Igbo Jews of Africa as detailed in Forward – The Jewish Daily
LAGOS, Nigeria – Efraim Uba was born and raised Catholic in southeastern Nigeria, the homeland of the Ibo ethnic group. He spent 17 years as a Pentecostal preacher before joining a messianic congregation where members wore yarmulkes and tallits but praised Jesus. In 1999, one congregant traveled to Israel and came back claiming that the Ibos were Jews. He convinced the whole congregation to embrace Judaism.
“We believe we are from Israel, and we only recently discovered that so many old Ibo traditions were in fact Jewish ones,” said Uba, 60, who was wearing a large silver Jewish star around his neck. In 1999, he founded the Association of Jewish Faith in Nigeria, an organization with some 20 congregations, most of them in his native region. He is one of an estimated 30,000 Nigerians – a fraction of the nation’s 135 million people – who claim to be Jewish. In recent years, they have abandoned the Christian faith of most southern Nigerians and are longing for official recognition by rabbis and by Israel. Just this summer, four members of the community were the first to formally convert to Judaism.
Following the examples of Ethiopia’s Falashas, the Lembas of South Africa and Uganda’s Abuyudaya, the Nigerian Jews are part of a growing number of sub-Saharan Africans who have embraced Judaism. Nigeria’s Jews, like the Falashas, claim to be descendants of some of Israel’s lost tribes who settled in what is now southeast Nigeria. By comparison, the Abuyudayas do not claim to have blood ties to the ancient Israelites and converted by following a local leader.
“There is a real phenomenon of construction of a Jewish identity in sub-Saharan Africa over the last few decades,” said Edith Bruder, a French researcher who recently published “The Black Jews of Africa: History, Religion, Identity” (Oxford University Press). “You have a belief among some local communities that they are descendants of Jewish communities who settled there since ancient times. This phenomenon has accelerated recently with the Falasha precedent and the globalization of information.”
The Nigerian Jewish claim was bolstered several years ago with the discovery in the area of an onyx stone reportedly bearing the name “Gad” in ancient Hebrew. In addition, the Ibo Benei-Yisrael, as they sometimes call themselves, have traditions bearing some resemblance to Judaism. Among them are the circumcisions of newborn males on the eighth day, the separation of women during the menstrual cycles, the mourning period resembling a shiva and the prohibition of eating the meat of an animal that was not blessed. There is also the blowing of a ram’s horn, akin to blowing of the shofar.
Reluctant to convert
But to be officially recognized as Jewish is a tedious process. Israel granted that recognition to the Falashas only after careful vetting. The Abuyudayas underwent a conservative conversion six years ago, a path the Ibos are reluctant to embrace. Their reasoning is simple: To convert would undercut their claim to be Jewish by ancestry. “We are Israelites. This is our identity, and our religion is Judaism, so being denied inclusion into the Jewish family makes us feel lost,” said Michael Ginika, a 53-year-old accounting teacher. ……………………………..
By Marc Perelman October 2, 2008.
More @
http://www.forward.com/articles/14317/
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1026682.html
DNA can be used to verify common
claims found in various parts of the world
amongst people who appear to be of
different racial,ethnic or cultural backgrounds
These varying peoples may have been further
separated by linguistic and geographic barriers,
but yet hold to the same tradition or claim.
For example if I was to arrive in the United States
and ask African-Americans where they originate
according to tradition or history,I most likely would
hear accounts of a Slave trade that took place hundreds
of years ago that brought their ancestors in ships from
Africa. I could then travel to French speaking Haiti and
hear of the same story. This process would continue
with identical accounts from Jamaica and Portuguese
speaking Brazil. Although there are no original captives
to test I could carry out DNA testing from all the present
day communities who are making this common claim
When the results come back positive linking all of the
tested communities the common tradition is now verified
through common ancestry. In order to reinforce these
results I could now do further DNA TESTING in the areas
from which the peoples commonly claim to have originated.
In this particular case it would be West Africa. When the
West African tested results likewise comeback as positive
the entire tradition as mentioned above is reinforced through
DNA EVIDENCES……CONT’D
I like to make this categorically clear . though i have been making statement on this issue most often but we seem to ignore the facts. Igbos are not jews, rather all jews are igbos. it is wrong and insulting for you to call an Ephraimite, or a Gadite a jew. Ephraimite are people from ephraim, Manasheite are from Manasseh, Zebulunite are from Zebulun, Gadite are from Gad , Jews are from Judah. there is definitly gonns be similarity in culture between igbos and present day Israel who i can call judah. but yet all cultures will not be same cos we are not from Judah , but from the house of israel. Igbos are HEBREWS as a genealogy and Israelite as a nationality. not jews.
Wrong, after the Babylonian exile the people were collectively called “Yahudim” regardless of what tribe they were from. you will find such references to Israelites all over Africa by the Arabs. They were called Yahudim or “Jews” then. Not Judaites or Yahudites but Yahudim as a people.
Judaism is simply a religion and like Christianity and Islam
its members are from many different races and ethnic backgrounds.
In fact the word Jew as in Judaism does not even come from Judah
but is rather derived from the Hebrew word Yodea which means to
KNOW. This referred to the followers of the KNOWLEDGE of the RABBIS
or the WISEMEN. Rabbinical Judaism was founded by Rabbi Hillel in what
was called the era of the Tanaim. Rabbi Hillel was born in Babylon and was
taught by Sh’maya and Abtalion who were both descendants of the Assyrian
King Senechrib. As Israelites the Igbo have nothing to do with the followers of
Judaism.
Igbos are original Hebrews meaning they are the children of Ebere/ Eber “The Merciful” who preceeded Abiaraham ” A Just Man”. Abiaraham / Abraham though recorded as ” a Semite” is of the Igbo Race. Igbos who can trace their ancestry to Jacob whose name was changed to Israel (Gen.35. vs 10) ARE ISRAELITES INDEED. All Israelites are not JEWS .Jews are from the fellowship/ Tribe of Judah. All labelled as Jews today are not of the Hebrew/ Igbo Race meaning that they are not all descendant of Abaraham / Abiahaham neither are they descendants of Eber.
igbos are of jewish descent realy i believe it our culture portrays it our language our name what of our traditional religion which clearly defines it , the ancient igbos worshipped CHUKWU ABIAMAH as their national GOD before the POTOKIRI{PORTUGUES] explorers came to NIGERIA ? the IGBOS of antiquity worshipped the GOD OF ABRAHAM [CHUKWU ABIAMAH} CHUKWU meaning the great GOD,and ABIAMAH AS ABRAHAM circumcises their SONS on the eight days ETC WHAT OF THE antiquity findings in AGULERI…….
Igbos are not JEWS- they are Israelites.. you would do well to just throw the word JEWS away, unless you are speaking of the mostly white people who follow Judaism- the religion or culture. NO Israelite ever called themselves Jews.. not even the Yahudim. It is a rather new word. J is not even in the Hebrew language.
The “Jewry” is an Igbo way of life .Which Igbo ?,THE ISRAELITES.. JEWRY ,literally means “the fullness”. Fullness of what? Fullness of the Laws as prescribed in The Torah( Old Testament kjv ) A Jew would be ‘One Living in The Fullness’. It was most definately applied to The Fellowship of The Tribe of JUDAH and ‘The House of Judah’ which had included The Tribe of Benjamin and men of the tribe of Simeon .
ENC
You say that J is not even in hebrew.
Check this- In Ganda the name Jacob is pronounced as yakobo. James is said to be yakobo in Ganda.
Gya is is pronounced as Ja in Ganda. e.g. the name Gyageenda is pronounced Jagenda
The J has has been creeping into Ganda slowly over time.
Also K followed by an i (Ki) is pronounced as “CHi” not as Key