Josiah Ransome-Kuti
Josiah Ransome-Kuti | |
|---|---|
| Born | Josiah Jesse Ransome-Kuti 1 June 1855 |
| Died | 4 September 1930 (aged 75) |
| Nationality | Nigerian |
| Occupations | |
| Years active | 1871–1930 |
| Spouse |
Bertha Anny Erinade Olubi
(m. 1882) |
| Children | 3
|
| Parent(s) | Likoye Kuti, Ekidan Efupeyin |
Josiah Jesse Ransome-Kuti (1 June 1855 – 4 September 1930) was a Nigerian clergyman and music composer.[1] He was known for setting Christian hymns to indigenous music,[2] and for writing Christian hymns in Yoruba.
Early life and career
Born on 1 June 1855 in Igbein, Abeokuta, Ogun State, to an Egba family, Josiah Ransome-Kuti was baptized in 1859. He enrolled as a student into the Church Missionary Society Training Institution, Abeokuta, before proceeding to the Church Missionary Society Training Institute, Lagos in 1871.[3]
Shortly after completing his education at the Church Missionary Society Training Institute, Lagos, Ransome-Kuti was employed as a teacher at St. Peter's School, Ake, Abeokuta, and then left in 1879 to teach music at the CMS Girls School, Lagos, where he met his wife Bertha Anny Erinade Olubi.[3] In 1891, he was made catechist at the Gbagura Church Parsonage, Abeokuta before he founded Gbagura Church, a local church where he converted people to the Christian faith through his versatility in rendering English gospel hymns into indigenous gospel songs.[3][4]
Ransome-Kuti became a deacon in 1895, ordained a priest in 1897 and was appointed district judge from 1902 to 1906.[3] In 1911, he was appointed pastor of St. Peter's Cathedral Church, Ake after previously serving as superintendent of the Abeokuta Church Mission.[5]
In 1922, he was made canon of the Cathedral Church of Christ, Lagos and in 1925, he became the first Nigerian to release a record album after he recorded several Yoruba language hymns in gramophone through Zonophone Records.[1][6]
Personal life
He married Bertha Erina Olubi in 1882. They had three children; Grace Eniola, Azariah Olusegun and Israel Oludotun. His descendants would go on to constitute the Ransome-Kuti family.
Bibliography
- Joseph Oguntade (1986). Canon Josiah Jesse Ransome-Kuti: A Short Biography. Gbemi Sodipo Press Limited. ISBN 978-978-183-004-4.
References
- ^ a b Ádébáyò Ádésóyè (25 March 2015). Scientific Pilgrimage: 'The Life and times of Emeritus Professor V.A Oyenuga'. D.Sc, FAS, CFR Nigeria’s first Emeritus Professor and Africa’s first Agriculture Professor. AuthorHouse. pp. 75–. ISBN 978-1-5049-3785-6.
- ^ Cheryl Johnson-Odim; Nina Emma Mba (1997). For Women and the Nation: Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti of Nigeria. University of Illinois Press. pp. 32–. ISBN 978-0-252-06613-9.
- ^ a b c d "Ransome-Kuti, Josiah Jesse". Dictionary of African Christian Biography. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
- ^ Raph Uwechue; Africa Books Limited (1991). Makers of Modern Africa. Africa Journal Limited.
- ^ H. Zell, C. H. Bundy and V. Coulon (eds), A New Reader's Guide to African Literature, rev. edn, (London : Heinemann, 1983).
- ^ Sansom, Ian (11 December 2015). "Great Dynasties: The Ransome-Kutis". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
- 1855 births
- 1930 deaths
- Ransome-Kuti family
- Musicians from Abeokuta
- Nigerian clergy
- Nigerian music people
- Nigerian composers
- Yoruba Christian clergy
- Yoruba musicians
- Yoruba-language singers
- Nigerian schoolteachers
- Yoruba educators
- 19th-century Nigerian people
- 20th-century Nigerian people
- 20th-century Christian clergy
- 20th-century composers
- 19th-century musicians
- 20th-century Nigerian musicians
- Music educators
- Yoruba-language writers
- People from Abeokuta
- People of colonial Nigeria
- 19th-century Nigerian educators
- English–Yoruba translators
- 19th-century translators
- 20th-century translators
- 19th-century Nigerian musicians