₦airaland Forum

KenGali: Your write up is still a little not clear so let me explain a bit more.
While the rest of Nigeria climb head and tail over their Kings, Igbos perfected democracy long before the white man came, till today some warrant chiefs cannot exert reasonable control over their communities.

The Eze Aro is only a king in Aro(one of the very rare true monarchies in Igboland), the fact that communities beyond Aro had no value for any king, makes his influence beyond Aro more of a literary mirage. But these are all historical stuff, its as good as some Yoruba guy arguing about the powers of Something of Ife, based on Oduduwa having done his magic in ife, thats so lame.

In Igboland, I could have said the "Obi of Onitsha" but I know that the less popular Igwe of my town "Igwe Peter Anugu" has more influence in the local Anambra state politics than the Obi Nnaemeka.

Nwonyeke, I don't want it to seem as if I'm making a big deal out of this, but be informed:

Source:http://aronewsonline.com/files/Aro_Monarchy.doc

"Since the British invasion of Arochukwu (otherwise known as the Arochukwu Expedition) in 1901-1902, the British Colonial Government recognized the influence and prestige of the Aro King (the Eze-Aro) whose influence and prestige transcend the whole of Igbo land and beyond. It will be recalled that Aro settle and constitute autonomous communities in various parts of Abia, Imo, Anambra, Cross River, Akwa Ibom, Ebonyi, Enugu and beyond with their recognized traditional rulers, but then these Aros and their traditional rulers pay true allegiance and annual homage to the Eze-Aro whom they recognize as their King. Because of his influence and prestige, the Eze-Aro was the first and only President of the then Arochukwu Native Court. Both King George VI and Queen Elizabeth II awarded previous Eze-Aro’s certificate and medals of Honor in recognition of their immense popularity, influence and prestige throughout the former Eastern Region of Nigeria, more particularly for their role in quelling the Aba Women Riot of 1929. In the colonial days and after, the Eze-Aro was and still remains an embodiment of peace and exercised sobering influence over the other chiefs and Traditional Rulers in the area. The Eze-Aro is one of the eight ( Traditional Paramount Rulers in the former Eastern Region of Nigeria, and the only one in Abia State of Nigeria, whose positions as First Class Paramount Traditional Rulers were entrenched in the 1960 Constitution of Eastern Region of Nigeria as well as in the 1963 Constitution of Eastern Nigeria when Nigeria became a Republic. The other seven (7) First Class Paramount Traditional Rulers are the Amayanabo of Opobo, the Amayanabo of Bonny, the Amayanabo of Nembe, the Amayanabo of Kalabari, the Obi of Onitsha, the Obi of Oguta and the Obong of Calabar. Consequently the Eze-Aro of Arochukwu and the other seven (7) First Class Paramount Traditional Rulers named above were automatic and ex-officio members of the eastern Nigeria House of chiefs until the outbreak of the Nigerian Civil War and subsequent creation of twelve (12) States in 1967. Thus the Colonial government and all subsequent Nigerian Governments, especially in the former Eastern Nigeria, have continued to recognize the influence, prestige and exalted position of the Eze-Aro as one of the few Traditional Rulers in the former Eastern Nigeria occupying a traditional stool with history. He is in fact, the only Traditional Ruler in Abia State occupying such a stool (i.e. a traditional stool with history."

tomakint: Is it true that in a particular place at Okija cobras are venerated, don't know please enlighten me

I don't know about this. You should ask someone from Okija (Okija_Juju).

I'll be back later tonight to usher us into the next stage.

Nsogbu adii; no problem.

NRI PRIEST: What tha f....uck is this Odumchi Who is Eze Aro?? His influence begins and stops with Arochukwu.....not Arondizuogu nor Ajali sef...Abeg get off your high horse...stop trying to spread false impression...this thing you wrote is complete rubbish...Eze Aro my a..ss!

I seriously doubt you know the gravity of this statement. I'm not trying to spread anything; I'm just saying things as they are. Anyway, I'm not surprised that, as an Idemili guy, this is your reaction.

Aro voro ivo si guma onye amaa ya juo ka e vooro ya maka Okonko anaa anu "asi m ma kwa".

ODUA_NEGRO: Thanks.

So I thought previously that the Obi is the highest ranking monarch of the land, now I know better. In any society you can ultimately converge overall leadership and authority in one person on top. If there are three subgroups under the Igbo nation then who is the topmost authority, would it be Eze Aro or Eze Nri?

I understand that Eze Aro is political and authority over sovereingty of Alaigbo. Eze Nri is priest and has authority over spiritual rites and customs of Alaigbo. What role does the third one, Eze Agbo, hold?

I think you might've misinterpreted what I wrote or that I wasn't clear enough in my explanation. The Igbo peoples do not have a single king; there's no one man who leads all of Igboland. However, it is true that, traditionally, the two most influential kings of Igboland are the Eze Aro and the Eze Nri.

The Eze Nri, although a clear religious leader, is not the religious leader of all of Igboland. The Nri people expanded from Anambra and spread "Nri culture" to most of the Igbo parts of Delta, parts of Imo, and most of Anambra. I could go even deeper as to what "Nri" culture means but I don't think it would be necessary since you, not being an Igbo, would probably not comprehend.

The Aro Confederacy was responsible for the cultural mixture of Igboland, and to a larger extent, eastern Nigeria. When people begin to list the monarchs of Igboland, they start off with the Eze Aro. Just to help emphasize my point: During his tenure, Obasanjo paid homage to the Eze Aro and was granted Aro citizenship.

The Obi Agbo is the king of Agbor (a town in Delta State). Unlike that of the Eze Nri and the Eze Aro, the Obi of Agbo's influence does not extend to vast parts of Igboland. However, he is the premier traditional ruler of the Ika. In the old days, the Obi of Agbo repeatedly fought with the armies of Benin as he led the Ika in an attempt to hold back Benin's eastward expansion.

Negro_Ntns: Odumchi, has your Eze term started?

Can you please educate us on the Igbo monarchs, titles, roles and tiers.

thank you. By the way, you and a few other people here are only ones I respect as Igbo and will approach to learn from. So my inquiry is a serious one.

No my term has not yet started.

Here's some of what I know:

Pre-colonially, the majority of the Igbo existed in village communities ruled by councils of elders, wisemen, and titled persons. From the northern Nike savannahs to the southern Ikwere marshes, these councils regulated village affairs, levied taxes, and managed inter-village diplomacy. These "polyarchies" carried out the will of the community, and most importantly, prevented tyranny. However, despite the proficiency of these "polyarchies", well-structured and organized monarchies arose in different axes of Igboland: in the Bende axis (Arochukwu area), in the Ika axis (Agbo), and in the Nri-Oka axis (Aguwku-Nri and Onicha).

In these three regions, the traditional roles of the "Eze" tend to differ. For example, in Agukwu-Nri, the Eze Nri (King of all people of Nri ancestry) is more of a priest king than an actual political figurehead because the people of Nri were [traditionally] reknown for their proficiency in native medicine. As chief of all practitoners of Nri medicine, the Eze Nri was very influential, and through the exportation of Nri medical science, his influence range spread to encompass most of what is now Anambra, parts of Imo, parts of Delta, and parts of Enugu.

The Eze Aro (King of all people of Aro ancestry), on the other hand, was the supreme political figurehead in all of Igboland due to the influence that the Aro people once wielded. However, nowadays, as a result of British intrusion, the Eze Aro, although very influential in the cultural context of not only Igboland but Eastern Nigeria, holds a mere fraction of the power that he once had.

Even in the areas where kingship is found, the council of elders is still present. For example, in Arochukwu, kingship (although relegated to a particular village and lineage) is not necessarily passed down from father to son. The Eze Aro is elected by a council of nine distinguished Aro elders, called Okpankpo.

Aside from the afformentioned kings, most of the Igwe, Eze, and Obi that we has today never existed prior to colonization. When the British came, they granted individuals/families authority and made them warrant chiefs. That ultimately evolved into the situation that we have now: towns that have never had a history of monarchy all of a sudden have kings and etc.

tpia1: In addition, which country in africa, is most like nigeria in terms of mindset?

I should think congo, no other place comes to mind.

I'd say Ghana.

Unu ahula ya?

See your life? You no fit think beta tin

toshmann: G-string= mpekele uwe otele
Homosexuals= ndi ndoro/ ndi or'ike( ndi ori Ike)
Lesbians= ndi oru'aka
Terrorists= ndi mmaja

Antivirus92: what do you mean by that, odumchi?

I ma-eje dibia agbara ya aja?

Do you need a divination?

olawalebabs: Front Page Please

https://www.nairaland.com/657732/nigeria-most-influential-monarch#13319348

Please repost that here: https://www.nairaland.com/1004554/promoting-culture-board-frontpage/1#13322142

Thanks!

Andre Uweh: The sultan to me is a religious leader just like Eze Aro and Nri. So in this case minus Sultan, it should be as follows.
Asagba of Asaba
Alafin of Oyo.
Oba of Benin.
Obi of Onitsha.
Shehu of Borno.
Tor Tiv
Etsu Nupe
Obong of Calabar
Olu of Warri.
Olubadan of Ibadan.

Eze Aro is not a religious leader.

ifyalways: a better question would have been, what does he think is "truth" ?

I think the deaths of the music icons in anambra axis and unwillingness of the youth to take up the mantle is one of the reasons. Highlife still thrive in Delta state oh. Imo have always been a force to reckon with when it comes to highlife but its safe to say that the anambra type of highlife was much more commercialised and accepted(can't think of the right word now) than Imo's.

Ok, Anambra highlife was first to the musician, a business, all about ego first as opposed to their Imo counterparts who sees it first as a sidekick recreational fun stuff.

Nna biko, o mu kowa n'Igbo? bekee bu agbara.

That's very interesting. Why I say this is because, in those days, Anambra and Delta highlife was very very popular but nowadays it seems as if Imo music has taken over.

I agree with you about the difference in mentality. Anambra and Delta guys seem to take it more seriously than Imo guys.

What I don't understand is the reason for the decline in Anambra. The only Anambra guy that I know that's really trying is Chijioke Mbanefo (Osadebe jr.), whereas Imo guys like Dr Sir Foreigner, Bongo Champion, Saro Wiwa, and Atinga Woma are growing in popularity. The premier music company in Anambra, Amaco Music, seems to be competing with Imo's Mega Beats Studios.

One_Naira: I got banned like four times today. I had to create three extra account, which I do ask you delete, I don't need it.

Anyway can you unhide my last three post. I wrote nothing wrong. At first I thought it blocked and hide my comments because of the pictures, I tried eliminating the pictures and it still blocking and hiding my post. IDK

https://www.nairaland.com/1075719/why-black-women-ugly/6

Here's the thread. I'm tired of trying to post the same reply for the past 1 hour now.

Thanks in advance.

Resolved!

Ezeagu, I would say that upwards of ninety percent of the Igbo populace identifies as being Christian. The remaining population is made up of those that still cling unshakably to their traditional beliefs: native doctors, elders, and the ruling class (Igwe, Eze, Obi, princes, etc).

Even though upwards of ninety percent of us are Christian, there are still people within that bracket that practice omenali (tradition) along with Christianity.

Dede1: The above post is a typical example of misinformation and opinion stated out of ignorance. Nothing could be farther from truth than the quote from the above post such as “What I've noticed is that in the Highlife era (60s to 80s) Anambra and Delta were the "hotbeds" of music in Igboland”.

What's wrong in what I said?

XFive: Nwanne m ndaa? onye ohu abu gi Onye Igbo, o onye mba ovia

Nwa Aro di ele m, I mere aga ole?

O ma awu kwa na o za mba ovia na ezi.

Odenigbo Aroli: Agwo is different from Eke.

I am well aware that eke and agwo are different. However, we treat all snakes the same, whether oguru (cobra) or eke nmini (python).

ChinenyeN: Hence the expression: agwo no n'akirika.

@Topic: I find it interesting that snakes (or the python) receive(s) such a tolerable treatment up in that region, whereas it is normal to kill them and collect their sloughed skin in my area.

Exactly. It's quite strange.

NRI PRIEST: Well,not all snakes...

What do you mean?

ezeagu: They should have thrown it into the bush, but in Nigeria everything is in ike-ike.

PAGAN 9JA:
typical hot-headed christian attitude towards lifeforms. the fool is not aware it seems that pythons rarely harm humans. totally uncalled for. . *smh

It's not normal for a giant python to crawl out of the stream and into a man's house, just like that. Besides, we don't tolerate snakes, where I come from.

BeraBera: I'm Ibo, but I will recommend the Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka any day any time

I za aga ole wuru onye Igbo?

Me?

Odenigbo Aroli: That's what they say and yes it did crawl into my room.

Your experience reminds me of when a huge python slithered into the house of a relative of mine. He immediately called all of his neighbors to help him corner the snake in order to prevent it from escaping. He finally delivered the fatal blow when he crushed the serpent's head with a huge stick. It's amazing to imagine that a few kilometers away, on the other side of Igboland, such vile beasts are revered.

*Kails*:
I said KAILS!

Sorry, no self-nominations.

somalia5: i nominate ayanle456

I guess this counts.

Avec plaisir.

How exactly did those Nike pyramids serve as shrines?

I have a question regarding Igbo music.

What I've noticed is that in the Highlife era (60s to 80s) Anambra and Delta were the "hotbeds" of music in Igboland. However, nowadays, it seems to have shifted to Imo (Bongo).

Who thinks so/has anything to say? And also, are Anambra/Delta/Enugu people fond of Imo music?

This thread is for that time that you have a question but don't know who to ask; that time you have something you'd like to discuss but not sure with who; that time you just want to discuss anything and everything cultural with everyone.

CAMEROONPRIDE: https://www.nairaland.com/1122925/word-monkey-africans-what-nigga#13241610

PLEASE MODE. AFRICANS ARE DEGRADING THEMSELVES.

As you say in French, fini!

*Kails*:
^^lol.

Lol, what's so funny?

CAMEROONPRIDE: MY BAD I WAS NOT AWARE OF A THREAD LIKE THIS.
THANKS FOR YOUR TIME.

Done! No prob.