Festival In my Area- Eyo festival

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Eyo Festival is a festival unique to my state of origin Lagos, Nigeria. It is usually performed in Lagos Island. Eyo also refers to the masquerades that come out during the festival. It is widely believed that Eyo is the forerunner of the mod¬ern day carnival in Brazil. On Eyo Day, the main highway in the heart of the city (from the end of Carter Bridge to Tinubu Square) is closed to traffic, allowing for procession from Idumota to Iga Idunganran.

Here, the participants all pay homage to the Oba (King) of Lagos. Eyo festival takes place whenever occasion and tradition demand, but it is usually held as the final burial rites for a highly regarded chief.

Among the Yorubas, the indigenous religions have largely given way to Christianity and Islam, but the old festivals are still observed. The traditional leaders of the Yorubas are the Obas, who live in palaces and govern along with a council of ministers. The Obas' position is now mainly honorary, and their chiefly role is during the observance of the festivals.

Order of events during Eyo Festival

A full week before the festival (always a Sunday), the ‘senior’ eyo group, the Adimu (identified by a black broad-rimmed hat), goes public with a staff, when this happens it means the event would take place on the following Saturday. Each of the four other ‘important’ ones—Laba (Red), Oniko (yellow), Ologede (Green), Agere (Purple)—in this very order take their turns from Monday to Thursday.

 The Significance of Festivals in Yoruba Land

Yoruban festivals honor their pantheon of gods and mark the installation of a new Oba. For example, we have the Engungun ("en-GOON-gun") festival, which honors the ancestors, lasts 24 days. Each day, a different Engungun in the person of a masked dancer dances through the town, possessed by one of the ancestors. On the last day, a priest goes to the shrine of the ancestors and sacrifices animals, pouring the blood on the shrine. The sacrifices are collected, and they become the food for the feast that follows.
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