Foumban
| Foumban | |
|---|---|
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| Coordinates: 5°43′N 10°55′E / 5.717°N 10.917°E | |
| Country |
 Cameroon |
| Province | West |
| Department | Noun |
| Population (2005) | |
| • Total | 83,522 (Census) |
Foumban or Fumban is a city in Cameroon, lying north east of Bafoussam. It has a population of 83,522 (at the 2005 Census). It is a major town for the Bamoun people and is home to a museum of traditional arts and culture. Foumban is known for its political significance in the formation of Cameroon's history and its cultural and touristic economic potentials. There is also a market and a craft centre, while Foumban Royal Palace contains a museum with information on Ibrahim Njoya who invented a new religion and the Shumom alphabet.
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Coordinates: 5°43′N 10°55′E / 5.717°N 10.917°E
History
Foumban is the headquarter of the Noun Division of the Western province. It was the seat of the Bamoun Dynasty.[1] The Bamoun Dynasty was founded in the 1394 by Mfon Nshare Yen. Mfon Nshare became the first Mfon (what is today called Sultan[2]) and was the founding father of Foumban, which became the capital city of the Bamoun Dynasty. This was as a result of the many wars against neighboring kingdoms between 1394 to 1418. Since then, Founban has politically, culturally and economic grown into a tourist city of great renown in Cameroon. Its rich history and development has seen it surpass other cities and towns in the region, and it continues to attract hundreds of visitors.
Sultans of Bamoun
1. Mfon NCHARE YEN, 1st Mfon of Bamoun 1394/1418,
2. Queen Nguepu, 2nd Queen of Bamoun 1418/1461
3. Mfon MONJOU, 3rd Mfon of Bamoun 1461/1498
4. Mfon MENGAP, 4th Mfon of Bamoun 1498/1519
5. Mfon NGOU I, 5th Mfon of Bamoun 1519/1544
6. Mfon FIFEN, 6th Mfon of Bamoun 1544/1568
7. Mfon NGOU II, 7th Mfon of Bamoun 1568/1590
8. Mfon NGAPNA, 8th Mfon of Bamoun 1590/1629
9. Mfon NGOULOURE, 9th Mfon of Bamoun 1629/1672
10.Mfon KUETOU, 10th Mfon of Bamoun 1672/1757, (his reign was calm and peaceful, reportedly the father of 400 children.)
11.Mfon MBOUOMBOUO [Mbuembue], 11th Mfon of Bamoun 1757/1814 or 1810/1845
12. 12. 13. Mfon MBEIKUO, 13th Mfon of Bamoun 1817/1818
13. Mfon MBEIKUO, 13th Mfon of Bamoun 1817/1818
14. Mfon NGOUHOUO, 14th Mfon of Bamoun 1818/1865
15. Mfon NGOUNGOURE, 15th Mfon of Bamoun in 1865
16. Mfon NSANGOU, 16th Mfon of Bamoun 1865/1889.
17. HRH Sultan IBRAHIM NJOYA, 17th Sultan of Bamoun 1889/1931. Sultan Njoya and his court converted to Islam in 1897. As ruler he displayed a sense of curiosity, a wit and a cultural ambition that sets him apart from the rest. Eager to modernize his kingdom, he created an alphabet (Shumom script) made of ideograms (80 signs), set up numerous schools to enforce it and wrote a book on the history and traditions of the Bamoun entitled "Histoire des lois et des coutumes des Bamoun", he also drew the map of his kingdom, created numerous pharmaceutical recipes and more surprising, invented an electric mill; later he merged some of the tenents of Christianity and Islam with traditional beliefs to create an altogether new religion more palatable to his subjects; after WWI, the incoming French Administration in due course considered him of too independent a mind and deposed him, sending him to Yaoundé in 1931 where he died in exile two years later. He was Mfon of Bamun till 1918, then Sultan of Foumban and Mfon of Bamun; married and had issue, 167 (or 177) children. He died June 1933.[3]
18. HRH al-Hajj Sultan SEIDOU NJIMOULUH NJOYA, 18th Sultan of Foumban and Mfon of the Bamun 1933/1992
19. HRH al-Hajj Sultan IBRAHIM MBOMBO NJOYA, 19th Sultan of Bamoun
The reign of Nsangou was marked by stiff colonial challenges.It was during his reign that Bamoun became a part of German Kameroun on 14 July 1884. He was beheaded in a conflict with the Nso people from the North West Province of Cameroon, and his head carried off in 1889.[4]
Though touristy, Foumban is one of Cameroon's major attractions and an important centre of traditional African art. Its jewel is the Palais Royal, seat of power for the Bamoun people. The ruler of the Bamoun is known as the sultan, and the Bamoun can trace the lineage of their sultan back to 1394.
The palace, completed in 1917, resembles a medieval chateau. It houses the Sultan's Museum, which contains a multitude of royal gowns, arms, musical instruments, statues, jewellery, masks and colourful bead-covered thrones carved in the shapes of the men who sat on them.
A few hundred metres south of the palace is the Musée des Arts et des Traditions Bamoun. This extensive collection has exhibits on Bamoun history and art, including cooking implements, musical instruments, pipes, statues, masks, gongs and an ornately carved xylophone. The road that connects the two museums is the Rue des Artisans, home to sculptors, basket makers, weavers and embroiderers, and one of the best places in Central Africa to buy wood carvings.[5]
The reign of these Kings or Nfons as is commonly called, from Foumban the headquarter and their acts of leadership have had a great influence on their subject and on Foumban itself, making it to be of critical reference in the history of the Bamoun people.
Economy
The economy was largely agricultural, and slave owning was practiced on a small scale. The Bamum kingdom also traded with neighboring populations. They imported salt, iron, beads, cotton goods and copper objects. The main economic activity in Foumban as of today is tourism and agriculture which is largely subsistence. Foumban is the touristic hoop of Cameroon and the Western Province in particular. Thousands of tourist visit this ancient city to take a look at the remains of arts and cultural display of the kings of this historic town. The streets are decorated with artistic designed but much more is the palace which protrudes and imposes at the center of the city. Its centrality symbolizes an era where the kings represents the nerve center of the entire community and a system where everything hinges on palace. Art work are the major source of income and many rely on it for their living. There is an art market, a touristic center and a museum called called Musée des Arts et des Traditions Bamoun.[6] Agriculture is also carried out in small-scale subsistence farming. However, due to its very rich and fertile soil, the government of Cameroon has established a research centre to develop local hybrid of seeds to expand on the agricultural sector. The Institute for Agronomic Research (IRAD) has engage the community in partnership with the government in developing large-scale fishing in this landlocked community. Other economic activities include cattle rearing and palm oil production. Coffee is the main cash crop that is produced and sold in the world market.[7]
Culture
The Bamoun people claim their origin from Tikar in Cameroon. Thus it no surprise that the language of the Bamum kingdom could be trace to the Tikars in the western highlands of Cameroon.[8] This apparently did not last long, and the language of the conquered, Mben, was adopted. The Bamun developed an extensive artistic culture at their capital of Foumban at the beginning of the 20th century. During Njoya’s reign six dye pits containing various colors were maintained. The Mbum also imported indigo-dyed raffia-sewn cloth from the Hausa as royal cloth. This royal cloth was called Ntieya, and Hausa craftsmen were kept at palace workshops to supply nobles and teach the art of dyeing.
See also
List of rulers of the Bamum History of Cameroon Bamum (people) Kingdom of Bamum
References
- ↑ Kingdom of Bamum
- ↑ Saltant
- ↑ http://members.iinet.net.au/~royalty/states/cameroun/bamun.html
- ↑ http://members.iinet.net.au/~royalty/states/cameroun/bamun.html
- ↑ http://members.iinet.net.au/~royalty/states/cameroun/bamun.html
- ↑ http://www.ibike.org/bikeafrica/cameroon/west/07-Foumban.htm
- ↑ http://famouswonders.com/foumban/
- ↑ Kingdom of Bamum
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_of_Bamum
http://members.iinet.net.au/~royalty/states/cameroun/bamun.