Igboland, also known as Southeastern Nigeria is a non-governmental cultural
region and a linguistic area in Nigeria that is defined by the Igbo culture and
language. It is primarily situated in the Lowland forest region of Nigeria,
with minor parts in the Niger-Delta, where the Niger river fans out into the
atlantic ocean in a vast network of creeks and mangrove swamps on the Bight
of Bonny located between latitude 5–7 degrees north and longitude 6–8 degrees
east, and occupies a total landmass of about 16,000 square miles in southern
Nigeria. It has lands on both sides of the lower Niger River, although the
larger chunk of the region is situated on the east of the river. The region is
surrounded by a host of large rivers. Igboland's culture has been shaped by
its rainforest climate. As this area constitutes a large part of the
south-eastern part of Nigeria, it is often referred to as the 'The East'
locally. The majority of the Igbo-speaking population in Igboland
identify as ethnic Igbo. The earliest found settlements in
Igboland date back to 4500 BC in the central area, from where the majority of
the Igbo-speaking population is believed to have migrated. The northern Igbo
Kingdom of Nri, which rose around the 10th century AD, is credited with the
foundation of much of Igboland's culture, customs, and religious
practices. It is the oldest existing monarchy in present-day Nigeria. In
southern Igboland several groups developed, of which the most notable was
the Aro confederacy. Igboland was part of the Southern Nigeria Protectorate of
the British Empire and was amalgamated into modern-day Nigeria in 1914; the
nation gained independence in 1960. Shortly afterwards Igboland was involved
in its biggest war during Biafra's movement for secession, which eventually
ended in 1970 when this area rejoined Nigeria.
History = Pre-history=
Early settlement of Igboland dates back to 6000 BC based on early pottery work
found in the Okigwe-Nsukka axis. There is, however, evidence of Palaeolithic
man settling in southern Nigeria from at least 10,000 years ago. Much of the
pottery excavated by a team led by Thurstan Shaw with the University of
Nigeria at Nsukka in 1978 uncovered a rock quarry which was a mine for tool
and pottery making for a 'stone civilisation' nearby at Ibagwa.
Anthropologists at the University of Benin discovered fossils and use of
monoliths dating back to 6000 BC at Ugwelle-Uturu in the Okigwe area.
Further evidence of ancient settlements were uncovered at a hypothesised Nsukka
metal cultural area from 3000 BC and later settlements attributed to Ngwa
culture at AD 8-18. = Ancient history=
The Nsukka-Okigwe axis forms as a basis for a proposed Proto-Igbo cultural
heartland antecedent to contemporary Igbo culture. It is unclear what
cultural links there are between these pre-historic artefacts and today. Later
human settlement in the region may have links with other discoveries made in the
wider area particularly with the culture associated with the terracotta
discoveries based at Nok spanning a wide area about north-central Nigeria.
Much of the Igbo population is believed to have migrated from a smaller area in
this region, starting several independent Igbo-speaking tribes,
village-groups, kingdoms and states. The movements were generally broken into two
trends in migration: a more northerly spread group towards the banks of the
Niger and the upper quadrant of the Cross River; the other, following a
southerly trail had mostly risen from the Isu populations based nearer the
axis from which the majority of southern Igbo communities were populated. Mbaise
are notably the best examples of an Igbo group claiming autochthony and rejecting
many migratory histories about their origins, many of these groups either way
are evidently culturally northern or southern Igbo based on the proximity of
their traditions to those of their neighbours and, many times, familial and
political ties. = Igbo-Ukwu and early settlements=
Isiah Anozie was digging in his compound to install a cistern in 1939 when he
stumbled unto the first finds of the Igbo Ukwu metal and precious artefacts
that led to the discovery of a larger network of linked metal works from the
9th century. The works were based in Igbo Ukwu and further finds were found
by archaeology teams led by Thurstan Shaw in 1959-60 and in 1964 in the
compound of Jonah Anozie. Initially, throughout the 1960s and
1970s it was thought that the Igbo Ukwu bronze and copper items were of an
external origin or were influenced by outside technology due to their
technical sophistication. The opposite was revealed to be true since local
copper deposits had been exploited by the 9th century and anthropological
evidence, such as the Ichi-like scarifications on the human figures,
show local origin. The works have been attributed to an isolated bronze
industry which had developed without outside influence over time to reach
such sophistication. Igbo trade routes of the early second
millennium reached the cities of Mecca, Medina and Jeddah through a network of
trade routes journeyed by middlemen. There was evidence of beads that
originated in India in the 9th century Igbo Ukwu burial sites: Thousands of
glass beads were uncovered from the ruined remains of a nobleman's garments.
The burial site was associated with the Nri Kingdom which began around the same
century according to indigenous history. = Nri and other migrations=
The northern Igbo Kingdom of Nri, rising around the 10th century based on Umunri
traditions, is credited with the foundation of much of Igboland's
culture, customs, and religious practices. It is the oldest existing
monarchy in present-day Nigeria. It was around the mid-10th century that the
divine figure Eri is said to have migrated, according to Umunri lore, to
the Anambra river basin — specifically at its meeting with Niger known as Ezu
na Omambara near present-day Onitsha. The exact origins of Eri are unknown and
much of Nri traditions present him as a divine leader and civiliser sent from
heaven to begin civilisation. In contrast, Eri's origins generally
suggest a north easterly origin which has sparked up debate pertaining to a
possible Igala origin for Eri. Towards the western end of Igbo land
across the Niger in the 16th century rose a man known as Eze Chima who fled
Benin with his accomplices after a dispute with the Oba of Benin who
consequently exiled him in the 1560s. As they left Benin City heading eastwards,
Eze Chima and his followers settled a number of lands and established
monarchies in areas that grew into major village groups and towns after the 16th
century. Collectively, the indigenous populations of these places are known as
Umuezechima which translates as 'the children or descendants of king Chima'.
= Igala wars and European contact= Igboland was historically known as the
Ibo(e), Ebo(e), and Heebo Country by early European explorers. Igboland was
conquered by the British Empire after several decades of resistance on all
fronts; some of the most famous of the resistance include the Ekumeku Movement,
the Anglo-Aro War, and the Aba Women's Riots which was contributed to by women
of different ethnic backgrounds in eastern Nigeria.
The extreme northern parts of Igboland in the eighteenth were subject to much
raiding by elements of the Igala people of Idah under Onoja Oboni, a descendant
of one of the Idah royal families. The conflicts drew down further into areas
in central northern Igboland, particularly Nsugbe near where early
European settlers with Joseph Hawkins noted events from parts of the conflicts
between the 'Ebo Country' and 'Galla' in A History of a Voyage to the Coast of
Africa published in 1797. Umunri traditions state that Onoja Oboni,
however, is of royal Nri stock and founded Idah as he trailed northwards.
The Igala do not claim origins from Onoja Oboni or the Igbo.
= Arochukwu and the slave trade= A number of polities rose either
directly or indirectly as a result of Nri; the most powerful kingdom of these
was the Aro Confederacy which rose in the Cross River region in the 17th
century and declined after British colonisation in the early 20th century.
The Aro state centred on Arochukwu followed Nri's steady decline, basing
much of its economic activities on the rising trade in slaves to Europeans by
coastal African middlemen. The present site of Arochukwu was
originally settled by the Ibibio people under the Obong Okon Ita kingdom before
the conquest of what became Obinkita in the 17th century by two main Igbo
groups: the Eze Agwu clan and the Oke Nnachi assisted by the Ibom Isi
mercenaries under the leadership of the Nnubi dynasty. Led by Agwu Nnobia, the
descendant of Nna Uru from Igboland, the Eze Agwu clan were centred at their
capital Amanagwu and were resisted by Obong Okon Ita which led to the start of
the Aro-Ibibio Wars. The war initially became a stalemate.
Both sides arranged a marriage between the king of Obong Okon Ita and a woman
from Amanagwu. The marriage eventually failed to bring peace but played a
decisive role in the war. Oke Nnachi was led by Nnachi Ipia who was a dibia or
priest among the Edda people and was called by Agwu Nnobia to help in the war
against the Ibibio. These groups were followed by a third non-Igbo
Ekoi-cultured group, Akpa or Ibom Oburutu who were led by Akuma Nnaubi,
the first Eze Aro, the title of the king of the Aro.
In southern Igboland several groups developed mostly independent of Nri
influence. Most of these groups followed a migration out of Isu communities in
present-day Imo State, although some communities, such as the Mbaise cluster
of village groups, claim to be autochthonous.
= Colonial era= Following the British parliament's
abolition of the slave trade in 1830, the British royal navy had opened up
trade with coastal towns Bonny and Opobo and further inland on the Niger with
Asaba in the 1870s. The palm oil industry, the biggest export, grew large
and important to the British who traded here. British arrival and trade led to
increased encounters between the Igbo and other polities and ethnic groups
around the Niger River and led to a deepening sense of a distinct Igbo
ethnic identity. Missionaries had started arriving in the 1850s. The Igbo,
at first wary of the religion, started to embrace Christianity and Western
education as traditional society broke down. Christianity had played a great
part in the introduction of European ideology into Igbo society and culture
often time through erasure of cultural practice; adherents to the denominations
were often barred in partaking in ancient rites and traditions, and
joining fraternities and secret societies were forbidden as the church
grew stronger. Due to the incompatibility of the Igbo
decentralized style of government and the centralized system required for
British indirect rule, British colonial rule was marked with open conflicts and
much tension. Under British colonial rule, the diversity within each of
Nigeria's major ethnic groups slowly decreased and distinctions between the
Igbo and other large ethnic groups, such as the Hausa and the Yoruba, became
sharper. British rule brought about changes in culture such as the
introduction of warrant chiefs as Eze where there were no such monarchies.
= Nigerian independence= Following the independence of Nigeria
from the United Kingdom in 1960, most of Igboland was included in its Eastern
Region. = Biafra and the Nigerian–Biafran War=
Following a coup in 1966 which saw mostly Igbo soldiers assassinating
politicians from the western and northern regions of Nigeria, Johnson
Aguiyi-Ironsi seized control of Lagos, the capital, and came into power as
military head of state of Nigeria. In revolt and retaliation against the
government General Aguiyi-Ironsi was ambushed and assassinated by Northern
members of the military on 29 July 1966 in a revolt against that had strong
ethnic overtones. Ironsi's assassination stood out more because of the method of
his killers; Ironsi had his legs tied to the back of a Land Rover and was driven
around town while still attached. The Eastern Region formed the core of the
secessionist Republic of Biafra. A regional council of the peoples of
Eastern Nigeria decided the region should secede as the Republic of Biafra
on May 30, 1967. Nigerian General Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu
on this day made a declaration of independence of Biafra from Nigeria and
became the head of state of the new republic. The Nigerian Civil War lasted
from 6 July 1967 until 15 January 1970, after which Biafra once again became
part of Nigeria. The Republic of Biafra was defeated after three years of war by
the federal government of Nigeria from 1967 to 1970 with military support from
the United Kingdom, Soviet Union, the United Arab Republic, as well as with
support from other states around the world. The effects of Nigerian war
strategies on Biafran civilians remains a controversial topic. The movement for
the sovereignty of Biafra has continued with a minority, most making up the
MASSOB organisation. Geography and biodiversity
Historically, Igboland has taken up a large part of southeastern Nigeria,
mostly on the eastern side of the Niger River. It extends westward across the
Niger to the regions of Aniocha, Ndokwa, Ukwuani, and Ika in present day Delta
State and also minute parts of Edo State in Nigeria. Its eastern side is
terminated by the Cross River, although micro-communities exist over on the
other side of the river; its northernmost point enters the Savannah
climate around Nsukka. Bonny Island and Opobo are often
included in the Igbo speaking region since the language of trade of the
island and town is Igbo and since many inhabitants are ethnic Igbo. Through
these ports, the Igbo speaking region reaches the Atlantic Ocean to its south,
although both towns are geographically separated form the rest of Igboland by
smaller Ijaw and Andoni speaking communities.
In Nigeria today, Igboland is roughly made up of Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu,
Imo, and major parts of Delta and Rivers states. Small parts of Akwa Ibom, Benue,
Cross River, Edo, and Kogi State make up the rest of Igboland. More than 30
million people inhabit Igboland and with a population density ranging from 1000
people per sq. mile in high density areas and 350 per sq. mile in low
density areas it could be the densest area in Africa after the Nile Valley.
Altogether Igboland has an area of some 15,800 to 16,000 square miles.
References Bibliography
Chigere, Nkem Hyginus M. V.. Foreign missionary background and indigenous
evangelization in Igboland. LIT Verlag Münster. p. 15. ISBN 3-8258-4964-3.
External links Igboland’s Culture and Language,
Igboguide.org Pictorial tour of Igboland,