Urhobo Studies Association (USA)

12/09/2026

Papers in ARIDON, THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF URHOBO STUDIES, Volume 5

PAPER 2

FROM EWẸ TO OKWEKO: FISH, CULTURE, AND THE FUTURE OF INLAND FISHERIES IN URHOBO LAND

By Ochuko Joshua Eriegha (PhD) and Solomon Iboko Ovie (PhD)

Abstract
This review examines the transformation of inland fisheries in Urhobo land, located in the western Niger Delta, from historically productive and culturally significant systems centred on traditional fish aggregating structures (ewẹ) to a present-day dependence on imported iced marine fish (okweko). Drawing on historical accounts, cultural records, ecological observations, and relevant scientific literature, the paper synthesises evidence on the cultural and nutritional importance of fish, the diversity and productivity of traditional fisheries, and the socio-economic systems they supported. The review identifies multiple drivers of decline, including habitat degradation, occasional chemical fish poisoning, pollution from oil and industrial sources, hydrological alterations, and the erosion of intergenerational knowledge transfer. It discusses the sociocultural and economic implications of this decline, highlighting its impact on food security, cultural identity, and local resilience. Based on lessons from global experiences, the review outlines integrated strategies for recovery, including habitat rehabilitation, revitalisation of owẹ, scientifically managed stock enhancement, household-level aquaculture using borehole water, market restructuring, and improved governance frameworks. The synthesis underscores that restoration of inland fisheries in Urhobo land is achievable if pursued through coordinated actions that combine environmental management, technological innovation, and cultural preservation, thereby ensuring nutritional, economic, and cultural sustainability.

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https://www.urhobostudiesassociation.org/journal/archives/articles/6a94d48cf70ec8471ea434d0

12/09/2026

Papers in ARIDON, THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF URHOBO STUDIES, Volume 5

PAPER 1.
COMPUTER TERMS IN URHOBO

Rose Oro Aziza, Philip Oghenesuowho Ekiugbo, Emuobonuvie Maria Ajiboye and Clement Onakpoberuo

Abstract
This study examines the equivalence of computer-related terms developed for the Urhobo language. Rapid advancement in technology continues to introduce terms for new concepts which are often lacking in many indigenous African languages, including Urhobo. Accordingly, indigenous scholars and researchers often undertake terminology development projects to fill such gaps. The Urhobo ICT terminology development project examined in this study sought to contribute to the modernisation of the Urhobo language by expanding its lexical resources to cover the rapidly evolving domain of computer technology. The project involved identifying corpus of frequently used computer words from textbooks and online resources and developing equivalent terms for them in Urhobo. The goal of the present study is to examine the strategies employed in creating the Urhobo equivalent terms, and show how possible equivalent terms can be developed from existing Urhobo lexical resources. The study found that strategies such as semantic extension, norminalisation, and calquing were employed in developing the terms. The study also showed that loanwords can be retained in Urhobo terminology development based on three factors: frequency of usage in conversations, economy and convenience.

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https://www.urhobostudiesassociation.org/journal/archives/articles/6a94d179d7b19635a3955f9e

12/09/2026

Now out!!!
Volume 5 of Aridon, the International Journal of Urhobo Studies, has been released.

https://www.urhobostudiesassociation.org/journal

19/06/2026

Akunẹchẹ, Anurhoro – Threshold.

The doorway functions as the threshold and point of transition into a house. In Urhobo traditional dwellings, it carries social meanings, cultural regulations, and ritual significance. Certain taboos are associated with the doorway, including the belief that to stand outside and carry a child with the hand from inside the house across the doorway may attract illness. During menstruation, the wife of a practitioner of Urhobo traditional religion usually avoids crossing the doorway into her husband’s dwelling, demonstrating cultural restrictions surrounding intimate relations during this period. She remains in her hut until the completion of her cleansing period, after which she paints her kitchen wall to signal her readiness to cook for her husband again and for intimate relations. Similarly, a nursing mother traditionally waits before entering her husband’s dwelling until after three lunar months. Upon observing the new moon of the third month, she joyfully announces the transition and shares the moment with her family.

Drawing by Raymond Chibueze Ehirim.

Source: A GLOSSARY OF URHOBO VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE
Including tools, wood species, and different structures. Funded by Endangered Wooden Architecture Programme of Oxford Brooks University, Oxford.

19/06/2026

Odorin – rhizophora mangle – red mangrove.

Odorin is the third choice of wood for construction because it is not as hard as the other two. It is mostly used for the construction of temporary structures or as standby and support material where uhin and avwa are used as first and second choice wood respectively. This wood is easy to find in the wetlands of Urhobo in the Niger Delta region. The latex from the cut bark of this wood is generally used to gum materials.

Photo by Akpobome Diffre-Odiete. March 29, 2026.

Source: A GLOSSARY OF URHOBO VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE
Including tools, wood species, and different structures. Funded by Endangered Wooden Architecture Programme of Oxford Brooks University, Oxford.

19/06/2026

Avwa – erythroxylum emarginatum – wild coca. Avwa is the second hardest of the wood species used for construction in Urhobo vernacular architecture. It can be readily fetched from nearby forests, although the forests are continuously being cleared for farming. Uhin (khaya ivorensis –African or Lagos mahogany) is the first choice of wood for building work, but the high demand for it makes it scarce, making avwa a second choice.

Photo by Akpobome Diffre-Odiete. March 29, 2026.

Source: A GLOSSARY OF URHOBO VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE
Including tools, wood species, and different structures. Funded by Endangered Wooden Architecture Programme of Oxford Brooks University, Oxford

19/06/2026

Wood Species for Building in Urhobo Architecture.

Uhin – khaya ivorensis – African or Lagos mahogany. The first choice of wood for builders of Urhobo vernacular architecture is uhin. It is the hardest wood species available in local forests for building. Consequently, it is an endangered wood species. It is mostly used as stakes and for crossing the top of the roof before the thatch is tied to it with uriri (rattan ropes).

Photo by Akpobome Diffre-Odiete. March 29, 2026.

Source: A GLOSSARY OF URHOBO VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE
Including tools, wood species, and different structures. Funded by Endangered Wooden Architecture Programme of Oxford Brooks University, Oxford

02/03/2026

Happy birthday Comr. Eguono Balogun!

06/02/2026

ARIDON, Volume 4, 2025

ON THE ORTHOGRAPHY OF URHOBO-ENGLISH LOANWORDS

Philip Oghenesuowho Ekiugbo

Abstract
This study examines the orthographic representation of Urhobo-English loanwords in the literature. Following Hosken (2003), one of the hardest issues any orthography has to deal with is how to spell words that are imported from another language: should the words keep their original spelling, or should they be spelled according to how they sound when spoken in the target language? This issue is not unconnected with the fact that loanwords are often modified, especially when they do not conform to the phonology of the borrowing language. Additionally, sounds that are similar in both source and target languages may be represented with different graphemes in the two languages. This study, therefore, seeks to examine the various modifications that loanwords undergo in Urhobo and how these can be best represented in the orthography, as well as how similar sounds that are represented by different graphemes are handled in the borrowing language. The data employed in the study were extracted from religious and literacy materials in Urhobo and evaluated by the researcher, relying on native speaker competence. The data analysis focused on the phonological nuances of loanwords, which have implications for Urhobo orthography, guided by the principle of consistency. The study made a case for the representation of the adapted forms in Urhobo. This is to ensure fluency, word recognition, and disambiguation in the orthographic reading of these words.

This study examines the orthographic representation of Urhobo-English loanwords in the literature. Following Hosken (2003), one of the hardest issues any ortho...

06/02/2026

ARIDON, Volume 4, 2025

COUNTER-ENLIGHTENMENT THEMES IN THE SONG-POEMS OF OGUTẸ ỌTTAN

-Emmanuel Ogheneochuko Arọdovwe

Abstract
The Counter-Enlightenment was an ideological movement that developed in Europe in the 17th and 18th Centuries. It challenged some of the assumptions of what is popularly described as the Enlightenment or Modern Age. The Enlightenment age lasted effectively from about the 1600s to the 1900s in Europe. It prioritized individualism, autonomy, freedom, and independence. It was the ideological inspiration behind capitalism in economics, and, liberal democracy in politics. But counter enlightenment thinkers such as Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) and Johann Gottfried Herder (1733-1803) reacted against the Enlightenment, holding that it came with huge moral deficits manifested in excessive materialism, consumerism, disdain for traditional values, and loss of ethnic and cultural affinities. For these counter-enlightenment thinkers, the pre-modern values of social cohesiveness, historicity, cultural purity and communitarianism were better to be desired than those that modernity promoted. Interestingly, we find such counter-enlightenment views in the song-poems of Ogutẹ Ọttan (1929-1999), a prominent Urhobo song-poet of the 20th century.This point is significant in view of the fact that Ogute's works were produced independently of those of the European thinkers, whose works he had no access to. In a world which continues to thrive on Eurocentric dispositions, expressed in form of high prejudice for any positive contribution from non-European societies, it is heartwarming to identify ideological profundity in the literary work of an 'obscure' 20th century poet/philosopher among the Urhobo-speaking people of Nigeria, West Africa. This paper, therefore, draws attention to the ideas of Ogutẹ Ọttan because they resonate with the thoughts of the most important counter-Enlightenment philosophers from Europe. It strengthens the argument,first, for the existence of philosophy in Africa, and second, for similarity in philosophic profundity in Africa as elsewhere in the world.

The Counter-Enlightenment was an ideological movement that developed in Europe in the 17th and 18th Centuries. It challenged some of the assumptions of what is...