₦airaland Forum

We've all borrowed some parts of our collective traditions from each other, and even from our non-Igbo neighbors. Nobody is disputing Nri influence at some point, in SOME parts of Igbo land. But there is really no evidence that much of what is Igbo tradition originated in Nri as some are claiming. Just because something was practiced in Nri does not mean other Igbos were not practicing it before them. There are certain things that Nri exported to other areas, but to sit here and think that it is a one way street with Nri 'TUTORING' other Igbos IS JUST CONDESCENDING. Surely, they learnt from other Igbos that they were in contact with. There is no evidence that the Ala deity started in Nri, or even the four market days,,,,,,they might have exported it to Benin(which the binis dispute) or Igala, but it does not mean they founded the practice in Igboland.

Come o, some of these yoruba folks must be suffering from small p.enis syndrome, how can someone be so intimidated by another group of people that you lay siege online, looking for every opportunity to bad-mouth them. I really pity the afflicted.

Noisemakers, OPC aint doing squat.

@ChinenyeN, I also doubt that Ngwa descended from Arochukwu , but I have heard that theory a few times, hence I said "might". Maybe the Aro groups got to owerri after the Ngwa had left. But, the migration from the owerri axis, across the Imo river, before settling at Okpulor Ngwa (Okpualangwa), is widely accepted among Ngwa. If there is another version of Ngwa history, I would like to hear it.

Abeg, lets celebrate the fact that someone, somewhere, had the foresight to acknowledge Igbo civilization. Besides, my grandfather in Isialangwa remains the most important cultural figure in all of Igbo land!!!!!!!!!  Ok, he is not.
  It is amazing to see an Ngwa and Aro uniting to dispute the extent of Nri authority or influence in Igbo land. Ngwa and the Aro Confederacy were mortal enemies, with the Ngwa throwing her full weight behind the British when it invaded Arochukwu. But that is history for you, it is murky, and your enemy today might be your ally in the future. The Ngwa were very fierce and were NOT under the authority of the Aro, but somehow they were very welcoming to the Aros, before the conflicts that were brought about by Aro involvement in the slave trade. Prior to that, Aros were pretty much the only outsiders the Ngwas allowed to live in their midst, i.e within the villages. The Aros that settled at AroNgwa were allowed to do so with the promise that they would never go back to Arochukwu. Aros were always merchants, even before the slave trade, and traveled all over what is the current south-east and south-south zones.
    On the other hand, we can't be dismissive of the Nri influence in Igbo land. As earlier stated, history can get murky, and given how long Igbos have been in their present location, this history that was passed on by oral tradition, is especially difficult to navigate. However, if most that have painstakingly studied this history at an academic level allude to some widespread Nri influence, then there must be some truth to it. All Igbos share a significant amount of cultural similarities, so we are either the same people or some group(s) imparted these customs on others. All Igbo groups see much of  Omelala as the authentic traditions of their fathers, and can also identify the practices that they have borrowed from external influences. So, I am inclined to believe that we are the same people. Does this make Nri the progenitors of much of what is regarded as Omelala, I do not believe so. But at some point, their philosophy was highly regarded in much of Igbo land and Nri emerged as a spiritual and cultural epicenter, with its priests being sought after in such matters. Likewise, Arochukwu with Ibini Ukpabi had its era of great influence in much of Igbo land and beyond, and the Igwe ka Ala deity of Umunneoha had its reign too, as a few others did too.
   Now, I believe Chinenye stated that there is no evidence of Nri influence in Ngwa land, which might be true of the current location of the Ngwa. But Ngwas were part of a group that left from the Owerri areas and made an eastward push. Could they have been exposed to Nri influence at their former location? Maybe or maybe not as I doubt anyone is certain of the timeline in which they left Owerri, or if Nri influence even got to this area. On the other hand, it is understood that many of the people that had settled at Owerri were from Arochukwu, so the Ngwa that later had conflicts with the Aro empire might have left Arochukwu long ago before settling around Owerri and then moving to their present location. Like I said, it gets murky.

This is an excellent development that might help curb some of the tribalism in Nigeria, as people realize that the person you hate b'cos of his ethnicity, might actually be more related to you than the person you are colluding with. I'm not surprised that all the tribalists that call nairaland home are incensed by this development.

hmmmm,,,,,I would vote for her. Is there a better candidate? None that I can think of. We've tried all kinds of stupid, and retarded men. Lets try a very intelligent woman for a change!!!!!

I'm not familiar with the Negro_Ntns character, so I can't conclude if this post is out of genuine concern or just another Igbo bashing post. In any case, I've never understood this Igbo phobia that runs rampant with some of our minority neighbors. One hardly sees Igbos taking an aggressive stance with any of the southern minority groups, and Igbos would have given the same support they gave to Jonathan, to another individual from any of the southern minority groups, given the same circumstances.
   My belief is that most of these groups made a conscious effort to dissociate themselves from the Igbo after the civil war, and I cannot say that I blame them for doing for doing so. Now, if this arrangement is not working out as expected, do not turn around to accuse the Igbo of high-handedness, trying to dominate you or refusing to negotiate. How many times, even on this forum, would Igbos extend a hand in friendship only to be met by a people that want nothing to do with us. Negotiation is a two way street. Even when Igbos have attempted to initiate some negotiation, we are accused of meddling, with intent to dominate.
    Anybody that wants to negotiate can come forth and meet us halfway(where we have always been), just like the Ijaw did when they needed our support for GEJ and suddenly realized we were their brothers. Quite funny. That is the much we can do, we are NOT your enemy in any sense, but one cannot forge an alliance where there is no reciprocity.

Never cared much for Reuben Abati. There was always something disingenuous about the crap he writes.

@icez, I totally agree. That was borderline racism by that woman on ESPN. She complained about every single thing the Nigerians did. It was a show of shame.

Bia Ezeuche, kedu ihe gi na nwa mmuo a na ezuzu ebe a ?

How can sane minds advocate for the eradication of our colorful dialects. That's just nonsense. Most Igbos have very strong affiliations to their respective clans, it does not diminish ones Igboness. To the best of my knowledge, the idea of a cohessive Igbo identity and even referring to oneself as 'Igbo' may not be as old as we may want to believe, but circumstances have mandated that we close ranks and forge a common identity, which is the natural and right thing to do. Some early European scholars observed that many Igbo clans referred to other Igbo speakers as Igbos, while exempting themselves from this term. I believe the Onitsha Igbos continued this practice longer than most.
     I am not saying this to sow a seed of discord or create disunity among the Igbo, because that is the last thing we need. We are one, but there has always been a significant uniqueness and sub-identity to every Igbo clan, which we have always recognized, respected and even celebrated. I reckon that Igbo in its richest and purest  form is attainable when spoken in the pure dialects, and contrary to what some may say, losing these dialects may accelerate the diminution of the Igbo language altogether. Sure, the so-called central Igbo has its usefulness too;  Igbo literature and mass media should benefits from this as a wider audience is reached. Besides, I am not opposed to diluting my Okwu Ngwa to accomodate a non-Ngwa in conversation,  as most Igbos would do in such circumstances anyway.

I see a lot of Igbo girls here, like 2/3 of the list. Not bad.

Obasanjo, stop all this your ranting. You are undoubtedly the biggest thief in this country's history. Shut up and let reasonable people talk. Don't you have a daughter-in-law to sleep with or something?

Oops, had Enyeama on my list. Definitely one of my favorite active players( along with Ike Uche), but he is not an ex-player yet.

had many favorites oh:
-JJ Magic (Okocha) - Started off as an over-dribbler, but found a balance that made him a fan favorite as well as a terror to all Eagles' opponents. The real fun started when Nigeria was comfortably up,, then JJ unleashed his bag of tricks on all helpless foes.

- Amunike- never stopped attacking down that left flank from the first whistle to the end of the match. My goodness, all the man ever wanted to do in life was terrorize defenders from that left wing. A perfect blend of tenacity, speed, powerful shots and crosses, we are yet to find any left winger remotely close to this dazzler.

- Sunday Oliseh- Such a quality player, would have put him up there with anybody playing the same position in the world, at his prime. What did he not do for the Eagles, pretty much the engine that ran the team. Passes, shots, tackles,, in short, Sunny dey ball.

- Rashidi Yekini- We probably under-appreciated this guy. Not as flashy as the Kanu's and Okocha's etc, but the guy was a finisher by all standards. Armed with powerful shots and the much needed sense of positioning, which every world class finisher must have,  Yekini came through on many occasions.

- Kanu Nwankwo - Papillo! His deft touch on the ball, his sleeky moves, his passes, his superior football IQ, quickly endeared him to the hearts of Eagles fans everywhere. He led the way in Japan 93' and also in Atlanta 96'. That second goal against Brazil still stands as one of the most glorious moments I have ever witnessed in Nigerian football.

- Finidi George- Hey! Dude was smooth, no wasted motion. When he beat u, he disposed u, and you didn't even have a chance to foul him. I can hardly remember anytime this guy messed up on the pitch, I'm sure he did, but it so rarely happened cos' I can't recollect any such occassions. Once thought of as the best right winger in the world!!!! Can't say that for many Nigerian players.

Other favorites of mine include; Uche Okechukwu, Victor Ikpeba, Ben Iroha, Celestine Babayaro, Vincent Enyeama, Julius Aghahowa, Daniel Amokachi, Sam Okwaraji, Samson Siasia. My apologies to the old-old schoolers, I didn't get to see u guys play.

Sharia law works well for this kind of problems . Jokes aside, its a psychological issue and a serious one at that. Was it not Winona Ryder, a huge hollywood star with no shortage of money, that was going around shoplifting from stores in Beverly hills.

@heavy G, Bro go after your ex with all you've got, no matter how slim the chances are, even if she does not agree to get back with you, at least you would be able to live with yourself, knowing that you tried all you could to revive the relationship. I'm not familiar with the background story and what led to the break up, but if the love u had for each other is anything like the picture u have painted, then she just might have a spot reserved for u in her heart. Hurry dude!

Yep, I agree on this one. Abacha would have destroyed both 'boko' and 'haram' in less than a week. Abacha wouldn't want the unnecessary attention that this could attract from the western world.

Just as many Yorubas as Igbos in places like Zaria, Kd and Jos. How can you guys question why southerners should even live and work in the north. These people are there for economic reasons, not for vacations. Just the same way northerners have a significant population in most southern cities. These rampaging fools would have won the day southerners cannot take advantage of economic opportunities in the north, while northerners can freely engage in their business activities in the south. Something has to give, but time shall tell exactly what gives.

Pornodude is a b.a,stard, choke on a di.ck. All u petty traders that sit in Aba and rain insults on the Ngwa people that were grateful enough to welcome u in their midst, are going to get what you have been asking for one of these days. U think you are special because every christmas you all climb into those lorries like sardines and go back to those hills and caves you come from, I don't have an iota of respect for any i.diot that thinks he can emerge from no where to insult my folks. All that mature politics that our fathers tried to play with u people is about to be over, because half human beings like you are beginning to mistake us for cowards.  An Ngwa individual is bound to emerge as governor in 2015, at which point you can go ahead and commit suicide!!!
     To all the reasonable Igbo folks here, I apologize for my outburst, but I cant stand such imbeciles.

Yeah, I've noticed this attitude coming from SOME Ethiopians and Somalis, its laughable to me. Even in college, the Ethiopians broke away from the African Students Association (ASA) to form the ESA. Personally, I remind them that just because they came to America on refugee status, does not mean that they can mouth off to me, and I close by reminding them that we fed them and sent them aid throughout the 90's when they were starving. That usually does the trick.

- Ok, we (Abians) don't need anyones's pity. Try fixing your own wretched states before you come to ridicule us with your pity.

- Yes, there wasn't really a concerted Ngwa opposition to Orji this time around. Most of the Ngwa political elite are in the PDP as well, and the only other option would have been to tear the party apart, as the party had naturally given Orji the nomination for a second term. The people had spent so much resources on battling Uzor Kalu, that they aren't quite as willing to jump in every seemingly fruitless fight. Moreover, since it would take a supernatural act not to have an Ngwa indigene emerge the next governor after Orji, I think most of the eligible Ngwa have their sites set on 2015.

- In the very least, we have rid ourselves of the colossal evil known as Orji Uzor Kalu. Most people outside the state do not appreciate the ridiculous extent of devilishness in this Kalu character, an individual that introduced ritualism and occult practices into every fabric of governance. Even council men in LGAs were made to take oaths of allegiance, as I heard from a first person account. Kalu underperformed like many other governors in Nigeria, but his ruthlessness, the stench of his voodoo practices, and the fact that he and his mother had their tentacles in every single facet of government, just crippled the state.

- The 'hope' is that T.A Orji, having finally rid himself of the Kalu burden, can get to work and find some redemption in the sight of the common Abian. I would NOT hold my breath on this.

Anybody chiding GEJ for this statement is a FOOL. The military is already on the ground trying to curtail the situation.

Sad news, I remember this lad from the youth championships, RIP bro.

I see some silly person on this thread trying to make this an Hausa vs Igbo fight 'again'. Pity, some people would be in denial even if somebody walked up and slapped their mothers right in front of them. The rioting northerner has never had the patience to select who is Ibo or not, out of the crowd, quite frankly, he doesn't know which is which. They go after Igbo, Yoruba, Ijaw, Efik, Ibibio, Edo and whichever non-hausa muslim they can get their hands on, heck they have killed Yoruba muslims too. The Igbos usually present the strongest resistance to them, so it comes off as Igbo vs Hausa, but no matter how much we deny it, the northerners riot and seek to kill any southerner in sight. I lived in Zaria for years, and this is what I observed.

@owobokiri, you are very smart fellow and you have said it all. Like everything else on nairaland, this thread quickly degenerated to inter-ethnic name calling and insults, but that was hardly the goal of this post. In supporting GEJ, Ndigbo might have even delayed their own aspirations for the office of the presidency. The opposition to GEJ tried to dangle this fact above the heads of Ndigbo, but we were unrelenting in our support for GEJ. Ndigbo care more for equality and due process in Nigeria, than the symbolism of the office of the president, because we are certain that we can hold our own in a level playing field. For so long Ndigbo have been telling our brothers in the SS that we are not their problem in Nigeria, and have been yearning for a chance to show them so.
   In all ramifications, it is good that the SS which provides so much of the nation's wealth has finally being given a chance at the leadership of this country, and Ndigbo are overjoyed at this development, as all Nigerians should be.

@aletheia, very good job indeed. It is not easy to SHUT UP the resident morons of nairaland. As they admitted, they are stubborn and would not submit to superior logic, just for the sake of having the last word. I've sen these fools capsize the truth, and infuse their ignorance into every thread, today sha, dem jam rock!!!!!!  

LOL, all na lie, these are the same idiotic lot that never liked Dora or anything Igbo, for that matter, coming here to pretend as if they are so concerned about the Anambra votes. U baboons only care to see ur ACN expand into other areas, type away all you want, u are only fooling yourselves. Don't u idiots ever get tired of running ur mouths

Nigerians won't give credit where credit is due, yet they claim they want change from the old ways. Truth is, some of you really don't want change. Kudos to Goodluck  Jonathan  for organizing one of the fairest elections we've seen in a long time. In the decadent state of Nigeria, this is not easy to achieve in less than a year in office.

Una too funny, abeg the Pastor spoke the truth so now he's a mad man. Are u guys more informed than him about what transpired between ACN and CPC? He's going on what he knows and you noise makers are spouting information based on rumors. Pastor please say the truth and shame the devil!!!!!!!!!!!!