Historical Society of Nigeria

THE DEVELOPMENT OF TRADE AND MARKETING IN IBOLAND

Author(s): Ukwu I. Ukwu
Source: Journal of the Historical Society of Nigeria, Vol. 3, No. 4 (June 1967), pp. 647-662
Published by: Historical Society of Nigeria
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/41856906 .
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OFNIGERIA
OFTHEHISTORICAL
SOCIETY
JOURNAL

THE DEVELOPMENT

VOL.m NO.4

JUNE
1967

OF TRADE AND MARKETING IN

IBOLAND
by
Ukwu I. Ukwu

, University
of Geography
of Ibadan
Department
I N the last fewyearsa greatdeal of researchhas been done on marketsand
a wide rangeof
market-place
exchangein Africa,a subjectwhichhas interested
marketsprovidea venue forthe
social scientists.In theireconomicfunctions,
meetingof buyersand sellers; face-to-facetransactionsbeing the principal
means of exchangein a developingsociety.The market-placesystemis very
sensitiveto change,changein historicaland economic conditionswithinthe
systemrelative
system,and in theimportanceof themarket-place
market-place
to othersystemsof economicchange.This paper attemptsto tracethe pattern
oftradeand marketing
in Iboland,EasternNigeria.
of development
TheSociologicalBackground
unit of social controlin Iboland is the
Traditionallythe largesteffective
villagegroup,whichhas a populationrangingfroma few hundredto a few
thousandpersonsand mayextendin area froma fewsquare milesto thirtyor
more.In topographicaltermsthevillagegroupconsistsof "a clusterof villages
centre."1
sharinga marketplace,whichis at oncea ritual,politicaland marketing
But thevillagegroupis morea sociologicalthana topographicalunit; it is the
"largestlocal unit, named, and based on a patrilineageor segmentof one,
whosemembersclaim to be regardedas independentof othergroups,even of
thosesharinga commonancestry;thisclaimbeingrecognisedbyothercomparable groups,but not beingnecessarilyconnectedwithany trueindependenceof
function".2Operationallydefined,the villagegroupis a workingarrangement
whichis by no meansstatic.Fission
of its constituent
villages,an arrangement
of groupsand adhesion of constituentvillagesto new groupsis a common
featureof Ibo social dynamics.
it is
The villagegroupmay be regardedas a corporateentity.Pre-eminently
unit. Althoughland normallybelongs to the consthe land-administering
tituentvillages,some of it,usuallyin thecentreor on theborders,may be held
intheland and mayrequisition
incommon.Also thegrouphas a suzeraininterest
it withoutcompensation,for purposes of common interest.Social life is
1 Forde,D. andJones,
G. I. : TheIboandIbibio-Speaking
Nigeria
Peoples
ofSouth-Eastern
,
1950.
London,
2 Ardener,
theMbaiseIbo , Africa
andLocality
E. W.: "Lineage
, 1954.
among
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of thevillagegroup.Ritualsand reciprocative
organisedwithintheframework
giftexchanges,redistributive
sharing,periodicmeetingsand commonfestivals
keep alive the solidarityof the group. The economyis organisedwithinthe
same context.The farming
to thedate
calendar,fromthedate of bush-burning
of the yam harvestfestival,is set forthe group. So are the locationof group
marketsand theirperiodicity.The membersof the group have contactswith
personsin neighbouring
villagegroupsand beyond,butthegreaterpartoftheir
activitiesare carriedout withinthevillagegroupcommunity
and theirstrongest
is givenphysicalform
tiesare withothermembersof it. Territorialsovereignty
- formalboundariesguaranteedby covenant
in theinstitution
of Ogbugbandu
- which exist onlybetweencontiguousvillagegroupsand not betweentheir
constituent
villages.
The villageis a morebasic unitthanthevillagegroupand is topographically
which
muchmoreobvious.It is made up of a numberoflocalisedpatrilineages,
live in compact
constitute
theprimarylocal group.Whetherthesepatrilineages
or in individualhomesteads,the congregationof settlement
units
settlements
the complexphysicallyfromothervillages.Strucabout a pointdistinguishes
the
turallythereis a greatercohesion betweenthe patrilineagesconstituting
village,whichare usuallyverycloselyrelated,thanbetweenthevillagesin the
villagegroup.The villageis the principalland-owningunit and usuallydeletherightsto allocateitsuse. Reciprocalgiftexchanges
gatesto thepatrilineages
are an importantelementof economicrelationshipswithinthe village.They
becomemoreprominentas theweb of kinshipbecomesmorecloselyknit,but
commercialexchangeswerealso significant
and remainso down to the family
- a man,his wivesand unmarriedchildren
- may be
level. The parentalfamily
consideredthebasiceconomicunit.Much of itseconomylies on the redistributivesector,dependingon internaldivisionof labour,mainlyaccordingto sex,
and on socially prescribedcontributionsby its members.But commercial
exchangesare by no meansruledout. Thus it is normalforwivesto buyfrom
theirhusbandsthe palm-wineand yam theyneed for theirsocial and ritual
obligations.
Tradeand Marketin TraditionalIbo Society
is theprincipalvenueforcommercialexchange.Typicallya
The market-place
traditionalmarketis held once in everyfouror eightdays. The orderingof the
is embeddedin Ibo cultureand derivesfromIbo conceptsof time.
periodicity
lifein Iboland, theunitsof time were theyearAfo, Aro; the
For day-to-day
moon Onwa; the week Izu and theday Ubochi, Mbosi. The year is ecolIt is theperiodfromone yamharvestto the
ogical ratherthanchronological.1
next,frommid-dryseason to mid-dryseason, and lasts betweentwelveand
to thelunarcycle,beingtheperiod
moons.The moonis relateddirectly
thirteen
betweenthebeginningofthefirstquarterand theend of thelast. Operationally,
thedurationis ratherimprecisesinceit dependson the abilityto spotthe new
i cf.Evans-Pritchard,
E. E. : Nuer:A Description
andPolitical
oftheModesofLivelihood
Institutions
People,London,1940.
ofa Nilotic
648

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moon; sometimes,as betweendebtorand creditor,luminescencecan be subjective! The basic unit of time,the week Izu, is chronologicaland is not
relatedto eithertheyearor themoon.The Izu is a four-dayperiod; the
strictly
are
known as Eke, Orie ( Olie), Afo ( Aho) and Nkwo, succeeding
days
in thatorder.Onlyin two smallareas in Iboland,in theNgbo enclavein Abakaliki Division, and in part of lkwerreland- both as a resultof non-Ibo
influences-are therefive-day
marketcycles.
Periodicmarketsin Iboland are widelybelievedto have developedout of the
Ibo customof therestday. By thiscustomdifferent
segmentsor villagesin the
within
the
have
different
four-dayweekor a periodof two
days
villagegroups
- big week) on whichtheyabstainfromfarmwork.
weeks(knownas izu ukwu
The people stayat home and do householdchores,practisecraftsor hobbies,
relaxand entertainone anotheras well as visitors.Most of the local festivals
and ceremoniesalso fallon restdays.A marketsytemthusfounda ready-made
each villagecontrollingthe marketdevelopedon its
institutional
framework,
land usuallyin the village square- and held on its rest day. Most village
groupshave a centralmarket,usuallyclaimedto date fromthe originof the
and
settlement,
havingbeing 'carriedover' fromthe abandoned settlement,
locatedin and controlledby the seniorvillage.Not all marketsare, of course,
restdays.But thehabitofallocatingvisitingdays
associatedwiththetraditional
to thatof fixingtheperiodicityof
on thebasis of fairnesshas been transferred
of existingmartheperiodicity
themarket,whichmusttakeintoconsideration
of tradof thegroup.The locationand periodicity
ketsin thearea of authority
itionalgroupmarketsin each villagegroupthusdependon factorsinternalto
that village group. Hence the group marketconstitutesindependentsets of
and we mayconsidertraditionalIboland as coveredbya basic orderof
markets,
ringsmoreorlessas numerousas therearevillagegroups.
marketing
independent
Althoughthe group marketingrings were independentof each other in
organisationand control,theywerenot independentin function.As has been
showntherewas considerabletradebetweenvillagegroups.Typicallyno new
marketswerecreatedto caterfor the inter-group
trade,but throughgeneral
or specialadvantagescertainmarketsin each villagegroupemerged
competition
marketsservingnotonlytheirvillagegroupbutlargenumbersof
as inter-group
personsfromoutsideit. Usually the seniormarketin the village group,the
marketat the centreof the groupand controlledby the seniorvillage,would
market,but it need not do so. The seniormarketsof
emergeas theinter-group
two contiguousvillage groupsmightbe held on the same day and a minor
role. Also wherea
marketin one of themmightwell take up the inter-group
villagegroupsprawledovera widearea,no one marketmightbe centralenough
marketfortradewithall theneighbouring
to act as inter-group
districts;several
each specialising
marketsin one groupmightthenemergeas inter-group
markets,
markets
communities.Thus the statusof inter-group
in tradewithdifferent
nor was theiremergenceconsciouslyplanned for.
was not institutionalised;
Marketswaxedand wanedwiththestateof externaltrade.
Some qualifications
maybe madeto thepatternoutlinedabove. Firstly,under
conditionsof unstablerelationsbetweenvillage groups,marketsowned and
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controlledbyrivalgroupsweredeemedtoo dangerousto visit,and newmarkets

had to be createdbetweenthem,or at theiroutskirts,
in orderto increasethe
chancesofescapefromattack.Thiswouldappearto be thecase amonga number
of communities
in partsof Onitsha,Awka and Nsukka Divisions.Secondly,in
- mainlyin Abakalikiand Aba DivisionsofIbo settlement
thepioneerfringes
fewsettlements
werelargeenoughto supporta market.Marketswere typically
locatedbetweenratherthanwithinsettlements,
so as to be as centralas possible
to the communitiesusingthem,and so that theymightbe seen by all to be
common property.A particulartype of inter-group
trade,that betweenthe
mainlandagriculturalcommunitiesand the people of the creeksand riverain
areas,deservesspecialmention.The locationof marketswas necessarily
linear,
on thebanks of thewaterways,
and was particularly
unsuitedto the operation
of theringsystem.Secondly,theperishablenatureof fish,theprincipalwatertheirdailydisposalbyfishermen.
side commodity,
necessitated
Thus in thecontactzone theOgwunabiri
, an earlymorningdailymarket,took theplace of the
market.
periodicinter-group
Bothintra-group
and inter-group
tradedependedmainlyon massmovements
of peasantswhilstlongdistancetradedependedon the movements
of specialist
The
and
individuals.
trades
relied
on
covenants
at the
long-distance
groups
personal level, Igbandu, as the principalmeans of guaranteeingfreedomof
movementacrossthecountryand safetyamongstrangers.
By thisthetraveller
establisheda ritualkinshipwithan influential
memberof thevillagegrouphe
was visitingor passingthrough.The partieswerebound to do no harmto each
otherand thehostprotectedhis guestand generallyacted as his agentvis-a-vis
othermembersof the community.
It was also his dutyto have the departing
to
the
escorted
Ogbugbanduwiththe next village group and formally
guest
handed over to the contactthere.Thus the travellerwas shuttledacross the
countrybya relayofhosts.
As long as tradewas mainlyinternallong distancegoods traffic
in a largely
well
similarenvironment,
was
not
established,
though
voluminous;the main
the
mentioned
trade
between
the
riverainand inland
already
exceptionbeing
communities.It was concernedlargelywithnon-bulkyor luxuryitems; salt,
- religiousand secular
beads,ivoryand otherornaments,
dyes,cloths,carvings
- charms,ironmongery
and such.It was forthemostpartirregular
and scarcely
creatednewmarketswithinan area. Two systems,
reached
a veryhigh
however,
level of organisation;theAwka and the Arochukusystems.The Awka system
to a moregeneralpattern.The Arochukusystemwas betterintegrated
conforms
and reachedits apogee whenthegreaterdemandsof Europeantradeenabledit
to make fulluse ofits organisation.
The prestigeof theAwka people in Iboland derivedfromthereputeof their
'Agbala' deityand fromtheirskillas physicians.Theytravelledfirstand foremostas priests,divinersand doctors.The contactsmadein thesecapacitieswere
marketsfortheirwaresand servicesas skilledcraftsmen
usefulin establishing
- and as pedlarsof luxuryitems,
blacksmithsand carvers
notablyivoryand
coral beads fromthe Anambraand Igala country.The Awka people did not
butintegrated
it withtheirspecialistactivities.The village
abandonagriculture,
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groupwas dividedintotwopartsbetweenwhichthemonopolyof goingon the

road alternated
after
annually.In theeighthor ninthagricultural
month,shortly
thenewyamfestival,
thetravellers
whoseturnit was wouldleave. Therewas no
formaldivisionof territory.
They travelledin troupesof ten to twentyadults,
each ofwhomhad withhimtwoto fourapprentices
aged betweenfiveand twelve
years.The area ofoperationofa troupewoulddependon earliercontactsand on
theabilityoftheleadersto opennewterritory
and negotiatenewcovenants.The
tournormally
lastedabout ninemonthsbuttravellers
werenotobligedto return
untiltheseventhmonthofthenextyear,about fiveIzus (20 days)fromthenew
yam festival.From the natureof theirorganisationthe Awka people did not
createanypermanent
settlements
or markets,
althoughtheAwkaman'spresence
in an area enhanced,fortheduration,theimportance
ofthelocal markets.Nonethelessseveralmarketswere verystrongly
associatedwithAwka activity.
TheAroTradeSystem
Like the Awka people the Arochukuowed theirsuccessas tradersto their
oftheAro
positionas agentsofa greatoracle,theEbinokpabi.The development
systemwas stimulated
by theoverseastradewithEurope,whichbeganwiththe
arrivalof thePortuguesetraderson theBightof Biafrain the 15thcentury.The
of the Arochukusystemmarkeda new phasein thedevelopment
establishment
of tradeand marketsin Iboland. The distinctive
featurewas the settingup of
a consciouslyco-ordinatedtradingnetworkbased on tradingsettlements,
trade
routesandfairs.Itsoperationled to thefurther
differentiation
ofexistingmarkets,
thecreationofnewonesand thedevelopment
ofnewpatternsofregionalorientation.
Arochukulies at theendofa ridgerunning
east and south-south-east
fromthe
oftheAwka-Orlu-Okigwi
CentralIbo uplandregion,a continuation
escarpment.
The mainArochukutraderoutelay along theridgeas faras Awka and thence
northand north-eastwards
to Nike. AnotherroutefromArochukuwentnorthwardsto the north-eastern
lbo areas throughAfikpoand Uburu to the Ezza
and Izzi country.From Bende and Uzuakoli on the main routeotherroutes
linkedup the southernpartsof Iboland and fromUzuakoli a northerly
route
route.TheArochukucolonieswereclustered
joinedup withtheArochuku-Uburu
alongtheseroutes.Iboland was carvedup bytheArochukuvillagesintospheres
of influence
so thatthevariouscolonieswereusuallyassociatedwithparticular
Arochukuvillages.Arochukucoloniescontinuedto be foundeduntilwell into
In theabsenceofwritten
the20thcentury.
recordsitis difficult
to be preciseabout
the dates of theirestablishment.
Kamu Umo lists98 settlements
and suggests
thatmostofthemwerefoundedin theseventeenth
The mostimportant
century.1
colonywas Aro Ndizuogu,situatedin the heartof the Ibo countrywitheasy
accessfromthisbrokencountryto theuplandsin thewestand north,through
gaps in the escarpmentto the Cross Riverbasin in the east, as well as to the
coastalplains.OtherlargecoloniesincludedAjalli,IsuochiandOkporosouthern
enyiand theirsatellitecolonies,all in thestretchof countrybetweenBende and
i Umo,K.: History
, Lagos,1948.
ofAroSettlements
651

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- NINETEENTHCENTURY
THE IBO TRADINGSYSTEM
1
Figure
Awka. In thisarea theArochukupeopleformedself-contained
communities.
In
otherareas whileretainingtheiridentitytheyusuallysoughtto be adopted by
and eventuallyto dominatethelocal groups.The functionallinksbetweenthe
coloniesand Arochukuwereverystrong.The colonistsacted locallyas agents
fromthe authoritiesat home.Theyrelayed
of the oracle and took instructions
back to Arochuku.They conductedclients,
intelligencefromtheirterritories
to Arochukuand broughtback pronouncements
litigantsand ritualoffenders
and charmsand medicinesto local peoples.
A certainamount of commercewas always associated withthe Arochuku
system,but at firstthisdid not necessarilygiveriseto markets.Much of it was
tradein luxuryitems- slaves,horsesand cattleforritualpurposes,
administered
and beads and did not commanda mass market.Hence the colonies themselvesratherthanthelocal marketswerethemainvenuesforlongdistancetrade.
The groupand inter-group
markets,wheretheyexisted,operatedlargelyoutside
the Arochukunetwork.Naturallythe presenceof an Arochukucolony and
the attendantcommerceenhancedtheimportanceof nearbymarkets.The rise
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of thegreatmarketshad to do withthedevelopmentof theoverseastrade,the

rangeand volumeof whichfarsurpassedwhatcould be dealt withby private
contactat the colonies.
on thecoast in 1486.Butfor
The first
Europeantradersestablishedthemselves
nearlyfourcenturies,in some places until 1912,Europeansdid not penetrate
intotheinteriorofIboland. Rathertheydependedon exchangewiththecoastal
communities
who in turnorganisedtradewiththe inlandpeoples.The coastal
communitiesdid not concernthemselveswith collectingproduce or selling
in theinterior.They reliedon watertransport
and on the
merchandise
directly
stringsof posts and buyingdepotswhichtheyestablishedalong the numerous
creeksand rivers.At these posts theycorrespondedwiththe inland trading
communities,
notablythe Arochuku,the Awka and the Nkwerrepeople,who
organisedthetradein the interior.The Arochukupeople,withtheirwide and
well-established
network,became their principalcustomers.The demands of
on theArochukusystem.The housethenewtradeimposedsomemodifications
to-housesystemcould not cope withtheexpandedvolumeof businessand was
for
exchange,particularly
byincreasingrecourseto market-place
supplemented
The traffic
theretailofimportedgoods- tobacco,spirits,
gunpowderand textiles.
so thatsomemarkets,
liketheNkwo
inslavestendedto keepwithintheold system
Ndoro marketin Oboro (Bende Division), although becoming important
Arochukutradecentres,werenevernoted forthe slave traffic.1
Nevertheless,
considerablemarketdevelopmentwas associated with theactivitiesof Aro
traders.As themap shows(Fig.l), thelocationof theprincipalmarketsdid not
exactlycorrespondwiththeAro colonies.RatherAro tradersadoptedtheprincipal marketsin variousareas.Thesemarketsremainedunderlocal administration
and controlalthough the Aro people wieldedmuchinfluence.In areas where
was inadequate,particularly
therewereno marketsor wheremarketdevelopment
the
Aro
establishednew markets.
Ukwu
and
Ikwerre
the
peoples,
Ogu
among
weretwofairssetup,notat Aro Ndizuogu,
oftheAro markets
Mostimportant
thepremierAro colony,but at nodal pointsin themain area of Aro influence.
The firstfair rotatedbetweenUzuakoli and Bende, and servedmainlythe
The second,alternating
betweenOkposiandUburu,
southern
partofthecountry.
two villagegroupsfourmilesapartin the Ogu-ukucountry,servedmainlythe
northern
partsof Iboland. The alternationbetweenpairsof siteswas forpurely
controlof thefairs
The Aro traderswantedto retaineffective
reasons.
strategic
and competitionbetweenrivalsitesfortheirveryprofitablepatronageensured
thattheyobtainedthe mostfavourableconditions.The operationof the two
Each was openedat 24-dayintervals
and during
fairswas functionally
integrated.
in thenineteenth
lasted
theperiodofthesystem'shighestdevelopment,
century,
was dovetailedso thattraderscould move
forfourmajordays.Theirperiodicty
fromone fairAgbagwuto the other(Fig. 2).
i Thepartial
themarket-place
network
from
oftheslavetrading
was
sub-system
separation
encountered
in suppresauthorities
formuchofthedifficulties
bytheBritish
responsible
InplaceslikeUzuakoli
where
a largeslavetraffic
intheinterior.
had
singtheslavetrade
thetradebackto thehouse-to-house
forced
Government
pressure
system.
developed,
itwasofficially
considered
closed.
continued
Thusthetrade
longafter
653

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.
(Aro) fairsinlate19thcentury
Figure2. Thetrade
cycleoftheAgbagwu
Theouter
tosuccessive
shows
wheel
themarketing
Thenumerals
cycle.
daysinthe24-day
refer
wheel
thesequence
at UZUAKOLI
intheUBURUfairandtheinner
; thus:
sequence
OgeUkwu
OgeNta
season
season
Casualevening
marketing A
B
market
D
day
Subsidiary
E
Mainseason
( Agbagwu
proper) C

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to co-ordinatethe activitiesof twogroupsof Aro

The fairsservedprimarily
traders,theAro Ulo (home-basedAro) and theAro Uzo (Aro abroad). The Aro
Ulo acted as middlemenbetweenthe coastal tradersand the Aro Uzo who
Iboland attracting
organisedthelocal trade.The fairswerefamousthroughout
thousandsoftradersfromall over the surroundingcountry-side.Because of
betweenthetwofairstherewas considerableoverlapin their
the interconnection
Thus a local historyof Uzuakoli recordsthattraderscame to its
hinterlands.
marketfrom "Akaka Elugu, Elugwu Ngwo, Agbaja, Mgbogho, Nnewi,
Okaiuga, Obowo, Ibeku, Lekwe, Ndi Okpara, Bende, Osuitem, and evenas
far as Ibibio and Onitsha." In addition to the trade in slaves the main
itemsoftradein thefairsweresalt,pigs,horsesand cattleat Uburuand Akwette
clothand tobaccoat Uzuakoli.1
The Coastal Tradeand theEuropeanContactPhase
By thetimethefirstEuropeantradersappearedon thecoast a regularpattern
was well establishedand
of tradebetweenthe coastal and inlandcommunities
and specialists.Awka and
of craftsmen
There was also an interflow
flourishing.
wereemployedfortheironworkof thehugetradecanoes.
Nkwereblacksmiths
There wererituallinksbetweensuchcoastal shrinesas thoseof Bonnyand the
like the Kalahari specialisedin the
priestsof theinterior.Certaincommunities
thebanksof thewaterways.
from
markets
trade,
along
operating
carrying
Like most Ibo groupsthe Arochukupeople were essentiallylandlubbers.
duringtheperiodoftheEuropean
AlthoughtheAro tradesystemwas perfected
slave trade and was based on the large-scaleexchangeof slaves and tropical
producewithsea-borneEuropean goods, the Arochukupeople wereneverin
controlofeithertheportsor thecreeksand riversleadingto them.Rather,they
communicatedwith riverainand coastal communitiessuch as the Efik,the
Opobo and Bonnypeoplewhoin turntradedwiththeEuropean ships.The Aro
to Itu, at themouthoftheEnyongtributary
Ulo tookmostoftheirmerchandise
oftheCross RiversomeeighteenmilesfromArochuku,and sold to Efiktraders
whohad comeup fromCalabar. Some ofthebiggerAro traders,however,went
directto thecoast to sell to Calabar, Bonnyand Opobo middlemen.Similarly
someofthebiggerAro Uzo (colonial)tradersbye-passedthefairsand tooktheir
trueof tradersoperatingin the
goods directto thecoast. This was particularly
coast.
near
the
and
Etche
Ikwere,
Ngwacountry
As longas theEuropeantraderswereconfinedto thecoastthegeneralpattern
Dutch
ofwhichever
oftraffic
Europeannation,Portuguese,
irrespective
persisted
and English,was dominant.But by thetimeof Britishascendancy,in the later
seventeenth
century,structuralchangeswere takingplace withinthe trading
At firsttheeffectof theEuropeantradewas to set thepatternof
communities.
Its muchgreatervolumeand regularity
trademorefirmly.
requiredpermanent
Here stocksin tradeweremaintainedand producepurold
routes.
the
on
posts
chased,fromhereinlandbuyerswerefinancedand producesentdown to the
i Dodds,F. W.: "Noteson EarlyDaysin Uzuakoli",
in Fox,A. J.: Uzuakoli:
A Short
, London,1964.
History
655

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coast. Amongthe moreimportantcolonieswerethoseat Azumini,Ohambele,

Akwete,Ndoni,Eleme,Asa, Urantta,Usemodu,Elele,Omoku,Oguta, Obigbo
and Owerrinta.UnliketheArochukusystemtherewas no centralisedco-ordinationoperationsand competitionwas as fiercebetweensegmentsofone trading
as it was betweenrivalcommunities.1
The introduction
ofgunpowder
community
in the mid-seventeenth
centurywas a key eventin the evolutionofthedelta
communities.
It enabledtherichand theefficient
to fighttheirwayto thetop of
thetrade.The communities
themselves
evolvedintooligarchiccitystateswiththe
heads of thepre-eminent
tradingfirmsas theheads of therulinghouses.2From
the point of view of efficiency
therewas a greatadvantagein the system.In
betweenperiodsofinter-House
warfare
theorganisationofeach House madefor
speedyand co-ordinatedlarge-scaletrade. The colonies and theirassociated
marketswaxed and wanedwiththestrength
oftheirHouses.
ofthenineteenth
theBritish,whowerenowvirtually
By thebeginning
century
the onlyEuropeantradinggroupin the area, werebeginningto turnfromthe
slave tradeto tradein vegetableoils; a changerelatedto thebeginnings
of the
industrialrevolutionin Britainand theneed forindustriallubricantsas wellas
new marketsforindustrialproducts.3One of theimmediateeffects
of the shift
in emphasiswas to enhancethepositionof thecoastal communities
nearerthe
mainland.The supplymarketforpalm produce,thechiefattractionin Iboland,
is ubiquitouswhilethatforslavesdependedon a highdegreeoforganisation
and
co-ordinationbetweenthe coastal communitiesand theinlandagents,such as
existedbetweenthe Bonny or Calabar and the Arochukupeople. Masses of
producersand small tradersoutsidethe Aro systemcould and did take their
palm producedirectto the watersideposts.Tradingstatessuch as Abonnema
and Aboh took on increasedimportanceand new settlements
proliferated,
on the Imo River(Imo RiverStation,Owerrinta,
Ife, Udoh). The
particularly
old Aro trade route continuedto flourishbut the new trade did not use it.
and twentieth
centuriesfurthermodifiedthe
Developmentsin the nineteenth
The
nineteenth
saw
the
patterns.
century
penetrationof Europeans into the
inlandwaterwaysand theestablishment
of directcontactbetweenthemand the
inlandwaterwaysas wellas betweenthemand theinlandpeoples,whilein the
twentieth
shiftedfromthewaterwaysto therailwayand later
centurythetraffic
on to the road system.Each changehad implicationsforthe patternsof comand thedevelopment
of markets.
modityflow,regionalorientations
The effects
of EuropeanPenetration
The voyageofJohnand RichardLanderdowntheNigerthroughthedeltato
thecoast markedthebeginning
ofa newphasein thehistoryofthedevelopment
of Ibo-Europeantradeand was the precursorof numerousexpeditionswhich
were to culminatein the Britishcontrolof, first,
thewaterwaysand thenthe
interior.4At firstBritishofficialinterestin the interiorwas sporadic,being
1 Dike,K. O.: Trade
andPolitics
intheNiger
Delta.1830-1885
1956.
,Oxford,
2 Jones,
G. I., od.cit.
3 Stillard,
H.: TheRiseandDevelopment
TradeinPalmOil(Unpublished
oftheLegitimate
M.A.Thesis,
Birmingham,
1938).
4 Dike,K. O.,op. cit.,p. 62.
656

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confinedto givingoccasionalgun-boatsupportto Britishtraderswho took the

initiative
forpenetration.
The majorBritishtradinginterests
wereamalgamated
intotheUnitedAfricanCompanyin 1879,by whichtimemanyEuropeantrading stationshad alreadybeen establishedup-river,the most importantbeing
thoseat Aboh, Oguta and Onitsha.
In 1885theBritishGovernment
overtheNigerDistricts.
declareda protectorate
The area was definedto include"theterritories
on theline of coast betweenthe
BritishProtectorate
ofLagos and therightor westernbanksof Rio del Rey,and
theterritories
on bothbanksoftheNigerfromitsconfluence
up to and including
Ibi!" The action,whichmarkedthe beginningof nominalpoliticalcontrolof
the NigerDelta by the British,was followedin 1886 by the grantof a royal
charterto the National AfricanCompanyto administerthe part of the new
whereits main interestslay: the area borderingthe lowerNigerfor
territory
the
some280 milesfromthesea up to Lokoja.1 The new authoritystrengthened
hands of the Britishtradersin securinga footholdon the inlandstations.The
company,now renamedthe Royal Niger Company, proceeded by several
devices to exclude the coastal peoples fromthe river trade, choosing to
in the company'sarea of authorityand thusliable
regardthemas 'foreigners'
to buylicensesfortrade,pay tax as well as importand exportdutieson their
of all thiswas to increasetherateat whichthecentre
The effect
merchandise.2
of gravityof the trade shiftedfromthe coastal portsto the creek and river
stationsnowcontrolledbythecompany.
From the official
pointof viewthesystemof indirectcontrolprovedunsatisand
after
a
factory
period of indecisionBritainintroducedconsularadministrationin 1891and beganto pursuea deliberatepolicyforthedirectcontrolof
on theknown
The attackwastwo-pronged.
theinterior.
FirstlyEuropeanactivity
to
offered
Government
and
was
tradingcompanies
encouraged.
waterways urged
between40
leases ofland at nominalrents(60 yearsat annualrentals)varying
and 60accordingto thevolumeoftradeestablished.The greatproblemwas the
Cross Riverdistrict.Here Europeanactivityhad been muchslowerthanon the
century"thetradeof the district
Niger.3Untilthefirstdecade of thetwentieth
down-river
conducted
people: Efiks,Akunakunas,Inokus and natives
by
(was)
of Umon" who cameup to Calabar in theirbig canoes. Contraryto thepattern
on theNiger,tradefollowedtheflag.The energeticBritishHigh Commissioner,
Sir Ralph Moor setup a stationat Itu,thegreatriverportforAro trade,made
surveysand canvassedfirmsforlocationat suitablepoints- Itu, Afikpo,Atani,
lenturgency
Obrikom.The fearofpossibleGermanacquisitionofthehinterland
to theseefforts.4
1 Quoted
1885-1906
inTransition
J.C.: Southern
inAnene,
1966,
,Cambridge,
p. 67.
Nigeria
2 Glaway,
oftheBrassmen
"TheRising
SirHenry,
, 1935;
oftheAfrican
Society
,Journal
intheNigerDelta,
, a History
of Nembe-Brass
Alagoa,E. J.: TheSmallBraveCity-State
metwithreprisals
theimposition
strong
against
bytheBrassmen
Ibadan,1964.A revolt
elsewhere.
resistance
similar
to discourage
enough
3 Thetimelagbetween
and
the
Cross
River
in
ofEuropean
traders theNiger
theactivities
more
which
waslinked
oftheArotradesystem,
tothepersistence
contributed
waterways
thelatter.
with
4 Sir RalphMoor'sCorrespondence:
of theAfrican
Letters
to Secretaries
Association,
A. Miller
andBros,21Feb.1901( Calprof9/2
).
, Vol.1(IbadanArchives)
657

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A seriesofexpeditThe secondprongoftheattackwas mainlandpenetration.

ions weresentinlandfromtheOil Riverbases. The policywas to makeas many
to
journeysinlandas possibleeach dryseason,makingtreatiesand surveying;
establishstationswhencethese places could be revisited;and then to make
furtheradvance thefollowingyear.1Onlythetwo mainriverswerenavigable
farinland,buttheheads ofnavigationoftheriversand creeksprovidedstarting
pointsforthe inlandtreks.Officialbases wereestablishedat Akwete30 miles
up theImo riverfromOpobo, at Degema,thesame distanceup the Sombreiro
riverfromthecoast, as well as at Warriand Sapele in theWesternDelta. The
to theofficers
spiritand aims oftheexerciseare illustrated
bythememorandum
of the 'AquettahOpobo' expedition,whichinstructedthat
"in movingaboutthecountry
you shouldkeepyoureyesopento see ifthere
are anyrubbertreesor you can discernanyeconomicindigenousplantsor
products.The directionfromwhichtradecomes should be notedand inlaid down(to
quirymadeifthetraderoutesarefree... It mustbe distinctly
the natives)that all the roads and waterwaysof the countryare freefor
tradeand no tollsmustbe leviedon thoseusingthembecause theydon't
happento belongto thecountrythroughwhichtheypass".2
but by theturn
The incursionswerestrenuously
resistedby coastal interests
of thecenturytheBritishhad succeededin concluding'treaties'withnumerous
Ibo communitiesguaranteeingfreedomof trade,guaranteeswhich,however,
werenotalwaysrespected.
The twentieth
interest
fromexplorationto
centurysaw a shiftinBritishofficial
in
1901 and reached
The
were
started
'pacification'.
greatmilitaryexpeditions
theirhighmarkwiththedestruction
of theIbiniUkpabi shrineat Arochuku,an
act whichit was hoped would bringdownArochukuinfluence.3
By theend of
1906muchof Iboland had come undereffective
Britishoccupation.The British
oftradeand marketing.
One
regimeprovideda newcontextforthedevelopment
ofthefirsttaskswas theextensionofthesystemofwaterways
the
byclearing yet
The new and expandedmarketson the waterwaysdrew
unnavigablestretches.
in palmproducefromtheirimmediatehinterland
a widerangeof
and distributed
inland
an
the
The
further
was
merchandise.
area,
imported
greater theinfluence
oftheOld Arochukunetwork
to
British
thedestrucwhich,contrary
expectation,
tionoftheIbina Ukpabi had leftlargelyunimpaired.For theinlandpeoplesthe
a newexperience.Theywerepermanent
centres
Europeanfactoriesrepresented
and offereddaily opportunitiesfor exchange,in contrastto the traditional
withthedays,sincethepeoplehad to fitin
periodicmarkets.Businessfluctuated
1 Gertzel,
on theNigerCoast1852-1891",
C. J.:"Commercial
Leverhulme
Organisation
inTropical
1960:Historians
1962.
Inter-Collegiate
Conference
Africa
,
Salisbury,
2 Consular
8/2dated26Feb.1896(IbadanArchives).
Papers:Calprof
3 Anene,
J.C.: "TheProtectorate
ofSouthern
Government
andtheAros1901Nigeria
Journal
1902",
, 1956.
oftheHistorical
Society
ofNigeria
toAnene(p.21)theBritish
hadgradually
builtuptheideaofAroenmity
into
According
anobsession.
A Government
thattheAro
report
(Annual
Report
1899/1900)
complained
were"scattered
alloverthispart,sometimes
intwosandthrees,
sometimes
insettlements
from
theCrossRiverto theNiger. . . Theirinfluence
is predominant
overthesepagan
tribesandas theyhaveno goodto say abouttheGovernment,
theirpresence
is a
continued
thorn
inthesideoftheGovernment."
658

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marketingat the 'beach' withthe local periodicsystem.But withtheirgreat

and frequencythesecentresand theirassociated
advantagesof opportunity
marketsgrewrapidlyat theexpenseofthetraditionalmarkets.This was thehey
day of such tradingcentresas Ogruru,Aguleri,Oguta, Osomari.The old networkwas used moreexclusivelyforluxuryitemsand theclandestinetradein
of thenewdevelopments
was to enhancethe posislaves.On thecoasttheeffect
tionof theportswheretheBritishfirmshad theirwarehouses,at theexpenseof
theotherports.
severaloperating
baseswereset
In thecourseof thesubjugationof theinterior
districts
becameheadquartersof administrative
up some of whicheventually
Owerri,Bende,Awka, Okigwi,Aba, Afikpo,Abakaliki,Udi and Orlu. Some,
like Okpoga and Umuduruwerelaterabandonedin favourof othersites.The
stationseemto have been as follows:(1)
chiefcriteriaforsitinga Government
to thenextpost. The usual day's marchforGovernment
reasonableproximity
troopswas about 40 milesand thisis the averagedistancebetweenstations;
to a
; (3) proximity
country
(2) nodalityand ease of access to the surrounding
counthe
well
above
where
market;
surrounding
(4)
possible,highground
large
well-drained,
airy and pleasantsiteforthe official
tryto providea strategic,
centreswas a
of administrative
residencesand barracks.1The establishment
It
did
not
for
and
trade
greatlyaffectthe
marketing.
development
significant
externaltradenortheold marketsand routesassociatedwiththecoastal trade.
But it increasedthescope fortradein local producein theinterior,
particularly
a nucleus
The garrisonsand theadministrative
personnelconstituted
food-crops.
forfood.Traders
based populationdependenton thecountryside
ofa non-rural
and personsengagedin otherserviceoccupationsas well as menwho came in
station.2
as conscripted
labourall settledneartheGovernment
originally
The post-warperiodhas seen an accentuationof the trendsalreadyevident
betweenthetwo WorldWars,an accentuationdue in partto theexigenciesof
war and in partto theneweconomicconditionsof thepost-warera. Up to the
interest
was focussedon encouragingexport
SecondWorldWar Britishofficial
with
the
and
trade
metropolitancountry.The disruptionof
crop production
theneedforincreasedlocal producefor
and
war
the
normaltradeduring
years
and
led to theentryofnumerousspecialist
food
createdhigh
thewareffort
prices
food
market.War conditionsalso highthe
local
into
tradersand producers
in
food
productionand food prices,differences
lightedregionaldifferences
natureof the market.Price control
arisingpartlyfromthe as yetfragmented
measuresintroducedfortheprincipalfood cropsand abandonedafterthe war
of reducingabnormalpricegradientsforlocallyprodeffect
had thelong-term
thecreationofa regionalmarketforfoodstuffs.
uced foodsand thusfacilitating
Most ofthe"demobbed"soldiersreturned
The waralso acceleratedurbanisation.
not to returnto therurallife.They
and
a
determination
withcapital,newskills
into
in
tendedto remain thetowns,going
trade,or business.Some of themset
i SirRalphMoor'sCorrespondence
outStations
Government
ontheopening
upofAfikpo
C. Calprof
linesthese
9/2(IbadanArchives).
clearly.
requirements
2 Ottenberg,
P. J.and
Markets
1900-1960inBohanan,
P.: Afikpo
S. C.,andOttenberg,
inAfrica
Markets
Press,1962.
University
, North-Western
Dalton,G. (edited):
659

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THE IBO MARKETING

LANDSCAPE
3
Figure
of the post-warboom
up theirrelationsas well,as did someof thebeneficiaries
in tropicalagricultural
produce.
The most significant
post-wardevelopmentwas the revolutionin transport.
The railway,constructedbetween1914 and 1917,cut throughthe heartof the
Ibo countryto thenew-foundcoal minesat Enugu (laterto becomethecapital
ofEasternNigeria)and gave thisarea forthefirsttimedirectaccessto thecoast
at the Port Harcourtrailhead.Eventuallyit linkednorthwards
withthegrainand meat-producing
savanah countryof NorthernNigeria.From the pointof
viewoftheexternaltradethemostimportantresultof railwayconstruction
was
the establishment
of
the
route
firms
after
the
manner
of
the
along
European
riverainand coastal stations.Indeedso close was thesimilarity
thatthestations
were knownlocally as 'beaches' (and still are). These firmsrapidlyattracted
marketsand tradingcommunities
aroundthemand formedthenucleusof new
commericaltowns. Where,as at Aba, both administrative
and commercial
centrescoincided,thetwo functionshelpedeach otherout and theurbancomWheretherewas competitionbetweena commercialand an
munityflourished.
660

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administrative
centre,as betweenEnugu and Udi or betweenUmuahia and
Bende, the commercialcentreprevailed,eventuallytakingoverthe political
functionsofthevanquishedtown.
Up to the end of the twenties,the waterwaysand the railwayline bore the
was stillconsidering
In 1926the Government
bulk of thelong distancetraffic.
of buildingfeederrailwaylines fromOguta to Aba or Port
the practicability
Harcourt.1By the beginningof the thirties,however,it had become evident
in road transportwas necessaryto increaseproductionand
thatimprovement
awayfromboththewatertrade,thebulkofthepopulationbeingconcentrated
werepreparedbut had to be
waysand therailway.Plans forroad development
shelvedduringthewar.The post-warera saw a hugeroad buildingprogramme,
theroad mileagemore than doublingbetween1937 and I960.2 At the same
time the numberof motorvehiclesregisteredannuallyincreasedmore than
eleventimes.Road developmentled not only to a greaterintegrationof the
regionbutalso to a changein orientationof theinteriorareas fromthewaterwaysand railwayto the road system.The motorroad networktoday reflects
linksinIboland.The principalnodesareat thechief
theweaknessof centralising
urbanadministrative
centres,the nucleiof the system.In additionto thesea
centreson
as transportation
numberofruralcrossroadshavebecomeimportant
themoreheavilyused roads. Most oftheseare foundin theCentralIbo upland
ofroad junctionson theUdi
areas.Thereis also a relatively
highconcentration
River
and Ozalla, wherethe eastbetween
Nwollo,
Oji
Enugu Ngwo,
plateau
westrouteson thedip slopecrossthenorth-south
plateauroutes,butelsewhere
roadjunctionsare fewerand morewidelyspaced.Wherethedensityof theroad
- usually
networkis low and roadjunctionsfewthelocationof road junctions
thehead of a valley,a pass or interdetermined
bytopographicconsiderations,
sectionof ridges- tendsto developinto a ruralcentre.But the relationshipis
not alwaysthata road junctiondevelopsinto a ruralcentre.Thus Inyi is the
focusof a greatmanyroutesfromtheAwgu plateauas wellas fromacrossthe
Mamu valleylargelybecauseit alreadywas an importantruralmarket.On the
other hand Ngwo, Angara and Akeze are examples of centresdeveloping
because of the cross-roads.In places wherethe road alignmentis dominantly
linear- particularlyin the riverainand coastal plains area- cross-roadsare
as centres.The newroad
fewand farbetweenand are notnecessarily
significant
so that thereare two
routes
the
traditional
to
transverse
often
alignmentis
traditional
trade between
side:
the
side
of
movement
main types
by
existing
tradefocussed
the
distance
routes
and
the
traditional
long
nearbyregionsusing
the
are
thus
at
locations
The
road.
on themain
crossingpointsof the
important
routes.
of
twosystems
The pull of theroad has meantlocal changesin orientation.In areas of diswherethereis greaterfreedomto build the tendencyfornew
persedsettlement
on to themainroad hasbeen muchmorepronouncedthan
built
to
be
buildings
in EnuguArchives
is preserved
firms
withEuropean
i Thevoluminous
correspondence
Ref.C. 10/27.
2 Annual
Abstract
, I960, Lagos1903.
ofStatistics
661

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wheresocial pressuresobligemost people to

in areas of nucleatedsettlement
edifices
fine
new
alongsidethehumblerhutsof theirrelations.But
put up their
of the
concentration
is
towards
the overalltrend
along the road. Irrespective
amenities
all
the
new
settlement
schools,hospitals,dispensaries,
post
pattern
officesand so on are builton themain roads. Wherethetraditionalmarketis
has oftenmeanta moveto
locatedawayfromthenewroad,marketdevelopment
a new site on the road.
The presenteconomiclandscapeof Iboland derivesfromvarioustraditional
elementsand historicalprocesseswhichhavebeendescribed.The broadpatterns
institutions
in so faras it affects
of development
maybe summarised
marketing
was thetraditionalpatternof smallvillagegroups
The basic framework
briefly.
withinternalmarketingsystemsbased on periodicgroup marketsand, in a
economy,concernedmainlywithexchangesbetween
largelyundifferentiated
masses of peasant producers-cum-consumers.
Intergroupexchange led to
of certainmarketswithinthe group systems.Throughthese
differentiation
The resulting
chainswereinterlocked.
marketsthevariousmarketing
intergroup
but
and stabilityofthegroupsystems,
chainsdid nothave thesocial recognition
tradetraditional
changedwithcompetitionbetweenmarkets.For long-distance
societydepended on specialisttradingcommunities,notablythe Arochuku
ofcompeople,whoseactivitiestook on newimportancewiththeestablishment
mercialcontactswithEuropeanmerchants
tradingon thecoast. Rural periodic
in relationto thelong distanceand their
differentiated
marketsbecamefurther
to thetraderoutes.In certainareas new marketswerefounded.The
proximity
creationof theAgbagwufairsintroduceda thirdorderintotheruralmarketing
WithEuropean penetrationinto and thesubsequentcontrolof the
hierarchy.
thesystemof specialisttradersdeclined,theold traderoutesgivingway
interior,
to newtrade centreson the waterwayswhichfringeIboland, and eventually
on the railwayand motorroads. The creationofadministrative
centres,urban
closer
of
the
entire
area
stimulatedthe
and
the
internal
integration
development
of
local
of
food
and
increases
in
inter-regional
production
growth specialised
- thedailyshop
a new typeof institution
trade.The European tradeintroduced
- into the marketing
or warehouse
landscape.Most of theseare located in the
towns, but some are now to be foundin ruralcentresnot alwayson thesiteof
existingmarkets.On theotherhandmarketplaces became establishedon the
newurbanand tradecentres.
are partof a continuingprocessin there-ordering
of the
These developments
spatial structureof the Ibo economy,a processwhichis paralleledin other
froma tradpartsof thedevelopingworldin thecourseof thetransformation
itionalto a modernsocietyand economy.

662

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