Ahebi Ugbabe was a prostitute and businesswoman from Enugu-Ezike who later became the only female king in British-Nigeria.
Ugbabe, who was the first and last king of Enugu-Ezike, ruled her people for 30 years until her death in 1948. She was 68.
King Ahebi Ugbabe could speak Igbo, Igala, Nupe, and Pidgin English. Thus, she held court cases in her palace while making money from the services. Women who had also been abused by their husbands escaped to Ugbabe’s palace, who then became their female husband.
Ahebi Ugbabe married wives for herself…by paying their bride price. She then looked for men who had intercourse with these wives and claimed the paternity of the children they bore. She assumed the role of a man and named the children after herself.
With the fear that her people might not accord her a rightful burial, Ahebi Ugbabe performed her own funeral rites in 1946, two years before her death.
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