PROUDLY AND UNAPOLOGETICALLY URHOBO ~PROMOTE YOUR TRIBE CONTEST BY BLURTTRIBE

Hello everyone

This is my entry to #blurttribe contest tagged Promote Your Tribe on blurt

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I hail from Nigeria, the land of “Unity and Faith, Peace and Progress” A land filled with minerals and natural resources. It is a heterogeneous and diverse society blessed with assortments of states which all consists of Tribes, traditions, religions and ethic groups.
There are currently 36states in Nigeria, which consist of over 250 ethnic groups and over 300 tribes.

Tribe
Before proceeding, it is necessary to explain what a tribe is. A tribe is a group of people that all have common ancestry, or a common ancestor, a common culture, and live in their own enclosed society.
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I am from the Southern part of Nigeria, which consists of six (6) states and can be located where the Y tail of the river Niger meets the Atlantic Ocean. Out of the six states, I am from Delta State to be precise and our slogan is ”The big heart.”
Delta state consists of four (4) indigenous tribes: Ijaw, Itsekiri, Urhobo and Isoko. I am from the ”Urhobo Tribe” which consists of twenty four (24) political
Clans and kingdoms.

The Urhobo Tribe
I am proudly a native of Urhobo, the major ethnic group in Delta state which have millions of indigenes scattered around. It is believed through oral history that the Urhobo’s people originated from the Edo/Benin territory. They have a wide history of migration and segmentation into cultural units.
The Urhobo tribe is best known for their fishing and hunting practices for subsistence, they practice farming of different assortment of crops, and are well known for growing and gathering palmnuts which is a source for oil. We have a wide range of evergreen forests consisting of oil palm trees. This oil is traded and used both domestically and internationally. We are also known for producing yam and cassava, corn, pepper and groundnuts.

The Culture And Tradition of the Urhobo’s
Under the Urhobo tribe, we have different towns and villages and we all the the Urhobo language. Since we reside really close to River Niger, our beliefs are linked to water and there are series of festivals used in recognition and celebration of these beliefs. Some are known to worship some ancestral spirits and supernatural powers.

However we also practise Christianity and Islamic as well. We worship Oghene the supreme, Almight God and creator.

Political System
The ruler and king is called Ovie who is the highest political figure and his queen is called Ovieya while her children are known as the Omo Ovie. The governing of the land occurs in the town level and kingdom level. Some areas practise organisation based one age grade or wealth.

Cultural Delicacy
Our special, cultural food is known as Banga and starch. Banga is a soup made from the extraction of oil from palm nuts and kernels. The palm nuts are boiled and pounded in a mortar and it’s juice is extracted and used to cook alongside Different varieties of proteins. This soup is best boiled in a clay pot. It is eaten with Starch, which is gotten from cassava. It is placed on heat, and stirred in in a pan with a little oil, giving it an orange like colour.

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Festivals

Ohwuru festival
Here the spirits worshiped are showcased to it’s believers. It takes place at Evwreni, the southern part of the land. The Ohwuru spirit is worshiped and prayed too.

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Fishing festival
This is an annual celebration, where masquerades are displayed, series of fishing activities done and the gods are praised for granting them success in most fishing endeavours.

Adane-Okpe masquerade festival
This festival is used as a means to renew spirituality, economic upliftment and liberation, and unity among its people. It celebrates the spiritual Essence of the Urhobo people and it involves series of performances by masquerades.

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Marriage
When a man wants to marry an Urhobo girl, she will have to inform her parents of this occurrence and upon approval, the young man will be invited over for him to introduce himself. It is our culture that he comes with a bottle of Gin. After this her parents can decide to do there findings through investigation and prayers that he is a good man. Once everything is set and approved, the groom can now come with his parents and relatives to support his quest -Ghore-Etse.
If the marriage is approved, a bottle of gin is poured as libation to the gods and ancestors for blessings, wealth, children and strong bond -
Udi Arhovwaje rights

Traditional Attire
Noticeably their cultural attires are mostly in blue, light green, yellow and orange. Blue symbolises the river connection and the sky while yellow symbolises richness. The women wear a blouse Ewu, and head tie known as Onerho while they tie a wrapper underneath. The men wear a shirt and tie a wrapper beneath which is long and overflowing, and finishes up with a walking stick and a cap Eru. They are both adorned by beads called Evwarha and Ivie.

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Conclusion
The Urhobo tribe is blessed with beautiful people, cultures and traditions. We are one of Nigeria’s most interesting people and Our lands with resources, food and life.

I invite @kemmyb and @mrnine to join this contest.

Urhobo Waado!!
Blurt To The Moon!!