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ARO GOLDEN AGE 1750 - 1902
(Antecedents of its rise and fall)
Prof. Chris Aniche Okorafor
Introduction:
To meaningfully discuss the Aro Golden Age, some of its relevant internal and external factors must be brought to the fore-ground.
Most of these were occurring almost concurrently or in close successions that they must be seen as having influenced the founding,
growth and decline of the Aro confederacy and hegemony. Earlier publications had given a brief introduction of the Founding Fathers of
the confederacy in the discussion on “Reflections on the symbolism of the Aro coat of arm”. (See also the Prologue). This paper
presumes that we have read that article and only adds on a few paragraphs as a link to the current discussion.
We must at this stage premise for obvious reasons that this discussion is based on extensive research on “facts” of history; generally
accepted but verifiably realistic and rational oral traditions; and methodically derived inferences from both. For instance, any oral
tradition that assigns the name Agbagwu to a city state implying that it was derived from the fact that the Akpa warriors ran out of
gun powder in that location is definitely not acceptable. It is anachronistic. The Ibibio war was about 1534, and guns were not
introduced in the entire area until about 1642, a span of over a hundred years. We therefore have made very strenuous effort to avoid
such inferences from a fog of inadequate and inaccurate reasoning in Aro history. A renowned Professor states that “development of
theories is by distinguishing between what is assumed, what is known, and what can be inferred.” His learned colleague has also said
that “if you want literal realism, look at the world around you; if you want understanding, look at theories.” These maxims have greatly
influenced the dating of persons and events in the “nucleic town”, its subsequent metamorphosis as a confederacy and acquisition of the
name Arochukwu, its growth and stultification by the British invasion. We are also emboldened by the extensive research of Professor
M. B. Abasiattai of University of Calabar’s dates in his work on “History of Cross River State.” The learned Professor, using available
Efik king-lists, and applying a mean reign of 11.8 years, dates the “Igbo-Ibibio” war to between 1500 and 1550, but specifically
suggests 1534.
The dating we have employed is also in consonance with the age-old and persisting tradition of the Uke (Age Grade) system of social
mobilization and governance celebrated as a rite of passage among Cross River Igbo and neighboring society’s eastwards right beyond
the Oban Hills. As the structure of the age grade is organic, each male belongs to an age grade. These traditional societies recognized
and acclaimed nobility enhanced by merit. A male child’s first association with the group that would eventually assume an age grade
classification is on the day he makes his first kill with his own bow and arrow. It may be just a bird or a squirrel. For an average child
this should occur before attaining his tenth birthday. After parading the village square with his trophy in company of boys about his age,
give or take three years, they eventually share the kill and the presents given to him by the villagers as prize for his first
demonstration of his “manly quality.”
By the time the boy has attained the age of puberty, his age mates now formally organized undertake general sanitation works in the
village, such as roads maintenance and providing raphia palm fronds for roofing the village hall. During this period each child devotes his
time to learning one profession, trade or craft. By about age 25, their age grade is formally recognized and given an official name
(Izara Ava). Simultaneous with this recognition of a new age grade is the passing into governance status of yet another age grade,
averaging 50 years and above, which now retires from community labor into the hallowed and revered status of village governance (Igba
Uche)
Between these two age grades, are usually three others groups of age grades about the ages of 30 to 36; 37 to 43 and, 44 to 50. As
the youngest age grade (25-29 age bracket) is given the task of general duties within the village which is mainly done on a regular and
particular day of the four-days week, so also their immediate senior age grade (30-36 age bracket), is assigned the internal security
function of parading the village when most villagers are out to the farms or the market. The more senior age grade (37-43 age
bracket), are deployed at the village borders to watch out for and ward off external aggression from slave raiders, head hunters,
domestic animal hustlers or yam barn looters as well as securing the boundaries of the village from encroachment by outsiders. This
age grade is also the standing army of the village. The deployment consists of a period of about four to five years during which they
set up watch camps outside the village. This is the status within which each member strives to attain excellence by protecting the
village thus qualifying to dance to the tune of the giant talking drum (Ikoro) with the head of a qualifying enemy he disengaged in
warfare. In some of these Cross River Igbo societies, the concluding rite of these years of military service is known as Igwa Mmang.
The age grade now graduates and retires as reservists in the village military system until their final bowing out at the once in six
years rituals of Igba Uche. It is from the members of this age grade that the village co-opts troop leaders to loan or hire out to other
towns or villages engaged in warfare. During such expeditionary engagements, the leaders recruit from the 30-36 age graders such as
would want to cut their teeth early in external warfare. With the system still very much in vogue but in a greatly modified form in
conformity with changed societal circumstances, we have also relied on it in our dating of Ozim Nnubi (Ozim Nubi) the lead commander
in the Igbo-Ibibio war of c1534 and Akuma Nnubi (Akuma Nubi) his sibling and lieutenant, as well as those of other notable Aro citizens
mentioned in this presentation.
Aro In History - No Apologies
Prof. Chris Aniche Okorafor
The Easter 2002 Edition of Aro News hailed the kick-off of the Centenary Celebration of the British Invasion of Aro with the
launching of the logo by no less a personality than the Nigerian Senate President in the very presence of our illustrious Eze Vincent
Ogbonnaya Okoro CFR in its front page. This incidence had earlier been given greater publicity in the national print and electronic
media. Since then, questions have been asked by a few Aro, and very many non-Aro, as to why anyone should mark with pomp and
pageantry the demise of his self-rule. “Why”, they demand, “should the Aro celebrate the one hundred years of the disruption of its
budding civilization by the British invasion and subsequent enthronement of colonial rule”?
There has not been a prior history of a nation celebrating or commemorating the fall of its empire. This is not therefore an idle
question. It rather calls for some considerable philosophizing or serious soul searching. History is replete with such questions as to
“how” and “why” certain events took place. There are well satisfying ‘hows’ and ‘whys’ the Roman empire fell. The defeat of Napoleon
Bonaparte in his Russian campaign, the collapse of communism in Russia and Eastern Europe and many more events in history, have all
been traced to acceptable causes. Several authors on Nigerian history have proffered various reasons for the invasion and fall of Aro
hegemony. The general trend in the presentations has been grossly biased and tended to run along the lines of the main frame concepts
propagated by the colonial historians. Some of the authors being non-Aro, have relied also on “the interpretation of interpretations” of
their forefathers who in some instances were claimed by the colonial historians as ‘liberated’ in consequence of the British invasion of
Aro. We shall later revert to this class of ‘liberated’ natives of the territories under Aro hegemony prior to 1902.
Suffice it to indicate at this point, that in dealing with the past or history of a people, one is invariably confronted with interpretation
of events which took place in the past, from the standpoint of circumstances and environments that are no longer the same. It
therefore follows that one is constrained to as it were, rationalize the thinking of the people who lived at those past times most of
whom are dead. If they kept any records, one cannot measure the degree of subjectivity in those records. It therefore calls for a
certain measure of charity in attempting to pass judgment on a generation with which one has no contact and in a situation where
circumstances have so changed that such situational criteria of morality, justice and fairness are not precisely the same as in the
present environment. Anthropologists now know that in prehistoric times, all races of humans practiced human sacrifice and slavery.
Some even indulged in cannibalism - a practice that was and is still taboo among the Aro. The Aro recognized that some slaves were
honorable and honest men of rank and affluence in their respective places of birth. They became slaves as a result of probably losing a
battle or some such other circumstance of un-avoidable misfortune or calamity. This accounts for the Aro practice of absorbing such
slaves into their patriarchal system and granting them all human rights excluding those related to headship of an ezi, ogo, mgbala or
similar traditional establishment within Aro society. This practice was common in only a few such other known ancient human societies
such as the Romans. Among the Jews it prevailed only during the jubilee year, when they granted freedom to their slaves. Sociologists
have demonstrated from recent studies that have been collaborated by very recent events that humans of all races, surviving but
marooned after a ship wreck, plane crash, earthquake, flood or other natural disaster, resort to deviant behaviors that are not
apparent in their normal societies. These include such practices as cheating on other victims and even cannibalism. Contemporary
history nevertheless, points out the falsifications that are deliberately imported into the interpretation of events in history. No one
reading the history book on Nigeria covering the period 1959 to 1970 particularly will fail to observe the biases and contradictions
among the authors. Most often the interpretation the author proffers is predetermined by whether he has sympathies for Hausa,
Yoruba or the Igbo tribe. The same sort of doctoring has been very obvious in the accounts of colonial and non-Aro historians with
respect to Aro history.
Amuvi History - From a Broader Landscape
Prof. Chris Aniche Okorafor
I enjoyed and still appreciate undertaking this assignment at making some extra relevant contribution to the history of Amuvi-Uda.
This paper should only be seen as at best; a complement to whatever else had been written on this City State within the enigmatic Aro
Confederacy. Each Amuvi citizen, from the age of sixty and above that I have had the opportunity of discoursing our past with, has had
one common regret. Each bemoaned his disinterestedness as a youth, in inquiring for greater details on what his parents were willing
and eager to tell him about our forebears, their lives, their history, our past. Much has therefore been lost irretrievably, but there
are some glimpses left in the mind of a few from which a cast may be made of a relatively reliable historical image of our past. Before
we proceed, it is essential to recall that no history is absolutely correct. To the contrary, all history is not correct. Several are pseudo-
history and not consistently related to facts. The extent to which recorded history is collaborated by events, peoples and places, to
that extent is it relatively accurate. Having laid down this common sense fundamental principle, let us now proudly review the past of
our dear City State, Arnuvi-Uda having recourse to reconcilable and contemporary events within her immediate and remote
environment.
One article carried in Aro News quoting stated:-
“Amuvi Village is one of the nineteen villages of Arochukwu in the Arochukwu local government area of Abia state. It is a village which is
unique and refreshingly different from most of the other villages of Arochukwu. Amuvi is perhaps one of the best planned villages in
Nigeria, in fact the whole of Africa. Thanks to that indefatigable gentleman, Sir Alex Onyeador of blessed memory, the Village is
properly mapped and laid out. The layout is only comparable to that of a good town planning authority. The situation is such that every
home in Amuvi has a drive way aborting into one of the network of roads.”
The fact that the houses were numbered under a systemic street names module was inadvertently omitted in the citation as the young
lawyer who wrote the article played a major role in the exercise. The quotation relates to only the physical environment. In human
society, the physical environment is a visible manifestation of the beliefs, attitudes, and behavior of its inhabitants. These three key
variables namely, beliefs, attitudes, and behavior are aggregates of the historical past of the people. They are embedded in the
culture and custom of the people which being dynamic, inculcate their past, their joys and sorrows, triumphs and failures through a trail
of challenges, prospects and constraints. The psyche of a people, their worldview, are therefore a reflection of their past. By
methodically analyzing their present, one can with some acceptable degree of certitude have a satisfying peep into their history.
A good beginning is definitely within the larger Aro Confederacy. Pages xii to xiv; 1 to 48 and 243 to 250 of the book “Perspectives in
Aro History and Civilization — The Splendor of a Great Past” Vol. 1,edited by Mazi Azubike Okoro and Ben Ezuma, is a pre-requisite
reading for a meaningful appreciation of this article. This is because, a lot of matters have been taken as known and bypassed
completely or skimmed through in this report, on the understanding that they have been extensively dealt with in that book. In the
book, Aro history was specifically explored along side other contemporary and related developments in history. References to dates in
this paper are borrowed or based on the principles enunciated in the book. For a start, I shall here make a brief but special reference
to the break made on the migration of Igbo elements southwards from their main heartland when they encountered a dominant already
established Ibibio elements under the rulership of Obong Okon Ita. A long lost Uneghe elements who then formed a buffer between
the southward migrating Igbo elements and this Ibibio kingdom, were later cropped off in the ensuing trans-Atlantic slave trade.
Details of the subsisting relationship between this group of Igbo dynasties of Nnachi Ipia and Agwu Inobia on the one hand and the
Ibibio dynasty of Obong Okon Ita on the other, as well as the developments that necessitated the treaty of alliance involving a tribe
of Ibom-Akpa elements under the leadership of Osim and his sibling Akuma Nnubi, were well dealt with in various passages in the book.
The climax of series of diplomatic adjustments within existing and developing trade opportunities by the members of the grand alliance
of the two Igbo dynasties, the Ibom-Akpa tribesmen and a faction of the Ibibio elements sympathetic to Ulu Okon, a pretender to the
throne of deceased Obong Okon Ita, was the successful eviction of the bulk of Ibibio elements after the 1534 war and the formation
of a Confederation that became immediately known among the Ibibio and Efik, as the Ulu Okon dynasty, a name corrupted to Inokon, by
which Aro is still fondly referred to by both groups. The term Uneghe still survives among the Ibibio as a stereotype nickname for the
non-Aro Igbo. Ulu Okon was the second son of Obong Okon Ita from an Igbo wife of the clan of Agwu Inobia, the first and rightful heir
being Akpan Okon otherwise known as Kakapko. Aro Confederacy started therefore as a fusion of these three dynasties subsequently
reflected to in its unique political, and administrative Otusi structure of Otusi Nna-Akuma, Otusi Oko-Nnachi and Otusi Eze-Agwu each
comprising of the federating Igbo and Ibom-Akpa elements. It should be observed here, that Osim lost his life in the course of the
Ibibio war and his sibling Akuma Nnubi stepped into his shoes. The three confederating dynasties had administrative headquarters in,
Ugwuakuma, Utughugwu and Amanagwu respectively. Obot Okon Ita, the historic base of the evicted Ibibio clan was retained by a
collaborating remnant Ibibio element, and is today known by its corrupt Igbo rendition of Obinkita. These four were the first in the
series of City States of Confederate Aro.
Reflections on the symbolism of the Aro Coat of Arm
Prof. Chris Aniche Okorafor
Preamble:
Many people raise eye brows when first confronted with the fact that the Aro Empire has had a coat of arm long before the nation
Nigeria got her own. A coat of arm was originally a tabard or surcoat embroidered with armorial bearings. It later was used by
individual families to depict their particular heraldic bearings. It is usual for coats of arms to have accompanying adjuncts such as a
crest and a motto. It was primarily a symbolic emblem representing the virtuous characteristics of the family or group that possessed
it. There is a well developed science of heraldry devoted to the practice of devising, blazoning, and granting armorial insignia and of
tracing and recording genealogies.
Designing an armorial ensign or coat of arm is not therefore something anyone can undertake without some considerable measure of
understanding of the governing principles. The Aro coat of arm is know as the “OMU ARO”. It was designed by Mazi Timothy Kanu
Utchay of blessed memories from Ujari Arochukwu. Relative to our own time, he was a man of several expertise, an educationist, a
philosopher, an author, a printer and a publisher. He was the proprietor of the jubilee chain of primary schools and was the first to
establish a private school in the town. He devoted a considerable extent of his time and wealth to acquiring and reading a variety of
classical and philosophical books he was also a student of the Jewish Kabala and was known to have quoted easily from Socrates,
Horace, Shakespeare and the Bible among others.
We may not know for certitude the mind of “TK” but it is reasonable to assume that if what he set out for our use is very directly
explainable in terms of certain definable sets of rules, then he must have applied those rules relatively or in the absolute. The only
other option we have is to assume that he configured the entire glyph by sheer chance. After the design was completed, he published it
with a glib explanation to satisfy the demanding profane populace. Deep down, he knew and had applied principles of ancient heraldry
which formed the underlining concept on which the coat of arm was created, but living in an environment, where he was far ahead of his
time, he did not waste his effort elaborating on detailed significance of that armorial ensign.
The Aro coat of arm is now very effectively used by the Aros particularly as the lead embroidery on a George (textile) material made
to order and to specifications of the designer, by the Okereke Brothers of Amuvi Arochukwu. It is found on letter heads of Aro
organizations worldwide, as posters, car stickers, wall hangings, carvings on doors etc., and may soon be available on signet rings and tie
clips. The Aro Empire owes Mazi T.K. Utchay a tremendous amount of gratitude. The only way we can best show that gratitude, is not
only in continuing our rallying and reverential use of the glyph, but also in devoting time once in a while to moralize on the totality of the
hidden concepts embodied in it. This paper is only intended as a beginning guide.
Ako Bu Ije: Its meaning and Relevance
Prof. Chris Aniche Okorafor
Prelude:
The motto of Aro Oke-Igbo is Ako bu ije. Within the Omu Aro, our coat of arm, it subsumes the worldview of our Founding Fathers.
(For more appreciation of the Aro coat of arm, see page104 of “Perspectives in Aro History and Civilization - The Splendor Of A
Great Past” Vol. I). Succeeding Aro generations have maintained its concepts and application in their inter-personal relationships,
typifying them in their individual and collective conduct to non-Aro communities. This motto that is very prominent in the Millennium
Logo launched with pomp and pageantry by the Eze Aro and his compeers, the Eze Ibom-Isii and Eze Eze Agwu is still very relevant
today and, yearns for fuller appreciation by all Aro particularly at this moment in time. We shall lean more to the Christian slant in this
discussion for obvious reasons.
There are definitely several acceptable translations of this very short but poignant aphorism - Ako bu ije. ‘Ako’ means more than
understanding or knowledge. These two are “Nghota and amamihe”. Ako means wisdom and intelligence. The sacred writings state that
“the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom”. (Verses 10 of both Psalm 111 and Prov. 9). Wisdom endows one with knowledge of the
essence and significance of God - A knowledge which imports the infinity of the Godhead within a finite universe, in which the solar
system is but as a grain of sand, and the whole human race simply a speck on a very diminutive planet earth. This awareness inspires
fear, but thanks be to God, that fear through the merits of the messiah (meshiah), the Immanuel, God amongst men , leads to
obedience of God’ s laws and consequently, faith in His fatherly love, the brotherhood of man and, hope of salvation. The Book of
Wisdom is one of the Deuterocanonical books, and several quotations were taken from it by the writers of the New Testament. Most
bibles, particularly those of the Catholic Church, carry this wonderful work.. To appreciate the importance of Ako one needs to read
from Chapter 6 of this book if not the entire work. The other interesting biblical work on Ako is yet another Deuterocanonical book,
Ecclesiasticus, also known as “The Wisdom of Jesus Ben Sirach”, or briefly Sirach. Like the Book of Wisdom, it consists of maxims and
aphorisms on wisdom and social prudence. More equally erudite thoughts on Ako are found in The Book of Proverbs particularly
Chapters 8 and 9.
We need also to recall the gift that Solomon requested for in 1st King 3:7,9: “And now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant
king in the throne of David my father, and I am but a little child I know not how to go out or come in....Give therefore thy servant an
understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad, for who is able to judge this thy so great a
people?” In other words, “Chim, me-e k’Ako buru ije-m.” To Solomon, the Hebrew word is Chokmah (Spelt:- Cheth Kaph Mem He) which
according to Hebraic sacred teachings is “the first power of conscious intellect within Creation, associated in the soul with the power
of intuitive insight.” It also implies “the ability to look deeply at some aspect of reality and abstract its conceptual essence till one
succeeds in uncovering its underlying axiomatic truth.” Ako therefore embodies wisdom, prudence, and by inference, diplomacy.
Prudence therefore compels us to regulate our lives and actions with the dictates of reason. It inculcates that habit by which we
wisely judge, prudently determine, recognize and restrict ourselves to the limits of our powers, rights and privileges. It impels equally
a sacred respect for the powers, rights and privileges of others in all things relative to our present, as well as our future relationships
with those others.
Uwam Uwa Asaa - A Reflection on Aro Existential Aphorism
Prof. Chris Aniche Okorafor
By the time an Aro child attains the age of paltry speech, he shall in the process of his learning experience, accumulate several quaint
aphorisms, phrases, proverbs and idioms within his nascent vocabulary. One such aphorism is ““uwam uwa asaa””. At this stage of infancy,
as with some phrases, it is merely an infrequently used expression heard from the lips of the adults in his life. Later, he may come to
attach a meaning to it, and this may lead him to occasionally use it in his speech. To some extent, he grows to knowing the appropriate
circumstance to apply “uwam uwa asaa”, while to a larger extent, he may merely be parroting the speech of his peers. Most users of
language go through life in precisely the same way, using learnt phrases in as much the same manner as they did as infants. They never
take time to seek to understand the root and the connotation nor reflect on the secondary meanings and extensions of these phrases.
Several such expressions in Aro have much more than their literal meaning. A starting point in this reflection would be to as briefly as
possible, review the Aro world view wherein the root of this expression is domiciled.
Uwam Uwa Asaa as a veritable philosophical concept:
The Aro philosophical concept may in part be classified as existentialist in that in no small measure, it emphasized individual existence,
subjectivity, individual freedom, and choice. The highest ethical good for the individual is to find his own unique vocation within which his
self-actualization is at its best. While in that station in life, he is satisfied irrespective of all other aspects of living that exist in
other person’s life style. These are pointedly brought out in such statements as “Ma ijem adighi gi mma, gbenu ene ukwum anya.” (If you
don”t like my gait, stop looking at my waist while I walk); and, “Kwai-rim ugwum, ma rie mmere gi.” (Grant me my honors, and keep your
benevolence to yourself.). “Nwa Aro icho, mkpola icho;” (Aro conscience can not be bought over with bullions); “Aro di ogbu” (Aro attitude
and behavior is unfathomable to an outsider). To the Aro, the understanding of a situation by someone involved in that situation is
superior to that of a detached observer. These truisms are not found among the Aro neighbors. They are based purely on Aro personal
experience and own convictions depicting Aro emphasis on concrete individual existence and, consequently, on subjectivity, individual
freedom, and choice. In all these and more, Aro is saying “I must find a truth that is true for me ... the idea for which I can live or die,”
which is what the 19th-century Danish philosopher Søøren Kierkegaard, the first writer to call himself existentialist later affirmed.
The specific Aro aphorism in this paper is “Uwam Uwa Asaa” It is unique on several accounts. In the first place, it is only a first part of
an determinate statement. Its mere mention demands a second and concluding part. Among other neighboring communities and tribes,
there is a near but completely separate version. Among the Igbo, there is a referential popular statement of: “Na uwam ozo...” (In my
next life) Among the Aro, it is, “In all my seven cycles of life.” It imports a next life as well as a cycle of seven lives. Both the Igbo
and Aro versions, imply belief in reincarnation. The difference is that the Igbo concept can be demonstrated to denote an indefinite
cycle of reincarnation, while the Aro belief unequivocally limits the cycle to the number seven. One may from varying concepts of
received religion, dispute or deny the concept of reincarnation and therefore feel emboldened to question the rationality of theories
based on it. It is therefore necessary to take time out to remind ourselves that reincarnation was an accepted teaching before and
during the time of Christ. He also was faced with issues based on the question of reincarnation and it would be interesting to later
evaluate his excellent reaction to it. Suffice it to say that Aro thought is suspicious of what may be termed dogmatic and systematic
reasoning in arriving at acceptable concepts. Aro philosophy tends to indicate the acceptance that rational clarity is desirable wherever
possible, nevertheless, the most important questions in life are not accessible to reason or science. Science on its part may be argued
to not being as rational as is commonly supposed. Nietzsche, also an existentialist, asserted that the scientific assumption of an
orderly universe is for the most part a useful fiction. Furthermore, a personal sense of authenticity and commitment is essential to
religious faith.
OGUGU IKEJI ARO:
...its Meaning Within A Scientific Calendric System
Prof. Chris Aniche Okorafor
Preamble:
At the 1998 Christmas home-coming, I led a troupe to Ihialla Local Government Area of Anambra State for the traditional wedding (ibu
mmai) of a nephew who resides in the United States. Being impressed by the aspects of Aro tradition exemplified in our general
outfit, demeanor and comportment, some of our in-laws expressed the desire to visit Aro at an opportuned time to observe more of
the much acclaimed rich Aro culture. A member of our delegation suggested that the best time would be during the annual Ikeji
festival, as that would present them with a chance of observing a good mix of Aro traditional rites which usually take place at such
times. Our problem was with an answer to their question, AWhen is your next Ikeji festival due?@ The bridegroom merely wished
that if he knew in time enough to schedule travel time, he would return with his wife for the festival, but regretted that those of
them outside rarely get more than a ten days= notice of the determined commencement dates. Much later at Easter 1999, I had the
occasion to discuss the imprecision of the due date of Ikeji Aro with an elderly maternal uncle resident in Umuaku Isuochi. He
volunteered that it had not always been so. He stated that our people like Mazi Inyama from Ugbo, residing in places as far out as
Igumale, timed their annual visits to Aro to coincide with the festival and the general Aconvention@ of itinerant and colonial Aro
merchants that took place immediately after the festival. At such conventions, the protocols of trade and residency in the colonies are
restated while fines are collected for adjudged breaches. Aro wealthy merchants, my uncle affirmed, returned with their convoy of
adolescent children, tradesmen and apprentices from distant lands as Ubani, Okija/Ihialla, Aro Enugwu (Ajalli and neighborhood), Ezza,
Ezeagu, Nsukka and beyond. They had a method of forecasting the days of the Ikeji festival as traveling from the different colonies
to Aro (including stops at market fairs and rest houses) required from between fifteen and thirty days. This elder was so certain
about this that I thereupon decided to further investigate the methodology adopted by our predecessors in the determination of the
holy days of Aro annual festival.
Historical Back-drop
Independently, all human societies developed a functional system for dividing time into a definite order of days, weeks and years.
Without such a calendric system, it would not have been possible for any society to regulate its basic affairs of civil and religious life
such as agriculture (cropping, harvesting, hunting and fishing), commerce (particularly trading), cultural and religious festivals etc.
The first fundamental unit in all calendars is the division of time into days. Early man noticed and appreciated the unbroken sequence
of Asun-rise@ and Asun-set@ occasioned by the rotation of the earth on its axis. Various societies variously divided the period from
one Asun-rise@ to another Asun-rise@ (labeling the parts thereof in their own tongues) into:-
a) >first cock crow=, >first light=, >mid-day=, >afternoon=, >evening=, >night-time=, and >mid-night= or,
b) >first hour= to >twelfth hour= for the day time and >first watch= to >fourth watch= for the night time or,
c) twenty four equal parts or hours which to suit scientific purposes, were further divided into minutes and seconds with near
infinite fractional parts.
A second classification consisted of labeling a set of days as one week. The week, unlike the day, is not correlated to any astronomical
or natural phenomenon. In some societies, four days make up a week, in others seven days constitute a week. The accepted
determinants of the number of days, derive from the religious ceremonies and rituals and, the attendant assumed mystical significance
of the number chosen. In most societies the days are assigned to and named after some god or goddess. (e.g: Sun, Moon, Tiw (Mars),
Woden (Mercury), Thor (Jovis), Venus (Frigg), and Saturn for Sunday, Monday etc.)
A third classification of the calendar is very significant for religious observations. It derives from the observable astronomical
phenomenon of the phases of the moon and has been used by several societies as consisting of 28 days. More precisely a month is made
up of 29.53059 days.
The fourth calendric period, the year, is derived from the length of time the earth takes to orbit the sun once. The commonly adopted
form of a year is the tropical year which is the interval between two successive >crossing= southward of the center of the sun through
the celestial equator. This incidence was realized early by man because at such times, about March 21, the day and night are of equal
length over the entire earth. It is for this reason that this particular day is termed the vernal (spring) equinox. (For general
information, the other equinox (the autumnal equinox) occurs about September 23). This interval, known as the solar year, consists of
365.242199 days, equivalent to 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes and 46 seconds. There is therefore no synchronization between the
lunar year of 364.36708 days based on 12 lunation of 29.53059 days each, and the tropical year of 365.242199 days. The difference
is about 10.875119 days. As it is not possible dividing either year into twelve months of equal number of days, it was found expedient
to make arbitrary insertions (intercalations) of extra days or months. In the current widely used Gregorian calendar, an extra day is
added to the 28-days apportioned to the month of February every fourth year which is then labeled a leap year. The months of April,
June, September and November are assigned 30 days each, while the rest have 31 days.
Some grey areas of Aro History and Culture
Prof. Chris Aniche Okorafor
OBJECTIVE:
The purpose of this paper is not to layout a researched history of the ancient and revered Aro Kingdom, but to excite research in two
sectors which have for some probably obvious reason been avoided by other writers. There are only a few authoritative books relating
to Aro history and culture. There are nevertheless, multiplicities of articles, pamphlets, magazines and books on the subject, but not
all of them can be taken as reliable since their authors may only fairly be considered as writing with their feet in the clouds, to such an
extent that they fail to separate the myth form the real. Several of these authors relied mostly on oral history, which t a great
extent is all that any historian would have to begin and end with an in cultures where the art of writing did not exist prior to external
influences from colonizing agents. Some brought in a sprinkling of references from achieves in the colonial office written for purpose
other than the establishment of an objective history of the natives. Therefore, to a large extent the authors meant well, but allowed
themselves to be carried away by the fantasies of narrated historical glories, and therefore filed up the gaps in our real history with
events and chronologies which have no acceptable true evidence sot veracity. The primary object of this paper is therefore to excite
methodic re-evaluation of the existing tenet sand theories of Aro history and culture with particular emphasis on dating, chronology and
origin.
The Acid Test:
All events occurring in human history lend themselves to several elementary tests. The primary ones are rationally and collaboration.
The one tests the overall appeal of reported historical events to reason; the other seeks traceable independent evidences that point
to the same reported events. Man in history depicts some unmistakable traces. His entrance in the earth environment is marked by
the un-mistakable imprints of change. The pre-historic man left collaborating evidences of his activity in his own skeleton, those of his
kills and the stone or fossilized wooden tools and weapons he fashioned for his use. Later in the archaeological records, man wrote his
story in the cave drawings that depicted in religious symbols and signs, his day to day activities of hunting, war and survival. As the
centuries rolled by, we find man-made edifices that survived the ravages of war and such devastating natural disasters as earth
quakes, volcanoes, floods and land slides etc. All these are collaborative material evidences of human existence in history and
extraneous of man himself. In effect, any observer would just conclude “there lies the trace of human influence in the environment’, or
“man was here’, briefly man ever leaves his footprints.
In all circumstances of human history, three basic needs have been dominant. These are food, clothing and shelter. As one goes back
into civilization, he finds traces of how man had provided himself with these basic needs. In the processes of providing these
essentials, man develops technology. This is seen in the evidences of tools for hunting, warfare, housing construction, and provision of
clothing. Beyond a certain point though, traces of these element are lost to the all absorbing influence of the nature. The early man’s
traces of food and clothing are found in some few fossilized remains. Housing at these initial stages were primarily tree houses or
caves shielded from other animals competing for the same shelters. Subsequently man built dwelling houses from basic raw materials
such as mud, stones and logs of wood. The invention of tools occasioned improvements in the housing, clothing and food components of
human existence.
Inspite of the thousands of years that had elapsed some of these early dwelling places are still found in ancient places of South
America (Aztec Kingdom) east Africa (Zimbabwe Kingdom), West Africa (Nok Empire) Nearer home there are arts and crafts
evidences of the Benin Empire, the Igbo Ukwu Kingdom etc, to mention but a few. All these ancient places are located in the tropical
and rain belts. Their edifices were built not with stones or marbles as those of Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece and Rome. They are not
more recent than the Aro Kingdom. Consequently, the ravages of war and the damages inflicted by mother nature on the structures
would be about identical on the artifices, the walls of houses, the cooking utensils, hunting and war implements, skeletons of the their
kills and dead etc.
“A new paradigm on the functionality of Ibn-Ukpabi”
Prof. Chris Aniche Okorafor
Prologue:
Current opinions of Ibit Ukpabi mispronounced Ibn-Ukpabi or Ibiniukpabi as a “slave god” among other derogatory designations is
reviewed in light of recent research on similarly structured institutions that are found in practically all corners of the globe. Ibn-
Ukpabi is a name-change of Ibit Itam, pronounced and written Ibritam sometime after the Ibibio War of about 1534. The affinity of
Ibritam with the esoteric sciences that developed in relation with ancient sites identified with subsisting monoliths or menhirs and
dolmens, indicates that its establishment about year 200AD by the Idiong Society was known as an oracle because of its predictive
properties. Recent researches in archaeoastronomy have proven that these ancient sites were basic astronomical observatories.
Ibritam’s oracular quality as observed in other identical sites, is principally that of establishment of calendars with its related
determination of seasons, moon phases, tidal movements, and even eclipses. This science was characteristic of the Neolithic era
associated with the origins of farming and a sedentary way of life. It enabled the hunter-gatherer migratory societies to switch over
to agriculture with the consequent development of cities and commerce. Ibritam’s influence grew with the establishment of sedentary
communities in and around its immediate and proximate neighborhood.
The change in management, control and name of Ibritam was by conquest and elimination of the pristine Idiong esoterists.
Consequently, its total body of developed knowledge which are secretly conveyed within strictly controlled hierarchical structure was
not transferred to the management of Ibn-Ukpabi. The commencement of coastal trade with the Europeans provided the incentives to
exploit the influence of Ibn-Ukpabi in the establishment of Aro hegemony and trade monopoly. This brought Aro into a head-on collision
with an alliance of the British Colonial Office, British Trading Companies and the Christian Missionaries. Most other sites of ancient
astronomical concern have been reconstructed as tourist centres. Petty interest of a few who earn pittances in their continued
proselytization of the “secrets” of Ibn-Ukpabi has led to misconceptions as to its actual location. They believe that a reconstruction in
the real site will deprive them of their earnings from the false forest groove they purport to be the base of Ibn-Ukpabi. The result is
that tourism authorities and tourists are fed with inconsistent fables by the “tour-guides.” The present site or sites that “guides”
take tourists to is(are) the copycat sites established away from the destroyed site that was too close to the constant official sights
of the colonial officers and missionaries in those days.
To earn its deserved World Heritage status, Ibn-Ukpabi must be divested of these falsities and the net effect will be of
considerable benefit to the community and the country as a whole. These points are articulately spelt out in the article which will be
serialized in two/three consecutive edition. The author infers that one may accuse him of writing purely as an Aro patriot where
patriotism according to Alistair Cooke of the BBC ‘Letter from America,’ is a bad historian as it writes the most beguiling history, and
always offers a flattering explanation of a complicated story. If you think this applies, please question the issues raised and thus
provide prompts for further elucidation.
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