"Igba Mkpe" or Traditional Mourning
"Igba Mkpe" or Traditional Mourning Igba Mkpe”, means the observation of period of mourning. At this period, the putting on of mourning cloth is very important. The picture below is a replica of Igbo Traditional Igba Mkpe, which starts on the burial day. In the tradition of Ndi Igbo, “Izu asaa” (seven Market days) should pass before a husband or wife starts going out for public gatherings. During this period, the mourner is not expected to wake up too early to visit people outside their home. This can also be observed by the relations especially by the children of a deceased man or the husband and children of the deceased woman. It is compulsory that the hair of a woman be cut by her fellow women after the corpse of her husband is buried. Also a man whose wife’s corpse is ...
