One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent - Culture - Nairaland
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| One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by Johnchizoba(m): 8:02pm On Oct 29, 2018 |
One evening, I was in a bus returning home from Lekki. There was this man seated next to me, he was an Igbo man and I knew that through the way he spoke to the woman seated next to him and the way he conversed with a man through the phone. At first we were discussing about Nigerian politics and other problems of Nigeria and, we moved to some of the reasons why Lagos is too congested. He told me that since there are Ports in Calabar, Port Harcourt and Warri, he thought that government would make those ports function-able so that people can leave Lagos and do their businesses in other cities because the seaport is one of the reasons why many people are in Lagos. When I learnt that he was from my zone, Abia state. I switched from English to Igbo language to make our conversation lively and enjoyable but he never replied me in Igbo rather he used English to reply me. When I spoke Igbo to him again, he replied me in English. I got tired of him replying with English language then I stopped the conversation. "In many parts of the world, languages are in danger of going extinct. It might be tempting to believe that English has become the lingua franca of global business and the Internet, but when languages die, the loss has repercussions far beyond simply the loss of a lexicon. Individuals lose out on the ability to contribute to the marketplace of ideas, businesses stand to lose a customer base, and an important connection to culture is lost." Missi Smith. Igbo people need to learn the act of being proud of their roots and appreciate their culture just as the Yoruba and the Hausa. If you are Ignorant and you are not proud of where you come from or the language, I think there is something wrong with you somewhere. I wonder why you would not be proud of where you come from, you didn't choose your tribe yourself, God did. This happens also when you find yourself in Alaba International market or Idumota market in Lagos, to buy things, once you speak igbo to a fellow Igbo man, he won't reply you or answer you with Igbo because he may likely think that once he does that, you will beat down the price of the commodity you intend buying. Or rather, he will not sell the goods just as the way he planned to sell it. And these men are full fledged Igbo men who ought to be the one to uphold this language and cultures that are going into extinction. Humans are the only species on the planet whose communication system exhibits enormous diversity In my village Nkporo, once it is Christmas period and you happen to be in the village, you will assume that English and Yoruba language are the official languages there. Those children born in Ghana, Benin Republic and Lagos can't speak Igbo language. Even majority of Children born in Lagos can not speak Igbo Language but can speak Yoruba and English Language fluently. It hurts me alot to see the parents of these young ones commending and appreciting them on how fluent they are in English and Yoruba language against their own language. Hence, we talk about unity amongst our people of Eastern Coast. We talk about upholding our relationship with one another while those things that bring us together are no more of value to our people. The most bitter part of this is that our parents also take part in this. I have seen an Igbo father communicating with his son in Yoruba language while this so called boy can not even say a word or speak Igbo but the father can, then why is he communicating in a strange language with his son?. Although, there are many reasons why languages die. The reasons are often political, economic or cultural in nature. Speakers of a minority language may, for example, decide that it is better for their children’s future to teach them a language that is tied to economic success. But we shouldn't allow our to die. I stopped going to my town' meeting because of this. I won't be in a meeting where we are suppose to use Igbo language to deliberate on our issues and someone is communicating with us in a strange language. It is disgusting! Shame on us! Shame on those parents that preferred English to Igbo Language? Shame on you father that your children are all grown up but can not speak Igbo! I know it means nothing to you, yes, some people have said that to me. But I think it is necessary we tackle this issue now before it gets out of hand. It is very annoying, very annoying when you see your brother on the way and you speak Igbo to him and he behaves like you are speaking Chinese to him. And sometimes, he won't even reply you. Remember, this language is our freedom. It is the only thing that can unite us as one body. A language that can keep us safe from our foes, would you allow this language to go into extinction? Would you not pass it to the next generation? Won't you keep this culture blossoming day in day out? We now have modern Igbo language, a fusion of 80% of English langauge and 20% of Igbo language together. This is not common with the Yoruba people and Hausa people let alone the other minor tribes in Nigeria. In Yoruba land, the first language most Yoruba children learn from their parents is the Yoruba language. It is same with their culture but this is not what we see among those parents living abroad. An Igbo mother in Lagos State prefer teaching her son how to speak English than Igbo language. The other one in USA prefer teaching her daughter the western culture than Igbo cultures. It doesn't matter where the children were born or raised. Asa, one of the finest artistes I have grown up to know was born in Paris and although she relocated with her parents and grew in her state, Ogun, she went back to France to kickstart her music career in the 2000s. Despite this, she is one of the best Yoruba singers. The likes of Brymo, Beautiful Nubia among others are doing great lifting their cultures home and abroad. Today, Contemporary writers like Tomi Adeyemi, and the rest are writing Adventure stories with Yoruba myths serving as their materials. All over universities in the US and UK, Yoruba culture and Ifa mythology are being studied. I have once watched a video about eleven years ago of some Cuban guys living in Cuba who practiced the Yoruba religion. It is that widespread because the Yoruba value their roots. In Igbo land, we still prohibit our children from speaking Igbo in school, we say it is vernacular and these students graduate without learning how to speak or write igbo language. What will happen to this language in the next fifty years to come? Some Igbo children born and bred in Port Harcourt can not even speak Igbo how much more know anything about their roots. And those ones born and bred in Lagos have made Yoruba language their language. Over 40% of Agbero in Lagos State are Igbo who have served and nationalised themselves as Yoruba. Igbo people need to learn and be educated on how to preserve their language and culture from other tribe in Nigeria especially the Yoruba and Hausa People! I don't know why Igbo language is not made compulsory for all the students in the Eastern zone! I don't know why a matured boy that graduated from a college in Enugu, Onitsha, Aba, Eboyi and Owerri can not write Igbo language! Why? Why?!! ©John Chizoba Vincent #The_Boy_Hero. 2 Likes
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| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by madridguy(m): 8:11pm On Oct 29, 2018 |
 1 Like |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by McStoic(m): 8:15pm On Oct 29, 2018 |
Odiegwu really. Another strange one is when those who live in places like Lagos come back and start putting on superiority airs, even disdaining their place of origin as if the other tribes will treat them better than their own tribe. South west and South South brought up are the worst culprits in this. Too much bad blood and unfounded tales they have been constantly spoonfed by their host states has thrown them into multiple personality disorder against themselves. Call it meetooism Igbos, just like any other tribe are not perfect. But the way some Igbos castigate nay downgrade themselves before other tribes, you will think it's only them that have weaknesses. SINCE THE DAY I LEARNT THAT NO TRIBE WILL EASILY OWN UP TO THEIR WEAKNESSES, I HAVE STOPPED OWNING UP TO MY IGBO TRIBE'S WEAKNESSES TOO. 4 Likes |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by Johnchizoba(m): 8:59pm On Oct 29, 2018 |
Thanks for this comment. I really appreciate. 1 Like |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by Nobody: 7:27am On Oct 30, 2018 |
Very shameful indeed, the worst part is speaking that Yoruba language against ur your own yet those people still claim you hate them. Igbo parents are mostly to blame for this, imagine hailing ur child for speaking a foreign language? "spits". 1 Like |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by Johnchizoba(m): 8:01am On Oct 30, 2018 |
@Tushkito it is indeed shameful. Our languages are dying daily. Our pride is carting away into bin. What does tomorrow holds for us all? |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by scholes0(m): 2:30pm On Oct 30, 2018 |
Yorubas do it too, but yeah, I see your point. |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by mabea: 7:24pm On Oct 30, 2018 |
It's a shameful thing to say the least. |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by bigfrancis21: 10:29pm On Oct 30, 2018 |
McStoic: I noticed this a lot back in my undergraduate days at UNN. Several students born and raised in the west who came to the east to study (their parents did this as a way of the children to reconnect to their culture) had this air of being a lagosian. They often tried to impress with their knowledge of Yoruba while showing little interest in Igbo language. However, I noticed that most of them seemed to 'auto-correct' as soon as they got to final year or became adults. Many of them I know now speak fluent Igbo, have a strong Igbo identity and are strong advocates of promoting the Igbo language. To me, such displays were teenage or early adulthood tendencies that often go away as they become adults. Many of them are still my friends on facebook who are core Igboists more than the regular born and bred SE Igbos. This is one of the lingering psychological effects of losing the war. It rendered a deep blow to the collective Igbo pride and consciousness, something Chimamanda talked about one time. Igbos born outside Igboland before the war were all taught Igbo by their parents first while they learned English in school and the local languages around. There was enormous pride in being Igbo and transmitting the language/culture. Nowadays the number of native Igbo speakers outside Igboland compared to those speaking English as children is in the minority. The anti-Igbo antics by our fellow tribes isn't helping also. It has eaten deep into some Igbos that they rather see their tribe as evil and try to act much less Igbo than the average Igbo. Have you noticed that a great many of advocates of promoting Igbo language are people who may not have spoken Igbo as children but realized the beauty of the Igbo language and learned it later as adults? 5 Likes |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by herich(m): 10:50pm On Oct 30, 2018 |
Most tribes does that too, but do you really think the said man can comfortably speak igbo? Sometimes the person might wish to reply in Igbo but do not have the capacity to speak it fluently the way you'll understand without embarrassing himself. 2 Likes |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by Ishilove: 11:19pm On Oct 30, 2018 |
bigfrancis21:You just shaded Ukwuani people. Kwantinue. Last last we go gather you for road beat shege commot for ya body |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by musicwriter(m): 11:58pm On Oct 30, 2018 |
The issue the OP is dealing with here is an Africa-wide problem that various native African languages and tribes suffer at varying degrees. Admittedly, its worse in some languages, like the Igbo language. However, parents are just the proximate cause, the root cause of our situation is colonialism, which still enslave us mentally, spirituality, intellectually. The solution to the problem is first to realize that the white man has left. Then, replace English with Igbo in school or at least make it a compulsory subject in school and also require "credit" on it like we do English. Nothing would be done until we wake up and realise that the white man has left. This talk of English being a global language is lame. Before 1348, English wasn't even an official language or language of learning in England!!. Before then, Britain was still speaking the language given them by their colonizers (Greek, Latin, French). Britain later woke up and made their native English a global language. We can make Igbo or any other language a global language. It's up to us!!. 2 Likes |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by bigfrancis21: 3:44am On Oct 31, 2018 |
Ishilove: Lolz, nah. I was referring to some SE Igbos born and bred in Lagos who detest their own tribe to curry favor from other tribes. They try their best to appear 'unigbotic' or neutral as much as possible and display much less pride in their heritage. Now, that's what I'm talking about.   3 Likes 1 Share |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by Probz(m): 3:57am On Oct 31, 2018 |
Ishilove: Tell you who he did shade though, one of my cousins. Typical Emeka he is. 2 Likes |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by McStoic(m): 9:27am On Oct 31, 2018 |
bigfrancis21: Nwanne, your words are seasoned truths borne out of thorough observation and intelligent thinking. I thank God some Igbo parents are trying to enlighten their children by sending them down east for their tertiary education. I have a brother in the US whose children are fluent in Igbo, all learnt there. They were all born and bred there, only visiting home occasionally. This is how i am gonna train my children! |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by morpheus24: 5:04pm On Oct 31, 2018 |
bigfrancis21: The issue goes both ways. When Igbo's from Lagos return back to their home towns, they are castigated and ostracized by the inhabitants. They are often considered not "Igbotic- enough" or lack a deeper knowledge of the language. An Igbo who grows up in Yoruba culture is bound to associate and present himself as such, that is just common sense, your mannerism and demeanor is shaped by your environment. case in point, when I discovered burna boy was not a Yoruba boy I was equally shocked because he presents himself as such and therefore regardless of his ethnic heritage and origins has grown up Yoruba. In my time in South Africa as well, I noticed this phenomena where if one group of people moved to an are that ws predominantly of another ethnic gropu they would identify with that group regardless. Brenda Fassie is a Xhosa woman who grew up in Soweto and so identifies more as a Zulu than her own ethnic group In my opinion using the war as a narrative to why this phenomena is present is juvenile, in my opinion the fact that the Igbo is the most mobile of all ethnicities in Nigeria lends more credence to this phenomena and you will therefore have varying degrees of Igbo identity with the strongest representation in the South East Shikena 5 Likes |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by Shikena(m): 8:02pm On Oct 31, 2018 |
The greed of the politicians (who really don't give a damn about tribe/ethnic group as long as there is money to share) has really dealt a huge blow on Pan-Africanism. I just wish we could find a way to start sowing seeds of love while appreciating our respective cultures. At least the 3 major languages should be mandatory at elementary level. Annual cultural events (not some fake Brazilian carnivals) should be encouraged with Hausas, Igbos, Ijaws, Yorubas, Tivs etc converging in Abuja, Enugu, Sokoto or Ibadan to showcase the beauty of African culture. We should all be sound students of our history and culture and above all, masters of the riches of our local languages. Our history as native Nigerians should not revolve around the Civil War and the related events! That is not what defines us! That is a product of greed and selfishness of politicians and administrators starting towards the end of the colonial era. The narrative should change. Yorubas and Igbos are not enemies. They have lived together peacefully for years before politics started ruining things. Same with the Hausa-Fulanis despite the added complexities due to religion. The Yorubas were able to manage this effectively for ages. The Igbos also have been peacefully doing business in the northern parts of Nigeria and beyond for several generations. There have been issues but those negatives never defined the people and that's why they are still there with strong roots till today. Let's stop fanning the destructive embers of division. We have so much in common than we think! We are Africans, and frankly, that's how non-Africans see us - nothing more, nothing less. Let's start using our brains instead of our emotions so we can understand and focus on what is important. |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by TeeSha(m): 9:20pm On Oct 31, 2018 |
Nwanne'm, Kaa! M'bu onye Nkporo. Its good you raised this topic. You see....there're always two sides to a sword. I didn't grow up in the East, so i could only learn Igbo from my parents. The way they arranged it was that, my Dad would teach us Igbo, while my mum would teach us English. But guess what? My Igbo life suffered because my Dad wasn't always around. So i understood Igbo (Nkporo), but couldn't speak fluently. Which wasn't my fault. I got to the university....happy that i would finally learn Igbo (especially general igbo, since most people don't understand Nkporo), i purposely moved into a room with two other Igbo guys from Arochukwu and Enugu. I made it clear to them that i wan't to sharpen my Igbo speaking skill with their help. But guess what? Whenever i speak....all they do is laugh (yes, i didn't have the accent and mostly bit my tongue, but i was trying). Now, i don't have a problem with them laughing. The problem was that they refused to correct me after laughing. I told them this, and they'd be like "ehh....you said it correctly", when obviously not true. I got frustrated and began trying to learn on my own. You see.....alot of you guys would come here and be bashing people like me. Given, we can't speak it well, but what have you done to help us. See, when you guys laugh and refuse to correct us, we give up. Thank God i don't give up easily. You talked about us feeling too big? I don't know about others....but whenever i speak English in the village (Amurie) so as not to embarass myself with my clumsy Igbo, people would treat you as a nobody. The last time someone did that was 2014. I accompanied my Dad to Eze Otam's Palace. I then went to visit a new acquintance close by. He was with some friends, and we were introduced. One of the guys then asked me a question (in Nkporo)...i answered in English. He immediately hissed and uttered some demeaning comments about me, for just that. Since that day, i swore that since i'd be treated like trash because i find it difficult to communicate fluently in Igbo, i won't associate with any of them. Some people would now come and interprete as "feeling superior". See, they were the ones started the superiority complex. Its my right not to associate with people who treat me like trash because i'm not fluent. Next year, i'm relocating back home.....to any of the Eastern state. This Igbo, i'm going to learn it intoto, i don't need anyone's help again (since all i'll get are laughs and insults). I'll learn it myself, and then i'll employ and sponsor people to travel outside Igboland to teach people like me......people who never had the priviledge to learn it to fluency. 1 Like |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by bigfrancis21: 5:50am On Nov 01, 2018 |
TeeSha: The easiest solution is to keep speaking and speaking. There's no other way to learn any language other than speaking it, making some mistakes here, perfecting daily and there and in a few years you'll be perfect. Trust me. You can spend 12 months sitting in an Igbo language class however if you don't make any direct effort to speak you will not make any progress. If you decide to learn French or Italian at a language school, the main emphasis would be learning to pronounce the words correctly, making sentences etc (practicing how to speak) and in a few months to years you'd become fluent in it. It's no different in learning Igbo which would be easier than learning French or any other new language since you already understand it but need to perfect your pronunciation. I see some 'I wish I could speak but my parents didn't teach me Igbo' people that use that excuse as a reason to not speak Igbo. Well understood, the mistake has been made but it is correctable by the individual, yet they make barely any effort to learn the language themselves and they go nowhere. There are plenty Igbo language movies on Youtube nowadays. Watch as many as you can, call up your parents, friends or relatives who speak Igbo and speak with them, if any laughs at you grow a thick skin and continue speaking. Practice practice practice. Life always rewards those who persevere. In Igboland, a child could be excused for not speaking Igbo but as an adult, you are definitely not excused. Truly speaking, as an adult you should be speaking Igbo, with no excuses whatsoever. Ndi bee ayi kwulu si, ngwele si n'enu osisi daa, o bulu na ndi umunna ya a jaro ya ike, o jaa onwe ya ike (if a lizard falls from a tree and survives, if its people do not congratulate it, it will congratulate itself). An Igbo proverb that emphasizes on perseverance in hard times in the midst of little to no support. 1 Like |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by TeeSha(m): 7:42am On Nov 01, 2018 |
bigfrancis21: Bro.....thats what i'm all about. Not giving up. Maybe i should also reveal that on phone and via text, i'm pretty much "average". The main problem is when i come face to face. Last, last....most people are bitches who'd try to complicate things for you as much as possible. But to hell with them. Its refreshing to know there're still "reasonable" people out there that'll encourage you. |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by Johnchizoba(m): 8:20am On Nov 01, 2018 |
TeeSha: This is greatly written thanks for this contributions. It will do me a great deal. 1 Like |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by Nobody: 5:47am On Nov 04, 2018 |
TeeSha: My case is like yours but the only difference is that I was raised in portharcourt and both my parents spoke igbo to me but didn't make me reply in igbo but English, so I grew up with that habit and I never felt anything wrong with it, even at my hometown, my people were not as harsh as yours, they would urge me to reply as little as I can and when I don't get some words right they'd laugh and call me tochi bekee. I finally felt isolated when I got to school at Unizik, the kind of friends I choose to hang out with were the chronic igbo speaking type, so I felt very awkward and weird replying my guys in English each time they spoke igbo to me especially when we were discussing about football or girls, it just took the sweetness out the discussion and make me stick out like a sore thumb. I finally made up my mind to learn when I found out that chike, a guy that was born and brought up in Lagos, who couldn't even say come in igbo, was speaking it like no tomorrow, I was beyond shocked honestly. I started replying my friends in igbo and to be honest what kept me going was their support and today am quite fluent even my parents were beyond happy. Pls just don't give up and the easiest way of learning a language is surrounding yourself with speakers of the language not just anybody but positive people that would help u and correct u when needed, wish u good luck. 2 Likes 1 Share |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by LadySarah: 4:52pm On Nov 04, 2018 |
I'm rolling it off my tongue to my kids and I ove it.They may not reply me now but they surely will. We r not in an Igbo environment but we are progressing Even their Igbo names are prominent. someone once told me their English will sound igbotic,I said "best" ,so they won't forget their root.Last time I went for Xmas in the east,among all their cousins,they were the only ones understanding Igbo.I also made sure no one spoke English to them. O by Omenala 3 Likes |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by Johnchizoba(m): 2:02pm On Nov 05, 2018 |
LadySarah: One of those things I promised myself is that my children will learn igbo to the core. |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by Johnchizoba(m): 2:04pm On Nov 05, 2018 |
Tushkito: It is very annoying when those who are supposed to teach you this language are those laughing at you or making mockery of you. |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by Banmeallday: 4:54pm On Nov 05, 2018 |
Johnchizoba: GBAM....Yet when you speak Yoruba or even Spanish even if its wrong, they will be so happy you tried...Unfortunately for Pyschologically homeless Igbo they will certainly mock you when they dont even have international airport while trying to speak.... Too bad |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by Johnchizoba(m): 7:14pm On Nov 05, 2018 |
Banmeallday: We will conquer this soonest. I am working very hard on this. God will help us. |
| Re: One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria. By John Chizoba Vincent by Nobody: 10:11pm On Nov 05, 2018 |
Johnchizoba: Very unfortunate indeed. |
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