The war of words between the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi and Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi is yet to abate over the vexed issue of the Igbo ancestral connection with the Yoruba. Another letter has emanated from Ife side (ASHE Foundation), trying to demolish the Alaafin’s position on the issue.
Not a few Nigerians now pray that this will not go beyond intellectual exercise.
What is happening between the two monarchs now began when Oba Ogunwusi spoke at his Ile-Oodua palace in Ile-Ife while receiving the Lagos State president of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Solomon Ogbonna. He was a member who accompanied the delegation of African Farmers And Cultural Organisation that paid a courtesy visit to the Ooni’s palace.
With eclat, Oba Ogunwusi told the visitors: “This is your root. I said it recently, some of our Yoruba kinsmen with ignorance of our history came out with nugatory beratement of my position on the family ties between Yoruba and Igbo people. We have to say the truth and the truth must set us all free, we are blood brothers. We should be inseparable. Please feel at home in Yorubaland and respect your Yoruba brothers and sisters too.”
The Alaafin, in a letter or response published in the Nigerian Tribune, debunked the linkages between the two ethnic groups and narrated the Yoruba and Igbo’s path in history.
Oba Adeyemi, as published earlier on this platform, reasoned that the Igbo with a record of highly respected origin will feel comfortable after tracing their origin to ancient Israel with lineage to Eri, the fifth son of Gad who was the seventh son of Jacob, who was the youngest son of Isaac, son of Abraham.
Alaafin repeated the history of Igbo origin: “Eri, the son of Gad was said to have entered the present Egypt, journeying down Africa, crossing the Nile to Ethiopia (present day Sudan) and finally into the present day Enugwu Aguleri (for more details about this see: THE BOOK NIGERIA 2.O. CARAPACE PUBLISHERS NIGERIA LIMITED. Pg 46 ORIGIN OF THE IGBO: OBU GAD (HOUSE OF GAD) ANAMBRA STATE. Khartoum Street, Wuse, Zone 5, Abuja Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria or www.dayoadedayo.com). Certainly, the Igbo people who are proud of their origin will not feel comfortable with any pseudo history that will make them superior to Israel.
“I am not aware of any business relationship between the Yoruba and the Igbo until the 19th century, leading to the amalgamation of the Southern Protectorate and Northern Protectorate that resulted into Nigeria in 1914. In other words, we are related as fellows Nigerians who have been enjoying mutual relationship for each other. Culturally, linguistically, traditionally and historically, we are basically different. We have always striven to promote harmonious understanding in our diversities.”
Now Prince Justice Jadesola Faloye, President ASHE foundation has written a letter dated 4 May 2019 and entitled, “Re: Alaafin – Aje, an early Yoruba deity,” trying to smash the Alaafin’s logic into smithereens. ASHE Foundation means African Social-Cultural Harmony and Enlightenment. Its Board of Trustees is chaired by Ooni Ogunwusi. Other members are:
•HRM Igwe Nnaemeka Alfred Achebe, Obi Of Onitsha, Chairman Anambra State Council of Traditional Rulers.
•HRM, Dr Idakwo Ameh Oboni II, Attah of Igala, Kogi State Chairman Council of Traditional Rulers
•HRM Dr. Shekarau Angyu Masa-ibi Kuvyon II. Aku Uka of Wukari, Chairman Council of Traditional Rulers, Taraba State
•HRM Dandeson Douglas Jaja, The Amanyanabo of Opobo, River State Chairman Council of Traditional Rulers
In the letter, Faloye argued: “Kabiyesi, is it a coincidence that Igbo rivers are called Osimirin and till date there is a river Osinmirin also pronounced Esinmirin in Ife. Can it be a coincidence that River Omi (Yorubas word for water) and River Mirin (Igbos word for water) join to make River Omirin, a tributary of River Osimirin till date in Ife? Kabiyesi, though Ifa says there are no coincidences in life, can it be a coincidence that in Ile Igbo (House of Igbo) inside Oonis palace, we have Ile Omirin, Ile Odikeji and Ile Ogun? Lastly, is it a coincidence that there is still Lukumi (Oluku mi) living in Ndigboland, a lineage they refer to as Oratife (Oramfe in Yoruba), and clearly traced to Ife.”
The ASHE Foundation President went further: “Kabiyesi, our response is not solely about mythology but about some incorrect assumptions made by you, especially since they are tied to the root of problems encountered by Yoruba and the Black Race, as a whole.
Kabiyesi Iku Baba Yeye, statements made in your point 6 have to be corrected to prevent further damage to our cultural psyche. You stated – ‘I am not aware of any business relationship between the Yoruba and the Igbo until the 19th century, leading to the amalgamation of the Southern Protectorate and Northern Protectorate that resulted into Nigeria in 1914. In other words, we are related as fellows Nigerians who have been enjoying mutual relationship for each other. Culturally, linguistically, traditionally and historically, we are basically different.’
On Alaafin’s debunking Yoruba’s early business relationship with the Igbo, Faloye submitted that it is understandable that Ife, and not Oyo, made the cultural link with Igbo, since Oyo was not created until thousands of years after Igbo migrated through what later became Oyo into Igalaland till they settled in Aguleri. Faloye added: “However, your claim that there was no interaction between Yoruba and Igbo, the two most populous Original African groups that lived across a single forest for thousands of years before the advent of the Whiteman and creation of Nigeria, is an insult on not only Yoruba and Igbo ancestors, but the entire Black Race. It’s tantamount to you calling us monkeys that only came down from trees with the advent of European.”
Below is Faloye’s full letter (the first response)
Re: Alaafin – Aje, an early Yoruba deity
May 4, 2019 | ASHE Foundation
Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi
Your Imperial Majesty, Alaafin of Oyo Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, with utmost respect, and on prostration, we are responding to your letter dated 2nd May 2019. We greatly appreciate your contribution to the public consciousness of our cultural origins, linkages and identity. We are also informed that the Ooni of Ife is also glad that the conversation is taking place to give us a true picture of our cultural origins and linkages.
ASHE Foundation welcomes all scholars to contribute to this most important conversation in 500yrs. We have previously stated that the discussion is about whether Ifa recorded the full origins of humanity and those calling Ifa a liar, ‘awon ti won pe Ifa leke’.
It is not about whether or not Igbos migrated from Ife since genetic and linguistic science and Obi of Onitsha have confirmed it. Some Igbo traditionalists trace their migration from Yorubaland through Igalaland to get to their ancestral home Aguleri and also link Obatala to Ala – Oba nti Ala.
We implore His Majesty to get the best Ifa scholars to discern Igbo origins in the following Odus – Ogbefun, Okanran Onile, Osa Fun, Ateka, Otura Meji, Irete Ogbo, Owonrin Onigbo (Owonrin Oyeku) and many other Odus of Ifa Corpus.
Kabiyesi, is it a coincidence that Igbo rivers are called Osimirin and till date there is a river Osinmirin also pronounced Esinmirin in Ife. Can it be a coincidence that River Omi (Yorubas word for water) and River Mirin (Igbos word for water) join to make River Omirin, a tributary of River Osimirin till date in Ife? Kabiyesi, though Ifa says there are no coincidences in life, can it be a coincidence that in Ile Igbo (House of Igbo) inside Oonis palace, we have Ile Omirin, Ile Odikeji and Ile Ogun? Lastly, is it a coincidence that there is still Lukumi (Oluku mi) living in Ndigboland, a lineage they refer to as Oratife (Oramfe in Yoruba), and clearly traced to Ife.
Kabiyesi, our response is not solely about mythology but about some incorrect assumptions made by you, especially since they are tied to the root of problems encountered by Yoruba and the Black Race, as a whole.
Kabiyesi Iku Baba Yeye, statements made in your point 6 have to be corrected to prevent further damage to our cultural psyche. You stated – “I am not aware of any business relationship between the Yoruba and the Igbo until the 19th century, leading to the amalgamation of the Southern Protectorate and Northern Protectorate that resulted into Nigeria in 1914. In other words, we are related as fellows Nigerians who have been enjoying mutual relationship for each other. Culturally, linguistically, traditionally and historically, we are basically different”.
It is understandable that Ife, and not Oyo, made the cultural link with Igbos, since Oyo was not created until thousands of years after Igbos migrated through what later became Oyo into Igalaland till they settled in Aguleri. However, your claim that there was no interaction between Yorubas and Igbos, the two most populous Original African groups that lived across a single forest for thousands of years before the advent of the Whiteman and creation of Nigeria, is an insult on not only Yorubas and Igbos ancestors, but the entire Black Race. It’s tantamount to you calling us monkeys that only came down from trees with the advent of European.
Kabiyesi, it is disheartening, as one of our paramount Yoruba Obas and cultural custodian, is not aware that Yoruba and Igbo share the same 16 erindinlogun IFA, the source of all Yoruba history and knowledge. Your statement is like the Queen of England saying she is not aware the French are Christians. And we share Ifa not only with Igbos, but Igalas, Idomas and practically every group across Africa. Ifa is not a tribal ancestral worship but a bona-fide African knowledge bank that also includes a global religion comparable to Buddhism or Abrahamic faiths.
Kabiyesi, rather than safeguard Yoruba culture your statement plays into the hands of those that want to sabotage Yorubas natural leadership role in bringing about original African unity and global Black ascendancy. You are giving ammunition to our cultural enslavers. In a Boston University study that collated ten different ethnolinguistic groups versions of Ifa, a wrong conclusion was arrived that since we all share identical Ifa systems, it must have originated from the Benue Valley based on the wrong assumption that Man and civilization came into Nigeria, and not evolved in Nigeria.
This wrong assumption was challenged with DNA results that rather than Yoruba evolving from the Middlebelt through Oyo to Ife, DNA results show that Yorubas are the oldest full sized humans (under-dated to 87,000yrs ago by Simons Human Genome Project) and all other Original groups started evolving out of Yoruba around 60,000yrs ago. One thing is crystal clear, we evolved from one family, so you either accept all evidence that Igbos evolved from Ife OR claim Yorubas evolved from Aguleri.
Linguistics shows that Yorubas, Igbos, Nupe, Ewe, Edo and others belong to the same linguistic family and origins called the Volta-Niger ethnolinguistic, a subfamily of the larger Niger Congo ethnolinguistic family.
We share hundreds of words:
Akuko (Yoruba)/ Okuko (Igbo) – Fowl.
Ewure (Yoruba)/ Ewu (Igbo) – Goat
Okuta (Yoruba)/ Okwute (Igbo) Stone.
Apo (Yoruba)/ Apa (Igbo) Bag/Pocket
Ile (Yoruba)/ Ala (Igbo) Land/Ground.
Eti (Yoruba)/ Nti (Igbo) Ear
Enu (Yoruba)/ Onu (Igbo) Mouth.
Imu (Yoruba)/ Imi (Igbo) Nose
Egungun (Yoruba)/ Egwugwu (Igbo) Masquerade and so on.
Kabiyesi, we would like to refer you to the book, ‘HOW YORUBA AND IGBO BECAME DIFFERENT LANGUAGES (2009)by Prof Bolaji Aremo Scribo Publications
Rather than back the Yoruba fight for global cultural Justice through cultural, linguistics and genetic anthropology, it is a sad day for Yoruba when an Alaafin publicly denies Ile Ife as the origin of humanity where all groups diverged. To make matters worse, you give credence to a Jewish origin of Igbo. The beginning of our problems culturally was the creation of the mosque in Oyo in 1550, Iwo in 1660 and a church in Benin in 1506, challenging the supremacy of our Ife culture and the beginning of our cultural disorientation.
In point 11, you ignore the fact that Kolanuts as the foundations of Igbo culture were bought from Yorubaland all through history and till date. It appears that you value trade with the Afroasians that burnt down Oyo Ile than your Original African family that you share the same 16 Odu of Ifa with. While on the issue of trade in Yorubaland, which you tied to Trans-Sahara trade, we would like to point out that Yorubas produced and traded beads as far back as 4,600 yrs ago, which was before Eurasians came out of Central Asian mountain cave complex to intermarry with Black Africans to give birth to Afro-Asians that Oyo traded with millennia later.
Igbo Olokun in Ife that produced Segi beads and Sesefun has recently been carbon dated to 4600yrs ago in the ongoing study that involves Harvard University and other internationally reputable anthropologists. The first currency, cowries, came out of Ife as we traded with fellow original Africans before the evolution of the Afro-Asiatic groups. The Ejigbomekun aka Ife market was created by Obatala descendants and is still immortalized by them. The deities of Oduduwa, Obatala, Oramfe and Aje are still in Ife, and being the source of all humanity is open to everyone to fact find.
As travelling and actual visit help perception, you are invited to Ife to visit these areas for better understanding. Ife still has ancestral homes of all groups that migrated eastwards- Ugbo Ile and Ugbo Oko, Iwinrin afi ota mo odi, Woye Asiri, Ado na Udu, Oluyare compounds etc. In 1830, Richard Lardner visit to Katunga near Old oyo gave him an insight, which unfortunately has not been impressed on we, Africans, especially Yorubas. He stated, “I met a trader and purchased a very curious stone in the market and was told it was dug from a country called Ife from where all Africans came from”. – Lander R and Lander J(1832). Journal of an Expendition to Explore the courses and Termination of the Niger. Vol I.JandJ Harper. Despite European and Arabic scholars knowing fully well that Igbo Irunmole, the Southern Ife rainforests, is the true origin of humanity, they have embarked on a divisive and defeatist history that prevents the cultural unity and uplifting of the Black Race.
Oyo may not be aware of the cultural relationships within the rainforests since it was based in the grasslands around River Niger, which was further to Akure than Western Igboland. Oyo and Benin shared borders at Otun Ekiti so most of the current Ekiti and Ondo states were not part of Oyo Empire. Nobody can deny that Oyo and Benin were the greatest kingdoms ever spurned by Yorubas and Edos, but we must accept Ife is the Black Race spiritual origin and cultural center like Jews accept Jerusalem.
At this point in history, after 500yrs of cultural, Economic and sociopolitical regression, it is time for us to unify the Original African cultural sphere instead of attaching ourselves to foreign cultural spheres. This is not anti-any group or imperialist but simply a reconciliation of the Original African family, aka Niger Congo groups which is a mere continuum of dialects from Gambia to South Africa. It is time for undoing the confusion of foreign cultures that prevents us from knowing that Ifa is uniform and shared by other Original African groups. Yorubas are Adiye funfun tio mo ara e lagba that is supposed to lead the Black Race.
With an average age of 18 in Nigeria, we can only beg you our elders to give the coming generation a unifying cultural platform that can allow them assume parity. There are two cultural spheres in Nigeria and across Africa, Original African and Afroasian. The Afroasians are well articulated and organized into a formidable political force, while Original Africans are disorganized since they can’t articulate their Ifa cultural linkages.
Ooni of Ife has embarked on identifying and strengthening Yoruba Original African linkages, not only with Igbos but every Original African group with an Ifa foundation. This will cement IFAs place as the true authentic African perspective and it will enable the creation of a unified belief system. Yorubas have been able to get over Oyo prominent role in slavery, we might not survive if Oyo breaks apart the original African cultural platform due to supremacy interests.
Kabiyesi Alaiyeluwa, as we enter a new 2000yr era known as Age of Shango, we implore you to take three things to mind. First, please support Ife as the Origin of all humans including Igbos. Second, please support the global relevance of Ifa to all original African groups. Third, please help in building an original African cultural platform that can help global Yoruba and Black ascendancy for the next two thousand years. Ki ade pe lori. May Eledunmare continue to strengthen you as the leader of Yorubas greatest empire ever.
Yours Sincerely
Prince Justice Jadesola Faloye,
President ASHE foundation
Below is ASHE Foundation’s article (the second response):
RE: IGBO IFE ORIGINS BY OONIRISA – Pros and Cons
As a cultural think-tank, ASHE Foundation, whose key mission is to stimulate public discourse on cultural origins and linkages, we are pleased with the current public discourse on Yoruba and Igbo cultural origins and linkages that has been long overdue, but eventually prompted by His Royal Majesty Ooni of Ife Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi.
However, despite it being an emotionally charged issue, we would have preferred a more focused and informed discourse, not hijacked by those with supremacy agendas or those who profit from divisive ventures.
At this junction, it is necessary to categorically state that this line of discussion is not to establish whether or not Igbos and Yorubas shared common genetic and cultural origins, since it has been proved 100% without an iota of doubt through DNA, cultural and linguistic anthropological evidence, as presented below. Most Important, The Obi of Onitsha and other informed Igbo elite have previously publicly stated that Igbos migrated out of Ife, and it is believed that a people will know where they are from based on their oral traditions.
Therefore the current discourse is whether or not our ancestors recorded the information of the migration of Igbos and many others out of Ife in our knowledge bank, the Original African Information Retrieval Information locally known as Ifa in Yoruba and Igala, Iha in Edo, Afa in Igbo, Efa in Uhrobo and all the other 16-sector (erindilogun) knowledge banks, which form the foundation and source of cultural origins of all ethnic groups in Southern and Central Nigeria.
His Royal Majesty, Oonirisa Adeyeye Ogunwusi has stated the Ifa corpus Odu regarding the evolution and migration of Igbos. What is required from those with dissenting views is to quote a different Odu pertaining to the Igbos. Otherwise, their denial, since it is clear that Igbos were with us at the beginning of humanity, can only impugn the validity of Ifa’s claim to know everything. Won pe Ifa leke, they are calling Ifa a lame liar. It would be a shock that Ifa never recorded our neighbours.
Long before the recent genetic evidence, linguistics had postulated that the Niger Congo ethnolinguistic family, of which Yoruba and Igbo are the two most populous groups, evolved from Nigeria and spread across Africa to form about 2240 groups currently over 700million strong from Gambia to South Africa. The Niger-Congo ethnolinguistic family is composed of two main subfamilies – Volta-Niger and Benue-Congo subfamilies. The Volta-Niger subfamily made up of Yoruba, Igbo, Nupe, Ewe, Fon, Igala, Gwari etc is believed to be the oldest and they share the 16 sector erindilogun Original African Information Retrieval System aka Ifa-Afa-Iha-Efa.
The Benue-Congo language evolved around the Jukun Kwararafa homeland in the Benue River basin, spread from Cross River to River Kaduna, then into Cameroun where it created the Beti-Pahuin branch before moving down Rivers Chari and Sanga to the River Ugbangi-Kongo River basins to form Western Bantus of Kongo and the Eastern Marshariki Bantus that spread to fill East and South Africa.
This linguistic fact has recently been backed by genetic evidence generated from the Human Genome Project, a global DNA comparative analysis commissioned in 1990 and concluded in 2002 by international collaborations led by USA that also included Nigeria. Genetic evidence shows Yoruba to have the oldest and most diverse DNA strand, making it the oldest full statured ethnic group in the world, from which all other African groups diverged. The table of DNA evidence can either be viewed from the supplementary table S8 in Tishkoff SA, Reed FA, Friedlaender FR, et al. (25 co-authors). 2009. The genetic structure and history of Africans and African Americans. Science 324:1035. Or directly from HGDP-CEPH Human Genome Diversity Cell Line banked at the Foundation Jean Dausset-CEPH in Paris.
In 2016, Harvard University Medical School, Reich Laboratory conducted a study that stated that San diverged from Yorubas 87,000 years ago, Mbuti diverged from Yorubas 58,000yrs ago, Dinka 19,000yrs ago – The Simons Genome Diversity Project: 300 genomes from 142 diverse populations Swapan Mallick, Heng Li[…]David Reich Nature volume 538, 2016 The Yoruba-San divergence is the first known ethnic differentiation. Another study shows that all other full statured Black African groups didn’t not start to diverge from Yorubas until about 60,000yrs ago – M.Silva, F.Alshamli, C,Carrilho et al ‘60,000 years of interactions between Central and Eastern Africa documented by major African mitochondrial haplogroup L2’ Scientific Reports volume 5, Article number: 12526 (2015).
Science has proven what was formerly regarded as Ife creation myth to be true and that we Black Africans lived together as a single group for tens of thousands of years before migrating along riverbanks as shown through linguistic migrations and fall in DNA values as you move away from what was labelled in the 18th century as Yorubaland. So, the current discussion is not a test of whether or not Igbos migrated out of Ife, but questioning the veracity of Ifa as a complete knowledge bank that recorded all our history, or a test of the ability of the current generation to understand and interpret Ifa corpus of history.
While ASHE foundation is gladdened by the current discourse, it implores contributors to shy away from sacrificing our collective future threatened by xenophobic tendencies and external hegemony for supremacy considerations. We also implore our cultural custodians not to shy away from the need to educate their people on their cultural origins, identity and linkages that will have immense social ramifications from better work ethics, moral value systems and sociopolitical alliances necessary to uplift us as a race. If we squander this opportunity, we would be leaving the stage for external predatory interests that profit from divide and rule policies that have arrested our economic and political development, as well as hatemongering Youths that will inspire xenophobic tendencies that will destroy our socioeconomic viability. History will harshly judge those who sacrifice our collective sustainability for personal supremacy games. Thanks
Prince Justice Jadesola Faloye,
President ASHE Foundation
Cc
HRM Igwe Nnaemeka Alfred Achebe, Obi Of Onitsha, Chairman Anambra State Council of Traditional Rulers.
HRM, Dr Idakwo Ameh Oboni II, Attah of Igala, Kogi State Chairman Council of Traditional Rulers
HRM Dr. Shekarau Angyu Masa-ibi Kuvyon II. Aku Uka of Wukari, Chairman Council of Traditional Rulers, Taraba State
HRM Dandeson Douglas Jaja, The Amanyanabo of Opobo, River State Chairman Council of Traditional Rulers
