This room displays many examples of how the African language was used. You will learn about what African people called certain things common to you, and others completely foreign to you. By learning about a country's language, you will learn about the culture. Language opens a passage to an entirely new world.

 

In this room you will open your eyes to the religion of African people. You will be able to understand what they believe in. This will allow you to feel how they felt. You will open yourself to their ideas and think how they did. This will help you understand many of the situations African people went through in this time.

 

Socialization is the general process of acquiring culture. In this room you will see the objects used when socializing with others. You will be able to see through the eyes of a young wife in a harsh social world. These objects take you back to the times of these African people and allow you to see what they were able to see, and feel the feelings they felt.

Egwugwu – a masquerader who impersonates one of the ancestral spirits of the village

Ekwe – a musical instrument; a type of drum made from wood

Eneke-nti-oba – a kind of bird

Eze-agadi-nwayi – the teeth of an old woman

Nza – a very small bird

Ogene – a musical instrument; a kind of gong

Udu – a musical instrument; a type of drum made from pottery

Uli – a dye used by women for drawing patterns on the skin

Ancestral spirits - souls or ghosts of ancestors. A belief in ancestral spirits is consistent with the widespread belief that humans have at least two parts--a physical body and some kind of non-physical spirit. The spirit portion is generally believed to be freed from the body by death and continues to exist. Ancestral spirits are often seen as retaining an active interest and even membership in their family and society.

Chi – personal god

Iyi-uwa – a special kind of stone which forms the link between an ogbanje and the spirit world. Only if the iyi-uwa were discovered and destroyed would the child not die.

Nso-ani – a religious offence of a kind of abhorred by everyone, literally earth’s taboo

Ogbanje – a changeling; a child who repeatedly dies and returns to its mother to be reborn. It is almost impossible to bring up an ogbanje child without it dying, unless its iyi-uwa is first foundand destroyed.

Osu – outcast. Having been dedicated to a god, the osu was taboo and was not allowed to mix with the freedom in any way.

Kola nut – given as a sign of respect and a peace offering.

Palm wine – wine made from distilled palm-tree sap that is used as a peace offering

Wife’s Journal – wrote about how women had to serve for their men. Men had many wives and always had one favorite.