ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This book has been long in the making. The impetus for the book stems from my study of gender relations focusing on widowhood practices among the Igbo of Eastern Nigeria in 1996. During that research, I found that various aspects of rural life, including social and cultural practices, were interlinked with the economic life of the people. The research also raised important questions about the economy and rural livelihoods in a transforming society. Although I was interested in the cultural aspects of widowhood, it was apparent that widowhood practices had been influenced by external factors, including colonialism, Westernization, and new economic structures that had their origins in the increased commercialization of agriculture in the early parts of the twentieth century. The increased importance of palm produce (oil and kernels) for the European market in particular led to significant changes among the Igbo, including the commoditization of land and changes in gender relations of production. The changes that emerged and the impact of colonial construction of new economic and social formations necessary to achieve increased export production, as well as the responses of rural people in a predominantly agrarian economy, piqued my interest. How did official policies and attitudes influence the nature of agricultural change among the Igbo of southeastern Nigeria? I sought to answer this question by exploring official agricultural policy and its influences through a multi-layered study of the Igbo of southeastern Nigeria. I was convinced that official perceptions about the local agricultural environment, the mode of production, and the role of colonial subjects – male and female – represented a narrow understanding of the local production system of the Igbo and how the culture affected economic life. The structure of the local production pattern was more complex than officials conceptualized it. By examining the historically important role that agriculture played in the encounter between the Igbo and the British colonial government, I sought to clarify the ways state policies transformed agriculture and, in particular, how local people responded to the transformation of the local society.
I owe a huge debt of gratitude to several people who made this book possible. Let me start by expressing such gratitude to Professor Martin Klein. His support when I was a graduate student at the University of Toronto gave me the courage to pursue this dream. He read the early drafts of this book and offered useful insights. Marty and his wife Susan shared their home with me on many occasions and I remain grateful for their continued friendship. I would also like to express my thanks to Professor Michael Levin. The Levins offered me accommodation for a full semester on my return from field work in 2001. I thank them immensely for their assistance.
I would also like to thank the African Research Center, Leiden, Netherlands, for a visiting fellowship in 2007 that enabled me to complete the manuscript. The British Academy fellowship at Oxford University in 2008 gave me the opportunity to explore additional resources at Rhodes House and to revise the manuscript. I am grateful to my hosts: the African Studies Center and St. Anthony’s College for supporting me during the period of my fellowship. Professor David Anderson, the Director of the African Studies Center and Dr. David Pratten, made the trip possible, and I thank them immensely.
Several people read my proposal and early drafts of the manuscript. I am particularly grateful to Professors U. D. Anyanwu, John Inikori, Toyin Falola, the late Ogbu Kalu, Dmitri van den Bersselaar, Dorothy Ukaegbu, and Faye Harrison, for their insightful comments and criticism. I owe a lot of debt to the staff of Enugu and Calabar archives. I have used both archives over several years and have developed enduring friendships. I thank the former director of the Enugu archives, Dr. U. Esse, and the current director, Chief Nsoro, for their assistance. Other staffs of both archives have been of immense assistance during my research and I thank them. At Marquette, the chair of the history department, James Marten, and my other colleagues have offered encouragement and support.
Finally I want to thank my family for their support. Akunna and Chidi deserve my sincere gratitude for putting up with my frequent absences while I conducted the research and wrote this book. I cannot repay such a debt. My father was an inspiration and I dedicate this work to him. My mother and siblings gave me more love and support than I could ask for. I especially want to thank my sister Adanna, her husband Mazi Onuegbu, and their children; my uncle, Rev. T.A.U. Iwuh, his wife Kate, and their children, for their hospitality during my many research visits to Nigeria. I am grateful to my research assistants, Mrs. Kate Emmanuel and Henry Onyema, for assistance during fieldwork in Nigeria. I benefited from the support of many other family members and friends in the process of writing this book: Bobby, Mama Charity Ihediwa, Uloaku and Niyi Adesun, Raph Njoku, Ebby Madera, Bright and Ijeoma Okoronkwo, Ifeanyi Ezeonu, Anayo Okorie and his family, Naomi Diptee, Ndu Life Njoku, Dr. Ugwuanya Nwosu and Patience, Bill Carrigan and Emily Blanck of Rowan University, and Christopher Obiukwu. I thank them sincerely for their support and enduring friendship.
I am very grateful to the staff at University of Calgary Press for their enthusiasm and for the insightful comments of my editor John King throughout the production of this book.
In the process of writing this book, I have come to respect the men and women I met and interacted with in the Igbo countryside. Their tenacity and resilience and their ability to cope amidst significant stress on their households and communities amaze me. I learnt valuable life lessons from them, especially the importance of listening to other voices – those often at the margins of society – in reconstructing the history of rural societies. The voices and criticism I received from readers helped to improve the manuscript, but I remain responsible for the imperfections that it contains and its contribution to the scholarship.
Map of Igboland