Nsukka

== Cultural practices ==

=== ''Eshu'' (cow) funeral rituals ===
{{For|more information about Igbo religion and cultural practices|Odinala}}
''Eshu'' is an Igbo breed of cow used in a funeral rite in the Nsukka cultural area of [[Igboland]]. Many factors influence if someone will receive funeral rites, such as how and when they die, their marital status, and if they performed the same rites for their own parents. If someone qualifies, then the rite is performed to ensure that the dead can rest peacefully and to lift them to a higher position within the spirit world. There are many animals which can be used and each animal has a different significance. The cow is the highest ranked among those used in the ritual.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Ossai|first=Anayo Benjamin|date=2016|title=Cow(Eshu) ritual in the funeral rite: the significance in the Nsukka cultural area of Igboland|url=https://www.ajol.info/index.php/jrhr/article/view/141460|journal=Journal of Religion and Human Relations|language=en|volume=8|issue=2|pages=35–54|doi=10.4314/jrhr.v8i2|doi-broken-date=31 January 2024 |issn=2006-5442}}</ref>

=== Ndishi tradition ===
In traditional Igbo society, men's dominance was total. Women were to be seen but not to be heard: it was a man's world. Whether in the day to day governance, economic activities, religion, among others, women played a peripheral role in the society. A man could marry as many wives as he wants. The younger wives could be the age mates of his first set of children. Whether the husband is virile enough to satisfy the innumerable wives is hardly taken into consideration. To check marital infidelity on the part of the women in this polygamous society, the Nsukka Igbo instituted the Ndishi/Nna tradition. &nbsp;The Ndishi/Nna tradition connotes a spiritual avowal among the Nsukka people which origin is embedded in myth. The tradition forbids any married woman from engaging in any form of extra-marital affairs or assisting the relations without express permission of the husband. Women from other parts of Igboland who are married to the men of this area are usually forewarned about the efficacy of this tradition. It is the general belief among the people that any such act attracts the wrath of the gods, which results to instant madness for the transgressor. Employing qualitative approach which includes, participant observation, indepth interviews and oral tradition, the researchers explored the potency of this tradition in checking marital infidelity. &nbsp;Enugu-Ezike, Obollo, and Imilike communities which have distinct cultural practices among Nsukka people were selected for the study. Johannes Andenaees's theory of punishment and deterrence would be applied.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Ngozika Obi-Ani|last2=Chiemezie Atama|last3=Charity. N. Onyishi|date=2016|title=Ndishi/ Nna Tradition among Nsukka Igbo: Crude Tool in a Man's World|publisher=University of Nigeria|url=http://rgdoi.net/10.13140/RG.2.1.2576.1529|doi=10.13140/RG.2.1.2576.1529}}</ref>

=== Masquerade ===
Nsukka is known to be rich in tradition and it is one of the Igbo communities that still upholds her traditional practices especially the masquerade festival.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Igbo Culture Is Superb: Watch Nsukka Masquerade (Oriokpa) | website=[[YouTube]] |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xeXfXsnEmcE}}</ref> These masquerades comes in different colors and shapes, some are beautifully made while some are tattered.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Ikem |first=Felix |date=January 30, 2019 |title=Masquerades of terror in Nsukka |url=https://www.sunnewsonline.com/masquerades-of-terror-in-nsukka/ |website=The Sun: Voice of the Nation}}</ref>  The Nsukka masquerade assumes different names in different communities. In Obollo Afor, it is called Akatakpa; in Igbo Etiti, it is known as Odo; in Orba it is known as Ogede; in Nsukka, it is called Oriokpa or Omaba.<ref name=":2" /> In olden days, masquerades were a rallying point as they performed different functions ranging from entertainment to peace making, social control, and it was also used for security purposes.<ref>{{Cite web |date=May 22, 2022 |title=How Masquerade Brought Mayhem in Nsukka Community |url=https://bellnewsonline.com/how-masquerade-brought-mayhem-in-nsukka-community/ |website=Bell News Online}}</ref>