After tracing their ancestry to Nigeria, South-East particularly, some students and faculty members from Morehouse College Glee Club in Atlanta, United States of America, USA, have resolved to add Igbo names to their existing identities.
The naming ceremony was done yesterday at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.
The students claimed they individually carried out Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA test) to trace their Igbo ancestral roots.
The naming ceremony was led by the traditional ruler of the Ibagwa-Aka community in Igbo-Eze South Local Government Area of Enugu State, HRH, Igwe Hyacinth Eze.
At the elaborate ceremony witnessed and participated by the apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the President of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Enugu State chapter, Prof. Fredrick Eze, said the development would serve as an avenue to improve the Igbo communities.
Speaking further, Hyancith Eze said he was also happy because of the spiritual, cultural and economic exchanges which would happen as a result of the reunion, adding that he is willing to provide lands for those that are willing to live in his community.
However, the Public Affairs Officer, United States Consulate General, Lagos, Stephen Ibelli, said the Club came to Nigeria to mark the 50th anniversary of its first visit to Nigeria in 1972.
He equally explained that the Club would tour Abuja, Enugu and Lagos States to strengthen US-Nigeria cultural ties through music, arts and film.
“The Morehouse College Glee Club, which is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its first tour in Nigeria, will offer public concerts in Lagos, Abuja and Enugu. In addition, the group will visit universities and high schools, meet Nigerian students, and explore their historical ties to Nigeria.
“The 1972 visit to Nigeria infused African music into the Glee Club’s tradition and American Choral music in general. Fifty years later, choirs across the United States sing in Nigerian languages, highlighting the long-term impact of that exchange.
“The Morehouse College Glee Club has since learned a variety of songs in Edo, Yorùbá, Hausa, and Igbo, including a piece specifically composed for them by Igwe Laz Ekwueme, famed Nollywood actor and University of Lagos professor.
“During the visit, the Morehouse College Glee Club will carry out a dynamic exchange of musical knowledge with the broad spectrum of the Nigerian society, singing in Hausa, Igbo, and Yoruba languages,” Ibeli said in a statement made available to newsmen.