₦airaland Forum

Since you are Ashanti, have you told your boyfriend, that in case both of you get married and have kids, there is the probability that the kids would hail from your side, and not his side? I am aware that your Ashanti culture confers the mother's heritage (and not the father's) on the children. Please educate us, if this practise is still widely practised.

How can you be cyberbullied by a nameless, faceless person? Why even let such stuff bother you?

For women, married to foreign spouses, it isn't a big deal, but for men, it is a conundrum, when your child, explicitly proclaims "I am an American". You may feel a sense of betrayal, because of our paternalistic culture that automatically confers the father's heritage on the child, to be passed on to the future generation. While some parents have attempted to instill in their kids, the essence of our culture, by reminding them of their Nigerian roots, by taking them to ethnic meetings, conversing with them in their local dialects, and introducing them into our ethnic dishes, all these are not the sole determining factors in influencing a child's world's views on their heritage.

I was confounded when my cousin told me that she is an American. Her parents are from Nigeria, but the girl has made a resolute effort to distance herself from her Nigerian heritage, almost to the point of a disavowal. No big deal, she is a woman, so when signs the dotted lines, her marital life, would take precedence in her life. But for the boys who would later on become adult males, what is their stance? A generation lost from their father land, because of America? The sweat of their ancestors in establishing roots in a certain village, long erased in their memory. The ancestral home in the village, overtaken by pests, the oral history of the village, long forgotten by future generations. And you wonder, what can be done to inculculate our culture in our future generation? Do we just fold our hands and give up, the gradual erosion of our heritage? Our presence (meaning this generation) in America, may perhaps be the last link between Nigerian culture and the Western world.

I live in the south bay area. How many of us on Nairaland live in the bay area?

How much is a 3 bedroom, 2 bath house in Buckhead, Atlanta? How do you calculate the property taxes? In California and MD, it is 1% of your property's value, I think.

@Chimegba, I live in Santa Clara county. Do you?

The problem with some women, is that the lure of materialism has blinded them into relationships that are toxic. Scram, before it is too late.

Do your homework first, before investing in Nigeria. Sure, it is my country, but I'll be deceiving you, if I tell you that all is dandy in the country. While there are opportunities to operate a small scale industry, I would have to remind you to do a feasibility study of the place that you intend operating your biz. I am certain that there are some companies that deal with toiletries, so, for a newbie, you might face stiff competition. Instead of investing in Lagos, that may be saturated with such business ventures, you could try a different locale that lacks the presence of such corporations. In that case, you will be "Omo" in the area.

Best wishes.

Look before you leap. Dont join that group. Some of the sales consultants have written their life experiences on blogs. Google it, and also look for more information on Mary Kay on Wikipedia.

Chei, some Nigerians never change. Always measuring up people's status by their appearances.

This adage rings true. East or West, Home is the best.

Girlfriend, you are in an emotionally abusive relationship, and your boyfriend is only trying to quiet you, with his constant pampering of money and all other material stuff. My advice it to quickly cut him loose, before this toxic relationship descends into physical abuse. No amount of money would be able to erase the traumatic episode.

Read this Biblical verse: Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death. Proverbs 11:4

Selling oneself on Nairaland? Are you kidding? I mean, which employer, in their right mind, would scout for prospective job applicants on a Nigerian blog, when there are other avenues like the classifieds? Seriously, would you@the poster? This is a Nigerian board, and people should be free to express themselves in whatsoever language, be it pidgin or correct English. As long as their discourse is understandable, that should not pose a problem.

I almost drowned in the river during my first year in secondary school at Obot Idim. My angel was Ita Oku, a senior student at the institution. I wish I could meet him once again to express my sincere thanks for what he did for me. Honestly, I have met very nice and caring people in my life.

To Ita Oku, whereever you are in this world, May God Bless you with His Salvation in the Name of Jesus Christ, Amen. There is no greater gift than God's Salvation.

Bossman, thanks for the info. Very cheap. Hmmm, could I just fly to Nigeria on a whim if it was 800 dollars?

No, don't lie, it is morally wrong. Hope in God and He will bless you with a good job.

Nuzo, away with that tradition of not recognizing you if you do not perform the ritual in the traditional manner. How can the leaders of the land, reject one's marital status because it was not conducted in the traditional manner? The Church's ruling overrules their decision, because it was performed in God's House, not in a land, that would pay obeisance to ancestral spirits, thus putting the couple in bondage.

How much is it from California to Nigeria@promise? You would be hard pressed to find cheap tickets, under 1500 dollars, because California is not geographically close (compared to NY and other east coast states) to Nigeria.

Uyai, our people are experts at pretending not to speak Ibibio. Once, while I was speaking our Ibibio dialect in the confines of my place, my then neighbour's girlfriend, overheard me, and she, also an Ibibio woman, wondered why I was speaking that bush language. No, I am not kidding you. I wasnt surprised when my friend, who overheard her, told me. Our people have that mentality that our dialect should possibly be erased for the Queen's language. While the Mexicans, Viet, Chinese and other nationalities are keen on preserving their language, ours is to call for a permanent dissolution of our dialect for the sake of English language.

I want to meet Jesus Christ when I go to Heaven, and just ask him of His Love for me and Mankind. That day would be a Glorious day when all the saints gather in His Presence.

Famous Five. I liked the show and used to read Enid Blyton.

Cock Crow at Dawn with Zamaye and Bitrus.

Hammer House of Horror

Lots of others shows. I can recall watching "Hammer house of horror", friday night at 11:15 pm, after the nightly news in Calabar. Terror, horror, dang, it was scary. The following morning, my friends and I would sit down to gist on the previous movies that we had watched at night time. Chips was shown on Saturday. That day, the compound is devoid of rambunctious kids, as we have crept back home to watch the show. Memories indeed.

Interesting.

Even in America, as far back as the 90's, some banks were charging their clients, for fees from their checking account. However, you could avoid those charges if you had more than the minimum that they required in your checking account. I am not so sure on how much it was, could have been like 5 dollars a month or thereabout. So, that biz concept is creeping into the Nigerian banking industry? Na wao!!!.

Naija4ever, Khaki no be leather. That is a funny expression that I have not heard in a very long time.

Yeah, but not at the detriment of your local dialect. I live in California, and during elections, there are certain languages, like Viet and I think, Spanish that are included in that box, for some folks who can't speak English Language. It is quite worrisome that these languages are given priority over other ethnic group, but as they say, "There is strength in numbers". Quite ironic, I read an article about a Chinese man, who operates a restaurant in Chinatown in San Francisco. His restaurant is well regarded for its meals, but the man and his children have little knowledge of the Queen's language. Is it not ironic, that back home, some of our people try to feel among by speaking English first, or terming their own dialect as "bush"? If the Chinese, Japanese, Mexican, in this era of globalization, are keen on preserving their language, why do we resort to weak excuses that perhaps, we ought to abandon ours for the Queen's language? Already, Chinese Mandarin is quite booming in my neck of the wood, with some companies establishing a presence in China for business reasons.


@spoilt, I reside in one of the suburbs of San Jose, South bay area.

My dear, if there is any group of people that shun their native dialect, my people, the Ibibios, would be a contender. Never have I witnessed the complex, some of them develop, when their dialect is spoken. Some could go so far to deny their heritage, or come up with a weak defense that they don't know how to speak the dialect. I went to Uniuyo, and it was always funny, that folks, who would yarn yoruba, pidgin, etc, would all of a sudden, queue up for bursary awards. For those who missed out on their cultural language, it is never too late to learn the language. The English man has his language, likewise, the Japanese, Indian, Korean, and some other nationalities. Cant we care for the preservation of our own dialect? Must we look up to the West even in communicating with one another?

Presidential candidates of the islamic faith are seeking out the advice of pastors in Naija, that tells you what? Would candidates, affiliated with Christianity seek the services of imams? I dont know, it may or may not happen, but this move, only reinforces the desperation and desires some people harbor for power.

Naijafresh, thanks for the information/clarification. Then, I am better off, investing out here. I used to think the savings rate back home was attractive, apparently, you just changed my mind on that, so investing in it, is not worth my while. A place that I am quite keen on exploring is the stock market back home. Wall Street has been volatile, lately, with the crisis in the housing market, but on a safer bet, mutual funds, are less riskier than investing in the stock market, with better returns/yields than the rate offered at some financial institutions. It is ridiculously low.

Polygamy breeds problems in today's society. It is hard enough for siblings to get along, sometimes, so factor in the stress involved in dividing your father's property, in the face of insults thrown at one another's mother. All for what reason? It is not worth it.

4play, thank you. Nkrumah was a despot who plunged the country into financial quagmire, with his huge elephant projects. Why was he overthrown if he was a good man? When he was deposed, Ghanians were so happy, that there was jubilation in certain parts of the country. He does not deserve the honor bestowed on him, simply because he was instrumental in the independence of Ghana. Nope, don't care for him, one bit. He was a dictator. Moreso, there was this cult of personality that he had developed, in Ghana, along with the likes of Sellaise and Kaunda, so they were bad news.

The person that I admired the most was the late Burkinabe leader, Thomas Sankara. He had the qualities of a true leader. May his soul rest in peace, in the Name of Jesus Christ, Amen. He advocated for the rights of women, by banning female circumcision. Shunning luxury, he was squired/or drove in his Renault car.

If it is the Will of God, I will visit Tinapa, on my next trip to Naija.