Cameroon:
The Armpit of Africa
Cameroon is a beautiful place where
everyone should visit. Located on the coast of Africa, visitors have access to
both the water and a volcano. The three main cities are Yaounde, the capital,
Douala, and Bamenda. Cameroon has a lot to offer in its geography, art,
religion and origin, natural resources and trade, its first contact with Europe,
in missions, and in its national identity.
Located on the West side of Africa,
Cameroon is in what is sometimes called the armpit of Africa. The country has
both wet and dry seasons, which refers to whether there is rain. The Atlantic
Ocean is the lowest point of Cameroon, while the highest point is the volcano
called Mount Cameroon. According to Kids National Geographic, Cameroon is a “mixture
of desert plains in the north, mountains in the central regions, and tropical
rain forests in the south. Along western border with Nigeria are mountains…”.[1] Lake Nyos is the lake that
in 1986 killed over one thousand people, including people miles away by releasing
its toxic gases.[2]
In Cameroon, there a stool that is said to
be common, and represent a throne. Depending on the pattern of the stole,
determine if it was made for authority. If the stool was made for someone of
high standing, it cannot be sold or given away as the commoner stool could.[3] If the stool was made for
a commoner then the stool can be given. Earlier in Cameroonian history people
of high standing would be respected by being given a stool to sit on that was
appropriate of their rank. One person of high standing was known to stand for
their visit rather than to sit in a seat that was not made for a person of
their quality. The way to determine the status of the stool was royal is it
would show an animal such as “an elephant, buffalo, leopard, lion, or python”.[4]
Commonly
seen in tourist markets are the bracelets made of cowry shells. These shells “represent
wealth and royalty, respect and dignity”.[5] Although the flag has
changed over the years the current Cameroonian flag is made of bright colors of
green, red, yellow, with a yellow star.
Green stand for “hope, green vegetation”, red is for “unity and
independence”, the yellow stands for the “sun, the source of happiness and prosperity”,
and the star stands for the “unity of Cameroon”.[6]
40% of Cameroon is Animist,
believing everything has a spirit, 40% is Christian, and 20 percent is Muslim. Christianity
tends to be prevalent in the south and Muslim dominates the north.[7] One faith was brought to
Cameroon by a Ugandan Man named Enoch Olinga, who had “created the largest Baha’I
community in West Africa”.[8]
With many resources, Cameroon’s
agricultural products are “coffee, cocoa, cotton, rubber…bananas…and timber” to
name a few.[9]
Much of its wood goes to China and Europe.[10] The United States also
imports from Cameroon.
The Portuguese were the first
contacts to Cameroon according to Bernard Fonlon in his article “The Language
Problem in Cameroon (An Historical Perspective)” named by Fernando Gomez and
his men when they found the Wouri River and named it the “river Rio does
Camaros, the river of Pawns” because of the number of prawn the river
contained.[11]
Interesting fact the King for whom Gomez was exploring was the nephew of Henry
the Navigator.[12]
The first missionaries to Cameroon
were slaves to Jamaica from Africa.[13] Once found man named
Joseph Merrick arrive, he was one of “the first Negro Jamaicans to enter the
ministry” and had a significant impact on the beginning of learning the new
language. According to Brutsch, the first missionaries were the Baptist
Missionary Society, then came the Basal Mission, German Baptist, and French.[14] The Pentecostals,
particularly Full Gospel Mission Cameroon, according to Akoko Mbe, began in
1961. It is the largest Pentecostal church in Cameroon.[15] These are just of few of
the many missionaries that have worked in Cameroon.
Cameroon has been significantly
affected by immigrants over the years since Cameroon does not have as much
unrest as other African countries therefore people go to Cameroon to seek
safety. Also, the national identity is changing because many of the students
are going to Germany to study and doctors and nurses are leaving the country to
find better paying job than in Cameroon.[16] In the past Cameroon had
been highly affected by it people leaving the country looking of better school
and higher paying jobs. As a result, the Cameroonian government started giving
teachers raise if they would come back to Cameroon to teach, the stipend
depended on their level of schooling.[17]
Now that you know a little bit more
about Cameroon, I encourage you to go for a visit. If you are worried they do
not speak English, if you go to the cities you will find English speakers. I
hope you have learned a lot from this paper and would love to hear about your
adventures in Cameroon.
[1] “Cameroon.” Relevant. 2016. Accessed
January 19, 2017. http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/explore/countries/cameroon/#Cameroon-gorilla.jpg
[2] Thuras, Dylan. “Lake Nyos: Deadliest lake in the world
suffocated over 1,746 people in one night.” Relevant. 2017. Accessed January
20, 2017. http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/lake-nyos-the-deadliest-lake-in-the-world
[3] Rand.
“Cameroon Stools.” Rand African Art. Last Modified January 1, 2004. Accessed
January 27, 2017. http://www.randafricanart.com/Cameroon_stool.html.
[4] Rand.
“Cameroon Stools.” Rand African Art. Last Modified January 1, 2004. Accessed
January 27, 2017. http://www.randafricanart.com/Cameroon_stool.html.
[5] Rand.
“Cameroon Stools.” Rand African Art. Last Modified January 1, 2004. Accessed
January 27, 2017. http://www.randafricanart.com/Cameroon_stool.html.
[6] “Cameroon
Flag: Description and Meaning.” Cameroon Today: Cameroon Travel and Information
Guide. Last modified n/a. Accessed January 27, 2017. http://www.cameroon-today.com/cameroon-flag.html.
[7] George
Thomas Kurian “Cameroon: Religions” World Geography and Culture Online, accessed
February 3, 2017, Facts On File, Inc.
[8] Anthony
A. Lee, “Underground Movement in a Missionary Church: The Baha'i Faith in
British Cameroons, 1952–1962,” Journal of Religious History 36, no. 4
(December 2012): 4, accessed February 3, 2017, Wiley Online Library.
[9] “The
World Factbook: Cameroon: Economy,” Central Intelligence Agency. Last modified
January 12, 2017. Accessed February 9, 2017. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/cm.html.
[10] “Economy
& Industry,” Our Africa, last modified n/a, accessed February 9, 2017, http://www.our-africa.org/cameroon/economy-industry.
Paragraph 9
[11] Bernard
Fonlon, “The Language Problem in Cameroon. (An Historical Perspective),” Comparative
Education 5, no.1 (February 1969): 28, accessed February 17, 2017, JSTOR.
[12] John
Lang, “The Rediscovery of West Africa”, The Land of the Golden Trade [West
Africa] (London: T.C. & E.C. Jack, 1910), 35, accessed February 17,
2017, https://ia802205.us.archive.org/33/items/landofgoldentrad00langrich/landofgoldentrad00langrich.pdf
[13] Jaap
van Slageren, “Jamaican Missionaries in Cameroon,” Exchange 30, no. 2
(2001): 146, accessed February 24, 2017, ATLA0000024697
[14] Jean
Rene Brutsch, “A Glance at Missions in Cameroon,” International Review of
Mission 39, no. 155 (July 1, 1950): 303-305, accessed February 24,
2017, http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal
[15] Akoko
Robert Mbe, “From the Asceticism to a Gospel of Prosperity: The Case of Full
Gospel Mission Cameroon,” Journal for the Study of Religion 17, no. 2
(2004): 48, accessed February 24, 2017, http://www.jstor.org/stable/24764335
[16] Blessing
Uchenna Mberu and Roland Pongou, “Crossing Boundaries: Internal, Regional, and
International Migration in Cameroon,” International
Migration, 54, no. 1 (February 2016): 109, accessed March 8, 2017, Wiley
Online Library.
[17] Blessing,
“Crossing Boundaries: Internal, Regional, and International Migration in
Cameroon,” 110.
Bibliography Page
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Cameroon.” International Review of
Mission 17, no. 2 (July 1950): 302-310. Accessed February 24, 2017. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1758-6631.
“Cameroon
Flag: Description and Meaning.” Cameroon Today: Cameroon Travel and Information
Guide. Last modified n/a. Accessed January 27, 2017. http://www.cameroon-today.com/cameroon-flag.html.
“Cameroon Geography.” Relevant. July 13, 2016.
Accessed January 19, 2017. http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/africa/cameroon/cmland.htm
Fonlon,
Bernard. “The Language Problem in Cameroon. (An Historical Perspective).” Comparative Education 5, no. 1 (February
1969):25-49. Accessed February 17, 2017, JSTOR.
Kurian,
George Thomas, ed. "Cameroon: Religions." World Geography and
Culture Online. Accessed February 3, 2017. Facts On File, Inc.
Lang,
John. “The Rediscovery of West Africa”. The
Land of the Golden Trade [West Africa] (London: T.C. & E.C. Jack, 1910.
Accessed February 17, 2017. https://ia802205.us.archive.org/33/items/landofgoldentrad00langrich/landofgoldentrad00langrich.pdf
Lee, Anthony A. “Underground Movement in a
Missionary Church: The Baha'i Faith in British Cameroons, 1952–1962.” Journal of Religious History 36, no. 4
(December 2012): 577-92. Accessed February 3, 2017. Wiley Online Library.
Mbe, Akoko Mbe. “From the Asceticism to a Gospel of
Prosperity: The Case of Full Gospel Mission Cameroon.” Journal for the Study of Religion 17, no. 2 (2004): 47-66. Accessed
February 24, 2017. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24764335.
Mberu, Blessing Uchenna and Pongou, Roland. “Crossing
Boundaries: Internal, Regional, and International Migration in Cameroon.” International Migration, 54, no. 1
(February 2016): 110-113. Accessed March 8 2017. Wiley Online
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“Cameroon Stools.” Rand African Art. Last Modified January 1, 2004. Accessed
January 27, 2017. http://www.randafricanart.com/Cameroon_stool.html.
Slageren,
Jaap van. “Jamaican Missionaries in Cameroon.” Exchange 30, no, 2 (2001): 145-156. Accessed February 24, 2017. ATLA0000024
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February 9, 2017. http://www.our-africa.org/cameroon/economy-industry.
Thuras, Dylan. “Lake Nyos: Deadliest lake in the
world suffocated over 1,746 people in one night.” Relevant. 2017. Accessed
January 20, 2017. http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/lake-nyos-the-deadliest-lake-in-the-world
“The
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