Onye aguu adigh eyi akwa isi Agu; The rejuvenescence of Isi Agu and the Afro-Centric Paradigm in isi Agu.

In the words of Williams Shakespeare - "Beware of men who have lean and hungry look. They think too much, such men are dangerous." A hungry man is  like a fast moving train willing to take any step to get to its destination. More so,  Williams Shakespeare's advice is crystal clear and Lucent - one should be sentient of the activities of a hungry man, their modes of operation are dangerous.

Hello beautiful viewers, I presume we are all good. Thank you so much for your undivided attention since the pre-production of this editorial. Stay with me till the end as we unravel the mystery and history behind Isi Agu. It is a comprehensive anecdote unleashing the rich cultural values and heritage of the eastern people of Nigeria, especially for the contemporary generation, it's important you get a bite from this piece.

"Onye Aguu adigh eyi akwa isi Agu" translates - "A hungry man does not wear the isi Agu chieftaincy rank" - the isi Agu cloth is a chieftaincy rank for all notable personalities. Until recently, it was verboten and a taboo to wear the isi Agu chieftain if you're not an elder or a title holder. This chieftain-cloth is marked with honour, leadership and achievements. It was impossible for you to see a "hungry man" rock this chieftaincy cloth. The hungry man has enough worries already, rather than harbour the thoughts of wearing the isi Agu or chieftain-cloth. Any man who is seen wearing the isi Agu outfit without holding a lordly or superior position or stratum in his clan or without any achievements of some sort is an hungry man.
However, we must watch out for him and his activities because he is dangerous. Of course my father does not own a title, neither does he occupy a superior position in his clan, but I've seen him wear the isi Agu cloth on countless occasions, but the day I dare call him an hungry man, probably a dead man would be better than me.

The Afrocentric paradigm in isi Agu is obviously denoted from its nomenclature. Our ancient fashion designers who named this chieftain-cloth mistakenly called it "Isi Agu". "Isi Agu" happens to be the accepted name for this cloth, but the motif on the cloth is "Isi Odum" (Lions head), not "Isi Agu" (Leopards head). Leopard in igbo language means Agu, while the lion means Odum...but these names are often mistaken for eachother. More so, in every society today, this has become a pattern and a system of referring to this chieftain-cloth as Isi Agu.  Similarly, the months September means 7th month (i.e septuagenarian); October means 8th month (i.e octagon, octogenarian); November means 9th month (i.e nonagon, nonagenarian); December means 10th month (i.e decimal, decade, decimetre). But in reality, they are the 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th month respectively in the Gregorian calendar we use today. This is because the old calender did not capture 2 months. The current calendar captured them, gave them names and adjusted the months by 2 months, causing the mix-up we have today. But nobody bothers to change the names of the months to reflect their true meanings.

Again when Christopher Columbus set out for India through a different route, he landed in North America. Thinking it was another part of India, he called the indigenous people he saw there Red Indians. West Indies also got its name via that mistake. These names have stuck till today even though North America has no connection with India.

So isi-agụ was mistakenly named by those who didn't know the difference between agụ (leopard) and ọdụm (lion). But that name has stuck. It can't be changed now. Isi-agụ is its name.

The Isi Agu cloth reflects one's identity anywhere he finds himself, it captures the legend of great history, myth and relevance. It is the responsibility of a designer to keep this culture on a path of relevance through his craft.

Lastly, beware of men that have a lean and  hungry look rocking Isi Agu, They're dangerous.

Thank you so much for Reading. I honestly appreciate your Audience. Don’t forget to engage me, drop a comment – what do you think? Do you have something to add? I’ll always appreciate inputs.



My team of Editors, A panel of Blue ribbons;

Miss. Deborah olajitan
Miss. Blessing Eno
Miss. Favour Paul
Miss. Chibuzor Sogunro

I salute Everyone of you,
God blessings, Always.