Topic summary
Osu caste system
The Osu caste system was a traditional practice in Igboland, characterized by social segregation and restrictions on interaction and marriage with a group of individuals known as Osu (Igbo: outcast). The Osu were persons dedicated to Igbo deities (Alusi), and as a result were set apart from the Nwadiala or diala (Igbo: freeborn) class. There are at least three categories of Osu, namely: the Osunwa, freeborn priests chosen by the gods and held in high regard; the Ohu or Oru, uninitiated slaves; and the Ume agbaragba, those whose body parts were physically dedicated to a shrine, who faced the most severe social exclusion.