Igbo People

Igbo "Ndi Igbo"
300px Olaudah Equiano • Nnamdi Azikiwe • "Emeka" Ojukwu • Francis Arinze
Total population
20–30 million
Regions with significant populations
Nigeria, Cameroon, United Kingdom, United States of America
Languages
Igbo
Religions
Christianity, traditional, Judaism
Related ethnic groups
Ikwerre, Idoma

The Igbo, sometimes (especially formerly) referred to as Ibo, are one of the largest single ethnicities in Africa. Most Igbo speakers are based in southeastern Nigeria, constituting about 17% of the population; they can also be found in significant numbers in Cameroon and other African countries. Their language is also called Igbo.

Geography

The Igbo population in Nigeria is primarily concentrated in Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo, but reaches into adjacent states like Delta and Rivers. Throughout this region, known as Igboland, the Igbo language is predominant , although English (the national language) is also spoken. Prominent cities in the Igbo country include Aba, Awka, Owerri, Orlu, Nnewi, Mbaise, Nsukka, Enugu, Onitsha, Afikpo, Okigwe, Umuahia, Asaba, Ohafia, Ututu, Alayi, Arochukwu, Abiriba, Ihechiowa, Item, Nkporo, Bende and Awkuzu amongst others.

Religion

Organization of Religion

The Igbo are a profoundly religious people who believe in a benevolent creator, usually known as Chukwu, who created the visible universe (uwa), and is especially associated with rain, trees and other plants.

There is no concept of a gender type such as “man” or “woman” associated to the Igbo supreme deity Chukwu, therefore, the Igbo people have no words in Igbo categorizing Chukwu as either man or woman. Colonialism introduced Christianity to the Igbo people, failed to significantly alter the prevailing belief in Chukwu.

The Igbos believe in the concept of Ofo and Ogu, which is more like the law of retributive justice. It is believed that Ofo and Ogu will vindicate anyone that is wrongly accused of a crime as long as "his hands are clean". It is only the one who is on the side of Ogu-na-Ofo that can call its name in prayer. Otherwise such a person will face the wrath of Amadioha (the god of thunder and lightning). Tied to restributive justice, Igbo's particularly in Nigeria, believe that each person has their own personal god called Chi. A Chi is the personification of an individual's fate, which is credited for an individual's luck and misfortune.

Opposing this force for good is agbara, meaning spirit or supernatural being. In some situations people are referred to as agbara in describing an almost impossible feat performed by them.

Apart from the natural level of the universe, they also believe that it exists on another level, that of the spiritual forces, the alusi. The alusi are minor deities, and are forces for blessing or destruction, depending on circumstances. They punish social offences and those who unwittingly infringe their privileges. The role of the diviner is to interpret the wishes of the alusi, and the role of the priest is to placate them with sacrifices. Either a priest is chosen through hereditary lineage or he is chosen by a particular god for his service, usually after passing through a number of mystical experiences. Each person also has a personalised providence, which comes from Chukwu, and returns to him at the time of death, a chi. This chi may be good or bad.

Dieties

These minor deities claimed an enormous part of the daily lives of the people. The belief was that these gods could be manipulated in order to protect them and serve their interests. If the gods performed these duties, they were rewarded with the continuing faith of the tribe. Different regions of Igboland have varying versions of these minor deities. Below are some of the most common:

Ala – the earth-goddess, the spirit of fertility (of man and the productivity of the land).

Igwe – the sky-god. This god was not appealed to for rain however, that was the full-time profession of the rain-makers, Igbo tribesmen who were thought to be able to call and dismiss rain.

Imo miri – the spirit of the river. The Igbo believe that a big river has a spiritual aspect; it is forbidden to fish in such deified rivers.

Mbatuku– the spirit of wealth.

Agwo – a spirit envious of other’s wealth, always in need of servitors.

Aha njuku or Ifejioku – the yam spirit.

Ikoro – the drum spirit.

Ekwu – the hearth spirit, which is woman’s domestic spirit.

The Afterlife

There is a strong Igbo belief that the spirits of one's ancestors keep a constant watch over you. The living show appreciation for the dead and pray to them for future well being. It is against tribal law to speak badly of a spirit. Those ancestors who lived well, died in socially approved ways, and were given correct burial rites, live in one of the worlds of the dead, which mirror the worlds of the living. They are periodically reincarnated among the living and are given the name ndichie – the returners. Those who died bad deaths and lack correct burial rites cannot return to the world of the living, or enter that of the dead. They wander homeless, expressing their grief by causing harm among the living.

The funeral ceremonies and burials of the Igbo people are extremely complex, the most elaborate of all being the funeral of a chief. However, there are several kinds of deaths that are considered shameful, and in these circumstances no burial is provided at all. Women who die in labour, children who die before they have teeth, those who commit suicide and those who die in the sacred month – for these people their funeral ceremony consists of being thrown into a bush. Their religious beliefs also led the Igbo to kill those that might be considered shameful to the tribe. Single births were regarded as typically human, multiple births as typical of the animal world. So twins were regarded as less than humans and put to death (as were animals produced at single births). Children who were born with teeth (or whose upper teeth came first), babies born feet first, boys with only one testicle, and lepers, were all killed and their bodies thrown away in secrecy.

Religion was regarded with great seriousness, and this can be seen in their attitudes to sacrifices, which were not of the token kind. Religious taboos, especially those surrounding priests and titled men, involved a great deal of asceticism. The Igbo expected in their prayers and sacrifices, blessings such as long, healthy, and prosperous lives, and especially children, who were considered the greatest blessing of all. The desire to offer the most precious sacrifice of all led to human sacrifice – slaves were often sacrificed at funerals in order to provide a retinue for the dead man in life to come. There was no shrine to Chukwu, nor were sacrifices made directly to him, but he was conceived as the ultimate receiver of all sacrifices made to the minor deities.

Modern Religion

Some Igbo still practice traditional Igbo religion. Although the Igbo have been largely Christianized, indigenous belief systems retain some influence, particularly in the suburban and rural villages. As with most Christianized peoples, Christian Igbos incorporated many of the culture's indigenous values, customs and traditions in their own systems of Christian worship — merely deemphasizing their origins. Most of the Christian Igbos are Roman Catholics.

In addition, there is a small Jewish minority among the Igbo, whose origins date from well before European colonialism in Africa.

Igbo Jews

The Igbo Jews of Nigeria are said to be descended from North African or Egyptian Hebraic and later Israelite migrations into West Africa. Oral legends amongst the Igbo state that this migration started around 1,500 years ago.

Members of the Igbo believe that they are descendants of Jews who had migrated to western Africa over many centuries via migrations south into sub-Saharan Africa, as well as west across North Africa, possibly following the path of the Arab conquests. Some Nigerian Jews hold that families amongst the community are descendants of Kohanim and Levites, the Jewish priests and their assistants who functioned in the Temple of Jerusalem.

Several Israelite/Jewish tribes settled in Western Africa during the glorious days of the Songhai, Mali and Ghana empires. Some sources have explained that a Jewish presence was present in Nigeria as early as 638 B.C.E. The Igbos are not the only group that claims such a heritage; the Sefwi people of Ghana, too, believe they are descendants of Jews that made their way to West Africa.

Perhaps the Jews of Nigeria suffered the same fate and with the arrival of Islam were either forced to leave the territory or submit to the Islamic domination. The Igbo Jews traditionally claim descent from three particular Israelite tribes: Gad, Zevulun, and Menashe. The Jews of Manipur and Mizoram, the Bnei Menashe, also claim descent from the tribe of Menashe. It is thought that these Jews fled to Africa after the destruction of the biblical Temples in Jerusalem and established communities all across the African continent. Israel has, to date, not recognized the Igbo as one of the Lost Tribes of Israel.

The Igbo Political History

Origins

The Igbo appear to have come south from the area where the Niger and Benue Rivers come together.

According to Professor A. E. Afigbo, a scholar of Igbo heritage, "the Igbo, and perhaps the Idoma and most likely the Ijaw (Ijo), would appear to be the one of the only surviving coherent ethnic groups from the first set of proto-Kwa speakers to penetrate the forest areas of Southern Nigeria and who at one time occupied areas as far to the west as Ile-Ife in Yorubaland.

Archaeological, linguistic, botanical and anthropological evidence also do suggest that the Igbo and their ancestors have lived in their present homes from the dawn of human history.

Igboland is the home of the Igbo people and it covers most of Southeast Nigeria. This area is divided by the Niger River into two unequal sections – the eastern region (which is the largest) and the midwestern region. The river, however, has not acted as a barrier to cultural unity; rather it has provided an easy means of communication in an area where many settlements claim different origins. The Igbos are also surrounded on all sides by other tribes (the Bini, Warri, Ijaw, Ogoni, Igala, Tiv, Yako and Ibibio).

The origins of the Igbo people has been the subject of much speculation, and it is only in the last fifty years that any real work has been carried out in this subject:

...like any group of people, they are anxious to discover their origin and reconstruct how they came to be how they are. ...their experiences under colonialsim and since Nigeria’s Independence have emphasized for them the reality of their group identity which they want to anchor into authenticated history. (Afigbo, A.E.. ‘Prolegomena to the study of the culture history of the Igbo-Speaking Peoples of Nigeria’, Igbo Language and Culture, Oxford University Press, 1975. 28.) Analysis of the sources that are available (fragmentary oral traditions and correlation of cultural traits) have led to the belief that there exists a core area of Igboland, and that waves of immigrant communities from the north and west planted themselves on the border of this core area as early as the ninth century. This core area – Owerri, Orlu and Okigwi – forms a belt, and the people in this area have no tradition of coming from anywhere else. Migration from this area in the recent past tended to be in all directions, and in this way the Igbo culture gradually became homogenized. In addition to this pattern of migration from this core area, other people also entered the Igbo territory in about the fourteenth or fifteenth centuries. Many of these people still exhibit different characteristics from that of the traditional Igbos – for example geographical marginality, the institution of kingship, a hierarchical title system and the amosu tradition (witchcraft). For some time some Igbo-speaking peoples claimed that they were not Igbo – the word was used as a term of abuse for “less cultured” neighbours. The word is now used in three senses, to describe Igbo territory, domestic speakers of the language and the language spoken by them.(see (A.E. Afigbo,1981: Ropes of Sand, Caxton Press,Ibadan. and T. Shaw:1970; "Igbo Ukwu: An Account of Archaeological Discoveries in Eastern Nigeria", Faber and Faber, pp. 268-285).

Pre-colonial life

Pre-colonial Igbo political organization was based on communities, devoid of kings or governing chiefs. With the exception of towns such as Onitsha, which had kings called Obis, and places like Nri and Arochukwu, which had priest kings known as Ezes, most Igbo village governments were ruled solely by an assembly of the common people.

Although titleholders were respected because of their accomplishments, they were never revered as kings, but often performed special functions given to them by such assemblies. This way of governing was immensely different from most other communities of Western Africa, and only shared by the Ewe of Ghana. Igbo secret societies also had a ceremonial script called Nsibidi. The Igbo had a calendar in which a week had four days. A month consisted of seven weeks and thirteen months made a year. In the last month, an extra day was added. This calendar is still in use in villages and towns to determine the market days.

They also had mathematics called Okwe and Mkpisi and a saving and loans bank system called Isusu. They settled law matters by oath-taking to a god. If that person died in a certain amount of time, he was guilty. If not, he was free to go, but if guilty, that person could face exile or servitude to a deity.

The Colonial period

The arrival of the British in the 1870s and increased encounters between the Igbo and other Nigerians led to a deepening sense of a distinct Igbo ethnic identity. The Igbo also proved remarkably decisive and enthusiastic in their embrace of Christianity and Western education. Under British colonial rule, the diversity within each of Nigeria's major ethnic groups slowly decreased and distinctions between the Igbo and other large ethnic groups, such as the Hausa and the Yoruba became sharper.

The novel Things Fall Apart by an Igbo author Chinua Achebe, is a fictional account of the clash between the new influences of the British and the traditional life of the Igbo.

Igbo Cultural Expression

Music

The Igbo have a rhythm of music which consists of drums "udu", flute "opi", Ogene, Igba, Ichaka and other instruments. They also have a style of music called Ikorodo which involves a vocal performance accompanied by several musical instruments. Nigeria is known as the land of music, and many Nigerians express themselves through music. Nigerians have acquired a great capacity for the love of music, which usually involves percussion accompaniment, although not always. Traditional Igbo music includes a lot of drum beats. Another popular musical form among the Igbo tribe is Highlife, which It is a fusion of jazz and traditional music and widely popular in West Africa. They listen to the Music that is called jams of Jalia

Language

The Igbo people largely speak the Igbo language. The language was used by John Goldsmith as an example to justify deviating from the classical linear model of phonology as laid out in The Sound Pattern of English. It is written in the Roman script. Igbo is a tonal language, like Yoruba and Chinese.

Modern Igbo Identity

After the Nigerian Civil War, Igboland had been severely devastated. Many hospitals, schools, and homes had been completely destroyed in the brutal war. The Federal government of Nigeria denied the Igbo people access to all the hard currencies such as pound sterling they had saved in Nigerian banks before the civil war, and only allowed them a minuscule compensation of £20 per adult bank account holder. For example, a man who had over £450,000.00 savings in one or several bank accounts could only receive £20.00 following this policy.

In addition to the loss of their savings, many Igbo people found themselves discriminated against by other ethnic groups and the new non-Igbo federal government. Due to the discrimination of employers, many Igbo had trouble finding employment, and the Igbo became one of the poorest ethnic groups in Nigeria during the early 1970s. Igboland was gradually rebuilt over a period of twenty years and the economy was again prospering due to the rise of the petroleum industry in the adjacent Niger Delta, which led to new factories being set up in southern Nigeria. Many Igbo eventually regained government positions.

The Igbo, however, continue to face many problems and challenges. Even today, Igbo people have sometimes continued to face discrimination from other ethnic groups. Also, because the traditional Igbo homeland was becoming too small for its growing population, many Igbo have emigrated out of Igboland.

The Igbo diaspora

After the Nigerian Civil War, many Igbo emigrated out of the traditional Igbo homeland in southeastern Nigeria due to a growing population. Not only have the Igbo people moved to such Nigerian cities as Port Harcourt, Lagos, Benin City, and Abuja, but have also moved to other countries such as Cameroun, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Togo, Ghana, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Prominent Igbo communities outside Africa include those of London UK, Houston, California, Atlanta and Washington, D.C., USA.

See also

• Igbo language
• Igbo mythology
• Igbo music
• Biafra
• Jews of Nigeria

References

ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

• Agawu, Kofi (2003). African Music: Postcolonial Notes, Queries, Positions. Routledge. ISBN 0415943892
• Forde, Cyril Daryll and Jones, G. I. (1950) The Ibo and Ibibio-Speaking Peoples of South-Eastern Nigeria International African Institute by Oxford University Press, London.
• Mushanga, Tibamanya mwene (2001). "Social and Political Aspects of Violence in Africa". Social Problems in Africa: New Visions. Praeger/Greenwood.
• Njoku, John Eberegbulam (1990) The Igbo of Nigeria: Ancient Rites, Changes, and Survival E. Mellen Press, Lewiston, NY, ISBN 0889461732.
• Okafor, Clement (2004). "Igbo Cosmology and the Parameters of Individual Accomplishments in Things Fall Apart". Emerging Perspectives on Chinua Achebe. Volume 1: Omenka the Master Artist: Critical Perspectives on Achebe's Fiction.
• Okpala, Benneth (2003). Toasting the Bride: Memoirs of Milestones to Manhood, 2nd ed. Trafford Publishing. ISBN 1890232076
• Smith, David Jordan (2004). "Igbo". Encyclopedia of Sex and Gender: Men and Women in the World's Cultures. Volume I: Topics and Cultures A–K. Springer. ISBN 030647770X
• Smock, Audrey C. (1971) Ibo Politics: The Role Of Ethnic Unions In Eastern Nigeria Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA, ISBN 0674440250.
• Uchendu, Victor Chikezie (1965) The Igbo Of Southeast Nigeria Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York.
• Davidson, Basil (1998) "West Africa Before the Colonial Era: A History to 1850". Pearson Education Limited, Essex, England. ISBN 0582318521

External links

• Igboguide.org - An insight guide to Igboland’s Culture and Language
• igbolandia.com - is a site dedicated to all young igbos worldwide

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