The Amalgamation of 1914 and the Lingering Challenge of Nation-Building in Nigeria

Abstract

The first building blocks for what has come to be known as Nigeria began during the period of state formation and empire-building processes of most Nigerian peoples several decades before the 1914 amalgamation. The development of early urban centers laid the foundation. The unification of hitherto autonomous groups under one political umbrella called the Sokoto caliphate represents a major building-block in the march towards what came to be known as Nigeria. In the south there was, the development and consolidation of the Oyo Empire, Benin Empire, City states in the Niger Delta and Nri influence across what is now Igboland and later the Aro confederacy within and beyond Igboland. By the late nineteenth century, religion also played a vital role in uniting the various people of Nigeria. Islam had united most of the Hausaland and made headway to Yorubaland especially the Ilorin and Lagos. Christianity from the southern coast had started uniting the various peoples of the Niger Delta, the Igbo and the Yoruba and had made headway to the Middle Belt. The research method employed was the qualitative analytical method which involved content analysis of relevant documentary data on the subject. The approach adopted was also thematic. The research finding showed that two sets of forces were at work in the evolution of the Nigerian state. These are the pre-colonial social economic formations and the colonial social formation. It also showed that there was a relative harmonious relationship among the people before colonialism in Nigeria, but this was altered by colonial policies. It, therefore, concluded that beyond the amalgamation of 1914, the Nigeria state would have evolved, and perhaps under a different name and size.