 Archaeological evidence suggests that Nri hegemony in Igboland may go back as far as the 9th century , and royal burials have been unearthed dating to at least the 10th century . Eri , the god @-@ like founder of Nri , is believed to have settled the region around 948 with other related Igbo cultures following after in the 13th century . The first Eze Nri ( King of Nri ) Ìfikuánim followed directly after him . According to Igbo oral tradition , his reign started in 1043 . At least one historian puts Ìfikuánim 's reign much later , around 1225 AD . 
