Bulu

The Bulu belong to the group of related Africans called the Beti-Pahuin, who inhabit the rain forest regions including the Camaroon, Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Sao Tome, and Principe. This group, sharing a common history, culture, and mutually intelligible Bantu language, includes the Beti, Fang, and Bulu, who are divided further into about 20 subnations or subtribes. Their mutually intelligible language is often referred to as the Beti or Ewondo language, and intermarriage among their subnations serves to unite them.

The Bulu can be found largely in Southern Cameroons and also in the Central and Eastern Provinces and constitute about 1 million of the population of Cameroons. They are supposed to have been slave hunters who aspired to satisfy European demand for slaves. They have also been accused of being fierce cannibals in the past. However, given the tendency of imperialism to malign those who resisted them, such accounts are not credible.

Like all Beti-Pahuin peoples, the Bulu organize themselves according to patrilineal kinships. In this respect, the paternal family live together in a village, and several related villages constitute a clan. Although such clans may come under a chief also traditionally regarded as a religious authority, the Bulu are so politically decentralized that the chief commands much respect, but does not command much political power, which is vested consensually among the village leaders.

The Bulu were highly skilled workers in wood and ivory and were particularly noted for their lively masks with associated ritualistic and festive songs and dances. However, through modernization, they have suffered cultural defoliation to such an extent that little of their traditional craft is still pursued, although some few carvers continue to supply the tourist market. Much Bulu culture has been abandoned, including their traditional dance and song, which once attracted visitors and tourists.

Like most Bantu, the Bulu believed in a Supreme Being, ancestral spirits, and spirits who inhabited natural objects such as rivers, lakes, lagoons, trees, and plants. Spirits can be invoked and pacified through rituals and sacrifices. Medicinal plants are believed to have spiritual components that are as important as their physical and biochemical properties. The spiritual components of plants heal the spiritual body with the help of ancestral spirits and the gods while the biochemical properties heal the physical body.

Although most Bulus may have been converted to Christianity, in practice, they are equally engaged in both Christianity and their traditional worship. They may go to a Christian church on Sundays, but that does not prevent them from attending their various secret societies and consulting their traditional healers during the weekdays. Indeed, some Bulus are still deeply involved in their own indigenous religion involving sacrifices and rituals aimed at appeasing their gods who are credited with healing, protective, and blessing powers.