Egwugwu

Egwugwu

The egwugwu were nine prominent men in a clan. In the case of Okonkwo's village of Umuofia the egwugwu were fearful spirits and men would dress up with large tribal masks and take part in all the major ceremonies. They were very important and being an egwugwu was one of the most highest rankings a man could achieve. The mask of an egwugwu was designed to be terrifying because that was how they egwugwu were supposed to make you feel. The worst thing to do would be to remove and Egwugwu's mask.

The egwugwu were masqueraders who personated one of the many ancestral spirits of the village. They are somewhat like representatives, one from each of the nine villages in Umuofia, and they come together to judge disputes among villages. In this masking tradition, each egwugwu would come out in a ceremony that performs as a judicial court. Women and children fear them, although they are only men merely impersonating spirits. The egwugwu were supposed to be addressed as the actual spirits they were pretending to be. Many people supsected Okonkwo to be an egwugwu, but this was not supposed to be acknowledged by the village people.

One time, a previous African, now christian unmasked an egwugwu. Everyone thought of punishing him but they felt the gods would be angry at him. They were right because he died several days later.