3. Mmuo Festival
Masks and Masquerades known
in Igbo language as "Mmanwu
na Mmuo"
Mmuo are the spirits of the dead
persons of a town. These spirits
are classified into good & evil
ones. The good spirits are placed
in a hierarchy as follows: the
spirit of ALL Ozo titled men,
which are regarded as the
Collective Royal Ancestors called
Ndi Ndushi, these are great
ancestors.
(http://www.oraifite.com/masks-
and-masquerades)
http://www.ecs.umass.edu/ece/wirele
ss/people/awduche/images/agbog
bo_mmuo.jpeg
4. http://www.oraifite.com/images/masks-dancers- http://www.clarku.edu/~jborgatt/igbo9.
afia-olu.jpg jpg
“‟Look at this,‟ Papa-Nnukwu said. „This is a woman
spirit, and the women mmuo are harmless…‟ The
mmuo he pointed to was small; its carved wooden
face had angular, pretty features and rouged lips.”
Pg. 85
5. For the children lucky enough to afford it, their parents would take
them off to a private Catholic school. Others attended a local public
school. Catholic schools were extremely strict and required a uniform
be worn. When it came to play time after school was let out, however
shorts became the standard issue clothing.
“I was at my study desk when Mama came into my room, my school
uniforms piled on the crook of her arm.” pg 19
“Obiora took off a dark pair of sunglasses and slipped them in the
pockets of his shoes as they came in.” pg 116
http://www.globalgateway.org/images/Will%20young%20people%20afri
http://www.natcf.org/minpics/Nigerian%20children.jpg can%20schoolkids.JPG
9. Akara
(Blackeyed Pea Cakes)
2 cups dried blackeyed peas
1 medium onion
1/2 tsp. red pepper or Tabasco to taste
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp. salt
Oil to deep fry
Soak peas 30 minutes or longer, then rub briskly to remove skins (Some people don’t remove the skins, but all Nigerian
cooks would). Grind peas in blender with just enough water for the blender to operate smoothly. Grind onion and pepper. Add
to the pea mixture with egg and seasoning. Mix thoroughly and drop by teaspoon into
hot oil. Fry until golden. Remove from oil and drain on paper towels. Tastes best while hot. Makes an excellent hors d’oevres
or side with meal.
Submitted by Lou Daniel
http://www.wfeca.net/clfonline/May04/recipe.html
Some other
traditional favorite
foods mentioned
in the book
include Akara,
Yams and Suya. Suya
Yams
http://food.oregonstate.edu/images/fruitveg/yam/yam3.jp http://photocom.gozaru.jp/gallery2004/pages/011suya.html
11. Effects of Literacy
“Let me play with the whiteman’s ways. Let me work with the blackman’s
brains” -Denis Osadebey, 1951
-The Arrival of the English Language and Western Education in Nigeria in
the past half century has led to its exploitation by the writers of the country.
-Said exploitation, while not necessarily negative, has given Nigerians, and
all Africans for that matter, a voice in a world that they rapidly fell out of
sorts with, given their lack of technological and political progress.
-In an interesting contrast to the overt Christianity expressed throughout the
book, the presence of Islam throughout Nigeria has promoted a great deal
of writing, and enterprises in education.
Falola, Toyin. Culture & Customs of Nigeria.
Westport, CT, USA: Greenwood Publishing Group, Incorporated, 2000. p 140.
http://site.ebrary.com/lib/dulaneybrowne/Doc?id=10017928&ppg=172
12. Literacy (cont.)
Developments among the Igbo parallel that among the Yoruba, although
with a somewhat slower beginning.
Efforts to create an acceptable written form of the Igbo language began in
the second half of the nineteenth century,but it was not until 1933 that the
first major work, Omenuko, was published.
Written by Pita Nwana, the book dominated the market for almost thirty
years and was widely read as a morality story.
In the 1960s, the Varsity Press at Onitsha released Leopold Bell-Gam’s Ije
Odumodu Jere and D. N. Achara’s Ala Bingo, both important works, but not
as successful as Omenuko.
Falola, Toyin. Culture & Customs of Nigeria.
Westport, CT, USA: Greenwood Publishing Group, Incorporated, 2000. p 61.
http://site.ebrary.com/lib/dulaneybrowne/Doc?id=10017928&ppg=79
13. Igbo In-depth
Igbo is one of the four official languages of Nigeria and is a
member of the Niger-Congo family of languages. It is spoken by
about 18 million people in Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea.
G. C. A. Oldendorp, a German missionary, was the first person to
produce a book containing material written in Igbo, which
consisted of a few words and phrases.
There are numerous Igbo dialects. The standard written form of
Igbo is based on the Owerri and Umuahia dialects and has been in
use since 1962.
It is a tonal language, based both on normal speaking and varying
pitch levels, both high and low.
http://www.omniglot.com/writing/igbo.htm
14. Modern Igbo History
The British colonizers withdrew from Nigerian territory in 1960, after arbitrarily imposing
national boundaries that pushed together three large and numerous smaller ethnic
groups, each with its own ancient customs, traditions, languages and clannish loyalties.
There followed an outmigration of Igbo from the crowded southeast into the more
sparsely populated Muslim north. Generally, the Igbo had embraced western education
while the northerners (Hausa-Fulani) had resisted it.
Following the Biafrin War (1967-70), amongst competing factions of Nigerian citizens
and government bodies, the Igbo in the North (already hated by rival tribe members)
relocated back to the southeast portion of Nigeria.
The sorry post-war conditions in Nigeria led to a significant diaspora that continues to
this day.
1961: A committee, with the help of the Society for Promoting Igbo Language and
Culture (SPILC), established a new orthography for the Igbo language, ending a 32
year controversy.
http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00fwp/igbo/whoare.html
15.
History (cont.)
1961: A committee, with the help of the Society for Promoting Igbo Language and
Culture (SPILC), established a new orthography for the Igbo language, ending a 32
year controversy.
1968: Two significant Igbo reference texts are published: Igbo, a Learner’s Manual and
Igbo, a Learner’s Dictionary, both meant for U.S. Peace Corps members coming to
provide aid in Igboland.
1972: The SPILC establishes a Standardization Committee meant to continually
change and monitor the various dialects spoken throughout Igboland, attempting the
nearly impossible task or creating uniformity.
1974-78: Various universities in Igboland establish departments devoted entirely to the
studies of Igbo Language and Culture.
1999: Prominent Igbo speaker Chinua Achebe denounces the SPILC‟s attempts at
standardization, saying it is representative of the oppressive rule of the British who
once controlled their land.
http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00fwp/igbo/whoare.html
16. Igbo
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http://mccoy.lib.siu.edu/jmccall/jones/misc.html
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17. Igbo Music
Udu - Pottery Drum
Igba - Cylinder Drum
Ekwe or Ufie - Slit-Drum
Ogene - Gongs
Oja - Flute
18. Traditional QuickTime™ and a
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Igbo Instruments
Igba
Oja QuickTime™ an d a
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http://www.umunna.org/instruments.htm?userid=Givesmart&userip=66.210.186.171&useragent=Mozilla%2f5.0+
(Macintosh%3b+U%3b+Intel+Mac+OS+X%3b+en)+AppleWebKit%2f419+(KHTML%2c+like+Gecko)+Safari%2f419.3
19. Ogene - Gongs
One of the most important metal
instruments used by the Igbo
Used to be made of Bronze, now
made of any common metal
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available.
are neede d to see this picture.
It is played by hitting the rim with a
stick to produce different tones.
http://www.umunna.org/instruments.htm?userid=Givesmart&userip=66.210.186.171&useragent=Mozilla%2f5.0+
(Macintosh%3b+U%3b+Intel+Mac+OS+X%3b+en)+AppleWebKit%2f419+(KHTML%2c+like+Gecko)+Safari%2f419.3
20. QuickTime™ and a
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http://mainearts.maine.gov/news/publications/
wc_booklet/discovery.shtml
21. Traditional Igbo Instrument
that is used today in
Modern Western Culture
This is what a common Udu looks like.
Quic kTime™ and a It is played by placing one hand over the
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open hole in the side and hitting the
body with the other hand.
http://www.answers.com/topic/udu-1
22. Ekwe - Slit Drum
This is made by hollowing out a
tree stump into two chambers that
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It is played by banging on it with
sticks
http://www.umunna.org/instruments.htm?userid=Givesmart&userip=66.210.186.171&useragent=Mozilla%2f5.0+
(Macintosh%3b+U%3b+Intel+Mac+OS+X%3b+en)+AppleWebKit%2f419+(KHTML%2c+like+Gecko)+Safari%2f419.3
23. Ufie - Slit Drum
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http://www.hamillgallery.com/DRUMS/DrumsMisc/
AnimalDrum01.html
24. Court Music
The more traditional Igbo continue to use Royal traditions
such as using the Ufie, or slit drum, to wake the Chief,
call him to meals, and communicate important village
happenings to him.
http://www.nigeria-planet.com/Nigerian-Music.html
25. Igbo Dancing and Music
http://youtube.com/watch?v=sIP
Dp48bZEA
http://www.okafordavid.com/music
/nkwa_group/idighi_ajo_njo.mp3
26. Modern Recordings
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www.amazon.com/music
27. Ollie Gee
Oliver Okolo, High Life
Reggae King
#1 selling CD in Nigeria
QuickTime™ and a International Hit:
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“Daddy Moh”
http://www.nlnshop.com/artist/ollie_gee.html
28. Modern Igbo Duo:
RESONANCE
Music Video
http://youtube.com/watch?v=
XvNEiIJ8S3Y&mode=related&search=
