Photographs of Philip Emeagwali's relatives. Most were taken in Onitsha, Nigeria
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I was three years old when this photograph was taken. My mother is sitting on the left of the front row.
Mother and her friends
Forcados, Nigeria, early 1958
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Sister and her family
Nwachukwu, Loretta, Onyeari (younger sister),
Lawrence Edekobi in Lagos, Nigeria, circa 1985
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Family
Akom, Emeka, Mama, Uju, and Peter. Onitsha, Nigeria. May 1982
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Social Event
Agatha Emeagwali (center front row), Onitsha, Nigeria,
circa 1982
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Mum and Sister
Agatha Emeagwali (mother) and Florence Emeagwali
(sister). Onitsha, circa 1982
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Owelle of Onitsha
Nnamdi Azikiwe, Onitsha, Nigeria, circa 1980s
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Paternal Uncle and Aunt
Uncle and Aunt, Odoge, Onitsha Inland Town, Nigeria, circa late 1920's
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The dancing masquerade (mmanwu) is surrounded by accompanying musicians and dancing men.
One of the social taboos that still exist today is that women and non-initiates of the masquerade society can only watch the ancestral masquerade from a distance. Other Igbo social taboos are that women cannot climb palm trees or break cola nuts in the presence of men.
I was initiated into the masquerade society at the age of seven and then was taught the society's secrets which I am not permitted to divurge to non-initiates (or on the Internet). My mother's older brother (Oro Balonwu) is shown on the far left.
Ancestral Masquerade
Umuasi Village, Onitsha. Circa 1950s
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Aunt Mama Felicia's Odu Ceremony
Mama Felicia (2nd from left), Uncle P.O. Balonwu (middle) and Orofo Balonwu (mum's older brother).
Umuasi, Onitsha Inland Town, Nigeria, circa 1995
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Funeral Ceremony in Onitsha, NIgeria
Brother Ikemefuna (2nd from left) and cousins
at a funeral ceremony in Onitsha, circa 1992
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Mama Felicia's Odu Ceremony
Mama Felicia (mother's older sister) and mum
at Onitsha, Nigeria, circa 1995