CANOE IN OBOLO HISTORY

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Canoe is a very crucial means of transportation in Obolo history. The canoe in Obolo was the equivalent of horse in the North among the Hausas and Fulanis. It enable them to move from village to village.
Obolos are canoe-users, their canoe varied in size. The larger canoe were sometimes converted into house-boats ( Uji Ofo or Uji Agalaga), in which the owner might live for months on long distance fishing or trading expeditions. The canoe was also used as a means of transportation, it was responsible for the transfer of persons or goods from one location or village to another. Perhaps, the most important use of the canoe was in fishing (Uji Mbom).In so far as all fishing technique involved off-shore operations, however, all were equally dependent on the canoe.
The canoe was also used for cultural festival ( Oke, Ofiokpo, Ikini, etc), and inter-village competition. Finally, the canoe was vital to Obolo warfare ( Uji Akon ), which was largely conducted in the Rivers and Creeks rather than on dry land.









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