User talk:Omega Janjay Jimmy

MY PEOPLE, THE BASSA PEOPL

By: Omega Janjay Jimmy omeja15@yahoo.com/+23176693537

The Bassa people, the second largest tribe in Liberia dominantly live in the Southwest (Montserrado and Margibi Counties), South (Grand Bassa), the Southeast (Rivercess), Central (Kokoya in Bong County) and also (Lower Nimba) in the Gbee region and they speak the Niger Kru Language. The Bassa is the largest tribe among the Kwa speaking people in Liberia. History records that they came from ancient Egypt and settle down in the Central Africa namely Congo and Cameroon but mainly settled in Cameroon before coming to this side of the Sub-Sahara Africa called Liberia formerly the Grain or pepper coast in the pre-historic Liberia. The Bassa people of Liberia are loving and caring and are open to others people and welcome them whole heartedly. The history of Liberia is incomplete when the Bassa people are not mentioned because they provided the first piece of land today called Liberia. The culture and tradition of the Bassa tribe are unique and provide for more respect for elder and older people. Before the coming of western school, they established the Poro and Sande schools which are the platform on which the younger generation get enlightenment and are trained to face the challenges of life. There are several dialects in the Bassa language (The Bassa of Gbehzohn, Gbee, Mambahn, and the Rivercess Bassa). These dialects have slight differences but are similar and understandable. The Bassa are pre-dominantly Christians and give praises to God the most High by many names they called him (Dehbioh, Bomo, Nyu-wudu-Konnyun, Gbusebah)…One thing admirable in the Bassa tradition and culture is the way the older people sit in the evening to talk stories (Dyainkadyu) to the younger one, stories of moral lesson which have impact on contemporary issues. The Bassa culture is the best in the world as it promotes human dignity and respect for older people. Their system of marriage, the procedure in which they select their bride and in case of death when the man had not marry the bride to be yet, how they go about marrying the dead body and buying her children if they have some. There are four steps in the selection of a bride in the Bassa culture and Tradition.

Origin and History of the Bassa Tribe

Historical accounts of the Bassa tribe traced them from ancient Egypt and they came and settled central Africa, to be specific Cameroon and DR Congo formerly Zaire. The word Bassa according to Joseph M.N. Gbardyu came from Ba which means father and sooh which mean Stone. The Bassa tribe is unanimously in tracing their decent from the single ancestor. Other said the word derives from ‘Nsa’, meaning retribution and sharing. The Bassonians live along the Atlantic coast that is now called Cameroon and they are native of Bantu people extending right into West Africa, where they constitute numerous families. Their scattered location drives not only from migratory movement which led to the fanning out of certain large tribe, but also from effect of colonization. A research work done by Samuel Brice TJOMB proves that up to date; the following families have been identified: •	Tha Bassa of Ouesso and Bassa la Mpasu, who live in Congo-Brazzaville that is presently the Republic of Congo. •	The Bassa-Nge found in the area surrounding the confluence of the rivers Benoue and Niger. Other groups are also present here, such as the BASSA-NKOMO AND THE BASSA KADUNA. •	The branch has its ramifications in Sierra Leone, Senegal and Togo known as the Bassa-ri. •	The Cameroonian branch which is found throughout the South of Cameroon, without doubt the most numerous, with around a million people out of the total population of the fifteen million people in the country. The Bassa people of Cameroon consist of three sub-groups: The Babimbi, the Likol and the Bikok. The Bassa of Liberia is said to have come from Cameroon and settle in this country today called Liberia before the coming of the free slaves. The Bassa of Liberia is the second largest tribe in Liberia according to the 2008 census report of the Liberia Institute of Statistic and Geo Information Services (LISGIS) and the largest tribe among the KWA speaking people (Bassa, Kru, Grebo Belle, Dei and Krahn).

The Bassa Public Administrative system

The Bassa has its own system and structure of governance before the coming of the free slaves. They have the chief executive who is the town chief (Whordorba) and the head of the town government who administers the affairs of the town and implement its unwritten policies. There is a council of elders or chiefs who are the decision makers and can be consider as the Legislature, headed by the Council Chief and the Chief zoe is the chief judge and the final obiter of the law. Therefore with this structure it can clearly be understood that the Bassa people had a well designed system of governance before the coming of the free slaves who claim to be one who brought civilization and system of government. The structure allows a fair justice system, where everyone is equal before the law and laws are fully implemented to the fullest. There are able lieutenants who can assist the chief executive in the town for smooth implementation of the laws and policies. For instance, in a town in the Bassa society we have an Information Minister (zeoponyun), he provides the town residents with information and served as spokesperson for the town, Finance Minister (Whededyi-dey-nyun), he keeps all funds of the town, ensure that taxations in kind and cash are collected and disburse same as well, Inspector General (Whodorgboye-gboinnyun) he ensures that the town is clean and roads leading from the town to other destinations are clean and in good conditions.

The Bassa Koo system

The Bassa people in the spirit of unity, they established Koos in order to help each others in their farm and some domestic works. In the farming season Koo are establish and they assist each others to smoothly and quickly engage into their farming activities. The Koo is established with heads who stirred the affairs of the institutions. The Koo is usually headed by the President, Vice President, Secretary General, Assistant Secretary, Treasurer, Chaplain and a Sergeant at Arm or Police Officer or Law enforcement officer.

Kinds of Koo

There are three major kinds of Koo with in our society namely: Whelay Kruay (koo), Gbeh Kruay (Koo) and House construction koo (Gbo-po-kruay). Whelay Kruay is the Kind of the Koo that is pre-dominantly men and usually takes place during the bushing and felling times in the farming season. During this time a special kind of drum (whelay) is used which the koo is named after. Whelay is Reef or piece of stick design in a special way to be use as a drum. The one usually used when the Bassa mask dancer is performing. During this time, each person performs as different kinds of animals and the ceremony can be very unique.

Gbeh Kruay is the kind of the Koo usually used during the scratching and harvesting of farm. This system comprises of both men and women. During this time there are more performances by members of the Koo in their kind of animals they associate with, this is usually done during the scratching of the farm. These performances are very unique and showcase the value of the African culture and its uniqueness. Gbeh is a kind of drum that the Koo is named after. The drum looks like the country drum design with meat skins. The drum is taller than the normal drum side. After the scratching by evening the special ceremony can be staged where each person performed like their animal they have association with. This event is one of the best unique ceremonies I have ever seeing in my life. This type of koo is the one I (The writer) admired most among the rest.

House Construction Koo (Gbo-po-kruay) is the kind of koo establish to assist each member of the koo to construct their individual houses and the houses of others. During this time, the members of the koo assist the owner of the house to be constructed during the time of cutting the house sticks, thatches, and to also Dub the house as well. This kind of koo system enlarging the town. Koo is communal cooperative that rapidly develop rural communities; if this adopted in the various urban areas communities’ development will be easy.

The Bassa Language (Basoh Wudu)

The Bassas of Liberia speak the Niger-Kru language and the language is so unique that everyone in Liberia would love to speak it. The langaue is now written and there are books such as Bible, Handouts, Dictionary, etc. and the language now can even be taught schools; letters and other scripts can now be written to educate those to be taught. The script name in the Bassa language is Vah and about 350,000 people in Liberia speak language. In the 1900s, a Bassa by the name of Dr. Flo Darvin Lewis discovered that former slaves of Bassa origin living in Brazil and the West Indies were still using the Bassa alphabet. Dr Lewis had not encountered the alphabet before and, after learning it himself, he decided to try to revive the alphabet in Liberia. Dr. Lewis obtained a PhD in Chemistry at Syracuse University, then returned to Liberia via Dresden, where he commissioned a company to manufacture the first ever printing press for material written in the Bassa alphabet. In Liberia, he set up a school to teach the Bassa alphabet. The language was also taught in some of the Poro society schools. Originally, the Bassa alphabet was written on slates with charcoal, and the writing could be easily erased with a leaf known as yan. People began to write with pencils in the early 1940s. The original writing direction was boustrophedon (alternating between right to left and left to right, but the alphabet has been written from left to right since the 1960s.

Conclusion

There are lots of Bassa people in and out of Liberia who have not known yet the uniqueness of the Bassa tribe and its rich culture and traditions but his is the time that they get to know and start exploring it and protecting it. Bassa parents now need to begin teaching their children the language and traditions of the Bassa tribe so that they can continue to foster “The Bassa Dream” and integrate with the rest of the Bassa people in and out the Liberia and the Bassa people will again live as one and be the role model for the rest of the tribe.

Acknowledgement

Let me thanks God for the courage He give me during these time of research and thank the Bassa scholars who works I read before writing this article. Scholars like Dr. Syrulwa Somah (The Role of the Bassa in the Reshaping of Liberia), Rev. Joseph Gbadyu, Varnie N'jola Karmo and Mattias Persson, Pastor David T.V. Patterson and the other comrades who supported me in providing some information about the history and traditions of the Bassa people. Again let God (Bomo, Dain-dain Gedepoh) be praise.