Change2015:


The place and the word are both permanent reminders of the impact of Benin on lagos, quite apart from Lagos once being a part of the bini empire as was Onitsha.

Ugomba:
will you shut up pls, we delta Igbos have warned you benin people to stop bringing your benin crap inorder to falsely rewrite our history and claim Asaba.. Heads will ROLL if you people dare us.

otr1:
The title "Oba" has meaning only in Yoruba language.

you cant change history. majority of today south south and part of south east are benin descendant.

MansaPiye:
As they say.. Story for the gods. Cultural influence is not political influence. American influence is global so while a Chinese city might copy an American one, it doesn't mean that America has any political influence in the area, the Chinese can decide to ban all that American influence like the Japanese did before the Meji restoration.
The Igbos in the Delta are politically influence by Nri, that is why they have Obi and Igwe. That is why they have Nze Na Ozo and pay homage to where the ofo of Igbos come from which is Igbo land. Rulers love the trappings of power and glory, they all heard of Bini and its courts. Some even visited and invited some Binis to add prestige to their royal courts the same way a Chinese company hires white Americans to add prestige to their company. Some went as far as copying the Royal regalias of the Bini. But did Bini have any political influence no. The Ekumeku fighters in Anioma carried on fighting the British long after Bini has surrendered. They were fighting to maintain their independence. If they were under some sort of Bini hegemony, they would surrendered too. In places where Bini had political influence you don't need to look hard to see it. In Anioma, they speak Igbo and observe very important Igbo customs with Nri written all over it not Edo. Nri itself is far older than Bini.
Since the Igbos had a sophisticated religious system and renounced priests, it is possible that Nri priests were invited to Bini by ambitious Kings. And when their services were no longer needed, they returned back to the east and the ambitious priests among them like Eze Chima settled in a new place and introduced some of what he saw in the courts of Bini in his own court while retaining his lgbo language and Nri culture like Nze Na Ozo which is practiced from Onitsha to Agbor and many other Igbo speaking settlements.

MansaPiye:
As they say.. Story for the gods. Cultural influence is not political influence. American influence is global so while a Chinese city might copy an American one, it doesn't mean that America has any political influence in the area, the Chinese can decide to ban all that American influence like the Japanese did before the Meji restoration.
The Igbos in the Delta are politically influence by Nri, that is why they have Obi and Igwe. That is why they have Nze Na Ozo and pay homage to where the ofo of Igbos come from which is Igbo land. Rulers love the trappings of power and glory, they all heard of Bini and its courts. Some even visited and invited some Binis to add prestige to their royal courts the same way a Chinese company hires white Americans to add prestige to their company. Some went as far as copying the Royal regalias of the Bini. But did Bini have any political influence no. The Ekumeku fighters in Anioma carried on fighting the British long after Bini has surrendered. They were fighting to maintain their independence. If they were under some sort of Bini hegemony, they would surrendered too. In places where Bini had political influence you don't need to look hard to see it. In Anioma, they speak Igbo and observe very important Igbo customs with Nri written all over it not Edo. Nri itself is far older than Bini.
Since the Igbos had a sophisticated religious system and renounced priests, it is possible that Nri priests were invited to Bini by ambitious Kings. And when their services were no longer needed, they returned back to the east and the ambitious priests among them like Eze Chima settled in a new place and introduced some of what he saw in the courts of Bini in his own court while retaining his lgbo language and Nri culture like Nze Na Ozo which is practiced from Onitsha to Agbor and many other Igbo speaking settlements.

chukzyblingz:
Agbor practice Nze na ofo and pay homage to where the ofo came from? even using the ekumeku war to disprove bini Anioma relationship? very lame logic

Ugomba:
will you shut up pls, we delta Igbos have warned you benin people to stop bringing your benin crap inorder to falsely rewrite our history and claim Asaba.. Heads will ROLL if you people dare us.

OfoIgbo:



That is my point... Remember that I had already written that the Oba title originated in Nri, and it is still born today. People in Enugwu-ukwu must have heard of the late Oba Nwandu. In fact, a cousin of the current Eze Nri is known as Oba Agbalanze (Prince Emeka Onyesoh). The title has been in Igboland (Umu-Nri clan to be exact) 100s of years before the first Oba of Nri ancestry was installed in Benin, and the current nomenclature's OBA IWEKA.
Put simply, it was the Nris that introduced the oba title to Benin, by installing an Nri titled man as the first Oba. Now Iweka means ANGER IS GREAT presumably in the land that he was installed as the don.

Akalaka is reputed to be a Benin prince that established Ikwerre, Ekpeye. Akalaka means DESTINY in Igbo.

Ezechima is reputed to be a Benin prince that established Onitsha. So how come these Benin princes all seem to have Igbo names? Because the first oba was an Nri man and his early descendants were Igbo, and Igbo was the language spoken at the Oba's palace to start with.

Add all these to the findings of early Portuguese explorers, most probably led by Prince Henry the navigator, in which they saw Nri people in the Oba's palace, and a picture begins to develop

Volksfuhrer:
@ KINGOSIRO99.

There's too much salt in your story. The Ilajes know their history, they are not from Benin. Many other groups you mentioned might have been vassals to Benin, it doesn't necessarily mean their people came from Benin. That Rome ruled over England does not necessarily mean the English came from Rome.

I believe Benin influence over the Niger delta has been grossly exaggerated. I find it curious that the Ogisos did not build an empire, yet we are being led to believe that the Benin empire has been ubiquitous for thousands of years! That story just doesn't add up.

morbeta:
An English friend of mine told me that an Igboman fron Onitsha in anambra state was a very famous Oba in Benin Kingdom. Pls confirm. I want to know how true that is.

Eros48:
This statement implies you know little about Edo history. Other than the fact your story looks like a poorly woven cloth, you need to understand that Edo has been through about 3 dynasties namely pre ogiso (poorly recorded), the Ogiso (Well documented from 40AD) and the Oba era.
Also it may interest you to know that the Portuguese first came to Nigeria in the 15th century. Which is recent and at the time the Benin empire (not the pre ogiso or the ogiso era) was in its full majesty. This already makes all your claims false.

About the Obi of Onitsha and Onitsha itself, the Benin presence and influence cannot be denied. Onitsha was founded in 17th century.

As for places like Asaba; Many of the people there originated from Benin, others Igala others Igbo.

You can deny it all you want but, be honest with yourself and connect the dots. It is obvious that the Igbos, Yoruba and Benin are different people. Not withstanding Benin's influence is predominant and not the other way around.

I also read someone say the Benin's are few, they aren't. The difference is they don't go around claiming people like other ethnic groups in Nigeria do. They have people in the Northern( middle belt), s. eastern, S.southern and S.Western parts of Nigeria, they also have Ga ethnic group of Ghana and some people in Benin Republic and Togo to mention those I am aware about.

Let's not also forget about the Ancient Benin Genocide, now dubbed massacre of 1897. That disintegrated the empire as it was and dispersed it's people.



(well documented) Og

OVB123:
They don't add up because you are a baby.

OfoIgbo:


That is my point... Remember that I had already written that the Oba title originated in Nri, and it is still born today. People in Enugwu-ukwu must have heard of the late Oba Nwandu. In fact, a cousin of the current Eze Nri is known as Oba Agbalanze (Prince Emeka Onyesoh). The title has been in Igboland (Umu-Nri clan to be exact) 100s of years before the first Oba of Nri ancestry was installed in Benin, and the current nomenclature's OBA IWEKA.
Put simply, it was the Nris that introduced the oba title to Benin, by installing an Nri titled man as the first Oba. Now Iweka means ANGER IS GREAT presumably in the land that he was installed as the don.

Akalaka is reputed to be a Benin prince that established Ikwerre, Ekpeye. Akalaka means DESTINY in Igbo.

Ezechima is reputed to be a Benin prince that established Onitsha. So how come these Benin princes all seem to have Igbo names? Because the first oba was an Nri man and his early descendants were Igbo, and Igbo was the language spoken at the Oba's palace to start with.

Add all these to the findings of early Portuguese explorers, most probably led by Prince Henry the navigator, in which they saw Nri people in the Oba's palace, and a picture begins to develop

Raskimonojendor:
What sort of rubbish topic is this

morbeta:
An English friend of mine told me that an Igboman fron Onitsha in anambra state was a very famous Oba in Benin Kingdom. Pls confirm. I want to know how true that is.

AntiMarxist:
We wuz Juice

We wuz Pharaohs n shit

Now we wuz Obas.

Igbo enh!

wytecat:
These are facts!

The ancient Binis were Yoruba.

Oba has no clear-cut meaning in other language but Yoruba.

Eko has no clear-cut meaning in any other language, but Yoruba.

Bini empire began with a Yoruba sent from Ile Ife.

Republic of Benin named after the body of water.

Benin republic pays homage to Ile Ife and nowhere else.

Itsekiri share language with Yoruba not with "Benin". Languages point to people's roots. Even the Olukunmi deep in delta still have their Yoruba language.

The modern day "Benin" are mostly ibos or mixed, I've said this in the past, everything about them is confusion. Forget their theory of a rat giving birth to an elephant, the true Bini emperor was a Yoruba from Ile Ife and was not as ruthless as made to believe, it was just added for feel-good measures.

Lagos was NEVER conquered by any forces outside Yoruba territories, this is the reason the language and names are still Yoruba. Conquerors live their marks via names and language, the reality on ground is Yoruba conquered Benin if anything because we don't speak the same language yet Yoruba language is used by Benin in worshipping gods, in the palace and naming, abeg it doesn't take a rocket science to know where the head has always been.

Johnjustice:

A people with no identity 😆

OfoIgbo:
People I am a direct descendant of Nri and let me shed a little light on these issues

1. The title OBA was/is an Nri title, already in use within the core Nri towns of Enugwu-ukwu, Enugwu-agidi, Nawfia and Agukwu centuries before the first known oba of Benin I.e OBA IWEKA.
2. BINI was coined from the Igbo sentence ILO OBI INU, which means THE ROAD OF BITTER HEARTS.
3. The first Oba of Benin was an Nri titled man and the alias attached to his Obaship denoted the temperament of the Bini people back then. IWEKA goes hand in hand with ILO OBI INU. It means ANGER IS GREAT, obviously still referring to the BINIS
4. In times past, mainly because of the relationship of the Benin obas and Nri, Nri priests crowned Obas of Benin, probably up until Oba Ewuare from whose reign, the Nris started playing diminishing roles in the Benin Kingdom
5. The four market days used by Binis is a corruption of the market days originated by the Nris
6. Portuguese explorers that visited the palace of the Oba about six hundreds of years ago or so, reported the presence of HIGHLY REVERED MEN FROM THE EAST WHO TAUGHT THE PALACE THE MYSTERIES OF THE HEAVINGLY BODIES AND SEASONS e.t.c. Of course that will explain why Bini people still use the Nri-Igbo four market days.
7. Around the time of the Portuguese visit and for hundreds of years before that, the official language of the Obas palace was Igbo.
8. I hope with the above, people can now see why quite a number of Benin princes that migrated to certain areas bore Igbo names e.g Ezechima, Akalaka e.t.c.

So basically, the first oba of Benin and his descendants have Nri ancestry

what I don't understand is how the binis claim everyone is
from them. Yoruba is from bini. ikwerre is bini. anioma is
bini.
na waa ooo.
all this tribe from bini.
bini should be the most populous tribe in Nigeria.
but, otu awu na ezi.
everybody migrate from there yet they so tiny....

delpee:


Ile Ibinu means the land of anger/bitterness in Yoruba.
The Oba of Benin certainly has a relationship with Ile Ife. That's why the Oba of Benin pays a visit to Ife sometime after coronation.

OfoIgbo:


Ilo Obinu also means the road to bitter hearts in Igbo.

That's why Benin people still use the Nri-Igbo four market days till tomorrow, all of which have their originating shrines in core Umu NRI towns

delpee:


Interesting. Seems we're all linked together somehow.
Anyway the Olukumis in Delta/SE too were originally Yorubas. Olukumi means my friend in Yoruba. They're referred to as Lucumis in South America..Colombia, Cuba etc Those sold into slavery I believe.

KINGOSIRO99:
WHO ARE THE EDO PEOPLE'S?

SOME WILL NOT ACCEPT THIS BECAUSE THEY HAVE LOST THEIR REAL ORIGIN.
BUT JUST DO YOUR THOROUGH RESEARCH YOU WILL COME TO KNOW THE TRUTH OF THIS HISTORY YOU ARE ABOUT TO READ.

Who are the Edo people?

EDO, is what you can describe as the "generic name given to a group of people who have a common ancestor and have a common language, with some different variants, depending on the distance between the group and the " tap root, " resident in and around the present day Benin City. In short, the land, the political state, the people, tribe, language and the principal city -Benin City is called EDO. At a point in the history of these people, another name called BENIN came into use. These Edo-speaking people are divided into the following clans today:

a) " BINI " derived from the word Benin for people living in and around Benin City, in Edo State. People living in and around Benin City, are gradually accepting the word BINI, as descriptive of their clan. Otherwise, they prefer to be simply called EDO.

b) ESAN/Ishan-for the immediate neighbor to the north are people living in around Irrua, Orhodua, Uromi, Ubiaja, Ewu, Ewatto, Igueben and the almighty Evbohimwin (Ewohimi))" the city by the big river " or " the city of Ikhimwin trees " etc.

c) The Afemais known as IVBIOSAKON by those living in and around Benin City to the north of Ishan/Esan clan.

d) Akoko-Edos based in Igarra, Ibillo and its environs to the north of Afemais.

e) The Owans-ORAS occupying Eme, Sabogida-Ora, Afuze, etc. Uhobe (SOBE) and Ifon in Ondo State.

f) Ekas-to East of Benin. A sizeable chunk of the Edo speaking people flow across River Niger and ending at ONITSHA.

g) Isoko, Urhobo, Itsekiris and about 70% percent of western Izon (Ijaws) in Ndegeni and its environs

h) A sizeable chunk of the Edos is found in River States and Balyesa States e.g. Ogba land and Diobu, Port Harcourt.

i) A sizeable chunk has been " Yorubanised in Ondo, Ekiti, Lagos and Ogun States. The descendants of Edo soldiers stationed in Akure are referred to today as ADO-AKURE (Edo ne ’kue) There are many Edos in Ekiti land, Idoani, Idanre etc going through life in Nigeria with Yoruba names. Acculturation has taken place. You are either a Yoruba man or you go nowhere.

j) The ILAJE community at OKITIPUPA and its environs.

k) The Edos who conquered and settled far way land like Dahomey, Togo and Ghana.

The Edo language is part of the Kwa-Niger group of languages according to Linguist. These people have lived were they are now for " Thousands of years." The monarchy centered in Benin City is about 6000 years old, including pre-ogiso and Ogiso era of history. All the clans had various functions, which they perform at the palace. For example, the Ishans/Esans were principally the medicine men and warriors of the ancient empire. They were the medical practitioners. The chieftancy groups responsible for the Oba's well being are dominated by Ishan/Esan descendants. The Ivbiosakon (Afemais) were the dental surgeon of the palace. That is the origin of the name IVBIOSAKON. Oba Esigie assigned that function to them in the c1500's.

The Owan/Ora people were the propitiators of the physical earth for the Oba of Benin. It was their responsibility to prevent things like earthquake, hurricanes, tornadoes, volcanoes and anything associated with geological disturbance to occur in Benin. In short, they were the geologists and weathermen of their day, forecasting and preventing physical calamities. Those we call BINIS today, were the traditional bureaucratic administrators and military generals. The Izons (Ijaws) were the " OZIGUE" -SAILORS The Ekas were farmers. They were in charge of the royal farms.

The Ibos across the Niger call the Edos, IDU, the name of the progenitor of Edo race, the Yorubas call us ADO, which is a corruption of the word EDO. However, the Itsekiris, another sub group in the Edo clans call us UBINI. Tradition asserts that it is derived from ILE-IBINU, which is descriptive of the exasperation and frustration encountered in Benin City, by Prince Oranmiyan of ILE-IFE. A further research may prove that, it was the Itsekiris who gave that name, to the people living in and around Benin City. The Itsekiris told the white man of the powerful overlord living in Igodomigodo. It was the Itsekiris who told the Whiteman that the name of the tribe of this powerful king was UBINI- a term which Whiteman corruptly wrote down as Benin. For example, the name of the eldest daughter of Oba Osewende, the mother of the OSULAS and the AIWERIOGHENES is today known as AGHAYUBINI. A closer examination of that name would reveal that the name is an Itsekhiri phrase-" The Ubini Lady or woman " i.e. the woman from Benin. Aghayubini was a very wealthy trader among the Itsekiris, from whence she got the money she used, is getting the throne for her brother, who became Oba ADOLO. An Itsekhiri descriptive phrase has simply over powered her original Edo name, to the extent that nobody knows anything about it now.

The ancient Edo/Benin Empire covered the whole of Bendel, parts of Bayelsa State and I repeat Balyesa State. The second son of the Enogie of Brass, popularly known as IYASE NE OHENMWEN became the Iyase of Benin under Oba Osewende. Iyase Ohenmwen is the ancestor of the OTOKITIS, THE OKEAYA-INNEH AND THE AIWERIOGHENES of Benin today. It also covers the IGBO-speaking areas of Delta State stretching to Onitsha. People hardly know that the actual title of the Obi of Onitsha is AIGBOGHIDI. The historical Chief Agho Obaseki of Oba Ovoranmwen era and later the Iyase of Benin under Oba Eweka II, was a descendant of the second son of Enogie of NSUKWA now in Delta State. It extended to the whole of Ondo State, parts of Ekiti and Ogun State and the whole of Lagos State including BADAGRY. It stretched to southern Dahomey (Republic of Benin) and on to the coast of Togo and Ghana.

THE OWANS /ORAS:

Oba Ozolua is traditionally regarded as the ancestor of the Owans/Ora. He was known as Prince Okpame before he became known as Oba Ozolua. He had sought refuge in Uwokha in Ivbiosakon areas in c1473. From Uwokha, Oba Ozolua founded Ora and other villages. Oba Ozolua was a warlord. He beat the people of Uzea near Uromi to a pulp when there was a revolt. He extended his carnage to Uromi when the Enogie was reported to have been rude to his messengers. He went up through Akoko land, wandering into Nupe lands where he acquired a lot of sophisticated weaponry then. He attacked the Igallas and Igbirras in the present Kogi and Kwarra states. After spending the greater part of his life in ORA, he left behind his son UGUAN and returned to Benin City.

But before he left, he proclaimed everybody free men and free women, entitled to enjoy the privileges of Edo princes and Princesses, for all the services they had rendered in his military campaigns. That is why the Oras call themselves today, the CHILDREN OF OZOLUA. Besides being in charge of propitiating the physical earth, they are responsible for ritually exorcising any harm that might come upon the EDO NATION-the land due to violation of sexual or other taboos. Their GUILD, quartered at EVBORHAN quarter in OGBELAKA in Benin City by Oba Esigie, demands steep fines from the culprits for their services.

A few years ago, the Oba of Benin created an Ogie-Duke-traditional rulership for the Oras because of popular demand.

Ademola Iyi Eweka. Look
The green color is the true map of Edo territories make this campaign know to the unknown
Edo is not a minority in their Land. EDO is an umbrella that cover all.