Nigeria Health & Lifstyle

A CRITIQUE ON THE ASO- EBI CULTURE

Aso -Ebi is a word that most or should I say a lot of Nigerians are familiar with- a kind of fashion culture I believe has come to stay for good or bad depending on which angle you choose to look at it from.

Aso- Ebi is a Yoruba word that means family cloth or group cloth in the English parlance. It refers to a group of people or family members wearing attire made from the same color and pattern of cloth. This dress culture evolved from the western part of Nigeria and has translated to the other parts of the country as far as the northern part.

Aso- Ebi is worn mostly during ceremonies and events for example; wedding ceremony, association meetings, and burial ceremonies. It is also worn to welcome visiting dignitaries and government officials. I can go on and on mentioning instances were it is used but let’s move on.

Fabrics used for Aso- Ebi ranges from expensive lace material to cheap Ankara pieces depending on the status of the group of people or family wearing it. Textile materials like Aso-Oke, Ankara of all kinds, Damask head ties, Jorge wrappers is used most often used, Aso-Ebi can also be in form of head ties(Gele) and cap for men(Fila).



In the western part of the country- The Aso-Ebi is worn as Buba and Iro for women and Buba and Sokoto for men; (thanks to the ingenuity of our local fashion designers deciding the style to make with the material is no longer a problem) accompanied with matching head ties and piece tied around the waist and the material mostly used is the Aso-Oke but nowadays the aso Oke is used mostly by the bride and groom during the engagement ceremony.

In the eastern part of the country, it is a little different in the sense that the aso-Ebi is used for women association meeting during burial ceremonies the Aso –Ebi is worn by family members, kinsmen and age group members.
The most commonly used material used in the east is the Jorge material which is worn as wrapper over a blouse usually made with lace material and a matching head gear. The Jorge wrapper is sometimes substituted for Ankara material of a higher quality popularly known as “Hollandis”

There are various views to this fashion phenomenon called “Aso-Ebi”