(5/5)... the water is then used to prepare a meal for the whole community.

For the Chewa, the custom is that when a tribe member passes, the entire community must attend the burial. Death is said to be caused by a witch; so the perpetrators would be scared to attend the burial

4] Igbo Tribe - Nigeria

Widowhood in Igboland

It is common among the Igbo’s to find widows subjected to humiliation to prove she had no involvement in her husband’s death. This cultural tradition is prominent in 5 Igbo states: Enugu, Anambra, Abia, Eboniyi and Imo (1/4)

(2/6*).. the experience of becoming a widow in Igboland has been described as one that “violates the fundamental human rights of women through culturally prescribed seclusions” (Mezieobi & Iyamu, 2011).

The treatment received varies depending on a woman’s social status (cont)

(3/6)... There is a shift and a fullness that comes into effect when a woman becomes a widow. They are often victims of societal neglect and cruel acts. E.g., a wife of a king in some communities must mourn her husband for 8 years (Jannah, 2018), other practices include (cont):

(4/6).. forcing her to drink the water used in washing her husbands corpse
- shaving off her hair
- seizure of husbands properties
-physical abuse
- starvation unless she is fed by another widow
- forced to bathe on her husbands grave

to list a few

(5/6) .. though it’s important to note that such maltreatment tends to be resolved through the intervention of appropriate authorities like family unions or village / town councils, so it is not being totally ignored & there is some forward thinking by individuals who care (cont)

(6/6) it goes without saying, as a woman I found this one both shocking and extreme. Similar to others who call it outdated. Odimmegwa (2010) sums it up well as “just one of such old age traditional values that needs more than any kind of evolution... it needs revolution” - FACTS

That’s the end! Like I said it’s important we don’t look with ignorance but as Africans it’s interesting to discover something and think “woah, that needs to change..” you know? Anyway hope you enjoyed the thread? Or learned something new

I’ve written a blog with sources (cont)

... it contains a lot more detail about these traditions and gives more background as there is a lot I couldn’t get into the thread. You can read it here https://www.ssozinha.com/post/extreme-tradition-4-african-cultures-that-will-shock-you thanks for reading x

Don’t forget to subscribe to my blog: http://ssozinha.com/subscribe  for more african history content ! X

Fixed the thread finally