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The word "Mmanwu" in Igbo means "spirits of the dead". [1] It is the combination of two Igbo words "mmuo" or "maa" which means spirit and "onwu" which means death. [2] This refers to the purpose behind Mmanwu which is to create physical representations of spirits and ancestors through the adornment of the masks.
The performances showcase an ideal image of an Igbo maiden. This ideal is made up by the smallness of a young girl's features and the whiteness of her complexion, which is an indication that the mask is a spirit. This whiteness is created using a chalk substance used for ritually marking the body in both West Africa and the African Diaspora.
Masks have been used for a variety of purposes within Igbo culture in both historic and modern times. For specific segments of the Igbo population, some mask pairs have been traditionally interpreted as representing the duality of beauty and ugliness. The former being depicted as the maiden spirit and the latter as the elephant spirit. [4]
People frequently question whether the man wearing the mask is indeed a man because she constantly looks stunning in colorful attire and dances so smoothly. Mkpamkpanku [6] There are many masculine aspects in this masquerade, which is quite stern. They are typically well-known in their own right, swift, aggressive, and nimble.
Ijele is the largest mask system ever to enter the history of the world masking tradition. It comprises two segments: the upper and the lower segments, divided at the centre by a big python. The upper segment is called Mkpu Ijele while the lower segment is called Akpakwuru Ijele or Ogbanibe and the centre is called Eke - Ogba (Python).
Ukara ekpe cloths are woven in Abakaliki, and then they are designed by male Nsibidi artists in the Igbo-speaking towns of Abiriba, Arochukwu and Ohafia to be worn by members of the Ekpe society. Symbols including lovers, metal rods, trees, feathers, hands in friendship war and work, masks, moons, and stars are dyed onto ukara cloths.
The earth spirit, Ana, is 'Odinana', as is the sacred role of yam in the Igbo world, the right of inheritance, and the place of the elder. 'Odinana', as the immutable customary rites and traditions of the Igbo world, is enduring and cuts across indigenous Igbo people, while 'Omenana' is rather relative from one section of the Igbo to the other ...
Ikenga (Igbo literal meaning "strength of majesty ") is a horned god found among the Igbo people in southeastern Nigeria. It is synonymous to the Christians' Angel Michael. It is one of the most powerful symbols of the Igbo people and one of the most common cultural artifacts. Ikenga is mostly maintained, kept or owned by men and occasionally ...