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is quite distinct from Mambila, though it displays numerous points of contact, especially with the dialect of the Wa group of Mambila. There are also points of contact with the Tigong dialect of Ashaku, and the villagers of Magu are commonly classed as Tigong.
The villagers of Kamkam and Magu are said to be one and the same people, having occupied a common village in the vicinity of Guroje until they were driven out by the Fulani of Banyo, one group flying to the present site of Kamkam and the other to Magu. If this is so, and there is no reason to doubt it, it is interesting to note the rapidity with which cultural and dialectical differences have arisen between the two groups.
The Kamkam group has, for example, retained its former system of matrilineal inheritance, whereas the Magu group now follows the patrilineal principle. On the other hand the people of Kamkam have adopted many of the religious cults of the Mambila. Their language appears to have been influenced also by that of the Bute, and it is probable, therefore, that a number of Bute have joined the Kamkam group within the last fifty years.
The people of Kamkam call themselves the Bungnu, the word Kamkam being, it is said, a nickname given by the Bute and Fulani, on account of the characteristic bag woven by the Bungnu and known as a "Kamkam".
The Bungnu differ from the Mambila in that they have no system of marriage exchange. A suitor approaches the maiden of his choice directly, and if she accepts his suit he can marry her without reference to her parents. He elopes with her, and notifies the elopement to her father by sending him a spear. But he has to give numerous gifts to the girl before he can claim the full status of husband. Thus on the journey to his house the girl stops at frequent intervals and refuses to proceed until the bridegroom gives her a hoe. She must be given a gift when she enters his compound, and another when she eats her first meal, and so on. During the first month she lives a life of seclusion, is smeared daily with oil and is given an abundance of food. At the end of this period a dance and feast are held, and the bridegroom must then send a substantial bride-price (consisting principally of hoes) to the girl's parents. One third of this bride-price is handed by the girl's father to his wife's relatives. All children born of the marriage remain normally in the father's