Ikwere:  Igbo or Edo; An Insight into the History of Ikwere People


                     By


Maaz? Ogbonnaya Okoro


The issue of identity is personal. Devoid of political sentiments, this article is an academic research conducted and carried out for the purpose of knowledge and preservation of historical information. Interviews in form of participate observation, were conducted. Different opinions were put into consideration. So, by no means, anyone's throat is forced with an identity neither this research is recruiting people to join any tribe or group.


Now let us make the move...


Are the Ikwere Igbo or Edo?


Before we go into this, the first question we would like to ask is this: what year did Ikwere become a recognised separate group in Nigeria?


1979


9 years after the genocidal war ended. That means, prior to this time, Ikwere had been an Igbo group, undoubtedly. The fictional works of Elechi Amadi, the characters and characterizations depict Igbo society. This group separation is political.


Afigbo (1980, p. 122) opined that: "the links which bind the peoples are as ancient, deep and varied; and therefore, as important as the links internal to each state". With this in mind, this research is more of discussing the yesteryears and not today. We want to research on how things were, life as it was before war and politics played their own game.


About the origin of Ikwere, many scholars regard them as southern Igbo tribe. This is as a result of migration and settlement that took place prior to the time foreign authorities arrived.


The people we know as Ikwere today migrated from different places and settled there. Some migrated from ?ka (Awka), ?l? (Orlu).


Even before the civil war, which its after effect changed everything, there was still a widespread belief, even amongst the Ikwere and still those historically informed now, devoid of political motivation that Ikwere is made up of migrants from Owere, ?rata, ?haji, Ngwa, Echie (Etche), Ar?, etc.


The Ar? formed many communities. Any Ikwere man who is historically conscious and aware know about a man called Okpo Ngwagidi. Okpo Ngwagidi was the leader of the Ikwere tribe, an Ar? man for that matter.


The first Ar? settlers migrated through Ozuzu-Echie (Ozuzu-Etche) and settled at  places we now call Isiokpo, Igwuruta, ?magwa, etc.


Have you asked yourself why all these places speak Igbo language, even when they deny being Igbo? Their dialects are mutually intelligible.


Let me not go into today. Let's still dwell in the past.


Ah?a Oshimini was a major market along the Sombreiro River and New Calabar River were in the past, the Ikwere exchanged goods with people from Okrika, ?ban? (Bonny) and Kalabari.


There was Ah?a ?z?/Apa where the Ikwere traded with the Ekpeye, Etche, Abua etc. Both markets—Ah?a Oshimini and Ah?a ?z? served for the purpose of slave trade, also.


The Ikwere would later have contact with the Kalabari in the business of fishery and buying and selling, especially in the Ikwere part of Iwofe, Choba, ?gbak?r?, Emohua, Ndele. The contact yielded intermarriage and concubinage. The same go with Okrika and Ikwere contact through Diobu and ?m?okwurushi.


There was still Ah?a Elechi.


It was in 1913 that Igwe?cha became an economic hub. That territory was originally known as Igwe?cha and was named after a British man known for all vices, by name Lewis Harcourt. The Port there was named after him, hence Port Harcourt. The name automatically changed from Igwe?cha to Port Harcourt.


The Obio is another Ikwere clan, one of the Ikwere Esaa (7 clans  that made up the Ikwere land) The Ikwere Esaa include: Elele, Isiokpo, Rumuji, Emohua, Akp?, Aluu Igwuruta and Obio group. The Obio traced their orijin to Ozuzu-Echie (Etche)


The markets the Ikwere and Echie (Etche) trade include:


Ah?a ?d?nwe-Etche in Igwuruta, Ah?a Igwe?cha in Port Harcourt, Ah?a Ozuzu in Ozuzu, Ah?a Nwonti in ?m?echem, Ah?a Eke in Egwi,  Ah?a Inim in Elelenwo, Ah?a Eketa in Igbodo, Ah?a Aluu and Ah?a Rukpokwu.


Why originally, these markets were known as Ah?a and not anything else related to Bini  dialectal word for market? 


Let me not digress...


Back to an aspect of origin and Ar? influence, the Ar? traded in palm oil centuries before the arrival of the colonists. Also during the slave trade they migrated and settled in Ikwere through Ozuzu Etche. It could be said that some Obio who claim Ozuzu-Etche origin have Ar? blood. The Ar? who came through Ozuzu-Echie settled in Igwuruta, Isiokpo, Elele, Rumuekpe, Ubima and Aluu.


During the colonial government era, Nwocha Amefule and Osundu Oyo were made warrant chiefs representing ?magwa, Ozuaha, Omademe and Ipo at Choba. They were both Ar? men.


In the side of Obio, Okorie Mbeke became the first headman of ?m? Evo Aros and Iburaikwu Apara became the head of ?m?apara Aros. In Elele, there are communities named: Ar?-Omuodu, Ar?-Omodukwu, Ar?-Omuma, Ar?-Ogbogbu, etc. The historical presence of the Ar? cannot be written off.


Let us consider the following names of some towns and villages under Ikwere and also check how they sound: Edoid or Igboid?


Adanta, Agba?ga, Àgwà, Agwara Ahiniri, Akpabu, Aluu, Apani, Ekuche, Elele, Ezeogo, Igwuruta, Igwuruta-Al?, Imogu, Ipo, Isiokpo, Itu, Mbunta, Mgba?gba, Mgbo, Mgbodo, Mgbu-Ahana, Mgbuanyuri, Mgbuefitib?a, Mgbuhie, Mgbumini, Mgbuodo, Mgbuodukwu, Mgbuogidi, Mgbuokiri, Mgbuokwukwu, Mgbuonyi, Nkaralua, Obelle, Obiti, Obo, Oborum,  ?ganira, ?gbasara-Imea, Ogboda, Okperekpe, Omadene, ?magwa, ?mak?, ?maraike, Omereku, Omesiobi, Omihua, Omizua, ?m?awa, Omobiri, Omuad?, Omuag?, Omagub?a, Omuagwewirie, Omuahunwo, Omechag?, ?m?chima, ?m?chet?, ?m?chi, ?m?chinwo, ?m?chi?l?, ?m?dagwa, ?m?dar?, ?m?d?da, ?m?echem, ?m?egwa, ?m?eh?a, ?m?ehie, ?m?eke, ?m?le, ?m?eze, ?m?gbala, ?m?igwe, ?m?igwe-?m?te, ?m?ikega, ?m?opi, ?m?ketai, ?m?kiole, ?m?kpiriku, ?m?kume, ?m?kwosi, ?m?mini, ?m?ma, ?m?ngbe, Omukpu-Omute, ?m?nkw?, ?m?nobo, ?m?nw?nj?, ?m??baa, ?m??d?, Omuoduku, Omuoporo, Omuohechi, ?m??h?a, Omuohie, Omuokiri, Omuokirika, ?m?oko, ?m??kpa-Omukolosi, Omuolori, Omutu, Omuonua, ?m??paraga, ?m?osi, ?m??ta, Omuotiua, Omuovim, Omutogbule, Omuueka, ?m?wehiei, Omuwonini, Omuzua, Onwali, Orua,  Ozuaha, ?m?ekpe, ?baba, Ubima, Ubiti, ?b?d?, ?m?chi, ?m?kine, ?m?kpuru etc.


Some places in Port Harcourt such as ?m?eme, ?m?okoro, ?m?okwuta, ?m?ibekwe, ?m?igbo, etc are now written as Rumueme, Rumuokoro, Rumuokwuta, Rumuibekwe, Rumuigbo, respectively, with the belief that they are rewriting their history which the Igbo bastardised when they dominated and colonised them.


Did Igbo colonised Ikwere?


In the history of mankind, the Igbo have never for once colonised anybody, impose his culture or history on anyone. How can Chukwuemeka whose language is Igbo claim that he is not Igbo but Bini, when asked why he has no Bini name or language, the only lame excuse turns out to be that the Igbo dominated him? Did they force you to take their names, culture and language? Did they do that by using guns and bombs? Can we also say that the names of  these markets that existed centuries before the white man came were forced down by the Igbo, to the throat of Ikwere by calling them Ah?a ?z? and Ah?a Oshimini?


When Igwe?cha was still under Eastern Region, Micheal ?kpara industrialised the city we know as Port Harcourt today. Trans Amadi Industrial area was the brain child of Dr. Micheal ?kpara. The Hotel Presidential also. Port Harcourt was built by the coal dug from Enugwu. The Government of Eastern region developed the region, massively.


When the colonists documented everything, and by that time, the Igbo had no infuence over anything, the Ikweres recognised themselves as nd? Igbo. Take for instance in 1957, the Ikwere leaders met before Sir Henry Willinks Commission to present their case before him, Wobo—an Ikwere leader stated that the Ikweres are Igbo and Port Harcourt to ?n?cha are Igbo land. Prior to 1979, the Ikwere remained the Igbo until the constitution gave them as different group, following the state creation of Rivers, hence the denial which of course is as a result of politics, instead of fact. Colonial documents till date present Ikwere as Igbo. The dialect of Ikwere is an Igbo dialect just as we have Ns?ka, Abakaliki etc. There is mutual intelligibility.


Why is it that there is no trace of Bini in the name, language and culture of the Ikwere despite the power old Bini kingdom wielded? Isn't it laughable to say the least, that the Ikwere migrated from Bini? Isn't that a rhetoric, devoid of historical, academic and oral traditional presentation?  Why is it no cultural semblance between the Ikwere and Bini? Till date, one bears Amadi, Chijioke, Chib?ike, Amaechi and still stretches that he's Edo.


Like I said from the outset, the issue of identity is personal. Having that in mind, the following notable personalities are of the Ikwere origin, they never for once denied their Igbo origin and identity. They were/are Igbo nationalists to the core. See them:


1. Barr. Uche I. Okwukwu— Secretary-general, ?haneze Nd? Igbo.


2. Dr. Obi Wali— First Ikwere man to hold PhD, minority rights activist, distinguished senator, literary scholar. The only Ikwere man in the 1978 Constituent Assembly and one of the 50 Wise Men to draft the 1979 constitution. Until death, he fully indenfied himself as onye Igbo and defended it at all cost.


3. Chief Joseph Wobo— member of the Council of Chiefs of Eastern Nigeria. He's an Ikwere man and always proud of his Igbo heritage.


4. Chief Isaac Wonwu— An Ikwere man from Elele who served as Secretary-General of ?haneze Nd? Igbo.


5. Sir Jackson Mpi—the first and last Ikwere man to be conferred with Knights of the Order of British Empire, OBE by Queen Elizabeth II in England, 1960. He's from Isiokpo and identified himself as onye Igbo. He worked for the advancement of Igbo course.


6. Chief Jackson Womenazu— He's a member of the Elders of Council, ?haneze Nd? Igbo. From Rumukrushi in the Evo quarters.


7. Emmanuel Aguma— the former Mayor of Port Harcourt. The first Ikwere man to head a college. The first Ikwere man to be made a minister in 1979. He's a member of the ?haneze Nd? Igbo. Very proud of his Igbo Identity.


8. Okogbule Wonobi—the first Ikwere man to be a university registrar; first Ikwere man to be a poet and Paramount title holder of Eze Ohiaemeru. Hé remained a member of ?haneze Nd? Igbo and Nzuk? Igbo.


In conclusion:
The Issue of identity is personal, but then, truth will never be swept under the carpet forever. The general truth of identity. Politics has brought about divide-and-rule system that has made people of the same blood look into their eyes and lie to themselves. Self-deceitfulness is the worst sickness on earth as well as identity crisis. The Igbo had never colonised or imposed their ideology on anyone. The British who colonised us did not zap everything in us. We still retain our culture, language, worldview and names. How can people said to have been colonised by the Igbo forgotten their original sense of self if there was any? They still bear Igbo names, speak the language and lie to themselves that they belong to another tribe where there is no trace of cultural semblances. That sounds ridiculous.


However, a handful of Ikwere people still know their root and stick to it, while some have decided to stick to the fallacy, living in denial of who truly  they are because of political factor of Nigerian state. Just from 1979 of yesterday. Just after the genocidal war. The Igbo race was positioned for extermination in all angle. Physical war. Historical distortion and what have you. Rivers State was created and all the Igbo people in that axis carved to the new state. A new song of history was sung. For political gains, identity was bruised.


But till date, Port Harcourt speaks more Igbo than English— from the market, bus driver, keke. The Ikwere land speak Igbo. Bear Igbo names. Even the state creation couldn't change that. Even the ridiculous Bini rhetorics couldn't change that. Elechi Amadi, who was contracted to write off his people from Igbo couldn't also write off his name and his children. Still Igbo name. Elechi Amadi has no meaning in Edo language but Igbo.  You cry domination and colonization where it didn't exist and still have no other identity than your identity—Igbo. How can you say you dominated yourself?


Now...


The Ikwere: Igboid or Edoid?


You know the answer.


I paused!


© Maaz? Ogbonnaya Okoro