O
Ogwezi I
Obi of Aboh
Aboh Kingdom
- Title
- Obi of Aboh
- Succession
- 1st Obi of Aboh
- Reigned
- c. 1480 – c. 1500
- Lived
- c. 1440 – c. 1500
- Children
- Udogwu I
About
Ogwezi I was the first Obi (king) of the Aboh Kingdom, a pre-colonial Igbo/Ukwuani polity in the Niger Delta region of present-day Delta State, Nigeria. According to oral tradition, he was the son of Esume (also called Esumei-Uku or Obazoeme), said to be a son of Oba Ozolua of Benin who migrated from Benin around 1480 AD to found the town of Aboh. Ogwezi is considered the ancestor of the UMUDEI royal lineage, and three of his sons — Ojugbeli, Ossai and Ozegbe — along with the Ogwezi line itself, became the heads of the four quarters and ruling houses of Aboh that still rotate the monarchy today.
Notable facts
- Recognized in oral tradition as the first Obi of Aboh and son of the kingdom's founder Esume/Esumei-Uku
- Ancestor of the UMUDEI (royal) lineage of Aboh, distinguished from the non-royal Ndiche
- His descendants form the four ruling houses of Aboh: Umu Ogwezi, Umu Ojugbali, Umu Ossai and Umu Ozegbe
- Linked by tradition to the Benin royal house through his father, said to be a son of Oba Ozolua of Benin
- Associated with the founding period of Aboh around 1480 AD in the Lower Niger / Niger Delta region
- First Obi (king) of the Aboh Kingdom.
🔗 Sources
Where Ogwezi fits
- OOgwezi I1st Obi of Aboh