Ijaw
The Ijaw (also Ijo or Izon ) are a people in the Niger Delta with ten to fourteen, according to Ijaw information, and only three to four million members according to other, more realistic information. You speak nine not very closely related languages of the Ijo language family . By far the most important of them is the Izon , which in turn is divided into a western and an eastern main dialect. The second most important language is Kalabari .
The Ijaw inhabit the Atlantic coast from the state of Akwa Ibom in the east to the state of Ondo in the west with exceptions in the state of Delta , where the Itsekiri inhabit the Atlantic coast and the Ijaw only live in the local government areas (LGA) Burutu 5 to the east, except in the city of Warri ° 21 ′ N , 5 ° 30 ′ E and Bomadi 5 ° 10 ′ N , 5 ° 56 ′ E are represented. Most of the Ijaw live in the states of Bayelsa , Rivers, and Delta . There is an almost extinct Creole language in Guiana , influenced by the Kalabari.
History and way of life
The Ijaw have settled in the Niger Delta in scattered villages along rivers for centuries, possibly 7,000 years. Their spiritual culture is characterized by water cults and belief in water gods. Another wave of immigration followed around 500 AD, merging with the local population. Very early, in the 15th century, the Ijaw had contacts with Europeans. Today 95 percent of them are Catholic or Anglican Christians. However, the water spirit Owuamapu is still worshiped ; Belief in ghosts is widespread.
The Ijaw are organized into 50 tribes (clans) according to criteria of descent. Today they work in fishing , agriculture , palm oil and palm wine production or are traditionally active as traders, hunters, carvers or weavers.
present
A kind of tribal identity of the Ijaw has only developed in modern times and under the pressure of external interference in their living space and the policies of the Nigerian central government, which are viewed as hostile. In the city of Warri, there are frequent conflicts with the Itsekiri ethnic group , which intensified after the oil boom.
The oil production and loading of the mangroves in the Niger Delta causes considerable losses and damage to the environment and thus affects the livelihoods of the Ijaw and other ethnic groups. The region benefits only marginally from the profits from oil production. This leads to the conflict in the Niger Delta with the Ijaw. In January 1999, soldiers charged with protecting a Chevron Corporation facility raided two Ijaw villages, murdered and displaced many people, and devastated homes and destroyed fishing boats. The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta has been fighting for their cause with violence since 2006.
literature
- EC Ariye: The Ijo (Ijaw) People of Delta State: Their Early History and Aspects of Social and Cultural Practices. In: Historical Research Letter , Vol. 8 (2013), online: [2]
- Philip E. Leis: Palm Oil, Illicit Gin, and the Moral Order of the Ijaw. In: American Anthropologist New Series , Vol. 66, No. 4, Part 1 (August 1964), pp. 828-838.
Web links
- GG Darah: The Ijaw Nation: Develop or Perish. July 10, 2004, archived from the original on August 31, 2006 ; accessed on June 13, 2020 .
- United Ijaw ( Memento from July 22, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
- Ijaw Foundation ( Memento from March 25, 2016 in the Internet Archive )