The emergence of praise-poetry recitation in the Ịjọ community

Abstract

This article focuses on the emergence of praise-poetry recitation among the Ịjọ of Nigeria’s Niger Delta region. It argues that until the contemporary period, the Ịjọ had no such poetic form. The article therefore examines how Chief Adolphus Munamuna, Ọụbẹbẹ Kẹnị Ịzọn Ibe (The Chief Oral Poet of the Ịzọn Nation), was influenced by Yoruba bards to begin a poetic tradition that was previously alien to the Ijo community. It further compares the tradition, as it is practised by the Ọụbẹbẹ Kẹnị Ịzọn Ibe, with other ethnic groups in Africa, including the Yoruba, Hausa, Somali and the Bantu-speaking peoples of southern Africa where the culture of praise chanting continues to this day.