/683848/ivory-coasts-middle-class-is-fueling-a-boom-in-the-buttock-enhancement-business/ |work=Quartz |date=13 May 2016 |language=en}} Also popular are butt augmentation surgeries, as well as padding giving the appearance of larger buttocks.{{cite news |last1=Pisa |first1=Katie |title=Bottoms up: Why butt lifts are big business in parts of Africa |url=https://www.cnn.com/2016/06/06/africa/bottom-enhancement/index.html |work=CNN |date=6 June 2016 |language=en}} This beauty ideal of a curvier body with larger buttocks has been cited as being a possible factor in the existence of some health risks in West African women such as overweight, obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, metabolic syndrome, and the use of carcinogenic beauty products.{{cite journal |last1=Lognon |first1=Jean-Louis |last2= Andoh |first2= Armelle Tania|date=2019 |title=Transformation de la silhouette à travers le grossissement des fesses en Côte d'Ivoire : normes sociales, représentations et enjeux sociaux
|url= |journal=Corps |volume= |pages= 363–376|issue=1 | doi=10.3917/corp1.017.0363|s2cid=239414286 }}{{cite journal |last1= Danho |first1=J.|date=2019 |title=Syndrome métabolique et surcharge pondérale : étude de 255 cas au service de Nutrition de l'Institut National de Santé Publique (INSP) à Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire |url= |journal=Médecine des Maladies Métaboliques |volume= 13|issue= 3|pages= 300–305|doi=10.1016/S1957-2557(19)30084-7|s2cid=189621084 }}