HDNigeriaPODLITH.qxd 6/15/09 11:09 AM Page 1 FALOLA & GENOVA Africa History HISTORICAL DICTIONARIES OF AFRICA, NO. 111 Since establishing independence in 1960, Nigeria has undergone tremendous change shaped by political instability, rapid population growth, and economic turbulence. Historical Dictionary of Nigeria introduces Nigeria’s rich and complex history and includes a wealth of information on such important contemporary issues as AIDS, human H rights, petroleum, and faith-based conflict. i s n t o In their thorough and comprehensive coverage of Nigeria, Toyin r Falola and Ann Genova provide a chronology, an introductory essay, i i a bibliography, and more than 500 cross-referenced dictionary entries c g on notable people, places, events, and cultural practices, with an a l emphasis on Nigeria’s post-1990 developments. Many of the dictio- nary’s entries highlight Nigeria’s relationship to its West African neigh- e D bors and its membership in international organizations, such as the i c AU, OPEC, and the UN. r t i o Toyin Falolais the Francis Higginbotham Nalle Professor of History NIGERIA n i at the University of Texas at Austin. He is the author of numerous works a a on Nigeria, including the award-winning memoir A Mouth Sweeter r than Salt. y o Ann Genova is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Texas at f Austin. She is an editor and contributor to several works on Nigeria’s history and culture. For orders and information please contact the publisher SCARECROW PRESS, INC. TOYIN FALOLA A wholly owned subsidiary of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc. ANN GENOVA 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200 Lanham, Maryland 20706 1-800-462-6420 • fax 717-794-3803 www.scarecrowpress.com HISTORICAL DICTIONARIES OF AFRICA Edited by Jon Woronoff 1. Cameroon, by Victor T. Le Vine and Roger P. Nye. 1974. Out of print. See No. 48. 2. The Congo, 2nd ed., by Virginia Thompson and Richard Adloff. 1984. Out of print. See No. 69. 3. Swaziland, by John J. Grotpeter. 1975. 4. The Gambia, 2nd ed., by Harry A. Gailey. 1987. Out of print. See No. 79. 5. Botswana, by Richard P. Stevens. 1975. Out of print. See No. 70. 6. Somalia, by Margaret F. Castagno. 1975. Out of print. See No. 87. 7. Benin (Dahomey), 2nd ed., by Samuel Decalo. 1987. Out of print. See No. 61. 8. Burundi, by Warren Weinstein. 1976. Out of print. See No. 73. 9. Togo, 3rd ed., by Samuel Decalo. 1996. 10. Lesotho, by Gordon Haliburton. 1977. Out of print. See No. 90. 11. Mali, 3rd ed., by Pascal James Imperato. 1996. Out of print. See No. 107. 12. Sierra Leone, by Cyril Patrick Foray. 1977. 13. Chad, 3rd ed., by Samuel Decalo. 1997. 14. Upper Volta, by Daniel Miles McFarland. 1978. 15. Tanzania, by Laura S. Kurtz. 1978. 16. Guinea, 3rd ed., by Thomas O’Toole with Ibrahima Bah-Lalya. 1995. Out of print. See No. 94. 17. Sudan, by John Voll. 1978. Out of print. See No. 53. 18. Rhodesia/Zimbabwe, by R. Kent Rasmussen. 1979. Out of print. See No. 46. 19. Zambia, 2nd ed., by John J. Grotpeter, Brian V. Siegel, and James R. Pletcher. 1998. Out of print. See No. 106. 20. Niger, 3rd ed., by Samuel Decalo. 1997. 21. Equatorial Guinea, 3rd ed., by Max Liniger-Goumaz. 2000. 22. Guinea-Bissau, 3rd ed., by Richard Lobban and Peter Mendy. 1997. 23. Senegal, by Lucie G. Colvin. 1981. Out of print. See No. 65. 24. Morocco, by William Spencer. 1980. Out of print. See No. 71. 25. Malawi, by Cynthia A. Crosby. 1980. Out of print. See No. 84. 26. Angola, by Phyllis Martin. 1980. Out of print. See No. 92. 27. The Central African Republic, by Pierre Kalck. 1980. Out of print. See No. 51. 28. Algeria, by Alf Andrew Heggoy. 1981. Out of print. See No. 66. 29. Kenya, by Bethwell A. Ogot. 1981. Out of print. See No. 77. 30. Gabon, by David E. Gardinier. 1981. Out of print. See No. 58. 31. Mauritania, by Alfred G. Gerteiny. 1981. Out of print. See No. 68. 32. Ethiopia, by Chris Prouty and Eugene Rosenfeld. 1981. Out of print. See No. 91. 33. Libya, 3rd ed., by Ronald Bruce St John. 1998. Out of print. See No. 100. 34. Mauritius, by Lindsay Riviere. 1982. Out of print. See No. 49. 35. Western Sahara, by Tony Hodges. 1982. Out of print. See No. 55. 36. Egypt, by Joan Wucher King. 1984. Out of print. See No. 89. 37. South Africa, by Christopher Saunders. 1983. Out of print. See No. 78. 38. Liberia, by D. Elwood Dunn and Svend E. Holsoe. 1985. Out of print. See No. 83. 39. Ghana, by Daniel Miles McFarland. 1985. Out of print. See No. 63. 40. Nigeria, 2nd ed., by Anthony Oyewole and John Lucas. 2000. Out of print. See No. 111. 41. Côte d’Ivoire (The Ivory Coast), 2nd ed., by Robert J. Mundt. 1995. 42. Cape Verde, 2nd ed., by Richard Lobban and Marilyn Halter. 1988. Out of print. See No. 62. 43. Zaire, by F. Scott Bobb. 1988. Out of print. See No. 76. 44. Botswana, 2nd ed., by Fred Morton, Andrew Murray, and Jeff Ramsay. 1989. Out of print. See No. 70. 45. Tunisia, 2nd ed., by Kenneth J. Perkins. 1997. 46. Zimbabwe, 2nd ed., by Steven C. Rubert and R. Kent Rasmussen. 1990. Out of print. See No. 86. 47. Mozambique, by Mario Azevedo. 1991. Out of print. See No. 88. 48. Cameroon, 2nd ed., by Mark W. DeLancey and H. Mbella Mokeba. 1990. 49. Mauritius, 2nd ed., by Sydney Selvon. 1991. 50. Madagascar, by Maureen Covell. 1995. Out of print. See No. 98. 51. The Central African Republic, 2nd ed., by Pierre Kalck, translated by Thomas O’Toole. 1992. Out of print. See No. 93. 52. Angola, 2nd ed., by Susan H. Broadhead. 1992. Out of print. See No. 92. 53. Sudan, 2nd ed., by Carolyn Fluehr-Lobban, Richard A. Lobban Jr., and John Obert Voll. 1992. Out of print. See No. 85. 54. Malawi, 2nd ed., by Cynthia A. Crosby. 1993. Out of print. See No. 84. 55. Western Sahara, 2nd ed., by Anthony Pazzanita and Tony Hodges. 1994. Out of print. See No. 96. 56. Ethiopia and Eritrea, 2nd ed., by Chris Prouty and Eugene Rosenfeld. 1994. Out of print. See No. 91. 57. Namibia, by John J. Grotpeter. 1994. 58. Gabon, 2nd ed., by David E. Gardinier. 1994. Out of print. See No. 101. 59. Comoro Islands, by Martin Ottenheimer and Harriet Ottenheimer. 1994. 60. Rwanda, by Learthen Dorsey. 1994. Out of print. See No. 105. 61. Benin, 3rd ed., by Samuel Decalo. 1995. 62. Republic of Cape Verde, 3rd ed., by Richard Lobban and Marlene Lopes. 1995. Out of print. See No. 104. 63. Ghana, 2nd ed., by David Owusu-Ansah and Daniel Miles McFarland. 1995. Out of print. See No. 97. 64. Uganda, by M. Louise Pirouet. 1995. 65. Senegal, 2nd ed., by Andrew F. Clark and Lucie Colvin Phillips. 1994. 66. Algeria, 2nd ed., by Phillip Chiviges Naylor and Alf Andrew Heggoy. 1994. Out of print. See No. 102. 67. Egypt, 2nd ed., by Arthur Goldschmidt Jr. 1994. Out of print. See No. 89. 68. Mauritania, 2nd ed., by Anthony G. Pazzanita. 1996. Out of print. See No. 110. 69. Congo, 3rd ed., by Samuel Decalo, Virginia Thompson, and Richard Ad- loff. 1996. 70. Botswana, 3rd ed., by Jeff Ramsay, Barry Morton, and Fred Morton. 1996. Out of print. See No. 108. 71. Morocco, by Thomas K. Park. 1996. Out of print. See No. 95. 72. Tanzania, 2nd ed., by Thomas P. Ofcansky and Rodger Yeager. 1997. 73. Burundi, 2nd ed., by Ellen K. Eggers. 1997. Out of print. See No. 103. 74. Burkina Faso, 2nd ed., by Daniel Miles McFarland and Lawrence Rupley. 1998. 75. Eritrea, by Tom Killion. 1998. 76. Democratic Republic of the Congo (Zaire), by F. Scott Bobb. 1999. (Re- vised edition of Historical Dictionary of Zaire, No. 43) 77. Kenya, 2nd ed., by Robert M. Maxon and Thomas P. Ofcansky. 2000. 78. South Africa, 2nd ed., by Christopher Saunders and Nicholas Southey. 2000. 79. The Gambia, 3rd ed., by Arnold Hughes and Harry A. Gailey. 2000. 80. Swaziland, 2nd ed., by Alan R. Booth. 2000. 81. Republic of Cameroon, 3rd ed., by Mark W. DeLancey and Mark Dike DeLancey. 2000. 82. Djibouti, by Daoud A. Alwan and Yohanis Mibrathu. 2000. 83. Liberia, 2nd ed., by D. Elwood Dunn, Amos J. Beyan, and Carl Patrick Burrowes. 2001. 84. Malawi, 3rd ed., by Owen J. Kalinga and Cynthia A. Crosby. 2001. 85. Sudan, 3rd ed., by Richard A. Lobban Jr., Robert S. Kramer, and Carolyn Fluehr-Lobban. 2002. 86. Zimbabwe, 3rd ed., by Steven C. Rubert and R. Kent Rasmussen. 2001. 87. Somalia, 2nd ed., by Mohamed Haji Mukhtar. 2002. 88. Mozambique, 2nd ed., by Mario Azevedo, Emmanuel Nnadozie, and Tomé Mbuia João. 2003. 89. Egypt, 3rd ed., by Arthur Goldschmidt Jr. and Robert Johnston. 2003. 90. Lesotho, by Scott Rosenberg, Richard Weisfelder, and Michelle Frisbie- Fulton. 2004. 91. Ethiopia, New Edition, by David H. Shinn and Thomas P. Ofcansky. 2004. 92. Angola, New Edition, by W. Martin James. 2004. 93. Central African Republic, 3rd ed., by Pierre Kalck, translated by Xavier- Samuel Kalck. 2005. 94. Guinea, 4th ed., by Thomas O’Toole with Janice E. Baker. 2005. 95. Morocco, 2nd ed., by Thomas K. Park and Aomar Boum. 2006. 96. Western Sahara, 3rd ed., by Anthony G. Pazzanita. 2005. 97. Ghana, 3rd ed., by David Owusu-Ansah. 2005. 98. Madagascar, 2nd ed., by Philip M. Allen and Maureen Covell. 2005. 99. Sierra Leone, New Edition, by C. Magbaily Fyle. 2005. 100. Libya, 4th ed., by Ronald Bruce St John, 2006. 101. Gabon, 3rd ed., by David E. Gardinier and Douglas A. Yates, 2006. 102. Algeria, 3rd ed., by Phillip Naylor, 2006. 103. Burundi, 3rd ed, by Ellen K. Eggers, 2007. 104. Republic of Cape Verde, 4th ed., by Richard A. Lobban Jr. and Paul Khalil Saucier, 2007. 105. Rwanda, New Edition, by Aimable Twagilamana, 2007. 106. Zambia, 3rd ed., by David J. Simon, James R. Pletcher, and Brian V. Siegel, 2008. 107. Mali, 4th ed., by Pascal James Imperato, Gavin H. Imperato, and Austin C. Imperato, 2008. 108. Botswana, 4th ed., by Fred Morton, Jeff Ramsay, and Part Themba Mgadla, 2008. 109. The Gambia, 4th ed., by Arnold Hughes and David Perfect, 2008. 110. Mauritania, 3rd ed., by Anthony G. Pazzanita, 2009. 111. Nigeria, by Toyin Falola and Ann Genova, 2009. Historical Dictionary of Nigeria Toyin Falola Ann Genova Historical Dictionaries of Africa, No. 111 The Scarecrow Press, Inc. Lanham, Maryland • Toronto • Plymouth, UK 2009 SCARECROW PRESS, INC. Published in the United States of America by Scarecrow Press, Inc. A wholly owned subsidiary of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc. 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706 www.scarecrowpress.com Estover Road Plymouth PL6 7PY United Kingdom Copyright © 2009 by Toyin Falola and Ann Genova All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Falola, Toyin. Historical dictionary of Nigeria / by Toyin Falola and Ann Genova. p. cm. — (Historical dictionaries of Africa ; 111) Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 978-0-8108-5615-8 (cloth : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-0-8108-6316-3 (ebook) 1. Nigeria–History–Dictionaries. I. Genova, Ann. II. Title. DT515.15.F35 2009 966.9003—dc22 2009006158 (cid:2) ™ The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992. Manufactured in the United States of America. Contents Editor’s Foreword Jon Woronoff ix Reader’s Note xi Acronyms and Abbreviations xiii Map xvii Chronology xix Introduction xxix THE DICTIONARY 1 Bibliography 381 About the Authors 423 vii Editor’s Foreword Geographically, Nigeria is one of the largest countries in Africa, and by far the biggest in West Africa, which it dominates. Nigeria’s population, is gigantic and constantly growing. The land, although not exceptionally rich, does provide the basis for agriculture and mining, and the production of oil has been a godsend or curse, depending on your perspective. Still, it does generate wealth, which could be used to power the economy. Moreover, Nigeria has masses of educated and hardworking people, eager to get ahead, and it has finally returned to an almost-democratic political system, which should theoretically al- low its elected officials to chart more promising paths than the series of military dictators. But these positives are apparently more than counterbalanced by negatives—a varied and often fractious national community divided by ethnic groups, religion, and political goals, birth rates that are too high for its educational and health infrastructure, and a meddling military. Thus, after about half a century of independence, Nigeria remains a land of promises that are inadequately fulfilled. This completely new edition of the Historical Dictionary of Nigeria is particularly welcome because it covers such a wide variety of topics over such an extensive time frame. The core of the book is obviously the dictionary section, which includes specific entries on the most cru- cial aspects of the country, its past and present, its population and ge- ography, its economic endowment and policies, its confusing and often disappointing politics, its religions and culture. Many of these are on persons, others on significant events, and yet others on ethnic groups, or religions, or political parties. Because they are amply cross-referenced, one easily leads to another and cumulatively they do impart of better understanding of the overall situation. A general overview is also pro- vided in the introduction, which highlights many of the successes and, ix