The Igbo people of Southeastern Nigeria perform masquerade dances by males in exclusive secret societies. These usually involve the use of elaborate, colorful costumes that are meant to invoke ancestral spirits (ghosts). Masquerade traditions have a varied range of purposes that span performing elements of drama derived from folk lore, to ushering in new months or seasons, honoring ancestral spirits, or simply entertainment and community building. In the past masquerades also had judicial, regulatory, and even policing powers. These functions have decreased in modern times. In general, these masquerades always emerge from the forests to visit the living.