The Limba people are an

ethnic group An ethnicity or ethnic group is a group of people with shared attributes, which they collectively believe to have, and long-term endogamy. Ethnicities share attributes like language, culture, common sets of ancestry, traditions, society, re ...

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

. They represent 12.4% of the total population, making them the third largest ethnic group in Sierra Leone. The Limba are based in the north of the country across seven provinces, but are predominantly found in the Northern Province of

. The Limba are believed to be the earliest

indigenous people There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

of Sierra Leone. The Limba may be the oldest inhabitants of Sierra Leone. They speak a distinctive language that is unrelated to the other languages in Sierra Leone. This is borne out of a lack of myth in Limba folklore explaining how they came to arrive in the land and because of significant linguistic differences between Limba and other tongues. They are primarily found in the Northern Province, particularly in Bombali District, Koinadugu,

Kambia District Kambia District is a district in the North West Province of Sierra Leone. Its capital and largest city is the town of Kambia. As of the 2015 census, The District had a population of 343,686. Kambia District borders the Republic of Guinea to the ...

, Karene District and Tonkolili District but a small number are found in

Guinea Guinea, officially the Republic of Guinea, is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Guinea-Bissau to the northwest, Senegal to the north, Mali to the northeast, Côte d'Ivoire to the southeast, and Sier ...

. During Sierra Leone's colonial era, thousands of Limbas migrated to the capital city of

Freetown Freetown () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Sierra Leone. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean and is located in the Western Area of the country. Freetown is Sierra Leone's major urban, economic, financial, cultural, e ...

and its

Western Area The Western Area or Freetown Peninsula (formerly the Colony of Sierra Leone) is one of five principal divisions of Sierra Leone. It comprises the oldest city and national capital Freetown and its surrounding towns and countryside. It covers an ...

. As a result, a significant number of Limbas can be found in Freetown and its surrounding

. During the 16th, 17th, and 18th century, many Limba people were shipped to

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

slaves Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

. The Limba are mainly rice farmers, traders, and hunters who live in the savannah-woodland region in the Northern Province of

. They predominate in 16 of Sierra Leone's 190 rural chiefdoms in

, and their community affairs are dominated by the local

paramount chief A paramount chief is the English-language designation for a king or queen or the highest-level political leader in a regional or local polity or country administered politically with a Chiefdom, chief-based system. This term is used occasionally ...

s. Major Limba Towns include: Bafodia, Wara-Wara Yagala Chiefdom, Kabala, Kamakwie, Binkolo, Kamabai, Madina, Fadugu, Kamasasa, Mabonto and Kamasigi.

History

Members of the Limba tribe believe that they have always lived in Sierra Leone in the Wara Wara mountains and were probably the first rulers of the territory. Some historians believe that the Limba were living in Sierra Leone prior to

colonialism Colonialism is the control of another territory, natural resources and people by a foreign group. Colonizers control the political and tribal power of the colonised territory. While frequently an Imperialism, imperialist project, colonialism c ...

. They were also brilliant scholars and philosophers who brought their knowledge of agriculture and trade with them and with that built a society based on this sole ideal: If you work and respect the land properly, then you are worthy to enjoy the fruits of your labor. During the colonial era, many Limba people were captured and sold at Bunce Island as slaves to the

Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...

through the Atlantic slave trade. To escape this, many Limba people traveled to the capital city of Freetown and the Western area, and as a result, most Limba are located in these places.

Culture

The Limba consider themselves to be a

mountain people Hill people, also referred to as mountain people, is a general term for people who live in the hills and mountains. This includes all rugged land above and all land (including plateaus) above elevation. The climate is generally harsh, with s ...

and have at points in their history found themselves pushed into the mountains, particularly during the periods of Susu expansionism. Historically, they also had to fight off incursions from the Fula and the

Mandinka people The Mandinka or Malinke are a West African ethnic group primarily found in southern Mali, The Gambia, southern Senegal and eastern Guinea. Numbering about 11 million, they are the largest subgroup of the Mandé peoples and one of the List of ethn ...

. The Limba take pride in their unique language, which differs from the other languages spoken in Sierra Leone. As a result, Limbas strive to be very articulate with their vocabulary as a way of sticking out among the rest. They are mostly rice farmers, palm wine brewers, and stone builders. They also have a past and current interest in politics, for example

Siaka Stevens Siaka Probyn Stevens (24 August 1905 – 29 May 1988) was the leader of Sierra Leone from 1967 to 1985, serving as Prime Minister from 1967 to 1971 and as President from 1971 to 1985. Stevens' leadership was often characterized by patrimonial ...

as the first president of Sierra Leone from 1971 to 1985, Ernest Bai Koroma as the former president of Sierra Leone from 2007, Christian Alusine Kamara-Taylor as a founding member of the

All People's Congress The All People's Congress (APC) is one of the two major political parties in Sierra Leone, the other being its main political rival the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP). The APC has been the main opposition party in Sierra Leone since 4 Ap ...

and Paolo Conteh, the former defense minister and Eric Dura Sesay as the Bombali district chairman. According to folklore, Limbas make excellent political leaders because they are descendants of the original rulers of Sierra Leone. The Limba's primary sport of interest is

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

, which is quite common amongst nations in

West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...

. The Limba have a spiritual home called The Kakoya Village, Wara-Wara Bafodia Chiefdom, and they believe all Limbas return to the mountain through the town beyond a "door" through the rock. An ancient wooden figure discovered in a cave at The Kakoya Village was probably made by the Limba people. Now in the

British Museum The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...

, it may have represented an ancestor or deity. They also have a folklore about spirits called Krifi, but information about this is limited. The Limba people also utilize practices of the Bondo secret society which aims at gradually but firmly establishing attitudes related to adulthood in girls, discussions on fertility, morality and proper sexual comportment. The society also maintains an interest in the well-being of its members throughout their lives.

Religion and spiritual beliefs

Christianity

The Limba in the southern province are mostly influenced by

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

. Portuguese Christian missionary efforts began before the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the papacy and ...

but had no lasting effects on the Temne. The Protestant presence accompanied the founding of Freetown in the late eighteenth century; Church Missionary Society representatives were active up the Rokel River and elsewhere in Temne country throughout the nineteenth century. In the 1890s, the Soudna Mission was the first American mission in the Temne area; American Wesleyans and the Evangelical United Brethren subsequently joined the field.

Islam

The Limba in the Northern Province are somewhat influenced by

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

contacts probably go back several centuries, and fifteenth-century Portuguese were cognizant of Muslim peoples. Early traders, holy men, and warriors brought Islam into the Temne area from the north by the Susu and northeast by the Fula and Mandinka. Through the nineteenth century, as the volume of trade grew, Muslim influences increased; in the late twentieth century, a significant proportion of Temne claim to be Muslim converts. Muslim Limba still practice aspects of their traditional religion as well.

Traditional beliefs

A minority of Limbo practice their traditional religion and are mostly located in more remote villages. Beliefs include worship of a god called Kanu Masala along with lesser deities. Creation of shrines, charms and rituals play a significant role in traditional Limba religion.

Notable Limbas

* Almamy Suluku, powerful Limba ruler during the colonial era *

, president of Sierra Leone from 1971 to 1985 * Joseph Saidu Momoh, president of Sierra Leone from 1985 to 1992 * Christian Alusine Kamara-Taylor, Sierra Leonean politician * Johnny Paul Koroma, Head of State of Sierra Leone from May 1997 to February 1998 * Ernest Bai Koroma, former president of Sierra Leone from 2007 to 2018 * Brima Acha Kamara, the former Inspector General of the Sierra Leone Police (SLP) * Alfred Paolo Conteh, Current Sierra Leone's Minister of Defence * John Sisay, Current Chief Executive Officer for Sierra Rutile * Sanpha Bilo Kamara, Current Director of Prisons Department * Eric Dura Sesay, Current Minister of State in the Office of the Vice President * Dauda Sulaiman Kamara, current Sierra Leone's Minister of Internal Affairs Minister and Rural Development * Moses Musa Sesay, Former mayor of Makeni * Hon Dr. Thomas Mark Turay, former Member of parliament * Kandeh Baba Conteh, Sierra Leonean politician and leader of the Peace and Liberation Party (PLP) * Almamy Kossie Dura, Prominent chief in the town of Binkolo * Peter Bayuku Conteh, Former Minister of Tourism and Cultural Affairs * Dr. David Soure Sesay, Order Of The Rokel Holder, Commander of Sierra Leone Gulf War Contingent, 1991 * Lamin Conteh, footballer * Abdul Thompson Conteh, footballer * Kewullay Conteh, footballer * Rosemarie Kargbo, former Miss Africa Netherlands * Sampha, UK musician * Adama Delphine Fawundu * Dembakwi Yomba * James Bambay Kamara, former Inspector General of Sierra Leone Police from 1987 to 1992 * Jimmy Bangura, musician and filmmaker

External links

Photos from the Limba Region

Limba Music Recordings

References

{{Authority control Ethnic groups in Sierra Leone West African people Female genital mutilation