The Esan Polities
Esan consists of thirty-five political units (Fig. 2,
map) recognized by the Nigerian government. These polities were established at
various times, and some have only recently gained government recognition as
independent units.
The Traditional Rulers and Chiefs Edict (Bendel State
1979: A81) uses the term clan to represent each of the Esan polities, and
defines the term variously as “ethnic unit,” and group of towns or villages with
a common language" or a common ancestry. There are problems with each of
these designations. As we have seen, for example, all Esans share the same
ethnic identity which has been constructed and refined over time; the term
"ethnic unit" would, therefore, properly include all of the
independent polities of Esan. The term "clan, on the other hand, implies
that its members are descendants of a common ancestor but, as we have seen, Esan
communities often have heterogenous origins. Butcher, who recognizes the
inadequacy of the term clan (1936: 2-3 re: Ekpoma), prefers “village group,”
which is similar to the current “group of towns or villages” used by the
Nigerian government.
1. Compare Igor
Kopytoff (1987: 7) who refers to the “. . . continuing reorganization of ethnic
identities … " in Africa.
The designation “village group” introduces the factor
of territoriality; Butcher (1936: 3) adds that those living on an Onojie's land
owe him allegiance. While the designation village group may be technically
correct, this language undervalues the political structure of Esan by not fully
recognizing the importance of the leader.
Thirty of the Esan groups are led by traditional rulers
titled Onojie (pl. Enijie). Of the others, which have recognized clan Heads,
Uzea once also had an Onojie. Egharevba, the Edo traditional historian,
translates Onojie as “duke” (1957: 6); his frame of reference is from within
the Benin imperial system which invests ultimate political authority in the Oba. Also speaking from a
Benin reference point, Bradbury (1957) uses the term "chief, and calls the
territories of the Enijie chiefdoms. The title Onojie, however, is derived from
the Edo/Esan term which the Esan people translate as “king.” The former Bendel
State of Nigeria (1979: A82, A106) ranks the Onojie title in the same category
as the Oba of Benin and regards each as a traditional ruler who holds the
highest traditional authority within each Esan political unit.
At the base of this semantic discussion, are two
issues related by the concept of imperialism. First, the Nigerian government's
use of the terms “clan” and “chiefdom,” rather than “kingdom,” to refer to Esan
polities is an apparent legacy of British colonial policy which often devalued indigenous
political institutions. Second, it was in Benin's interest to perpetuate the
subordinate position of the Esan Enijie, who in the past were required to pay tribute
to the Oba and have their titles confirmed by him. Indeed, it was only
Britain's success in shattering the power of Benin that finally freed the Esan
Enijie from these obligations, after centuries of struggle for independence.
Even during the period during which Benin was suzerain
to Ishan, however, the Enijie had powers which are normally ascribed to kings.
They have always been the highest authority within their domains, and for
centuries they have bestowed chieftaincy titles upon loyal and talented subjects.
They could demand tribute and labour from their subjects, and had the right to
seize the property of criminals and to accumulate wives without payment or formalities.
They were the ultimate upholders of the laws of the land, they had the power to
execute capital offenders, and they were responsible for performing certain rituals
to ensure peace and welfare within their realms. As the Esan people say, ojie
kbe ebho or “the king is the community” (Okojie (1960): 164). Judging the
term king" to be appropriate, then, and following the practice of the Esan
people, I will use the words king or ruler" interchangeably with the Esan
term Onojie in the present work. Moreover, this work will consider only those
groups which have the Onojie title, plus Uzea, which lost its title because of
rebellion against Benin. The remaining Esan communities at Illushi, Ifeku
Island and Uroh are satellite settlements in areas with mixed ethnic
populations in which Esans are in the minority. Never having had Enijie, they do
not have the large public sculptures or other elite art characteristic of Esan
kingdoms.
The Esan System of Government
The traditional system of government in Esan shares some
features with other Edo groups in the Benin orbit, but is also distinguished
from them in particular by the presence and importance of the Onojie title.
Among the Northern Edo peoples of the Etsako, Owan and Akoko-Edo areas,
political authority is assigned to men who have reached the status of elder in
the age-grade organization and to members of voluntary title associations
(Bradbury 1957: 91-92, 104-105, 115). Although age-grades are
important social institutions in Esan, the political
role of elders is mostly limited to the village level, and title associations
are nonexistent or politically insignificant. In the Southern Edo area,
political organization is highly variable but throughout the area kinship and
age appear to be the main determinants of authority on the village level although
title association members and priests also have a role in councils at different
levels of government (Bradbury 1957: 144-145).
2.
Historian Ade
Obayemi (1985: 300) also rejects the terms "clans, village groups or
chiefdoms of earlier writing" in favor of the designation
"mini-states."
Both the Urhobo and Isoko peoples also have a titled
official known as Ovie or “king” whose importance and functions, however, vary
greatly; whereas in some locations the
Ovie has ultimate authority over his subjects, elsewhere his status is no
greater than that of the head of the elders (Bradbury 1957: 146-147). The Ovie
title, like the Onojie title of Ishan, appears to have originated with the
domination of the area by Benin; wherever the Ovie is important, his functions
are comparable to that of the Ishan Enijie (Bradbury 1957: 146).
The description of Esan governance which follows is distilled
primarily from observations which I made during my fieldwork in 1980, but is
supported by references from older sources wherever appropriate. In Esan, each
kingdom is autonomous, and is governed in the manner of the Edo empire, although
on a smaller scale. The administrative centre of each Esan kingdom is Eguare,
the seat of the Onojie. Succession to the title of Onojie is normally by
primogeniture, and the identity of the heir will be established by the
titleholder during his lifetime. Often the heir must live in a designated
quarter outside of Eguare in the manner of the heir (Edaiken) of Benin (e.g.,
Okojie (1960): 211 re: Uromi). Upon the death of an Onojie, it is the
responsibility of the Kingmakers --usually the elders of Eguare and other royal
quarters to select the heir according to custom. The Kingmakers ensure that the
heir performs the burial ceremonies for his late father correctly and
completely, including the Ogbe ceremony which throughout Esan is the key to
inheritance of all titles and properties (Talbot 1926, vol. IV: 590; Okojie (1960):
126-127). The Kingmakers also supervise the numerous rituals which fortify the
heir and purify the palace, but the actual installation ceremony is the
prerogative of certain chiefs.
The Onojie administers his kingdom with the assistance
of several orders of chiefs (Ekhaembon), many of whose titles and
functions are patterned after Benin. The Benin related chieftaincy titles may
have been adopted by Esan at various times, but the process is likely to have
begun with the introduction of the Onojie title during the conquest of. Esan by
Benin. The new leaders probably reproduced the system of government prevailing
in the capital, including the palace and village chiefs which are crucial to
the Onojie's administration today. The Ekhaembon include hereditary
state council chiefs and village representatives; personal and palace chiefs;
and social chiefs whose titles are in the Onojie's gift and usually lapse with
the death of the holder.
3.
In many Esan
kingdoms, the heir to the Onojie is known as the Edaiken, a title of Benin
origin.
There is a great deal of variation from kingdom to
kingdom in the ranking of the hereditary chiefs; Okojie (1960): 59) states that
the traditional order of the seven most important chiefs (Ekbawmon-Ihinlon or
Edion-Ihinlon) is Oniha, Iyasere,
Ezomo, Edohen, Oloton, Uwangue, and Ero, but that the Enijie manipulated the
ranking in order to promote some chiefs and curtail the influence of others.
The Oniha is still usually highest in rank, and
governs the kingdom in the period between the death of an Onojie and the
installation of his successor. The Iyasere and Ezomo formerly commanded the
Onojie's armies, and continue to be concerned with security issues. The Uwangue
is usually the keeper of the royal regalia and chief of protocol, although in
some kingdoms he is first in rank and takes over the throne at the death of an
Onojie. The Edohen, Oloton and Ero are traditional members of the executive
council, but in many kingdoms their titles have lapsed and in others they rank
below the Oshodin, Adolor, Ihaza, Ologbosere, Eribo, Osuma and others. The
council chiefs and other hereditary (alebbuku) titleholders are the
Onojie's liaisons with the villages in which they reside.
There is another class of chiefs which is associated primarily
with the person of the king and with the palace. In days gone by, personal
titles such as Egbe (“body”) and Ehi (“guardian spirit”) carried with them many
privileges, but the holders may have been sacrificed at the burial of the
Onojie who conferred the titles upon them Butcher 1935c: 11; Okojie (1960):
58). Palace chiefs include the Ihaza who formerly functioned as a treasurer and
collector of tribute, and the Oshodin, who supervises the Onojie's harem. In
some kingdoms, such as Uromi and Ewohimi, palace societies (Iwebo, Iweguae and
Ibiwe) similar to those at Benin are responsible for the smooth running of the
palace and the proper conduct of its inhabitants (Okojie (1960): 219, 283).
The Enijie can create new chieftaincy titles for any number
of reasons, and this has been an important political tool throughout Esan
history. For example, Esan oral histories recount that, in early settlements,
important titles such as Oniha and Iyasere were bestowed upon powerful strangers
to induce them to remain and insure their loyalty (e.g., Okojie (1960): 218 re:
Uromi). Although the most important Esan chieftaincy titles are now hereditary
and fixed in tradition, the Enijie have generated new social titles, for
example, to increase their representation in troublesome villages (Hawkesworth
1932: 20) and, in the colonial era, to enable their staunch supporters to
become court members (Butcher 1935b: 22). At the turn of the century in Irrua,
4.
The Egbe of Uromi,
like some other current holders of personal titles, denied that his
predecessors were buried with the deceased Onojie. He claimed that the title
had been hereditary for at least eight generations (Omhelimhen Egbe, Uromi, 8
May 1980). Butcher (1935b: 22) was told that the first Onojie of Uromi
established the title of Egbe, whose duty was to prepare the Onojie's corpse
for burial. This responsibility was confirmed by the current Egbe and elders of
his family.
the Onojie granted titles of Hausa origin in an
attempt to propagate Islam (Hawkesworth 1932: 16)5. Enijie today still bestow
social titles to reward loyal subjects and honour illustrious and influential
members of their communities; for example, in recent times titles were conferred
upon A.O. Ayewoh, a dedicated educator in Uromi, and Umuobuarie Igberaese, a
famous musician in Ewu. The Enijie have also granted titles as a means of
obtaining revenue.
Most titleholders in Ishan are men, although in some kingdoms
the Onojie's senior wife carries the honorific title Eson (cf. Bradbury BS
316.4 re: Benin). Nowadays, a few kingdoms, such as Uromi and Ekpoma, are
bestowing social titles upon prominent women of the community, but this is still
rare. In Uromi, a woman must undergo initiation into the Egba society before
she can be installed as a chief. Her membership in Egba confers upon her the
status of a man and entitles her to carry a leather flywhisk (ijiakpa)
on her shoulder in the manner of titled men (H.H. Stephen o. Edenojie I, gnojie
of Uromi, 29 April 1980). Formerly, men eagerly accepted titles because of the
prestige it conferred upon them, and the rewards of sharing in certain revenues
and freedom from communal labor. Honor is still a factor which induces men to
undertake the costly title-taking ceremonial, but their political power is
limited.
5.
Bendel State (1979)
recognizes titles such as Giwa, Haruna, Sedenu, Kaisaraki and Dania in Irrua.
Islamic titles are also gazetted" in Ewu and Opoji.
Although the Enijie have historically considered the Ekbaemhon
to be the heads of the villages, the village government system severely limits
the powers of the chiefs. In most Ishan kingdoms, no chief can call a village
meeting or hear a court case on his own.6 Although a chief conveys directives
from the Onojie to the village, he himself may not announce them. From the
point of view of the village, the chiefs are merely ambassadors from the Onojie
(Okojie (1960): 62), and the non-traditional social chiefs in particular have
no inherent authority in village government (Hawkesworth 1932: 16; Butcher
1936: 30; Butcher 1935d: 9). Even when a chief is highly ranked in the central administration,
his rank is lower than that of the eldest man (Odionwele) of the village
(e.g., Chief Edohe, Uromi, 28 July 1980). The daily administration of the
village is in the hands of the elders (Edion, sing. Odion), men of sufficient
age and moral stature who are at the apex of the age-grade system.
6.
In some southern Esan kingdoms, such as Ewohimi and Ekpon (Butcher 1932: 2; 1935d: 16), the
Ekbaembon had more executive power than is typical.
The Esan Age
Grade System
The age-grade system (Otu) varies somewhat from
kingdom to kingdom, but everywhere it organizes men into groups with well-defined
public service and village leadership roles. Boys enter the age-grade system
without ceremony as soon as they can assume community responsibilities, usually
around eight to twelve years old. All boys who enter together belong to the
same which in Esan means “company” and corresponds roughly to an age-set,
several of which constitute an age-grade. The youngest grade is called Egbonughele,
or sweepers of the village plaza, which is indicative of the unskilled communal
work the boys do.
Graduation to the next grade, Ighene or Igbama,
takes place when a man has reached maturity at about twenty-five to thirty
years of age; usually he must have established a family to be eligible for
promotion. After preparing a celebratory feast with his otu for those
who have already achieved the level of Ighene, he takes his place among
them. In the past, the primary role of the able-bodied young to middle-aged men
of the Ighene grade was to defend the village as warriors. In some Esan
kingdoms the Iqhene were divided not only into their age-based otu,
but also into three military companies, or otuneha, comprising the
right, left and center flanks of an army. A group of men selected from this
grade also formed the Inotu, or police force of the community, which was
at the service of the elders. Today the Ighene engage in communal road
and house building, and other work which is too difficult for the young Egbonughele.
The elders or Edion are free from communal labour, but
they order and direct the work of the junior Out. The elders are
responsible for settling disputes, hearing civil or minor criminal cases,
deciding village policy, allotting land which is held communally, and
announcing directives from the Onojie. Their principle duties are to interpret and
uphold Ishan custom (Butcher 1936:26), according to which they must live a
model life. The elevated position of the elders is owing to their advanced age,
which places them next to the ancestors and allows them to intercede with the ancestors
for the well-being of the community (Hawkesworth 1932: 22; Okodua n.d.: 6). In
most villages, however, one does not become an elder on the basis of age alone.
Often the expensive male coming of age ceremony, irhuen (literally “I
tie on cloth”), is a prerequisite of the Odion grade (cf. Scallon 1937a:
23, 31. 31; Butcher 1935e: 17). Often too, a man must have buried his father,
or sometimes both parents, with all due ceremony before he is eligible to be an
elder. The most universal" method of becoming Odion is through the Ilodion
ceremony, which requires that the applicant give gifts and a feast to current
elders, who bless him and accept him as one of themselves (Okojie 1960: 57).
The four most senior men (Edion-enen) of a village are accorded special
reverence, and the Odiowele or oldest indigenous man is head of the village
and presides over the community council.
It is the prerogative of the Odionwele to call
a meeting of the elders, which takes place in a simple but important structure
in the middle of the ughele or village 85 plaza. The chief(s) of the
village may attend, but they may not initiate a discussion unless they are also
elders. The same is true of patrilineage heads (Omijiogbe or Omonijiogbe)
who may attend these meetings as leaders of their uwenlen or family
units. The elders consider the Ekbaemhon and Omijiogbe to be no
more than assistants in the decision-making process. Each village also has Iko
(sing Uko), or messengers, and one or more Aghale, “dividers” of
food or fees (e.g., Hawkesworth 1932: 3) who assist the elders. When an
important issue demands that the entire village meet, each age grade will meet
separately. The leaders of the junior grades may be called upon to give the opinion
of their fellows to the elders, after which the latter will deliberate and
announce their decision.
Ishan Family Authority Structures
Women are normally excluded from village authority structures;
although the exceptional elderly woman might become an Odion in some
places, such as Okhuesan and Igueben (Bradbury IS 159), she has no place in the
elders meeting house. Usually the female leader is called Ojeada, a term
which also signifies the eldest woman in each family group, who is responsible
for upholding the morality of women within the family (Scallon 1937a: 9-10, 20;
Bradbury IS 191). The male head of the household (Omijiogbe), however,
is the traditional authority of the family (uwenlen), which consists of
his wives, children, junior brothers and their families, unmarried sisters,
widowed mother and servants. The Omijiogbe maintains ancestral staffs (ukhure)
on behalf of his extended family, which sometimes also includes uncles and
their families. As the representative of the ancestors of his family unit, the Omijiogbe
is permitted to join the elders at village meetings. He is responsible for
family discipline, peace and general welfare, and he deals with internal
disputes and petty crimes.
Several related family units comprise an exogamous idumu,
commonly described as a ward or quarter of a village. The members of the idumu
(or several idumu) consider themselves to be an egbele, a kin
group whose members are all descended from a common ancestor. A number of idumu
from different patrilineages constitute a village, which in turn is joined by
up to twenty other villages to create an Ishan kingdom. An idumu has its
own Odionwele, at the head of a council of elders who meet to settle
issues which are minor and affect only the immediate quarter. The Odionwele of
a village, however, supercedes that of an idumu, and the Odionwele of
the entire kingdom is potentially a powerful leader of all the common people.
Social and Political Organization Conclusion
Esan socio-political organization reflects several important
principles of interest to this work. The first is that the monarchy imposed
upon Esan communities by Benin in the fifteenth century and maintained over the
centuries forms a sharp contrast to more democratic village authority structures
which are based on age, access to the ancestors by the elders and family heads,
and individual achievement. In particular, the Otu system offers men a
great deal of control over local concerns, and serves as a counterbalance to
the authority of the Onojie. Okojie claims (1960: 71) that the Inotu, or
special forces of the Ighene age grade, was a unified body which was almost
as powerful as the Onojie. Esan history records the ouster of tyrannical Enijie
by subjects who had suffered under their atrocities; in the mid-nineteenth
century, for example, Ikeakhe of Ekpoma was routed (Okojie 1960: 201), and the
people of Opoji forced Onojie Okhinan
into exile (Butcher 1935e: 11; Okojie 1960: 178).
A second principle of concern here is that while the Otu
system incorporates all men of the village, promotion to Odion and
sometimes also to the Ighene age grade often requires proof of the
ability of a candidate to propagate his lineage and establish his parents among
the ancestors, as well as his willingness to redistribute wealth through feasts
and ceremonies such as irhuen. In effect, the Esan Otu system
combines features of both age grades and voluntary title organizations. Within
the junior Otu, a man has ample opportunities for demonstrating
individual leadership by becoming the head of his age set, serving the elders
as a messenger or divider of fees, excelling in tests of physical strength,
etc. In some cases, a man is eligible for advanced promotion to the next grade
based on his achieved status.
The art of Esan is different in character depending on
whether it is made for royal and chiefly patrons, or for use within the village
structures. As we shall see, the arts of the elites are elaborate and concerned
with the perpetuation of power through displays of strength. On the other hand,
the arts of the common people are often rough-hewn and simple expressions of
ancestral devotion, familial solidarity, or age-based and achieved status.
