The Performance of Cultural Identity and Race in a Technological Space: Iwa-Akwa Ceremony of Umuezeala Autonomous Community as Prototype

Abstract

Ndi Igbo in Nigeria as a race is imbued with different cultures that are celebrated and performed for different reasons. These reasons are either for the appeasement and propitiation to the gods for a wrongful act, as a thanksgiving to Ahiajoku for a bountiful harvest; as a rite of passage to the great beyond; as a mark of honour for achievement and/or an initiation into manhood amongst others. Thus, communities in Igbo land are identifiable with one cultural festivals or the other and this has continued to serve as a clear demarcation between them and their neighbours. Before now, these cultural festivals were performed in their primitive and raw state without much alteration and embellishment but the advancement in technology has altered the way most of these cutural festivals are celebrated and performed. This is the case of Iwa-Akwa ceremony of Umuezeala Autonomous Community in Ehime Mbano Local Government Area of Imo State. This paper therefore, through the use of historical and observational methods, and anchoring on the theory of technological determinism, examines the current technological wavelength in the world and how it has affected the celebration of the event. This is against the backdrop of the fact that technology has revolutionized the world and almost everything man does, including cultural celebrations have been influenced by it. It is the opinion of the writers that modern technology has drastically influenced the festival in terms of its accessibility, communicative nuances, visual appeal and acceptability. The paper therefore concludes that the sustenance of, improvement on and constant modification of these technologies is key to the continued survival of the festival as a cultural identity of Umuezeala people.