Alternate Names: Babinga, Bebayaga, Bebayaka, Bibaya, Pygmees Baka, Pygmees de l’est
Genealogy:
Demographics: 40,000 in Cameroon (2007 Y. Léonard). Population total all countries: 43,200. 15,000 monolinguals. Mainly women. Ethnic population: 40,000.
Language Use: The Baka, being pygmies, are held in low esteem by the Bantus. East Region population increase among all language groups and Baka sedentism increase bilingualism. Most domains, including home, education, and forest. All ages. Positive attitudes. 5,000 also use French [fra]. French [fra] also used in schools and is most used with outsiders. Also use Koonzime [ozm], Njyem [njy].
Language Development: Literacy rate in L1: Below 5%. Literacy rate in L2: 5% in French. In small, dispersed villages, which makes literacy difficult. Taught in primary schools. Used in 3 villages. Dictionary. Grammar. Bible portions: 1996.
Writing System: Latin
Nation of Origin: Cameroon
Other Comments: Semi-nomadic but encouraged by the government to settle along roadways. Different from Baka of Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sudan and from the Aka , (Baaka, Bayaka, Biyaka). Although similar in culture, they are different in language. Traditional religion, Christian.