Biafra on the Internet

AHA Teaching & Learning Teaching Resources for Historians Teaching and Learning in the Digital Age Through the Lens of History: Biafra, Nigeria, the West and the World Biafra on the Internet

In This Section

Biafra on the Internet

General Internet Intersections

1. The Central Intelligence Agency develops a factbook for most nations in the world. This link connects you to the one for Nigeria. This link includes a map of Nigeria today (1998). On this map the area of Biafra (the former Eastern Region) is essentially the area east of the Niger river south of the word "City" [in Benin City] Port Harcourt was in Biafra.

2. This is another overview site on Nigeria with a primary focus on the postcolonial experience. It has connections to a wide variety of topics. Some links in this network are used in the sections of this unit.

http://www.stg.brown.edu/projects/hypertext/landow/post/nigeria/nigeriaov.html

3. Nigeria connection page of the University of Pennsylvania African Studies

http://www.sas.upenn.edu/African_Studies/Country_Specific/Nigeria.html

4. Gateway to African Studies on H-Net

http://www.h-net.msu.edu/gateways/africa/

5. Postcolonial and Post imperial literature

http://landow.stg.brown.edu/post/misc/postov.html

6. African Art: Aesthetics and Meaning: Electronic exhibit from the University of Virginia. Discussion of African values in art with some Yoruba but no Igbo art.

http://www.lib.virginia.edu/dic/exhib/93.ray.aa/African.html

7. NigeriaWeb A Charlotte, NC, based listing of a variety of news and business issues with some opinion pieces. Billed as the starting point for your internet study of Nigeria.

http://odili.net/nigeria.html

8. History of Nigerian coups

http://www.africanperspective.com/html19/Featpe.html

9. USAfricaonline is an online newspaper focused on Africa with special interest in Nigeria.

Connections to Issues Specific to this Unit

Timelines

1. For an excellent timeline of Africa divided into four periods extending from earliest times to the present, see the work of Cora Agatucci who teaches composition and literature at Central Oregon Community College. If you will look around this site, you will find a number of connections including some which address the debates about the African origins of western civilization.

http://www.cocc.edu/cagatucci/classes/hum211/timelines/htimelinetoc.htm

Ethnic Overview for Republic

1. An overview of Nigerian ethnic groups with a brief explanation of their beliefs is located at

http://www.stg.brown.edu/projects/hypertext/landow/post/nigeria/ethnicity.html

2. To gain a sense of the ethnolinguistic diversity of Nigeria, visit this site whose 1^st paragraph describes current (1990s) diversity and then lists the languages of Nigeria with a brief description of the language and number of speakers.

http://www.sil.org/ethnologue/countries/Nigr.html

Events and People of the Era

1. Soyinka’s experience in the Biafran war as well as some information about Biafra is in

http://www.stg.brown.edu/projects/hypertext/landow/post/nigeria/civilwar.html

2. Inventory of Conflict and Environment at American University studies a number of conflicts including the Biafran war.

http://gurukul.ucc.american.edu/ted/ice/index.html

3. British Interests, Nigerian Tragedy is a short statement of the human costs and the economic interests involved in the war with reference to the extent of starvation.

http://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~nwosu/biaf2.html

4. Photos collected by Philip Emeagwali including some of the political leaders of the First Nigerian Republic and of Biafra including the cover photo of a Life magazine issue on Biafra.

http://www.emeagwali.com/photos/biafra/photo-essay-on-index.htmll

5. History of Nigerian coups

http://www.africanperspective.com/html19/Featpe.html

Miscellaneous

1. Azikiwe biography from Philip Emeagwali website [regarded as Nigeria’s computer genius]. Site includes his reading list.

http://emeagwali.com/nigeria/nigerians/nnamdi-azikiwe.html

2. Material on Obasanjo, the current President of Nigeria and a former leader who facilitated the transition of Nigerian government from a military group back to democracy.

http://www.africanperspective.com/html19/Featpe.html

3. Page describing a late 1990s Festival of the New Yam. Ties in to Igbo culture and to condition of the Igbo today with references to Ojukwu

http://emeagwali.com/nigeria/cuisine/igbo-new-yam-festival.html

4. Interview with Ojukwu when Abacha still ruled Nigeria. Dictator who sentenced Saro-wiwa to death. Ojukwu worked with the regime. Echoes of Biafra.

http://emeagwali.com/nigeria/cuisine/igbo-new-yam-festival.html

5. Ojukwu opposes Abacha succeeding himself in office

http://www.africanews.org/pana/news/19970606/feat19.html

6. Nigeria needs me (interview with Ojukwu)

http://emeagwali.com/nigeria/biography/odumegwu-ojukwu-nigeria-needs-me.html

7. BBC interview with Ojukwu (audio)

http://ftp.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/mycentury/audio/wk03d3.ram