Oku people (Sierra Leone)
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|
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 5,000 (0.5% of population]] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Sierra Leone, Gambia | |
| Languages | |
| Religion | |
| Islam (Sunni) | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Yoruba people |
The Oku people, also commonly known as Oku Mohammedans or Aku Mohammedansin Sierra Leone and as the Aku Marabou or Oku Marabou in the Gambia, are an ethnic group in Sierra Leone and the Gambia. The Oku people are the descendants of liberated Africans of Yoruba descent from Southwest Nigeria who were liberated or came to Sierra Leone as settlers in the mid 19th century and formed a distinctive ethnic group The Oku are virtually all Muslims and are known for their conservative muslim population. Although the Sierra Leone government officially considered the Oku people as members of the Creole ethnic group, many Sierra Leoneans consider the Oku people as a distinctive ethnic group.
The Oku people in Sierra Leone are mainly found in the capital Freetown, particularly in the Freetown neighborhood of Aberdeen Village, Fourah Bay and Fula Town. Most Oku have Islamic first names and English last names. Most Oku also have Yoruba middle names.
The Oku people are mainly descended from the Yoruba Liberated Africans that were resettled in Sierra Leone during the nineteenth century. These Liberated Africans formed a distinctive community based at Aberdeen village, Fourah Bay, and Fula Town. As early as the 1840s, there were references to 'Aku Mohammedans' and because the communities at Fourah Bay were distinctly of the Yoruba tribe, they were referred to as 'Aku' or 'Oku' Mohammedans.
The Oku people have a distinctive culture that has strong similarities with the Yoruba people. The Aku often have Arabic first and last names, although some Oku people later adopted the names of prominent benefactors such as Savage or other European surnames to gain admission into the missionary schools. It is not uncommon for some elder members of the Oku community to speak the Yoruba language in addition to the Oku variety of the Krio language.
Some scholars consider the Oku people as entirely distinct from the Creoles (Marriage Rites among the Aku (Yoruba) of Freetown, Olumbe Bassir Africa: Journal of the International African Institute, Vol. 24, No. 3 (Jul., 1954), pp. 251-256) and some scholars consider the Oku as a sub-ethnic group of the Krio, rather than a separate ethnic group.
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