Bini/Igbo Factors- Origins And Migration of Ika People

Ika lacks archeological works, and she is grossly deficient of ancient written records, myths, legends or fantasized oral traditions towards her history, culture and origin. For example, no part of Ika has been studied by a professional historian or anthropologist neither has any part of Ika villages been visited by one. The dearth of literature in Ika history can also be said to have stemmed up from lack of initiative of the early Ika people who embraced Western Education; who never picked up a pen and never made the feeble effort to attempt it. Otherwise, it is known that Ika had a crop of literate men since the arrival of the British in Agbor.

Aside from the Government School that was established at Agbor in 1906, most Ika people were products of the Mission Schools that started in some Ika towns ever before the British formed their school. Such kind of materials on folklores, folktales or treatises, etc. on Ika written by this generation of Ika would have been worthwhile contributions to the body of knowledge of Ika history. For instance, an Igbo ex-slave, Olanda Equiano’s autobiography (1789) answered some questions about Igbo people, their origin, government, politics, their economy, social life and British.

On the side of the British, their Officials did not help matters with their perfunctory Intelligence Reports on Ika clans. The British had every reason to have written extensively on Ika judging from the events of Ekumeku Movement (1880-1910) and the incident of the gruesome murder of Captain Crew Reade in 1906 at Owanta. But none of their writings, if ever, was available to this writer. In the absence of such detailed records, much of the account in the this chapter is based on the oral traditions of the Ika people, otherwise referred to as fluid history of Ika clans, or recalls of the various schools of thought on the origins of Ika people.

According to Eguavon, S.I. Eka (Ika) means deserters from Benin because of the bloody rule of Oba Ewuare about 1440 AD. It is said that the Binis who seized the opportunity of Oba Ewuare’s absence to flee from Benin were given this name Eka by Oba Ewuare, who on his return from one of his military campaigns, found that many of this subjects had deserted him. It was then he remarked sagaciously: So ghai Eka no. “Leave them, they are deserters”.

During this period for example, Oba Ewuare lost his only two sons, Ezuware and Ekpoboyuuwa through poisoning on the same day. To show hi grief for the death of these princes, he declared three years of mourning for them. During these years of mourning, he ordered that no one was to marry, and those who were married should not have sexual intercourse within the period. He also ordered that there should be no bathing and shaving of hair during the period. Those who were of marriageable age then fled Benin Kingdom in order no to prohibited from raising up families.

Generally, there were political and social disturbances and unrest during the period. The rulers were powerful and overbearing, and there was no known punishment that they could not mete out to offending subjects. Some were forcely charged and dealt with. Life and property were insecure in the face of political uncertainties that existed in Benin Empire. Since there was social disorder, the conditions became unbearable in Benin Empire, which resulted in migration spree of adventurous subjects.

However, on settlements in the areas now known as Ika, some of the Ika clans claim to have been formed before the movement of people from Benin and Ishan Divisions to Ika Land, and these are Agbor, Owa and Umuned clans. It may be that deserters or Ika not only swelled the population of the already existing settlements but also formed new settlements. Ika appears to have grown as a result of the influx of immigrants from Benin, Ishan and Aniocha areas of the defunct Bendel State. Ika people came to Ika Land in different waves of migration, led buy different persons from different directions at different times for different reasons.