The Mulimba (or Malimba) are an

ethnic group An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...

of the

Republic of Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; th ...

. They belong to the Sawa peoples, those of the Cameroonian coast.

History and geography

Mulimba and Duala

oral history Oral history is the collection and study of historical information about individuals, families, important events, or everyday life using audiotapes, videotapes, or transcriptions of planned interviews. These interviews are conducted with people wh ...

traces their ancestry back to a man named Mbedi. His sons, Ewale and Dibongo, parted from a place called Piti on the

Dibamba River The Dibamba River is in the Littoral Region of southern Cameroon, emptying into the Cameroon estuary near the city of Doula. Location The Dibamba river has a length of and a catchment area of . Average discharge at the river mouth is 480 cubic ...

. Ewale moved to the mouth of the Dibamba with his followers and then northwest to the east bank of

Wouri River The Wouri (also Vouri or Vuri) is a river in Cameroon. Cameroon has two major rivers, the Sanaga, the longest at about 525 km (325 miles) long and the Wouri, the largest. The Wouri forms at the confluence of the rivers Nkam and Makombé, ...

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...

. Meanwhile, Dibongo and his companions migrated southeast to the Sanaga River and then split up, some heading upstream with Dibongo and others moving downstream with a man named Ilimbe. Ewale's people became the Duala, and Dibongo's the ILimb'a Mbed'a Mbongo. Limba territory lies southeast of the Duala, east of the

Wouri estuary The Wouri estuary, or Cameroon estuary is a large tidal estuary in Cameroon where several rivers come together, emptying into the Bight of Biafra. Douala, the largest city in Cameroon, is at the mouth of the Wouri River where it enters the est ...

, to the mouth of the Sanaga River, and up its course to

Edéa Edéa is a city located along the Sanaga River in Cameroon's Littoral Region. It lies on the Douala–Yaoundé railway line. Its population was estimated at 122,300 in 2001. There are bauxite facilities, aluminium processing facility, stee ...

in the Sanaga-Maritime division of the Littoral Province.

Fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from fish stocking, stocked bodies of water such as fish pond, ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. ...

is an important part of the diet. The Limba emerged as prominent traders during the 16th and 17th centuries. The Limba purchased goods and

slave Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

s from interior groups and sold these items to the Europeans, typically aboard their ships (and later at mainland factories or stores). In exchange, the Europeans provided alcohol, gunpowder, guns, mirrors, shoes, textiles, and tools. When the Limba king, Pass All, ceded his territories to the

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

, British traders expressed the urgency of annexing the Duala territories north of there. In July 1884, however, German explorer Gustav Nachtigal annexed all of Cameroon for the

German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

Culture

Malimba is part of the

Bantu Bantu may refer to: *Bantu languages, constitute the largest sub-branch of the Niger–Congo languages *Bantu peoples, over 400 peoples of Africa speaking a Bantu language * Bantu knots, a type of African hairstyle * Black Association for Nationa ...

group of the Niger–Congo language family. Malimba speakers have little difficulty understanding Duala. The Limba often utilise Duala and Mokpwe as

trade language A lingua franca (; ; for plurals see ), also known as a bridge language, common language, trade language, auxiliary language, vehicular language, or link language, is a language systematically used to make communication possible between groups ...

s, due largely to the spread of these tongues by early missionaries. In addition, individuals who have attended school or lived in an urban centre usually speak

. The Limba participate in the annual

Ngondo The Ngondo is an annual water-centered festival held by the Sawa (coastal peoples) in Douala Douala is the largest city in Cameroon and its economic capital. It is also the capital of Cameroon's Littoral Region. Home to Central Africa's larg ...

, a traditional festival for all of Cameroon's coastal peoples, during which participants communicate with the ancestors and ask them for guidance and protection for the future. The festivities also include armed combat,

beauty pageant A beauty pageant is a competition that has traditionally focused on judging and ranking the physical attributes of the contestants. Pageants have now evolved to include inner beauty, with criteria covering judging of personality, intelligence, ...

pirogue A pirogue ( or ), also called a piragua or piraga, is any of various small boats, particularly dugouts and native canoes. The word is French and is derived from Spanish , which comes from the Carib '. Description The term 'pirogue' does n ...

races, and traditional

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat s ...

.''Guide touristique'' 126. The Mpo'o brings together the Bakoko, Bakweri, and Limba at Edéa. The festival commemorates the ancestors and allows the participants to consider the problems facing the Duala and humanity as a whole. Lively music, dancing, theatre, and recitals accompany the celebration.

Notes

References

* Chrispin, Dr. Pettang, directeur. ''Cameroun: Guide touristique.'' Paris: Les Éditions Wala. * 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. * Fanso, Verkijika G. (1990). "Trade and supremacy on the Cameroon coast, 1879–1887". ''Introduction to the History of Cameroon in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries.'' Palgrave MacMillan. * Gordon, Raymond G., Jr. (ed.) (2005):
Duala
. ''Ethnologue: Languages of the World'', 15th ed. Dallas: SIL International. Accessed 6 June 2006. * Gordon, Raymond G., Jr. (ed.) (2005):
Malimba
. ''Ethnologue: Languages of the World'', 15th ed. Dallas: SIL International. Accessed 6 June 2006.

External links

Peuple Sawa
(in French) {{Ethnic groups in Cameroon Bantu peoples Ethnic groups in Cameroon Indigenous peoples of West Africa