History
Under Cameroon's colonial-era governments, German, British, and French regimes banned dances that they deemed a threat to their primacy. Meanwhile, Christian missionaries discouraged all kinds of dancing and forbade dances that they felt represented paganism or offended Christian sensibilities. Many of these dances have since died out. Other dances were forgotten when the rituals associated with them were outlawed for similar reasons.
Nevertheless, traditional dance persisted. People continued to practice dances for purely social purposes or adapted them to Christian worship. Dancing in church became increasingly common as evangelical Christianity gained popularity and Cameroonian priests and pastors replaced Americans and Europeans. After Cameroon gained independence in 1960, the government recognised traditional dance as an integral part of the nation's culture, and non-governmental organisations promoted its preservation. Some villages enroll children in dance groups to teach them about their culture and native dances.
Read more about this topic: Dance In Cameroon
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