Historical Research Letter www.iiste.org ISSN 2224-3178 (Paper) ISSN 2225-0964 (Online) Vol.43, 2017 35 DYNAMICS OF PRE-COLONIAL DIPLOMATIC PRACTICES AMONG THE IGBO SPEAKING PEOPLE OF SOUTHEASTERN NIGERIA, 1800-1900: A HISTORICAL EVALUATION Patrick Okpalaeke Chukwudike 1 Esin Okon Eminue 2 1. Department of History and International Studies, University of Uyo, Uyo. Nigeria 2. Department of History and International Studies, University of Uyo, Uyo, Nigeria E-mail: keryflux83@gmail.com Abstract This paper seeks to conduct a historical evaluation on the dynamics of pre-colonial diplomatic relations among the Igbo speaking people of Southeastern Nigerian. This became a necessity owing to the fact that there appear to be a big neglect by scholars of Igbo descent in discussing the mode by which city-states littered across the Southeastern region of Nigeria conducted their own unique form of diplomacy. This implication of this neglect have only given further credence to Eurocentric claims that “Africa has no history”. It is a historical fact that when most societies where invaded by European colonialists, they paid little or no attention to how these societies have conducted indigenous affairs that have for centuries sustained them. Rather, a conclusion was drawn that these pre-colonial societies were devoid of any meaningful aspect of life that should be understudied. Be that as it may, through the concept of African historiography, the fore-going has long been debunked with the help of oral history as enunciated by Jan Vasina. However, what is yet to receive adequate attention is the art of diplomacy across Africa, vis a vis the conduct of diplomatic practices among the Igbo speaking people of Southeast Nigeria .Thus, the study reveals base on the much available sources, that in pre-colonial Igboland, the people conducted a unique and sophisticated art of diplomacy. The study also submits that not only did the Igbo speaking people engaged in the art of diplomatic practices, but diplomacy in the area was practiced according to civilized standards. The study draws instances from various Igbo communities and discusses elaborately on how they conducted theirs. Historical analysis was employed as the method for this research. Keywords: Diplomacy, Igbo, Pre-colonial, Southeastern and Nigeria. 1. Introduction Diplomacy is an art of negotiation practise across many societies, though in diverse dimensions, with the aim of yielding the same result. Unfortunately, many Euro-centric scholars had over the course of time hold tenaciously to the misconception that the art of diplomacy was only practiced in “civilized societies” such as Europe and the Orient, dismissing, in particular the African continent as one which has no history, talk less of a systematic and a refined pattern of organized diplomacy. However, it is in a bid to debunk such erroneous views about African societies that scholars of African descent, through various researches had put up a strong resistance on the misconception that Africa is devoid of history. Through these in-depth researches, a historical fact has been established showing the uniqueness of Africa’s very rich and colourful history. The richness of her history cuts across centuries depicting issues bordering on areas such as economic, warfare, diplomacy, political institutions, traditional and religious institutions, cosmology, among others. Some of these areas were mentioned in most of the Islamic chronicles left behind by Arab historians such as Ibn Battuta, Ibn Khadun, among others. In light of the foregone, it would be apt to state herein that the art of diplomacy was also very much conducted in the most civilized manners even among the Igbo speaking people presently occupying Southeastern part of Nigeria. In as much as Professor Adiele Afigbo described an attempt to conducting a study on the Igbo history as “trying to tie sand with ropes”, evidences abound that depicts the richness of Igbo history vis a vis their diplomatic conducts. A good illustration of the Igbo diplomatic conducts is very much depicted in Chinua Achebe’s novel entitled Things Fall Apart in which Achebe gave various illustrations on pre-colonial diplomacy within a typical pre-colonial Igbo setting. Thus, from the foregone, this study aims at conducting a historical evaluation on the nature and dimensions of diplomatic conducts among the Igbo speaking people from 1800-1900. The essence of this paper is to help reassert that no continent during the period this work covers had monopoly to diplomatic practices. It is