The ancient map of Africa as at 1662 shows that there were three kingdoms that existed side by side for over 500 years before the amalgamation in 1914 and the subsequent naming of the country later called Nigeria.The three kingdoms were the kingdom of Zamfara, in the North, Kingdom of Benin in the West and Kingdom of Biafra in the East.
The name Biafra was derived from the bight of Biafra, which according to Chinua Achebe, is originally “the vast expanse of water covering the continental shelf into which the Niger River empties before flowing into the golf of Biafra.”
John Mitchell’s map for resolving boarder disputes shows that that same river actually empties into an ocean called ‘Ephraim town’ which is about 60miles away from River Nun which is presently in southsouth Nigeria today.
The river area which was named after Nun the Biblical Joshua’s father from the tribe of Ephraim is believed to have been inhabited by Ephraim descendants who later adopted the name Biafra.
According to Martins Ukegbe, the name Biafra was coined from Bay Ephraim. The bay or bight of the “Ephrame town”;in other words, the bight of Biafra. The bight of Biafra was later renamed the Gulf of Guinea after Biafra was conquered during the civil war, based on Achebe’s account.
Now this is what the bay looked like from River Niger:
From a global map view, see what it
looked like;
The capital of Biafra was located at Enugu.It also represents the administrative quarters of Biafra. It is demarcatd to the west by River Niger, to the east by Obudu plateau and Ikom high lands, to the south
by the bight of Biafra and the north by the administrative boundary many kilometers apart.
BIAFRANS’ POPULATION
The population of Biafra at the time was over fifteen million. Biafra comprises many ethnic groups including Igbo. The Igbo constitutes 0ver 65% of Biafra’s population; the other ethnic groups were Ikwere, Ibeno, Efik, Ibibio, Ijaw,Ikom,Iyalla,Ekoi,Egbema, Eket, Andoni, Agbo, Kana, Uyanga, Yako and Mbembe.
To cater for the administrative needs of each group, Biafra was divided into eleven administrative provinces, which was later made twenty five.They include Agbor, Asaba, Aba, owerri, Umuahia, Orlu,Ikot Ekpene, Uyo, Eket, Ogoj, Calabar,Enugu, Oji-River, Awka, Onitsha, Nnewi, Okigwe, Annang,Abakiliki, Yenegoa, Warri, Ahoada, Ugheli, Degema, and Port Harcourt. As it were, Biafra was majorly decentralized and was manned by a head to fit into the ethnic need of the each province.
THE BIAFRAN FLAG
The flag of Biafra was designed to pioneer the spirit of the black’s fight against colonialism and racial
discrimination. It was Marcus Garvey’s idea that pioneered the three colored flag of pan-Africans to be green, red and black. For Garvey, the colors should
represent the ancestral and political aspiration of all blacks around the globe. Some other countries also adopted this color for their national flag.
The red color in the Biafra context symbolizes the blood shed during the fight for independence. The black symbolizes the ancestral connection to
the souls of years past; the green symbolizes the African abundant natural wealth resources.
The Biafra flag also bears a rising yellow sun with eleven golden rays. This represents the Biafra aspiration for independence and the eleven golden rays represent the initial eleven provinces of the Biafra kingdom.
THE BANK OF BIAFRA
After the amalgamation of the tree regions, the Biafra sought to become independent again. Following the declaration of secession, Biafra needed an independent legal tender for transaction. The administration at the time name a bank called Bank of Biafra and situated it in Enugu. The Biafra currency was designed in 1968 by Simon Okeke and some other artists. The initial denominations were fivebshillings and one pound note.The Biafra currency were acceptable within the region but was not recognized in the foreign exchange. History held that
the wealthy among the biafrans offered their private bank accounts for foreign transaction.
Generally, the Biafra republic is decentralized in nature.This means that it does not have one overall or central power source or president per say, although it has an administrative quarters.Her strength lies within the provinces which constitutes the various ethnic groups within the region.The various provinces lived together in harmony until the amalgamation of Nigeria by colonial masters in 1914.The Biafra through Odumegu Ojukwu and other stakeholders rose to fight for independence. When they lost the civil war to Nigeria in 1970 the various provinces stayed side by side by themselves.However, the similarities in the cultural and lingual emancipation of these provinces cannot be hidden.It is really obvious. This same reason has been the reason for Biafra agitation up until today.
Considering the differences in the religious, political and cultural orientation of the three regions, biafrans think Nigeria may not stabilize except it returns to its root before the colonial era
It is good to know about your history, as you would easily defend yourself anywhere, anytime!
N/B: This material is not of any intention to cause disagreement or chaos between any group of individuals. It is only for historical purposes!
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