By Tedunjaiye Oluwatobi, Honorary Reporter, Nigeria

 

If there's one significant similarity between Korea and Nigeria, it is the fact that culture is highly valued and appreciated in both countries.

Chuseok, the Korean harvest thanksgiving festival is around the corner. In this article, I'll be talking about Chuseok and the new Yam festival; a harvest thanksgiving festival annually celebrated in the Eastern part of Nigeria. I'll also be pointing out attributes peculiar to both celebrations.

 

CHUSEOK (추석)

Chuseok is an annual harvest festival also known as Thanksgiving Day celebrated in Korea. It is one of the most significant and biggest festivals celebrated by all Koreans both inside and outside the country. Chuseok is a 3 day holiday which spans from the day before the festival to the day after the festival.

During chuseok, Korea is known to be a busy place because it is always alive and bumbling with different activities and preparations, also, the traffic is usually heavy during this period since many people go to their ancestral hometowns to spend quality time with their families and relatives.

The origin of Chuseok can be traced back to the history of Korea as an Agrarian community, thus this festival is a celebration held to give thanks to the last harvest and also strive forward to a better one. Therefore, people offer thanksgiving ceremonies to their ancestors to thank them for the bountiful harvest.

As Korea is a country known to uphold and preserve its cultural values, even in the modern day, people still travel to their hometowns to pay homage to their ancestors as a sign of respect. This is equally considered as a time of bonding for family members.

 

During Chuseok, foods such as rice, Songpyeon (rice cakes), jeon (Korean pancakes), Japchae are usually the delicacies of the day.

One of the eminent activities observed during this festive period is Charye (차례). During Charye, families hold memorial services in honour of the dead. On the morning of Chuseok, family members assemble at their homes to observe this memorial service. Newly cultivated fresh rice and alcohol are prepared as offerings to the ancestors after which the members proceed to eat together.

Another important activity observed is Beolcho (벌초). This when families visit ancestral graves, clean and tidy them up, this is done to honor the dead. Families tend to offer food, crops, fruits and drinks to their ancestors during this activity. People also play folk games, mask dance, Korean wresting, and Korean circle dance amongst other exciting activities.

Notably, Chuseok is a time of appreciation as people give out gifts to families, friends, colleagues, business partners and close associates in honor of the celebration.

 

NEW YAM Festival (Iri-ji / Iwa-ji)

The Yam festival is an annual harvest festival celebrated in the middle belt and eastern part of Nigeria. This festival usually takes place at the end of the raining season from early August to October. It symbolizes the end of a harvest cycle and the beginning of another. Therefore people observe this festival to thank the gods of the land for the previous bountiful harvest cycle and hope towards the beginning of another.

The festival is important among the Igbo speaking communities as Igbos both in Nigeria and Diaspora marks it with pomp and pageantry. The day is regarded as a public function and the celebration lasts from a day to a week depending on the community.

This celebration originated from fact that the Igbo people are essentially Agrarian and dependent on yam. Yam is considered the most important and king amongst crops because it is the first crop to be harvested during the harvest period.

During the feast, yams are offered to the gods to show gratitude for the generous harvest, and then the people pray for renewed life as they proceed to eat of the produce. The evening before the festival, all old yams are either eaten or discarded as only dishes made from the new Yam will be served during the feast the next day.

At the start of the feast, the offerings take place before the yams are distributed and eaten by the people. Notably, the offering is performed by either the oldest man in the community, the king or someone holding an important title. After the prayers, the person who offers the offering eats out of the yam before anyone else because it is believed that the position makes them an intermediary between man and the gods of the land.

Once the offering takes place, the yam can be distributed to families, friends or close associates. Different entertaining activities and ceremonies such as performance of rites by the king, contemporary shows, masquerade dance and parades amongst others, are observed. The festival is a display of cultural beauty as the modern day celebration attracts both indigenes and tourists.

 

SIMILARITIES BETWEEN BOTH FESTIVALS

Similar origins: Chuseok stemmed from the history of Korea as an Agrarian society while the new Yam festival also stemmed from the history of Igbo as an Agrarian community. Thus, the people who started the festivals in the society and communities were farmers and were at one point in time solely dependent on farm produce.

 

Harvest and Thanksgiving festivals: Both festivals are held to celebrate bountiful harvest of crops and also to express gratitude to ancestors and gods of the land for the harvest.

 

Cultural: Both festivals are culture driven and they began as part of the way of life of those that practiced them. This cultural celebration has been preserved and passed down from generation to generation.

 

Giving gifts: Giving gifts is prominent to both cultures. While gift varies during Chuseok, Yams are significantly given out during as gifts the new Yam festival.

 

Food: There are foods that are peculiar to both festivals. For Chuseok, Songpyeon (rice cakes), jeon (Korean pancakes) and Japchae are some of the delicacies specially associated to the festival, while delicacies made out of yam are unique to the new Yam festival.

 

Happy Chuseok day celebration!!

One day, I hope I get to participate and experience the celebration of Chuseok!