THE HISTORY OF ZUMA ROCK, INTERESTING THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT IT AND ITS FORGOTTEN DEITIES  

According to history, Zuma rock was discovered by a group known as the Zuba people (Koros), and the rock possesses great powers. 

The Zuba people settled around the rock on the instruction of their soothsayer who asked them to settle permanently only when they reached a magnificent rock. As pagans, the Zuba started worshipping the rock and noticed that every time they worshipped the rock good things happened. 

Zuma Rock became the strongest idol in the old Abuja area. All wars and battles against the Zuba people were never successful. Many attributed this to the powers of the rock. At that time they had no name for the rock. 

But when they discovered later that there were many Guinea-Fowls within the forest where the rock is situated, they named the rock "Ezumwa ba." Meaning: Place of catching Guinea-Fowls. That was how the rock got its name originally as "Zumwa." 

However, when the Hausa people started moving to the area, they found it difficult to pronounce "Zumwa" so they just called it "Zuma." When Europeans arrived, they also had difficulty pronouncing the original name Zumwa so they adopted the Hausa pronunciation. Hence, the popular name that went into literature was "Zuma" instead of the original name in koro, "Zumwa." 

With the introduction of western religion, most koros no longer worship the deities as their ancestors did in the early times. Some people believe this led to the silence of the gods of the rock. 

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The information in this article was curated from online sources. All details cannot be independently verified by DAILYGISTIRL or its editorial team.

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