₦airaland Forum

Efewestern:
So where do you place the Effik/Ibibio in your debate? I thought we all argue with facts rather than sentiment.

Effik/Ibibio should be the fourth largest ethnic group in Nigeria. They always had the numbers.

Here's an unbiased ranking
1. Efik/Ibibio (98% of Cross River & Akwa Ibom)
2. Edoid (2/4 of Delta State, 95% of Edo state, 10% Bayelsa)
3. ijoid (90% Bayelsa, 1/5 Delta state, 1/4 Rivers State, 2% Edo)
3. igboid (1/4 Delta, 2/3 Rivers, 2%Edo)


what in the world does edoid mean.....bini people are limited to edo state na!

If you want to argue further, we can start to referencing population census from the 50's.

Modified: I attached the population census of Bendel (Delta). Urhobo/Isoko (Edoid) - 42%
Igboid - 30%
Ijaw - 15%
Itsekiri - 10%. Please note that I didn't take account of the Urhobo communities in Western Ijo territories and Warri. Also didn't include Isoko population in Ukwuani. This is for Delta state. In Edo state, Edoid group occupied over 95% of the population.

The only state the Igboid group are majority, is Rivers. Meanwhile the Edoid dominate two states (Edo & Delta with significant population in Bayelsa & Rivers).

In Cross River and Akwa Ibom, the Effik/Ibibio occupy these states completely, giving them the clear lead.

The Ijaws are found in every states but only command numbers in Delta, Bayelsa and Rivers. There's no way they can surpass the Edoid group in strength.

Cc: Ologbo147.

Efewestern:
Unlike you, I debate with fact. The Edoid completely cancelled Igboid group in Delta. In Edo, the Edoid reign supreme. As at 1967, Edoid had a population of 1+ million in Edo. What's the population in Rivers, and how many of these population belongs to the Igboid group?

Efewestern:
I was even wrong according 5% to these non-Edoid groups. They should be far far less. The Itsekiri/Ijaw population are too minute to amount any significant population.

The situation in Edo is similar to most states in Nigeria. In Ondo for example, there are Edoid and Ijoid groups, but the Yoruboid are over 90%. In Anambra, there is Igala population. But somehow, these non-groups are ignored when numbers are counted but in the case of Edo, minute groups always want to be mentioned in a bid to push falsehood.

BeninRefugees:
there are no Edoid people in Delta State now

afube:
what in the world does edoid mean.....bini people are limited to edo state na!

Efewestern:
What do you mean by there are not Edoid groups in Delta State?

Efewestern:
Edoid - A group of people who speak variants of the Edo language and share common ancestry (most) and culture.

Bini - A tribe belonging to the Edoid group.

Edo State - A place many believe is the origin of the Edoid people.

So all groups I mentioned fall into the Edoid group. Same way you lump Itsekiri and Ilaje as Yoruboid or Ika & Ikwerre as Igboid... It's the same way groups who speak similar variants of the Edo language are called Edoid groups and they are found mostly in Delta, Edo and Bayelsa (Minority).

Please note, Bini is not the same as Edoid. They are a branch of the family, same as Esan, Isoko etc. So don't get confused.

Ologbo147:
pay no heed to those ones who are not educated enough to know that Urhobo and Isoko are Edoid groups, even Degema, Engenni , Epie-atissa are all Edoid groups even linguistically even if the last three identify as Ijaw.


Avoid the last one call Beninrefugee, he is empty, seem like one that will never learn or take correction and is out to derail the thread

Efewestern:
So where do you place the Effik/Ibibio in your debate? I thought we all argue with facts rather than sentiment.

Effik/Ibibio should be the fourth largest ethnic group in Nigeria. They always had the numbers.

Here's an unbiased ranking
1. Efik/Ibibio (98% of Cross River & Akwa Ibom)
2. Edoid (2/4 of Delta State, 95% of Edo state, 10% Bayelsa)
3. ijoid (90% Bayelsa, 1/5 Delta state, 1/4 Rivers State, 2% Edo)
3. igboid (1/4 Delta, 2/3 Rivers, 2%Edo)

If you want to argue further, we can start to referencing population census from the 50's.

Modified: I attached the population census of Bendel (Delta). Urhobo/Isoko (Edoid) - 42%
Igboid - 30%
Ijaw - 15%
Itsekiri - 10%. Please note that I didn't take account of the Urhobo communities in Western Ijo territories and Warri. Also didn't include Isoko population in Ndokwa. This is for Delta state. In Edo state, Edoid group occupied over 95% of the population.

The only state the Igboid group are majority, is Rivers. Meanwhile the Edoid dominate two states (Edo & Delta with significant population in Bayelsa & Rivers).

In Cross River and Akwa Ibom, the Effik/Ibibio occupy these states completely, giving them the clear lead.

The Ijaws are found in every states but only command numbers in Delta, Bayelsa and Rivers. There's no way they can surpass the Edoid group in strength.

Cc: Ologbo147.

Yujin:
Your analysis is wrong and I say it was tainted by bias.
Let us start with the percentage you gave Anioma from the table you provided.
Urhobo alone was 32.85%
Anioma was 33%
Urhobo and Isoko was 41.81%.
However, your analysis brought Anioma down to 30% and you concluded by ascribing 1/4th population of Delta for them. That's a huge error that can only be blamed on bias.

As for the total population of the Igboid, Edoid and Efik /Ibibio as to who among them is this largest in the SS, I'm still compiling to bring something closest to the most accurate data. I don't just throw statistics around because it can easily be debunked. You'll notice that I never mentioned the Ijaw because clearly they're not close to the largest in anyway. Even if you use the word Ijoid like you use for the Igboid and Edoid, Ijoid is still a distant fourth and I'll prove it.
Visit this link and see Bayelsa state ethnic composition. The Ijaws and Ijoids in the state are not more than 65%. Bayelsa is mostly Ijoid, followed by Cross River language group of languages, then Edoid (Urhobo/Isoko) and finally Igboid(Ekpeye and Ukwuani).
https://www.nairaland.com/6885475/ethnic-diversity-bayelsa-state

Efewestern:
Warri Population is obviously not added in your calculation. Or you don't know the ethnic groups that occupied the Warri province in the 60's and even till now? Even if the Urhobos in Warri was 15% of the population (Which is not possible, because majority of Warri province population was in present day Warri South LG that is heavily shared between Urhobo & Itsekiri). If I'm to add the Urhobo population in Patani & Bomadi, then the Urhobos should be nothing less than 38% of the entire population. Also, I left 5% uncounted for, giving rooms for any slack.

Again, you are bias to not see the falsehood some people are trying to push. There's no way anyone can challenge the population strength of the Effik/Ibibio folks. My only problem with them is that they don't know the strength they have. After the Effik, you have the Edoids that completely dominate two states.

Then you also have the Ijaws whose population in Delta alone covered that of Ndokwa & Ndoshimili together, and Itsekiri (from their population in Warri Province). The Ijaws are also the lead majority in Bayelsa and the Edoid numbers can't be more than 10% of the population.

Without even debating, you know it's a lie to say Igboid are the biggest group in a region with far more dominating groups.

Yujin:
Are you claiming that the population given in that table wasn't an ethnic one but rather the general population of the division? I disagree with you on that because if it was so, they would have stated it. Warri was used specifically for the Itsekiris but the populations of other ethnic groups there(in Warri) were pushed into their home divisions. That is why there wasn't any room for overlapping ethnic populations in other divisions. No division even at that time was without migrants. This is how you will know. Compare Itsekiri population with Isoko population at the time and today. It still tallies.
Urhobo and Isoko= 41.81%
Anioma = 33%
Ijaw = 15.48%
Itsekiri = 9.69%

Why did you reduce Anioma's population from 33% to 30% and even went further to decrease it to 1/4th(25%) if not because of bias? I just wanted to set the analysis straight based on the data you uploaded. Published stats are produced without ambiguity to guard against guessing just like you did because they'll be used by the government for planning purposes.

I didn't state that I supported the claim of Igbo being the largest in the SS but the argument can be made due to some factual circumstances. I will leave it for now.

My conclusion on the former post was that the contention for the largest is between the Igboid, Ibibiod and Edoid.

The Ijoid isn't even close and I sent you a link for you to peruse and infer somethings about the Ijoid population. You will infer from their that hardly will you find any state where whole Ijoid population is up to 2.5 million. Not even in Bayelsa that they are in the majority. This puts the Ijoid total population to be below 5 million. Counter it with facts if you must.

Now, the Efik-Ibibio-Anaang(Ibibiod) population after my research is almost at 6-6.5million. Notice I didn't add the Oron, Ibeno and Eastern Obolo languages. If I added them, they will be the clear majority in the SS. I did so because of political reasons and language intelligibility.
The Edoid number about 5.5-6million but language intelligibilty is their greatest weakness and it will always show. It's either the Bini and Esan hold up the Edoid or the Urhobo and Isoko do so but they'll won't be able to hold it up. Here's a single fact; there's no single umbrella body for Edoid people. The same problem the Ibibiods have. I'll leave you to conclude this for yourself.

BeninRefugees:
there are no Edoid people in Delta State now

but there are Igboid in Edo State and as well as Delta State which gives us

there was a huge population explosion after the war

in Rivers state Igboid groups are the majority

there are Igboid groups in some part of Benue and Akwa ibom Ebonyi boundary

again your census nailed you