In Igbo culture east and west of the Niger, Rivers state and other places, the arrival of a new baby is always greeted with happiness. There is always a joyous welcome song. As soon as the news of a safe delivery of a baby is broken, the women around would assemble and start singing songs of joy and happiness.
UmuIgbo, let us discuss about arrival of new babies in Igbo culture.

In my part of Igboland, there are so many songs that accompany the birth of a new baby e.g
Erimeri na adi mma erimerie x2,
Onwu egbule nwayi n'afo ime ka omuora anyi nwa,
tara okporo, nuru mmii ngwo.
In translation, merrymaking is good,
let death not claim pregnant women, so that they can deliver babies,
So that we can eat and drink.
How about your part of Igboland or in Igboland generally.

Another popular song to greet the arrival of a baby in IGBOLAND
Onye muru nwa na ebe akwa,
Chioma (depends) muru nwa na ebe akwa.
Tewe uzuza, tewe oso,
Ka umu mmadu racha ya.
In translation: Who delivered the baby that is crying,
Chioma delivered the baby that is crying,
Prepare uzuza and pepper soup,
for people to enjoy.
Idiomatically, the song is referring to the delicious uzuza and other soups that will be prepared for the woman who newly gave birth to a baby.

When a child is born in Igbo culture, most women who went there would rub nzu (white powder on their necks as a mark of purity of heart, goodwill and welcome to the new baby. This practice is still in place in Isinweke.
There is no doubt that there are varieties of songs depending on the part of Igboland. The fact remains, however, that Ndigbo welcome a new baby into the world with a joyous song.

The omugwo is the best part for me.Having everyone fuss and watch over me and the baby,feed me in bed,bathe me et.

I love that "erimeri na-adi nma" song.Where I married,the women within the kindred all come with wrappers(as gift),dance and rub white powder all over their bodies.They also take turns in fetching the new mother water and firewood(if you are in the village).All old grudges,petty quarells and enimity are erased as soon as a woman puts to bed,even debts are written off.

IMO,the best days of a womans life are her nursing days.If anyone has got hers bad,sorry oh.

Argh,I wanna make more babies now

Yes Ify, there are so many songs that accompany the birth of a child in Igbo culture.
There is this one that goes like this:
Onye ihe oma di mma, bia kwe anyi iloola, iloola, iloola.
After that they will say: Unu muru nwa gi--WHAT IS THE GENDER OF THE BABY.
Eji gini azu ya eeeh!?---What is going to be used for the feeding of the baby.
They the host will respond: Ihe eriwere enye nwa eeh!. (What ever we are eating, so as the child).

the best experience so far.


I love omugwo, my favorite song, o bughi ma nwa onye ga enye m

Igbos are always very happy when the child is male but indifferent when a female, more expecially if the family is xpecting a male after series of female children

Those days in owerri when kids we were then troop 2 any house with new baby arrival to collect salted clay(nzu) as refreshments to welcome de newbie

@Mirima,Yes.
O buro ma nwa,onye ga-enyem
Ukwu George,onye ga-enye mAkpa rice,onye ga-enye m
Moto car(lol),onye ga-enye m

I particularly feel for women still waiting to be blessed with children whenever i hear the song.

@Brainpulse,You don't say .I believe you've interacted with all Igbo's to come up with this ya 2pence theory.

Assuming its even true,hows that your concern?

ifyalways:

@Mirima,Yes.
O buro ma nwa,onye ga-enyem
Ukwu George,onye ga-enye mAkpa rice,onye ga-enye m
Moto car(lol),onye ga-enye m

I particularly feel for women still waiting to be blessed with children whenever i hear the song.

@Brainpulse,You don't say .I believe you've interacted with all Igbo's to come up with this ya 2pence theory.

Assuming its even true,hows that your concern?

nO OFFENCE THOSE THAT HAVE INTERRACTED WITH, LAY ALOT OF EMPHASES ON THE MALE CHILD WHICH IS NOT SUPPOSE TO BE, SO DISCRIMINATING THE FEMALE CHILD. EVEN IN SOME CASES RIDICULING THE MOTHER AS IF SHE HAD CONTROL OVER THE CHOICE OF THE CHILD. THIS IS MORE COMMON WITHIN THE IGBOS

U and who?

amaham:

Those days in owerri when kids we were then troop 2 any house with new baby arrival to collect salted clay(nzu) as refreshments to welcome de newbie

Wtf?

@ifyalways,I guess the omugwo thing is sweet for you cos you get a lot of pampering but mehn I just came back from helping my cousin who just had twins(2 very big boys) no be small thing o,these boys gave me sleepless nights for the two months I was there,always crying,I can't count how many times I cook in a day,nsala suffer for my hand,pounding yam,boiling hot water etc,and these boys won't let you carry them while sitting,you must stand,singing and dancing(I turned celine dion over night),I had to run o for reals but I really can't wait to have a kid so somebody ga bia ne mu omugwo make I follow enjoy small.

During my primary schools I used to love it when a woman puts to bed because I will go there to get my share of cabin biscuits and sprinkle powder on my body even if I havent taken a bath.
Powder is also poured into a tray where you take and rub yourself and drop some money for the mother and child. Nobody mentions the preference for male or female during this period
If it is in our house, we use to pilfer some baby milk like NAN and Cerelac, but you are dead meat if mum catches you.

^^^Is Cerelac a type of milk?
@topic,
everybody is talking about omuguo. What about the naming ceremony now? How is it held? After how many days? And what about circumsicion and were there any native rituals that had to be performed on the baby?

Nice thread.

Please keep more of these topics coming. Helps us revive our culture and educate younger ones.

Yes, we are a beautiful people. Forget all this inter/intra ethnic nagging and bickering. We should speak more about our beautiful culture.

That way people would want to associate with us.

My younger sister's birth some 25years ago was most remarkable for me. I refused to go to school (Kindergarten) for about a year and stayed home to terrorise my granny (God rest her soul). It was a wonderful time.

If the baby will be a trouble maker like ojukwu, let him/her die, so that we will not witness civil war 2 in nigeria.

ismhab:

If the baby will be a trouble maker like ojukwu, let him/her die, so that we will not witness civil war 2 in nigeria.

shut up ur mouth, Aboki, Boko Haram like you

It was so joyous everywhere in my village then whenever a new baby is born; I still remember those song that they usually sing;

Ihe amuru bu nwa, ihe amuru bu nwa
Nwanne gbanwee naira elewe omugwo
Ihe amuru bu nwa

Melinde:



shut up your mouth, Aboki, Boko Haram like you

You're an idiota for answering a foooll

@Free,ndo.I had twins,all boys too and my mom and MIL plus aunties and SIL's reported for duty.Mine was to eat well,sleep and breastfeed.Lucky they came with good herbs to monitor my weight else i for blow up.

@Fellis,I don't think Igbos are so much into "naming ceremonies".Most people after celebrating in their home/hood after mom and baby gets discharged from the hospital does what's known as "I kupute nwa"(outdooring) in church which is where the child is named,getting god parents and baptism follows suit.

Am already salivating for the interesting menu that accompany omugwo.

[size=16pt]Otu Nzọpụta Asụsụ Igbo[/size] (ONAIgbo)


Nke a Bụ Ọkwa Dị Ezigbo Nkpa, nke sitere n'aka ndị ONAIgbo.


Igbo bụ Igbo, ekelee m ụnụ.

Ọ bụ oke ihe nwute na anyị hapụrụ asụsụ anyị, o wee na achọ ila n’efu . Ọkwa mba dị iche iche na asụ asụsụ ha? Asụsụ ndị Bekee dịrị ha, nke ndị Japanụ dịrị ha. Ndị Chaina, ndị Fụrenchị, nakwa ndị Ndia na asụgbado asụsụ ha n’otu n’otu.

A bịa na obodo Naijiriya, asụsụ ndị Yoruba dịrị ha, nke ndị Awụsa dịrị ha. Ndi Ịjọ n’asụ be ha, ndị Tivi nakwa asụ be ha.

Igbo bụ Igbo bikonụ, a sịrị m ka m jụọ; gịnị mere asụsụ anyị? Kedụ ka anyị ga esi na aza ndị Igbo, mana anyị amaghị Igbo asụ? Igbo bụ Igbo, ọ bụrụ na anyị ejighị ehihie were chọọ ewu dị oji, ọbụ na chi jie ka anyị ga achọtanwu ya? Igbo na aba aha sị, AHAMEFỤLA! Ndị asụsụ ha furu efu, bụ ndị aha ha furu efu. Ọ bụrụ na asụsụ Igbo fue, ndị Igbo efuela!

Chineke ekwela ihe ọjọọ. Ọ ga ajọgbu udele na njọ, ma sigbukwa nkakwụ na isi, ma ọ bụrụ na anyị hapụ asụsụ anyị ka ọ nwụọ.

Ọ na bụ m hụcha, edemede ụfọdụ a na edezi ugbua na aha asụsụ Igbo, anya miri anachọzị ịgba m. Echekwara m na anyị bụ ndị nwere akọ na uche? Biko nụ, ka anyị were otu obi, were nebaokwua anya.

ONAIgbo (Otu Nzọpụta Asụsụ Igbo), bụ otu ndị ihe gbasara ya bụ ajọ ọnọdụ asụsụ anyị nọ ugbua na e metụ n'obi rinne.

Na mgbe na adịghị anya, anyị ga eme ka ụnụ mata atụmatụ nakwa ebu m n'obi anyi gbasara ihe anyị nile ga eme, ka asụsụ anyị were dikwa ndụ ọzọ.


Ndewo nụ!

ONAIgbo kwenu! Igbo bụ asụsụ ọma!
ONAIgbo kwenu! Asụsụ anyị ga adịrị anyị!.
Igbo kwezuenu! Ọ gadịrị Igbo nma.


Kwado ONAIgbo.
Kpọtụrụ anyị na:
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Detara anyị ozi na "onaigbo@yahoo.com".
Anyị nọkwa na Akwụkwọ Ihu (http://www.facebook.com/ONAIgbo)

Memories; when my younger sister was born,she was so beautiful very light and ppl thought she was white. Everybody want to carry her as the village women trouped in and started singing "Egwu nwa".

But the best part was the LEGENDARY NSALA SOUP!! Because my grandmother is no more. My aunt was the one that did the "INE OMUGWO"
During the "OMUGWO" we the children are always happy because its either they cook "NSALA SOUP" or "JI NSALA“ And during this time our mum wouldnt beat us if we do something wrong.
Its a joyful experience,always running home to go eat "NSALA SOUP" after school.

@ify, thanks for the exposé.
@topic,
what is this nsala soup everyone is talking about sef. I want to taste it.

INE OMUGWO is a salivating yet tedious. i wont forget nkem owoh's very interesting film where he insisted on representing his wife during his daughters omugwo.
another song is
ihe omuru amaka (x2)
oga changeia naira nee ya omugwo
ihe omuruo amaka
or
onuru akwa nwa ehee
ahaa ehee
onuru akwa nwa me-gwagwa
o bu ofuonye nwe nwa?

In my part of Igboland, the birth of a child heralds great joy in the community. The women gather to sing/chant and dance. The most of the songs are very funny and as kids, we didn't really understand what the women meant, though later we got to know the real meanings of the song. My best chant/song is:

o, o, n' obu nwa (1 person chants)
o, o, o (the rest will respond)

also (the one we didn't quite understand the meaning as kids)

nbia nbia ka nma n'ebe (again 1 person chants that)
nbia nbia ka nma na ute (the rest responds)
biakoro biakoro biakoro bia
nbia nbia ka nma na ute

of course this is sung using ohaozara dialect, really nostalgic

My best part of child birth is d announcement. D baby's grandma wil be running around d village /community wit bottles of powder spaying it in d air /everywhere, mostly singing with great excitment. People wil then be asking, where did it happen?

another tradition prevalent in my part comes on the day the umbilical cord falls off the child. Usually, it's buried beside a particular economic crop which will become the child's own or belong to it's mother (in a polygamous family). A little palm frond is also hung at the door jamb to ward off evil spirits

Usually, a nursing mother is free from all debts for 1 year (one may not ask a nursing mother to payback anything owed within this 1 year) and all enmity are to end with the arrival of a new baby - that does not foreclose future enmity (women will always be women).

As for the Omugwo (called Omua in my dialect - and usually the responsibility of the woman's mother (if still alive) for the first child and the man's mother for the second), the grandma comes with gifts and special herbs for preparing meals for the mother (how we used to love those Ji mmiri oku spiced with uziza, utazi and lots of pepper and dried fish). Grandma is also responsible for bathing the baby and ensuring that the new mother gets back into shape. I witnessed my mother having wrapper tied around her abdomen - grrrrr

Awesome thread.

This is fantastic.  I love our cultures!  I have always said no matter what's going on with me, I will be sure to make sure to give birth in Naija.  Forget about all that trying to have your baby in America for citizenship nonsense.  I want my babies (twins, i hope) to be born on our soil.  Now, with all these reminiscing about traditional celebrations that accompany the birth ot a new baby, I not only want to go to Naija for the delivery, I want to go to the village.  lol,  Except I am omo Eko proper.  What village?    It will still be nice sha.

Andre, good job on the thread.  I like you better this way, when you're not fighting. 

To the poster that made the comment about male children, it is almost all cultures that are like that.  Yes!  Surprise Surprise!  Even "western" ones.  It just depends on the family sometimes.