Igbo History Hebrew Exiles of Eri. Omabala Aguleri
IGBO HISTORY
HEBREW EXILES
OF
ERI KINGDOM
Chief Fidelis C. Idigo (B. Sc. Hons)
Omabala of Aguleri
Copyright 2014 Omabala Aguleri,
All rights reserved.
Published in eBook format by eBookIt.com
ISBN-13: 978-1-4566-2220-6
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
My acknowledgment goes foremost to Professor M. A. Onwuejeogwu, Dr. Elizabeth Isichei, Professor Alaezi and Chief M.C.M. Idigo. These are much respected and esteemed scholars of history whose research works were extensively quoted in this book. I must say it loud and clear that without their works I could not have written this book. I hope not, but should there be any instance where I misquoted them, I ask for their forgiveness.
It is usual that when someone strays into a profession that does not belong to him, he rarely attracts the interest of people. While writing this book, I was overwhelmingly impressed with the support and encouragement I got from Chief Bede Ivenso, the Odu of Aguleri, and Chief Emmanuel Orakwe Nwobu, the Onwanetiliora of Aguleri, both of whom are members of the cabinet of Eze Christopher Nwabunwanne Idigo IV, Igwe Ogalagidi II of Aguleri. I am highly indebted to them for their contribution to this project.
My thanks go to many patriotic Igbo, too numerous to name, with whom I discussed this book, for their encouragement and preparedness to go to any length to project this book, the reading of which they are convinced will give special identity to the Igbo.
Omabala F.C. Idigo
FOREWORD
It is very relieving that this book entitled IGBO HISTORY Hebrew Exile of Eri Kingdom is coming at a time and age when the Igbo are anxious to confirm the source that has long been speculated as their root. What makes Omabala’s book unique is that he has been able to assemble some research works and data from senescent elders, anthropologists, archaeologists’ historians and from the Bible to prove the link of the Igbo with Israel. The author made a point by asserting that any scientific evidence that authenticates history of a people gains more credibility when it is backed by oral tradition of the people whose history is being discussed. The scientific evidence of Oduduwa and Eri migration from south of the Nile and the subsequent migration of Eri through Igala to start the Anambra civilization is supported by Aguleri oral tradition that regards Eri as a king from the sky, coming from Igala around the confluence of the Niger and the Benue rivers to Eri-Aka in Aguleri to establish the Igbo race.
Chief Idigo did a fine job by putting together the great works of very reputable Igbo scholars to trace the migration of the offspring of Eri in family units from Eri settlement to different settlements presently occupied by the Igbo of Nigeria.
The Igbo need this book that emphasizes that the people of the South East and South South zones belong to the same ancestor. I wholeheartedly agree with him that right from an early age, the Igbo should learn their history to enable them to imbibe the spirit of patriotism. I strongly recommend this book to students in tertiary institutions. Its suitability lies not only in the manner of presentation of the materials but in the condensation of facts to enhance easy comprehension.
The Omambala of Aguleri has stressed the need for more academic research to be carried out by Igbo scholars in order to unveil the seeming mysteries surrounding certain events in Igbo history
Eze Christopher N. Idigo
Igwe Ogalagidi II of Aguleri.
DEDICATION
This book is dedicated to the memory of our fallen ancestors particularly Eri and his children Aguleri, Igbariam, Nteje, Nri, Nsugbe, Amanuke and Adamgbo and to the people of Nigeria who seek to know the truth about the history of the Igbo.
PREFACE
I feel greatly relieved to have the opportunity of making my contribution towards the history of the Igbo people. Recent events tend to confirm the general impression that the Igbo are not united as a people, and on of the reasons is that they are starved of the facts of their common heritage through Eri. I have had the privilege of reading the contributions of scholars and writers of Igbo history and I am amazed that not much is known and said about Eri, the founder of the Igbo race. There can be no history of the Igbo people without the history of Eri and his kingdom. Surely, Eri has a history. This is why I feel anxious to give my research account of events surrounding Eri Kingdom, in order to correct some misconceptions and misrepresentations by some writers.
The material I have collected on Eri Kingdom comes from Aguleri oral tradition and scientific evidence from archaeological excavations and research. Incidentally, Aguleri is the place of settlement of Eri, the founding father of the Igbo. Being a son of the soil, I feel obliged to give the Igbo the benefit of the store of information in Aguleri tradition and ability of the people, through tales to retain facts about Eri Kingdom, which was established Mgbe-Eri (during the time of Eri) dating back to about 3000 BC.
The efforts of most writers of Igbo history were based on speculation. This is understandable because the ethnographic materials collected for their works were obtained mainly from European settlers in Igboland and from the people resident outside the scene of the early history of the Igbo people. It is unfortunate that no Igbo scholar has bothered to research into the past of Aguleri, where it all happened. The only research on Aguleri soil was carried out by a non-Igbo, in the person of Professor Omoregie of the University of Ibadan. This is not a development for which we can clap our hands in praise of our Igbo scholars. I sincerely hope that our Igbo scholars will accept the challenge of carrying out serious research work on Eri civilization which, to my mind, has been grossly understudied. Of course, I am aware that a lot of research work has been done in Nri who was one of the sons of Eri. What puzzled me was not the confusion, but the fact that Nri was being projected to take the place of his father, Eri, as the head of the Igbo. Surely, a father and a son cannot become two parents of the Igbo. The true position is that Menri (Nri), who established Agukwu Nri, is one of the six sons of Eri. This book will give details.
Eri has a Kingdom, not an empire of the type Oyo, Igala, Sokoto, and Bornu Empires. Some Igbo historians agree that Eri is the founder of the Igbo race. Mythology describes Eri as coming from the sky. We shall build very strong evidence in this book to prove that Eri migrated from Israel to Egypt, through the Sahara, to Igala, and from Igala to Eri-Aka, in Aguleri. Having lived in Egypt, which was the cradle of world civilization, Eri must have dressed in the usual long robes and costumes customarily worn by Jews and kings of the Middle East. Eri landed on Igala soil at a period when the Igala people went about almost naked. Not knowing from whence he came into Igala, tradition described the stately dressed Eri as a king from the sky. This book will show that Eri is not from the sky, but rather from the Hebrew Kingdom of Israel. However, no matter what one chooses to believe, we are immediately concerned with the fact that Eri is the founder of the race. Starting from this premise, what should interest the Igbo is how the Igbo were built since then.
We have read from the Bible that God created Adam and Eve and gave them the power of procreation. The two were the nucleus of human race. As the race increased in number, it became more and more wicked. Finally, God destroyed it in a