Did you know that 24 of the 54 current African countries have English as their official language? You’d imagine that nearly all of them would have their own native language as the official languages considering that they aren’t European countries, but due to an unfortunate sequence of events, this is not the case. The unfortunate sequence of events I mentioned is in reference to the harsh brainwashing done by the Europeans to Nigerians and other Africans, stripping them of their cultural values and norms and replacing it with what the Europeans deemed civilized or holy. The decline of Nigerian languages such as Igbo was not the only culturally devastating result of the integration of missionaries into Nigerian society. Other adverse effects of missionary integration on Nigerian culture can be viewed in “The Headstrong Historian”, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. The significance of this writing is that it allows us to view the conflicts that individuals faced first hand as a result of shifting structures and customs in Nigeria. As a short example, “She felt her son slipping away from her”(Adichie, 11). For context, this is the moment a mother realizes her son is now a man of alternative culture after being brainwashed by missionaries. The missionaries cause changes in peoples’ ideologies which clash with their traditional familial ideologies, causing family feuds and tearing apart families. This mother losing grasp of who her son is, is but one example of the adverse effects of missionary teachings. This may bring about the question of how might a teaching be so effectively compelling as to convert one’s entire identity? “European missionaries called upon the tenants of Christianity to spread what they believed was a just and compassionate doctrine. In practice they were used to degrade the culture and society of the African people”(Violence in Twentieth Century Africa, 2016). This was the brainwashing method used by missionaries to ensure that these vulnerable Nigerian children would grow to be ashamed of their culture. They’d degrade the children for their culture, creating an inferiority complex amongst them, then providing their European counterparts to “solve” the issue that was never present until it was created by them.
I emphasized that missionaries were brainwashing Nigerian children, but I’ve yet to specify what aspects of their culture were shunned and replaced in the brainwashing process. “Father Shanahan told her that Anikwenwa would have to take an English name, because it was not possible to be baptized with a heathen name”(Adichie, 9). Names of the Igbo language were called heathen names and replaced with European names. In Anikwenwa’s case, the name ‘Michael’ was the replacement. By deeming igbo Nigerian names unworthy of baptism, the missionaries caused them to be seen as unworthy, unholy, “heathen” names. The word heathen has a negative connotation, and by describing a part of their culture as such, it then correlates to other parts of the culture which will be viewed the same way. I.e., since my Igbo name is not worthy, Igbo as a whole may as well not be worthy. When parents choose a name for their child, there is an ungodly amount of thought and consideration that goes into it. The name Anikwenwa means may Ani permit this child to live, “Ani”(Adichie, 2) being the earth goddess, another part of traditional Nigerian culture. As I was saying, an ungodly amount of intricate thought and consideration is in play by the parents when deciding the name of their child, or at least I'd hope so. Assuming the parents did care enough about the child, there would be a strong meaning behind the name, whether it be spiritual, religious, or whatever else it may be. By assigning the child the name they decide to assign them, the parents create the first ever aspect of this child’s identity. If this isn’t the most important thing about a person, I don’t know what is. When this crucial polysemous part of a person is discarded in favor of a title that carries no weight in comparison, the identity of that person is forever damaged. Riddle me this, would people still wear Nike if the iconic checkmark was replaced with the Skechers logo? It’s the same shoe, is it not? It is the same shoe, but its title bears so much weight, that without it, it's quite frankly nothing. Nobody would blow out $250 on them if that was the case. This is emphasis for how Anikwenwa’s identity is tainted by this European name that he has adopted. Unfortunately he may not realize the magnitude of his actions due to the brainwashing. “Catholic missionaries were harsh and did not look out for the best interests of the natives”(Adichie, 8). It’s almost as if they wanted to get rid of the Nigerian culture.
The true mission of these missionaries was a “civilizing mission”(Violence in Twentieth Century Africa, 2016). They wanted to take these people that they saw as unfit and conform them to the contrary. “The only reason why our theological views are not as foolish and corrupting as theirs, and that we are not believers in witchcraft, devil-worship, and a thousand other foolish things, is simply because the light of Heaven shines upon us”(Violence in Twentieth Century Africa, 2016). The missionaries say that the light of heaven shines upon them but not the Africans because of their culture and lifestyle. I’d like to know what exactly it means for the light of heaven to shine upon an individual, because by the looks of it, they are exploiting christianity and using these reasons as an excuse to colonize innocent African peoples, while simultaneously granting them the key to salvation. Then again, it’s not like Jesus Christ himself, fully man and fully God, came down from heaven and told these Europeans that they are the chosen ones and have to go to Africa to do these things. It's more what they, the European missionaries deem fit with some christian logic sprinkled in as well. The issue was that Nigerian culture didn’t consist of many things that the missionaries deemed fit. As these teachings continued, Nwamgba noticed how her son would change. He lost motivation and found himself bearing the weight of the world. He stopped eating because the food was “sacrificed to idols”(Adichie, 10), he refused to participate in his initiation ceremony because it was a heathen custom, according to Shanahan. It was then that Nwamgba noticed the sadness in her son and the fact that their relationship was growing distant. The real bombshell is when Anikwenwa says he’ll be going to Lagos, Nigeria’s ex-capital, to become a teacher. Nwamgba is distraught. Some Nigerian cultural events and customs couldn’t be fulfilled if Anikwenwa was not present. This is a result of the missionaries’ teachings. Years pass and Anikwenwa returns and has a church wedding, an outlandish ceremony that Nwamgba has no choice but to bear silently, wishing she would die and join her late husband. This is a result of the missionaries’ teachings. Anikwenwa’s extreme missionary ideologies caused his new wife to cry. This is a result of the missionaries’ teachings. “Nwamgba was ashamed of her son”(Adichie, 13). Everything that he has become is a result of the missionary teachings he adopted so tenaciously into his character when he was younger. This is her realization, and her reaction is shame.
Missionary influence in Nigeria did nothing but destroy its cultural aspects. This is observed on a small scale with the conflicts between Nwamgba and Aniwenkwa as well as the decline of the Igbo language in Nigeria on a larger scale. “Today, English is the official language of Nigeria. Few people speak Igbo. Many Igbo leaders worry that their language may disappear. They have asked the government to support the preservation of their language”(Worley, n.d.). Yet another cultural issue in Nigeria, at the hands of the missionaries.
[Works Cited]
Adichie, Chimamanda Ngozi. "The Headstrong Historian." The New Yorker, 23 June 2008, www.newyorker.com/magazine/2008/06/23/the-headstrong-historian. Accessed 26 Oct. 2022.
"The Philosophy of Colonialism: Civilization, Christianity, and Commerce." Violence in Twentieth Century Africa, scholarblogs.emory.edu/violenceinafrica/sample-page/the-philosophy-of-colonialism-civilization-christianity-and-commerce/#:~:text=Christianity%20was%20one%20justification%20that,educate%20and%20reform%20African%20culture. Accessed 26 Oct. 2022.
Worley, Barbara A. "Igbo." World Book. World Book Advanced, www.worldbookonline.com/advanced/article?id=ar271790#tab=homepage. Accessed 26 Oct. 2022.
