OHA MMUO MASQUERADE FESTIVAL AND PROMOTION OF PEACE AND UNITY IN IHIALA ANAMBRA STATE

ABSTRACT

This study was carried out to assess the masquerade of Afiolu festival in Ihiala LGA of Anambra state. The study revealed that Anambra state has a lot of tourism attractions that are innumerable because the state has twenty-one local government areas with over two hundred towns but emphasis was laid on the Afolu festival in Ihiala LGA. The aim of the study is to assess the Oha Mmuo Masquerade Festival and Promotion of Peace and Unity in Ihiala Anambra State. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out to identify to what extent the role of masquerade in afiolu festival influence Ihiala people, find out the extent those activities that feature in the festival affect Ihiala people, identify the origin are concept of afiolu festival in Ihiala, and find out to what extent the advantage of afiolu festival affect Ihiala people. It will be pertinent to say that large scale tourism development must or definitely will involve the local people otherwise it will hamper the progress of tourism development at the long-run and some of the dangers of non-community involvement are: overstretching of limited resources in rural area, defacing of natural attractions, altering the natural surface, environmental pollution, restiveness and hostility to mention but a few. The study recommended that there should be importance placed on the economic consequences of tourism development in Anambra state. Also, there is need for encouragement of private investors in tourism development in Anambra state. This study will be of immense benefit to other researchers who intend to know more on this study and can also be used by non-researchers to build more on their research work. This study contributes to knowledge and could serve as a guide for other study.

CHAPTER ONE

1.1 Introduction

Mmanwu is a traditional masquerade of the Igbo people of Southeastern Nigeria. They are performed only by males in exclusive secret societies and involve the use of elaborate, colorful costumes that are meant to invoke ancestral spirits (Anuka, 2019). Masquerade traditions have a varied range of purposes that span from performing elements of epic drama derived from community cosmology and lore, ushering in new months and seasons, honoring totems and ancestral spirits, enactments of parables or myths, with entertainment and community building serving as a consistent commonality. In the past masquerades also bore judicial, social regulatory, and even policing powers, however though these functions have decreased in modern times (Wikipedia, 2021).

As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Limitations of the Study and Definition of technical terms.

1.2 Background of Study

The Igbos appears to be people perpetually celebrating. Every month, some community somewhere is celebrating the Igbo year, “aro”, is a round of festivals and ceremonies, which vibrate with life, collier, sounds and meaning” (Okafor 1989: 133).

Festivals are an integral part of Igbo traditional culture and system. It is a period of celebration when series of performance of music, drama, film etc, given regularly, especially once a year.

In Igbo land, every town, kindred, village have festivals they celebrates, like wise in Ihiala, Ihiala is a village that situated at southern part of Anambra State. It's people have a rather intricate origin, as handed down by the predecessors.

Also considering the fact that most so this information is based on oral traditions, we are presented with so many faces of the story making it difficult to identify the true origin.

Despite of its intricate origin, Ihiala is in existence till date. They have their festivals they celebrates Viz: Igu aro, Igba Ofala, Afiolu, Iriji, Ikwu aro, ETC. Above all mentioned Afiolu Festival happens to be the greatest festival that Ihiala people respect and being practicing to date.

Since festival is a public celebration of very important event with different remarkable happenings in live. Afiolu festival in Ihiala happens to be outstanding festivity that remarks when long toil of cultivation is over every year. Also it was done to offer thanksgiving to the gods of crop and farming called Ufejioke which they believe that it makes their land to be fertile so that on harvesting period the plants will produce richly.

During this festival, there are so many activities that Ihiala people engage themselves into, like, people in their various homes cook different types of foods and drinks for enjoyment. People that are abroad visit their various homes. Friends visit their friends but the most important aspect of it is masquerading by the youths at ama. Afiolu masquerade, this masquerades wipe themselves with a particular cane called anasi on their heads to display power and entertainment. Women, girls and little children ran for them for fun.

Masquerading in afiolu festival has some important roles it plays during that great festival.

It acts as homage to Ufejioke god of Crop and farming.
It act as refreshing of spirit/human relationship
It helps in sustaining of tradition
It serves as an entertainment to people
It also serves as a display of traditional wealth of creativity to Ihiala.

Afiolu festival is free for everyone to participate, women and children are allowed because is a festival that brings sharing of love, happiness and unity. It is one of their traditional heritages that is not against Christianity no performance of rituals in this festival.

Finally, Afiolu festival in Ihiala has been started for some years back till date, it is still this same. It is a time of grand merriment for everybody in Ihiala be it indigenes or foreigners.

Therefore, in Ihiala, Anambra State where the research was carried out, the activities that was conducted is to discover the Oha Mmuo Masquerade Festival and Promotion of Peace and Unity.

1.3 Statement of Problems

Investigation revealed the problems of the Oha Mmuo Masquerade Festival and Promotion of Peace and Unity in Ihiala Anambra State reseearch work, which are as follows:

The role of masquerading of afiolu festival
Those activities that features in the festival
The origin and concept of afiolu festival
The advantage of afiolu festival to Ihiala people.

1.4 Aim and Objectives of the Study

The aim of the study is to assess the Oha Mmuo Masquerade Festival and Promotion of Peace and Unity in Ihiala Anambra State. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:

To identify to what extent the role of masquerade in afiolu festival influence Ihiala people.
To find out the extent those activities that feature in the festival affect Ihiala people.
To identify the origin are concept of afiolu festival in Ihiala
To find out to what extent the advantage of afiolu festival affect Ihiala people.

1.5 Significance of Study

This study will be of immense benefit to other researchers who intend to know more on this study and can also be used by non-researchers to build more on their research work. This study contributes to knowledge and could serve as a guide for other study.

1.6 Scope of the Study

This work does not exceed the bounding of Ihiala community. It's emphasis, however, is on the art of masquerading in a specific occasion i.e. The Afiolu festival.

1.7 Limitations of the Study

During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:

Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
Research material: availability of research material is a major setback to the scope of the study.
Frequent power failure: This made the researcher append more money on fuel to ensure sustainable power.
Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet).

…

CHAPTER TWO

2.0 Literature Review

2.1 Introduction

The review of relevant literature is the main topic of this chapter. A literature review covers theoretical and methodological contributions to a certain issue in addition to the state of knowledge at the time of writing. It provides information about the state of the art in relation to the subject you are writing about. It examines the body of work on the chosen subject. The literature evaluation in this study comprises the …

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