The Umuoji people are those whose roots can be traced to the town of Umuoji, in Idemili North - a local government area in Anambra State, Nigeria. These people are an Igbo speaking ethnic group, whose early history is adversely affected by a lack of, or non-existent, written records . Umuoji is bounded by Ogidi, Ojoto, Uke, Abatete and Nkpor and has an estimated population of 80,000 people which includes local residents in its 23 villages and citizens in diaspora.
Origin myth
Two possible sources about Umuoji origin have been postulated. Both apparently are derived from oral tradition. The first, more widely held, is that Umuoji people originated from a man called Okodu, who was a descendant of a man called Nri. Another is that one Okoli Oti from Arochukwu was the ancestor of Umuoji.
In those early days, only the people of Arochukwu (Umuchukwu meaning Children of Supreme God) and Nri, who were also regarded as sacred people or mediators between men and the gods, were free to travel about and they were the two predominant sets of people who were known throughout the then Igbo nation. The Aro people were great warriors with sophisticated weapons that gave them a military advantage over the other inhabitants of the Igbo nation. Consequently, one great warrior named "Okoli Oti" from Arochukwu is believed to have set out in company of his followers to visit the famous Eze Nri (the great king of Nri). His intention was not that friendly but on reaching the Nri Kingdom, he changed his mind as a result of what he heard and saw about the Nri people. Okoli later decided to settle near the kingdom of his host and thereby found his own kingdom. He settled in the present area inhabited by Abatete people. Okoli later married a woman from Nri town. Some of his men never went back to their places of origin. They also raised up families later known as Isiuzo, Azu, Owa, Akwa, Oraofia and Mputu.
Okoli Oti brought with him three deities named Ezeigwe, Oji and Ogwugwu. He begat three sons and some daughters. The sons were Ezeogu, Ora and Idike. Ezeogu was the father of the Abatete people, otherwise known as Abatete Ezeogu. Ora the second son was the father of the Umuoji people, while Idike was the father of the Nkpor people . Ora Okoli had a son named Okodu and some daughters whose names were not known as nobody bothered to trace the lineage of women in Igboland then . Okodu is the father of Oji; he named him after his father's deity which he(Okodu) later inherited. Oji in turn begat Ora II whom he named after his grandfather
From mythology, Ora II had two wives - each of whom had two sons . The sons were Ezi, Ifite, Echem and Akala. Ezi and Echem were of the same mother, while Ifite and Akala were of the same mother . These made up the quarters of Umuoji and the villages therein .
From the various accounts on the origin of the three towns, the name of Okolie Otie, an itinerant trader from Arochukwu, appears a common denominator in the origin legends of the people. What appears to be significantly but regrettably missing from the various accounts, seems to be the name of the mother of the progenitors of the three communities.
Few observations are however pertinent to these accounts. One is that as far as the Arochukwu connection is concerned, striking flaws are apparent which calls for further investigation and reassessment. As noted by Ekpunobi (1998), “the story is an attempt by local historians to link Umuoji with the once famous Arochukwu trading expedition”. This position is borne out by the fact that as of present, there is not yet any evidence of Aro-Abatete-Umuoji-Nkpor connection either in their usages, customs, or traditions. On the other hand, the story linking these communities to Nri appears to enjoy more acceptability. As noted by Ekpunobi (1988) and strongly supported by Nwosu (2013) “before the advent of the Europeans, Nkpor-Umuoji-Abatete went to Eze Nri to pay their Nru (annual homage)” . Tradition affirms that the tribute was paid in recognition of the “fatherly role Nri was playing towards the three communities” and in recognition of the fact that Nri was their original home . To further lend credence to this evidence on Nri origin of the three communities, Onwuejeogwu (1972) observed that in the past, the power and authority of Eze Nri were based on the belief of many Igbo settlements that Eze Nri had spiritual authority over them. Ilozue (1966), in his work-Umuoji Cultural Heritage-wrote equally that "the chief of Nri is the only person who can announce or denounce the sacredness of anything in Umuoji" .