There is hardly any continent where Yorubas are not present. Europe, America, Asia, name it, and you will find Yorubas there. One reason for this is the transatlantic slave trade which spanned the 16th to 18th century and resulted in the forceful migration of over 10 million Africans across the Atlantic. West Africa, home to the Yorubas, was particularly subject to relentless slave trading and attacks even after slavery was abolished. Millions of Yorubas hence found themselves in strange countries because of this.
One thing the colonizers and slave traders realized too late is that you can’t move such a number of people without their culture and traditions. A problem they tried to solve by banning and outlawing many aspects of their subjects’ customs. That notwithstanding, there remains a strong influence of the Yorubas in the culture and customs of the peoples of North and Latin American countries like the United States, Brazil, Cuba, and Trinidad and Tobago. An influence Toyin Ibrahim Adekeye spotlights in his 2018 documentary, Bigger Than Africa.
Bigger Than Africa unravels the history behind the presence of the Yoruba culture in continents outside of Africa. It begins with a look at the Oyotunji Village, a Yoruba village complete with a king and council of chiefs, existing in South Carolina, US, and delves into how the civil rights movement in America embodied a fight for physical, religious, cultural and mental liberation. It spotlights how Yoruba slaves became devious in practicing their religion by fusing their 401 orishas with the Catholics’ many saints, in the process birthing what is widely known as Santeria in most of Latin America.
The documentary features narratives from numerous people across Nigeria, the Republic of Benin, Cuba, Trinidad and Tobago, US, and Brazil such as Olusegun Obasanjo, Femi Kuti, Wole Soyinka, Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi; Ooni of Ife; Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, Dr Paula Gomez, Oba Adegbolu Adefunmi and many more. The documentary examines the fusion of Yoruba food, music, clothing, religion, and marriage with those of the countries where the slaves were taken to.
Some interesting bites from Bigger Than Africa:
- Akara (fried bean cakes) as it is known in Nigeria is the same as akara in Trinidad (though this is made from salt fish) and is also the same as akaraje in Brazil.
- Femi Kuti’s great grandfather was captured from Abeokuta and almost transported across the Atlantic. Fortunately, his ship was intercepted, and he was taken to Sierra Leone instead, where he had to walk many miles back to Abeokuta.
- Salvador in Brazil is home to the largest population of Blacks outside Africa.
- In terms of fusing Yoruba orishas with Catholic saints, Santa Barbara is cover for Shango, Mercedes is cover for Obatala, and Oshun is The Lady of Charity.
- There is an Orisha Marriage Act in Trinidad and Tobago that allows adherents to marry according to traditional precepts.
Delving into this documentary is to commit to unlearning whatever you already know about how Yoruba customs and traditions traveled outside Africa and learning and relearning them afresh. The documentary ends with suggestions of what can be done to ensure more knowledge about Yoruba culture is unearthed and passed across generations.
This documentary is recommended for everyone interested in the origins of the Yorubas outside Africa.