24 thesouth-west
Tuesday, 3 May, 2016
Nigerian Tribune
Bride, groom absent at Fulani marriage
People serving food at the wedding ceremony.
Food being served at the wedding ceremony.
Representatives of the bride family inspecting the dowry.
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S a Yoruba man, who, until recently, never had any serious information regarding the Fulanis, when I was told that a marriage ceremony was coming up, I was delighted to attend. It was an open ceremony with Islamic clerics billed to offer prayers for the new spouse. According to their tradition, both the groom and the bride would not attend. They are expected to be represented by their parents and other siblings. In addition, women do not come near the venue of the ceremony. Their preoccupation is to prepare food for the ceremony and stay back at their houses,
entertaining the women folk. Isa, the nomadic teacher who served as my tour guide informed me that “it is the parents that perform the ceremony on behalf of the newly wedded couple. The elder brother of the groom in some situations represents his brother.” He also added that the bride will not move into the groom’s house on that day, but a day will be fixed for the movement. On this occasion, friends of both families from different settlements gathered for the wedding ceremony of Adama and Mohammed. According to their tradition, a representative from the bride and groom’s
The bride
Representatives of the groom’s family
family requested for the hand of a daughter in marriage with the sum of N10,500, 200 pieces of kolanut and two pieces of Ankara fabric of five yards each. When this offer is accepted, the clerics then commenced prayers which in this case lasted for around 35 to 45 minutes. The prayer for the wedding was led by the Chief Imam of Igbojaye, Alhaji Usam Alim,
followed by other Imams on the occasion. Thereafter, the ceremony featured local dishes like rice, and surprisingly, amala with soup was on the menu list. Without mincing words, meat cut in large pieces complemented the savoury taste of the soup which was devoid of artificial seasonings. Meanwhile, God’s grace sustained my salt resistance.
‘Some of us have married Yoruba people’ Continues from pg23
Mosobalaje is one of hundreds of Fulani cattle rearers who have migrated from their original birthplace down the south. His grandfather, Saliu Abagun came to Otu, Itesiwaju Local Government over 80 years ago. One of his children, Mosobalaje Mohammed gave birth to Kehinde, who today sees himself as an indigene of Otu.
Mrs Modinat Rabiu
Mrs Tawa Yamusa
Mr Audu Rabiu
Mr Bani Gbonke Yamusa
The People Today, there are many fulanis like Mosobalaje and Adepoju in various towns in the 10 Local Government areas of Oke-Ogun, in Oyo state. From Itesiwaju to Kajola, Iwajowa, Iseyin, Atisbo, SakiEast and others, the Fulani have found comfort over a period of years. As an ethnic group, the Fulani/Yoruba people relationship in the region has become a union which is difficult to separate. The Community The Oke-Ogun people are predominantly farmers and the zone is almost officially termed the food basket of the state. The climate favours the growth of food crops like yam, cassava, millet, maize, fruits, rice and plantains. Cash crops such as citrus, tobacco and timber also abound in the region. Despite this the zone has many uncultivated land. The region also has many streams. The
weather in this zone is also not significantly different from that of the north. These features among others are the reasons why the community become hospitable for herdsmen since time immemorial. So, from Kwara, Sokoto, Kebbi, Niger, Kano, Zamfara, Adamawa, Jigawa, Kaduna among other Northern states in Nigeria, herdsmen considered the region as safe to travel down to especially during the dry season. In the process, many of them never returned home. They stayed behind and became part of the society. Most of the Fulani people told South west Tribune that their forefathers travelled down from their states in search of favourable climate for their cattle business. And because the land was fertile, they stayed and lived till they died while their offspring inherited their business and properties. To some, their forefathers left the north during war times and having found solace in these communities, they settled there. Sixty year-old Oseni Iyanda hails from the Fulani community in Kwara state. Today, he has not only integrated fully in Komu where his grandfather settled down after a local war in Ilorin, Kwara State, he claims that he hails from Olowu’s compound in Komu. “I am part and parcel of the compound,” he said. According to Iyanda, his grandfather,
a herdsman, Balogun Mohammed migrated from Ilorin to Komu where he was received by members of the Olowu’s compound in the town. He said his father, Usman Abagun, who also died over 20 years ago told him that they are from Komu. And today, nothing has changed as the Baloguns have been well integrated into the compound. Iyanda himself who just retired from the services of Itesiwaju Local Government said his children are erecting structures in their fatherland, Komu, today. One of Iyanda’s son, Babatunde, who is of the fourth generation also ascertained that “I am from Komu. I married my wife Mulikat from Okeho when I was training as bricklayer there. I can’t go anywhere because I was born here. I am from Olowu’s compound in Komu.” Today, the Komu natives today regard the Baloguns as members of Olowu’s compound. But while the Baloguns have integrated into one of the compounds in Komu, some Fulanis have remained independent communities, retaining their Fulani essence while also claiming to be indigenes of the towns they reside in. In Igbojaye, also In Itesiwaju local government, for example, a group of Fulani herdsmen also from Kwara State informed the South west Tribune Continues on pg25