₦airaland Forum

Can someone clarify for me the historic difference between Calabar and Kalabari in terms of European settlement? Was "Kalabari" a term given to the people in Rivers State before europeans settled in "Calabar" near Cameroon? Were the Efik in "Calabar" before the "Kalabari"?

diagetus:
Can someone clarify for me the historic difference between Calabar and Kalabari in terms of European settlement? Was "Kalabari" a term given to the people in Rivers State before europeans settled in "Calabar" near Cameroon? Were the Efik in "Calabar" before the "Kalabari"?

the term kalabari was used by the colonial masters to describe a coastal area in Rivers state. Kalabari literally means "New Calabar" it was given so because Calabar was a popular settlement for the Englishmen.

Thank you for the reply sageb!

So there is no historic ethnic tie between the Efik in Calabar and the Kalabari (Ijo) people?

Kalabari Ijaws were the original aborigines of what is known as Calabar today.

The Portuguese met the Kalabari natives in the town when they arrived around 1473.

It was from Kalabari that the Portuguese derived the term Calabar, It was when the Kalabari natives led by Opukoroye moved back to Elem Kalabari that Elem Kalabari became known as NEW CALABAR (from the Portuguese term Nova Calabari).

The current efik people in Calabar do not even know the origin of the term Calabar. When the Obong of Calabar was interviewed, he claim that Calabar is of Portuguese origin, meanwhile the Portuguese records show clearly they met Ijaw people led by Opukoroye in Calabar.

I have read 'traditions' of historical kinship link between the Efik of Calabar and the Kalabari. I'm skeptical of those traditions however; they appear to me to be an attempt to explain the name similarity.

It seems that the Kalabari people were the original owners of the name before it was applied (perhaps in error) by the European slave traders to the Efik city of Calabar.

How the original owners of the name came to be called 'New Calabar' and the latter-day acquirers 'Old Calabar' is what I can't explain.

ijawcitizen:
Kalabari Ijaws were the original aborigines of what is known as Calabar today.

The Portuguese met the Kalabari natives in the town when they arrived around 1473.

It was from Kalabari that the Portuguese derived the term Calabar, It was when the Kalabari natives led by Opukoroye moved back to Elem Kalabari that Elem Kalabari became known as NEW CALABAR (from the Portuguese term Nova Calabari).

The current efik people in Calabar do not even know the origin of the term Calabar. When the Obong of Calabar was interviewed, he claim that Calabar is of Portuguese origin, meanwhile the Portuguese records show clearly they met Ijaw people led by Opukoroye in Calabar.

Show us the Portuguese records

Logan23:
Show us the Portuguese records

Lazy goat, go and get it yourself.

ijawcitizen:
Lazy goat, go and get it yourself.

.

Normal Afonja tonye B.


Spewing absolute lies n falsehood upandan without any proof.

ijawcitizen:
Kalabari Ijaws were the original aborigines of what is known as Calabar today.

The Portuguese met the Kalabari natives in the town when they arrived around 1473.

It was from Kalabari that the Portuguese derived the term Calabar, It was when the Kalabari natives led by Opukoroye moved back to Elem Kalabari that Elem Kalabari became known as NEW CALABAR (from the Portuguese term Nova Calabari).

The current efik people in Calabar do not even know the origin of the term Calabar. When the Obong of Calabar was interviewed, he claim that Calabar is of Portuguese origin, meanwhile the Portuguese records show clearly they met Ijaw people led by Opukoroye in Calabar.

Calabar, Just like lagos are 2 Portuguese words, Calabar in Portuguese means *Calm waters* and the Portuguese named the location called calabar to day by that name because wen they arrived, the water was calm. Calabar is also a name answered by portuguese people from ancient times, up till this day. I dont expect a treacherous Afonja to know this fact.

Quit the stupidity, kalabari has nothing to do with calabar.


If u are well read, u would have heard of the rascal free spirit called Domingos Fernandes Calabar, A Portuguese Man

RedboneSmith:
I have read 'traditions' of historical kinship link between the Efik of Calabar and the Kalabari. I'm skeptical of those traditions however; they appear to me to be an attempt to explain the name similarity.

It seems that the Kalabari people were the original owners of the name before it was applied (perhaps in error) by the European slave traders to the Efik city of Calabar.

How the original owners of the name came to be called 'New Calabar' and the latter-day acquirers 'Old Calabar' is what I can't explain.

No, Calabar has no connection to Kalabari. Below is my reply to Tonye Barcanista, AKA Ijawcitizen




Calabar, Just like lagos are 2 Portuguese words, Calabar in Portuguese means *Calm waters* and the Portuguese named the location called calabar to day by that name because wen they arrived, the water was calm. Calabar is also a name answered by portuguese people from ancient times, up till this day. I dont expect a treacherous Afonja to know this fact.

Quit the stupidity, kalabari has nothing to do with calabar.


If u are well read, u would have heard of the rascal free spirit called Domingos Fernandes Calabar, A Portuguese Man

diagetus:
Can someone clarify for me the historic difference between Calabar and Kalabari in terms of European settlement? Was "Kalabari" a term given to the people in Rivers State before europeans settled in "Calabar" near Cameroon? Were the Efik in "Calabar" before the "Kalabari"?

Yes, efiks were in the area long before anyone came and long before the white man named the place Calabar, A Portuguese word that means calm waters or the Water is calm

sageb:
the term kalabari was used by the colonial masters to describe a coastal area in Rivers state. Kalabari literally means "New Calabar" it was given so because Calabar was a popular settlement for the Englishmen.

The Portuguese named the area Calabar. Calabar is a portuguese word, just like lagos is a portuguese word

Logan23:
No, Calabar has no connection to Kalabari. Below is my reply to Tonye Barcanista, AKA Ijawcitizen




Calabar, Just like lagos are 2 Portuguese words, Calabar in Portuguese means *Calm waters* and the Portuguese named the location called calabar to day by that name because wen they arrived, the water was calm. Calabar is also a name answered by portuguese people from ancient times, up till this day. I dont expect a treacherous Afonja to know this fact.

Quit the stupidity, kalabari has nothing to do with calabar.


If u are well read, u would have heard of the rascal free spirit called Domingos Fernandes Calabar, A Portuguese Man

You didn't see where I said I was skeptical of the claims, or you just want to be noticed?

RedboneSmith:
You didn't see where I said I was skeptical of the claims, or you just want to be noticed?

U said u are sceptical and i offered info on d matter and it started paining u.. .

Everyone with thier interpretation ....But what is known as Calabar was originally know as AKWA AKPA,.''Great River''.....alias Akan aba....The Akan aba was what the English men corrupted to Calabar.....

The Kalabari and other Ijaws are migrant from the Ghana/Togo area who escorted the Portuguese as porters to the area known as the Niger/Delta. When the Portuguese left the Ijaws remained in the area to continue trading with the Dutch, Spanish, German and English merchants.

Kalabari as a name is fraudulent. The real name is Calabar which is a Portuguese name given to the lands close to the river Cross. Kalabari is a the dialectical name for Calabar by the Ijaw porters. They claimed the name in order to divert trade from the real Calabar after the Portuguese left. And this was achieved as the Dutch, Spanish and English began patronizing them from the trade and other human cargoes. Even the Aros who sold slaves from the Calabar port had to swap their trading centres to places like Elem Kalabari, Finima and Brass.

Logan23:
The Portuguese named the area Calabar. Calabar is a portuguese word, just like lagos is a portuguese word

Exactly

ijawcitizen:
Kalabari Ijaws were the original aborigines of what is known as Calabar today.

The Portuguese met the Kalabari natives in the town when they arrived around 1473.

It was from Kalabari that the Portuguese derived the term Calabar, It was when the Kalabari natives led by Opukoroye moved back to Elem Kalabari that Elem Kalabari became known as NEW CALABAR (from the Portuguese term Nova Calabari).

The current efik people in Calabar do not even know the origin of the term Calabar. When the Obong of Calabar was interviewed, he claim that Calabar is of Portuguese origin, meanwhile the Portuguese records show clearly they met Ijaw people led by Opukoroye in Calabar.

.


Stop with this uttermost RUBBISH

nsiba:
.


Stop with this uttermost RUBBISH

There are better ways to register your displeasure but anyways, my apologies.

I just got the correct storyline from my close friend who is a Kalabari historian.

He explained that Calabar was mistaken named by a Dutch cartographer who plagiarized a map he got from Portuguese source and mistakenly labelled the Efik area as Calabar. Meanwhile, the area labelled as Calabar in the Portuguese map is the Kalabari area. The said dutch carthographer never visited the Niger Delta.

He further explained the distinction between Old Calabar and New Calabar as thus: Old Calabar was Elem Kalabari ( Obu-Amafa) while New Kalabari was Torusaramapiri which was closer to the coast and better position for trade with the Europeans.

So you see, I was correct in most parts of my earlier write up esp the part where the Obong of Calabar claimed that the name Calabar is of European origin.

ijawcitizen:
There are better ways to register your displeasure but anyways, my apologies.

I just got the correct storyline from my close friend who is a Kalabari historian.

He explained that Calabar was mistaken named by a Dutch cartographer who plagiarized a map he got from Portuguese source and mistakenly labelled the Efik area as Calabar. Meanwhile, the area labelled as Calabar in the Portuguese map is the Kalabari area. The said dutch carthographer never visited the Niger Delta.

He further explained the distinction between Old Calabar and New Calabar as thus: Old Calabar was Elem Kalabari ( Obu-Amafa) while New Kalabari was Torusaramapiri which was closer to the coast and better position for trade with the Europeans.

So you see, I was correct in most parts of my earlier write up esp the part where the Obong of Calabar claimed that the name Calabar is of European origin.

.

Akwa Akpa is the name the Europeans met and not for one single minute has Ijaws ever settled in Akwa Akpa.

nsiba:
.

Akwa Akpa is the name the Europeans met and not for one single minute has Ijaws ever settled in Akwa Akpa.

I don't know why people are so worked over name . I've read soemthing like that on another thread ,i think by charleys. The name of city is part of it's history . For example ,New York was first named New Amsterdam for 40 years . Istanbul use to be Constantinople. Mumbai use to be Bombay .
Calabar is actually one of the oldest organized city states in West Africa and should be something like Paris and other historic tourist cities around the world. it's just sad that Africans lack maintenance. The name Calabar is actually perfect and sounds appealing, it sounds calm like relaxation or enjoyment or beach and it sounds English ,though it's Portuguese . Did you know Miami,California ,Los Angeles are all Spanish names while names like Toronto and Atlanta are native American name, but today it's even viewed as English because they're 'English speaking .

ijawcitizen:
There are better ways to register your displeasure but anyways, my apologies.

I just got the correct storyline from my close friend who is a Kalabari historian.

He explained that Calabar was mistaken named by a Dutch cartographer who plagiarized a map he got from Portuguese source and mistakenly labelled the Efik area as Calabar. Meanwhile, the area labelled as Calabar in the Portuguese map is the Kalabari area. The said dutch carthographer never visited the Niger Delta.

He further explained the distinction between Old Calabar and New Calabar as thus: Old Calabar was Elem Kalabari ( Obu-Amafa) while New Kalabari was Torusaramapiri which was closer to the coast and better position for trade with the Europeans.

So you see, I was correct in most parts of my earlier write up esp the part where the Obong of Calabar claimed that the name Calabar is of European origin.

Okpo spoon..

U claimed calabar was named from kalabari.

U turned around again today and claim that the obong of calabar claimed the name calabar is of european origin.

Paid confuaionist

Logan23:
Okpo spoon..

U claimed calabar was named from kalabari.

U turned around again today and claim that the obong of calabar claimed the name calabar is of european origin.

Paid confuaionist

Calabar was how the Portuguese spelled Kalabari. Theres no k in Portuguese and the last R consonant is pronounced. Do it and see

dogheart:
Calabar was how the Portuguese spelled Kalabari. Theres no k in Portuguese and the last R consonant is pronounced. Do it and see

Nah, dont try to sell that shit here. Calabar means *Calm waters* in Portuguese language, It has nothing to do with kalabari

sageb:
the term kalabari was used by the colonial masters to describe a coastal area in Rivers state. Kalabari literally means "New Calabar" it was given so because Calabar was a popular settlement for the Englishmen.

Long before Nigeria existed as a country, the Purtuges discovered Calabar, and called it Calabarra which translates to 'the bar is silent,' in reference to the calm waters of the estuary. This became known as Old Calabar by the English, which is today the capital of Cross River state(also Oude Calburg in Dutch.) They also discovered and traded with New Calabar, which today is known as Kalabari. Keep in mind the old (19th century) spelling of Calabar is Kalabar. You can see that in the work of Balfour Baikie called Narrative of an Exploring Voyage.

Now the English called the peoples from both Calabars 'Calabarese,' so a person or thing from Calabar was called calabaree or calbry, and the people of New Calabar kept the old spelling of 'Kalabar, referring to themselves as Kalabari, which is just the English term for anyone from(Old or New) Calabar.

Therefore, the Efiks and Kalabari are two separate peoples living in two separate places with the names Old Calabar and New Calabar. The New Calabarese now call themselves Kalabari.

diagetus:
Can someone clarify for me the historic difference between Calabar and Kalabari in terms of European settlement? Was "Kalabari" a term given to the people in Rivers State before europeans settled in "Calabar" near Cameroon? Were the Efik in "Calabar" before the "Kalabari"?

Long before Nigeria existed as a country, the Purtuges discovered Calabar, and called it Calabarra which translates to 'the bar is silent,' in reference to the calm waters of the estuary. This became known as Old Calabar by the English, which is today the capital of Cross River state(also Oude Calburg in Dutch.) They also discovered and traded with New Calabar, which today is known as Kalabari. Keep in mind the old (19th century) spelling of Calabar is Kalabar. You can see that in the work of Balfour Baikie called Narrative of an Exploring Voyage.

Now the English called the peoples from both Calabars 'Calabarese,' so a person or thing from Calabar is called calabaree or calbry, and the people of New Calabar kept the old spelling of 'Kalabar, referring to themselves as Kalabari, which is just the English term for anyone from(Old or New) Calabar.

The Efiks and Kalabari are two separate peoples living in two separate places with the names Old Calabar and New Calabar. The New Calabarese now call themselves Kalabari.