Igede people

Last updated
Igede
Total population
c. 300,000-500,000 [1]
Regions with significant populations
Nigeria: Benue State, Cross-River State, Ogun State, Osun State
Languages
Igede
Religion
Christianity, Traditional Religion
Related ethnic groups
Idoma, Igbo Tiv, Etulo, Cross-River Languages

The Igede people are a Nigerian ethnic group [2] in Benue State of Nigeria. [3] They are native to the Oju and Obi local government areas of Benue State, Nigeria, where 2006 population figures stand at an estimated 267,198 people. [4] However, many Igede people are dispersed across the state and the Nation. For instance, the Igede language is also spoken in Nigeria's Cross River State, and many Igede communities exist in Osun State and Ogun State. [5] The Igede language is a member of the Benue-Congo subgroup of the Niger-Congo language family.

Contents

Geographical location

The Oju Local Government Area was created in 1976 and shares boundaries with present-day Obi, Ado, Konshisha and Gwer East Local Government Areas of Benue State, Ebonyi and Izzi Local Government Areas of Ebonyi State, and Yala Local Government Area of Cross River State. It is headquartered in Oju Town. [6]

The Obi Local Government Area was created in 1996 and has its headquarters at Obarike-Ito. The local government area derives its name from the Obi stream that flows in the area and shares boundary with Ado, Otukpo and Oju local government areas of Benue State. [7]

History

Origin: Oral tradition

The Igede trace their origin to Sabon Gida Ora in present-day Edo state. They are said to be the descendants of Agba, a high chief in Sabon Gida Ora. A skirmish between the Igede and the natives of Ora led to their migration from that region to present-day Benue state through Nsukka in Enugu state. This historical event in Igede history is commonly recounted in song and drama, for instance the record and drama piece "Ego ny'Igede". [8]

Origin: Archival records

Archival records portray them as migrants from Ogoja province who have increasingly adopted the culture and practices of the Idoma. [9]

Administration and politics

Politically, the Igede falls under the Benue South senatorial district. [10]

Igede culture

The Igede are predominantly farmers cultivating maize, cassava, groundnut and yams. Igede is home of the popular Igede-Agba festival, a colourful annual celebration that marks the yam harvest season in September. [11]

Igede traditional clothes are blue, black, and white stripes.[ citation needed ]

Notable Igede people

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cross River State</span> State of Nigeria

Cross River State is a state in the South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria. Named for the Cross River, the state was formed from the eastern part of the Eastern Region on 27 May 1967. The state has its capital as Calabar and is bordered to the north by Benue State, to the west by Ebonyi State and Abia State, and to the southwest by Akwa Ibom State while its eastern border forms part of the national border with Cameroon. Originally known as the South-Eastern State before being renamed in 1976, Cross River state formerly included the area that is now Akwa Ibom State, which became a distinct state in 1987.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benue State</span> State of Nigeria

Benue is a State in the North Central region of Nigeria. It has an estimated population of about 4,253,641 in the 2006 census. The state was created in 1976 and was among the seven states created at that time. The state derives its name from the Benue River initially called Ber-nor, a compound word in Tiv language which means river or lake of hippopotamus the name Ber-nor was corrupted to BENUE by colonial masters, the river is the second largest river in Nigeria after the River Niger. The state borders Nasarawa State to the North; Taraba State to the East; Kogi State to the West; Enugu State to the South-West; Ebonyi and Cross-Rivers State to the South; and has an international border with Cameroon to the South-East. It is inhabited predominantly by the Tiv, Idoma and Igede people. Minority ethnic groups in Benue are Etulo, Igbo, hausa and Jukun people etc. Its capital is Makurdi. Benue is a rich agricultural region; common crops cultivated in the state include oranges, yams, mangoes, sweet potatoes, cassava, soya bean, guinea corn, flax, sesame, rice, groundnuts and palm trees.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ebonyi State</span> State of Nigeria

Ebonyi is a state in the South-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria, bordered to the north and northeast by Benue State, Enugu State to the west, Cross River State to the east and southeast, and Abia State to the southwest. Named after the Abonyi (Aboine) River—a large part of which is in the state's south—Ebonyi State was formed from parts of Abia and Enugu state in 1996 and has its capital in Abakaliki.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Enugu State</span> State of Nigeria

Enugu verbally pronounced as "Enụgwụ" by the igbo indigenes is a state in the South-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria, bordered to the north by the states of Benue and Kogi, Ebonyi State to the east and southeast, Abia State to the south, and Anambra State to the west. The state takes its name from its capital and largest city, Enugu. The city acquired township status in 1917 and was called Enugwu-Ngwo. Due to the rapid expansion towards areas owned by other indigenous communities, it was renamed Enugu in 1928.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Idoma people</span> Ethnic group in Nigeria

The Idomas are a people that primarily inhabit the lower western areas of Benue State, Nigeria, and some of them can be found in Taraba State, Cross River State, Enugu State, Kogi State and Nasarawa State in Nigeria. The Idoma language is classified in the Akweya subgroup of the Idomoid languages of the Volta–Niger family, which include Igede, Alago, Agatu, Etulo, Ete, Akweya (Akpa) and Yala languages of Benue, Nasarawa, Kogi, Enugu, and Northern Cross River states. The Akweya subgroup is closely related to the Yatye-Akpa subgroup. The bulk of the territory is inland, south of river Benue, some seventy-two kilometres east of its confluence with River Niger.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Local government areas of Nigeria</span>

Nigeria has 774 local government areas (LGAs), each administered by a local government council consisting of a chairman, who is the chief executive, and other elected members, who are referred to as councillors. Each LGA is further subdivided into a minimum of ten and a maximum of twenty wards. A ward is administered by a councillor, who reports directly to the LGA chairman. The councillors fall under the legislative arm of the Local Government, the third tier of government in Nigeria, below the state governments and the federal government.

Otukpo is a town in Benue State, Nigeria located in the Middle Belt Region of Nigeria. It is also the eponymous name of a subgroup of the Idoma people. Otukpo is the headquarters of the Otukpo Local Government Area. It is the headquarters of the Idoma Nation, and remains an important town in Idomaland, an area mainly populated by the Idoma speaking people, though with numerous local dialects spoken in the diverse reaches of Idoma land. Otukpo Idoma language is the umbrella lingua.

Yala is a Local Government Area in Cross River State, Nigeria. Its headquarters is in the town of Okpoma in the east of the area at 6°35′35″N8°38′01″E.

Oju is a local government area in Benue State, Nigeria. It borders Obi and Gwer East in the north, Konshisha and Yala in the east, Izzi and Ebonyi in the south, and Ado in the west. As of 2022, its total population is 243,300.

Agatu is a Local Government Area of Benue State, North Central Nigeria, created in 1996. It was formerly part of the Agatu district in the old Otukpo division. The headquarters of the local government is at Obagaji. Agatu is one of nine local government areas in the southern senatorial zone of Benue State, which is mainly occupied by the Idoma people. The majority of the resident population are farmers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ado, Benue</span> LGA in Benue State, Nigeria

Ado is a local government area of Benue State, Nigeria and was created in 1989. It is one of the 9 local government areas in the southern senatorial zone which is mainly occupied primarily by the Idoma and Igbo people of Benue State. The administrative headquarters are at Igumale, situated on the railway line transversing the north-south of Nigeria. The area contains mineral and natural resources in commercial quantities such as limestone, kaolin, petroleum and coal. It is a culturally rich and diverse area comprising the Agila/Apa, Ulayi, Ijigban, Utonkon and Igumale, Ekile communities. It was one of the first areas in Idoma to have contact with European missionaries, hence it had the first missionary school in the Idoma area. The Catholic Missionaries first came to Utonkon in Ado in 1922 where they established the St. Paul's Catholic Church (Parish) in Utonkon, the home of HRH, Late Amb. Dr. Edwin Ogebe Ogbu, the Ochi'doma III of Idoma, Hon. (Chief) Dennis Ekpe Ogbu, The Ogakwu K'Idoma, and Justice George I. Uloko (Rtd) a former Chief Commissioner, Public Complaints Commission, Nigeria. Utonkon is the location of the defunct Apa State University and Igumale is the location of the Benue state cement factory.

The Ukelle people (Ba'kelle) make up roughly half of the population of the Yala Local Government Area in Cross River State, Nigeria. The language of the Ukelle people is Kukelle belonging to the Kukelle-Korring language family.

Agila Town, located in the Ado local government area of Benue State, Nigeria, is the traditional home of the Agila people. Ado was established as a local government area in 1991. Nigeria, an independent country, is situated in West Africa.

The Waawa clan of Northern Igboland, also referred to as Ndi Waawa, Wawa People, are a unique sub-group of the Igbo people in Enugu and Ebonyi State, Nigeria, consisting of several communities, who all speak a unique dialect of Igbo called Waawa. The most notable among these are the Agbaja and Ngwo which consist of peoples between the wooded lands of Awka to the rocky valleys of Enugu. The Agbaja are made up of communities in present-day Ngwo clan, Udi, Ezeagu, Umulokpa, Igbo-Etiti, Oji River, greater Awgu, Aninri and Enugu East Local Government Areas. Other notable parts of the Waawa clan include Nkanu, Nsukka, Abia, Nike, Agbani, Owo, and other communities in Enugu State. The Waawa are most notably associated with Chief Onyeama's people from Eke, who was the paramount ruler of Agbaja in the early 20th century.

Benue South senatorial district covers Ado, Agatu, Apa, Obi, Ogbadibo, Ohimini, Oju, Okpokwu, Otukpo and Gboko. The district has produced two Senate presidents, Ameh Ebute who was president in the third republic and shortest serving president, and David Mark, the longest serving president of the Nigerian Senate. It is the only district to produce two Senate presidents with Benue State being the only state to produce three Senate presidents with Iyorchia Ayu from Benue North-West also serving as Senate president in the third republic. David Mark was first elected in 1999 and left at the end of his 5th term in the Senate in 2019. The current representative of Benue South is Abba Moro of the People's Democratic Party, PDP.

The Benue State House of Assembly is the legislative arm of the government of Benue State of Nigeria. It is a unicameral legislature with 32 members elected from the 23 local government areas of the state. This makes the number of legislators in the Benue State House of Assembly 32.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2023 Benue State gubernatorial election</span> 2023 gubernatorial election in Benue State, Nigeria

The 2023 Benue State gubernatorial election took place on 18 March 2023, to elect the governor of Benue State, concurrent with elections to the Benue State House of Assembly as well as twenty-seven other gubernatorial elections and elections to all other state houses of assembly. The election — which was postponed from its original 11 March date — was held three weeks after the presidential election and National Assembly elections. Incumbent PDP Governor Samuel Ortom was term-limited and could not seek re-election to a third term. Hyacinth Alia — a suspended Catholic priest — gained the office for the APC by a 33% margin over PDP nominee House of Assembly Speaker Titus Uba.

The 2019 Benue State House of Assembly election was held on March 9, 2019, to elect members of the Benue State House of Assembly in Nigeria. All the 30 seats were up for election in the Benue State House of Assembly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2023 Nigerian presidential election in Benue State</span>

The 2023 Nigerian presidential election in Benue State will be held on 25 February 2023 as part of the nationwide 2023 Nigerian presidential election to elect the president and vice president of Nigeria. Other federal elections, including elections to the House of Representatives and the Senate, will also be held on the same date while state elections will be held two weeks afterward on 11 March.

David Ogewu is a Nigerian politician and Federal House of Representatives member-elect for Oju/Obi Federal Constituency on the ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC). He defeated the incumbent Reps member Samson Okwu of the People's Democratic Party (PDP) in the 25 February 2023 presidential and National Assembly elections.

References

  1. Odey, Mike (2020). Understanding Igede Indigenous Knowledge Systems and the Future of Igede Cultural Heritage in Benue State, Nigeria. p. 263.
  2. "Our Story". Indigenous People of Biafra USA. Retrieved 2019-06-28.
  3. "Igede.org". Igede.org. Archived from the original on 2016-05-26. Retrieved 2016-05-27.
  4. "Brief History". Igede.org. 2010-11-10. Archived from the original on 2016-03-27. Retrieved 2016-05-27.
  5. Olatokun, Wole; Ayanbode, O.F. (April 2009). "Use of indigenous knowledge by women in a Nigerian rural community". Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge. 8 (2): 287–295. Retrieved 2016-05-27.
  6. https://www.pressreader.com/nigeria/daily-trust-sunday/20140302/282157879169288 . Retrieved 2022-05-24 via PressReader.{{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  7. "Obi Local Government Area". IdomaLand. 31 December 2011. Retrieved 2022-05-24.
  8. David Agogo (2011-09-02), Ego nyi Igede , retrieved 2016-05-27
  9. Ugbem, Confort E. (2013). "The Social Relations of Identity Construction and Reconstruction among Ethnic Groups in Benue State, Nigeria". IFRA E-papers. Archived from the original on 2016-07-17. Retrieved 2016-05-27.
  10. "Benue Guber & The Dynamics Of Zone C Politics". benue.com.ng. Archived from the original on 2015-07-16. Retrieved 2016-05-27.
  11. Ebhota, Eseohe (2014-03-02). "Intriguing traditional wedding rites of the Igede people". Daily Trust . Retrieved 2016-05-27.
  12. "Nigeria: The Sack of Prof Ode Ojowu" . allafrica.com. Daily Trust. 2005-11-28. Retrieved 2016-05-27.
  13. 1 2 Odeh, Onche (2014-11-01). "Every radio station in Lagos refused to hire me – BBC's Okwoche". Archived from the original on 2014-11-02. Retrieved 2016-05-27.