Igbo Culture free essay sample

Imagine living a life with a completely different set of cultures and traditions; it is hard to do. Many people in the world today do not take the time to acknowledge the ways in which other societies live or how their cultures and traditions shape the way they are. The way in which a culture survives depends on the people’s capacity to understand and transfer it to succeeding generations. The Ibo culture has succeeded in maintaining its unique customs and traditions and is still successful to this day. The Ibo people have very unique customs and traditions. Nigeria is composed of three major ethnic groups, the Yorubas, the Hausas, and the Ibo. The Ibo people cover most of Southeast Nigeria, also known as Iboland. The Ibo people have very unique customs and traditions. One might feel shocked at the clothing that the Ibo people wear; while the majority of the people we know may wear jeans and a t-shirt, the Ibo people prefer quite less clothing. The sun lets out a blistering heat in Africa that causes the native people to desire to dress differently. Traditionally the Ibo wore very little to nothing until they reach the age of puberty at which time the men generally wear loose fitting cotton shirts and loincloths and the women usually wore a short wrapper with beads around their waist with other ornaments such as necklaces and beads. In the book Things Fall Apart Achebe decribes a womans attire â€Å"She wore a black necklace which hung down in three coils just above her full, succulent breasts and on her waist, four or five rows of jigida, or waist beads. †(71) The colonialism of the Ibo culture brought upon the western styled clothes such as trousers and shirts. Today the typical traditional attire of the Ibo men generally consists of an Isiagu top, which is very similar to the African Dashiki, paired with trousers and a hat. The Ibo women wear embodied puffed sleeve blouses, two wrappers, and a head scarf. Although the traditional attire has changed slightly, the new attire is still custom to the tribe. Kola nut (Oji)inhabits a unique place in the cultural life of Ibo people. The kola nut tradition is used for anassortment of events, but mainly to welcome guests to a village or house. Kola nut is always the first thing served to any visitor in an Ibo home. Other events where it may be shared include marriage ceremonies, entering into an agreement, and settling family disputes. The kola nut is also used to make a connection with spirits and ancestral gods. According to Ugbala â€Å"The importance which the Igbos attach to ? j? can further be illustrated by a legend which speaks of the visit of the founding fathers to the home of the gods where the gods asked the founding fathers to choose a fruit from all the fruits in the orchard of the gods. The founding fathers chose ? j? as the king of all the fruits and because it came from the gods, it is used in communicating with gods. Because it is the king of all the fruits (a sacred fruit from the gods) it is used in showing goodwill to visitors and for entering into bonds. †(Ugbala) Ways in which kola nut is broken is very specific to the Ibo people. Usually it is the privilege of the eldest man in a group to offer prayers and thanks when the kola nut is about to be broken and shared however in some parts of Iboland, the youngest breaks the kola-nut. The breaking of the kola nut is fundamental aspect of the Ibo people. The Igbo are intensely religious people who believe in one compassionate creator, usually known as Chukwu, who created the visible universe. â€Å"The creator can be approached through numerous other deities and spirits in the form of natural objects, most commonly through the god of thunder (Amadioha). There is also the belief that ancestors protect their living descendants and are responsible for rain, harvest, health and children. † (igboguide. rg) The living are very respectful and show much appreciation for the dead, it is actually against tribal law to speak badly of any spirit. Chi also plays a major role in the Ibo life. Chi is the spiritual entity that is embodied in everyone before birth and is with them throughout life. They believe that each life is predetermined by chi. The burial ceremonies of the Ibo are very complex, there are several deaths that prove to be shameful, and when these events occur no burial is performed at all. Women who die in labour, children who die before they have no teeth, those who commit suicide and those who die in the sacred month – for these people their funeral ceremony consists of being thrown into a bush. † (Slattery) The religious beliefs also led them to kill those who might be shameful to the tribe, for example, single births are considered typically human while twin births are thought to be typical of the animal world; therefore twins were seen as less than humans and put to death. The spirit world is very real to the Ibo people. The feast of the New Yam brings about much excitement in the Ibo community. The feast of the new yams is also known as Iwa-ji. These festivities normally include a lot of variety entertainment including aperformance of ceremonial rites by the Igwe or King, cultural dances by Igbo men, masquerade dance, fashion parade, and feasting at a grand scale on a wide variety of food that makes up the Ibo menu. Yams are the main agricultural crop among the Ibo and are the primary food as well. Generally at the start of each festival the yams are offered to the gods and ancestors before being distributed to the villagers. The rituals that are involved with the new yam eating are made to express the people’s appreciation to the gods for making the new yams harvest possible. According to Portia Websolutionsâ€Å"the day is symbolic of enjoyment after the cultivation season and a day of showing gratitude to god for his protection and kindness in leading them from lean periods to the time of bountiful harvest without deaths resulting from hunger. Iwa-ji is therefore an important event in the calendar of Igbo people all over the world. † The ceremony has been celebrated for centuries and is always celebrated in memorable ways in order to protect the tradition. The Ibo culture is very unique and diverse. The Ibo have an abundant sense of faith, and take great pride in the traditions and customs that they have created, tweaked, and maintained. The culture is still alive to this day and it is because of the people who kept the tradition alive and passed on for generations and generations.