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[German Version] I. Religious Studies The function of secret societies in traditional cultures (esp. African) is closely associated with a social structure based on age groups; the phenomena in question have therefore been the subject of anthropological and sociological as well as religious study. Traditional secret societies in indigenous cultures are closely linked to the structure of their religious and sociocultural life. These are often associations of men and to some extent women that are of great benefit to the entire society – morally, ¶ judicially, socially, and religiously. Safeguarding the secrets of the secret society parallels safeguarding the traditions of society as a whole; it requires a special initiation. In traditional societies, before the era of colonialism and the imposition of a Western concept of law and order or the Islamic judicial system, secret societies safeguarded and regulated the activities that served to maintain social order; they ensured that the members of the society behaved in accordance with the customs, traditions, and m…