|
The Sierra Leone Creole people (or Krio people) are an ethnic group in Sierra Leone. They are the descendants of freed African American, West Indian and Liberated African slaves who settled in the Western Area of Sierra Leone between 1787 and about 1885. The colony was established by the British, supported by abolitionists, under the Sierra Leone Company as a place for freedmen. The settlers called their new settlement Freetown.〔, originally published by Longman & Dalhousie University Press (1976).〕 Today, the Krio comprise about 4% of the population of Sierra Leone.〔 ''citing'' 〕 Like their Americo-Liberian neighbors in Liberia, Krio have varying degrees of European ancestry because some of the settlers were descended from European Americans and other Europeans. Through the Jamaican Maroons some Krio probably also have indigenous Jamaican ancestry.〔http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25392952〕 Alongside the Americo-Liberians, the Creoles are the only recognised ethnic group of African-American, Liberated African, and West Indian descent in West Africa. As with their Americo-Liberian neighbors, Creole culture is primarily westernized. The Krios developed close relationships with the British colonial power; they became educated in British institutions and held prominent leadership positions in Sierra Leone under British colonialism. The vast majority of Creoles reside in Freetown and its surrounding Western Area region of Sierra Leone.〔 The only Sierra Leonean ethnic group whose culture is similar (in terms of its integration of Western culture) are the Sherbro. From their mix of peoples, the Creoles developed what is now the native Krio language (a mixture of English and indigenous West African languages). It has been widely used for trade and communication among ethnic groups and is the most widely spoken language in Sierra Leone.〔("Sierra Leone languages" ), Joshua Project〕 The Creoles are primarily christian, although some scholars consider the Oku community of Sierra Leone as 'Creoles'. The Oku or Oku Mohammedans are known as Oku or Frobe (Fourah Bay) Krio and are the descendants of liberated Muslim Africans, who were mostly Yoruba from what is today Southwest Nigeria who settled in Freetown in the mid-19th century. Because the Creoles are a mixture of various ethnic groups and the Oku are mainly of Yoruba descent, some scholars do not classify the Oku as Creoles. Due to their history, the vast majority of Creoles have European first names and surnames. Many have both English first names and last names. Most of the Oku Muslims have Islamic first names, some of them have English surnames. ==History== In 1787, the British helped 400 freed slaves, primarily African Americans freed during the American Revolutionary War, West Indians and Africans from London, to relocate to Sierra Leone to settle in what they called the "Province of Freedom." Some had been freed earlier and worked as servants in London. Most of the first group died due to disease and warfare with indigenous peoples. About 64 survived to settle Granville Town. In 1792, they were joined by 1200 Black Loyalists from Nova Scotia, African Americans and their descendants; some adults had left rebel owners and fought for the British in the revolutionary War. The Crown freed them as promised and resettled 3,000 of the African Americans in Nova Scotia, where many found the climate and racial discrimination harsh. More than 1200 volunteered to settle in the new colony of Freetown, which was established by British abolitionists. In 1800, the British transported 550 Maroons, militant escaped slaves from Jamaica, to Sierra Leone. After Britain and the United States abolished the international African slave trade beginning in 1808, they patrolled off the continent to intercept illegal shipping. The British resettled Liberated Africans at Freetown. The Liberated Africans included people from the Yoruba, Igbo, Efik, Fante, and other ethnicities of West Africa.〔 Some members of Temne, Limba, Mende, and Loko groups, indigenous Sierra Leone ethnicities, were also among the Liberated Africans resettled at Freetown; they also assimilated into Krio culture. Others came to the settlement voluntarily, seeing opportunities in Krio culture in the society. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Sierra Leone Creole people」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|