Ubakala is a large
town
A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city.
The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...
in
Umuahia
Umuahia () is the capital city of Abia State in southeastern Nigeria. Umuahia is located along the rail road that lies between Port Harcourt to its south, and Enugu city to its north. Umuahia has a population of 359,230 according to the 2006 Ni ...
South
Local Government Area
A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a federated state, state, province, division (politica ...
(LGA) of
Abia State
Abia is a state in the Southeastern region of Nigeria. The state's capital is Umuahia and its most populous city is Aba.
Abia is bordered the west by Imo, east by Cross River, south by Rivers, northwest by Anambra and northeast by Enug ...
,
Nigeria
Nigeria, 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 Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...
. It is one of the major ancient clans of Umuahia.
[Hanna, Judith. (2006). Dance and Social Structure: The Ubakala of Nigeria. Journal of Communication. 29.184-192. 10.1111/j.1460-2466.1979] A popular market for which it is known is the Apumiri Market.
Umuahia South Local Government Area Headquarters is located at
Apumiri as well. Ubakala is situated southwards of
Umuahia main township. Its well defined boundaries geographically places it at the North of Ntigha (a community in Isiala-Ngwa LGA).
History
There is the popular belief that Ubakala didn't migrate from anywhere in the distant past. Legend however has it that a wealthy merchant called Uba (or Ubaka according to other oral sources) founded what we know today as Ubakala. It was said that during the mass exodus of the Igbo through the Awka-Okigwe axis, he sojourned with his family, goods and servants across undulating hills and valleys towards the Imo river, he discovered a lush rainforest inhabited only by wild beasts and large trees. As he surveyed the entire virgin territory, he finally exclaimed to himself "Uba ikala!" (that is to say, "Uba you have increased!"), thus, coining a name for his newfound domain - Ubakala.
It was also said that he placed his sons in three strategic areas of the land namely - Mba-iyi, Ala-ocha and Nsuda-Imo. His sons helped manage his wealth in these three areas and gave rise to children who over time married and had their own offspring, which over generations evolved into villages.
Cuisine
Traditional cuisine typically involves Akpu (fufu)/Pounded yam (Asurasu Ji) and Okazi soup cooked with achara and akpụrụakpụ elile. Other soups popular in Ubakala are the ụgbọghọrọ soup, bitter-leaf soup, Oha soup, elile soup and the Ugu soup.
Delicacies consumed in other parts of Igboland as well as Ibibio-efik communities are consumed in Ubakala too.
Religion
In ancient times, Ubakala people were Animists whose cultural and religious practices bore interesting similarities to Judaism as seen also in every other Igbo community. Ubakala people once adhered to a deity called 'Nkpata', invoked by the long juju (Ibini Ukpabi) priests from
Arochukwu
Arochukwu Local Government Area, sometimes referred to as Arochuku or Aro Oke igbo is the third largest local government area in Abia State (after Aba and Umuahia) in southeastern Nigeria and homeland of the Igbo subgroup, Aro people.
It ...
, as well as lesser deities like the
Njoku Ji. The
Ekpe
Ekpe, also known as Mgbe/Egbo ( Ekoi language: ''leopard''; derived from the Efik term for the same), is a West African secret society in Nigeria and Cameroon flourishing chiefly among the Ejagham. It is also found among a number of other ethni ...
secret society (Okonko) was quite prominent during those times. A masquerade festival called "Abu Nkwu" took place on occasional basis. Ubakala believed in reincarnation and ancestor honor as part of their worldview.
[Ubakala Dance - Oxford Reference.https://www.oxfordreference.com/view]
Today, Ubakala people are predominantly Protestant Christians. Denominations like Anglicanism, Presbyterianism, Adventist Movements, Qua Iboe Churches, Assemblies of God Churches amongst others are conspicuous. Catholicism has some degree of foothold in Ubakala as well.
Social structure
Ubakala people are generally modest, religious, and industrious. Their dance-plays are well documented in contemporary anthropology and the Oxford's International Encyclopedia of Dance.
Ubakala is a patrilineal, egalitarian and achievement oriented clan.
[Ubakala Dance - Oxford Reference. https://www.oxfordreference.com/view] Once led by constitutional monarchs who bore the now defunct 'Uba of Ubakala' title, Ubakala has evolved into conglomerates of thirteen viable villages, each one presided over by an instituted Eze with his council of elders/chiefs. Before British colonialism, Ubakala was one of several clans in igboland that, as a matter of principle, didn't practice the Osu caste system (not to be misconstrued for the "osu" homonym associated with greatness in the igbo lexicon) despite its legality and presence in ancient Igbo socio-cultural practice.
[Asiegbu, Johnson U. J.(1985). Traditional African Societies And Indigenous Technology: A Case Study Of The Umuahia-Igbo Communities Of South-Eastern Nigeria. Pg.95-105. https://idl-bnc-idrc.dspacedirect.org/bitstream/handle/10625/1741/IDL-1741.pdf]
The 13 villages of Ubakala which now have the status of Autonomous Communities are:
*
Nsukwe
* Amibo
* Umuogo
* Amuzu
* Eziama
* Mgbarakuma
*
Umuosu
* Avodim
*
Laguru
*
Abam
Abam is a populated Igbo clan in Abia state. It is located in Arochukwu/Ohafia federal constituency of Nigeria. Abam is the biggest clan by population and landmass in Arochukwu LGA, and one of the biggest clan in Abia North senatorial district. ...
*
Nsirimo
* Ipupe
* Umuako
References
{{coord missing, Nigeria
Populated places in Abia State