Anthropos: Anthropos, 90.1995

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Strukturtyp:: Zeitschrift

Werks-URN (URL):: https://digi.evifa.de/viewer/resolver?urn=urn:nbn:de:kobv:11-d-4754913

URN:: urn:nbn:de:kobv:11-d-4754913

Persistenter Identifier:: BV043334262

Titel:: Anthropos

Erscheinungsort:: Fribourg

Verlag:: Ed. St. Paul

Erscheinungsjahr:: 1906

Sammlung:: Zeitschriften und Zeitungen > Zeitschriften zur Ethnologie

Wissensgebiet:: Sozial- und Kulturanthropologie > Allgemeines

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Strukturtyp:: Zeitschriftenband

Werks-URN (URL):: https://digi.evifa.de/viewer/resolver?urn=urn:nbn:de:kobv:11-d-4749401

URN:: urn:nbn:de:kobv:11-d-4749401

Persistenter Identifier:: 1513767960782

Titel:: Anthropos, 90.1995

Erscheinungsjahr:: 1995

Signatur:: LA 1118

Sammlung:: Zeitschriften und Zeitungen > Zeitschriften zur Ethnologie

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Strukturtyp:: Zeitschriftenheft

Titel:: Bd. 90, 1995, Heft 4-6

Sammlung:: Zeitschriften und Zeitungen > Zeitschriften zur Ethnologie

Topos 90.1995: 353-364 Anth The Evolution of the Aro Confederacy in Southeastern Nigeria, 1690-1720 ^ Theoretical Synthesis of State Formation Process in Africa ^Polios O. Nwauwa ^stract. — This work analyzes the unique evolution of the Aro JTate (Arochukwu) in southeastern Nigeria in ca. 1690-1720. e state emerged from the union of three distinct ethnic groups Igbo, Ibibio, and Akpa - but the traditions have been distorted V colonial officials/anthropologists for both racial and admin- •strative convenience. This study attempts to correct the misrep- ^Sent ' wxxvvi U.V .mo.vp the _ ons anc l offer a more plausible analysis by correlating the ^ r ° cess °f the development of the Aro confederacy with the the° neS State f orrnat * on - Because of the inherent defects of ¡ n Conv entional assumptions, this work advances an alternative ^ Tretation based on the judicious mix of the scarce resource, tr ar . x ' st ’ an d multiethnic hypotheses. Granted that most of the das' l0na ^ Tories °f state formation exhibit relevance, both onl S an< ^ et hnicity were powerful internal forces which not inter St * mu ^ ate( ^ change but also determined the patterns of Ar ^ anc * intra § r oup relations within the Aro society. [Nigeria, din ° n -f ec ^ e,ac y’ Igbo, Ibibio, Akpa, oracle, multiethnic thesis, of Af° S Nwauwa, Ph. D. (Dalhousie Univ., Halifax), Prof, deth r ' Can Histor y at Rhode Island College. - Research on: st 0( *°*°£y °i chronology for acephalous African societies; >n j 6 / 0rmat ion process in Africa; British warrant chief system Univ 8 °| an d; British imperial politics and the development of Vel erSltles * n Africa; intellectual dependency and underde- Aron? 16111 * n Africa - ~ His publications include: Integrating c ukwu into the Regional Chronological Structure (His to- in t AfHca ^991); The British Establishment of Universities l9^-. ro Pi ca l Africa, 1920-1948 (Cahiers d'Etudes africaines Q n< j University Education for Africans, 1900-1935 (Asian fiican Studies 1994); see also References Cited. ihte formation in precolonial Africa was a comp el* Process of which no single theory could con i’ u sively and satisfactorily explain. Each of the ra ditional theories (conquest/Hamitic and diffu- Sl ° n °f ideas, scarce resource, interclass and -eth- ri ) c conflicts) has either been very simplistic, ra- or ideological. But this is far from suggesting at some of the hypotheses have not been more ^pirical and elaborate than the others. Rather, it s a clear indication that the origin of the state is 0r mally intricate. Despite the fact that none of . e existing assumptions has been flawless, there S . n ° doubt that they have been very useful for a e arer understanding of the complicated process state formation. In Africa where many states and kingdoms were formed between the 17th and the 20th centuries, the course of state formation had been even more complicated. Not only did Africa become a classic experimental ground for state formation theories, but, two historiographi cal problems emanated from its history, namely, the Eurocentric neglect of African political insti tutions which did not conform to the European mind-set, and the modification of state formation theories to embody the trappings of racial bias. Wherever any organization which approximated the European model was observed, the tendency was to attempt to discover from where, outside tropical Africa, such “civilized” ideas had come. Egypt was often seen as the source and the Ham- ites were normally considered as the propagators. Aro history constituted one such misrepresent ation. The Aro confederacy emerged uniquely as a state in southeastern Nigeria in ca. 1690-1720, according to the dating structure worked out by the author (Nwauwa 1990). Three heterogeneous ethnic groups, namely, the Igbo, Ibibio, and Akpa were confederated to form Aro state or chiefdom (Arochukwu). The realities of the foundation of the Aro state suggest that it exhibited elements of all the traditional theories of state formation. The conquest theory, diffusion of ideas, monopoly of scarce resources, and class and interethnic con flict theories all exhibit relevance. State formation was not merely the story of “Hamitic” influences as racist scholars would tend to emphasize. No one has yet utilized those hints evidenced in the peoples’ traditions to attempt a theoretical analysis of the origin of the Aro state. This may explain why the origin of the people and their chiefdom have been shrouded in confusion. Thus, in order to penetrate the maze associated with the foundation of the chiefdom, this exercise seeks to interrelate oral tradition with the existing theories of state formation. The traditions of the foundation of the Aro chiefdom indicate conquest. An alien group inter

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