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AMONG YORUBA WOMEN of SOUTH-WESTERN NIGERIA By

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AMONG YORUBA WOMEN of SOUTH-WESTERN NIGERIA By CAJES Vol. 6 No 2 | SEPTEMBER 2020 CAJES: Capital Journal of Educational Studies, 2020, 6(2), page 100– 111. ISSN: 2996 – 103X. ©2020 FCT College of Education Zuba Abuja. http://fctcoezjournals.org HAIRDO AND HEAD-COVER: FASHION EXPRESSION OF REPOSITORY OF ‘ORI’ AMONG YORUBA WOMEN OF SOUTH-WESTERN NIGERIA By Adeoti Adebowale. A Department of Fine and Applied Arts FCT College of Education Zuba-Abuja Email: [email protected] (Received May 14, 2020 and accepted June 1, 2020) Abstract The Yoruba women of South-Western Nigeria are fashionable people just like other women around the world. Every part of their body is a symbolic feature of beauty, especially the head (ori) which is considered as ‘eleda’ (Immortal spiritual being) and the seat of power of the body. Hence, the head must be taken care of with special attention owing to its spiritual and biological significance. The need to take care of ones eleda is informed by various ways which Yoruba women extravagantly decorate their head with fashion adornment as part of the care of the head. The craft of hairdo and wearing of head-cover (gele) is an artistic legacy of beauty from the past and their significance has been emphasized through Yoruba philosophical practices from time immemorial. The main peculiarity is that Yoruba hairstyles and head-cover were not created just for beautification but as means of differentiation. Such differentiation could be religious, on the basis of gender, marital status, age, mood, political orientation etc. In this study, attention is therefore paid toward exemplifying the use of visual and cultural materials to make a fashion statement in the care of women’s head. This research is descriptive through participant observation, interview and literature search to give account of photographic illustration of hair style and head-cover as method while analysis is done in tandem with oral tradition. The study recommends that local content patronage should be encouraged; the craft should be well packaged as a source of income and integration of the craft as academic syllabus in the department of visual arts. However the study concludes that the care of ori (head) is a fashion among the Yoruba women which has basis from visual materials their art provided them. Keywords: Hairdo, Head-cover, Fashion, Ori, Yoruba Women Introduction Every society of the world ascribes concept of beauty and care to women folks. Art and fashion is synonymous to everybody’s culture and within this context lays paraphernalia of Yoruba 100 CAJES Vol. 6 No 2 | SEPTEMBER 2020 women body care. The way and manner of care of the head especially in the olden days was related orally as head being considered as the seat of power. A Yoruba proverb elucidates the significance of oral history in this context that “bi omode o ba ba itan, a ba aroba, aroba ni baba itan” - If a child never experienced historical events but he is acquainted with oral tradition, because oral tradition is the father of history. For instance an oral tradition signifying head as powerful organ of the body and composed as a song by Late Hubert Ogunde in the 1960s and accentuated by Webby (2017) recited as: “Ori mi ye e, ori mi ah, My head I hail you, My head I hail you, Ori ma se pa kun de o, My head, please do not close the door, Lodo re mo m bo o, My head, here I come to you Jowo wa saye mi di rere, Please come and make my life prosperous, Ori wo bi ire gbe mi, My head please take me to a successful end, Ona wo bi ire gbe mi gba o. Let my roads lead me to my fortune” Apart from the oral tradition which places much importance on the care of the head, the vestige of sculptural piece of the Yoruba art is a point to reckon with. In Yoruba typical expression of human representation in painting and sculpture is the rendering of head disproportionately bigger (image 1) than the rest of the body connoting head as the power house of the body and this assertion was reinforced in the work of Ajíbóyè, Fọlárànmí and Umoru-Ọ̀ kẹ (2018). The expression of images in this manner is psycho-cultural philosophy which the artists bear in mind as part of belief system is documented in many studies of the Yoruba art historians and the work of Ademuleya (2007) was peculiar about this phenomenon. The fashion of care of head stems from the visual art which is embedded in Yoruba culture. For instance, the technique of hairdo and head-cover is from textile weaving where two stuck of hair strands are intertwined to achieve a hairdo while warp and weft are applicable for head-cover in care for ori. The aim of this study is therefore, to x-ray aesthetic philosophy of the Yoruba to provide a foundation for fashion care of ori through visual art. Research Objectives The followings are the objectives of the study: 1. to establish the relevance of visual art to care of head among the Yoruba women 2. to account for interpretative meaning of hair styles among the Yoruba women 3. to analyze forms of head-cover as care of the head among Yoruba women 4. to expound concept of ‘Ori’ as viewed from the Yoruba philosophical perspective Research Questions 1. How relevant is visual art to care of head among the Yoruba women? 2. What is the meaning of hair styles among the Yoruba women? 3. How analytical is forms of head-cover as care of the head among Yoruba women 4. How concept of ‘Ori’ viewed from the Yoruba philosophical perspective? 101 CAJES Vol. 6 No 2 | SEPTEMBER 2020 Research Methodology The study adopted oral tradition as evidential theory from the literature which the result is consistent with formal analysis of material culture in this study. This model is in tandem with Ademuleya (2015) opined that oral tradition remains the most hopeful tool for a better understanding of Yoruba philosophy and also in consonance with the model of Abiodun (2014) as adopted by Ajíbóyè, Fọlárànmí and Umoru-Ọ̀ kẹ (2018), suggests that “we look beyond what is curiously observed if we are to understand Yorùbá art.” In essence he offers that “we should not be content with only formalistic analysis of Yorùbá art, but endeavour to understand it as an expression of the thought and belief system that produced it. Participant observation and Interview were made possible while some photographic images of hairstyles and headgear were purposefully selected using descriptive analysis to explain their meaning. The art of Hairdo It is a general belief among the Yoruba that God (Eledumare) refers to us as ‘omo adari hurun’ (specie that grows hair on the head) which simply put, hair grows and hairdo as basic and complete formation of ori (head) from Yoruba philosophy and aesthetic concept. The art of making hair follows principles and elements of art as mentioned by Adiji, Oladumiye and Ibiwoye (2015) which include line, shape, texture, repetition, form, and balance to mention but a few. Hairdo is the twisting of two strands of hair or more together to form a bunch, a continuous multiple supplies of many strands resulting to a complete pattern while different motif can be intertwisted. The pattern of formation could be repeated in a row which is typical of textile weaving (image 2). News Agency of Nigeria (2015) reporting Prof. Bolanle Awe, a former Director of the Institute of African Studies, University of Ibadan, says the traditional hair-styles of Yoruba women are not only for beautification but also serves religious purposes as well as indicate identification, age, political power, ceremony, occupation or mood. Hairdo is a symbol of pride and honour which communicates several messages such as: mark of initiation, state of mind, religious beliefs, marital and social status of Yoruba women. For instance, Mide (2017) posits that hairstyle which starts from the forehead and ends at the back of the neck (image 3) shows the carrier is married. Besides, married women carry hair styles from both sides of the head, and finish up at the middle of the head in such a network shape that connect the forehead and back together. On the other hand, maiden style runs from the right side of the head to the left ear. The smaller, and the more hair strands a young lady carries, the more beautiful such a lady will look. Maidens usually carry hair-style of 8 to 14 strands, in braided or wrapped form. Hairdo can come in different forms, for example Irun didi – a handmade plaits hair or stuck hair weaving in elaborate formation (image 5). Irun kiko – a thread attachment or braided formation can be good especially for women whose heads are little hairy (image 8). Irun biba - simple form of loose hair formation, it is a preliminary braiding usually done in preparation for the actual didi (weaving) or kiko (braiding) by the professional stylist (onidiri). Irrespective of styling forms of hairdo what is common as predictor to a beautifully finished hairstyle is the working tools such as comb, hair cream and thread as mentioned by Femi (2017): Onya/ Ilarun: a wooden comb with teeth that come in various sizes (image 4), used to 102 CAJES Vol. 6 No 2 | SEPTEMBER 2020 set the hairdo in place, hence Yoruba aphorism “Ile, Ogere, afi oko yeri” (Earth, the goddess, who combs her hair with a hoe). Adi - local hair cream traditionally applied to enhance and soften hair strands; and Owu - plaiting threads used for variations of both braiding and weaving hair.
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