HISTORY SCHEME OF WORK JSS TWO

FIRST TERM
WEEKS TOPICS CONTENT

POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS IN
NIGERIA
1-10 Non- centralized states in pre-colonial 1. Meaning of Non- centralized states
Nigeria
2. Characteristics of Non- centralized states

3. Examples of Non- centralized states in non-

colonial      Nigeira.
 Tiv
 Idoma
 Igbo
 Urhobo
 Ijo (Ijaw)
 Oro (ORON)
 Ibibio
 Anang

11-12 REVISION AND EXAMINATION

week 1-10 [WEEK 1]

TOPIC; NON CENTRALIZED STATES IN PRECOLONIAL NIGERIA [ MEANING AND CHARACTERISTICS OF NON CENTRALIZED STAES]

MEANING OF A NON CENTRALISED STATE;

A non-centralised stateis the one in which political power is distributed among various units of government ,power is not
concentrated at the centre,In this form of government,small governing authorities or bodies exist to share power in
governance,it is also known as decentralized state.The igbo society was a typical example of non centralized state during the
pre-colonial era.

CHARACTERISTICS OF NON CENTRALISED STATES;

[1] POWER DISTRIBUTION; Power is shared among the units of government,it is not concentrated on a particular unit,

[2] SINGLE CONSTITUTION; Only one constitution is used to govern all the units of government,They all derive their powers and
functions from it

[3] WRITTEN CONSTITUTION;The body of law governing the society is written in a single document,it can be referred to from
time to time by leaders and citizens

[4]RIGID CONSTITUTION; The constitution is difficult to change,this prevents from changing it for selfish reasons,

[5] SINGLE JUDICIARY; The supreme court exist and has the final decision on any legal matter in the states that has been
decided by lower courts,

[6] different executive bodies; each units oif government has its own executives but the one at central units is the most
powerful,
[7]DIFFERENT LEGISLATIVE HOUSES; different units of government have its own body of legislature to make its laws

[8] FREEDOM TO MAKE POLITICS; The existing political units are free to make politics for the smooth running of their
government.

CLASS WORK

[1] Explain non-centralized states

[2]identify three characteristics of non centralized state

ASSIGNMENT;

Mention two characteristics of non centralized states in pre-colonial period

WEEK 2 [ NON-CENTRALIZED STATES]

The following are some of the characteristics of non-centralized states in pre-colonial era in Nigeria

[1] different governing units existed in the states; There were different bodies that helped in the administration of these
states,each state had its peculiar governing structure.

[2]Age grade systems were used in most of the state; This was very common in the igbo and some Niger Delta –city states,

[3]decision making were in the hands of elders; The elders most often took major decisions in many of these states,

[4]power distribution; political powers were distributed among various units such as age grade,council of elders,secret
societies,etc,in most cases the king did not have final say in decision making,

[5] existencd of secret societies and cults; In many of the pre-colonial states secret societies and cults played significant roles in
political administration

ADVANTAGES OF NON CENTRALISED STATES;

1]It prevents misuse of power

2]it encourages everyone to participate in govern,ment

3]it brings government close to the people

4]it gives people at the grassroots sense of belonging

5]it grooms people at the grassroots for future leadership role.

DISADVANTAGES OF NON- CENTRALIZED STATES;

1]It increases cost of governance

2]corrupt politicians at the grass roots may mismanage funds

3]it may bring about tribalism and ethnicity

4]it may retard growth of areas with immature and inexperienced political leaders
5]The entire nation may become weak politically

EXAMPLES OF NON-CENTRALIZED STATES IN PRECOLONIAL NIGERIA

TIV,IDOMA,EBIRA,IGBO,URHOBO,IJO[IJAW], ORO[ORON]IBIBIO,ANAANG

CLASSWORK;

1]state three advantages of non centralized states

2]state two disadvantages of non-centralized states

3] mention six examples of non-centralized states in pre-colonial Nigeria

ASSIGNMENT;

Identify the location of TIV on the map of Nigeria

WEEK 3 [ TIV]

TOPIC; TIV

TRADITIONS OF ORIGIN;

According to history ,their ancestor was a man named TIV.he had sons called ICHONGO and IPUSU.All TIVS were descendants of
either of these two sons of the man TIV.

a similar version saidTAKURUKU was the founding father of Tiv,Takuru had two sons,Ichongoa and ipusu ,

Ichongoa had seven two sons which were Gondo,ikyura,Nongo,Ihar,mase and turan,his brother had three children ,these were
shitire ,kum, and kpar,

The tiv people came from these ten children ,all tivs had just one language which gave room for unity.

furthermore,the Tiv originated from Bantu-speaking people of the present day democratic republic of congo ,havoing moved
through many places from the central Africa through savannah land of west Africa,they eventually came to benue valley around
1750AD.

SOCIO-POLITICAL ORGANIZATION ;

Tiv like the igbo ,was a stateless society without strong centralized administrative and judicial systems.

Three major factors determined leadership ,these were age,influence and affluence,

leaders duties included settling of disputes among the people within their lineage,maintaiinig good behavior among
them,sitting on kmoots and leading their people in internal and in precolonial days,tiv society had segmentary lineages in which
every tiv was a member ,the smallest of these was ityo,the pre-colonial administrative system had the following components;

1]the orya;; orya means head,each compound was named after its head,senior male members of the compounds usually
formed a council which looked into the administration of the compound,

The oryas as the head of the council performed the following duties;

ensuring the well being of every member of the compound,

ensuring peaceful co-existence among people in the compound,

ensuring peaceful co-existence among people in the compound

settling disputes

To carry out his functions the head was given powers to;;;

administer justice within the compound,

determine sites for new buildings,

distributes farmlands,

identify burial ground

admit,entertain and expel visitors as the case may be,

2] The ityo;;; This body was supreme and patrilineage,it discharge its duties according to tradition of the land ,it was made of
representatives of difficult families [ sublineage] that made up particular lineage,its decision was binding on every member of
the group .

3] The kwav [age trade] here,there were different age grades or group or groups,the age groups assisted in

fighting against witchraft,helping each other in farming,the kur,he was the tiv military head,his responsibilities were; to lead
people in war, to defend people against external aggression,

5] the drum chief [ Tor-agbana] he was in charge of drum group ,he had no political or control,

6] igba[ maternal clan]; this was the woman in charge of protecting young girls or ladies in times of sickness and death,

CLASSWORK;;

1] locate the tiv on Nigeria map

2] trace the origin of the tiv

3] mention at least three main leaders in tiv society in pre-colonial days.

Assignment;;

narrate the story of IDIOM

WEEK 4

Topic; IDIOM

The oringin of idiom can be traced to Apa capital of kwararafa confederacy, the idiom people,according to history migrated
from Apa along with igala ,ebira,and other people,this was necessary because of wars and insecurity in the kingdom,it
eventually established itself in the present location at about 18 th century
according to history ,iduah was the father of the idoma,the names of his children were
AMANAWOOGENO,OLINAOGWU,IDUM,AGABI,EJE,EBEIBI,EDEH and ODE.all these children established different areas of
idomaland,

SOCIO-POLITICAL STRUCTURE OF IDIOMA

1] FAMILY UNIT [OLE]; this was the smallest unit in idoma political structure ,the head of the family unit was called adole.His
major duty was to settle disputes among the family members.

2]OJILA; This was the highest organ of government and final authority in idoma political system,

it was the general body of all adult men in idomaland,but most often the elders used to dominate discussions and decisions
making,

3] OCHE[ The king] oche in idomaland acted as both the king and religious leader of the community ,he was usally chosen
democratically through the central ojila,different lineages would present candidates and out of all these one person
wouldeventually emerge as the king,

oche was the highest officer in idomaland ,he was the chief priest and president of all cults in the land,he was regarded as
mediator between the people and their ancestors,the position of oche used to be rotated among specific number of
lineages,this method prevented omopoly of power by a particular lineage,

besides,oche was the custodian of the law of the land,he ensured the laws were enforced and obeyed,he also acted as the chief
judge of court officer of appeal,oche also used to perform executive functions and was equally the chief external oificer,

4]Age group;;;The idomaland also had age-group and age ste as important parts of its political structure,

CLASSWORK;

1]Locate the idoma on Nigeria map

2]2] trace the origin of idoma

3]mention any two major officers in the political structure of idoma in pre-colonial days

4]state any two functionof the king in idoma during pre-colonial days,

ASSIGNMENT;

Explain the history of EBIRA

WEEK 5

TOPIC; EBIRA

TRADITIONS OF ORIGIN;

According to oral tradition,ebira origin can be traced to WUKARI which was part of kwararafa confederacy In 1680AD, the ebira
migrated from wukari due to chieftaincy dispute,they were together with the igala for about 300 years before they parted
ways,the father of the Ebira Tao was itaazi who had five sons and one daughter,he led the ebira tao to the present ebiraland,
the five sons of Taazi later spread and founded the various districts in ebiraland,

SOCIO-POLITICAL STRUCTURE OF EBIRA;;

Ebira had no central administrative structure,the clan head was called otaru, it consisted of community of kindred lineage

the clan head [otaru]used to be conferred on the oldest male within the clan ,the clan had little political influence,he presided
over meetings,he however,made judgements based on the consensus opinion of the elders in the clan

he also also performed religious and disciplinary duties which were limited by his family, Otaru also had the responsibility of
keeping the income from the clan,

all the clan heads in the communities of ebiraland were under the control of the chief priest ,the elders and influential
individuals

MILITARY;;;

The Ebira had strong military force ,they waged wars and resisted invaders form Nupe [1865-1900],The Nupe army was resisted
and chased away under Ebira military leaders Attah Omadiri

CLASSWORK;

1]locate ebira on Nigeria map

2]trace the origin of the ebira

3]mention the major leaders in ebira in the pre-colonial days

ASSIGNMENT;;

Briefly narrate the origin of the IGBOS

WEEK 6

TOPIC; THE IGBO

EARLY HISTORY;

Even though not much was known of the ibos speaking people,before the advent of Europeans into the west coast of
Africa,history has revealed that they migrated into their present location hundreds of years ago,it has been suggested that they
migrated with the Ibibio but soon became the dominant tribe in eastern Nigeria,due to their dogged industry ,they
overshadowed the Ibibio and others that arrived later.

The igbo are close neighbours of the Ibibio who migrated with them to thei present location,along with the ijaw and the itsekiri
of the NIGER delta,

THE POLITICAL AND SOCIAL STRUCTUIRES OF THE IGBO.

one of the developments that distinguished the igbo in the pre-colonial era was that while states and empire already discussed
had people who lived in large and urban communities ,the igbo had scattered pattern of settlements[ i.e.they lived in villages
and villages groups]
also,unlike other states and empire,the igbo had no traditional rulers or kings,this was why they were referred to as ‘stateless
society’’

The political structure of the igbo was regarded as subtle and complex,this is because it was based on the principle of village
democracy,it is democratic because every male adult had the right to the decision making process,each village was architect of
own fortune,members of each village were bound together in their strict belief in the common descendant or ancestor [i.e
umunna]

The village council; The actual organ of government at the village was level thevillage council consisting of leaders of the various
families.These elders were their compound;s mouthpiece as well as the earthly representative of each family ancestor.the
village counsil was responsible for voicing out laws already sanctioned by the ancestors.These included laws for misbehavior
which were accompanied by the highest punishment in the land.

In the southern part of the iboland,there were villages and villages councils that comprised of heads of the different lineage and
some wealthy individuals,for examples the okpara [the head of a lineage] kept the ofo title whichrepresented the symbol of
their common ancestor,

Age Group;;;;; The system of government recognized the institution of the age group social life,each age groupwas responsible
for certain duties as stipulated by law,for example,the senior age group looked after the maintenance of peace and order as
well as providing army commander off external aggressions.the junior age-group took care of the sanitation related
matters,while the most junior age group catered for other issues not mentioned above,

CLASSWORK;

1]Locate the position of the igbo on the map of Nigeria

2]why were the igbo regarded as a stateless society

ASSIGNMENT;;;

NARRATE THE HISTORY OF URHOBO

WEEK 7

THE URHOBO

The urhobo speaking people of Nigeria can be found in the present delta state of Nigeria ,stories about their origin have been
linked to the ijo-speaking people of Niger delta in which five clans were identified,

The first, UGHELLI clan which was said to have been founded by one ogele,two of his brothers namely; ogo and Agbarha later
founded settlements named after them ,The above three settlements of ughelli,ogo and Agbarha became the owha clan,

other clans such as ughienvwe and Ewu were founded by both ughienvwe and ogobiri ,these two bothers were said to have left
ogobiri after a misunderstanding with their kinsmen,they moved through the creeks towards bomadi where they settled moved
through the creeks towards bomadi where they settled for a while before they later established ughienvwe and ewu clans.

another tradition of origin identified benin as their ancestor,this traditionwhich claimed that a benin man was the father of
uwherun with his two brothers who were the first to sttle in eastern part of niger delta,from here uwherun moved to
established a settlement called urhobo clan,

furthermore,other cans such as the urhobo clan of effurun [ uvwie] founded by a mixed group,Evhro-oto founded by a GROUP
of migrants from Agbon that traced heir origin to benin,
POLITICAL AND SOCIAL STRUCTURES OF THE URHOBO

1]Like the igbo,the political and social structures of the urhobo were based on the structure of the village in which the
compound was the smallest units,for examples,the father was the head of the compound who was responsible for the
maintenance of law and order as well as the promotion of the welfare of each family,

2]There were clans which exercised authority of ovie among the urhobo

CLASSWORK;;

1]mention the various clans from which the urhobo traced their origin

2]lists the various activities of the age-grades among urhobo

ASSIGNMENT

Narrate the history of the IJAW [ IJO]

WEEK8

TOPIC; THE IJAW [IJO]

TRADITIONS OF ORIGIN

The ijaw were one of the ethnic groups found today in the niger delta region of Nigeria.in the earliest time,the Ijaw were
identified with three settlements of bonny,Nembe and Kalabari.

According to history,the ijaw like many other tribes,had many traditions of origin,The first being the one that claimed three
men were involved,These were OLODIA,ONYO and OBOLO.They were said to have come from Benin,

The second set of immigrants were led by ogidigba,who was a descendantof Ginuwa,the founder of the Itsekeri kingdom,while
the third group of immigrants founded the coastal ports of akassa and Twon.

Another version of the origin of the Ijaw linked it to some Nemne rulers,in which the mostly remembered was Kala-Ekule
through which seven rulers were identified,The last ruler was Busua who after his death,succession disputes arose between his
two sons; Ogbodo and Mingi,This later led to a civil war which resulted into two lines of kingship in Nembe {brass]

SOCIO POLITICAL STRUCTURE OF THE IJAW

The ijaw speaking people developed a system of administration known as the house system as it was with other Niger Delta city
states, This system made people to be grouped into households and ward.These were composed of families and village heads
who became closer to their families in each house than any other groups,

he government was mainly in the hands of a group of elders while the house heads had powers of life and death over the
households,

Houses were based on localized groups that were homogenous in their composition,consisting of group members,their wives
and children,

Moreover,different house heads saw to the welfare of its people by the 18 th centure,when trade in slaves took control of the
economic activities of the ijaw,the house system developed into ‘ canoe house system’ under this situation,slaves and
how status freemen could rise to the office of canoe house head in any of the ijaw city states as long as they
maintained their socio-economic status of being wealthy,
The ijaw canoe houses were made up of organizations of kinsmen,slaves and strangers that came together for the purpose of
participating in the atlantic slave trade,

The number of canoe that a house had was a proof of its strength and prosperity.

CLASSWORK;

1]Locate the ijaw on the map of Nigeria

2] highlight the traditions of origin of ijaw

3]explain the house system administration of the ijaw in pre-colonial period.

ASSIGNMENT;

Discuss the history of Ibibio

WEEK 9

THE IBIBIO

TRADITIONS OF ORIGIN

The Ibibio group of people that could be found mostly in Akwa-ibom state and also in some parts of Cross Rivers in the south-
south geo-political zone of Nigeria

The traditions of origin of the Ibibio like that of some ethnic groups in Nigeria are not clear of reports of different versions.

The Ibibio said that they actually came from a place called Ibom,their legend story of origin stated that they first settled in a
location between Arochukwu in the north,Ika in the west and Oron in the south,from this location,they later migrated
to Uyo and Abak,

Another traditionof origin had it that old calabar was the home of early Ibibio settlers that settled at the mouth of calabar
river,by the 13th century,the Ibibio spread out to establish other settlements,

Even though the Ibibio have affinity with the Efik in terms of language and culture,they have been able to maintain their tribal
identity.

THE POLITICAL AND SOCIAL STRUCTURES OF THE IBIBIO

The Ibibio before colonial rule was one of the non-centralised states in Nigeria because politically,they practiced segmentary
system of government,This means they were not united un der a single authority in which there were no rules as in
empires and kingdoms,in view of the above,the Ibibio had the following political and social arrangements,

1]The Ibibio were formed and developed into village groups with each having an elder as the head ,the village was the political
life of the Ibibio,

2]The Ibibio had village councils where ebery members of the society played his role to contribute to the discussion that will
lead to the overall developments of each village,therefore,the village council was the decision making of each village,
3]The elders who were regarded as the head of each village group provided leadership at the village councils,His symbol of
authority rested on the title holder like the ‘OFO’ title holders among the Igbo.There was also a senior title holder
whose position was more or less ceremonial

CLASSWORK;

1]Who are the Ibibio?

2]how related are the Ibibio and the Anang speaking peole of Nigeria?

3]identify an area of similarity in the socio political life of the Ibibio and that of the igbo.

ASSIGNMENT

Who are the Oron and Anang?

WEEK 10

ORON AND ANANG

TRADITIONS OF ORIGIN OF ORON

Unlike many Niger delta tribes,orn did not have a dependable history to trace its origin,

it is believed that it had settled in the present location by 2370BC,after Noah’s deluge.

However,oron folklore revealed that Abang a great wrestler in Oron was overpowered by slaves traders and was sent to Egypt,

He escaped from Egypt and found his way back to Oron having established his presence in Cameroon,

SOCIO POLITICAL STRUCTURE OF ORON

Oron had non-centralised political structure,the following were some of the major organs that featured in her political
structure;

1] The head was known as ‘Ahta oro,He ruled with other chiefs,

2]council of prists; This also helped in the administration of the oron society by making important decisions for the people

3]secret societies and association; These played the role of executing the decisions of council of priests,

4]Age grade group; Thye also helped the council of priest in enforcing their decisions

TRADITION OF ORIGIN OF ANANG

Anang people were believed to have originated fro Egypt,

their movement from Egypt started in 7500BC,they first settled in Ghana before finally settling in their present place,

Another oral version of their history said their ancestors were Israelites of the Northern Kingdom who settled in Egypt.It is
believed that the Anang were products of Marriages between the Epyptians and the Isrealites,They later migrated to
their present location Nigeria
SOCIO POLITICAL STRUCTURE OF ANANG

Like many Niger delta city states,Anang had non-centralised structure of administration in pre-colonial days,

The following featured in the political administration of Anang in the pre-colonial days;;

1]Obong; This was the head of the executive arm,He was the chief of the village or clan.He performed the role of the leader or
ruler.

2]Afe Isong;; These were the elderly men in the society,they performed legislative functions among the Anang.

3]Association; In the pre-colonial days,Anang had societies and association for men and women,The women organizations
were,ABIDE,ISONG IBANG,NYAAMA,ETC

CLASSWORK;;

1]Locate oron and afang on Nigeria map

2]trace the origins of oron and anang

3]Name two major leaders in oron political structure

ASSIGNMENT;;;

Identify two major leaders inAnang political structure