The Nsibidi (Nsibiri) script (Nigeria and Cameroon)-gctid23544

[Oju]

The Nsibidi (Nsibiri) script (Nigeria and Cameroon)

This script was invented by the Ejagham people of southeastern Nigeria and southwestern Cameroon. The exact time of its invention is not known. Some sources say that sibidi means "cruel" in Ejagham; other sources say it means "bloodthirsty", while yet others say it means "magic". What is clear is that it is a mysterious script used only by secret societies and the rich and powerful. The ideographs represent life among the Ejagham and illustrate how advanced and culturally rich they were.


Nsibidi

There were three types of nsibidi. First, there were common signs that were not secret or mystical-signs representing human relationships and communication. Then there were the "dark signs" representing danger and extremity and these were often black. The colors black and white were used to represent death and freshness respectively. Finally, there were the nsibiri or the very important signs of rank and ritual which were secret and known only by priests and initiates.

Nsibidi signs may be carved on calabashes, painted on walls, printed on cloth or painted or tattooed on the human body.

Nsibidi crosses the Atlantic

The cruel slave trade transported a lot of people from Nigeria and Cameroon who took their Nsibidi secrets with them. Today, nsibidi is still widely used by Cuban blacks and called anaforuana and used by such secret societies as the Abakua.


Anaforuana Symbol

[Ɔbenfo Ọbádélé]

¿ «é o! Bí a «e ñ jà fún òmìnira, ó «e pàtàkì fún wa láti mæ bí a «e ñ kæ örö sílë l'ônà t'ó y÷, t'ó sì tô. Láìpê, mo fê kí ökan nínú àwæn örê mi kô wa nípa kíkæ Mdw Ntr. Á dára púpö bêëy÷n.

¿ «é o! As we are fighting for liberation, it is important for us to learn how to write in a correct proper manner. Soon I would like for a friend of mine to teach us Mdw Ntr. That will be most BlackNificent!

Obadele Kwame

[Ɔbenfo Ọbádélé]

Nsibidi Dictionary
                            Attached files  63616534-Ikpo-Nsibidi-Igbo.pdf (3.1 MB)

[Heru Djet]

An ancient system of artistic symbols, nsibidi (also referred to as nsibiri, nchibiddi or nchibiddy) debunks the notion that information dissemination in precolonial Kmt was accomplished only through oral traditional channels. Being Kmt's oldest scripted form behind hieroglyphics, nsibidi has been used to document history, celebrate the people's heritage, instruct values, reinforce communication, deliberate on key issues and resolve conflicts.

Though it is indigenous to peoples occupying the southeastern region of modern Nigeria, nsibidi is more commonly associated with the Ejagham people of northern Cross River State and southwestern Cameroon, from where it is believed to have spread to surrounding ethnic groups like the Ibibios, Efiks and Igbos, influencing their art forms and undergoing notable transformation in the process. Among the Igbos, for instance, uri or uli graphic design is often cited as an offshoot of nsibidi. Essentially, while nsibidi does not correspond to any single spoken language, it has dismantled linguistic barriers that would otherwise prevent communication between various ethnic nationalities, thus facilitating interaction between the groups.

 142-Nsibidi.pdf