Igbo Family History & Genealogy Records

 You don’t necessarily need to start with your birth and go chronologically. Write about brief memories as they come to you. If you save your memoirs on a computer, you can put each short essay into chronological order at a later time, if you choose to do so.

Be sure you save a backup of your computer file on disk or print out a paper copy. Computers have been known to crash at the most inconvenient times.

Organize and label family photographs. How many people have boxes of snapshots in various places throughout the house? By labeling the pictures and organizing them, the collection will be far more valuable.

Be careful to label photographs with a pencil or photo-quality marker. Ball-point pens can leave ridges on the right side of the picture. You may want to organize the pictures into albums.

If you do, use acid free materials and label the people in each shot. You may know everyone in your album, but 100 years from now, will your descendants recognize anyone?

Transcribe family letters, diaries, or other documents. If you have letters or journals that belonged to your ancestors, you might want to preserve them.

One way is to copy them into a computer file, so more family members can enjoy them. Be sure not to “correct” spelling and punctuation. The way the items were originally spelled is part of the charm. The history of your family played a role in the history of the world.

A local historical society or university library might also be interested in having a copy. Document family heirlooms. You may own items that belonged to your ancestors. Do any of your relatives know the stories behind the treasures? Take time to photograph each item and to write a brief story about who owned it and why it is important.

You can make a file of these stories, either in a binder or on your computer. Keeping an extra copy in your safe-deposit box at the bank is a good idea in case of natural disasters. This file can help your relatives know what items you own are of significance to your family’s history. Document your descendants. Do you have birth, marriage, and death information for each of your descendants and their spouses? It wouldn’t hurt to have copies of official certificates on file as well.

A computer genealogical program can help you organize this data, but paper forms also work well. Update your resume. A resume can be important when job hunting, but it can also be a good source of family history. Do you have a record of each job you have held? How about volunteer work you have done? Do you have a list of awards you have received? Taking time to record milestones as they happen is much easier than recalling them if you should need the information. Interview older family members.

Each time someone dies, their memories are no longer available to the rest of us. If you have parents, grandparents, or other elderly relatives, now is a good time to record their memories. Make an appointment and give them some of the questions you would like to ask. You can record the interview with either a tape recorder or a video camera.

Be sure that the microphone is close enough that the person’s voice is clearly recorded. Be aware of background noises that could interfere with the recording, such as a barking dog or a ticking clock. Usually about an hour is long enough. If you have more questions, plan a second visit.

Be sure to give the person a copy of your interview. With his or her permission, you can distribute the tape to other family members. Local libraries and historical societies might like a copy as well. Collect data on your ancestors. Using a blank paper form or a computer genealogical program, record birth, marriage, and death dates and places for your ancestors as far back as you can remember. Then visit with other family members to see if they have additional information. Write down where you got the information. Did Aunt Mary tell you her birth date, or did you get it from Cousin Martha? Do you have any documents, such as certificates, funeral programs, or newspaper clippings? If so, record the information and the source. Visit a Family History Center. Family History Centers are found throughout the world. They are sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but their services are free and open to the public. You do not need to be a member of that church to use the facilities. You can find the address and contact information for a center by going to www.familysearch.org/Eng/Library/FHC/frameset_fhc.asp and typing your location. Trained people will be there to help you get started. Take a class on genealogy. Local genealogical societies and Family History Centers often offer classes on genealogical research. In addition, there are several places on the internet that offer online classes. Some of the best beginning courses are “Finding Your Ancestors” (#FHGEN 68) and “Introduction to Family History Research” (#FHGEN 70). They are available through Brigham Young University, and they are free of charge. The National Genealogical Society provides an excellent series of online classes. For more information, go to

Nnewi people lived and invested in Onitsha, Aba, Port Harcourt, Kano, Kaduna, Sokoto, Maiduguri, Jos, Lagos, etc. When the 1966 massacres started, those of them who survived ran back home without being able to take their investments with them. Many got home empty-handed because they had no house or business in Nnewi, which they saw as a "village" then. The logical reasoning before 1966 was: What is the economic sense in investing in my village when I can invest in a city and make quick returns?

The only markets in Nnewi then were the village markets that held once every four days (Eke, Orie, Afọ, and Nkwọ). Foodstuffs were the key items sold at such markets by women.

While the uncertainty in Nigeria persisted between 1966 and 1967, the returnees had no convenient place to do their business. On the advice of the then Governor of Eastern Region, Lt Col Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu, a son of the soil, the Igwe of Nnewi, Igwe KNO Orizu (Orizu III), led the Nnewi people to clear a part of the dreaded forest of Edo goddess and started the Nkwọ Nnewi Market. Even though different items were sold in the market, the main focus was motor and motorcycle spare parts, which the people felt had a great future and yielded good returns.

After the war, many of the people refused to return to where they lived before. Despite the lack of good road network, those who needed vehicle spare parts travelled to Nnewi to buy them. That led to the growth of the town. Later the people decided to begin the manufacture of different products.

Today, that so-called "village" that was too small for investment before the 1966 crisis has become big enough to attract people from all parts of the world, that a plot of land in Nnewi now costs as high as N200 million in the central business district.

It is a global phenomenon that can be replicated anywhere in the world. UAE (Dubai) turned the desert into a wonderland. Singapore turned the sea into a haven.

If you persevere and build your land by thinking of the greatness of your land rather than immediate personal gain, people will start visiting your land from all corners of the world for one thing or the other. Your land will benefit from it. You and your children will benefit from it. Everybody wins.