IHUNANYA, THE IGBO CONCEPT OF LOVE

Ihunanya means Love in Igbo language. When broken down, it reveals the Igbo people's concept of love. 'Ihu' means 'to see' 'nanya' means 'with the eyes' So ihunanya means 'To see with the eyes'. By this interpretation, it means that the Igbo people believe that love is a function of the sight. Love is inspired by what you see with your eyes and maintained by what you see with your eyes. Although this sounds like 'fake love' because love should not just lie with what a person sees but should be unconditional. However, there lies truth in that concept. When you love someone, you have eyes for that person only. You may see every other man or woman but your eyes (attention and interest) have been captured by just that one man or woman. That is why you hear people say, " I have eyes just for you" or " I see you ." These statements are traced to the Igbo concept of love which is seeing only that person with your eyes. I...