I Am A Yoruba By Birth Not Igbo By Philip Emeaguali -

Ethnic, Racial, Or Sectarian Politics

I am a Yoruba by birth (born in Akure, western region) and Igbo by heritage. As a native Onitsha

Igbo, I trace my ancestry to Eze Chima, a prince who rebelled against the Benin royal dynasty

and emigrated from the kingdom. Other Igbos that trace their lineage to Eze Chima include

Onicha-Ukwu, Onicha-Olona, Onicha-Ugbo, Obior, Issele-Ukwu, Issele-Mkpima, Issele-

Azagba, Ezi, Abeh and Obamkpa.

Native Onitshans speak a dialect of the Igbo language with several Benin/Yoruba words such as

"Obi" (of Onitsha) and "Oba" (of Benin). In fact, the word Onitsha (Onicha) is a corruption of

the god "Orisha." The bini name for River Niger is Ohinmwin. The Onicha Igbo call it

"Orinmili." In a few years, we will have DNA tests that proves (or disproves) the Onitsha-Benin-

Yoruba connection.

In fact, a lost dialect of the Yoruba language, called Olukwumu, is spoken in Brazil and in a few

Igbo communities named Anioma, Idumu-Ogu, Ubulubu, Ugboba, Ugbodu, and Ukwunzu (M.

A. Onwuejeogwu, 1987 Ahiajoku Lecture). The absence Olukwumu in core Yoruba land proves

that these communities are the Lost Yoruba Tribe that were fleeing from slave raiders.

http://emeagwali.com/photos/yoruba/photo-essay-on-yoruba.html

A READER WRITES:

April 3, 2002

I first of all congratulate you, Onicha, and the entire Igboland on your wonderful achievements.

Among Ndiigbo, "age is respected but achievement is revered" - Achebe. They are solid personal

achievements of yours. Ka Chukwu nye gi ogologo ndu.

Isee.

On a personal thought, I view the history of Bini Kingdom as "rigged". I think that Africa less

than 3000 years ago had unique language and way of life. In the same vein, I think that the Bini

(Edo) and the Igbo (East and West of River Niger) had a cut less than 700 years ago. I mean that

Ndiigbo and Ndiedo were just one people of one culture and language about 700 years ago. And

so was with Igala and Idoma. Ndiedo have Eke-Orie-Afo-Nkwo just like Ndiigbo. Ndiyoruba do

not have these market days. Also, if you observe the Igbo-Bini language, you see that there must

had been sometime in the past when they existed as one.

You talked about the River Niger, saying that 'The Onicha Igbo call it "Orinmili." In a few years,

we will have DNA tests that proves (or disproves) the Onitsha-Benin-Yoruba connection.' I read

somewhere about Nri and the Igbo race. I also read of Eze Chima, who came from what is today

called Umunri (Children of Nri) in Anambra, and as republican as his fellow Igbo, he and his

priestly people went West of the Niger River. They settled far away West of Agbo, extending

into Igbanke, Ibekwe, Nsukwa, Uromi, Afuze, Ubiaja. And due to disturbances from the Bini

Kingdom, Eze Chima ran back to the East of the Niger. But his fellow Igbo around Ubiaja,

Agbo, Ibekwe, Ubulu etc., suffered a lot under Bini Kingdom, which was part of the reasons why

Agbo fought Bini sometime ago. So, I do not think that Eze Chima ran back to around Umunri

with all the priests he left with. How then can Igbo have DNA related to faraway Yoruba? I do

not think that so can happen correctly. And it is not a view of mine that Ndiyoruba are

homogenous. You may find out that around the East of the Western Region, the people there are

of Ndiigbo DNA. That is for instance. Afterall, the word "Ekiti" = "Etiti" = "Centre" in Igbo

language. We have not yet explained the names of places in the Western Region with '-Igbo'

attached in their spelling, like Igbo-Ora, Ijebu-Igbo etc.

Was any DNA carried out then? The results. My thinking is that the Bini Kingdom spread all

over, and every community in Alaigbo in those days heard of it. Equiano was from Iseke, now in

Imo. He knew about the Bini Kingdom, and so were his people, Ndiigbo. ", our subjection to the

king of Benin was little more than nominal…," writes Equiano, and thus, the spread of Bini

rulership revealed. And now Onicha. Wasn't Igbo half-East and all-West of the Niger ruled by

Bini? How then comes the trace of DNA of Onicha to Bini and Yoruba?

If so had been tasted, Dee Emeagwali, was the result what?

I still look forward to understanding the Kings of Bini Kingdom, for their names are just

sounding Igbo. For instance, 'Eweka' may be 'Iweka'. Also, 'Ewuare' may be 'Iwua' or 'Iwuani',

Perhaps, the British and early historians misspelt the right sound of the names of those Bini

Kings.

I look forward to hearing from you. And once again, I highly revere your achievements. In a

situation where the opportunities were somehow strictly restricted, you bravely and intelligently

obtained the knife and the yam: you acquired in a high articulate way the essentials capable of

leading to great achievements. And the sky is now your limit. Daalu.

Chukwu nye gi ogologondu na ahuisiike. Isee.

Nwanne gi,

EMEAGWALI REPLIES

Nwannem nwoke dalu:

Thank you for taking the time to visit my Web site and share your thoughts with me. I was out of

town when your email arrived and it took me awhile to read my past email. Your write-up is

thought provoking and I hope you don't mind my posting it on http://emeagwali.com.

Let's look at the timeline.

In the 1560s: Eze Chima and his descendants left Benin. As many as one in four Igbo-speaking

people are the descendants of people that emigrated from Benin Kingdom.

In the 1560s: The Benin Kingdom produced its first powerful Oba, named Esigie. All Obas

derived their wealth, power and mystique from slave trading.

In the 1560s: John Hawkins took the first African slaves from The Slave Coast to Haiti.

What was then called the Slave Coast was later renamed Benin Kingdom, Nigeria, Gold Coast

and Ghana. The word "Onitsha" is a corruption of the word "Orisha." The religion Orisha is

practiced among Yorubas and Haitians.

Just as we shortened the name "United States of America" to United States or America, similarly

the name "Orisha Edo" was corrupted to "Onitsha Ado" and then shortened to "Onitsha." The

proof is that the web site for Onitshans is not onitsha.com: it is onitshaado.com.

People did not travel far in the olden days. In fact, three of my four grandparents never travelled

more than ten miles from the place they were born. Therefore, it is not possible for Eze Chima to

travel 200 miles through the rain forest to Benin and then return homeward in his lifetime.

It will require an entire book to expound on the Onitsha-Igbo-Yoruba-Edo connection. In the

future, I will provide details that prove that as much as one in four Ndi Igbo were descendants of

refugees that were fleeing slave raiders. Igbo elders have a saying that "when you see a lizard

running in the daytime you know that something is after its life." The mass migration that forced

Onitsha people to resettle in the east bank of the River Niger was a result of their flight from the

Oba of Benin and his slave raiders.

Kene ezi na ulo gi,

Emeagwali

A 2nd Reader Writes:

I have just finished reading your writing. I am familiar with your accomplishments in academia

and technology. In fact, I visited your website about nine months ago. I was impressed. More

power to you.

Let me, however, disagree with a major tenet of your polemic: that as many as one out of every

four Igbo may be a descendant of those who migrated from the Benin kingdom. I refute this

hypothesis not with facts of my own (because the facts are not there either way), but with a

proverbial and inductive shaking of the head to denote the implausibility of your conclusions.

Much of the historical "facts" on which your thesis is based remain speculative at best and

downright manufactured at worst. You and I know that our African/Igbo oral history heritage is

one that pits the notoriously fallible memory of a human being against truth and authenticity

especially when there is no incentive for the oral historian to be accurate. And when centuries

separate the oral historians who hand us "facts" supposedly passed through numerous great-

great-great grandparents, a scholar, which you are, must be careful not to elevate speculation to

facts.

Take for example, your quotation of the famous Igbo adage on logical deductions: you

misquoted the adage as "when you see a lizard running in the daytime, you know that something

is after it's life." The correct Igbo saying is "When you see a toad running in the day time, you

know that something is after it." Any serious farmhand or naturalist knows that this is an

empirically verifiable truism as well as a proverb. Lizards run at any time, morning, afternoon,

and night, but toads normally do not run in the afternoons. See how a reliance on your memory

(the oral history tradition) fails you. Imagine then how reliable is a set of facts from the 16th

century on Igbo migration based on oral history and further based on connection of similar-

sounding Igbo-Yoruba names. This is the stuff of legend and night-time stories in all parts of

Igboland. Speculations.

So that I don't offend our non-Igbo brothers and sisters who read this, let me state this in Igbo:

Ekweghi m na ndi Igbo gbara oso si Benin bia biri n'ala anyi. Ihe n'ile anyi mutara n'ulo

akwukwo na ndi echiche anyi kuziri anyi gosiri na ndi Igbo di iche ma nwekwaa amamighe na

obi nwanne nke ndi ozo bi na Nigeria enweghi. Any n'ile bi na Obodo America na ndi bi na Ala

bekee ndi ozo anaghi echefu ebe anyi si bia. Onwere ihe di iche n'ebe ndi Igbo no, nke m

enweghi ike ikowa na akwukwo. Anyi abughi ndi obia si obodo Benin. Ekweghi m nke ahu.

Daalu, Nwannem Chukwu gozie gi.

EMEAGWALI REPLIES

Nwannem nwoke, kedu ki imere:

The story of Eze Chima is widely known amongst River Igbos and Western Igbos. The reason

the Eze Chima story has been passed on from one generation to the next is that we humans have

an innate need to understand who we are, where we came from and how we arrived at our

present location.

I do not believe that dozens of geographically separate communities, independently, created the

Eze Chima story out of thin air. However, I agree with your argument that our memories fade

with time and that in the telling and retelling of a story, details are obscured, lost and added. An

anthropologist explained to me that in the telling and retelling of a story, the original story

generally evolve into a "myth" that retains a "kernel of truth."

The "grain of truth" is that Eze Chima had a dispute with the Oba and, as a result, was forced

into exile from Benin Kingdom in the 1560s. The wide geographical spread of Eze Chima

descendants is my basis for deducing that a mass migration took place.

I also noted that our historical timeline shows that the latter mass migration coincided with the

Atlantic slave trade. Consequently, I deduced that the descendants of Eze Chima were refugees

fleeing from the Oba of Benin and his slave raiders.

A war veteran knows that for every soldier killed in battle that at least one is wounded. Similary,

for every slave captured, at least one escaped capture. Olaudah Equiano, the Igbo slave boy, also

confirmed the latter in his famous autobiography. It is only plausible to infer that if there are 200

million descendants of slaves now living in the United States, Caribbean and Latin America that

there could be as much as 100 million descendants of slave/refugees living in west Africa.

Linguistically and geographically, we have three types of Ndi Igbo: Heartland Igbos, Igbo Rivers

and Western Igbos. I believe that the Igbos that live along the River Niger and in mid-western

Nigeria (Anioma, Kwale, Ika and Ukwani) are descendants of refugees that fled the slave raiders

of the Benin Kingdom.

I have observed that the vocabularies of River and Western Igbos contain numerous words from

the Edo and Yoruba languages. This was the basis of my conclusion that as many as one in four

Igbos might be related to the Edos and Yorubas? Even the cultures of River and Western Igbos

are different from that of Heartland Igbos. For example, the old adage that Igbos have no king

(Igbo enweghi eze) applies only to Heartland Igbos.

As an aside, Eze Chima is at the apex of my family genealogical tree. I first learned that I am a

descendant of Eze Chima, in 1970, when my uncle contested (and lost) to become the next Obi

of Onitsha. My uncle was required to recite the names of his great-great-great … grand-fathers

and prove that he is a descendant of Eze Chima.

Udo di ri gi,

Emeagwali

Please, Archive

Dear Brother Emeagwali:

Your Websites are so informative and so educative. I am so enthralled with the amount of

information I get from you and fellow Africans and the world at large based on your information

technology and know-how.

My question is this: Do you archive all the information in your website so that these information

could be accessed at any time in future and not be lost? I would like to see archived websites.

Your Internet information is so rich that I have this fear that one day, I might not be able to

access past resources as they could be overtaken and replaced by the present.

The Nigerian/Biafran war issues and discussions among others should be archived for posterity. I

and my father, mother and family were in Biafra during the war; and we enjoyed the hospitality

of our kith and kin throughout the duration of the war.

I enjoyed your piece on the origin of the Ibos and the criticism that followed. My mother is from

Onicha Ukwu and my father is from Idumuje all in Anioma, Delta State.

I have always believed that there was some type of migration of Ndiigbo from the Yoruba

Kingdom, Benin (Edo) to their present location.

Dalu. Nwanne gi.

Lawrence Diai

Los Angeles California

June 29, 2003 Ldali75537 @ aol.com

Onicha/yoruba link

I commend you for having thrown up the issue of Yoruba,Edo and Onitsha historical link . In the

absense of zero archaelogical and linguistic evidence,my friends here are questioning the

common sense behind this type presentation from a man assumed to have achieved something in

the academia for himself,the Igbo and Nigeria in general. For you to rely so much on an apparent

old and orally handed down story, to the extent of concretising and inventing new theories is

baffling, especially from an emerging Igbo mouth-piece like you,

Did you ask your kindred why there was a Benin king or prince with such a traditional hard-core

Igbo name as Chima? Why was he not named Osagie,Erediuwa,Imasogie,

Despite being a highly oppressed people,the Gypsy migration 1000 years ago from India to the

present Eastern europe has had little or no effect to their native Punjabi dialect.Or the fulanis

across the wide spectrum of the West-African sub-region. The Boers (Afrikaners) of Southern

Africa are also a typical example.

In your case there is a 100% demise of Edo tongue in respectof the communities you mentioned.

The proximity of Benin and Agbor which are divided by two different languages,shows despite

every claim of Benin descent by the latter that a strong Igbo aboriginal factor exists. (compare

Abiriba and Agbor dialects)

I could see this mentality of being proud to be linked as a subject of Ancient benin,while the

evidences even without a DNA shows certainly that an Igbo man with an Igbo name Chima,most

certainly an Nri priest or an aboriginal western Igbo community leader,fought and resisted the

continuation of Benin administration, and retreated with his fellow Igbo-speaking subjects and

resettled back home. Phil, if onichans were former Bini speakers, today,400 years after, you

would find a corrupt Bini dialect spoken in Onitsha. It's simple.

While white anthropologists like (Ford&Jones),simply rejected the Benin/Yoruba origin of some

Igbo communities based on linguistic and cultural differences,it is simply troubling that the

concerned people are giving in to forces that are simply bent on misrepresenting and obliterating

important historical exploits of our Igbo forebears. It is the duty of i and you to nuture,re-

orientate our people and reintroduce our history in its true perspective to our people for posterity.

The present oral facts do not simply fall into place. The military conquests of Old Benin is not in

doubt but to claim that the respective Igbo communities traced their own very origin to Benin

itself is a travesty of history. The communities undoubtably were invaded by Benin warriors, and

their Oba style of leadership imposed on them by selecting one amongst the natives to rule them

and report back to the Oba in Benin. To indigenise the system,the invaders had to select from the

natives lexicon the word Obi to identify the throne.

Phil,don't forget that the Igbo both on the western side maintained their "Igbo enwe Eze" concept

until being invaded, It is very important for you to know that the word Obi has its origin in Igbo

language and tradition. Obi in its meaning is a court-house obliged by every elder in Igboland to

erect within his living premises from which he mediates family disputes,convenes village

gatherings and makes important decisions.It has always being a word associated with authority.

It was never coined out of the Benin/yoruba word Oba. Let us not forget that the word Oba also

has its natural place in Igbo language and culture. For thousands of years the Igbo has always

called the Alligator Oba. I even have an octogenarian aunt whose real name is Ucheoba.

Therefore i don't know who has borrowed from who, or who has corrupted each others lexicon?

Hundreds of years ago the Aros (Arochukwu) in their mass emigration to different parts of

Nigeria also settled somewhere in the present Ondo state (Aro-Okigbo.com). This does not

neccessarily mean we should start to read meanings to phonetical coincidences such as Ijebu-Ora

(Aro) or the other ones Ijebu-Igbo,Awodi-Ora,

I don't know if you are aware that there are over 30 (thirty) commubities in the vast Eastern Igbo

heartland that Onicha is appended to their names. We have Onicha-Ezza in far Ebonyi

state,Onicha-umuaka,Onicha-uboma ,Onicha-Nkwerre , These communities in their own words

have nothing to do with Benin or yoruba. Those areas fall within what Igbo anthropolgists call

"core-Igbo" in the sense that they did not witness waves of migration as was seen in the Coastal

areas.

Igbo History and present evidences tells us that Igboland stretches as far as Igbo-Akiri to the

North west (now changed to Igbanke) by enemies of the Igbo. The simple fact of the presence of

Nri priests in all Western Igbo communities auhenticates the aboriginal factor,which supposedly

must come first in any historical consideration.

My wife is from Ogboli,a village in Igbuzo founded by Nri priests. Yes another Ogboli in

Onitsha founded by Benin speaking refugees,how do you reconcile that? Our Orinmili was also

borrowed. I have discussed this issue with notable Onichans from the Emejulus to

Ibekwes,Ikpeazus and Chukwurahs and we all agreed that there is a missing link yet to be found

in Onitsha oral history.

You can start to know the truth this way: take time off,go home on a fact finding tour.Request for

a detailed list of all communities with the appendage Onicha in the Eastern Igbo heartland. Visit

the elders and note down the respective accounts of their history. With this you can start to

establish the true origin of the word Onicha. And that is the key to unravel all these stuff. To

publish to the world that our own Philip Emeagwali,Chike Obi and Nnamdi Azikiwe could

genetically be yorubas is a slap and an insult to the Igbo race. Please apologise to your brethren.

Nwannem gbaa nbo ki me ifem kwulu! Kene lum ndi beyi.

Ossie Ezeaku,born and bred at Onitsha,a son of the royal family of Ukpo-Dunukofia writes from

his residence in Belgium

August 3, 2003

EMEAGWALI REPLIES:

First, the Onitsha version of the Igbo language is distinct: it still contains numerous words from

the Yoruba, Edo and Igalla languages. In 1967, I was told that the oldest man in Onitsha could

speak "old Onitsha language" which none could understand.

Again, the Yorubas/Edos immigrated in the mid-1500s, as they fled the slave raiders. The Igbos

and Igallas traders immigrated circa 200 years ago. Today, 95 percent of Onitshans were not

even born near Onitsha. Hence, only the descendants of the old Onicha immigrants known as

Ume Eze Chima could aspire to become the Obi of Onitsha.

Second, your argument that "Chima" is an Igbo name is not sufficient proof that Eze Chima is

Igbo. Please remember that Chima's contemporaries include Cristóbal Colón, the Spanish

explorer that was renamed "Cristoforo Colombo" by Italians and "Christopher Columbus" by

Anglo-Saxons. Spanish speakers often insist on calling me the more familiar "Felipe" or Spanish

for "Philip." Since words such as Chima, Onitsha and Ado were not written down, they are

certainly corruptions of Edo/Yoruba words.

REFERENCE:

Richard Henderson, The King in Every Man: Evolutionary Trends in Onitsha Ibo Society and

Culture

onitshaado.com.

-----------------------

Dear Dr Philip Emeagwali,

So many years ago when I was a schoolboy I discovered that my dad who was then a civil

servant had more friends among his Igbo colleagues from Onitsha than those from other parts of

Igbo land. I had to ask my father why this was so, he told me this was so because people from

our town [Onicha Olona] and the people of Onitsha has common ancestry.

A few years later my dad travelled home and he brought a pamphlet titled Umu Eze Chima,

which he encouraged me to read. This type written pamphlet, which I believe was the effort of a

local publisher presented the first opportunity to me to avail myself of necessary information

about my people and my root. Since my first contact with this literature, I made it a point of duty

to always read all relevant literature and materials that I may come across

While I can not lay claim to much knowledge on this subject matter, however I can say with out

fear of contradictions that any effort in establishing DNA link between the Onitshans, the Binis,

and the Yoruba will prove positive due to my personal observations which I believe will lend

credence to this line of thought

One very important angle to this discourse is the emergence of the people called the Ado Akure

in Akure, this phrase in Yoruba translate to half Bini, half Akure. In other word it means that this

people are a hybrid people sort of. They can be found in a particular quarter in Akure. The Binis

calls them Edo Ne Kure. On enquiry I was told by an old man that in precolonial times virtually

all the Kings in Benin then, carried out expansionist policy which invariably made their

immediate neighbours of which Akure was numbered scape goats. So the people of Akure and

the Binis were at war for a very long time. Eventually diplomacy was employed by both kings in

settling their differences and an alliance that guaranteed peace became a source of assurance that

Akure will not be attacked by their ambitious neighbour [ the Binis].

To cement this alliance the Oba of Akure gave his daughter in marriage to a Bini Prince, their

descendants are the Ado Akures or the Edo Ne kures, they are of mixed blood Yoruba and Edo,

they can be found in a particular quarter in Akure. Seven years ago I could remember speaking to

an old woman in Akure who told me she was an Ado Akure and she was about visiting their

family house in Benin.

We know that it was common trend that if anybody should fall out of favour with the monarch in

Benin the most reasonable thing to do is to run towards the Niger and possibly cross the Niger to

Onitsha which was a safe haven for those who cherish their freedom. And not a few crossed from

Benin to Onitsha in other to escape slave traders who were eager to convert them to human

wares and cargo. History even has it that princes who were independently minded even fell

victim, those who were regarded as rascals and headstrong suffered similar fate. Are we saying:

non of the Ado Akures or Edo Ne kures who has Yoruba blood in them made it to Onitsha.

History also, has it that at a time in Ile Ife an Ife prince Oranmiyan who was one of the sons of

the seven sons of Oduduwa has a spiritual instruction to go and get some water from a big river

around Benin to help cure his father of an eye problem that was almost ruining his sight.

Custodian of oral tradition both in Benin and Ile Ife agrees on this story.

In the course of his journey to Benin he founded many settlements and also had children from

women given to him by locales as his journey progresses. Orunmila which is a deity native to the

Ile Ife, I will want to believe was one of the export of Oranmiyan to Benin in terms of religion,

This more than anything suggest that he stayed long enough in Benin. Though the river

Oranmiyan visited around Benin was not Specified I will want to believe that it is the river

Niger. However the fact that Oranmiyan had children in Benin kingdom shows that there are

Yorubas in the Kingdom and once there are such elements in Benin it is not unlikely that some

will find their way to Onitsha for some reasons

All stories I have read are not unanimous in their account of the origin of Eze Chima but I know

it, as a matter fact that some of the communities in Aniocha part of Delta state within Onitsha

axis speaks olukwumu a lost Yoruba dialect, though convoluted but an average Yoruba speaker

will understand some sentences in a statement and will ultimately comprehend what the speaker

is trying to say with some effort. Ebu speaks Olukwumu and still has a Yoruba egungun cult and

masqurade called igunnu ko which is not even easy to come by in most Yoruba communties

now. Ukwunzu is just about forty kilometres to Onitsha which is a walkable distance for our fore

fathers. So those who are putting up argument to debunk our claim of DNA link between the

Binis, the Yoruba and the Onitshans should do a rethink.

The foregoing notwithstanding I beg to disagree with the erudite one, Emeagwali on his view

that as many as one out every four Igbo may be the descendant of those who migrated from

Benin kingdom. I do not share your view in this regard. Though those who made up the bulk of

inhabitants of Onitsha are immigrants from Benin Kingdom I do not think it was possible for

them to move out of that enclave as war among clans was still wide spread, human sacrifice was

in practice, from what we read in the Chinua Achebe’s book Things Fall Apart the igbos of old

treat strangers with suspicion, they lived in clans which are not possible for strangers to penetrate

without questions from titled chiefs ruling such clans. At best the alien may end up in the Osu

caste if they are permitted to stay, which invariably will have amounted to another kind of threat

to their lives and liberty. No man will run that far, from one form of slavery and decide to put

himself in shackles again for whatever reason

If one out of every four Igbo are descendant of the migrant from Benin, it will have been very

difficult for the Ighos to retain their art form as depicted by works from Igho Ukwu the only

thing common to the art of both people is the lost wax form which artisans from both

communities used in fashioning moulds for their works but this was not even exclusive to the

Igbos and the Binis, the Ile Ife and Igala artisans employed same in processing their work of art.

In history if a community was captured and taken into captivity the chances are high that after

they must have arrived their new place in exile, they start practising the religion they knew

before their present fate befell them. In some cases where their captors decrees that they must

only practice the religion of their host is where you find immigrant forsaking their gods or

religion for another. If it were true that one out of every four igbo was a descendant of the

migrant from Benin kingdom then deities that are being served by the people of Benin Kingdom

like Orunmila, Olokun, and ogun will have long found their way to igbo land. This was the case

in Brazil and Cuba

You will agree with me that music and dance is very important to every African, so one will

expect those immigrants to fashion out musical instruments that are similar to those in use in

their place of origin in Benin in their new home in Igbo land. That is not the case here, the

musical insrument used by both people are different and distinct. I do not think it is possible for a

community to acquire about seventy percent of her population from another community without

tell tale signs on the host community in their culture and tradition. Your statement holds true for

the Onitshans and Onitsha but not for entire Igboland

One of the most well researched materials I have read on Umu Ezechima was written by one

Godwin Ijediogor in an issue of The Guardian Newspaper on Sunday, it was published between

March and July 2002

In conclusion, Mr Philip Emeagwali let me say here that I am pleasantly disappointed that an

African in Diaspora who has been away for thirty years and a scientist whom most people

believe will hardly have time for any thing outside his field could still devoted time and energy

to discuss his history and provoke debates that will shed more light on our root for the benefit of

all and posterity. Need I say here that you are a blessing to Umu Eze Chima, the Igho ethic

group, Nigerians and the world in general.

Daalu nwa Dei,

Godwin Ifeayinachukwu Kwushue

------------------------

By Onyebuchi Amene

" Nwam, Nnam gwalum na Obulu na Udala amaro ebe nkpoluguya di, O ga ada, odanye na ofia

ofeke, si na obumu gwali, "

(My son, My father told me that if an udala fruit lacked knowledge of the roots of the tree that

produced it, would surely fall into the evil forest of the profane, quote me)

, , Onowu Phillip Okolonkwo Anatogu.

"Izobelu nwa agu obala, oma ama na obu nnia fa nwe ofiah, maka na awuwo na uluani gba aro

obulu omenani, jegakwagodu nnai tupu ichibe ozo, inanu ife nnekwu?"

(When blood is hidden from a lion's cub, you deprive him of the awareness of his ancestral

ordained dominance of the jungle, I am saying this because if fraud and breach of customs were

left un-addressed in a year, they would turn to customs, go and complete the funeral services of

your father before taking the Ozo title, have you heard me?

, Odu Isaac Aniegboka Mbanefo.

"Na awotaro 'Onitsha ke ke ja ke ja na ogwa' bu kwonu alu na alu Onitsha" (Not understanding

of our ancestral greeting of "Onicha Ke ke ja ke ja and Ogwa is one of our setbacks in Onitsha.)

, Owelle Nnamdi Azikiwe (Eke Nwe Mmili)

Our main problems in Africa today are traceable to the effects and affects of the imposed alien

culture on Africans. These alien religions, culture, and norms were imposed on Africans without

considering the African psycho-cultural dynamics. Our ways of life were discredited and

abandoned. Our sacred ancestral rites (still are)were derogatory addressed and referred to as

"fetish” and "paganism". Terms which reflect the user's ignorance of the African sacred approach

to the divine? Ironically, I am yet to hear or read these terms in use on Hinduism, Shintoism and

many other ancient religions. Shintoism is mostly practiced in Japan and China, it has the same

African approach to God, ancestral, nature and Gods. There are more than 400 Gods in

Shintoism. You always see the Japanese rushing to their temples to pray to his ancestors during

his lunchtime in Manhattan. He would proudly display his ancestral shrine in his house and his

shops, the Chinese rice vending stores display theirs a lot. They were defeated and disgraced

during the second world war, but they never abandoned their ancestors and their Gods. The

African Gods and the Chinese/Japanese Gods and concepts are very similar. The concept of

"Chi" in Zen Shintoic Buddhism practiced in China and Japan is the same as that of the Igbos.

Binis and Yorubas call it "Ori." One would not be surprised about this when one realized that the

Asians were the last group of people that left Africa (See "African Genesis" by Robert Ardrey,

published by Dell Publishing Co. Inc)( See also "Shintoism: The Blood of My People" by

Nagasaki Jean, published by Harding Co. See also the "The Meaning of Evolution", by George

Gaylord, see also the "Roots and Concept of Tai Chi" by Janet Cohen, Published by Deninigs

Inc.

Many Gods also exist in Hinduism. A God is assigned to all aspect and stages of life and

existence(See, "Bhagavad-Gita" by Swami Prabhupada, also see” Gandhi" an autobiography,

published by the Beacon Press.)They practice vegetarianism because they believe that all

animals are manifestations of the divine. Their Sacred myths, which were later put into writing,

were created to guide them about their Gods, headed by Brahma(The Creator), Shiva(the

destroyer) and Vishnu(the preserver). I am yet to see any Hindu or Japanese, as educated and

advanced in Euro centric accomplishments as they are, referring to their rituals, belief in

presence of spirits or divine in animals as fetish, paganism, or superstitious. The British did

everything possible to convert them but they kept to their religion and their ancestors. They

observe their festivals and customs with great pride. They all live together and proclaim their

culture everywhere with pride. He explains his culture as it is and will never try to dilute or tailor

them to suit any body, audience or expectations.

Nevertheless, ask an African who has had a little exposure to westernization about his ancestral

ways of life. With tears in his eyes, he would apologize for his ancestors' "ignorance" and

"uncivilized status". He would employ the little knowledge that he's had of Euro centric

education and values to explain his ancestral ways of life, culture and religion, he would jump to

trace his ancestry to the "holiest" place of the colonial master's religion and then would

demonstrate his "enlightenment" by doing everything to reinterpret his culture to accord with

"modern decency" and alien values. (see "Who Betrayed the African Cause" by John Henrik

Clarke, published by the African World Press. See also "From the Nile Valley to the new World"

and "The New Dimensions in African History" by Drs. Ben Jochanan and John Henrik Clarke,

published by Africa World Press, Inc.) Also, see "The Lamentations of Oba Ovonramwhen" by

Igiosa Inueben, published by Ovie Edo printing press Benin. See also "How Europe

Underdeveloped Africa" by Walter Rodney, republished by Nadad house, in 1996.

Africans embraced these religions without realizing that some of the doctrines that these

religions brought were meant to further the economically oriented political ambition of the

colonial master. These religions came with their own disguised ancestral worship and refocused

our spiritual bases to areas that were out of Africa, this was in accordance to a basic

psychological tenet, which advocated, "a void cannot be left unfilled." See” Christianity and

Paganism in the Fourth and Later Centuries" by Ramsay McMullen. See also "Religion and

Misapplication of Psychology, by H.G.J. Beck, 1971.

His Gods were taking away and Saints who were canonized for their services to alien

populations in Europe were introduced as one of the vehicles to God. Some of these saints died

in furtherance of such devotions to their holy duty. Some of these saints predated the advent of

Christianity in Europe, but they were still made saints because of their services to their villages

and towns. (See "Lives of the Popes" and "Catholicism" by Richard McBrien, both published by

Harper Collins. Also, see "The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church" First Edition London,

published by the Oxford University Press. See also "The Making of Saints" by Brezzi Paolo,

Newman Press, 1999).

To uplift any African to sainthood would be contrary to the directives that the colonial masters,

church and other colonial agents were given before embarking to colonize Africa. They were

instructed to focus on areas that would not inspire the rise of a "black messiah, religious deity or

hero" whether dead or alive. They were specifically instructed to destroy concepts "like

worshipping ancestral warriors" in order to discourage revolutions as we had with "the Zulus".

See "A Study of Colonial Impact in Selected Primitive Societies(Thesis, Oxford University

unpublished,1972). See also "The Rebirth of African Civilization" by Dr. Chancellor Williams,

published by U.B. and U.S. Communications Inc. It was Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, (my mother and

Zik shared the same grandparents in Umudei, Mba family) that gave me this book, apart from so

many other books, during my LL. B. Thesis On Pre-Colonial Laws and Customs in Onitsha, 14

years ago. I shall come to this in subsequent paragraphs.) "The Rebirth of African Civilization"

Op.Cit. was dedicated to Zik and Kwame Nkrumah by the author. Zik and Kwame Nkrumah

(Osagyefo) were the greatest men amongst us that Mother Africa produced. See also "The Mis-

Education of the Primitive Peoples" by Hambly, Wilfred, published by Macmillan, 1926).

We now pray to Saints in Portugal, Rome, and Spain who spent most of their lives serving their

people. Nothing is wrong with that! My own ancestors died serving their communities. Why

would I be discouraged from ascribing sanctification to them? Do we have two criteria for this,

one for Africans and one for Europeans? I do not discourage people that visit sacred places, I just

do not want them to advocate that I should abandon my own. What could be holier than my

honoring Princess Ojedi Dei, a woman who willingly gave up her life so that the village that

gave birth to the women who gave birth to my father, my great grandfather, my children, and me

could live? Without Ojedi's sacrifice of her life, Umudei might have been wiped off, many years

ago. Her father Dei, left Umudei after this sacrifice, because he could not stand living around her

only daughter's grave. Ojedi was a very wealthy woman (Nne na ama Odu! Nwe eze bu Okike),

the only daughter of a Prince, who willingly sacrificed her life so that her people would continue

to live. She wiped the tears from her brothers' faces, danced to her grave, and was buried alive.

What other proof of love for one's people was more than this. Without this woman not almost all

the great men that Onitsha prides herself with would have been born. Yet, I should not honor her

because she did not do it in the "name of Christ"? On the other hand, maybe I should hide a

representation of her image on decent grounds. However, I could hang your pictures of your

saints even though the saints lived when pictures were not yet invented. Something is wrong with

this picture. Did Christ teach this or was this taught by people who tried to "misinterpret Christ's

teachings thousands of years after His departure to suit their purpose? In the name of the Bible

and deliberate misinterpretation of some of its contents, slavery, Inquisitions, Holocaust and

other vices against humanity were perpetrated. I have Uncles and Aunts who were stopped from

receiving communion in the catholic church. Their sins were allowing their children to marry

non-Catholics (Protestants). Were they not created by the same Olisaebuluwa? Why would our

people import and practice the hostility of the Irish-Catholics and British-Protestants into

Onitsha? (See "Deceptions and Myths of the Bible" by Lloyd Graham, published by Citadel

Press Book, 1995. See the Text of Pope's Apology to the Primitive People of the World,

Published by New York Times, in July of 1999. See "Our Black Seminarians and Black Clergy

Without a Black Theology" by Dr. Ben Jochanan, published by Alkebulan Books. See” The

Scramble for Africa: Causes and Dimensions of the Empire. Boston” by Raymond Betts. See

also "Civilizations or Barbarism" by Cheikh Anta Diop, Published WestPoint, 1986. I had read

the original publication of this book, which was written in French, at Zik's Onuiyi library.

Going back to Ojedi, I would suggest that any Onitsha person that had interest in Onitsha should

obtain a tape titled "Ndunata Ojedi" produced by Chuka Nwammuo Okechukwu. This tape was

made when the Umudei clan "brought Ojedi back home". Princess Ojedi was asked to come back

to Umudei from Oguta, where her father Dei was buried many centuries ago, as I had written in

the past. This tape was a historical masterpiece, I however objected to the video taping of the

Ojedi rituals being performed by the Presiding Diokpa, Akunwata Ojiba. In this tape, many great

Onitsha men were interviewed, men like. Akunwata Ojiba, the Diokpa of Umudei(One of the

most powerful Diokpa stools in Onitsha), Chinyelugo Zoro Odita, Okunwa Nwammuo

Okechukwu, son of Ogene Okechukwu, grand son of Orakwue Owelle and nephew of Abutu Ike

Akatakwuani. Akunnia Okocha was also interviewed in this tape. Many other prominent Onitsha

men were interviewed in this tape. I politely refused making copies of this tape to many friends

who saw it, because it was meant to raise funds that would go to Umudei children. Again, I

recommend this tape to any Onitsha man, it is still being sold in Onitsha. Apart from my

friendship with many Oguta indigenes and the writings of my mother’s uncle, Mba Owelle (Eze

Otu), Osuma Ibisi’s accounts, and many other sources, I had relied on this tape in my conclusion

about the Dei and Oguta connection. I also witnessed the reception given to the Obi of Oguta in

1981. I was with my adopted Godfather, the late Ogbuefi Akunne Okagbue, who then taught

Geography then at C.K.C. Onitsha. Present at the palace then was my classmate and the Obi of

Oguta's nephew, Nwanne Oputa-Dei, now a Professor of History.

I am not writing my history as a pretentious African trying to live up to any pseudo-Euro centric

expectations. I am writing as an African, who approaches the unknown from my ancestral

spectacles. I know who my Ancestors were and what they contributed in making the world what

it is today. My ancestral perspective was strictly holistic and sacred. They placed love, sacrifice

and service above everything. He saw the world as a multidimensional expression of oneness. He

approached and defined this oneness with anthropomorphic expressions. They knew that men

and women could be deified upon death, so they did their best to attain this status. He knew that

he did not have to "convert" "force" or "persuade" his neighbor to worship his own Gods,

because he understood that his neighbor was only using a different expression for the same

essence. He did not have confusing and MIS-spiritual doctrines like being sinners just by being

in the world and children being born out of sins. To him the children were sacred and friend of

the Gods.(See "A Friend of the Gods" by Odu Isaac A. Mbanefo, published in 1990 by

Etukokwu Publishers). See "Black History, A Reappraisal" by Melvin Drimmer, published by

Douy Anchor books. See also, "The African Origins of Civilizations: Myth or Reality, by Cheikh

Anta Diop, published by West Port.

See also "Africa: Mother of Western Civilization" by Dr. Ben Yosef Jochanan, published by

Alkebulan Books.

The African saw the presence of God in everything animate or inanimate, and approached God

and the unknown from many perspectives( I try to avoid words like” Polytheistic and

Pantheistic".) Employment of many of these European terms in defining African concepts should

restricted, because it makes the reader to see or focus and interpret such concepts from Euro

centric angles, consciously or unconsciously. Many of the African concepts like "Religion"

"Dibia","Agbalanze" and many others should not be defined or equated to alien or westernized

terms or concepts. This is because they do not exist in the West. There is no African word for

religion, because to the African, life is all about being spiritual and not religious. RELIGION IS

A WAY TO SPIRITUALITY AND NOT THE OPPOSITE. ALL DAYS WERE HOLY TO

HIM. TIME AND SPACE WERE SACRED TO HIM, BECAUSE THEY BELONGED TO

THE GODS, HE THEREFORE DID NOT ATTEMPT TO MASTER THEM(I will address our

traditional time and space in my next writing).See "In Search of My African Identity" by John

Henrik Clarke, published by Alkebulan Books,1989.

In all my writings, Africa and history are my guides. I have not mastered all these but I am still

searching. I only use Onitsha as my focus because it happened that she just happened to be the

vehicle through which Olisaebuluwa chose in His/Her infinite mercy to manifest my existence. I

do not endorse the superiority of any African family, town, culture or tribe over another. This

goes against the African spiritual concept, unfortunately, forgotten during years of the British

divide and rule policy. Most of the West African and Eastern tribes passed through Egypt. The

Yorubas, Igbos, Ijaws, Efiks, Fantes, Twi, Nagos and so many others, belong to the Kwa

Language speaking group. In this group the dominant usages of "Ka", Kh" and "Kw" indicate

common linguistic source in Egypt(See "Ancient Egypt and Modern Linguistics, by Robert

Fisch, published by African World Press.) Then language was only seen as a means of

expression and each borrowed each other's language in their expressions in Egypt. Difference of

the languages did not matter to our ancestors. They were Gods and knew what life was. Professor

Enyi. Nina Mba and I compared many notes on Igbo and Hebrew etymology. I shall address

these in my next writing. Professor Mba was an Australian Jew and descended from a very long

line of Australian Rabbis. She taught African history and participated in all the traditional

ceremonies of her husband's village, Umudei. She also believed that Onitsha was a land of the

Gods.

Onitsha is made of two words from a language spoken in Ancient Egypt, then called "Kmt" or

"Kemet". Please note that the vowels were sacred to ancient Egypt and they never wrote it down.

It was only chanted. Onitsha people still chant this in the Ozo sacred chant; O O O O O

OOOOOO(Notice that the O would then be dragged after the fifth O.)The key here is the

significance of five in our traditional numerology. "On" sometimes written as "AN" with a dot

on top of A, pronounced (as Aw). The other word is "Sha", "Sa" or "Saa". "SA" also means Son

or God of Knowledge. "Sha" means to cut of we still say "shapu ya isi" meaning cut away his/her

head. "Saa" means to protect or "a shepherd ", one of the titles of Osiris. "Shaa" means to begin.

Like I had written, "On" was a sacred place in Egypt where the priest "Onowu" crowned the

Pharaoh. A crocodile guided the sacred fountain of "On." The Yoruba word for crocodile is Oni

and is used interchangeably in addressing the Ooni of Ife. See "Egyptian Hieroglyphics" by

Stephane Rossini, published by Dover Inc. See also "A Hieroglyphic Vocabulary" by E.A.

Wallis Budge, especially pages 321, 322, 323, 392, 394,.See"Lettre a M. Dacier relative a

L'alphabet des hieroglyphs phonetiques, by Champollion Jean Francois. See also " A Concise

Dictionary of Middle Egyptian" by Faulkner, R.O. published by Oxford.

Another important book was written by a Yoruba man, Dr. Olumide Lucas, it is titled, "The

Religion of the Yorubas in relation to Ancient Egypt" published by Athelia press inc, in 1948

and later republished in 1996. See pages 27 and compare with my previous writing on Onowu

and Ooni of Ife. Apart from tracing some Yoruba words to Egypt, the author traced many Bini

and Igbo words to Egypt. See Pages 386, 387, 388, on the appendix of this book.

Onitsha could possibly mean a people that left "On", or children of "On" or those that were given

the responsibility to protect the purpose of "On" or it could be people who cut away from "On",

i.e. kewapu from 'On." I subscribe to the last view. The closest research I have made is traceable

to a time when Imhotep(On Imhotep), a powerful priest of On(Onowu)had prophesied about a

future invasion and destruction of "On" and had suggested a south ward movement and

relocation of the City of "On" by a "river". See " The Book of The Beginnings" Vols.1 and

Vols.2 by Dr. Gerald Massey, published by Williams and Norgate, London. See also "Egypt,

Light of The World" by Gerald Massey. See also, "Recasting Ancient Egypt in the African

Context" by Clinton Crawford,, published by Africa World Press, 1996. This book needs to be

read by every Onitsha man that has interest in making connections with our Egyptian ancestry.

Professor Okey Emeagwali gave me this book when we discussed the Egyptian(African) origin

of time and space. See also "Egyptian Kingdoms" by Rosalie David, published by E.Phaidon

press, 1975. See also "The History of the Ancient Benin Empire" by Chief Oronsayae, the

Osayuwa of Benin, published by Jeromeliaho, 1995. This book traces the Benin ancestry to

Egypt. It discusses the events that led to the emigration of the Binis and many other African

tribes and families out of Egypt, attributing them to series of military invasions on Egypt. See

also "Benin Studies" by Bradbury, Oxford University Press, 1973. See also "the Benin Kingdom

and the Edo Speaking People of Southern, Nigeria, by Bradbury, published by International

African Institute, 1957)

Onitsha is the reestablishment of the ancient city of "On" in prophecy in compliance with the

ancient city of On. There were many attempts by the Benin priests to establish the city of On and

Onitsha was its ultimate realization. Could the roles that the word "On" play in our cultural

nomenclature be a coincidence. Also, note that places like Nri, were attempts to reestablish other

religious centers that were in ancient Egypt. In Egypt, you had many different schools and belief

systems all focusing on different aspects of the divine, like Re, Ra(Memphis), Ptah , Khunnum,

Osa(Osiris), Amon(From On). In addition, why did our ancestors refer to Onitsha as "Ebo

itenani?, even though we had never been strictly nine clans. Note that Ebo is a Benin name. The

Binis went to form the Igala Royal families that took this name to Igala. Ebo family of Isiokwe

retains their ancestral Benin names. (See "The Igala/Benin Ancestral Connection, by Prince

Okawlobia Utubu, published by Ibadan Printing Press, 1989, also see, "A Short History of Benin

City," by Jacob Egharevba Jacob, published by Ibadan University Press, 1968) The nine clans

were reflective of the Ennead, the nine Gods of ancient city of On. Onowu Anatogu called Nine

"ogugu akwa akwulu (a number that cannot be moved or removed). The nine Gods called

Enneads protected the ancient city of On. It was the number of the Ennead(nine) that influenced

the division of On into nine quarters(See "The Gods of the Egyptians" by E.A. Willis

Budge(Op.Cit.) See also "Introduction to African Civilizations" by John Jackson, published by

Citadel Press. See also "Recasting Ancient Egypt in The African Context" Ib.Id. The haphazard

and inconsistent arrangement of these names by most Onitsha elders indicated that the source of

the nine clans was not in the names that they gave as the clans that made the Ebo itenani.( see

The "Ground work of Onitsha History", by S.I. Bosah.

Let us now review, the presence of many "On's" in our many Onitsha traditional institutions. The

first Benin prince to establish Onitsha after Benin exodus was called" Olona", meaning he who

worships "On". We have "On owu/On uiyi", "On ya", "On oli", "On ika", and "On wolu" as

names that belong to Ndichie. We also see the names of many ancient families in Onitsha

starting with "On" examples are Umu "Onumonu" in Isiokwe, Umu "Onira" in Iyiawu, Umu

"Onaje" in Ubene Clan, Umu"Oniah" and so many others. All with "ON's" Could it be a

coincidence? See "Nomenclatures, Phonology and Ancestral Links" by Watkins Ira, published

by Heinemann, 1975. See also " Signs of the Primordial Men" by A . Churchward, published by

Dell Pub. 1968. See also "Voices of the Ancestors" by Parrinder, Heiniman Pub. 1972. I shall

expand on this in future writings.

Many years ago, we were required to write thesis for our law degrees on any area of law. I had

before then, been gathering many materials on Onitsha pre-colonial history, because of my

interest in our ancestral ways of life. I therefore chose to write on Onitsha Pre-colonial

Traditional Institutions and the separation of powers. I went to Professor K. Igweike, a Professor

of Law and an Onitsha man from Umuaroli and told him about my plans and he discouraged me

and rejected my choice. This was a fair judgment on his part because it was never taught in

school. He wanted me to write on International laws and conflicts. I tried with other lecturers and

all refused except for a visiting Professor from the University of West Indies, Professor Irwin

Gun, who decided to approve my paper. I focused on Onitsha traditional institutions and focused

on Obi's powers, the Ndichie, the Agbalanze, Agbala na Iregwu, Ogbo na Achi Onitsha and other

traditional checks and balances. This research took to Benin, Obamkpa and Obior. Thanks to

Ezennia Ben Anyaeji, I interviewed one of his In-laws in Benin, The Ezomo of Benin. I had a

private interview with the Obi of Onitsha, thanks to my Godfather, Akukalia Mike Ibekwe, who

had suggested that I wore white to the interview. I found Obi Okagbue to be a very intelligent

man. He gave me many insights on many of our traditions, "like his fathers told him". I also

interviewed many Ndichie and 32 other elders in Onitsha, including Nnanyelugo Obinwe,

Ojinnaka Gbasiuzo all sons of previous Onowus of Onitsha. I would discuss their roles in future

publications. See "The Administration of Laws, Checks and Balances in an Onitsha Pre-Colonial

Society" written by Onyebuchi Amene, University of Jos, Nigeria, 1989.

From,

Onyebuchi.