Uagadou School of Magic

Uagadou is the Ugandan wizarding school, located in the Mountains of the Moon in western Uganda. It is the largest of the eleven wizarding schools, accepting students from all over Africa.

Location
Visitors to the school speak of a stunning edifice carved out of the mountainside and shrouded in mist, so that it sometimes appears simply to float in mid-air.

History
Uagadou was founded at least a thousand years before the lifetime of Harry Potter, making it roughly the same age as Hogwarts (possibly even older). Although a number of smaller wizarding schools can be found throughout Africa, only Uagadou has stood the test of time and achieved an enviable international reputation.

One notable graduate of Uagadou is Babajide Akingbade, who succeeded Albus Dumbledore as Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards. Another student from Uagadou also competed in the Wizarding Schools Potions Championship.

At an International Symposium of Animagi held in or around 2016, the Uagadou School Team attracted a lot of press when their display of synchronized transformations nearly caused a riot. Many older and more experienced witches and wizards felt threatened by teenagers who could transform at will into elephants and cheetahs, and Adrian Tutley lodged a formal complaint with the International Confederation of Wizards.

Reputation
Uagadou students are famously skilled in Astronomy, Alchemy, and Self-Transfiguration. Wands are primarily a European invention and, although African wizards have adopted them as useful tools, Uagadou students prefer and are able to cast spells simply by pointing their fingers or through other types of hand gestures. This technique gives them a sturdy line of defense when accused of breaking the [[International Statute of Security, as they could say they were simply making a random gesture and not intending to do magic.

Recruitment
Students receive notice of their acceptance to Uagadou through Dream Messengers, sent by the Headmaster of the day. The Dream Messenger appears to the child as they sleep and will leave a token, usually an inscribed stone, to be found in the child's hand upon waking. Uagadou is the only school that employs this method of student selection.

Alumni

 * Babajide Akingbade

Etymology
Uagadou may be a variant spelling of Ouagadou, a commune in southwestern Mali, or Wagadu, a name for the Ghana Empire, which was located in what is now southeastern Mauritania and western Mali. It is also possible that it is derived from the capital of Burkina Faso, Ouagadougou.

The pronunciation of Uagadou is wag-a-doo.