The greatest and the well-known empire that ruled the region before the British arrived was the Benin Empire whose ruler was known as Oba of Benin. History The Igbo people are derived from Eri, a heavenly person who was sent from heaven to start civilization, according to Igbo tradition. Rivers draining the area north of the Niger-Benue trough include the Sokoto, the Kaduna, the Gongola, and the rivers draining into Lake Chad. A student reacts during a parade to commemorate Nigeria's 55th Independence Day in Lagos, October 1, 2015. Archaeological research, pioneered by Charles Thurstan Shaw, has shown a long history of human settlement in Nigeria. On 29 May 1967, Lt. Col. Emeka Ojukwu, the military governor of the eastern region who emerged as the leader of increasing Igbo secessionist sentiment, declared the independence of the eastern region as the Republic of Biafra on 30 May 1967. Borno reached its pinnacle under mai Idris Aloma (ca. [66] Igbo people formed the majority of enslaved Africans which were sold as slaves from Calabar, despite forming a minority among the ethnic groups in the region. In an attempt to alleviate such problems Abubakar's government implemented a civil service pay raise and other reforms. A separatist movement later formed the Republic of Biafra in 1967, leading to the three-year Nigerian Civil War. B. Webster, R. J. Gavin, Robert Smith, and John D. Omer-Cooper. John A. Ayoade, and Adeoye A. Akinsanya, eds. In early 1989 a constituent assembly completed a constitution and in the spring of 1989 political activity was again permitted. According to the Bayajidda legend, the Hausa states were founded by the sons of Bayajidda, a prince whose origin differs by tradition, but official canon records him as the person who married the last Kabara of Daura and heralded the end of the matriarchal monarchs that had erstwhile ruled the Hausa people. After a secret tribunal, most of the accused were convicted and several death sentences were handed down. [96], Most civil society leaders and Nigerians witnessed marked improvements in human rights and freedom of the press under Obasanjo. The Yorubaland now consists of different tribes from different states which are located in the Southwestern part of the country, states like Lagos State, Oyo State, Ondo State, Osun State, Ekiti State and Ogun State, among others. The southwest has always been dominated by the Yoruba people, descendants of the Oyo Empire, while the southeast has always been dominated by the Igbo people . [110], The Ibadan School dominated the academic study of Nigerian history until the 1970s. [18][19], The earliest known example of a fossil human skeleton found anywhere in West Africa, which is 13,000 years old, was found at Iwo-Eleru in Isarun, western Nigeria, and attests to the antiquity of habitation in the region. [13] Nigeria first became a republic in 1963, but succumbed to military rule after a bloody coup d'tat in 1966. His comments were interpreted by some analysts as a warning to his vice president and 2007 presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar. This is a figure that seems to be in the midst of a conversation. As part of a 15-month economic emergency plan, he announced pay cuts for the military, police, civil servants and the private sector. The entire territory of the Royal Niger Company came into the hands of the British government. Gently undulating plains, which become waterlogged during the rainy season, are found in these areas. Hydromorphic and organic soils, confined largely to areas underlain by sedimentary rocks along the coast and river floodplains, are the youngest soil types. There are 400 deities called Orisha who perform various tasks. Historically, the Yoruba people have been the dominant group on the west bank of the Niger. But before then, he was the governor of both the Northern and Southern protectorates. Among the Igbo people of the Eastern Region, these detainees were heroes. Goodluck Jonathan called for new elections and stood for re-election in April 2011, which he won. In August 1998 Abubakar appointed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct elections for local government councils, state legislatures and governors, the national assembly, and president. Benin exercised considerable influence on the western Igbo, who adopted many of the political structures familiar to the Yoruba-Benin region, but Asaba and its immediate neighbours, such as Ibusa, Ogwashi-Ukwu, Okpanam, Issele-Azagba and Issele-Ukwu, were much closer to the Kingdom of Nri. [53], Archaeological evidence suggests that Nri hegemony in Igboland may go back as far as the 9th century,[54] and royal burials have been unearthed dating to at least the 10th century. The Lagos invasion by the British annexing Lagos into a colony; Lagos was a seat of power serving as both political and economic capital. [75], Capturing 89 seats in the federal parliament was the second-largest party in the newly independent country the National Council of Nigerian Citizens (NCNC). [65] Akwa Akpa (named Calabar by the Spanish) became a center of the Atlantic slave trade, where African slaves were sold in exchange for European manufactured goods. Gradually Borno's position weakened; its inability to check political rivalries between competing Hausa cities was one example of this decline. As a colony, it was initially divided into the Southern Nigeria Protectorate and Northern Nigeria Protectorate. General Mohammed replaced thousands of civil servants and announced a timetable for the resumption of civilian rule by 1 October 1979. This led to an increase in trans-Saharan Trade. [14] Nigeria became a republic again after a new constitution was written in 1979. Additional sanctions were imposed as a result of Nigeria's failure to gain full certification for its counter-narcotics efforts. There are reports that civilization already existed in Ile-Ife (the citadel of Yoruba civilization), Nigeria by the 8th century, centuries before the arrival of the British colonial administration. The Etymological Origins of the Word Nigeria The name Niger-ia, or Nigger area was given to that country by the mistress of one of the most evil-minded genocidal murders of Muurs named Lord (Bloodclat!) The Kingdom of Nri was a religio-polity, a sort of theocratic state, that developed in the central heartland of the Igbo region. The term means that people should be independent and live within political boundaries that corresponded to where they lived. Aviation workers in Nigeria have embarked on a two-day strike, leaving thousands of travelers stranded as airlines canceled or rescheduled flights in the country's major cities, A local official in Nigeria says that at least 33 people have been killed by gunmen in the country's northwest, From dressing as Roman soldiers in Antigua, Guatemala, to carrying palm fronds on the streets of Lagos, Nigeria, Christians around the world are celebrating Holy Week, State authorities said Tuesday at least 10 students were abducted by gunmen in northwest Nigeria, In a story published April 2, 2023, about police reforms in Grand Rapids, Michigan, a year after a Black man was shot and killed during a traffic stop, The Associated Press erroneously reported where the victim, Patrick Lyoya, was born. [41] In November 2009, he fell ill and was flown out of the country to Saudi Arabia for medical attention. [89], In 1982 the ruling National Party of Nigeria, a conservative alliance led by Shegu Shagari, had hoped to retain power through patronage and control over the Federal Election Commission. However, the Igbo rejected attempts at constitutional revisions and insisted on full autonomy for the east. E. Elochukwu Uzukwu [48] The area was formerly the Igala Division of Kabba province, and is now part of Kogi State. The President moved quickly and retired hundreds of military officers holding political positions, established a blue-ribbon panel to investigate human rights violations, released scores of persons held without charge, and rescinded numerous questionable licenses and contracts left by the previous regimes. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. The election was marred by electoral fraud, and denounced by other candidates and international observers.[102][103]. The Niger delta is a vast low-lying region through which the waters of the Niger River drain into the Gulf of Guinea. Unlike the forest-bound Yoruba kingdoms, Oyo was in the savanna and drew its military strength from its cavalry forces, which established hegemony over the adjacent Nupe and the Borgu kingdoms and thereby developed trade routes farther to the north. It might suggest speech and that the figure has something to tell us. This lack of communication left the new acting President Jonathan with no knowledge of his predecessor's plans. Although Abacha was initially welcomed by many Nigerians, disenchantment grew rapidly. Following World War II, in response to the growth of Nigerian nationalism and demands for independence, successive constitutions legislated by the British government moved Nigeria toward self-government on a representative and increasingly federal basis. Kingdoms west of the River Niger like Aboh (Abo), which was significantly populated by Igbos among other tribes, dominated trade along the lower River Niger area from the 17th century until European explorations into the Niger delta. Toyin Falola, and Julius Omozuanvbo Ihonvbere. Author of, Professor of Geography, University of Ibadan, Nigeria. As of January 2010, he was still abroad. Many Fulani moved into Hausaland and Borno, and their arrival increased tensions because they had no loyalty to the political authorities, who saw them as a source of increased taxation. While that may be a lot of people, population . The constitution includes provisions for a bicameral legislature, the National Assembly consisting of a 360-member House of Representatives and a 109-member Senate. ), width: 50cm (19.6in. Author of. More than 100 were killed in riots before Babangida agreed to hand power to an interim government on 27 August 1993. According to one of the various myths about him, he founded Ife and dispatched his sons and daughters to establish similar kingdoms in other parts of what is today known as Yorubaland. [8] From the 15th century, European slave traders arrived in the region to purchase enslaved Africans as part of the Atlantic slave trade, which started in the region of modern-day Nigeria; the first Nigerian port used by European slave traders was Badagry, a coastal harbour. Hundreds of languages are spoken in the country, including Yoruba, Igbo, Fula, Hausa, Edo, Ibibio, Tiv, and English. George's . Despite Borno's hegemony the Hausa states continued to wrestle for ascendancy. [25][26] Iron smelting furnaces at Taruga, a Nok site, date from around 600 BC. 2014. Acceptance of Islam was gradual and was often nominal in the countryside where folk religion continued to exert a strong influence. The need to protect its commercial interests compelled Borno to intervene in Kanem, which continued to be a theatre of war throughout the 15th century and into the 16th century. Communal violence has plagued the Obasanjo government since its inception. The Yoruba-dominated AG became the opposition under its charismatic leader Chief Obafemi Awolowo. Most fateful for the Ironsi government was the decision to issue Decree No. Igbo gods, like those of the Yoruba, were numerous, but their relationship to one another and human beings was essentially egalitarian, reflecting Igbo society as a whole. It has been in an acute stage since last January when a military coup d'tat destroyed the constitutional regime bequeathed by the British and upset the underlying tribal and regional power relationships. [101], In the 2007 general election, Umaru Yar'Adua and Goodluck Jonathan, both of the People's Democratic Party, were elected president and Vice President, respectively. There they constituted a devoutly religious, educated elite who made themselves indispensable to the Hausa kings as government advisers, Islamic judges, and teachers. They arrived at Lagos and Benin in 1485 and the Merchants were welcomed. However, the republic was short-lived, as the military seized power again in 1983 and later ruled for ten years. Women, for example, continued to exercise considerable political influence. This was especially true after the founding of the Institute for African Studies that brought together experts from many disciplines. Nigeria is the seventh-most populous country in the world, home to more than 200 million people. The Central Intelligence Agency commented in October 1966 in a CIA Intelligence Memorandum that:[85]. Jack McCaslin is a . Kanem expanded westward to include the area that became Borno. After holding the record as the longest-serving female senator in the history of Nigeria, Remi Tinubu will become first lady when her husband is inaugurated as President on 29 May. Alternate titles: Federal Republic of Nigeria, Emeritus Lecturer in the Modern History of Africa, University of Oxford; Emeritus Fellow of St. Antony's College, Oxford. Here are 10 interesting facts about Nigeria: 1. The Igbos were accepted as fellow citizens in many parts of Nigeria, but not in some areas of former Biafra where they were once dominant. With the increase of resource spending and oil exportation, Nigerian GDP and HDI (Human Development Index) have risen phenomenally since the economically stagnant rule of Sani Abacha, but the primary population still survives on less than US$2 per day. The Igala are an ethnic group of Nigeria. Upon independence, it was widely expected that Ahmadu Bello the Sardauna of Sokoto, the undisputed strong man in Nigeria[76] who controlled the North, would become Prime Minister of the new Federation Government. They discovered that Nigerians have to be civilized so as to be good customers. The former military head of state Olusegun Obasanjo, freed from prison by Abubakar, ran as a civilian candidate and won the presidential election. Notably, as First Speaker of the House, Jaja Wachuku received Nigeria's Instrument of Independence, also known as Freedom Charter, on 1 October 1960, from Princess Alexandra of Kent, the Queen's representative at the Nigerian independence ceremonies. trace the origin of News Agency of Nigeria discuss the functions of NAN and the services rendered by the agency. During his first days in office, President Babangida moved to restore freedom of the press and to release political detainees being held without charge. According to another legend, Eri was one of Gad's sons who traveled down to build modern-day Igboland, as described in the Bible's book of Genesis. In subsequent attempts to reconvene the Western parliament, similar disturbances broke out. The judiciary system continued to be hampered by corruption and lack of resources after Abacha's death. The present crisis started" with Nigerian independence in 1960, but the federated parliament hid "serious internal strains. Nigeria as a nation has a rich and complex history which can be traced to when it first became a British protectorate in 1901. Nigeria is not only large in arealarger than the U.S. state of Texasbut also Africas most populous country. Author of, Professor of History, University of Ibadan, Nigeria. [90] All of this meant that by 1979, Nigeria was the sixth largest producer of oil in the world with revenues from oil of $24 billion per year. [50], The Kingdom of Nri is considered to be the foundation of Igbo culture and the oldest Kingdom in Nigeria. [23] It is the oldest boat discovered in Africa, and the second oldest known worldwide. He remained incommunicado for 50 days, by which time rumours were rife that he had died. [3] Islam reached Nigeria through the Bornu Empire between (1068 AD) and Hausa States around (1385 AD) during the 11th century,[4][5][6][7] while Christianity came to Nigeria in the 15th century through Augustinian and Capuchin monks from Portugal. A sign of federalism has been the growing visibility of state governors and the inherent friction between Abuja and the state capitals over resource allocation.[97]. British cultural influence is strong but its political influence is declining. Parliament hid `` serious internal strains in October 1966 in a CIA Intelligence Memorandum that: 85... Hausa states continued to exert a strong influence site, date from around 600 BC died! 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