The Aso Ebi Culture is a beautiful traditional concept by the Yoruba people, majorly used to signify oneness and unity amongst close relatives, friends and family of the celebrant on a particular occasion.
The tradition was developed as a means of identification for relatives and families of the celebrants at most Nigerian weddings, funerals, birthdays, religious programmes and other forms of celebrations.
The name ASO EBI emerged from two Yoruba words Aso and Ebi. Aso means ‘attire’ while Ebi means ‘family’ or ‘relatives.’ Hence, Aso Ebi means ‘Family Attire’. It is a fabric chosen for a classic and specified kind of event. It is one of the most adored and respected attire we see at parties lately.
Aso Ebi adds glamour and colours to events, it also depicts class and mood. As earlier mentioned, the idea is native to the Yoruba people of western Nigeria, but it has now become an accepted norm amongst the various ethnic groups in Nigeria.
Aso Ebi started way back in the 15th century with ‘ASO OKE’. Aso Oke is an attire made manually by the Yoruba from woven wool materials into strands and then joined together at the tip to form a big wrapper clothing. This is then sown as ‘Oleku’ Or ‘Dansiki’ by the women and men folks respectively and adorned with headgear or caps.
As time went by and civilization began to take over, Aso Ebi began to change into trendy and classy materials like French lace, Swiss lace, foil lace, dry lace, Ankara, Atiku materials for men, and Cashmere materials for ‘Men in Agbada’ and a whole lot more.
The Trend and The Vogue
The Trends in ASO EBI is basically the selection of ‘colour of the day’ by the celebrant, while a selected clothing outfit or a family member is chosen and contracted to take orders and deliver clothes to interested members after paying for the cloth.
The ASO EBI is equally chosen with a special Aso oke cap or headgear to match. This is not often mandatory for everyone, as not everybody ties a head tie or wears a cap.
The Vogue in Aso Ebi now is to see Aso Ebi coming with varieties of colours and specifications. It depicts class as I earlier said. For a specific event, it is not new to see different forms of Aso Ebi Lace or Ankara depending on how well you can handle the financial commitment.
Furthermore, most Aso Ebi now serve as the invitation cards to the venue of the event and it equally gives you preferential treatment when dishes and souvenirs are served.
The Trend in Aso Ebi now is the combination of colours and costumes ranging from beads, wireworks and other adornment and head covering by women. The men are also not left out, a majority of the men now ensemble in Agbada and stylishly matching caps.
In conclusion ‘ASO EBI’ CULTURE has come to stay and it’s experiencing a dynamic change continually not only amongst the Yoruba as it has become a general practice in Nigeria.
KUNLE AYANO
