325:
136:
301:
102:
156:
120:
187:, were essentially coalitions of these individual city-states. Due to this, a great deal of local power was concentrated in the hands of rulers that remained almost permanently in their capitals. These rulers had sacred functions - a number of them were even considered to be sacred themselves - and therefore often lived in seclusion as a result. Their nobles, both hereditary and otherwise, typically also had functions that were tied to the religious traditions of the kingdoms that they served.
86:
369:, their relative antiquity, how expensive they are to acquire, whether or not they are hereditary, and a number of other such customary determinants are commonly used to ascribe hierarchical positions. A number of kingdoms also make use of colour-coded regalia to denote either allegiance to particular title societies or individual rank within them. Examples of this phenomenon include the
35:
364:
Chieftaincy titles are often of differing grades, and are usually ranked according to a variety of diverse factors. Whether or not they are recognized by the government, whether they are traditionally powerful or purely honorary, what the relative positions of the title societies that they belong to
248:
in
Nigeria during the 19th century, the anti-European chiefs used a variety of tactics to work against foreign influence, utilizing both direct and indirect forms. The colonial government responded by favouring the pro-European chiefs and supporting more amenable claimants to the Nigerian titles in
240:
During the early
European forays into Africa, Nigerian chiefs - both monarchs and nobles - came to be divided into two opposing camps: the anti-European chiefs on the one end (who wanted nothing to do with the Europeans and wanted them to leave, by war if necessary) and the pro-European chiefs (who
223:
As a general rule titles did not always pass from father to son; many royal and noble families did however provide a number of titleholders over several generations. In the south, the titles held by nobles were often not the same ones as those that had been held by others in their lineages. Some
227:
Although dominated by the titled men mentioned above, several kingdoms also had parallel traditions of exclusively-female title societies that operated in partnership with their male counterparts. Others would reserve specially created titles, such as the
361:- and by way of them official recognition - from the governors of the states of the Federation as the culminations of their coronation and investiture rites. Thus installed, they then have the power to install inferior chiefs themselves.
249:
an attempt to frustrate the anti-European chiefs. Minor wars were fought with the anti-European chiefs, while pro-European chiefs prospered through trade with
Britain and so were politically safe as a result. During the
356:
and their titled subordinates currently derive their powers from various Chiefs' Laws, which are official parts of the body of contemporary
Nigerian laws. As a result, the highly ranked amongst them typically receive
261:, which involved native chiefs becoming part of the administrative structure to ease administrative costs. Through this method, the colonial government was able to avoid any rebellions against its authority.
194:. These bodies combined the aforementioned priestly functions with judicial ones, and also traditionally provided advisers to the monarchs in question. Some of these societies, like
288:- were all royals or nobles in the Nigerian chieftaincy system. This has continued to operate since their time as a locally controlled honours system alongside its
224:
chiefs had even been untitled slaves, and therefore had had no titled forebears prior to their eventual ascension to the ranks of the aristocracy.
269:
77:, the chieftaincy as a whole is one of the oldest continuously existing institutions in Nigeria and is legally recognized by its government.
289:
210:, the emirates of the old caliphate were usually divided into districts, and these districts were in turn ruled by nobles known as
241:
favoured maintaining friendly relations with the
Europeans, even if it meant sacrificing certain amounts of political power).
190:
In the South, the nobles ruled the states on a day-to-day basis on behalf of their monarchs by way of a series of initiatory
28:
20:
751:
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206:, have survived to the present day as aristocratic social clubs within their respective tribes. Meanwhile, in the
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268:, which was part of its lawmaking system. These houses have since been replaced by the largely ceremonial
882:
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443:
353:
19:"Nigerian aristocracy", "Nigerian chiefs", and "Nigerian chieftaincy" redirect here. For other uses, see
624:
The Roots Of
Political Instability In Nigeria: Political Evolution and Development in the Niger Basin
135:
756:
305:
352:, one-time presidents of Nigeria, have belonged to the noble stratum of the Nigerian chieftaincy.
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273:
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The
History of the Yorubas, from the Earliest Times to the Beginning of the British Protectorate
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nationally controlled counterpart, which is itself within the gift of the
Federal Government
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Following
Nigeria's independence in 1960, each federated unit of the country had a
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Today, many prominent
Nigerians aspire to the holding of a title. Both Chief
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837:"Traditional Institutions and Traditional Rulers in National Development"
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253:, anti-European chiefs were slowly replaced with pro-European ones, and
705:"Native Authorities and Local Government Reforms in Nigeria Since 1914"
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752:"Jeje Oladele and others versus Oba Adekunle Aromolaran II and others"
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Nigerian Political Parties: Power In An Emergent African Nation
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272:. In addition, many of the founding fathers and mothers of the
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596:"In Pictures: Country of Kings, Nigeria's many monarchs"
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Nigerian pre-colonial states tended to be organized as
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638:"The Most Prominent Secret Societies In Nigeria"
69:. Consisting of everything from the country's
737:Ebenezer Obadare and Wale Adebanwi (2011),
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739:Nigeria At Fifty: The Nation In Narration
679:"Gender and Female Chieftaincy in Anioma"
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276:- including the leading troika of Chief
257:came to be governed by a system known as
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312:, his wife Aduke, daughters Atinuke and
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171:. The empires that did exist, like the
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220:) that were subject to the monarchs.
29:Nigerian chieftaincy (disambiguation)
21:Nigerian aristocracy (disambiguation)
702:
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703:Egbe, Enyi John (1 January 2014).
677:Uchendu, Egodi (22 January 2006).
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16:The chieftaincy system of Nigeria
805:"Nigerians go crazy for a title"
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244:At the point of the increase in
25:Nigerian chiefs (disambiguation)
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803:Ewokor, Chris (1 August 2007).
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444:Nigerian traditional rulers
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354:Nigerian traditional rulers
336:, speaking at Asbury Hall,
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724:Sklar, Richard L. (2004),
365:(if any) are in the royal
113:14th and 16th Emir of Kano
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18:
835:Adedokun (3 April 2017).
93:, the 1st Amanyanaboh of
65:system that is native to
663:Johnson, Samuel (1921),
306:Antonio Deinde Fernandez
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868:Social class in Nigeria
561:Social class in Nigeria
237:, for their womenfolk.
149:Western House of Chiefs
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141:Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti
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841:The Palace of Oke-Ila
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73:to its titled family
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404:Nigerian sovereigns
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308:, the Apesin Ola of
163:, an Oloye of Lagos.
59:Nigerian Chieftaincy
379:White-Capped Chiefs
350:Umaru Musa Yar'Adua
251:Scramble for Africa
109:Muhammadu Sanusi II
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783:worldstatesmen.org
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173:Kanem-Borno empire
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604:. 13 October 2013
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647:. Retrieved
643:The Guardian
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606:. Retrieved
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518:Other Chiefs
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286:Ahmadu Bello
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125:Jaja Wachuku
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888:Upper class
683:Asian Women
476:Ooni of Ife
348:and Alhaji
169:city-states
63:chieftaincy
862:Categories
846:17 October
831:Abolarin,
816:16 October
788:17 October
763:17 October
710:16 October
688:16 October
649:17 October
608:16 October
544:Nze na Ozo
340:, in 2008.
203:Nze na Ozo
177:Oyo empire
47:18th Eleko
728:, p. 234.
534:Eso Ikoyi
464:Etsu Nupe
810:BBC News
741:, p. 32.
667:, p. 70.
626:, p. 63.
601:BBC News
555:See also
426:Colonial
394:Monarchs
377:and the
375:Igboland
314:Abimbola
310:Egbaland
280:, Chief
183:and the
129:Ngwaland
71:monarchs
498:Eze Nri
234:Iyalode
218:Hakimai
147:of the
123:Prince
81:History
67:Nigeria
61:is the
539:Ogboni
529:Hakimi
524:Waziri
449:Lamido
408:Lamido
328:Chief
304:Chief
230:Yoruba
213:Hakimi
197:Ogboni
179:, the
175:, the
159:Chief
139:Chief
111:, the
106:Alhaji
91:Jaja I
75:elders
45:, the
27:, and
549:Ichie
383:Lagos
334:Ogidi
296:Today
216:(pl.
208:North
145:Oloye
143:, an
95:Opobo
89:King
51:Lagos
848:2019
818:2019
790:2019
765:2019
712:2019
690:2019
651:2019
610:2019
200:and
57:The
41:Sir
833:Oba
493:Eze
471:Oba
418:Eze
413:Oba
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373:of
49:of
39:Oba
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