Both historians and anthropologists have over the years been ensued on the possible blood relation between the Luo community and the Igbo of Nigeria.
The debate has been brought about due to the stunning similarities between the two African communities.
Luo community is based in many Eastern and Central African countries such as DRC, Sudan, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Uganda, and Kenya while the Igbo are living in the southeastern part of Nigeria.
From the research that has been done, there are similarities between these communities in terms of cultural beliefs, naming, and even language.
Here are some proofs that show that the two communities similar.
Similarities in Naming Â
If you are a fan of reading novels written by the great Nigerian writers such as Chinua Achebe and Amdi Elechi who come from the Luo community. you will have noticed something peculiar about their naming. You will realize that the names are similar to the ones used by authors like Grace Ogot, Okot P Bitok, and Adrian Onyando who also happen to come from the Luo community.
The similarities between the naming are so great that even the meaning of the names in both tribes sometimes means the same thing. In both tribes, the names of the male begin with ‘O’ while the names of the female begin with ‘A’.
Names such as Okeke, Okoye, Okore, OKeno, Oneya, Amadi, Anayo, Akomo are common in both communities. At times the difference can only be seen in spelling but have the same pronunciation with the same meaning, for example; Akpala in Igbo and Apala in Luo.
The names in the communities also bore the same meaning culturally, for example, the name Akomo or Okomo is Luo’s name meaning a person born during the harvesting period and that’s exactly what it means in Igbo community too.
The Luo version of Okonkwo is Okongo which means a person born during a drinking spree in both communities.
Same Language Group
Both Luo and Igbo have Nilotic origin something that might have led to the lingual similarities. For example, the word ‘bia’ means comes but in Luo the word also means come.
Cultural Norms
The two communities also share a lot of cultural norms with regards to things like marriage, birth, and even death. For instance, the naming of a newborn within the two communities follows a certain norm such as a child could be named according to seasons.
Religious Believes
Before the introduction of foreign religions, the Luos believed in a sun god called chieng while the Igbo believed in a sun god called chi.Â
