List of Igbo people
The list of Igbo people includes notable individuals who have full or significant ancestry to the Igbo people of southeastern Nigeria. As the Igbo are an ethnicity, people listed come from variety of different nations, and may have other ancestry as well as Igbo.
The Igbo people (who are sometimes referred to as the Ibo(e), Ebo(e),[1][2] Eboans[3] or Heebo)[4] (Igbo: Ndi Igbo) are an ethnic group in West Africa. Most Igbo people live in southeastern Nigeria where they are one of the three largest and most influential groups, the two others being the Hausa and Yoruba people.[5] Further populations live in other nations out of Africa due to migration and to the effects of the Atlantic slave trade. The Igbo peoples involvement in the Nigerian Civil War (6 July 1967 – 13 January 1970) (or the "Nigerian-Biafran War") is well known as they were the main group calling for secession from and recognition by Nigeria of Biafra.[6]
Arts and entertainment
Artists and illustrators
Actors and actresses
| Name | Born | Death | Notability | Reference |
| Stella Damasus-Aboderin | 24 April 1978 | – | | |
| Francis Agu | 18 February 1965 | 20 March 2007 | | |
| Ifeanyi Chijindu | | | | |
| Caroline Chikezie | 1979 | | | |
| Chioma Chukwuka | 12 March 1980 | – | | |
| Rita Dominic | 12 July 1975 | – | | |
| Megalyn Echikunwoke | 28 May 1983 | – | | |
| Pete Edochie | | | | |
| Chiwetel Ejiofor | 10 July 1974 | – | Award-winning and two-time Golden Globe Award-nominated actor | [7] |
| Osita Iheme | | | | |
| Chinedu Ikedieze |
| | | |
| Genevieve Nnaji | 3 May 1979 | – | Best Actress in a Leading Role, African Movie Academy Award 2005 | |
| Chike Nwoffiah | | | | |
| Stephanie Okereke | 1982 | – | Best Actress – English and Best Actress of the year 2003, Reel Awards 2003 – also nominated twice for the African Movie Academy Award 2005 and 2009 for Best Actress in a Leading Role | |
| Onyeka Onwenu | | | | |
| Cyril Nri | 1961 | – | | [8] |
| Kanayo O. Kanayo | 1 March 1962 | – | | |
| Oby Kechere | | | | |
| Tonto Dike | | | | |
| Michael Ezuruonye | | | | |
| Chiké Okonkwo | 18 March 1982 | – | | |
| Antonia Okonma | 24 July 1984 | – | | |
| Oge Okoye | | | | |
| Zack Orji | | | | |
| Phina Oruche | 31 August 1975 | – | | |
| Nkem Owoh | | | | |
| Kenneth Okonkwo | 6 November 1968 | - |
| |
| Uzo Aduba | | | | |
| Chidi Mokeme | | | | |
| Yul Edochie | 7 January 1982 | – | | |
| Paul Robeson | 9 April 1898 | 23 January 1976 | Multi-lingual American actor, athlete, Basso cantante concert singer, writer, civil rights activist, fellow traveler, Spingarn Medal winner, and Stalin Peace Prize laureate. | [9] |
| Forest Whitaker | 15 July 1961 | – | American actor, producer, and director who won an Academy Award for his performance as Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in the 2006 film The Last King of Scotland'. | [10] |
| Blair Underwood | 25 August 1964 | – | American television and film actor nominated for a 2009 Golden Globe Award for his role on In Treatment | [11] |
| Chuma Mmeka | 21 June 1975 | – | Poet, film actor, published writer |
| Joshua Uzoigwe | 1 July 1946 | October 2005 | | |
Authors
| Name | Born | Death | Notability | Reference |
| Chris Abani | 27 December 1966 | – | Notable for his first novel, Masters of the Board, which was about a Neo-Nazi takeover of Nigeria. | [12] |
| Chinua Achebe | 16 November 1930 | 21 March 2013 | Novelist, poet and critic, Achebe is best known for his award winning novel, Things Fall Apart. | [13] |
| Catherine Obianuju Acholonu | October 1951 | – | | |
| Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie | 15 September 1977 | – | Best known for Half of a Yellow Sun | [14] |
| Nnorom Azuonye | July 1967 | – | | |
| William Napoleon Barleycorn | 1884 | 1925 | Spanish Guinean Primitive Methodist missionary and author of the first Bube language primer. He was a member of a prominent Fernandino family. | [15] |
| Edward Wilmot Blyden | 3 August 1832 | 7 February 1912 | Liberian educator, clergyman and Pan-Africanist. | [16] |
| Ifeanyi Chijindu | | | | |
| Michael Echeruo | 14 March 1937 | – | | |
| Buchi Emecheta | 21 July 1944 | – | | |
| E. Nolue Emenanjo | 1943 | – | | |
| Okwui Enwezor | 1963 | – | | |
| Cyprian Ekwensi | 26 September 1921 | 4 November 2007 | | |
| Olaudah Equiano | c. 1745 | 31 March 1797 | Also known as Gustavus Vassa, was a writer and abolitionist. | [17] |
| Paschal Eze | | – | | |
| Africanus Horton | 1835 | 1883 | Also known as James Beale, he was a writer and folklorist from Sierra Leone. | [18] |
| Chinweizu Ibekwe | | | | |
| Vincent Chukwuemeka Ike | | | | |
| Uzodinma Iweala | 5 November 1982 | – | | |
| Uche F. Okpara | 10 September | – | Full Name: Uche Francis Okpara, also known as the lazy son of Hercules. He is an Educator, essayist, award winning poet amongst other things. With a genius IQ of 149,he earned the title "Brainiac". His popular works include 'Hallowed Antiquity', 'Its Not Rape', and 'I Am The Change'. | |
| Uchechi Kalu | | | | |
| Nnedi Okorafor | | | | |
| Uche Nduka | 14 October 1963 | – | | |
| Nkem Nwankwo | 12 June 1936 | 12 June 2001 | | |
| Flora Nwapa | 18 January 1931 | 1993 | | |
| Onyeka Nwelue | 31 January 1988 | – | | |
| Okey Ndibe | 1960 | – | | |
| Onuora Nzekwu | 19 February 1928 | – | | |
| Ike Oguine | | | | |
| Christopher Okigbo | 1932 | 1967 | | |
| Obinna Charles Okwelume | 20 September 1981 | | | |
| Ifeoma Onyefulu | | | | |
| Ada Udechukwu | 1960 | – | | |
| F. Nnabuenyi Ugonna | 12 October 1936 | 5 June 1990 | | |
| Chuka Umunna | October 1978 | – | | |
| Chika Unigwe | 1974 | – | | |
| Chuma Mmeka | 21 June 1975 | – | Also known as T-char, he is a poet, actor, published writer, award winning humanitarian well known for his poetry chapbook The Broken Home | |
Film makers and producers
Models and beauty pageant contestants
Singers and musicians
Education
Historians
| Name | Born | Death | Notability | Reference |
| Adiele Afigbo | 1937, 22 November | 9 March 2009 | Historian known for the history and historiography of Africa, more particularly Igbo history and the history of Southeastern Nigeria. | |
| Kenneth Dike | 1917 | 1983 | | |
| Paul Robeson, Jr. | 1927, 2 November | – | | [9] |
Philosophers
Heads of organizations and business executives
Nnaleche Michael Kossy Caleb
| Leo Stan Ekeh | 22 February 1956 | – | Founder and head of Nigerian PC manufacturer Zinox Technologies | |
| Louis Odumegwu Ojukwu | 1909 | 1966 | Business mogul and father of Chukwuemeka Ojukwu, the former governor of the Eastern Region and leader of Biafra | |
| Nnaleche Michael Kossy Caleb | 27 December 1997 | 2016 | Co-founder and Owner Of Qwive Inc | |
| Samuel Maduka Onyishi | 1963 | 1995 | Founder and CEO Peace mass transit and Peace group of companies | |
| P. N. Okeke-Ojiudu | 1914 | 1995 | | |
| Omu Okwei | 1872 | 1943 | Merchant queen of the River Niger | [24] |
| C. T. Onyekwelu | 1898 | | | |
| Mathias Ugochukwu | 1926 | 1990 | | |
| Evelyn Okere |
4 November 1973 |
– |
Nigerian businesswoman, publisher, fashion designer and the Managing Director/CEO of St. Eve Concepts. |
Economists
Bloggers
| Name | Born | Death | Notability | Reference |
| Linda Ikeji | 19 September 1980 | | | |
Journalists
Judges
Political figures
Activists
Politicians
| Name | Born | Death | Notability | Reference |
| Enyinnaya Abaribe | | | | |
| Catherine Obianuju Acholonu | | | | |
| Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi | 3 March 1924 | 29 July 1966 | First military and second substantial Head of State of Nigeria | |
| Igwe Aja-Nwachukwu | | | | |
| Frank Ajobena | | | | |
| Dora Akunyili | 14 July 1954 | 7 June 2014 | Former Director General of National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) of Nigeria and current (since 17 December 2008) Nigerian Minister of Information and Communications. | |
| Rotimi Amaechi | 27 May 1965 | – | Current Governor of Rivers State and the Chairman of the Nigerian Governors' Forum | |
| Collins Nweke | 14 July 1965 | – | Municipal Legislator Ostend City Council Belgium and former Chairman of Nigerians in Diaspora Europe | |
| Emeka Anyaoku | 18 January 1933 | – | Former Secretary-General of the Commonwealth of Nations | |
| Nnamdi Azikiwe | 16 November 1904 | 11 May 1996 | Nigeria's foremost President and the Owelle of Onitsha | |
| Chukwuemeka Chikelu | | | | |
| Uche Chukwumerije | | | | |
| Edward Wilmot Blyden | 3 August 1832 | 7 February 1912 | Americo-Liberian educator, writer, diplomat, and politician in Liberia and Sierra Leone. | [26] |
| Kema Chikwe | | | Academic and politician; former federal minister of transport and later minister of aviation; and former Nigeria's ambassador to Ireland | |
| Alex Ifeanyichukwu Ekwueme | 1932 | – | Renowned architect, lawyer, and politician. Formerly, vice-president of the 2nd federal republic of Nigeria (1979 - 1983) | |
| Martin Elechi | | | Current governor of Ebonyi State | |
| Evan Enwerem | 29 October 1935 | 2 August 2007 | | |
| Virginia Etiaba | | | Educator; politician; former deputy governor (and briefly governor) of Anambra State. | |
| Herbert Eze | | | | |
| Akanu Ibiam | 29 November 1906 | December 1995 | Medical missionary who later became the first governor of the Eastern Region from 1960-66. The Enugu International Airport is named after him. | |
|
| Maurice Iwu | 21 April 1950 | – | Former head of INEC | |
| Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu | 4 September 1942 | – | | |
| Orji Uzor Kalu | 21 April 1960 | – | Oligarch and former governor of Abia State | |
| K. O. Mbadiwe | | | | |
| Ojo Maduekwe | 6 May 1945 | – | Former Federal Minister under Obasanjo and Yar'Adua administrations. | |
| Chinwoke Mbadinuju | | | | |
| Sam Mbakwe | 1929 | 5 January 2004 | One of the chief former governors of Imo State. The international cargo airport in Owerri is named after him. | |
| Chris Ngige | 8 August 1952 | – | Former governor of Anambra State | |
| Akachukwu Sullivan Nwankpo | 1962 | | Former Special Advisor to the President Goodluck Jonathan on Technical Matters | |
| Nkechi Justina Nwaogu | 1956 | | Senator who represents the People's Democratic Party in Abia State. | |
| Chimaroke Nnamani | 10 April 1959 | – | Former governor of Enugu State | |
| Obiageli Ezekwesili | 28 April 1963 | – | Former Vice President of the World Bank and Education Minister as well as a co-founder of Transparency International. | |
| Ike Nwachukwu | | | | |
| Frank Nweke | | | | |
| Chinyere Ike Nwosu | | | | |
| Zacheus Chukwukaelo Obi | | | | |
| Peter Obi | 19 July 1961 | – | Former Governor of Anambra State, the Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Governors' Forum and the Chairman of the Southeast Governors' Forum. | |
| George Obiozor | | | | |
| Peter Odili | 15 August 1948 | – | Former governor of Rivers State. | |
| Igwegbe Odum | | | | |
| Frank Ogbuewu | | | | |
| Vincent Eze Ogbulafor | | | | |
| Joy Ogwu | | | | |
| Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu | 4 November 1933 | 26 November 2011 | Military officer and politician who served as the military governor of the Eastern Region of Nigeria in 1966 and the leader of the breakaway Republic of Biafra from 1967 to 1970. | |
| Chuba Okadigbo | | | | |
| Edward Ikem Okeke | | | | |
| P. N. Okeke-Ojiudu | | | | |
| Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala | 13 June 1954 | – | Current Finance Minister and former Foreign Minister of Nigeria, notable for being the first woman to hold either of those positions. | [25] |
| Richard Okonye | 1943 | 1999 | | |
| Augustine Uwa Aniebo | | | | |
| Jaycee Okwunwanne | 8 October 1985 | – | | |
| Ogbonnaya Onu | | | | |
| Nwafor Orizu | | | | |
| Theodore Orji | 11 November 1950 | – | Current governor of Abia State. | |
| Dennis Osadebay | 29 June 1911 | 26 December 1994 | Nigerian politician, poet, journalist and former premier of the now defunct Mid-Western Region of Nigeria, which now comprises Edo and Delta State. | |
| Edward James Roye | 3 February 1815 | 11 February 1872 | Fifth President of Liberia from 1870 to his overthrow and subsequent death in 1871. | [27] |
| Andy Uba | | | | |
| Achike Udenwa | 1948 | – | Former governor of Imo State. | |
| Onyema Ugochukwu | | | | |
| Sylvester Ugoh | | | | |
| Charles Ugwuh | | | | |
| Emmanuel Ukaegbu | | | | |
| Jaja Wachuku | 1918 | 1996 | | |
| Chukwuemeka Ngozichineke Wogu | | – | | |
Warriors
Science
Sports
American football players
Canadian football players
Athletes
Basketball players
Boxers
Footballers
Martial arts
Religion
Citations
- ↑ Cassidy, Frederic Gomes; Robert Brock Le Page (2002). A Dictionary of Jamaican English (2nd ed.). University of the West Indies Press. p. 168. ISBN 976-640-127-6. Retrieved 24 November 2008.
- ↑ "Ebo Landing". title. Retrieved 19 November 2008.
- ↑ Poupard, Dennis; Mark Scott; Gale Research Company (2007-11-19). Literature Criticism from 1400 to 1800 (1st ed.). Gale Research Co. pp. 185–187. ISBN 0-7876-9905-5. Retrieved 24 November 2008.
- ↑ Obichere, Boniface I. (1982). Studies in southern nigerian history: A Festschrift for Joseph Christopher Okwudili Anene 1918–68. Routledge. p. 207. ISBN 0-7146-3106-X.
- ↑ Williams, Lizzie (2008). Nigeria: The Bradt Travel Guide. Bradt Travel Guides. p. 32. ISBN 1-84162-239-7.
- ↑ Forsythe, Frederick (2006). Shadows: Airlift and Airwar in Biafra and Nigeria 1967–1970. ISBN 1-902109-63-5.
- ↑ Hattenstone, Simon (10 July 2004). "The rainbow's end Arts". London: Guardian News and Media Limited.
Life, he says, was always precarious for his parents in Nigeria – they belonged to the Christian Ibo tribe...
- ↑ "Cyril Nri". IMDb.com, Inc. Retrieved 30 January 2009.
- 1 2 Robeson II, Paul (2001). The Undiscovered Paul Robeson: An Artist's Journey, 1898–1939 (PDF). Wiley. p. 3. ISBN 0-471-24265-9. Retrieved 27 December 2008.
A dark-skinned man descended from the Ibo tribe of Nigeria, Reverend Robeson was of medium height with broad shoulders, andhad an air of surpassing dignity.
- ↑ James Lipton (Himself – Host), Forest Whitaker (Himself) (11 December 2006). "Inside the Actors Studio: Forest Whitaker (2006)". Inside the Actors Studio. Season 13. New York City, USA. Bravomedia. Bravotv.
- ↑ Underwood, Blair. "Testimonials – "A welcome surprise that my people are from Nigeria & Ibo people"". Africanancestry.com. Retrieved 23 November 2008.
- ↑ Timberg, Scott (18 February 2007). "Living in the 'perfect metaphor'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 25 January 2009.
But even before he became one of the rare Africans in the Phoenix Inn and one of the few blacks living in East L.A., Abani was what he calls "an outsider's outsider." He grew up in small Nigerian cities, the son of an Igbo educator father and a white English-born mother who'd met at Oxford, where she was a secretary and he was a post-doc student. Raised Roman Catholic, Abani studied in the seminary as a teenager.
- ↑ Ezenwa-Ohaeto (1997). Chinua Achebe: A Biography. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. p. 7. ISBN 978-0-253-33342-1.
- ↑ Nixon, Rob (1 October 2006). "A Biafran Story". The New York Times Company. Retrieved 25 January 2009.
Adichie may not have lived through the civil war, but her imagination seems to have been profoundly molded by it: some of her own Igbo family survived the Nigerian Civil War; others did not.
- 1 2 Sundiata, I. K. (1996). From Slaving to Neoslavery: The Bight of Biafra and Fernando Po in the era of abolition 1827–1930. University of Wisconsin Press. p. 149. ISBN 0-299-14510-7.
- ↑ Edward Wilmot Blyden. Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia. Archived from the original on 31 October 2009. Retrieved 19 November 2008.
- ↑ Equiano, Olaudah (1837). The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano. I. Knapp.
- ↑ Edwards, Paul; David Dabydeen (1991). Black Writers in Britain, 1760–1890: An Anthology. Edinburgh University Press. p. 185. ISBN 0-7486-0327-1.
- ↑ "Ikenna Bryan Okwara – Nigeria". Miss World Limited. Archived from the original on 7 December 2008. Retrieved 30 January 2009.
- ↑ "2007 Sports illustrated Swimsuit Bio -Oluchi Onweagba". CNN/Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 30 January 2009.
- ↑ "Biko". Retrieved 6 January 2009.
- ↑ Aliyu, Adekunle (9 May 2008). "P-Square crowned King of Africa in Ghana". paragraph 14: Vanguard Media Limited. Retrieved 18 January 2009.
- ↑ "My Father". W.E.B. DuBois Learning Center, Inc. Retrieved 25 December 2008.
- ↑ Commire, Anne, ed. (1999). "Okwei of Osomari (1872–1943)". Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia. Waterford, Connecticut: Yorkin Publications. ISBN 0-7876-4080-8.
- 1 2 Nwobu, Lawrence Chinedu (31 January 2006). "Ohanaeze and the Igbo Leadership Question". BNW Magazine. Retrieved 6 October 2007.
- ↑ Edward Wilmot Blyden,. Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2008 encarta.msn.com © 1997–2008 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Retrieved 19 November 2008. . Archived 2009-10-31.
- ↑ Lynch, Deidre Shauna; Hollis R. Lynch (1970). Edward Wilmot Blyden. Oxford University Press US. pp. 3, 49. ISBN 0-19-501268-2.
- ↑ Curtis, Jake (17 November 2000). "BIG GAME / Brothers to Experience a New Family Rivalry". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 26 January 2009.
It is understood that Nnamdi and Chijioke represent their family in everything they do, says Nnamdi, and that each accomplishment or each behavior flaw would reflect on the entire family, even relatives in Nigeria. In their Ibo tribal language, Chijioke means "God creates talent" and Nnamdi means "My God is alive."
- ↑ Jenkins, Lee (15 October 2007). "No More Kid Stuff". Time Inc. Retrieved 26 January 2009.
- ↑ Altobelli, Lisa (18 February 2008). "Osi Umenyiora". Time Warner Company. Retrieved 26 January 2009.
- ↑ Jenkins, Lee (13 February 2008). "Everywhere Man". Time Warner Company. Retrieved 26 January 2009.
- ↑ Kaufman, Laura (6 July 2008). "Ogonna Nnamani". Stanford Magazine. Retrieved 28 July 2008.
- ↑ "Athletics: Briton Sweating Over Drugs Test". The Guardian –. 9 November 2006. Retrieved 18 January 2009.
- ↑ Snow, Mat (11 January 2009). "Christine Ohuruogu: Holidays are for wimps". London: Times Newspapers. Retrieved 25 January 2009.
Her parents came to England from Nigeria in 1980 and the family name means "fighter" in their native Igbo tongue.
- ↑ McRae, Donald (2 August 2008). "Mirth and melancholy of a dreamer named Ohuruogu". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 25 January 2009.
From Ohuruogu, "My mum and dad still speak their Igbo dialect which we were never taught. But we know odd words. Like when someone annoys you, you know how to insult them."
- ↑ Okoro, Marilyn. "Marilyn Okoro" (Interview). Interview with Spikesmag. Retrieved 26 April 2010.
My mum and dad are of Nigerian origin and my tribe, the Igbo, is known for being tough, which you have to be in athletics.
- ↑ Jackson, Jamie (4 March 2000). "Why I've come out". London: Guardian News and Media. Retrieved 25 January 2009.
My mother had travelled to Nigeria to support my father. She worked as a medic while he fought for Igbo, his ethnic group, in a civil war in which one million people died.
- ↑ Kirkpatrick, Curry. "Plenty to like about Ike". ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved 25 January 2009.
- ↑ Longman, Jere (31 December 2008). "2003 N.C.A.A. TOURNAMENT: TRUE STUDENT ATHLETE; Academics, And a Game To Back It Up". The New York Times Company. Retrieved 25 January 2009.
Basketball has never been the top priority, said Pius Okafor, Emeka's father... Pius Okafor arrived in the United States in August 1976 from Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation, rich in oil but wracked through the decades by colonialism, military dictatorship, ethnic strife and pervasive corruption. He carried $400 in his pocket and a student visa. Education was paramount in his Ibo ethnic group, he said, and to study overseas meant you were large.
- ↑ Rogak, Larry (2005). You Don't Know Dick!: An Onomastic Reference Compendium. iUniverse. p. 80. ISBN 0-595-35433-5.
- 1 2 "Semi-final success unites Nigeria". BBC News. 11 February 2000. Retrieved 25 January 2009.
Two of the Super Eagles' top international stars, Arsenal star Nwankwo Kanu and Paris St Germain's Augustine 'Jay-Jay' Okocha are Ibo.
- ↑ "Obi's father calls for truce". BBC News. 13 May 2005. Retrieved 25 January 2009.
- ↑ Longman, Jere (12 June 2006). "U.S. Team Playing Czech Republic in First Match". The New York Times Company. Retrieved 23 March 2010.
- ↑ Loyn, David (18 April 2005). "Profile: Cardinal Francis Arinze". BBC News. Retrieved 18 January 2009.
- ↑ Oduro, Thomas. "Agnes Okoh". Dictionary of African Christian Biography. Retrieved 7 December 2015.
- ↑ Robeson II, Paul (2001). The Undiscovered Paul Robeson: An Artist's Journey, 1898–1939 (PDF). Wiley. p. 3. ISBN 0-471-24265-9. Retrieved 27 December 2008.
- ↑ Jestice, Phyllis G. (2004). Holy People of the World: A Cross-cultural Encyclopedia (illustrated ed.). ABC-CLIO. p. 837. ISBN 1-57607-355-6.
Activist- Clement Okechuchukwu Nwankwo -HAUMAN Right Activist (co-founder CLO, founder CRP and president international Transition Monitoring group Nigeria).
External links
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