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“Nri, the ancient city-state of the Nri-Igbo subgroup of the Igbo people in north- central Igboland, is located in the present-day local government area of Anaocha in Anambra State, Nigeria. Anaocha is bordered to the north by Awka, to the south by Idemili, to the east by Aguata, and to the west by Njikoka local government areas. Anaocha has a land area of about 171.62 square kilometers with a population of about 300,000. Present-day Anambra State is a cluster of numerous populated villages and small towns, which gives the area an estimated average density of 1,500– 2,000 persons per square kilometer. The state is rich in crude gas and oil, bauxite, and ceramic, and has arable soil advantageous for agro-based activities such as farming, pasturing, and animal husbandry. Among the precolonial West African kingdoms, Nri is regarded as the earliest Igbo city-state, reputable for spirituality, learning, and trade. As Greece is identified as the cradle of Western civilization, Nri is remarkable for Igbo customs and civilization.
Nri, founded in about 900 CE in north-central Igboland, flourished from the 11th to 17th centuries and declined in the 19th century. The kingdom has diverse traditions of origin, which make its origin a subject of speculation. One of the traditions of Nri origin suggests that Nri, who was the founder of the Nri clan, migrated to present-day Nri from the Ama-Mbala River Valley in northern Igboland, Anambra. The tradition also believes that Nri inherited spiritual powers from his father, Eri, the founder of Aguleri, whose history is surrounded with myth. Eri is described as a sky being who was sent by Chukwu (God) to make peace by settling disputes, cleansing abominations, and providing Igbo people with food ranging from yams to cocoyams. Another version is known as the Igbo mythology. Igbo mythology speculates that Eri may have migrated to Anambra from the Igala dynasty located in central Nigeria. This claim is questionable, however, as historians have gathered contradictory evidence and established that Onoja Oboli, who founded the Igala dynasty, was another son of Eri. In the face of diverse traditions of origin, the Nri people generally trace their origins to Eri, with other Igbo groups and cultures joining in the 13th century.
The state system of Nri was remarkable in the history of African politics, as it developed to be a theocratic one in which its state system was sustained by divine authority and ritual power rather than military power. Nri had at its helm of political structure a divine ruler (eze nri) who possessed both ritual and mystic powers other than those of a precolonial African king. According to Nri traditions, Nri- Ifikwuanim is said to have taken after his progenitor, Eri. Usually, ezeship candidates were not expected to possess any supernatural powers until they had been installed by electors after a period of interregnum. The new eze is installed after he has symbolically journeyed to Aguleri on the Anambra River. In the course of his journey, the eze was expected to undergo symbolic burial and exhumation by means of mysterious influence to accumulate pebbles beneath the water. After the successful completion of the rites, the eze was anointed with white clay, which symbolizes purity. The eze nri was responsible for the management of trade and markets as well as diplomatic relations, and at death he was buried seated in a chamber lined with wood. However, eze kingship titles as we have in contempo- rary Igbo societies originated from Nri.
Nri’s hegemony developed as a result of its ritual powers, diplomatic skills, market and trading networks, and administration and management expertise. The eze nri established four market days with spirit names—eke, oye, afor, and nkwo—for the purpose of exchanging commodities and knowledge. Markets were structured in a way that stationed alusis (deities) at the market square, and at the hosting communities were representatives of the eze nri responsible for guarding and collecting tributes. Other features of Nri’s economy included hunting and farming in yam and cocoyam. A sophisticated system of using cowrie (ego ayo) as a medium of exchange and valuation was developed and used until the beginning of the 19th century, when the British introduced the pound, shilling, and pence currency system. Also within Nri’s economy, a rudimentary local banking system developed. Individuals with strong and secured harbors kept the cowries of successful business merchants in return for commission. These individuals later rose to become rich and capable of offering capital loans to individuals in need of setting up business ventures. One striking difference that Nri had compared to many traditional Nigerian economies of the period was its nonpractice of slave possession and trading. It was not only a sanctuary where osus, people rejected in their localities, seek asylum but also where slaves were granted freedom.”
-Tosin Akinjobi-Babatunde, Nri, in African Kingdoms by Saheed Aderinto
Masharika and AFRON8V7 Comments-
I see the author’s name, but what text is this from?
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source is African Kingdoms, An Encyclopedia of Empires and Civilizations edited by Saheed Aderinto
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Chukwu=God
A Black African/Kmt Igbo Supreme Creator Divinity = A jealous old white man German diety.
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@heru Can you please provide the source or textbook? Medaase.
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@Talawa @Kwabena source is African Kingdoms, An Encyclopedia of Empires and Civilizations edited by Saheed Aderinto
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Medaase.
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I updated it with the source text.
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