Bamileke dancers in Batié, West Province

The Bamileke (French Bamiléké) are a collection of Semi-Bantu (or Grassfields Bantu) ethnic groups most highly concentrated in the western highlands of Cameroon's West Province, west of the Noun River and southeast of the Bamboutos Mountains and in the Mungo region of the Littoral, Southwest, and Centre Provinces. The Bamileke divide themselves into over 100 individual groups, each under the rule of a chief or fon. Nonetheless, all of these groups are related historically, culturally, and linguistically. With over 2,120,000 individuals in the late 20th century, the Bamileke are the most numerous semi-Bantu group. They speak a number of related tongues from the Bantoid branch of the Niger-Congo language family. These languages are closely related, however, and some classifications identify a Bamileke dialect continuum with seventeen or more dialects. Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 539 pixelsFull resolution (1160 × 782 pixel, file size: 747 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Bamileke Metadata This file contains additional... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 539 pixelsFull resolution (1160 × 782 pixel, file size: 747 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Bamileke Metadata This file contains additional... Batié is a town located in the western province of Cameroon. ... Semi-Bantu or Grassfields Bantu refers to a group of related African languages spoken by the inhabitants of the Western grassfields of Cameroon (portions of the Adamawa, West, Northwest, and Southwest provinces). ... The West Province (French Province de lOuest) is 14,000 sq km of territory located in the central-western portion of the Republic of Cameroon. ... The Noun River, during the dry season, a few kilometers after Bandjoun The Noun river flows through the West Province of Cameroon. ... Littoral Province is a province of Cameroon. ... link titleSouthwest Province is a province of Cameroon. ... Geography View of Yaoundé Land The Centres soil is primarily composed of Precambrian deposits of metamorphic rocks, such as gneiss, mica, migmatites, and schists. ... The examples and perspective in this article may not represent a worldwide view. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999... In the classification of African languages, Bantoid is a branch of the Benue-Congo subfamily of the Niger-Congo phylum. ... Map showing the distribution of Niger-Congo languages The Niger-Congo languages are probably the largest group of the world in terms of different languages. ... 1 CLASSIFICATION AND WHERE SPOKEN The language/dialect cluster known as Bamileke belongs to the group that has been termed Eastern Grassfields Bantu or, more currently, Mbam-Nkam, which is a branch of Benue-Congo. ... A dialect continuum is a range of dialects spoken across a large geographical area, differing only slightly between areas that are geographically close, and gradually decreasing in mutual intelligibility as the distances become greater. ...

Organization

The Bamileke did not consider themselves a single people until colonial times. Even today, individual Bamileke usually regard themselves as members of one or another chiefdom (or fondom). Of these, the fondoms of Bafang, Bafoussam, Bandjoun, Bangante, Bawaju, Dschang, and Mbouda are the most prominent. The Bamileke also share much history and culture with the neighbouring fondoms of the Northwest province, but the groups have been divided since their territories were split between the French and English in colonial times. It has been suggested that Benign colonialism be merged into this article or section. ... Bafang is a town in Cameroon situated in the Haut-Nkam division of the West Province. ... Bafoussam is the capital of the West Province of Cameroon, lying on the Adamawa Plateau. ... Bandjoun is a town in West Province, Cameroon. ... Dschang is a city located in the West (Ouest) Province of Cameroon. ... Mbouda is the capital of the Bamboutos division of West Province, Cameroon. ... The Northwest Province (Nord-Ouest) is the third most populated province in Cameroon. ...

Languages

Following Ethnologue classification, we can identify 11 different languages or dialects:

Variants of Ghomala' are spoken in most of the Mifi, Khoung-Khi, Hauts-Plateaux divisions, the eastern Menoua division, and portions of the Bamboutos division, by 260,000 people (1982, SIL). The main fondoms are Baham, Bafoussam, Bamendjou, Bandjoun. Hauts Plateaux (High Plateaus) is a division (or departement) of West Province in Cameroon. ... Baham is a meat typically served for breakfast in South Africa. ... Bafoussam is the capital of the West Province of Cameroon, lying on the Adamawa Plateau. ... Bandjoun is a town in West Province, Cameroon. ...

Towards southwest is spoken Fe'fe' in the Upper Nkam division. The main towns include Bafang, Baku, and Kékem. Bafang is a town in Cameroon situated in the Haut-Nkam division of the West Province. ... Municipality: Baku Area: 260 km² Altitude: -28 m Population: 2,074,300 census 2003 Population density: 1280 persons/km² Postal Code: AZ10 Area code: +99412 Municipality code: BA Latitude: 40° 23 N Longitude: 49° 52 E Mayor: Hajibala Abutalybov The Baku region. ...

Nda'nda' occupy the western third of the Nde division. The major settlement is at Bazou.

Yemba is spoken by 300,000 or more people in 1992. Their lands span most of the Menoua division to the west of the Bandjoun, with their capital at Dschang. Foukoué is another major settlement. 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... Dschang is a city located in the West (Ouest) Province of Cameroon. ...

Medumba is spoken in most of the Nde division, by 210,000 people in 1991, with major settlements at Bangangte and Tonga. 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Bamileke dancers in Batié, West Province The Bamileke (French Bamiléké) are a collection of Semi-Bantu (or Grassfields Bantu) ethnic groups most highly concentrated in the western highlands of Cameroons West Province, west of the Noun River and southeast of the Bamboutos Mountains and in the Mungo region...

Mengaka, Ngiemboon, Ngomba and Ngombale are spoken in Mbouda division.

Kwa is spoken between the Nde and the Littoral province, Ngwe around Fontem in the Southwest province.

History

Early population movements

Because the Bamileke are such a diverse group of peoples, it is difficult to determine their exact origins and early history. The best estimate is that they and the related Tikar and Bamun occupied a western portion of the Adamawa Plateau before the 17th century. They eventually crossed the upper Mbam River into what is today Tikar territory. Bamum may refer to: The Bamun language The Bamun people This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... The Adamawa Plateau (also spelled Adamaoua) is a plateau region in west-central Africa stretching from south-eastern Nigeria through north-central Cameroon (Adamawa Province) to the Central African Republic. ... (16th century - 17th century - 18th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 17th century was that century which lasted from 1601-1700. ...

The Bamileke migrations southward likely resulted from the Fulbe (Fula) invasion of the Adamawa Plateau led by Modibo Adama. The Bamileke and Tikar also wanted to find fertile land for cultivation. The Bamileke thus moved southward in a succession of five waves. The first group, which included the Baleng, Bapi, and Bafussam peoples, moved southwest into what is today the eastern half of Cameroon's West Province. Here, according to tribal traditions, they founded several villages, including Bapi, Baleng, and Kounden. Before long, however, the Bamun entered the region. The groups fought, and the Bamileke groups fled further west across the Noun River in a number of small groups. These small populations then founded an equally scattered number of fondoms, including Bandjoun, Bankassa, and Balengo (founded by the Baleng princes). Other minor fondoms were established after conquests, submissions, or civil wars among fons and their subjects. The Fula or Fulani is an ethnic group of people spread over many countries in West Africa, from Mauritania, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Mali in the west to Cameroon and as far as Sudan in the east. ... Adama bi Ardo Hassana (c. ... Oral history is an account of something passed down by word of mouth from one generation to another. ... BAPI is Business API. It is used in mySAP to achieve business related functionalities. ... Bamileke dancers in Batié, West Province The Bamileke (French Bamiléké) are a collection of Semi-Bantu (or Grassfields Bantu) ethnic groups most highly concentrated in the western highlands of Cameroons West Province, west of the Noun River and southeast of the Bamboutos Mountains and in the Mungo region... The Noun River, during the dry season, a few kilometers after Bandjoun The Noun river flows through the West Province of Cameroon. ... Bandjoun is a town in West Province, Cameroon. ...

Four more waves of migrants followed the first. The next included the Bagam, Bamenda, Bansoa, Bazu, and Bangu; the third and fourth consisted of the Bati and Bafamgwa; and the fifth and final wave of the Bamugum and Bandenkop. As various peoples migrated, smaller groups often split off to found their own settlements or fondoms, such as those started by the Baleng princes. Meanwhile, a steady stream of migrants continued to enter the newly claimed Bamileke territory. The Bamileke dominated and assimilated them, however, so that today these groups share the Bamileke culture and, often, language. In fact, those Bamileke groups at the western and southern frontiers of Bamileke territory may be descended from these early, absorbed peoples, as they have much stronger links with their forest Bantu neighbours and often consider themselves as somehow distinct from the other Bamileke groups. Map showing the approximate distribution of Bantu (dull yellow) vs. ...

German administration

Germany gained control of "Kamerun" in 1884. The Bamileke quickly adapted to the new realities of colonialism by establishing themselves as enterprising traders and partners with the new rulers. The Germans urged or forced large numbers of Bamileke settlers to move south to work the coastal plantations they had planted there. Year 1884 (MDCCCLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Thursday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... It has been suggested that Benign colonialism be merged into this article or section. ... // This article is about crop plantations. ...

The Germans first applied the term "Bamileke" to the people as administrative shorthand for the people of the region. It was during German (and later French) colonial rule that the Bamileke first began to regard themselves as a single, albeit fragmented, people.

French administration and post-independence

Under French colonial rule, the Bamileke birthrate grew, and their small territory's capability to support a large population was put to the test. Thus, beginning In the 1940s, Bamileke migrants continued and expanded the trend begun by the Germans almost a hundred years earlier of moving to the Mungo region of the Littoral, Southwest, and Centre Provinces in order to work as labourers, open businesses, or start farms. These farmers mostly purchased their land from the region's historical inhabitants, the Duala and Bakossi peoples. By the 1950s, the Bamileke had come to outnumber the native Dualas and Bakossi of the area. The original inhabitants of the region were growing increasingly disenchanted with having given up their lands. This article does not cite its references or sources. ... The Duala (or Douala) are an ethnic group of Cameroon. ... 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday. ...

In 1955, the French banned a wing of the Union des Populations du Cameroun (UPC) political party, which they deemed to be a terrorist group. This party had much support among the Bamileke, so many of them fled to the Tombel region of British Cameroon (today part of the Southwest Province). When further attacks on the French colonial government originated from the region, the native Bakossi were quick to blame the Bamileke newcomers. The Bamileke counter-accused the Bakossi of perpetrating the acts in an effort to reclaim their lands. A spate of skirmishes between the two groups soon followed, and attacks, blamed on the UPC militants, continued. 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Union of the Peoples of Cameroon (French: Union des Populations du Cameroun) is a political party in Cameroon. ... Terrorist redirects here. ...

The independence of French Cameroon on 1 January 1960 did not stop the tensions. Things finally came to a head in December of 1966. UPC militants attacked a Bakossi vehicle near the Bamileke settlement of Nken, at the edge of the Kupe Mountains of the Tombel region. The Bakossi blamed the Bamileke of the nearby villages of Ekonegbe and Nsoke for the murders, and the victims' families and other enraged Bakossi sacked the villages. The government of British Cameroon sent troops to quell the violence, but not before many Bamileke settlers had been killed. January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1960 calendar). ... 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1966 calendar). ...

Lifestyle and settlement patterns

Political structure and agriculture

Statue of a chief at Bana.

The Bamileke's high population and relatively small territory has taught them to be skilled and resourceful farmers. Their settlements are fairly compact and scattered. Houses are often placed in groups, which are then surrounded by individual fields. Neighbours typically separate their fields with fences or hedges. Though livestock are few, these barriers also serve to keep pigs, goats, and chickens from devouring the crops. Men typically clear the fields, but it is largely women who work them. Most work is done with muscle-powered tools such as machetes and hoes. Staple crops include cocoyams, groundnuts, maize, and taro. Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 450 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (1536 × 2048 pixel, file size: 598 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Statue dun chef coutumier à Bana au Cameroun Chefferie de Bana. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 450 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (1536 × 2048 pixel, file size: 598 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Statue dun chef coutumier à Bana au Cameroun Chefferie de Bana. ... Bana is a village in the West Province of Cameroon, near the town of Bafang. ... Subsistence farming is a mode of agriculture in which a plot of land produces only enough food to feed the family working it. ... Sheep are commonly bred as livestock. ... This article is about the pig genus. ... Species See Species and subspecies The goat is a mammal in the genus Capra, which consists of nine species: the Ibex, the West Caucasian Tur, the East Caucasian Tur, the Markhor, and the Wild Goat. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Cocoyam can mean: Taro (Colocasia esculenta) Malanga (Xanthosoma spp. ... This article is about peanut, the food. ... “Corn” redirects here. ... Binomial name Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schott Taro corms for sale Taro (from Tahitian), more rarely kalo (from Hawaiian), is a tropical plant grown primarily as a vegetable food for its edible corm, and secondarily as a leaf vegetable. ...

Several farms of this type form a "village", though the term is used for any settlement from a few hundred to several thousand people. The village head is the chief, or fon or fong, who is the nominal owner of all lands cultivated by his subjects. The fon is well respected by the villagers, and he is traditionally accorded with political, judicial, and spiritual authority, including certain divine powers. The fon chooses his own successor from among his children, though this information is typically kept secret until the fon's death. A secret society known as the Laikam is tasked with naming and crowning the new fon. Masouleh village, Gilan Province, Iran. ...

Various advisers and councils serve the fon. Chief among these is the Council of Notables, or Kamveu, which consists of between five and nine individuals. In addition, a "queen mother" or mafo was an important figure for some fons in the past. Below the fon and his advisers lie a number of ward heads, each responsible for a particular portion of the village. Some Bamileke groups also recognise sub-chiefs, or fonte.

Economic activities

Hut at the chefferie of Bana.

The Bamileke are renown for their skilled craftsmen. Their artwork was highly praised by early European visitors to their lands, though since the colonial period, many traditional arts and crafts have been abandoned. Bamileke are particularly celebrated carvers in wood, ivory, and horn. Chief's compounds are notable for their intricately carved doorframes and columns. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1200x1600, 396 KB) Case à la Chefferie de Bana (Cameroun). ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1200x1600, 396 KB) Case à la Chefferie de Bana (Cameroun). ... Bana is a village in the West Province of Cameroon, near the town of Bafang. ...

Traditional homes are constructed by first erecting a raffia-pole frame into four square walls. Builders then stuff the resulting holes with grass and cover the whole building with mud. The thatched roof is typically shaped into a tall cone. Nowadays, however, this type of construction is mostly reserved for barns, storage buildings, and gathering places for various traditional secret societies. Instead, modern Bamileke homes are made of bricks of either sun-dried mud or of concrete. Roofs are of metal sheeting. Species About 25-30 species, including: Raphia australis Raphia farinifera Raphia hookeri Raphia regalis Raphia taedigera Raphia vinifera The Raffia palm (Raphia) is a genus of tropical palms, native to tropical regions of Africa, Madagascar, Central America and South America. ... A secret society is an organization that conceals its activities from outsiders. ...

A reputation as shrewd businessmen is today supplanting the Bamileke's esteem as craftsmen. The various peoples have eagerly and adeptly adopted the European-introduced cash-based economy, making the Bamileke some of Cameroon's most prominent entrepreneurs. Many Bamileke thus find employment as not only artisans or labourers, but also as traders, business owners, and skilled professionals. They have thus played and continue to play an important role in the economic development of Cameroon. On the other hand, the Bamileke's famous business sense has served to stigmatise them among many of Cameroon's other ethnic groups. In the eyes of many Cameroonians, Bamileke businessmen are ruthless and avaricious. In much of Cameroon, the expression "Are you Bamileke?" (Tu es Bamiléké?) is a way of accusing someone of being greedy or miserly.

Religious beliefs

The Bamileke were largely Christianised during the colonial period, and today more Bamileke profess Catholicism than Protestantism. Some people practice Islam toward the border with the Adamawa Tikar and the Bamun. Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ... As a Christian ecclesiastical term, Catholic - from the Greek adjective , meaning general or universal[1] - is described in the Oxford English Dictionary as follows: ~Church, (originally) whole body of Christians; ~, belonging to or in accord with (a) this, (b) the church before separation into Greek or Eastern and Latin or... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Islam (Arabic:  ) is a monotheistic religion based upon the teachings of Muhammad, a 7th century Arab religious and political figure. ... The Adamawa Province (French Province de lAdamaoua) is a constituent province of the Republic of Cameroon. ...

In addition, traditional ancestor worship still thrives. The leader of each lineage is expected to offer libations to the forefathers with aid of their preserved skulls. Traditional medicine also features prominently in these beliefs, and healers are diviners, as well. One common form of divination involves interpreting the manipulation of various marked blades of grass by an earth spider. Ancestor worship, also ancestor veneration, is a religious practice based on the belief that ones ancestors possess supernatural powers. ... The term traditional medicine is used with two main meanings. ... This article is about the religious practice of divination. ... The Tsuchigumo (土蜘蛛) were a peoples of ancient Japan, believed to have lived in the Japanese Alps until at least the Asuka period. ...

Succession and kinship patterns

The Bamileke trace ancestry, inheritance and succession through the male line, and children belong to the fondom of their father. After a man's death, all of his possessions typically go to a single, male heir. Polygamy (more specifically, polygyny) is practiced and encouraged, and some important individuals may have literally hundreds of wives. Marriages typically require a substantial bride price to be paid to the bride's father. This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Succession is the act or process of pooing or of following in order or sequence. ... The term polygamy (many marriages in late Greek) is used in related ways in social anthropology and sociobiology and sociology. ... The term polygyny (neo-Greek: poly+gune Many + Wives) is used in related ways in social anthropology and sociobiology. ... Bride price also known as bride wealth or a dower is an amount of money or property paid to the parents of a woman for the right to marry their daughter. ...

References

• Fanso, V.G. (1989) Cameroon History for Secondary Schools and Colleges, Vol. 1: From Prehistoric Times to the Nineteenth Century. Hong Kong: Macmillan Education Ltd, 1989.
• Neba, Aaron, Ph.D. (1999) Modern Geography of the Republic of Cameroon, 3rd ed. Bamenda: Neba Publishers, 1999.
• Ngoh, Victor Julius (1996) History of Cameroon Since 1800. Limbé: Presbook, 1996.

Further reading

• Knöpfli, Hans (1997—2002) Crafts and Technologies: Some Traditional Craftsmen and Women of the Western Grassfields of Cameroon. 4 vols. Basel, Switzerland: Basel Mission.