Mr N had just returned from the farmers market with bags of njama njama. As we unpacked the greens, we started joking about how easy it is to spot a Cameroonian at the market: their eyes dart over the stalls until they locate the cherished njama njama, known in English as garden huckleberry. You can almost tell someone’s Cameroonian roots by the way they hunt for those leafy greens, as if they held the secret to life itself.
That conversation made me think about all the little things that make someone truly Cameroonian — from foods and phrases to childhood memories and family rhythms. You know you’re Cameroonian when…
1. Party time means eat, drink, repeat. Food! Food!! More food!!!
2. To you, good food is eru, ndole and burning fish. You have a deep, affectionate bond with these dishes, and the moments you share them are moments of pure joy.
3. You call beer “one man”, “shack” or “mimbo”.
4. You’ve eaten puff puff and beans at least once in your life.
5. You remember cursing Mami Puff Puff when her stall was closed and you were craving her snack. Ah, the disappointments of childhood hunger.
6. Some form of rice must be on the table for Christmas.
7. You look forward to long road trips not just for the destination but for the food stops along the way: burning plantain and plum, roasted fish, pamplemousse, soya kebabs.
8. Your father was always top of his class, so how could you possibly fail?
9. Your mother once called you from across the compound to fetch something that was just inches away.
“Azahhh!!! Gimme that coco for front dey make ah peel am”
10. Your household was never just parents and children. I grew up with uncles, aunts, cousins — a whole extended family. Pa and Ma Nchifor, I hail oo!
11. Football is a central part of life for you or for someone in your household. I wasn’t a fan, but my dad and brothers lived for it.
12. You ask for “dash” when you’ve finished shopping — a little extra for the vendor.
13. You speak English and some French (whether broken or fluent), or French and some English. Bilingualism is part of everyday life.
14. You played tabala, cizo, dodging and ehn ehn while growing up.
15. You sang childhood songs like:
Mr Cocoji e bikin di falla goat
E nack e food… (Fill in the rest from memory)
16. You staged pretend wars in unfinished buildings.
17. You made toy cars from flip-flops and scraps of wood.
18. You cooked “mud” as play food in empty tomato or sardine cans.
19. You call flip-flops “two-rope sleppas”.
20. You’ve been late for nearly everything in life — except you showed up early for your American visa interview.
21. You call your mother “reme” and your father “repe”.
22. Your father had almost nothing to do with the kitchen while you were growing up. Shout out to Mr N who once cooked something that looked like Irish potato hotpot and called it Poulet DG.
23. You call your friends “boh”, “massa” or “o boy”.
24. Everyone might know you by a given name like “Precious,” but your family will often call you “Meshi,” “Ma Meshi” or “Mamire” — the home name that matters most.
25. A visit to someone’s home is never complete without being offered food or drink. I remember a young boy who could not believe my younger brother refused a neighbor’s offer of a drink. He was genuinely shocked — how could you deny mimbo?
Have I covered everything? Add your own memories and characteristics below — what traditions and quirks define the people in your country?
