20th May: Cameroon National Day

National Day of Cameroon - celebrates the transition from a federal state to a unitary one.  10 things you didn't know about Cameroon.

1. The capital of Cameroon is Yaoundé, and the largest city is the port of Douala.
2. The highest point is Mount Cameroon, an active volcano which is 4,100 metres (13,500 ft) high. Each year, the mountain is the setting for a 24 mile/38km race called the Mount Cameroon Race of Hope.
3. They have a good Football team. Cameroon is the first African country to reach the quarter-final in the soccer World Cup. The country has also won the African Cup of Nations four times, in 1984, 1988, 2000 and 2002.
4. Cameroon has 7 national parks, the most famous being Waza National Park.
5. The second wettest place in the world is in Cameroon. Debuncha, a town at the foot of the Cameroon mountains gets 400 inches (10,000mm), of rain a year, about 20 times the amount we get in England.
6. The name Cameroon is derived from Rio de Camarões, which means the River of Prawns. This is the name given to River Wouri by 15th century Portuguese Explorers because a lot of prawns and Crayfish were found there.
7. Cameroon was the second state to adopt the traditional Pan-African colours in its Flag. The flag has three vertical stripes in Green, red and Yellow, with a yellow five-pointed star in the centre. Red is the colour of unity, and the star is referred to as "the star of unity". The yellow stands for the Sun, and also the savannahs in the northern part of the country. Green stands for the forests in the southern part of Cameroon.
8. Cameroon is often referred to as "Africa in miniature" for its geological and cultural diversity.
9. English and French are the official Languages, which have replaced the German spoken by early colonists. There are, however, more than 1,500 languages spoken.
10. The National Anthem of Cameroon is Chant de Ralliement (The Rallying Song). It was written in 1928 and became adopted as the national anthem in 1957. The original words were written by René Djam Afame and the music composed by Samuel Minkio Bamba and Moise Nyatte Nko'o.