Eyo is the forerunner of the modern day carnival in Brazil. On Eyo
Day, the main highway in the heart of the city (from the end of Carter
Bridge to Tinubu Square) is closed to traffic, allowing for procession
from Idumota to Iga Idunganran.
Here, the participants all pay homage to the Oba of Lagos. Eyo
festival takes place whenever occasion and tradition demand, but it is
usually held as the final burial rites for a highly regarded chief.
Among the Yoruba, the indigenous religions have largely given way to
Christianity and Islam, but the old festivals are still observed. The
traditional leaders of the Yoruba are the Obas, who live in palaces
and used to govern along with a council of ministers. The Obas'
position is now mainly honorary, and their chief role is during the
observance of the festivals.
Yoruban festivals honor their pantheon of gods and mark the
installation of a new Oba. The Engungun ("en-GOON-gun") festival,
which honors the ancestors, lasts 24 days. Each day, a different
Engungun in the person of a masked dancer dances through the town,
possessed by one of the ancestors. On the last day, a priest goes to
the shrine of the ancestors and sacrifices animals, pouring the blood
on the shrine. The sacrifices are collected, and they become the food
for the feast that follows.
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