University of Nigeria

Research Publications

EMEZUE, Sydney
Author

PG/MA/81/1153
Title

Warfare in Pre-Colonial Ohuhu

Department Faculty

Arts

History

November, 1983
Date

Digitally signed by Omenuko

Omenuko Sunday Ogbonna

DN: CN = Omenuko Sunday
Signature

Ogbonna, C = NG, O = University

Sunday of Nigeria, OU = Innovation

Centre
Reason: I have reviewed this
document
Ogbonna Date: 2008.12.09 23:48:42 -12'00'
WARFARE I N P R E - C O L O N I A L OHUHU

BY

SYDNEY E M E Z U E

~~/~~/81/1153

NOVEMBER 1983
APPROVAL PAGE

PROFESSOR C H I E K A I F E M E S I A
H E A D OF DEPARTMENT.
 WARFARE I N PRE-COLONIAL OHUHU

SYDNEY EMEZUE

PG/M~/81/1153

A PROJECT REPORT SUBMITTED TO THE

DEPARTMENT O F H I S T O R Y , U N I V E R S I T Y O F N I G E R I A ,
NSUKKA, I N P A R T I A L F U L F I L M E N T O F T H E REQUIREMENTS
FOR T H E AWARD O F A MASTER O F ARTS DEGREE.

NOVEMBER, 1983.
 -. - --

DEDICATION

This work i s d e d i c a t e d t o t h e memory o f

my grandmother, Ezenwanyi Ihudiya Onuoha, who

departed t h i s world on June 13 1980 as I was

\

d o i n g my f i n a l examination f o r the Bachelor

of Arts Degree.
 T A B L E O F CONTENT

-
PAGE

ABSTRACT .. .. i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT .. .. iii
PREFACE ..
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER TWO: C A U S E S O F WARS I N PRE-COLONIAL

OHUHU .. ..
C H A P T E R THREE: S Y S T E M S O F WARFARE I N
PRE-COLONIAL OHUHU ..
C H A P T E R FOUR: IQJDING O F H O S T I L I T I E S AND T H E
CONSEQUENCES O F WARS ..
CHAPTER F I V E : SOME PRE-COLONIAL OHUHU WARS

CHAPTER S I X : CONCLUSION .
BIBLIOGRAPHY

APPENDIX A P A R T I C U L A R S O F INFORMANTS ..
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

MAP I: F a c i n g page 2 - Map of Ohuhu

PLATE I : F a c i n g page 20 -
ofo, t h e Igbo s t a f f of
a u t h o r i t y and jus-e.

PI,ATE 2: F a c i n g page 2 1 , I h u n l a Umuajameze, s h r i n e

of t h e e a r t h d e i t y of Umuajameze.

PLATE 3: F a c i n g page 62, a Dane gun m a n u f a c t u r e d by

a n Nkwerre s m i t h .

PLATE 4: F a c i n g page 63 -
a p i s t o l m a n u f a c t u r e d by a n
Nkwerre s m i t h e a r l y i n t h e t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y

PLI'LTE 5: F a c i n g page 66 - a gun made by a n Awka s m i t h

PL,ITE 6: F a c i n g page 6 9 - a l o c a l l y made s p e a r .

PLATE 7: F a c i n g page 73 - Akparaja ( o b e j i l i )

MAP 2: Facing page 106 -

of I s i n g w u p e o p l e .
Hap showing d i s p e r e a l
 -
ABSTRACT
i&

There were two kind8 of m i l i t a r y engagements i n

pre-colonial Ohuhu. One of them - - was t h e t y p e between

groups t h a t ehared one form of blood r e l a t i o n s h i p o r t h e

other. I n t h i s type of e n c o u n t e r , t h e use o f l e t h a l weapons,

e s p e c i a l l y g u m i waa p r o h i b i t e d . because t h e s p i l l i f l g of blood

among n a t a l l y r e l a t e d groups war c o n a i d e r e d o i f e t i l i v e t o t h e

earth deity - - -.
ala Agha which was f u l l - s c a l e war involved

gfoups t h a t d i d n o t have any form of blood r e l a t i o n d R i p r

The & p i l l i n g of blood w a s t o l e r a t e d d u r i n g t h i s type of

engagements.though a s o l d i e r who k i l l e d d u r i n g a war had t o

perform some r i t e s t o c l e a n ~ eh i m s e l f of t h e blood of his

victim.

By f a r t h e s i n g l e most i m p o r t a n t caube of ware i n

pre-colonial Ohuhu was land. T h i s was due mainly t o t h e

great importance which t h e people a t t a c h e d t o farming and a l s o

t h e t y p e of a g r i c u l t u r e - r o t a t i o n a l burh fallow syatea *

practised i n t h e a r e a which r e q u i r e d a n a l m o s t limitless

s u p p l y of l a n d t o be e f f e c t i v e . D i s p u t e 8 a r i s i n g from

c o n t r o l of m a r k e t s , m a l t r e a t m e n t of married d a u g h t e r s , and

c a r e l e s s t a l k by p e o p l e , were o t h e r common c a u s e r of wars.

M o ~ to f t h e weapon8 used d u r i n g wars were manufactured

l o c a l l y w i t h i n Ohuhu by r e s i d e n t Awka and Nkwerre s n i t h e

u s i n g l o c a l l y smelted i r o n . Communities and i n d i v i d u a l s

 ii.
..
u s u a l l y f o r t i f i e d themselveb w i t h charme. Some o f t h e

charms were b e l i e v e d t o c o ~ h t e rt h e e f f e c t s o f t h o s e being

used by opponents. O t h e r s were b e l i e v e d t o r e n d e r t h e i r

$ 8- -
ueare i q r x l a e r a b l e t o enemy weapons.

Most wars ended t h r o b g h m e d i a t i o n dnd n e g o t i a t i o h

r a t h e r t h a n t h e t o t a l c o n q u e s t o f one s i d e bg a n o t h e r . Two

groups, married daughters a umu,.o& - and n e i g h b o u r s o f

I /

b e l l i g e r e n t s were u s u a l l y i n b t r b r n e n t a l t o b r i n g i n g w a r r i n g

communities t o t h e c o n f e r e n c e t a b l e . Peace s e t t l e m e n t s

were, i n most c a s e s , s o l e m n i e e d by t h e i n s t i t u t i o n of a n

i n t e p c o m m u n i t y convenant - igba o r i k o r o . Some s e t t l e m e n t s

a l s o led t o t h e e s t a b l i ~ h m e n to f d e i t i e s j o i n t l y owned by

t h e communities i n v o l v e d i n t h e war.
 Many p e o p l e o f f e r e d me i n v a l u a b l e h e l p i n t h e p r e p d a t i o n

of t h i a work - f o r which I am v e r y g r a t e f u l . My g r e a t e a t

d e b t of g r a t i t u d e goes t o my s u p e r v i s o r P r o f e s s o r A.E. Afigbo

who n o t o n l y s u g g e s t e d t h e t o p i c b u t a l s o t h r o u g h h i s a d v i c e , .

s u g g e s t i o n s b u t above a l l prompt a t t e n t i o n saw t h i s work

through. D r . P.O. Esedebe r e n d e r e d me h i g h l y v a l u a b l e

a d v i c e and encouragement n o t o n l y i n t h e p r e p a r a t i o n o f t h i s

p r o j e c t b u t a l s o i n o t h e r a s p e c t s of my academic work.

I c a n n o t w i t h words a d e q u a t e l y e x p r e s s t h e d e p t h of my

g r a t i t u d e t o Mr. & Mrs. J.0 Ahazuem f o r t h e i r k i n d n e s s t o me

a l l t h r o u g h t h e p r e p a r a t i o n of t h i a work.

I a l s o owe a & f , of g r a t i t u d e t o M r . Ndubisi Azubike

who accompanied me d u r i n g most of my f i e l d w o r k - sometimes a t

f i n a n c i a l c o s t and g r e a t i n c o n v e n i e n c e t o h i m s e l f . Miss

~ u g u s t i n aChukwu a l s o proved a very r e l i a b l e companion n o t

o n l y d u r i n g t h e s e a r c h f o r m a t e r i a l s on which t h i s work I s

baaed b u t a l s o i n its f i n a l p r e p a r a t i o n , My u n c l e C a p t a i n

Okwukaire Onuoha s t o o d by me o f f e r i n g b o t h moral and f i n a n c i a l

a s s i s t a n c e f o r - which I w i l l f o r e v e r remain grateful.

I owe my p a r e n t s M r . & Mrs. Gab. Emezue and my b r o t h e r s -

Onwuka and Uche and my s i s t e r Lucky -a d e b t of g r a t i t u d e f o r

t h e i r f o r e b e a r a n c e and u n d e r s t a n d i n g a l l t h e s e l o n g y e a r s

o f my e d u c a t i o n ,
 iv.

F i n a l l y , I w i s h t o e x p r e s s my d e e p e s t g r a t i t u d e t o my

i n f o r m a n t s f o r t h e i r p a t i e n c e i n s u p p l y i n g me w i t h t h e

i n f o r m a t i o n on which t h i s work is based. I have t o mention

p a r t i c u l a r l y Eze Chima Ndom - the I b o t o of Itumbuzo f o r his

h o s p i t a l i t y and g e n e r o s i t y . Eze Lawrence D.O. Nwankwo -

t h e I k p o I11 of Bende (now l a t e ) proved v e r y h e l p f u l t o me,

May h i s magnanimous SGQC r e s t i n peace.

Sydney Erne zue .

 v.
Preface

T h i s work s e e k s t o c o n t r i b u t e t o t h e s t u d y of one a s p e c t

of p r e - c o l o n i a l Igho history - warfare. Though i t d o e s n o t

c l a i m t o have answered a l l q u e s t i o n s r e l a t i n g t o t h e t o p i c ,

i t p r e s e n t s a n a l t e r n a t i v e t o some e a r l i e r v i e w s r e l a t i n g t o
war and p e a c e among t h e I g b o . One o f t h e v i e w s w h i c h was

b u i l t u p hy c o l o n i a l writers m a i n t a i n s t h a t t h e I g b o man and

i n d e e d t h e /',f r i c a n , p r i o r t o t h e coming of E u r o p e a n s , l i v e d

n o t o n l y i n a s t a t e of p e r m a n e n t s t r i f e t o t h e e x t e n t t h a t

l i f e w a s morz o r less u n s a f e b u t a l s o b r u t i s h and s h o r t ,

T h e p r o p o n e n t s of t h e s e v i e w s a d v a n c e d v a r i o u s r e a s o n s t o

e x p l a i n t h e so-called h i g h i n c i d e n c e of wars i n p r e - c o l o n i a l

Igboland, One of t h e m o s t f a v o u r a b l e e x p l a n a t i o n s i s t h a t

t h e Igbo people took to warring constantly to fight-off

t h e b u r d e n of i d l e n e s s i n t o w h i c h t h e y u s u a l l y f e l l a f t e r

t h e p l a n t i n g season.

R u t as ,,fi g b o h a s c o r r e c t l y p o i n t e d o u t , . Warfare i s

u s u a l l y a c o n t i n u a t i o n of p o l i t i c s by o t h e r means, This

i m p l i e s t h a t warnwere u s u a l l y n o t f o u g h t f o r t h e f u n of i t

b u t o n l y when t h e y c o u l d n o t be a v o i d e d . The f i r s t of t h e

s i x c h a p t e r s of t h i s w o r k , t h c r e f o r c , t a k e s a l o o k a t t h e

l a n d (0huh;) and i t s p e o p l e . I t examines t h e p o l i t i c a l

system o f k h c a r e a s i n c e i t i s o f t e n t h e i n a b i l i t y o r
i n a d e q u a c y o f p o l i t i c a l s y s t e m s t o r e s p o n d t o and d e a l

d e c i s i v e l y w i t h vonf l i c t s i t u a t i o n s t h a t r e s u l t e d

i n t o wars. C h a p t e r two i n v e s t i g a t e s t h e common c a u s e s of

 ~ 3 .
wals i n pre-colonial Ohuhu, T h i s was d o n e m a i n l y t o see

i f t h e claim made by some a u t h o r s r e g a r d i n g t h e s o - c a l l e d

h i g h i n c i d e n c e of w a r s and i n s e c u r i t y i n t h e I g b o area c a n
be s u s t a i n e d i n t h e l i g h t of e x a m p l e s d r a w n f r o m t h e Ohuhu

area.
The t h i r d c h a p t e r t a k e s a l o o k a t t h e s y s t e m s o f
w a r f a r e i n Ohuhu, Some o f t h e i m p o r t a n t a r e a s c o v e r e d i n
t h i s c h a p t e r i n c l u d e t h e v a r i o u s k i n d s of w a r s f o u g h t i n

pre-colonial Ohuhu, m e t h o d s o f r e c r u i t m e n t of s o l d i e r s ,,t h e

command s t r u c t u r e o f a r m i e s and t h e w e a p o n s u s e d and t h e i r
s o u r c e s of procurement, I n t h i s r e g a r d , some a t t e n t i o n i s

p a i d t o t h e r o l e and i m p o r t a n c e of Awka and N k w e r r c

b l a c k s m i t h s i n t h e m a n u f a c t u r e of weapons used d u r i n g wars

i n pre-colonial Ohuhu, T h i s c h a p t e r a l s o p a i d some

a t t e n t i o n t o t h e r o l e o f m e d i c i n e s and m e d i c i n e men i n wars.

I n c h a p t e r f o u r , a t t e n t i o n i s p a i d t o t h e ways i n w h i c h

Ohuhu p e o p l e e n d e d t h e i r w a r s . T h e r o l e of two g r o u p s of
p e o p l e who of t e n i n t e r v e n e d t o make p e a c e b e t w e e n w a r r i n g
communities - married d a u g h t e r s (umu o k p u ) and n e i g h b o u r s
of b e l l i g e r e n t s a l s o r e c e i v e d d u e a t t e n t i o n . Also covered
i n t h i s c h s p t e r i s t h e ccmmon m o t i v a t i o n o f t h e two g r o u p s
m e n t i o n e d e a r l i e r as i n t e r v e n i n g i n w a r s . T h e common
consequences of wars is a n o t h e r i m p o r t a n t a r e a covered i n
chapter four. The f i f t h c h a p t e r i s a r e c o s t r u c t i o n , t h o u a h

o n t h e b a s i s of l i m i t e d i n f o r m a t i o n , o f some of t h e w a r s
 vii.

fought i n prc-colonial Ohuhu. F o u r examples i n a l l w c r \ -

taken, Two of t h e w a r s d e s c r i b e d i n t h i s c h a p t e r rcsul-t..:'

n p a r t s of Ohuhu by t h e famed b u t
f r o m t h e i n v ~ . s i c ~of

d r e a d e d jibam w a r r i o r s and h e a d h u n t e r s . The o t h c r two

i n v o l v e d c c m m u n i t i i ; . ~b e l o n g i n g t o t h e same c l a n b u t wh

did not share m y c l o s e n a t a l r e l a t i o n s h i p i Chapter s i x

i s a SUMMWJ~f t h e major f i n d i n g ~ i of t h e work.
 CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
A s s h a l l b e u s e d i n t h i s work, Ohuhu r e f e r s t o t h e
a r e a d e l i m i t e d and c a l l e d s o by D a r y l F o r d e and G.1. Jones
i n t h e i r ethnographical survey of t h e Igbo-speaking area. 1
The g r o u p o f v i l l a g e s o r c l a n p r e s e n t l y known a s Ohuh~! s h a l l ,
i n t h i s work, be r e f e r r e d t o as Umuhu-na-Okaiuga. Thus,
Ohuhu w i l l r e p r e s e n t t h e e n t i r e a r e a l i s t e d by t h e a u t h o r s 2.s

c o n s t i t u t i n g ( a l o n g w i t h Ngwaland) t h e Ohuhu-Ngwa g r o u p o f
Z
peoples. Ohuh. presently, i s carved i n t o t h e following
l o c a l government a r e a s o f Imo S t a t e - Bende, Ikwuano, Odida
Anyanwu, and IJmuahia u r b a n . During t h e c o l o n i a l p e r i o d t h e
a r e a c o n s t i t u t e d t h e b u l k o f what was f o r sometime known as
t h e Bende D i v i s i o n o f O w e r r i P r o v i n c e . The o n l y p a r t o f t h e
d e f u n c t Bende D i v i s i o n t h a t ir n o t Ohuhu i s t h e a r e a t h a t
F o r d e and J o n e s c a l l e d I s u - I t e m group. 3
Ohuhu i s bounded t o t h e n o r t h , e a s t and s o u t h e a s t by
p o r t i o n s of t h e Isu-Item; t o t h e s o u t h and s o u t h e a s t by t h e
~ n n a n g / ~ b i b i poe o p l e of t h e C r o s s R i v e r S t a t e and t o t h e

1, D a r y l I. F o r d e & G . 1 , J o n e s , The I b o a n L I 1 i b i . o - s p e a _ k i n
.--e o e s o f S o - u t h e a s k r n ~ i ~ e r - i . - T o - n ,
P
A f r l c a n I n s t i t u t e , 195m-i-pp+ 42 - 43.
Internationa
1
2,. I n e n u m e r a t i n g t h e g r o u p s t h a t make up Ohuhu, t h e a u t h o r s \
made eotlze. g l a r i n g m i s t a k e s . One s u c h e r r o r was t h e
o m i s s i o n of Itumbuzo which h a s c l o s e a f f i n i t y w i t h Bende
a n d which was n o t g r o u p e d u n d e r I s u - I t e m e i t h e r . Another
e r r o r was t h e o m i s s i o n o f Oloko c l a n which t o g e t h e r w i t h
~ r i a m - U s a k a ( I s u o r g u ) Oboro and I b e r e c o n s t i t u t e what
i s c a l l e d Ikwuano
3. F o r d e 8i J o n e s , o p . c i t . , pp, 44 - 45.
 2.
s o u t h w e s t by t h e Mgwa p e o p l e , Obowo, Mbaise and I s u p e o p l e ,
a l l a c r o s s t h e Imo r i v e r a r e t h e w e s t e r n n e i g h b o u r s , Though
t h e Imo r i v e r i s g e n e r a l l y r e g a r d e d as forming t h e w e s t e r n
boundary o f Ohuhu, t h e r e a r e l o c a t e d on t h e w e s t e r n s i d e of
t h e r i v e r two t i n y v i l l a g e s o f Umuhu-na-Okaiuga clanr The
two v i l l a g e s a r e Uhuala and UmulEgnwoke
Almost t h e e n t i r e p o p u l a t i o n e s t i m a t e d i n 1 9 6 3 a t
1 3 6 , 1 7 1 ~a r e o f I g b o s t o c k . However, t h e d i a l e c t s o f t h e
Igbo l a n g u a g e spoken w i t h i n t h e a r e a v a r y t o t h e e x t e n t t h a t
some o f them a r e a l m o s t m u t u a l l y u n i n t e l l i g i b l e , In addition
t o t h i s , t h e r e a r e p a r t s o f Ohuhu t h a t a r e b i - l i n g u a l , The
most g l a r i n g example o f t h i s i s Itumbuzor Here, t h e I g b o a n d
I b i b i o l a n g u a g e s e n j o y a l m o s t e q u a l c u r r e n c y as l i n g u a f r a n c a d
I n f a c t , s o common i s t h e u s e o f I b i b i o l a n g u a g e w i t h i n t h e
Ohuhu a r e a t h a t some p e o p l e have been tempted i n t o b e l i e v i n g
t h a t some Ohuhu v i l l a g e s a r e o f I b i b i o o r i g i n . One example
of s u c h v i e w s i s t h a t e x p r e s s e d by F o r d e and J o n e s t h a t
Mbinyang ( i n I b e r e ) and Mbiokpong (now c a l l e d I s i a l a , i n Oboru,
a r e of I b i b i o o r i g i n . The p r e s e n t r e s e a r c h e r found t h a t t h e s e
names came i n t o b e i n g a s a r e s u l t o f m u t u a l borrowing and
i n f o r m a l a c c u l t u r a t i o n between n e i g h b o u r i n g I g b o and I b i b i o
people. I n t h e c a s e o f Mbiokpong, t h e name h a s s i n c e been
- -I- -- .- _-- - -
4. F a r from b e i n g l o c a t e d on t h e w e s t e r n s i d e o f t h e Imo
r i v e r a s wrongly i n d i c a t e d by F o r d e and J o n e s , t h e b u l k
o f Ohuhu i s l o c a t e d t o t h e e a s t o f t h e r i v e r and n o r t h
o f Ngwaland.
5. Source: Population census f o r Eastern N i g e r i a
(Lagos, The Government S t a t i s t i c i a n , B u l l e t i n Hoe 8,
,
1963) PPO 1 7 19,
changed t o conform w i t h t h e e t h n i c o r i g i n o f i t s p e o p l e
and t o emphasize i t s p o s i t i o n as t h e most s e n i o r v i l l a g e i n
Oboro - hence t h e name I s i a l a l 6
I t i s a l s o b e c a u s e o f t h e common curpency t h a t I g b o
and I b i b i o l a n g u a g e s e n j o y i n Itumbuzo t h a t some p e o p l e havc
prcsw t h a t $he (Itumbuzo) i s o f I b i b i o o r i g i n , I t is,
o b v i o u s l y as a r e s u l t o f t h i s t h a t some p e o p l e have a r g u e d
t h a t t h e town s h o u l d be p a r t o f t h e C r o s s R i v e r State, blbgt
o f my i n f o r m a n t s a t Itumbuzo c o n t e n d e d t h n t t h e i r p e o p l e who
make t h e c l a i m o f I b i b i o e t h n i c i t y a r e m e r e l y h i r e l i n g s o f
t h e C r o s s R i v e r s t a t e government,7 Such pooplq- they contend.
r e c e i v e handsome r e w a r d s f o r p l a y i n g t h a t r o l e . I t was n o t
p o s s i b l e f o r t h e p r e s e n t r e s e a r c h e r t o meet any o f t h e
p e o p l e who make t h i s c l a i m o f I b i b i o o r i g i n f o r Iturnbuzod
T h i s problem a r o s e m a i n l y from t h e f a c t t h n t p e o p l e who h o l d
s u c h views a r e s a i d t o be l i v i n g o u t s i d e t h e i r homes ( i n
f a c t t h e y are s a i d t o be l i v i n g i n p a r t s o f t h e Cross R i v e r
state), They a r e also a c c u s e d o f b e i n g t h e b r a i n s b e h i n d t b p
many s k i r m i s h e s t h a t have been f o u g h t between Itumbuzo and
h e r I b i b i o n e i g h b o u r s d u r i n g which many l i v e s havc been
l o s t and v a l u a b l e p r o p e r t y d e s t r o y e d . 8

6. T h i s p o i n t was made by b o t h G h i e f R o b e r t Okoro

i n t e r v i e w e d a t Amawom-Oboro 1 5 , 1 2 , 8 2 and N a z i Ukandu
Kamanu i n t e r v i e w e d at Umugbalu-Oboro 15,12,82.
7. Eze Chima Ndom, t h e I b o t o I o f Itumbuzo, i n t e r v i e w c d a t
h i s Onun I b o t o p a l a c e , Okopedi -
Itumbuzo 4,12.82.
8. Mazi E l i j a h Isendom, i n t e r v i e w e d a t ??diwo Itumbuzo
7.12.82,
 4.
T h e r e a r e , s c a t t e r e d w i t h i n Ohuhu, p o c k e t s o f Aro
settlements, These s e t t l e m e n t s , i n some p l a c e s c o n s t i t u t e
e n t i r e v i l l a g e s w h i l e i n o t h e r s t h e y do n o t , I n p l a c e s where
Aro s e t t l e m e n t s c o n s t i t u t e ~ e p a r c l t ev i l l 8 g e s u c h s e t t l e m e n t s
bear t h e prefix - Aro - b e f o r e t h e name o f the village-group
i n which t h e y a r e found. I n Oboro, f o r example, t h e r e a r e
such v i l l a g e s as Aro-Umudike ( i n Umudike) , Aro -Amawom ( i n
Amawom) e t c e t e r a . What i s t r u e o f Amnwom and Umudike i s
a l s o t r u e o f a l m o s t t h e e n t i r e Ohuhu a r e a , The o n l y excep-
t i o n would seem t o be Umuopara where t h e r e i s no Aro s e t t l e -
ment, ' T h i s a b s e n c e o f Aro s e t t l e m e n t i s a t t r i b u t e d t o t h e
p e o p l e f s d i s t r u s t of t h e Aro whom t h e y f e a r e d f o r t h e i r
sweat t o n g u e ' and double-dealing' .' Part of t h i s r e s e n t -
ment o f t h e Aro must have grown o u t o f t h e knowledge t h a t
t h e r e was a s y m b i o t i c r e l a t i o n s h i p between them and t h e much
f e a r e d 'Abaml h e a d - h u n t e r s . Umuopara p e o p l e a r g u e t h a t t o
have a l l o w e d t h e Aro t o found s e t t l e m e n t s amongst them would
have been tantamount t o condemning t h e m s c l v e s t o a l i f e of
perpetual fear. T h i s , a c c o r d i n g t o them, i s b e c a u s e i n t h e
p a s t , t h e Aro d i d n o t h e s i t a t e t o l e t l o o s e Abam head-
h u n t e r s on any community w i t h whom t h e y had a misunderstand-
ing, T h i q a c c o r d i n g t o niy i n f o r r n a n t ~ ~ o f t ehappened
n even
when t h e Aro t h e m s e l v e s l i v e i n o r t r a d e w i t h s u c h a commu-
nity, The Obegu m a s s a c r e e a r l y i n t h i s c e n t u r y i s o f t e n

9. Nazi G i l b e r t I. Nwaubani, c d 7 5 Enterviewed a t

Nwaubanils compound 1Jmuajmcze -
Umuopara, 14.12.82,
 5,
mentioned as a c o n c r e t e example of t h i s k i n d o f A ~ o
treachery. 10
These Aro s e t t l e m e n t s were o b v i o u s l y e s t a b l i s h e d by
t h e Aro uzo ( t h e Aro who have gone a b r o a d ) , Some o f them a r e
c e n t u r i e s old. The Aro uzo a c t e d as a g e n t s and r e p r e s e n t a -
06
t i v e s t e Aro u l o (home-based ~ r o )whose commercial i n t e r e s t s
spanned t h e e n t i r e I g b o a r e a and beyond. They a l s o a c t e d as
a g e n t s o f t h e famed I b i b i - U k p a b i ( l o n g j u j u ) o r a c l e o f Aro-
chukwu whose i n f l u e n c e spanned t h e whole Igbo a r e a and a160
t h e w e s t e r n I j o and p a r t s of I g a l 5 , T i v and Idoma t e r r i b c r y ; ' ?
I t i s p a r t i a l l y a s a r e s u l t of t h e preponderance of
Aro s e t t l e m e n t s and p e o p l e i n p a r t s o f Ohuhu t h a t some conimen-
t a t o r s have gone o u t o f t h e i r way t o p o s t u l a t e t h a t many o f
t h e communities i n which t h e s e s e t t l e m e n t s a r e found are
i n d e e d Aro c o l o n i e s . Commenting on t h e g r e a t number o f Aro
p e o p l e and s e t t l e m e n t s i n I b e r e , L.T, Chubb s a i d :
Almost as soon as t h e c l a n w a s e s t a b l i s h e d t h e r e
was a heavy i n f i l t r a t i o n o f t h e Aro. I n two
v i l l a g e s , N k a l u n t a and O b i u r u o , , . t h e Aro popula-
t i o n i s g r e a t e r t h a n t h e i n d i g e n o u s and t h e r e i s
c o n s i d e r a b l e c o l o n y o f t h e Aro i n e v e r y v i l l a g e , 12
i
P r o f e s s o r Anene a l s o o p i n e d t h a t Rende i s one o f t h e many
s e t t l e m e n t s founded by t h e Aro o u t s i d e t h e i r home - Aro~hukwu.E~
/

A.E: Afigbo, Ropes o f Sand: S t u d i e s i n I g b o IIisto_ry and

C u l t u r e (Ibadan, U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s T , t d / U n i v c r s i t y o f
N i g e r i a P r e s s L t d , L981), p. 240,
L ' T Chubb, l l I n t e l l i g e n c e R e p o r t on I b e r e c l a n , Eende
D i v i s i o n , O w e r r i P r o v i n c e 1 ! Ep 9889 CSE 1/85/4961
N a t i o n a l A r c h i v e s , Enugu.
J.C. Anene, So-uJhern N i g e r i a i n T r a n s i t i o n (London
University press, 1966) p. 16.
CEmWidgega ,
 6.
O t h e r s u c h settlement.#, a c c o r d i n g t o him a r e Okigwe, Arondi-
zuogu, a& T h e r e can h a r d l y be any g a i n s a y i n g t h o
f a c t t h a t t h e r e a r e w i t h i n Bende as w e l l as i n many o t h e r
p a r t s of Ohuhu, ~ o g ~ s i d e r a b lAro
e s e t t l o m c n t s and p e o p l e b u t
t o h o l d a s Anene h a s done t h a t s u c h communitics as Bende werr?
founded by t h e Aro would be d r i v i n g t h e t r u t h t o o far.
According t o C h i e f >ischa14 and Ezo 1kpo15 ( b o t h of
Bende),? Bende was founded by p e o p l e who, though t h e y came
I

from somewhere n e a r hrochukwu were n o t o f Aro o r i g i n , They

a r g u e f u r t h e r t h a t most o f t h e Aro p e o p l e p r e s e n t l y l i v i n g i n
Cende came t h e r e d u r i n g t h e t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y m a i n l y a s coca?

farmers, According tb them, Aro p e o p l e d i d n o t s e t t l e i n

Bende i n g r e a t numbers b e f o r e t h e t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y b e c a u a e
t h e Aro who t r a d e d a t t h e famed Bende market d i d not q u i t s
need t h e s e r v i c e s of middlcnien s i n c e Arochukwu i s n o t t o o
fGar from Eende.
As t o t h e t i m e o f t h e e s t a b l i s h m e n t of t h e Aro s e t t l e -
ments, C h u b b t s c o n t e n t i o n t h a t i t was a l m o s t as soon as t h e
cornmunitics i n which t h e y e x i s t were founded,cannot b e
s u s t a i n e d on t h e b a s i s of e m p i r i c a l e v a l u a t i o n . This i s so
b e c a u s e t h e e r a o f Aro dominance of p a r t s of I g b o l a n d d o c s
not date back i n t i m e as t h c $oundation of t h e commu-
n i t i e s concerned, T.O. Okoyc h a s d a t e d t h e f o u n d a t i o n o f Aro

14. S. K O ' Mccha -t h e E z e j i o f Bendc, i n t e r v i e w e d at

M c c h a l s conpoungl Dande 4.12.82
1. Ezc Lawrence D;O, Nwnnkwo - The I k p o 111 o f Bcnde,
i n t e r v i e w e d i n h i s p a l a c e a t Bcnde 6412082r
 7.
s e t t l e m e n t s o u t s i d e Arochukwu t o t h e perdod r a n g i n g from
t h e s e v e h t c e n t h t o t h e n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y . l6 B U ~i f ~artlcls
d a t e i s a n y t h i n g t o go by, Bcnde was a l r e a d y i n e x i s t e n c e
sometime between t h e e i g h t h and n i n t h c e n t u r i e s , 17
I n marking o u t Ohuhu and Ngwaland as n g r o u p d i s t i n c t
( i n some a s p e c t s ) from o t h e r p a r t s o f I g b o l n n d , F o r d e and
J o n e s d i s t i n g u i s h e d what t h e y c o n s i d e r e d were d i s t i n c t c h a r a -
c t e r i s t i c s o f t h e l a n d and p e o p l c , Whilc some o f t h e s e
d i s t i n g u i s h i n g p e c u l i a r i t i e s can be s a i d t o be l a r g e l y t r u e ,
mono of them c a n n o t be s a i d t o be e n t i r e l y s o ( o r a t l e a s t
need q u a l i f i c a t i o n ) , I t would t h e r e f o r e be n e c e s s a r y t o t a k e
a hard look a t these so-called distinguishing p e c u l i a r i t i e s
n o t o n l y as a means o f a u t h e n t i c a t i n g t h e a u t h o r & c l a i m s b u t
a l s o a s a means o f r e f l e c t i n g on a s p c c t s o f t h e l'md and t h e
l i v e s of i t s people,
One o f t h e d i s t i n g u i s h i n g p e c u l i a r i t i e s o f t h e Ohuhu-
Ngwa a r e a , a c c o r d i n g t o t h c s e a u t h o r s , i s t h e p r e p o n d e r a n c e
i n t h e a r e a , o f an e a r l y r i p e n i n g yam, T h i s s p e c i e o f yam i,
c a l l e d ( i n t h e a r e a ) apu ji o r ji oko, l8 T r u e t h i s s p e c i e
o f yam i s dominant i n t h e Ngwa a r e a . I t i s a l s o t o be found

T.O. Okoyc, Y J r b n n i s n t i o n i n IgbolandfP p a p e r p r e s e n t e d

a t Workshop on Igbo c u l t u r e , I n s t i t u t e o f , 2 f r i c a n
~tuTr6Z u n i v e r s i t y o f bTigeria Nsukkn, 1977, p a 331.
D.D, H m t l e 'iArchaeology i n E a s t e r n hTigeriat' N i g e r i a
Ma a z i n e ( ~ ~ 0 % F e d e r a l t i i n i s t r y of
*ion, v o l . 93, June 19671, P. 138
T h i s s p c c i e of yam i s b e l i e v e d by some t o be i n d i g e n o u s
t o t h e Ngwa a r e n . A s t a n d o f i t can be h a r v e s t e d
t w i c e a y e a r ; f i r s t between J u l y and August and s e c o n d l y
around November. The f i r s t h a r v e s t comcs i n v e r y
handy t o a l l e v i a t e t h e hunger t h a t u s u a l l y p r e v a i l s
a f t e r t h e p l a n t i n g season.
 8,
i n a p p r e c i a b l e q u a n t i t i e s i n t h e Chuhu a r e a e s p e c i a l l y
a r o u n d I b e k u , TJmuopara, O l o k o r o , Ur~luhu-na-Okaiuga, and
Ubakala, O t h c r p c c u l i n r f e a t u r e s of t h e a r e a u n d e r d i s c u s s i o n
( w h i c h were h i g h l i g h t e d by F o r d e and o ones) i s t h e nbundancc?
o f c a s s a v a and t h e p r o d u c t i o n o f g a r r i t h e r c f r o m , I t would
a p p e a r t h a t t h e p r e p o n d e r a n c e of cassavz. i n t h e Ohuhu-Ngwa
a r e a i s cauacd by t h e s o i l i n t h e s e p l a c e s which t e n d s t o
s u p p o r t t h e c u l t i v a t i o n o f c a s s a v a r a t h c r t h a n yarn,
Thc predominant u s e of t h e d o u b l e c l i m b i n g r o p e i s
a n o t h e r s p e c i a l f eclture o f t h e Ohuhu-Ygwa a r e a i s o l a t e d by
the authors, This climbing rope known
It c o n t r a s t s s h a r p l y with t h c single-rope type - -E t e - in
vogue i n other p a r t s of I g b o l a n d , I t s h o u l d be n o t e d howeve;-
t h a t w h i l e mbnga i s i n common u s e i n t h e Ohuhu a r e a , .Lte ir
a l s o f r e e l y u s e d i n p a r t s o f Umuhu-na-Okaiuga clan. T h i s ma:-
i n f a c t be a c a r r y - o v c r from t h e Obowo and I s u a r e a s where
t h e p e o p l e a r e s a i d t o have come from, I n t h e two t i n y U I , ~
Umukanwoke
n a Okaiuga v i l l a g e s - - and Uhuala. l o c a t e d on t h e w c s t e r n
bank o f t h e Imo r i v e r , i s alliiost i n e x c l u s i v e wage* 3 - s

a s s e r t i o n by F o r d e and J o n e s t h a t t h e d o u b l e - c l i l u b i n g r o p e i . ~
o f I b i b i o o r i g i n i s n o t a c c e p t a b l e t o r ~ ~ o Ohuhu
st people into--,
viewcd by t l i c p r c s e n t w r i t e r , I t i s g e n e r a l l y believed. t h a t
\
t h e d o u b l e - c l i m b i n g r o y c was i n v e n t e d by Ohuhu p c o p l c , 1t ? ,
i n f a c t claimed t h a t Bende was founded 2 s a r e s u l t of
a s e a r c h by a man f o r f r e s h s u p p l i c s o f (one of t h e
i m p o r t a n t m a t e r i a l s f o r t h e making o f mbag?) . T h i s was a f t c
s u p p l i e s a t t h e man's form$& abodc n e a r ( b u t n a t i n ) Are-
 I

9.
'Ehe pyedmi.nart= of Faifla-palm wine i n t h e Ohuhu-
Ngwa a r e a i n c o n t r a s t t o t h e s i t u a t i o n i n some o t h e r p a r t s
of I g b o l a n d w h e r e o i l palm- urine p r e d o m i n a t e s i s another
s p e c i a l f e a t u r e of Ohuhu n o t ~ dby t h e a u t h o r a i n review.
Within t h e Ohuhu-Ngwa a r e a , s u c h towns as A r i a m , Ndoro,
N t i g h a and most i m p o r t a n t l y Umuoba (Omoba) a r c h i g h l y r e p u t e d
for the quality q u a n t i t y o f r a f f i a palm wine produced i n
themr Such r e p u t a t i o n can o n l y be compared w i t h t h a t o f
Enugu E z i k e as a c e n t r e f o r o i l - p a l m wins, Two i m p o r t a n t
r e a s o n s seew responsible f o r the preponderance o f
r a f f i a palm wine i n t h e Ohuhu-Ngwn a r e a , First the s o i l
seems t o s u p p o r t t h e growth o f r a f f i a palm which t h r i v e s i n
c o n d i t i o n s o f r e l a t i v e l y h i g h humidity, The e n t i r c area
f a l l s within a distanceL100
of
- 140 k i l o m e t r e s from t h e
coast, Thc a r e a t h e r e f o r e r e c e i v e s enough r a i n f o r t h e
growth o f t h e r a f f i a palm, Secondly, t h e h i g h premium
which tho p e o p l e p l a c e on t h e p r o d u c t i o n o f palm o i l (and
o t h e r t y - p r o d u c t s o f t h e o i l palm t r e e ) makes i t i m p e r a t i v e
t h a t t h e t r e e must be preserved. T h i s i s s o because t h e
t a p p i n g o f t h e o i l palm f o r wine i n v o l v e s t h e d e s t r u c t i o n
of t h e e f f l o r e s c e n c e of t h e t r e e , Any t r e e b e i n g t a p p e d
c a n n o t t h e r e f o r e produce palm f r u i t s ; It shoul? however*
b e n o t e d ' t h a t t h e o i l palm t r e e s t a r t e d b e i n g a v e r y
i m p o r t a n t economic a s s e t from t h e n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y
when t h e demand f o r palm o i l fcw e x p o r t o v e r s e a s began t o
spiral4,
 10.
The claim by Porde and J o n e s t h a t Ohuhu-Ngwa p e o p l e
do n o t have t i t l e s y s t e m s c a n n o t be s u s t a i n e d i n t h e l i g h t
o f e v i d e n c e s c o l l e c t e d by t h e p r e s e n t r e s e a r c h e r ; While i t

-
i s t r u e t h a t s u c h s o c i e t i e s / t i l l e s as ozo (which predomina-
t e e i n t h e Awka - O n i t s h a a r e a ) and aha and nzc (commonly
found i n t h e Owerri a r e a ) do n o t e x i s t i n t h e Ohuhu a r e a ,
i t i s n o t a l t o g e t h e r t r u e t o say thzit o t h e r t i t l e s y s t e m s do
not exist, P r o f e s s o r Afigbo h a s s a i d t h a t w h i l e some I g b o
communities e v o l v e d h i g h l y developed t i t l e s y s t e m , and
place r e l a t i v e l y l i t t l e premium on s e c r e t s o c i e t i e s , some
emphasise t h e r o l e o f s e c r e t s o c i e t i e s a t the eXpea;se of
t i t l e systems. O' P r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu would seam t o have
f a l l e n among t h e g r o u p where t h e r o l e o f t i t l e s o c i e t i e s
was de-emphasised b u t n o t a l t o g e t h e r l a c k i n g .
The most i m p o r t a n t ' s e c r e t g s o c i e t y i n p r e - c o l o n i a l
Ohuhu was t h e okonko s o c i e t y , I t was a t t h a t t i m e t h e
e x e c u t i v e arm o f t h e assembly o f a d u l t m a l e s o f a v i l l a g e -
;u;lcda A s Onwuanaku p u t s i t , okonko was a s t r o n g c o e r c i v e
f o r c e especially f o r t h e enforcement o f t r a d i t i o n a l laws
and customs. 21 Our i n t e r e s t h e r e i s n o t s o much i n t h e
f u n c t i o n s and i n n e r workings o f t h e s o c i e t y b u t i n how i t
f u n c t i o n e d n o t j u s t as a s o c i e t y b u t as a s t a t u ~symbol.

20. A. E. Afigbo, U e s o f Sand OF. cit,, pa 123,

21, V.0, Onwuanaku, Okonko sqci_ety_ i n O r l u ( u n p y b l i s h e d
B,Aa T h e s i s , Department o f ~ i n e n i e Ad r t s ,
U n i v e r s i t y of N i g e r i a , 3Tsukka 1976) p.. 9. ,
 The s o c i e t y had f o u r M e r a c h i c n l l y a r r a n g e d rjcngs.
T4ovement fror;: o n e l e v e l t o t h e o t h e r u s u a l l y i n v o l v e d n o t
o n l y t h e a b i l i t y t o pay t h e n e c e s s a r y f e e s and f e a s t i n v i -
t e e s t o one's i n i t i a t i o n ceremony b u t a l s o t h e p o s s e s s i o n
o f o t h e r q u a l i f i c a t i o n s i n c l u d i n g good c h a r a c t e r , The f i r s t
ring i n t h e s o c i e t y was t h e i n i t i a t i o n s t z g e - i b a ohia,
Next came i k p u u. l o. ( e n t e r i n g t h e t r e a s u r e h o u s e ) . The
t h i r d s t a g e was known as i d a n i r i ( b a t h i n g i n t h e w a t e r ) ,
The f i n a l , and most p r e s t i g i o u s s t a g e was known 2.s %a 2hia.r
i zI.-.aT a h i a r i t e s
P e r s o n s who had performed t h e i d n miri 2nd _
f o r t h e m s e l v e s and also i n i t i a t e d t h e i r c h i l d r e n were
h i g h l y Y e s p c c t e d n o t o n l y w i t h i n t h e i r imlflediate comnunity
b u t a l s o beyond i t , T h i s was s o , f i r s t l y , b e c a u s e o f t h e
enormous c o s t i n v o l v e d i n p e r f o r m i n g t h e s e r i t e s . Thus,
b e f o r e a p e r s o n c o u l d u n d e r t a k e s u c h an e x p e n s i v e v e n t u r e
h e must be w e l l above a v e r a g e i n t e r m s o f w e a l t h , Secondly
p e o p l e who had a t t a i n e d t h a t s t a g e a l s o d e r i v e d economic
b e n e f i t s from it. T h i s was s o because t h e i n i t i a t i o n f e ,
p a i d by new members was s h a r e d among p e o p l e who had t a k e n
the highest t i t l e s , I n e f f e c t s o c i e t i e s l i k e t h e okonko
s e r v e d as m u t u a l i n s u r a n c e s o c i e t i e s e n a b l i n g t h e s o c i a l l y
a m b i t i o u s t o i n v e s t t h e s a v i n g s he a c c u r m l n t e d i n h i s y o u t h
w h i l e g u a r a n t e e i n g him c o n t i n u e d economic s u p p o r t and
p r e s t i g e d u r i n g h i s o l d age. 22 T h e s e a r e among t h e two main
f u n c t i o n s o f t i t l e s everywhere,
-- .-- ---
22. V,CL Uchendu, The I ~ b oof-$o_utkast I J i e2i.n (New
York, Holt, R h i n e h a r t and i l i n s t o n , =5B, p, 82.
 A p a r t from p r e s t i g e d e r i v i n g from h i g h a t t a i n m e n t
w i t h i n t h e okonko s o c i e t y , o t h e r forms of t i t l e did exist,
The most i m p o r t a n t of t h e s e was t h e onyima i n s t i t u t i o n .
Nembership o f t h i s s e l e c t i n s t i t u t i o n was a s p e c i a l p r e -
s e r v e o f p e o p l e who had a c h i e v e d a good rJeasurc o f s u c c e s s
i n t h e i r economic and f a ~ i i i l yendeavours, P e o p l e were
i n i t i a t e d i n t o t h i s s e l e c t i n s t i t u t i o n a t o l d age. The
onyima
. . i t s e l f was a l o o p of bends e a c h of which r e p r e s e n t e d
a son, d a u g h t e r , g r a n d s o n o r g r a n d - d a u g h t e r o f t h e r e c i p i e n t .
P e o p l e who had been i n i t i a t e d i n t o onyiina were h i g h l y r e s -
pected, I t was a l w a y s t h e wish of e v e r y e l d e r t o l i v e up
t o t h e age and a l s o be a b l e t o a f f o r d t h e c o s t of i n i t i a t i n g
i n t o t h e onyimg ( f e a s t i n g i n v i t e e s a t t h e i n i t i z t i o n ceremony
was v e r y e x p e n s i v e ) . I t s h o u l d however be n o t e d t h a t w h i l e
p e o p l e who had i n i t i a t e d i n t o onyima had no s p e c i a l t i t l e s ,
as was t h e case w i t h t i t l e d men, t h e onyima bead can
e a s i l y e q u a t e w i t h t h e a n k l e t s worn by ozo members.
A p a r t from onyima d i s c u s s e d above, t h e r e were o t h e r
prestigious institutions, The m o s t ir,iportant o f t h e s e had
t o do w i t h s u c c e s s i n t h e c u l t i v a t i o n o f yam ( b y inen) and
c o c o y m ( b y women). S u c c e s s f u l yam f a r m e r s who had l g p l a n t e d
t h e r i g h t t y p e of yams and c o u l d b o a s t o f a t l e a s t a c e r t a i n
q u a n t i t y o i yarns ( c o u n t e d i n u n i t s o f --
nnu - 4 0 0 ) o~r ~ ~ the
number o f b,vns t h e y k e p t t o o k t h e E z e j i o r & - -t i t l c 24

While t h e p r e s t i g e a t t a c h e d t o t h e $ z e , i i o r D i - , i i t i t l e s
be
nay n o t L e x a c t l y equal t o t h a t of e l s e w h e r e i n IgSo-
land, i t is, nevertheless importnnt t o s t r e s s t h a t t h e
p r e s t i g e was enormous. T h i s becomes a l l t h e more c l e a r
when one a p p r e c i a t e s t h e i m p o r t a n c e and p r e s t i g e pre-
c o l o n i a l Ohuhu p e o p l e a t t a c h e d n o t o n l y t o a g r i c u l t u r e b u t
t o yam c u l t i v a t i o n ( a n d t o a l e s s e r e x t e n t , c o c o y m ) , In
Ohuhu as i n m 0 6 t o t h e r p a r t s of I g b o l a n d , a g r i c u l t u r e was
r e g a r d e d as t h e s t a f f of l i f e , Other occupations/underta-
k i n g s complemented r a t h e r t h a n s u p p l a n t e d i t . Among t h e
c r o p s c u l t i v a t e d were c a s s a v a , maize, v e g e t a b l e s , cocoyam
and .yam. The most i m p o r t a n t and p r e s t i g i o u s o f a l l was t h c
yam. A s Uchendu h a s p u t i t , l i y m p r o d u c t i o n , . , i s liiore
f o r p r e s t i g e t h a n f o r trade'!. 2 5
The i m p o r t a n c e a t t a c h e d t o yam c a n be s e e n from t h e
f a c t t h a t i t s c u l t i v a t i o n and i n d e e d consumption was
r e g u l a t e d by a d e i t y - f\~,joku. Njoku f o r b a d e p e o p l e from
e n t e r i n g yarn b a r n s w i t h b a s k e t s , f i g h t i n g o r d e f a c a e t i n g
i n f a r m s , v i s i t i n g o r s t a y i n g i n yam f m s after dusk and
/
most i m p o r t a n t l y ,

---- ---
h a v i n g s e x u a l i n t e r c o u r s e i n farms. 2':

- -. -- --- --- i
\

24, --
C h i e f Necha c i t e d .
25. V.C. Uchendu, OP. cit., p, 26.
26. G i l b e r t Nwaubani, c i t e d . ---
Women were o b l i g e d n o t t o t h r o w away y m s i n a n g e r , a n
did
a c t t h a t o f f e n d s o h a niok4. But i f t h e y and s u b s e q u e n t l y
t!dh yams w i t h o u t a p p e a s i n g o h a n j o k u , itW" b e l i e v e d t h a t
they have d y s e n t r y o r c h o l e r a . 27 1t was a l s o ae e
w.hich t h e
r e s u l t o f t h e h i g h premium p e o p l e p l a c e d on yams t h a t
L

t h e y i n s t i t u t e d t h e new yam f e s t i v a l which e v e n t marked t h e

b e g i n n i n g o f t h e h a r v e s t s e a s o n and o n l y a f t e r which c u s t o -
d i a n s o f n j o k u were f r e e t o e a t new yams.
I .
Many p e o p l e
i n t e r v i e w e d by t h e p r e s e n t w r i t e r m a i i ~ t ~ a i n etdh a t t h e
p r e s e n t poor s t a t e o f yam y i e l d was c a u s e d by t h e p e o p l e s '
i n a b i l i t y t o k e e p t h e r e g u l a t i o n s enmrr&ed above.
T h e r e were however, no s p e c i a l f e s t i v a l s f o r t h e
cocoym. C e r t a i n r e a s o n s were r e s p o n s i b l e f o r t h i s .
First,- cocoyam was b e l i e v e d t o be n woman's crop. Its
c u l t i v a t i o n ( a n d t o an e x t e n t consumption)was l e f t t o women.
Secondly t h e cocoyam was h a r v e s t e d v e r y l a t e i n t h e y e a r
when t h e r e we= many o t h e r f e s t i v a l ! . t h e most i m p o r t a n t o f
which was Ekpe i n Umuopara, Oboro and some p a r t s o f Ibek,.

Umuopara and I b e k u c e l e b r a t e d Etswu during t h i s period,.

I n Umuhu n a Okaiuga t h i s was t h e t i m e f o r t h e A,jana f e s t i v a : .
T h e s e f e s t i v a l s which were h e l d p r e p a r a t o r y t o t h e b e g i n n i n p
of t h e p l a n t i n g s e a s o n were deemed t o o i m p o r t a n t t o b e
j u x t a p o s e d w i t h a minor f e s t i v a l s u c h as t h a t r e l a t i n g
t o cocoyam.

-----I--- - -- - . _-
27. V.C. Uchendu, op. c i t . , p. 99.
 15".
F o r d e and J o n e s a l s o h e l d t h e e r r o n e o u s view t h a t t h e

-
osu c a s t e system was a b s e n t i n Ngwaland as w e l l as i n Ohuhu.
T h i s , a c c o r d i n g t o them i s one o f t h e r e a s o n s why t h e Ohuhu
and Ngwa c o n s t i t u t e a g r o u p d i s t i n c t from a11 o t h e r I g b o
groups, W r i t i n g i n t h e same v e i n Uchendu m a i n t a i n e d t h a t t h e

-
o s u system h a s n o t y e t diffused i n t o t h e Ohuhu-Ngwa a r e a from
t h e Owerri-Okigwe r e g i o n - i t s zone o f h i g h e s t p e r s i s t e n c e ; 28
He d m opined t h a t t h i s phenomenon can be a c c o u n t e d f o r
by t h e f a c t t h a t t h e Ohuhu-Ngwn p e o p l e must have l e f t t h e
Owerri-Okigwe zone f o r t h e i r p r e s e n t l o c a t i o n b e f o r e t h e
emergence o f t h e osu system,
T h e r e can h a r d l y be any d o u b t i n g t h e fact t h a t =
d o e s e x i s t i n t h e Ohuhu a r e a , I f t h e i n f o r m a t i o n g i v e n by
L e i t h R o s s i s a n y t h i n g t o go by, t h e n one form o f osu o r the
o t h e r must a l s o have e x i s t e d i n Ngwa a r e a , 29 One m i s t a k e
p e o p l e have o f t e n made w h i l e d i s c u s s i n g t h e osu system in
Igboland i s t o hold t h a t t h e r e i s only one t y p e o f osu
(i.e, t h o s e who h i t h e r t o had been t r e a t e d as o u t c a s t s ) . .
~ e n e r a l l ys p e a k i n g , osu r e f e r s t o any p e r s o n ( o r d e s c e n d a n t s
o f s u c h a p e r s o n ) who had been d e d i c a t e d t o t h e s e r v i c e o f
a deity4 T h i s c o u l d be done e i t h e r t o a p p e a s e t h e gods f o r
a n o f f e n c e committed o r t o ward-off
m
some impending c a l a m i t i e s GL
c r o p f a i l u r e , c h i l d d e a t h o r epidemic, There i s a l s o
i
\

28. Uchendu, op-. c i t , , p. 89. He a l s o made

V.C.
girt
i n " P a t t e r n s o f ~ g b oS o c i d s t r r c t u r e ~ ~P ,a p e r P b n e a
a t W:orkshop on I g b o c u l t u r e , I n s t i t u t e o f A f r i c a n S t u d i e s
U n i v e r s i t y o f N l g e r l a , ~ s u l f k a , 1977, pp. 347-3823
294 S. L e i t h - R o s s , "Notes on t h e Osu System Among t h e I b o
o f Ovaerri P r o v i n c e Y i g e r i a v 1 , A f r i c a : J o u r n a l o f t h e
I n t e r n a t i o n a l African I n s t i t u t e , vol, 10, \19m-pY208.
 t h e c l a i m t h a t i n some p l a c e s t h e osu s y s t e m came i n t o
b e i n g t h r o u g h t h e a c t i v i t i e s o f f a m i l y h e a d s who, t i r e d o f
t h e burden o f s a c r i f i c i n g t o t h e i r f a m i l y o r l i n e a g e d e i t i e s ,
a c q u i r e d s l a v e s who would do t h e job f o r them, P e o p l e who
r a n f o r r e f u g e t o t h e s h r i n e of powerful d e i t i e s a f t c r
c o m m i t t i n g an o f f e n c e were a l s o r e g a r d e d as m. S ~ m eo f
t h e d e i t i e s t o which a p e r s o n c o u l d r u n o r t a k e r e f u g e in
i n c l u d e d , O&, Chukwu, flla ( t h c e a r t h d e i t y ) and Lm_o_.I t
was t h r o u g h t h e above m e n t i o n e d p r o c e s s e s t h a t s u c h names
as O s u a l a , Osunnuo, O s u c h u k ~e t c emanated. But i t i s
i n t e r e s t i n g t o n o t e t h a t i t was o n l y t h o s e p e o p l e who were
d e d i c a t e d t o o r t o o k r e f u g e a t t h e s h r i n e o f t h e _Im_q d e i t y
(i.e, ~ s u i m o )who became known and t r e a t e d as o u t c a s t s ,
Such p e o p l e n e v e r b o r e any names r e l a t i n g t o w, Why they

were t r e a t e d t h e way t h e y w e r e , c a n n o t b e e a s i l y
explained. A f t e r a l l t h e --
Imo d e i t y was n o t t h e most pmer-
f u l o r i m p o r t a n t d e i t y i n Ohuhu o r i n I g b o l a n d f o r t h a t
matter, The f a c t t h a t t h e r e were d i f f e r e n t f o r m s o f
a n d t h a t some v a r i e t y o f i t m i g h t h a v e e x i s t e d i n p r e - c o l o -

n i a l Ngwaland i s b o r n e o u t by L e i t h - R o s s 1 o b s e r v a t i o n th2.t
d t h ~ u dt h e Ngwa had t h e t r a d i t f o n o f d e d i c a t i n g # s l a v e s t o
t h e j u j u f , such d i d n o t c a r r y w y stigma nor d i d i t cause
m y s o c i a l p r o b l e m . 30

30, Ibid., p, 212,

 I t i s n o t easy t o determine t h e a n t i q u i t y of t h e
s y s t e m i n Ohuhu.. However U c h e n d u t s c o n t e n t i o n t h a t Ohuhu
and Ngwa p e o p l e must have l e f t t h e Owerri-Okigwe zone b e f o r e
t h e s y s t e n o r i g i n a t e d i n t h e Owerri-Okigwe a r e a i s n o t e a s y
t o substantiate. L
T b i s l.c1
s % 'm
u b t f u l b e c a u s e t h e whole argument
h i n g e s on t h e a s s u m p t i o n t h a t 2%; d o e s n o t e x i s t i n t h e
Ohuhu-Ngwa area. The 9 s system i s , no d o u b t , o f g r e a t
antiquity. T h i s c l a i m i s b a s e d on t h e f a c t of t h e s i z e of
a p a r t i c u l a r --
o s u f a m i l y somewhere i n Uniuopara, The f a m i l y
u n d e r r e f e r e n c e c o n s t i t u t e s n e a r l y a t h i r d of t h e p o p u l a t i o n
of t h e v i l l a g e i n which i t i s located., This village is
e s t i m a t e d a t some t h o u s a n d s , Since, according t o information
c o l l e c t e d by t h e p r e s e n t r e s e a r c h e r , t h i s f a m i l y grew from
an ~ S nU u c l c a r f a m i l y i t must have t a k e n i t some c e n t u r i e s
t o a t t a i n its present size,
An osu-Imo i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu s u f f e r e d a l o t of
disabilities, -
M a r r i a g e between him and an amadi ( f r e e b o r n )
was (and i s s t i l l ) f o r b i d d e n . He c o u l d n o t b u i l d h i s h o u s e
w i t h t h e door f a c i n g d i r e c t l y t o road, I f h e met an

-
arnadi o r ---
d i a l a on a narrow p a t h , h e was o b l i g e d t o c l e a r
i n t o t h e bush t o a l l o w t h e f f r e c b o r n l e a s y p a s s a g c , In the
o l d e n d a y s an u s u a l l y wore a t h r e a d r o u n d h i s neck f o r
e a s y i d e n t i f i ~ n t i o n . ~When
~ h e d i e d , h c was n o t b u r i e d
w i t h i n t h e v i l l a g e b u t thrown away i n t o an e v i l forest**t..
 18.
I n some v i l l a g e s t h e y were b a n i s h e d t o i s o l a t e d 2nd almost
inaccessible parts. T h i s p r a c t i c e i s t y p i f i e d by t h e b a n i -
shment o f a p a r t i c u l a r -o-. s u f a m i l y i n Umuajameze t o an a r e a
a l n o s t a m i l e nway from t h e v i l l a g e ,
Though l e g a l l y a b o l i s h e d by a n E a s t e r n TJigerin l a w

o f 1956, d i s c r i m i n a t i o n a g a i n s t t h e osu i s f a r from ended,

Though i t i s now i l l e g n l t o r e f c r t o a p e r s o n a s psu,
e q u a l l y d e r o g c t o r y n a n e s s u c h as n d i o k p u e a c 9 ~ d a ik a i k ~ a
e t c , a r e i n vogue. Uchendu a p t l y summnrised t h e ~ 0 d t ~ 0 n
of t h e i n I g b o s o c i e t y when h e s a i d t h ~ t~h et y a r e a
s u b o r d i n a t e c a t e g o r y who a r e i n I g b o s o c i e t y b u t n o t o f i t , 32
So f a r we h a v e t r i e d t o t a k e a s e c o n d l o o k a t t h e
r e a s o n s why F o r d e and J o n e s marked o u t t h e Ohuhu-Rgnc~ men
as a d i s t i n c t group, We h a v e s e e n t h a t t h e p e c u l i a r i t i e s
of t h e area ( t h o u g h w i t h some m o d i f i c n t i o n s ) a r e enough f o r
such c l a s s i f i c a t i o n , The n e x t and p e r t i n e n t t h i n g t o do i s
t o p r o d u c e a t l e a s t an o v e r v i e w o f t h e p o l i t i c a l s e t up o f
the area, T h i s i s i m p o r t a n t s i n c e i n most c a s e s i t was
e i t h e r t h e f a i l u r e of a p o l i t i c a l s y s t e m t o work o u t
n e c e s s a r y and a c c e p t a b l e c o m p r o n i s e s on i s s u e s o r i t s i n a b i -
l i t y t o r e s p o n d q u i c k l y 2nd d e c i s i v e l y t o c o n f l i c t s i t u a t i o n s
t h a t r e s u l t e d i n t o wars ( w h i c h i s t h e main f o c u s o f t h i s
research).
------.- - ---- ---- - -.- .--
32. V.C. Uchendu, "Igbo s o c i a l S t r u c t u r e i i _QP._C%,, p. 356.
 I g b o l a n d , o f which Ohuhu 1s p a r t , i s among t h e
c o m m u n i t i e s c l a s s i f i e d as s t a t e l e s s by F o r t e s and Evans-
P r i t c h a r d i n t h e i r s t u d y o f f ~ f r i c a np o l i t i c a l s y s t e m s . 33
S o c i e t i e s c l a s s i f i e d as s t a t e l e s s by t h e a u t h o r s a r e t h o s e
which, among o t h e r t h i n g s , a r e s a i d t o l a c k c e n t r a l i z e d
a u t h o r i t y , a d m i n i s t r a t i v e machinery, and c o n s t i t u t e d j u d i c i a l
i n s t i t u t i o n s : i n s h o r t t h e y a r e s a i d t o l a c k g o v e r n n e n t , 34
Such s o c i e t i e s a r e a l s o s a i d t o hzve no s h a r p d i v i s i o n a s t o
rank, s t a t u s o r wealth, While t h i s i s n o t t h e p l a c e t o look
a t t h e m e r i t s a n d d e m e r i t s o f t h e t y p o l o g y u s e d by t h e
a u t h o r s , i t i s however i m p o r t a n t t o concede t h a t p r e - c o l o n i a l
Ohuhu ( o r a n y p a r t t h e r e o f ) n e v e r c o n s t i t u t e d ? n r g e s c a l e
L
e m p i r e o r p a r t o f any s u c h empire. Afigbo h a s tagged t h e
p o l i t i c a l s y s t e m o f p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu a n d Ngwa ( v i s - a - v i s
o t h e r I g b o g r o u p s ) as t y p e 111. According t o h i m . t h i s t y p e
of p o l i t i c , d s y s t e m was marked by t h e i n t e r - p l a y o f s e c r e t
s o c i e t i e s and u n s h i p groups i n t h e maintenance of t h e
system, 35
The l o w e s t p o l i t i c a l u n i t i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu was
t h e f a m i l y 9 n y obp. It consisted of 3 man, h i s w i f e o r w i v e s
t h e i r children 2nd g r , m d c h i l d r e n , Here t h e a u t h o r i t y
---- -~-------- \
33. PI. F o r t e s & E. E v a n s - P r i t c h a r d ( e d s ) , b f r i c a - r - P o 1 i t i c a 1
s t e m s (London, I n t e r n a t i o n a l A f r i c a n I n s t i t u t e ,
h P . 5.

35. A.E. A f i g b o , '!The I n d i g e n o u s P o l i t i c a l s y s t e m s o f

t h e I g b o k ZT a r i k h v o l . 4, No. 2 , ( 1 9 7 3 ) , p. 16.
PLATE I: Qfp - the Igbo staff
a u t h o r i t y and j u s t i c e .
of t h e f n t h e r who was a l s o head o f t h e gnuVobu was a l m o s t
a b s o l u t e a s h e commanded u n q u e s t i o n a b l e l o y a l t y from ~ a c u b i - c
of t h o family. A number o f f a m i l i e s most o f whom t r a c e d
t h e i r a n c e s t r y t o t h e same p e r s o n b u t which s o m e t i n e s
included absorded immigrants o r s l a v e s made up a sub-
l i n e a g e o r ikwu, The ikviu which, l i t o r a l l y t r a n s l a t e d me? ) - -
c h i l d r e n o f t h e same f a t h e r , was t h e minimal p o l i t i c 3 1 u n ? t ,
I n p a r t s o f Ohuhu ( e s p e c i a l l y Umuopara) some ikwu b o r e t h o
name of women, Thus s u c h names a s _u_mua?, and umunwnn;~;rln
'-re common,
V!ithin a n ikwu - t h e o l d e s t man, who o f t e n t o o k t h o
title - o p a r a was t h e p o l i t i c a l a s w e l l as t h e r i t u a l h e ( v
::is p o s i t i o n and power was s t r e n g t h e n e d by t h e f a c t t h c t 1
uiw t h e c u s t o d i a n o f t h e g r o u p P s g. f o. ( t h c I g b o symbol o f
a u t h o r i t y and j u s t i c e ) , T h i s , i t was b e l i e v e d , l i n k e d t h a
l i v i n g , t h e dead and t h e unborn i n t o a u n i o n , When nn 9x0.
h o l d e r d i e d he was s u c c e e d e d n o t by h i s s o n b u t by t h e ne7'-
e l d e s t person i n t h e sub-lineage .36 NO serious r i t e or
ceremony c o u l d b e p e r f o r m e d w i t h o u t t h e -o.. f o. . T i t l e s wers
c o n f e r r e d w i t h t h e o. f q. , Laws were r a t i f i e d a n d c o n s e c r a t e r :
-
w i t h t h e o f o and none was v a l i d w i t h o u t i t s b e i n g u s e d ,

-
Njnkavs c o n t e n t i o n t h a t o f o a l l o w s e a c h p e r s o n t o be h i s o w
p r i e s t on p o s s e s s i n g i t , a s s u r e s i t s h o l d e r o f a g r e a t

6 . M.0, TJkagwu, ects-o_f t --.h? e Pre-Colon_ial H i s t o r y o f

Lbeku. ( u n p u b l e E e d R.s. - ( ~ l s t o r y ) T h e s v u E < - -
19781, P. 17.
7 - Flechukwu N j a k a , I g b o l?o,l~t..ll~ulture ( E v a r ~ s t o n ~
N o r t h w e s t e r n U n i v e r s l t y P r e s s , lqm,-$,14,
PLATE 2: Ihu-ala-Umuajameze - Shrine d t h e
earth deity of Umuajameze-
measure o f i n d i v i d u a l i s m and y i e l d s him t o a s h a r e o f
authority,38 c a n n o t b e s a i d t o be t r u e o f Ohuhu. Here, ofo
. .
w a s a c o l l e c t i v e property, Rather than assure i t s custodian
w a s believed t o unite
of i n d i v i d u a l a c t i o n o r i n i t i a t i v e , i t
L
t h e l i v i n g w i t h t h e dead and t h e unborn g e n e r a t i o n .
Above t h e ikwu was t h e v i l l a g e o r pnymara, It was a
t e r r i t o r i a l l y d i s t i n c t community h a v i n g i t s own s t r e a m , farm-
l a n d and t r a c i n g i t s a n c e s t r y t o a p e r s o n o r g r o u p of p e r s o n s .
I t a l s o had a common e a r t h d e i t y o f t e n c a l l e d i h u a l a whose
keepen was one o f t h e l e a d e r s of t h e v i l l a g e , Many v i l l a g e s
had two d i s t i n c t s e c t i o n s - thewtochthormw quarter often
c a l l e d o k p u a l a ,and a n o t h e r (some t i m e s c a l l e d o b i ohuoo)
. ..
i n h a b i t e d by l a t e r immigrants. The k e e p e r o f t h e s h r i n e o f
t h e e a r t h d e i t y a l w a y s came from t h e o k p u a l a s e c t i o n . Within
t h e v i l l a g e t h e h i g h e s t p o l i t i c a l a u t h o r i t y w a s e x e r c i s e d by

t h e assembly o f a l l a d u l t m a l e s - amala. The were f r e e

t o a t t e n d m e e t i n g s of t h e analti, t a k e p a r t i n i t s d e l i b e r a -
t i o n s , mLke r e p r e s e n t a t i o n s t o i t b u t c o u l d n o t h o l d i n p o r t c a t
positions within it, B e f o r e a man q u a l i f i e d t o be t r e a t e d
as an a d u l t and t h e r e f o r e f r e e t o a t t e n d m e e t i n g s of t h e arnna.,L-.,
he must have a t t a i n e d an a g e of a t l e a s t t w e n t y , p r e f e r a b l y
i n i t i a t e d i n t o t h e okonko s o c i e t y and i n some p l a c e s h e must
i
of
have q u a l i f i e d t o t a k e p a r t i n t h e h a r v e s t i n g l p a l m t r e e s owned
-
L

i n common by h i s community i ~ b uiwu nkwu, Such a p e r s o n was

38. Ibid.
i n a d d i t i o n , r e q u i r e d t o p a y occasional l e v i e s imposed by
the anala - u t u arnala. 39
M e e t i n g s o f t h e arnala were u s u a l l y h e l d a t t h e v i l l a g e
s q u a r e , mbexa. E v e r y a d u l t male was f r e e t o e x p r e s s h i s views
d u r i n g n e e t i n e s o f ariia,la. However, i n d o i n g s o : c a r e w a s
t n k e n n o t t o go t o t h e e x t e n t o f i n s u l t i n g o n e ' s e l d e r which
was r e g a r d e d as s a c r i l e g e - e. E l d e r g especially opnra
who a c t e d as l e n d e r s o f t h e i r l i n e a g e were m o t i v a t o r s o f
d i s c u s s i o n and d e b a t e d u r i n g m e e t i n g s o f t h e nmala. The
a u t h o r i t y e x e r c i s e d by e l d e r s was i n s t i t u t i o n a l r a t h e r t h a n
personal. So a l s o was t h e r e s p e c t a c c o r d e d them. This
,.me n o t t o t h e i r p e r s o n s p e r s e b u t t o a g e which was a l m o s t
f-nstitutionalized, Young p e o p l e w h o . t h r o u g h t h e i r own h a r d -
their
Lqrk, ' a t t a i n e d w e a l t h and o r i n f l u e n c e w i t h i n L cornmu-
n i t y were a l s o h i g h l y r e s p e c t e d . Their opinions carried
some w e i g h t h e n c e t h e p o p u l a r s a y i n g n w a t a kwozie a k a , y a
a n d i o k e q y e e--.r---i--k o t a a n r i which r e n d e r e d i n E n g l i s h would
?'L-"-.----
equate w i t h something l i k e - if n c h i l d washed h i s h a n d s

w e l l , h e would d i n e w i t h k i n g s . As N j a k a p u t s i t , what a

p e r s o n c a n h a v e i n p u b l i c i s i n f l u e n c e which h e e a r n s t h r o u g h
hardwork. 40 M e e t i n g s o f t h e --.
amala u s u a l l y t o o k p l a c e i n t h e
m o r n i n g s o f t h e l o c a l m a r k e t day. T h i s was s o b e c a u s e e v e r y

3 G i l b e r t Nwaubani, c i t e d .

4. E. Njaka, op. c i t , , p. 159.

 23
, d u l t male was e x p e c t e d t o b e home a n d t o a t t e n d t h e
. ocal. iuarket which s e r v e d t h e d u a l p u r p o s s o f a p l a c e f o r
:onornic exchange and t h a t f o r s o c i a l i n t e r a c t i o n ,

If two p e o p l e o r g r o u p s were i n v o l v e d i n n d i s p u t c ,
L
,
3
icy sometimes i n v i t e d p e o p l e from w i t h i n and o u t s i d e t h e i r

~. t o h e l p them s e t t l e i t , T h i s was e s p e c i a l l y t r u e o f
- y d . , .

a d
(ses i n v o l v i n g t h e f t , land,f d i v o r c e ,
~: This process
..,lawn as i k u i k p e r e q u i r e d t h e a g g r i e v e d p a r t y t o n o t i f y t h e
,t h e r ( t h r o u g h h i s l i n e a g e head) o f h i s i n t e n t i o n t o r e s o r t

I -
iku ikpe. Sometimes r e s o r t t o t h i s form of s e t t l e m e n t
- - s made when i n e d i a t i o n o f t h e arnala hz~d f a i l e d , A person

. lviting p e o p l e t o an i k p e u s u a l l y p a i d them some t o k e n

1-onsultntionq f e e , e i t h e r i n c a s h o r kind, He a l s o f e a s t e d
.'sm e v e r y day t h e c a s e came up f o r m e n t i o n ,
An i k p e u s u a l l y t o o k t h e form o f a f o r m a l c o u r t
- : ~ s s i o n . The h i r e d 'wiscmenq u s u a l l y cross-examined both
t h e p l a n t i f f and t h e d e f e n d a n t , T h e r e was u s u a l l y , 110

s i n g l e p e r s o n who p l a y e d t h e r o l e o f p r e s i d i n g judge. This

r o l e o r what r e s e m b l e d i t was p l a y e d by a n i n f o r m a l j u r y
o m s i s t i n g o f e q u a l number o f vwisernenl r e p r e s e n t i n g t h e two
sides. T h e i r v e r d i c t s which more o f t e n t h m n o t , were coin-
. - ? r o ~ ! i s e sbetween t h e e x t r e m e p o s i t i o n s adopted by t h e
r 1 ! s m t i n g p a r t i e s were a r r i v e d a t a f t e r a s e c r c t s e s s i o n -
b i z V e r d i c t s were announced by a g i f t c d o r a t o r who
- u n l l y t o o k g r e a t c a r e t o a v o i d h e a p i n g t o o much b l a s e
:n on t h e g u i l t y s i d e ,
 I f t h e v e r d i c t o f a j u r y proved u n h c c e p t n b l e t o a
p a r t y , r e s o r t was had t o t h e s w e a r i n g o f an o a t h - i.du i s h i
by t h e d i s s e n t i n g s i d e , f o r t h e o t h e r . %hoever accepted t o
s w e a r t o an o a t h was n o r m a l l y g i v e n c u s t o d y o f t h e m a t e r i a l
i n dispute. I t was g e n e r a l l y b e l i e v e d t h n t i f a p e r s o n swore
t o a f a l s e o a t h , he would w i t h i n a c a l e n d a r y e a r of s w e a r i n g
t o t h e o a t h be k i l l e d by t h e d e i t y by which he swore. If
t h i s d i d n o t happen, he was deemed i n n o c e n t . Such g p r o o f s o f
i n n o c e n c e was t a k e n as a m o r a l v i c t o r y f o r a p e r s o n s o v i n d i -
cated. I t w a s c e l e b r a t e d w i t h a f e a s t known 2s jFy nmyp.
-
Above t h e v i l l a g e , t h e n e x t l e v e l o f p o l i t i c a l a c t i o n
w a s t h e v i l l a g e group. T h e v i l l a g e - g r o u p was, i n p r e -

c o l o n i a l Ohuhu, as w e l l as i n some o t h e r p a r t s of I g b o l m d
t h e h i g h e s t l e v e l of e f f e c t i v e g o v e r n n ~ c n t , By v i l l a g e - g r o u p
we r e f e r t o s u c h u n i t s as E z e l e k e a n d Ogbodi ( b o t h i n Umu-
o p a r a ) , 0 s a a and Ndi.Um ( i n I b e k u ) , and ilriam and Usaka
( i n Arian-Usaka). A v i l l a g e . g r o u p c o n s i s t e c l o f a nulxber o f
v i l l a g e s a l l o f whom s h a r c d 3 common m a r k e t , The ember
v i l l a g e s of a v i l l a g e g r o u p were o f t e n l o c a t e d i n s u c h a
manner t h ? t e a c h of them had a m a j o r r o a d - okporo anla

h i a k i q ib. w i t h ! t h e market,

C e r t a i n f a c t o r s made f o r u n i t y w i t h i n t h e v i l l a g e -
group. F i r s t t h e v i l l a g e group provided t h e i n d i v i d u a l with
t h e c l o s e s t community w i t h i n which he c o u l d marry. Endogamy
w i t h i n t h e v i l l a g e was ( a n d i s s t i l l ) a taboo.' Secondly,
t h e r e was i n many p l a c e s , t h e b e l i e f t h a t most rne~iber
v i l l a g e s of a v i l l a g e - g r o u p were founded by a common
a n c e s t o r who was o f t e n a n o f f s p r i n g o f t h e famed f o u n d e r of
t h e l a r g e r community - t h e clan. I n Umuopara, t h e b e l i e f
t h a t E z e l e k e was founded by Eke, who h i m s e l f was a son o f
Opara, t h e m y t h i c a l f o u n d e r o f Uinuopnra h a s c o n t i n u c d t o
a
-
s e r v e a s / u n i t i n g f o r c e among E z e l e k e people. Thirdly, the
s h a r i n g by members o f a v i l l a g e - g r o u p of a common m a r k e t ,
h e l p e d i n no s m a l l way t o u n i t e them, They a l s o had t h e same
market d e i t y , and c e l e b r a t e d s u c h i m p o r t m t f e s t i v a l s a s t h o s e
of t h e new yam, okonko and ekpe, t o g e t h e r , Also w i t h i n the

v i l l a g e - g r o u p t h e member v i l l a g e e were r a n k e d a c c o r d i n g
famed
t o t h e senio$8%e founders of t h e v i l l a g e s . lloreover, i n t e r -
L L
m a r r i a g e between member v i l l a g e s r e p u t e d t o have been founded
by m a t e r n a l l y - r e l a t e d p e r s o n s was f o r b i d d e n , I n Ezeleke,
f o r example, i n t e r - m a r r i a g e between Umuajameze and Umuba i s
n o t allowed. So a l s o between Unuekwule, Amnchara and Amnnkwo.'
S i n c e t h e v i l l a g e - g r o u p vms by f a r b i g g e r t h a n t h e
v i l l a g e , d i r e c t democracy a6 p r a c t i s e d i n t h e l a t t e r was n o t
p o s s i b l e i n t h e former. Thus, i n p l a c e of d i r e c t democracy,
t h e v i l l a g e - g r o u p p r a c t i s e d what c a n be c a l l e d r e p r e s e n t a t i v e
1
democracy, h o t h e r f a c t o r t h a t made r e p r e s e n t a t i o n n e c e s s a r y
--
was t h e f a c t t h a t m a t t e r s d i s c u s s e d by t h e amah o f t h e
k \

v i l l a g e g r o u p were, more o f t e n t h a n n o t , n o n - c o n t r o v e r s i a l
issues,, T h i s meant t h a t i n d i v i d u a l s d i d n o t u s u a l l y . have
d i r e c t stakes i n its decisions. Its meetings o f t e n d e a l t
w i t h s u c h i s s u e s as t h e f i x i n g o f d a t e s f o r t h e f e s t i v a l s
 26.
m e n t i o n e d above, s e t t l e ~ e n to f q u a r r e l s among member
villages, etc. Meetings o f t h e m a l a of t h e v i l l a g e group
were n o t f r e q u e n t . E x c e p t i n t i m e s o f emergency, i t met
only twice a year -once a t t h e beginning of t h e p l a n t i n g
the
season - -
t o t a k e d e c i s i o f i a b o u t / f e s t i v n l s and r i t e s a s s o c i n t e d
w i t h t h e p l a n t i n g o f new crops,. The o t h e r was d u r i n g t h e
h a r v e s t s e a s o n when i t a l s o t o o k d e c i s i o n s r e l a t i n g t o t h e
c e l e b r a t i o n of new c r o p s
M e m b e r - v i l l a g e s w e r e r e p r e s e n t e d by s e l e c t p e o p l e ,
T h e s e i n c l u d e d e l d e r s and l e a d e r s o f t h e l o c a l ~ 1 1 3 ; k, e e p e r s
---
o f i h u n l a ( c a r t h d e i t y ) and o t h e r p e r s o n s mandated fror.1 t i n e
t o t i m e t o r e p r e s e n t t h e i r ?mala on a c c o u n t o f e i t h e r t h e i r
s p e c i a l i z e d knowledge o f what was g o i n g t o be d i s c u s s e d o r
b e c a u s e t h e y had shown t h e n s e l v e s c a p a b l e of u n d e r s t a n d i n g
issues, Decision-making a t t h e l e v e l o f t h e v i l l 2 g e g r o u p
t o o k t h e s h a p e a d o p t e d a t t h e v i l l a g e l e v e l , i+&, i n v o l v i n g
secret consultations - igb?. i z u - and t h e aniaouncment o f
t h e v e r d i c t by a t d e n t c d o r a t o r ,

P o l i t i c a l o r g a n i s a t i o n at t h e c l a n l e v e l w 2 s very
weak. T h i s was s o b e c m s e most c l a n s were c o n g l o m e r a t i o n s
o f p e o p l e d e r i v i n g from d i f f e r e n t s o u r c e s , Only i.n a few
p l a c e s s u c h a s Urnuoparn and I b e k u where t h e r e was t h e
b e l i e f i n a cormon a n c e s t o r d i d some measure o f u n i t y e x i s t ,
E l s e w h e r e i n Umuhu-nz-Okaiugr, f o r example, t h e p e o p l e
d e r i v e t h e m s e l v e s from d i f f e r e n t s o u r c e s , p o l i t i c a l o r g a n i s a -
t i o n a t t h i s l e v e l was v e r y weak i n d e e d . However, t h e r e were
 27.
c e r t a i n i n s t i t u t i o n s though n o t p o l i t i c a l i n n a t u r e t h a t
o f f e r e d members o f a c l a n forum f o r u n i t e d a c t i o n , The
of
-
most i m p o r t a n t / s u c h i n s t i t u t i o r e was t h e w o r s h i p of common
deities, These d e i t i e s i n c l u d e d 0.jam Umuopara i n Umuopara;
A,jana i n Umuhu n a Okaiuga; and Egwu i n Ibeku. The u n i v e r s a l
c u r r e n c y e n j o y e d by t h e okonko s o c i e t y a l s o s e r v e d as an
important u n i t i n g factor, I t s g e n e r a l m e e t i n g s which o f t e n
c u t a c r o s s v i l l a g e - g r o u p s i a l s o helped t o u n i t e t h e people.
So f a r we have h i g h l i g h t e d t h e p o l i t i c a l s y s t e n o f
p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu and h a v e t e n d e d t o s t r e s s t h e r o l e o f men
to a t o t a l e x c l u s i o n of r o l e p l a y e d by women w i t h i n t h e
system. We s h a l l now b r i e f l y d i s c u s s t h e p o l i t i c a l o r g a n i ,
s a t i o n o f t h e a r e a as f a r as women were c o n c e r n e d , It is
i n p o r t a n t t o n o t e a t t h e o n s e t th3.t women p l a y e d b u t secondGary
and minor r o l e s i n t h e p o l i t i c a l l i f e o f t h e i r community.
T h i s was m a i n l y b e c a u s e women were, t o a v e r y l a r g e e x t e n t ,
r e g a r d e d as p e o p l e who s h o u l d be s e e n b u t n o t ( t o o o f t e n ) h e a r d .
G e n e r a l l y , women i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu were d i v i d e d
i n t o two b r o a d c a t e g o r i e s , One c a t e g o r y was made up o f t h e
married wives - ndiomi o r n d i a l u - a l u .- The o t h e r c a t e g o r y
i n c l u d e d l i n e a g e women who were m a r r i e d , d i v o r c c d o r widowed.
These w e r e ' c a l l e d umuokpu o r umuada. \ i h i l e t h e f o r m e r had
influence among t h e i r h u s b a n d s ' p e o p l e and a r e a , t h e l a t t e r
(who were sometimes p a r t o f t h e f o r m e r ) , i n f l u e n c e d s i t u a t i o n s
i n t h e i r p l a c e s of b i r t h . l4ost o f t h e r o l e s p l a y e d by women
had t o do w i t h t h e r e g u l a t i o n o f m o r a l b e h a v i o u r o f b o t h
t h e m s e l v e s and t h e younger g e n e r a t i o n - t h e i r children.
T h e i r i n f l u e n c e however, ended w i t h i n i n d i v i d u a l v i l l a g e s .
M a r r i e d women met a t i r r e g u l a r i n t e r v a l s i n a s s e m b l i e s known
a s i n o n a am:, I f a young p e r s o n behaved i n n m n n e r t h a t
c o n t r a v e n e d a c c c p t e d norm, women i n v o k e d t h e w r a t h o f t h e gods
on s u c h o f f e n d e r t h r o u g h t h e p e r f o r r m n c e of a s p e c i a l i n v o c a -
t i o n c a l l e d i k u aka n f i h u apatq, Th.83 n l s o s e t t l e d q u a m e l s
among two o r more of t h e m s e l v e s i f i n v i t e d t o do s o t h r o u g h
t h e s h o u t i n g o f o l o l o l o . 41
.-

Umuokpu d i d n o t have any f o r m a l o r g a n i s a t i o n , Nembers

. * r .
c o u l d b e summoned by one o r more members i f i n t h e t h i n k i n g
of t h e sumnoneto t h e r e was a s e r i o u s s i t u a t i o n t h a t needed
t h e i r intervention, M a t t e r s o v e r which t h e y i n t e r v e n e d were
u s u a l l y t h o s e r e l a t i n g t o m o r a l i t y , d i v o r c e and i n t c r o r i n t r a
village disputes, I n c a s e s i n v o l v i n g moral i s s u e s and d i v o r c e
t h e y u s u a l l y i n v o k e d t h e s p i r i t s of t h e ancestors o f t h e
v i l l a g e through t h e i n s t i t u t i o n of ofo on any p e r s o n t h e y
believe8
Frnl
r 'torind g u i l t y o f wrongdoing.
ted
T h e i r method o f
i n t e r v e n t i o n i n w a r s w i l l be d i s c u s s e d i n a latter c h a p t e r
d e a l i n g with t h e ending of h o s t i l i t i e s ,

41. Madam J a n e t Efughu, I n t e r v i e w e d a t Efughu I s

compound, Umuqjameze Urnuopara, 7/4/83,
 One prominent f e a t u r e o f p o l i t i c a l g r o u p i n g s o f
p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu i s t h a t t h e y d i s p l a y e d t h e c h a r a c t e r i s -
t i c Horton h a s d e s c r i b e d as p o l i t i c a l r e l a t i ~ i t i y , ~ ' By
t h i s i s meant t h e t e n d e n c y o f p o l i t i c a l g r o u p i n g s t o
c o n v e r g e and a c t t o g e t h e r a t one p o i n t i n t i m e ( e s p e c i a l l y
i n t i m e s o f d a n g e r ) o n l y t o d i s i n t e g r a t e when t h e d a n g e r
i s over, Thus, p e o p l e who c o - o p e r a t e d a t a p o i n t i n t i m e
c o u l d , a t t h e n e x t t u r n be l o c k e d i n combat. For t h e
i n d i v i d u a l , t h e s i t u a t i o n meant t h a t t h e r e was no
p o l i t i c a l g r o u p i n g t o which he f e l t p e r m a n e n t l y attached,
Thus, f o r example a man may i n a p a r t i c u l a r c i r ~ u n s t ~ m c e
s e e h i m s e l f as an Umuopara man who must u n i t e w i t h o t h e r
kinsmen t o b e a t b a c k an a t t a c k on a s e c t i o n o f t h e c l a n ,
could a t t h e n e x t t u r n s e e h i m s e l f c o - o p e r a t i n g w i t h kinsmen

from a s m a l l e r u n i t t o f i g h t m o t h e r segment o f Umuopara.

T h i s s i t u a t i o n w i l l become c l e a r e r when we come t o t h e
main f o c u s of t h i s work which i s w a r f a r e ,

42. Robin Horton, ' S t a t e l e s s S o c i e t i e s i n t h e H i s t o r y

o f West ~ f r i c a ;J.F. Ade A j a y i , & M, Csowder ( e d q )
H i s t o r y o f West A f r i c a vol. I , (Lon$or,~ongrnan, 1976)
P, 83 84. -
 CHAPTER TWO
CAUSES OF WARS I N PRE-COLONIAL OHUHU
Two views t h a t a r e a l m o s t d i a m e t r i c a l l y opposed t o each
o t h e r have been e x p r e s s e d w i t h r e g a r d t o t h e f r e q u e n c y of wars
i n p r e - c o l o n i a l I g b o l a n d o f which Ohuhu i s a p a r t . It is
t h e r e f o r e n e c e s s a r y t o examine t h e s e views as a way o f start-
i n g a d i s c u s s i o n GB t h e c a u s e s o f wars i n t h e Ohuhu a r e a ,
One o f t h e views i s t r a c e a b l e t o a u t h o r s l i k e J e f f r e y s 1
- and -
,
3 a s d e n d , ~ ~ q u i a n o - ) . According t o t h i s view, wars were s o f r e -
q u e n t i n p r e - c o l o n i a l I g b o l a n d t h a t l i f e and p r o p e r t y were
unsafe, The t y p i c a l Igboman t h e r e f o r e l e d a s h o r t and b r u t i s h
life, Equiano f o r example, o p i n e d t h a t wars had become s u c h a
r e g u l a r f e a t u r e o f l i f e i n h i s community i n t h e e i g h t e e n t h
c e n t u r y t h a t women became v e r i t a b l e f i g h t e r s o f t h e s o r t known
as t h e famed Amazons o f Dahomey, The o t h e r view which i s
e x p r e s s e d by p e o p l e l i k e Eze Lawrence ~ w a n k w om~a i n t a i n s t h a t
Ohuhu p e o p l e n e v e r f o u g h t wars,
Tha t i r u t h a b o u t t h e f r e q u e n c y o f wars i n p r e - c o l o n i a l
Ohuhu l i e s somewhere between t h e s e two p o l a r extremes, Pro-
p o n e n t s o f t h e f i r s t view a r e g u i l t y o f e r r o r s e i t h e r of

1, M.D,lrJ. J e f f r e y s , "Ibo Warfare" Man: A Monthly Record o f

A n t h r o p o l o g i c a l S c i e n c e , vol. 5% (l956), p, '19,
2. GOT. Basden, Among t h e I b o s (London, F r a n k Cass, 1966)
ppm 202 203, a

3, Quoted i n A.E. Afigbo, Ro e s o f Sand: S t u d i e s i n I bo

aE
v i a t o r y . and C u l t u r e ( I b a an,llnlve= P r e s s +C
n l v e r s l t y o f N i g e r i a P r e s s ~ t d . , 198%), p. 156.
4. Eze Lawrence D . a Nwankwo, The I k p o 111 o f Bende
i n t e r v i e w e d a t Bende 6,12,82,
o m i s s i o n o r commission, The proponent^ o f t h i s view f a i l e d
t o d i s t i n g u i s h between what s h o u l d r e a l l y b e c a l l e d wars and
what were mere a f f r a y s . Among Ohuhu p e o p l e , t h e r e were two
d i f f e r e n t kinds of c o n f l i c t s , F i r s t t h e r e was ggy which,
L-

r e n d e r e d i n E n g l i s h , w o u l d r e f e r t o s u c h t h i n g s as an a f f r a y ,
a f i g h t o r a ~ k i r t n i s h . ~T h i s t y p e o f c o n f l i c t o f t e n i n v o l v e d
n a t a l l y r e l a t e d groups, Such conflict^ n e v e r l a s t e d l o n g .
They o f t e n r e s u l t e d from s p o n t a n e o u s r e a c t i o n s t o i n j u r y ,
i n s u l t o r a s s a u l t i n f l i c t e d on an i n d i v i d u a l o r srnall g r o u p ,
I * I * . * * .. I * I *, ' " ' 8

by a n o t h e r , , S p i l l i n g o f b l o o d d u r i n g s u c h c o n f l i c t s was
t a t a l l y prohibited. p I '
*
- agha - . c o u l d
0

The o t h e r t y p e o f c o n f l i c t be s a i d t o
* 4 ? ' ..
approxhate t o full-scale wa, It o f t e n involved grpupc t h a t
e i t h e r had no b l o o d r e l a t i o n s h i p a t a l l o r rx v e r y d i s t a n t one,
S p i l l i n g o f b l o o d was t o l e r a t e d d u r i n g c o n f l i c t s o f t h i s
nature, The f x t t h a t human c a s u a l t i c s c o u l d r e s u l t from t h i s
t y p e o f c o n f l i c t made i t much l e s s f r e q u e n t t h a n t h e form,er,
I t would a p p e a r t h a t most o f t h e p e o p l e who t a l k e d o f h i g h
i n c i d e n c e o f wars i n p r e - c o l o n i a l I g b o l a n d f a i l e d t o make t h e
d i s t i n c t i o n between and =kt, This m i s t a k e i s however
p a r d o n a b l e f o r a p e r s o n working i n a s e c o n d l a n g u a g e o r
an
througdinterpretor.
----*-- - -- ..- - -- ----- -
5. Njaka h a s i d e n t i f i e d t h r e e t y p e s of c o n f l i c t s i n w e -
c o l o n i a l Akokwn, He c l a s s i f i e d them as Yker'egbe
t y p e o f h i t - a n d - r u n t a c t i c ;'Nwa ogu which was tx t y p e
tx --
o f p e r i o d i c r a i d o f 3 weak community by a s t r o n g e r o n e ;
- -
a h I b u s o A , a which c o u l d be c a l l e d f u l l - s c a l e war,
SeB Elechukwu f j n k a I g b o P o l i t i c a l C u l t u r e ( Z v a n s t o n ,
PTorthwestern T J n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 197v), p;. 1 2 1 122. -
 32,
A n o t h e r comment t h a t c a n be made on t h e v i e w s o f most
o f t h e non-Igbo w r i t e r s who h a v e t a l k e d o f a h i g h i n c i d e n c e of
wars i n p r e - c o l o n i a l I g b o l a n d i s t h a t most o f them came t o o r
d i d t h c i r fieldwork i n t h e a r e a during o r immediately a f t e r
t h e l a t e nineteenth o r e a r l y i n t h e twentieth century. The
durirp-
p e r i o d immediately preceding t h a t w L C t~h e s e w r i t e r s d i d
L
t h e i r f i e l d w o r k must h a v e s e e n some c h a n g e s i n I g b o w a r f a r e ,
T h i s , o b v i o u s l y , was due i n p a r t t o n g r e a t e r a v a i l a b i l i t y o f
f i r e a r m s and o t h e r l e t h a l weapons. liars f o u g h t w i t h s u c h

weapons were bound t o be ( a n d were i n f a c t ) more b l o o d y t h a n

t h o s e of e a r l i e r periods. Nemories of s u c h wars must h a v e been
f r e s h i n t h e minds o f t h e p e o p l e ( i n c l u d i n g , p o s s i b l y , some o f
t h e a c t o r s ) when t h e ?i:uropean w r i t e r s d i d t h e i r f i e l d w o r k ,
Given s u c h a s i t u a t i o n , t h e r e s e a r c h e r s must h a v e met many
s t o r i e s o f wars which t h e y m i s t o o k as r e p r e s e n t a t i v e o f t h e
whole o f p r e - - c o l o n i a l I g b o h i s t o r y ,
The p r e p o n d e r a n c e o f s t o r i e s of wars c a n a l s o be
a c c o u n t e d f o r by t h e f a c t t h a t p r e - l i t e r a t e s o c i e t i e s t e n d t o
their
remember two p e r i o d s o f l h i s t o r y -
t h e e a r l i e s t and t h e r e c e n t
past, I1The f o r m e r i s i m p o r t a n t b e c a u s e i t s y m b o l i z e s t h e
b e g i n n i n g o f t h e p e o p l e ' s h i s t o r y and t h e l a t t e r i s remembered
b e c a u s e i t i s r e c e n t u e 6 Moreover, " d e e d s o f arms have a way
of l e a v i n g a permanent i m p r e s s i o n i n p e o p l e ' s m places
6 MrS,PIa Kiwanulia, E l A f r i c a n P r e - C o l o n i a l H i s t o r y
R C h a l l e n g e t o t h e H i s t o r i a n ' s C r a f t 1 ! A f r i k a Zanani
No& 6 s( 7 ( 1 9 7 7 1 , p. 27.
7. S.C. Ukpabi, s i I g b o K a r f a r e f 1 U n p u b l i s h e d p a p e r p r e -
s e n t e d a t Workshon on I n b o C u l t u r e , I n s t i t u t e of
A f r i c a n S t u d i e s , U n i v e r s i t y o f U i g e r i a , Nsukka, 1977,p.426.
 ,330
-..2..-.-
7
I g b o l a n d where no w r i t t e n r e c o r d s e x i s t e d d u r i n g most
o f t h e p e o p l e k h i s t o r y , f a r - r e a c h i n g e v e n t s s u c h as wars were
p r e s e r v e d i n memory, and as t h e s t o r i e s were t o l d retold,
l i t t l e s k i r m i s h e s c o u l d be e x a g g e r a t e d t o l o o k l i k e m a j o r
battles. A l s o wars which i n v o l v e d o n e o r two b a t t l e s c o u l d b e
p r z s e n t e d a s h a v i n g d r a g g e d on f o r a c o n s i d e r a b l e p e r i o d .
I t i s n o t p o s s i b l e t o r u l e o u t b i a s as b a s e s o f some o f
t h e comments h i g h l i g h t e d e a r l i e r , T h i s a s s e r t i o n comes o u t
c l e a r l y when o n e c o n s i d e r s t h e b a s i s o f J e f f r e y s ' a s s e r t i o n ,
f o r example. A c c o r d i n e t o him, wars were i m p o r t a n t t o t h e
Tzbo p e o p l e b e c a u s e i t h e l p e d t o ease t h e lx-oblom o f i d l e n e s s
i n t o which t h e p e o p l e u s u a l l y f e l l after the planting sense?. Hut
t1iis i s n o t t r u e . The f a r m i n g c y c l e i n p x e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu f o r
eyqmple, c o v e r e d a l m o s t t h e e n t i r e y e a r - s t a r t i n g w i t h bush-
: l c ~ r i n ga b o u t J a n u a r y " a f t e r t h e h a r m a t t a n had opened up t h e
b1sIu8 t o t h e h a r v e s t season b e g i n n i n g around October. Tf

t l e r e was a n y p e r i o d o f r e s t ( n o t t o t a l k o f i d l e n e s s ) , i t was
b e - ween J u n e and J u l y , i . e , a f t e r t h e p l a n t i n g season but
before t h e harvest, N i l i t a r y campaigns were i m p o s s i b l e t o
o r g a n i s e a t t h i s t i m e b e c a u s e o f heavy r z ~ i n s , ,

D u r i n g t h e months o f J u n e and J u l y , t h e men u s u a l l y

b u s i e d t h e m s e l v e s s t a k i n g t h e i r yams w h i l e t h e women weeded
t h e i r f n r m s . . P e o p l e a l s o t o o k a d v a n t a g e o f t h e l i g h t work i n

.
0
V.C. Tjchendu, T h e I g b-----
o of Southeast l%eri~
( N e w York, I J o l t , R i n e h n r t a n d W i n s t o n , 1 9 6 5 ) , p. 24.
 34.
to
farms a t t h i s timeLengage i n long-distance trading. Moreover,
i t was u s u a l l y d u r i n g t h i s p e r i o d t h a t p e o p l e c e l e b r a t e d t h e
festival
new yam and t h e r e f o r e o b s e r v e d a b s o l u t e p e a c e
L - t h e type
Okonkwo w a s p e n a l i z e d f o r breaking.' I t i s t h e r e f o r e wrong t o
a r g u e as J e f f r e y s had done t h a t t h e I g b o p e o p l e engaged i n
l i f e during
-
w 2 - s m e r e l y t o b r e a k t h e monotony o f / t h e d r y s e a s o n ; It is
n e e ' l e s s t o add t h a t Ohuhu p e o p l e ( a n d t h e I g b o , by e x t e n s i o n )
recognised t h a t lswar i s a l w a y s e v i l and s a n e l y c a n n e v e r be
c o n s i d e r e d o t h e r w i s e f l . 10
P.,s f o r t h e view t h a t p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu n e v e r f o u g h t
, ,, -s, t h e r e i s o n e p o s s i b l e e x p l a n a t i o n . Most o f t h e p e o p l e

k h o l d t h i s view went t h r o u g h t h e B i a f r n expcrimsn*,. They

i h e r e f o r e went t h r o u g h t h e e x p e r i e n c e o f a modern w a r f a r e -
- - - i % hmass k i l l i n g s , d e s t r u c t i o n and s t a r v a t i o n , t h a t go with

it. T h i s , c e r t a i n l y w a s t o o much t o b e compared w i t h w h a t e v e r

- : ~ f f e r i n g and d e s t r u c t i o n t h a t accompanied t h e wars t h e y and
- ~ ' ? e ipr e o p l e h i t h e r t o knew o f o r e x p e r i e n c e d , It is against
t h p background of t h i s s e n s e of bewilderment t h a t t h e s e
c l a l m s have t o be a s s e s s e d .
A m a j o r problem e n c o u n t e r e d by t h e p r e s e n t w r i t e r i n
d e t e r m i n i n g t h e c a u s e s o f wars i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu was t h e

i n a b i l i t y o f most i n f o r m a n t s t o i s o l a t e more t h a n o n e c a u s e f o r

go -
C h i n u a Achebe, T h i n ~ sF a l l A p a r t (London, Heinernann,
1 9 5 8 ) p P* 2 1
'0. Basil D a v i d s o n ; The P e o 9 l e s Cause:-A H i s t o r
~ u , e y r i l l n si n ~fE-~ondo?l, L o n g m i . 7.
 3%
t h e c o n f l i c t s t h e y r e f e r r e d to.. Most o f them were c o n t e n t e d
w i t h i d e n t i f y i n g what l o o k l i k e i m m e d i a t e c a u s e s w i t h o u t
making a n y r e f e r e n c e t o r e m o t e c a u s e s . Most o f t h e s e i m m e d i a t e
c a u s e s l o o k s o i n s i g n i f i c a n t t h a t c o n s i d e r e d a l o n e , o n e would
b e t e m p t e d t o a c c e p t t h e argument t h a t t h e I g b o p e o p l e went t o
wars a t t h e s l i g h t e s t p r o v o c a t i o n . The i m m e d i a t e c a u s e s
s h o u l d , however, be s e e n as t h e p r e c i p i t a t i n g e v e n t s , as t h e
p o i n t i n a c h a i n o f e v e n t s , t r e n d s and i n f l u e n c e s a t which t h e
e f f e c t o f a l o n g and simmering c o n f l i c t b e g i n s t o be v i s i b l e ,
Most of them do n o t t o d a y seem s t r o n g enough t o p r e c i p i t a t e
fighting. w h a t happened w a s t h a t ( i n most c a s e s )

they provided t h e s p m k t h a t i g n i t e d major c o n f l a g r a t i o n s t h a t

A d been s e e t h i n g f o r l o n g w i t h o u t b e i n g e f f e c t i v e l y r e s o l v e d .
Sor.~ew r i t e r s h a v e g i v e n i t as t h e i r view t h a t t h e d e s i r e
f o r s l a v e s w a s o n e o f t h e m a j o r c a u s e s o f wars i n p r e - c o l o n i a l
Africa. Turney-High o p i n e d t h a t " s e r i o u s f a r m i n g , a f o r t u n a t e
g e o g r a p h y and a t e e m i n g p o p u l a t i o n p r o d u c e d s l a v e r y and s l a v e r y
meant waru, " While i t i s p o s s i b l e t h a t t h e d e s i r e f o r c a p t i v e s
( n o t o n l y f o r s a l e as s l a v e s b u t a l s o f o r t h e b u r i a l o f k i n g s
+?
and o t h e r n o t a b l e s and f o r d e d i c a t i o n t o d e i t i e s as E) mu&
h a v e p l a y e d some p a r t i n m o t i v a t i n g p e o p l e i n t o g o i n g t o war,
i t cannot be rightly argued t h a t i t was i n d e e d a m a j o r c a u s e .

11. --
S e e R o b e r t S m i t h ; W a r f a r e and D i ~ ---l o m a c yi n
P r e - c o l o n i a l \ y e s t A f r i c a (London, ~ e t h u e c 1 9 7 6 )p, 45.

-x. Some c a p t i v e s were u s e d a s p o r t e r s who c a r r i e d palm

p r o d u c e t o T-kwc and o t h e r c o a s t a l m a r k e t s , f o r e x p o r t ,
T h i s was d u r i n g t h e e r n o f t h e s o - c a l l e d l e g i t i m a t e
trade.
 T i h e view t h a t most of t h e s l a v e s s o l d i n and around ohuhu

during t h e pre-colonial e r a came from 'Obow01'~ enjoys very wide

currency, According t o people who hold t h i s view, Obowo people

were very fond of s e l l i n g away t h e i r excess c h i l d r e n i n o r d e r t o

reduce t h e burden of c a r i n g f o r l a r g e f a m i l i e s , This practiBe,

this
according t o information c o l l e c t e d by L
researcher resulted

from t h e f a c t t h a t Obowo people were s h o r t of land and what

13
l i t t l e land they had was i n f e r t i l e . According t o ~ d i m o r aEjiogu

one of t h e reasons why Umuhu-na-Okaiuga people f l e d t h e Obowo a r e a

was t h e c o n s t a n t s c a r c i t y of food t h e r e . ~ h i n g s ,according t o

him, w e r e s o bad t h a t "'f you planted yams, another person went

14
and harvested some of it". 1t i s a l s o claimed t h a t p a r e n t s

who wanted t o sell t h e i r c h i l d r e n brought them t o t h e market

and s o l d them t o people who they were s u r e would n e i t h e r

m a l t r e a t nor s e l l them again, There would seem to be some

t r u t h i n t h e above argument because a p a r t from t h e Aro, 'Obowo'

people c o n s t i t u t e t h e g r e a t e s t number of s t r a n g e r s s e t t l e d i n

t h e ohuhu area, ~ o s tof t h e s e people ( o r t h e i r o f f - s p r i n g s )

s t i l l maintain e f f e c t i v e l i n k s with t h e i r o r i g i n a l f a m i l i e s .

I n Ohuhu, they a l s o enjoy f u l l c i t i z e n s h i p r i g h t s ,

12. The name Obowo i s a blanket term f o r t h e two r e l a t e d

groups of I s u and Obowo who a r e t h e Western neighbours
of ohuhu,

13. J.O. Ahazuem, Origin, Migration and Inter-group

Relations i n i?re-6&onxal Ohuhu (Unpublished B .ii.
Thesis, University of Nigeria Nsukka, 1975), p. 146.
 Ohuhu
Most o f t h e
LPeo l e who were s o l d t o Are s l a v e d e a l e r s
and many. o f whom l a t e r found thelilselves i n t h e New w o r l d w e r e
g u i l t y o f s u c h c r i m e s as r a p e , a d u l t e r y and t h e f t , Any woman
f o u n d w a n t i n g i n h e r d o m e s t i c o b l i g 2 t i o n s t o h e r husband a l s o
r a n t h e r i s k of b e i n g s o l d , T h e r e i s t h e s t o r y o f a woman
from Onhia and m a r r i e d a t Ehume who was s o l d t o Aro s l a v e
d e a l e r s b e c a u s e h e r husband found h e r g u i l t y o f 'carelessness91-'
A c c o r d i n g t o t h e s t o r y , t h e woman i n q u e s t i o n had gone t o t h e
b u s h t o c o l l e c t some f i r e w o o d where s h e w a s b e a t e n by a n a n t ; I

She i s s a i d t o have f a i l e d t o n o t i c e t h e a n t which l a t e r

d i e d l e a v i n g i t s head a t t a c h e d t o h e r body, The husband

i s s a i d t o h a v e n o t i c e d t h e dead a n t ' s head on t h e womanqs b o d y ,
I

t h e n e x t day, When h e found t h a t t h e woman had c a r r i e d t h e

a n t s head f o r more t h a n t w e n t y - f o u r h o u r s , the m a n ' s h u s b h
p r o m p t l y d e c i d e d t o s e l l her away.

The s e a l i n g o f p e o p l e ( e s p e c i a l l y m a r r i e d women) was o n e

o f t h e m a j o r c a u s e s o f c o n f l i c t s i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu. l'here

was a c o n v e n t i o n t h e n , t h ~ b~e tf o r e any man s o l d h i s w i f e , h e

had t o c o n s u l t h e r p e o p l e and c o n v i n c e them t h a t nha had
committed a n o f f e n c e f o r which e n s l a v e m e n t was a n a p p r o p r i a t e
penalty.. A s a precaution against abuse of t h i s oonasntiw- r
a man who s o l d h i s w i f e was e n t i t l e d t o r e c o v e r o n l y t h e b r i d e \
Wealth he p a i d on s u c h a woman, I n s o n e p l a c e s , p r o c e e d s from

15. I c h i e Adighimadu Ogbuehi - t r a d i t i o n a l medicineman

and h e r b a l i s t . I n t e r v i e w e d a t Ogbuehi ' s compound,
Umuoyime Ehurne -Unuopnra 5.4.83,
s u c h t r a n s a c t i o n was s h a r e d e q u a l l y between t h e man and h i s
inlaws. However, ninny p e o p l e s t i l l a b u s e d t h i s c o n v e n t i o n .
I n n p a r t i c u l a r c a s e , an Ehume rmn s o l d h i s w i f e w i t h o u t p r i o r
c o n s u l t a t i o n w i t h h i s i n l n w s and worse s t i l l , k e p t a11 t h e
p r o c e e d s o f t h e t r a n s n c t i c n t o h i m s e l f . His i n - l a w s ( f r o m
affront
O n h i a ) c o n s i d e r e d h i s a c t i o n an L and p r o c e e d e d t o
c c L p t u r e an Ehume wom2.n who p a s s e d t h r o u g h t h e i r v i l l a g e on
h e r way t o O r i e N t i g h a market. Ehumels a t t e m p t t o r e s c u e t h e
c a p t i v e l e d t o a s k i r m i s h i n which a p e r s o n was k i l l e d .
T h i s i n c i d e n t r a i s e d t h e c o n f l i c t from i t s small dimension t o
a n a l l - o u t war which l a s t e d many months and i n which many
p e o p l e were k i l l e d , 1 6
M a l t r e a t m e n t o f m a r r i e d d a u g h t e r s was a n o t h e r i s s u e t h a t
h e l p e d t o c a u s e c o n f l i c t s between c o n m n i t i e s i n p e - c o l o n i a l
Ohuhu. The most i n i : o r t a n t i s s u e i n t h i s r e g a r d '=the refusal
L
of peo1:le t o g r a n t t h e r e q u e s t by a dead wonants r e l a t i o n s t o
t a k e away h e r c o r p s e f o r b u r i a l among h e r a n c e s t o r s . I n many
p l a c e s r e f u s a l t o g r a n t such r e q u e s t s interpreted to
mean an a f f r o n t on t h e community s o r e f u s e d . Situations l i k e
t h i s , i f n o t h a n d l e d w i t h g r e a t t a c t o f t e n l e d t o open
conflict.

1 6 Mazi E. Ywanmuo, V i l l a ~ ee l d e r , i n t e r v i e w c d a t
Ywanmuo s compound, 1J1,iunnara Ehume Umuopara
8.45830
 Woman c o n t r i b u t e d i n c a u s i n g c o n f l i c t s between commu-
n i t i e s i n o t h e r ways. O f t e n t h e y f a i l e d t o heed w a r n i n g s by
t h e men n o t t o v i s i t o r p a s s t h r o u g h c o r n n u n i t i e s w i t h which
t h e i r s was n o t on t h e b e s t o f r e l a t i o n s . T h e r e w e e many ins-
tancem o f c a l - ~ t u r eand d e t e n t i o n o f women who f a i l e d t o heed
t h e s e warnings, A s we have a l r e a d y s e e n , t h e nttemlzt by
Ehume 1:eople t o f r e e o n e o f t h e i r w i v e s b e i n g h e l d c a p t i v e a t
Onhia w a s t h e immediate c2,use o f t h e o u t b r e a k o f h o s t i l i t i e s
between t h e two communities. Wonen a l s o c o n t r i b u t e d t o
c a u s i n g t e n s i o n between communities by making unguarded s t n t e - 1

ments. ,
A c c o r d i n g t o O h i e f Okoro 1 7 o n e o f t h e c n u a e s o f a
war between Amawonl and Amaoba ( b o t h i n ( .t?oro) was soltlc d e r o -
g a t o r y s t a t e m e n t made by an Amaoba woman at Nbaru market
i n Amrxwom.
I n f i d e l i t y on t h e p a r t o f women 2 l s o c o n t r i b u t e d i n
s t r a i n i n g r e l a t i o n s between communities i n p e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu.
T h i s c o u l d come a b o u t e i t h e r as a r e s u l t o f v i o l e n c e meted o u t
by a man on h i s w i f e f o r u n f a i t h f u l n e s s o r on a n o t h e r man f o r
f l i r t i n g with h i s wife, Some men a l s o r e s o r t e d t o v i o l e n c e
a g a i n s t o t h e r men whom t h e y s u s p e c t e d o f f l i r t i n g w i t h a widow
w i t h whom t h e y had o b t a i n e d p e r m i s s i o n t o c o n s o r t . In the
p a s t , i t was a common y r a c t i c e f o r a man t o makc known h i s
i n t e n t i o n o f m a i n t a i n i n g f a i r l y c l o s e r e l a t i o n s w i t h a widow.
P e r m i s s i o n t o do s o was o b t a i n e d e i t h e r frorc t h e f a m i l y o f t h e
dead husb,md o r t h a t o f t h e woman, Sone p e o l l e t o o k t o
------- -
-.--- -.- ---- .- -
-a

17. C h i e f R o b e r t Okoro, f o r m e r t r a d i t i o n a l r u l e r , i n t e r v i e w e d ;.'-

Amawom Oboro, 15.12.82.
v i o l e n c e i f t h e y f o u n d thatt n widow o v e r whom t h e y had

o b t a i n e d n e c e s s a r y P c l e , a r a n c e ~ t o c o n s o r t w i t h was f l i r t i n g
w i t h m o t h e r man, 18 Such v i o l e n c e o f t e n h e l y e d s t r a i n r e l a -
t i o n s b e t w e e n communities and i n many c a s e s s e r v e d as
i m m e d i a t e c a u s e s o f wars.

One o t h e r f a c t o r t h a t h e l p e d i n s t r a i n i n g r e l a t i o n s
between communities i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu w a s t h e s a l e o f
earlier
domestic s l a v e s , -
Though i t h a s been a r g u e d / t h c l t most o f t h e
s l a v e s s o l d i n t h e Ohuhu a r e a d u r i n g t h e p e - c o l o n i a l e r a came
from Gbowo, q u i t e n few were n a t i v e s o f Ohuhu. Most o f t h i s
c a t e g o r y o f s l a v e s were common c r i n i n n l s . PL few were peolple
whose p a r e n t s presented as c o l l a t e r n l s when t h e y
went t o borrow money o r when t h e y f a i l e d t o r e p a y d e b t s t h e y
owed. Such peofle were s u p p o s e d t o be k e p t as d o m e s t i c
servants u n t i l their a r c a b l e t o meet t h e i r o b l i g a t i o n s .
I n f o r m a t i o n c o l l e c t e d by t h e p r e s e n t r e s e a r c h e r shows t h c L t
t h e r e were i n s t a n c e s of p e o l > l e who e i t h e r o u t o f d i r e need o r
s h e e r wickedcess s o l d t h e s e domestic s e r v a n t s . lqany v i l l a g e s

a r e known t o have gone o u t t o c a y t u r e z ~ e o p l efrom t h e v i l l a g e

of a person g u i l t y o f t h i s offence. Situations like t h i s
o f t e n a c t e d as i m m e d i a t e c a u s e s o f h o s t i l i t i e s .

18. Mazi O k o r i e I g b u d u , v i l a g e e l d e r , i n t e r v i e w e d
a t Anuro mWi%, L4.12, +3 2-
 C a r e l e s s t a l k by men a l s o c o n t r i b u t e d causing
conflict between cor!imunities, The imixcdiate c a u s e of a war
t h a t e n g u l f e d Okopedi and Fldiwu b o t h i n Itumbuio, was a c a r e l e s s
s t 2 t e r l ~ e r i tmade by an NUm rmn. : ' ~ c c o r d i n gt o t h e s t o r y ,
o n e e v e n i n g , an Okopedi man a s k e d h i s f r i e n d from IJdiwo t o
e s c o r t him t o h i s pnlmwine p l a n t a t i o n t o c o l l e c t ' e v e n i n 2 w i n e P .
When b o t h men g o t t o t h e 1 , l a n t ~ t i o nt h e Okopedi man climbed ul:
w h i l e h i s Ndiwo f r i e n d w a i t e d on t h e s r o u n d f o r him. The
a
Ndiwo rmn i s s a i d t o have mnde/derogatory s t n t c n e n t nbout
Okoyedi ( w h i l e c o n v e r s i n g w i t h h i s f r i e n d who had c l i m b e d
~ 1 : ) ~O t~h e~r Okopedi
- p c o r l e who w s r e a r o u n d and o v e r h e a r d t h e
c o n v e r s a t i o n were e n r a g e d a t t h e s t a t e n e n t made by t h e Ndiwo
I
man, They a r e s a i d t o have b e a t e n up and t a k e n h i n p r i s o n e r ,
A t t e m p t s by Rdiwo t o f r e e t h e c a p t i v e l e d t o 2~ major
conflagration.
I

A n o t h e r example o f a war t r i g g e r e d - o f f by r e a c t i o n s t o

c a r e l e s s t a l k was one between Ehume and Umunwanwa, It is said

t h a t d u r i n g a market s e s s i o n a t Nkwo Ozu i n lJlilunl~~anwz!,an
Ehurne Dan c a l l e d Ugwu Onerekpo, d e s c r i b e d Urmnwanwa p e o p l e as
nm

-.-
Lbuba .ju e k e t e a g b a g h i ar.uLU ( i , e . w o r t h l e s s -i:cople). Umunwn-
/
nwn p e o ~ l owho were n a t u r a l l y unpaged a t t h i s c a r e l o s s s t n t e m c n t , (

19. @ze Chima Ndom -

t h e I b o t o 111 o f Iturnbuzo.
Interviewed a t h i s O n ~ nI b o t o p l a c e 4.12.82.
20, N a z i I b e l e c h e O h n e r i ; Ex customary c o u r t judge,
i n t e r v i e w e d a t O h a e r i s compound Wgodo
Umunwanwa - lJrliuopnra 5.4.83.
g o t h o l d o f t h e man t i e d him t o I: t r e e and p o u r e d u r i n e and
f a e c e s o v e r h i s body. When h e was f r e e d , he o r g a n i z e d h i s
p e o p l e f o r a n a t t a c k on Ununwmv,m.
some ti-mea.
Pmrkct s and m a r k e t p l a c e s were a l s c sources
L
of d i s p u t e s between c o m m u n i t i e s i n 1:re--colcnial Ohuhu.

Among Ohuhu p e o g l e , t h e m a r k e t p l a c e s e r v e d n o t o n l y as a
1:lace f o r economic exchan/;c b u t n l s o as a c e n t r e f o r s o c i d
i n t e r a c t i o n as w e l l as venue f o r t h e c e l e b r a t i o n o f i m p o r t n n t
f e s t i v a l s s u c h a s Ekl.,e ( i n ~ i x u o p a r a ) (i.11 I b e k u ) , and
$,,jana ( i n Umuhu-na-Okaiuga). The m a r k e t a l s o h o u s e d i r n j ~ o r t n n t
d e i t i e s of t h e l a n d e s p e c i a l l y t h o s e of t h e market.
Another f a c t o r t h a t x . d e t h e m a r k e t p l a c e a v e r y
i m p o r t a n t c e n t r e i n p r e - c o l o n i z l Ohuhu was t h e p r e s t i g e which
I
a. community t h a t had n b i g n a r k e t e n j o y e d . Euch c o m m u n i t i e s

as Bende, ,",rim, Ndoro, Ezelelre and O k a i u g a that hc?d w i d e l y

famed m a r k e t s were deemed v e r y p r o s p e r o u s . The p r e s t i g e
a t t a c h e d t o owing m a r k e t s can be s e e n from t h e f a c t t h a t most
c o m m u n i t i e s t o o k important s t e p s t o r n a i n t n i n t h e l,enceg of

t h e market; !!It i s t h e f u n c t i o r o f t h e v i l l q e - g r o u p where

t h e mmket i s s i t u a t e d t o niaintzlin t h e F e n c e o f t h e m2rkot
t h u s a s s u r i n g t h e s a f e t y of t h e t r a d e r s u . ~ i a n yc o m m u n i t i e s
even went as f a r as eniploying t h e s e r v i c e s o f rain-riinkers who
l a b o u r e d t o e n s u r e t h a t r a i n n e v e r d i s t u r b e d 1.eople who
v i s i t e d t h e i r markets, ';There was o f t e n t h e m a r k e t d e i t y
w i t h an e s t a b l i s h e d r e p u t a t i o n f o r k i l l i n g undetectecl
t h i e v e s v 1 22
,
I t w a s m a i n l y as a r c s u l t o f t h e h i g h ~ r e n i u mp l a c e d
on m a r k e t s and m a r k e t p l x e s t h a t many c o m m u n i t i e s i n p r e -
c o l o n i a l Ohuhu o f t e n went t o war t o d e f e n d t h e i r c l a i m s t o
markets, A good example o f t h i s t y p e o f c o n f l i c t i s that w h i c h
a r o s e b e t w e e n Umuajaneze a n d Umuabali o v e r t h e i r connon market.
Sometime l a t e i n t h e n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y , U n u a b a l i v i l l a g e l e d
by C h i e f A t u l o n a i n i t i a t e d n o v e s t o s h i f t t h e m a r k e t from i t s
l o c a t i o n a t Eke Udi t o n more c e n t r a l p l a c c .23 This

&tempt l e d t o t h e e s t a b l i s h m e n t o f Nkwo Own by Fmezue o f

Umuajameze and Nkwo t i y a r a by I L t u l o n a , B o t h m a r k e t s h e l d on
Nkwo d a y s as d i d t h e o r i g i n 2 1 m a r k e t , T e n s i o n b e t w e e n t h e two
v i l l a g e s r e a c h e d a c r i s i s p o i n t when Unuajameze t o o k s t e p s t o
p r e v e n t Obowo and X k e n o b i z i p o p l e from a t t e n d i n g Ukwo 'LW~.
T h i s was made p o s s i b l e by t h e f a c t th2.t Obowo a n d E k e n o b i z i
p e o p l e n u s t pass t h r o u g h Umuajameze b e f o r e r e a c h i n g Nkwo Ayara.
Umuabali d i d same t o I b e k u a n d Umuhu-nn--Okaiuga p e o p l e who
i n t e n d e d t o p a s s t h r o u g h h e r t e r r i t o r y t o Nkwo Ows, Violence
e v e n t u a l l y e r u p t e d i n which rnmy p e o p l e i n c l u d i n g o n e Uhegwu o f

23, G i l b e r t Nwaubani
elder - - e x - c o u n c i l l o r and v i P l a g e
i n t e r v i e w e d a t fdwnubcmi cor,~pound,
Urnuajnmeze-Urnuopara 14.12.82.
Umuajaneze, were wounded. This tense situation w a s
t e m p o r a r i l y d e f u s e d as a r e s u l t o f B r i t i s h i n t e r v e n t i o n i n
t h e area early i n t h i s century . 24
Roth s i d e s r e s o r t e d t o v i o l e n c e soon a f t e r B r i t i s h
occupation of t h e area, S e t t l e m e n t was however a c h i e v e d by
one of t h e B r i t i s h c o l o n i a l a d m i n i s t r a t o r s - 1;'rank H i v e s
(nicknamed O g b a j i n k n by t h e l o c a l p e o p l B ~ 8 f U ~ hf sn b y h a n d s ) .

Finding himself a t 3. l o s s i n understandinc t h e i s s u e s involved

i n t h e d i s p u t e , H i v e s t o o k what ~ ~ p p c a r etdo be t h e e a s i e s t way
out. He measured t h e d i s t a n c e l ~ e t w e e nNkwo Ayara a n d TTkwo Qvir-2
an ti midway between t h e two he founded a now m a r k e t which he
L
c a l l e d ?!kwo Oha - (Ykwo 1mrkt.t f o r a l l ) ,
Disputes arAsing from m a r k e t s x l s o s p a r k e d - o f f a war
between Obuohia on t h e one h m d and a11 t h e o t h c r s e c t i o n s o f
I b e r e on t h e o t h e r , The main c a u s e o f t h i s c o n f l i c t a c c o r d i n g
t o s o u r c e s , was t h e a t t e m p t by Obuohia t o e l e v a t e h e r m a r k e t
t o a p o s i t i o n of p r e c e d e n c e o v e r A
-- h i a O r i e m a r k e t owned

by t h e e n t i r e I b o r e ~ o r n r m n i t ~ Thc
. ~ ~o t h e r s e c t i o n s o f I b e r e

s a ~ rt h i s a t t e m p t as u n f a i r c o m p e t i t i o n 2nd t o o k s t e p s t o prcvenk
p e o p l e from a t t e n d i n g t h e m a r k e t any day i t h e l d . Obuohiavs
r e a c t i o n was t o go t o n c i g h b o u r i n g c o n m u n i t i e s t o g i v e s a f e
c o n d u c t t o i3eople who i n t e n d c d t o a t t e n d h e r rnarkct - espe-
\

c i a l l y t h e Aro, D u r i n g one s u c h ' s a f e t y r i d e s ' a convoy o f

25, Mazi Nwclbuisi Okoro -

village elder,
i n t e r v i e w e d a t Ngwugwuo I b e r e 15.12.82,.
 45.
t r a d e r s a n d t h e i r O b u o h i a g u i d e s were ambushed a n d a t t a c k e d
by p e o p l e from o t h e r I b e r e v i l l a g e s , T h i s l e d t o a war i n
which O b u o h i a was d e f e a t e d and h e r m a r k e t removed.
Many c o m m u n i t i e s i n Ohuhu a l s o went t o war i n t h e p a s t
e i t h e r t o advance t h e c l a i m s o f a r i c h o r n o t a b l e person o r
i n d e f e n c e o f such p e r s o n ( s ) . While Plazi O h a c r i l s26 a s s e r -
t i o n t h a t r i c h and i n f l u e n t i a l men a l w a y s d e t e r m i n e d t h e t y p e
o f r e l a t i o n s h i p t h a t e x i s t e d between t h e i r conmunity a n J
o t h e r s may b e r e g a r d e d as e x t r e m e , i t i s however t r u e t o s a y
t h a t i n t h e p a s t many c o m l m n i t i e s d i d go t o war p x t i a l l y t o
advance t h e cause of i n f l u e n t i a l people, This i s not t o
s u b t r a c t from t h e f a c t t h n t wars a r e , g e n e r a l l y s p e a k i n g , a away
o f f u r t h e r i n g group i n t e r e s t through t h e u s e of f o r c e , It
d o e s however i n d i c a t e t h n t t h e r e was s o much g r o u p f e e l i n g
among t h e p e o p l e t h n t t h e y w e r e p r e p a r e d t o go t o war j u s t t o
d e f e n d t h e i n t e r e s t o f tx~. I n d i v i d u & . .
Examples abound of c o n f l i c t s t h a t r e s u l t e d from

a t t e m p t s by c o m m u n i t i e s t o a d v a n c e t h e c l a i m o f totables,
Osaa f o r i n s t a n c e , was f o r many months locked. i n bloodycornbat
w i t h Owa,, a r e s u l t of rough t r e a t m e n t s h e gave t o cmissa-
L
r i e s s e n t by o n e Akoma O r i a k u t o r e c o v e r a d c b t o f t w s l u a
N k ~ o l aowed shim by nn O W man. I n s t e a d of being paid, t h e
e m i s s a r i e s w e r e b c n t e n u p a n d t o l d t o go hoqe, !'Feeling t h u s

Nazi I b e l e c h e O h a e r i c i t e , d ,
a f f r o n t e d and i n s u l t e d by Osaa p e o p l e , t h e Onhia p e o p l e
27
d e c l a r e d war on t h e Osaa p e o p l e and i n v a d e d t h c i r h0n1e.s~~.
There were o t h e r u n d e r l y i n g c a u s e s o f t e n s i o n between
t h e two c o m m u n i t i e s t h e most i m p o r t a n t o f which was t h e
r e f u s a l by Onhia p e o p l e t o r e t u r n t h e l a n d which they had
r e c e i v e d from Osaa p e o p l e f o r s e t t l e m e n t a f t e r t h e y ( O n h i a
~ e o p l e )a n d o t h e r I s i n g w u p c o p l e were e x p e l l e d from t h e i r

f o r m e r l o c a t i o n a t Okpu Isingviu, There w a s a l s o t h e s e e t h i n g

t e n s i o n c a u s e d by a t t e m p t s by O n h i a p e o p l e t o h k e o v e r t h e I

l a n d on which Ogwumabiri Nkwo Osaa i s p r e s e n t l y l o c a t e d . Thc

m a l t r e a t m e n t of Mnzi Akona's e m i s s a r i e s o n l y exploded

t e n s i o n t h a t had b u i l t up o v e r o t h e r i s s u e s , 28
The r o l e p l a y e d by Umuajnneze i n mitiah occupation of
p a r t s o f Ohuhu i s a n o t h e r example o f cases where t h e i n t e r e s t
of o n e man p l u n g e d a whole community i n t o war, Sometime i n t h c
l a t e n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y , Nwnubnnl Ogogo, a s u c c e s s f u l l o n g -
d i s t a n c e t r a d e r was f o r c i b l y d i v o r c e d o f o n e o f h i s w i v e s -
Lda Omelihu, She was g i v e n i n m a r r i a g e t o a n o t h e r man -
Nwosu O y i r i d i - of Unuckwule f l f u g i r i , TJwnubani w a s s t i l l
b r o o d i n g o v e r t h e l o s s o f h i s w i f e when t h e B r i t i s h intervened
i n Umuopara and made him o n e o f t h e i r a i d e s , One o f t h e f i r s t
t h i n g s Nwaubani d i d i n h i s new p o s i t i o n was t o c o n v i n c e t h e
B r i t i s h t h a t t h e r c e x i s t e d i n Umuegwu ( t h e home o f h i s f o r m e r
in-laws), a d e i t y t h a t was 2s s t r o n g and d a n g e r o u s as t h e
-"---.-L- -
27, J.O. Lhazuen~, op. c i t , p, 39.
28. Mabel 0. Ukagwu, f ~ s ~ e c ot fs t h e P r e - c o l o n i a l
H i s t o r y o f I b e k u .(UnFublished R.1. H i s t o r y T h e s i s ,
U n i v e r s i t y of N i g e r i a , Nsukka, 1 9 7 8 ) , p. 64.
d r e a d e d ILi-ni TTkpabi o f Arochukwu. The B r i t i s h who a r e s a i d
t o have g o t i n s t a n t l y i n t e r e s t e d i n t h c v c n t u r e o f d c s t r o y i n g
the evil deity - )TJoku Uk=, g a v e Nwaubani t h e go-ahead t.o
o r g n n i s e h i s p e o p l e f o r a n a s s a u l t on Umuegwu w h i l e t h e y , t h e
B r i t i s h . p r o v i d e d him w i t h l o g i s t i c s u p p o r t . Nwaubani a n d hi^
men a t t a c k e d Uriuegwu u n e x p e c t e d l y a t n i g h t . ,lf o r m e r i n l a w o d
and
Nwaubani Ogogo, U o ~ n a b a ,b ~r o t h e r o f h i s d i v o r c c d w i f c were
t o r t u r e d and k i l l e d w i t h s h a r p s t a k e s pushed through t h e i r
n o s t r i l s , 29
R e f u s a l by p e o p l e t o k i l l n p e r s o n i n a t o n c m c n t f o r
h i s k i l l i n g o f a n o t h e r p e r s o n o f t e n r e s u l t e d t o wars. '.ccord-.
i n g t o Mnzi ~ k e o ~ u , t~h 'i s was a b o u t t h e most i m p o r t a n t c n u s r
I
of wars i n p r e - c o l o n i a l I b e r e , A c c o r d i n g t o him, i t was I

c u s t o m a r y f o r a p e r s o n who k i l l e d a n o t h e r even a c c i d e n t a l l y r
t o be s u r r e n d o r e d t o r e l a t i o n s o f h i s v i c t i m , t o b c k i l l e d .
I n t h e a l t e r n a t i v e , a c u l p r i t could o p t t o perform very

expensive c l e a n s i n g r i t e s t o a t o n e f o r h t 8 crime, Many cormv-

n i t i e s i n I b e r e , a c c o r d i n g t o Mazi I k e o g u , o f t e n r e s o r t e d t o
violence against people frov t h e villa-ge of a c u l p r i t i f
r e l a t i o n s o f n c u l p r i t r e f u s e d t o s u r r e n d e r him e i t h e r t o be
i
k i l l e d o r f o r s a f e-keeping u n t i l c l e a n s i n g r i t e werc parfori?crl

29, J.0, Ahazuem, p j , c i t . p a 78.

30. Mazi Jombo I k e o g u - v i l l a g e e l d e r - i n t e r v i e w e d
a t I k e o g u ' s compound I h i m - I b e r e 14.12.02.
 By f a r t h e s i n g l e most i1:iportant f a c t o r t h a t d e t e r -
mined t h e s t a t e o f r e l a t i o n s h i p between c o m n u n i t i e s i n p r e -
c o l o n i a l Ohuhu was l a n d , I n d i c a t i o n s from t h e f i e l d w o r k o f
the present writer a r e thnt land o r land-related issues l a y
a t t h e h e a r t o f most i f n o t a l l c o n f l i c t s t h a t o c c u r r e d i n
p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu. The i m p o r t a n c e o f l a n d t o t h e I g b o
p e o p l e c a n h a r d l y h e over-emphasised. Being l a r g e l y a g r i c u l -
t u r a l , t h e p e o p l e t r e a s u r e d lancl' as t h e i r g r e a t e s t h e r i t a g e I

T h i s s e n s e o f a t t a c h m e n t was a l s o
and s o u r c e o f s u s t a i n m c e ,
spirit
extended t o t h e l a n d deity-Ala, -
!'The world comprised a
L
h e i r a c h y o f gods; t h e most i m p o r t a n t was perhaps t h e god o f t h c
land - small
t h e u n s e e n p r e s i d e n t o f t h e ~ l o c a l i z e dcommunity. 31
I t was m a i n l y due t o t h i s c o n n e x i o n t h a t most p e o p l e i
f e l t i t was t h e i r s a c r e d . d u t y t o r i s e u p i n arms a g a i n s t any
p e r s o n o r g r o u p o f p e r s o n s s e e n o r t h o u g h t t o b e i n f r i n g i n g ,.
t h e p e o p l e r s most v a l u a b l e h e r i t a g e - land, There w a s o f t e n

t h e b e l i e f t h a t w i t h t h e h e l p of t h e gods e s p e c i a l l y t h e e a r t h

g o d d e s s , v i c t o r y would be a c h i e v e d , T h i s a t t i t u d e , i t c a n be
s a i d , a c c o u n t s f o r t h e f a c t t h n t w h i l e most c o n f l i c t s r e s u l t -
i n g from l a n d were c a u s e d by i n j u r y s u f f e r e d by a small g r o u p ,
t h e y o f t e n e n g u l f e d t h e i r e n t i r e community,
Ylnrs r e s u l t i n g from l a n d and l a n d - r e l a t e d i s s u e s can \

b e d i v i d e d i n t o two b r o a d c a t e g o r i e s - those fought over

settlement . l a n d a t d t h o s e f o u g h t f o r farm l a n d . Generally

31. J.C., Anene, S o u t h e r n N i g e r i a i n T r a n s i t i o n

(London, C.Uep, 1 9 6 6 ) , p.. 13.
spe&ing, t h e former t y p e o f c o n f l i c t o c c u r e d much e a r l i e r
than the l a t t e r . From what i s p r e s e n t l y known a b o u t t h e
4

h i s t o r y o f t h c Ohuhu n r c a , f o u n d e r s / n n c c s t o r s o f n o s t o f
t h e e x i s t i n g c o m m u n i t i e s c'me t o t h e i r p r e s e n t l o c 2 t i o n s v i a
migrations
d i f f e r e n t waves o f m i g r a t i o n . Most o f t h e s e 1 ernan?.-
t e d from p l a c e s w e s t o f t h e p r e s e n t Ohuhu a r e a . '3 Groups
s u c h as I b e k u , Umuol;ara, U b n k d a and O l o k o r o , t h a t a r r i v e d
e a r l i e r o c c u p i e d most o f t h e l a n d f o r c i n g t h e f ! l a t e c o r n e r s f F
s u c h as t h e Umuhu n a Okaiuga t o e i t h e r f i g h t o r beg f o r
most o f t h e l a n d t h e y now occupy.
The h i s t o r y o f s u c h 1 1 3 t e c o r n e r s ' i s r e p l e t e w i t h
s t o r i e s o f wars f o u g h t m a i n l y f o r s e t t l e m e n t l a n d , FL typical
example o f t h i s i s Unuhu n a - O k a i u g n who x - e s a i d t o have I

a r r i v e d a f t e r most o f t h e i r present ~ e 1 , g h b o u r s . ~ OCCUT:IL[A

C
most o f t h e l a n d . F i r s t , t h e y , t h e Umuhu na-0k::iuga had t o
f i g h t and e x p e l o b a n u - l b e k u p e o p l e from their former l o c a t i o n

t w e v . They a l s o had a p r o l o n g e d war w i t h T T l - q x L

pcoplc,ogu nshii - which r e s u l t e d i n t h e s i e z u r e by t h e
f o r m e r (Umuhu n a Okniuga) o f t h e l n n d e x t e n d i n g t o t h e ~ o u t h
o f t h e N s h i i s t r e a m i n t h e I k p o t o area ,33 They a l s o s i e z e d

32.. A,$, A f i g b o , Ropes o f -CeL --

'- ~ .-n:-d S. t u d-i e s i n J
H i s t o r y and-C,-u~ture (Ibadrxn, U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s
I

pp* 1 2 -
m ' n i v e r s i t y o f N i g e r i a P r e s s L t d . , 1901.),
13,
33. Ndudim E. Esobe: A P r e - c o l--......-
._---.-- o f -Ohuhu
o n i a l I I i s t o r - -. - -..
C l a n , ( U n p u b l i s h e d T3.A. H i s t o r y T h e s i s , ~ n i v c r s n y
m i g e r i a Nsukka, 1973), p. 29.
s e t t l e m e n t l a n d from t h e Eziugwu-na-bnura people and t h e
Ekwuru p e o p l e b o t h o f Nkpa, Unuakwu ( a n Fgwa v i l l a g e ) a l s o
fought a t i t a n i c b a t t l e a g a i n s t A z u i y i 2nd Usalra p e o p l e
i n t h e a t t e m p t t o e x c i s e t h e small p i e c e o f l a n d t h e y now
occupy from A z u i y i and Usaka p e o i ~ l e . Urnuakwu i s s a i d t o h a v e

been s o d e j p e r a t e l y i n need o f t h e l a n d and f o u g h t s o b i t t e r l v

f o r i t t h a t a t a p o i n t A z u i y i and Usaka had t o c o n c e d e them

some, 34
I n many c a s e s , l n t e c o m e r s who were p e a c e f u l l y r e c e i v e d
and g i v e n s e t t l e m e n t and o r f a r m l a n d by t h e i r h o s t s f e l l o u t
w i t h them. C o n f l i c t s o f t e n b e g m when t h e l n t e c o m e r s s t a r t e d
t o assume permanent r i g h t s o v e r t h e l a n d o r when t h e h o s t s
began t o impose new c o n d i t i o n s and r e s t r i c t i o n s on them. Such
s i t u a t i o n s were made even more conimon and v o l a t i l e by khe f ~ i c ,
t h a t i n most c a s e s , t h c r e were no :Landmarks s u c h a s s t r e a m s ,
r i v e r s , e t c , t o d e m a r c a t e o n e comir~unity from t h e o t h e r , The
r e m o t e c a u s e o f t h e war between Osaa and O n h i a , f o r exaiiiple,
w a s d i s a g r e e m e n t between t h e two o v c r t h e e x t e n t o f l a n d Osac.,
U b n k a l a' Umuopara p e o p l e g a v e Onhin f o r s e t t l e m e n t a f t e r
t h e y and o t h e r I s i n g w u p e o p l e were e x p e l l e d frcm &&u_-Jg-ig~wu.
C o n f l i c t s r e s u l t i n g from u s e o f f a r l n l a n d s began t o
c l e n i f e s t nu'ch l a t e r t h a n t h o s e o v e r s e t t l e m e n t l a n d . This
category c o n f l i c t s r e s u l t e d m a i n l y from two i n t e r - r e l a t e d
factors. F i r s t , was t h e i n f e r t i l i t y o f t h e l a n d i n many p a r t s

34, Mazi A. U k a l i k e , Former c u s t o m a r y c o u r t judge

i n t e r v i e w e d a t U k a l i k e v s compound A z u i y i Oloko
-
10.4e83.
o f Ohuhu. T h i s p a u c i t y o f p a r t s o f t h e l a n d encouraged
p e o p l e t o e n g a g e i n g r a v e s t r u g ~ l e sf o r t h e few f e r t i l e c are as,
S e c o n d l y , t h e r e was t h e h i g h p r e n i u m which t h e p e o p l e p l a c e d
on a g r i c u l t u r e . \.Vhile t r a d i n g , c r a f t s - m k i n g a n d wine- t a p p i n g
w e r e a11 r e s p e c t e d v o c a t i o n s , f a r m i n g t o w e r e d above a l l o f

them. Ils Uchendu h a s s t a t e d ' : t o r e m i n d zn Igbc t h a t h e :is

O r i mgbe------
a h i a l o r o f'one who e a t s when t h e m a r k e t h o l d s ' i s t o
h u m i l i a t e him' .35 The t y p e o f a g r i c u l t u r e ( r o t a t i o n a l b u s h
f a l l o w ) p r a c t i s e d i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu a l s o c o n t r i b u t e d i n
generating c o n f l i c t s over land. T h i s s y s t e m r e q u i r e d a n allilosf
l i m i t l e s s supply of l a n d t o be very e f f e c t i v e , This type of
c o n d i t i o n c o u l d n o t b c met by t h e a r e a d u e t o c e r t a i n p e c u l i a r
f a c t o r s o f geography and p o p u l a t i o n i n c r e a s e . F a c e d w i t h this
1
h a n d i c a p , g r o u p s r e s o r t e d t o u s e o f f o r c e i n t h a~t t e i i i p t t o
a c q u i r e a n d k e e p as much o f t h e a r a b l e l a n d a s p o s s i b l e .
Wars f o u g h t i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu o v c r f a r m l a n d s incluc\
t h a t b e t w e e n Obanu a n d E~nede ( b o t h i n Tbeku) o v e r a p i e c e o f

l a n d known as Ala Uzuzu. O h i a o c h a a n d Ehume ( b o t h i n Unuopara)

w e r e f o r many y e a r s l o c k e d i n d c a d l y s t r u g g l e o v e r 2. p i e c e of
l a n d known a s Azij-. A
- Ariarn F l u - T l u a l s o f o u g h t Pkwelu ( i n
XJsaka) f o r many y e a r s a s a r e s u l t o f d i s a g r e e m e n t o v c r t h e
b o u n d a r y o f . t h e i r common f a r m l a n d ,

35. V.C. Uchendu, op. c i t . , p. 27.

 52,
C.HXFTER THREE
SYSTEI\lS OF b'X?FA'L?EI N FP&--COLON1 AL OHUHJ

?Ls must have become c l e a r from t h e precc3db.ng

c h a p t e r , t o p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu p e o p l e fi:;hting o f wars

was r e s a r d e d a s a l a s t r e s o r t i n inter-coininunity d i s p u t e s . ,
B e f o r e t a k i n g t o arms, g r o u p s u s u a l l y e x p l o r e d a n d exhaus-
t e d a l l a v e n u e s 2nd p o s s i l j i l i t i c s of a m i c a l ~ l cs e t t l e m e n t o f
$ssuea i n dispute, T h e q e n c i e s t h r o u s h which m i c a b l e
settlement ms u s u a l l y a t t e m p t e d i n c l u d e d n o i ~ h l ~ o u rand
s
o r g r o u p s of i n d i v i d u a l s r e l a t e d t o any o r b o t h p a r t i e s t o
a dispute. O f t e n , n e i c h l ~ o u r swho d i d n o t Iinve any ' c l o s e
r e l a t i o n s h i p w i t h any c r b o t h p a r t i e s t o a d i s p u t e i n t e r - I
vened t o p r e v e n t n a t a l l y r e l a t e d g r o u p s from fzoin; t o war, I

T h i s happened as r e c e n t l y as 1934 d u r i n g t h e Umudn - :mafor

a f f r a y (1:oth v i l l a g e s b e l o n g t o t h e I s i n g w u v i l l a p - g r o u p
of Umuhu-na-Okaiuga clan). Umuagu ( a v i l l a g e i n n e i ~ h b o u r -
i n g I b e k u c l a n ) made f r a n t i c e f f o r t s t o p r e v e n t Unuda and
Amafor from g o i n g t o war, "It w2.s a l s o arranged t h a t t h e
s u r r o u n d i n g I b e k u towns s h o u l d c a l l t h e d i s p u t i n s tovms
t o e e t h e r and a r r i v e a t a s e t t l e m e n t " . ' Urnungu-Ibeku d i d
i n f a c t t r y t h e c a s e and r e t u r n e d a v e r d i c t t h a t Umuda wgs
a t f a u l t i n making a r o a d t h r o u g h t h e l a n d i n d i s p ~ t % ,

1. liUi?luda-!~mafor A f f r a y , Bende D i v i s i o n i ; F i l e No,

0U 2321 Umprof 5/1/16 p a r a 45 N a t i o n a l
A r c h i v e s Enugu.
She (Umuagu-Ibeku) was s o i n t e r e s t e d i n p r e v e n t i n g blood-
shed between Umuda and Lmafor t h a t n i n e p e o p l e from t h e
v i l l a s e (Umuagu) went as f a r a s s v ~ e a r i n ~t go an o a t h t h a t
t h e l a n d i n d i s p u t e b e l o n c e d t o Urnucgu b u t th?.t i t was
g i v e n t o Amafor on t r u s t a 2
O f t e n , i t was o n l y when m e d i a t i o n from g r o u p s
( e s p e c i a l l y n e i g h b o u r s ) f a i l e d o r was overtalreri by e v e n t s
( s u c h as t h e m o l e s t a t i o n o f p e o p l e from one p o u p b y t h o s e
from a n o t h e r ) t h a t r e s o r t t o f i d h t i n c becLme i n e v i t a b l e .
I n f a c t s o much w a s t h e b e l i e f t h a t p e a c e f u l s e t t l e m e n t
was s t i l l p o s s i b l e even a t t h e e l e v e n t h h o u r t h c L t a g r o u p
i n t e n d i n s t o t a k e o f f e n s i v e a c t i o n q a i n s t a n o t h e r would (

u s u a l l y make a d e c l a r a t i o n o f war a g a i n s t her. ':The enemy I

had t h e o p t i o n o f s u i n g f o r peace o r p r e p a r i n s f o r w a r . rs3

T h i s p r a c t i c e o f makins an open d e c l a r a t i o n o f war - &u&mu.-
w a s observed well i n t o t h i s century. During t h e Umuda-
iimafor a f f r a y ( a l r e a d y r e f e r r e d t o ),U~iiuda p e o p l e , a f t e r t a k i n z
up p o s i t i o n on t h e p i e c e o f l a n d i n d i s p u t e , s e n t a message .

t o Amafor p e o p l e c h a l l e n g i n g them t o e i t h e r come f o r a

fight o r relinquish a l l claims t o tha land i n disputeO4 It
i s important t o remark t h a t fitu ornu w a s not universally
- P -
2, Ibid,

I k e n n a Nzimiro, I b o P o l i t i c & Systems:-,-Studies i n --

C h i e f t a i n c y a n d p o l i t i c s i n F o u r Nir;er I& S t a t e ?
(London, F r a n k Cass, 1 9 7 ' 2 T x . 1 3 4 .
4. Umuda-Amafor A f f r a y op, c i t , p a r a 48,
p r a c t i c e d i n Ohuhu, I n some c a s e s , p e o p l e r e s o r t e d t o
suprise a t t a c k as a means o f s h o c k i n g t h e i r o p p o n e n t s i n t o
makin3 c o n c e s s i o n s , Some communities t h a t were termed weak
mounted s u p r i s e a t t a c k s on r e p u t e d l y s t r o n g e r o n e s j u s t t o
d e m o n s t r a t e t h a t t h e y were n o t s o weak and a l s o t o show
t h a t t h e 4 s t r o n g l community was n o t i n v i n c i b l e , 5
Once r e l a t i o n s between a community and a n o t h e r
d e t e r i o r a t e d t o n p o i n t where t h e p o s s i b i l i t y of either an
o f f e n s i v e war o r a d e f e n s i v e one becane h i g h , p e o p l e i n
s u c h community were p l a c e d on what c o u l d be c a l l e d a s t a t e
of emergency, T h i s p e r i o d was u s u a l l y u t i l i z e d f o r t h e
m o b i l i z a t i o n o f b o t h men and m a t e r i a l s , During such times,
p e o p l e n e v e r v e n t u r e d t o o f a r from t h e s a f e t y of t h e i r homes
w i t h o u t t a k i n g a d e q u a t e p r e c a u t i o n a r y measures, Precautions
t a k e n a t t h i s t i m e i n c l u d e d c i v i n g o f armed e s c o r t s t o
women and c h i l d r e n s o i n g t o m a r k e t s , farrns,and s t r e a m s .
T h i s type of precaution resembles t h a t u s u a l l y taken i n
E q u i a n o t s d a y s when, f o r f e a r o f s u p r i s e a t t a c k , p e o p l e went
t o t h e i r f a r m s i n g r o u p s , armed and r e a d y t o f a c e any
challenger, D m i n g t i m e s o f emergency, l i t t l e c h i l d r e n
were h e r d e d t o g e t h e r a t a p l a c e where t h e y were s u n r d e d ,

5. ! h e ChimaNdom - t h e I b o t o I11 of Itumbuzo,

I n t e r v i e w e d a t h i s Onun I b o t o p a l a c e , Ituribuzo
4.12.82.
 55.

V i g i l a n t e groups a t such times k e p t v i g i l over t h e community a t n i g h t .

Men moved about a t t h i s t i m e armed and ready t o c h a l l e n g e any person

who molested them,

It should be noted t h a t t h e precautionary measures l i s t e d above

were u s u a l l y taken by both communities i n t e n d i n g t o t a k e o f f e n s i v e

a c t i o n and those a n t i c i p a t i n g enemy a t t a c k . For t h o s e i n t e n d i n g t o

t a k e o f f e n s i v e a c t i o n , such p r e c a u t i o n s were deemed necessary because

of t h e f e a r t h a t t h e enemy could c a r r y o u t pre-emptive s t r i k e s . These

measures w e r e however, n a t u r a l f o r people a n t i c i p a t i n g i n v a s i o n s

because t o do otherwise would g i v e t h e enemy o p p o r t u n i t y t o r o u t them

7
i n t h e i r homes,

It was probably s i t u a t i o n s such as t h i s t h a t u s u a l l y e x i s t e d during s

8 9
s t a t e - o f emergency t h a t Basden .and o t t e n b e r g misconceived as reprctsenta-

tive o f - t h e ~ ~ ~ %
s t a~t a
e lo f affairs i n t h e Ighu a r e a . Basden for.example

It would however be wrong t o say t h a t it was o n l y i n times of a c t u a l

wars o r t h r e a t s of wars t h a t t h e defensive arrangements l i s t e d above
were made, Communities surrounded by h o s t i l e neighbours with whom
they had unresolved d i s p u t e s l i v e d i n a s t a t e of permanent alert.
his was e s p e c i a l l y true o f Ekwelu-usaka which was surrounded by not-
too-friendly neighbours - A r i a m t o t h e n o r t h and ~ n n a n g h b i b i opeople
t o t h e south and south-east. Ekwelu youths were consequently almost
always under m i l i t a r y t r a i n i n g while t h e community ringed i t s e l f w i t h
a network of m c n t s , Bridges were c o n s t r u c t e d a c r o s s t h e moats but
t h e s e were removed i n times of danger t h u s g i v i n g t h e community a
continuous defence network, This resembles t h e s i t u a t i o n i n
Equiano's v i l l a g e which was p r o t e c t e d from enemy invasion by
I d r i v i n g s t i c k s i n t o t h e ground which were s o sharp a t one end as to
p i e r c e t h e f o o t and were g e n e r a l l y d e p t
-
Olaudah Equibno i b i d .
-
-6ic7 i n poim*l. Se;t

G.T. Basden, Among t h e I b o s of Nigeyia, (London, Frank Cass,

l 9 6 6 ) , p. 202.

Simon Ottenberg Y b o Oracles and Inter-group R e l a t i o n s v

Southwestern Journal of Anthropology v o l e 14, No. 2,
(19581, p. 296.
 56
w r o n g l y a s s e r t e d t h a t i t was n e v e r s a f e t o v e n t u r e f a r
beyond t h e c o n f i n e s o f
oL
n e vTown n o r was t h i s done e x c e p t

by h a n d s o f men r e a d y t o d e f e n d t h e m s e l v e s .
A p a r t from e f f o r t s t o s e c u r e t h e i r b o r d e r s from enemy
i n f i l t r a t i o n s , c o m m u n i t i e s a l s o s p i e d on t h c i r o p p o n e n t s .
The f a v o u r i t e t a c t i c w a s f l o o d i n y t h e r n a r k c t ( s ) of o n e Ps
enemy w i t h women from O n e ' s s i d e . Such women were u s u a l l y
g i v e n s p e c i f i c i n s t r u c t i o n s t o d i s c u s s t h e impending show-
down between t h e i r c o n m u n i t i e s w i t h t h c i r f e l l o w s from t h o
o t h e r side. On coming b a c k from t h e m a r k e t s u c h women

u s u a l l y a s s e m b l e d a t a p l x e where e a c h r e v e a l e d w h a t e v e r
i n f o r m a t i o n s h e was a b l e t o g a t h e r , I t was m a i n l y as a
r e s u l t o f t h e d u b i o u s r o l e p l a y e d by t h e s e ' m a r k e t womenq
t h a t some c o m m u n i t i e s went as f a r as t u r n i n g women from an
enemy community from a t t e n d i n c t h e i r market. Some warned
t h e i r women a g a i n s t d i s c u s s i n g w i t h t h e s e women. I n extreme
c a s e s men went o u t o f t h e i r way t o c a p t u r e and d e t a i n o r
m o l e s t s u c h women. The m o l e s t a t i o n o f a m a r k e t woman by
O n h i a , f o r example, was t h e f i n a l e v e n t t h a t ~ e c i p i t n t e da

war between M e m ( 0 n h i a ) a d Ehume.

Married daughters - -umu okm - also spied f o r t h e i r
kinsmGn, They were e s p e c i a l l y a c t i v e d u r i n g w a r s i n v o l v i n g \

t h e i r kinsmen and c o m m u n i t i e s o t h e r t h a n t h o s e t o which t h e y

were m a r r i e d . I t was m a i n l y t o f o r e s t a l l t h i s t y p e o f s p y i n c
t h a t Umunwmwa r e s t r i c t e d t h e movement o f wornen m a r r i e d from
 57.
o u t s i d e Umunwanwa i n t i m e s o f war. lo some c o m m u n i t i e s
a l s o r e s t r i c t e d t h e i n f l u x of a l i e n s during periods of
emersency. The g r o u p on whom t h i s t y p e o f r e s t r i c t i o n f e l l
most h e a v i l y on was t h e 1x0 whom most o f t h e p e o p l e d i s h
11
t r u s t e d f o r t h e i r ' s w e e t t o n g u e q and d o u b l e - d e a l i n g ,

They were d i s t r u s t e d b e c a u s e t h e y o f t e n e x p l o i t e d fluidq

s i t u a t i o n s t o s e t t l e o l d s c o r e s w i t h c o m m u n i t i e s and o r
i n d i v i d u a l s , 1 2 V i g i l a n t e s r o u p s who m a i n t a i n e d check-
p o i n t s on r o a d s l i n k i n g a beIRlgerent community w i t h o t h e r s ,
o f t e n had s p e c i f i c i n s t r u c t i o n s t o t u r n b a c k any Aro man
whose m i s s i o n t o t h e community was n o t a d e q u a t e l y e x p l a i n e d .
Those whose m i s s i o n l o o k e d d u l ~ i o u swere d c t a i - n e d .
The d e c i s i o n t o go t o war e s p e c i a l l y , o f f e n s i v e ones,.

was u s u a l l y t a k e n by t h e a s s e m l ~ l yo f a l l a d u l t m a l e s -
1 G e f o r e a f i n a l d e c i s i o n a b o u t z o i n c t o war ivas t a k e n ,
e v e r y member o f t h e ---
Pmala was g i v e n n c h a n c e t o a i r h i s
-*

views f o r o r a z a i n s t t a k i n g t o f i c h t i n g , The n e e d t o o b t a i n
t h e c o n s e n t o f n m a j o r i t y o f members o f t h e m a l a was --
d e s i r a b l e f o r two m a j o r r e a s o n s . F i r s t , i t was r e a s o n e d
t h a t s i n c e e v e r y a d u l t male would make one t y p e of c o n t r i b u -
/
t i o n o r t h e o t h e r t o t h e war e f f o r t , i t w a s o n l y f a i r t h a t
--.-I_-_I__-N-PIU-.p,..-UIY
i
\
\
10, ~ a i Iib e l e c h e O h a e r i , r e t i r e d c u s t o m a r y c o u r t
judge i n t e r v i e w e d a t Q b g d t a compound
IJmunwanwa-Umuopara 5.4.e 3.
11. Mazi E l i j a h Isendom, v i l l a g e e l d e r ,
i n t e r v i e w e d a t Ndiwo I t u n i l ~ u z o 7.12.82.
Ibeleche Ohaeri cited.
 58
should
a l l o f them 1 -Part . i n t h e decision-making process4
S e c o n d l y , even a t t h e t i m e o f g o i n c i n t o a c t u a l b a t t l e s
a v e n u e s f o r a p e a c e f u l s e t t l e ~ e n to f t h e i s s u e s i n d i s p u t e
u s u a l l y remained open. I t w a s t h e r e f o r e important t h a t
t h o s e who d i d n o t p r e f e r , s o i n g t o war s h o u l d be c o n v i n c e d
t h a t a war w a s more h o n o u r a b l e ,and d e s i r a b l e t h a n a n g i g n o b l e s
peace., Moreover, c o r m u n i t i e s o f t e n s o u g h t and ' o b t a i n e d 1 t h e
' c o n s e n t f o f t h e i r a n c e s t o r s and g o d s b e f o r e f i n a l l y d e c i d i n g
on g o i n g t o war. Thus t h o s e s i t t i n g on t h e f e n c e had t o b e
r e a s s u r e d t h a t t h e c o n s e n t and h e l p o f t h e i r a n c e s t o r s and
g o d s had been s e c u r e d and t h a t v i c t o r y w a s f o r s u r e ,
Once t h e d e c i s i o n t o i n v a d e an enemy o r t o f i g h t back
i n d e f e n c e was t a k e n , e l a b o r a t e b u t q u i c k p r e p a r a t i o n s went

u n d e r way. F i r s t , t h e s o l d i e r s had t o be m o . b i l i z e d , Since

t h e r e were no permanent a r m i e s i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu, commu-

n i t i e s made u s e o f a l l t h e i r a b l e - b o d i e d men. T h e s e men

into
u s u a l l y b e l o n g e d t o t h e s e c o n d o f t h e t h r e e a g e - s e t s 1 which
men i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu were d i v i d e d , Thc f i r s t of t h e
t h r e e a g e - s e t s c o n s i s t e d o f young b o y s who had a t t a i n e d t h e
age of .about f i f t e e n . T h i s group, because of t h e i r t e n d e r
\
a g e , p e r f o r m e d l i g h t d u t i e s f o r t h e community. These i n c l u d e d
sweeping t h e l o c a l market and o r m e e t i n g p l a c e o f t h e amcrla ---
--
c a l l e d mbara and m a i n t a i n i n g v i l l a g e path-ways and o t h e r
utilities. They a l s o h e l p e d t o c'ater f o r a g e d p % i l d l e s s
w i d ~ w sa n d widowers. Some e x e c u t i v e f u n c t i o n s o f t h e amalq
 59. .
i n c l u d e d c o l l e c t i o n o f f i n e s f o r v i o l a t i o n s o f r u l e s and
b r i n g i n g offenders t o t h e s e n i o r age-grades f o r t r i a l ,
hey a c t e d as p o l i c e i n t h e m a r k e t s and a s i n v e s t i g a t o r s i n
cases involvLng women s u c h as a d u l t e r y , ' 3 T h i s was t h e
s t a g e at which t h e c h a r a a t e r o f young boys began t o be
moulded i n o r d e r t o tmke them r e s p o n s i b l o c i t i z e n s , One way
of a c h i e v i n g t h i s was t h r o u g h g i v i n g them j o b s t h a t were
b e n e f i a i a l t o t h e e n t i r e community and a u p e r v i s e d by t h e
a g e - s e t i m m e d i a t e l y above them, .
People g r a d u a t e d i n t o t h e s e c o n d o f t h e t h r e e nge-
s e t s a t a b o u t the age o f twenty-two, This was u s u a l l y a f t e r
e l a b o r a t e c e r e m o n i e s which a l s o l a u n c h e d them i n t o manhood
and f u l l c i t i z e n s h i p , -To p r e p a r e t h e y o u t h s f o r t h e ~ r v ~ o u s

r e s p o n s i l ~ l l i t i e so f t h i s age- eretc, elaborate training

s e s s i o n s were o r g m i s e d f o r them. -In I b e k u , t h o young men
underwent r i z o r o u s t r a i n i n g / i n i t i a t i o n s e s s i o n s i n t h e bush.
T h i s e x e r c i s e which was c a l l e d i t u a n y a r e s e m b l e d iwa akvra
.c*r..uc

o f n e i g h b o u r i n g Obowo. Z t u anya normally, l a s t e d about

e i g h t days, During this p e r i o d o f t r a i n i n g , ,he boys were
e x p e c t e d t o m o r t i f y t h e m s e l v e s by p e r f o r m i n g a c t s o f
endurance. They f e d on l e a v e s and r o o t s and were o r d e r e d t o
c l i m b t a l l t r e e s .I4 They a l s o had what
1-
co Id
2
be c a l l e d s o l o

13. Kenneth S, C a r l s t o n , S o c i a l Theory and l i f r i c a n

? . r i b a l O r a a n i s a t i o n (Urbnna, unive;sity of I l l i n o i s
P r e s s , 1 9 6 8 ) p , 19~6
14. Mabel 0. Ukagwu A s p e c t s o f t h e P r e - c o l o n i a l H i s t o r
of ~ b e k u _ ( u n p u b h a e dB.A. ( H i s t o r y ) T h e s i s d t S I
o f N i g c r l n , Nsukka 1978) p. 21.
 60,
n i g h t s d u r i n g which each p e r s o n s l e p t a l o n e i n t h e bush,
f a r rernoved from o t h e r s , L e c t u r e s on m i l i t a r y t a c t i c s -
i n c l u d i n g methods o f o f f e n c e and d e f e n c e , u s e o f c u t l a s s e s ,
guns, bows, a r r o w s and s p e a r s ( f o r m i l i t a r y p u r p o s e s ) were
a l s o o r g a n i s e d f o r them, l5 On t h e l a s t day o f i t u any%,
t r a i n e e s went t h r o u g h t h e l a s t t e s t o f e n d u r a n c e , This
the
i n c l u d e d p r i c k i n g body w i t h s h a r p t h o r n s and p u t t i n c v e r y
L
s t r o n g and p a i n f u l m e d i c i n a l h e r b s i n t o t h e e y e s , The
l a t t e r , i t w a s believed, f o r t i f i e d t h e eyes t o withstand
d r e a d f u l s i c h t s e s p e c i a l l y d u r i n g wars w h i l e t h e f o r m e r
toughened t h e body.
Pipcart from g r o u p t r a i n i n g g i v e n t o t h e y o u t h s , i n d i v i -
d u a l p a r e n t s a l s o g a v e t h e i r s o n s toughening-up t r a i n i n g s

and a s s i g n m e n t s , The most i m p o r t a n t o f s u c h t r a i n i n g i n c l u d e d

Caking t h e young b o y s t o h u n t i n g e x p e d i t i o n s - e , ~ b eo h i a o r

-
n t a d u r i n g t h e day, and ambushing a n i m a l s a t n i g h t - nkere

-*a b n l i H u n t i n g was b e l i e v e d t o bo ,an a c t i v i t y which enhanced

a p e r s o n ' s m i l i t a r y s k i l l , I n Nsirirno ;in a d d i t i o n t o s i v i n g
t h e i r c h i l d r e n t o u g h e n i n p u p t r = i n i n g s , p a r e n t s a l s o performed
a special r i t u a l - $ma ~ g w uf o r
-2
t h e i r children, This ritual,
i t was b e l i e v e d , g a v e t h e b o y s t h e e x t r a p r o t e c t i o n of t h e
g o d s of t h e ' l a n d , w 1 6

1 Nazi Timothy Kanu, v i l l a c e e l d e r a n d e x - c o u n c i l l o r ,

I n t e r v i e w e d a t ICmu s compound I y i e n y i - I b e k u 19,12.82,
16. I c h i e Ukaforo Ukaegbu, v i l l a g e e l d e r , i n t e r v i e w e d
a t Ukaegbu 1 s compound Nsirimo-Ubakala l 7 , l 2 , 8 2 ,
 While as we s h a l l s e e l a t e r , m i l i t a r y accomplishment
( e s p e c i a l l y k i l l i n g an opponent i n b a t t l e ) was n o t a d o r e d i n

p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu as was t h e c a s e i n p l a c e s l i k e O h a f i a , 1 7
i t was g e n e r a l l y r e g a r d e d as a mark o f weakness f o r a man t o
come home from b a t t l e w i t h a wound which h e was n o t
a b l e t o avenge. I t was p a r t i a l l y t o a v o i d s u c h , ' s h a m e f u l t
i n t i d e n t s t h a t p a r e n t s gave t h e i r sons p r i v a t e t r a i n i n g s .
F a t h e r s who were w a r r i o r s d u r i n g t h e i r y o u t h t o l d t h e i r s a n s
( r e a l o r i m a g i n e d ) s t o r i e s o f how t h e y overcame d i f f i c u l t i e s
at war f r o n t s . Men a l s o e n c o u r a ~ e dt h e i r s o n s t o t a k e pcrt
and p o s s i b l y e x c e l i n w r e s t l i n g m a t c h e s o r g a n i s e d b o t h
w i t h i n a n d between v i l l a g e s . Such m a t c h e s i t was b e l i e v e d ,
h e l p e d youngmen a c q u i r e t h e n e c e s s a r y h a r d i n e s s t h a t t h e

l i f e of a f i g h t e r e n t a i l e d .

People graduated i n t o t h e t h i r d age-set about t h e age

of forty-five. Membership o f t h i s g r a d e a l s o marked t h e end
o f one& a c t i v e l i f e as a f i g h t . e r . One a t t h i s p o i n t g r a d u a t e d
i n t o f u l l membership o f t h e ,?mala and t h e r e f o r e p a r t i c i p a t e d

17. Men i n w e - c o l o n i a l O h a f i a were s t r a t i f i e d i n t o f i v e

c a t e g o r i e s ( a ) uJg when a man had n o t c u t a head i n
e i t h e r a war o r r a i d ; ( b ) nwoke when he had b r o u g h t
home a h e a d ; ( c ) u f i e m i f h e had gone t o war o r r a i d
s e v e r a l t i m e s and b r o u g h t home human h e a d s ;
( d ) okerenkwa s t a t u s was a c c o r d e d men who, i n t h e i r
l i f e t i m e , b r o u c h t home b l e e d i n g human h e a d s and
d o n a t e d same t o t h e c l u b o f head c u t t e r s ; ( e ) i t e odo
s t a t u s was a c c o r d e d men who d u r i n g s o l o r a i d s c u t
many h e a d s and a l s o had many s l a v e s whom t h e y
c a p t u r e d d u r i n g wars o r r a i d s , S e e O j i Kalu O j i ;
A S t u d y o f M i f f r a t i o n and v ! a r f a r e i n P r e C o l o n i a l
O h a f i a ( u n p u b l i s h e d B.A. (History) Thesis,
U n i v e r s i t y o f N i g e r i a , Nsukka, 1 9 7 4 ) , 38.
PLATE 3: A Dane gun manufactured i n Ohuhu
by a n Nkwerre smith.
 62,
i n t a k i n g m a j o r d e c i s i o n s i n c l u d i n g t h o s e r e l a t i n g t o wars.
of
-
The o n u s o f t h e d e c l a r a t i o n and e n d i n s / w a r s , and making
p e a c e l a y on them - the third ase-setr This privilege w a s
left t o them b e c a u s e i t w 2 s b e l i e v e d t h 2 t , l ~ e i n g e l d e r s ,
t h e y were n o t s u s c e p t i b l e t o t h e s ~ m ed e g r e e o f r a s h n e s s a s
t h e y o u t h s . l8 The conmunity a l s o b e n e f i t t e d from t h e
e x p e r i e n c e o f members o f t h i s g r o u p who were g r e a t w a r r i o r s
d u r i n g t h e i r youth. They o f t e n , were t h e t a c t i c i m s who
a d v i s e d t h e f i e l d commanders a s t o how and when b e s t t o
a t t a c k o r r e s i s t t h e enemy, I n Oboro, members o f t h i s age-
g r a d e p r c v i d e d some o f t h e ammunition u s e d d u r i n g wars,
I n d i v i d u a l members u s u a l l y bought gun powder which t h e y
b r o u g h t t o g-bara - t h e c o n v e r g i n c and d r i l l i n s p o i n t of t h e

soldiers. They pls.ced s u c h ammunition a t t h e d i s p o s a l o f

s o l d i e r s who n e e d e d them, T h i s r e s e m b l e P what happened
d u r i n g t h e Yoruba c i v i l wars where a s o l d i e r would n o r m a l l y
b r i n g h i s own gun t o w a r , b u t a t l e a s t a p a r t o f t h o powder
was p r o v i d e d f o r him, 20
A p n r t from p r o v i s i o n s made by e l d e r s , e v e r y f i g h t e r
a l s o provided f o r himself. M i l i t a r y a c q u i s i t i o n s were n o t
made o n l y i n t i m e s o f and i n r e s p o n s e t o e m e r e e n c i e s . The
--.-I--

18. Nazi I b e l e c h e O h a e r i - --•

cited
19.' C h i e f R o b e r t Okoro, f o r m e r t r a d i t i o n a l r u l e r ,
i n t e r v i e w e d a t Amawom-Oboro 15.12.82,

20, J.E, flde A j n y i & R o b c r t S m i t h , Yorubn \ ! a r f a r - i n t h e

1 9 t h c e n t u r z ( I b n d a n , I badan U n i v e r s i t y ~ r e s s , m r
P. 196
PLATE: 4: A pistol manufactured in Ohuhu
Mkhverre smith early in the t w e n
century.
 63s
normal p r a c t i c e was f o r p e o p l e t o make u s e o f arms which
t h e y a c q u i r e d i n peace t i m c , Rowever, s u c h t h i n s s as sun
powder, ipi t i o n c a p s - icu er:bek and b u l l e t s - were
n o t # u s u a l l y , s t o r , k g i l c i t b e c a u s e of t h c i r h i z h c o s t and
d i f f i c u l t y o f storc1;e. I n some p l a c e s , c o m n u n i t i e s co-opcrn-
t e d i n p e a c e time t o p r o c u r e t h e s e r v i c e s o f t h e famed

Nkwerrc a n d Lwka b l a c k s m i t h s , These made s u n s , k n i v e s ,

s p e a r s m d . swords f o r inc1ividut:ls who n l s o paid them, Some
communities c o n t r i l ~ u t e dt o b r i n g them clown ( i , c . paid the
c o n s u l t a t i o n f e e s ) d u r i n g wars b u t i n d i v i d u a l s o l d i e r s pE~id
f o r s w v i c e s r e n d e r e d t o thcri~. I n n f e w p l a c e s , t h e e n t i r e
community p a i d f o r r e p a i r s ljut any p e r s o n r e q u i r i n g ncw
weapons p z l d o u t o f his own p o c k e t , S m i t h s were n l s o
i n v i t e d from !,gulcri t o h e l p make i s n i t i o n caps-
u s e d f o r some s u n s . 21
S m i t h s from Nkwerre wsre h i g h l y r c p u t c d i n Ohuhu 2nd
o t h e r neighbourin!; communities f o r t h e i r competence as z u n
makerre, I t was n n i n l y duo t o t h i s t h z t t h e y bi:c?~ic known
as Nkwerre qp$$ e g l ~ e . I n 1 ~ ; b c r ethem was a s a y i n g / i n j u c t i o n
--I__--

t h a t ifwhen o t h e r s a r e f i r i n c and b r e a k i n g t h e i r guns, break

y o u r s , f o r Nkwerre p e o ~ l edo n o t l i v e i n t h c i r areau. 22 I

21. Ibeleche Ohaeri --

cited.
22. r&otcd i n E l i z a i i c t h I c i c h o ! . I y b o ir!orld.s: LG
; ~ n - t ~ o ~ - _Oral
o f I I i s t o r i e s and H i s t o r i c a l
-IP------C

M a c n i l l n n E d u c a t i o n Ltd.
 64-
This t h e n b r i n g s u s t o t h e c l a i m by J e f f r e y s t h a t b e f o r e
t h e whiteman c2me t o t h e I c b o a r e a and even as r e c e n t l y as
1930, i r o n was a p e a t r a r i t y - even i n Awka o n e o f t h e main
c e n t r e s of blacksmith in^ i n I c b o l a n d . 23 The e f f e c t o f t h i s
s c a r c i t y a c c o r d i n g t o J e f f r e y s i n c l u d e d t h o f a c t th9.t wenpons
made of l o c n l l y s m e l t e d i r o n n e v e r f e a t u r e d i n t h e armoury
o f t h e I g b o soldier.
The above c l a i m s made by J e f f r e y s c a n n o t s t a n d t h e
t e s t of e n p i r i c a l evaluation. Contrary t o J e f f r e y s P claim,
I g b o l a n d has 2 l o n g t r a d i t i o n o f i r o n s n c l t i n e and working.
H a r t l e f o r cxnmple found 'some i r o n v a t t h e t o p l a y e r
d u r i n g h i s e x c a v a t i o n o f t h e Ukpa Rock S h e l t e r i n !lfikpo.
I r o n s ~ m p l e sfrom t h i s s i t e h a v e l e o n d a t e d t o "2100 y e a r s
ag9 a n d vie rnisht t a k e t h i s t o mean that i r o n t o o l s were i n

u s e a b o u t t h i s p e r i o d i n L f i k p o . 24 Unundu,n town i n Fsukkn,

a l s o h a s a l o n g t r a d i t i o n o f i r o n s m e l t i n g and working,
.:nozie e n c o u n t e r e d an o l d man i n t h e town whose father,

p c l n d f a t h e r and g r e a t - s r n n d f z t h c r were l ~ l n c k s m i t h s who

made 2 wide r a n g e o f i r o n g o o d s f- l o c a l l y smelted i r o n
which t h e y o b t a i n e d from l o c a l s m e l t e r s
--- - ------.--
""
.25 The d a t e z i v e n

M,D.\;, J c f f r c v s . r P I b o\ i a r f n r e f l P U N . A Monthlv

F.F. Anozie "The C o n t r i b u . t i o n o f d r c h n e o l o g y t o t h e

s t u d y o f I g b o c u l t u r e f 1 Unpubli shed p a p e r p r e s e n t e d
at W --
-.---o r k s h o ~ o nI g b o C u l t u r e ( In s t i t u t c o f A f r i c a n
S t u d i e s U4N.N., 1977)3;36
by H a r t l e s h o u l d b e r e g a r d e d as t e n t a t i v e u n t i l i t i s
c o n f i r m e d by f u r t h e r r e s e a r c h , Such c o n f i r m a t i o n w i l l
p r o b a b l y t a k e t h e form o f a d e t a i l e d s t u d y o f t h e t r a d i t i o n -
a l methods o f i r o n ' s m e l t i n g i n t h e I g b o a r e a and comparing
i t w i t h d a t a obtained elsewhere.
Afilybo h a s o p i n e d t h a t :
The Y o r t h e r n I g b o p l a t e a u a n d i t s e x t e n s i o n
t o Bende f i h i c h i s p a r t o f 0 h u h g i s r i c h i n
i r o n o r e d e p o s i t s , Amd i t was h e r e t h a t
s m e l t i n ~and i r o n ' working were most h i g h l y
d e v e l o p e d i n I g b o l a n d , The i r o n t o o l s and
i m p l e m e n t s produced on t h e p l a t e a u were i n p e n t
demand o v e r t h e r e s t o f I g b o l n n d a n d even beyond. 1 6
T h i s would seem t o l e n d c r o d e n c e t o c l 0 a by Itumbuzo

and Bende p e o p l e t h a t , i n t i m e s o f war, t h e y i n v i a e d

s m i t h s from Nkwerre who n o t o n l y r e p a i r e d t h e i r p n s b u t
m a n u f a c t u r e d new o n e s . 27 Talbot also said t h a t there is
e v i d e n c e t h a t s u c h arms ( t h o s e u s e d i n t h e I g b o a r e a ) were
a c t u a l l y m a n u f a c t u r e d by t h e I g b o i n p a r t s of Enugu and
Okigwe D i v i s i o n s . 28

-------
2 f .E, Afigbo FiProle~sornena t o t h e study of t h e
' C u l t u r e ist tory o f - t h e ~ g b u - s ~ e o k i pn e~o-p l e s o f
N i g e r i a w F,C, Ogbalu & E,N, ECl~n&%ngo(eds) ,I&
L2ny;uay;e a n d _ ( I b a d a n , Oxford U n i v e r s i t y
P r e s s , 1 9 7 5 ) p. 45.
27. Mazi E l i j a h Isendom - citd,

28. P,b. T a l b o t : The Pcople_ssoof~u,tJhern Nik;eria

i;;w--
vol 111 T t h n o l o g y (London, F r a n k Cass, 1923)
PLATE 5: A gun made by an Awka smith.
 66;
I t i s c l e a r from t h e $ o r e g o i n g , t h a t J e f f r e y q s view
r e g a r d i n g t h e a n t i q u i t y o f i r o n i n t h e I g b o a r e a i s o u t of
place. The o n l y way o f a c c o u n t i n g f o r t h i s view i s by
a c c e p t i n g ,.lnozieVs claiin t h 2 t "from o r a l t r a d i t i o n , we can
c o n f i d e n t l y s a y t h a t i r o n s f i e l t i n g wzs d i s c o n t i n u e d i n
Tgboland e a r l y i n t h i s ccntu2y"h 29 ~ u t th i s e x p l a n a t i o n
l o o k s t o o s i m p l i s t i c 2nd d i f f i c u l t t o a c c e p t as a d e q u a t e *
S u r e , t h e i m p o r t ~ ~ t i ofrom
n overseas of b e t t e r f i n i s h e d and
c h e a p e r i r o n i m p l e m e n t s must h2.w had some n c p t i v e i m p a c t
on i r o n s m e l t i n g a n d s m i t h i n g i n I g b o l a n d ; But i t would
b e wrong t o a r p e t h a t i r o n s m e l t i n s was d i s c o n t i n u e d
e n t i r e l y i n t h e Igbo a r e a e a r l y i n t h i s century. The

p r e s e n t w r i t e r o b s e r v e d some Lwka b l a c k s r ~ l i t h swho l i v e d i n

and p r a c t i s e d t h e i r t r n d e i n p a r t s o f Ohuhu a s r e c e n t l y as
t h e mid 1960s. One o f them who was w e l l o v e r s e v e n t y , was,
a c c o r d i n g t o i n f o r m a t i o n , b o r n i n Umuopara. I t i s i n fact
s a i d t h a t h i s c r a n d f a t h e r came t o Unuopara 3s a s m i t h .
S i n c e , as we have a l r e a d y s e e n , Ghuhu i s r i c h i n i r o n o r e ,
i t i s r e a s o n a b l e t o h o l d t h a t t h c i r o n u s e d Ly t h e s e s m i t h s
were i n i t i a l l y s m e l t e d w i t h i n t h e Ohuhu a r e a , They may
have s t a r t e d u s i n g s c r a p s o f ilnportec't i r o n goods wlien t h i s
became c h e a p and r e a d i l y a v a i l a f j l e a s t o make t h e u s e of
l o c a l l y s m e l t e d i r o n unecononiic. This E I U S ~ have happened
well i n t o the present century r a t h e r than t h e early part
o f i t , as p o s t u l a t e d by h o z i e .

F.W. imozie l o c c i t
 67.
W h i l e i t i s t r u e t o say t h a t t h e gun had a l o n g
h i s t o r y i n p r e - c o l o n i ~ J Ohuhu, i t i s however i m p o r t a n t t o
stress that it never become a v e r y pogular weapon.
T h i s was duc rnninly t o two i n t e r - r e l a t e d r e a s o n s . First,
p e o p l e were o f t e n a f r a i d o f s h o o t i n s o t h e r s dead i n wars
e s p e c i a l l y t h o s e i n v o l v i n g n ~ t t a l l yr c l a t c d p e o p l e s , In
t h i s type o f war, t h e u s e o f l e t h a l weapons e s p e c i a l l y p n s
was h i g h l y p r o h i b i t e c l . J n o n g Ohuhu p e o p l e t h c s p i l l i n s o f
b l o o d o f a p e r s o n w i t h whom one h a s even t h e r e m o t e s t
r e l a t i o n s h i p was r e g a r d e d as m, I t was r e p u g n a n t t o t h e
e n r t h d e i t y - 91,, f ~ n yp e r s o n wlio k i l l e d a n o t h e r d u r i n g n
war was bound t o p e r f o r m v e r y c o s t l y c l c n n s i n g r i t e s ,
Even i n n e i g h b o u r i n e ; O h a f i a where t h e c u t t i n g o f human
h e a d s was r e g a r d e d a s a mark o f manhood, any p e r s o n who
wcnt t o a war o r r a i d 2nd came b a c k w i t h a hend p e r f c r m e d
purification rites, "On r e t u r n , w a r r i o r s who h~.cl s e c u r e d
h e a d s o f victims werc ilmde t o u n d e r g o p u r i f i c a t i o n r i t e s
b e f o r e r e j o i n i n g t h e i r f a i . . i l i c s and moving a b o u t f r e e l y i n
t h e communityl~.30 *he pgrfomance -af. c l e a w g *tos%bhan me

s a c r e d n e s s w i t h which human l i f e was h e l d by t h e p e o p l e , 31

30. N. Ukn, 17,', Note on t h e afAbaml V a r r i o r s of I g b o l a n d i l ,

J k e n s a . J o u r n a l o f A f r i c a n S t u d i e s , v o l e I , No, 2,
(19721, pe 80.
 68.
I n Ohuhu, n k i l l e r who d i d n o t have t h e w h e r e w i t h a l
t o p e r f o r m t h e c l e a n s i n @ r i t e was k e p t i n semi- s o l i t a r y
c o n f i n e m e n t u n t i l h e w a s a b l e t o do s o . Even a f t e r p e r -
f o r m i n g s u c h r i t e s s u c h a p e r s o n w:~s n e v e r f u l l y a c c e p t e d
i n s o c i e t y again. Every ' a b n o r m a l v l ~ e h n v i o u ro f h i s was
a t t r i b u t e d t o m e n t a l p r o b l e m s c a u s e d by t h e b l o o d o f h i s
victim,. The t r c , ~ t m e n th e r e c e i v e d was o f t e n a k i n t o t h a t

g i v e n t o t h e B i b l i c a l Moses by h i s f e l l o w Jew a f t e r h e ,
Moses, had k i l l e d and c o v e r e d t h o body o f an E g y p t i a n
with sand,
I t would be wrong t o i n f 2 r from t h c c o n v e n t i o n s
cnurnerated above th3.t wars were mere p i c n i c s and jamborees.
F a r from it, Wars, e s p e c i a l l y t h o s e i n v o l v i n g o p p o n e n t s t h a t
d i d n o t h a v e any b l o o d r e l a t i o n s h i p o f t e n i n v o l v e d a. l o t o f
b i t t e r n e s s r e s u l t i n g i n t h e k i l l i n g a n d maimin(; o f many.
The war between Ariam and Ekwelu w a s f o u s h t w i t h g r e a t
b i t t e r n e s s ~ n dt h i s r e s u l t e d i n t h e l o s s o f many l i v e s ,
The number o f !ziam p e o p l e k i l l c d d u r i n g one o f t h e m~my
b a t t l e s o f t h i s war h a s been v a r i o u s l y e s t i m a t e d a t some-
t h i n g between f o r t y a n d s e v e n t y . Ekwelu a l s o s u s t a i n e d
c o n s i d e r a ? ~ l ehuman l o s s e s . : war between Ohinocha and
Ehume ( b o t h i n IJmuopnrn) p r o v e d e q u a l l y c o s t l y i n human
l i v e s t o 1 ~ 0 t hs i d e s . Some i n f o r m a n t s p u t t h e l o s s s u s t 3 i n e c l
by e a c h s i d e i n e x c e s s o f t h i r t y . Hard-pressed groups
sometimes d i s r e g a r c l c d c o n v e n t i o n s g o v e r n i n g t h c c o n d u c t o f
-
PLATE 6: A l o c a l l y made s p e a r .
war between n a t a l l y r e l a t e d g r o u p s . One way ,Ariarn
d e m o n s t r a t e d h e r d e t e r m i n a t i o n t o f i g h t Ekwelu t o a f i n i s h
was t h r o u ~ ht h e kill in^ o f 2 woman whose m o t h e r w a s from
i ~ r i n m . T h i s , u n d e r n o r r m l c i r c u m s t a n c c s , would h a v e been

regardcd as a taboo - m.
The s e c o n d f a c t o r t h a t i n h i b i t e d l a r g e s c a l e u s e o f
t h e gun wa6 i t s u n r e l i a b i l i t y . T h i s was e s p e c i a l l y t r u e
in
o f t h e two t y p e s o f gun conimonly u s e i n p r e - c o l o n i a l

Ohuhu - --
ep;13e cham a n d a d a k a . T h e i r u n r e l i a b i l i t y would
seem t o h a v e stemmed from t h e i r p o o r q u a l i t y e s p e c i a l l y
a f t e r F k w c r r e a n d Awka s m i t h s s t a r t e d i m n u f a c t i u r i n g t h a n
( t h e guns). D e s c r i p t i o n s o f egbc char11 ( i n Ohuhu) would
seem t o t a l l y w i t h D a v i d s o n l s d e s c r i p t i o n o f t h e
mu~kct . The musket a i c c o r d i n ~t~o him i s a H l ~ a l l - f i r i n ~
smooth b a r r e l l e d weapon f i r e d by t r i g g e r i n g a f l i n t s p a r k
i n t o a l i t t l e 9 p a n P o f gun-powder a t t h e r e a r end o f t h e
b a r r e l t t . 32 The o t h e r weapon - s d a k a was o f
P
such poor
q u a l i t y t h x t i t o f t e n entlangcred i t s s h o o t c r r a t h e r t h a n h i s
t n r ~ e t , T h i s was m a i n l y b e c a u s e t h e gun when f i r e d p r o -
duced two d i f f e r e n t e x p l o s i o n s . The f i r s t e x p l o s i o n was
p r o d u c e d by t h e t r i g g e r h i t t i n g t h e i g n i t i o n c a p - k ~ i c~r;be.
The s e c o n d was c a u s e d by t h c e x p l o s i o n o f t h e gun powder
i n t h e gun which d s o r e l e a s e d t h e l . . ) u l l e t s / p o l l e t s i n t h e

32. B a s i l D a v i d s o n ; The Peo l e F s a u s e : A I I i s t o r

e e - i y i l l a s i n : ~ f r i ~ Z ~ o n , ~1 .m9 8a Tne f 4
 70
gun. The t i m e la$ b e t w e e n t h e f i r s t a n d second
e x p l o s i o n s was s o much t h a t t h e t n r ; ; e t h a d enouf;h t i m e t o
e i t h e r escn9e or t z k e cover, l i z s a f e t y '3f i t s c o v e r ,
F ~ @ tM
a t a r g e l ; couli! t u r n r o u n d t o hnrm t h e s h o o t e r . !!.'here i s t h e
s t o r y o f an Ihirn - I b e r e man v~howas d i s a r m e d by a n opj:~oneiit
w h i l e w a i t i n g f o r h i s ..,-a d a k a :;un t o i;c off. 33 The u n r e l i n b -
i l i t y o f -adnkn h n s been - p r e s e r v e d i n sorne now p o p u l a r
--.-

i n s Examples of' t h e s e a r e - Lnye ntz

a.ckaa-;i.!.g?u
&ru t h z t any p e r s o n k i l l e c ? by --
ya meanin,.;. a d a k ~must Le
deaf. T h e r e i s a l s o a sayin[': t h a t g l p k a ;~:b~.y:.Y:g-o~~i-c&im,,,_o-&~~
--
m e a n i n s t h a t aclakz k i l l s o n l y t h e u-nlucky.
In addition to oh a n d a d a h a l r e a d y rncnt:ioned, o t h e r

puns i n u s e i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu i n c l u d e d $ce-,~)&k~ gp&a&

ci

nr,d _e-r-?fere-4 The p r e s e n t r e s e a r c h e s W L - su n n t ~ l et o 3e-t

d e t n i l e c l d e s c r i p t i o n s o f both g;ala!ja 2nd but they
a r e s a i d t o ?-~emore e f f i c i e n t t h a n L c t h w h e cham z d adaka. --
-
E r e f e r e i s m i d t o h e . b~c c~n introc1.u.ct.d i n t h c n i i i c t e e n t h
+f !,e
c o n k u r y b y./ w l i i t c p c o p l e ,
l-. I t waLs a l s o c a l . l e d p_zei.;liri:,:iri.
becau.so o f its boomins souncl, I t was o f v e r y 1 . i m i t e d u s t i s e
because cf j.ts h i ~ hc o s t , A ~ o t h e rf a . c t o r t h a t l i m i t e d ibs
u s n g e was i t s w e i g h t 2nd the,; s p e c i a l s k i l l s e q u i s c c l t o lfian
i t , 3 4 *E..--r e P e r e ( i , c , ---.-
o z c & s i---.-...-
,yiri) i s s a i d t o be s o p o w e r f u l
t h a t o n c e f i r e d , i t i n s t a n t l y d i s p e r s e d oneb e n e m i e s ,
T h i s happened t o Umuopara p e o p l e e a r l y i n t h i s c e n t u r y .
They had m o b i l i z e d t o f a c e t h e B r i t i s h who c r o s s e d i n t o
t h e i r t e r r i t o r y from Udo-1 i l m i s e . But N w o b i l e l u ( a s t h e
commander o f t h e B r i t i s h f o r c e was c a l l e d ) f i r e d o z e rj;iriziri
which p r o m p t l y d i s p e r s e k l t h e p e o p l e f o r c i n ! ; many t o t a k e
r e f u g e i n n e i g h b o u r i n g communitics and i n b u s h e s , 35
, I n o t h e r problem w i t h p n s i s % h a t t h e y were v e r y
expensi-ve t o o b t a i n and m a i n t a i n . F o r most o f t h e t i m e ,
t h e gun r e m a i n e d a s t a t u s symbol r a t h e r t h a n wenpon o f war.
E

T h i s was due m a i n l y t o t h e f a c t t h a t o n l y v e r y few p e o p l e

c o u l d a f f o r d t h e c o s t o f o b t a i n i n c and m a i n t a i n i n ~o n e ,
Moreover, gunpowder was n o t o n l y e x p e n s i v e b u t a l s o v e r y
scxxe - s o much s o t h a t o n l y t h e r i c h c o u l d a f f o r d t o buy
and s t o c k p i l e them f o r f u t u r e u s e . Even t h e ; z o who u s e d
9Abarn1 h e a d - h u n t e r s t o f u r t h e r t h e i r economic i n t e r e s t
i n I c b o l a n d and l j e y o n d , d i d n o t u s u a l l y a f f o r d t o arm them
with suns, iFlirmswere p r o v i d e d by t h e i n d i v i d u a l w a r r i o r s
themselves... 36
The f i s u r e s g i v e n by M1m.eyi r e g a r d i n g t h e c o s t o f nrms
znd ammunitions i n e a r l y n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y Gold C o a s t t e s t i -
f i e s t o t h e h i g h c o s t o f m i l i t a r y h a r d w a r e i n ! j e s t .:frica \

35, Ibeleche Ohaeri c i t e d ,

3 N* Uka, op, cite, p, 79,

during t h i s period. L c c o r d i n g t o him, p n p o w d e r which was
s o l d a t t h e r a t e o f f 4 p e r b a r r e l o f 25 pounds weic;ht a t

Cape C o a s t on t h e s e n c o a s t was r e t a i l e d a t 73d n charge

o f 1 6 n c k i e s ( 3 / 4 o f a n o u n c e v r e i c h t ) a t Jiumasi g i v i n g a
p r o f i t m a r g i n o f 400 p e r c e n t .37 I r o n b a r s f o r ammunition
f e t c h e d p r o f i t s o f 75 p e r c e n t a t Kurnasi and 300 p e r c e n t a t

S a l a g a and Yahudi. T h e s e n m t e r i n l s c o u l d n o t h a v e c o s t much

l e s s i n Ohuhu. T h i s a s s e r t i o n i s b a s e d on t h c f a c t t h a t
Ohuhu and Kumasi a r e n e a r l y t h e same d i s t a n c e from t h e c o a s t .
I n view o f t h e f o r e g o i n g , o n e c a n n o t but a g r e e w i t h h f i ~ b o
L

The g r e a t s o c i a l s i g n i f i c a n c e o f t h e gun wac

p e r h a p s as a symbol o f manhood znd m a t e r i a l
success. I n most p a r t s , anybody who a t t a i n e d
a d u l t h o o d had i n a d d i t i o n t o d o i n g s u c h t h i n g s
as e n t e r i n g t h e s e c r e t s o c i e t i e s and m a r r y i n g n
w i f e o r more, t o buy n Gun and a h u n t i n z k n i f e
( o l ~ e j i l i )w i t h which he a d o r n e d h i m s e l f on
c e r e m o n i a l o c c a s i o n s ,38
The h i g h c o s t and s c a r c i t y o f g u n s o f t e n f o r c e d
resorted to
people t o adopt f r a n t i c measures a k i n t o t h o s e / by com-
a

b a t a n t s d u r i n c oqu mkpuru o k a f o u g h t betvieen O b i b i and h e r

neighbours. A c c o r d i n g t c Vzewunwa, O b i b i w a r r i o r s on

37. P.A. h b a e y i , lll\rms and ?Lmmunitions and t h e i r

e m b a -r ~ oi n B r i t i s h Yiest A f r i c a n H i s t o r y 1823-1874
---
I k e n ~ a ,J o u r n a l o f A f r i --
c a n S t u d i e s vol; 2, -
IE~~JTTT p. , 20
PLATE 7: Akparaja ( O b e j i l i ) , This type of matchet
was the most w i d e l y u s e d weapon d u r i n g
e n c o u n t e r S b e t w e e n n a t a l l y r e l a t e d cominunities.
 73.
r u n n i n g o u t o f ammunition f l e x p e r i m e n t e d w i t h e r s a t z cun
powder and w i t h a v a r i e t y o f r e p l a c e m e n t s f o r b u l l e t s -
palm k e r n e l s , c o w r i e s and f i n a l l y maize p - a i n s s T39
r Gun
powder was a l s o a d u l t r a t e d w i t h p u l v e r i s h e d c h a r c o a l ,
A t y p i c a l Ohuhu s o l d i e r c a r r i e d , i n a d d i t i o n t o t h e
weapons mentioned above, some p r o t e c t i v e d e v i c e s . These
included a- a band made o f t r e e b a r k , which h e t i e d
across t h e waist, T h i s hand p r o t e c t e d t h e stomach a r e a
from bows 2nd a r r o w s f i r e d by t h e enemy. It also facili-
t a t e d crawlin[;. The head was p r o t e c t e d w i t h a t y p e of
helmet - okpu a ~ h a - m a d eo f e i t h e r t r e e b a r k o r g r a s s ,
T a l b o t l s c l a i m t h a t s o l d i e r s from Bende d i s t r i c t ( a f which
Ohuhu was p a r t ) " u s e d okpu oc,qu - f i z h t i n g caps - made o f
r e d cloth4' d u r i n g wars is a l i t t l e o u t of p l a c e . Ohuhu
s o l d i e r s , zs we have s e e n ~ d i dwe,v c a p s b u t i t i s most
u n l i k e l y t h a t t h e y wore r e d o n e s which would have made them
easy t a r g e t s , I t would a p p e a r T a l b o t w a s a c t u a l l y r e f e r r i n e
t o t h e r e d c a p s worn by d a n c e r s o f t h e p o p u l a r Bende war
dance. Soldiers also carried shields - n k a t a which
r e s e m b l e s t h o s e p r e s e n t l y uscd by , a n t i - r i o t policemcn. The
s h i e l d was u s e d mninly t o p r o t e c t t h e h o l d e r from c l u b s

39. Q u o t e d i n E l i z a b e t h I s i c h e i ; d H i s t o r y o f t h e 1,qho
p e o p l e (London, Macmillan, l 9 7 6 ) , pp. 76-77.

40. F.A. T a l b o t , op. c i t , , p, 843,

and p e b b l e s which were t h e n o s t f r e e l y u s e d weapons d u r i n g
wars i n v o l v i n ~ ;n a t a l l y r e l a t e d groups. They a l s o o f f e r e d
some p r o t e c t i o n from k n i v e s when s o l d i e r s f o u c h t i n c l o s e
combnt, ,$n Ohuhu s o l d i e r a l s o c n r r i c d n r a f f i a bag where
hc s t o r e d b o t h p r o v i s i o n s m d ammunitions. These p r o v i s i o n s
u s u a l l y i n c l u d e d r o a s t e d yams and t o b a c c o s n u f f which
took
s o l d i e r s u s u a l l y t o k e e p awake a t n i c h t . Some a t e k o l a n u t s
L
as a s t i m u l a n t , 'iEach f i g h t i n g man from t h e c h i e f down-
wards f e e d s h i m s e l f a c c o r d i n g t c h i s own t a s t e and f a n c i e s
o r needsu. 41
Most of t h e p e o p l e i n t e r v i e w e d l ~ yt h e p r e s e n t r e s e a r -

c h e r a f f i r m e d t h a t m e d i c i n e s and medicinemen p l a y e d i m p o r t a n t
r o l e s i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu w a r f a r e , The importance a t t a c h e d
t o m e d i c i n e s and m e d i c i n e men was s o much t h c t i t a l ~ o s t
became n myth as c a n be s e e n from t h e s a y i n g t h a t - alu~hn
a u j n aforo ndi d i m . T h i s s a y i n s i m p l i e s t h a t i f a war
d r a g s e d , i t was bound t o d e ~ c n e r n t et o a c o n t e s t between
m e d i c i n e men, Some s o l d i e r s wore charms t h e y believecq pro-
t e c t e d them from gun s h o t s w h i l e some, i t was b e l i e ~ c d ~ c o u l c l
n e u t r a l i z e t h o s e ( c h a r m s ) worn by o p p o n e n t s , I n p a r t s of
Ohuhu p e o p l e somctimes u s e d t h e supplement to bullets

41, Jd', Ade A j a y i & R, Smith; OP, c i t ; p. 22.

m e n t i o n e d by Nzewunwa t o c o u n t e r t h e e f f e c t s o f c h a r m s
worn by o p p o n e n t s . 42 "Other medicines werc drunk t o z i v e
strenl;th a n d c o u r a g e , ,143
Some c o m m u n i t i e s c o o p e r n t e l l t o p r e p a r c c h a r m s
s u p p o s e d t o r e n d e r t h e e n t i r e c i t i z e n r y i n v u l n c r a l ~ l et o
l ~ u l l e t s , T h i s c o n t r a s t s s h a r p l y w i t h what h a p l ~ e n c di n

TJmueke - P-cbaja w h e r e , a c c o r d i n g t o Green t h e p e r s o n d i r e c t l y

c o n n e c t e d w i t h t h e d i s p u t e t h z t l e d t o war would,,;f h i s own

i n v i t e n m e d i c i n e man t o p r e p a r e c h a r m s f o r t h e s o l d i e r s
a n d a l s o paid t h e b i { : p s t p a r t o f t h e c o s t of t h e charms
prepared, "But t h o s e who u s e d t h e m e d i c i n e - i t would b e
put i n t o c u t s i n t h e skin - would c o n t r i b u t e , The maf;ic o r
m e d i c i n e was known as u f e r e ef:be - breeze o f sung. 44 1n
Ngwuswuo, t h e r e was a c h m m kncwn as ufc w h i c h protected
t h e e n t i r e community d u r i n g a t t a c k s , The charm w h i c h
t i e d t o t h e t o p o f a palm t r e e i s s a i d t o h a v e h a d t h e
e f f e c t o f d i r e c t i n g a11 b u l l e t s f i r e d ? ~ yt h e enemy w i t h i n
t h e v i l l a s e s k y w a r d s , thus m n k i n ~i t i m p o s s i b l e f o r them to
a
harm a n y Nswugwuo c i t i z e n , 45 X s i r i n i o a l s o h a d ~ p o w e r f u l

42, T h e r e w e r e c h a r m s w h i c h : r e p u t e d l y , made t h e i r u s e r s
invulnerable t o bullcts. I t i s clnixed t h a t people
u s i n g s u c h c h a r m s c o u l d o n l y be harmed by s u c h
t h i n z s as m a i z e g r a i n s a n d c u t t i n g s o f t r e e s l i k e

43. Pa:\, , T n l b o t , o p e c i t , p. 823,

44. I4.N .
Green, _If;bo V i l l a ; ? e :Iff a i r s (London, F r a n k
Chss? 1 9 6 4 ) , p* 64,
45, Nazi O k o r i e N w a b u i s i , v i l l a g e e l d e r , i n t e r v i e w e d
a t N[:wugWo--Ibero, 15,12.82,
charm which, i t i s c l a i n e d , made i t s c i t i z e n s i n v u l n e r a l ~ l e
t o b o t h m a t c h e t s a n d b u l l e t s . 46 The charm was known as ..--
nkpC
A p a r t from f f o r t i f y i n y ' s o l d i e r s w i t h charms, m e d i c i n e
men sornctimes d i c t a t e d b a t t l e s t r a t e i ; i e s t o s o l d i e r s . Some
o f t h e charms also had t z b o o e s t h z t must be k e p t i f t h e y -
t h e c h a r m - were t o be e f f e c t i v e . L: war chnrm i n Okopedi -
Itumbuzo f o r b a d e s o l d i e r s usin[; i t f r o n u s i n c .l e a l weapons
on t h e i r o p p o n e n t s f i r s t , In TJmunwanwa, a p a r t i c u l a r charm
refrnined. i t s u s e r s f r o n l o o t i n g t h e i r opponentasprsperty.
T h i s t ~ . b o owas o n c e b r o k e n by one E z i n n a Nvmnyioma d u r i n s
2 war between Ununwanwn and Mgbarakuma - U l ~ a k n l a . Be i s
s a i d t o have k i l l e d and t n k e n hone t h e c a r c m s o f a doc,

T h i s t r e a c h e r y l e d t o t h e r o u t i n 5 o f TJrnunwnnwa by t h e i r

opponents. Many Umunwmwa l i v e s were l o s t . Uhen E z i n n a qs

b e t r a y a l was d i s c o v e r e d , n e c e s s a r y r i t u a l s w e r e p e r f o r m e d
a f t e r which Ununwanwn s c o r e d a d e c i s i v e v i c t o r y o v e r
M,ybarakuma. 47 Some chcrrna f o r b a d e t h e i r u s e r s from con-
s o r t i n ; ; w i t h women f o r a numb.e r o f d a y s b e f o r e g o i n g t o war.
I t would a p p e a r t h a t Ohuhu d i d n o t have h i g h l y r e p u t e d
m e d i c i n e men and o r a c l e s . I n most o f Ohuhu, (the

d e i t y a s s o c i a t e d w i t h yarn c u l t i v a t i o n ) and (the earth

d e i t y ) r c r m i n e d t h o most i m p o r t a n t d e i t i e s i n t h e p r e -
colonial era, FTonc o f t h e s e d e i t i e s had i n f l u e n c e o r
- ----....I -- - --
.-II-
1--- -- - -- I --*

46, I c h i e Ewulonu Ezen!;wn, v i l l a e e e l d e r ,

interviewed zit Umuerim-Msiriil~o, 17,12.82.
47. --
Nazi I b e l e c h e O h a e r i , c i t e d ,
 77 .
r e p u t a t i o n beyon& t h e immediate community o f t h e i r owners
as d i d i ~ w e - k a - a l a and i b i n i - u k p a b i o r a c l e s of Umunneoha
and Lrochukwu r e s p e c t i v e l y . I n f o r n i n t i o n c o l l e c t e d by t h e
p r e s e n t w r i t e r shows t h a t Ohuhu p e o p l e went a s f a r a f i e l d
a s Urnunneoha ( i .c . t o i;yre-ka-ala) , Lrochukwu (i.e. i b i h i -
u k p a b i ) , W a i s e , Obowo, and :fikpo i n s e a r c h o f m e d i c i n e
men. Some communities u s e d m e d i c i n e men from t h e I b i b i o
area, I n Unuopara t h e most p o p u l a r war-charm maker was a
mm c a l l e d Onuoha Nwapiri from Udo i n ~ f b a i s e . ~Durin:;
~ a
w a r between PLriam and Ekwelu, t h e l a t t e r i n v i t e d a medicine-
'
rnan c a l l e d Okpanebong fro171 l3ang i n n e i g h b o u r i n g 1b i l ~ i o
is
area, HeLsaid t o have p r e p z r e d a charm which he save t o
a b i r d known as ikon^. The b i r d i s s a i d t o have t a k e n t h e
charm t o t h e h o u s e o f t h e commander of Crinrn f o r c e s .
T h e r e , t h e b i r d made a n o i s e which a t t r a c t e d t h e commander
from h i s h o u s e , He vas s h o t and k i l l e d by Fkwelu s o l d i e r s
who were i n ambush a r o u n d h i s compound. The d e a t h o f
t h e i r conirnnnder s o d e m o r a l i s e d ,:rim s o l d i e r s th,:t they
were e a s i l y d e f e a t e d by Ekwclu, 49
So much was t h e b e l i e f i n charms t h a t communities
t o o k s t e p s t o e n s u r e t h e i r e f f i c a c y and r e l i a l ~ i l i t y ,
S t o r i e s abound o f communities who k i l l e d t h e i r d o c t o r a f t e r
he had p r e p a r e d charms f o r them. Urmnwanwa-Umuopara f o r

49. C h i e f E z e k i e l Mwaulu, v i l l a g e e l d e r , i n t o r v i e w e d
a t Nwaulu s compound-, Ekwelu-Usaka 10.12.82.
 example, d i d s o when t h e y s u s p e c t e d t h a t t h e i r man -
Onuoha N w a p i r i was l i k e l y t o p r c p a r e c h a r m s t h a t w e r e
; > n ti d o t e t o t h o s e h e YaVe t o Umunwanwa, f o r o t h e r c l i e n t s ,
I n I b e r e , r , i c d i c i n c rncn w c r e v e r y w e l l p a i d s o as t o
p r e v e n t them from p r e p a r i n l ; s t r o n [ ; e r c h a r m s o r a n t i d o t e s
for o t h c r p e o p l e . x h i m - I b c r e went as f a r a s e n t e r i n g i n t o

blood p a c t - I,r.:bnndu - w i t h hep doctors. To p r e v e n t

b e i n g f o o l e d by m e d i c i n e m e n , O k o p c d i - Itumbuzo b u i l t n
p e r m a n e n t war s h r i n e , ,211 b a t t l e - r e a d y s o l d i e r s converged
a t t h e s h r i n e o f t h e was d e i t y w h e r e t h e y w e r e s p r i n k l e d

w i t h some c o n c o c t i o n s i n c l u d i n e n q s p e c i a l Dw a t e r .
T h i s s h r i n e a l s o s e r v e d as t h e t a c t i c a l h e a d q u a r t e r s o f
t h e army, J.11 wounded s o l d i e r s w e r e t a k e n t o t h i s s h r i n e
i n t h e h o p e t h a t t h e z o d s would c u r e them, 50 Before
moving o u t t o b a t t l e , driam s o l d i c r s n o r m a l l y c o n v e r g e d a t
a s q u a r e known as A r u a - n l a - a l a - n d i O k o r i e , I t w a s t h e r e
.
. ..
k i t h a t f i n a l b a t t l e p l a n s w e r e drawn, To p r e v e n t b e i n g
a n n i h i l a t e d even b e f o r e t h e y t o o k t o t h e f i e l d , t h e s q u a r e
w a s w e l l p r o t e c t e d w i t h charms. I n Ndiwo, a medicineman
h i r e d from t h e I b i b i o a r e a u s u a l l y l e d t h e p e o p l e i n
battle, He i s s a i d t o h a v e h a d t h e power t o r e d u c e b u l l e t s
t o water,. 51

50. Eze Chima Ndom - .-c i t e d ,

51 Mazi E l i j a h Isendom - cited,

 79.

AS w e have a l r e d d y mentioned, ohuhu d i d n o t have permanent armies,

A l l able-bodied men u s u a l l y took t o t h e f i e l d i n times of war, Soldiers

were grouped i n t o regiments, I n oboro, a regiment c o n s i s t e d of between

a hundred and a hundred and f i f t y men, Some communities d i v i d e d t h e i r

s o l d i e r s i n t o regiments each o f which s p e c i a l i z e d i n t h e u s e of a weapon,

Umuopara, f o r example, had two regimcnts --

uke o r ogbo-akparaja which

was made up mainly o f youngmen who wielded k n i v e s and swords, The o t h e r -

uke-egbe comprised o l d e r members of t h e second age-set, It was o n l y

members o f t h i s regiment t h a t were allowed t o c a r r y guns, T h i s was s o

because b c i n g e l d e r s , t h e y were, n a t u r a l l y , b e l i e v e d t o be much more

c a u t i o u s i n t h e u s e of t h i s weapon t h a n members of t h e o t h e r regimcnt

who w e r e mainly, younger people, I n Ibeku, t h e r e w a s a d e l i b e r a t e

p o l i c y of s t a g g e r i n g people born w i h i n a c a l e n d a r y e a r i n t o d i f f e r e n t

regiments. T h i s was done mainly i n o r d e r t o r e d u c e t h e r i s k of many

people born w i t h i n t h e same c a l e n d a r y e a r being k i l l e d a t t h e same

timeo Such it was f e a r e d , c o u l d d e m o r a l i s e t h e i r s u r v i v i n g mates,

Each regimcnt was a s s i g n e d t o a p a r t i c u l a r s e c t o r o r t a s k , All

s o l d i e r s d i d n o t u s u a l l y go t o w a r a t t h e same t i m e , Some came t o

r e l i e v e battle-weary ones, Regiments were commanded by people chosen

on account o f t h 2 i r b r a v e r y i n e a r l i e r b a t t l e s o r e x p l o i t s a s h u n t e r s

o r i n t h e performance o f o t h e r f e a t s of b r a v e r y - The e x i s t e n c e o f

commanders d u r i n g wars h e l p s t o b e l i e t h e c l a i m by C a r l s t o n t h a t i n

Igboland, W a r f a r e took p l a c e by t h e w a r r i o r s o f one side l e a v i n g

t h e i r v i l l a g e o r v i l l a g e s i n a d i s o r g a n i s e d mass and k i l l i n g a l l t h e y
52
encountered,

52, KeS. C a r l s t o n -
2.c i t . p, 203.
 F a r froin b e i n g n h a p h a z a r d , u n c o r d i n a t e d a f f a i r a6
c c n t e n d e d by asd den,^^ Igbo warfare involved n g r e a t d e a l
o f i n t r i c a t e p l a n n i n g and e x e c u t i o n . Thc p l a n s o f t e n
i n v o l v e d n o t o n l y t h a human b u t a l s o t h e s p i r i t u a l r e s o u r c e s
o f a community. B a s d e n t s o b s e r v a t i o n t h a t onc of t h e
c a u s e s of t h e uncoordinated n a t u r e of Igbo warfnre w a s t h e
f a c t t h a t c h i e f s who, natu!-?,lly, should l e a d t h e people i n
war were o f t e n n o t t h e r e , i s a l s o n o t p r o p e r . I n most of
Ohuhu t h e r e w a s h a r d l y any community t h ( 2 t had a c h i e f who
wielded
I
.
I
s t r o n g e x e c u t i v e o r l c g i s l a t i v c o r j u d i c i a l powers
as was t h e c a s e i n some o t h e r ] - a r t s o f N i g e r i a . The powers
the
m e n t i o n e d above were w i @ l d c d by rirnala w h i c h p a s we h a v e
6-
a l r e a d y s e e n , c o n s t i t u t e d a t y p e o f j o i n t m i l i t a r y command
i n t i m e s of w a r . Even i f t h e r e were t h e t y p e o f c h i e f s
Basdcn had i n ri~ind, i t i s d o u b t f u l i f s u c h p c r s o ~ w o u l dh a v e
their were
t a k e n d i r e c t command o f
t, f o r c e s , They L l i k e l y t o b e
t o o o l d t o do s o -they would c e r t a i n l y b e l o n g t o t h e t h i r d

of t h e t h r e e nge-sets - which a l s o neant t h a t / I

they
coulcl n o t
go t o war. I n t h e N i g e r I g b o a r e a where t h e r e were c h i e f s
who e n j o y e d a good measure o f power, command o f t h e armed
f o r c e s i n t i m e s o f mar w z s d e l e s a t e d t o o f f i c e r s s u b o r d i n a t e
t o the chief. I n O n i t s h a f o r example, t h e army was d i v i d e d
i n t o t h r e e main r e g i m e n t s ench cofiirnanded by t h e i y a s e , a , j i e
and 34
 81 0

F a r from beini; t h o Amazons t h a t ~ ~ u i a tnr i oe d~ ~

t o make o f them, women i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu p l a y e d r o l e s
o t h e r t h a n t h o s e o f c o m b a t a n t s i n t i m e s o f war. l;!e have
a l r e a d y s e e n t h 2 t t h e y w e r e u s e d a s s p i e s who c o l l e c t e d
v a l u a b l e m i l i t n r y i n t c l l i y e n c e f o r t h e mensfolk. It was

d u e m a i n l y t o t h e i r n o n - c o m b a t a n t r o l e s t h a t t h e r e was n
c o n v e n t i o n t h a t women s h o u l d n o t bc k i l l e d durinc; wars.
I n f a c t , i t w a s r e ~ z - r d e d, ~ sa n a c t o f c o w a r d i c s f o r a n2n
t o k i l l n woman d u r i n c a w a r , The w o r s t t h a t u s u a l l y
hap1;ened t o women clurin;; wars was b e i n 3 s e i z e d carried4
off. I n t h e l a t t e r c a s e t h e y were e i t h e r k e p t as s l a v e
wives, s o l d , o r o c c a s i o n a l l y handed back t o t h e i r husbands
a t t h e end o f t h e war, 56 iL few o f them w e r e g i v e n as

wives t o male ,
_
us
.
o
Women c o o k e d f o o d w h i c h t h e y s o m e t i m e s t o o k t o t h e
men i n t h e b a t t l e f r o n t s , I n some p l a c e s t h e y a c t e d as t h e
r e a r p a r d o f t h e i r community i n t i m e s o f war. They p l a y e d
t h i s r o l e by l a y i n g ambuah,.armecl w i t h c l u b s v i i t h which
t h e y c l u b b e d a n d sometimes k i l l e d e s c a 1 ; i n ~o r wounded
enemies. They lured enemies i n t o t h e i r
houses with assurances of providing t h e n with s e c u r i t y
comfort. Such men w e r e u s u a l l y b e t r a y e d by t h e women.
The r o l e o f women i n help in^; gnd h o s t i l i t i e s w i l l b e
discusseci i n a later chapter.

55. O l a u d n h E q u i a n o 013.cit. p, 2 5 ,
56. P.A. Talbot gp.cit, p. 824.
 Vie have s a i d t h n t p e o p l e t r i e d a s much as p o s s i b l e

t o a v o i d b l o o d s h e d d u r i n g wars ( e s p e c i a l l y d u r i n g wars
involvin;; n a t a l l y r e l z t e d croups). T h i s i s n o t , however,
t h e s a m e t h i n ( ; as sayin!; t h a t wars were e n t i r e l y b l o o d h s s .
P e o p l e were f o r s u r e , k i l l e d and o r maimed d u r i n s wars i n
p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu. Thc c o n v e n t i o n s e n ~ n c r ~ x t eeda r l i e r
were meant t o k e e p t h e c a s u a l t y r a t e , low. Two o t h e r
f a c t o r s , a s we h a v e s e e n , a l s o c o n t r i b u t e d t o t h e low
c a s u a l t y r a t e o f w a r s i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu. T h e s e W@E@, -
the i n e f f i c i e n c y o f t h e weailons u s e d and t h e hil52.1 c o s t o f
performin:; p u r i f i c ~ ~ t i or ni t e s by a k i l l e r . Another f a c t o r
t h a t h e l p e d a c c o u n t f o r t h e low c a s u a l t y r a t e o f wars was
t h e c o n v e n t i o n t h a t human c a s u a l t i c s lnust be k e p t a t l;ar
between a n y two s i d e s i n v o l v u d i n a civil^ war, 57 Thus,
i f a F c r s o n k i l l e d a n o t h e r d u r i n s a c i v i l war, h e ( t h c k i l l e r )
w a s hound t o be h m d e d o v e r t o t h e o t h c r s i d e t o 11e k i l l e d
i n atonement. T h i s c o n v e n t i o n made i t p o s s i b l e f o r n
s o l d i c r who came i n t o c l o s e c o n t a c t w i t h a n o p p o n e n t t o
l ~ i v ehim o n l y a s l i s h t c u t o r a n y o t h c r i n j u r y t h a t would
not l e a d t o death, Many s o l d i e r s p r e f e r r e d t o p h y s i c a l l y

overcome t h e i r opponentS 2nd t a k e &

, home - i f t h e y could.
--- --- -

57. I t would ap1;ear t h a t t h i s r e ! ; u l a t i o n w a s e n a c t e d as

n r e s u l t o f two c o n s i d e r a t i o n s r F i r s t w a s t h e b e l i e f
t h z t any f r e e m a n ' s l i f e was as v a l u a b l e as nny o t h e r ' s
h e n c e t h e sayin:; t h n t -
i s i nwoke ana,qhi a k a i b e ya.
Secondly t h e r e w a s t h e b e l i e f t h a t u n l e s s such
r e p a r a t i o n s were made, t h e a c h i e v e m e n t of a meanins-
f u l p e a c e between two n a t a l l y r e l n t e d b e I l i ~ c r e n t s
v ~ o u l db e i m p o s s i b l e .
T h i s was done m a i n l y t o c1enc;nstrate p e r s o n a l v a l o u r .

C a p t i v e s were s c a r c e l y harmed o r s o l d i n t o s l a v e r y .
R a t h e r t h o s e r e t a i n e d ? ~ yt h e i r c a p t o r s were d e d i c a t e d t o
d e i t i e s a s _osu, T h i s , however, happsned i f t h e c a p t i v e g s
r e l a t i o n s w a s t e d t o o much t i m e i n cornin!; t o redeem him,,
Only w c r t h l e s s p e r s o n s - gJ,u&fg were l e f t w i t h t h e i r
c a p t o r s loni; enouch t o 'he cledicatcc? t c d e i t i e s .

A s o l d i e r who went o u t o f h i s way t o k i l l *an

o p p o n e n t durinll; a c i v i l war, ms, i f i d e n t i f i e d , f o r c e d t o
pay w i t h h i s own l i f e , 50 1 n scma c a s e s , s u c h c u l p r i t s
were n o t k i l l e d . b u t s o l d i n t o s l a v e r y . P a r t o f t h e pro-
c e e d s from t h e s a l e o f a k i l l e r w a s u s e d t o p e r f o r m
c l e a n s i n g r i t e s f o r t h e dead w h i l e t h e f a m i l y o f t h e v i c t i m
kept the r e s t , I n TTmuoyara. a k i l l e r was u s u a l l y handed
o v e r t o t h e o p p o n e n t s who t o o k him t o t h e i r m a r k e t s q u a r e ,
T h e r e h e w c s z i v e n a k n i f e c u t by a member o f h i s v i c t i m ' s
side. T h i s was u s u a l l y done i n f u l l view of some o f t h e
k i l l e rt s c o l l e a g u e s . 59 A f t e r t h e k n i f e c u t , a p e r s o n was

58. N o t h i n j happened t o a p e r s o n v~hv k i l l e d a n o t h e r

d u r i n g n war between s r o u p s . t h a t d i d riot h a v e any
blood r e l a t i o n s h i p . L l l t h a t h k i l l e r was r e q u i r e d
t o do was t o p e r f o r m soroc r i t e s t o c l c n n s u hirfisclf
o f t h e b l o o d c f h i s v i c t i m ant,! ap:lcrxse t h e e a r t h
goddess -&la. T h i s r i t u a l was c d l e d &.KO_ a k a o r
-
i riapu a k a l k c .
59. The r e s u l a t i o n t h a t sonic c o l l e a L ; u e s o f n p e r s o n
{ y i l t y o f k i l l i n g a n o t h e r d u r i n L ; a g c i v i l i vmr n u s t
w i t n e s s h i s b e i n c g i v e n t h e prenerj ; J ~ B 1.unishment
was e n a c t e d s o a s t o p r e v e n t p e o p l c t o wholn s u c h
c u l p r i t s were handed o v e r from u s i n c t h e n f o r
o t h e r t h i n g s s u c h a s s d e i n t o s l a v e r y z.nd
d e d i c a t i o n t o t h e f;od.s 2s ~ 9 .
 84c
removed by h i s c o l l e a g u e who t r e a t e d him f o r t h e wound

( i f h e w a s s t i l l A i v e ) o r b u r i e d him ( i f h e was d e a d ) .
However, i t was n o t a l w a y s t h a t p c o p l e handed o v e r
k i l l e r s t o t h e i r opponents. T h i s convention w m o f t e n
b r o k e n i f t h e c u l p r i t was a not:l.i.~l.c i n s o c i e t y whom h i s
c o l l e a ( g u e s would n o t e a s i l y p a r t w i t h . However, r e f u s a l t o

hand o v e r c u l p r i t s o f t e n idrolon;;ed w a r s u n d u l y . Xhume and

O h i a o c h a ( i . e. @ p ; h o d i n a i l ~ ea n d Umunwanwa) a l l i n Umuopara
f o u g h t t h e m s e l v e s f o r many y e a r s b e c a u s i . of' t h e r e f u s a l o f
t h e l a t t e r t o h m d o v e r o n e J1kwacla who k i l l e d an cipponent
d u r i n c a w a r b e t w e e n t h e two communitios.60 Rather than
hand o v e r Akwnda, O h i n o c h a p e o p l e c h a l l e n g c c l Ehume t o a v e n g e
themselves i f t h e y could. They w e r e n o t a b l e t o do t h i s
i n t h e b a t t l e t h a t immediately followed but r a t h e r s u s t a i n e d
more c a s u a l t i e s . T h i s strcn~.;theriecl t h e i r r e s o l v e to
fight. When t h e wnr e n d e d , hkwada was nicknamed
onukar<bu,onw=.
W a r f a r e i n Ohuhu d i f f e r e d from t h o s e i n some o f h e r
n e i ~ h b o u r i n gc o m m u n i t i e s i n iiii]:,crtant ways. I n t h e qf~bam~
w e a , t h e main pur1)ose o f fi:;htin!; wars was t o c u t human
h e a d s w h i c h was a si:,n o f b o t h manhood a n d accom:Li.shi:~?lent.
T h e r e , a man who h a d n o t c u t a h e a d was re::;mded 2s n
weaklins - a n d n o t many women would a c c e p t s u c h a m a n ' s
hand i n m a r r i a s e .
-- p
1\10
a -
s u c h p r m t i c e e x i s t e d i n Ohuhu
- --
-
- not

Ibeleche Ohaeri cited. -<-

even i n Bende which s l i a r e s a common l ~ o u n d a r yw i t h parts o f
Aham. Iiowcver, i n :iriam t h e r e was o s h r i n e known as
!Lwcrrshi Oha t o which a mnn who k i l l e d a n o t h e r d u r i n e a war
u s u a l l y went f o r c l e a n s i n ; ; , A f t e r t h e r i t u a l , h e was f r e e
t o d i s p l a y t h e head o f h i s v i c t i m d u r i n ; ; i m p o r t m t f e s t i v a l s

s u c h as Ekpe. T h e r e w e r e n o t i n Ohuhu a n y s p e c i a l c l u b s
whose memLership was r e s t r i c t e d t o t h o s c who ha:: ,;one
t o war 2nd s l a i n p e o p l e . thc case
communities. 6 3
Ohuhu p e o p l e a l s o d i d n o t hnvc t h e p r a c t i c e o f e a t i n g
t h e f l e s h of s l a i n opponents. This is contrary t o Tnlbot's
clnis- t h a t i n t h e Eende d i s t r i c t o f I ~ b o l n n d , ( o f which
Ohuhu was part;), t h e b o d i e s o f t h o s e k i l l e d rlurinf; wars
were "cooked i n n a t i v e p o t s a n d o a t v n and as many a6
p o s s i b l e s h a r e d i n Chcm.,. Human f l e s h was p r i c e d above
a l l o t h e r lrinds o f T n l b c t went as f o r as h o l d i n g
t h a t c a n n i b a l i s m was, d e f i n i t e l y p r a c t i s e d i n p l a c e s l i k e

61. R e f e r t o f o o t n o t e 1 7 on page 6 1 f o r d c t n i l s o f
s t r a t i f i c a t i o n o f p r e - c o l o n l a 1 O l i ~ f i amen a c c o r d i n g
t o t h e i r m i l i t a r y achieve~nent.

62, Here t h e r e was a m a n - e a t i n g s o c i e t y known as n d i nkvm

ike t o which o n l y men who had k i l l e d i n l j a t t l e b e l o i i $ ? d .
7

See M.14. Grcen o p . c i t . 2p. 66-67. I \

63. I n t h e Fii;cr I g b o s t a t c s , f 5 t was a mark o f h e r o i s m
t o a c q u i r e t h e head o f a n enemy who had Lecn k i l l e d o r
c a p t u r e d i n war o r as a r e s u l t o f w a r l i k e a c t i o n such
as r a i d i n g and a n i 5 u s h i n ~ . P e o p l e who a c c o m p l i s h e d t h e
f e a t belonzed t o t h e society. See I k e n n a Nzimiro
op.cit, p, 34.
 8 6'.
-
Ohonhow D h u h d I s i - k w e a t o w LTsuikwuato7 and E l e r a l l i n
Bende d i s t r i c t v f ,65 I n f o r m a t i o n c o l l e c t e d by t h e p r e s e n t
r e s e a r c h e r shows t h a t a t n c t i m e i n t h e (remerubered) h i s t o r y
o f Ohuhu was c n n n i i ~ a l i s mp r a c t i s e d . F o r were wars and r x i d s
u n d e r t a k e n f o r t h e p u r p o s e o f o b t a i n i n r : human f l e s h f o r
eatin[;. I n Ohuhu as i n Oifbnja, when a p e r s o n was k i l l e d in
b a t t l e , a s t r u g ~ . l eu s u a l l y cnsu.eG betwcen h i s c o l 1 e n ; u e s and

opponents f o r t h e corpse, A c c o r d i n : t o Green, i n l q : b n j ~ ~ , t h e

body o f a man k i l l e d i n b a t t l e c o u l d b e c a p t u r e d znc! e a t e n
by t h e opponents i f t h e dead m n f l s c c l l e q y e s were s l o w i n
r e m o v i n t h e c 0 r ~ s o . 6 6 I n Ohuhu, stru:; l e s f o r b o r ' i e s viere
prompted by f ~ . c t o r so t h e r t h a n t h e d e s i r e t o inake meat oft-.
F i r s t , i t w a s c o n s i d e r e d a mark o f weakness f o r a s i d e t o
f o r f e i t t h e bo(1y o f i b s d e a d t o o p p c n e n t s . S e c o n d l y , i t was
b e l i e v e d t h a t t h e s p i r i t o f t h e d e a d would f o r a v e r y l o n g
t i m e t o r m e n t h i s ~ o l l e 3 ~ ; u ei sf t h e y f n i l e d t o r e s c u c h i s body.
I t was even b e l i e v e d t h a t s i n c e s u c h a p e r s o n was n o t s u r e o f
r e s p i t e i n t h e v a r l d o f s y i r i t s , h c c o u l d c a u s e h i s community
military reverses. T h e r e w : ~a l s o t h e common b e l i c f t h a t
e v e r y a d u l t mzle must be buriecl vanon,:,.h i s a n c e s t o r s v
h e n c e t h e s a y i n g i s i nwoke tin2i:hf a t o n a inbn. Ijoreover,
p e o p l e whc; p a i d t h e supreme s a c r i f i c e w h i l e advancin:; t h e
c a u s e o f t h e i r community w e r e a c c o r d e d h e r o e s t b u r i a l
- A L-WI------

65. 834.
I b i d . I?.
66. bl.FZ. Grcon, op.
Y
c i t . p. 66.
 -
a c c o m p a n i e d by t h e d a n c i n s o f Nkwa i k e , Any p e r s o n
who q u a l i f i e d f o r t h i s h o n c u r b u t whose c o r p s e was l o s t
t o enemies w a s i n e v i t a b l y d e n i e d t h i s ~ ; r i v i l e ~ e .s u c h
d e n i a l , i t was believed, c a u l 3 c a u s e the dead mnnDs
s p i r i t t o torment h i s people.
 ?ic saw i n c h a p t : ? ~t h r e e tha.?; e v e n at t h e t , i ~ a eo f
goirq; l ~ l t oa c t u a l ?!a.';t.:!e?, av:;l-li,tes f o r pr-:acc f c l a c t t l e m c n t
of' t h e i s s u e s l e a d i n g t o v~ar.:; o l t e n r e n a j . ncd open.

f o r somi: i;lti.ma.te r e a s o n s . F i r s t , tkrc S Y S ~ L S C Iof' exogamy

p r a c t i a e d in t h e C;l.iuhu ;we:J gave ri:,o t o a sit..uation

where there w.s h a r d l y any c ~ m ~ i ~ ; i : i tt hy n t did n o t h a v e

onc f o m o f rnnrr-i~lge !-ink jii t h the othcr. lTnter-niarri q;c
c r c > ~ i ; c sa. :ictuorli o f I;ri.c.s b y w11icll c e i l s oP boci.ety.. a are,. ,
i n t e r - . l i . v ked h o r i z o ~qt l l y by the, s o c i ~ lb o n d s o f inter-
r n a r ~ i a g ( :I~ ~ It
. was ( a n d i s cti.l.1) m a i n l y due:: t.0 t h i s
\ ; i d e n c t n o r k of' c;rog:rmy
t h a t i n Unuoparn, :'or example, i f
LL:C~ othcr
two mc,v \ r h o 1 ~ 1 ~n1o t !rno7vil / b e f o r e ~ c i tn m o t h e r
 89.
c o l o n i a l Ohuhu a f t e r a g r i c u l t u n e . Trade i n pre-
c o l o n i a l Ohuhu c a n b e d i v i d e d i n t o two b r o a d and
complimentary groups - the long distance o r external
t r a d e znd t h e s h o r t d i s t a n c e o r i n t e r n a l t r a d e . While
t h e f o r m e r l i n k e d t h e Ohuhu a r e a w i t h s u c h d i s t a n t

m a r k e t s as t h o s e o f TJkwa, Oharnbele, TJburu, and O k p o s i ,

t h e l a t t e r l i n k c d t h e v a r i o u s p a r t s o f Ohuhu w i t h o n e

i n c l u d e d 2.fo.r- Eende, @wok, Nkwo F d o r o , TTlrwocgp, and

A f o r Uinuda, Uars d i s r u p t e d t h i s n e t w o r k o f t r a d e - r o u t e 6
i n many i m p o r t a n t a s p e c t s , F i r s t , a s we h a v s a l r e a d y
m e n t i o n e d , o n e o f t h e p ~ e c a u t i o n a r ym e a s u r e s t a k e n by
c o m m u n i t i e s p r e p a r i n g f o r war was t o r e s t r i c t t h e i n f l u x
o f t r a d e r s i n t o !hci%arket.se This type of situation
L
af f ccted trade badly. Y o r s e s t i l l , war s i t u a t i o n s made
i t d i f f i c u l t f o r communities and i n d i v i d u a l s t o c o n t i n u e
r e n d e r i n g t h e t r a d i t i . o n a 1 h o s p i t a l i t y which t h e y ; i n
p e a c e t i m e 9 e x t e n d e d t o t r a d e r s who e i t h e r came t o t h e i r
markets o r passed through t h e i r land 011 t h e i r way t o
d i s t a n t markets. A s Ukwu c o r r e c t l y o b s e r v e d ,

Ph.e l o n g d . i s t a n c e t r a d e r r e l i e d on c o n v e i i a i i t s
a t t h e p e r s o n a l l e v e l , a b a n d u as t h e
p r i n c i p a l means o f g u a r a n t e e i n g f r e e d o m o f
movement a c r o s s t h e c o u n t r y a n d s a f e t y among
strangers. By t h i s t h e s t r a n g e r e s t a b l i s h e d
 90-
a r i t u a l k i n s h i p w i t h an i n f l u e n t i a l
member of t h e v i l l a g e - g r o u p h e was v i s i t i n g
o r p a s s i n g t h r o u g h ,2
To e n s u r e s a f e t y o f t r a d e r s , n e i g h b o u r i n g communities
Afigbo h a s
sometimes e n t e r e d i n t o b l o o d p a c t s , AS / correctly
L

observed s'Between one c l a n and a n o t h e r a r i t u a l

b r o t h e r h o o d c o u l d b e e s t a b l i s h e d by means o f t h e id;a_nciu
b l o o d p a c t w e 3 T h i s i n t r i c a t e s y s t e m o f b l o o d p a c t s on
which t h e s a f e t y of t h e t r a d e r s d e p e n d e d was o f t e n d i s r u p t e d
by wars. T h i s c o ~ ~ ~ p e l lcommunities
ed and i n d i v i d u a l s who
o t h e r w i s e , would n o t have been much p e t u r b e d by t h e
wars t o t a k e s t e p s t o end them.
The s u f f e r i n g of n e u t r a l communities was o f t e n
p r o l o n g e d by t h e f a c t t h a t i n most c a s e s , i t was d i f f i c u l t
if n o t i m p o s s i b l e f o r any o n e s i d e t o s c o r e a d e c i s i v e
victory over the other* \,Jarso f t e n d r a g g e d u n t i l t h e y
were r e d u c e d t o p r o t r a c t e d s k i r m i s h e s which c o u l d o n l y be
broken by t h e i n t e r v e n t i o n o f peacemakers, The l o n g e r
wars d r a g g e d , t h e more t h e y ( t h e n e u t r a l g r o u p s ) s u f f e r e d ,
The f a c u t h a t wars o f t e n d r a g g e d f o r v e r y l o n g i s a t t e s t e d

2. Ukwu, I. Ukwu; "The development o f t r a d e and m a r k e t i n g

i n ~ g b o l a n d f l J o u r n a l of t h e I J i s t o r i c a l S o c i e t y ~ f .
N i g e r i a vol. 111, No. 4, ( 1 9 6 7 ) , p. 650.
3. A.E. Afigbo; Ropes o f Sand: S t u d i e s i n I ~ b oK i s t o r
and C u l t u r e (Xba~w., IJniversity Publishers Ltd, I_T_Y
U n i v e r s i t y o f N i g e r i a P r e s s L t d , 1981), p. 135
t o by two i n f e r e n c e s , F i r s t t h e r e w a s i n most p l a c e s a
c o n v e n t i o n which f o r b a d e ~ o l d i e r sfrom p u r s u i n g t h e i r
o p p o n e n t s i n t o t h e i r homes even a f t e r b r e a k i n g t h e i r
defences. I t w a s a l s o u n c o n v e n t i o n a l t o l o o t opponent
communities, biars were t h e r e f o r e c o n c e n t r a t e d i n t h e

borders. F i g h t i n g w a s resumed by any s i d e whenever i t

f e l t i t had t h e means. The enemy would, i f n o t r e a d y f o r
an o f f e n s i v e , r e s o r t t o d e f e n s i v e t a c t i c s u n t i l t h e
a g g r e s s i v e s i d e was s p e n t and a l u l l would e x i s t 4 a

.
Moreover f i g h t i n g was o f t e n suspended when any s i d e
had an i m p o r t a n t f e s t i v a l s u c h as Ekpe, Okonko, 0,jarn and
Egwu, i n Umuopara; F;gv~u, i n Tbcku; Ajana i n Umuhu-na-
Okaiuga and Ekpe i n Oboro, There, Oloko and Ariam. Truces
were o b s e r v e d whenever t h e r e was a f e s t i v a l t h a t was
customary t o t h e c a l e n d a r o f o n e side. Each s i d e knew
when t h e o t h e r o b s e r v e d i t s r e l i g i o u s f e s t i v i t i e s and
r e f r a i n e d from a t t a c k i n g , s i n c e d e a t h s a t s u c h t i m e s
r e s u l t i n g from a t t a c k s would have t o be a t o n e d f o r by
heavy s a c r i f i c e s .5 I t i s c l a i m e d by some i n f o r m a n t s t h a t
even w h i l e s t i l l a'-. war, p e o p l e v i s i t e d and d r a n k w i t h
t h e i r f r i e n d s from t h e !enemyf s i d e d u r i n g t h e f e s t i v a l s
mentioned above.6 The c o n v e n t i o n s enumerated above pro-
l o n g e d wars and--- t h e s u f f e r i n g o f n e u t r a l g r o u p s by o f f e r i n g
4. E l i z a b e t h I s i c h e i : I ~ b o' i o r l d s : An Anthology o f Oral
H i s t o r i e s and H i s t o r i c a l D e s c r i p t i o n s (London,
INacmillan E d u c a t i o n L t d . l97?), p. 102.
5. -
Ibid.
6, Nazi A. E3onu , v i l l a g e e l d e r , i n t e r v i e w e d a t
1Jmuoriehi-1singwu 7.4.83.
 92.,
b e l l i g e r e n t s highly valuable time t o strengthen
t h e i r defences. .
inference
One o t h e r -/ t h a t would seem t o eupporlt . t h e c l a i m
t h a t wars ended on c o n f e r e n c e t a b l e s r a t h e r t h a n on b a t t l e -
f i e l d s i s t h e f a c t t h a t i t i s d i f f i c u l t , b a s e d on t r a d i -

t i o n s c o l l e c t e d d u r i n g f i e l d w o r k s , t o a s c e r t a i n who vms
v i c t o r o r vanquished. Even i n f o r m a n t s from n e u t r a l comau-
n i t i e s do n o t seem t o a g r e e o v e r t h i s . T h i s disagreement
would seem t o h a v e been c a u s e d by t h e f a c t t h a t most wars
ended t h r o u g h t h e i n t e r v e n t i o n o f o u t s i d e r s r a t h e r t h a n as
a r e s u l t of any s i d e a c h i e v i n g d e c i s i v e v i c t o r y o r t h e
o t h e r s u i n g f o r p e a c e due t o d e f e a t . Only i n v e r y few
c a s e s do we have some form o f g e n e r a l a g r e e m e n t a s t o who
was v i c t o r i o u s o r v a n q u i s h e d i n a war, One s u c h example was
t h e war between U n u h u - ~ a O k a i u g a ane Obanu -. ~ b e k u . ~ i l o s t

i n f o r m a n t s a g r e e t h a t Umuhu-na-Okaiuga 'Idrove away t h e Obanu

p e o p l e from Nkwoegwu and o c c u p i e d t h e i r T h i s was
when t h e form* moved i n t o t h e Ohuhu a r e a from Cbowo due
t o s c a r c i t y of land. Obanu p e o p l e were t h u s f o r c e d t o
found a new s e t t l e m e n t somewhere between Umuahia and U z u a k o l i .
--
M a r r i e d d a u g h t e r s Emu okpu o r Umuada were t h e s i n g l e
most i m p ~ - r t a n tand a c t i v e g r o u p when i t came t o e n d i n g wars
i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu. On t h i s f l f i g b o h a s w r i t t e n It... if
--- -. -
I
- .
L .
U I
L--.- - ----- --.-

7. J.C.. Ahazuem, Q r i g i n s , V i ~--- r a t i ----

o n sand -I n t e r - r o u
R e l a t i o n s h i p s --
i n m e - c c i o n i a l Ohuhu ( u nI_EL6epubllshe
D.A. 1 T s t o r y ~ h e s i s : T s T k k n , 1977, p, 1 9 .
 93e
v i l l a g e A f e l l o u t w i t h v i l l a g e E, women b o r n i n t h e
l a t t e r v i l l a g e b u t m a r r i e d i n t h e f o r m e r would meet women
b o r n i n v i l l a g e A b u t m a r r i e d i n E a n d d e c i d e t o impose
peace.u8 -~.
The i n t e r e s t o f Umuokpu i n making p e a c e between
t h e i r h u s b n n d P s community m d t h a t o f t h e i r f a t h e r s w a s

d i c t a t e d by two c o n s i d e r a t i o n s , First wars o f t e n made i t

d i f f i c u l t f o r them t o v i s i t t h e i r f a t h e r s ! homes, There
was a l s o t h e r i s k t h a t t h e i r c h i l d r e n c o u l d be k i l l e d
by p e o p l e from t h e i r ( t h e women's) f a t h e r s homes. Any

p e r s o n g u i l t y o f t h i s o f f e n c e was s e v e r e l y ~ u n i s h e d , He
a l s o performed very expensive c l e a n s i n g r i t e s t o p l a c a t e
t h e gods. I n most p a r t s o f Ohuhu i t was a t a b o o - ar_u_ - f o ~
a p e r s o n t o b e wounded by a p e r s o n from h i s m a t e r n a l s i d e .
I t w a s even worse i f t h a t o f f e n c e w a s committed w i t h i n a
p e r s o n ' s m a t e r n a l community, I n Umuopara, a p e r s o n was
n e v e r b u r i e d w i t h i n h i s m a t e r n a l home n o t even i f h e l i v e d
h i s whole l i f e t h e r e . The b e s t t h a t c o u l d be done was' t o
bury such a person i n an e v i l f o r e s t - okata, I t w a s mainly
t o avoid t h e i n c i d e n c e of a person k i l l i n g a s i s t e r ' s son
o r v i c e - v e r s a t h a t i n some p l a c e s , p e o p l e were n o t a l l o w e d
t o go t o wars i n v o l v i n g t h e i r p a t e r n a l and m a t e r n a l @ 6 ~ % * $ @ &
Uniu o k p u V s method o f i n t e r v e n t i o n i n wars was v e r y
\
direct: Whati t h e y u s u a l l y d i d was t o c o n v e r g e on t h e b a t t l e
an
f i e l d on a g r e e d d a t e . There, t h e y would move i n t o t h e n e u t r a l
L

8, A, Em A f i g b o , o p e ~ i t . ,p, 158,
ground between t h e a r m i e s o f t h e b e l l i g e r e n t s c a r r y i n g
t e n d e r palm f r o n d s - qmu - which i s a s i g n o f p e a c e , They
would t h e n b e g i n t o s i n g and s h o u t on b o t h d d e s r e a f f i r m i n g
t h a t t h e y were n o t g o i n g t o l e a v e t h e p l a c e u n t i l b o t h

s i d e s had e n t e r e d i n t o a n u n d e r h u n g . t o call-off hosti-

lities, They a l s o s a n g f P s o n g son t h e e v i l s o f war and

b e n e f i t of T h e i r encampment o f t e n made i t impo-

s s i b l e f o r b o t h s i d e s t o exchange f i r e s i n c e i t was f e a r e d
t h a t any weapons f i r e d would harm e i t h e r o n e ' s w i f e o r
daughter, o r s i s t e r . T h i s r e s t r a i n t stemmed from t h e
u n d e r s t a n d i n g t h a t " t h o s e women h o r n i n one of t h e w a r r i n g
towns b u t m a r r i e d i n t h e o t h e r as w e l l as t h e i r o f f - s p r i n g s
must n o t be harmedlj. lo The l u l l t h u s c r e a t e d o f t e n f o r c e d
t h e men t o s e n d d e l e g a t e s t o t h e women. The women would
t h e n f o r c e t h e men t o a g r e e t o go f o r a s e t t l e m e n t a t a
place acceptable t o both p a r t i e s .
C h i l d r e n o f m a r r i e d d a u g h t e r s i, e , gken_c, o r umu-uin~,
e s p e c i a l l y t h e males, a l s o p l a y e d v e r y i m p o r t a n t r o l e s i n
a c h i e v i n g p e a c e between w a r r i n g g r o u p s . !?The s o n o f a
woman who had been b o r n i n a h o s t i l e town was s e n t as
h e r a l d when p e n c e was d e s i r e d " , Okene o r umu-umu o f t e n
_UI

7. --
Ibid.
10. S.C. Ukpabi, " I g b o V a r f a r e U ( u n p u b l i s h e d p a p e r
p r e s e n t e d a t l f ~ & & ~ ~ g n _ J g &I n~s t, i .t u~t e~ o,f
A f r i c a n S t u d i e s U n i v e r s i t y o f F i g e r i a , Nsukka ,(1977)' P 433
11. P.A. T a l b o t , The P e o ~ l e so f S o u t h e r n Ni * e r i a v o l , I11
E t hno 1
- ( L o z o ' c ~r a ~ - a r l y ~ 7 ~ 7 A & 7 ~ - - - -
 95.
i n t e r v e n e d w i t h t h e a i d of n e i g h b o u r i n g communities. What
t h e y u s u a l l y d i d was t o s o l i c i t t h e a i d of n e i g h b o u r i n g and
o r r e l a t e d communities. When a s s u r a n c e of s u c h a i d had been
obtained, they, &ek would move i n t o t h e b a t t l e f r o n t s i n

--
t h e same manner a s umuokpu do t h e r e b y f o r c i n g f i g h t i n g t o
come t o an end, During t h e c e a s e f i r e c r e a t e d by t h e
p h y s i c a l p r e s e n c e of !mu-urnu, r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s of t h e commu-
n i t i e s c o n s u l t e d would move i n t o j o i n umu-umu i n p l e a d i n g
w i t h t h e c o m b a t a n t s t o l a y down t h e i r arms and a l l o w mu-umu
and t h e c o n s u l t e d communities t o a r b i t r a t e . Both s i d e s
would u s u a l l y a g r e e t o t a l k p e a c e a f t e r t h i s t y p e o f i n t e r -
vention. I n many p l a c e s , p e o p l e d i d n o t p u l l away t h e i r
f o r c e s u n t i l some p r o g r e s s had been made i n t h s n e g o t i a t i o n .
I n some c a s e s , t h e a r b i t r a t o r s i n c l u d e d p e o p l e who had
f o u g h t on t h e s i d e o f one of t h e b e l l i g e r e n t s . Tn a war
i n v o l v i n g Elemaga and I b e r e n t a ( b o t h i n I b e r e ) ,p e o p l e from
Abam who had f o u g h t on t h e s i d e of I b e r e n t a a l s o t o o k
p a r t i n t h e peace s e t t l e m e n t . The i n t e r e s t of t h e lbam
p e o p l e i n t h i s war s t e w e d from t h e f a c t t h a t I b e r e n t a i s
c l o s e l y r e l a t e d t o Idima-!Lbam. The l a t t ~ rd i d n o t want
I b e r e n t a t o be e x t e r m i n a t e d by h e r h o s t i l e n e i g h b o u r s b u t
she nevertheless realised t h a t i t i%$ossible f o r her
L
t i c o s h e w a s zttacked,
t o continue t o defend I b e r e n t a a ~ y So,
even though t h e y t o o k p a r t i n a m i l i t a r y a c t i o n t h e i'lbm
 96
were n e v e r t h e l e s s i n t e r e s t e d i n a p e a c e f u l P@~O~#'@&OP
of t h e i s s u e s i n dispute. Also a w a r between Obugwu
and Ekwelu ( b o t h i n Lriam-Usaka c l a n ) was ended by t h e
i n t e r v e n t i o n o f e l d e r s from t h e e n t i r e c l a n . This w a s
i n s p i t e of t h e f a c t t h a t a l l t h e v i l l a g e s i n Usaka
v i l l a g e - g r o u p f o u g h t on t h e s i d e of Ekwelu w h i l e t h o s e
from A r i a m a i d e d Obugwu, 13
Settlement of d i s p u t e s u s u a l l y took place at loca-
t i o n s a g r e e d t o by a l l p a r t i e s concerned. T h i s was u s u a l l y
a t t h e b o r d e r between b e l l i g e r e n t s , I n some c a s e s , t h e
b o r d e r s were deemed t o o c h a r g e d f o r s u c h c o n f e r e n c e s and as
a r e s u l t p e o p l e met a t t h e mbara ( i . e . m e e t i n g p l a c e of t h o
v i l l a g e council) of a n e u t r a l v i l l a g e . Yo arms were ufiualy
a l l o w e d a t s e t t l e m e n t venues, I n Ariam t h e r e were n e i t h e r
judge no j u r y d u r i n g p e a c e c o n f e r e n c e s .l4 But e l s e w h e r e
i n Umuhu-na-Okaiuga, n e g o t i a t i o n s were more p r o t r a c t e d and
sometimes i n v o l v e d t h a s w e a r i n g t o a n o a t h by any p e r s o n o r
g r o u p o f p e r s o n s who a f t e r b e i n g found g u i l t y o f c o n t r i b u -
ting to ,
causin
c 6 n ? l a g r a t i o n between two communities i n s i s t e d
-
L

on t h e i r i n n o c e n c e , T h i s happened d u r i n g t h e h a f o r Umuda
affray, When Umuagu-Ibeku wanted t o end t h e d i s p u t e n i n e

12, I c h i e Nkwa E k e t a , v i l l a g e e l d e r , i n t e r v i e w e d a t
E k e t n vs compound Eleniaga-lbere 12.12.82,
13. T e t e Ukoha -
v i l l a g e e l d e r , interviewed at
Obugwu A r i a m 9,12,02.
14, --
Ibid.
 97
p e o p l e from Uniuagu swore t o an o a t h t h a t t h e
l a n d i n d i s p u t e b e l o n g e d t o >Lmafor..
M e d i a t o r s were o f t e n v e r y c a r e f u l n o t t o e i t h e r
blame a p a r t i c u l a r s i d e o r c o m p l e t e l y a b s o l v e a n o t h e r o f
g u i l t i n c a u s i n g a war. T h i s w a s clone, m a i n l y , as we
s h a l l s e e l a t e r , b c c u u s c most m e d i a t o r s d i d n o t have t h e
e x e c u t i v e power t o e n f o r c c t h e i r verdicW. The b e s t t h e y
c o u l d do was t o impose s a n c t i o n s on a n y r e c a l c i t r a n t s i d e ,
I f t h e war was c a u s e d by l a n d d i s p u t e ( a s many w e r e ) t h e
e l d e r s undertook an on-the-spot a s s c s s n e n t of t h e v a l i d i t y
o f t h e c l a i m s made by each group. C ~ u n d a ~ i ewere
s deter-
mined ned new r u l e s made t o i;overn f u t u r e use of t h e land.
I n drawing new b o u n d a r i e s t h e y o f t e n r e s o r t e d t o u s i n g l a n d -
marks s u c h as s t r e a m s and r i v e r s . \\!here s u c h l a n d m a r k s
were l a c k i n g o r b r o u g h t t h e boundary t o o c l o s e t o t h e
homes of one of t h e c o n t e s t a n t s , p e r e n n i a l t r e e s such as

o i r i h i, +PO, a b o s h i an8 --
obu were p l a n t e d a t intervals
on t h e new boundary. 'The ncw bounclrxry was made s a c r o s a n c t
by t h e s l a u g h t e r i n g o f a n i m a l s f o r t h e performance o f a
o r i k o r-
s p e c i a l r i t u a l known a s i g b a ---- o. $, good e x a u p l e o f n
boundary d e m a r c a t e d i n t h i s manner i s t h c t between Obanu-
I b e k u and U z u a k o l i . The boundary known as ogbugbandu came i
Z
i n t o b e i n g a f t e r Obanu p e o p l e were e x p e l l e d from t h e
Vkwoegwu a r e a by Umuhu nz. Okaiuga.
 tho
D u r i n g t h e s e t t l e a c n t of&kwelu - Obugwu d i s p u t e ,
a l r e a d y r e f e r r e d t o , --
Umuokpu, who convened t h e p e a c e
meeting,brought a d e i t y from e a c h o f t h e w a r r i n g communi-
ties. The d e i t i e s were u s e d t o s o l e m n i z e a c o n v e n a n t

e n t e r e d i n t o by t h e two c o ~ m u n i t i c sd u r i n g t h e s e t t l e r ~ i e n t .
The s o l e m n i z a t i o n i n v o l v e d a s p e c i a l s a c r i f i c e made by

m i x i n g e q u a l volume o f wine from p o t s o f s i n e b r o u g h t by

t h e two communities, Ani.mals were s l a u g h t e r e d and p a r t o f

t h e i r b l o o d mixed w i t h t h e wine. Each okene came t o a

c e n t r a l p l a c e where t h e m i x t u r e o f wine and b l o o d w a s k e p t ,
o f t h e rnixt r e
t o o k some L from t%e p o t . d r a n k some o f i t and p a c s e d
t h e r e m a i n i n g t o a man from h i s m a t e r n a l s i d e , I t was
a f t e r t h i s s e t t l e m e n t t h a t a d e i t y known as Mmogho uzo
which i s j o i n t l y owned by t h e two c o m m u n i t i e s came i n t o

being, 15
However, s e t t l e m e n t o f t h e d i s p u t e between Ekwelu
and Ariani d i d n o t i n v o l v e any d e i t i e s , . I n t h a t case, a f t e r

t h e i n t e r v e n t i o n o f Uniuokpu, e l d e r s from b o t h c o m m u n i t i e s
scheduled 2, pence c o n f e r e n c e a t a r m j o r r o n d j u n c t i o n
between t h e two communities, Every e l d e r coming f o r t h i s

m e e t i n g b r o u g h t w i t h him a jar o f palm wine and a d r i n k i n g

\
gourd. 'The m e e t i n g was n o t f o r m a l , What happened was t h a t
-- --
15. Mazi E z e k i e l Nwaulu v i l l a g e e l d e r , i n t e r v i e w e d
a t Ekwelu-Usnka 9.15.82.
 99.
e a c h e l d e r on s e e i n g a p e r s o n ( f r o m t h e o t h e r s i d e )
known t o him r u s h e d t o s u c h p e r s o n w i t h a gourd of wine,
Both men d r a n k from t h e g o u r d a t t h e same t i m e - a type of
convenant --
o r i-
koro. A f t e r t h a t t h e y exch,mged p l e a s a n -
tries. l ~ R e c o n c i l l i a t i o nwas t h u s , g e n e r a l and c o m p l e t e
and i m p l i e d a t y p e o f i n t c r - p e r s o n a l c o n v e n a n t f l .
16

I t was a l w a y s d i f f i c u l t i f n o t i m p o s s i b l e t o e n f o r c e
v e r d i c t s agreed t o during peace conferences ( i n c a s e s
where t h e i s s u e s i n d i s p u t c were t r i e d ) , T h i s was m a i n l y
b e c a u s e most o f t h e i n t e r e s t g r o u p s t h a t i n t e r v e n e d d u r i n g
wars d i d n o t have t h e e x e c u t i v e c a p a c i t y t o e n f o r c e t h e i r
verdicts, some g r o u p s t h e r e f o r e a c c e p t e d s u c h settlements
as mere s t o p - g a p a r r a n g e m e n t s o n l y good enough t o g i v e
them ( t h e w a r r i n g p a r t i e s ) some r e s p i t e t o r e - o r g a n i s e
themselves b e f o r e t a k i n g t o t h e f i e l d again. I n some
c a s e s , p e o p l e t h r e w o v e r b o a r d a g r e e m e n t s r e a c h e d between
t h e i r a n c e s t o r s and a n o t h e r group, They o f t e n a r g u e d t h a t
since they did not take part i n the negotiations, its
p r o v i s i o n s were n o t bincling on them. T h i s t y p e o f thinlsing
l e d t o a s i t u a t i o n where a p G a r t i c u l n r d i s p u t e exploded
i n t o open c o n f l i c t s e v e r a l times. I t was m a i n l y as a
r e s u l t o f t h i s t h a t m~wyo f t h e d i s p u t e s s t r e t c h e d i n t o

16. John Ifenkwe, v i l l a g e e l d e r , interviewed at

Ekwelu-Usaka 9.12.82.
 100.
t h e c o l o n i a l e r a a n d had t o be d e c i d e d by t h e l w h i t e m a n v s
court. The Umuda - i s m f o r d i s p u t e was 2, victim of t h i s
kind of s i t u a t i o n . The 1334 f l a r e - u p was c a u s e d by t h c
d i s s a t i s f a c t i o n of l a t t e r g e n e r a t i o n s with s e t t l e m e n t
agreed t o S y eLarlier generations. ,:,nother example was

t h e i n t e r m i t t e n t f i g h t i n g s t h a t o c c u r r e d between Arnabn
and Umugbalu b o t h i n Oboro, One o f t h e mars l a s t e d w i t h
o c c a s i o n a l b r e a k s , f o r s e v e n y e a r s u n t i l i t was f i n a l l y
t r i e d and. r e s o l v e d i n a c o l o n i a l c o u r t . T h i s d i s p u t e con-
t i n u e d f o r many y e a r s a f t e r t h e a d v e n t o f t h e E r i t i s h .
tills e a r l y as I4ay l92;',fl wrote a 13ritish c o l o n i a l o f f i c i a l
" t h i s l a n d d i s p u t e had p a s s e d t h r o u g h t e n d i f f e r e n t
n a t i v e court sf^, 17
I t would, however, be wrong t o s a y t h a t s e t t l e m e n t s
nade a f t e r wars were s u c h u s e l e s s t h i n g s t h a t any p e r s o n
c o u l d d i s c a r d and d i s r e g a r d them w i t h o u t qualms. The
p u r p o s e o f &&g_du i.c. solemnization of settlemen.tswith
b l o o d p a c t s , was t o make t h e gods and a n c e s t o r s o f b o t h
c o m b n t a n t s w i t n e s s e s t o agreement6 rewcbsd. They were
b e l i e v e d t o be c a p a b l e o f p u n i s h i n g persorswho c o n t r a v e n e d
such s e t t l e m e n t s . Tn some p l a c e s , communities were
c o e r c e d i n t o a c c e p t i n g and k e e p i n g t h e t e r m s o f pence
settleriients, Tn A r i a i n , t h e -----
okonko s o c i e t y c o o p e r a t e d w i t h

17. R e p o r t s on Urnuahia D i v i s i o n 0P.I 2751/16

P. 21.
- Umdiv 3/1/356.
 101.
-
t h e a m a h of mediating v i l l a g e s t o e n f o r c e terms of peace accords,

m y group t h a t r e f u s e d t o a c c e p t t h e v e r d i c t of a r b i t r a t o r s e s p e c i a l l y

-
i f t h e peace-makers were s e n t by t h e i r amala was i n s t a n t l y cordoned-off

-
by e i t h e r t h e Ekpe o r Okonko s o c i e t y . This caused t h e people a l o t of

hardship, e s p e c i a l l y i n t h e c a s e of okonko, because o n l y men who had

i n i t i a t e d i n t o t h e s o c i e t y could come o u t of t h e i r houses during t h e

siege, U n i n i t i a t e d men --
okpoo, women and c h i l d r e n would t h u s be

confined indoors. This t y p e of s i e g e o f t e n forced r e c a l c i t r a n t

v i l l a g e s t o sue f o r peace by a c c e p t i n g t h e terms of t h e agreement. 18

One prominent f e a t u r e of s e t t l e m e n t of wars i n pre-colonial

Ohuhu was t h e r e c o n c i l i a t i o n of a s o l d i e r who k i l l e d another i n b a t t l e

with t h e gods of t h e land. This was deemed very important because

even though t h e k i l l i n g may have been done i n advancement of t h e cause

of t h e community, t h e mere a c t of k i l l i n g another person who deemed

repugnant t o t h e gods. SO s e r i o u s was t h i s taken t h a t a person who

k i l l e d another d u r i n g a war was kept i n some form o f s o l i t a r y confine-

ment u n t i l he was a b l e t o a f f o r d t h e c o s t of performing t h e c l e a n s i n g

ritual - ikwo aka (ifhe d i d n o t have t h e money t o do s o immediately)o

It was mainly i n o r d e r t o avoid t h e h a r d s h i p and c o s t involved i n

performing c l e a n s i n g rites t h a t i n oboro, s o l d i e r s who i n f l i c t e d

d i s a b l i n g wounds on t h e i r v i c t i m s were duty bound t o s h i e l d them from

being k i l l e d o u t r i g h t by o t h e r w a r r i o r s a s t h e consequences of t h e d e a t h (
\
of t h e v i c t i m would be very grave on t h e a s s a i l a n t , l9 This i s a k i n t o

what happened i n Nimbo Nsukka where t h o s e wounded i n

18. p i u s Chionuma, v i l l a g e e l d e r , interviewed a t Ariam

16012.82.

19. C. I. Hgomoh, Some Aspects o f t h e pre-colonial ist tory of

Oboro c l a n i n ~kwuano-umuahia UD t o 1910
(Unpublished BOA. ist tory T h e s i s , Nsukka, 1979), p038.
 102".
b a t t l e were a l l o w e d t o b e conveyed home by t h c i r comrades
f o r t r e a t m e n t . 20 I n Okopedi - ~ t u f n b u z oa l l s o l d i e r s
r c t u r n i n g from b a t t l e a s s e n b l e d a t a s h r i n e c n l l u d Q l i l c "
.
?
&
a I t a m h e r e t h a t t h e i r w i v e s and s i s t e r s n e t them
w i t h s o n g s and c h a l k - nzu_, t h e l n t t c r being n s i g n of

peace. Thc s o l d i e r s were n o t a l l o w e d t o r11cet o r have

any form o f c o n t a c t w i t h f o r d i n a r y P ptcoplc u n t i l t h e y , t h e
them
s o l d i e r s , had bccn c l e a n s e d . T h i s was t o m a k c l p u r e a g a i n
because t h e s p i l l i n g of human b l o o d , even i f i t d i d n o t
r e s u l t i n t h e v i c t i m ~ sd e a t h , was c o n s i d e r e d n c r i m e
agninst the earth deity - 31..
in
!!L?~s. p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu, l i k e i n other parts
o f t h o w o r l d were r e g a r d e d as v e r y s e r i o u s i s s u e s which
had f a r - r e a c h i n g c o n s e q u e n c e s f o r t h e p e o p l e - somc o f
them permanent. It i s important t o note t h a t desp5tc
c o n s c i o u s e f f o r t s t o k e e p i t v e r y low, wars s t i l l i n v o l v e d
a considerable l o s s o f human l i v e s . F i g u r e s g i v e n by
i n f o r n n n t s r e g a r d i n g d e a t h t o l l s d u r i n g wars r a n g e d from a
minimum o f f i v e ( o n t h e s i d e o f 51nnba d u r i n g t h e Arnaba -
Uniugbalu war) t o c l a i m s t h n t whole r c g i m c n t s o f i n v a d i n g
enemies w a s a n n i h i l a t c d . Examples o f s u c h c l a i m s i n c l u d e
t h o s e rmde by Umuhu-na-Okniuga p e o p l e t h n t a whole army o f
Lban w a f r i o r s who i n v a d e d Umungu, many y e a r s bnck,was

22. -.- -- -.. - .--i n F r e - c o l o n i n l PTimbo

A. 0. Okwcry, 'V/arfnre .-a -----
TTsukk?.
( U n p u b l i s h e d C . !lo i!is=-ThesZ'F, university o r
N i g e r i a P s u k k a , 1 9 8 0 ) p. 47.
 103-
completely decimated, So many were t h o s e k i l l e d t h a t
.
g P g r a v e s , , rnade w i t h t h e h e a d s o f hbam s o l d i e r s e x t e n d e d
from Uhuokwu t o P'ibaraukw~l~~. T h i s t y p e o f c l a i m o f
complete a n n i h i l a t i o n of opponents ( e s p e c i a l l y e x t e r n a l
i n v a d c r s ) i s 2 1 . ~ 0w i d e s p r e a d among Oboro p e o p l e , Thore
would seem t o be soriic c o n t r o v e r s y o v e r t h e c a s u a l t y e s t i -
m a t e s i n a war f o u g h t between lJmuokwo and .iUilnv~omon t h e o n e
hand and :Lbam i n v a d c r s on t h e o t h e r . While Agomoh h o l d s
t h e view t h a t 'lone Abam w a r r i o r was k i l l e d w h i l e t h e r e s t
,
r e t u r n e d home s a f e l y f f 22 C h i e f Okoro would have u s b e l i e v e
t h a t t h e e n t i r e band o f ~,bam i n v a d e r s was a n n i h i l a t e d . 2 3

However, b o t h ~'~gornohand Okoro a g r e e t h a t t h e p r e s e n t

s p a r a e p o p u l a t i o n o f Umuokwo was c a u s e d by a n e a r - c o m p l e t e
e x t e r m i n a t i o n o f h e r p e o p l e by Lbarn i n v a d e r s d u r i n g t h e
war u n d e r r e f e r e n c e .
One o t h e r prominent consequence o f wars i n p r e -
c o l o n i a l Ohuhu was t h e l o s s o f l a n d by d e f e a t e d p e o p l e , .As
we saw i n an e a r l i e r c h a p t e r , l a n d c o n s t i t u t e d t h e s i n g l e
most i m p o r t a n t f a c t o r t h a t s e n t one Ohuhu g r o u p a g a i n s t t h e
176 a l s o .w.w
other. t h a t even where l a n d o r l a n d - r e l a t e d
i
i s s u e s d i d n o t p r o v i d e t h e imraediatc s p a r k , i t d i d however
I

23. C h i e f 8. Okoro, f o r m e r t r a d i t i o n a l r u l e r a n d
now v i l l x g e e l d e r i n t e r v i e w e d at Ar,iawon
Oboro 15.12.82.
l i e a t t h e r o o t o f most wars. A good example o f a p e o p l e
who s u f f e r e d g r a v e l o s s o f l a n d and g e n e r a l d i s l o c a t i o n a r e
t h e Obanu - Ibeku people. The Obanu p e o p l e were f o r m e r l y
t h e o c c u p a n t s and owners of t h e l a n d a r o u n d t h e p r e s e n t

Nkwoegwu m a r k e t , I T n f o r t u n a t e l y t h e y were t o o weak t o stem

t h e waves of in-coming, l a n d hungry Umuhu-na-Okaiuga people

who e a s i l y d e f e a t e d and d r o v e them t o a n e a r d e s o l a t e p a r t
o f Ohuhu. Osaa and Emede p e o p l e a l s o o f I b e k u s u f f e r e d t h e
same f a t e a t t h e h a n d s o f I s i n g w u p e o p l e who founded t h e
v i l l a g e s of O n h i a , Umuoriehi and Umuda. One o f t h e m a j o r
c o n s e q u e n c e s f o r t h e I b i b i o o f t h e i r d e f e a t by a j o i n t

liriam l!A~-El;n. and Obugwu army was: t h e l o s s o f a s u b s t a n t i a l

p a r t of t h e i r farmland t o t h e v i c t o r s . ltW""as a r e s u l t
L
o f t h i s v i c t o r y t h a t Obugwu now h a s f a r m l a n d i n t h e

b o r d e r a r e a between t h e I b i b i o and L r i a m E b - E h l even

though Obugwu d o e s n o t s h a r e a common boundary w i t h t h e
Ibibio. I h i m a l s o e x p r o p r i a t e d Lmuro s l a n d a f t e r
d e f e a t i n g h e r i n b a t t l e , 24
Wars o f t e n l e d t o t h e f o r m a t i o n o f m u t u a l l y b e n e f i -
cial alliances, Sometimes t h e s e a l l i a n c e s were f o r g e d
between p e o p l e who d i d n o t s h a r e any b l o o d r e l a t i o n s h i p ,
f 1 t o t h e r t i m e s t h e y i n v o l v e d t h o s e who s h a r e d s u c h r e l a t i o n -

s h i p b u t d i d n o t have common b o u n d a r i e s , Examples abound

o f n a t a l l y r e l a t e d g r o u p s t h a t went t o t h e a i d o f one

24, Lucky 0. Ekpo, Some ,isj,e_c-t,s o f P r e - c o l o n i a1 H i s t o r l

o f I b e r e c l a n ( U n p u b l i s h e d B.1. History Thesis,
U n i v e r s i t y o f N i g e r i a I\Tsukka, 1 9 0 3 ) p a 1 0 7
 105.
a n o t h e r i n t i m e s o f war. D u r i n g a s k i r m i s h between Zhume
and Ohinocha, e a c h s i d e r e c e i v e d s u b s t a n t i a l a i d from
groups r e l a t e d t o i t . Ehun~c ( especially t h e Uliluoyi.me
s e c t i o n ) r e c e i v e d s u b s t a n t i a l a i d from Umuajnmeze who a r c
r e l a t e d t o them, Umunwnnwa on t h e o t h e r hand was a i d e d by

O g b o d i n a i b c and I b e e b o t h of whom arc: r e l z t e d t o h e r ,

D u r i n g n way botween Onhin 2nd O s m t h e L a t t c r was amply
a i d e d by Eniede ( w h i c h l i k e Osnn i s p n r t o f 1 b e k u ) w h i l e
o t h e r p a r t s o f t h e I s i n g w u v i l l n z e - g r o u p gclvc O n h i a
substantial aid,
C o m m u n i t i c ~invoLved i n wars o f t e n s u f f c r e d grave

economic s e t b a c k s . T h i s was m a i n l y i n t h e form o f r e d u c e d

a t t e n d a n c e t o t h c i r rfiarkets, Knny p e o p l e who must p a s s
t h r o u g h enemy t e r r i t o r y b c f o r e r c n c h i n g some narkut s
o f t e n abandoned g o i n g t o s u c h i m r k c t s f o r f e a r f o r t h e i r
personal safety, Econonic r e s o u r c e s l o c a t e d in a r e a s
b o r d e r i n g enemy t e r r i t o r y were o f t e n abandoned . T h i s was
m a i n l y clue t o f e a r f o r t h e s a f e t y o f p e r s o n s who go t o
e x p l o i t such resources, D u r i n g t h e s k i r m i s h between IZhuue
a n d O g b o d i n a i b c , two men - Ogbuehi and Nzeako' , b o t h from
Ehume w e r e k i l l e d 2s t h e y w e r e t a p p i n g palriiwine i n a bush

on t h e border: between t h e i r community 2nd Ogboclinaibe,

Wars were a l s o n s u r e s o u r c e o f s u p p l y o f p e o p l e who
were d e d i c a t e d t o d e i t i e s as m. The p e o p l e who
s u f f e r e d t h i s f a t e , as we hnvc a l r e a d y m e n t i o n e d were
f Scme Towns

FIG. : MAP SI-iOW1NG DISPERSAL OF ISftiGWU PEOPLE

worthless people - e f u l e f.-...
u whose p e o p l e r e f u s e d t o redeem
when t h e y were c a p t u r e d . A few of t h e c a p t i v e s were s o l d
as s l a v e s i f t h e y were decrned t o o w o r t h l e s s t o b e k e p t as
d o m e s t i c s e r v a n t s o r even as o_s_u. fi few c a p t i v e s were a l s o
s o l d by t h c i r c n p t o r c . T h i s o f t e n happened i f t h e v i c t i m D s
comn~unitywas deemed t o o weck t o t a k e any n e a n i n g f u l
a c t i o n t o e i t h e r rescue t h e i r person o r i n r e t a l i a t i o n .
Some p e o p l e found g u i l t y o f k i l l i n g an opponcnt d u r i n g a
' c i v i l t war and were handed o v e r by t h e i r comrades were
a l s o s o l d i n t o s l a v e r y i f t h c i r v i c t i d s colleagues so
p r e f errecl,
One o f t h e m a j o r c o n s e q u e n c e s of w a r s i n p r e -
c o l o n i a l Ohuhu was t h e e x p l u s i o n o f d e f e a t e d p e o p l e from
t h c i r land, The Obanu-lbeku, as a l r e a d y shown were f o r c e d
t o found a new s e t t l e m e n t a f t e r t h e y were o v e r r u n by
Umuhu-na-Okaiugn, When t h e I s i n g w u v i l l a g e g r o u p o f Umuhu-
na-Okaiuga were e x p e l l e d from t h e i r f o r m e r homos a t Okpuhu
Isingwu, t h e y s c a t t e r e d i n d i f f e r e n t d i r e c t i o n s . Some
founded t h e I s i n g w u v i l l a g e s o f Amnfor, Umuda, TJrmoriehi
and Onhia, - a11 t o t h e s o u t h o f t h e i r former l o c a t i o n ,
One g r o u p moved n o r t h w a r d s . T h e r e i t w a s a b l e t o sandwich
i t s e l f between Nunya and Umuirnenyi on a p i e c e of l a n d t h a t
had been a s o u r c e of s e r i o u s d i s p u t e and f i g h t i n g , Flunya
p e o p l e were n o t g e t t i n g t h e b e t t e r o f t h e exchanges when
Isingwu people a r r i v e d , I s i n g w u forgctl a new a l l i a n c e w i t h
 107.
bTunya. The new a l l i a n c e e a s i l y d e f e a t e d Umuimenyi i n a
subsequent b a t t l e . k s a mark o f a p p r e c i a t i o n f o r t h e i r

h e l p , Nunyz a l l o w e d I s i n g w u p e o p l e t o t a k e o v e r t h e d i s p u t e d
l a n d m d t h e r e b y s e r v e as a b u f f e r between t h e two cornba-
I n Umuopara, Ammkwo h a d t o move e a s t w a r d s f r o u
h e r f o r m e r l o c a t i o n a t Umuekaule t o s t e n t h e a t t a c k s of
h r o p e o p l e who h a r a s s e d t h e cocmunity from t h a t wing. In
,'d-iarn, 'iriam E l u - E l u sucapped l o c a t i o n s w i t h V i m Ala-
la when i t became obviou-s t h ~ tt h e l a t t e r c o u l d n o t be
t r u s t e d t o stem t h e t i d e o f I b i b i o i n v a s i o n s from t h e s o u t h ,
Though t h e r e were no s t a n d i n g a r m i e s , m i l i t a r y
h e r o e s d i d emerge i n some p m t s of Ohuhu, The s i n g l e
most i m p o r t a n t r ~ ~ i l i t a rf ye a t f o r wliich most o f t h e h e r o e s
wore a c c l n i n i c d was t h e o v e r p o w e r i n g o p p p o n n c n t with
p h y s i c a l f o r c e and b r i n g i n g s u c h v i c t i m home - alive.
However many o f t h e s e h e r o e s , t h o u g h t h e y p u t t h e i r
s t r e n g t h and e x p e r i e n c e a t t h e d i s p o s a l of t h e i r communities
i n t i m e s o f war, were o f t e n d i s t r u s t e d . I n Isingwu v i l l a g e -
g r o u p a p a r t i c u l a r f a r ~ l i l yo f war heroes/conimanders i s s a i d
t o h a v e grown s o h e a d - s t r o n g t h a t t h e y s e t t h e m s e l v e s above
the law. They a r e s a i d t o h a v e been g i a n t s who had
extraordinary s t r e n g t h a n d c o u r a g e . They were t h e r e f o r e
---
nicknamed Urnuot~irnk~irimz.
.- They became s u c h 3 terror
t h a t a t a p o i n t t h e e n t i r e community was f o r c e d t o p r e p a r e
mme c h a r m s w h i c h -?re said t o have s a p p e d t h e i r
super-humnn s t r e n g t h and also t o h a v e k e p t t h e s i z e of
t h e i r l a t e r g e n e r a t i o n s within n o r m a l p r o p o r t i o n s . 25
 I n t h i s c h a p t e r , we s h a l l a t t e m p t a r e c o n s t r u c t i o n
o f some o f t h e illnny wars f o u g h t by s e c t i o n s o f p r e - c o l o n i a l
Ohuhu. I t must be s t r e s s e d , howevcr, t h n t t h e i n f o r n ~ ~ t i o n
on which t h i s r e c o n s t r ~ ~ . c t i oins b a s e d i s h i g h l y s k c l e t a l
and t h i s h n s , t o a l a r g t ? e x t e n t , l i m i t e d t h e amount of
d e t a i l s given i n t h e succccding paragraphs. ! ' r h ~ ~t h e
p r e s e n t v r i t e r h a s clone i s t o s e l e c t t h o s e wars a b o u t which
enough i n f o r m a t i o n t o j u s t i f y t h e w r i t i n g , e x i s t . Another
shortcoming of t h e a v n i l n b l e inforrimtion i s t h e complete
absence of p r e c i s e dates. To overcome t h i s problem, t h e
p r e s e n t w r i t e r h a s a t t m p t e d on t h e b a s i s o f e s t i m a t e s
the
g i v e n by i n f o r m a n t s t o o b t a i n some r e l a t i v e d a t e s f o r ~ w n m

U n t i l v e r y r e c e n t l y t h e ibam' ( o f which O h n f i a i s
p a r t ) were r e g m d c d as a b l o o d - t h i r s t y p e o p l e who, w i t h o u t
p r o v o c a t i o n , would d e s c e n d on any c o n n u n i t y t h e y f e l t t h e y

T h i s war c o u l d be d a t e d t o sometime a r o u n d 1860.

T h i s d a t e i s d e r i v c d from i n f o r m a t i o n g i v e n by
M r , ,I,E8ODu o f IJmuorehi t h a t h i s g r a n d f a t h e r was
s t i l l u n m a r r i e d when t h i s w a r t o o k p l a c e , M r . so nu
h i m s e l f i s o v e r s e v e n t y - f i v e . T h i s means t h n t h e was
b o r n a r o u n d 1900. Making a l l o w a n c e f o r a g e n e r a t i o n g a p
o f t h i r t y y e a r s , we f i n d t h a t h i s f a t h e r was b o r n a b o u t
1 8 7 0 , Afssurning a g a i n t h a t t h i s w a r t o o k p l a c e t e n y e a r s
b e f o r e h i s f a t h e r was b o r n , t h e n w e c a n t e n t a t i v e l y
d a t e t h e war t o 1860.
2. By Abam we r e f e r t o t h c p e o p l e t h a t i n h a b i t O h a f i a ,
ban, A b i r i b a and Pkporo-Edda c l a n s o f I n o S t a t e .
c o u l d e a s i l y over-run. I n t h e Ohuhu n r e a , t h e y were
-_--
called ndi orbuishi - head-cuttcrs. 7'his s t e r e o t y p e d .
i m p r e s s i o n d e f i n i t e l y h a s somc t r u t h i n i t as i n s t a n c s
abound o f wars i n which t h e Lbam p l a y e d m a j o r r o l e s . Tkir

p a r t i c i p a t i o n i n t h e s e wars was o f t c n a t t h e b i d d i n g o f t h e
Are who t r a v e r s e 2 t h e Ohuhu a r e a and bzyond. 1 '

o f t c n i n v i t e d t h e I^,b~,rat o rc?.id comnunitiea;- whcre t h e y , t h e

acq u i r i n z
Aro, e n c o u n t e r e d probler,is e i t h e r i n r e s p e c t o f , s e t t l c : ~ l i e n t
L
l a n d o r i n t h e i r b u s i n e s s t r a c s n c t i o n s which s p a n n e d t h c
e n t i r e I g b o n r e a and beyond.

One s u c h war i n which t h e fLharn t o o k p a r t and on

which n good d e a l o f v a l u a b l e i n f o r m a t i o n e x i s t i s &
.a~
I&uG.The war was f o u g h t betwecn TJmunii;u (2 village-
g r o u p i n Umuhu-nn-0kniu;a c l a n ) and ?ham i n v a c ? e r s from
Ohafia. Two m a j o r c a u s e s o f t h i s war have been i s o l a t e d .
The f i r s f was t h e k i d n a p p i n g o f a n ,"i.koli man a t a m a r k e t
in
i n Umuagu.. T h i s i s s a i d t o have been d o n e , r e t i d i a t i o n f o r
L
t h e k i l l i n g o f a n Umuhu uan at a m a r k e t of Ugviu Fkpa i n
t h e h k o l i nrca, I t i s s a i d t h a t Lkoli people could not
m u s t e r a n a r n y which t h e y w e r e c o n f i d e n t c o u l d i n v a d e a n d
c o n q u e r Umuagu and e i t h e r l i b e r a t e t h c i r k i n o r t a k e a n

Uinuagu p e r s o n c a p t i v e i n a t o n e m e n t f o r t h e i r man bcini;

held hostace. T h i s f e a r would seen t o h a v e stemmed f r o n
t h c i r e a r l i e r d c f e n t by n s e c t i o n o f Umukabia v i l l n g ~i n a
b a t t l e over a d i s p u t e d fnrmland, T h e r e was 2.1~0t h e fear
among t h e A k o l i a b o u t r e p r i s a l s from Umuagu i f t h e y
( t h e L k o l i ) t o o k an Unuagu p e r s o n c n p t i v e d u r i n g n s u p r i s e
solitary raid, F e e l i n g s o weak, t h e L k o l i a p p e a l e d t o
t h e O h n f i a -p?ople who w c r e o n l y t o o w i l l i n g t o t a k e p a r t

-
i n s u c h a r a i d b e c a u s e o f t h c ' p R r v e s t o f human h e a d s w h i c h

t h e y b e l i e v e d i t would y i c l d . 3 The Ohafia r n i d c r s

o b v i o u s l y t h o u g h t t h a t t h i n g s w e r e g o i n g t o be v e r y e ~ y
f o r them i n v i e w o f t h e f a c t t h a t t h e y w e r e t o r e c e i v e
l o g i s t i c h e l p from t h e i . k o l i . The i n v a d e r s may
have been f u r t h e r encouraged i n t o u n d e r t a k i n g t h e v e n t u r e
by t h e f a c t t h a t Umuagu i s w i t h i n s t r i k i n g d i s t a n c e of
Akoli t o which t h e y ( t h e O h a f i a ) c o u l d r e t i r e a f t e r
carrying out a suprise attack,

The s e c o n d p r o b a b l e c a u s e o f t h i s war was a n o u t r a -

g e o u s a c t i o n p e r p e t r a t e d by a n Umuagu man a g a i n s t a man

from O h a f i a . !.ccording t o i n f o r m a t i o n g a t h e r e d by t h e
p r e s e n t r e s e a r c h e r t h e man who c o m m i t t e d t h e c r i m e was

c a l i t d uchegbu. He was a .native of UmuBgu. 'Thh3$bu'.waa repukddly,

'

3. P r e - c o l o n i a l ti,bamv s o c i e t y was s t r a t i f i e d i n t o
two b r o a d g r o u p s - t h o s e who h a d c u t human h e a d s
d u r i n g wars o r r a i d s a n d t h o s e who h a d n o t ,
Nost o f t h e r a i d s 2nd wars i n w h i c h t h e Pi~bnrn'
p e o p l e were i n v o l v e d w e r e mainly aimed a t
e n a b l i n g t h o s e who h a d n o t f u l f i l l e d t h i s social
o b l i g a t i o n t o do s o .
Umuagu. .s was c u s t o m a r y i n t h o s e d a y s , Uchegbu 4.6
s a i d t o h a v e i n v i t e d a medicineman from G h a f i a b n s c d z t
U z u a k o l i t o p r c p a r e some c h a r m w i t h which h e - Uchegbu -
hopcd t o p r o t e c t b o t h h i m s e l f and h i s w e n l t h , Uchegbu

etllepclly k i l l e d t h e m e d i c i n e innn a f t e r t h e l a t t e r had

p r e p a r e d t h e charms, I t i s clnilncd t h a t Uchegbu d i d t h i s

b e c a u s e h c d i d n o t t r u s t t h a t t h e n c d i c i n e man would n o t

p r e p a r e e i t h e ~s t r o n g e r charms o r antidotes f o r h i s
(Uchegbur s ) enemies. Fews o f lJchegbuqs t r e a c h e r y l a t e r
r e a c h e d t h e m e d i c i n e m a n ~ sb a s e a t v z u a k o l i and l a t e r h i s
family a t Ohnfia. T h i s a c t i o n i s s a i d t o have s o e n r a g e d
O h a f i a p e o p l e th3.t t h e y p r o m p t l y d e c i d e d t o i n v x d e IJnua-gu.
O h a f i a d i d n o t have much probleix convincing t h e
A k o l i t o t a k e p a r t i n an i n v a s i o n o f Umuagu i n view o f t h e
s t r a i n e d r e l a t i o n s between Umuagu and A k o l i . O h a f i a was
t o s e n d an army w h i l e d k o l i would p r o v i d e l o g i s t i c s u p p o r t ,
The army s e n t by O h a f i a ( b u t whose n u m e r i c a l s t r e n g t h c o u l d
n o t b e d e t e r m i n e d by t h e p r e s e n t r e s c a r c h c r ) i s s a i d t o
have s p e n t a n i g h t a t U z u a k o l i - s p e c i f i c a l l y i n t h e home
o f o n e Chukwu Anyaogu o f iLmmba* I n o r d e r n o t t o e x p o s e
t h e m s e l v e s , t h e w a r r i o r s d i s g u i s e d t h e m s e l v e s as t h e y
entered ~z;akoli. E a r l y t h e n e x t morning, t h e d i s g u i s e d
i n v a d e r s were g i v e n a g u i d e who t o o k them t o IJmuokoroala -
a v i l l a g e i n Umuhu-na-Okaiuga c l a n t o which Urnuagu a l s o
belong. T h e r e , t h e y were i n t r o d u c e d by t h e i r g u i d e t o o n e
Okoto who h i m s e l f was a l o n g d i s t a n c e t r a d e r . S i n c e he
d i d n o t know t h e i r - m i s s i o n , Okoto e x t e n d e d t o h i s , ; u e s t s
the traditional h o s p i t d i t y offered v i s i t i n g traders,

They, as was t h e u s u a l p r a c t i c e , p a i d him n f e e o f two

n k p o l a each. The 'traders' s u c c e s s f u l l y t r i c k e d Okoto i n t o
his
a l l o w i n g them s p e a d t h a whole day i n h o u s e which was
L
w i t h i n s t r i k i n g d i s t a n c e from Umuagu - their target.
The i n v a d e r s l e f t f o r Urnuagu v e r y e a r l y t h e n e x t
morning. On g e t t i n g t h e r e , t h e y f i r s t s t r u c k a t a house
where young maldens were u n d e r g o i n g t h e t r a d i t i o n a l
f a t t e n i n g r i t e s p r e p a r a t o r y t o m a r r i a g e , and s l a y e d many
o f them i n c o l d blood. The u p r o a r c a u s e d by t h i s a c t s e n t
many TJmungu p e o p l e f l e e i n g i n t o b u s h e s t h u s g i v i n g t h e
i n v a d e r s a f r e e hand t o r a v a g e t h e whole p l a c e , But b e i n g
u n f - m i l i a r r i t h t h e l a n d , and f l u s h e d i n t h e e n t h u s i a s m of
t h e i r s u c c e s s , t h e i n v a d ~ r esoon l o s t c o n t r o l o f t h e i r
f o r m a t i o n and s t r a t e g y and s c a t t e r e d a 1 1 o v e r t h e v i l l a g e
e a c h p e r s o n s e e k i n g t o cut as many h e a d s as p o s s i b l e .
T h i s made i t i n p o s s i b l e f o r them t o c o o r d i n ~ t et h e i r
o f f e n s i v a and o r withdraw when i t was s t i l l e x p e d i e n t t o
do so.
T h i ~l a c k o f c o o r d i n n t i o n o f f e r e d TJmuagu some r c s p i t e
t o organise themselves t o f a c a t h e i n v x i c r s . Thcy soon
managed t o r a i s e an army which kook t h e f i c l d a g 2 i n s t t h e
 114.
invaders. Two men who had e a r l i e r d i s t i n g u i s h e d t h e m s e l v e s
i n war - Nwosu Ugonma and Agucbi - commanded t h e Urnungu
army. A s t h i s army t o o k t h e f i e l d a g a i n s t t h e i n v a d e r s ,

e m i s s a r i e s were s e n t t o n c i g h b o u r i n g c o m m u n i t i e s f o r h e l p .
Each community on r e c e i v i n g t h e c a l l f o r h e l p s o u n d e d i t s

-i-k o r o drum which was a n alarm f o r a 1 1 a b l e - b o d i e d men t o

assemble a t mbara f o r an cmergcncy. Before long, a l a r g e
army o f Umuhu-na-Okniuga s o l d i e r s h a d assembled a n d
c o r d o n e d - o f f Umuagu l e a v i n l ? o n l y o n e r o u t e open - that
g o i n g s o u t h t o w a r d s Uhuokwu.
The i n v a d e r s , i t must be s t r e s s e d , had n o t envisaged
s p e n d i n g a whole day n o t t o t h i n k o f a n i g h t a t Umuagu.
They w e r e , a s a r e s u l t o f t h e c o r d o n i n g - o f f , f o r c e d t o do s o
a n d w o r s e s t i l l , move i n a s o u t h e r l y d i r e c t i o n i n s t e a d o f
an e a s t e r l y o n e - whence t h e y came. B e c a u s e t h e y c o u l d no
l o n g e r c o - o r d i n a t e t h e i r movement, t h e i n v a d e r s became
panicky, I t was i n t h i s c o n f u s i o n t h a t t h e y were c o n i p l e t e l y
r o u t e d by Umuhu-na-Okaiuga forces, 3 c c o u n t s o f t h e number
k i l l e d on t h e s i d e of t h e i n v a d e r s vary but i t does n o t
a p p e a r t h a t many o f t h e m . escaped. A purported
mass g r a v e where t h e s l a i n i n v a d e r s w e r e b u r i e d e x t e n d s
f o r more t h a n h a l f a k i l o m e t e r i n l e n g t h : - from Mbaraukwu

to Uhuokwu
 115.
The Ekwelu - brim War
Ekwelu a n d t i r i a n b e l o n g t o what i s p r e s c n t l y known
as Lrinm c l a n . 4 Some p e o p l e however, o b j e c t t o t h c uoo 0 2
Ariam a l o n e t o r e f e r t o t h e o n t i r e c l a n s i n c e t h e c l a n i s
made u p o f two d i f f e r e n t e n t i t i e s , .ilccorciing t o Nazi
~ h i o n u m a , ? Usaka p e o p l e m i g r z t .:r Lo t h e i r -~--p~c.*i '
pA " 2 L l l L J-GCCl--

t i o n from Usaka-Eleogu i n t h e Ngwn a r e a , This, according

t o him, i s why Usakn ( i n t h e Ohuhu a r e a ) i s known as
Usnka-Ukwu w h i l e t h a t i n t h e TTgwn a r e a i s known as TJsnka-
Ntn. Lriam on t h e o t h e r hand was founded 5y p e o p l e who
m i g r n t e d from Idima-Abam. The f o u n d e r o f ;'irian, according
t o Mazi Chionuma, was a woman hence .!d.an pcoplc n r e
sometimes r e f e r r e d t o a s U'J'nu-nwanyi-ukk.~. T h i s d i f f ercncc
i n o r i g i n o f t h e two g r o u p s t h a t makc up what i s p r e s e n t l y
r e f e r r e d t o as 3riam c l a n , i t shoulcl b e n o t e d , made i t
p o s s i b l e f o r t h e s p i l l i n g o f b l o o d among t h e two g r o u p s
d u r i n g wars t o be t o l e r a t e d , The c l a i m t h a t .Lrim n i g r a -
t e d from Idima-Abam would seem t o be corwobc':rrted. by t h e

f a c t t h a t t h e y , 3rinrn p e o p l e , o f t e n r e c c i v c d m i l i t a r y
a s s i s t a n c e from Abam duri.nc.:. wars.

4. F o r d e and J o n e s u s e d I s u o r g u t o r e f e r t o L r i r u -
Usaka, S e e D a r y l F o r d e (3.1. J o n e s ; x h J~JG
~
-- -.--%31"-L- .--.m-
and I b i M o - s ~ a k i n zq c o p l e s o f Southens-s -.
ern
. -.- -.-
~ i h ~ ~ ~ n d o ~ n t e r ~ i n: f rt i ci con n I an sl ~ i t u t c ,
1 9 5 0 ) p. 43.
5. Mazi P i u s Chionuma, v i l l a g e e l d e r i n t e r v i . w o i .
a t A r i a m Elu-$.Eu l 6 . l 2 , 8 2 .
 Usaka p e o p l e who now occupy t h e a r e a t o t h e s o u t h
o f Ariam a r e s a i d t o have a r r i v e d and s e t t l e d t h e a r e a
b e f o r e t h e f o r m e r came, For n long time both groups-

continued t o e x p l o i t a p a r t i c u l a r a r e a f o r farming purposes.

T r o u b l e began t o brew as t h e r e were no c l e a r l y mz.rked
b o u n d a r i e s between t h e f a r m l a n d s c l a i m e d and u s e d by 1 ~ 0 t h
groups. T h i s s i t u a t i o n soon s k i r m i s h e s i n which
many p e o p l e were wounded. As t h e s i t u a t i o n d e t e r i o r a t e d ,
h i a m g l a - & l a t h e n l o c a t e d t o t h e s o u t h o f Ariam nu-@'lu
moved n o r t h w h i l e t h e l a t t e r came t o occupy t h e i r p l a c e .
T h i s r e - a r r a n g e m e n t was u n d e r t a k e n c:lztensi!,ly t o make i t
p o s s i b l e f o r f ~ r i a mg l u - g l u which was r e p u t e d l y s t r o n g e r
t h a n A r i a m &la-$la t o s t e m t h e a c t i v i t i e s o f Usaka and
n e i g h b o u r i n g I b i b i o p e o p l e who h a r ~ s s e dt h e community from
t h e south. The combined h a r a s s m e n t o f b o t h Usaka
I b i b i o p e o p l e f o r c e d s e c t i o n s o f ;xiam t o m i g r a t e a c r o s s
t h e ~ c h * s t r e ~ mt h u s l e a d i n g t o t h e f o u n d i n g o f t h e

s e c t i o n o f ,\rim p r e s e n t l y known a s AZU n c h a i .

The swapping o f p o s i t i o n s by Griam g l u - ~ l uand
A r i a m gla-41a d i d n o t h e l p m a t t e r s i-nuch. The e e n ! d r a t h e r
their
&n,f+-n$'r~edL p r e s s u r e . T h i n g s , a c c o r d i n g t o Mazi
lJgboaja6 g o t 'so bad t h a t a n driarn man known as O k o r i e
Ukwu who was r e p u t e d t o b e a n a c c o r j ~ p l i s h e dm i l i t a r y commander

6. N a z i 11, Ugboaja - r e t i r e d school teacher,

i n t e r v i e w e d a t A r i a n Elu-Blu, 19.12482,
 113..
was f o r c e d t o found a new s e t t l e m e n t somewhere i n t h e
d i s p u t e d farmland, He and h i s f o l l o w e r s g u a r d e d Ariarn
p e o p l e as t h e y worked i n t h e i r f a r m s and a l s o gave them
e s c o r t a s t h e y went home,
As t i m e went on, t h e s i t u a t i o n d e g e n e r a t e d i n t o a
t h r e e c o r n e r e d a f f r a y i n v o l v i n g h i a m , Ekwelu-Usaka and
t h e I b i b i o people t o t h e south, Fearing t h a t she could n o t
e f f e c t i v e l y f a c e two o p p o n e n t s a t t h e same t i m e , Lriam made
peace w i t h one of h e r opponents - the Ibibio, She was t h u s
f r e e t o f a c e Usaka e s p e c i a l l y t h e s e c t i o n t h e n known as
I b i o n u (now Ekwelu). -
The I l ~ i b i o AriLm a c c o r d was a r r a n g e d
by O k o r i e Ukwu and a n i n t i n e r a n t I b i b i o h u n t e r , The two
men a r e m i d t o have a g r e e d and founded a new l ~ o u n d a r y
between t h e i r communities, T h e - a c c o r d was s o l e m n i z e d w i t h
piha performed a t t h e new l ~ o u n d a r y . The new boundary was
c a l l e d N.duru~be. Nobody v i o l a t e d t h i s boundary u n t i l a f t e r
t h e N i g e r i m c i v i l war when t h e r e were some s k i r m i s h e s t h e r e . 7
Having made p e a c e w i t h t h e I b i l ~ i o , Ariarn d e c i d e d t o
s q u a r e - u p w i t h Usaka. Many b o r d e r i n c i d e n t s , most of which
r e s u l t e d i n l o s s of l i v e s , took p l a c e before t h e s i t u a t i o n
exploded i n t o open w a r f a r e . Some of t h e m a j o r i n c i d e n t s
t h a t p r e c i p i b a t e d t h e war i n c l u d e d t h e k i l l i n g by Ekwelu
 118.
p e o p l e o f a n Ariarn man who had gone t o Ekwelu t o v i s i t h i s
friend during a feast. h i a m i s s a i d t o hzvc i - c t a l i n t e 2 .
w i t h c a p t u r i n @ and s c l l i n g E k ~ i ~ c lyus o p l c who came t o f c t c h
w a t e r a t .Nchai
----.- stream. E h c l u a l s o killed a n J.riam n e d i -

cincrm.n lmoan as E n e l e 2.s h c ems c o n s u l t i n g t h e o r x l e i n

h i s shrine. 8 Thc r e a c t i o n o f '..rimt o t h i s p a r t i c u l : ~ r
a c t i o n v:as t o movc t o E k v ~ e l uwhere t h e y k i l l e d u woIil~?.n
whose n n t c r n n l home was d r i m . T h i s a c t i o n shoclccd Ekwelu
i n t o makinc u r g c n t p r e p a r a t i o n s f o r war b e c n u c c t h e k i l l i n g
o f t h e woman who, u n d e r normal circumstances, shoulc! n o t
be harmed, d r o v e t h e p o i n t home t o them t h a t t h e i r oppo-
n e n t s w e r e p r a p n r e d f o r f u l l s c a l e war,
The war t h a t e v e n t u a l l y e r u p t e d - was p r o t r x t c c l .
Ekwelu-Usakn c l a i m t o h a v c ? ) e m v i c t o r i o u s d u r i n g t h e f i r s t
battle.' T h i s v i c t o r y , a c c o r d i n g t o them, ans made p o s s i b l e
by t h e enormous h e l p t h e y r c c e i v c d from an I l ~ i b i om e d i c i n e - .
man c a l l e d Okpanebong from hbanc i n nci!;hbouring Tkot Ekpene, 1 0 2

Mazi T e t e Ukoha -
v i l l a g e elder, interviewed
a t U k o h a D s conpound Obugwu-Lrinn 9.12.82.
T h i s b a t t l e must h a v e t a k c n p l a c e s o m c t i n e a b o u t
1840. T h i s d a t e i s d e r i v e d from I l x z i Cliionuinrxls
c l a i which
~ i s s u p p o r t e d by Ugboaja t h a t h i s grand-
f a t h e r was y e t a k i d when t h i s b a t t l c wns f o u g h t ,
Mazi Chionuma h i m s e l f i s o v e r e i s h t y y e n r s . T f we
make p r o v i s i o n f o r a generation sap o f t h i r t y y e a r s ,
'setween Chionuma and h i s f a t h e r znd l ~ c t w e e nh i s l a t h e r
a n d g r a n d f a t h e r we g e t a t e n t a t i v e d n t c o f 1 8 4 0 ,
Nazi E z e k i e l Nwaulu, v i l - l q ; e e l d e r ,
i n t e r v i e w e d a t E k v ~ e l uUsakn 9.12.82.
He i s s a i d t o have p r e p a r e d a charm which h e g a v e t o a
b i r d known as Ikong. The b i r d , i t i s c l a i m e d , t o o k t h e
charm t o t h e h o u s e o f t h e commander o f !&am f o r c e s where
it made a t e r r i b l e n o i s e which a t t r a c t e d t h e commander
from h i s h o u s e o n l y t o be k i l l e d by e n e m i e s who were i n

a n b u s h a r o u n d h i s house, T h i s i n c i d e n t i t is claimed, a0
a
d e m o r a l i s e d .:rim s o l d i e r s t h a t t h e y p u t up o n l y h n l f -
L
h e a r t e d showing a t a b a t t l e f o u c h t t h e n e x t dcy and wer, .
as a r e s u l t , t h o r o u g h l y d e f c a t e d l ~ yL h e i r o p p o n e n t s ,
But t h i s c l a i m o f v i c t o r y by Ekwelu i s d i s p u t e d b y
A r i a m people, They c l a i m t h z t no s i d e s c o r e d n d e c i s i v e
v i c t o r y i n t h i s as in many o t h e r b a t t l e s o f t h e w a r , !"hat,
a c c o r d i n g t o them hnppened, was t h a t o t h e r se~tl~o~.nsofAriam
(such as Obugwu) and a l s o p a r t s o f Usaka which were n o t
d i r e c t l y i n v o l v e d i n t h e war i n t e r v e n e d to riinkc p e a c e among
t h e combatants, T h i s intervention was a t t h e b i d d i n g o f
married daughters --
u r n u o k ~from b o t h comrnunities
i n v i t e d e l d e r s from n e i g h b o u r i n g t o w s t o s e t t l e t h e d i s p u t e .

A f t e r t h e s e t t l e m e n t , Ekwelu 2nd d r i a m j o i n t l y e s t ~ ~ b l i s h e d

a d e i t y which t h e y c a l l e d Mmoi.,ho u z o , For a long time,

t h e people o f f e r e d s a c r i f i c e j o i n t l y at t h e s h r i n e during
important gestival-s,
 120.
However, t h i s s e t t l e m e n t e n d u r e d f o r o n l y a few
y e a r s h e f o r e f i g h t i n g erupted again. T h i s time
t r o u b l e a r o s e from t h e c o n d u c t o f some Ekwelu p e o p l e who

came t o A r i a i n , c l i m b e d o v e r t h e walls o f a m a n q s compound

a n d murdered him i n c o l d b l o o d . The p e o p l e who p e r p e t r a t e d
t h i s a c t i o n a r s u e d t h n t t h e fori:ier s e t t l e m e n t was h u m i l i n -
t i n g t o t h e i r community - Ekwelu and t h a t since they ( t h e

l a t t e r gcnerc.tions) d i d n o t t a k e p a r t i n t h e convannnt t h n t
was p a r t o f t h e s e t t l e m e n t , t h e y were f r e e t o r e d r e s s t h e
situation, The f i s h t i n c t h n t f o l l o w e d was co b i t t e r a n d
l a s t e d s o l o n g t h a t Ekwclu had t o r i n g h e r s e l f w i t h a n e t -
work o f monts. The f i g h t i n g was s t i l l r a g i n g when tlis
British intervened i n the area - which event f o r c e d both
p a r t i e s t o l a y down t h e i r arms.
Fhume - Ohiaoc h a ll!ar

Both Ehume and O h i a o c h a l x l o n g t o Urnuopara c l a n ,

O h i a o c h a c o n s i s t s o f two v i l l a s e - g r o u p s - Urnunwanwa and
Ogbodinaibe, I t was n o t p o s s i b l e f o r t h e p r e s e n t r e s e a r c h e r
t o d e t e r m i n e t h e o r i g i n a n d mcanine; o f Ohiaochn, Until
v e r y e a r l y i n t h i s c e n t u r y what i s t o d a y known a s Ununwnnnc
was c a l l e d The p r e s e n t
conlrnunity Ly'Nwosuocha who was t h e f i r s t nzn from t h e a r e a
t o e n c o u n t e r t h e w h i t e p e o p l e 2nd which a l s o l e d t o h i s
b e i n g a p p o i n t e d a w a r r a n t c h i e f by t h e c o l o n i a l a u t h o r i t i e s ,
The name o f h i s m o t h e r was I\lwanwz. so TJmunwanvm l i t e r d l y
 121.
means c h i l d r e n o f Nannwa, Ogboclinnibe on t h e o t h e r hand
was f o u n d e d by inIbe o n e o f t h e s o n s o f O ~ b o c l iwho b r o k e
away from his 2clrerst g r o u p t o found h i s own s e t t l e r . ~ e i ~1t2~ ~ .

h e r i l - ~ t i r m t cr e l a t i o n s h i p a n d c o n t a c t w i t h t h c l a t t e r ,
The bone o f c o n t e n t i o n between O h i a o c h a cmd X ~ L J ~ I C

was o r i g i n n l l y a p i e c e o f l a n d known as -~,i.,I t i s l o c a t e d

on t h e boundary bctween I l ~ e es e c t i o n o f Og1~0dinaibt?:~iid
Eliume. I t woulcl a p p e a r t h n t ?:cforc I b e e pucplt? xoved t o
t h e i r p r e s e n t l o c 3 t i o n from O[;'l_iodiukwu, t h e c n t j - r e l a n d on
both s l d c s of t h e p~ij-om
s t r e t u n which p r c s c n t l y marks t h e
boundary ?~ctwt:cnZhurne 2nd Ohiaochr: i ~ e l o n ~ ct do t h e f o r m e r .

l o o k i n g f o r a p b a c c t o s e t t l c , F l i u ~ cs u r r e n d e r e d some o f t h e
l a n d on t h e o t h e r sicl.e o f t h e ,oyim
- river t o Ibee for
s e t t l e m e n t and f a r m i n g p u r p o s e s , l3 The c x t e n t o f t h e l a n d
g i v e n t o Ilxc. was n o t p r o p e r l y dcri~:~rcatcda n d i b e e p c o p l c
t o o k f o r g r n n t c d t h n t i t e x t e n d e d as f a r n o r t h as t h c ,oxi.,rO
s t r e a m which would seen t o l ~ cn nc:turnl ljounckiry i.,etween
t h e two co~nrnunities.

12. Anabaronye .3tulomah, The-.--.----. E s t a l ~ l i s h m e--.n t...-

.
-
a
*
-- o f B r i t-.-.-
-
: ish
p u l e i i i , , ~ ~ u o p ~ ' . ~ ~ - f , (1U3n 0p u~t l1i s~h )a d E.A. I I i s t o r y
T h e s i s , University o f F i g e r i a , ?<sukka, 1373) p. 6.
1. I c h i e l A d i g h i r m d uO g l ~ u e h i , t r a d i t i o n a l m c d i c i n e m m
and v i l l a g e e l d e r , interviev!c.? a t 'Jmuoyime-Ehuiac 7.4.. 83.
 When mar$ y e a r s l a t e r Ehume t r i e d t o l a y c l a i m t o

some o f t h e l a n d a c r o s s t h e stream, I b e e f e l t alarmed

1
and r a i s e d v e r y s t r o n g o b j e c t i o n s . The m i s u n d e r s t a n d i n g
t h a t f o l l o w e d t h i s i n c i d e n t was coiiipouncied by Ehun~e s a c t i o n
i n moving a c r o s s a -
o t o remove h e a d s o f palm f r u i t s c u t
there
and s t o r e d ,by I b e e p e o p l e , The r e s p o n s e o f I b e e p e o p l e t o
I,
t h i s f l a g r a n t a b u s e was t o d e p l o y a v i g i l a n t e g r o u p d o n @

t h e same b o r d e r . T h i s deployment o f f o r c e s l e d t o t e n s i o n
which b e f o r e l o n g e x p l o d e d i n t o open combat between t h e two
groups, The s k i r m i s h was q u e l l e d by t h e i r , t c r v e n t i o n o f
g r o u p s r e l a t e d t o t h e two c o m b a t a n t s - Umuajnmeze ( w h i c h i s
c l o s e l y r e l a t e d t o Umuoyime s e c t i o n o f Ehume) and Ununwanwn
(on t h e p a r t of 1bee).14 This mediation l e d t o t h e cstn-
b l i s h m e n t and a c c e p t a n c e o f o y i y o a s t h e boundary between
t h e two c o m m u n i t i e s ,
Uhnt t h i s m e d i a t i o n m a n q ~ e dt o o b t a i n f o r t h e w a r r i n g
p a r t i e s w a s , as i t t u r n e d o u t , a n u n e a s y p e a c e , Trouble
soon s t a r t e d again. T h i s t i m e i t was a n i n c i d e n t a t Nkwozu

m a r k e t i n Umunwnnwa t h a t p r o v i d e d t h e s p a r k , During a drink-

i n g s p r e e on ~ulNkwozu m a r k e t d a y , a n Ehurie man known as U ~ W U
Qraerekpe
. who s h a r e d d r i n k w i t h some Ununwanwa p e o p l e j o k i n g l y
c.
c h a l l e n g e d them t o show t h a t t h e y w e r e n o t w o r t h l c s s p e o p l e -
efulefu
-*-
- by c r o s s i n g t h e ,o.yiyo s t r e a m any t i m e t h e y were
s u r e Ehuine p e o p l e were on g u a r d t h e r e , This challenge
i n f u r i a t e d many O h i a o c h a p e o p l e who t i e d him t o n t r e e
and p o u r e d u r i n e a n d f e a c e s on him, They n l s o l e f t him
t i e d t o t h e t r e e t o S e b e a t e n by r z ~ i n . He was l a t e r
r e l e a s e d and t o l d t o i n f o r i n h i s p e o p l e t h a t Ohiaochn was

n o t f u l l o f ,e-.-f u l c f u- 2 a f t e r , a l l . He was a l s o t o l d t o i n f o r m
h i s p e o p l c t h a t O h i ~ . o c h awould b c r c a d y t alr e them
any t i m e t h e y ccme f o r F~ fisht.

VJhen U~i;:.rwg o t home 2nd t o l d h i s s t o r y , Ehune

d e c i d e d a t o n c e t o go t o war a g a i n s t Ghinocha, Their
m o b i l i z a t i o n a l s o c o i n c i d c d w i t h t h a t o f Ohinochn. Some-hoe
O h i a o c h a d i d n o t l a u n c h an open w a r f a r e 1;ut r a t h e r o p t e d
gv ?rrill;?
for ... : w a r f a r e , T h i s t a c t i c worked w e l l f o r t h e n
i
b e c a u s e t h e y w e r e a b l e t o i n f i l t r a t e enemy l i n e s t o h a r a s s
and s o m e t i ~ o e sk i l l i n n o c e n t p e o p l e , Two o t h e r i n c i d e n t s
worked t o g e t h e r t o r a i s e t h i s s k i r i n i s h i n t o a ~ i n j o rc o n f l n -
gration, F i r s t was t h e a t t c m p t l ~ yEhuine p e o p l e t o p o i s o n
Oliiaocha p e o p l e who had gone t o Ehumegs &kh-ia Eke r m r k e t as
a g e s t u r e of peace, Some o f t h e O h i a o c h a p e o p l e who were
l e d t o t h e m a r k e t by a man known 2,s Nwosu O l e f o r o were f o r c e d
by some Zhume p e o p l e t o d r i n k p o i s o n e d wine, Two p e o p l e -
Nwosu Nwanyiekc and Akobundu O t u k a a c t u a l l y d r m k t h e wine
under duress. A t h i r d person - Opoko - from ITmluodo-Ogl~odi-
n a i b e had n bit;" s c u f f l e w i t h some Tzhume p e o p l e who attemljted
t o f o r c e him t o d r i n k t h e p o i s o n e d wine.15 I n t h e confusion

15* N a z i I L e l e c h c O h a e r i , ex-customary c o u r t judge 2nd

now v i l l a g e e l d e r , i n t e r v i e w e d a t Urnunwanwa
Urnuopara 5e4.83.
-
t h a t e n s u ~ d ~between
.: O l e f o r o ~ smen and t h e i r Ehume o p p o n e n t s ,
O l e f o r o s n a t c h e d a k n i f e f r o x a n Ehume man and g a v e t h r e e
people very s e r i o u s c u t s , tie a f t e r w a r d s d r o p p e d t h e k n i f e

and s t a r t e d r u n n i n g , h o t l y p u r s u e d Sy some p e o p l e from Ehume,

They p u r s u e d him z.s f a r n s Eke Ala m a r k e t i n O g b o d i n a i h e ,
-.
Th2 two s i d e s d i d n o t immediately r e s o r t t o p i t c h e d
battles. Rather each s i d e c a r r i e d o u t hit-and-run attacks
the other, O h i a o c h a would seem t o have the better

o f t h i s t y p e o f exchange b e c a u s e s h e managed t o k i l l two

p r o m i n e n t Ehume p e o p l e - O s b u e h i a n d Kzeako. l6 T h i s a c t i o n
w2s t h e f i n d e v e n t that p r e c i p i t a t e d t h e war. Both s i d e s
t o o k t o open w a r f a r e a l o n g t h e i r common boundary, In the
f i g h t i n g Ehuli~e r e c e i v e d s u b s t a n t i a l a i d from U m u a j m e z e
w h i l e O h i a o c h a was a i d e d by Abam-Ubakala and p a r t s o f
Ogbodiukwu ( t h e l a t e r s y m p a t h i s e d w i t h Lbee on whose s o i l
t h e war w3.s b e i n g f o u g h t ) ,

D u r i n g t h e f i g h t i n g o n e A c h i l e f u from O g S o d i n a i b e
c l k n b e d a t r e e from where h e s n i p p e d Ehume s o l d i e r s . He
was s p o t t e d and 2 t i t a n i c s t r u g g l e e n s u e d f o r t h e a r e a around
t h e t r e e which he had climbed. A t a p o i n t Ehume a l m o s t

16. T h i s w a r must have t a k e n p l a c e sometime a r o u n d

1890. T h i s d a t e i s b$a&d~:l on t h e f a c t t h z t t h e
f a t h e r o f one Adighimndu OgLuchi who i s p r e s e n t l y
w e l l o v e r n i n e t y was k i l l e d d u r i n g t h i s w a r .
Adighimadu h i m s e l f i s s a i d t o b e n t o d d l e r when
h i s f a t h e r died,
 125.
c a p t u r e d t h e p l a c e b u t when A c h i l e f u s h o u t e d on h i s
f l e e i n g c o l l e a g u e s e s p e c i a l l y h i s b r o t h e r Nwnmara, t h e y
r e t u r n e d and r,~anagedt o h o l d t h e ground l o n g enough f o r

A c h i l e f u t o come down. The war was s t i l l r a g i n g when t h e

B r i t i s h moved i n t o Umunwanwa on t h e i r way t o ;rochukv~u
from O w e r r i . The day t h e E r i t i s h a r r i v e d Umunwanwa was
t h a t o f i t u a k a which preceded o,iam month d u r i n g which

a b s o l u t e p e a c e w a s o b s e r v e d i n t h e whole o f Umuopzra and

Ibeku. l7 S u r p r i s i n g l y , Ehurne and o t h e r n e i s h b o u r i n g commu-
n i t i e s r d l i e d r o u n d Umunwanwa t o c o n t a i n t h e t h r e a t o f
-
d i s r u p t i o n o f i t u a k a and a m by s e n d i n g t r o o p s t o a i d
Umunwanwa f i g h t and d e f e a t the intruders, The c o n t e s t
between t h i s combined 2rmy and t h e B r i t i s h was s h o r t and

decisive. The f o r m e r were e a s i l y d i s p e r s e d by t h e d e v a s t a -

t i o n b r o u g h t i n t h e i r r a n k s by t h e B r i t i s h f i e l d guns,
The a i d r e c e i v e d by Umunwnnwa from Ehume h e l p e d t o
s e t t l e t h e dispute temporarily. A few y e a r s l a t e r , however,
t h e r e was a n o t h e r f l a r e - u p i n which o n e Chukwu Nwagboso
from O g b o d i n a i b e k i l l e d a man c a l l e d I s i a h who had j u s t been

converted t o c h r i s t i a n i t y , T h i s c a u s e d t h e two s i d e s t o
m o b i l i z e a g a i n f o r war b u t f e a r o f r e p r i a ~ l e from t h e
\
B r i t i s h d e t e r r e d them from r e s o r t i n g t o a c t u a l f i g h t i n g .

17. N a z i A. Rwanmuo, v i l l a g e e l d e r , i n t e r v i e w e d a t
Nwanmuo's compound Umunnara-Ehume 8.4,83,
18, h , fitulomah op, c i t , p. 18.
 126.
Nwagboso was t a k e n t o a c o u r t a t Bende where h e was t r i e d
a n d s e n t e n c e d t o l i f e impr8sonement. He was however
p a r d o n e d and r e l e a s e d a f t e r s e r v i n g a b o u t s e v e n y e a r s ,
The I:r-'&-c~,.-
Umuokwo -
Yar
T h e r e a r e two d i f f e r e n t v e r s i o n s o f t h e s t o r y
r e l a t i n g t o t h e r a u s e o f t h i s war, One v e r s i o n m a i n t a i n s
t h a t t h e L b m w a r r i o r s who i n v a d e d Umokwo w e r e s p e c i f i c a l l y
i n v i t e d by t h e tire p e o p l e from Okporocnyi and I s i n k p u . The

same b r o p e o p l e a r e s a i d t o h a v e c a u s e d Umuokwo p e o p l e t o
l e a v e t h e i r f o r m e r homes i n O k p o r o e n y i a n d I s i n k p u . When
Umuokwo f l e d t h e i r f o r m e r homes as a r e s u l t o f t h i s i n v a s i o n
t h e y were g i v e n some s e t t l e m e n t l a n d a t Apagu by :Lmavfom
p e o p l e , l9 The o t h e r v e r s i o n o f t h e s t o r y i s t h a t i t was
Umuokwo p e o p l e t h e m s e l v e s who i n v i t e d t h e Aham w i t h whom
t h e y have some b l o o d r e l a t i o n s h i p . 20 It i s said that
Umuokwo i n v i t e d t h e Abam t o d e d w i t h Amawom whom t h e y -
Umuokwo - e n v i e d b e c a u s e o f h e r w e a l t h and s i z e * According

to 2
tbi V C r.8 + 0 ~ h e nt h e Lbam f o u n d t h a t t h e y c o u l d n o t w i t h

t h e f o r c e t h e y h a d , d e f e a t Amawom ( t h e y found t h i s o u t
a f t e r t h e y had done some r e c o n n a i s s a n c e on Amawom) t h e y
t u r n e d i n w a r d s t o a t t a c k Umuokwo who i n v i t e d them, They
charged t h a t s e n d i n g them t o a t t a c k a community as l a r g e as
- -.--

19. C h i e f R o b e r t Okoro, f o r m e r t r a d i t i o n a l r u l e r
and now v i l l a g e e l d e r , i n t e r v i z w e d a t /inawon~-
Oboro 1 5 , 1 2 , 8 2 ,
20. N a z i Ukandu Kamanu, v i l l a g e e l d e r ,
i n t e r v i e w e d a t Umugbalu Oboro, 15.12.82,
 127.
Amawom a l m o s t amounted t o a s k i n g them t o commit s u i c i d e .
The Abam i n v a d e r s a l s o a t t a c k e d Umugbalu which t h e y t h o u g h t
was n o t as s t r o n g as Amawom b u t were r e p u l s e d ,
?dhen, however, Amawom found t h a t t h e i n v a d e r s had
def e n t e d Umuokwo, s h e became alarmed, Her f e a r was b a s e d
on t h e c o n v i c t i o n t h a t i f s h e a l l o w e d t h e "ro and !"!!lxm t o
s e t t l e down a t n p l a c e S % a n g e r o u s l y close t o her borders,
b
s h e would be u n d e r c o n s t a n t t h r e a t from -1ro s l a v e c a t c h e r s
and 3bam h e a d - h u n t e r s . She t h e r e f o r e d e c i d e d t o t a k e s t e p s
t o d i s l o d g e t h e i n v a d e r s from Umuokwo, However, b e f o r e
.!imaworn c o u l d m o b i l i z e h e r f o r c e s f o r t h e a s s a u l t on Urnuokwo,
words r e a c h e d h e r t h a t t h e i n v a d e r s had been receiving
s u b s t a n t i a l reinforcemen' from home and t h a t d e f e a t s n ~
them would be v e r y d i f f i c u l t . She t h e r e f o r e a p p e a l e d t o
o t h e r p a r t s o f 1kwuano21 t o c o n t r i b u t e men a n d ~ m a t e r i a l s
f o r the invasion,
I n t h e c o u n t e r o f f e n s i v e which, a c c o r d i n g t o some
i n f o r m n n t s , l a s t e d a b o u t f i v e d a y s non-stop, the invaders
were d r i v c i i m a y from Umuokwo, However, most i n f o r m a n t s
v w y a s t o t h e i r a c c o u n t o f t h e human c a s m l t y d u r i n g t h i s

21. Ikw.=.no r e f e r s t o t h e f o u r c l a n s t h a t make u p

wh,q.t i s r e s e n t l y known as Ikwuano L o c a l Government
Arc?. o f ?no S t a t e . TPr;e%&c l a i m o f b e m g o f t h e same
g r o u p & & w ~ i s n o t e a s y t o a s c e r t a i n as e a c h g r o u p
c 1 x i . m t o haxe come from a n a r e a d i f f e r e n t from
the r~thcr,
war. Agornoh f o r excunple m a i n t a i n s t h a t o m Abam warrior
was k i l l e d w h i l e t h e r e s t r e t u r n e d home s a f e l y . 22 Chief
0 k o x - 0 ~on
~ t h e o t h e r hand m a i n t a i n s t h a t t h e e n t i r e i n v a d i n g
f o r c e was d e c i m a t e d ,
T h i s w a r l e f t a major s c a r on Umuokwo, I t i s claimed
t h a t t h e p r e s e n t s p a r s e p o p u l a t i o n o f t h e v i l l a g e was caused
by t h e t e r r i b l e d e p o p u l a t i o n c a u s e d by t h i s war. T h i s conse-
quence would seem t o have a r i s e n o u t o f t h e t e n d e n c y among
t h e Lban t o a d o p t measures t h a t were d r a s t i c t o t h e extreme
and which had no comparison ' ? w i t h t h o s e a d o p t e d by t h e men
o f towns t h a t q u a r r e l l e d and f o u g h t w i t h o u t r e s o r t t o a i d
from f o r e i g n s o u r c e s , 24 Even a f t e r t h e r e p u l s i o n o f t h i s
i n v a s i o n , Umuokwo found i t u n s a f e t o r e t u r n t o t h e i r former
l o c a t i o n n e a r Okporoenyi, T h i s was mainly due t o f e a r o f
reprisal8 from b o t h t h e I.ro and fibam, They have e v e r s i n c e
c o n t i n u e d t o l i v e i n thB: r e s t r i c t e d l o c a t i o n g i v e n t o them
by Lmav~om, C l a i m s t h a t Umurbnlu was d e s t r o y e d by t h e L"L1~am
i n v a d e r s d o e s n o t seem t o hnve much s u b s t a n c e i n i t ,
L c c o r d i n g t o K a z i ~ a m a n u , ' ~Urnugbalu d i d n o t s u f f e r any major
d i s l o c a t i o n b e c a u s e s h e was n e i t h e r d i r e c t l y i n v o l v e d i n t h e
war nor d i d t h e w a r i n h e r t e r r i t o r y last long,
-- , ---W.--.-L----^4 -..--1)-\1&9_1--I.C.--CPI-.,-.----

C.I. Lgomoh, Some a s p e c t s o f t h e P r e - c o l o n i a l -

3 n'l rr I.. -
H i s t o r y o f Oboro c l a n i n m o m a h i a up t o -
n p u b l.*i s h e, d. E.L, H i s t o r y T h e s i s U n i v e r s i

23 a,, C h i e f R o b e r t Okoro -c* i t e d -

24, -
G,T. Basden, N i , ~ e rI b o s (London. F r a n k Cass, 1966)
pa 244.
25. Mazi Ukandu Kamanu, c i t e d ,
 CHAPTER SIX
CONCLUSION
T h i s work h a s a t t e m p t e d t o do t h r e e t h i n s s . First
i t h a s s o u g h t t o i d e n t i f y t h e m a j o r c m s e s of wars i n p r e -
c o l o n i a l Ohuhu. I n t h i s r e g a r d i t was f o u n d t h a t d i s p u t e s
o v e r m a r k e t s and m a r k e t p l a c e s , maltreatment of m a r r i e d
dau<:hters and c a r e l e s s t a l k by p e o p l e were among f a c t o r s
t h a t , i n t h e p a s t , s t r a i n e d r e l c t i o n s between g r o u p s i n
Ohuhu. However i t was f c u n d t h a t t h e s i n g l e most i m p o r t = %
c a u s e o f wars was d i s p u t e a r i s i n g from c l a i m s a n d c o u n t e r
claims t o land. T h i s was d u e m a i n l y t o t h e f a c t t h a t
b e i n g l a r c e l y f a r m e r s , Ohuhu p e o p l e v a l u e d l a n d more t h a n
a n y o t h e r m a t e r i a l a s s e t a n d t h e r e f o r e would go t o a n y
e x t e n t t o advance o r defend t h e i r claim t o it. Another
f a c t o r t h a t c o n t r i b u t e d t o making l a n d t h e most i m p o r t a n t
c a u s e o f f r i c t i o n amon{: p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu p e o p l e i s t h e
u n d u l a t i n g t o p o p - a p h y o f t h e a r e a which r e n d e r e d v a s t
p o r t i o n s of l a n d u n i n h z t i t a b l e t h u s forcin;; people t o
crowd t o z e t h e r k the few a r e a s s u i t a b l e f o r h a b i t a t i o n t h u s
generating i n t e n s e competition,
The s l a v e t r a d e was n o t o n e o f t h e m a j o r c a u s e s o f
wars i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu. T h e r e w e r e however, a few
i n s t a n c e s o f d i s p u t e s t h a t w e r e h s j g h t e n e d by t e n s i o n
a r i s i n g from t h e c a s h u r e and s a l e by o n e community, of
p e r s o n s from a n o t h e r . ,! g o o ~ ie x a m ~ l eo f t h i s was t h e war
between Ehume and O n h i n i n which t h e f i n a l p r e c i p i t a t i n g
 130.
e v e n t was t h e c a p t u r e and s a l e o f an Ehume woman by O n h i a
p e o p l e as s h e p a s s e d t h r o u g h O n h i a on h e r way t o O r i e N t i g h a
market, Even h e r e , t h e r e was a r e m o t e c a u s e which w a s a
l a n d d i s p u t e t h a t had been l o n g - s t a n d i n g between t h e two
communities.
The s e c o n d a s p e c t o f w a r f a r e i n p r e - c o l o n i n l Ohuhu

d e a l t w i t h i n t h i s work i s t h e manner i n which t h e p e o p l e

o r g a n i s e d and f o u g h t t h e i r wars. T h e r e were two main t y p e s
of inter-group c o n f l i c t i n Ohuhu, Each t y p e was s o v e r n e d
a
b y-
/ d i f f e r e n t s e t of conventions, The f i r s t was c a l l e d a.
T h i s t y p e o f engagement was u s u a l l y between p e o p l e who
some o f blood r e l a t i o n s h i p , t h i s t y p e of
engagement, t h e s p i l l i n g o f b l o o d w a s a b h o r e d b e c a u s e i t
w a s b e l i e v e d t o be a t a b o o f o r p e o p l e from n a t a l l y - r e l a t e d
communities t o s p i l l one a n o t h e r ' s blood. To a v o i d b l o o d -
s h e d d u r i n g e n c o u n t e r s o f t h i s n a t u r e , n o n - l e t h a l weapons
s u c h as c l u b s , s t o n e s and p e b b l e s were used. The o t h e r
type of c o n f l i c t - a ~ h a - o f t e n involved groups t h a t did
n o t h a v e any form o f b l o o d r e l a t i o n s h i p , L e t h a l weapons
they
-
s u c h as g u n s ; (when / became a v L i l a b l e ) , k n i v e s , swords 3nd
s p e a r s w e r e f r e e l y u s e d d u r i n g a ~ h a , The s p i l l i n c o f human
b l o o d was a l l o w e d d u r i n g c o n f l i c t s o f t h i s n a t u r e t h o u g h a
s o l d i e r who k i l l e d a p e r s o n d u r i n g a w a r w a s r e q u i r e d t o
u n d e r s o c l e a n s i n s r i t e s c a l l e d ikwo a k a o r i napu a k a i k e .
A p e r s o n who k i l l e d a n o t h e r d u r i n g a c o n f l i c t between n a t a l l y
r e l a t i o n g r o u p s w a s bound t o pay w i t h h i s own l i f e , Such a
person ( i , e . t h e k i l l e r ) was u s u a l l y handed-over t o
 131.
c o l l e a g u e s o r r e l a t i o n s o f h i s v i c t i m whose d u t y i t was
t o k i l l him a f t e r p e r f o r m i n g n e c e s s a r y r i t e s , I n some
communities, a p e r s o n g u i l t y o f t h i s t y p e o f o f f e n c e was
n o t k i l l e d b u t was e i t h e r s o l d i n t o s l a v e r y o r a d o p t e d
by t h e f a m i l y o f h i s v i c t i m ,
Some o f t h e weapons u s e d d u r i n g wars were mmufac-
t u r e d l o c a l l y by h i r e d Nkwerre and Awka s m i t h s u s i n g
l o c a l l y smelted i r o n . The m a j o r weapons m a n u f a c t u r e d by
t h e s m i t h s i n c l u d e d k n i v e s , swords =md guns, T h e r e were
no s t a n d i n g a r m i e s , Every a b l e - b o d i e d man who a l s o belonged
* t o t h e second o f t h e t h r e e n e e - s e t s i n t o which men were
d i v i d e d , t u r n e d t o b e a f i g h t e n i n t i m e s o f war. The
f i g h t i n g men were commanded by p e o p l e chosen on a c c o u n t
e i t h e r o f t h e i r b r a v e r y i n e a r l i e r wars o r o f t h e i r fame
as h u n t e r s , M e d i c i n e s and m e d i c i n e men were v e r y f r e e l y
u s e d d u r i n g wars, I t was common f o r p e o p l e t o t r a v e l as
f a r as Afikpo, Umunneoha, and Arochukwu t o p r o c u r e t h e
s e r v i c e s o f competent charm-makers, Some of t h e c h w m s
were b e l i e v e d t o make t h e i r u s e r s i n v u l n e r a b l e t o k n i v e s and
guns. O t h e r s gave s t r e n g t h and c o u r a g e w h i l e a few were
meant t o c o u n t e r t h e e f f e c t s o f charms worn by o p p o n e n t s ,
The t h i r d m z j o r a s p e c t o f Ohuhu w a r f a r e c o v e r e d i n
t h i s work i s t h e v a r i o u s ways i n which wars were ended and
t h e c o n s e q u e n c e s o f wars, Most p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu wars
ended t h r o u g h t h e i n t e r v e n t i o n o f i n t e r e s t g r o u p s and p e r m n s
r a t h e r th3.n t h r o u g h t h e d e f e a t a n d / o r c a p i t u l a t i o n o f one
s i d e t o another, Two g r o u p s t h a t o f t e n i n t e r v e n e d t o
b r i n g w a r r i n g p e o p l e s t o t a l k p e a c e , w e r e n e i g h b o u r s and
married daughters - ynV okpy, The i n t e r e s t o f n e i g h b o u r s
was u s u a l l y , t h e r e s t o r a t i o n o f commercial r e l z t i o n between
c o m m u n i t i e s which was o f t e n d i s r u p t e c l i n t i m e s o f c o n f l i c t ,
T r a d i n g came n c l o s e s e c o n d t o a g r i c u l t u r e as a s o u r c e o f
l i v e l i h o o d i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu. I t was t h r o u g h t h e n e t -
work o f l o n g ancl s h o r t - d i s t a n c e t r a d e r o u t e s a n d m a r k e t s
t h a t p e o p l e were a b l e t o e x c h a n s e t h e i r e x c e s s p r o d u c t s f o r
t h e i r n e e d s e s p e c i a l l y s a l t which came from s u c h f a r - o f f
p l a c e s as Uburu ancl Ukwa. T h i s i n t r i c a t e network of
exchange when d i s r u p t e d by wars, c a u s e d p e o p l e o t h e r t h a n
those d i r e c t l y involved grave hardships, Groups s o
a f f e c t e d n a t u r a l l y t o o k s t e p s t o b r i n g t h e f e u d i n s commu-
n i t i e s t o make p e a c e ,
Narried daughters - ymy o k p ~- w e r e naturally,
i n t e r e s t e d i n makin:; p e a c e between t h e i r kinsmen a n d any
o t h e r community w i t h whom t h e y had problems. This i n t e r e s t
s t m m e d m a i n l y from t h e f e a r t h a t wars exposed t h e i r
( y m ~o k p y r s ) kinsmen t o t h e r i s k o f b e i n g k i l l e d . umu okpurs
method of i n t e r v e n u b i n wars w a s v e r y d i r e c t , They o f t e n
went t o t h e b a t t l e f i e l d t o occupy n n e u t r a l :?round between
t h e a r m i e s o f t h e two c o m b a t a n t s , This t a c t i c usually
f o r c e d b o t h s i d e s t o l a y down t h e i r arms f o r f e a r o f harming
either t h e i r wives o r s i s t e r s , f ~ f t e ra c h i e v i n g t h i s t y p e
o f s t a l e m a t e , ymy okpy n o r m a l l y f o r c e d t h e b e x g e r e n t s t o
t a l k peace. P e a c e s e t t l e m e n t s i n Ohuhu were u s u a l l y
 133.
f o l l o w e d by t h e p e r f o r m a n c e o f c e r t a i n r i t u a l s . Such

r i t u a l s , i t was b e l i e v e d h e l p e d t o r e c c n c i l e t h e g o d s and
n n c e s t o r s of t h e w a r r i n g communities, The s e t t l e m e n t o f
t h e Lriani-Ekwelu w a r f o r example, l e d t o t h e e s t a b l i s h m e n t
o f a s h r i n e known as p ~ o ~ hU ZoO which was j o i n t l y owned by
t h e two communiti-es,

l i m s i n p r e - c o l o n i a l Ohuhu n a t u r a l l y , had t h e i r

i m p a c t on t h e ~ e o p l e , some o f them permanent. Thouzh con-

s c i o u s e f f o r t s w e r e made t o k e c p c a r n a l t i c s low, l i v e s were

inevitably ; l o s t i n t h e s e wars. T h i s was e s p e c i a l l y t r u e o f

wars i n v o l v i n g g r o u p s t h a t d i d n o t h a v e any b l o o d r e l a t i o n -
ship, T h e r e are i n s t a n c e s o f w n s w h e r e t h e human c a s a a . l t i e s
were p a r t i c u l a r l y h i g h . L! ( ~ o o dexample o f a war t h a t was
I
,

v e r y e x p e n s i v e i n t e r m s o f human l i f c was f~,o:haUinua~r;u

" *
- the
Ohafia invasi I t i s claimed t h a t * t h e e n t i r e
i n v a s i c n f ' o r c c e s t i m a t e d a t some h u n d r e d s was c o m ~ l e t e l y
destroyed, They, t h e i n v a d e r s , a l s o t o o k a h i g h t o l l o f

U m u a p l i v e s when t h e y a t t n c k e d and k i l l e d many m a i d e n s

undergoing t h e t r a d i t i o n a l f a t t e n i n g p r i o r t o m a r r i a c e ,

Uars a l s o c a u s e d n l o t o f human s u f f e r i n g , The s u f f e r i n s w a s

o f t e n c a u s e d by t h e d i s r u p t i o n which t r a d e and exchange and
f a r m i n g s u f f e r e d d u r i n f ; wars.
1

I n aX1, t h i s s t u d y h i g h l i s h t s t h e n e e d f o r u s t o have
more m i c r o s t u d i e s o f I g b o s c c i c t y . I n t h e a r e a of warfare,
f o r i n s t a n c e , i t h a s shcwn how d i f f e r e n t r e a l i t y was from
t h e m s y c o n c l u s i o n s p o p u l a r i s c d by t h e p n o r a m i c s t u d i e s
o f c o l o n i a l a p o l o g i s t s mc! Ijy t h o s e who s u b s e q u e n t l y
depended on t h e i r works,
 --
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(19% 1 pp* 295-317.

S m i t h , R o b e r t , IIYoruba Armamentw J o u r n a l o f A f r i c a n H i s t o r y
VOL 111, NO. 1, (19671, pp. 87-106.

Uka, N.,
Ikenga ,.."A vNote on t h e @AbamtW a r r i o r s o f I g b o l a n d M
o l . 1, No. 2 , (19721, pp. 76-82.

Ukwu, I. Ukwu, "The Development o f T r a d e and M a r k e t i n g i n

IgbolnndI1 J o u r n a l of t h e H i s t o r i c a l S o c i e t y o f N i g e r i a
v o l e 111, No. 4 , (19671, pp, 647-662.

Unpublished M a t e r i a l s : \
\
1. ~ f o k e ,J.N., Ezza W a r f a r e and I n t e r - g r o u p R e l a t i o n s ( ~ n p u b l i -
s h e d BOA. ' H i s t o r y ' T h e s i s U n i v e r s i t y o f N i g e r i a , ~ s u k k a l ,
1974.

2. A g a s h i , P.O., P r e - c o l o n i a l W a r f a r e i n Enugu-Szike (B.A.

H i s t o r y T h e s i s , U n i v e r s i t y o f N i g e r i a , Msukka 1979).

3- Agomoh, C.I., Some A s p e c t s of t h e P r e - c o l o n i a l H i s t o r y of

Oboro C l a n i n Ikwuano-Umuahia up t o 1910 (B.A. History
Thesis, U.N*N., 1979).
4. Ahazuem, J.O., and I n t e r - g r o u p R e l a t i o n s h i p s I

i n Pre-colonial T h e s i s , U.N.N., 1975)

5. Amajo, U.A.C., Old Umuahia Under B r i t i s h R u l e , 1902-1929

(B.A. { H i s t o r y T h e s i s 1 9 7 4 ) .

6. Anozie, F.NO4 '!The C o n t r i b u t i o n s o f ~ r c h a e o l o g yt o t h e S t u d y of

Igbo C u l t u r e (Unpublished papei- P r e s e n t e d a t W o r k s h q ~ , , , o,Igbo n
----
C u l t u r.. e.*, I n s t i t u t e of A f r i c a n S t u d i e s , U n i v e r s i t y of N i g e r i a ,
Nsukka, 1 9 7 5 ppo 65-92.

7. Atulomah, A . I . , The E s t a b l i s h m e n t o f B r i t i s h Rule i n

Uminonarn
- .- -& --
.-- (B.A. H i s t o r y T h e s i s , U.N.N., 1973).

8. Ekpo, LOOo, Some A s p e c t s of t h e P r e - c o l o n i a l H i s t o r y of

-
I b e r e C l a n (B.A. H i s t o r y T h e s i s , U.N.N., 1983).

9. Emezue, S o , A P r e - c o l o n i a l H i s t o r y o f Umuopara
(B.A. H i s t o r y T h e s i s , U.N.N., 1980).

10. Esobe, EoNo, P

P r e - c o l o n i a l H i s t o r y of Ohuhu C l a n
(B.A, H i s t o r y T h e s i s , U.N.N., 1973).

11. E s e r e o n y e , E., S l a v e r y and S l a v e Trade i n Bende D i v i s i o n

B e f o r e 1 9 0 2 (B.A. H i s t o r y T h e s i s , U.N.N., 1977).

12. Okoye, Too., T J r b a n i s a t i o n i n I g b o l a n d " Workshop on

-
I q b o C u l t u r e , pp. 324-346.

1. Okwery, A.O., Warfare i n P r e - c o l o n i a l Nimbo Nsukka

(B,A, H i s t o r y T h e s i s , U.N.N., 1 ~ ~ ) .

14. Onuigbo, W o , Warfare i n P r e - c o l o n i a l Mgbowo

(B.A. H i s t o r y T h e s i s , U.N.N., 1977).

15. Onwuanaku, V.O., Okonko S o c i e t y i n O r l u (Unpublished

Ben. F i n e & Applied A r t s T h e s i s , U n i v e r s i t y of N i g e r i a
Nsukka, 1976).

16. Uchendu, V.C., " P a t t e r n s of I g b o S o c i a l S t r u c t u r e f f -

Workshop on I g b o C u l t u r e op. c i t . , pp. 347-382.
I

17. Ukagwu, M o o . , A s p e c t s of t h e P r e - c o l o n i a l H i s t o r y o f I b e k u
(B.A. isto tor^? T h e s i s , U.N.N., 1978).

18. Ukpabi, S o C o , f f I g b o W a r f a r e f 1 , ( u n p u b l i s h e d p a p e r p r e s e n t e d
---
a t Workshop on Igbo C u l t u r e . , I n s t i t u t e of A f r i c a n S t u d i e s
U n i v e r s i t y of N i g e r i a , Nsukka 1975, pp. 413-443.
 APPENDIX A
PARTICULARS OF INFORMANTS

: PLACE OF
I Y - C - Y

i I
N4liZOP D A OF~ :MODEOF I
s/No~
v-=
I IXPGZM~'LNTS
I
1 AGE i INTERVIEW; INTERVIEW ;INTERVIEW OCCuPAToN ,j I
I
STATUS
----A - I
ASSESSMENT
I
1. I S.L. Xecha
I
I
I
6 5 I 4.12.82 Bende
- - - - f - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - I - - - - - - + - - - - - - - - - - *
Direct ; Farmins ,----+--------------------------?-----------------
1 1
The E z e j i of Eeiic':e I
Reliable I
I
I

2. i Chim. Ndon
I
1 58 ; 4.12.82 I
1 Okopedi : T( ~r abdoi tt ioo)ofn a l I Xt ~~ bl eu rz- o
I
I
I
I
I
I""
""7""-----""
I
1 :
,------+----------
Itumbuzo
r----------+---------+-------------+*--------------------------+----------------- 11 I II I I 1'.

3 I Lawrence D.G.
1
II
I
I 1 T r a d i t i o n a l Ruler - I k p :
I
I
I 1
' Nwankwo
---- J-----------------J------A---Z--:----L~~--------A-----~---J-------------A--------------.-----------L-----------------
65 6 1 2 8 2 Bende I I 1 111, of Bende I 1 11
I
11
1
11
I I I I I I
4. 1 E l i jsh Isendom ; 70 1 7.12.82 ;Ndivo Farmind Fairly
I I

- - -
I
- - I - - - - -
I
I
- -
I
- - -
I
I
- - - - - - -
I Itumbuzo
4 - - - - -
I
* +
o : Tar A
1
pcj I
I Village e l d e r
I
I
I Reliable
&-----+---------------"-----------L-----------------
5 1I Pi- Shionuma
I
I 84
I
I 7.12.82 1Ariam I
I Retired C i v i l i I4
I
I
I
l------t----------
I
----1----------------- I
I
:Elu-Elu 11 Servant 1 Village elder
1""""""""----1-------*-----------------
I
I Reliable
:
7--------"f--""---ttt-t---t-t----

6. 1 J o h n Ifenkwe 1 9/12/82 IEkwelu- I 72 I

I
I
I
I
I
I
' I
- - - - - J - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 4 - - - - - - + - - - - - - - -I +
I Usaka
I
11 ' Farming------4------------------.-----
Village elder ---;---
I 1t

7. I
,,--J--,---,----,,,,,,
E z e k i e l Xwaulu I 60
1 9/12/82 I w I II I
J------A------,--,,L----------J--------oA--------------J--------------------------L-----------------
II I tt II I tt

8.
I
; Tete :bugn nu
Vroha
I
Retired
1
I
I
90 : 9.12.82
1 I
I
1
I
I I
I
I Okonko p r i e s t and
I
I
I

----?-----------------+------+------~----*----------*------
I Ariarn Farmer
I I I I I village elder t

r--:
11 I --------------+--------------------------b-----------------t 19

9. : Nkwa 3keb 90 11.12.82 :Elemaga- I

I
J
I 1I I I
I
I
I I 1 1 I
I
----1"---"--'""--"----1 f b e r e
r--"----"T"""'--tttttt----t-t--
~--""T-."""--- I I I , !
I1 II V i l l a g e--"--"--"---"--r---------------
elder I II

10. : G i l b e r t Nwaubani 75 : f;Cuil~&&~muajameze II ]--Z;ounc i l l o r now II I

I I I
----L----------------J------
I I
i I s ; .,:- nara Umuo
--,,,-,,._,+----E.----J--------- ara 1 11
-------
Farming-.----+------
V i l l a g e------------------k-----------------
elder tI

11. 1 Okorie Igbudu 1 80 14.12.82

I
) Amuro-
I
I
I
I
I I
I
I
I
I I I
1 I b e r e I II I H e r b a l i s t I Village e l d e r I
II
----+------------------$----------------~---------~--------------~---------------------------L-----------------
12. R o b c r t Gkoro
I
1
I
I
15.12.82 I mawom 90
4
I
; I
I
I
I
I
I
Formerly a t r s d : S i o i i a l
I
I
I I I I Oboro I 11 I I r u l e r b u t now b l i n d - I' II
I
- - - - 7 - I- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - I
+-----
7t - - - - - - - - - - - r - - - - I- - ' " ' 1 ' - - - - 1 1 - - -I - - - - - T - T - - - - -I- - - - - - - 7 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ~ .v- -i .l-l-a f
- -g- -e- - -e~l-d
- -e- r
------------- I
13. 1 U k ~ n d uXamanu 1 70 1 15.12.82 Umugbalu- 1I I I I
t

-
I
I
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I
I
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I
I :~ b o r o II I1
I
I Farming :
I
Village eldcr
---
I
! II
I -- I
-I_- 1 -- - ---A
I ' I - * --