Cultural portrait · South and Mayo-Kebbi
Mbum / Laka
Farmers of the southwest, culturally distinct from the Sara, also present in Cameroon.
Credit : Francisbbk, jeunes Mboum dansant au Tchad, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
Context
People profile
- Language family
- Niger-Congo (Adamawa)
- Region / province
- East Logone, toward the CAR and Cameroon borders
- Livelihoods
- farming
- Customs and oral literature
- Chiefdom dances and agricultural festivals.
- Present-day situation
Amnesty International documented 98 deaths in 14 villages between 2022 and 2024 in farmer–herder violence in Moyen-Chari, Mandoul and both Logone provinces; it notes longer transhumance and herders settling in the south. (Amnesty International, « Vivre de la terre et mourir pour elle », )
The southern provinces, notably Logone Oriental and Moyen-Chari, host about 140,000 Central African refugees in camps, sites and host villages. (UNHCR, « Chad: Forcibly Displaced Persons » (octobre 2025), )
- Sources
- Wikipédia, « Laga (peuple) » · Sources
- Last reviewed
- Subgroups
- Mbum, Laka
- Culture
- Adamawa people. Farming villages, chiefdoms, cross-border trade. Counted among “other Chadian ethnicities” in the census.
- Food / staple foods
- Millet, cassava, peanuts, vegetables.
- To remember
- Mbum and Laka languages. Field studies treat them as distinct from the Sara of the Chari.
SourcesPortraits and pages draw on public sources. Population shares follow the 2014-2015 EDS-MICS household survey, not the last census (RGPH 2009). Main photographs are documentary stills (Festival Dary, Wiki Loves Folklore, Wiki Loves Africa, Wikimedia archives) under Creative Commons, credited to the photographer.
In-depth portrait
Machine translation from French, under review. The French text is authoritative.
What the encyclopedia says
The Laga are a Central African people living mainly in south-western Chad. A few thousand also live in northern Cameroon, Nigeria and the Central African Republic.
Cultural profile
0 of 6 sections documented
- History and origins To document
- Language To document
- Social organisation To document
- Beliefs and religious practice To document
- Life cycle (birth, initiation, marriage, funerals) To document
- Housing, crafts and dress To document
Documented fact: based on a published written source, cited under the section. Reported oral account: testimony from a community member, published with their consent, not confirmed in writing. Empty sections stay empty rather than being filled in.
History and origins
To be documented: awaiting verified sources and community testimony.
Language
To be documented: awaiting verified sources and community testimony.
Social organisation
To be documented: awaiting verified sources and community testimony.
Beliefs and religious practice
To be documented: awaiting verified sources and community testimony.
Life cycle (birth, initiation, marriage, funerals)
To be documented: awaiting verified sources and community testimony.
Housing, crafts and dress
To be documented: awaiting verified sources and community testimony.
Population share source: EDS-MICS 2014-2015 (INSEED / ICF).
Location
South and Mayo-Kebbi
Provinces listed in our data: Logone Oriental
Cultural identities extend beyond provincial boundaries. See on the map
Media
Entry photo: Francisbbk, jeunes Mboum dansant au Tchad, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
References
Key: Documented: based on the published sources cited below.
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