Batik, Tye-Dye, and Adire: Comparing Resist-Dyeing Traditions Across Nigerian Zones

Nigeria's resist-dyeing textile traditions encompass a rich diversity of techniques, materials, and aesthetic systems, yet comparative analysis across regional traditions remains underdeveloped in the scholarly literature. This study compares the resist-dyeing traditions of batik, tie-and-dye, and Adire across production communities in Abeokuta (South West), Bida (North Central), and Aba (South East), examining technical approaches, design vocabularies, material inputs, and the social contexts of production. Primary data are gathered through structured interviews with 30 practitioners per site and visual documentation of production processes and finished textiles. The study applies a structured comparative framework that evaluates each tradition on dimensions of technical complexity, symbolic content, ecological material use, and commercial viability. The theoretical framework draws on comparative craft studies, material culture theory, and the cultural geography of textile traditions. The study examines whether there is evidence of historical cross-regional influence between these traditions or whether they developed largely independently from distinct ethnic and environmental contexts. The current status of each tradition in terms of skill transmission, generational continuity, and market performance is assessed. Recent scholarship has called for comparative approaches to Nigerian craft traditions to overcome the tendency toward ethnically siloed documentation. Findings are intended for the National Council for Arts and Culture, textile heritage researchers, and educators in craft and design programmes. Keywords: resist-dyeing, batik, Adire, comparative craft, Nigerian textiles