Ahia Njoku

{{short description|Goddess worshipped by the Igbo people of Nigeria}}

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In Igbo mythology, Ahia Njoku, also known as Ifejioku, Aha Njoku, is a goddess worshipped by the Igbo people of Nigeria.

She is responsible for yams, which were an important ingredient in the Igbo diet, and the men who care for them (Farming yams is a traditionally male job in the Igbo tribe unless one is weeding or harvestingAchebe, Chinua. (1958). Things fall apart. London: Heinemann.). Ahia Njoku's name would often be called upon to settle altercations between Igbo people regarding ownership of farmland or agricultural conflicts.{{Cite journal |last=Ekeada |first=Felix |date=1977 |title=CULTURAL RENEWAL AND MANPOWER DEVELOPMENT IN CONTEMPORARY NIGERIAN ART EDUCATION |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/302833577?%20Theses&fromopenview=true&pq-origsite=gscholar&sourcetype=Dissertations%20 |journal=The Pennsylvania State University |pages=135 |via=ProQuest}}

The Ahanjoku Festival is celebrated among the Igbo people on a full moon before the New Yam Festival. It is an elaborate festival in which sacrifices and offerings are made to Ahia Njoku to ensure a healthy yam harvest in the following season. Until the ceremony is carried out, newly harvested yams are not consumed. In addition to the ceremony, the accompanying festival is a time of social gathering and celebration amongst Igbo people.{{Cite journal |last=Nwosu |first=Patrick |date=2010 |title=The Age of Cultural Hybridisation: A Case Study of Okonko Society vis-à-vis Christianity in Igboland |url=https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/2498774/6bva6f29ogx0oo3.pdf?1737737195=&response-content-disposition=inline%3B+filename%3DThe_Age_of_Cultural_Hybridisation_A_Case.pdf&Expires=1745449644&Signature=g2lfiHMdqgq3Fn1DlM1aayq9lwbRztTzeOOK~UldcHC9bY2wW~keDM7jhEvQALwrOHlc7rjTbGLnDntJx1lAYz760EFvo38ZRbbEpHHKEJuJ87tGgbqthqcTuqf9zfip-KT4Bgta-WqFbEKUMuWhWrmzaQVTL88EY0Yu07yzMroXxoaaB75MSTjWMIp-nxBUlKsyMQcAeAzp59wQd4Qdc80SkU2KcnIzoYEa1doKNx~4aH5Lx7qGgaAOfB6Wp9JxyKd4d4YfmnHvlw22qZ0~axMNWMV6O1oQ0GqFseAUFkkhAaH7IHaFWqo64KO0zHGNIfy9AByL2dqS4nXIfeHQuA__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJLOHF5GGSLRBV4ZA |journal=Department of Religions, Faculty of Arts, University of Ilorin |pages=164}}

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In some parts children who were dedicated to the service of the deity were named Njoku. As adults, such children were expected to become prosperous yam farmers, which made them into nobility.{{Cite web|url=https://forebears.io/surnames/njoku#meaning|title = Njoku Surname Origin, Meaning & Last Name History}} The name gives you a nature that believes in the phrase - "larger than life". It is this nature that makes you a leader, visionary and a equally grand organizer {{Cite web |url=https://www.naamvidya.com/numerology/name-meaning/Njoku.html |title=Njoku | Meaning of Name Njoku | Numerology Name Analysis |access-date=2020-07-21 |archive-date=2020-07-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200721160336/https://www.naamvidya.com/numerology/name-meaning/Njoku.html |url-status=dead }}