Our navigation bar is loading . . . . . .


Advertise on JCSM - Hear JCSM's Weekly Devotions via Podcast/RSS Feed! - Skip These Ads

You can advertise your site right here!Third Day, Switchfoot, and Jars of Clay - MercyMe and David CrowderClick here to learn more!

 10,000 Wise Quotes and Spiritual Sayings by Jason Gastrich, Ph.D.

 JCSM's Top 1000 Christian Sites - Free Traffic Sharing Service! Join the Online Christ-Centered Ministries!

-
Jesus Christ Saves Ministries

Click here and add this page to your favorites!

Return to the JCSM Study Center!

Encyclopedia Britannica



KRUMEN (KROOMEN, KROOBOYS, KRUS, or CROOS)

This article appears in Volume V15, Page 933 of the Encyclopedia Britannica.

Encyclopedia Britannica - Main :: KRO-LAP
KRUMEN (KROOMEN, KROOBOYS, KRUS, or CROOS) , a negro people of the West Coast of Africa. They dwell in villages scattered along the coast of
Liberia
  from below Monrovia nearly to Cape Palmas. The name has been wrongly derived from the English word " crew," with reference to the fact that Krumen were the first West African people to take service in European vessels. It is probably from Kraoh, the primitive name of one of their tribes. Under Krumen are now grouped many kindred tribes, the Grebo, Basa, Nifu, &c., who collectively number some 40,000. The Krus proper live in the narrow strip of coast between the Sino rivefand Cape Palmas, where are their five
chief
  villages, Kruber, Little Kru, Settra Kru, Nana Kru and King William's Town. They are traditionallyfrom the interior, but have long been noted as skilful
seamen
  and daring fishermen. They are a stout, muscular, broad-chested race, probably the most robust of African peoples. They have true negro featuresskin of a blue-black hue and woolly and abundant hair. The women are of a lighter shade than negro women generally, and in several respects come much nearer to a European standard. Morally as well as physically the Krumen are one of the most remarkable races in Africa. They are honest, brave, proud, so passionately fond of freedom that they will starve or drown themselves to escape capture, and have never trafficked in slaves. Politically the Krus are divided into small commonwealths, each with an hereditary
chief
  whose duty is simply to represent the people in their dealings with strangers. The real government is vested in the elders, who wear as insignia iron rings on their legs. Their president, the head fetish-man, guards the national symbols, and his
house
  is sanctuary for offenders till their guilt is proved. Personal property is held in common by each family. Land also is communal, but the rights of the actual
cultivator
  cease only when he fails to farm it.
At 14 or 15 the Kru " boys " eagerly
contract
  themselves for voyages of twelve or eighteen months. Generally they prefer work near at home, and are to be found on almost every ship trading on the
Guinea
  coast. As soon as they have saved enough to buy a wife they return home and settle down. Krumen ornament their faces with tribal marksblack or blue lines on the forehead and from ear to ear. They
tattoo
  their arms and mutilate the incisor teeth. As a race they are singularly intelligent, and exhibit their enterprise in numerous settlements along the coast. Sierra Leone, Grand
Bassa
  and Monrovia all have their Kru towns. Dr Bleek classifies the Kru language with the Mandingo family, and in this he is followed by Dr R. G. Latham; Dr Kolle, who published a Kru grammar (1854), considers it as distinct.
See A. de Quatrefages and E. T. Hamy, Crania ethnica, ix. 363 (18781879) ; Schlagintweit-Sakunlunski, in the Sitzucgsberichte of the academy at Munich (1875) ; Nicholas, in
Bull
 . de la Soc. d'Anthrop. (Paris, 1872) ; J. Biittikofer, Reisebilder aus
Liberia
  (Leiden, 189o) ; Sir H. H. Johnston, Liberia (London, 1906).


End of Article: KRUMEN (KROOMEN, KROOBOYS, KRUS, or CROOS)


If you wish, you can link directly to this article.
<a href="http://jcsm.org/StudyCenter/Encyclopedia/KRO_LAP/KRUMEN_KROOMEN_KROOBOYS_KRUS_o.html">
KRUMEN (KROOMEN, KROOBOYS, KRUS, or CROOS)
</a>
(Previous)
KRUMBACHER, CARL (18561909) 		(Next)
KRUMMACHER, FRIEDRICH ADOLF (17671845)

 


 

Jesus Christ Saves Ministries

The JCSM Study CenterAmerica's Christian FoundationSkeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and ExplainedNKJV Web Hosting and Services
JCSM's Sermons, Debates and the Bible on MP3The Online Christ-Centered MinistriesDo You Have A Web Site?  Your Ad Could Be Here!Seminary Notes and PapersThe Picturesque Photo Albums


Jesus Christ Saves Ministries, P.O. Box 70696, Pasadena, CA 91117

JCSM is a 501(c)(3), non-profit organization. Copyright © 1997-present.


Kingdom Debt Solutions - Be Debt Free! Sport Logos - Quality Athletic Equipment The JCSM Study Center Your Ad Could Be Here! Launch A Successful Internet Organization or Business! Learn Guitar, Bass, or Piano in San Diego county!

You can advertise your site right here!

Free & Cheap Cell Phones  |  Cheap Long Distance Phone Service Carriers  |  Talk America Local Phone Service  |  Ztel & MCI - Unlimited Long Distance
Compare Cell Phone Plans & Companies  |  International Calling Cards & Prepaid Phone Cards  |  Voice Over IP Broadband Internet Phone Service  |  Wireless Phone Plans & Cheap Cell Phones

Dr. Jason Gastrich

Jason Gastrich, Ph.D.

 

Jesus Christ Saves Ministries is directed by Dr. Jason Gastrich.  It was founded in 1997 and it exists to bring people into a life-changing and productive relationship with Jesus Christ.  JCSM offers over 200,000 free web pages, discussion boards, weekly html and mp3 devotionals, free email accounts, and much more.

Jesus Christ Saves Ministries
P.O. Box 9297
San Diego, CA  92169
1-877-850-3878 or Email

JCSM is a 501(c)(3), non-profit organization. Copyright © 1997-2008.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Online First Aid and CPR Certification  .  The Online Christ Centered Ministries  .  The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained  .  The Inerrancy Discussion Board  .  Free Email Accounts  .  Home Equity Loans  .  JasonGastrich.com  .  The Missions, Apologetics, and Creation Bible Conference  .  Young Earth Creation Science  .  San Diego Music Lessons  .  10,000 Wise Quotes and Spiritual Sayings  .  Gastrich.net  .  Maximizing the Internet: 12 Keys to Success  .  Louisiana Baptist University  .  NKJV Web Hosting and Services  .  Michael Newdow  .  San Diego Soccer Training  . Christian Guitar Lessons  .  Jesus Christ Saves Ministries  .  Eternal Security