Isunjaba: The Land, The People And Their Historical Origin

By John-Cliff NWADIKE

Isunjaba occupies a strategic position and very important place in the history of Igboland. It forms a cultural link between the Northern and Southern groups of the Isu clan. The area was and is still favourable for settlement of people from the beginning of Igbo history. It is fertile for crops like yam, cocoyam, maize, cassava and vegetables of all sorts. The Njaba River which has its source in Isunjaba provides the inhabitants with excellent drinking water as well as white chalk of superior quality (nzu). Thus, prospective settlers had both opportunities for subsistence and engaging in gainful occupations.

The roots of the Isunjaba town, like those of other Igbo areas, lie deep in the distant past. Though there are diverse tales of origin, most of the people appear to have lived in their present villages from the dawn of Igbo history, thus making the town one of the oldest in Igboland. According to the G. I. Jones Intelligence Report on Northern and Central Isu (NAE/MILGOV/13.1/27) published in 1934, Isunjaba is the head of the Isu group and is respected as such.

Besides, M. A. Onwuejeogwu maintains that nine major movements of peoples might be postulated to account for the present distribution and diversities of people and cultures in the Igbo culture area. One of such movements, according to him, is the Isu movement. This means that all other Isu communities which abound in Imo, Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu, Delta and Rivers States migrated from Isunjaba at one time or the other. Most of these groups, up till the present, revere the Eke-Njawa, the sacred python.

Isunjaba myths of origin can be divided into two different but related versions. The first version has it that the first Isunjaba man was created by Chukwu Abiama out of the Njaba River through the instrumentality of NJAWA. With time, he populated all the villages in the town through his son, Isu, who is said to have married a wife, ELILI. This marriage was blessed with two sons, Ebeke and Okporo.

The Njaba River

To foster a sense of oneness and kinship and to perpetuate and immortalize their forefather’s name, the sons of Ebeke called themselves ISUNJAWA, which is coined from Isu and Njawa, their grandfather and great-grandfather respectively. Thus, Isunjaba literally means Isu, son of Njawa – Isu nke Njawa. However, when the British had contact with the people in the early twentieth century, they erroneously referred to them as Isunjaba, which is Anglo-saxon version of Isunjaba and both are used to refer to a town that is currently in Isu Local Government Area of Imo State.

The second version of the origin of Isunjaba has is that the town was founded by a man called NJAMU (let me hide) or NJAWA. According to this version, Njamu was discovered by hunters at the source of a stream which they later called Njaba/Njawa. Njawa got married and his wife gave birth to a baby boy, and he called him Isu, which means Ishi (head). The wife also gave birth to another son called EZIAMA, and a third son, AMUCHA, which means AMUCHANAM. Unfortunately, this version does not tell us where the hunters came from and what actually brought NJAWA to the source of the river. It is also difficult to reason why the hunters preferred to perpetuate the name of NJAWA (by establishing a town with it) to theirs. Despite all these arguments, many elders still believe and hold this version only as a variant of the first.

With time, the sons and great grand-sons of Njaba/Njawa dispersed to other areas and founded communities which bear their names till date. Isu, being the most senior and Ojiofo of Njawa settled at the place of their birth – the source of the Njaba River.

At present, Isunjaba town is made up of twelve villages in the following order: Okwara, Uzoafor, Ihitte, Ndiuhu, Imeowerre, Umunwamiri, Ubah, Umuezealaibe, Duruaku, Umuoji Uzoafor, Ndimbara Onunkwo Imeowerre, Ndimbara Nzeneri Imeowerre, and Umuokwaraku.

At the early stage of its history, the village head of Isunjaba had far-reaching powers which enabled him to administer his people efficiently. He demanded and received prompt obedience from his subjects on anything at all. As a matter of fact, the first generations of Isunjaba rulers were men of repute, active and persuasive enough to be spokesmen of the town.

It is interesting to observe that a visit to the Okwaraezeobi’s palace (the traditional stool of Isunjaba) is a “veritable encounter with history: the cannons used in the pacification of Igboland by the British, pots of cowries used in the past as money, big traditional talking drums, carved traditional seats, old traditional war knives, the old storey building built in the nineteen twenties and historic photographs”. All these point to a people with long traditional history of organized and efficient leadership.

The judicial system also played an important role in the growth of the town. The Okwaraezeobi presided over the judicial set-up. In most cases, he was regarded as the final court of appeal in all cases, but a more efficient court was that provided by public opinion.

The socio-economic life of the people was regulated by religious sanctions, especially during the Igbu-Awa (New Yam Festival) which has been modernized and Christianized by HRH, Eze B. C. Osuala (Okwaraezeobi Isunjaba). Those sanctions provided effective checks on crimes. Offenders were dealt with through a number of religious sanctions. In some instances, the public could ridicule anyone who failed to observe social standards of the town.

The Isunjaba people were not war mongers. This is due mainly to the fact that the town evolved political and social mechanisms that averted the outbreak of wars from within and outside. However, to say the above should not imply that the people did not give good accounts of themselves during the few recorded wars that occurred. Enlistment into the local military machine was ad-hoc. Once the aggressors were taken care of, those who took part in the war went back to their homes and resumed their routine socio-economic life.

Another interesting aspect of Isunjaba history is the reverence the whole town accords the sacred python – Eke Njawa. This python is treated with utmost reverence by all the inhabitants of the town, irrespective of one’s religion and social standing. It is neither killed nor eaten. Strangers, including religions leaders, are not allowed to tamper with it. This explains why neighbouring and outside communities regard Isunjaba as a totemic entity.

Right from the inception of the town, the people, via their leaders, managed to organize their very limited resources in order to provide some basic services. The need for an efficient means of communication and transportation made the people to engage in the construction and maintenance of footpaths. These paths were swept and kept clean regularly as they led to the markets, streams, farms, and village squares. Markets were built and the elders ensured that they were kept clean. Some of these markets, especially the Nkwo Isu daily market, reflected the vitality and viability of the economic life of the Isunjaba people.

Another interesting aspect of Isunjaba social history is the Okorosha cultural dance which immensely helps to stabilise the town. The Okorosha institution is an exclusive affair of adult males. Only one woman in a village could be initiated into its fold as “Lolo Okorosha”. Such a woman must be responsible and wealthy enough to be selected for such an honour. After her initiation, she becomes free to come out when the Okorosha masquerades are performing both in the day and night (practice period). The Okorosha as such contributes greatly in regulating the lives of the people. The Okorosha masquerade performs parallel function of the modern police force and tax agents. They are used in collecting debts and fines, and as the spirits of the ancestors, they are immune to attack, physical molestation and police arrest.

In conclusion, it must be remarked that the average Isunjaba person believes that the town was created by Chukwu Abiama through the instrumentality of Njawa and Isu. The children and great grand-children of these early founders of the town called themselves and their place of abode ISUNJABA – Isu nke Njaba. It was the British, out of their ignorance, that later corrupted Isunjawa to Isunjaba. Ever since then, both names are used interchangeably and they mean one and the same thing and represent the same great and historic town in the heart of Igboland – Isunjaba.

*JohnCliff NWADIKE is a professor in the Department of History and International Studies, Imo State University, Owerri