Enuani Lady

A young Igbo woman from Onicha Olona, or surrounding settlement, c. 1912-13. Onicha Olona is an Enuani settlement, an Igbo population west of the Niger River. Many of these settlements were founded by migrations from east of the Niger River (Oshimili) hundreds of years ago. These settlements came into much contact with the Edo and Igala. The Benin Empire especially influenced their political structures and even populations, particularly after the conquering 15th century Oba, Oba Ewuare.

It is interesting to note that when this photo was taken, the western Igbo people, Enuani people in particular, were in the midst of a 30-year resistance against British colonial expansion, the Ekumeku Movement, that fizzled out roughly just before the 1920s.

Photographed during British colonial anthropologist Northcote Thomas tour of the western Igbo area c. 1912-13, which culminated in a book on the history and culture of this area. MAA Cambridge.