Nigeria, Nationalism, and Writing History

375 Pages·2011·5.75 MB·English

by  Toyin Falola

the second half of the twentieth century saw the publication of massive
amounts of literature on Nigeria by Nigerian and non-Nigerian historians.
This volume reflects on that literature, focusing on those works by Nigerians
in the context of the rise and decline of African nationalist historiography. Given
the diminishing output of literature on Africa by African historians, it has become N
a
crucial to reintroduce Africans to historical writing about Africa. As the authors
Ni
attempt here to rescue older voices, they also rehabilitate a stale historiography g
by revisiting the issues, ideas, and moments that produced it. This revivalism d
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also challenges Nigerian historians of the twenty-first century to study the nation
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in new ways, to comprehend its modernity, and to frame a new set of questions
on Nigeria’s future and globalization. i
ra
In spite of current problems in Nigeria and its universities, that
historical scholarship on Nigeria (and by extension, Africa) has come of age is i,
t
indisputable. From a country that struggled for Western academic recognition N
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in the 1950s to one that by the 1980s had emerged as one of the most studied Na
countries in Africa, Nigeria not only is one of the early birthplaces of modern
t
g
African history but has also produced members of the first generation of
i
African historians whose contributions to the development and expansion of Ho
modern African history is undeniable. Like their counterparts working on other
N
i
parts of the world, these scholars have been sensitive to the need to explore
sa
virtually all aspects of Nigerian history. The book highlights the careers of some
t
of these Nigerian historians of the first and second generation. l
o
i
rs
“The authors examine the trajectories of Nigerian historiography and the
m
contributions of Nigerian historians to African history with an original turn of y
mind and compelling analysis. The volume—produced by a master and his ,

academic son—is yet another classic that will remain a major contribution to

the development of African studies.”
—C. B. N. Ogbogbo, Fellow of the Historical Society of Nigeria,
Department of History, University of Ibadan
F
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“A powerful panorama of Nigerian historians past and present. . . . And looking l
o
to the future, Falola and Aderinto point to Nigeria’s vast, fabulously rich, and
l
largely untapped historical-resource heritage that cries out for exploration and a
mapping. A majestic and valuable contribution.”
a
n
—Michael Vickers, historian, poet, and author of the recent acclaimed
A Nation Betrayed—Nigeria and the Minorities Commission of 1957 (2010) d

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Toyin Falola is University Distinguished Professor and the Frances d
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Higginbotham Nalle Centennial Professor in History at the University of Texas
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at Austin, and the Mwalimu Julius Nyerere Chair of Modern African History i
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at Large, Benue State University, Nigeria. Saheed aderinTo is assistant
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professor of history at Western Carolina University. o Nigeria, NatioNalism,
Cover art: Time Traveler by Aderonke A. Adesanya
Cover design: Frank Gutbrod aNd WritiNg History
Toyin Falola and Saheed aderinTo
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Falola/Aderinto_cover.indd 1 11/29/10 7:31:44 AM
Nigeria, Nationalism,
and Writing History
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Nigeria, Nationalism,
and Writing History
Toyin Falola and Saheed Aderinto
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Copyright © 2010 by Toyin Falola and Saheed Aderinto
All rights reserved. Except as permitted under current legislation, no
part of this work may be photocopied, stored in a retrieval system,
published, performed in public, adapted, broadcast, transmitted,
recorded, or reproduced in any form or by any means, without the
prior permission of the copyright owner.
First published 2010
University of Rochester Press
668 Mt. Hope Avenue, Rochester, NY 14620, USA
www.urpress.com
and Boydell & Brewer Limited
PO Box 9, Woodbridge, Suffolk IP12 3DF, UK
www.boydellandbrewer.com
ISBN-13: 978-1-58046-358-4
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Falola, Toyin
Nigeria, nationalism, and writing history / Toyin Falola and Saheed Aderinto
p. cm. —
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 1-58046-358-4 (hardcover: alk. paper)
1. Nationalism and historiography—Nigeria. 2. Nigeria—historiography. I. Title.
DT515.55 F35 2010
966'. 90072—dc22
2010038143
A catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library.
This publication is printed on acid-free paper.
Printed in the United States of America.
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For our wives, Olabisi Falola and Olamide Aderinto
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Boydell & Brewer
University of Rochester Press

Chapter Title: Table of Contents

Book Title: Nigeria, Nationalism, and Writing History
Book Author(s): Toyin Falola and Saheed Aderinto
Published by: Boydell & Brewer, University of Rochester Press. (2010)
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7722/j.ctt81wzc.2

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Contents
Preface ix
Acknowledgments xv
Part One: The Foundation of Knowledge
1 A Preface to Academic Historiography 3
2 K. O. Dike and the National Archives of Nigeria 27
Part Two: Varieties of History
3 Political History 37
4 Economic History 53
5 Social History 68
6 Women’s History and the Reconfiguration of Gender 82
Part Three: Nationalist Historians and Their Work
7 Adiele Afigbo: Igbo, Nigerian, and African Studies 99
8 J. F. Ade Ajayi: Missionaries, Warfare, and Nationalism 115
9 J. A. Atanda: Yoruba Ethnicity 129
10 Bolanle Awe: Yoruba and Gender Studies 143
11 Obaro Ikime: Intergroup Relations and the Search for Nigerians 157
12 G. O. Olusanya: Contemporary Nigeria 171
13 Tekena N. Tamuno: Pan-Nigeriana 184
14 Yusufu Bala Usman: Radicalism and Neocolonialism 200
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viii Contents
Part Four: Reflections on History and the Nation-State
15 Nigeria in the World of African Historiography 215
16 Fragmented Nation and Fragmented Histories 239
Notes 265
Selected Bibliography 309
Index 327
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