A European's guide to Igboland

A pleasant surprise

During the completion of my post in Igboland over the past three years, I have observed the habits and customs of the Igbo people, one of the largest ethnic groups in the whole continent of Africa. It seems to me that their culture and society is structured similarly to that of the Europeans, and I would like to provide other Europeans with a guide to how to behave there.  So, without further a do, here is my version of a European’s guidebook to Igboland.

Cultural Structure:

A significant difference of cultural structure between the West and the Igbo people, would be their lack of "centralized political structures", however similarly, the Igbo people follow democratic political decision-making. They like the idea of direct involvement in government/political decision. "Cross cutting ties" was something they adherently subscribed to, so when Europeans arrived, the Igbo societal structure was halted by our impositions. Before our arrival, Igboland could consider itself divided into 200 separate groups, which emphasizes the diversity of cultural values within the country.

Title:

Throughout Igboland, the title "ozo" was appointed to men who merited the title throughout wealth, dedication and respect. The word is not used lightly and has a high significance to this culture, since status is very important to them. However, while colonizing Igboland, the ozo's have been stripped of their title by British colonizers who overtake their powerful place in society. Nowadays, the terms "igwe" and "ogbu efi" are use to describe the ozo's. The age group system seems to be significant to this culture as well, as it promotes respect as individuals age and gain wisdom. Also, the Igbo people must maintain a “transparent” life, meaning that they must not live a life of secrecy and should deal with their conflicts through compromise.

Religion/ worship:

Eze Nri is the Igbo people's first family to be created on the Earth, while Chukwu is the name for a god. Contrarily to Christianity, each person forms a belief in his or her own individual god, while acknowledging the main god Chukwu.

Marriage:

Men are allowed to have many wives. The main/first wife often brought the junior wives to the husband. Each wife is given her own house and also have the right to leave if unhappy in the marriage. Although this may not adhere to Western standards of cultural structure, there do not seem to be major issues that surface as a result of these different customs.

Death:

Igbo people believe of multiple lives and that their social status would be carried on throughout these lives. However, the death of an individual is considered to be a disturbance to the cosmological balance of their society.

Women:

Similarly to men, women are involved in associations that contributed to the wellbeing of their society. Also, women are considered to be more spiritually aware.

Children:

Children are valued very highly and deemed to be important for lineages to be continued.

Source of food:

Don’t expect apples or potatoes as sources of vitamins and potassium. Instead, develop an open mindedness to yams, cocoyams, bananas and plantains, as Igbo agriculture mainly revolves around these staple fruits and vegetables.

Above are different aspects of the Igbo culture and society that one must be aware and extremely respectful of. However, they are aware of the differences between theirs and our culture, and the mistakes or assumptions we may make during our stay in Igboland.