ẸYỌ FESTIVAL

ẸYỌ FESTIVAL 

The Eyo Festival, otherwise known as the Adamu Orisha Play,
is a Yoruba festival unique to Lagos , Nigeria  In modern
times, it is presented by the people of Lagos as a tourist event
and, due to its history, is traditionally performed on Lagos
Island .

THE EYO 

The word "Eyo" also refers to the costumed dancers, known as
the masquerades that come out during the festival. The origins

of this observance are found in the inner workings of the secret
societies of Lagos. Back in the days, The Eyo festival is held
to escort the soul of a departed Lagos King or Chief and to
usher in a new king. It is widely believed that the play is one of
the manifestations of the customary African revelry that serves
as the forerunner of the modern 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 the Iga Idunganran palace. The
white-clad Eyo masquerades represent the spirits of the dead,
and are referred to in Yoruba as "agogoro Eyo" (literally: "tall
Eyo").

The first procession in Lagos was on the 20th of February,
1854, to commemorate the life of the Oba Akintoye .
Here, the participants all pay homage to the reigning Oba of
Lagos. The festival takes place whenever occasion and
tradition demand, though it is usually held as part of the final
burial rites of a highly regarded chief in the king's court.
Among the Yorubas , the indigenous religions have largely lost
the greater majority of their traditional followers to Christianity
and Islam. Be that as it may, the old festivals are still almost
universally observed as tourist attractions which generate a lot
of revenue for government and small businesses around the
Lagos Island venue of the Eyo festival. It is during these
occasions that their traditional monarchs and nobles exercise
the most of their residual power.

ORDER OF EVENTS 

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 will take place on the following Saturday. Each of the
four other ‘important’ groups — Laba (Red), Oniko (yellow),
Ologede (Green) and Agere (Purple) — take their turns in that
order from Monday to Thursday.

FESTIVAL DATES

2011
November 26, commemorating Prince Yesufu Abiodun
Oniru, a Lagos nobleman.

PROHIBITED ITEMS 

Here is a list of prohibited items at the festival:
Okada motorcycle taxis
Bicycles
Sandals
Suku - hairstyle that is popular among the Yorubas, one that
has the hair converge at the middle, then shoot upward, before
tipping downward.
Smoking
The masquerades are known to beat people who use any of
the prohibited items at sight with their staffs.

wikipedia