|
Tribe Snapshots Bangwa |
| Location: |
Western Cameroon |
| Population: |
20,000 |
| Language: |
Bangwa (Macro-Bantu) |
| Neighboring
Peoples: |
Fontem, Mbo |
| Types
of Art: |
Most Bangwa statues are royal portraits, which
are kept in royal shrines along with the skulls
of the ancestors. Frightening masks associated
with the Night society are employed by the chief
to maintain social order. Beautiful beadwork associated
with the Fon is common throughout this area. |
| History: |
The Cameroon Grasslands is a large cultural
area, which is inhabited by a large number of
related peoples. These peoples can be divided
into three smaller subgroups: Bamileke, Bamum,
and Bamenda Tikar. The Bangwa are one of the numerous
smaller ethnic groups within the Bamileke complex.
They are loosely affiliated with other groups
in the complex, sharing many historical and political
similarities while retaining their separate identity.
All members of this group originally came from
an area to the north and migrated in various complex
patterns throughout the last several centuries.
Fulani traders moving steadily southwards into
Cameroon in the 17th century forced the southern
drift of most of the current residents. The Bangwa
were only officially separated from the Bamileke
during colonial administration during the early
20th century. |
| Economy: |
People in the region played an important part
in regional trade routes connecting with the seaport
of Douala in the south and with Fulani and Hausa
traders in the north. The Bangwa, like most of
the people in this area, are historically farmers
who grow maize, yams, and peanuts as staple crops.
They also raise some livestock, including chickens
and goats, which play an important role in daily
sustenance. Women, who are believed to make the
soil more fruitful, are responsible for the tasks
of planting and harvesting the crops. Men are
responsible for clearing the fields for planting
and practice some nominal hunting. The Bangwa
also developed trade relations with their neighbors
living in southeastern Nigeria. |
| Political
Systems: |
Authority among the Bangwa was traditionally
instituted as part of the Bamileke political complex.
Like most of the western Grasslands people, Babanki
political authority is vested in a village chief,
who is supported by a council of elders, and is
called Fon. The Fon is elected to his position
by his predecessor's council and is often an elder
member of the most powerful extended family within
the community. The chief is recognized as the
de facto owner of all the land that belongs to
a given village and is seen as the dispenser of
supreme justice. Social behavior within the village
is further controlled through a series of extensive
age-grade associations and secret societies, both
of which fall under the auspices of the village
chief. |
| Religion: |
Like the Bamileke, the Bangwa recognize a supreme
god (Si), but more commonly pay homage to their
ancestors. Ancestral spirits are embodied in the
skulls of the deceased ancestors. The skulls are
in the possession of the eldest living male in
each lineage, and all members of an extended family
recognize the skulls as common heritage. When
a family decides to relocate, a dwelling, which
must be first purified by a diviner, is built
to house the skulls in the new location. Although
not all of the ancestral skulls are in the possession
of a family, the memories of all ancestors are
honored. The spirits of ancestors whose skulls
are not preserved have nowhere to reside and may
as a result cause trouble for the family. To compensate
when a man's skull is not preserved, a family
member must undergo a ceremony in which libations
are poured into the ground. Earth gathered from
the site of that offering then represents the
skull of the deceased. Respect is also paid to
female skulls, although details about such practices
are largely unrecorded. |
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