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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Raa u (Tupuri): to call out names to confer fame and appreciation If thanks could be read as a story, then mine would begin with Maı̈comshuki, my stalwart neighbor in Tupuriland who laughed uproariously whenever I pronounced her name. Without speaking a word of French (and me, in 1985, speaking only a word of Tupuri), she reached out and showed me how worthwhile it would be to engage with her and the Tupuri people. Later, I would meet Wasdi Blandine, Dassinwa Rose, and Tergal Pauline, all of whom showed me friendship and the joys and challenges of life in Doukoula. However, guidance in understanding Tupuri culture came from Toukrou Antoine, who, as a lycée student, became my Tupuri language tutor and, twelve years later, my intellectual sounding board. His poetic sensibility combined with his passion for history has made a significant mark on my understanding of Tupuri verbal art and sociopolitical organization. Toukrou proofread much of the gurna song transcription in this study, though remaining inaccuracies are my own. This study would not have been possible without the integrity and diligence of my research assistants, Dourwé Paul and Hedjakga Jean-Pierre Awé. Dourwe had a remarkable knack for ferreting out and delighting in the controversial angle of every phenomenon. Like the yin of yang, Awé exhibited tenacious concentration and stick-to-itiveness in transcribing interviews and in assisting me to translate gurna song, even during his days of fasting. It was the indefatigable Hounkao Emilienne who sent me Dourwé and Awé and who became a friend and collaborator in women’s development projects. Maı̈gama Josephine was equally dynamic and invaluable to my learning. Her untimely death in childbirth was a tragedy to all who knew her. By sharing with me his lycée gurna songs and unique commentary on what it was to be a composer, Dangmoworé lent a great deal to this study. To this day I am saddened by his premature death. I had numerous other mentors in my effort to understand Tupuri culture. Kidmo Mbraogue enabled me to conduct interviews with elders in Douaya and shared his subversive love of the dance. Kléda Samuel provided insights into the song tradition which he has studied alongside his duties as a Catholic seminarian. Domga Makouly and Kaoga Rigobert, both Tupuri radio disk jockeys, offered me their perspectives as cultural activists. In Lara village, Farsia enabled me to make contact with the composer of Dawa and transcribed his compositions. Baı̈- x Acknowledgments lainso Fele welcomed me at the Club Kwoı̈ssa in Yaounde. Kenso’s enthusiasm for learning about the spiritual practices of his grandmothers became an important avenue of inquiry for me as well. Taı̈we Felix Mouhamad helped me understand the perspectives of young men who were caught in Cameroon’s economic crisis. I also thank gurna song composers—Sogole, Teodandi, Noumnamo, Wore, Ringwa, and Houyang—for trusting me enough to share their art and politics. The gurna members at the Mogom camp were especially open to and tolerant of my entering their world. Not all my support was from Tupuri people. Jim and Marilyn Erickson selflessly shared their knowledge of Tupuri language and ways of thinking over iced drinks before electricity came to town. Posted in Doukoula, teacher Alain Boaye provided me with important “outsider” perspectives on Tupuriland. The Anglophone community in Maroua nurtured me in important ways, especially the late Marie Foncham and Joseph Ngonga. My life with them, and others, would fill a second book. Of course I had a great deal of support in the United States as well. Inspirational in her quiet passion for Africa and African Studies, Sandra Barnes has been a rock-solid source of wisdom for me over the years. At the University of Pennsylvania I appreciate the support and encouragement of Roger Abrahams, Fred Erickson, Kathy Hall, Catherine Lacey, John Lucy, Julia Paley, Peggy Sanday , and Greg Urban, each of whom offered unique perspectives on my work. I have also benefited from the insights of those who offered suggestions as this research unfolded, including Karin Barber, Dickson Eyoh, Eric Gable, Dorothy Holland, Tanya Luhrmann, Achille Mbembe, Flagg Miller, Steve Parish, and the anonymous reviewer for the Indiana University Press. I benefited greatly from the “Words and Voices” symposium on orality in Africa in 1997, co-organized by David William Cohen, Stephen Miescher, and Luise White. Deb Augsburger, Kristin Cahn von Seelen, Cati Coe, Jane Cowley, Kathryn Geurts, Wendi Haugh, Catherine Newling, Elisa von Joeden...

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