The roots of the word Redbone originate in Jamaica where they used the word ‘Red Ibo’ to describe certain fair-skinned people who lived in the harbour areas. Merchant seamen, sailors’ cargo ships and so on bring foreigners who slept with local women and had many mixed race children in these areas. The term ‘Red Ibo’ was used (it is no longer in common use) to describe fairer than average Jamaicans. The term came into use because originally among the slaves taken to Jamaica there were a good number of Igbo’s who were comapratively lighter among dark skinned Igbo. They exist to this day in Africa. Igbo are the lightest population of the Bantu populations, in fact, the term for Whites was Oyibo, which comes from Onye Igbo, Which means "Like an Igbo."

Many use the term "redbone" for African Americans with medium toned skin, adopting the term from the Caribbean. The term also come to identify two separate ethnic classes, one of mixed African, European and Native American ancestry and the other usage is to designate some groups of Native Americans. This still seems to cause controversy and confusion among people. The first ethnic group who were called "Redbones" were groups of multi-ethnic families with similar or the same English surnames who were labeled as Free Persons of Color, Mulatto or Indian by early American census takers. The term was used for these mixed race multi-ethnic groups of families in Louisiana, South Carolina, Mississippi and East Texas[/b].

One crucial part that the information left out was that, do to the fact of that the majority of the Africans brought to the US were Igbo, thus the African-American black population was/is majorly an Igbo population, the term Redbone rather fluidly transgressed into the society as in the early 1800's some Jamaican slaves began being taken to the US to help fuel the rapidly growing Cotton plantations of the Deep south, in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas and Texas, and in in the process passed on some of their unique slangs. :thumbs

hmmmmm

Looks like God dipped me in a bowl of hot chocolate as he ran out of orange flavour- - -

Seriously why do we dwell so much on our skin colours? Africans come in different shades and it is no big deal. Unfortunately in our twisted mind we believe 'yellowness' equals 'whiteness'. - - - it gets depressing sometimes the way we hype about 'light skinned'- - - I mean, what's the big deal?

Maybe you're Blacky

Whatever article being quoted is a bit inaccurate. "Oyibo", as used by other Nigerian tribes besides Yorubas or Igbos. most likely comes from the Yoruba language, and it is extremely unlikely that it has to do with the Igbo ethnic group, although you might read differently on wikipedia and other sites where people can just make up stuff. The writer of that article should have done their homework.

Oyibo is most likely not from Yoruba.

It could be from Portuguese or another European language.

@ topic

seems a large number of Igbos enslaved, may have been light skinned, thus leading to the impression all Igbos are light skinned.

Did the demand for light skinned "Igbos" from overseas, possibly lead to "light skins" being captured and shipped out more?

sort of a vicious cycle, just guessing.

tpiander:
Oyibo is most likely not from Yoruba.

It could be from Portuguese or another European language.

I think it's Igbo. Older generation Igbo people used to answer it as a first name and it means light skinned. There is a woman from my hometown that is called Oyibo Asieme. Also there is that song that goes "oyibo na nu eh joromi jomimi jo". Na nu = Is married to.