Research Paper
Year: 2020 | Month: August | Volume: 7 | Issue: 8 | Pages: 159-168
Transformation of Sacred Sites into Human Settlements in Cameroon: The case of Gouache in the West Region
Norah Aziamin Asongu
Research officer, National Center for Education (CNE), Ministry of Scientific Research and Innovation, PO box 1721, Yaounde, Cameroon.
ABSTRACT
This paper addresses recurring societal problems resulting from the transformation of sacred sites into human settlements in Cameroon. In Cameroon, like in other parts of the world, industrial development, construction projects, agriculture and other factors have caused significant harm to sacred sites. Though many of them still exist with the taboos and norms surrounding them still respected, many of them are under threats of extinction due to the decreasing cultural values attributed to them. In Cameroon, sacred sites are found in almost all communities though with varying significance and representations. While some sacred sites are reserved for the gods through the institution of worshipping shrines, others are sacred forest for performing rituals, rites, taking oath and swearing. This paper focuses on Gouache in the West Region of Cameroon, which was a sacred site reserved for the dumping of corpses of people considered unclean by the society. Today, Gouache and other sacred sites in Cameroon are gradually being transformed into human settlements, but not without grievous consequences. The study made use of both the qualitative and quantitative research approaches, with in-depth interviews, observation, focus group discussions and questionnaires as our main data collection techniques. Our findings show that there is need to identify the sacred sites in Cameroon and preserve them not only as a strategy to preserve our cultural heritage, but also as a way of minimizing the consequences of destroying them.
Keywords: Sacred sites, settlements, representations, transformation, Gouache
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