A Tour through Nigeria in the 1890s: the Ibo Culture

Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe

Sophomore English: Mrs. Kamali

The Food

Activity: What foods can you think of that are specific to a holiday or custom in your family?

Check for Comprehension: scroll through these popular dishes and common ingredients.

http://www.foodbycountry.com/Kazakhstan-to-South-Africa/Nigeria.html Answer the questions on your worksheet.

The LanguageIgbo (igbo)Igbo is one of the four official languages of Nigeria and is a member of the Niger-Congo

family of languages. It is spoken by about 18 million people in Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea.

Sample text in IgboA muru mmadu nile n'ohere nakwa nha anya ugwu na ikike. E nyere ha uche na mmuo

ime ihe ziri ezi nke na ha kwesiri ikpaso ibe ha agwa n'obi nwanne na nwanne. TranslationAll human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with

reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Activity: look up the meaning for your own name.Comprehension Check: The names in Things Fall Apart can be both interesting and

frustrating to pronounce. Use the website below to look up the meanings of the characters on your worksheet.

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://culture.chiamaka.com/images/woman_child_nigeria.jpg&imgrefurl=http://culture.chiamaka.com/igbonames.html&h=420&w=620&sz=67&hl=en&start=2&um=1&tbnid=bUImcm2QyN3vfM:&tbnh=92&tbnw=136&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dibo%2Bnigeria%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Dactive%26rls%3Dcom.microsoft:en-us

ProverbsProverbs are wise sayings that are meant to offer a advice about life. They are common

in the Ibo language, and they are used to pass on traditions and moral values.

Activity: look up proverbs from your own heritage.

Check Comprehension:

Explore some Ibo proverbs using the link below. Select one proverb you enjoy and draw a illustration of it on your worksheet.

http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00fwp/igbo/proverbs/index.html

The MusicThe Ibo people have a melodic musical style, into which they incorporate various percussion

instruments: the udu (a clay jug); an ekwe (a hollowed log); an ogene (a bell designed from iron); and the opi ( a wind instrument similar to the flute).

The ekwe is used to call meetings and signal emergency. This instrument is a form of communication in the village.

Originally, this clay udu pot was only used for carrying water, but then women began to use it as an instrument. Different amounts of water can be put inside to adjust the sound.

The ogene is the most important instrument used in ceremonies.

Activity: name five different uses thatwe have for music in our culture.

Comprehension Check: check out the following website and answer the questions on the worksheet. You will also be able to listen!http://umunna.org/instruments.htm

Traditional West African music by Yaya Diallo. Listen! http://store.mp3tunes.com/artist_details.php?artist_id=17327

The Eqwuguw MasksThe Masking Tradition

In Things Fall Apart, the egwugwu come out in a ceremony that performs the function of a judicial court. Later, the egwugwu appear at an important man’s funeral.

On some level, the people of the village know that these characters dressed in

costume are men from their own village – people that they know very well. But

people also get wrapped up in the experience of the moment. The

drumming affects them powerfully. The egwugwu are dressed in masks

designed to appear terrifying and awe-inspiring. The spirits even speak their

own language. These egwugwu ceremonies – or masked performances – are powerful because they are so multi-dimensional. Sound, dancing, costume,

sculpture (in the form of masks), tradition, personal religious belief, group

emotion and conviction, and group participation – all come together.

When we get to this point in the book, look forward to making your own mask!

Family

The Ibo culture is polygamous. A man earned status by having multiple wives. Each wife and her children lived in a different hut called an obi that was part of a family’s compound. The

husband was permitted to beat his wives and children, except during the Week of Peace. Sons were favored and men have

much more power in the villages. Activity: how are the gender roles defined in your family?Comprehension Check: http://www.motherlandnigeria.com/pictures.html#Culture

Scroll down to Places to see how much Nigeria has changed since the 1890s.

ReligionActivity: From an outsiders perspective, what religious practices might seem strange?Comprehension Check: use the following website to see what happens when the Christian missionaries arrive in Nigeria. http://www.bookrags.com/notes/tfa/TOP2.htmRecord your findings on the kola nut, Oracle, twins, Evil Forest and the Earth Goddess on your worksheet.

The Kola Nut

The Oracle TwinsThe Evil Forest

The Earth Goddess

Meet Your Author, Chinua AchebeActivity: What would be the most challenging part of being an author?

Comprehension Check: Locate important information about Achebe from a biography. http://www.gradesaver.com/classicnotes/authors/about_chinua_achebe.html

Sources• Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe• http://www.foodbycountry.com/Kazakhstan-to-South-Africa/Nigeria.html

• http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://culture.chiamaka.com/images/woman_child_nigeria .jpg&imgrefurl=http://culture.chiamaka.com/igbonames.html&h=420&w=620&sz=67&hl=en&start=2&um=1&tbnid=bUImcm2QyN3vfM:&tbnh=92&tbnw=136&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dibo%2Bnigeria%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Dactive%26rls%3Dcom.microsoft:en-us

• http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00fwp/igbo/proverbs/index.html

• http://umunna.org/instruments.htm

• http://store.mp3tunes.com/artist_details.php?artist_id=17327

• http://www.motherlandnigeria.com/pictures.html#Culture

• http://www.bookrags.com/notes/tfa/TOP2.htm

• http://www.gradesaver.com/classicnotes/authors/about_chinua_achebe.html