Odunde Festival
Odunde Festival | |
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Odunde Festival celebrated in Southwest Center City in Philadelphia | |
Observed by | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA |
Type | Cultural, commercial |
Date | Second Sunday in June |
2023 date | June 11 (2023-06-11) |
2024 date | June 9 (2024-06-09) |
2025 date | June 8 (2025-06-08) |
2026 date | June 14 (2026-06-14) |
Frequency | annual |
The Odunde Festival is a one-day festival and mostly a street market catered to African-American interests and the African diaspora. It is derived from the tradition of the Yoruba people of Nigeria in celebration of the new year according to the Yoruba calendar or Kọ́jọ́dá, which usually falls on the first moon of June (Òkudù) on the Gregorian calendar. It is centered at the intersection of Grays Ferry Avenue and South Street in the U.S. city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Ruth Arthur and Lois Fernandez were co-founders of Odunde festival. Ruth died at age 64 in 1997. While Lois died at age 81 in 2017.
History
The Odunde festival started in Philadelphia in 1975. Lois Fernandez and her friend Ruth Arthur organized the first Odunde Festival. It took place in April 1975,[1][2] as the "Oshun Festival".[1] The goal was to bring together the community and to foster awareness of and pride in black history and culture.[3] The festival began with $100 from neighborhood donations.[4]
The festival is one of the largest African celebration on the east coast of the United States. It is held in the month of June. The festival brings in Africans from all parts of the world, including Africa, Brazil, and other places around the United States.[5] According to WXPN, "... beginning with an all-inclusive spiritual procession to the Schuylkill River, the festival carries on from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., filling the day with vibrant traditional clothing, African food, and art and craft vendors from around the world."[6]
There was no festival in 2020.
- Odunde Festival 2013 on Grays Ferry Avenue
See also
- African-American neighborhood
References
- ^ a b Harris, Christina Afia. "ODUNDE Festival". The Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
- ^ Mazenko, Elizabeth (June 7, 2013). "Odunde Festival closes the streets for its 38th anniversary". WXPN. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
- ^ Hunter, Marcus Anthony (2013). Black citymakers: how the Philadelphia negro changed urban America. Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 170, 196–202. ISBN 9780199948130. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
- ^ Gregg, Cherri (May 13, 2013). "Oshunbumi Fernandez, Caring Through Culture and Odunde 365". CBS Philly. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
- ^ Jenkins, Kristina (June 6, 2013). "Our Guide To The Odunde Festival, Set To Bring A Celebration Of African-American Culture To South Street West This Sunday, June 9". UWISHUNU Philadelphia. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
- ^ Mazenko, Elizabeth (June 7, 2013). "Odunde Festival closes the streets for its 38th anniversary". WXPN. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
External links
- ODUNDE365 Official festival website
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Neighborhoods
- Bella Vista
- Central South Philadelphia
- Devil's Pocket
- Dickinson Square West
- East Passyunk Crossing
- Fabric Row
- FDR Park
- Girard Estate
- Graduate Hospital / Southwest Center City
- Grays Ferry
- Hawthorne
- Italian Market
- Little Saigon
- Lower Moyamensing
- Marconi Plaza
- Moyamensing
- Newbold
- Packer Park
- Passyunk Square
- Pennsport
- Point Breeze
- Queen Village
- Schuylkill
- Southwark
- Sports Complex
- West Passyunk
- Wharton
- Whitman
- Wilson Park
Public K-12 |
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Private K-12 |
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- 2300 Arena
- Citizens Bank Park
- Lincoln Financial Field
- Wells Fargo Center
- Xfinity Live!
Demolished |
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- Congregation Shivtei Yeshuron-Ezras Israel
- Franklin Hose Company No. 28
- Geno's Steaks
- Gloria Dei (Old Swedes') Church
- Grays Road Recreation Center
- Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia
- Marian Anderson House
- Pat's King of Steaks
- Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad Freight Shed
- Royal Theater
- St. Anthony de Padua Parish School
- St Nicholas of Tolentine Church
- Tindley Temple United Methodist Church
- Tony Luke's
- Walt Whitman Bridge
- Mount Sinai Hospital (demolished)
- Odunde Festival