ABSTRACT
The peoples here termed Bamum are referred to variously in the literature as Mom, Banun, or Bamoum; they call themselves Shupaman. There is similar variation in the spelling of village names depending on whether the English, French, or German version is given. There are three suggested derivations of the name Bamum : 1
(1) In his History, King Njoya writes that Nchare, the first king of the Bamum, called his people Pa-mom because he set out from his natal chiefdom at Rifum on the day known as Fmtmom.2 Martin states that this derivation is unlikely to be the correct one, since, according to tradition, it was not Nchare but Manju, the third king, who gave the Bamum the names of the week.
