Ma Vie Au Cameroun: Traditional Life: Jujus

Cameroon is known as "Africa in Miniature," which is exactly what it is. In one day's worth of travel one can go from the savanna to the jungle, then the next day to rolling mountains. With such diversity in landscape comes extreme diversity in culture. Cameroon is divided into 10 regions, which can be loosely grouped into 3 categories - Grand North, Gran South and Grand West. In the Grand North, where I am posted, there is more of a common cultural connection due to Islam.

I find it interesting when visiting other regions how diverse culturally Cameroon actually is. From what I have found, throughout Cameroon there is some aspect of the traditional culture. There is a "Fon," "Lamido," or "Chief" depending on the region. The person is the Traditional ruler. Where I am in Meiganga, the Lamido is not a big deal, in comparison to other areas. From my understanding, his main role is to settle household or land discrepancy matters. But in other regions the traditional life is the life of the people. I first visited Kumbo, Northwest in December for the "Cultural Festival." It was an annual celebration to unify the Banso area and to celebrate their unique traditions.

During this Cultural Festival week it was, to oversimplify, a large party at the palace, home of the Fon. People from all over the Banso area as well as Cameroon came to participate in the festivities. One of the most interesting parts of the Festival was the "Juju." A Juju is a spirit embodied by a person whose face is covered by cloth, a mask, or paint; and only the people in the traditional house know who the Juju is.

Throughout the year in the Kumbo area the Jujus only come out for special occasions: death of someone high up in the traditional house, Holidays, etc. During the Cultural Festival Jujus are out in full force as well as spectators. Each Juju is completely different. Because they each embody a different spirit, each Juju has different appearances and mannerisms; there is also a power structure. Some Jujus are more powerful than others, and the more powerful the Juju is, the more the people respect it.

Some Jujus are reigned in by a group of men trying to control the spirit. Some will dance around, others will do flips down the road and most have sticks or daggers in their hands commanding the respect of the people around them. When a Juju passes you, you must crouch down (like the catcher's pose), put your right hand in a fist and cup it at the bottom with your left hand and lastly, bow your head if you do not want to see the wrath of the Juju. I have seen one Juju beat and drag a man around for not following the protocol.

I went back to the Kumbo area this past weekend to attend a Shey Coronation ceremony of a friend. A "Shey" is someone who has been given title in one of the traditional houses by the Fon. After the ceremony, a group in the community dressed up as Jujus and danced for us. The video below and the 2 pictures above are from the cultural soiree. It was a fun interpretation of such a powerful, important and unique aspect of the culture in the Kumbo area. The rest of the photos are from the Cultural Festival in December. I hope that you find it just as interesting as I did. I showed these pictures to other Peace Corps Volunteers in other parts of Cameroon and they were all so amazed by the Jujus. Enjoy!