The Canoe and The Paddler(s) PART II

In the first part of this article, we described the canoe and its importance to a significant section of several communities across Nigeria. The canoe was closely intertwined with the economy and the way of life of several Nigerian communities. 

We described the discovery of the aged Dufuna canoe in the Present-day Yobe State in northeast Nigeria which redefined how the role of Africans in the development of maritime transportation was viewed. It was a history revision of significant proportions. At the time, a number of authentication Radio-Carbon tests conducted in laboratories of reputable universities in Europe and America indicated that the Dufuna canoe was over 8,000 years old. Then we posed the question why nobody for millennia had innovated on the canoe. Why was the canoe, which has proven invaluable to several societies, left just as it has been from way back when it was first invented?

In the post entitled 'Pure Water' Nigeria, the writer used the example of the sachet 'Pure Water' commonly sold all over Nigerian cities and rural areas to as a metaphor to portray the state of CREATIVITY AND INNOVATION in Nigeria. The article concluded that on the balance of evidence Nigerians are inclined to rather copy than innovate. This article would buttress the point.

Men inside canoe at 2009 Argungu Fishing Festival (Source: Irene Becker)

Why was the canoe left frozen in the rudimentary stage in 'inventive' time? Why would an object that has effect in many aspects of the lives of large sections of people economically, socially, and culturally not be considered for modification? Why would an object of humongous value remain at the very rudimentary levels of development?

Was it that the problem which necessitated the invention of the canoe was solved and disappeared rendering the invention unnecessary? Or was it a case of creativity stasis, an invention arrest development, where creative imagination sparked and flamed out in one brief span?

There are more questions. Was the Dufuna canoe the result of one inventor or several collaborators? When this man (or men) completed building, did they transfer the skill? If yes, what became of that know-how? If no, why not?

Whatever the answer you come up with, whatever the plausible explanation, the fact of lack of continuity of originality would not be lost on any observer. The people who usually argue that colonial adventurers interfered with the natural development curve of the colonised people would not be able to rationalise this query. Because the Dufuna canoe was invented thousands of years before the first intruders arrived. The whole affair does not shed flattering light on whatever was the system of skills transfer in the era.

Boat Regatta in Rivers State 2011 CARNIRIV (Source - naijanet.com)

Well, the world caught up to the Dufuna canoe and moved past it. Let us travel through time and glimpse remarkable developments, transformations, inventions, innovations and process developments which took place in all this time.

In summary, starting from 10,000 to 1000 BCE human societies passed through Neolithic, Bronze and Iron Ages, after the preceding Paleolithic Age, witnessing the emergence of increasingly Complex Societies.  About 10,000BCE some human communities began to move in a new direction. For the first time, mankind began to produce food in a systematic way rather than hunt or collect all their food in the wild.  Farming in this sense is defined as a set of interrelated activities that increase the production of those resources that humans can use, such as cattle, grain, or flax, and reduce the production of things humans cannot use, such as weeds or pests. The emergence of societies based on agriculture, commonly referred to as agrarian societies, involved a complex interplay of plants, animals, topography, climate, and weather with human tools, techniques, social habits, and cultural understandings. All this transformation also helped humans develop a more varied and sophisticated kit of stone tools in connection with the emergence of farming.

The Agricultural Revolution (between 8000 and 5000 BCE) marked a change in human history, as humans began the systematic husbandry of plants and animals. Agriculture advanced, and most humans transitioned from nomadic to a settled lifestyle as farmers in permanent settlements. Nomadism continued in some locations, especially isolated regions with few domesticable plant species, but the relative security and increased productivity provided by farming allowed human communities expand increasingly larger units, fostered by advances in transportation.

As farming developed, grain agriculture became more sophisticated and prompted division of labour to store food between growing seasons. The growing complexities of human societies necessitated systems of writing and accounting. Many cities developed on the banks of lakes and rivers and as early as 3000 BCE some of the first prominent, well-developed settlements had arisen in Mesopotamia, on the banks of Egypt's River Nile, and in the Indus River valley. 

Haulage Business in the Niger Delta Depends on Canoes (Source - Reuters)

An innovation of the Neolithic period worth noting here is the use of bricks. In their simplest form, bricks were shaped by pressing mud or clay into a mould. The damp blocks are then left to bake hard in the sun. Bricks of this kind are known in Jericho from about 8000 BC.

It is however recorded that some parts of the world forwent agriculture altogether. In these regions, one of two alternative subsistence methods was pursued. The first alternative was to continue with the hunter - gatherer indefinitely and the second was nomadic herding life. The first alternative path was followed by Australia, much of Siberia, much of the Americas (the far north and south), and parts of sub-Saharan Africa. The second was well-suited to arid regions, where rainfall is sufficient for grass but too scarce for productive farming; typical herd animals include sheep, goats, cattle, horses, camels and reindeer (depending on climate).

The Neolithic Age was succeeded in Eurasia by the Bronze Age which is considered to begin when bronze became the much-used material for practical object such as tools and weapons. The key prerequisite to this Age was the development of smelting (the process of extracting metal from ore). Copper was the first metal to be smelted. In Southwest Asia, the Bronze Age spanned 3000 - 1000 BC.

The Iron Age began in Southwest Asia around 1000 BC.  The Iron Age also diffused across North Africa, and then (unlike the Bronze Age) southward across sub-Saharan Africa. It crossed the Sahara Desert by travelling through the Nile (through Egypt into Nubia), and may also have crossed at other points farther west.  The transition to the Iron Age was critical because it enabled, for the first time in history, true mass-production of metal tools and weapons so that agriculture and warfare among others were thereby revolutionised.

In terms of the timeline of inventions and discoveries from early times to the present time click here.

ALL OF THE FOREGOING HAPPENED WHILE THE DUFUNA CANOE STOOD UNTOUCHED, UNCHANGED AND UNTRANSFORMED!

Canoe Full of School Children Waiting For The Tide To Come In (Source - Bebor Model School)

 
This writer can only imagine what life would have been like if the inventor(s) of the Dufuna canoe had dared to be more imaginative and more daring. Can you?

There is no doubt that if there had been any innovation on the canoe, a number of results would have been achieved. We can hazard a few: 1) the speed could have been improved, to make people arrive their destination faster, saving time; 2) the handling could have been improved making it possible for less energy to be invested in steering the canoe; 3) safety could have been improved, so that passengers and paddlers are better protected against the mercy of the water; and navigational aids could have been introduced, so that the paddler(s) could have ventured into more adventurous undertakings.

All the foregoing interventions would have improved the efficiency, convenience, safety, and ease of operation of the canoe, thereby making it improve lives for the people economically, socially and culturally. 

However, nobody did anything at all, other than vary the size (I'm certain based on the material at hand). 

8,000 years is a long time! And 8,000 years is too long a time to be standing still!

Now let us as the final question for this thought: SHOULD WE ALLOW THIS SAME CREATIVE STASIS AND 'INNOVATION ARREST DEVELOPMENT' IN NIGERIA CONTINUE FOR THE NEXT 8,000 YEARS?

(NB: Some sources quote that the Dufuna canoe is actually 8,500 years old.)

References:

1. www.essential-humanities.net
2. www.worldhistoryforusall.sdsu.edu
3. www.ancient.eu.com/mesopotamia
4. Wikipedia
5. Encarta
6. www.worldhistory.net