@ topic in this day and age O please

The Osu caste system is an archaic practice. However, it may suprise most people that a good number of parents that are still led by this are well-read, well-educated and exposed people.

If you really love this guy and intend to marry him, then go ahead. Be ready to face all the oppposition that will come your way from every angle.

i cant believe that repugnant custom is still in existence!!!!!!!!!!!! thats terrible it is a useless custom 4rm the pit of hell designed to deny anyone who respects or observe it his or her happiness
pls dont give it any regard it is of no consequence

Historical Perceptive
The Osu, by definition, is a people sacrificed to the gods in Igbo community. And they assist the high priest of the traditional religion to serve the deities or the gods in their shrine. It is the belief of many Igbo traditionalists that the deities, which were (and are still) perceived in some quarters as being very powerful, would wreck havoc in the society, if they are not appeased.

In some special circumstances, those who hold the traditional beliefs of the Igbos could transform a Diala who committed certain atrocities against the land, into an Osu. This process involved intricate rituals (offering of libations and sacrificing animals to the earth goddess). Some of the ancestors of the present-day Osu people inherited their dehumanizing social status this way.

In some circumstances, prisoners captured during inter-communal wars were sold off, and their new owners could elect to enlist some of them to Osu status by giving them away as gestures of and placation to a local deity. Other captives could be sold as slaves or become objects of ritual murder, which occurred mostly upon the death of powerful chieftains.

However, some war captives preferred the Osu status rather than being sold far away to distant lands as slaves. Thus, the population of the Osu increased. Evidence suggests that the Osu were originally regarded with “respect and honour” apparently because they belonged to the gods. This show of respect for those who attended to the shrines, unfortunately, transformed into social ostracism. And the Osus were not many in number. But in the nineteenth century, “their numbers expanded and their status deteriorated dramatically, so that they became outcasts, feared and despised” or even abhorred.

The Osu caste system is a societal institution borne out of a primitive traditional belief system colored by superstition, and propagated by ignorance. It is absurd to categorize a human as a sub-human being.

Way Out
In 1950 the then Eastern Nigerian Colonial Legislative Council under the leadership of the late Owelle of Onitsha, Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, passed a legislation that outlawed the Osu caste system. The law made it a criminal offense to discriminate against anyone on the basis of the Osu caste system. But the law, like other laws in Nigeria, was rendered impotent, as it was not enforced. But thank God for the kind of vibrant, near-independent judicary we have today.

Set an Example
If you are ready to go the whole hog in this relationship, then get yourself a good tape recorder and a good lawyer and somebody is on his way to jail.

Hmm. . . was this topic influenced by the movie 'Sitanda' in any way? Just wondering. . .

Marry the man you love. settle down in a neutral locality and enjoy your life. I assume you'll stop giving a damn about the "osu" shit and live in the current world. Or may be I'm just plain stupid!

osu!strange, i've never heard of it. . but it just must be stopped

If you could date him, why can't you marry him? Or does it mean you never knew he's an Osu? Being an Osu doe not make him less human. If where you guys live has strong penchant for stuffs like this, then, you may consider relocating. But what really matters is if you truly love him to marry him and not this Osu thing as a pretext.

If you love him, please, marry him. Osu or no Osu. Love is what matters most here.

You people are seeing him as an outcaste ONLY BECAUSE HE IS POOR. If he was to be like OBJ or ATIKU,OR ORJI KALU the story will be different.
By the way what the hell is outcaste at this modern times? does it still exist? in which part of Nigeria are they still living in Bondage of outcastism?

When he makes love to you, does his Dick says he is outcaste, when he kisses you do you not feel like you use to feel when you do it with someone else? My sister you better marry this man you know for the past three years than marrying some one who will just use you for RITUALS,or better still break your heart every single day that you live on this earth.?

my sister i feel for ur situation but if you are not OSU yourself you have to think of it diply b4 you go into it. in Igbo land we have the so called osu and UME, both are placed at the same level but OSU can never marry UME. if OSU can Discriminate in marrying an UME why not u. When Diala and OSU or UME marry things dont move very smooth history can tell you better.

It is not the fault of our generation and we cannot do anything about it. The changes has reached its limit and the limit is in marriage, before as i heard osu and non osu do not trade in the same market,do not eat togather and many other thing they dont do in common but all those are no longer in place today. Your Pastor can tell you many things but on that day he will not be their for you,after all a pastor can never advice you against it.

You have to carry ur cross my sister cos at the last day you family ,your pastor,your friends and even your guy will not be dia. its you and your GOD.

my sister i feel for your situation but if you are not OSU yourself you have to think of it diply before you go into it. in Igbo land we have the so called osu and UME, both are placed at the same level but OSU can never marry UME. if OSU can Discriminate in marrying an UME why not u. When Diala and OSU or UME marry things don't move very smooth history can tell you better.

It is not the fault of our generation and we cannot do anything about it. The changes has reached its limit and the limit is in marriage, before as i heard osu and non osu do not trade in the same market,do not eat togather and many other thing they don't do in common but all those are no longer in place today. Your Pastor can tell you many things but on that day he will not be their for you,after all a pastor can never advice you against it.

You have to carry your cross my sister because at the last day you family ,your pastor,your friends and even your guy will not be dia. its you and your GOD.

Ican't believe my eyes!!!!!

Fromuk, what exactly is the point of your 'discourse'? Are you advising the girl not to marry her boyfriend because he is an osu? Expantiate please.

Call a spade a spade, forget about the relationship. Love or no Love, you both belong to different realms. Dont listen to all these janded people advicing you up an down to go ahead.If you plan to leave the shores of Nigeria for good and never return, then go ahead, but my sister if you will remain in Nigeria , DON'T EVEN CONTEMPLATE IT AT ALL. Its hard but you will surely get someone else and love the person. Some of thse folks advicing you are just under 18 and know nothing about intricacies of lifes, they are just yapping off their mouth. FACE REALITY and part ways with the guys amicably. a word is enough for the wise. that is my two cents for you

Give up her love for the sake of culture@fayatlive? Absurd. If folks like Martin Luther King were to adopt your stance, I am sure that blacks today would still be in the dark era in the USA.

I thought the cast system has been abolished? does it still exist? dang, this is so 19th century.

I need to think about this one.

fayalitte:

Call a spade a spade, forget about the relationship. Love or no Love, you both belong to different realms. Dont listen to all these janded people advicing you up an down to go ahead.If you plan to leave the shores of Nigeria for good and never return, then go ahead, but my sister if you will remain in Nigeria , DON'T EVEN CONTEMPLATE IT AT ALL. Its hard but you will surely get someone else and love the person. Some of thse folks advicing you are just under 18 and know nothing about intricacies of lifes, they are just yapping off their mouth. FACE REALITY and part ways with the guys amicably. a word is enough for the wise. that is my two cents for you

and u thought it is easy as u said. . haba!!

@Ogejov,

Please go to this link:

https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-23527.96.html

The subject has been discussed extensively there. You will get a variety of opinions on this subject.

Dont marry this guy or any guy for that mater without the blessings of your parents i understand how it feels when someone is in love you dont mind eloping with the person you are willing to tell your parents to Bleep off and mind their business but you should also remember that after the wedding you still need your people and extended relatives around you since your parents have genuine reason and concern for not wanting you to marry this guy not just because he is poor,too short,too dark or any silly reason but because they need the relationship of their kinsmen and your marrying an outcast will deny the family such.Now i am not saying that it is wrong to marry him but you should consider how smoth your future with him will be for you and your children with your family.What if [God forbid] he dies or starts misbehaving in future leaving you with kids how will you cope on your own without the support of your people i know it is painful now to think of leaving him but life may be more painful after marrying him and then you wish you havent married him but it will be too late then so i advise you to seek your parents blessing before marring him.

My Dear Lady,

pls do not marry the guy. even the bible is against it.

Marriage is for life.

@ogejov,

you stand to condem your future kids forever as long as you marry him.
your kids will never be happy with you if they grow up and find out.
Though the boys can sneak out and marry from other tribe. But what about the girls. do you want them to be in your house and clock 40 years for you?

Since you are not an OSU ARUSHI my girl, any child you give birth to, that comes from your own side , that is re-incanation , will die and that from his own side will leave.

You and i are igbo, you know that this will not work, why did you not get out fast.
though this OSU PEOPLE will not tell you what they are. it is too bad for ones parents to die and re-incanate or later be born by their children into an OSUARUSHI family. my sister oge run away.

I am dating an NKWERRE MAN here in port harcourt , and you know in nkwerre 95% is OSU, 2% is UME.
I had to send an elderly woman from my place dikenafai as we are close to help me trace his family in nkwerre as to be sure before i give in.

OGE CALL ME 08033106073.

Na wa o!! Abeg if anybody is Osu, if Igbos refuse to marry you, you can go ahead and marry other ethnic groups please. At least those ones will not come up with all these trash I'm hearing from supposedly enlightened people!!!

I'M SHOCKED TO SAY THE LEAST!!!!!

@stellose

thats good my mom is from nkwerre too.

hi, its a pity that u hooked up with him. But the question is this, r u one as well? If you're one then its alright otherwise no amount of spirituality can get things right. If you wonna go ahead and marry him then thats your cross which you have to bear. Another thing is this, are you willing to accept whatever comes of the union in good faith? Just search your mind and then know the next step to take.  Thats why its always good to find out about one's family backgrounds earlier on. I for one wouldn't advice anybody to go into that. Most people can't travel to their village(s) and can't even talk in public because of this. My advise is that you think twice before taking your final decision. Even far away here in london its still an abomination talk more of in Igbo land. All these traditions are still been enforced to the later. I wish you all the best.

Very shameful that this tradition of discrimination is still rearing its ugly head, even in the computer age. Tomorrow now, some of the adherents of this accursed practises would cry foul of being discriminated in the nation.

Thank you all the great nairaland. I have heard all what you guyz have said. I think right now I have won my father's heart I really I thank G od for that, I will be getting married to him very soon. I did not see him as one instead I see him as a free born. Thank all I LOVE ALL STILL

ojejov

If that is our decision, why bringing it here for advice, the cross is urs to carry nobody can carry it for you. Those who thinks it only exist in the east are not thinking well. It is called Goin in Ireland, Untouchables in India, even other parts of Nigeria avoids one thing or the other when it comes to marital situation. If you do not beleive OSU and UME of a time try do any marriage ceremony on Eke market day.

@fromuk

If you claim to be christian and you still profess these views then you are a DISGRACE to christendom. You say Christ came to the world to set free, is it not from demonic ideas like Osu that he came to set us free from. How would you have felt if you were born to a supposed "Osu"? Because you feel you were free-born now gives you the right to condemn others to a life of misery through your blind discrimination? You think our lord Jesus would be proud of the views you've espoused here? Stop to think for once and not be blinded by some stupid and evil cultural allegiance.

_spitting

If u really sure u love him,go ahead and marry him.History is full of those who married each other against all odds.good luck!

And I tried to look up your "goin in Ireland", couldn't find anything like that!

dela:

If u really sure u love him,go ahead and marry him.History is full of those who married each other against all odds.good luck!

True!! True!!

Erm, where is Ogbuefi Donzman to shed more light on this issue? I thought he said the matter was a non-issue in the East?

The Osu/Ohu system is still strong in Igboland and has not been abolished.  While I am very much against it, if you marry this person with or without your parents wishes you will be condeming your children and their children to the same fate. Unless it dies a natural death by then. 

There are still a lot of people who will not marry/associate with one. This has nothing to do with education, religion or enlightenment. Ridiculous, I know, but nobody has been able to undo what our ancestors did, yet!!!  Just my opinion.