Ibibio Oral Performance: A Study of "Ùtó" Poetry

This work sets out to examine Ibibio Oral Performance in the poetic sub-genre known as "Ùtó". Ùtó is a popular Oral art form among the Ibibio of South-South Nigeria. In the past, researches carried out on African Oral Literature were biased because the investigators were whites and did not fully appreciate the cultures within which they were working. Since then, it has been necessary for indigenous researchers to come into the field so that their interpretation of oral texts would be in line with the cultural background of their area. In this book, the researcher has examined the various themes which are manifest in Ùtó chants, their setting, aspects of their performance, and most importantly, what makes for their literariness -that is, the techniques used by the oral artists to achieve their effects on their audiences. The over all picture from this analysis is that the Ibibio have a lively culture that serves as the bedrock of their oral literature. Ibibio oral poetry, as demonstrated by Ùtó chants, is an art form that remains alive in spite of modernity and urbanization. It is a major medium through which the Ibibio express their profound philosophical world view.