Ogba people

The Ogbas are one of the Igbo Subgroups in Rivers State. This history of the community, written by its current Eze (king), sets out to cover the entire sweep of its history, from ‘the origin of the Ogbas’ (attributed to the fourteenth century) to the colonial period (post-independence history being treated only cursorily). It is based mainly on local oral traditions, taken partly from colonial Intelligence Reports, but also including extensive new material collected by the author; some use is also made, for the colonial period, of contemporary documents from British and Nigerian archives, and for prehistory, of archaeological evidence.[6] The Ogba people comprise fourteen extended families divided into clans, and occupy an area of about 600 km in the Niger flood plain. This study covers their origins, environment, political, economic and social institutions, and cultural practices. It also considers the impact of colonialism and the activities of the Christian missionaries on the Ogba, in the context of the various ethnic groups in Nigeria thus affected. It argues that although the Ogba lost much under colonial rule, their resilience and adaptability, in common with many Nigerian ethnic groups was the key to their cultural renewal and adaptation to the modern era. The author further suggests that rather than perceiving Nigerian history as a series of micro- histories of different ethnic groups, it is closer to the truth to understand Nigeria as a loose associations of people with a common history and common cultural traits - all to the good, given their common destiny.

The Ogba people are ruled by the Oba (Eze Ogba) of Ogba land, Barr. Nwachukwu Nnam Obi III.

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