RIP Chinua Achebe

Today, we lost a great Nigerian visionary. Chinua Achebe has influenced so many great writers all over the world and has touched the lives of many young people in and out of the literary scene. I grew up reading his books and i personally felt i knew him. He was someone i respected dearly mostly because he stood for something, had values and integrity. I particularly loved the fact that he refused a National Honour TWICE. It showed that there were more important things to him than recieving an honour from leaders who have been unimpressive and dubious. He did not compromise his integrity and i respect him for that. He made African literature what it is now and was never afraid to express his opinions or serve his country. He was a man of the people, loved by many. To think he wrote 'things fall apart' at the age of 27 is nothing short of  inspiring.

Here is my best quote:

'One of the truest tests of intergrity is its blunt refusal to be compromised' -Chinua Achebe

And he lived by every word of it. Africa has lost a great man. More importantly, the Igbos have lost a father, a great leader and a visionary.

 RIP Chinualumogu Achebe.

ADA...The Igbo first daughter

I have been learning a lot about my culture this past year. Living in England makes it difficult for me to learn as much as i'd like to but when i get the opportunity, i never let it pass me by. Today i learnt about the many roles of a first daughter (Ada) in Igbo  land. One of the roles of an Ada which i found rather interesting is this:

When a man dies without a male child, the Ada does not get married. She stays back and selects lovers with whom she cohabits to beget children on behalf of her dead father. The children thus raised will take over her fathers property but most importantly, the children will continue the fathers name. This is how important a male child is in Igbo culture. Without a male child, a mans last name will become extinct as all the female children will get married and bear their husbands last name.

This tradition is no longer practiced by the way. This used to happen decades ago..although i will not be surprised if this still happens in some rural parts of Igbo land. I guess modernization has helped a lot..and so a lot of archaic practices are extinct. Whats all the fuss about a male child anyway? Society is a very interesting human construct.