Oshie
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| Oshie | |
  Oshie
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| Coordinates: | |
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| Country |  Cameroon |
| Province | Northwest Province |
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Oshie is a small mountainous village located in the English-speaking Northwest Province of Cameroon. The people who make up part of the semi Bantu ethnic group of Cameroon are said to have originated from Mbeitong near Ntadkon in present day Mezam Division in the Northwest Province. These people were forced to migrate south because of the spread of Islam in west and central Africa. They then migrated in two waves one through Oshum, Widikum and Ngie. The other through Njinibi and Frigyien. These people today occupy a land surface estimated at 70 square kilometers and has as extreme coordinates of 6 degrees 5' and 6 degrees 13' North of the equator and 9 degrees 45' and 9 degrees 55' east of the Greenwich meridian. It is located to the east of Njikwa Sub-division in Momo Division and forms a geographical gate way into Njikwa. The present site was initially inhabited by the Konda and Beba people, who were driven out by the migrant Oshie people. Early settlement sites were places such as Tikob, Edek, and Togobeiku. These sites were chosen for defensive purposes, taking advantage of the strategic landscape.
2004 population projections placed the population of the village at 10,822 inhabitants. This population is structured into families that were born out of two principal families; Andek and Oyemi. Though the population is made up predominantly of indigenes, the society is ethnically and religiously pluralistic, yet very peaceful. The village is structured into quarters with Nyebai, Beimban, Barimbom, Neucop, Fum, Fringyen and Bereje being the main quarters. They are further broken into sub quarters each under a quarter head. Oshie is a land of rich physical diversity and presents an undulating landscape which is an extension of the Bamboutos Highlands of the Western Highlands of Cameroon.
The village has a fondom occupied by the Anyangwe family. Before the advent of colonisation, the [largest part of the] village was ruled by the Awanayah family; however when the explorer came to the village, everyone vacated the village but for the great Anyangwe warrior who had had his leg amputated from a recent battle. His words were, "I did not run from death when I was a strong young man, why should I run from death now".
Because Anyangwe was not scared of the explorers and reorganized his people after they arrived, the explorers now made him their authority and mouthpiece with the people thereby relegating the former chief of the village (Nyebai & Bembam) who was scared of the "red" men. This is how the Awanayahs lost chieftaincy in Oshie.
The Awanayahs, however hold the authority as the supreme King maker of Oshie. Till date because of the power struggle that ensued between the Anyangwes and the Awanayahs after the explorers/missionaries had left, there can not be marriage between members of the two families.
It should be noted that the Awanayahs had a chieftaincy (1 village, about 3 quaters - Nyebai,Bembam & Foum) and the Anyangwes have but a Fondom which is the present day Oshie of about 25 quaters (about 10 villages)
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