Cameroon Traditional Architecture

The Musgum people, also known as Mulwi, are an ethnic group residing in Cameroon and Chad. They speak Musgu, which is a Chadic language. In 1982, there were 61,500 Musgu speakers in Cameroon, and 24,408 in Chad as of 1993.

The Mousgoum people have inhabited the floodplains of northern Cameroon and Chad for over 300 years. They are known for building traditional mud huts called Musgum mud huts in the Maga sub-division of the Mayo-Danay division in the Far North Province of Cameroon. These homes are also referred to as tolek in Munjuk and cases obus (granite houses) in French. They have been documented since the 1850s when German explorer Heinrich Barth traveled to North and Central Africa.

The Musgum people of Cameroon use compressed sun-dried mud, thatch, and water to build their mud houses. Each structure is 3 to 9 meters high and has no foundation. It takes six months to build a house. The building is decorated with inverted V's or straight grooves, which provide a grip for construction and maintenance. The grooves also act as a structural buttress and facilitate the draining of rainwater.

The mud is laid over a thatch of lashed reeds. A spiral coil of mud, about 0.5 meters high, is added layer by layer. Each layer is dried before the next one is added.

These houses are designed to cool down efficiently in hot weather. They have vents at the top of the building and small entrances without windows. The high domes collect hot air and move it away from the sleeping area, keeping the interior at around 75°F (24°C). This design is based on the catenary arch and is an ancient method of construction. Houses built in this way can be very slim and use a minimum of materials.

The huts have a small circular opening at the top, which helps with air circulation and serves as an escape hatch in case of flooding. This opening, also known as a smoke hole, is only a few inches in diameter and is closed with a slab or pot during the rainy season to prevent water from entering the house. The entrance to the hut is provided by a single door that is narrow up to knee level but widens at shoulder level, resembling a keyhole.

Sources

1. Traditional Architecture on Facebook

2. Africa 101 Lost Tribes