Festivals
| UNWANA FESTIVALS Unwara community is endowed with reach cultural heritage which they translate into different forms of festivals. Below are festivals that are typical to the Unwara people; 1. OKOSA FISHING FESTIVAL: This is a fishing festival that is carried out every february of the year in a lake called OKOSA. This lake harbours different variaties of fishes ranging from Tilapia, catfish, scarfish, prawn, crab etc. This fishes are allowed to grow and reproduce (from the end of the festival to the begining of another). During this festival, great fishermen from the community compete with each other in all day and night fishing thereby making available excess fresh fishes for consumption at a token price. This festival lasts up to 1-2months. I no you can't afford to miss it. 2. IKEJI FESTIVAL: This festival marks the begining of the harvest season as it is used to thank our god for a successful farming season. YAM which is regarded as the king of our farming seedlings, is symbolic to this celebration as newly harvested Yam is cooked and it's the food of the day. Farmilies prepare this food waiting for friends and relatives to visit so that they can eat and dine together in celebration of a successful farming season. Nobody is allowed to harvest his/her farm produce (especially Yam) before the festival untill after the celebration. This celebration is also extended to our neibouring communities who come to celebrate with us. 3. IKO FESTIVAL: this is a festival for reconciliations and love sharing. During this festival, families are expected to prepare a delicious meal(usually our native white soup prepared with moulded melon), such that can serve the family members, friends, neibours, even well-wishers. The aim is to afford the opportunity to the community members to eat and dine together so as to reconcile with each other and to foster a formidable love amongst us. This festival just as the Ikeji festival is also extended to the neibouring community for a stronger relationship. ''But i bet you, those soups with pounded yam are made from heaven''. |
 Author:Com. Ibiam Uchechukwu 4. IGBAMGBA WRESTLING FESTIVAL: This is a festival for the brave!. In the olden days, this festival was used to test the muscular strenght of the men of the community such that before you get married, you must show your muscular strenght to the community by participating in the festival. So this is a wrestling festival in which strong men exhibit their muscular superiority by contesting in wrestltes and come out champions. But as the wrestlers will always say''dont try this at home'' 5. OKUMKPO MASQURADE FESTIVAL: This festival is used to expose the evil deeds of the evil men in the community. The whole community gather at the sqare to watch concert displays of the masqurades. This masqurades converts the evil deeds of the men in the community into songs and sing it even in the presence of the evil men at the festival venue. But before the event, the masqurades prepare very early in the morning and move from house to house, to wake the community up and to say goodmorning to the village elders. They can also be found along the roads were they greet people and beg for arms. This is one of the finest festivals in the community. |