Women of Power: Gender Celebration Among the Yoruba

Women of Power:

Gender Celebration Among the Yoruba

In Nigeria and Benin, the Yoruba people are very celebrative of the mystical powers of women. They hold Gelede masquerades in honor of the fairer sex, and their innate life-giving powers. The name Gelede consists of three parts directly relating to women. The first part “ge”, translates roughly to “soothe, placate, pet or coddle”. The second and third are similar, “ele” refers to a woman’s “private parts”, while “de” refers to “soften with care or gentleness.” There are a wide variety of the Gelede dances, but each celebrates women in an empowering way; such is the popular belief.

Indeed gender interactions are important to the Yoruba, and possibly most prominent in the dances of Gelede. Although in comparison to Western culture, the extent of the empowerment of women may be debatable. The Yoruba have a heavy influence of tradition and urbanization, so it’s an interesting line to walk when dealing with gender roles and identity.

The Yorubans have three well-known masquerades that provide commentary on the community and the interactions that take place within. These celebrations cover everything from death to the mystical life giving powers of mothers. The three festivals that take place are, the “Egungun Festival”, the “Epa Masquerade”, and the “Gelede or Efe” Masquerade. Each performance commemorates something in relation to the importance of community, family, and power of gender.

The “Egungun Festival” commemorates ancestors and death among the Yoruba people, and also serves as symbols of status for the living. The attire for Egungun performers is a suit made up o layers of material. When performed, these layers of material are meant to spin to reveal more and more layers. Material is actually so important in the “Egungun Festival” that tailors are considered to be “an important part in the process of regulating the relations between the world of the living and the world of the dead.” This creativity can often be overlooked much like the performer’s identity, who’s face remains covered by a cloth the entire duration of the performance.

In the “Egungun” festival, identity of the individual is not important, rather, the ancestors and appreciation of life is the main focus of celebration. As described in The Visual Arts of Africa, “…the masked dancer is believed to be temporarily possessed by the deceased ancestral spirit.” So in this tradition, the living is empowered by the dead, in giving them an appreciation for life. However in the “Epa Masquerade”, the individual is empowered in a mask honoring their contribution to the town.

In the “Epa Masquerades” all focus is put on the elaborate masks carvers produce for the festival. They honor the coming into manhood for boys and the “procreative ability of fertile women.” Men wear these masks that can sometimes reach a weight of 50 pounds and a height of 4 feet, and perform “dramatic acrobatic feats.”

There is a specific order in which these masks must make their appearances. First the owner of the farm must appear, the Oloko. This mask depicts a “leopard leaping over an antelope.” Next is the “warrior-hunter-chiefs,” or the Orangun, who “founded northern Yoruba Ekiti towns. This is shown by an “equestrian figure, expressing physical power and military skill.” These masks are followed by masks depicting priests and add a softer contrast to the aggressiveness of the warrior in showing the importance of “wisdom and spiritual power.” The last mask however, is the most important and honors the procreative power of women.

The “Eyelase,” or “mother who possesses power,” is often depicted by a mother of twins. This mother of twins signifies royalty with large coral beads and “a towering conical coiffure.” The woman’s life giving power is most important to the community, as within her womb the future of their lineage is held. This celebration commemorates her procreative powers, but also the gender roles established sexually in the community. She dances with the Orangun, showing the importance of the relationship between the king and mother, but also male and female.

Relationships are important to the Yoruba, but what is most important of all is the “mother.” The mother is sometimes defined as a witch when referring to the cults of Yoruba. Other times she is referred to as a postmenopausal woman, with equal rights to men. In any case, she is revered and cherished for her life giving powers and beauty.

The “Gelede/ Efe Masquerade” is strictly centered around the celebration of women, however women are involved in the actual process and performances minimally compared to men. The performances are done by a pair of men dressed as women, one representing male and one representing female. The men’s identities are not necessary knowledge for the audience and satire is often used to make commentary on the many facets of the human experience.

In Western culture however, this may not seem empowering at all. Men dancing for women, calling them witches and trying to appease them so that they may have healthy harvests and communities. How is the Yoruban woman given a voice if she cannot speak, or dance for herself? But our culture is different in the treatment of women. Our culture cannot agree on a definition of empowerment for women.

Our culture is not familiar with the symbolic richness of most African populations such as the Yoruban. The symbolism in each dance, each costume and each mask is an important factor when questioning gender roles and the empowerment of women in these places of the world. While masks and costume are often seen here as things to hide behind, in Yoruba, they are meant to glorify and honor.

There tends to be two opposing views on Gelede masquerades. One being that they are dances to protect men from witches and appease the “Aje” so that their community may go on prospering. An example of the symbolism associated with this, is the use of birds incorporated into the Gelede masks. Yoruban’s feel women and birds are interchangeable. According to Perini and Smith, “Postmenopausal women are believed to have the capacity to transform themselves into witches, who, in the guise of menacing night birds carry out either destructive or beneficial acts, which, respectively, endanger or aid the living community. The bird image effectively suggests the reserves of hidden power possessed by the mothers.”

The other take on the Gelede masquerades is a more positive one of empowerment and celebration of women. Three vertical marks often placed on the cheek and sometimes forehead, called “pele,” signify being a “gem” and accentuate the precious nature of women. Mothers nursing are popular symbolism as well as mother gorillas who are paraded throughout the village after the ceremony to signify protection and strength.

It is difficult to fully understand the Yoruban’s view of woman, as our westernized culture is very different. However, there is no mistaking that women, especially mothers, are extremely important and highly regarded. Whether it is out of fear of them in their witchery and darkness, or the celebration of life and a woman’s mystical life giving powers of birth. Community is extremely important to the Yoruba as evident in the “Epa” masquerades, and ancestors help remind them of the sanctity of life in the “Egungun” festivals. However the individual’s identity seems lost for what we may not completely comprehend as a greater cause, and by western standards, the woman’s voice falls short. Although, through the symbolism, the dances and the absolute beauty in the art encompassing these celebrations, even the foreign eye can see the care and importance of the community, the mother, the children, the ancestors and life, in these beautiful and elaborate performances celebrating the Yoruba.

St. Michael’s College, “Women in Ritual: Gelede”, http://academics.smcvt.edu/africanart/Arianne/Gelede.htm (accessed on April 3, 2011).

Ibid. (Accessed on April 3, 2011).

Judith Perani, Fred T. Smith, The Vidual Arts of Africa: Gender, Power and Life Cycle Rituals New Jersey Prentice Hall). 149

Ibid. 149, quote taken from Houlberg 1978:27

Judith Perani, Fred T. Smith, The Vidual Arts of Africa: Gender, Power and Life Cycle Rituals New Jersey Prentice Hall). 152

Ibid. 152-153

Ibid. 153

Judith Perani, Fred T. Smith, The Vidual Arts of Africa: Gender, Power and Life Cycle Rituals New Jersey Prentice Hall). 153

Ibid. 153

Ibid. 153

Judith Perani, Fred T. Smith, The Vidual Arts of Africa: Gender, Power and Life Cycle Rituals New Jersey Prentice Hall). 153

Ibid. 153

Ibid. 153

Ibid. 153

Ibid. 150-152

Ibid. 150

Ibid. 152

African Art Museum: Society of African Missions, Gelede Masks, To Protect Man from Witches, 2011, http://smafathers.org/museum/?page_id=192 (accessed on May 1, 2011).

Judith Perani, Fred T. Smith, The Vidual Arts of Africa: Gender, Power and Life Cycle Rituals New Jersey Prentice Hall). 151

Ibid. 151

Babatunde Lawal, The Gelede Spectacle: Art, Gender, and Social Harmony in an African Culture, (University of Washington Press, 1996), 236

Ibid. 180-181