Gèlè and the Headwrap

Gèlè na di fine, well-shaped cloth headwrap wey be di main crowning piece for formal Yorùbá women dress. Dem dey tie am afresh for each occasion instead of say make dem sew am put for one fixed shape, and e dey turn flat piece of stiff cloth to standing, three-dimensional structure wey di height, how e bend, and how dem take finish am dey show everybody wey dey dere about di person money, di occasion, and di person level. Dis file cover di gèlè specifically: im name, im place for di philosophy of di head, di cloth materials wey dem dey use make am, di named tying styles wey follow Yorùbá urban history since mid-twentieth century, di business of professional tying wey grow around am, and im role for di aṣọ ẹbí group-dress economy. Di general logic of di Yorùbá dress ensemble, wey gèlè be one part of am, dey inside [[the-yoruba-dress-system]] and we no repeat am here; di philosophy of orí and ìwà wey explain why dem dey dress di head with dis kain care dey full inside [[cosmology-ori]] and [[cosmology-iwa]]; di loom traditions, named prestige cloths and di general aṣọ ẹbí institution dey inside [[arts-textiles]]; and di technical weaving detail behind aṣọ òkè dey inside [[aso-oke-in-depth]].

Etymology

Plenti popular and reference sources on Yorùbá dress dey explain di word gèlè say e come from ga, wey mean to high or dey elevated, wey match how di headwrap dey stand high once dem don tie am. Dis derivation dey show consistently across dose sources, but scholarly linguistic treatment with documented citation no dey independently confirmed for dis file, so dem present am as di commonly given etymology instead of settled scholarly fact.

Make person no confuse Gèlè with ìbòrí, wey be term for Yorùbá cosmological usage wey dey call di shrine or physical symbol of di inner head, orí inú, and di ritual to feed am, bọ orí. Di two words no relate for meaning even though dem resemble for surface, and ìbòrí dey covered fully inside [[cosmology-ori]] as ritual object, no be cloth.

Ontological framing: the head and why it is covered with care

Yorùbá dress dey treat di head as di part of di body wey formal presentation must honour pass, because dem believe say di head, orí, dey carry person destiny and share of àṣẹ, di generative force wey dey give life power. Babatunde Lawal study on di head inside Yorùbá sculpture differentiate orí òde, di visible physical head, from orí inú, di inner, spiritual head wey be di seat of destiny and personal divinity, and e argue say Yorùbá sculptural and visual practice dey always give di head big size and finishing pass di rest of di body because e represent orí inú 2. Di full philosophical account of orí, di primary literature behind am, and di practice of ìbòrí belong to [[cosmology-ori]] and we no repeat am here. Wetin belong to dis file narrow pass dat: di gèlè na di specific cloth wey dem take dey show dat philosophy for women formal dress, wey dey do similar work as di cap, fìlà, for men dress, as [[the-yoruba-dress-system]] note.

Rowland Abiodun account of Yorùbá visual culture dey treat oríkì, praise poetry and di wider category of verbal and visual invocation wey e name, as something wey reach dress, architecture, dance and other things wey dem make and perform, no be only spoken verse, and e argue say Yorùbá visual objects, including cloth, dey function as performances wey dem dey read for dat kain way instead of ordinary passive decoration 1. If dem read am together with Lawal account of how di head carry pass for visual weight, wetin e mean for di gèlè specifically be say, as e dey sit highest for di body, dey catch light pass, and dem dey shape am afresh for each occasion instead of say make dem sew am once and reuse am without change, na im be di single element wey dominant pass visually for woman dress and na im onlooker dey first read.

Materiality: textiles used for gèlè

Di choice of fabric for gèlè dey signal era, cost, and formality, and e don shift over di twentieth and twenty-first centuries from handwoven cloth go reach wider range of imported and industrial materials wey dem choose for structural performance as much as prestige. gèlè must hold sculpted shape wey often dey hang out without collapsing through hours of standing, sitting, greeting, and dancing, wey be real engineering constraint on top of di aesthetic one, and na big part of why fabric choice dey matter like dat 6.

Aṣọ òkè. Historically di primary and highest-status textile for gèlè, aṣọ òkè na di handwoven narrow-strip cloth wey dem dey produce on top men horizontal treadle loom, wey dey described in full inside [[aso-oke-in-depth]]. Di three classic prestige weaves, sányán (undyed wild silk and cotton), àlàárì (crimson-dyed silk or cotton), and ẹtù (deep indigo with fine white stripes), na wetin dem dey use for gèlè just as dem dey use am for wrapper and blouse, and dia meanings, chemistry and named weaving centres dey covered dere instead of say make we repeat am here.

Damask and other imported wovens. From mid-twentieth century, imported jacquard-woven damask become popular gèlè fabric because of im heavy, paper-like sizing, wey dey allow wrapper sculpt wide, sharp pleats wey dey hold dia shape through long ceremony 6.

Sego and related synthetic-stiffened fabrics. Contemporary gèlè production dey widely use Sego, one perforated, stiffened woven fabric, alongside other branded synthetic and metallic-thread cloths, wey dem value because e dey give strong structural memory (di fabric dey hold fold once dem crease am) at lower cost pass heavy aṣọ òkè. Sẹ̀gho̩ṣẹ́n, "di cloth wey dey chop money," di prestige textile of Òwọ̀ wey dem document in depth inside [[aso-oke-in-depth]], na wetin dem dey use occasionally for gèlè when money no be obstacle, although e no be gèlè-specific fabric.

Named tying styles and their history

Styles to tie Gèlè don change along with Yorùbá urban history instead of to just dey one place. Di style with name wey dem document pass na Onílégogoro, wey mean "owner of the tall house" or "skyscraper", one very tall gèlè wey stand up straight, wey popular and design writing on di form dey connect well well with di 1960s, di decade wey follow after Nigerian independence for 1960. Dat popular literature dey usually link di style name and inspiration to di new tall tall building architecture of dat era for Western Region, especially di Cocoa House wey dem build for Ibadan, one 26-storey building wey finish for 1964 and dem commission for 1965 wey come be, for pass ten years after dat time, di tallest building for Nigeria. Dem dey continuously repeat dis architectural connection across popular sources on di gèlè, but scholarly source wey establish dis link with primary evidence no dey confirmed for dis file, so make dem read am as di story wey people dey usually tell about where di style originate from, instead of as independently documented historical fact.

Styles with name wey dey flow since dat time, and wey dem document consistently across popular and design-reference sources on di gèlè, include di Fan gèlè, wey open wide like arc; di Infinity Pleats gèlè, wey dem build from plenty narrow, uniform parallel folds wey sweep pass di front and wey dem see as di contemporary standard wey hard pass to do technically; di Rose gèlè, where di remaining cloth dem twist am enter flower rosette for one side; di Peacock gèlè, wey open like waving fan for back; and di Centre Knot, Centre Bow, and Ruffle gèlè, wey each of dem get name from di special way dem take finish am. Detailed scholarly documentation wey carry specific decade for each of dis later styles no dey found, so dem present dem here without inventing dates, as di current working repertoire instead of dated sequence wey di sources no support.

Directionality and social reading

One claim wey popular sources on di gèlè dey repeat talk say di direction wey di main fold or knot bend go, weda na to di right or left of di person wey wear am, bin dey show weda person don marry before, with bending go right meaning say di person don marry and bending go left meaning say di person never marry. Di same right-for-married, left-for-unmarried code dey also documented for men cap, fìlà (see [[the-yoruba-dress-system]]), wey give di claim some structural plausibility as part of wider directional code across Yorùbá headwear. Primary ethnographic or scholarly source wey document di gèlè-specific version of di code, instead of to just repeat am as general popular knowledge, no dey confirmed for dis file, so dem present am here as popular and oral tradition wey people dey cite well well instead of independently sourced ethnographic fact. Popular sources on di gèlè agree say people no dey strictly follow dis code for today modern city life, where most women dey put symmetry and personal style first pass directional message.

Di professional gèlè-tying trade

To tie gèlè well, especially di tightly pleated contemporary styles, na specialized hand skill, and how dem dey pass am down don shift over di past generation from something wey dey happen only inside house from mama to pikin go enter paid professional trade wey balance inside Nigeria event and beauty economy. People wey dey tie gèlè now dey work fixed engagement for wedding, naming ceremony, and oda formal event, weda na to run studio or travel go client venue, and to make person allow well-known professional tie dia gèlè before major event don turn normal part of event preparation for Yorùbá city life.

Di individual person wey dem document pass for di trade na Hakeem Oluwasegun Olaleye, wey people know professionally as Segun Gele, one Nigerian-born makeup artist and gèlè tier wey learn di craft from im mama as child for Lagos and turn am to paid profession after e relocate go Houston, Texas, around 2001, according to wetin dem report, after e tie gèlè for one party based on bet and oda people wey attend pay am for di same service dat same day. Im work, wey base around dramatically tall, sculptural gèlè, don appear as profile coverage for CNN, and e still dey continue to work as paid gèlè tier and makeup artist based for United States, wey dey serve both di Yorùbá diaspora and oda wider customers. Training for di trade generally dey also come through short courses for fashion and beauty schools, informal mentorship under established tier, and, increasingly, video tutorials, one channel wey don make specific named tying techniques dey spread far wider outside di house setting where dem bin dey teach am before.

Pre-tied and pre-stitched gèlè. One ready-to-wear form of gèlè, wey dem generally dey call Auto-Gèlè, don enter market: one headpiece wey dem don already tie and fix put for place, wey person dey secure to head with strap or elastic instead of to wrap am fresh, wey dey take just one or two minutes to wear instead of di fifteen minutes to half an hour or more wey manually tied gèlè fit require. Some popular stories talk say na one Nigerian stylist wey her name na Funmilola Olurinola bring di innovation come, wey dem talk say base early design on top di shape of rose, but who first produce pre-tied gèlè never settle inside di available sources and make dem treat am as something wey people dey drag. Di pre-tied form don gain serious market, especially among women wey dey feel say to sit down tie am for long dey give discomfort and among diaspora communities wey no get easy access to skilled tier, but people also dey criticise am for popular and trade commentary on Yorùbá fashion say e dey reduce di special, hand-and-cloth-specific craft of professionally tied gèlè to uniform, mass-produced object. Dat debate, inside di sources wey dey available for dis file, na matter of popular and trade commentary instead of position wey named academic scholars document, and dem present am here like dat.

Gèlè inside di aṣọ ẹbí economy

For practice, di gèlè na di single element wey dey show pass and wey dem dey coordinate well pass for aṣọ ẹbí, wey be di practice where whole social circle dey wear di same chosen cloth for wedding, burial, or oda formal event. Di institution itself, where e start from wey people dey drag, di way di money matter dey run, and how e shift go Ankara and lace as di main fabrics today, dem don cover all of dem well inside [[arts-textiles]] and we no go repeat dem here. Wetin specifically belong to dis file na di role of gèlè inside dat system: even though individual guests for aṣọ ẹbí event dey often sew dia bùbá and ìró to match wetin dem like from di shared cloth, dem dey frequently make di gèlè uniform, tie am from di same material to almost di same height and style across di whole group, so dat when group of guests enter hall togeda, pesin go sharp-sharp see am as di clearest visual sign of how di group coordinate and how far di host reach to organize things. Okechukwu Nwafor research on aṣọ ẹbí and Lagos fashion magazines record how di way people dey wear di same cloth and style across crowd dey serve as public show say dem belong togeda, wey fashion photography and magazines dey spread and boost 5. Toyin Falola account of Nigerian social custom also treat aṣọ ẹbí as central institution of Yorùbá and broader Nigerian social life, wey tie to burial, wedding, and community events 4.

Cloth sellers across major Lagos markets dey get aṣọ ẹbí fabric, including gèlè cloth, from local weaving cooperatives and industrial import channels join togeda, and hosts dey usually divide di price and grade of cloth wey dem dey offer to different groups of guests: close family and elder guests dey get handwoven aṣọ òkè gèlè cloth wey cost pass, while wider circles dey get cheaper industrial alternatives like Sego. Dis arrangement of price levels, and di social duty wey follow am, where host wey collect aṣọ ẹbí contributions from guests suppose pay back for future events of dose guests, na part of di broader aṣọ ẹbí institution wey dem record for [[arts-textiles]], no be sometin wey dey only for gèlè. Even at dat, gèlè dey very often be di single item wey cost pass inside aṣọ ẹbí package, since e dey require di material wey cost pass per cloth and, as time dey go now, separate money to pay professional wey go tie am on top.