Eri (c. 900 CE) is said to be the original legendary cultural head of the Nri-Igbo , a
subgroup of the Igbo people . According to legends, Eri is said to come down from the
sky, having been sent by God ( Igbo : Chukwu ). It is possible Eri may have migrated from
southern Egypt, through the Igala area, settled, and established a community in the
middle of Anambra river valley where he married two wives. The first wife, Nneamakụ,
bore him five children. The first was Agulu, the founder of Aguleri , the second was Nri
Ifikuanim , the founder of Umunri / Kingdom of Nri , followed by Nri Onugu, the founder of
Igbariam and Ogbodulu, the founder of Amanuke. The fifth one was a daughter called
Iguedo, who is said to have born the founders of Nteje, and Awkuzu , Ogbunike , Umuleri ,
Nando and Ogboli in Onitsha. As one of the children of Eri, Nri Ifikuanim migrated from
Aguleri, which was and still is, the ancestral temple of the people, in search of a place
of settlement. His second wife Oboli begot Ọnọja, the only son who founded the Igala
Kingdom in Kogi State. [1]
Eri is the founder of the Umueri and Umunri clans, both of whom were some of the most
influential and powerful dynasties of priests and diviners in Igboland and adjacent areas
such as the Bini and Igala /Idoma areas. He and his children are responsible for the Igbo
Ukwu sites, Four market days , Ozo /nze title systems, Igu alu, and other practices of the
Igbo people and their neighbors.
