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The Nigerian Chieftaincy is the
chieftaincy
A tribal chief or chieftain is the leader of a tribal society or chiefdom.
Tribe
The concept of tribe is a broadly applied concept, based on tribal concepts of societies of western Afroeurasia.
Tribal societies are sometimes categorized as ...
system that is native to
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
. Consisting of everything from the country's
monarch
A monarch is a head of stateWebster's II New College DictionarMonarch Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. Life tenure, for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority ...
s to its titled family
elders, the chieftaincy as a whole is one of the oldest continuously existing institutions in Nigeria and is legally recognized by its government.
History
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Nigerian pre-colonial states tended to be organized as
city-states
A city-state is an independent sovereign city which serves as the center of political, economic, and cultural life over its contiguous territory. They have existed in many parts of the world since the dawn of history, including cities such as ...
. The empires that did exist, like the
Kanem-Borno empire, the
Oyo empire
The Oyo Empire was a powerful Yoruba empire of West Africa made up of parts of present-day eastern Benin and western Nigeria (including Southwest zone and the western half of Northcentral zone). It grew to become the largest Yoruba language, ...
, the
Benin empire
The Kingdom of Benin, also known as the Edo Kingdom, or the Benin Empire ( Bini: ') was a kingdom within what is now southern Nigeria. It has no historical relation to the modern republic of Benin, which was known as Dahomey from the 17th c ...
and the
Sokoto caliphate
The Sokoto Caliphate (), also known as the Fulani Empire or the Sultanate of Sokoto, was a Sunni Muslim caliphate in West Africa. It was founded by Usman dan Fodio in 1804 during the Fulani jihads after defeating the Hausa Kingdoms in the Ful ...
, were essentially coalitions of these individual city-states. Due to this, a great deal of local power was concentrated in the hands of rulers that remained almost permanently in their capitals. These rulers had sacred functions - a number of them were even considered to be sacred themselves - and therefore often lived in seclusion as a result. Their nobles, both hereditary and otherwise, typically also had functions that were tied to the religious traditions of the kingdoms that they served.
In the South, the nobles ruled the states on a day-to-day basis on behalf of their monarchs by way of a series of initiatory
secret societies
A secret society is a club or an organization whose activities, events, inner functioning, or membership are concealed. The society may or may not attempt to conceal its existence. The term usually excludes covert groups, such as intelligence a ...
. These bodies combined the aforementioned priestly functions with judicial ones, and also traditionally provided advisers to the monarchs in question. Some of these societies, like ''
Ogboni
Ogboni (also known as Osugbo in Ijèbú) is a fraternal institution indigenous to the Yoruba-speaking polities of Nigeria, Republic of Bénin and Togo, as well as among the Edo people. The society performs a range of political and religious fun ...
'' and ''
Nze na Ozo
The Nze na Ozo society (pronounced ''Nzeh nah Orzoh''), is the highest and most important spiritual religious and social grouping in the Igbo society of Southeast Nigeria. Initiation into the aristocratic Nze na Ozo society marks the person as ...
'', have survived to the present day as aristocratic social clubs within their respective tribes. Meanwhile, in the
North
North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography.
Etymology
T ...
, the emirates of the old caliphate were usually divided into districts, and these districts were in turn ruled by nobles known as ''
Hakimi'' (pl. ''Hakimai'') that were subject to the monarchs.
As a general rule titles did not always pass from father to son; many royal and noble families did however provide a number of titleholders over several generations. In the south, the titles held by nobles were often not the same ones as those that had been held by others in their lineages. Some chiefs had even been untitled slaves, and therefore had had no titled forebears prior to their eventual ascension to the ranks of the aristocracy.
Although dominated by the titled men mentioned above, several kingdoms also had parallel traditions of exclusively-female title societies that operated in partnership with their male counterparts. Others would reserve specially created titles, such as the
Yoruba
The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute ...
''
Iyalode
The Iyalode is a high-ranking female chieftain in most of the Yoruba traditional states. The title is currently within the gift of the obas, although Njoku asserted in 2002 that the process of choosing an Iyalode in pre-colonial Nigeria was less ...
'', for their womenfolk.
During the early European forays into Africa, Nigerian chiefs - both monarchs and nobles - came to be divided into two opposing camps: the anti-European chiefs on the one end (who wanted nothing to do with the Europeans and wanted them to leave, by war if necessary) and the pro-European chiefs (who favoured maintaining friendly relations with the Europeans, even if it meant sacrificing certain amounts of political power). During the increase in
British influence
British Influence, formally the Centre for British Influence Through Europe, was an independent, cross-party, pro-single market foreign affairs think tank based in the United Kingdom, founded in 2012 to make the case for the European Union ami ...
in Nigeria during the 19th century, the anti-European chiefs used a variety of tactics to work against foreign influence, utilizing both direct and indirect forms. The colonial government responded by favouring the pro-European chiefs and supporting more amenable claimants to the Nigerian titles in an attempt to frustrate the anti-European chiefs. Minor wars were fought with the anti-European chiefs, while pro-European chiefs prospered through trade with Britain and so were politically safe as a result. During the
Scramble for Africa
The Scramble for Africa, also called the Partition of Africa, or Conquest of Africa, was the invasion, annexation, division, and colonisation of Africa, colonization of most of Africa by seven Western Europe, Western European powers during a ...
, anti-European chiefs were slowly replaced with pro-European ones, and
Colonial Nigeria
Colonial Nigeria was ruled by the British Empire from the mid-nineteenth century until 1960 when Nigeria achieved independence. British influence in the region began with the prohibition of slave trade to British subjects in 1807. Britain a ...
came to be governed by a system known as
indirect rule
Indirect rule was a system of governance used by the British and others to control parts of their colonial empires, particularly in Africa and Asia, which was done through pre-existing indigenous power structures. Indirect rule was used by variou ...
, which involved native chiefs becoming part of the administrative structure to ease administrative costs. Through this method, the colonial government was able to avoid any rebellions against its authority.
Following Nigeria's independence in 1960, each federated unit of the country had a
House of Chiefs A House of Chiefs (or ''House of Traditional Leaders'') is a post-colonial assembly, either legislative or advisory, that is recognised by either a national or regional government as consisting of and providing a collective, public voice for an eth ...
, which was part of its lawmaking system. These houses have since been replaced by the largely ceremonial
Councils of Traditional Rulers. In addition, many of the founding fathers and mothers of the
First Republic - including the leading troika of Dr.
Nnamdi Azikiwe
Nnamdi Benjamin Azikiwe, (16 November 1904 – 11 May 1996), usually referred to as "Zik", was a Nigerian statesman and political leader who served as the first President of Nigeria from 1963 to 1966. Considered a driving force behind the n ...
, Chief
Obafemi Awolowo
Chief Obafemi Jeremiah Oyeniyi Awolowo (; 6 March 1909 – 9 May 1987) was a Yoruba nationalist and Nigerian statesman who played a key role in Nigeria's independence movement (1957-1960). Awolowo founded the Yoruba nationalist group Egbe Om ...
and Alhaji Sir
Ahmadu Bello
Ahmadu Ibrahim Bello, Sardauna of Sokoto (12 June 1910–15 January 1966), knighted as Sir Ahmadu Bello, was a conservative Nigerian statesman who masterminded Northern Nigeria through the independence of Nigeria in 1960 and served as its first a ...
- were all royals or nobles in the Nigerian chieftaincy system. This has continued to operate since their time as a locally controlled honours system alongside its
nationally controlled counterpart, which is itself within the gift of the Federal Government.
Today
Today, many prominent Nigerians aspire to the holding of a title. Both Chief
Olusegun Obasanjo
Chief Olusegun Matthew Okikiola Ogunboye Aremu Obasanjo, , ( ; yo, Olúṣẹ́gun Ọbásanjọ́ ; born 5 March 1937) is a Nigerian political and military leader who served as Nigeria's head of state from 1976 to 1979 and later as its pres ...
and Alhaji
Umaru Musa Yar'Adua
Umaru Musa Yar'Adua (16 August 19515 May 2010) was a Nigerian politician who, was the President of Nigeria from 2007 to 2010. He was declared the winner of the Nigerian presidential election held on 21 April 2007, and was sworn in on 29 May 20 ...
, one-time presidents of Nigeria, have belonged to the noble stratum of the Nigerian chieftaincy.
Nigerian traditional rulers
Nigerian traditional rulers often derive their titles from the rulers of independent states or communities that existed before the formation of modern Nigeria. Although they do not have formal political power, in many cases they continue to comma ...
and their titled subordinates currently derive their powers from various Chiefs' Laws, which are official parts of the body of contemporary Nigerian laws.
As a result, the highly ranked amongst them typically receive
staffs of office - and by way of them official recognition - from the governors of the states of the Federation as the culminations of their coronation and investiture rites. Thus installed, they then have the power to install inferior chiefs themselves.
Chieftaincy titles are often of differing grades, and are usually ranked according to a variety of diverse factors. Whether or not they are recognized by the government, whether they are traditionally powerful or purely honorary, what the relative positions of the title societies that they belong to (if any) are in the royal
orders of precedence
An order of precedence is a sequential hierarchy of nominal importance and can be applied to individuals, groups, or organizations. Most often it is used in the context of people by many organizations and governments, for very formal and state o ...
, their relative antiquity, how expensive they are to acquire, whether or not they are hereditary, and a number of other such customary determinants are commonly used to ascribe hierarchical positions. A number of kingdoms also make use of colour-coded regalia to denote either allegiance to particular title societies or individual rank within them. Examples of this phenomenon include the ''Red-Capped Chiefs'' of
Igboland
Igboland (Standard ), also known as Southeastern Nigeria (but extends into South-Southern Nigeria), is the indigenous homeland of the Igbo people.
It is a cultural and common linguistic region in southern Nigeria. Geographically, it is divided b ...
and the ''White-Capped Chiefs'' of
Lagos
Lagos (Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the List of cities in Africa by population, second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national ca ...
, each the highest ranked group of noble chiefs in its respective sub-system.
Nigerian titleholders
Monarchs
Pre-colonial
* Nigerian sovereigns
**
Lamido
Lamido (Adlam: , pl. Lamibe ) is the Anglicisation of a term from the Fula language or Fulfulde, used to refer to a ruler. In the language it is properly ''laamiiɗo'' (, pl. ''laamiiɓe'' ), derived from the verbal root ''laamu-'' meaning "lead ...
**
Oba
**
Eze
Eze (pronounced ) is an Igbo word which means King. Such words as Igwe and '' Obi'', plus others, are used by Igbo people as titles of respect and homage to the Eze. Igwe is derived from the Igbo word ''Igwekala'' or ''Eluigwekala'', "the sky or ...
Colonial
*
Native Authorities
Post-colonial
*
Nigerian traditional rulers
Nigerian traditional rulers often derive their titles from the rulers of independent states or communities that existed before the formation of modern Nigeria. Although they do not have formal political power, in many cases they continue to comma ...
**
Lamido
Lamido (Adlam: , pl. Lamibe ) is the Anglicisation of a term from the Fula language or Fulfulde, used to refer to a ruler. In the language it is properly ''laamiiɗo'' (, pl. ''laamiiɓe'' ), derived from the verbal root ''laamu-'' meaning "lead ...
***
Sultan of Sokoto
Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it ...
***
Emir of Kano
Emir (; ar, أمير ' ), sometimes transliterated amir, amier, or ameer, is a word of Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person possessing actual or ceremo ...
***
Etsu Nupe
The Bida Emirate is a traditional state in Nigeria, a successor to the old Nupe Kingdom, with its headquarters in Bida, Niger State. The head of the state is the Etsu Nupe, considered the leader of the Nupe people.
History
The old Nupe Kingdo ...
**
Oba
***
Ooni of Ife
The Ooni of Ile-Ife (Ọọ̀ni of Ilè-Ifẹ̀) is the traditional ruler of Ile-Ife and the spiritual head of the Yoruba people. The Ooni dynasty existed before the reign of Oduduwa which historians have argued to have been between the 7th-9 ...
***
Alaafin of Oyo
Oyo, Oyo State, is the seat of the line of the rulers of Oyo. Their territory, a constituent rump state, is located in contemporary Nigeria. Since the 1900 political absorption into Southern Nigeria of the kingdom that it once served as a metrop ...
***
Awujale of Ijebu
**
Eze
Eze (pronounced ) is an Igbo word which means King. Such words as Igwe and '' Obi'', plus others, are used by Igbo people as titles of respect and homage to the Eze. Igwe is derived from the Igbo word ''Igwekala'' or ''Eluigwekala'', "the sky or ...
***
Eze Nri
The following is a list of rulers of Nri. The title of the ruler of Nri is ''Eze Nri''. He held religious and political authority over the Kingdom of Nri.
The Nri culture is believed to stretch back to at least the 13th century, with a traditiona ...
***
Obi of Onitsha
The Obi of Onitsha is the traditional leader of Onitsha, Anambra State, southeast Nigeria. The post of the Obi is recognized by the state and federal governments of Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naij ...
***
Igwe of Nnewi
Other Chiefs
*
Waziri
*
Hakimi
*
Eso Ikoyi {{Short description, Aristrocratic attribute in Yoruba culture
Eso Ikoyi (also appearing as Esho Ikoyi) is an aristocratic attribute amongst the Yoruba people which denotes an eminent warrior. It has been used as everything from a chieftaincy title ...
*
Ogboni
Ogboni (also known as Osugbo in Ijèbú) is a fraternal institution indigenous to the Yoruba-speaking polities of Nigeria, Republic of Bénin and Togo, as well as among the Edo people. The society performs a range of political and religious fun ...
*
Nze na Ozo
The Nze na Ozo society (pronounced ''Nzeh nah Orzoh''), is the highest and most important spiritual religious and social grouping in the Igbo society of Southeast Nigeria. Initiation into the aristocratic Nze na Ozo society marks the person as ...
*
Ichie
Ichi was facial ritual scarification worn by mainly men of the Igbo people of Nigeria. The scarification indicated that the wearer had passed through initial initiation into the aristocratic ''Nze na Ozo'' society, thus marking the wearer as nobil ...
See also
*
Social class in Nigeria
*
Nigerian heraldry
*
Nigerian traditional rulers
Nigerian traditional rulers often derive their titles from the rulers of independent states or communities that existed before the formation of modern Nigeria. Although they do not have formal political power, in many cases they continue to comma ...
*
Nigerian traditional states
There are many traditional states in Nigeria. A partial list follows.
Although the traditional rulers no longer officially have political power, they still have considerable status in Nigeria and the power of patronage.
Except where otherwise no ...
References and sources
{{reflist
Society of Nigeria
Tribal chiefs
African nobility
Upper class