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Ekene / Acknowledgments
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EKENE / ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The Igbo have a saying that coming and going keeps the road from getting cold. Like that insightful proverb, my journey into researching and writing King Ahebi’s world has required several comings and goings to navigate and complete. I owe a debt of gratitude to my family, friends, and colleagues who have all in one way or the other supported and nurtured my journey. I am particularly grateful to the late Professor Boniface Obichere, under whose guidance I first discovered Ahebi. I have also benefited from the unflagging encouragement and unwavering support of the late Professor A. E. Afigbo, to whose Nigerian residence I first pilgrimaged in the summer of 1995 and subsequently every summer starting in 2006—all in an attempt to learn from a true master and live up to that perceptive Igbo adage that proclaims that a child who stays near an adult does not chew pepper but rather chews kola nut. Professor Afigbo, thank you so very much for your intellectual support of me. I will forever treasure our conversations and your kind words and e-mail communications.1 This book is dedicated to you. This book is as much for my friend and guide, Mr. Erobike Eze, who twice dropped everything to accompany me into the research field, and without whose assistance and support this study could never have been completed. Mr. Eze, words are not enough to thank you for your commitment to this project. This book is also dedicated to you. Funding for my research came from several sources and funding agencies . I thrice received the Sesquicentennial Research Fund for Historical Research and Publication of the history department at Michigan State University (MSU). Collection of source materials was further facilitated by MSU’s Special ForeignTravel Fund and the Summer Research Fellowship of MSU’s International Studies and Programs. I also received MSU’s Intramural Research Grant Program award, which bought me a semester with no teaching, and the Wenner-Gren Postgraduate Fellowship, which allowed me to dedicate an entire academic year to writing. Without this support, I would never have been able to put Ahebi’s story into writing. Likewise, this study could not have been completed without the support of Mark Kornbluh, the former chair of the history department, who approved the financial support from my department and accommodated my request for time away from teaching when I received external awards. Special mention must also go to my present acting chair, Keely StauterHalsted , who has seen to the continued support of my project by providing funds for an indexer. x EkENE / ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Heartfelt appreciation goes to all my collaborators in Enugu-Ezike (especially Umuida), Unadu, Ofante, and Idah, who, over the fifteen years that I have been working on this project, have shared their experiences and memories of King Ahebi. I would be remiss, however, if I did not single out several collaborators for special mention. Mr. Samuel Ezeja, a teacher from Enugu-Ezike, first accompanied me to the Ahebi Primary School in 1996; thank you so very much for your time.That same year, the now-deceased Wilfred Ogara very graciously welcomed me into his home in Umuida, spending more time than I could ever have hoped explaining Ahebi’s world to me. Alice Akogu (formerly Ahebi) also welcomed me on several occasions, cooking for me and sharing remembrances of her deceased “mother-in-law” Ahebi. I am particularly indebted to Nwoyeja Obeta (Felicia Ugwu Agbedo), now deceased, who first introduced me to the inner life of King Ahebi’s palace. She too spent several hours with me, cooking, singing, and dancing King Ahebi’s world. I will never forget how comfortable she made me feel. A world of thanks goes to Abodo Nwa Idoko of Ikpamodo, Enugu-Ezike, who on September 29, 1998, let me in on the “community secret” and by so doing gave me the space to critically reconstruct the life of the remarkable woman Ahebi. Honorable Fabian Azegba is warmly acknowledged for his dedication and support and for receiving me on numerous occasions. He also introduced me to his “big brother,” retired army sergeant Samuel Apeh, who in turn shared memories of the day-to-day world of the Ahebi Palace School—which he attended as a youngster—recalling the songs they were taught so many years ago. Speaking of songs, I am most indebted to the now-deceased Oshageri, professional musician extraordinaire, who in 1998 twice entertained me with food and song. He...