The Chukwu octuplets were the fifth set of live-born

octuplets A multiple birth is the culmination of one multiple pregnancy, wherein the mother gives birth to two or more babies. A term most applicable to vertebrate species, multiple births occur in most kinds of mammals, with varying frequencies. Such bi ...

recorded history Recorded history or written history describes the historical events that have been recorded in a written form or other documented communication which are subsequently evaluated by historians using the historical method. For broader world hi ...

, and the first to have seven of eight children survive

infancy An infant or baby is the very young offspring of human beings. ''Infant'' (from the Latin word ''infans'', meaning 'unable to speak' or 'speechless') is a formal or specialised synonym for the common term ''baby''. The terms may also be used to ...

. The birth happened in December 1998.

Family history

The six girls and two boys were born in December 1998 at

St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center (BSLMC) is the private adult teaching hospital of Baylor College of Medicine jointly owned with CHI St. Luke's Health. The medical staff at the hospital includes full-time Baylor faculty, as well as community ph ...

in Houston, Texas. Their parents — mother, Nkem Chukwu and father, Iyke Louis Udobi — are both

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of G ...

n-born American citizens."Mother of the Octuplets Goes Home to Recover"
by Rick Lyman, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

,'' December 31, 1998; retrieved January 10, 2008 All weighed under two pounds (900

gram The gram (originally gramme; SI unit symbol g) is a unit of mass in the International System of Units (SI) equal to one one thousandth of a kilogram. Originally defined as of 1795 as "the absolute weight of a volume of pure water equal to ...

) at the time of birth. The first born, Ebuka, was delivered on December 8, 15 weeks

premature Premature may refer to: * ''Premature'' (2014 film), an American comedy film * ''Premature'' (2019 film), an American romantic drama film * '' PREMature'', a 2015 British television drama miniseries See also * Premature aging, of an organism * ...

. The remaining 7 octuplets were born by

caesarean section Caesarean section, also known as C-section or caesarean delivery, is the surgical procedure by which one or more babies are delivered through an incision in the mother's abdomen, often performed because vaginal delivery would put the baby or ...

on December 20, 13 weeks premature. The smallest of the octuplets, Odera, died on December 27, a week after birth. She was the lightest of the 8 babies, weighing just over . The obstetrician was Brian Kirshon, a well-known physician practicing in Houston. The seven remaining octuplets celebrated their 10th birthday in Houston on December 20, 2008, in the company of volunteers who helped in their early years. The five girls and two boys were reported to be "normal, active and bright fourth-graders.""Houston octuplets celebrate 10th birthday"
by Jennifer Leahy, from the

Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With i ...

website, December 20, 2008, retrieved February 2, 2009 The babies were named as follows:

Media appearances

Early January 2009, Nkem Chukwu and her husband, Iyke Louis Udobi, appeared January 27, 2009, for the first time in 10 years on national TV on ABC's ''

Good Morning America ''Good Morning America'' (often abbreviated as ''GMA'') is an American morning television program that is broadcast on ABC. It debuted on November 3, 1975, and first expanded to weekends with the debut of a Sunday edition on January 3, 1993. ...

'' in a prerecorded segment where they commented on the birth of the new

Suleman octuplets The Suleman octuplets are six male and two female children conceived via in vitro fertilization (IVF) and subsequently born to Nadya Suleman on January 26, 2009, in Bellflower, California. Residing in Lancaster, California, they are the first kno ...

. The next day, January 28, 2009, the whole family along with grandmother Janet Chukwu appeared on NBC's ''

The Today Show ''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'' or informally, ''NBC News Today'') is an American news and talk morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It ...

'',"Houston octuplets visit The Today Show"
by Michael Inbar, from

website, January 28, 2009, retrieved February 7, 2009 which was the first time the octuplets appeared on national television since their first birthdays. Later that day, they were whisked to the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. n ...

(AP) World Headquarters for a TV interview for the world newswires. On Monday February 2, Nkem Chukwu released the statement: "In light of the Bellflower mom, Nadya Suleman's story, I spoke on ''The Today Show''. When asked, Iyke Louis Udobi stated in their recent AP interview that 'if you can take care of one, you can take care of eight'."Houston Octuplet dad tells AP parents who can take care of one baby can do the same with 8!"
by Bonny Goach, from

TV website, January 28, 2009, retrieved February 7, 2009 They also appeared on the ''

Larry King Live ''Larry King Live'' was an American television talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was the channel's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly. Mainly aired from CNN's Los Angeles ...

'' show in a segment titled "Octuplet Outrage" focusing on the worldwide coverage generated by

Nadya Suleman Natalie Denise Suleman (born Nadya Denise Doud-Suleman; July 11, 1975), known as Octomom in the media, is an American media personality who came to international attention when she gave birth to the first surviving octuplets in January 2009.

's 14 children and the ethical and medical controversy."Chukwu Octuplets visit Larry King Live"
/ref> On February 9, 2009, Nkem and Iyke Chukwu appeared on Radio One's talk show ''The

Mo'Nique Monique Angela Hicks (née Imes; born December 11, 1967), known professionally as Mo'Nique, is an American stand-up comedian and actress. She has received an Academy Award, BAFTA Award, Golden Globe Award, and Screen Actors Guild Award. She ...

show''."Chukwu Octuplets parents on the Mo'Nique radio show"
February 9, 2009, retrieved February 10, 2009 They also appeared Sunday February 15, 2009, on a local TV segment on KHOU-TV, Houston, Texas, on a family update.
, by KHOU-TV, Houston from the KHOU-TV website, February 16, 2009, retrieved February 18, 2009 They also appeared on CNN's AC360 on February 18, 2009. Nkem Chukwu later addressed the Nadya Suleman octuplet row with Randi Kaye of CNN's ''Anderson Cooper 360'' show on February 18, 2009."Growing up as Octuplets"
by CNN-TV's Anderson Cooper 360, from the AC360 blog, February 18, 2009, retrieved February 18, 2009 The Chukwu octuplets embarked on a world tour themed "Promoting Healthy Families". The tour, which began in mid-2009 and included the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, England, and the parents' native Nigeria, included visits to TV talk shows, health clinics, summer camps, and supermarket seminars on large families for the children and speaking engagements at prenatal and postnatal clinics for Nkem. In a March 18, 2009, interview in ''

The Daily Sentinel A variety of newspapers are called ''Sentinel'' or ''The Sentinel'', including: * ''The Daily Sentinel'' (Texas), based in Nacogdoches, Texas * ''Daily Sitka Sentinel'', based in Sitka, Alaska * ''Grand Junction Daily Sentinel'', published in west ...

'', Iyke Louis and Nkem stated said that they did not intend to have so many children but accepted the children as a gift from God.Jacobs, Trent (March 18, 2008)
"Title unknown"
''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chukwu 1998 births Multiple births American children American people of Igbo descent People from Houston Living people