Oracular Deities as Traditional Sources of Credit Among the Igbo of Nigeria

Bibliographic Data

ID5969962
AuthorsKenneth Omeje (0000-0003-3979-6045, United States International University Africa), Josephine Magawi (United States International University Africa)
Year2013
Volume51
Issue2
Pages107-129
Publication date2013-10-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueFolk Life (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0430-8778 • E-ISSN: 1759-670X
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1179/0430877813z.00000000017
OpenAlexW2070603252
LanguageEN
References cited5

This study focuses on the role of oracular deities as traditional sources of credit among a limited number of local communities of the Igbo of southeastern Nigeria noted for their powerful ancestral deities. The study is based on ethnographic methods of research and the fieldwork carried out in three local communities within the Nsukka cultural area of the Igbo ethnic group. The communities are Oba, Amufie, and Ugbaike. The findings of the study indicate that the credit institutions of the community deities are dual-tracked, involving financial and non-financial capital. The oracular credit institutions have far-reaching advantages as sources of micro-credits for a variety of largely (but not exclusively) non-business related purposes, albeit the institutions also have some negative externalities. But the real challenge of the fetish gods’ credit system is the issue of sustainability given its characteristic informality, poor liquidity base, and its overwhelming dependence on the personality and entrepreneurial acumen of the officiating chief priest

Archaeology · Art · Business · Capital (architecture · Dual (grammatical number · Economics · Ethnic group · Ethnography · Externality · Geography · Igbo · Literature · Market liquidity · Sociology · Variety (cybernetics · African studies and sociopolitical issues · Anthropology · Finance · Islamic Finance and Banking Studies · Microfinance and Financial Inclusion