Search

While many studies have been devoted to interrogating the political history of the centralized Igala society and the enormous influence of the Atta and Achadu institutions on the Igbo polity and economy, little scholarly attention has been paid to analyzing, in reverse order, the influence of Igbo culture on the Igala society. Despite the precarious placement of women in traditional Igala-Igbo Nsukka borderland, the Umu-ada (women) institution represents one of the means through which women organize and assert power while promoting collective peace, security, development and socio-cultural transformation. We argue that the diffusion and adaptation of Umuada heritage in this region is traceable to geography, the influence of inter-ethnic marriage, trade, burial and funeral rites. The similarities and differences in organization and impact of this women institution in both Igbo Nsukka and Igala communities are appraised to show the preponderance of cultural dispersals in contemporary Nigeria. This paper relied on the use of both primary and secondary data. Primary data was obtained through oral interviews with aged Umuada (women) members of Igbo Nsukka-Igala communities including men. Oral data were intermeshed with secondary literature, especially published books and journal articles. The collected data were qualitatively analyzed using the cultural diffusion theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the background to Ghana's search for peaceful co-existence with Cote d'Ivoire after its attainment of independence in 1957. Relying mainly on information from archival and secondary documents and using the qualitative analysis technique, the article provides insights into the creation of the Cote d'Ivoire-Ghana international boundary. It investigates the landscapes of the kingdoms, empires and states between Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana that have been caught up in the complex geopolitical boundary problems and challenges. It also assesses the sustainability of the land conflict redress policies championed by Ghanaian governments. The study finds that colonial boundary issues worsened under Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana's first president, compelling him to createa bound aryre-demarcation commission to resolve boundary issues. Border disputes persisted, necessitating the creation of another boundary re-demarcation commission in 1968. Relative peaceful Cote d'Ivoire-Ghana relation shave since persisted, which is attributable, partly to the work of the Commission. One wonders if the relative peace is sustainable without a longer lasting scheme. This article examines the boundary issue and contributes to the study of Ghana's relations with Cote d'Ivoire and colonial boundary issues in Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Historical studies since the 1970s have emphasized the impact of colonialism on African women, but surprisingly little attention has been paid to colonial endeavors to improve women's conditions in the colonized countries. Since the 1970s, especially following Ester Boserup's perception that women's development during the colonial era was more about 'training for the home,' historians have redirected their conclusions about the causes of change in African women's economic lives. Studies of colonial policies and their generally positive implications for women under colonialism have been largely neglected. Colonialism has frequently been regarded as an arbitrary force, a system imposed on indigenous societies, though in practice it was not completely authoritarian, one-sided, or all-imposing. It involved a wide range of policies, including policies on women in the colonizer's home country and the colonized country. The colonial experience involved social, economic, and cultural transformation, not necessarily exploitation of resources and oppression. Against this background, this article examines the policies employed by the British colonial administration to improve women's welfare in the Gold Coast colony to ascertain how these policies affected postcolonial decision making on women in the Gold Coast. The article interrogates the ways in which power and authority were exercised in improving women's general living conditions in the Gold Coast and the reasons for colonial authorities' seemingly small achievements in educational, health, and welfare issues involving women. The article makes a case that, though standards of education and traditional beliefs affected the British colonial administration's policies on women's development, the colonizers through sheer determination succeeded in improving the welfare of women and children., Introduction The history of women on the African continent was until recent times too small to have any significant impact on mainstream African history. Historians interested in women's history received [...]

This article examines the background to transformations in the traditional funeral rites of the Ga ethnic group of Accra, the capital city of Ghana. It finds that major changes in Ga customs and traditions began appearing in the late nineteenth century, when colonial authorities moved the capital of the then Gold Coast from Cape Coast to Accra, the core of the Ga traditional communities. Although important political, social, and economic changes were to be expected, customs and tradition, in particular, underwent considerable changes. This article, using qualitative, historical, and ethnographic methods, examines how factors associated with growth and modernization in Accra, especially after World War II, helped transform Ga cultural practices. It helps explain the importance of multidisciplinary research and contributes to studies in the interrelations of modernization, custom, and tradition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper interrogates the historical background to the diarchy system of rule in the Odomase traditional area in the Brong-Ahafo Region of Ghana. Relying on archival documents complemented by interviews, the research reveals that unlike chieftaincy forms in other traditional Ghanaian societies, the people of Odomase have a completely different practice in electing chiefs. The two royal houses have the endorsement of central government to elect two candidates to be installed concurrently as chiefs for the traditional area. The authors argue that the dual chieftaincy arrangement in Odomase, despite its seeming challenges, is the best solution to address the intractable conflict in the traditional polity of the area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]