Centre for Esan Studies-CES

The cultural life of the Esan people deserves greater scholarly attention in order to project our cultural practices to the rest of the world through rigorous and well-researched publications.

Beyond the continuation of various eclectic cultural festivals, including the legendary Ikhien Arimhin (Igbabonelimhin) acrobatic dance, more intensive research, documentation, and dissemination strategies need to be undertaken by Esan people themselves.

It would be grossly unfair if the preservation of our cultural histories were left solely to outsiders, who may neither fully understand nor accurately document them from the indigenous Esan perspective.

Such scholarly inquiries would encourage productive dialogues and critical conversations surrounding different aspects of Esan culture. These investigations could also be explored through filmmaking and other creative media of documentation. Furthermore, Esan culture requires greater academic engagement. Scholars and researchers should write more extensively about our cultural beliefs and practices, both for the purpose of enriching knowledge and for preserving them for future generations.

Let’s write. Let’s make films. Let’s exhibit. Let’s do all we have to do to take Esan culture to the world stage.

After the BBC(pidgin) visit, recently, Reuters News Agency visited Esanland to interview some practitioners as well as beneficiaries of the Ema/Udeh ancient healing tattoo of the Esan people.

This was on the heels of a documentary film made by our brother Samuel Osaze late 2024 where people from the town and gown were interviewed in the 55 minutes documentary film that seeks to spotlight and popularize an aspect of the Esan traditional medical history

FOR FREE, you can watch the full-length documentary film here—

EMA/UDEH-- Ancient Healing Tattoo of the Esan People Crafting beauty out of pain is at the core of the Ema/Udeh artistry. An untold story is finally revealed to the world showcasing how the Esan people cure spl...

Congratulations to Professor Eunice Eboserehimen Omonzejie on her appointment as the new vice chancellor of the prestigious Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma.

We hope, with this Esan woman at the helm of affairs, AAU will think in the direction of establishing a Centre for Esan Studies within the school premises. This agenda becomes more feasible given the pedigree of the current Vice Chancellor of AAU: Prof. Eunice Eboserehimen Omonzejie as an astute scholar of linguistics and adroit researcher.

https://guardian.ng/features/education/okpebholo-appoints-omonzejie-as-new-aau-vc/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR4m3yzwEvi62J2txCdmxDRyjq_JeS0XDgRLccGOtpGHTzL3kUyCf3tF4BJj2A_aem__ZPwv8qeOcE4niPO1l5O-Q

Okpebholo appoints Omonzejie as new AAU VC Edo State governor, Monday Okpebholo, has approved the appointment of Prof. Eunice Omonzejie as the new Vice Chancellor of AAU, Ekpoma.

Anthology of Esan Folktales and Nostalgia Stories
—Call for Entries

Submissions are now open for the 2025 edition of the Anthology of Esan Folktales and Nostalgia Stories. Organized by Proudly Esan— a socio-cultural group dedicated to promoting, documenting, and preserving the rich cultural heritage of the Esan people, this inaugural edition will feature a captivating collection of folktales and nostalgia stories that beautifully portray the Esan lifestyle, worldview, and unique cultural traditions.

The anthology is the first in a series designed to chronicle and historicize the Esan people’s past, serving as a valuable resource and inspiration for future generations.

We invite submissions from anyone with the creativity to bring these stories to life. Entries can be in the form of *short stories and poems*.

*Submission Details:*
Send entries in Microsoft word to *[email protected]*.
*Submission deadline: April 21, 2025*

*Inquiries and Sponsorship:*
For further inquiries or sponsorship opportunities, please call 0803 655 4119 or 0706 757 5040.

Join us in preserving and celebrating the cultural legacy of the Esan people!

BBC BBC News Pidgin interview on the Ema/Udeh (Ancient Healing Tattoo of the Esan People). This 6 minutes video clip gives a sneak peek into the yet-to-be-screened, mid-length documentary film I released on September 30, 2024 by Samuel Osaze

Di ‘tattoos' wey Esan pipo for Nigeria believe say dey cure dia sickness - BBC News Pidgin Esan pipo dey call dia tattoos Ema Udeh – body markings wey dem dey use as treatment for splenomegaly or swollen spleen.

(Trailer) Watch! An untold story is finally revealed to the world showcasing how the Esan people cure splenomegaly through an ancient tattoo that blends art, medicine, spirituality, and identity.

Ema/Udeh — Ancient Healing Tattoo of the Esan People (Trailer) Crafting beauty out of pain is at the core of the Ema/ Udeh artistry. An untold story is finally revealed to the world showcasing how the Esan people cure sp...

Glad to announce that my documentary film Ema/Udeh Ancient Healing Tattoo of the Esan People) is ready for screening worldwide.

Featuring prominent academic scholars and medical experts of international repute like Professor of Dance Studies and Performance Aesthetics Mariam Iyeh , Professor of Philosophy Matthew Izibili, Dr. Aloja Aiwerele and Dr. Abel Toms-Oriakhi, the focused traditional tattoo artists are women (3) who get involved in the phenomenon practice for the sole aim of saving lives rather than making earnings. While awaiting partnership, collaboration and screening opportunities at this point, please, see the film synopsis below:

Ema/Udeh (Ancient Healing Tattoo of the Esan People)

To a vast number of Esan people, a certain measure is an unquestioned remedy for ailments whose symptom is a swollen spleen. This is the Ema/Udeh traditional tattoo. Beyond medicinal, aesthetic, spiritual, and identity significations, experts have even begun to deem it evolutionary, feasibly moving Ema/Udeh from its present abdominal abode - where it is restricted on private exhibit for many years - to the canvas. On the canvas, the curative yet artistic patterns can be replicated for public consumption.

From ages past, the Esan people of Edo State have found succour in artistic markings on the abdomen, considering them curative of a swollen spleen, medically termed 'splenomegaly'. In the 21st century, the practice has not waned. It surprisingly thrives, prompting interest and critical discourse from far and wide, despite the spiraling popularity of orthodox medical practice.

This documentary film raises and answers questions about this intriguing practice. The following questions are asked: (a) Are there grounds for comparison between the modern tattoo and the ancient Esan body marking? (b) How is Ema /Udeh carried out? (c) What could be responsible for its continuing popularity, or what does the Ema/Udeh offer that modern medical methods lack over curing the same ailment ? (d) How genuine is the claim that splenomegaly cannot be cured by orthodox medical methods? (e) Is splenomegaly endemic to Esan/Edo people and if not, how do people of other ethnic groups treat the ailment? (f) How could the ancient practice be improved and aligned with global standard health practices?

Furthermore, the film attempts to depict the ancient practice without bias or prejudice, interrogating the practitioners and people from the town and gown. These contributors include university professors and orthodox medical experts, each articulating divergent views for the engagement of the public. The film aims to rouse debate over the traditional practice vis-à-vis orthodox methods. This is underlain by the conviction that such dialogues would create improvement and synergy for better-quality healthcare.

Ema/Udeh does not only cure: a truth it has proved in the midst of many doubts. It also leaves carefully curated artistic footprints behind for the admiration of the bearer and the public, making the bearer a mobile canvas of the tattoo artist. Thus, the Ema/Udeh artists are able to maintain the dual functionalities of a healer and an artist, wrapped into one ball—a medical practitioner whose motivation is the wellbeing of the people. This is the point of convergence between art and medicine, exemplified by the Ema/Udeh artists of Esanland.

With best wishes,
Samuel Osaze
+234 8036554119