OJIJI ÍZHÌ (NEW YAM FESTIVAL)
Yam is the king of all crops in the socio-cultural milieu of Igbo people in general and of Izhi people in particular. To show its precedence over all crops, the New Yam Festival is celebrated to thank the gods of good harvest.
Ojiji Izhi usually begins with a ceremonial roasting of whole yams by the king or titled elders of the community in our Àńmegu Acenstral Home to which portions of the yams are offered first to the yam or earth gods which connote a sign of gratitude to God for his protection and kindness in leading us from planting periods to the time of bountiful harvest; whereas, the rest are shared and we can then feel free to consume new yam without incurring the wrath of the gods.
In Izhi land, Ojiji Izhi does not only provide a platform for cultural rituals of thanksgiving to the gods of good harvest but equally include display of our rich cultural heritage like masquerade, dances, wrestling, gifting and so on.
It is largely tagged as "OJIJI ÙNWÚANYÍ" because in this period of new yam festival; that is, in the eve before the day of the celebration proper, husbands or intending husbands across Izhi land sends new yams, fowls and other gifts to their in-laws to reinstate their matrimonial bond and where on the day of the new yam festival proper or any other day within the festive period the husband and wife goes to their in-law's house to eat the new yam festival food.
This gifting of yams and fowls by husbands or intending husbands is highly treasured by mother in-laws in my land such that they rejected if their son in-law fails to bring his new yam festival gifts. In fact, women castigate fellow women their son in-law fails to send his gifts and the man is generally underscored as a poor and wretched man because he couldn't fulfill his obligation as a husband.
Collectively, Ojiji Izhi equally serves as a time to call home our sons and daughters abroad to renew and reaffirm the bond of brotherhood, it also brings to mind a sense of belonging to our rich cultural heritage and a reunion to plan for community development as it is within this month of August that different organizations host their August Meetings.
Ojiji Izhi lastly is a time to show hospitality to ourselves as a people with a common origin, history and who pursue a common course and share equally in a common culture. By a way of hospitality and gifting, our young wives would gather firewood for the elderly women in the villages coupled with gifts like yam, cassava fufu, beneseed, groundnut, bush mango, meat, egusi, dry fish, and so on.
And on the day of Ojiji Izhi beneseed soup is the general served dish with yam fufu or draw soup made with bush mango and garnished with melon seed.
This is climaxed by gifting of cooked food from one house to another in the neighborhood down to the villages to community throughout Izhi land. This is a great deal of communion and sharing of the spirit of oneness among ourselves and we equally extend this to strangers.
I heartily invite you to join me ÒNWÁ ÌZHÍ and my Izhi people today as we celebrate Ojiji Izhi
Long Live Izhi Ńnodo Ekumenyi!
Long Live IEF Family!
Long Live UNIG Family!
Long Live GISAD Family!
Comr Ikechukwu Peter a.k.a Onwa Izhi
©15th August, 2019
Yam is the king of all crops in the socio-cultural milieu of Igbo people in general and of Izhi people in particular. To show its precedence over all crops, the New Yam Festival is celebrated to thank the gods of good harvest.
Ojiji Izhi usually begins with a ceremonial roasting of whole yams by the king or titled elders of the community in our Àńmegu Acenstral Home to which portions of the yams are offered first to the yam or earth gods which connote a sign of gratitude to God for his protection and kindness in leading us from planting periods to the time of bountiful harvest; whereas, the rest are shared and we can then feel free to consume new yam without incurring the wrath of the gods.
In Izhi land, Ojiji Izhi does not only provide a platform for cultural rituals of thanksgiving to the gods of good harvest but equally include display of our rich cultural heritage like masquerade, dances, wrestling, gifting and so on.
It is largely tagged as "OJIJI ÙNWÚANYÍ" because in this period of new yam festival; that is, in the eve before the day of the celebration proper, husbands or intending husbands across Izhi land sends new yams, fowls and other gifts to their in-laws to reinstate their matrimonial bond and where on the day of the new yam festival proper or any other day within the festive period the husband and wife goes to their in-law's house to eat the new yam festival food.
This gifting of yams and fowls by husbands or intending husbands is highly treasured by mother in-laws in my land such that they rejected if their son in-law fails to bring his new yam festival gifts. In fact, women castigate fellow women their son in-law fails to send his gifts and the man is generally underscored as a poor and wretched man because he couldn't fulfill his obligation as a husband.
Collectively, Ojiji Izhi equally serves as a time to call home our sons and daughters abroad to renew and reaffirm the bond of brotherhood, it also brings to mind a sense of belonging to our rich cultural heritage and a reunion to plan for community development as it is within this month of August that different organizations host their August Meetings.
Ojiji Izhi lastly is a time to show hospitality to ourselves as a people with a common origin, history and who pursue a common course and share equally in a common culture. By a way of hospitality and gifting, our young wives would gather firewood for the elderly women in the villages coupled with gifts like yam, cassava fufu, beneseed, groundnut, bush mango, meat, egusi, dry fish, and so on.
And on the day of Ojiji Izhi beneseed soup is the general served dish with yam fufu or draw soup made with bush mango and garnished with melon seed.
This is climaxed by gifting of cooked food from one house to another in the neighborhood down to the villages to community throughout Izhi land. This is a great deal of communion and sharing of the spirit of oneness among ourselves and we equally extend this to strangers.
I heartily invite you to join me ÒNWÁ ÌZHÍ and my Izhi people today as we celebrate Ojiji Izhi
Long Live Izhi Ńnodo Ekumenyi!
Long Live IEF Family!
Long Live UNIG Family!
Long Live GISAD Family!
Comr Ikechukwu Peter a.k.a Onwa Izhi
©15th August, 2019
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