The original home land of e-Mokpwe.
Oral history makes reference to two narrations concerning the original homeland of e Mokpwe. The familiar narration is that ancestors of the Bakweri were members of a section of a family in Womboko Clan that migrated and then settled where the Bakweri are today.
It is said that Njia Tama Lifanje, a hunter from a village in Womboko Village Group was the founder of the Village of Buea . That is why Buea is sometimes referred to as “Buea wo Njia Tama Lifanje” - “Buea the Village of Njia Tama Lifanje”.
It is said that at the time that Buea was found there were hundreds and hundreds of herds of wildlife, especially deer (kaave), in the forest of Bakweri lands, particularly in the forests adjacent to the savannah zone of the Mountain.
Being very pleased with the remarkable success he made in capturing good quantities of wildlife, Njia Tama Lifanje named his new found settlement “ebgwe-ye gbwe-ye”. The name “Buea” is derived from “egbwe-ye gbwe-ye”
Note:
gbwe-ya = execute; perform..
egbwe-ye gbwe-ye = executed remarkably very well; an outstanding performance.
Womboko Clan and Bakweri lands are situated on opposite sides of e-Fako
(the Mountain).Womboko is on the slopes of hills on the leeward side of the Mountain while Bakweri lands are on the slopes of hills on the windward side of the Mountain overlooking the Atlantic Ocean .
The track that Njia Tama Lifanje used from Womboko Village Group to Buea is not known.He probably trekked from one of the villages in Womboko Clan to the top of the Mountain (e-Fako), then trekked down the hills on the slopes of the Mountain overlooking the Atlantic Ocean , and then anchored on the banks of Mosele Stream, probably in the vicinity of the present day Buea Police Headquarters Offices.
It is said that the original site of the village of Buea extended westwards from the banks of Mosole Stream at the present day Road Junction near the Police Headquarters Offices to the area around the Mountain Hotel.
As recent as 1940-50 when pipe borne water from Mosole Spring at Upper Farms was available only to residents of Buea Old Government Station and in some parts of Buea Village water from Mosole Spring flowed along the ravine close to the Prime Minister’s Lodge, then to the Police Roundabout, then to the Prison Yard and then to the Village of Great Soppo.
Note:
There are three springs of water along the path that Mosole flows.The first spring is situated on the regular track to the summit of the Mountain, about half a kilo metre south of Hut 01.The second spring is situated about three quarters of a kilo metre north-west of the buildings at Upper farms.The third spring is situated about one kilo metre north-east of the Village of Great Soppo.
The second and less familiar narration about the original home land of the Bakweri is that the Douala, the Womboko, and the Bakweri are descendants of ancestors of a family in a tribe whose original home land is in East Africa in the region of Lake Victoria. A section of the family migrated from East Africa and settled on the east and west banks of River Wouri close to the estuary.
Later a section of the family on the banks of River Wouri migrated north-westwards to the estuary of River Meme and then settled on slopes of hills on the leeward side of the Mountain (e-Fako) south-east of the River.The new found land was named Womboko while the area that is still being occupied by descendants of the family on the banks of River Wouri has continued to be known as Douala .
Later another section of the Womboko family migrated and settled on hills of slopes of the Mountain (e-Fako) overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.The area became known as Bakweri land.The bulk of emigrants founded villages in areas that became known as Buea Village Group, Muea Village Group, Lysoka Village Group, Mutengene Village Group, Wonjongo Village Group.
Two small groups of emigrants have however settled along two natural tracks that connect Bakweri lands to Womboko area.The East settlement is known as Vahwiya/Vakpwe Village Group while the West settlement is called Bakweri/Womboko Village Group.
The East track or the Vahwiya track extends from the Bakweri villages of Lysoka and Ekona Mbenge to Lio la Gbwea to Masuma to Ikata to Vavenga then to Wova wo Womboko, and then up the hills to Wokoso in Womboko Village Group area.The Womboko Clan customary court is at Wokoso.
Vahwiya is situated on level land at the foot of the Mountain north-east of the Bakweri village of Ekona Mbenge. Vahwiya people speak Bakweri, Vahwiya and Womboko languages.
The West track is at the foot of the Mountain along the sea plain - Vatoke to Vakingili to Njonji to Vewonde (Idenua) then up the hills to Womboko villages.The people of Bakweri/Womboko Village Group speak Womboko and Bakweri languages.
The natural tracks at the East End and West End of the Mountain have been developed to motor roads that connect Bakweri lands to Womboko area. A ring road stretches from Vewonde (Idenua) up the hills to Womboko villages in the west, then across Womboko land to the village of Wokoso in the east, then down the hills to Vahwiya land, then to Owe, then to Muyuka, then to the Bakweri village of Ekona Mbenge, then to Vevonde (Idenua) via Mutengene and Victoria.
The assertion that the Bakweri, the Womboko, the Douala and an unknown tribe in East Africa, all have common East Africa ancestors corresponds with facts such as,
(i) Similarity of some Bakweri names to names in East Africa .
(ii) The remarkable exactness or near exactness in the pronunciation and meaning of several names in the Douala , the Womboko and the Bakweri languages.
(iii) Similarities in the mystic societies and the culture and traditions of the Womboko and the Bakweri, for instance the Maale (Elephant Society) and mystic healing of certain illness.
As concerns the similarity of some Bakweri names to names in East Africa I have tried to match below Bakweri names with names of six of the Christian Martyrs of Uganda and also with six familiar East Africa names. They are:
East Africa Bakweri.
Christian Martyrs
Muwanga Mowanga
Mukasa Mokase
Mulumba Molomba
Ngonge Ngongi
Mbwa Mbgwa
Mbogo Mbongo
Familiar names in East Africa. Bakweri.
Banda Mbanda
Mugabe Mongambe
Nyerere Nyalele
Molimo Molimo
Mbeki Nambeke
Zuma Suma; Suume.
Here also are some names selected randomly from the several names in Douala , Womboko and Bakweri languages that have the same pronunciations and the same meanings.
Douala Bakweri
Loba Loove = God; The Creator
Moto Moto = a human being
Tete Taata = father; elder
Enanga Enanga.
Mbela Mbela
Mokoko Mokoko
Ndumbe Ndumbe
Manga Manga
Wonjongo Wonjongo
Jengu Liyengu = a mermaid
Esambo Esambo = disgrace
Munyenge Monyengi =happiness
Ndutu Ndutu = misfortune
Muna nyongo Mwa nyongo= your brother
Mosima Mosima = good fortune
Longe Longe = life
Kwedi Kweli = death
Mukom Mokomi = a slave
Tokisene Tokisene = to dispute
Manyaka Manyaka (wonderful)
Diba Liva = marriage
Bobe Wove = bad
Mbowa Mbowa = home; home town.
Songtan Songitane = understand.
Maongo Maongo = danger.
Bongo Woongo = fear.
Bona Wonya = descendants of.
Bunya Wunya = day.
Dia Liya = a hand
Bosangi Wosangi = clean and tidy.
Mbenge Mbenge = south
Mbenga Bakala Mbenga Vakala = Europe
Njie/Njia Njie/Njia.
Tama Tama
Lifanje Lifanje
Likafi Likafi
Ngomba Ngomba
Lotongo Lotongo
Njoku Njoku
Mbenga Mbenga
Nimonge Nimonge
Naliyongo Naliongo
Namwene Namwene
Note: Some Bakweri villages and families are named after their founders.
Lexicon: va OR wo = wonya = descendants of...
Hence:
Wonjuku = the descendants of Njoku.
Wonjia = the descendants of Njia.
Wolifamba = the descendants of Lifamba
Wonya Kpwaongo = the descendants of Kpwaongo
Wonya Woleta = the descendants of Woleta.
Womboko probably means the descendants of Mboko.
mboko = a seat; a stool.
Vatoke probably means the descendants of Toko.
Note
Wojuwa = Buea Village Group and Muea Village Group.
Metowo = marshes: refers to village in Muea Village Group that are situated on swamps, for instance: Muea, Evili, Wonyamokuma, Womaka, Wonyavio, Woanda, Wolifamba wo Mbenge (Mile 16), Livanda (Mile 14).
Vaima = Lysoka Village Group.
Mbenga Mbowa = Wonjongo Village Group
Note: There is a Douala speaking village called “Bonjongo” situated between Bonaberi and Bekoko. Then there is also a Bakweri village called “Wonjongo” The name “Wonjongo” is being distorted and pronounced. “Bonjongo”.
Oma Nanu
Imba Thomas Mbua Ndoko
Chicago ILL, USA
Wisdom is it that I seek and the Lord has given.Always in our minds as we learn from Ur wise words.Rest well in our Lords bosom Mbamba..
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