The Volambetohaka is a major cultural and artistic festival in the Amoron’i Mania region, located in the southern Highlands of Madagascar. Held every two years on a rotating basis in the districts of Ambositra, Ambatofinandrahana, Fandriana, and Manandriana, this travelling event usually takes place in August or around that time, lasting about five days.
Deeply rooted in Betsileo tradition, it is often celebrated with a good glass of galeoka, a type of tohaka gasy, which is a local rum. (Careful though, it’s strong and not for the faint-hearted!)
The word “Volambetohaka” combines volana (moon or month) and tohaka (alcohol or celebration), expressing the idea of a festive month filled with collective joy. In local tradition, the year is divided into two main periods: Volandrimorimo (from September 15 to March 14), the season of hard work dedicated to agriculture, and Volambetohaka (from March 15 to September 14), the season for festivities, construction, and rice harvesting.
Born in 1995 and growing in popularity from 1998 onward, the festival usually lasts four to five days. It showcases the cultural richness and ancestral traditions of the Betsileo people while strengthening the bonds between local communities. The event begins with a ceremonial welcome that includes speeches, rituals, and cultural performances. This is followed by parades, communal meals, the sharing of zebu meat, traditional dances like kidodo, as well as collective circumcision ceremonies, ritual piercings for young girls, traditional marriage proposal demonstrations, cockfights, and fetrika (traditional boxing).
One of the festival’s most iconic moments is the savika, a Malagasy rodeo where young men face off against zebu bulls. The festival concludes with an award ceremony and the symbolic handover of the banner to the next host district.
Celebrated for many years, the Volambetohaka is a powerful means of cultural transmission in the region. It honors Betsileo customs, rites of passage, traditional speeches, and ancient games. It also encourages exchanges between generations and strengthens fihavanana, the essential Malagasy value of solidarity and social cohesion.
In short, the Volambetohaka fully embodies Betsileo identity and reflects the cultural vitality of the Amoron’i Mania region. It offers a deep and authentic immersion into Malagasy traditions, standing apart from more familiar events such as the Famadihana.
