Life Lesson

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Customs and Traditions

Ngwas have one custom, tradition and culture which we now refer to as ‘Ome na-ala-Ngwa’. He believe in the supreme deity (God), but he equally believed in the lesser deities, for example: Ala (mother earth) Ofo-La Ogu (god of right doing) Ihi Njoku (god of yam), and amadi-Oha (god of thunder). His music include Ekeravu for adults, Anyantolukwu for young girls. Ese dance for a deceased noble man and warrior. Ukom for the deceased noble woman. Wrestling was the most popular game in Ngwa-land. Other cultural festival were Ikoro and Ekpe dances. Iru-Mgbede for unmarried young ladies.

The Ngwa man as a farmer, had great regard for land. Some acts and behavior were regarded as taboo against the land. Such acts included s*xual encounters in the bush, s*x or marriage with close blood relatives, s*xual encounter with your father’s wife while your father is still living, disrespect for the elders, killing by poisoning. Phrase such as ‘Iru-ala’ were used to describe any of the above acts. To appease the aggrieved land forms of sacrifice were carried out known as “Ikwa-ala”. Land was the source of wealth of the Ngwa man and cultivation was tied to the availability of labor. The most dependable source of labor force was the womenfolk, hence the average Ngwa man of the immediate past was a polygamist. The attachment to the land as the principal source of livelihood placed the Ngwa man of the in serious handicap especially in times of disturbances involving moving away from his habitat.

Ngwa people a tribe in south eastern part of Nigeria. It's also the largest and most populous ethnic group in Abia state southeastern Nigeria. They occupy an area of about 1,328 square kilometres (513 sq mi), although some accounts read at least 2,300 km2 (900 square miles). The current population is estimated to be 2 million.Within the seventeen local government areas of Abia State, Nigeria. Ngwa people occupy nine Local Government Areas which include: Aba North, Aba South, Isiala Ngwa North, Isiala Ngwa South, Obi Ngwa, Osisioma, Ugwunagbo, Ukwa East, Ukwa West. The Ngwa language spoken by over 2 million people in Aba North, Aba South, Osisioma, Obingwa, Ugwunagbo, Isiala Ngwa North and Isiala Ngwa South LGA's and Ngwa unique alphabets are endangered as there is no official documentation and parts of the artificial "Central Igbo" dialect are being substituted into Ngwa language by the younger generation.