EXODUS 1:1-10. (Read all 10 vs).
"1. Now these are the names of the children Israel, which came into Egypt; every man and his household came with Jacob.
(Only Jacob & families of his12 children).
7. And the children of Israel were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled with them.
8. Now there arose a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.
9. And he said unto his people, Behold the people of the children
of Israel are more and mightier than we:
10. Come on, let us deal wisely with them, lest they multiply,and it come to pass, that when there fallen any war, they join also unto our enemies, and fight against us, and so get them up out of the land."
NOTE: Here the children of Jacob (now Israel) moved to Egypt (a whole nation) just as one man's
family unit. After some hundreds of years, they are said to be more in number than the Egyptians according to their king.
NO BARRENNESS vs POPULATION EXPLOSION:
a. There were no known serious marital cultural taboo against unfaithfulness of married women in igbo land of old.
Therefore, no major barrenness in igbo land ancient history due to other factors outside the scope of this write-up.
b. A childless woman can get pregnant from any source and the child accepted by her husband.
c. If a man dies childless or no male child, hi widow is allowed by culture to to reproduce and up
for the family through a hidden male partner.
d. If a housewife had an adultery
sex with her secret lover and gets pregnant while still in her husban's home, the husband takes the child as his own.
e. A man may be in Abijan or Sokoto, yet his wife in the village keeps reproducing children for
him.
f. All children produced by the slaves of a strongman or chief are automatically admitted as his family members, even going by his name.
g. Other unmarried women from the homes of chiefs without sons also marry co-women to fill up their family name and avert extinction.
h. In any community setting, the new comers or strangers often
overwhelm the local inhabitants both in number and material wealth.
All these are elements of uncontrolled population explosion due to lack of marital customary norms or taboos.
Seriously speaking, all the above mentioned oddities are forbidden in Midwest region marital
culture especially in Urhobo and Ukwuani tribes where gripping a married woman's wrist
(then) is considered an adultery case.
Surely and good development too, Christianity is fast changing
most of such anomalies in our contemporary era.
Again, not all igbo are bye-products of the Eri stock from Afor in Ndokwa. There are many on their own sojourn tracks, like in Nnsuka community
and part of Ohafia in Ebony State. Others too, like Ndoni, Omoku, Atani, Ugwute etc, are also from
great Aboh lineage.
+Lawrence Sc Egwali.
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