Wao! I thought I had ended this topic by my explanation, I never knew my explanation will elicit more questions than answer. As for the interpretation, Desola got the closest interpretation. I want to say here that any one who say Itsekiris are not Oduduwa children is making a big mistake. It is like saying Ilajes are not children of Oduduwa. The Itsekiri history provided by an Ijaw man in the link provided by tpia has some level of truth but it is also adulterated and incomplete. May be the writer decided to take it mid way. As for Jason123, he may be an Itsekiri man but not the type of Itsekiri referred to as ‘‘Omo-Aja’’ or Omo-Ale. ‘‘Ground pickin’’. I think he is a Lagos boy. Although I am only related to Itsekiri but I spent most part of my life living with them and I can confidently call myself Omo-Ale. The writer made reference to the fact that Itsekiri is a sub tribe of Yoruba and the first Olu of Warri was placed in a magical box and sent through the river with 70 slaves but he did not include the reason why Iginuwa was sent out of Benin. To get the record straight Iginuwa’s mother is a Yoruba woman from Ile-Ife who got married to the Oba of Benin and gave birth to Iginuwa who was suppose to be the hare to the throne. The Oba wives who are of Benin origin regarded Iginuwa as the son of a Yoruba woman who is a stranger to Benin and therefore cannot be allowed to inherit the throne. They conspire to level an allegation against him that he attempted to rape one of the Oba’s wives. The punishment for such an offence is that the offender will be thrown into the evil forest to die and never return to the land. The Oba so much loved Iginuwa, he doesn’t want him to die, he therefore prepared an ark and decorated Iginuwa with the attire of a prince in addition to so many gold and ornaments and he attached some slaves to him to escort him out of Benin kingdom through the river. He then prayed for him before the departed. They eventually arrived at Ode-Itsekiri where he met some Yoruba speaking people who migrated from Ijebu, Owo, Ugbo, etc through the cost to Ode Itsekiri. When they saw that the man was a prince and he could speak their language because of his Yoruba background, they adopted him as their king. The Yoruba language was diluted by a combination of factors including the bini intonation to become what is now known as the Itsekiri language. Basically, it is the royal family that has the Benin lineage and even at that it is still partly Benin and Yoruba but the people who accepted him as their king are purely Yoruba speaking people who migrated along the coast from Ijebu, Owo, Ugbo and other Yoruba towns to Iwere kingdom.
The Ijaws are always fond of adultrating Itsekiri history whenever they post it to suit their purpose . I think Lagos Itsekiri boys can now understand why Itsekiris are Oduduwa children

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Interesting posts from kpogede77.

Anyway, whatever the consider themselves, it is fine by me. There probably is no uniform, official tribal position on the matter, it probably varies from individual to individual.

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ok post pics of ur breastttt

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babe im deleting what i said

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sbeezy8:

ok post pics of your breastttt

badt chappy, Ala Ala Ala AKA MIlk is very healthy and good for the tongue ,

enough thread derailments, thank you.

must every thread turn into a p.orno fest thanks to the sex addicted drug addicts.

@bluetooth,

I agree with you. Yorubas would say omo ale ni o n f'owo osi juwe ile baba e (translation: only a bastard gives direction to his fathers house with the left hand). A true Oodua son - home and abroad, would say loud and proud that he is such.

Yes, all Yorubas from those in Lagos through to Kwara speak different variations/dialects but are always proud to identify first as Yoruba. If Itsekiris say that they are not, because they found themselves in a land surrounded by Ijaws and Urhobos and have now lost their identity, then I'm happy to accept them by what they say they are. Even the Yorubas in Kogi (who just like the Itsekiris would rather be known as OKun) who now find themselves among Hausas are proud to say they are Ooduaites.

Tpia@, I did not refer to you in any way, I was only referring to those Itsekiri Children who were born and brought up in Lagos. Some of them don't know the history and they cant write Itsekiri. For instance, Jason123 said he just found out something about Itsekiri from his people but he could not explain it in details. ITSEKITIS ARE PROUD ODUDUWA CHILDREN. They have never said anything contrary to that. The major issue here is that I said Itsekiri language has similarity with Yoruba language. Ileke-Idi then made a statement that every body want to claim Yoruba. That even Fulani will soon claim Yoruba. That is the origin of this aguement. It is not that the Itsekiris are saying they are not Oduduwa children. I have not contradicted myself, may be you are misunderstanding me.

Just woke up and I almost died of laughter when I read some of the comments here. So because I said I am not Yoruba but Itsekiri means I am not from Oduduwa Guy? seriously ?
I AM A PROUD ODUDUWA OF ITSEKIRI ORIGIN! end of!

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I'm oduduwa but not Yoruba. Loads of crazies on this forum. What the F.

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afam4eva:

I'm oduduwa but not Yoruba. Loads of crazies on this forum. What the F.

Common we are not talking of Kidnapping business here

Itshekiri are just what Eguns of Ogun and Lagos are to Yoruba nation. Lost but found dialects

Itshekiri are just what Eguns of Ogun and Lagos are to Yoruba nation. Lost but found dialects

Seanet03,

are you same as seanet02? You guys confuse me a whole lot!

@Kpogede,

Thanks for the clarification. You have done well.

@Desola, yes seanet02 is seanet03. That the defence. Have a stunning array of Patriot Missiles on display in my Arsenal when the spam bot launches Scud attack.

Itsekiri are Yoruba or atleast very related to the Yoruba ppl. The Ijaw have a tendency of always wanting to balkanize their neighbors to suit their ambitions just like 1 day they will say there are no native Igbo like Ikwerre, Ndoni in Rivers state but then do a reverse when the tide turns against them. My cousin is partly Itsekiri.

afam4eva:

I'm oduduwa but not Yoruba. Loads of crazies on this forum. What the F.

You are very unserious. Most Bini or atleast some, will tell you Oduduwa a gbe wa oo but it does not mean they are yorubas.

are the hausas also from oduduwa?

Who Are The Itsekiri? Close Window

The Itsekiri are a peculiar and unique people in the Nigerian Niger delta. They have inhabited their homeland, which now constitutes the three Warri Local Government Areas of Delta State, Nigeria, for centuries. The Itsekiri have rich traditional and cultural practices.

Itsekiri modern history dates from the late fifteenth century when the Itsekiri people adopted a prince from Benin Kingdom as their monarch. Prior to this time, Itsekiri lived independently in different communities that included Irigbo, Ureju, Omadino and Ugborodo. With the arrival of the prince and adoption of the monarchy. These communities coalesced to become a Kingdom. The current monarch is Ogiame Atuwatse II, who was crowned at an impressive ceremony in 1987.

History reveals that in several waves of migration before the 15th Century, and some a little later, groups from Igala in Nupe country came in through the creeks; Yoruba from ljebu-Ode, Akure and Owo found their way into parts of the Kingdom and a group from Aboh also came in. Some along the coast came in through Gulani/Amatu.

Historically, the ltsekiri have a monarchy, over 500 years old, and which, as a rallying point in their society, remains its supreme government. From 1480 to now, there have reigned 19 Olu of Warri: five Olus of the pre-Christian era; 1480 - 1597: eight Roman Catholic Olus from 1597-1735, and six Olus of the post-Roman Catholic Christian era. Atuwatse I, baptized as Dom Domingo reigned between 1625 and 1643, having studied in Coimbra University in Portugal for eleven years where he obtained a degree. The first-ever church monastery built in what today is Nigeria was erected in Big Warri (Ode-ltsekiri) before 1700 and was christened Saint Anthony (today, the site is known as Satone). As an ethnic nationality, the Itsekiri people are a micro-minority in Delta State. Estimated at over 450,000, Itsekiri is one of the five distinct ethnic nationalities in Delta State, Nigeria.

The Itsekiri ancient Kingdom of Warri dates back to the 15th century. Their 1,520 square mile homeland, known over time in history as Iwere or Awyri, Warree, Aweri and Wari etc, had diplomatic, Christian and trade relations with Medieval Europe between the 16th and 18th centuries. It became a prominent trade centre within the Oil Rivers Protectorate.

Obaro Ikime, a prominent historian described the Itsekiri homeland as follows: "The Itsekiri inhabit the North Western extremity of the Niger Delta in area bounded approximately by latitudes 50 20 and 60 N and longitudes 50 5 and 50 40 East. Their neighbors are Bini to the North, the Ijaw to the South, the Urhobo to the East and the Yoruba of Ondo province to the North - West." ( Obaro Ikime Phd Merchant Prince of the Niger Delta, 1968).

The following also appeared in the footnote of Professor Allan Ryder's, book, Benin and Europeans 1485-1897 {page 108. "A.S.C. Scritture originali vol. 249 F328} - many varieties of the spelling of Iwere (Itsekiri word) appear in European documents. In the twentieth century English version - Warri has become the most common and will be used in future for the Kingdom of Itsekiri"

A highly cultured people, over the centuries they had impressive trade and cultural links with different people and these ties helped to broaden and enrich their cultural life. The Itsekiri were among the first to have contact with the Portuguese traders in the 16th Century. Traditionally, the ltsekiri are fishermen and traders.

The promotion of economic activity was a major pre-occupation of the ltsekiri monarch from the 16th Century. The fact that there existed a kingdom was important in the decision of the Europeans to do business with the ltsekiri. (Europeans tended to go to areas, which had a political system that could guarantee peaceful trade). The early contacts of the Itsekiri with medieval Europe, especially Portugal, helped to foster a conservative Christian education and civilization in Itsekiriland and the people remain proud of this historical circumstance.

The coastal location of the kingdom and accessible waterways and rivers did not only lead to the early contacts of the Itsekiri with medieval Europe, especially Portugal and foster a conservative Christian education and civilization, but it led to its significant prosperity between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries as trade with neighboring ethnic groups and Europeans flourished.

These interactions also led to an Itsekiri prince, christened Domingo, going to study in Portugal for eleven years in the seventeenth century and returning as the first Itsekiri to graduate from college. Itsekiri prosperity proved to be a fertile environment for the emergence of prominent Itsekiri leaders like several kings or Olu. They include, Diare, Olomu and Nanna. The latter three all serving as Governors of Benin River.

However, unlike in the past when prosperity from their homeland propelled the Itsekiri people to glorious heights, recent riches have paradoxically become bane to them. Not only has exploitation of crude oil in the area debilitated the ecosystem and destroyed local trades and economies, from 1997 to 2003, Itsekiri were victimized by some of its violent neighbors.

This is an undiluted Itsekiri history from Itsekiri web site. I think this has confirmed my earlier position that some Yorubas from Ijebu-Ode, Akure, Owo, Ugbo and Igala from Nupe where living in the communities before the prince arrived from Benin and he was adopted as the King.They all came together to form a kingdom. In fact Itsekiris are delta Yorubas.

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