Ika Man Denies Igbo Identity in Lagos, Faces Cultural Reality Check
A Lagos resident, Ibekwe Chukwudi, recently shared a personal experience highlighting the ongoing identity debate among some Igbo people from the South-South region who deny their Igbo origin. In his account, he recalled an encounter with an Ika man who lived near his compound and consistently refused to be identified as Igbo.
According to Chukwudi, the Ika man grew uncomfortable whenever Yoruba neighbours referred to him as “Omo Igbo.” One day, during a visit to a provision store near their yard, the Yoruba shop owner greeted him, saying, “Omo Igbo, how are you? You will buy me Alomo bitters today.” The Ika man, visibly irritated, insisted that he was not Igbo but rather from Ika, and therefore would not buy the drink.
In response, the Yoruba man calmly explained to him that Ika is a dialect of the Igbo language. He asked, “If you are not Igbo, why is your name Azubuike, your wife’s name Ngozi, and your son’s name Ifeanyi? With these names, it is clear that you are Igbo; no one needs to ask where you are from.” He further added that even people from Calabar are often considered Igbo due to cultural similarities.
As the conversation drew a crowd, the Ika man eventually acknowledged that he was Igbo and accepted being addressed as “Omo Igbo.” Chukwudi humorously concluded the story by saying that he ended up buying the Alomo bitters for the Yoruba man as a token of appreciation for enlightening Azubuike about his identity.
