Banen

Ian Skoggard

Banend, Penin, Penyin

The territory of the Banen is within the Ndikinimeki division of Mbam–et-Inoubou department Centre region, and the Yabassi division of Nkam department, Littoral region, Cameroon, occupying an area of approximately 4,900 square km (1800 sq. miles). The Ndikinimeki plateau ranges in altitude from 600 to 1200 m from west to east. The region is an area of extremes, ranging from dry savannah plateau (with gallery forests along rivers) to dense forests. It lies in the West African subequatorial zone with four seasons: a dry season lasting from mid-November to the end of March, followed by a rainy season that peaks in June, then a brief period of extreme drought from July to mid-August, and finally a period of heavy rains in September and October. Total annual rainfall is from 1.5 to 2 meters. Temperatures range from 15° to 33° C, averaging between 22° and 23° C.

The population of Banen territory in 1950 was 28,326, with a density of 16.3 persons per square mile. In 1997, the Banen-speaking population was around 40,000; ethnic population was about 100,000.

The Banen speak a common Bantu language, with dialects existing among the Yambeta, Lemande, Ndoghok, and Ponek. Through trade they have picked up vocabulary from the neighboring Bassa (Basa) and Duala (Douala) peoples.

Banen history is one of clan growth, migration, settlement and conflict. The original location of the Banen was most likely along Nun (Noun) River near its juncture of the Mbam River; The Ndiki and Itunda lived along the left bank and the Yambeta and Lemande occupied the right bank. Three hundred years ago, the Nidiki and Itundu crossed over to the right bank, displacing the Banen already there. The Eling separated from the Itundu to settle in the savannah upland region, displacing the Ndogbanol, who in turn migrated west to displace the Ndogbiakat, who then drove out the unrelated Bassa (Basa). The Yingi separated from the Eling to migrate west, settling among the Bassa. A significant battle occurred in the mid-nineteenth century, when the Bamum king attacked the Banen. Initially, the Bamum routed the Banen, but the latter regrouped to entrap the enemy cavalry and prevailed. The first Europeans, a German expedition, arrived in 1901 and, after a skirmish in which the Ndiki chief was wounded, the Banen offered no resistance. The Germans established an administrative post in 1911, but closed it in 1914. The French reopened it in 1916.

Dwellings have walls built with timber posts and woven raffia palm, daubed with clay, and roofs are of raffia-palm mats. Each homestead consists of huts built around a central quadrangle. The hut of the family head is the largest and has two rooms, a bedroom and a living room in which to entertain guests. Each wife has her own hut with a single room used as both a kitchen and bedroom. Fences built between huts form an enclosed courtyard. Dispersed homesteads form loose villages based on clan membership.

The Banen economy is primarily agricultural, minimally supplemented by hunting and fishing. The Banen grow maize, millet, vegetables, and coffee. Vegetable crops include yams, sweet potatoes, groundnuts, wandzou peas, melons, beans, calabashes, cassava, bananas, and a variety of green vegetables. Farmers practice a strict rotation of crops, leaving land to fallow for two to three years after every five or six years of use. With two rainy seasons, the Banen can grow food nearly year-round by planting along rivers, and in forests and savanna areas, and therefore do not experience food shortages. A family subsists on one-half to three-quarters hectares of land. Axes, machetes and hoes are the primary agricultural tools. Wandzou peas, groundnuts, and yams are stored in granaries and in baskets hung in kitchen rafters. Livestock include chickens and guinea pigs. Goats and sheep are used in marital exchanges.

The Banen grow coffee and cocoa as cash crops. Local markets are on certain days of the week at busy crossroads or the residences of chiefs. Palm kernels are used as currency.

Men use machetes and hooked knives to make furniture and utensils, such as beds, stools, mortars, pipes, spoons and drums. The woodwork is often decorated with simple incised lines. Men also weave baskets used to carry trade goods and store food. Men and women plait rope to make necklaces and belts. Women make cooking pots by the coiling technique and open pit firing. The Eling were the blacksmiths, smelting ore and fashioning basic iron tools.

Major trade items are cocoa and palm kernels. Before highways and trucks, people carried loads of up to a hundred pounds for days to markets in Yabassi. Palm oil is traded in the large markets of Ndikinimeki, Nituku, and Tonga.

In agriculture, men clear the land and women sow, weed and hoe the crops. Both men and women harvest. Men build and repair huts and granaries. Women plaster the walls and tamp down the floors. Other male tasks include basketry, carpentry, and rope making. Women make pots and cook food.

The chief owns the land, and individual households have usufruct rights. Families are free to claim whatever land is available, establishing their right through first use. Family plots can be widely scattered. There are also ancestral lands shared among different clans and used to grow palm trees.

The exogamous, patrilineal clan (hitik is the basic kin group. All clan members consider themselves brothers and occupy a common territory. A man may join his mother’s clan. Households are composed of nuclear and extended families. Polygamy was practiced.

Banen kinship terms distinguish between generations and gender. Father is isə; the same term is used for paternal and maternal uncles. The term for mother is inyə, also used to refer to paternal and maternal aunts, and the daughters of maternal uncles. A single term, ibᵚə, is used for a husband and his brothers. Wives and sisters-in-law also are referred to by a single term, muənd. Mon or mona is used for children, maternal nephews, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Birth order is specified, such as wə busi for the oldest child, mutiəti for middle children, and itifətif for the youngest child.

The traditional form of marriage, arranged by chiefs, involved an exchange of brides between families or clans, often decided upon before children are born or during early childhood. A wife could join her husband’s home at an early age where she would be raised by her husband’s family. There was no wedding celebration, although wedding gifts were sent along with the child bride when she changed residence. Divorce was common, but families consequently would then have to enter into negotiations to find a replacement. An irregular marriage (olɔn) occurred when a woman left her husband’s family and met her new husband in the marketplace. Such marriages are celebrated by drinking and feasting. What was once an exchange of daughters between families or clans has now been replaced by a family giving away a daughter in exchange for bridewealth.

The composition of the homestead varies according to the family life cycle. It may start out as a nuclear family, but can become an extended or polygamous family.

Only sons have rights to inheritance. The oldest son is the most favored, receiving the largest share of property and is responsible for dividing the remainder among his brothers. The father’s wives and daughters remain in the household, now headed by the oldest son; the wives can choose to return to their natal families.

Babies are named after a well-loved or dead relative. Traditionally, men were circumcised when adults as a test of courage and would receive a new name. Nowadays, men are circumcised before marriage. Tattooing on the arms, chest, back and face was common. From an early age, children do odd jobs such as drawing water, washing dishes, sweeping the courtyard, carrying loads, and tending goats. Older children learn to build huts and cultivate fields. Parents command respect from their children. Fathers do not spare the rod.

Traditionally, the Banen divided themselves into three status categories: freeborn (ifeyi, pl. bifeyi), immigrants (itwenini, pl. bitwenini) and slaves (muteka, pl. bateka). The freeborn were persons born in Banenland, in the territory and home of parents of known Banen paternity and maternity, and are not a descendent of a slave. Among the freeborn, status was further distinguished based on wealth and authority, the wealthiest being referred to as munen (pl. banen). Immigrants were usually refugees granted asylum in exchange for allegiance to a munen. Slaves were prisoners of war, or were persons exchanged as part of a peace treaty or as ransom for a prisoner. Slaves also could be kidnapped travelers (moyong, pl. biyong), or persons sold into slavery (yond, pl. biond), usually for some violation such as theft, witchcraft, treachery, incest, adultery, or murder. Slaves were tattooed on the neck, or their right earlobe was removed. Slaves could marry, have children, and own property. Female slaves were often concubines of freemen, whose children were born free. Slaves labored in agriculture and craft production, and were frontline soldiers. They could be used as a form of currency. Slavery was abolished after the arrival of Europeans.

The Banen are organized into exogamous patriclans (hitik, pl. tutik) of around 500 to 1000 members, further segmented into subclans, lineages and families. The term banen itself refers to the chief and the territory a clan occupies. The chief was a person of wealth and supernatural power, who could mediate between the clan and forces of nature. He was responsible for the prosperity and general well-being of the clan. He received the first fruits of the harvest and the choice portions of animals from the hunt. Most importantly, he acted as judge and peacemaker.

Traditionally, the chief acted as judge, along with a small council of elders. Courts were held almost every day at the chief’s residence or at the marketplace on market days. The majority of cases heard concerned sorcery, theft, debt and adultery, which could bring misfortune on the whole community. Punishments varied by social status and gender. Today, most cases are held in administrative courts, where the most common cases are those regarding divorce and custody of children.

Raiding between clans was common in pre-colonial times. Captives were enslaved or ransomed. Tensions within clans resulted in divisions and dispersals. Major disputes took place over land, as segments grew and encroached on the lands of neighboring clans or subclans.

The Banen believe in a high creator god (ombaŋ, meaning “up above”), who “braided all things”, including people. They also believe in water and forest spirits who can possess people. Drowning is blamed on water spirits. The Banen also believe in a vital force (hɔϵl, “the deep life found in everything”) that animates people, animals and things, even words. This vital force is revealed in dreams and in the actions of animals, is embodied in talismans, and is invoked in prayers. It can be used for good or evil purposes.

Religious practitioners include diviners, healers and sorcerers. Diviners inherit a special form of the supernatural viscera (bibuηə) in all people, permitting them to communicate with the vital force, and putting them in contact with divinatory objects. Different methods of divination include: interpreting patterns of leaves moved by a tarantula; a basketful of divine objects including shells and leaves; cowrie shells; and a small antelope horn suspended on a string. Diviners can become evil-doers (balєmp killing and eating their enemies. Chiefs, too, had the power to bring life or death, rains or drought.

The Banen carry out ceremonies to address sterility and at births. The birth of twins was both welcomed and feared, calling for a series of special ceremonies beginning with a nine days of celebration featuring dancing and a communal feast. When the twins begin to walk, another celebration occurs involving the sacrifice of two goats, one for the family and one for the village.

The Banen had minimal ornamentation or decoration. Tattooing was a common practice. Singing and dancing are the most developed art forms.

Babies are smeared with a mixture of powdered bark to prevent skin diseases such as scabies. Certain objects are used as protective amulets, including found polished stones in the shape of an ax. The words of a chief are powerful enough to spread blessings and life, or could be curses causing infertility and death. Victims of such curses brought the chief gifts to appease him.

Burial takes place on the day a person died. Widows sit naked by the corpse chanting lamentations recalling the life of the deceased. A grave is dug while people dance. The oldest son dances a leopard hunt dance. Maternal uncles bring gifts, while the maternal nephews demand gifts. Brothers lay claim to the deceased’s possessions, including crops harvested or still in the field. Family members place the corpse in the burial pit along with a few possessions. A miniature hut is built over the filled-in grave. Widows remain in seclusion for twenty days and their meals are brought to them. Lamentations continue on the fifth day, when men of the deceased’s family present engagement gifts to the widows they wish to marry. On the twentieth day, there is another ceremony (hit) with more lamentations and dancing, along with drinking and feasting, after which everyone resumes normal activities. The heir is expected eventually to reciprocate for the gifts his family received. The spirits of the dead linger among the living, causing annoyances for a short time until they are forgotten and leave. In the past, a rich man’s slaves were killed and buried with him.

The culture summary was written by Ian Skoggard in February, 2021.

Abwa, Daniel. 1995. “The Banen and Slavery.” (Translated from the original French version by John Bime.) Paideuma: Mitteilungen zur Kulturkunde 41:107-125.

Dugast, Idelette. 1954. The Banen. London; International African Institute.Dugast, Idelette. 1954. The Banen. London; International African Institute.

Dugast, Idelette. 1955. Monographie de la tribu des Nidiki (Banen du Cameroun), Tome 1, Vie matérielle. Paris; Institute d’Ethnologie.

Dugast, Idelette. 1959. Monographie de la tribu des Nidiki (Banen du Cameroun), Tome 2, Vie sociale et familiale. Paris; Institute d’Ethnologie.