The Federal Republic of Nigeria
Located in the west of Africa, housing a city with major attractions in the country as the Nigerian National Mosque and the Nigerian National Christian Centre, it is safe to say that Nigeria has a prosperous ethnic diversity housing 250 ethnic groups of which there three in 250 ethnic groups are predominant which are the Hausa, Yoruba and the Igbo. Amongst other predominant tribes the Edo, Ijaw and the Kanuri are three major tribes of six major tribes (Maps of World, 2014: Internet).
Likewise to the constitution of Nigeria, which supports the freedom of religion of the citizens of Nigeria and other citizens, Nigeria is (although others oppose) a multi- religious country. Half of the country which is fifty
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Ethno-religious conflicts, have managed to give birth to various militants, to mention a few; Igbo People Congress (IPC), the Egbesu Boys and a great deal of other militants. It is but true to note that it is not possible identify the precise number of ethno-religious conflict that occur of have occurred and this is due to the lack of satisfactory data on this subject [Salawu, 2010: 345].
Ethno Religious Conflicts
Salawu [2010: 46] defines ethno-religious conflict as a situation whereby, the relationship among members of one ethnic or religious group and others of such groups in a multi-ethnic and multi-religious society are categorized by lack of affability, mutual suspicion, more like the state of nature as Hobbes would regard such a setting, full of fear and aversion and a propensity towards violent confrontation. Ethnicity and religious intolerance have become the point of multiple forms of self-rule ranging from the proclamation of the language barrier, cultural independence and religious dominance. These have been seen to lead to a contextual discrimination of conflict between, one ethnic or religious group against another on differentials on the biases of systems of socio-cultural symbols and religion. In a state like Nigeria where there are multiple ethnic and religious groups with some relative discrimination, how relationships are characterized is by lack of affability and fear. Ethno-religious conflicts in Nigeria date back as far as the 1980s
There have been many situations in which religion and race has led to major conflict and massacres. These types of conflicts are still happening today, however, they have been happening for centuries.
Ever seen something that may look odd to you? Or someone that shows up and you seem to wonder why they’re doing what they’re doing? Do you feel a little unpleasant about their actions? That’s totally normal, because that’s what we call cultural collision. In the book Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, he shows how cultural collision affected the Ibo culture in Nigeria because of colonization and the arrival of Europeans who brought forth a new religion, a new lifestyle and ways that challenge the Ibo culture. The conflict in Things Fall Apart is the struggle between change and tradition. Chinua Achebe demonstrates Okonkwo’s daily life as a struggle to resist changing from
40% of sub-Saharan countries have experienced civil war largely because of differences in cultural and political beliefs. On prominent African civil war existed in Nigeria where after gaining their independence, cultural differences led the Ibo people to rebel against the government and declare independence as the Republic of Biafra. “A 3 year war ensued that left hundreds of thousands dead” (Ellis and Esler 1030). Similar wars existed in countries throughout the continent, greatly hurting Africa’s economic
I belong to a group called the Yoruba Tribe. This is a group known for its large population and dominance of the western part of Nigeria. The Yoruba’s believe their tribe is the best. Of course, every tribe think themselves into believing that their tribe is the best. The Yoruba despises some other tribes, but the ones they cannot stand are the Igbo. The Igbo are known for two things, which are the dominance of the Eastern part of Nigeria and trade. They are perceived to lack manners and culture. The Yoruba’s can relate to other tribe through religions like Islam, Christianity and traditionally believes while the Igbos are known mainly for two religions which are Christianity and traditional believe. Just like
Ethnic conflict is the dominant security issue of our time, 75 percent of all new conflicts are ethnic. Since 1989, ethnic conflict has killed at least 3.5 million and displaced 26 million people. Almost all ethnic conflicts, especially in the 21st century, occur in post-colonial settings. Colonialism is why we have ethnic conflicts, especially in Africa. There are many factors contributing to post-colonial ethnic conflict, however some have more influence over the others. I argue that during colonialism, the intraethnic and interethnic divisions that led to the creation of different types of ethnic groups, and unequal treatment by colonial rule led to ethnic conflict in post-colonial settings.
The concepts of order, hierarchy, and religion are the most important components of the Igbo society. These concepts are so profoundly entrenched in society that their alteration could result in chaos. The introduction of a new religion as a result of Westernization serves as a catalyst for destructive cultural change, which ultimately results in contrasting cultural traditions that compromise existing core values. In Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe describes the impact Christianity has on the Igbo society, that causes the modification of its native traditions.
This religion takes up about 42.8% of the nation’s total population. Other religions throughout the country include Catholic, Muslim, Vodoun, and Protestant. Most adherents of the Yoruba religious group are located in the south, whereas the other African Religion beliefs are found more in the north and southeast.
A major aspect of one’s society is religion. Without it, the way people hold themselves accountable would be nonexistent. In addition, many moral standards that exist today are values taken directly from religions such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Currently, there exists a feud between people who believe in a god, and of those who do not. Eventually those who believe in a higher power will fight against each other. In “Things Fall Apart”, Chinua Achebe brings to light the differences and similarities of Christianity and Animism in order to demonstrate the effects of religion upon one’s society, which is exemplified by Okonkwo and his people. This is noticed in the lives of the Ibo, the missionaries, and
In Nigeria, the main ethnic group from Ekiti, Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Osun and Oyo States are the Yoruba. You can also find Yoruba in Kwara, Kogi, and Edo States, but here the communities are not so big.
In the novel “Things Fall Apart”, by Chinua Achebe, one of the main aspects of the Ibo community was religion, before the pre-colonization of Nigeria. After the White Man known as the British took over, it caused many people of the Ibo community to betray their religious beliefs, causing people to change to their religion, Christianity that is more acceptable in many aspects.
It has been establish that a country with abundant ethnicity does not mean that it is fated to be in conflict. Nigeria
Nigeria is located on the western coast of Africa, surrounded by Benin, Cameroon, and Niger. This country is known to have one of the largest populations among the African countries. Falola (3) says that not only it has large population, but also its land size is a little bigger than the size of the U.S. state of Texas. Nigeria has about 170 million residences which is about half of current population in United States. In other words, Nigeria has a very dense population regarding its size of land. Within 170 million people, there are twelve dominant ethnic groups, such as Yoruba, Hausa, Igbo, Fulani and etc., and about 200 more distinct ethnic groups are present. Therefore, hundreds of different languages are also used in Nigeria. Lastly,
Conflict of ideas consists of ethnic, religious, ideological, territorial, governmental, and economic. According to Goldstein and Pevehouse (2014), “the first three are conflicts over ideas, the last three conflict over interests” (p. 160). Throughout the world, ethnic conflict is the most important source of conflict as it is large groups of people who share ancestral, language, cultural, or religious ties and a common identity. Thus, this is not based on tangible causes, but on intangible ones. Goldstein and Pevehouse (2014) stated that “fundamentalist religious movements pose a broad challenge to the rules of the international system in general and state sovereignty in particular” (p. 188). Religious conflicts are intangible, as everyone’s religious practices are different and often transcend material grievances. Although some religious groups coexist peacefully, religions involve core values and held as absolute truth for
This paper reflects the novel “Things Fall Apart” written by Chinua Achebe in 1958. Achebe gives an overview of pre-colonialism and post-colonialism on Igbo, detailing how local traditions and cultural practices can “fall apart” in some scenarios through some introduced, externally created hassles elevated because of colonization. The protagonist named Okonkwo mentioned in the story is a proof showing the lifestyle of the tribe. My main objective and focus is to lay emphasis on Africa specifically the Igbo society, before and after the arrival of the Europeans in Umuofia community; the results of their arrival concerning Igbo culture, thus leading to the clash of cultures between the two categories. I will also draw on post-colonialism with respect to globalization.
hostilities as well attacks by militant organizations.” [ Siddiqui , 2015 , Pg 6 ]