The society known as Ekpo Nyoho (or, in its shortened form, Ekpo) is the most
important and widely distributed of three secret societies still active in
various Ibibio towns in southeastern Nigeria. In the absence of a centralised
political state, Ekpo regulated social, legal, political, and economic matters
in its community during precolonial times. As instruments of social control,
its masks were carved to heighten a sense of fear and mystery.
Before
the advent of colonialism in the early 1900s in Nigeria, village government functioned on
two overlapping structural levels; it still does so today, though to a lesser
extent. The first level consists of the civil mechanism of traditional
patriarchal authority. The head of the family rules his immediate household.
Beyond him is the head of the extended family, who hears complaints and settles
disputes between families united by ties of kinship and living side by side in
the town. He is concerned with the everyday management of the community, with
rules and customs governing conduct. These town and family chiefs frequently
call upon elders to help decide important matters during town councils, where
opinions are openly expressed.
The secret societies, constituting the second
level of government, are concerned with crises and emergencies affecting the
town collectively. It was on this level, devised to deal with powerful socially
disruptive or dysfunctional forces, that the mask found its special place.
Ekpo Nyoho is the principal secret society in most
Ibibio towns and villages. A second society, Ekpo Ekong, is active only in
Ibiono, where it is of first importance. The third society, Ekpe, has been
described in detail by Nair (1972:14-20). Though found in all Ibibio towns it
is of first importance only in Opobo and Oron and among the Efik of Calabar and
the Ogoja of Cross River State. Ekpe is also practiced in many Igbo towns, and
beyond.
The Ekpo society serves as an enforcement arm of village government, though it
plays a smaller role in this regard than it did in the past. It provides an
outlet for youths and men to channel their energies into activities which are
beneficial to the community. During the Ekpo season, which lasts from June to
December, the society exerts an enormous influence on people's lives. For
example, on the days when the masks come out, farming activity is suspended.
Women and nonmembers cannot go to the market or perform activities outside
their homes: food, water, and firewood must have been obtained in advance. When
they are not patrolling the village border or assembling at the village shrine to
sing and dance, society members also remain at home.Quarrels and fights are
prohibited. Visitors to the village are thoroughly checked by Ekpo to make sure
their missions are harmless. Stealing carries particularly heavier penalties
during the season; about fifty years ago, the penalty was death, carried out by
Ekpo.
Masks are used by each of the three secret societies but are most common in
Ekpo Nyoho, where face masks with raffia hanging down to the waist are the most
characteristic type. If a rule is violated, the chief sends masked characters
to enforce sanctions. The authority and legitimacy of these characters are due
partly to their established history and partly to imagery and symbols carefully
manipulated to arouse fear and and to create an impression of the masks'
invincibility. Without the mystique surrounding hem, masks and costumes are
merely objects. The physical characteristics of a masquerade depicted in the
carving breathe artistic life into the mystique.
Source: http://bit.ly/1RVo4LH
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