Owambe

Owambe, — purists will disagree with this spelling — a word formed by the contraction of a longer phrase “o wa ni ibe” roughly translates to “it/they are over there” depending on the subject. I’m not an expert on Yoruba, so this is not an etymology of the word, but the tone definitely suggests that “owambe” ìs a response to a question, an answer that points to a destination. I would love to know the original context in which the word was used but finding anything about its history is only as easy as you guess.

Like I suggested, to what Owambes used to refer I do not know but I know that in these modern times, Owambes are parties of diverse scales thrown, usually by Yoruba people in celebration of a joyous event — weddings, births, graduation, retirements, and even death (of elderly persons).

My enjoyment palette is certainly not the most colourful, but it’s OK, I think. I mean, I enjoy partying alone in my room, or going to house parties, games nights or the local bar as well as I enjoy the s̶t̶r̶i̶p̶ clubs, but none of these quite compare to an owambe.

The lure of the owambe is not just the food, sure, the bottom pot firewood Jollof is usually excellent, and the amala & abula, exquisite. The supporting cast of asun and small chops will also most likely not be found wanting, and of course, the drinks, are more often than not in endless supply. What’s a party without music? A farce. The live band will make it their life’s mission to see you go home empty-handed while the DJ will see to it that you lose whatever remains of your home training.

A great owambe has food, drinks, music in abundance but the thing that really makes an owambe is the people. The people make the owambe, not just because of their beautiful a̶n̶d̶c̶o̶ uniforms, but the very spirit they bring to these events. The soul that lets them let loose, eat, dance and enjoy the party regardless of personal predicaments or their familiarity with other people in the room, the fellowship that almost turned one of these owambes I attended into an #EndSARS protest, the togetherness shown in support of the hosts and celebrants. Indeed, owambe seems a likely answer to give when one asks “where can one find happiness?”