IN SEARCH FOR NATIVE COMMUNICATION: IGWEBUIKE AND SHIKROT PHILOSOPHICAL RENDERINGS

Abstract

The ancients developed their modes of communication which helped them to relate with one another and communicate with the divine. These forms of communication also distinguished them from others while providing meaning about life and the eternal destiny of man. Unfortunately, the arrival of the colonialists and the advent of the Internet with its razzmatazz of new media expressions showed an exit door to native media. This qualitative study, “In Search for Native Communication: Igwebuike and Shikrot Philosophical Renderings” investigated the matter with the help of Native Theory of Communication theoretical framework. While dissemination of information, public relations and entertainment were found as native forms of communication in Igbo philosophy, it was discovered that being persuasive, active listening and saying the truth are elements of communication in Ngas culture. The paper recommended revamping African traditional education, embracing public relations and encouraging divine encounter as veritable ways of inculcating traditional values of community among people of the two cultures. It concluded that notwithstanding the use of the new media, if various forms of communication are married to newer expressions, Africans are capable of finding solutions to contemporary challenges in an African way.