THE NON- CENTRALIZED STATES OF NIGERIA BEFORE 1800 - WEEK ONE

THE NON- CENTRALIZED STATES OF NIGERIA BEFORE 1800

Performance Objectives At the end of this topic, students would be able to

1.   State the origin of the Igbo

2.   Define the meaning of non-centralised states

3.   Mention the common features of non-centralised states

4.    Discuss the social and political organization of the Igbo

5.   Trace the significance of Age-grade in Igboland

WHAT ARE NON-CENTRALIZED STATES? These are independent ethnic groups that had no central administration which means that they had no powerful ruler at the hand. The ethnic groups that fall into this group are the Igbo, Birom, Angas, Urhobo, Isoko, Idoma, Tiv and Ibibio.

The people who lived in these societies, unlike their counterparts in Oyo and Benin which are centralized for example, were distinguished by the ununified and relatively restricted socio - political structures in which they ordered their lives. The small scale organization of these societies, did in some areas, permit efficient democratic practices to take firm root in the respective communities because of the thorough manner in which everybody was involved in governmental processes through family representations in village elders' council, through clan meeting and through various age grades and village societies.

THE COMMON FEATURES OF THE NON - CENTRALIZED STATES

1.  They had neither kings nor rulers but they had the eldest male member of their communities as their leaders who had no executive powers.

2.  There was general absence of law courts and prisons. The citizens were rather guided by the customs, taboos and sanctions. Oracle was usually consulted in resolution of certain disputes.

3.  There were no kingdoms or empire; the predominant political organizations were small autonomous villages.

4.  The wealthy and the influential persons usually occupied prominent positions in the society and could influence decisions on important issues.

5.  The settlement of these ethnic groups are scattered that is to say that houses were located any how without planning in the villages and there was nothing like city walls or meats.

6.  There were no wars of expansion perhaps due to lack of empires and kingdoms -c    to be expanded. Wars that took place wer- only inter - village wars.

7.  They had various secret societies and title taking societies. Members of these societies enjoyed respectable stance in the community.

8. Members of each autonomous community look upon each other as a relative probably because they claimed to have originated from a common ancestor.

THEIGBO

ii. The Igbo people today inhabit the forest belt area between the Cross River, east of the river Niger and Benin, west of the Niger and between the Igala to the north and the Niger Delta city - states to the south. There had been a confusion on whether the Igbos are the real indigenes of the places they are occupying today or whether they migrated from some where. Even if they are the real indigenes of these places they are occupying; the time of their occupation is still uncertain but according to the recent archaeological discoveries in Igbo - Ukwu, a village twenty - five miles South - East of Onitsha by a team of researchers led by Professor Thurstan Shaw of Ibadan University, it is now believed that some ancient Ibo people had settled in this area earlier than the 9^lh century A. D. it is hoped that further research in this field of study will yield interesting and much needed information about the origin of the Igbo people.

iii. Also, according to G. T. Basden, one of those who are of the opinion that the Igbos migrated from some where; "Igbos must have originated from Egypt or some where in the middle east". He arrived at this conclusion after reflecting on the apparent similarities between the religious and circumcision practices of the Igbos and those of the ancient Egyptians or the Hebrew.

iv. The Igbos today live in the following five pure Igbo States: Anambra, Imo, Enugu, Abia and Ebonyi States of Nigeria. Igbos can also be seen in other States like Delta, Cross - river, Bayelsa and Rivers States of Nigeria but in a very small number. According to some anthropologists, the early Igbo settlements started at Nri in Anambra State or Isuama in Imo State.

v. The dominant physical features of most of Igbo country is thick tropical forest. This physical environment has greatly influenced the history of the Igbo people. Firstly, the forest provided excellent natural defence against invasions from external enemies. There was therefore no conquest on the Igbo people which could have resulted in the establishment of an empire as was the case with the Fulani conquest of Hausa land and parts of Northern Nigeria and northern Yoruba land or the Oyo conquest of Dahomey.

vi. Secondly, the inaccessible nature of the forest made mobility and intercourse among the Igbo people themselves who were mainly sedentary farmers difficult. Consequently, no one Igbo group was able to unite the people under one government through conquest. These reasons partly explain why the Igbos never evolved a centralized polity of the Yoruba or Dahomey type before or during the century. Another reason often given is that the Igbos are by nature extremely egalitarian and individualistic. They have intense love of personal freedom and very strong resentment for autocratic government over them. As a result, they preferred living in small village republics where every grown - up male was regarded as important as everyone else.

SOCIAL AND POLITICAL OGRANIZATION OF THE IGBO

The Igbo Political and Social Organization differs remarkably from that of the Hausa and other centralized states. Two types of socio-political organization existed is Igbo land before the coming of the European. These were the kingship or monarchical system and the village democracy of village republican system.

(a)  The Monarchical System                  

The monarchies were few in number and this system was found in the Igbo communities which had long age contract with non-Igbo centralized states like Benin and Igala. These monarchical system existed in areas as Aboh, Agbor, Asaba, Onitsha, Nri, Oguta and Arochukwu. They were not absolute rulers because they had to take advice of their chiefs and were often guided by the realization that the 'king' belonged to the masses, just as the masses belonged to the king. The chiefs who made up the council of state, were drawn from various lineage groups.

(b)  The Village Republic

The village republic was common and widespread in Igbo land. Village republics were autonomous communities which managed their affairs independent of one another; they were usually small in size and had thin population.

The Igbo had four main levels of government outside the family organization namely minimal lineage group, the major lineage group the maximal lineage group and the village group.

1.   The minimal lineage group  'Umunna'  was made up of a number of nuclear families which descended from the same father the eldest in this group is the Okpara, he presides the family meeting, he also keeps the 'Ofo', the symbol of truth and justice. All adult male members were free to participate in the group's meeting.

2.   The meetings of the major lineage group the 'Ebo' were presided over by the oldest of the heads of minimal lineage groups. Members of this group descended from a common ancestor. Each of the group meetings was a council of the various minimal  lineage groups.  The meetings were mainly concerned with offences against the group religion and public issues likely to break up the solidarity of the group. Membership was open to all adult males. However, the group decision were dc-ninated by title-holder, wealthy and highly respected persons.

3.   The maximal lineage group ⁴Mba was the meeting point of people at the village level. All adult males can attend the meeting of the village assembly through heads

HISTORY OF NIGERIA AND THE WIDER WORLD SINCE 1800

of the various lower lineage groups. The most senior of the major lineage usually presided over the meeting which in most cases was an adhoc general assembly. 4. The village group Obodo was the highest level of government in Igbo land. It was an autonomous mini-state. Members of the village-group assembly were usually representatives of the villages. The meeting was presided over by the head of the senior village. The assembly as well as issues of war and peace.

Village

Maximal lineage

Major lineage

Minimal lineage

Household or family

Ogbe/Obodo

Mba

Ebo

Umunna

Ezi na Ulo