Opening
12PM
Festival Grounds Open
Explore the marketplace, enjoy food, visit cultural displays, connect with community members, and get settled before the formal program begins.
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Join Us at the 2026 Igbo Cultural Festival
One People
One Culture. One Voice.
One Nation.
Celebrate the richness of Igbo culture through music, dance, food, art, and community at Northern California's annual Igbo Cultural Festival. Join us for a day of cultural celebration, meaningful connections, and unforgettable experiences for the whole family.
Festival Begins In
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Igbo bu Nke Anyi
Why attend the Igbo Cultural Festival?
Sacred Ceremonies
Sacred Mmanwu masquerades, ancestral displays, and traditional arts passed down for generations.
Nonstop Entertainment
Live bands, dancers, and performers keep the celebration moving from noon to night.
Taste of Home
Authentic Igbo food, local vendors, and artisans with something worth taking home.
Come Together
Kids' activities, community connection, and a space to build real relationships.
Experience Igbo culture
Festival Schedule Preview
- Ceremony·№ 011PM
Welcome & Introduction of the Masters of Ceremony
Our masters of ceremony open the formal program and set the tone for the day's celebrations.
- Ceremony·№ 021PM
Welcome & Recognition of Dignitaries, Chiefs, Nze & Ozo
Honouring the dignitaries, traditional chiefs, and Nze & Ozo titleholders in attendance.
- Ceremony·№ 031PM
Presentation of Kola Nuts & Opening Prayer
The sacred kola nut ritual and opening prayer to bless the day's proceedings.
- Ceremony·№ 041PM
Opening Remarks – Chief Ike Orji, General Coordinator
Opening remarks from the General Coordinator welcoming the community to the festival.
- Opening12PM
Festival Grounds Open
Explore the marketplace, enjoy food, visit cultural displays, connect with community members, and get settled before the formal program begins.
- Ceremony·№ 011PM
Welcome & Introduction of the Masters of Ceremony
Our masters of ceremony open the formal program and set the tone for the day's celebrations.
- Ceremony·№ 021PM
Welcome & Recognition of Dignitaries, Chiefs, Nze & Ozo
Honouring the dignitaries, traditional chiefs, and Nze & Ozo titleholders in attendance.
- Ceremony·№ 031PM
Presentation of Kola Nuts & Opening Prayer
The sacred kola nut ritual and opening prayer to bless the day's proceedings.
- Ceremony·№ 041PM
Opening Remarks – Chief Ike Orji, General Coordinator
Opening remarks from the General Coordinator welcoming the community to the festival.
Igbo bu Igbo
Igbo bu nke anyi
Our Mission is to connectIgbo hearts across the globe.
Igbo Union is not a Social Club. Igbo Union is for every Igbo son and daughter. Therefore every Igbo son or daughter is a member of the Igbo Union. All you have to do is register with your town/community/state organization.
- 17
- Community Partners
- 25+
- Events Hosted
- 12
- Years Active
Stories, History & Culture
How Igbo Union Emerged
From a youth homecoming in 2012 to a registered 501(c)(3) cultural association with a vision for a Heritage Center — the story behind Igbo Union.
April 12, 20267 min readIgbo Union Editorial
Read Article- 01IGBO TRADITIONS
Iri Ji — The New Yam Festival
January 20, 20266 minRead
- 02IGBO CULTURE
Ndi Igbo and their "Village" Mansions
March 28, 20269 minRead - 03IGBO CULTURE
How Igbo Women used petitions to influence British authorities during colonial rule
February 15, 20268 minRead
- 01IGBO TRADITIONS
Iri Ji — The New Yam Festival
Iri Ji — literally 'eating new yam' — is the annual harvest thanksgiving that anchors Igbo cultural life. From the first yam cut by a titled elder to Iri Ji nights in diaspora living rooms, the festival is the Igbo argument for continuity.
January 20, 20266 min read - 02IGBO CULTURE
Ndi Igbo and their "Village" Mansions
When the hashtag #IgboVillageMansions trended online, it revealed a deeper misunderstanding — one rooted in language, identity, and how a people describe home.
March 28, 20269 min read - 03IGBO CULTURE
How Igbo Women used petitions to influence British authorities during colonial rule
Selected petitions and written correspondence between Igbo women and British officials between 1892 and 1960 shed fresh light on how women navigated male-dominated colonial institutions.
February 15, 20268 min read
Heritage Center
The Vision
Every year our families and associations pay to rent event halls — and that money leaves the community. The Heritage Center is our answer: a place we own together, with event spaces, an ethnic marketplace and restaurants, places of worship, office space, and an elaborate African museum and library.
It will stand as a symbolic monument for our presence as Ndi Igbo in the United States — a public-interest property belonging to the whole community, not to any one person or one association.
Campaign Progress
$18,000of $30,000 full vision
$30K
The full vision
$18K
Raised to date
501(c)(3)
Tax-deductible
100%
Community-owned
Community Voices
Community voices: The FestivalBrought Me Hometo My Roots
“I left Nigeria as a child and spent years feeling split between two worlds. At this year's festival, dancing with my community under the sun, I finally felt whole — home is wherever we gather.”
— Chinedu Okafor, Igbo Union Member
Read More Stories
Community testimonials
CommunityVoices
The Igbo culture of southeastern Nigeria revolves around the extended family compound, where elders lead village assemblies to make communal decisions that shape local governance. Age-grade groups step in to build roads and schools when government support falls short, but rigid gender roles still sideline women from leadership and property rights. The revered title-taking system grants social influence, yet the fierce entrepreneurial spirit that turns cities like Onitsha and Aba into commercial hubs also widens the gap between rich and poor. Meanwhile, the bride price tradition honors family ties but can financially strain young men, sometimes delaying marriage and altering relationship timelines. Ultimately, Igbo culture remains deeply proud and resilient, even as Christianity, urbanization, and younger generations continuously challenge and reshape its age-old practices.
Mr. & Mrs. Donatus Ubechu.Community Members
Read full story
As the Igbo Union Cultural Chairman, I wish the Igbo youths to embrace our Language, traditions and culture. Igbo culture and traditions are our way of life. Igbo language is our identity which is a responsibility of every Igbo person to preserve.
Nze/Engr. Vitus NnannaIgbo Union Cultural Chairman
Read full story
Our mothers’ recipes, our songs, our dances. The union keeps all of it alive for the next generation. It is more than an organization; it is our heritage.
Ngozi EzeIgbo Union Member
Read full story
Volunteering at the festival taught me so much about who I am. Watching our community celebrate together reminds me why ‘One People, One Voice’ matters.
Kelechi UmehBoard Trustee
Read full story
Every practice with the cultural group reminds me of my grandmother’s village. The union gave me back a rhythm I thought I had lost.
Chioma OkonkwoCultural Dancer
Read full story
The union showed me that leadership is about lifting others. Mentoring the youth group has become the most rewarding part of my life.
Obinna AgwuYouth Leader
Read full story
I grew up understanding Igbo but never speaking it. Through the language class, I finally told my mother a full sentence in her own tongue. She cried.
Amara ChukwuIgbo Language Student
Read full storyThe Festival, on Film
Festival2025Northern California
Leadership
Igbo Union
Board of Trustees
CEO / President
Ike F. Orji
Ike F. Orji leads the Igbo Union with a deep commitment to unity, cultural preservation, and community advancement for Ndi Igbo across Northern California.
Working alongside the Board of Trustees, the CEO / President stewards the organization's mission and shapes the initiatives that strengthen every member of our community.
Meet Our Leadership