Owambe: The Beauty of the Yoruba Wedding Ceremony
The Yoruba people of Western Nigeria are known for their exquisite wedding ceremonies. The ceremonies are called “Owambe". Yoruba people are known for “Owambe" parties which hold, mostly, on Saturdays. There are many things that give Yoruba weddings the esteemed “owambe" title.
They are:
The Bride: The bride is dressed in beautiful “Aso Oke", a Nigerian fabric which is peculiar to the Yoruba people. The Aso Oke fabric is sewn into Iro(wrapper), buba(blouse) and gele(headgear). The bride is also adorned with traditional beads. Of course, the bride and groom rock the same fabric, but we'll get to that later 😉
The Bridesmaids: One thing that the Yoruba wedding has in common with white weddings is the theme of bridesmaids. The bridesmaids are usually dressed in a fabric. It's more like a uniformed kind of dressing. Although, the bridesmaids pick a common fabric, they are, however, permitted to sew different styles with the fabric. The number of bridesmaids could be ranging from 2-20, depending on how the bride wants it.
The Groom: Now, there's not much to say about the groom. He basically follows what his bride wants 😂. Just kidding! He picks the same fabric as his bride and his Aso Oke is sewn into Agbada, buba and sokoto. He also has his fila(cap/hat) ,which can be sewn in different forms.
The Groomsmen: Like the bridesmaids, the groomsmen also pick a common fabric. The number of groomsmen could be ranging from 2-20 depending on how many close friends the groom has.
The Cake: The cake needs to make a statement. Although, small, it also qualifies as one of the various qualities used in judging a perfect Owambe wedding. As a result of this, couples spend lots of money in order to come up with a perfect cake.
Food 😋: First of all, there's nothing like an Owambe wedding without food. Various meals are provided for the guests to eat and take home. Jollof rice, pounded yam and egusi, fried rice, Amala and ewedu. Several mouth watering meals
Loads of drama: Yoruba people are known for their drama. People in charge of food see themselves as ultimate rulers. Some people fight to get souvenirs 😂😂. Some would pour rice and other meals in polythene bags to take home. The caterers would have to fight off a lot of people who want to get rounds of food by all means 😂😂😂😂
All in all, Yoruba weddings are so much fun. You should gatecrash a Yoruba wedding one of these days, you'll love it 😊😊. Luckily, Yoruba people are very accommodating so, you don't need to worry about being busted for gatecrashing 😀😀