The Bua or Niellim are part of the Adamawa-Ubangi people cluster within the Sub-Saharan African affinity bloc.
The Bua or Niellim are a subgroup of the Sara people of Chad. Most of Niellim live in southern Chad, along the Chari River until it reaches the Salamat River.
During the nineteenth century, the Niellims were a small sultanate that suffered badly from attacks at teh hands of the Barmas. Today. the Niellims are in an advanced state of assimilation with the Barmas.
23.000 Bua live in the forested plains and hills north of Sarh (Southern Chad) along the Chari River. (Peoplegroups.org, 2024)
The Niellim language (autonym lwaà) is a Bua language spoken by some 5,000 people (as of 1993) along the Chari River in southern Chad. It is mainly spoken in two areas: one around the city of Sarh (to which many - perhaps most - speakers have migrated) and one, its traditional home, further north, between about 9°30′ and 9°50′ N, corresponding to the former chiefdoms of Pra and Niou, as well as the Niellim Sultanate.
The Bua are nomads who live in the middle or Sahel section of the central African country of Chad. They are traditionally herders of animals and subsistence farmers. The Sahel is a dry grassland region south of the Sahara Desert in the north of Chad and north of the agricultural region with abundant rainfall in the south Chad.
The Bua are farmers and herders. The Bua travel a lot with their cattle, sheep and other animals. Bua people living near Chari River also fish.
Most Bua roam central Chad searching for water and green plants for their camels, goats, cattle, and sheep. If the Bua cannot find water and grass for their animals as during draught years, they have no other way of supporting themselves. From an early age children work with their parents to support their families. Some Bua live a settled life. Since no irrigation water is available, farmers are totally dependent on intermittent rainfall. Cotton is a cash crop. The Bua sell raw cotton, clothing, and rugs to obtain cash to buy things they cannot make for themselves such a cell phones, appliances, radios, and TVs.
Bua people scarified their faces with vertical marks in both chicks. The tradition started to fade in the 1960s with the arrival of missionaries and forced schooling.
In the religious aspect the Bua were forced into becoming Muslims at the beginning of 20th Century though most still follow the original African religion. The Bua living near roads or in bigger towns have converted into Christianity or follow Folk Islam.
In the middle of the 19th century, the Niellim-speaking clan along the Chari organized into a small sultanate. Throughout the latter half of the century, they suffered various raids by the Baguirmi Kingdom, until they were eventually vassalized by them. Under their rule, they assimilated with the Barma people
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