Abstract
This chapter explores Igbo communication as an aspect of Black communication. It is recognition that Black communication is varied and not unitary. It is also recognition that theorizing Igbo communication as an aspect of African communication is recognition of the dynamism of such communication. It is a recognition that such communication is not static but one that is indeed enduring and impacts communication of N’digbo (Igbo people). The chapter locates the source of Igbo theory of communication as traditional religion (Odinani), a religion that defined the way of live for N’digbo in a community where it was impossible to exist as a non-religious person because life itself was religion and thus the theory of communication is inevitably an outcome of the religion of the people. The chapter identifies key principles of Igbo communication and uses autoethnographic method to bring to life examples of this communication in different contexts that include conflict, bride price ceremony, family life, and sport.
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Notes
- 1.
Breaking of kolanuts refers to an Igbo ceremony that is similar to an opening prayer at an event. However, breaking of kolanuts also occurs not just at public events but during a home visit involving interpersonal communication or at other events. It symbolizes recognition of the eternal presence of ancestors at any of those events. Kolanuts are broken into pieces after a prayer and distributed to all persons who are present, including ancestors that are not visible to the worldly eye. To the wordly eye, the kolanuts are thrown to the ground but the belief is that ancestors who reside with Igbos, invisibly, receive those kolanuts and partake in eating them and importantly, their spirits help protect those who are at the event and those who are not there as well.
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Onwumechili, C. (2018). Dynamism: N’digbo and Communication in Post-modernism. In: Langmia, K. (eds) Black/Africana Communication Theory. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-75447-5_10
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