OHAZURUME - Unizik Journal of Culture and Civilization

Kola nut is an important tree crop in Igboland. Yam, which was regard as the king of crops by Igbo people in the pre-colonial era, was the only crop arguably more esteemed than Kola nut in south-eastern Nigeria. The socio-cultural relevance of Kola nut in Igboland transcends the fact that, the people used it for almost all activities such as marriage, burial, ritual, cleansing, widowhood rites and social reengineering. It featured prominently in pre-colonial Igbo diplomatic practice. Kola nut is central to peacebuilding and friendship building processes in Igboland. It is against this backdrop that this study examines the history of Kola nut usage in Igboland in the context of diplomacy. Using the historical research methodology, the study corroborates primary and secondary materials to achieve its objective. To this end, data gotten from observations, oral interviews, books, journal articles and the internet are analysed. The findings of the qualitative study showed that to a large extent whoever brought Kola nut in pre-colonial Igboland arguably brought life and peace. Thus, it justifies Igbo indigenous epistemologies on Kola nut usage that holds that “He who brings Kola brings life”; and “He who brings Kola brings peace”. Kola diplomacy in Igboland is an under-explored frontier of diplomatic history that needs to be incorporated into mainstream texts on global diplomacy. This study concludes that, the knowledge of how negotiation, bargaining, mediation, arbitration and conciliation as tools of diplomacy were facilitated by Kola nut usage in pre-colonial Igboland is significant in modern diplomatic conduct. Diplomacy is sterile without its aids then and now.

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