New Yam Festival

In Nnewi, the occasion of Iri-ji ohuu (new-yam eating) is a cultural festival because of its significance. Nnewi people celebrate their new yam festival usually at the end of August during which assortment of festivities mark the eating of new yam. These festivities normally include a lot of variety entertainment including performance of ceremonial rites by the Igwe (King), cultural dances by Igbo men, women and their children as well as a display of Igbo cultural activities in the form of contemporary shows, masquerade dance, and feasting at a grand scale on a wide variety of food making up the menu of the Igbos.

The first day of the festival the Igwe of Nnewi will officiate the Harvest thanksgiving ceremony at his palace where the yams are offered to gods and ancestors first before distributing them to the villagers. After the prayer of thanksgiving to god, The Igwe eats the first yam because it is believed that his position gives him the privilege of being intermediaries between Nnewi communities and the gods of the land. The rituals involved in the new yam eating are meant to express the community's appreciation to the gods for making the harvest of their yams possible. This therefore explains the three aspect of Igbo worldview, that they are pragmatic, religious and appreciative. This ceremony has been celebrated for centuries and as has always presented the right conditions for all and sundry, family and friends to come together to demonstrate their commitment and solidarity to their local community. Due to this fact, the Igbos every where in the world do celebrate this event in a highly captivating manner in order to protect and celebrate the enriched cultural heritage of her people.