#  Voices of the Displaced 

 



##  Voices of the Displaced 

Millions of people are [forcibly displaced](https://www.unhcr.org/us/about-unhcr/overview/figures-glance) from their homes each year due to political conflict, persecution, food insecurity, and other crises. The experience of displacement can have severe effects on both mental and physical health, and often leads to the devastation of communities. This website is devoted to documenting the experiences of internally-displaced people in Cameroon, Central Africa, where ongoing civil conflict and climate-induced famine are forcing people to leave their homes. A primary focus of our interviews is on the way that these crises have impacted the use of Cameroon's indigenous languages, of which there are over 300 spoken in the country. Many of these languages were endangered or threatened prior to the conflict, and the current situation, combined with the lasting impacts of colonialism, have accelerated the pace of language loss. Here, we document the experiences of Cameroon's internally-displaced people, and feature messages, greetings, and advice in their languages. The site is a work-in-progress, with additional participants being added as the project grows. For more information, you can read [this preprint](https://voicesofthedisplaced.hsites.harvard.edu/sites/g/files/omnuum10421/files/2026-02/Language%20Loss%20and%20Political%20Conflict%20in%20Cameroon%20%281%29.pdf) on the effects of displacement on language loss in Cameroon.



 

 

 

       ![background](/sites/g/files/omnuum10421/files/styles/hwp_21_9__1920x825/public/2025-08/background%201_0.png?h=16328a96&itok=AXkRNoaQ) 

 

 



 

 



     ![Image of Dschang Subject 4](/sites/g/files/omnuum10421/files/styles/hwp_4_3__480x360/public/2025-08/DschangSubj4.1_0.jpeg?h=444b5da8&itok=GIf-7iim) 

 



 

 [✩Ernest giving advice in Lamnso' on learning agricultural work](https://prod-fas003.drupalsites.harvard.edu/dschang-lamnso)

[✩Ernest discussing children's learning of Lamnso'](https://prod-fas003.drupalsites.harvard.edu/dschang-lamnso-acquisition)



   

 

     ![Image of Nkambe Subject](/sites/g/files/omnuum10421/files/styles/hwp_4_3__480x360/public/2025-08/Nkambe.1.jpeg?h=40d0ac76&itok=WKnmo1KG) 

 



 

 [✩Hazel discussing the importance of speaking to our children in Nkambe](https://voicesofthedisplaced.hsites.harvard.edu/dschang-nkambe)

[✩Hazel talking abou the meaning of speaking one's native language in English](https://prod-fas003.drupalsites.harvard.edu/dschang-nkambe-speaking-ones-language)



   

 

 

 

 

 

    ![Image of Bafoussam subject 1](/sites/g/files/omnuum10421/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2025-08/BafSubj1_Interview_Part2.1_0.jpeg?h=2423dd70&itok=7DLHxeVr) 

 



 

 [✩Blandine giving advice on why people should not forget their languages ('dialects') in Lamnso'](https://prod-fas003.drupalsites.harvard.edu/bafoussam-lamnso)

[✩Blandine singing in Lamnso'](https://prod-fas003.drupalsites.harvard.edu/bafoussam-lamnso-singing)



   

 

    ![Image of Dschang subject 6](/sites/g/files/omnuum10421/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2025-08/DschangSubj6_Interview_Part3_Chouwushi.1_0.jpeg?h=df9c252c&itok=Bs2hOkfw) 

 



 

 [✩A](https://prod-fas003.drupalsites.harvard.edu/dschang-chouwushi)[nifatou: 'Our dialect is what we came and saw, and that's what we will leave' in Wushi](https://prod-fas003.drupalsites.harvard.edu/dschang-subject-6)

[✩A](https://prod-fas003.drupalsites.harvard.edu/dschang-chouwushi)[nifatou describes journey to Dschang since displacement in English](https://prod-fas003.drupalsites.harvard.edu/anifatou-describes-her-journey-dschang-being-displaced)



   

 

    ![Image Foumban subject 3](/sites/g/files/omnuum10421/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2025-08/FoumbSubj3_Interview_Part6_Tupuri_1_5_2025.1.jpeg?h=08395af9&itok=YABqVBUx) 

 



 

 [✩Yves speaks about finding one's clan origins in Tupuri](https://prod-fas003.drupalsites.harvard.edu/Foumban-Tupuri)

[✩Yves talks about his business plan project in French](https://prod-fas003.drupalsites.harvard.edu/Foumban-business-plan)



   

 

 

 

 

 

    ![Image of Foumban subject 2](/sites/g/files/omnuum10421/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2025-08/FoumbSubj2_Interview_Part4_Masa_1_5_2025.1.jpeg?h=065abc3f&itok=5630LqPJ) 

 



 

 [✩Naissou teaching some greetings in Massa](https://prod-fas003.drupalsites.harvard.edu/foumban-masa)



   

 

    ![Image of Foumban Subject 1](/sites/g/files/omnuum10421/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2025-08/FoumbSubj1_Interview_Part2_1_5_2025.1.jpeg?h=8da04afd&itok=TqKj3_7M) 

 



 

 [✩Gaston: 'We no longer chat in our language' in Giziga](https://prod-fas003.drupalsites.harvard.edu/foumban-subject-1)

[✩Gaston's journey to Foumban since being displaced in French](https://prod-fas003.drupalsites.harvard.edu/gaston-discusses-his-journey-foumban-displacement)



   

 

    ![Image of Oku Yaounde](/sites/g/files/omnuum10421/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2025-08/Oku_Yaounde.1_0.jpeg?h=4553b99a&itok=Esix2lNC) 

 



 

 [✩Vivian explains how to cooking fufu corn and djama djama in Oku](https://prod-fas003.drupalsites.harvard.edu/oku-yaounde)

[✩Vivian describes her journey to Yaoundé since displacement in English](https://prod-fas003.drupalsites.harvard.edu/vivian-describes-her-journey-yaounde-displacement)



   

 

 

 

 

 

 

This site is maintained by Kathryn Franich and members of the [PhonLab ](https://sites.harvard.edu/phonlab/)at Harvard University. Site design and digital drawings of interview participants were done by **Serena Lendja**.