NCHO (IZU NCHO): A TRADITIONAL GAME, RECREATIONAL PRACTICE AND CULTURAL HERITAGE OF IHIALA

 

By: NWABUGWU Okey Anthony 

(Assistant Chief Exhibition Officer, National Museum of Unity, Enugu)

ABSTRACT

Ncho, also known as Izu Ncho, is a traditional game associated with recreational and social life in Ihiala, Anambra State, southeastern Nigeria. Although traditional games are often regarded primarily as forms of entertainment, they can also function as important channels for social interaction, intellectual development and the transmission of indigenous knowledge. This paper examines Ncho as a traditional game, recreational practice and cultural heritage of the people of Ihiala. It discusses the cultural context of Ihiala, the nature and procedure of the game, its rules and materials, and the skills required by players. The paper further examines the recreational, social and cultural functions of Ncho, particularly its contribution to relaxation, family bonding, intergenerational interaction, strategic thinking and the transmission of traditional knowledge. It argues that the significance of Ncho extends beyond the physical game board and playing materials to include the knowledge, skills, values and social relationships associated with its practice. The paper also considers contemporary challenges, including changing leisure patterns and declining transmission among younger generations, and highlights the role of museums, schools, communities and digital documentation in safeguarding the practice. The paper concludes that Ncho represents an important element of Ihiala's living cultural heritage and deserves systematic documentation, promotion and intergenerational transmission.

“SACRAMENTALS” IN IGBO WORSHIP: RITUAL OBJECTS, SYMBOLISM AND SPIRITUAL COMMUNICATION

 

BY: NWABUGWU OKEY ANTHONY

Exhibition Unit, Department of Museums,

National Museum of Unity, Enugu, Nigeria

ABSTRACT

Material objects occupy an important place in Igbo traditional worship, where certain natural and manufactured materials acquire ritual, symbolic and spiritual meanings. This paper examines what it terms “sacramentals” in Igbo traditional worship, focusing on oji (kola nut), nzu (white chalk), edo (camwood), ose oji (alligator pepper), bitter kola, spirit drinks and incense. The term “sacramentals” is used comparatively to describe objects that function within ritual contexts as mediums of prayer, invocation, purification, communication and interaction with the spiritual realm. Particular attention is given to kola nut, whose presentation, prayer, breaking and distribution are significant in Igbo social and religious life. The paper also examines the symbolic interpretations associated with different numbers of kola-nut lobes and highlights the variation of such practices across Igbo communities, with particular reference to Ihiala. It further discusses the ritual meanings attributed to nzu, edo, ose oji, hot drinks and incense and demonstrates how these materials form part of a wider system of indigenous knowledge. The paper argues that the significance of these objects extends beyond their physical form to include the beliefs, language, rituals and cultural knowledge associated with them. It concludes that documenting both the objects and their associated indigenous knowledge is important for the preservation and interpretation of Igbo cultural heritage, particularly within museums and other heritage institutions.

YAM: THE UMBILICAL CORD OF IGBO IDENTITY IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY

By Amadi Ngozi Patricia

Ndigbo are one of the ethnic groups that constitute Nigeria. They live astride the Niger River in the southern part of the country. There are also pockets of Ndigbo in the following states: Benue, Kogi, Rivers, Cross River, and Akwa Ibom. Igbo presence is marked by the high prestige ascribed to yam, the pinnacle of which is the profuse annual celebration of the New Yam Festival. 

GEORGE N. CHAMCHOUN: CHAMPION OF FILM AND CULTURE, UNITING THE WORLD THROUGH ACTIVE PARTICIPATION IN FESTIVALS

From Taraba to Bishkek, back to Taraba, the language of cinema and culture continue to unite, and champion human dignity.

George CHAMCHOUN (Left)

George N. Chamchoum, is the Executive Director of the Asian World Film Festival. His love for the Film Industry and proper understanding of the role of Culture in Peace building, human relations and as a matter of fact sustainable Socio-economic development stands him out in the midst of other people.

MY CULTURE FOR PEACE MAIDEN EDITION: A CELEBRATION OF PEACE AND CREATIVITY

 

The massively attended maiden edition of My Culture for Peace 2026 that held recently in Taraba State, Nigeria, was a huge success, many people reveal.

The remarkable and distinctively colourful event was by every  stretch of the human imagination a unique celebration of culture and diversity, creativity, unity and peaceful coexistence.

PICTURES: CULTURE (ARTS AND CRAFT)

 

PICTURES: THE ONAKANFO

 

DECEMBER 25, 2025: DAY I CHOSE TO TELL THIS STORY AND APPRECIATE PANCHEN GOBUM

 

The Tree through which the path to Christianity in Ngas Land was paved

Considering what Christmas is to most Nigerians of the Christian faith, and indeed what the incident in the story I am about to tell represents for people of the community affected by the incident, something in me keeps telling me and reminding me that my resolve from the point of receiving the story to release it to the public December 25, 2025, is a decision well made. By the time you are done reading the story, who knows, you may end up thinking like me.

REMEMBERING NWANNEUKWU AUGUSTINE OKPU EZE, 30 YEARS AFTER HIS DEATH

By Nnabugwu Chizoba

Work of Augustine Okpu Eze (copied)

He is Nwanneukwu and forever he is Nwanneukwu,

His name remains and will always remain,

His name is Augustine Okpu Eze,

He now lives with the dead, and therefore, is Late,

Nwanneukwe is attached to his name, 

He was of the land of the Nwanneukwes,

Nwanneukwu Augustine Okpu Eze was a reputed and very remarkable achiever, an inspiring, active and competent leader, very skillful, vast in knowledge and in-depth in his practice. He was a unique pathfinder and celebrated sculptor and painter, who died in active service, in October 1, 1995, while serving as the President, Society of Nigerian Artists (SNA).

Nwanneukwu, Augustine Okpu Eze, was a man of firsts, and is today, October 1, 2025 remembered and celebrated by our dear Platform SCOREline, for his enviable art works, leadership acumen and massive contributions to the growth and development of the Culture and Creative Industry in Nigeria.

THE IGBOS WERE NEVER KINGDO: Reclaiming a Republican Legacy - EK Gwuru, Ph.D

 COPIED

Among the peoples of Africa, the Igbo of Southeast Nigeria stand apart for their unique political philosophy. For centuries, the Igbo thrived without kings or centralized monarchies. We built a society in which every village was autonomous, every adult man had a voice, and authority flowed upward from the people, not downward from a throne. We gave the world republican democracy long before Athen knew what republic means.

THAT MOVE BY CHINAZAEKPERE PRODUCED A BEAUTY WORTH SHARING, JOIN TO SPREAD IT

When it became very obvious to her that she could not resist the powerful urge to do something else apart from standing where she was to admire the beauty that mother nature decided to position firmly on her way inside the premises of the University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN) that very day, she decided to succumb to the unflinching pressure inside of her, and by so doing, made a quick move, the target of which was to arrest for keeps the object of her fancy.

MUSEUM ROLE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF SKILLS ACQUISITION IN THE CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY

Civilization through the ages is the hand work of artists. It is a known fact that proper development cannot be on course without first, including civilization.

DESECRATION OF TRADITIONAL SYMBOLISM AND ROYALTY IN NIGERIA: A CULTURAL CRISIS

By: EKE Obinna F. (National Commission for Museums and Monuments) 

Abstract 

This paper explores the growing desecration of traditional symbolism and royalty in Nigeria, identifying it as a critical cultural crisis with deep social, political, and psychological implications. Drawing upon historical contexts, contemporary practices, and sociocultural analysis, the paper examines how political interference, commercialization, modernization, and generational disconnection have eroded the sanctity and authority of Nigeria’s traditional institutions. The essay advocates for policy reform, cultural re-education, and the restoration of indigenous value systems as necessary steps toward reversing this cultural decline.

ART WORKS AND THE MESSAGE THEY BEAR

The Osun Priest

By Nnabugwu Chizoba

Dear reader, it is a fact that you may not know what the object in the picture actually means in terms of what it indeed represents, the message it bears or carries, as well as the source of the message, and as a matter of fact who the real targets of the message are, but one thing is sure, you know what art works are when you see them. 

NCHOROKOTO: MY REFLECTION ON THE BEAUTIFUL GAME WE PLAYED GROWING UP

Nchorokoto

By Nnabugwu Chizoba

Nchorokoto, often called by its short form “Ncho” is a game I grew up to meet, love and played regularly, growing up as a child in my beautiful village of Ndi-Agwala, Echiele Otampa, Isuikwuato Local Government Area, Abia State, South East, Nigeria. 

THE AFIZERE NATION: CREATING WEALTH, HARNESSING THE BEAUTY WITHIN

The Jarawa Dancers

 

By Nnabugwu Chizoba

A common saying of my people of Isuikwuato, in Abia state is here para-phrased: The neglected one does not neglect himself or herself. Translated to my Mother tongue, it reads, "Onye ajuru aju aduwu aju onwoya". 

TO THE SCHOOL SYSTEM IN NIGERIA, THE MOTHER TONGUE IS NOT IMPORTANT - Barr Lemuel Stephen

By Nnabugwu Chizoba 

Continuing with our self-imposed mandate of promoting literacy in mother tongue, Scoreline decided to engage one of the young people in town, a law graduate of the University of Jos, Barr. Lemuel Stephen. His interest in graphics design, a trade he cherishes so much and does very well is top notch, going by the quality of his works, number of patronage and the calibre of clients he services regularly. 

SOME SECRETS OF HAPPY LIFE ARE IN OUR HANDS. OUR DESIRE ALWAYS IS TO SPREAD THEM

By Nnabugwu Chizoba 

Savor the captivating landscape that has always harboured and showcase beautifully the volcanic and inspiring rock formations and Hills in Plateau state... 

IT IS UNFORTUNATE, MOTHER TONGUE IS NOT TAUGHT IN OUR SCHOOLS—PROF. FWATSHAK SATI, REACTS

 

Prof Sati Fwatshak: Former Dean, Faculty of Arts University of Jos

By: Nnabugwu Chizoba

Recently, Scoreline in a bid to deliver on its self-imposed mandate of doing the needful in promoting literacy in mother tongue in Nigeria via a specialized tool: the Culture and Creativity Empowerment Initiative in Schools. Scoreline engaged an erudite scholar, a Lawyer, Historian, former Dean, Faculty of Arts, University of Jos, Professor Sati Fwatshak, to provide insight into the subject of promoting literacy in mother tongue.

EMBRACE YOUR CULTURE. WORK WITH OTHER PEOPLE TO IMPROVE WHAT IS NOT REQUIRED

No Society has ever eliminated completely the ills in her culture. Development is a movement, always an on-going thing.