ABSTRACT

There are still one or two secret societies among Ibibio women, though none so powerful as great Ekoi cult of Nimm, or the famous Bundu of Sierra Leone. The corners are gathered together in a rosette and knotted along the ceinture so as to overlap slightly, while the lower end floats free. A vivid account of the death of a woman who peeped at Egbo is given by the Rev. That the most dreaded of all Ibibio secret societies, Ekkpo Njawhaw, i.e. Ghosts-The Destroyers, was originally also a woman's society is proved by the following story compiled from three accounts, only varying slightly in detail, which were collected from different parts of the District. In the old, old days Ibibio women were more powerful than the men, for to them alone the mysteries of the gods and of secret things were made known. At the time of the new yam harvest the members of “Ekong” assemble for an interesting ceremony.