Kirdi
Encyclopedia
The Kirdi are is a term that describes some many culture
s and ethnic group
s who inhabit northwestern Cameroon
and northeastern Nigeria
.
The term was applied to various peoples who had not converted to Islam at the time of colonization and was a pejorative
, although some writers have reappropriated
it. The term is comes from the Fulani word for "pagan
"; the Fulani people are Muslim
.
Estimates of how many groups may be described as Kirdi vary, with estimates ranging from 26 (2007) to more than 40 (1977).
The Bata, Fali
, Fata, Guidar, Kapsiki, Mafa, Massa, Matakam, Mofou
, Mousgoum, Podoko and Toupouri are all considered Kirdi, due to their resistance to Islam. They speak Chadic
and Adamawa languages
.
The first mentioning of Kirdi is by Denham in 1826 (1985:145) who translates the word Kerdies as "Negroes who have never embraced the Mohammedan faith".
Culture
Culture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...
s and ethnic group
Ethnic group
An ethnic group is a group of people whose members identify with each other, through a common heritage, often consisting of a common language, a common culture and/or an ideology that stresses common ancestry or endogamy...
s who inhabit northwestern Cameroon
Cameroon
Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon , is a country in west Central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the...
and northeastern Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
.
The term was applied to various peoples who had not converted to Islam at the time of colonization and was a pejorative
Pejorative
Pejoratives , including name slurs, are words or grammatical forms that connote negativity and express contempt or distaste. A term can be regarded as pejorative in some social groups but not in others, e.g., hacker is a term used for computer criminals as well as quick and clever computer experts...
, although some writers have reappropriated
Reappropriation
Reappropriation is the cultural process by which a group reclaims—re-appropriates—terms or artifacts that were previously used in a way disparaging of that group. For example, since the early 1970s, much terminology referring to homosexuality—such as gay, queer, and faggot—has been reappropriated...
it. The term is comes from the Fulani word for "pagan
Paganism
Paganism is a blanket term, typically used to refer to non-Abrahamic, indigenous polytheistic religious traditions....
"; the Fulani people are Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
.
Estimates of how many groups may be described as Kirdi vary, with estimates ranging from 26 (2007) to more than 40 (1977).
The Bata, Fali
Fali people
The Fali people are a small ethnic group of west and central Africa. The Fali are concentrated in mountainous areas of northern Cameroon, but some also live in northeastern Nigeria. The Fali are composed of four major groups, each corresponding to a geographic region: The Bossoum Fali, the Kangou...
, Fata, Guidar, Kapsiki, Mafa, Massa, Matakam, Mofou
Mofu
Mofu is a designation for various ethnic groups and languages they speak which are located in northern Cameroon, near the border with Nigeria. The Mofu live in the Mandara Mountains of Cameroon's Far North Province....
, Mousgoum, Podoko and Toupouri are all considered Kirdi, due to their resistance to Islam. They speak Chadic
Chadic languages
The Chadic languages constitute a language family of perhaps 200 languages spoken across northern Nigeria, Niger, Chad, Central African Republic and Cameroon, belonging to the Afroasiatic phylum...
and Adamawa languages
Adamawa languages
The Adamawa languages are a putative family of 80–90 languages scattered across the Adamawa Plateau in central Africa, in Nigeria, Cameroon, Central African Republic, and Chad, spoken altogether by only one and a half million people . Joseph Greenberg classified them as one branch of the...
.
The first mentioning of Kirdi is by Denham in 1826 (1985:145) who translates the word Kerdies as "Negroes who have never embraced the Mohammedan faith".