are the Pinyin, Mankon, Awing, Bambulewie,
Bafut, Bafreng, Mandankwe, Mbili, Mbambili,
Mbui, Bamunkum, and Kpati. To these people,
the word “abela” has an ancient meaning attrib-
uted to the interactions with strangers and other
people. It signals recognition of the person inas-
much as to ignore another human being is consid-
ered the breaking of a taboo. Thus, it is a vile act
of neglect and disrespect.
Abela being a simple form of greeting has
no other ritualistic origin; however, as a way of
initiating conversation or generating familiarity
and friendliness, it fosters social coercion among
the Ngemba and outsiders who use it. The term
“abela” is so popular that even people from
other ethnic groups now use the term for greet-
ing whenever they meet an Ngemba person. This
is a sign of hospitality and politeness, and it is
part of the grace of demonstrating connection,
togetherness, and respect.
It is believed that the Ngemba migrated from
a place called “Feulu” in Tibati near Banyo in
the Adamawa Province of the Republic of
Cameroon because of the frequent interethnic
wars between the Ngemba and the Fulani, a
large and powerful trading and martial people.
The Ngemba left Feulu under the leadership of
Aghajoo, a wealthy man with numerous victories
in war, and made a brief, but significant, stop on
the fertile and scenic plains of Ndop. Following
tremendous competition for territory and war-
ring feuds with other ethnic migrants, the
Ngemba group left Ndop and continued their
trek, settling by the great Mezam River where
they organized their families.
Africans generally use greetings such as “abela”
to ascertain the status of a person’s family, the
economic well-being of a community, and the
relationship with the ancestors and the spiritual
world. Thus, the greeting “abela,” like similar
expressions in other languages, speaks to the equi-
librium between communities. To ask someone
“How is it?” is to inquire about something more
than the superficial presence of the individual, but
to seek a deeper response about the condition and
life of the community.
A typical greeting only begins with the expres-
sion “abela” and continues with questions about
individual members of the family, relatives, and
even animals. To really know “how it is,” one
must interrogate the entire universe of the person
that you are greeting, and therefore it is not an
easy, quick, raising of the hand and moving
onward. It must be a sincere question, and the
questioner usually receives a full and complete
answer. This is the nature of reciprocity in the
Ngemba culture.Emmanuel Kombem NgwainmbiFurther Readings
Ayotte, M., & Lamberty, M. (2003).Rapid Appraisal
Sociolinguistic Survey Among the NGEMBA Cluster
of Languages:Mankon, Bambili, Nkwen, Pinyin, and
Awing:Bamenda, Santa and Tubah subdivisions
Mezam Division North West Province(SIL Electronic
Survey Reports 2003–002). http://www.sil.org/silesr/
abstract.asp?ref=2003-002.
Sadembouo, E., & Hasselbring, S. (1991).A
Sociolinguistic Survey of the Ngemba Languages.
Yaounde, Cameroon: Centre for Anthropological
Research and Study, Societe Internationale de
Linguisticque.
Soh Bejeng, P. (1978).The History and Social
Institutions in the Ngemba Chiefdoms of Mbatu,
Akum, Nsongwa, Chomba, and Ndzong(Travail et
documents de 1’ISH, No. 9). Yaounde, Cameroon.ABOSOM
In the Akan tradition, abosom (deities/divinities/
lesser gods; singular: obosom) are the children
and messengers of Nyame (Creator). Similar in
function to Yoruba orisha and Vodun loa, the
abosom are spiritual forces evincing and operat-
ing throughout the Akan universe, assisting
Nyame in the task of managing Creation,
namely humanity. They are found throughout
Ghana and are a major part of Akan cosmology.
Abosom may be male or female or have the abil-
ity to embody both. Although the abosom often
embody various manifestations of nature (i.e.,
wind, bodies of water, trees, mountains, hills,
animals, etc.), these objects are used only as
temporary dwelling places and should not be
confused with the abosom themselves. The
abosom are essentially spirit.Abosom 3