The True Meaning Of New Yam Festival (Afịa-Ọlụ)||What Afịa-Ọlụ Means To Me

Written by Nze Tobe Osigwe (Eze Ikolommụọ)

Nze Tobe Osigwe Celebrating Afiaolu – Nnewi

What Afiaolu-Nnewi Means To Me

Growing up in Nnewi, Afiaolu simply means a period to see masquerades in great numbers. As someone who grew up in a strong Christian family, it was only during Afiaolu I was opportuned to see Igbo masquerades mistakenly.

I used the word mistakenly because our Christian denomination made us believe the art of masquerading was a sin. So was going out to watch masquerades. Thus, I missed out on all the fun, initiation and experiences many youths of my generation had in respect to masquerading.

As a child, I never knew what Afiaolu really meant. It was in my first year in the university when I took Dr. Felix Egwuda’s course on African Festival as Performance Theatre that I had to find meaning to the annual traditional festival.

With Ajofia Masquerade

Dr. Felix tasked us to write about any African festival as a Term Paper. I chose my town festival. It was after choosing Afiaolu Festival that it fully dawned on me I didn’t really know what the festival was all about.

Resultantly, I had to come down to Nnewi to meet some elders and cultural enthusiasts. The best I got from this research was; Afiaolu is a period Ndi Nnewi celebrate new yam festival.

Of a truth, prior to this time, I didn’t know about the new yam festival aspect of Afiaolu. For me, Afiaolu was simply the period masquerades parade Nnewi gleefully.

I scoured some books like Nnewi History by Dr. John Alutu. I got little leads from the book. I also got a lot of Afiaolu brochures printed every Afiaolu by Nzuko-ora Nnewi from Prince Afam Ezenwa Nwachukwu.

This academic exercise exposed me to the sheer lack of citable materials and documents when it comes to archiving our history as Ndi Igbo. Even the Afiaolu brochures didn’t have any worthy information of what Afiaolu is. Rather, the brochures were all buffeted with goodwill messages.

It fully dawned on me many of us do not really have an indepth knowledge of some of our cultural practices we were hanging on to.

Till date, I am certain there are many people who define Afiaolu as a period masquerades go abroad with reckless abandon, flogging people, dancing and begging for money.

Five years ago, 2021 precisely, it dawned on me to consciously celebrate Afiaolu. It was in the cause of my celebrating Afiaolu that I realized the festival was far beyond the masquerade entertainment it was popularly associated with.

It was in my being intentional to celebrate Afiaolu that I realized these:

1. Afiaolu is a period to renew the bond between the living members of a family and the departed members. A traditional fusion of the old and the new.
2. It’s a traditional period designated to celebrate those who have helped your work in the course of the year. A traditional period of charity for these human vessels.
3. It’s a period of visitation. A period Umudianas visit their Ndi Nna Ochie. It is also a period people come from distant lands to visit and celebrate with their friends. A traditional period of love and camaraderie.
4. Afiaolu is annual mass thanksgiving to the Gods of the land and God of the earth.

From the above, we can deduce that Afiaolu is a designated holy and happy hour. This is why it is wrong, an anomaly and incongruous to fix burial or anything that has to do with mourning during Afiaolu. One is not expected to wear long faces during Afiaolu.

There is time for every thing. There is time to weep and there is time to dance. There is time to merry and there is time to cry.

Afiaolu is a period to temporarily suspend your sorrows. Therefore, choosing these four days period the community has designated for celebration to mourn is being insensitive and a total disregard to the spirit behind Afiaolu.

I wish all Ndi Nnewi and other neighbouring communities Happy Afiaolu.

To Ndi Nnewi by birth, by residence and by association, please endeavour to celebrate this season with friends and family no matter how little. After these four days of happiness, we go back to facing the vicissitudes of life which is never ending.

May we reap the seed of happiness and celebration we sow during Afiaolu in thousand folds.

Read about Afiaolu Festival 2025: Nnewi’s Vibrant New Yam Celebration, Day 1