Report on Library and Archival Search in SOAS London
by Gordwin Onuoha
27.09.2008 - 15.10.2008
At the instance of my supervisor, I was in London from the 27th of September to15th of October, 2008. During my visit consulted the Library and Archival Sections at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London. The SOAS Library serves as one of the most up to date collection of materials on African Studies in Europe, offering an excellent opportunity to carry out research on contemporary ethnic politics in Nigeria.
My research plan at SOAS was divided into two stages. In the first week, I was involved in searching out materials in the archives and rare book collections section of the library. This was tasky since it involved pouring through archival sources and files to find out which was directly relevant to my research. At the end of the collection of relevant materials, I used a digital camera to save the data.
The second stage involved collecting relevant books from the library catalogues for photocopy. Since most books on African studies were not available in Germany, I used the opportunity to copy some relevant books which were no longer in print and which directly addressed the issues I was dealing with in my research.
Although, I was scheduled to hold interviews with a few sources on Nigerian politics, this could not materialize because of time constraints. However, the trip was productive with respect to the availability of sources and materials I was able to find. But, after my trip to Nigeria, and depending on the outcome of the trip in terms of materials and sources available in Nigeria, it might be necessary to visit the SOAS once more, and to arrange for interviews from Igbo Diasporas in the UK. Presently, I am making preparations to embark on my field trip to Nigeria. This will take about three months, between the 31st of October, 2008 and 31st of January, 2009.