Articles to be published in 2025
Gerald D. Sack. More on Cannibalism and the Development of Early Human Society
ABSTRACT
A substantial body of archaeological research over the past 25 years supports the proposition that Paleolithic and Neolithic cannibalism was a sub-optimal survival strategy. This is because early modern man had to compete with non-human scavengers and predators for meat, and so vegetable foods became essential for survival. We now know that “man the hunter” was successful in relatively few hunts, and so probably lived on the margin until foraging skills developed sufficiently to provide nutritious supplements not available from meat. Seasonal variations in food animals caused food stress, thereby depressing women’s fertility. This probably promoted intergroup co-operation, rather than cannibalism.
Kazeem Omotola Seriki. Ethno-Cultural Associations as Shadow States: The Case of Ijebu Province in Western Nigeria, 1900–1960
ABSTRACT
Extant scholarly works on ethno-cultural associations (ECAs) in Nigeria have done little to provide a robust historical perspective on their roles in community development of British colonies in Africa. Thus, this paper is an attempt to fill the gap in the body of knowledge on ethno-cultural associations in colonial Africa with specific reference to Ijebu province in Western Nigeria. The study is aimed at providing a critical historical discourse on the social, economic and political roles of ethno-cultural associations in colonial Ijebu province of Western Nigeria.
The study utilises primary and secondary sources. While archival materials and oral interviews provide the primary data in this discourse, books, journal articles and newspaper reports are explored as secondary data. The study found out that the efforts made by the ECAs through several strategies in colonial Ijebuland brought about meaningful development at the community level. We also found out that the ECAs represented indigenous organizational structures developed by the Ijebu people and functioned as community-wide forums for problem identification and prioritization, social and financial resource mobilization and development project implementation at the community level in colonial Ijebu province of Western Nigeria. The study concludes among other things that the ECAs were more or less shadow states and that their efforts must be seen against the background of the failure of the colonial state and the Ijebu Native Administration between 1900 and 1960.
Aleksei S. Shchavelev. People Rus’ in the Ninth – Middle Eleventh Centuries: Novel Approaches to the Study of Ethnogenesis and Politogenesis
ABSTRACT
The main aim of this paper to try to make an outline of modern understanding of processes and mechanisms of formation of people named Rus’ and the polity of Rurikid linage. In a basis of the offered approach new interpretations of written sources are put. The later Old Russian narratives, first of all, “Primary Chronicle”, are recognized as sources unreliable and secondary, and the basic factual basis is formed on the basis of documents (treaties, statutes and legal codes, etc) and synchronous for 10th century narrative texts, first of all, Byzantine descriptions of Rus’ in special manuals on diplomacy and ambassadorial protocol. It is no less important now to understand the epistemological and practical limitations of the use of archaeological and linguistic data, eliminating schemes built on false interpretations of it. Following these guidelines, the paper substantiates the following provisions. Firstly, the autocatalytic process of deployment of a network of long-distance trade-routes and the emergence of urban-centres in their hubs became the basic factor in the formation of medium-scale polities on the East European Plain. Secondly, in the new settlements of the Upper and Middle Dnieper Area in the 10th century, new mixed urban communities were formed, among which groups of people who labelled themselves as Rus’ were formed. Here politogenesis and ethnogenesis both were triggered and stimulated by long-distance trade and urbanization. Thirdly, no medium-sized polity of the 9th–10th centuries had the features of an early state, because it was an ecumene without developed writing abilities. Only the complex chiefdom under the leadership of Rurikids, after joining the Byzantine Christian Church, gained access to the technology of written practices. This allowed, during the first half of the 11th century, to create a governing machine of specialized functionaries, proto-bureaucrats, who produced the first state regulatory documents. By the middle of the 11th century, the early state in Rus’ was established. In the same period elite and the population of “Rurikid empire” finally appropriated ethno-political label Rus’, as a result, a new Christian folk with such name has appeared on the map of the Western Eurasia. These processes of ethnogenesis and politogenesis on the East European Plain in the 9th–11th centuries fit into the most standard models of sociocultural and political anthropology.
Titilayo Elizabeth Anifowose, Teminijesu Isreal Oke, Olabode Ifetola Oyedele, Ayomipo Akintunde Fadeyi, Taiye Oladoyin Alagbe, and Oluwatoyin Abiodun Adebayo. Sapon Traditional Market: An Evolution of Cultural Values in the Spatial Planning of Oke-Ona, Abeokuta
ABSTRACT
Traditional markets are not merely places of trade; they play a crucial role in the cultural and economic fabric of African societies, serving as vibrant hubs for commerce, social interactions, and cultural exchange. Furthermore, they embody historical significance, community identity, and planning, especially in urban settings. In Abeokuta, towns such as Oke-Ona feature traditional markets as integral parts of their spatial planning patterns, distinguishing them from modern urban structures. This study focuses on the Sapon market in Oke-Ona, Abeokuta, with the aim of identifying the cultural values that shape its spatial patterns. This study employs an inductive qualitative approach, utilising spatial analysis and other analytical methods, to explore the relationship between the traditional market and the urban layout of Oke-Ona. Using descriptive qualitative methods and in-depth interviews, this study highlights how the spatial values of the traditional Egba-Oke-Ona space inform market morphology. The findings reveal that: (1) The Sapon market is a historical element of Abeokuta’s spatial layout and a crucial component of Oke-Ona town. (2) Oke-Ona is a traditional Yoruba town with a belief system that emphasises the harmony between the universe and human endeavours. It follows a tripod model in which the palace represents governance, the market represents economic activity, and the religious centre represents spiritual life. (3) The integration of the traditional market into the urban environment reflects the Sapon concept, illustrating its significance within both Oke-Ona and the larger Abeokuta urban areas. Despite the morphological changes since the market’s establishment, particularly regarding the palace square and city size, traditional values remain the primary drivers of these transitions.
Andrea Komlosy. What Could Happen in the Next One Hundred Years?
ABSTRACT
However, although these two trends are certainly among the most important ones, both today and in the future, there is a surprisingly small number of works that present a consistent forecast of technological development in a systematic and coherent way. The situation is even worse for global aging research. There is a serious lack of systematic research and analysis on this topic.
Mir-Ali Askerov, Andrey Korotayev, and Leonid Issaev. Islamist State Formation in Somalia