Critical Perspectives on Cameroon Writing

28. The English Language in Cameroon: The Pre-Colonial Period

363 28 The English Language In CameroonThe Pre- Colonial Period by Etienne ze Amvela, University of Buea Abstract The history and development of the English language in Cameroon may be divided into several periods, prominent among which is the pre-colonial period. It spans from the first possible mention of the Cameroon coast in 500 BC to 12 July 1884, the date when Cameroon was made a German protectorate. The author shows that the development of the English Language during that period may be characterized by two factors. Firstly, the language did not have any profound impact on the indigenous populations, since it was limited to the coastal region. Secondly, its use was almost restricted to the registers of trade, religion, the court, and politics. To give a comprehensive picture of the linguistic situation during that early period, the author also discusses, where relevant, the role of Pidgin English. indigenous languages and their respective interactions with English. 1. Introduction A meaningful discussion of the variety of English in any part of the world entails some consideration of how the language was first introduced in that geographical area. This article deals with the introduction of English to what is now the Republic of Cameroon. It focuses on the pre-colonial period which spans from the first possible mention of the Cameroon coast in 500 B.C. by the Carthaginian seafarer Hannon (I) to 12 July 1884, the date when the German 364 Gustav Nachtigal and Kings Bell and Akwa of Douala signed the treaty making Cameroon a German protectorate. On the whole, the development of the English language during that period may be characterised by the fact that the language did not have any profound impact as such on the indigenous populations, limited as it was on the coastal region. Furthermore, its use was almost restricted to the registers of trade, religion, the court, and politics. These four registers will be discussed’ in sections 2 to 5 below, respectively. In order to give a comprehensive picture of the linguistic situation in which the development of English took place during that period, we shall also discuss, where relevant, the role of Pidgin English, that of indigenous languages, and their respective interactions with English. 2. English in Trade With the paucity of evidence available, it is not possible to determine with certainty when the English language ~as heard along the Cameroon coast for the first time. What is generally admitted by historians is that the first contact that Cameroon had with the Western world was with the Portuguese. (e.g. Mveng, 1963; Le Vine, 1964; Fanso, 1975). In fact, the coastal region of Cameroon entered history near the end of the 15th Century, possibly in 1472 when Portuguese seafarers arrived the Bight of Biafra and visited the island of Fernando Po. As they sailed into the estuary of the Wouri River they were so struck by the presence of innumerable prawns that they named the river “Rio dos Cameroes”; a label that became “Rio dos Cameroes” in Spanish. It is from this appellation that the country derived its name: Kamerun in German, initially” The Cameroons” then “Cameroon” in English, and Cameroun in French. During the whole of the pre-colonial period, the name “Cameroon District” (2) was used to refer to the entire Cameroon coast form Rio del Rey on the Cameroon-Nigeria boundary in the west to the Campo River on the boundary between Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea, then Rio Muni in the south. But the Portuguese never had any foothold on the land since they never established any fixed station on the Cameroon coast. Their base 365 of operations remained Sao Tome Island, from which they sent their ships to visit their trade points at the mouths of various coastal rivers. Lured by the predominant slave trade, other European adventurers followed, including the Dutch, the Swedes, the Danes, the French, the British, and the Germans. (3). It is not clear what language was used in these various transactions. However, owing to the heterogeneous linguistic situation that prevailed during that period on the one hand, and the restricted communication needs imposed by trade on hand, there are indications that the means of communication must have been a sort of pidgin probably Pidgin English. (4) But despite the numerous transactions none of the European languages involved - not even English - had any real influence on the people of Cameroon up to the...