Origin Of The Negro 
"Only The Fool Points At His/Her Origin With His/Her Left Hand"

The Yoruba of Nigeria, for instance, trace their origin to Arabia, the Rausa(Hausa - Pronounced Hauza) to Baghdad , and the Ibo to the Egyptian Jews. It has been suggested that the word "Ibo" is a corruption of "Hebrew", and that many Ibo customs have Jewish traits. But no one is sure. Perhaps, research may throw some light Sooner or later on these legends of origin.

The Negroes of West Africa fall into two groups, generally speaking, namely, the pure Negroes and the mixed negroes.
With the exception of the Fulani, the geographical distribution of the two groups about AD 1000 seems, to a large extent, similar to what it is today.

The Negroes of West Africa fall into two groups, generally speaking, namely, the pure Negroes and the mixed negroes. With the exception of the Fulani, the geographical distribution of the two groups about AD 1000 seems, to a large extent, similar to what it is today.

The Pure Negores
They lived in the rain forest region of West Africa . Their racial purity has been preserved by the forest which prevented the penetration of foreign invaders from the north.

• The Wolof, Serer and Tukolor, who occupy most of the territory between Senegal and The Gambia rivers. They are mainly Muslims.

To the south in the forest belt live the Kru of Liberia and Ivory Coast, the Akan and Ga of Modern Ghana, the Ewe of Togoland, the Fon of Benin, the Yuroba of South west Nigeria and the Ibo of south-eastern Nigeria. These are either pagans or Christians.

1. The Mixed Negres
   Negro races living north of the forest region have come under the influence of foreign Hamitic (Berber) and semetic(Arab and Jewish) people across the Sahara desert. They are therefore not pure negroes.

   The principal Hamitic Negroes are:

   1. The Songhai who occupy the country along the eastern bend of the Niger from Gao to Bussa. They are mixture of Tuareg Berbers and Negroes. They are mostly Muslims.
   1. The Voltaic or Gur-speaking people – the Mossi, the Dagomba, the Gurma and other small groups. They inhabit the country between the Songhai in the North and the forest in the south around the head-waters of the Upper Volta. They are mostly pagans
   2. The Hausa inhabit the grasslands of Northern Nigeria from the Niger in the West to the western limits of Bornu in the east. They almost all Muslims.
   3. The Kanuri are found around Lake Chad, especially in the Bornu emirate.

   The Fulani are the Semitic Negroes of West Africa and the last to arrive. It is commonly believed that Fulani are a mixture of Jewish and Negro bloods. They are widely spread across the West African grasslands from Senegal to the Cameroons. They are mostly Muslims

   The physical characteristics of pure Negroes are dark skin, curly hair, flat broad nose and thick lips. Every Negro should be proud of these features. Their average height is about 1.7 meters, and the shape of the head and face varies slightly among the different Negro races.

   By culture, the Negroes also have common traits. For example, they have a traditional style of house building. gable-roofed huts thatched with grass or palm leaves and walled with mud. Their traditional weapons are bows and arrows, knives, spears and plaited shields. The chief musical instruments are wooden drums, a peculiar type of guitar and trumpets made from horns of animals or from a peculiar type of gourd.
   In traditional social life, they live in villages which have developed from large family groups.
   
   There is usually a chief of the village who is assisted in ruling the village by elders or family heads. Taboos are a common form of punishment for anti-social offences. Secret societies are characteristic of many West African Negroes, as for instance, the Ogboni and Oro among the Yoruba; the Ekpo among the Ibibio; the Okonko and Ozo among the Ibo; and the "Poro" among the Mende, Bulom and Temne. These secret societies, apart from conferring social distinction on their members, also help in the maintenance of law and order as some of them perform judicial functions

   In religion, the pagan Negroes believe in a supreme Deity and creator of the universe whom the Ibo refer to as Chineke. But they identify the earth, rivers, trees, and the elements with numerous lesser gods who are agents of the supreme God, who dwells far away. There is a strong belief in life after death and in a world of spirits including those of the dead members of the family who are usually venerated. Domestic animals such as goats, sheep and hens are used in sacrifice to the gods and ancestors. Libation with native or imported wine is a common religious ritual. Circumcision is practiced.

   True Negroes are very skilful in native art. The carved ivories, masks and bronzes of Ife and Benin are world famous. Carving in wood is also common.

   The traditional economic life of the people is simple. Before the advent of Europeans each village was to a large extent self-sufficient , for the people produced most of their needs. Agriculture was and still the principal occupation. The main crops are yam, plantain and oil palm. Maize, cassava, oranges and mangoes were introduced from Asia and America The chief domestic animals are goats, dogs, sheep and hens. Cattle and horses are raised only by the mixed Negroes who inhabit the grasslands, for these animals cannot thrive in the forestlands owing to the ravages of the tsetse fly.