Dress Code Fashion And Regalia In Northern Nigeria- Cultural, Religious, Or Political Domination Of The Middle Belt Nationalities: Southern Kaduna In Focus

By Emmanuel Gandu

EXCERPTS
“Traditional outfit and regalia is timeless elegance that not only speaks volumes about a people’s heritage and cultural roots, but also deepens the people’s connection with the ethic identity in an atmosphere of style, pride and nostalgia.”

“Southern Kaduna unique cultural heritage and fashion dress code certainly needs to be amplified in agreement with her racial ideology and identity.
There is no gain-saying the fact that the Royal institution represented by the Chiefs as custodian of this cultural identity should be the agent of the people’s traditional civilizations fore – fronting.”

INTRODUCTION
Traditional fashion in dress and regalia highlights the creativity, beauty and elegance of traditional wear and civilization in showcasing the place of culture in timeless appeal. Whether it’s for a festival occasion or everyday style, one’s passion for traditional attire while celebrating the cultural significance, heritage and ethnic fashion is a “fever” that is catching up everywhere.
Dress fashion are created, designed, and worn, out of the culture, customs, social perceptions, and norms of the people. People’s sense of dress fashion differs from place to place, and these variations are based on societal and cultural preferences, purposes, circumstances, occasions, and sense of identity projection.
In addition, dress fashions are symbolic indicators of the different social ideas, social class, cultural identity, attitudes towards comfort, tradition, political, and religious affiliation.
Interestingly, dress fashion allows individuals the freedom to express themselves with their choice of apparel in order for them to feel at home, and real good.

This discourse is an attempt to highlight the level of awareness on the proliferation and use of tribal dress fashion by the different nationalities in the middle Belt. It also seeks to project, inform, and enlighten the public by provoking discussion on the efficacy and otherwise of the role of these dress fashion in fostering unity, sense of cultural identity, and pride of independence and equality in a pluralistic Nigeria.
Above all, it seeks to put the Royalty on the spotlight in order to make known whether as custodians of the people’s cultural heritage if they have been effective agents of the people’s traditional civilizations fore – fronting.

TRIBAL DRESS FASHION
All through the Middle Belt and other Northern non Hausa/Fulani nationalities, history and experience of religious and Hausa cultural fashion have become not only a strong determinant of aesthetic/fashion production, but a high level of influence and domination.
Thus, while being aware of the differences in culture, religious affiliation, and norms as determinants of dress fashion, and while sometimes insisting on their unique cultural identity, the Middle Belt tribes do find themselves at a crossroads as they struggle to perceive and define their own aesthetics of fashion dress.
Moreover, sociological, historical, economic and political dynamics of control and domination in Northern Nigeria have continued to make such attempts at defining a unique, common, and unifying identity dress fashion code for the Middle Belt difficult, and an inevitable enterprise.

Discussing the hypothesis of fashion dress religious, cultural, and political dominance of the minority by the majority, Gandu – yours sincerely (2021 unpublished thesis) posits that the adoption and adaption of the Hijab fashion by Christianity, and much later by Islam in the Arab world is due to the dominant culture of women fashion dress of the Greek and Middle Eastern countries that predates Christianity.
Citing Kwasniewski to support this hypothesis, Gandu(2021) relied on Kwasniewski on the Assyrian Law from 1400 – 1100 BC which stipulated that “women were never to be seen in public exposing from their head and hair down to the shoulder, chest and rest of the body to the eyes of men other than their husbands.”
Still on this hypothesis according to Gandu, three prominent Islamic scholars and authors, Karen Armstrong, Reza Aslan and Leila Ahmed posits that there is a cultural and political influence of dominance of the majority over the minority.
While Olabisi Deji – Falutile (2021) identified greed for political control of the minority, Faeghe Shiraz (2010), an Islamic fashion scholar unequivocally support this hypothesis of cultural and political dominance of the minority culture by the majority.

Consequently, it is glaringly obvious that centuries of Northern Hausa/Islamic culture and political domination have been strongly manifest in the Middle Belt cultural life, especially on dress fashion.

REGALIA OF MIDDLE BELT TRADITIONAL CHIEFS
Dress fashion of traditional leaders in the North complies with Islamic and Arabian fashion. In this dress fashion, the flowing regalia is flambouyantly flaunted, covering all the Emir’s body except the face. This is the dress code by the traditional institution in the North.
However, this is generally seen as a continuation of dominance of the tribes in the Middle Belt.
Hence, vigorous attempts are made by the various other cultures to replace and supplant these Islamic/Hausa royal regalia with contemporary indigenous dress fashion which reflect historical cultural traditions of the people.
Public opinion suggests that the indigenous tribes in Northern Nigeria had blamed the predominance of the Islamic style regalia influence of their dress fashion to the alienation and betrayal of their Chiefs, leaders and political heavy weights. Consequently, disillusionment, liberation and independence sentiments among these indigenous nationalities began to drive the narratives.
As a result of this, and as time went by, the Tiv, Jukun, Idoma, Igala, Berom and other Nationalities insisted on their cultural attire, and having their royal regalia as such.
Hence the appearance in public by theTor Tiv, Aku Uka, Och’ Idoma, Atah of Igala, Gbom Gwom, etc, in their traditional tribal regalia.
However, the Southern Kaduna Royal fathers did not borrow any royal dress fashion leaf from their counterparts in the Middle Belt but rather chose to remain with their Hausa neighbors.

TRIBAL DRESS CODES : A CLARION CALL TO SOUTHERN KADUNA CHIEFS
Lamentably, Southern Kaduna Royal fathers had been comfortable with the regalia that was never representative of their own cultures.
During the late 2000 however, attempts began to made by a few of the tribes to counter the superimposed Hausa/Fulani dress fashion culture. This was done through home grown designs of fabric materials to produce attires called dress code. This positive direction to imaginatively reasses and redesign the fashion outlook was pioneered by the Bgagyi and Adara.
By 2006 the Atyap came up with theirs. This was closely followed by the Checerak (Kachechere) in 2008.
Others including the Bajju, Ham, Asholio, Takkad, Gwong, Fantswam, Ikulu, etc later joined the queue.
Interestingly, all these aesthetics and arts have assisted in motivating attention and efforts at invigorating modern dress code fashion in Southern Kaduna towards showcasing their rich cultural, historical, and traditional civilizations.

To no small measure, this renaissance has awaken the consciousness of some of the Southern Kaduna Chiefs to the role of dress code and fashion dress as part of their royal regalia.
Among the early Southern Kaduna Chiefs to embrace their tribal dress code attire include the Agom Adara, Agwam Bajju, Agwam Takad, Agwam Fantswam. The Agwa Tyap joined at the heat of the farmer/herder crisis that engulfed parts of Southern Kaduna towards the last years of the Nasir El – Rufai administration.
However, and for whatever reasons, the following tribal chiefs are yet to embrace their own tribal fashion dress culture as part of their royal regalia : Oegwam Oegworok, Agwam Asholio, Ikulu, Anghan, Res Tsam, Kpop Gwong, and the rest.(please correct me where necessary).

Interestingly, the yeary tribal traditional cultural festivals which usually incorporate aesthetics on musical performances, dance, display of rituals, chants, songs, prayers, praise and worship, costume, show of gallantry and prowess, display of traditional food and drinks, beauty pageant, sports, and other aspects of both physical and spiritual life of the people have always pointed in direction towards a guided leadership of the various chiefs.
Expectedly, these royal chiefs are to be seen to reciprocate the “reverence” following accorded their status by the people. This would no doubt help them share their passion for traditional attire while celebrating the cultural significance and heritage of their ethnic fashion.
Moreover, since every ethnic group have their traditional dress code style worn for occasions, coupled with the fact that each attire/regalia as clothing associated with particular ethnic group is expected to be worn in order to also emphasize identity, the traditional institution is expected to lead the way.
Besides, traditional outfit is timeless elegance that not only speaks volumes about a people’s heritage and cultural roots, but also deepens the people’s connection with their ethnic identity in an atmosphere of style, pride and nostalgia.
Therefore, Southern Kaduna unique cultural heritage and fashion/dress codes certainly needs to be amplified in agreement with her racial ideology and identity.
There is no gain-saying the fact that the Royal institution represented by the Royal fathers as custodian of this cultural identity should be the agent of the people’s civilization’s fore – fronting.

CONCLUSION
Impactful, especially as it resonates with the essence of traditional style, and in highlighting the timeless elegance and rich cultural heritage of Southern Kaduna traditional attires, may I conclude with this eulogy :
Southern Kaduna culture is Beautiful, Timeless, Elegant, Rooted, Vibrant, Majestic, Classic, Opulent, Graceful, Authentic, Regal, Bold, Heritage, Dignified, Stately and Unique.
Like it, love it, use it, flaunt it, and savour every moment of it.

Peace 🙏
11/1/2025