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A Philosophical Exposition of Kinship in Igbo African Ontology

Received: 29 January 2022    Accepted: 21 February 2022    Published: 23 March 2022
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Abstract

Ndigbo have a peculiar way of being as a people. They have a peculiar way of relating among themselves and establishing social affinities; they have their unique idea of relatedness. This peculiar sense of relatedness bound them together as a people despite the absence of a central government in the pre-colonial era. Kinship was cherished and was in some situations elevated to the sacred. It was the sacred bond that established as well as defined social relations among Ndigbo. The Igbo social web of relatedness generally revolved around the father. Patriarchy was ubiquitous in the Igbo society. The mother was important but was not the pivot of kinship relations among Ndigbo. However, Afikpo, Ohafia and Abiriba stand out as notable exceptions due to their matrifocal kinship practices. Although kinship is generally expressed by proximity and consanguinity, Ndigbo have their peculiar ways of interpreting and expressing consanguinity in their cultural milieu. Ndigbo express certain levels of relatedness with people in their proximity but definitely do not ipso facto see such people as kith and kin. Although, Igbo kinship is mostly patrilineal, it certainly does have significant bi-lineal components. This work showcases Igbo kinship system in philosophical formations. It is essentially a philosophical investigation of the Igbo idea and practice of kinship using the analytic method of inquiry. The work will systematically explore the subject matter in logical formation.

Published in Humanities and Social Sciences (Volume 10, Issue 2)
DOI 10.11648/j.hss.20221002.16
Page(s) 83-87
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Kinship, Igbo, Consanguinity, Affinity, Patrilineal

References
[1] Ebo, S. (2019). Death in Igbo African Ontology. http://skhid.kubg.edu.ua/article/view/171815
[2] Acholonu; C. O & Leguer E. F. (2011). West African Origin of Language. The Case of Igbo. http://www.faculty.ucr.edu/~legneref/igbo/westafricanorigin.htm
[3] Ina; I. (2020, March, 11). “Akwa Ibom’s indigenous Igbo”. The Southern Examiner. http://thesouthernexaminer.com/akwa-iboms-indigenous-igbo-p1668-197.htm
[4] Fadaka; L. (2020, August, 6). “Ohaobu-Ndoki”. Gbetu TV. https://www.gbetutv.com/ohaobu-ndoki-aiboms-blue-river-host-community-in-ruins/
[5] Igboid. (2016, October, 23). “Meet The Isobos, The Igbo Speaking Tribe Of Obubra LGA Of Cross River State”. Nairaland Forum. https://www.nairaland.com/3425009/meet-isobos-igbo-speaking-tribe
[6] Unigwe; C. (2020, October, 2). “Nigeria: A case of Resilience”. The Africa Report. https://www.theafricareport.com/44226/nigeria-a-case-against-resilience/
[7] Ejiofor; G. (1974). Constitutional Guarantee of Property Rights in Nigeria. https://www.jstor.org/stable/745064
[8] Wechie; L. (2021). Actually, what is Bini about Ikwerres? https://expect.ng/2021/05/12/actually-what-is-bini-about-ikwerreby-livingstone-wechie/
[9] Nwaokocha; A. O. (2015). An interrogation of the Anioma identity. https://www.jstor.org/stable/24768927
[10] Lampell; E. K. (1984). Cultural Survival Quarterly Magazine. https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/batek-de-malaysia
[11] Schwimmer; B. (1997). Bilateral kinship systems. https://umanitoba.ca/faculties/arts/anthropology/tutor/descent/cognatic/bilateral.html
[12] Arbor; A. (1980). Marriage relationships in the double descent system of the Afikpo Ibo of southeastern Nigeria. https://ehrafworldcultures.yale.edu/ehrafe/citation.do?method=citation&forward=browseAuthorsFullContext&id=ff26-016
[13] Ember; M. (1966). Samoan kinship and political structure: An archeological test to decide between the two alternative reconstructions. https://www.jstor.org/stable/668076
[14] Gudeman; S. (1975). Spiritual relationships and selecting a godparent. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2800496
[15] Ene-Obong; H. N. (2017). Gender roles, family relationships, and household food and nutrition security in Ohafia matrilineal society in Nigeria https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/mcn.12506
[16] Chang; C. (1980). Women’s Status in the Afikpo Ibo Society. https://www.google.com/search?q=in+afikpo%2C+the+wife+is+never+a+member+of+the+husband+lineage&oq=in+afikpo%2C+the+wife+is+never++a+member+of+the+husband+lineage+&aqs=chrome..69i57j33i10i160l2.35870j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
[17] Achebe; C. (1958). Things Fall Apart. Heinemann Educational Publishers, London.
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    Socrates Ebo. (2022). A Philosophical Exposition of Kinship in Igbo African Ontology. Humanities and Social Sciences, 10(2), 83-87. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.hss.20221002.16

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    Socrates Ebo. A Philosophical Exposition of Kinship in Igbo African Ontology. Humanit. Soc. Sci. 2022, 10(2), 83-87. doi: 10.11648/j.hss.20221002.16

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    AMA Style

    Socrates Ebo. A Philosophical Exposition of Kinship in Igbo African Ontology. Humanit Soc Sci. 2022;10(2):83-87. doi: 10.11648/j.hss.20221002.16

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  • @article{10.11648/j.hss.20221002.16,
      author = {Socrates Ebo},
      title = {A Philosophical Exposition of Kinship in Igbo African Ontology},
      journal = {Humanities and Social Sciences},
      volume = {10},
      number = {2},
      pages = {83-87},
      doi = {10.11648/j.hss.20221002.16},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.hss.20221002.16},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.hss.20221002.16},
      abstract = {Ndigbo have a peculiar way of being as a people. They have a peculiar way of relating among themselves and establishing social affinities; they have their unique idea of relatedness. This peculiar sense of relatedness bound them together as a people despite the absence of a central government in the pre-colonial era. Kinship was cherished and was in some situations elevated to the sacred. It was the sacred bond that established as well as defined social relations among Ndigbo. The Igbo social web of relatedness generally revolved around the father. Patriarchy was ubiquitous in the Igbo society. The mother was important but was not the pivot of kinship relations among Ndigbo. However, Afikpo, Ohafia and Abiriba stand out as notable exceptions due to their matrifocal kinship practices. Although kinship is generally expressed by proximity and consanguinity, Ndigbo have their peculiar ways of interpreting and expressing consanguinity in their cultural milieu. Ndigbo express certain levels of relatedness with people in their proximity but definitely do not ipso facto see such people as kith and kin. Although, Igbo kinship is mostly patrilineal, it certainly does have significant bi-lineal components. This work showcases Igbo kinship system in philosophical formations. It is essentially a philosophical investigation of the Igbo idea and practice of kinship using the analytic method of inquiry. The work will systematically explore the subject matter in logical formation.},
     year = {2022}
    }
    

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    AB  - Ndigbo have a peculiar way of being as a people. They have a peculiar way of relating among themselves and establishing social affinities; they have their unique idea of relatedness. This peculiar sense of relatedness bound them together as a people despite the absence of a central government in the pre-colonial era. Kinship was cherished and was in some situations elevated to the sacred. It was the sacred bond that established as well as defined social relations among Ndigbo. The Igbo social web of relatedness generally revolved around the father. Patriarchy was ubiquitous in the Igbo society. The mother was important but was not the pivot of kinship relations among Ndigbo. However, Afikpo, Ohafia and Abiriba stand out as notable exceptions due to their matrifocal kinship practices. Although kinship is generally expressed by proximity and consanguinity, Ndigbo have their peculiar ways of interpreting and expressing consanguinity in their cultural milieu. Ndigbo express certain levels of relatedness with people in their proximity but definitely do not ipso facto see such people as kith and kin. Although, Igbo kinship is mostly patrilineal, it certainly does have significant bi-lineal components. This work showcases Igbo kinship system in philosophical formations. It is essentially a philosophical investigation of the Igbo idea and practice of kinship using the analytic method of inquiry. The work will systematically explore the subject matter in logical formation.
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Author Information
  • Center for Continuing Education, Federal University Otuoke, Bayelsa, Nigeria

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