Spirit work
Egungun masquerade
Yoruba festival in which cloth-covered dancers embody the ancestors and speak to the living.
Presented by ClearTrust Customs described as customs, free to read.
Egungun are masquerades of the Yoruba people in which a dancer, wholly covered in layered cloth, is understood by believers to carry the presence of the ancestors into the community. Egungun societies perform at annual festivals and at funerals. The wearer is not named in public, and the masquerade is treated as a visiting ancestor rather than a costume.
This is an outline of a custom, said as belief and practice. It is not instruction, it does not say that the rite works, and it is not medical advice.
What goes into it
- Layered cloth costumeObjectMany strips and fabrics that swing as the dancer turns.
- DrumsToolSet the pace and call the masquerade.
- Praise songsWordHonour the family line and the ancestor.
- Gifts and moneyOfferingGiven to the masquerade for a blessing.
- Town squareSpaceThe meeting ground for the procession.
- Object
- Tool
- Word
- Offering
- Space
Each part has an equal wedge. The ring shows what goes into the rite, not how much. Colour is the part's role.
The steps, drawn
Each drawing shows the kind of act in that step. Details differ from place to place, family to family and practitioner to practitioner.
Step 1: Gather The society prepares the masquerade away from public view. Step 2: Circle The masquerade arrives and dances through the town or compound. Step 3: Speak Chants and praise songs call on the lineage, and the masquerade may address the crowd. Step 4: Offer Families bring gifts and ask for a blessing. Step 5: Close The masquerade withdraws and the cloth is put away.
What is said and done
The masquerade moves through the town with drummers and a crowd. It may give blessings, scold bad conduct and speak in a distinctive voice. Families offer gifts and ask for the ancestors to bless their children and household.
Membership and limits
Egungun belongs to initiated men of particular lineages. Women and the uninitiated keep a respectful distance, and what happens behind the scenes is not shown to outsiders. Visitors to a festival are asked to follow local guidance on photography.
Change over time
Colonial officials and missionaries sometimes called the masquerades idol worship. They survive today in Nigeria and Benin, and in Brazil in the Egungun houses of Bahia.
What it is for
- Honouring ancestors
- Blessing the community
- Funeral rites
Who does it
Related entries
Also part of it, and being written: Egungun (The masquerade and its societies.), Yoruba religion (The wider tradition.).
More on EveryJaadu
No entries here yet. New pages are added every day.
Sources and further reading
Original text and drawings by the EveryJaadu desk, written with AI assistance and checked against the sources above. Closed or sacred detail is left out. If we have something wrong, tell us.