But what if an entire village had twins?
First Published Oct 15, 2022, 5:24 PM IST
Twins are still a curiosity to us. If they are sitting together, don’t say it. No matter how much they grow up, that curiosity remains. But what would happen if an entire village had twins like this?
If there is any doubt that such a thing can happen anywhere, there is such a village. That village is in Nigeria. Every house here has at least one pair of twins. The locals see this as a great fortune for their village. Every year they organize a big celebration in the village to share the joy of the birth of twins. All the twins born in the village will participate in that celebration dressed up. Even twins from other countries come here to be a part of the celebration. Thousands of twins attended this year’s celebration earlier this month.
In the southwestern city of Nigeria, Igbo-Ora, twins are born in this unusual way. Almost every family here has twins or more than two children. Jimo Titiloy himself testifies that there is not a single house in this village that does not have at least one pair of twins.
They do not know clearly why twins are born in their village but they consider it as a great luck and happiness for them. Hence, for the past 12 years, they have been organizing an annual festival for twins in the village to turn it into a celebration.
All the twins born in the village come to participate in this festival and even twins from outside the country come to participate in the celebration here. This year’s annual festival was held in the first week of October. A thousand pairs of twins participated in this festival.
There is no scientific explanation for the high rate of twins among the Igbo-Ora, home to at least 200,000 people, 135 kilometers (83 miles) south of Lagos, Nigeria’s largest city. But many of the Igbo-Ora believe that it can be found in the diet of women. Alake Olawunmi, a mother of twins, attributes this to a local delicacy called amala made from yam flour.
John Ofem, a gynecologist in the capital, Abuja, says, ‘Some of the foods they eat are high in hormones and cause multiple ovulations. Another interesting fact is that most of the twins born here are identical twins.
Last Updated Oct 15, 2022, 5:24 PM IST
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