History and Origin Of Leboku Festival
The Leboku Festival which is also known as “New Yam Festival” is celebrated by the Ugep people annually. the festival last for about four weeks starting from the first week of August to the first Week of September. The four weeks festival is the culmination of many events: the beginning of the yam harvest, a time to appease the gods and ancestors, a public parade of engaged maidens, a commemoration of events that led to the migration from the Yakurr ancestral home to the present site, a period of holiday in the Yakurr traditional calendar, etc.
Leboku is the annual New Yam Festival celebrated in Ugep, Nigeria in honor of the earth goddess and the ancestral spirits of the land in Ugep, one of the five settlements of Yakurr. During the Leboku festival, people keep away from intense farming activities and exchange visits with their families..
Leboku Celebration
The leboku festival celebration starts with the following events:
Male Wrestling: The leboku festival officially kicks off with female wrestling competition. Before the commencement of the wrestling, A chief goes ran the Lukpal in the morning to perform some rituals which is known as leboku kepili. during this time, no body is expected to come close to him or pass by. He does this for about seven time before declaring the leboku festival open.
After the declaration, the female wrestling will commence immediately that very morning starting from little children and gradually go to mature female wrestlers in the various playground of each ward such as Ijom, Ijiman, Biko Biko and Ikpakapit.
Male Wrestling: After the female wrestling in the morning hours, the male category also takes off in the evening in Ijiman play ground behind the Obol Lopon palace. Just like the female category, the male wrestling also starts with little boys then finally graduate to mature wrestlers of which the best wrestler for the year will be selected.
Mblemi: On this day, the harvest of new yams is officially flagged off. Woman go to farm in the morning to harvest and bring new yams to the commuinty.
In the evening, beautifully attired women from different farm-roads who had gone to harvest yams will parade the town with their harvests. Showing the big yams and the best yam harvested of the year will be selected that very day.
Janenboku: After the Yam harvest, the next thing is the Janenboku, which literally means “Women’s Festival day“.
On this day, gifts are given to women only by their loved ones, parents and friends. The leteboku traditional dance also takes place in the evening around all the wards in Ugep.
Ekoi Dance: The Ekoi dance is the traditional carnival-like drumming and dancing to the rhythm of the Ekoi drums to usher in the Ledemboku. This dance usually take place from the Mid night of the Janenboku at the Obol Lopon Palace.
Mr. and Miss Leboku Contest: This is a great contest to select who will be the winner of the Mr. and Miss Leboku Beauty Pageant. It starts from 9PM on the very day of Janenboku till Mid Night at about 1AM
Note: Tourists, visitors and people of Ugep on the night of Janenboku are faced with these two options: Either dancing to the rhythm of the Ekoi drums held at the Obol Lopon Palace or attending the Mr. and Miss Leboku Beauty Pageant contest, held in one of the hotels within the town.
Ledemboku: The next day after the Janenboku is the Ledemboku which mean “Men’s Festival day“. It involves exchange of gifts to men only, performance by the male Ekoi dancers, a parade of the Obol Lopon and his council of chiefs (Bi-Inah), a parade and dances by leg-bangle-wearing Leboku maidens to the rhythm of the Ekoi drums, and a display by the Etangala masquerade, whose only outing yearlong is on this day.
Leteboku: The Leteboku is a performance poetry contest among Leboku maidens from each of the political wards in Ugep. The songs danced to, and the rhythm produced by the leg-bangles worn by the maidens is a delight to watch.
The Leteboku comes up after a day of rest from the Ledemboku, which gives the Leboku maidens opportunities to make new friends, known as Nkokeboi.
Lobo (Yekpi): Two days after the Leteboku, which are normally observed as rest days, is the Yekpi which is also known as lobo. The Yekpi is a day when boys and Leboku maidens parade the town in a ceremony believed to usher in peace and prosperity.
The boys dress in white wrappers, with powder on their body and yellow color known as “Ejehno” on their legs as seen in the picture below:
Yeponfawa (Libini): The Yeponfawa which is also known as “Libini” follows the Yekpi. This is a ceremony reserved only for initiates of the Libini group, to declare the first phase of the Leboku over.
This event usually start at mid night to the next day morning where the non-initiates stay awake to listen to the songs and see their dance steps.
Egbendum and Oka: After the Libini, young boys and girls still in secondary school participate in a one-week music and dance celebration which is known as Egbendum (for boys) and Oka (for girls).
Every neighbourhood has its own singing and dancing group, which is usually controls by an adult, who also teaches them songs and dance steps.
Conclusion:
The festival is an incredible cultural and tourism fiesta and also a refreshing and interesting experience.
The Final celebration usually takes place at the Peace Stadium, Ugep, the headquarters of the local government area.