The Most Talented People Igbira
The Ebira (also spelt Igbira or Igbirra) are the outspoken and very hard working agrarian Nupoid-speaking ethno-linguistic group located in the Central Senatorial district of Kogi State (not far from the Niger-Benue confluence) in Nigeria.
Recent in depth research indicates that the Ebira have been part and parcel of what is now generally known as Central Nigeria since 4000 BC (Ohiare 1988). The Ebira zone is also prominent in the prehistoric civilization of the Iron Age generally characterised by the Central Nigeria as epitomised by Nok Culture. Even recently the iron-working site of Ife-Ijummu (Kogi State) has been dated to 260 B.C. Thus, it could be deduced that the Ebira as a group existed for a long time in locations within Central Nigeria not far from where they are located presently (Ohiare 1988, Willamson 1967, Beneth 1972).
Many Ebira people are from Kogi State, Kwara State, Nasarawa State, Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, and Edo State. Okene is said to be the administrative centre of the Ebira-speaking people in Kogi state.
The word “Ebira” refers to the people themselves, their language and their geographical location. Using the name of the most popular town of the land, we may refer to them as Ebira Okene. The Ebira Okene occupy the hilly stretch of land southwest of the Niger-Benue confluence area and share boundaries with the Yoruba-speaking people of Akoko, Owe and Ijumu to the west; the various Akoko-Edo people to the south and south west; the Hausa, Nupe and Ebira groups at Lokoja to the north; and the River Niger to the east. Nigerian Nollywood stars Mercy Johnson and Halima Abubakar are from Ebira tribe.
Other Ebira groups are Ebira Igu in Kogi and Koton Karfi local government areas of Kogi state; Ebira Toto and Umaisha ofNassarawa (Toto) local government area of Nassarawa state; Ebira Mozum of Bassa local government area of Kogi state; and Ebira Etuno of Igarra District of Ako-Edo local government area of Edo state. Other Ebira are to be found in Abaji in the Federal Capital Territory and Agatu in Benue state.
The Ebira people are republican by nature, outspoken and very hard working. Farming and cloth-weaving are occupations for which the Ebiras are well known. The paramount ruler of the people is called Ohinoyi of Ebiraland. The Ebira cherish their traditional festivals in spite of the infiltration of some negative tendencies.
GEOGRAPHY (ENVIRONMENT)
A common physical feature of Ebiraland is the conspicuous presence of blocks of dissected hills and the metaphoric rocks enveloping the greater part of the land. The hills rise to a peak of 2000 ft and probably represent the remnants of an old post of Gondowana pedi-plain (Clayton 1957). The African laterite and plain which embraces the greater part of Ihima, Okengwe and Ageva are occupied by extensive undulating plains (1200-1400ft). They are studded with smooth rounded rocks of in selbergs. The laterite soils are derived from metaphoric rocks of greyish-buff (18 inches) and clayed pan which overlay vascular iron stone (Omorua 1959:1). The depth of the soil is however variable, ranging from two to three feet to about three inches where the ironstone approaches the surface, as in the Itakpe hills in Adavi district.There is also the Niger literic plain forming a lower terrace below the higher plains. This is conspicuous in Ajaokuta, Eganyi, Ebiya and part of Adavi in the north and north-east of Ebiraland. Another very important feature is the rim from the highland. This enscarpement which extends to Ihima, Eika and part of Ajaokuta widens into abroad zone of dissected hills. The soil formation of the rims are mostly skeletal, consisting of pale brown and orange brown sands and grits. The enscarpment contains quartz stones interspersed with pockets of deeper sand wash (Omorua 1959:1-2).The implications of these features to the past and contemporary history of the land are many. A few of them are as follows. The nature of the topography has affected the relief pattern of Ebiraland,which is marked out of the dissected peaks with knife-edged ridges,and steep V-shaped valleys. Valleys of this type occur in Okene,Okengwe and Eika towns. Apart from exerting much influence on the climate, the features in part provided security and protection for the ancient Ebira. Thus they resisted external incursions into their geo-polity as in the case of the Ajinomoh jihadist wars in the 1880s discussed elsewhere (Okene 1990:26-30). Furthermore, the features influenced the pattern of the people’s technical know-how as it relates to the production of crafts like pottery, dyeing and blacksmithing and of the people instruments of production or destruction such as hoes, cutlasses and spears and bows and arrows.The Ebira were famous in Central Nigeria for the production of these crafts (Barth 1990:510-515; Jones 1969:38). In contemporary times, these features serve as a reservoir of the iron-ore deposit now discovered in large quantity in some hills of the land. Itakpe hill inAdavi district alone has an iron-ore deposit estimated between 37 and 47 million tons, and of more than 60 per cent iron content (Okene 1995:37). This is meant to provide raw material for the Ajaokuta Iron and Steel Industry set up by the Federal Government of Nigeria.Other minerals to be found in substantial commercial quantities in Ebira include marble, limestone, copper, chalk and mica.
Recent in depth research indicates that the Ebira have been part and parcel of what is now generally known as Central Nigeria since 4000 BC (Ohiare 1988). The Ebira zone is also prominent in the prehistoric civilization of the Iron Age generally characterised by the Central Nigeria as epitomised by Nok Culture. Even recently the iron-working site of Ife-Ijummu (Kogi State) has been dated to 260 B.C. Thus, it could be deduced that the Ebira as a group existed for a long time in locations within Central Nigeria not far from where they are located presently (Ohiare 1988, Willamson 1967, Beneth 1972).
Many Ebira people are from Kogi State, Kwara State, Nasarawa State, Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, and Edo State. Okene is said to be the administrative centre of the Ebira-speaking people in Kogi state.
The word “Ebira” refers to the people themselves, their language and their geographical location. Using the name of the most popular town of the land, we may refer to them as Ebira Okene. The Ebira Okene occupy the hilly stretch of land southwest of the Niger-Benue confluence area and share boundaries with the Yoruba-speaking people of Akoko, Owe and Ijumu to the west; the various Akoko-Edo people to the south and south west; the Hausa, Nupe and Ebira groups at Lokoja to the north; and the River Niger to the east. Nigerian Nollywood stars Mercy Johnson and Halima Abubakar are from Ebira tribe.
Other Ebira groups are Ebira Igu in Kogi and Koton Karfi local government areas of Kogi state; Ebira Toto and Umaisha ofNassarawa (Toto) local government area of Nassarawa state; Ebira Mozum of Bassa local government area of Kogi state; and Ebira Etuno of Igarra District of Ako-Edo local government area of Edo state. Other Ebira are to be found in Abaji in the Federal Capital Territory and Agatu in Benue state.
The Ebira people are republican by nature, outspoken and very hard working. Farming and cloth-weaving are occupations for which the Ebiras are well known. The paramount ruler of the people is called Ohinoyi of Ebiraland. The Ebira cherish their traditional festivals in spite of the infiltration of some negative tendencies.
GEOGRAPHY (ENVIRONMENT)
A common physical feature of Ebiraland is the conspicuous presence of blocks of dissected hills and the metaphoric rocks enveloping the greater part of the land. The hills rise to a peak of 2000 ft and probably represent the remnants of an old post of Gondowana pedi-plain (Clayton 1957). The African laterite and plain which embraces the greater part of Ihima, Okengwe and Ageva are occupied by extensive undulating plains (1200-1400ft). They are studded with smooth rounded rocks of in selbergs. The laterite soils are derived from metaphoric rocks of greyish-buff (18 inches) and clayed pan which overlay vascular iron stone (Omorua 1959:1). The depth of the soil is however variable, ranging from two to three feet to about three inches where the ironstone approaches the surface, as in the Itakpe hills in Adavi district.There is also the Niger literic plain forming a lower terrace below the higher plains. This is conspicuous in Ajaokuta, Eganyi, Ebiya and part of Adavi in the north and north-east of Ebiraland. Another very important feature is the rim from the highland. This enscarpement which extends to Ihima, Eika and part of Ajaokuta widens into abroad zone of dissected hills. The soil formation of the rims are mostly skeletal, consisting of pale brown and orange brown sands and grits. The enscarpment contains quartz stones interspersed with pockets of deeper sand wash (Omorua 1959:1-2).The implications of these features to the past and contemporary history of the land are many. A few of them are as follows. The nature of the topography has affected the relief pattern of Ebiraland,which is marked out of the dissected peaks with knife-edged ridges,and steep V-shaped valleys. Valleys of this type occur in Okene,Okengwe and Eika towns. Apart from exerting much influence on the climate, the features in part provided security and protection for the ancient Ebira. Thus they resisted external incursions into their geo-polity as in the case of the Ajinomoh jihadist wars in the 1880s discussed elsewhere (Okene 1990:26-30). Furthermore, the features influenced the pattern of the people’s technical know-how as it relates to the production of crafts like pottery, dyeing and blacksmithing and of the people instruments of production or destruction such as hoes, cutlasses and spears and bows and arrows.The Ebira were famous in Central Nigeria for the production of these crafts (Barth 1990:510-515; Jones 1969:38). In contemporary times, these features serve as a reservoir of the iron-ore deposit now discovered in large quantity in some hills of the land. Itakpe hill inAdavi district alone has an iron-ore deposit estimated between 37 and 47 million tons, and of more than 60 per cent iron content (Okene 1995:37). This is meant to provide raw material for the Ajaokuta Iron and Steel Industry set up by the Federal Government of Nigeria.Other minerals to be found in substantial commercial quantities in Ebira include marble, limestone, copper, chalk and mica.
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