Extrait de amazon.com : "Among Africanists and feminists, the Igbo-speaking women of southeastern Nigeria are well known for their history of anti-colonial activism which was most demonstrated in the 1929 War against British Colonialism. Perplexed by the magnitude of the Women's War, the colonial government commissioned anthropologists/ethnographers to study the Igbo political system and the place of women in Igbo society. The primary motive was to have a better understanding of the Igbo in order to avoid a repeat of the Women's War. This study will analyze the complexity and flexibility of gender relations in Igbo society with emphasis on such major cultural zones as the Anioma, the Ngwa, the Onitsha, the Nsukka, and the Aro."
Gender, Migration and Development in Africa: Igbo Women in the Diaspora and Community Development in Southeastern Nigeria provides a unique approach to the study of the role of Igbo women in the diaspora to community development in Igboland. Utilizing primary sources, specifically, migration stories of women and the groups they form in the United States and other parts of the world, the book highlights the dynamism in the zeal to give back to their communities of origin in Igboland. The book seeks to affirm the propensity of Igbo women to evolve through personal efforts and formation of social groups to extend humanitarian services to underprivileged individuals and societies in Igboland. Through several community development programs, they have provided needed medical and educational supplies, hospital equipment, supplies and sponsored several medical missions in different parts of the Igboland. This book further counters the previously understudied role of women in development. Through a comprehensive documentation of the various programs and projects completed by the groups and individual charities, readers and policy makers will be inspired to appreciate the efforts of the various groups and extend needed support and assistance to the groups. The findings in the book reveal the increasing shift from the brain drain concept to brain circulation and networking within the Igbo women community. They are positively utilizing the skills and resources acquired from their host communities to engage in the development processes through remittances and social development projects. The study reinforces the trends and ideas that the improvement of African societies may well depend on the contributions of Africans outside the continent, especially women.
In this groundbreaking collection, leading historians, Africanists, and other scholars document the life and work of twelve Igbo intellectuals who, educated within European traditions, came to terms with the dominance of European thought while making significant contributions to African intellectual traditions.
This book provides a unique insight into understanding the Igbo social, economic, and political world through comprehensive analyses of indigenous and foreign religious practices, issues surrounding women, literature, language, sexism in musical lyrics, films, and community development and government. It also explores thought-provoking cultural practices relating to marriage and divorce, reincarnation, naming, and masquerade dance. The themes covered in the book help readers appreciate the often-neglected multifaceted local and external forces that continue to shape the Igbo experience in southeastern Nigeria.
This is a brilliant and refreshing book, which gives ample and well-deserved voice to women...It is a book that will definitely be of interest to scholars and students in the fields of history, anthropology, political science, religion, and political economy. It is a must read for scholars and students in Women's Studies Programs. - Felix K. Ekechi; Professor Emeritus(History); Kent State University This orginal and insightful work's sensible and balanced view of Igbo women's power and authority is modulated by a profound understanding of the ways in which women negotiated indigenous cultural spaces and at the same time negotiated with and refashioned pre-colonial and colonial contexts. Farmers, Traders, Warriors, and Kings is a major event in African gender studies publishing. - Obioma Nnaemeka; Professor of French, Women's Studies, and African/African Diaspora Studies; Indiana University, Indianapolis Nwando Achebe's book is rich in accounts of the life histories of recent powerful goddesses that were constructed by the Nsukka Igbo from the late 19th century... She] recounts these case studies with passion and fascination. This is another important addition to the growing literature in Igbo studies, gender studies and African historiography. - Ifi Amadiume; Professor of Religion and African and African American Studies; Dartmouth College A] landmark in African historiography. In the best tradition of the discpline, Dr. Achebe] reminds us after all that history, however academically grounded, should aim to delight as well as educate. Nwando Achebe is ahead of her generation not only in the depth of her sensibility but in the facility with which she represents the structures of feeling of her Igbo society. - Isidore Okpewho; Distinguished Professor of the Humanities; State University of New York, Binghamton There is an adage that the Igbo have no kings. Farmers, Traders, Warriors and Kings focuses on an area in Igboland where, contrary to this popular belief, Igbos not only have kings, but female kings. It is an area where women served as warriors and even married many wives. Because women in Nsukka Division served as prominent actors in a complex set of interactions, relationships and manifestations unmatched elsewhere in Igboland, the author argues that researchers cannot adequately analyze the landscape of Nsukka Division (or any other African society, for that matter) without investigating the central place of women and the female principle in the spiritual world of the society. The author examines the political, economic, and religious structures that allowed women and the female principle to achieve measures of power and looks at some of the ways they reacted and adjusted to the challenges of European rule. Such an investigation into the history of this gender dynamic yields important results for both African History and Women's Studies. Achebe focuses on the evolution of gender politics and female power in Nigeria's northern Igboland over the first six decades of the 20th century. This time period, approximately 1900-1960, is important because it allows for the exploration of continuity and change in Nsukka women's activities, as well as the female principle, over three periods: late pre-colonial, colonial, and post-colonial Nigeria. Along the way, she raises and answers questions relating to scholarship on women, sex, and gender in Africa by uncovering the complexities of the Igbo gender construct, arguing, for example, that sex and gender did not coincide in northern Igboland. Consequently, women were able to occupy positions that were exclusively monopolized by men in other societies, and men, likewise, occupied positions that would have otherwise been monopolized by women. Expanding on this premise, the author calls for a revision of traditional classifications of African women
This book analyzes the history of the Ngwa-Igbo of Southeastern Nigeria in time perspective. It begins with an evaluation of the methodologies used in studying the so-called stateless societies and goes on to discuss the origin of the Ngwa and their socio-political organization. Subsequent chapters examine local and regional trade networks as well as the roles Okonko title society, the Aro and other oracular specialists played during slavery and legitimate commerce. Also discussed are the production and marketing of palm produce and the sequence of events that contributed to the Aba Women's Revolt of 1929. The final chapter uses the Ngwa example to highlight the diverse changes that occurred in Igbo mini states during the periods under review.
Between Tradition and Change explores selected themes on the historical, socio-economic and ethno-political history of the Igbo of Nigeria. Its coverage encompasses political economy, civil society, religion and politics, traditional politics, crime and punishment, literature and politics, cosmology, and women in politics. The book provides an insightful account of state formation processes in Igboland, and the embattled transformation of Igbo society, norms and political economy since the period of colonial encounter with Europe. It includes detailed accounts of the impact of Christianity and colonialism on Igbo communal cohesion and traditional norms. The book reveals that core Igbo values are important in understanding the character and trajectory of the transformations that have occurred and how the Igbo responded to these transformations in national, regional, and international contexts. Between Tradition and Change is an indispensable work for a micro analysis of the major forces of change in African societies since the colonial period.
Nigeria is Africa's most populous country and the world's eighth largest oil producer, but its success has been undermined in recent decades by ethnic and religious conflict, political instability, rampant official corruption and an ailing economy. Toyin Falola, a leading historian intimately acquainted with the region, and Matthew Heaton, who has worked extensively on African science and culture, combine their expertise to explain the context to Nigeria's recent troubles through an exploration of its pre-colonial and colonial past, and its journey from independence to statehood. By examining key themes such as colonialism, religion, slavery, nationalism and the economy, the authors show how Nigeria's history has been swayed by the vicissitudes of the world around it, and how Nigerians have adapted to meet these challenges. This book offers a unique portrayal of a resilient people living in a country with immense, but unrealized, potential.
