GST 112 Test Compilations 8

Study Summary: Nigerian History, Culture, and Society

1. Nigerian History & Politics

1.1. Civil War Era (1967-1970)

• The British initially adopted an attitude of Neutrality during the Nigerian Civil War.
• The United States refused to sell arms to either of the belligerents during the Nigerian Civil War.
• At the end of the Nigerian Civil War, General Yakubu Gowon extended the olive branch.
• Yakubu Gowon made the statement: "we are quelling a rebellion, not fighting an external enemy."
• Chief Obafemi Awolowo served as the Minister of Finance during the Civil War.
• The Post-Civil War National Rehabilitation Commission of Nigeria was headed by Mr. Ukpabi Asika.

1.2. Post-Colonial Era & Governance

• The first military Head of State in Nigeria was Aguiyi Ironsi.
• Manipulation of electoral processes will lead to all negative outcomes EXCEPT the production of legitimate leaders.
• Nigeria has reached a situation of the prevalence of the culture of corruption.
• One major economic effect of corruption is the destruction of national treasury.
• In the post-colonial period, the culture of corruption in Nigeria has spiraled to all segments of the Nigerian state.
• The judiciary can support the anti-corruption war in Nigeria through all means EXCEPT if the judges are compromised.
• Ahmed Sanni Yerima first introduced the Sharia Penal Code in 1999/2000.

1.3. Key Historical Figures & Events

• Benjamin Nnamdi Azikiwe argued that education should be the first point of reforms in post-war reconstruction in British West Africa.
• Rev Samuel Johnson wrote "The history of the Yoruba from the earliest times".

2. Culture & Society

2.1. General Cultural Aspects

• Nigerian cultural heritage is generally described as Rich.
• A historical explanation of a city comprises its origins, growth, and the interactions of the various groups in time perspectives.
• The death of a young person is usually mourned.
• Secret cults have contributed to the untimely death of many undergraduate students in Nigerian universities.

2.2. Gender Roles & Women's Issues

• Globalization has influenced gender roles over time.
• One impact of Nigerian Pentecostalism on females is that it has gradually broken religious barriers that hitherto hindered women's rise to leadership positions.
• Women could not be ordained as bishops/prophetesses in the Catholic Church of Nigeria.
• The Aba Women Riot (occurred in the Twentieth century, specifically 1929) was arguably the most prominent women's riot in Nigeria.
• The Aba Women Riot of 1929 was essentially meant to protect the interest of women in society against oppressive policies of the colonial government.
• While men dominated Christian services in various churches and denominations, women played key roles in the traditional religion.
• The Family Support Programme was established by Mrs. Maryam Abacha.
• Westernized women's organizations emerged and developed under the Colonial era.
• The sexual division of labor inevitably has caused gender stratification and an unequal distribution of rights and resources.
• Among the outspoken women leaders during colonial rule, G.I. Okoye was notably NOT one of them (Efunsetan Aniwura, Margaret Ekpo, Olufunmilayo Kuti were).

2.3. Family & Social Norms

• In some societies, a dead child was mutilated to alter beliefs about re-incarnation.
• Marriages in most Nigerian communities usually start with an introduction.
• Committing adultery was seen as an abomination.
• In most Nigerian communities, incest was seen as an abomination.
• A child could be named after the deities.
• In the pre-colonial period, people kept large families in order to ensure adequate labour supply.

3. Religion

3.1. Christianity & Missions

• The first black man to be consecrated as Anglican Bishop was Samuel Ajayi Crowther.
• The attitude of white priests in foreign Pentecostal Churches in Nigeria led to the establishment of "African" or "Native" Churches.
• The first Christian missionaries visited Warri.
• According to J.F. Ade Ajayi, relics of early missionary activities in Nigeria included the First Storey Building in Badagry.
• The establishment of "Nigerian Native Churches" was an indication that Nigerians could throw off the yoke of "spiritual or religious" colonialism.

3.2. Islam & Traditional Beliefs

• One factor that did NOT contribute to the spread of Islam in Yorubaland was the installation of the Ooni in the 19th century.
• The leadership of Kanem-Borno before the Shehu was called the Mai.
• Mai Idris Alooma was the Borno ruler best known for the expansion of Islam.
• A major reason given for the Fulani Jihad of 1804 was the level of syncretic practices among the Habe rulers.

3.3. Religious Institutions & Conflicts

• Religious crises in Nigeria could take various forms, including ethno-religious, intra-religious, and inter-religious (Muslim-Christian), but NOT inter-royal.

4. Economy & Colonialism

4.1. Colonial Economic Impact

• The major motive of European colonial presence in the Nigerian area was economic.
• Political Economy recognizes the primacy of the economy and material production as the foundation of society.
• The political economy of colonialism was exploitative.
• The economic status of a city goes a long way to determine its financial health.
• One of the main features of dependency is that the colony depended on the external or metropolitan economy.

4.2. Features of Colonial Cities

• Lagos Colony was merged with the Southern Protectorate of Nigeria in 1906.
• Several Nigerian colonial cities did not owe their birth, growth, or influence to their being religious centres.
• Colonial cities had modern functional facilities.
• Sexual immoralities were enhanced by urbanization in colonial cities.
• Owo was one urban city not directly influenced by colonial railway lines.

5. Geography & Ethnic Groups

• The "Confluence State" (Kogi State) is formed by the confluence of the Niger and Benue rivers.
• The ethnic Ijaw are concentrated mainly in the Delta & Bayelsa states.
• Bayajidda is credited as the ancestor of the Hausa.
• The name Yoruba was first applied to the Oyo sub-group.
• The Affade ethnic group is found in Borno state.
• The Hausa are found in large numbers in Kebbi, Kaduna, Kano states.
• Brazilian returnees settled mainly in Lagos and Abeokuta.
• The traditional leadership pairing is Attah and Igala, Etsu and Nupe (similar to Alaafin and Oyo, Mai and Kanem Borno).

6. Education

• All played noticeable roles in the introduction of American education in Nigeria EXCEPT Clement Isong.