A Bibliography of Published Literature on the Bali Chamba of Cameroon & Nigeria

Compiled by Jude D. Fokwang

The following bibliography details the names of scholars (and their works) who have researched and published on the Bali or the Chamba more broadly. These authors include expatriate scholars, some of whom are leading authorities on traditional religion and ritual among the Chamba. Others are Cameroonian and Cameroonist historians, political scientists and geographers who have studied and written on vital aspects of Bali/Chamba scholarship.

This bibliography has been compiled to assist scholars and students of Bali society as they pursue their scholarship. Non-academics may also benefit from reviewing the list for relevant documentation on issues about which they would like to read further. Needless to add that this list would inspire interest in researching aspects of Bali society that haven’t been explored or underexplored.

NB: This bibliography includes authors who have published on Bali Nyonga, the Bali of the Cameroon Grasslands or the Chamba in Nigeria and Cameroon. It does not include Bali authors who have written on themes or academic topics not directly concerned with the (history, geography, economics, politics, anthropology etc. of the Bali). The list shall be updated as new literature becomes available. For additions to this list, kindly reach out to the author via his contact page.

BIBLIOGRAPHY ORGANIZED THEMATICALLY

POLITICS

Aletum Tabuwe, M. (1985). The traditional political institutions of Bali-Nyonga and their contributions to modern politics in Cameroon. Yaounde: Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research.

Fokwang, J. (2009). Mediating Legitimacy: Chieftaincy and Democratisation in Two African Chiefdoms. Bamenda: Langaa Research and Publishing.

Fokwang, J. (2011). Chieftaincy at the Crossroads: Politics, Society and Customary Reform in Bali Nyonga. In J. Fokwang & K. Langmia (Eds.), Society and Change in Bali Nyonga: Critical Perspectives (pp. 147-164). Mankon, Bamenda: Langaa Research & Publishing CIG.

Geary, C. M. (1988). Arts and Political Process in the Kingdoms of Bali-Nyonga and Bamum (Cameroon). Canadian Journal of African Studies, 22(1), 11-41.

Nyamndi, N. B. (1988). The Bali Chamba of Cameroon: A Political History. Paris: CAPE.

Soh Bejeng, P. (n.d.). The Concept of Power Transfer in the Bali Nyonga Political System. Institute of Human Sciences, Bamenda.

HISTORY & GEOGRAPHY

Bali-Nyonga History and Culture Committee. (1986). History of the Bali Family. Bamenda: Radio Cameroon.

Chilver, E. M. (1960 [1963]). Bali Nyonga: A few notes on twins in Bali Nyonga.

Chilver, E. M. (1964). A Bamileke Community in Bali-Nyonga: a note on the Bawok. African Studies, 23(3), 121-128.

Chilver, E. M. (1964 (revised 1970)). Historical Notes on the Bali Chiefdoms of the Cameroons Grassfields. Two reports to the Bali-Chamba Historical and Cultural Society, Report 1 Origins, migration and composition. Report 2 The Bali-Chamba of Bamenda: settlement and composition.

Chilver, E. M. (1966). Zintgraff’s Exploration in Bamenda, Adamawa and the Benue Lands 1889-1892 (E. W. Ardener Ed.). Buea: Ministry of Primary Education and Social Welfare and West Cameroon Antiquities Commission.

Chilver, E. M. (1967). Paramountcy and protection in the Cameroons: the Bali and the Germans, 1889-1913s. In P. Gifford & W. R. Louis (Eds.), Britain and Germany in Africa: Imperial Rivalry and Colonial Rule. New Haven: Yale University Press.

Chilver, E. M. (1970). Chronology of the Bamenda Grassfields. Journal of African History, 11.

Chilver, E. M. (1995). Grassfields Working Notes: Max Moisel’s Visit to Bamenda, Bali-Nyonga and Babungo, 1907. Privately circulated.

Chilver, E. M., & Kaberry, P. (1967). Traditional Bamenda: The Precolonial History and Ethnography of the Bamenda Grassfields. Buea, Cameroon: Government Printer.

Fardon, Richard. Raiders & Refugees: Trends in Chamba Political Development, 1750-1950. Smithsonian Institution Press, 1988.

Fardon, R. (2006). Lela in Bali: History through Ceremony in Cameroon. Oxford: Berghahn Books.

Fardon, R. O. (1980). The Chamba: A Comparative History of Tribal Politics. (PhD), University of London

Fardon, R. O. (1983). A Chronology of Pre-Colonial Chamba History. Paideuma, 29, 67-92.

Fardon, R., & Furniss, G. (2021). The histories of an enlightened ruler: Malam Muhamman Bitemya Sambo, Garbosa II of Donga, Central Nigeria. Vestiges: Traces of Record, 7(2), 28-61. 

Garbosa II, M. S. (Gara Donga), Translated by Graham Furniss and Richard Fardon. (2021). History and Customs of the Chamba. Vestiges: Traces of Record, 7(2), 62-159.

Gwanfogbe, M. B. (2016). Geographical Presentation of Bali Nyonga Kingdom. In V. P. K. Titanji (Ed.), Bali Nyonga Today: Roots, Cultural Practices and Future Perspectives (pp. 1-4). Denver, Colorado: Spears Media Press.

Gwanfogbe, M. B. (2016). Bali Nyonga: From Migration to Settlement. In V. P. K. Titanji (Ed.), Bali Nyonga Today: Roots, Cultural Practices and Future Perspectives (pp. 5-26). Denver, Colorado: Spears Media Press.

Meek, C. K. (1925). The Northern Tribes of Nigeria: An Ethnographical Account of the Northern Provinces of Nigeria Together with a Report on the 1921 Decennial Census. United Kingdom: Oxford University Press, H. Milford.

Njinuwo, E. (2022). The Bali Nyonga of Cameroon, 1889-2013: A History of Cultural Imperialism, Heritage Politics and Heritage Economy. (PhD). University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. 

BIOGRAPHY, REFERENCE & GENERAL

Chilver, E. M. (Ed.) (1962). Portrait of a Cameroonian. An Autobiography of Maxwell Gabana Fohtung: Cyclostyled edition.

Domatob, J. K. (2016). Bali American Diaspora: History, Challenges and Policies. In V. P. K. Titanji (Ed.), Bali Nyonga Today: Roots, Cultural Practices and Future Perspectives (pp. 46-58). Denver, Colorado: Spears Media Press.

Fardon, Richard. “The Person, Ethnicity and the Problem of ‘Identity’ in West Africa.” African Crossroads: Intersections between History and Ethnography in Cameroon, edited by I. Fowler and D. Zeitlyn, Berghahn Books, 1996.

Fochang, B. (2015). A Wealth of Wisdom: A Reference Collection of African Proverbs. Denver, Colorado: Spears Media Press.

Fohtung, M. G. (1992). Self-portrait of a Cameroonian. Paideuma, 38, 219-248.

Fokwang, J. K. (1992). A Dictionary of Bali Popular Names (2nd Edition ed.). Bamenda: Unique Printers.

Fokwang, J. K. (2010). A Dictionary of Popular Bali Names (3rd Edition ed.). Bamenda: Langaa Publishers.

Jeffreys, M. D. W. (1962). Isaac Fielding Pefok, B.E.M: a brief autobiography. The Nigerian Field, 27(2), 81-90.

Ndangam, A. F., & Nwana, E. M. (1981). Portrait of their Royal Highnesses Galega I, Fonyonga II, Galega II. BACCUDA, Bali, December 1981.

Nyamndi, F. N. (2007). The Making of a Fondom: Prominent Figures of Bali Nyonga History from Fonyonga I to Galega II. Yaounde: Mvomberg Publishers Ltd.

Soh Bejeng, P. (1985). The passing of a great leader: Galega II of Bali-Nyonga (1960-1985). Limbe: Nooremac Press.

Titanji, V., Gwanfogbe, M., Nwana, E. M., Ndangam, A. F., & Lima, A. S. (Eds.). (1988). An Introduction to the Study of Bali-Nyonga (A tribute to His Royal Highness Galega II, Traditional Ruler of Bali-Nyonga from 1940-1985). Yaoundé: Stardust Printers.

Tischhauser, G. (1992). Mungaka (Bali) Dictionary (J. Stöckle, Trans. Vol. 1). Cologne: Rüdiger Köppe Publishers.

Zintgraff, E. (1895). Nord-Kamerun. Berlin: Paetel

RELIGION & RITUAL

Chilver, E. M. (1960 [1963]). Brief notes on spirits, divinity and occult powers.

Fardon, Richard. Between God, the Dead and the Wild : Chamba Interpretations of Religion and Ritual. Edinburgh University Press, 1990.

Fochang, B. (2011). Old Wine in New Wineskin? Social Change and Traditional Religion in Bali Nyonga. In J. Fokwang & K. Langmia (Eds.), Society and Change in Bali Nyonga: Critical Perspectives (pp. 23-36). Mankon, Bamenda: Langaa Research & Publishing CIG.

Fochang, B. (2016). Contemporary Religious Co-existence in Bali Nyonga. In V. P. K. Titanji (Ed.), Bali Nyonga Today: Roots, Cultural Practices and Future Perspectives (pp. 108-113). Denver, Colorado: Spears Media Press.

Fokwang, J. (2020). The Cultural Diffusion and Analysis of a Symbol Complex: Lela and its Antecedents among the Bali Chamba of the Cameroon Grassfields.  Retrieved from https://judefokwang.com/the-cultural-diffusion-and-analysis-of-a-symbol-complex/

FOLK MEDICINE & ETHNOBOTANY

Chilver, E. M. (1988). Some notes on alternative therapies and thaumarturgies in Bali Nyonga, North West Province Cameroon, in the sixties. Paper presented at the Conference of Ethnomedical systems in Sub-Saharan Africa, Leiden.

Fokunang, C. (2016). Traditional Medicine in Bali Nyonga. In V. P. K. Titanji (Ed.), Bali Nyonga Today: Roots, Cultural Practices and Future Perspectives (pp. 159-176). Denver, Colorado: Spears Media Press.

LANGUAGE, SOCIETY & CULTURE

Fielding, P. (2009). Language Use in the Negotiation of Linguistic and Cultural Knowledge and the Sustenance of Online Diasporic Relations. L2 Journal, 1(1), 62-82.

Fielding, P. (2011). Language Use in a Multicultural Online Community. In J. Fokwang & K. Langmia (Eds.), Society and Change in Bali Nyonga: Critical Perspectives (pp. 109-130). Mankon, Bamenda: Langaa Research & Publishing CIG.

Fokwang, J. (2011). Introduction: Society and Culture in Early 21st Century Bali. In J. Fokwang & K. Langmia (Eds.), Society and Change in Bali Nyonga: Critical Perspectives (pp. 1-20). Bamenda: Langaa Publishers.

Fokwang, J. (2017). The New Mungaka Alphabet for Beginners. Denver, Colorado: Spears Media Press.

Fokwang, J., & Gwaabe, G. (2020). The Mungaka Alphabet Workbook. Denver: Spears Books.

Fokwang, J., & Langmia, K. (Eds.). (2011). Society and Change in Bali Nyonga: Critical Perspectives. Bamenda: Langaa Research and Publishing.

Hunt, W. E. (Assessment Report on the Bali Clan of the Bamenda Division, Cameroons Province, Bamenda). 1925.

Jeffreys, M. D. W. (1957). The Bali of Bamenda. African Studies, 16(108-13).

Jeffreys, M. D. W. (1962). Traditional sources prior to 1890 for the Grassfield Bali of Northwestern Cameroons. Afrika und Ubersee, 46(3), 168-199.

Jeffreys, M. D. W. (1962). Some Notes on the Customs of the Grassfields Bali of Northwestern Cameroon. Afrika und Ubersee, 46(3), 161-168.

Kaberry, P. M. (1962). Retainers and Royal Households in the Cameroon Grasslands. Cahiers d’Études Africaines, 10(282-298).

Langmia, K. (2011). Social Criticism through Oral Discourse in Bali Nyonga. In J. Fokwang & K. Langmia (Eds.), Society and Change in Bali Nyonga: Critical Perspectives (pp. 131-146). Mankon, Bamenda: Langaa Research & Publishing CIG.

Langmia, K. (2016). Bali Nyonga Musicians at Home and Abroad. In V. P. K. Titanji (Ed.), Bali Nyonga Today: Roots, Cultural Practices and Future Perspectives (pp. 182-193). Denver, Colorado: Spears Media Press.

Mutia, B., & Mecaly, B. (2011). Performance Aesthetics, Structure and Language of Bali Nyonga Divination Systems. In J. Fokwang & K. Langmia (Eds.), Society and Change in Bali Nyonga: Critical Perspectives (pp. 37-58). Mankon, Bamenda: Langaa Research & Publishing CIG.

Ndangam Fokwang, L. (2011). Imagining Bali Nyonga Online: Online Discussions of the Bali-Bawock Crisis on a Bali Electronic Forum. In J. Fokwang & K. Langmia (Eds.), Society and Change in Bali Nyonga: Critical Perspectives (pp. 83-108). Mankon, Bamenda: Langaa Research & Publishing CIG.

Ndangam Fokwang, L. (2021). Mungaka Word Book: Ŋwà’nì Lɨŋ kě nì Mɨ̀ŋgâkà. Denver, CO: Spears Books.

Ndangam, G. (2014). Cultural Encounters: Society, Culture and Language in Bali Nyonga From the 19th Century. Collierville, TN: Instantpublisher.com.

Ndangam, G. (2016). The Lela Festival. In V. P. K. Titanji (Ed.), Bali Nyonga Today: Roots, Cultural Practices and Future Perspectives (pp. 194-197). Denver, Colorado: Spears Media Press.

Njimanted, G. F. (2016). Art and Craft in Bali Nyonga. In V. P. K. Titanji (Ed.), Bali Nyonga Today: Roots, Cultural Practices and Future Perspectives (pp. 147-158). Denver, Colorado: Spears Media Press.

Nwana, E. M., & Ndangam, A. F. (Eds.). (1981). The Living Culture of Bali-Nyonga. A Collection of Some Popular Names Together with a Pictorial Presentation of Some Aspects of the Bali-Nyonga Culture. The Third Attempt of a Series of Documentation on the Bali-Nyonga Tradition. Bamenda.

Nwana, E. M., Ndangam, A. F., & Nti, D. F. (Eds.). (1978). The Living Culture of Bali-Nyonga. The Lela Festival. The First Attempt of a Series of Documentation on the Bali-Nyonga Tradition. Bamenda.

Nwana, E. M., & Nwana, V. L. (2011). Marriage and Widowhood Rites in Bali Nyonga. In J. Fokwang & K. Langmia (Eds.), Society and Change in Bali Nyonga: Critical Perspectives (pp. 59-82). Mankon, Bamenda: Langaa Research & Publishing CIG.

Nyamndi, G. (2016). The Bali Social Man. In V. P. K. Titanji (Ed.), Bali Nyonga Today: Roots, Cultural Practices and Future Perspectives (pp. 178-181). Denver, Colorado: Spears Media Press.

O’neil, R. (1996). Imperialisms at the Century’s End: Moghamo Relationships with Bali-Nyonga and Germany 1889-1908. In I. Fowler & D. Zeitlyn (Eds.), African Crossroads: Intersections between History and Anthropology in Cameroon (pp. 81-100). Providence and Oxford: Berghahn Books.

Page, B. (2007). Slow Going: The Mortuary, Modernity and the Hometown Association in Bali-Nyonga, Cameroon. Africa, 77(3), 419-441.

Richards, S. C. (1999). Planning a family in Bali Nyonga: Concepts and practices in the context of medical pluralism. Boston: African Studies Center, Boston University.

Rubin, N. N. (1970). Matrimonial Law among the Bali of West Cameroon: A Restatement. Journal of African Law, 14(2), 69-97.

Russell, S. W., Jr. (1980). Aspects of Development in Rural Cameroon: Political Transition Amongst the Bali of Bamenda. (PhD), University of Pennsylvania.

Sikod, R. B. (2016). The Role of Ndakums and BANDECA in the Development of Bali Nyonga 1985-2015. In V. P. K. Titanji (Ed.), Bali Nyonga Today: Roots, Cultural Practices and Future Perspectives (pp. 27-45). Denver, Colorado: Spears Media Press.

Soh Bejeng, P. (1975). A Study of Lela, A Bali-Chamba State Cult of the North West Grassfields of Cameroon. (D.E.S. Thesis), University of Yaounde, Yaounde.

Stöckle, J. (Ed.) (1996). Traditions, tales and proverbs of the Bali-Nyonga. Cologne: Rüdiger Köppe Publishers.

Tasama, J. N. (2016). The Rehabilitation and Revival of Mungaka for Literacy. In V. P. K. Titanji (Ed.), Bali Nyonga Today: Roots, Cultural Practices and Future Perspectives (pp. 114-136). Denver, Colorado: Spears Media Press.

Titanji, B. K. L. L. (2016). Mungaka in Perspective: Past, Present and Future Trends. In V. P. K. Titanji (Ed.), Bali Nyonga Today: Roots, Cultural Practices and Future Perspectives (pp. 137-146). Denver, Colorado: Spears Media Press.

Titanji, B. K. L. L. (2013). Literacy in Cameroon: The Case of Mungaka. In P. W. Akumbu & B. A. Chiatoh (Eds.), Language Policy in Africa: Perspectives for Cameroon (pp. 52-61). Kansas City, MO: Miraclaire Academic Publications (MAP).

Titanji, V. P. K. (Ed.) (2016). Bali Nyonga Today: Roots, Cultural Practices and Future Perspectives. Denver, Colorado: Spears Media Press.

Titanji, V. P. K. (2016). The Traditional and Modern Calendars of Bali Nyonga: Co-existence and Change. In V. P. K. Titanji (Ed.), Bali Nyonga Today: Roots, Cultural Practices and Future Perspectives (pp. 60-77). Denver, Colorado: Spears Media Press.

Titanji, V. P. K. (2016). Honouring the Living and the Dead in Bali Nyonga: Cultural Symbols and Expressions in a Post-traditional Society. In V. P. K. Titanji (Ed.), Bali Nyonga Today: Roots, Cultural Practices and Future Perspectives (pp. 78-107). Denver, Colorado: Spears Media Press.