What is the egungun ritual?

What is the egungun ritual?

Associated with the Yoruba ethnic group is a ceremony called “egungun,” involving the return of the spirits of ancestors (The Houston Chronicle 25 Oct. 1997). The literal translation of the word egungun is “the walking dead” (Clark 1997).

What was the purpose of the egungun?

Egungun is a visible manifestation of the spirits of departed ancestors who periodically revisit the human community for remembrance, celebration, and blessings.

What is egungun in Yoruba?

Egungun, (egúngún with Yorùbá language tone marks) in the broadest sense is any Yoruba masquerade or masked, costumed figure. More specifically, it is a Yoruba masquerade for ancestor reverence, or the ancestors themselves as a collective force.

What is the purpose of the Egungun festival what group of people celebrate it?

Celebrated in southwestern Nigeria by the Yorubas, the Egungun Festival is dedicated to the worship of ancestors. It is said that the circumstances surrounding the origin of the festival are full of mystique and based on a legendary folklore.

Are EGUN Yorubas?

According to Falola, the Egun are an ethnic subgroup of the Yoruba (n.d). They occupy southwestern Nigeria, and can be found elsewhere—in the Republic of Benin and Togo in West Africa and, as members of the African diaspora, in the American continent” (ibid.). …

Is Egungun a religion?

Egungun is a part of the Yoruba pantheon of divinities. The Yoruba religious system is sometimes referred to as the ‘Yoruba Religion’ or simply ‘Orisa Veneration’. In the tradition of ancestor veneration, Egungun represents the “collective”.

Are Badagry people Yorubas?

Geography and people The Ogu people are found in Badagry and in the Yewa and Ipokia region of Ogun State. The Ogu people share similarities with the Yorubas owing to the fact that during the 17-18th the Dahomey Empire was under the Oyo Empire rule, thus the strengthen relationship between both tribes.

What is an EGUN?

Egun (plural Egungun) A member of the Yoruba people who performs a masquerade as an ancestor.

What is the meaning of Sango in Yoruba?

god Of Thunder And Lightning
In Yoruba mythology, Sango also known as Jakuta is perhaps the most popular Orisha; he is god of thunder and lightning and as well one of the most worshipped gods all over the world. …

Why was the Egungun important to the Yoruba?

The appearance of the egungun was a sign of celebration that goes on for several days (Egungun Masquerade). The goal of the egungun is to unite those who have departed the earth with those who still inhabit it. This costume is a lot more important to the Yoruba people than to the Pilkings.

What is the Egungun in death and a funeral?

The egungun in the play showcases the religious nature of the Yoruba people. The egungun is a visible representation of spirits or ancestors (Egungun Masquerade). It is made up of many different materials like cloth, beads, and shells (Egungun Masquerade).

What is the purpose of the Egungun costume?

Only the best materials are used for the costume as the costume is to include “potent empowering materials” (Egungun Masquerade). The purpose of the egungun masquerade to have those from heaven come down and bless the living, hear grievances, and give them general prosperity as well (Aremu 6).

Why are the Pilkings wearing the Egungun?

As part of the notes of what the character is doing Amusa “retreats slowly, open-mouthed as Pilkings approaches the verandah” (Soyinka 24). The Pilkings are wearing the egungun, which Amusa states that “it belong to death cult, not for human being” (Soyinka 24).