Yoruba Customs and Beliefs Pertaining to Twins
The Yoruba are an important ethnic group mainly occupying
Southwestern Nigeria. Mainly for genetic reasons, this very
large tribe happens to present the highest dizygotic twinning rate in the world (4.4 % of all maternities). The high perinatal mortality rate associated with such pregnancies has contributed to the integration of a special twin belief system within the African traditional religion of this tribe. The latter is based on the concept of a supreme deity called Olodumare or Olorun, assisted by a series of secondary gods (Orisha) while Yoruba religion also involves immortality and reincarnation of the soul based on the animistic cult of ancestors. Twins are therefore given special names and believed to detain special preternatural powers. In keeping with their refined artistic tradi-
tion, the Yoruba have produced numerous wooden statuettes called Ibejis that represent the souls of deceased newborn twins and are involved in elaborate rituals. Among Yoruba traditional beliefs and lore some twin-related themes are represented which are also found in other parts of the world.
Basic features of the original Yoruba beliefs have found their way into the religious traditions of descendants of African slaves imported in the West Indies and in South America.
Geography, Population and History
The Yoruba area is mainly located in Southwestern Nigeria and in the East of adjacent Benin formerly known as Dahomey (see Figure 1) but Yoruba people have also spread to Togo and Ghana (Massa, 1999). The twenty five million people or so who speak the Yoruba language (belonging to the Kwa language family) represent one of Africa’s largestethnic groups of which the main city is Lagos, one of the most rapidly growing cities in the world with a populationof 1.4 million in 1972, 10.6 in 1996 and a projected figure of 20 million by 2010. The origin of the Yoruba is somewhat obscure. Classical theories maintain that they originated from Egypt, Arabia or Nubia and that they settled in their present homeland long before the 12th century. However, studies of mtDNA indicate that in addition to their kinship with close neighbours such as Hausas and Ibos, they are genetically the most closely related to two Western African populations located in the Senegalese region (Mandenka, Songhai) as well as to Tuaregs (Cavalli-Sforza et al., 1993; Watson et al., 1996). According to Yoruba lore, they originally came from the ancient city of Ife where their almighty god Olorun also known as Olodumare created mankind (Bolajildowu, 1973; Chappel, 1974; Radin, 1924; Stoll & Stoll, 1980).
The Yoruba chiefdoms were united under the supreme authority of the powerful Alafin, king of Oyo, until the beginning of the 19th century. The great Oyo kingdom was then thrown into confusion by internal battles and wars so that new smaller kingdoms were created, generating the major Yoruba subtribes that exist today alongside the original Oyo (Chappel, 1974).
In 1886 began the British colonial period which ended with the declaration of Nigerian independence in 1960. In 1966, the Biafra civil war involved the Yoruba, Haussa and Ibo tribes and led to political turmoil and military government until the return of Nigerian civilian rule in 1979.
The Traditional Yoruba Community
The family unit is of vital importance in the life of every Yoruba. As in many African societies, the concept of the family extends far beyond one’s own parents, siblings, wife and children. It includes a whole clan often composed of more than a hundred people among which mutual assistance is compulsory. The head of this extended family is the clan elder called Bale (Mobolade, 1971). Within the clan, the senior is always superior to the junior. The former, however, has the obligation to support the junior. If needed, he must, for instance, take over the role of the junior’s father (Stoll & Stoll, 1980).
The next level of Yoruba social organisation is the village community assembling several clans that are closely linked to each other in a brotherly way. A number of village communities combine in the form of a principal Yoruba tribe occupying a given area (Figure 1). At the head of each tribe reigns a king called Oba who used to deal with supraregional matters. Nowadays, the Obas no longer have a say in official policy making although they are still honoured and respected as traditional rulers. Beaded crowns are
worn by the Oba kings during festivities to emphasise their spiritual powers and royal lineage (Olaleye-Oruene, 1983).
Yoruba Religious Beliefs
Within today’s Yoruba religious affiliations, more than 40% of the population are allied to Islam, less than 40% are Christians with the remaining 20% exclusively practising the traditional animist Yoruba religion. However, most Yoruba people belonging to the Islamic or to the Christian faith also adhere in one way or another to the traditional religious beliefs. The latter are based on the immortality of
the soul and on its reincarnation, which are both essential to the ibeji twin belief.
Besides the creator Olorun or Olodumare the Yoruba pantheon is diversified into numerous gods or Orishas. The resemblance with the realm of ancient Greek mythology justifies the designation of the Yorubas as the “Hellenes of Africa” (Bascom, 1973; Chappel, 1974; Mobolade, 1971; Thompson, 1971). The main Orishas are (Courlander, 1973; Stoll & Stoll, 1980):
Shango: god of thunder and lightening whose emblem is the double axe (Yoruba territory is subject to the second highest frequency of thunderstorms in the world, after Java);
Shopona: the god of smallpox, very powerful and much feared;
Eshu: the troublemaker, the magician and sorcerer who has many faces and may behave either favourably or balefully;
Ogun: god of iron and war and anyone who works with iron (smiths, hunters, carvers, taxi drivers, etc.) is a worshipper of Ogun;
Obatalla: Olorun’s plenipotentiary who created the cripples while being drunk.
Besides these main figures, there are many secondary Orishas.
The belief in reincarnation is linked to the Yoruba ancestor belief. In Yoruba religion it is thought that about two generations after death, every human soul has a chance to return to earth in the body of a newborn, mostly within the same family. The welfare of any family is entirely dependent on that of its ancestors. Therefore, regular prayers are said and sacrificial gifts are laid in front of a special family
shrine devoted to the ancestors (Jantzen & Bertisch, 1993; Stoll & Stoll, 1980; Thompson, 1971).
As in other African social frameworks, the Yoruba have developed select and secret religious communities endowed with strong powers based on the use of black magic and powerful drugs. The most prominent of these groups is the Ogboni organisation which, in the past, could even force an
offender to drink a cup of deadly poison.
In their very popular festival that takes place once a year, the Egungun worshippers represent the spirits of the departed by masks, in order to connect the living to the dead. Other such organisations are the Gelede and Epa societies which are well known for their display of elaborate masks (Thompson, 1971).
Twins in Yoruba Society
In traditional African societies, twins were considered of preternatural origin and raised emotional reactions oscillating from fear and repugnance to hope and joy (Leroy, 1995). In ancient times, the Yoruba used to reject and even sacrifice newborn twins (Leroy, 1995). Strangely enough, historical scales were tipped so that twins are nowadays not only well accepted but welcomed, their birth being an occasion of great rejoicing. A feast will be organised for the whole community and even for neighbouring villages if the twins are the children of a prominent member of the tribe
(Chappel, 1974; Stoll & Stoll, 1980).
It is believed that twins are able to bestow happiness, health and prosperity upon their family. However, since they can also bring about disaster, disease and death, they will be treated with all due respect, loving and care. Their upbringing is therefore far more permissive than that of other children (Stoll & Stoll, 1980).
The first born twin, whether a boy or a girl, is always called Taiwo, meaning ‘having the first taste of the world’, whereas the second is named Kehinde, meaning ‘arriving after the other’. Although being born first Taiwo is considered as the younger twin. His senior Kehinde is supposed to send out his partner to see what the outside world looks like. As soon as Taiwo has given a signal by crying, Kehinde will follow. Kehinde is supposed to be more careful, more intelligent and more reflective, while Taiwo is believed to be more curious and adventurous, but also more nonchalant
(Olaleye-Oruene, 1983; Stoll & Stoll, 1980).
On the third day after the birth of twins, a visit is paid by the parents to the Babalawo, the Ifa priest of the community. Through the interpretation of the Ifa oracle which includes no less than 1,600 sayings, he is able to drive out whatever evil spirits may threaten the newborn twins (Chappel, 1974; Courlander, 1973; Thompson, 1971). He will dedicate the twins to the Orisha Ibeji god of twins and
if deemed necessary will appoint for them an additional patron such as Eshu or Shango. Contrary to these latter prominent deities, the specific god of twins is a minor Orisha who is never figuratively represented.
The Babalawo communicates to the mother a series of instructions on how to treat her twins: which colours they should wear or avoid, which food is recommended or prohibited, which animals are dangerous for them, etc. (Olaleye-Oruene, 1983; Stoll & Stoll, 1980). The powers of the Babalawo included the ability to give the order to let one of the twins starve to death if he was thought to be
possessed by evil spirits that could not be exorcised. This custom is a reminder of the theme of “the good and the bad twin” which is part of the mythical beliefs of many archaic tribes (Leroy, 1995).
The Ibeji Belief System
As the Yoruba believe that twins share the same combined soul, when a newborn twin dies, the life of the other is imperilled because the balance of his soul has become seriously disturbed. To counteract this danger a special ritual is carried out. After consulting the Babalawo, an artisan will be commissioned to carve a small wooden figure as a sym- bolic substitute for the soul of the deceased twin. If both twins have died, two of these figures are made (Figure 2; Jantzen & Bertisch, 1993; Mobolade, 1971; Stoll & Stoll, 1980).
These effigies are called Ere ibeji (from ‘ibi’ = born and ‘eji’ = two; ere means sacred image). By virtue of his immortal soul hosted by his ibeji, the departed twin remains as powerful as the living one. The ibeji(s) will have to be cared for by the parents or later on by the surviving twin. Therefore, these figures are symbolically washed, fed and clothed on a regular basis, according to a popular Yoruba saying “dead ibeji expenses are expenses for the living” (Courlander, 1973). According to these customs, the mother enjoys certain privileges even if both her twins have died (Stoll & Stoll, 1980).
For further reading:
http://www.randafricanart.com/Yoruba_Customs_and_Beliefs_Pertaining_to_Twins.html
From the publication: Twin Research
Volume 5 Number 2 pp. 132-136
By: Fernand Leroy(1),Taiwo Olaleye-Oruene (2), Gesina Koeppen-Schomerus (3) and Elizabeth Bryan (4)
1-Overijse, Belgium
2-Olabisi-Olaleye Foundation, London, UK
3-SGDPRC, IoP, King’s College, London, UK
4-Multiple Births Foundation, London, UK
Southwestern Nigeria. Mainly for genetic reasons, this very
large tribe happens to present the highest dizygotic twinning rate in the world (4.4 % of all maternities). The high perinatal mortality rate associated with such pregnancies has contributed to the integration of a special twin belief system within the African traditional religion of this tribe. The latter is based on the concept of a supreme deity called Olodumare or Olorun, assisted by a series of secondary gods (Orisha) while Yoruba religion also involves immortality and reincarnation of the soul based on the animistic cult of ancestors. Twins are therefore given special names and believed to detain special preternatural powers. In keeping with their refined artistic tradi-
tion, the Yoruba have produced numerous wooden statuettes called Ibejis that represent the souls of deceased newborn twins and are involved in elaborate rituals. Among Yoruba traditional beliefs and lore some twin-related themes are represented which are also found in other parts of the world.
Basic features of the original Yoruba beliefs have found their way into the religious traditions of descendants of African slaves imported in the West Indies and in South America.
Geography, Population and History
The Yoruba area is mainly located in Southwestern Nigeria and in the East of adjacent Benin formerly known as Dahomey (see Figure 1) but Yoruba people have also spread to Togo and Ghana (Massa, 1999). The twenty five million people or so who speak the Yoruba language (belonging to the Kwa language family) represent one of Africa’s largestethnic groups of which the main city is Lagos, one of the most rapidly growing cities in the world with a populationof 1.4 million in 1972, 10.6 in 1996 and a projected figure of 20 million by 2010. The origin of the Yoruba is somewhat obscure. Classical theories maintain that they originated from Egypt, Arabia or Nubia and that they settled in their present homeland long before the 12th century. However, studies of mtDNA indicate that in addition to their kinship with close neighbours such as Hausas and Ibos, they are genetically the most closely related to two Western African populations located in the Senegalese region (Mandenka, Songhai) as well as to Tuaregs (Cavalli-Sforza et al., 1993; Watson et al., 1996). According to Yoruba lore, they originally came from the ancient city of Ife where their almighty god Olorun also known as Olodumare created mankind (Bolajildowu, 1973; Chappel, 1974; Radin, 1924; Stoll & Stoll, 1980).
The Yoruba chiefdoms were united under the supreme authority of the powerful Alafin, king of Oyo, until the beginning of the 19th century. The great Oyo kingdom was then thrown into confusion by internal battles and wars so that new smaller kingdoms were created, generating the major Yoruba subtribes that exist today alongside the original Oyo (Chappel, 1974).
In 1886 began the British colonial period which ended with the declaration of Nigerian independence in 1960. In 1966, the Biafra civil war involved the Yoruba, Haussa and Ibo tribes and led to political turmoil and military government until the return of Nigerian civilian rule in 1979.
The Traditional Yoruba Community
The family unit is of vital importance in the life of every Yoruba. As in many African societies, the concept of the family extends far beyond one’s own parents, siblings, wife and children. It includes a whole clan often composed of more than a hundred people among which mutual assistance is compulsory. The head of this extended family is the clan elder called Bale (Mobolade, 1971). Within the clan, the senior is always superior to the junior. The former, however, has the obligation to support the junior. If needed, he must, for instance, take over the role of the junior’s father (Stoll & Stoll, 1980).
The next level of Yoruba social organisation is the village community assembling several clans that are closely linked to each other in a brotherly way. A number of village communities combine in the form of a principal Yoruba tribe occupying a given area (Figure 1). At the head of each tribe reigns a king called Oba who used to deal with supraregional matters. Nowadays, the Obas no longer have a say in official policy making although they are still honoured and respected as traditional rulers. Beaded crowns are
worn by the Oba kings during festivities to emphasise their spiritual powers and royal lineage (Olaleye-Oruene, 1983).
Yoruba Religious Beliefs
Within today’s Yoruba religious affiliations, more than 40% of the population are allied to Islam, less than 40% are Christians with the remaining 20% exclusively practising the traditional animist Yoruba religion. However, most Yoruba people belonging to the Islamic or to the Christian faith also adhere in one way or another to the traditional religious beliefs. The latter are based on the immortality of
the soul and on its reincarnation, which are both essential to the ibeji twin belief.
Besides the creator Olorun or Olodumare the Yoruba pantheon is diversified into numerous gods or Orishas. The resemblance with the realm of ancient Greek mythology justifies the designation of the Yorubas as the “Hellenes of Africa” (Bascom, 1973; Chappel, 1974; Mobolade, 1971; Thompson, 1971). The main Orishas are (Courlander, 1973; Stoll & Stoll, 1980):
Shango: god of thunder and lightening whose emblem is the double axe (Yoruba territory is subject to the second highest frequency of thunderstorms in the world, after Java);
Shopona: the god of smallpox, very powerful and much feared;
Eshu: the troublemaker, the magician and sorcerer who has many faces and may behave either favourably or balefully;
Ogun: god of iron and war and anyone who works with iron (smiths, hunters, carvers, taxi drivers, etc.) is a worshipper of Ogun;
Obatalla: Olorun’s plenipotentiary who created the cripples while being drunk.
Besides these main figures, there are many secondary Orishas.
The belief in reincarnation is linked to the Yoruba ancestor belief. In Yoruba religion it is thought that about two generations after death, every human soul has a chance to return to earth in the body of a newborn, mostly within the same family. The welfare of any family is entirely dependent on that of its ancestors. Therefore, regular prayers are said and sacrificial gifts are laid in front of a special family
shrine devoted to the ancestors (Jantzen & Bertisch, 1993; Stoll & Stoll, 1980; Thompson, 1971).
As in other African social frameworks, the Yoruba have developed select and secret religious communities endowed with strong powers based on the use of black magic and powerful drugs. The most prominent of these groups is the Ogboni organisation which, in the past, could even force an
offender to drink a cup of deadly poison.
In their very popular festival that takes place once a year, the Egungun worshippers represent the spirits of the departed by masks, in order to connect the living to the dead. Other such organisations are the Gelede and Epa societies which are well known for their display of elaborate masks (Thompson, 1971).
Twins in Yoruba Society
In traditional African societies, twins were considered of preternatural origin and raised emotional reactions oscillating from fear and repugnance to hope and joy (Leroy, 1995). In ancient times, the Yoruba used to reject and even sacrifice newborn twins (Leroy, 1995). Strangely enough, historical scales were tipped so that twins are nowadays not only well accepted but welcomed, their birth being an occasion of great rejoicing. A feast will be organised for the whole community and even for neighbouring villages if the twins are the children of a prominent member of the tribe
(Chappel, 1974; Stoll & Stoll, 1980).
It is believed that twins are able to bestow happiness, health and prosperity upon their family. However, since they can also bring about disaster, disease and death, they will be treated with all due respect, loving and care. Their upbringing is therefore far more permissive than that of other children (Stoll & Stoll, 1980).
The first born twin, whether a boy or a girl, is always called Taiwo, meaning ‘having the first taste of the world’, whereas the second is named Kehinde, meaning ‘arriving after the other’. Although being born first Taiwo is considered as the younger twin. His senior Kehinde is supposed to send out his partner to see what the outside world looks like. As soon as Taiwo has given a signal by crying, Kehinde will follow. Kehinde is supposed to be more careful, more intelligent and more reflective, while Taiwo is believed to be more curious and adventurous, but also more nonchalant
(Olaleye-Oruene, 1983; Stoll & Stoll, 1980).
On the third day after the birth of twins, a visit is paid by the parents to the Babalawo, the Ifa priest of the community. Through the interpretation of the Ifa oracle which includes no less than 1,600 sayings, he is able to drive out whatever evil spirits may threaten the newborn twins (Chappel, 1974; Courlander, 1973; Thompson, 1971). He will dedicate the twins to the Orisha Ibeji god of twins and
if deemed necessary will appoint for them an additional patron such as Eshu or Shango. Contrary to these latter prominent deities, the specific god of twins is a minor Orisha who is never figuratively represented.
The Babalawo communicates to the mother a series of instructions on how to treat her twins: which colours they should wear or avoid, which food is recommended or prohibited, which animals are dangerous for them, etc. (Olaleye-Oruene, 1983; Stoll & Stoll, 1980). The powers of the Babalawo included the ability to give the order to let one of the twins starve to death if he was thought to be
possessed by evil spirits that could not be exorcised. This custom is a reminder of the theme of “the good and the bad twin” which is part of the mythical beliefs of many archaic tribes (Leroy, 1995).
The Ibeji Belief System
As the Yoruba believe that twins share the same combined soul, when a newborn twin dies, the life of the other is imperilled because the balance of his soul has become seriously disturbed. To counteract this danger a special ritual is carried out. After consulting the Babalawo, an artisan will be commissioned to carve a small wooden figure as a sym- bolic substitute for the soul of the deceased twin. If both twins have died, two of these figures are made (Figure 2; Jantzen & Bertisch, 1993; Mobolade, 1971; Stoll & Stoll, 1980).
These effigies are called Ere ibeji (from ‘ibi’ = born and ‘eji’ = two; ere means sacred image). By virtue of his immortal soul hosted by his ibeji, the departed twin remains as powerful as the living one. The ibeji(s) will have to be cared for by the parents or later on by the surviving twin. Therefore, these figures are symbolically washed, fed and clothed on a regular basis, according to a popular Yoruba saying “dead ibeji expenses are expenses for the living” (Courlander, 1973). According to these customs, the mother enjoys certain privileges even if both her twins have died (Stoll & Stoll, 1980).
For further reading:
http://www.randafricanart.com/Yoruba_Customs_and_Beliefs_Pertaining_to_Twins.html
From the publication: Twin Research
Volume 5 Number 2 pp. 132-136
By: Fernand Leroy(1),Taiwo Olaleye-Oruene (2), Gesina Koeppen-Schomerus (3) and Elizabeth Bryan (4)
1-Overijse, Belgium
2-Olabisi-Olaleye Foundation, London, UK
3-SGDPRC, IoP, King’s College, London, UK
4-Multiple Births Foundation, London, UK