₦airaland Forum

falconey:
6. Threatening to withhold something (e.g. conversation, sex, etc.) to get your way.

I can say for others but this will never stop.It's their most crucial weapon in manipulating men.

Doesn't work on real men

Abagworo:
This thread was opened by an angry Esan guy and will give you an insight on the fact that other Benin originated people view Ika as Igbos.

www.nairaland.com/3650946/esan-people-not-igbo

Are you serious? Using that mad man's ranting to make a point? Even when all known Edos on Nairaland have denied him? Seems you don't have any point

Game

baddosky1:
Zombies...you people have taken the job of wailing to yourselves now. Okonjo Iweala is originally from Umuahia, Abia State but is married to a Deltan. Secondly, is it her job to supply electricity to the community or the job of that flat faced fowlshola?

You well so?

Other countries struggled but Nigeria didn't struggle. All the suffering and hardship happening in Nigeria is not struggle. But countries like Iran, Iraq, Canada Saudi Arabia and Russia struggled. Nice Logic

PassingShot:
At $25 per barrel, it was not worth dying for. That was the message.

Now that it's going up, it's good news for us since it remains the major dollar-earner for the nation.

After all, it is our oyel wey baba God give us.

$25 per barell? I think that happened in planet hell where you went to spend your vacation. Did Satan eject you?

bigfrancis21:
@bold...this is very wrong because you are taking current circumstances and applying it to what happened centuries ago. The concept of Igbos being travelers to distant lands started only since the coming of the british. Before then, Igbos existed in well-delineated clans of their own with no central authority. Second, there is no proof of you that you can furnish about Igbos going anywhere and renaming the place or wiping off the existing people's town name or language. That's absurd. You are trying to come up with this reason to 'buttress' ika being different but ask yourself twice if that is really true? Do you really believe that? Have you forgotten that there was no 'collective' Igbo people 400 years ago who all called themselves Igbos and were out on a mission to go colonize other lands? The ethnic consciousness of the people called Igbo started with British civilization. 100 years ago an Nnewi man would tell you he is Nnewi not Igbo, an Awka man would tell you the same too, etcetera. Also between the 1400s to 1700s, many Igbo-speaking slaves arriving the new world were shocked to get there and were called 'ebo'. Many of them admitted that they had never heard of such name back home and that their identity was the village or town which they came from. There was no 'collective Igbo' ethnic group or tribe existing several centuries ago out on a mission to colonize Ika land or non-Igbo speaking areas. That of Bonny happened by chance and the natives were also part of the reason Igbo is the mother tongue in the area (after the abolishment of slavery, thousands of Igbo slaves destined for slavery were stuck in the island, as bonny was one of the major ports from which Igbo slaves were sold. The natives felt Ibani language was sacred and made it secret language spoken only within themselves and did not teach outsiders their language but instead learned Igbo to communicate with the teeming population of Igbo slaves and settlers in the town, which led to the gradual displacement of Ibani in the town for Igbo instead. Remember that at this time, there was no ethnic consciousness or allegiance paid to any ethnic group but instead what people knew then were just languages without the concept of belonging ethnically to the people of that language) and Opobo was an outstretch of Bonny.

As for that of the missionaries bringing Igbo-speaking priests to Ika land to 'Igbonize' Ikas, it is not as simple as abc as you think. First of all, the missionaries, who happened to be whites, not Igbo, thank God, brought Igbo-speaking priests to Ika land because despite being outsiders they recognized that the people spoke and understood a speech form or dialect similar to other Igbo speakers. Recognize here that the missionaries did not care about ethnicity nor paid allegiance to any, their mission was to spread their message to everyone the fastest and easiest way that they could. However, they were faced with a daunting task being that the people under the 'Igbo-speaking' umbrella spoke way too many different dialects, many which were often unintelligible to the other and they had to come up with one dialect which they felt everyone should be able to understand. It started with the Anglican missionaries importing an Igbo dialect called 'isuama', spoken by liberated Igbo slaves in sierra leone to Igboland which failed because the 'isuama' spoken in SL happened to be a mixture of several Igbo dialects given that these liberated Igbo slaves came from different areas in Igboland. In fact, the earliest evangelical mission to Igboland in 'Isuama' dialect (resembling southern Igbo dialects, more like owerri-etche dialects etc.) failed at Aboh because the people of Aboh (Ndokwa) could not understand what was being said in 'Isuama' at first attempt (which would not be so today when Igbo speakers are more exposed to other Igbo dialects). Thus the ultimate search for a unifying Igbo dialect ensued and it is a long story from there onwards. My point is, recognize that as of 100 to 180 years ago or more when the missionaries landed in Ika land, they must have identified that the Ika people were Igbo-speaking to begin with, and thus brought Igbo-speaking priests trained in the gospel to spread the word. That's all they cared about - spreading the gospel. Anything to facilitate that, they did. This was happening at a time when Igbos were not as well travelled as today to be exposed to other dialects and speakers of Igbo dialects at opposite extremes of the Igbo language continuum were worst hit at understanding each other. If you claim Ika was only 20% Igbo as of then and probably 80% Bini, why then did the white missionaries not bring Edo-speaking priests to Ika land to preach the gospel to them? Till today I am amazed at how accurate descriptions of southern Nigerian tribes written by foreigners 400 years ago or more are even till today. Pick up any book of yore of southern Nigeria written by foreigners and you'd be amazed at how accurate they were. These foreigners were able to tell accurately which language was which and where speakers of each language started and ended (or their boundaries). So you cannot tell me that these missionaries 'made a mistake' at assuming Ika people were Igbo speakers because their accuracy as of 200 to 500 years back stand outs clearly. These missionaries did not bring Yoruba priests to Igboland did they? Why? Because they clearly knew Igboland was not Yoruba speaking. Thus, they should have brought Bini-speaking priests to Ika land if Ika was 'originally' Bini to begin with or 80% Edoid as you claimed, which history has shown severally to be false.

In every language worldwide due to the natural occurrence of several dialects, there is often a standard form which is spoken and understood by everyone and the dialects spoken locally by their speakers. Standard Igbo being spoken or used in official levels in Ika land or in other areas of Igbo land is no different from standard English spoken in the US (with so many dialects and accents spanning across north to south), or standard English spoken in the UK (with different dialects such as Manchester, Chelsea, etc.) or standard Spanish spoken in Mexico (with so many dialects and even native american languages) etc.

For what is is, Ika is simply an Igbo dialect with Bini loan words and sometimes Bini inflections. Let's not make things more complex than they really are. Do yourself a favour, tear a sheet of paper and write out 10 sentences in Ika dialect and compare it with Bini and Igbo and tell us which it closely resembles. The Ohafia people who live close to the Ibibio-speaking areas sometimes speak Igbo with sort of an Ibibio accent, which is expected or normal due to assimilation and inter-marriage with Ibibio people which may have occurred several centuries ago, yet Ohafia is an Igbo dialect and not Ibibio.

That there was no ethnic consciousness doesn't mean that majority of the SE if not all were already Igbo speaking about half millenia ago and these people go out and do business. They interact and trade. And the present Igbo population shows that Igbos have always had high population so all these interactions are in high numbers. They exhibit those traits I talked about because I don't believe they only picked that up after the colonials arrived. These Igbo groups, in whatever name they moved by migrate to places, probably in high number and another group come in from another part of Igboland in different batches. There are only a few Edo groups during this period, it's only at latter period that groups like Esans and other groups sprang up. but there has been so many Igbo groups that. It's possible this groups come into Anioma with their peculiar Igbo language and culture and influence us. All these happens within a very long period of time.

Read my post well, I said I've always admitted that Igbo words has been existing in Ika but it should be around 20% about 3 centuries ago and probably a little more when the colonials got to Ika and it was this little similarities they laid hold on and imposed Igbo on us. Even some Binis say Yoruba and Igbo was imposed on them. I don't know how true that is. Ika language is not only about Edo and Igbo. There are many indigenous words formed over time just like Urhobos and Isoko developed many indigenous words away from Edo. And if true that alien groups were imposed on Edo, how do you think the British would ever consider Edo people to take charge in Ika? Most early missionaries were of Igbo stock so there was no way Edo would be considered when they're lacking in Edo then even if Edo was intelligible to Ikas during that period

RedboneSmith:
What is this incoherence about?

I have tried to read and reread but still can't get the head or the tail of what he wrote. That was a real emotional ranting. Doh

PabloAfricanus:
Dude do yourself a favour...dont bother...its pointless.
Difference between recite and translate?
For a guy who was busy schooling others on the finer points of Ika pronounciation, dialects, inflections and what not?
Only for you boldly announce you cannot recite the Lord's prayer in the same "language" you claim to be an expert in?
GTFOH
A bigger favour you could do yourself, cos u sorely need it, is to go back home and ask deep questions and demand real answers.
Also travel around and gain some knowledge before discussing topics you apparently are not familiar with.
My 2 cents.

This confirms you do not know the difference between the two words. To translate, I have to pick it word by word, think it in a sentence and all these within few seconds. But to recite is like singing a song. The wordings and the the lyrics is already stored in your brain. It doesn't even matter if you know their meanings. You guys always pick up wrong points. Is this the handiwork of prejudice? I checked my mention lo and behold, everybody is quoting me out of context, but I don't have the time to respond to them.

dairykidd:
The word Esan is a Bini word meaning "they jumped away, or they have fled." The name became the accepted name of the group of people who escaped from the reign of Oba Ewuare of Benin in the middle of the 15th century. During the 15th century, the Oba Ewuare of Benin had two sons that both tragically died on the same day. Oba Ewuare then declared for mourning the death of his sons to the whole kingdom that there shall be no sexual intercourse in the kingdom; no washing, sweeping of the houses or compound, drumming or dancing; and making of fire in the land. Oba Ewuare insisted that these laws be strictly adhered to for a period of three years as a mark of respect for his dead sons.

Many natives fled the Bini Kingdom unable to abide by these rules to join previous groups that had already migrated out of the kingdom years before (notably, the groups that had earlier formed Irrua, Uromi, and Ekpoma). Soon after, the Oba summoned a meeting of his subjects from various quarters and to his amazement, noticed that they had greatly diminished in numbers. When the Oba asked where his subjects had went to, he was told, "Ele san-fia" ("They have fled". This later turned into E-san-fia and then Esan. When Oba Ewuare saw that his kingdom was quickly becoming depopulated, he revoked his laws but the migrations continued. Oba Ewuare tried to wage war against the migrants but this failed.

The Oba conquered 201 towns and villages but he had to use diplomacy for many of the other scattered towns and villages in the forest in order to bring them under Benin rule. Thus, Oba Ewuare invited Esan leaders or their representatives to Benin for a truce. He enticed them with the idea of having an attachment to Benin City and of their having the honour of being called "Onojie", which means king. The future of Esan rested on the Esan who went to Benin and took the title of Onojie. It was not an easy decision for the Esan leaders to decide whether or not to go. Many feared Oba Ewuare but also did not want more military attacks against them. To reduce their fears, Benin promised military support for the Onojie to enforce authority over insubordinate subjects. Only three leaders actually went to Benin in person.

All three were apparently men who had nothing to fear from the Oba due to various reasons. The first was Ekpereijie, the son of Oba Ohen's daughter and a sister to Oba Ewuare. The sister had been given to the leader of Irrua. Ekperejie came without fear because relations must have been cordial between Irrua and Benin.

The second was Alan of Ewohimi, the son of Ikimi who had left Benin prior to the reign of Oba Ewuare and as such was not considered as one of those who fled the city by the Oba. The third was Ijiebomen who left Benin for Ekpoma after the Oba had granted him leave. In contrast to those mentioned above, chief Okhirare of Ohordua, , had especially offended the Oba and would not risk his neck, so he sent his heir Odua to Benin.

His brother and leader of Emu also sent his son rather than risk his life. Three other Esan leaders dispatched brothers as their representatives to the meeting in Benin. Ede felt he was only less than the Oba by degrees and as such refused to honor the call. He then sent his junior brother to listen to what the Oba had to say. The leader of Ubgoha also asked his junior brother to go on his behalf. The leader of Uromi sent his junior brother to find out what the Oba had to say. Ewuare concealed his anger at the impertinent leaders in Esan since he was a skilled diplomat.

During the meeting, he told the visitors how they had migrated from Benin. He enthroned the Benin court traditions in Esan. The Oba bestowed the title of Onojie on those that were present at the meeting. This historic moment happened in 1463. Instantly, the Oba made them rulers of their communities and subservient only to the Oba. Above all, this noble title was not transferable to father, brother, or master, and once an Onojie, always an Onojie until death.

Where Oba Ewuare had enthroned a proxy as Onojie except in Ewohimi, Irrua and Ekpoma, strife and hatred followed as the new leaders began to assert authority and control over the elders. Thus, the Oba wielded the numerous villages into large political entities that hitherto became known as chiefdoms, loosely knitted villages, ruled by the Enijie.

Let me reply you with someone's quote. You see it's not only Esan that has such tales? But what I don't understand is the business the guy has with Ika and Urhobo. Did any Ika man try to tell Esan history? The guy is paranoid


But isn't it possible that the Ikimi in your narrative the same Ikhime that some Aniomas believe was corrupted to Ezechime? And isn't it possible that the Ede is also the Ede that founded Umunede? Not concluding anything. Maybe you know more about these two people?

Also note the first bolded part

bigfrancis21:
Bini/Igbo Factors- Origins And Migration of Ika People

Ika lacks archeological works, and she is grossly deficient of ancient written records, myths, legends or fantasized oral traditions towards her history, culture and origin. For example, no part of Ika has been studied by a professional historian or anthropologist neither has any part of Ika villages been visited by one. The dearth of literature in Ika history can also be said to have stemmed up from lack of initiative of the early Ika people who embraced Western Education; who never picked up a pen and never made the feeble effort to attempt it. Otherwise, it is known that Ika had a crop of literate men since the arrival of the British in Agbor.

Aside from the Government School that was established at Agbor in 1906, most Ika people were products of the Mission Schools that started in some Ika towns ever before the British formed their school. Such kind of materials on folklores, folktales or treatises, etc. on Ika written by this generation of Ika would have been worthwhile contributions to the body of knowledge of Ika history. For instance, an Igbo ex-slave, Olanda Equiano’s autobiography (1789) answered some questions about Igbo people, their origin, government, politics, their economy, social life and British.

On the side of the British, their Officials did not help matters with their perfunctory Intelligence Reports on Ika clans. The British had every reason to have written extensively on Ika judging from the events of Ekumeku Movement (1880-1910) and the incident of the gruesome murder of Captain Crew Reade in 1906 at Owanta. But none of their writings, if ever, was available to this writer. In the absence of such detailed records, much of the account in the this chapter is based on the oral traditions of the Ika people, otherwise referred to as fluid history of Ika clans, or recalls of the various schools of thought on the origins of Ika people.

According to Eguavon, S.I. Eka (Ika) means deserters from Benin because of the bloody rule of Oba Ewuare about 1440 AD. It is said that the Binis who seized the opportunity of Oba Ewuare’s absence to flee from Benin were given this name Eka by Oba Ewuare, who on his return from one of his military campaigns, found that many of this subjects had deserted him. It was then he remarked sagaciously: So ghai Eka no. “Leave them, they are deserters”.

During this period for example, Oba Ewuare lost his only two sons, Ezuware and Ekpoboyuuwa through poisoning on the same day. To show hi grief for the death of these princes, he declared three years of mourning for them. During these years of mourning, he ordered that no one was to marry, and those who were married should not have sexual intercourse within the period. He also ordered that there should be no bathing and shaving of hair during the period. Those who were of marriageable age then fled Benin Kingdom in order no to prohibited from raising up families.

Generally, there were political and social disturbances and unrest during the period. The rulers were powerful and overbearing, and there was no known punishment that they could not mete out to offending subjects. Some were forcely charged and dealt with. Life and property were insecure in the face of political uncertainties that existed in Benin Empire. Since there was social disorder, the conditions became unbearable in Benin Empire, which resulted in migration spree of adventurous subjects.

However, on settlements in the areas now known as Ika, some of the Ika clans claim to have been formed before the movement of people from Benin and Ishan Divisions to Ika Land, and these are Agbor, Owa and Umunede clans. It may be that deserters or Ika not only swelled the population of the already existing settlements but also formed new settlements. Ika appears to have grown as a result of the influx of immigrants from Benin, Ishan and Aniocha areas of the defunct Bendel State. Ika people came to Ika Land in different waves of migration, led by different persons from different directions at different times for different reasons.

cc Cire80

http://aniomawatch..com/2013/08/biniigbo-factors-origins-and-migration.html

PabloAfricanus:
You see the problem of shameless history revisionists is analogous to that of the actor on stage.
Everyone can see your back, your moves, the entire stage...except the actor who is squarely focused on acting out his script.
If the actor goes out of line or misinterprets his character just a bit, there are those who can tell...
The audience generally have a more holistic view of the whole play than the individual actors...

When you go around inventing tall tales and fabricating nonexistent history...
maybe due to lies or fallacies you have been fed from home(happens to everyone)...
You do not generally perceive anything in your narrative as being off...cos you have been consciously desensitized to it.
That there are those with stronger historical perspectives and facts than yours almost always escapes revisionists...
particularly those whose mandate came from their traditional narratives...
It is a veritable blindspot well known to anyone who has confronted historical revisionists...
usually it takes a whole lot of fact digging and public exposure of one's historical ignorance to wake up these set of people
to the fact that there are indeed other narratives that are more factual and accurate than the ones they've been fed with.


That you agree in general with the load of bombastic and wholesale revision of history by Cire80 leaves little to discuss...
Cos you apparently are not aware of how ridiculously funny his narrative sounds...
Lemme paraphrase it for you...that history or narrative espoused by him and believed by you in general...never happened.
Nothing like that ever took place, neither were there any people called "Igbos" who partook of such a history with another set of people
called "Ikas". Never happened, precolonial, during the colonial times, post colonial times.
Anyone who has studied the matter not just from a neutral perspective, but from even a shallow knowledge of the history of both peoples across the Niger can tell by reading that load of BS that such a thing never took place.
Except ofcourse in the parallel universe of revisionists...
...where a grown man cannot recite the Lord's prayer in his own supposed language in which he claims fluency and claims to be an authority...but can recite the same in a foreign language imposed on his people.
One wonders if the Lord's prayer is not available in English for translation?
...where the Annangs, Ibibios, Efiks and Ijaws who are closer to the Igbos escaped buying Igbo language, words, dialects from the Igbos when they came to trade with them...despite very very heavy intermarriage with the Igbos...
but another set of people who claim to be Edos and have never had anything to do with Igbos suddenly lost their language and culture in less than 100 years...after conducting trans-Atlantic and trans-Pacific trading with the Igbos.
I could go on.
You lots should go get some sense and quit making fools of yourselves.

Among everything you said, let me respond to one. Maybe I modify later if I have the time. Do you know the difference between recite and translate ? Yes, I can translate any English word to Ika but that is not the same as recitation.

Afam4eva:
The way you people shamelessly go on lying will leave satan to the second position. Chineke nna onye Onitsha.

Why is the Igbo migration into Ikaland more plausible than Edo/Bini migration into an Igboland (Ika)? Nobody has ever told you that you're settlers. That we say you're Igbo does not mean we will come from Enugu or Anambra to come and take your land. Your land remains your land. I don't know why you guys take this land grabbing shebang among the Igbos too far when there is no record of Igbos ever taking over anybody's land except the ones they bought with their hard earned money.

Your second paragraph is fille dwith lies as you claim that Igbo language presence in Ika language is 20% when i was able to understand atleadt 50% of what was spoken in those Ika videos posted here. And how can you say that Christianity and colonialism brought Igbo into Ika without taking into cognisance the fact that Igbo was only thought in places where some form of Igbo was already been spoken. You say that a lot of Ika people can only pray in Igbo language instead of Ika. How many Igbo people from the south east can pray in their own dialects. Central Igbo was thought to your people the same way it taught to people of the south east. I am from Nkanu in Enugu state and we were not born with central Igbo in our tongues. We had to learn it like everyone else. So, don't make it seem like we all speak central Igbo as our dialect. We freaking have our own dialects just like you have yours.

I have no problem with you guys claiming whatever you like. But i'll always be here to shut up your lies.

Igbos say it loud and clear how they are going to come to Anioma and chase us out taking what rightfully belong to them. I hear that almost everyday online. It's ridiculous, isn't it?

Igbo migration is not more plausible than Edo migration. Everything about Ika is mostly Edo. Igbos win in language but we're still able to retain our Edoid inflections (according to Bigfrancis21), which shows Benin language is the aboriginal language in Ika before some of the factors I mentioned and other factors affected that. Is language the only element to consider in ethnicity ? List any other characteristics and see how Edo give Igbo a race in Ika man among all the factors, language is the one that can be easily influenced but accent and intonation is not easy to lose so we still retained it.

I said the Igbo in Ika a few centuries ago is about 20% and maybe a bit higher before the colonials came and that little similarity is what they laid hold on and started teaching our people Igbo.

You pray in central Igbo because you speak and understand it. People in Ika pray in central Igbo not because they speak it but because they were thought in central Igbo and it almost became a norm until the advent of pentecostal churches. They can't even speak or pray on it well. But mostly on church greeds, recital of Bible passages and other recitals. They were thought in Igbo just like the Muslims were thought in Arabic

bigfrancis21:
Could you explain more what you mean by this? I mean give examples?

I've always admitted that Igbo name and Igbo language has been existing in Ika land for a few centuries which suggests there must have been some unrecorded Igbo migration into Ika land. My problem with you guys is making bogus speculations and going to the extent of fabricating and concocting non existing history. We Ika people know our history. You don't come to our land and tell us we're settlers and should vacate our ancestral land. This is the height of insolence. This attitude is the reason Igbo is hated today by every other groups

Back to your question. The percentage of Igbo names and words in Ika is very minimal. It not up to 20% about 3 centuries ago. There are many factors responsible for the encroachment of Igbo language into Ika and one of them is the Colonial masters and Christianity. The Colonial masters imposed Igbo on us - Even the Edos said Igbo and Yoruba was imposed on them though I don't know how it happened. Our ancestors were thought Igbo and Igbo language was used in churches and courts and many other places. Many people today can't pray in Ika language except in Igbo language. Even I can't say "Our Lord's Prayer" in Ika because I was thought that in Igbo. Churches like Catholic, Baptist, Anglican, even Cherubim and many other churches do all their recitals in Igbo and it's the norm to try to pray in Igbo language. Igbo was like the Latin of Ika churches still existing till date.

Another factor is the population of Igbo speakers. Igbos are existing in 5 States and these 5States States have little amount of non Igbos in them. The Igbo States are mostly populated by Igbo people which shows the Igbos have always had a very high population. Inspite of Igbos populating 5 States, there is no where you go to without seeing a high number of Igbos. You guys are everywhere. Some years back when I was in Abuja, I sometimes wonder if Abuja is turning into Igbo land. All the taxi, molue and even El rufai drivers are Igbo. Wherever you go to, they speak Igbo to you as if it's the new lingua franca of Nigeria. If you reply in English, you see a great shock on their face. Same thing with Lagos. Even outside of Nigeria, Igbos are everywhere in large numbers.

And wherever Igbos are large number, they invade and occupy and make that place their home. No intention of going back home. After that, they start looking for ways to rename the place and Igbonize it. If they see for instance, a place called Ife for instance, they wouldn't call it Ife but they will call it a name like Ifeyinwa, and concoct a story of how a certain Ifeyinwa is the founder of that place. And if Igbos are there in large numbers or if this place is close to Igboland, this name and story will stuck wiping away the original name and history. They also do this for people's name and words. I'm talking from experience and observations.

Another way Igbos influence others is the media including movies, and music (especially gospel music) and other means. I can go on and on.

bigfrancis21:
If you claim Edo was the original language, how come you guys now speak Igbo? I want you to give me a cogent reason why you guys now speak Igbo instead of Edo, something that deep down you believe also.

PS: please do not start with the whole Igbo trading mantra. Before the white men came, Igbos were not known to be traders. That concept of Igbos came after British civilization.

You know I replied you based on your logic. Are you aware of that?

Ok. This was my response to your other quote but think this response is kinda appropriate for this as well.

've always admitted that Igbo name and Igbo language has been existing in Ika land for a few centuries which suggests there must have been some unrecorded Igbo migration into Ika land. My problem with you guys is making bogus speculations and going to the extent of fabricating and concocting non existing history. We Ika people know our history. You don't come to our land and tell us we're settlers and should vacate our ancestral land. This is the height of insolence. This attitude is the reason Igbo is hated today by every other groups

Back to your question. The percentage of Igbo names and words in Ika is very minimal. It not up to 20% about 3 centuries ago. There are many factors responsible for the encroachment of Igbo language into Ika and one of them is the Colonial masters and Christianity. The Colonial masters imposed Igbo on us - Even the Edos said Igbo and Yoruba was imposed on them though I don't know how it happened. Our ancestors were thought Igbo and Igbo language was used in churches and courts and many other places. Many people today can't pray in Ika language except in Igbo language. Even I can't say "Our Lord's Prayer" in Ika because I was thought that in Igbo. Churches like Catholic, Baptist, Anglican, even Cherubim and many other churches do all their recitals in Igbo and it's the norm to try to pray in Igbo language. Igbo was like the Latin of Ika churches still existing till date.

Another factor is the population of Igbo speakers. Igbos are existing in 5 States and these 5States States have little amount of non Igbos in them. The Igbo States are mostly populated by Igbo people which shows the Igbos have always had a very high population. Inspite of Igbos populating 5 States, there is no where you go to without seeing a high number of Igbos. You guys are everywhere. Some years back when I was in Abuja, I sometimes wonder if Abuja is turning into Igbo land. All the taxi, molue and even El rufai drivers are Igbo. Wherever you go to, they speak Igbo to you as if it's the new lingua franca of Nigeria. If you reply in English, you see a great shock on their face. Same thing with Lagos. Even outside of Nigeria, Igbos are everywhere in large numbers.

And wherever Igbos are large number, they invade and occupy and make that place their home. No intention of going back home. After that, they start looking for ways to rename the place and Igbonize it. If they see for instance, a place called Ife for instance, they wouldn't call it Ife but they will call it a name like Ifeyinwa, and concoct a story of how a certain Ifeyinwa is the founder of that place. And if Igbos are there in large numbers or if this place is close to Igboland, this name and story will stuck wiping away the original name and history. They also do this for people's name and words. I'm talking from experience and observations.

Another way Igbos influence others is the media including movies, and music (especially gospel music) and other means. I can go on and on.

RedboneSmith:
Hian! He won't even address what I said.

Okay, bye-bye.

Are you just finding out he's lunatic?

Monkeydeychop:
Having a Yoruba name does not make me less edo. Again I'm not an evil person. I'm just against people falsifying my history.

No Ika person has ever tried to tell Esan history. Why are you obsessed with Ika? Who are you to tell Ika Urhobo and other Delta groups who they are? Are we some Bini people that said you are not Edo? Are we some Benin people that said you are descendants of Benin slaves? Why not stand up and face those Binis that call you descendants of slaves instead of facing people that don't have any business with you? You called us Igbos, Urhobos and other Delta groups slaves but this people have never tried to write your history but here you are writing theirs.

RedboneSmith:
Me neither. Although i'll have to admit that I don't know many Esan people one-on-one. A number of other Esan people were airing similar opinions on that Facebook Group, so maybe this guy isn't the only one. Ironically, they all have Yoruba first names.

I didn't see many Esans airing similar opinions except Remi. But the Remi of a guy is more sensible than this guy here. It's possible he's the guy but being mild because it's on Facebook and decided to unleash his venom on a faceless group like nairaland

RedboneSmith:
Okay.Why are you guys angry about a certain Esan person called Nkechi when you and many of your cohorts have Yoruba first names? Isn't that hypocritical?

I

say why is he? In all my interactions with Esans, I've never seen one that acts this way.

RedboneSmith:
Are you the Remi Omoruyi person on that Nigeria Nostalgia page?

Yes he is. I wanted to say it but just didn't want to try any exposure on Nairaland.

Monkeydeychop:
I am on those pages. Ika people are not edo or esan or whatever fantasy they're living in. Even illushi people in esan land bear Igbo names but they are not esan. We esan people see them as settling tribes and that's it. They should not annex themselves into our bible history. They're simply Igbo people who don't know it.

Esan, Afemai and bini are Benin people.

Ika, anioma, etc they are pure igbos. Igbo kwenu!

you're the most confused soul on Nairaland. Now you're not just Edo but Bini? Wow.

pazienza:
So you are the Nosa Edo guy there?

You know, the unexplained total absence of the usual Bini monikers who besieged Western Igbo threads like Bokohalal, Ezotik, Lordbolton and the emergence of this your Cire80 moniker claiming Anioma is not lost on anyone here.
The witch cries in the night and the child dies in the morning, coincidence? I don't think so.

Anyway, Agbontae got murdered on that page, he started off speaking for Anioma, Osita cut him to size, he started claiming that he speaks for only Ika, Osita again cornered him and he started saying that he doesn't care about Ika, that he cared only about Owa, and again Osita cornered him and reminded him of Obi of Owa book where he re emphasized the Nri origin of his ancestors and Agbontae was left throwing shades up and down on Igbodo and Ute Okpu plus other Ika communities, tagging them Aniocha towns in bid to get at Osita who is a native of Igbodo.

You know someone had lost an argument when they leave issues of discuss and focus on ad hominem attacks.

for those who want to see, here is a link to that Facebook page:

https://m./142387942535037?view=permalink&id=1238111869629300

You may think whatever you want. Link me to anybody you like. No problem. But as for Osita and Mgbejiume, they both have beef with each other from way back and wherever they meet, they always have a face off. Nobody cut the other to size. They both argued and fought like babies without making any point. FYI, same way I respect RedboneSmith is same way I respect Osita Mordi. Though I have a different opinion from them some times, I respect the way they present their facts. They're all Anioma brothers and everybody is entitled to their opinion. Except for that encounter with Mgbejiume. That was very childish

pazienza:
The same Nigerian Nostalgic project facebook page where Osita mordi tore the Bini worshiping Mgbejiume known in naira land as Agbontae to shreds?

That's not the point. The reason I mentioned that is because of the monkey that opened this thread. Nobody tore anybody to shreds. They both behaved like cry babies. It's very funny. If that's what you call tear to shreds then I pity you.

cheruv:
This Bini settler still dey regurgitate these lies
Guy, pack your load and start going back to the land of your ancestors before the OmoNoba vex close Abudu border gate
See as Edos don deny you like say you shit for altar

who is Edos? Obviously I know some elements will try to use this thread as a point. If you can't see through the confusion in the mind of the monkey that opened this thread then you're a bigger monkey. And there is no time Ika ever said they are Edo. I've never seen any Ika say that. Ika is Ika. Edo is Edo.

cheruv:
Which Edo language All these Bini settlers self
Edo is the name of a family of similar languages... Bini, Ishan, Kukuruku, Sobo(urhobo/isoko) and Jekri. And ika is surrounded on three sides by Edo languages... So its expected that they'd borrow,but to claim that ika was originally Edo just bkos it provided succor to your ancestors fleeing the Oba's madness is just insane.

now it's obvious you've officially gone nuts. You leave my points and pick just that and reply. If your selective myopia has gotten to such irredeemable stage, please don't ever quote me

PabloAfricanus:
No they can't, have never and will never be able to.
If the criteria for survival during the civil war in Ika land was for one to speak Edo or recite the lists of say the last 20 Oba's of Bini, or even give the the official greetings of any random quarters in the Edo royal family...
You and I both know the Ikas would have been wiped out, as these self acclaimed descendants of Bini "princes" would never have been able to deliver.
The much to be commended silence or rather complete ignoring by the Edo's...is what has given them and their cousins the room to weave historical fabrications without fear of corrections or public shaming.
But then, I think the Igbos should be very wary of these people. A people who can deny themselves and their ancestry with a straight face and with so much shamelessness do not deserve to be taken as kith and kin.
Their inferiority complex will play out sooner or later in either sabotage or gross discrimination.

Owa people still retained the Edo greetings till date. In ancient Edo, every activities has a peculiar greetings for them and they're still retained in Owa and other Ika areas to a lesser extent. As for lists of past Obas, even most Bini people don't know it. And Esans? Don't know it at all lol

Monkeydeychop:
Any Benin person you hear saying Esans are not real edo's tell them to tell you where esan came from even though history shows they were Chiefs and doctors of the Benin empire? Olodo.

You are ika. You are Igbo and you know it. If you like speak edo language, it doesn't make you edo. You are still Igbo descendants. You people should go back to delta state.

go and join Nigeria Nostalgia project - pre Independence Nigeria. It's a Facebook group. Even the major Bini historian, Nosa Uwaila and other Edos said times without number that Esans are not Edo prompting an Esan girl on that group to open a thread on that topic.

You can as well join Edo Political world on Facebook and see how Ika is solidly represented on that group. Stop saying what you don't know. Ekpons are not Ika. They are Esan. They speak Ika but all their cultures are Esans. Ika on the other hand have mostly Bini cultures. And those deities you talked about exist in Ika land. You're the most ignorant person I've ever come across on Facebook. All your comments don't make a single sense. Just expressing emotions instead of trying to make sense.

bigfrancis21:
I understood many of what was said. Honestly at first glance, Ika is basic igbo dialect spoken with edoid pronunciations/inflections. This is possible given that many edoid families and those fleeing the bini empire in the past settled in Ika land several centuries ago. Part of this settlement was cultural acculturation into the environment and learning the language, and for first/initial speakers pronouncing Ika words with edoid inflections would be expected, which over time gave birth to a generation of people speaking Ika with edoid inflections. Another possible bini influence on Ika is the replacement of 'ch' with 'k' which is clearly heard when the singer said 'eki ri ime'/'echi di ime'. However, the basics or the structure of the dialect resembles closely other igbo dialects than bini.

Also, these bini settlers in Ika came with several bini words which were fused into Ika however in recent times Ika dialect generally is dropping off bini words for certain items and adopting or rather 're-adopting' the Igbo equivalents instead.

Ali onye wu ndua...ala onye bu ndu ya? I'm guessing?

you're not being honest here. You're completely biased. Words can easily be borrowed but accent is more difficult to change. We're Ika people, we speak Igbo with an Ika accent and inflections which is Edoid, same way we would speak any other languages with Ika accent.

It's never possible for a migrating group coming to Ika area to influence the way we pronounce words. They can only introduce new words but the new words will be pronounced in the accent of the aboriginal language. If Edos were the latter migrators and settlers, we would only be having many Edo words which would be pronounced in Igbo accent but the reverse is the case here. We have Edo words pronounced with Edo accent and many Igbo words also mostly pronounced with Edo inflections. Which shows Edo language is the original language here.

bigfrancis21:
Dude, please point out or show me where or which Igbo person claimed Esan people are Igbo? If you are sort of angry over Yorubas who confuse Esan with Igbos don't you think you should be educating them instead of pouring out all these hate on Igbos for nothing?

Please, you guys should ignore him. He's so bitter and full of hate that he doesn't even know what to say anymore. If he says Ika is not Edo, fine but going further to say that Itsekiri, a Yoruboid group is closer to Edo than Urhobo/Isoko/Okpe that speak Edoid languages is completely contradictory. If Ika is Igbo because of the closeness in our tongue, how then is Itsekiri Edo? From his logic, Itsekiri should be Yoruba.

PabloAfricanus:
Come on dude,
You can see how ignorant he is
Just imagine his confusion at seeing that Iselle Ukwu king in Edo royal attire and standing before the Oba,
he must have been feeling all warm and cozy at seeing such a warm, original display of Edo history,
only to read his name as Nduka Ezeagwuna
Dude would prolly be like WTF?
I was too, when some friends from Anioma sold me the Edo but Igbo speaking bit,
I too was like WTF
I dug in as an amateur historian and all I could see was...you guess what?
Don't worry, you can help cure his ignorance here.

PS:http://www.royaldiary.com.ng is not an Igbo site as you predictably thought. Its an Ika site
You could point him there to read the finer points of Edo history in Anioma.

you're a joke. What's up with that links you keep on pasting around?

afoobabs:
you are a liar, can you swear in Jesus name on what you just said

I don't swear. And in the name of Jesus? Jesus is not Ogun that you can swear in His name. BTW, that I detest Islam doesn't mean I'm a Christian. But if I should become religious someday, I know which one to choose

Trump doesn't know the meaning of forgiveness. CNN was obviously biased against Trump but I don't think this is the best way to go about it

PabloAfricanus:
@Monkeydeychop

Op really??
What do you mean now?

This guy here disagrees vehemently with you

But Pablo, why are you quoting me along that mad man? Does any of the things he wrote make sense? Even saying Itsekiri is more related to Edo than Urhobos and Isoko is the height of his stupidity. I've seen Benin people that said Esans are not real Edo and this one is here talking trash. Ika is more related to Edo than Itsekiri is. But the Urhobos and Isokos are the most related and this one is here talking trash