Check out TOP 10 Famous Festivals in Nigeria

8. NEW YAM FESTIVAL

The New Yam Festival is a popular annual cultural festival in Igbo land, Southeast Nigeria. The festival is held at the end of every farming season, usually in August, to mark the beginning of harvest. Symbolically, the festival, known as Iri ji ohu, Iwa ji or Ike ji in the Igbo language presents the people with the opportunity to make sacrifices and thank their gods for granting them a bountiful harvest. Iri ji or Iwa ii literally means “eating new yam”.

The festival also celebrates the abundance of food that replaces the scarcity usually experienced between planting season and harvest time. This festival is, therefore, a popular celebration among the Igbos, who are predominantly farmers and eat yam a lot. It attracts prominent Igbo sons and daughters from all over the world, as well as guests who grace the occasion.

On the eve of the festival, all old yams from the previous year’s harvest are either discarded or eaten to give way for new ones. Then, on the day of the festival, only yam dishes are served in the homes. Some renowned farmers use the occasion to invite friends and relations, especially the less privileged, to celebrate with them.

Making presentations of special offerings, the traditional ruler or the oldest man in each community is required to offer yam (cooked or roasted), usually mixed with palm oil, to the recognised deities of the land and to the ancestors. After the sacrifice with its rituals, members of the community are free to start eating their already prepared dishes of yam.