African resistance. Archives ~ Ozi Ikòrò

04

Feb 2026

The Merchant Prince of the Niger Delta: Chief Nana Olomu and the Commercial Empire of the Benin River

Caption: The grand residence of Nana Olomu in Koko, which survived the British bombardment of 1894. Photo Credit: National Commission for Museums and Monuments, Nigeria. The history of the 19th-century Niger…

11

Nov 2025

Berbice Dutch Creole: A Lost Language of Guyana

A map of Guyana showing its borders with Venezuela, Brazil, and Suriname, as well as its major cities, rivers, and the Atlantic Ocean. The map also indicates an area claimed…

09

Nov 2025

Anthropology and Ethnography Ethnohistory

King Béhanzin: The Last Independent King of Dahomey

The image is a portrait of Béhanzin, the eleventh and last king of Dahomey (present-day Benin), who reigned from 1889 to 1894. The caption identifies the subject as "BEHANZIN.” King Béhanzin,…

03

Nov 2025

Biography Historical Studies

Igbo Historian Spotlight: Highlighting Notable Igbo Historians

The story of a people is not written in dust, it is etched in memory, song, and story. For the Igbo, whose history was long spoken before it was written,…

10

Oct 2025

Historical Studies

Warriors, Raids, and Resistance: Igboland Against the Slave Trade

In the thick forests and open markets of Igboland, life was defined by vigilance. The booming sound of the Ikoro drum was not just music; it was an…

25

Jun 2025

Historical Studies

The 1898 British Punitive Expedition and the Catholic Mission in Western Igboland (Anioma)

In 1893, Fr. Carlo Zappa, an Italian priest of the Society of African Missions (SMA), established a Catholic mission in Issele-Ukwu, a significant town in western Igboland. His efforts, however, were met with…

22

Jun 2025

Historical Studies

The Killing of Dr. Stewart and the Brutal Ahiara Expedition of 1905

The story of a white man dragged off his bicycle and killed while riding through Igbo territory has been told in different versions, including in Chinua Achebe’s famous novel Things…

20

Jun 2025

Historical Studies

Documenting Resistance: Igbo Fugitives in Colonial Jamaica

University of Florida Digital An 18th-century Jamaican newspaper advertisement offers a reward for capturing escaped enslaved people, preserved in a historical compilation of such notices (Rucker, 2013). This document lists over…

17

Mar 2025

Historical Studies

Positions of British and Aro-Igbo Combatants in the Anglo-Aro War (1901–1902)

Burning of Arochukwu during the Anglo-Aro War after the British captured it. Photo by Donald A. MacAlister. Source: British Museum. The Anglo-Aro War (1901–1902) was a conflict between the British colonial…

15

Feb 2025

Anthropology and Ethnography Cultural Heritage Photos

Igbo Masquerades as Colonial Satire: The Ghost Policemen and Oyibo Masks

Igbo ghost policemen masks, representing symbols of colonial authority, were part of the same masquerade performance as the Oyibo or Onye Ocha mask from Amobia (Amawbia), previously mentioned. Captured by…