THE HERITAGE RESOURCES OF AFIKPO IN EBONYI STATE, NIGERIA: A CASE STUDY OF MASQUERADING

Abstract

1. Introduction Whenever we mention masquerading in Igboland one immediately thinks of just the traditional religious ritual symbolism; yet it is far more than mere ritualism because it is also one of the channels through which many communities traditionally corrected some unwanted behavioural practices. Afikpo, formerly known as Ehugbo people, is settled at two localities: the upper undulating settlers (due to the basement rock) and the lower land settlers (the settlement that has proximity to the lower shore of the cross-river flood-plain). The people are known for subsistent farming and they also engage in trading. Masquerading is vital in farming activities of the people. In this paper, the word masquerade or masquerading is to be differentiated from masking. Masking refers to costume (Boston 1960) and masquerade/masquerading concerns not only the costume, but also the religious-cultural significance and the plays involved. Ehugbo masquerades are classified into three types such as Iri Iko, Igwugwu and Okumkpo. The three feature at different periods for different purposes. For instance, Iri Iko masquerade festival is a yearly seasonal festival, and the featuring masquerades are Okpa, Yewelo and Otero. It is a festival set aside to mark the commencement of dry season. Igwugwu festival is celebrated once in ten years (a decade), specifically in the month of November. It marks a religious festival that celebrates the maturation of young boys into manhood. Hence it orchestrates the rites of initiation into adulthood. Okumkpo is a periodic masquerade festival that is celebrated whenever the need for it arises. It showcases the festival of cleansing of the land of any form of abomination (Nsoani), which if left uncleansed is believed to have adverse effects on the economic, socio-religious and physical wellbeing of the members of the community. Conducts such as dangerous or blood-spilling fights or warfare, stealing, homicide, especially in the form of unwitting or accidental killing of a kinsperson, child abuse, rape, incest and robbery, among many others, are believed to heat up the land and need to be ritually atoned for, or calamities awaited the dwellers on the land until the necessary is done. Among these three masquerade festivals, Okumkpo is most widely known and sought for in view of its great intervening, liberating and reconciling effects, and that is part of the reason why we decided to dwell more on it. This values of Okumkpo masquerading kept it relevant and persistent as a corrective measure in the Ehugbo community despite modern measures that are now put in place in line with western civilization. Hence even as the police, the judiciary and other law enforcement organs are put in place to protect human rights, the traditional festival is still held in high esteem by the people. Okumkpo masquerade can be compared with mmanwu (masquerade) festival in old Anambra State and which was later been celebrated in the new Anambra State. Since masquerade activities always coloured every important celebration among the Igbo in view of the belief that it represented the ancestors of the land witnessing the activities of their descendants, there is the move that festivals that showcase assemblage of masquerades should be gazetted by the government of South-east Nigeria to reflect the sum total of Igbo life, activities, beliefs, passions, theatre and tradition (Chiewe 1990). Ike (2012) in his study of unmasking the mask posits mmanwu in Igbo traditional society as an institution of unquestioned reverence. He further ascertained the mask as an inimitable agent of social order and court of final appeal. Therefore, the relevance of Okumkpo masquerade centres on the religious significance and social importance. 2. The meaning of masquerade According to Onyeneke (1987) masquerade means different things to different people. Many see it as a representative of ritual symbolism, some as a representative of empirical symbolism and to some others is an illusion. …