The Role of social media and it’s impact on the omabe festival of the people of Enugu Ezike in Igbo Eze North

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the Study

Festivals are integral aspects of African traditional societies, serving as cultural markers and vehicles for transmitting values, beliefs, and collective identity across generations. They embody the philosophies, worldviews, and moral codes of a people, while also creating opportunities for communal interaction and socialization. Among the Igbo people of southeastern Nigeria, traditional festivals represent symbolic moments when communities renew their cultural identity, express collective solidarity, and pay homage to the spiritual forces that shape their existence (Nwabueze & Ugochukwu, 2018).

One of the most notable cultural events in Igbo land is the Omabe Festival, celebrated by the people of Enugu Ezike in Igbo Eze North Local Government Area, Enugu State. The Omabe Festival is deeply rooted in spirituality, ancestral reverence, and communal unity. It functions not only as a religious ritual but also as a social event that brings together indigenes and non-indigenes, strengthens kinship ties, and reinforces communal harmony. Beyond its ritualistic elements, the festival provides a stage for masquerade displays, music, dance, and traditional storytelling, making it both a sacred and entertaining event for the people.

Over the years, the Omabe Festival has served as a platform for cultural continuity, where values, norms, and indigenous knowledge are transmitted from one generation to another. Elders play a crucial role in guiding younger members of the community through active participation and cultural education. However, rapid modernization and urban migration have contributed to a decline in direct engagement with indigenous practices, as many young people find themselves distanced from traditional rites and communal festivities. This has created concerns about the long-term survival of the festival in its authentic form.

The emergence of globalization and digital technology has introduced new dimensions to cultural sustainability. Social media platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, and YouTube have become powerful tools for communication and cultural promotion, offering opportunities to project festivals like Omabe to local, national, and international audiences (Okoro & Odoemelam, 2013). Through these platforms, festival performances, rituals, and stories can be recorded, archived, and disseminated widely, allowing diasporic communities to reconnect with their heritage and fostering intergenerational dialogue within and beyond Enugu Ezike.

However, social media’s influence is not without challenges. Scholars argue that digital platforms sometimes distort cultural authenticity, as sacred practices are often reduced to mere spectacles for online consumption (Eze, 2020). The commercialization of cultural expressions through online streaming and tourism promotion may also weaken the spiritual depth of festivals. Furthermore, with youth increasingly influenced by globalized lifestyles and digital content, there is the risk that their participation in Omabe becomes superficial or detached from the deeper values the festival embodies.

Despite these concerns, the opportunities social media provides for cultural visibility cannot be underestimated. By documenting, publicizing, and reinterpreting the Omabe Festival, social media can serve as a bridge between tradition and modernity. It can encourage cultural pride among the youth, attract researchers and tourists, and stimulate cultural economy in Enugu Ezike. The critical issue, however, lies in striking a balance between preservation and innovation—ensuring that while the festival adapts to changing times, its sacred and communal values remain intact.

Therefore, the role of social media in shaping perceptions of cultural festivals like Omabe cannot be ignored. It raises important questions: Does social media serve as a vehicle for sustaining the Omabe Festival, or does it contribute to its distortion? Does it enhance youth participation, or does it further alienate them from their cultural roots? These questions underscore the need for systematic inquiry into how social media affects the awareness, participation, and preservation of the Omabe Festival in Enugu Ezike.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

The Omabe Festival has long served as a cultural symbol of unity, ancestral worship, and identity among the people of Enugu Ezike. For centuries, it has been a festival deeply rooted in spirituality, communal participation, and cultural continuity. It reinforces social ties, strengthens kinship, and provides a collective platform through which values are preserved and transmitted. However, in recent years, the ways in which the Omabe Festival is practiced, understood, and celebrated have begun to shift significantly.

One major factor influencing this change is the rapid growth of social media and its penetration into nearly every aspect of human life. Platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and YouTube have amplified the visibility of the Omabe Festival, enabling global audiences—including those in the Igbo diaspora—to participate virtually. While this digital exposure has created opportunities for wider recognition, it has also introduced challenges that threaten the authenticity and sacredness of the festival.

A major concern lies in the issue of cultural misrepresentation on online platforms. Videos, images, and posts about the Omabe Festival are often shared without proper cultural context, leading to distorted interpretations by outsiders. In some cases, sacred elements of the festival are trivialized, commercialized, or sensationalized for entertainment purposes, which undermines their spiritual and cultural significance. This raises the question of whether social media, while providing visibility, might also be contributing to the erosion of cultural values.

Another pressing challenge is youth disengagement from traditional practices. Increasingly, young people in Enugu Ezike rely on digital narratives and social media commentary about the Omabe Festival rather than participating in its actual rituals and performances. This detachment from physical participation weakens the intergenerational transfer of knowledge, leaving cultural custodians worried about the survival of the festival in its authentic form. If the younger generation views the Omabe Festival primarily as an online spectacle rather than a lived communal experience, its cultural depth may be lost.

Furthermore, the festival now exists in a space of tension between cultural preservation and modernization. While modernization encourages adaptation and creative reinterpretation of traditions, it often conflicts with the sacred and spiritual elements that define the Omabe Festival. Social media, by amplifying modern influences, risks pushing the festival toward a model of performance geared more toward external audiences and tourism than for the cultural and spiritual benefit of the local community.

Thus, while social media appears to promote awareness of the Omabe Festival, it simultaneously creates the possibility of eroding its sacred and communal values. This paradox calls for a deeper examination of the extent to which social media influences awareness, youth participation, and cultural preservation in Enugu Ezike. This study is therefore designed to investigate these dynamics, with the aim of determining whether social media functions as a tool for cultural preservation or as an agent of cultural distortion in the context of the Omabe Festival.

1.3 Objectives of the Study

The general objective of the study is to examine the role of social media and its impact on the Omabe Festival of the people of Enugu Ezike in Igbo Eze North Local Government Area. Specifically, the study seeks to:

1. Assess the extent to which social media promotes awareness of the Omabe Festival.
2. Examine the influence of social media on the participation of youths in the Omabe Festival.
3. Determine whether social media contributes to the preservation or distortion of the cultural values embedded in the Omabe Festival.
4. Explore the challenges and opportunities of using social media in promoting indigenous festivals.

1.4 Research Question

The research questions are buttressed below:

1. To what extent does social media promote awareness of the Omabe Festival?
2. How does social media influence youth participation in the Omabe Festival?
3. Does social media preserve or distort the cultural values of the Omabe Festival?
4. What challenges and opportunities are associated with using social media to promote the Omabe Festival?

1.5 Research Hypothesis

The hypothetical statement of the study is buttressed below:

H₀: Social media has no significant impact on the awareness, participation, and cultural preservation of the Omabe Festival in Enugu Ezike.
H₁: Social media significantly impacts the awareness, participation, and cultural preservation of the Omabe Festival in Enugu Ezike.

1.6 Significance of the Study

The study is significant because it contributes to the growing body of academic discourse on the intersection between digital technology and indigenous cultural practices. In recent decades, scholars have examined how globalization and digitalization influence cultural identity, but there remains a gap in research on how specific indigenous festivals in Nigeria, such as the Omabe Festival of Enugu Ezike, are shaped by social media. By focusing on this cultural event, the study enriches scholarly understanding of how technology interacts with tradition in a local African context, thereby providing a nuanced perspective on cultural sustainability in the digital age.

Secondly, the findings of this research will be of immense value to cultural custodians, including traditional leaders, masquerade associations, and community elders, who play a central role in preserving the Omabe Festival. By uncovering the opportunities and threats posed by social media, the study will provide them with practical insights on how best to use digital platforms to project the festival without compromising its sacredness. This knowledge will help custodians balance cultural authenticity with the demands of modernization.

In addition, the study has policy relevance. For policymakers and cultural agencies at local, state, and national levels, the research findings will offer evidence-based recommendations on how to design frameworks and policies that promote cultural preservation in the digital era. Cultural festivals such as Omabe have significant potential for tourism and cultural diplomacy, but without proper guidelines for social media engagement, there is a risk of exploitation and misrepresentation. This study will therefore serve as a resource for informed policy decisions on cultural heritage management.

Furthermore, the study highlights the role of youths in the digital dissemination of cultural values. Since young people are the most active users of social media, their participation is central to whether indigenous cultural practices like the Omabe Festival will be preserved or eroded. By examining youth involvement, the study emphasizes the importance of intergenerational dialogue and seeks to encourage young people to take ownership of their cultural heritage while engaging with modern platforms. This has implications for cultural continuity in Enugu Ezike and beyond.

The study is also important for the wider community of Enugu Ezike. By documenting and analyzing the impact of social media on the Omabe Festival, the research not only contributes to cultural awareness but also promotes community pride and identity. Residents, both at home and in the diaspora, will be able to reflect on how their cultural practices are evolving and how best to safeguard them for future generations. This can foster unity and a stronger sense of belonging among indigenes of Enugu Ezike.

Finally, the study may serve as a reference point for further research on cultural preservation in the digital era. Future researchers can build upon its findings to conduct comparative studies with other festivals in Igbo land or across Nigeria, thereby broadening the scope of knowledge on the interplay between culture and technology. In this way, the study lays a foundation for continuous inquiry into how indigenous traditions can survive and thrive in an increasingly digitalized world.

1.7 Scope of the Study

The study focuses on the role of social media and its impact on the Omabe Festival in Enugu Ezike, Igbo Eze North Local Government Area, Enugu State. It examines how social media influences awareness, youth participation, cultural preservation, and challenges related to cultural authenticity. The scope is limited to selected residents, cultural custodians, and youth groups within Enugu Ezike.

1.8 Operational Definition of Terms

• Social Media: In this study, social media refers to online communication platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, and YouTube, which are used to create, share, and exchange information about the Omabe Festival. It specifically relates to how these platforms promote, preserve, or alter cultural narratives.
• Omabe Festival: The Omabe Festival, as used in this study, is a traditional celebration of the Enugu Ezike people in Igbo Eze North Local Government Area, marked by masquerade performances, ancestral rites, music, and communal gatherings. It represents both a religious and cultural event that reinforces identity and unity.
• Impact: For the purpose of this research, impact refers to the measurable influence or effect of social media on the awareness, participation, and preservation of the Omabe Festival. This includes both positive outcomes (e.g., increased visibility) and negative outcomes (e.g., cultural distortion).
• Cultural Preservation: In this context, cultural preservation means the safeguarding and continuity of the traditional values, practices, and rituals of the Omabe Festival in their authentic form, even as they adapt to modern realities.
• Awareness: Awareness refers to the degree to which members of the Enugu Ezike community and wider audiences are informed or knowledgeable about the Omabe Festival through social media exposure.
• Youth Participation: In this study, youth participation means the involvement of young people, both physically and virtually, in the rituals, performances, and promotion of the Omabe Festival, particularly as influenced by social media platforms.