Mende people

The Mende people (also spelled Mendi) are one of the two largest ethnic groups in Sierra Leone; their neighbors, the Temne people, have roughly the same population.

The Mende and Temne each account for slightly more than thirty percent of the total population.

The Mende are predominantly found in the Southern Province and the Eastern Province, while the Temne are found primarily in the Northern Province and the Western Area, including the capital city of Freetown

Some of the major cities with significant Mende populations include Bo, Kenema, Kailahun, and Moyamba.

The Mende belong to a larger group of Mandé peoples who live throughout West Africa.

The Mende are mostly farmers and hunters.

During the civil war the Civil Defense Force (CDF), a militia group, is founded by Dr. Alpha Lavalie, a Mende himself, to fight the rebels along with government troops.

The forces include five groups drawn from all major ethnic groups in the country: Tamaboros, Hunters, Donso, Kapras, and the Kamajors.

Kamajor is a Mende term for hunter; they are not only the dominant warring factions but the most fearful among the CDF militias headed by late Deputy Minister of Defense, Chief Hinga Norman.

To date, the Kamajors are honored among the elite groups of men and women who fought to restore democracy in modern Sierra Leone.

The Mendes are divided into Kpa-Mende, who are predominantly in the South— in Moyamba district, the Golah-Mende, from the Gola forest between Kenema and Pujehun districts into Liberia—a national reservation landmark, Sewa-Mende, who settle along the Sewa River, Vai-Mende also in Liberia and Pujehun district, Sierra Leone and the Koh-Mende, who are the dominant tribe in Kailahun district with the Kissi (Ngessi) and Gbandi, both of whom are in Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea.

The secret "Poro" society is for men while "Sande" society for women both of whom initiate the young into adulthood.

Those who join either of the male or female secret societies are referred to as the halemo— members of the hale or secret societies— and kpowa, people who have never been initiated into the hale.

The Mende believe that all humanistic and scientific power is passed down through the secret societies.

The Mende language is widely spoken in Liberia, more so in areas once considered part of Liberia.

In the year 1984, then President Samuel Doe threatena to retake the part of Sierra Leone that was once Liberia.

Both countries have Mende, Gola, Vai, Gissi and Gbandi tribes but the Mende are the dominant population.

Mende names are common in Liberia including towns that share names on both side of the border; for example, Guma Mende is popular section in Loffa, Liberia and those living along the borders claim dual citizenship.

Mende language is also taught in Sierra Leone schools and the Alphabet is closely identical to the English Alphabet. For example, the letter 'C' is flipped facing left and pronounced 'orh'; 'E' is written with broken edges and pronounced 'eh'.

The Mende speak the Mende language among themselves, but their language is also spoken as a regional lingua franca by members of smaller Sierra Leonean ethnic groups that inhabit the same part of the country.

Their language is spoken by around forty-six percent of Sierra Leone's population.

Like a majority of African nations, Sierra Leone's political parties are often tied to specific ethnic groups and have been dominated by the Mende, on the one hand, and the Temne and their long-time political allies, the Limba, on the other.

The Mende are known to typically support the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP), while the Temnes and Limbas are associated with the All People's Congress party (APC).