Eyo Festival in Lagos
By Aminat Olanrewaju
The first procession in Lagos was on the 20th of February,1954 to commemorate the life of the Oba Akintoye. Eyos (the masquerade celebrate a the Oba’s (king) life.
Eyo festival is the most spectacular cultural fiesta held in south west Nigeria. Originating in 19th century Lagos in a fishing village on the Lagos end of the new glover road ikoyi.
The ruler of creek town from 1835 until his death on 3 December 1858. Creek town was part of the efik city state of the old calabar province.
Eyo usually carries a long palm stick called Opambata as his staff of office. The stick is usually with artistic inscriptions to express its uniqueness and beauty. Opambata are normally used by Eyo to greet each other and elders.
There are two types of Eyo masquerade: the Adimu Orisa and the Eyo Olokun. Eyo masquerade, also known as Adimu Orisa Play, is a prominent cultural and traditional festival in Yoruba culture.
The Eyo celebration was once held to welcome a new monarch and to escort the soul of a deceased Lagos King or Chief. According to history, two nameless individuals from the Ibefun and Ijebu communities in present day Ogun State brought the Eyo Masquerade to Lagos Island around 1750.
The masquerades walk and dance while wearing white robes, a veil covering their faces, and customary hats (Akete), each of which stands for the group to which the Eyo belongs and is distinguished by colour. The Eyos carry an Opambata stick made of palm branches with different artistic.
The Ofala Festival takes place in Anambra State and it is one of the oldest traditional festival in Nigeria. The event dates back to about 700 years ago, at the time of the first monarch of Onitsha, Eze Chima. The event’s name is derived from two Igbo words, ‘ofo,’ meaning king and ‘ala,’ meaning land.
The last Eyo Festival was held in May 2017 . The Eyo festival is one of the most colourful festival in the world. The week long festival Do withness thousands of people dressed in white ropes,walk and sing in the streets of Lagos from the Oba Palace, Iga Iduganran, located in the heart of Lagos Island. The last edition was held in 2017, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the State of Lagos, created on 27 May 1967.
