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Periodical article | Leiden University catalogue | WorldCat |
Title: | The birth song as a medium for communicating woman's maternal destiny in the traditional community |
Author: | Okereke, Grace Eche |
Year: | 1994 |
Periodical: | Research in African Literatures |
Volume: | 25 |
Issue: | 3 |
Pages: | 19-32 |
Language: | English |
Geographic term: | Nigeria |
Subjects: | Igbo birth rites songs Cultural Roles arts Women and Their Children |
External link: | https://www.jstor.org/stable/3819843 |
Abstract: | Birth is an important 'rite de passage' in traditional African cosmogony and is always an occasion for festivity. Birth songs are a central part of such festivities. The author analyses the content and style of birth songs from her native clan Ututu (in Abia State, Nigeria). The songs are divided into four categories, each communicating one aspect of a woman's maternal experience and destiny. The first set of songs announces the birth of a child, and the women's reaction to this joyful news. The next set consists of songs which give a joyful recapitulation of the pains of labour and childbirth. The third set addresses the predicament of the childless woman which the new mother has escaped. The last set of songs consists of songs of thanksgiving to God, a befitting conclusion to the joy of a safe delivery. Examples of songs from each category are presented, first written in the Ututu Igbo dialect, then translated into English. Bibliogr. |