Isoko Tribe in Delta State

Location of the Isoko tribe

The Isoko tribe live in the Isoko North and Isoko South Local Government Areas of Delta State, Nigeria. They also have other Isoko groups outside these areas, such as Ibrede, Ushie, Igbuku, Umuolu, Ewedhe-Ashaka, and Ibredeni.

Six Isoko-speaking communities are located in the Sagbama Local Government Area of Bayelsa State. The Isoko homeland is bounded by the Ukwuani and Aboh communities in the north, the Ase River in the east, Urhobo towns in the west, and the Ijaw in the south. 

Origin

The Isoko tribe comprises nineteen clans, including Uzere, Ozoro, Emede, Igbide, Erowha, Okpe, Oleh, Iyede, Irri, Olomoro, Emevor, Owhe, Enhwe, Okpolo, Aviara, Umeh, Ofagbe, Ellu, and Oyede. These clans are organised into subcultural units or Kingdoms, similar to the Scottish clan, where members belong to one great family descended from a common ancestor. Within the Isoko context, a clan is a socio-political unit.

The Isoko people and clans have traditions of origin, claiming they originated from Benin and Igboland. However, two exceptions exist: the Olomoro clan, which links it to Urhoboland, and the Erowha clan, which claims autochthony. Isoko land has never been an empire or kingdom, and its cultural diversity is influenced by the absence of a central government and differences in ethnological origin.

The different clans often stress their different traditions of origin. Traditions of origin are controversial oral literature, but they are considered historical documents with limitations such as chronology and interpolation. Despite being accounts of the beginning of people, they only represent a fraction of their history.

The origins of the Isoko tribe are complex due to the limitations of oral tradition. The Isoko clans may have migrated as isolated units for hundreds of years, primarily from the Benin Kingdom or its surroundings.

The current population includes native peoples and those from Egypt/Sudan, Ife, Igbo, and Benin. The exact migration dates in the Niger Delta region are unknown, but it is suggested that segments of the Isoko may have been there for around 2000 years.

The nineteen Isoko clans are traditionally of Benin or Igbo descent. However, the 1960s and 1970s idea that most Isoko groups were of Benin ancestry needed to be more concise and based on British Intelligence Reports and Professor Obaro Ikime’s work. The remote nature of these occurrences may question their ability to account for their origins accurately.

The Isoko language, considered younger than the Benin language today, is believed to have emerged after their migration. Elugbe believes that the Edoid languages, including Isoko, could not have emerged after the formation of the Benin kingdom. Isoko, nearly as old as Edo, could not have developed from it.

However, it shares certain similarities with the Edoid language. Elugbe claims that the founders of the Isoko clans and the Benin villages must have descended from a common origin, who migrated and founded different settlements. Today, this common origin includes the Edoid-speaking peoples of Edo and Delta states, as well as sections of Rivers state.

The Isoko clans claim Benin origins, although linguistic evidence implies that the clans were not founded due to migrations from Benin. Benin migrants arrived in territory previously occupied by early settlers and mixed with them. Human memory may recall the last migrations however, it is challenging to determine where the original founding fathers of Isoko came from. Linguists and historians refer to Benin and its neighbours as Edoid.

This cultural group comprises ethnic fragments such as Bini, Ishan, Owan, Etsako, Isoko, and Urhobo in the western Niger Delta. The Bini and these communities collectively refer to the Benin king as ‘Oba’, though the Isoko-Urhobo complex also refers to the ancient Ogisos dynasty.

Religion

The Isoko tribe, a tribe of indigenous people from the Isoko region, have a strong bond with their creator and father, Oghene. They believe that Oghene is beyond human knowledge and can only be understood via his acts, hence calling him “our father” (Ose mai) rather than “my father.”

Life in pre-colonial Isoko tribe was linked with religion, and the Isoko did nothing except worship God. They associated every act with God from birth to death through invocation, sacrifice, and ceremony.

The clan elders, who served as guardians for the family and clan, represented the ancestors and Oghene. Worshipping ancestors were essential in Isoko’s life since they were considered closer to Oghene(God) and watched over their children on earth. 

Oghene was thought to punish evil and reward good. Therefore, the Isoko blamed witchcraft for any misfortunes that occurred to a virtuous man.

To bridge the distance between Oghene and man, middlemen were assigned as ancestors and other deities and divinities. The most potent moral force in Isoko’s life was the worship of ancestors, who were envious of their family and clan’s good name and could punish anyone who mistreated them by sending disaster.

Today, most Isoko people are Christians, yet traditional worship stays strong. Isoko  is home to more than 1,000 distinct Christian faiths, which has earned them the appellation “Race of Reverends and Teachers.”

Marriage rites

The Isoko marriage involves three steps: first visit, second visit, and paying the bride price. The groom visits the bride’s home with his family to declare his intention. The bride’s father entertains them with kola nuts and drinks and gives her money for trouble locating their house. In return, the groom’s family offers drinks and kola nuts and pays back the money.

On the second visit, the groom presents his gifts to the girl’s father, and the bride is asked if she knows the man and wants to marry him.

The gifts presented are only accepted upon the bride’s agreement to marry him. A list of required items is provided to the man, who must buy or pay the equivalent. The girl’s father introduces the groom to family members, and the groom must visit them multiple times to fulfil their requests. The groom is also given a list of required items from the girl’s parents.

Note: Traditional marriages exclusively use the Isoko language, with no other language spoken during the ceremony, even if the groom is a foreigner. If he has difficulty understanding the language, he can seek assistance from an Otuta (speaker). The Otuta must understand Isoko to effectively interpret to him.

The bride price is crucial in traditional marriages, with concessions for Isoko men. If an Isoko man is present, the bride price is N500; if not, it is N1000. Elders review the price as time passes, and the groom must give the bride a box with clothes and hot drinks, such as wine.

The bride is expected to wear George fabric or lace, and the man must wear the traditional attire of the Isoko tribe, including a wrapper, Esbo Abre, bowler hat, and holding a walking stick..The groom must also present the drinks and kola nuts, even if they don’t.

The bride’s family caters for the food as the ceremony occurs in her home. However, both families can work together.

After traditional marriage, the bride is given to her husband, followed by a relative who escorts her to her husband’s house. When returning, the man is expected to give them either a goat or ten thousand naira.

The Isoko Community gives a Marriage Certificate to the couple, which is recognised in all parts of Isoko. In the Urhobo-speaking part of the Isoko tribe, the man is told to give a bag of salt to every married woman in the bride’s extended family.

Traditional Attire

The Isoko tribe’s traditional attire for men is a lace shirt, george wrapper to be tied from the waist to toe, and a cowboy hat (usually black). To complement the attire, the man uses a walking stick and beaded accessories round the neck and wrist.

For the women, it’s two wrappers tied round the waist to toe (usually George or lace) with one longer than the other. Along with this is a headgear (udhofor), a blouse (ewhu) and beaded accessories.

Occupation

Before colonisation, the Isoko economy was mainly focused on land production, with riverine Isoko clans relying heavily on fishing. Farming was a secondary activity, with fishing taking place year-round. Localised trade consisted mainly of barter between nearby family groupings and clans, with hunting playing an important role.

The majority of people from Isoko tribe were farmers, with fishing as a sideline. The principal food crops were cassava and yams, supplemented with maize, beans, pepper, groundnuts, melon, okra, plantain, and banana. These crops were sown on the same farm and during the same growing season. Cassava was the source of most foods consumed in pre-colonial Isoko tribe, and products like Garri, starch meal, and Egu was extracted from it. 

Presently, the Isoko homeland in Delta State, Nigeria, is a substantial source of crude oil revenue, with 43 oil wells producing 56,000 barrels daily (8,400 m3/d) in present-day Isoko South. The region, which contains hundreds of oil wells, ranks second in commercial quantities.