The Languages of Cameroon: The Complete Guide

Cameroon is nicknamed "Africa in miniature": its landscapes range from desert to equatorial forest, and its languages follow the same logic. With more than 250 recorded languages for around 28 million inhabitants, Cameroon is one of the most multilingual countries in the world. This guide presents the major families of Cameroonian languages and, within each one, those you can learn on Jossmo today. There are nine of them, among hundreds: a doorway in, not an inventory.

A linguistic landscape unlike anywhere else

French and English, colonial legacies, are the official languages. But everyday life, families and traditions speak the national languages. They fall into major families: the Bantu languages of the south and the coast, the Grassfields languages of the West (including the Bamileke languages), and the Sudanic languages and Fulfulde in the North. On top of all this comes Camfranglais, an urban slang that cheerfully mixes everything above.

The Beti languages

Around Yaounde, the capital, people speak the languages of the Beti-Fang group: Ewondo, but also Bulu, Eton, Fang and several other closely related varieties, often mutually intelligible. On Jossmo, Ewondo is the one available: as the lingua franca of the Centre region, you hear it in the taxis, markets and church choirs of the capital. If your family comes from the Centre or the South, it is an excellent starting point, even if your family language is another Beti variety.

The languages of the Littoral and the coast

The Cameroonian coast speaks the Sawa languages, the best known of which is Duala, the historic language of trade: it was in Duala country that Douala, the economic engine of the country, was born. Between Douala and Yaounde, Bassa carries a strong tradition of resistance and music. Further north in the Littoral, in the Moungo, Bakaka and Mboo belong to the Mbo group. These four languages are available on Jossmo, and many other coastal languages (Malimba, Batanga, Bakoko...) bring the same region to life.

The Bamileke and Grassfields languages

Western Cameroon, Bamileke country, is a mosaic of kingdoms almost every one of which has its own language: there are more than a dozen Bamileke languages. Four are available on Jossmo: Ghomala' around Bafoussam, Medumba in the Bangangté area, Fe'Fe' in Bafang and Yemba in Dschang. Others, such as Ngiemboon or Nda'nda', complete this family, a close neighbour of the Bamoun of the kingdom of Foumban. These tonal languages, rich in diacritics, sit at the heart of a culture famous for its entrepreneurial drive and its sumptuous funeral celebrations, the famous Bamileke funerals.

The Great North

The three northern regions (Adamawa, North, Far North) speak dozens of languages: Chadic languages such as Mafa, Guiziga or Musgum, but also Tupuri, Mundang, Kanuri and Shuwa Arabic. This is where three of Africa's great language families meet. The shared lingua franca is Fulfulde, the language of the Fulani people, available on Jossmo and spoken far beyond Cameroon across the whole Sahel. Learning it means being able to travel from Garoua to Dakar and make yourself understood.

The East: languages of the forest

The East region, the largest and least populated, speaks the languages of the Maka-Njem group (Maka, Kako, Njem...), related to the Bantu languages of the South, as well as Gbaya, also present in the Central African Republic. It is also the territory of the Baka communities, whose language belongs to an entirely different family, Ubangian. No language from the East is available on Jossmo yet.

The anglophone regions: Grassfields, coast and Pidgin

The anglophone North-West speaks Grassfields languages that are cousins of the Bamileke languages: Lamnso' of the Nso kingdom, Kom, Bafut, Wimbum... The South-West, around Mount Cameroon, speaks Mokpwe (Bakweri), Akoose, close to the Mbo group, and Kenyang. And hovering above all these languages is Cameroonian Pidgin, spoken by more than three anglophones out of four and understood far beyond: it is the country's great popular lingua franca, the language of markets and songs.

Why learn a Cameroonian language?

For the Cameroonian diaspora, with large communities in France, Belgium, Germany and the United States, language is the most direct link to the village and the family. Cameroonian languages are passed on less and less in cities and in the diaspora: every new learner counts. We talk about this in our article on preserving African languages and our guide to passing on an African language to your children.

Where should you start?

With your family's language, quite simply. If you have no particular attachment, Ewondo and Duala are good entry points thanks to their role as lingua francas. As all these languages are tonal, the most important thing is to learn with audio recorded by native speakers, a few minutes a day. To choose more broadly, see our guide on which African language to learn.

Your language isn't here yet?

With more than 250 Cameroonian languages, no catalogue can claim to be complete. Jossmo's catalogue keeps growing thanks to native contributors who record and validate the content. If your language is not available yet, you can request it directly from the app: the most requested languages are prioritised.