ABUJA, Nigeria — Eighty-two Nigerian schoolgirls released several weeks ago after more than three years in Boko Haram captivity were reunited with their families on Saturday, as anxious parents looked for signs of how deeply their daughters might have changed in the hands of the extremists.

Images from the scene showed brightly dressed family members rushing through the crowd and embracing one another outdoors. One small group of people sank to their knees, with a woman raising her hands as if praising in church. Some were in tears.

“I am really happy today — I am Christmas and New Year,” said Godiya Joshua, whose daughter Esther was among those freed. “I am very happy and I thank God.”

The families were reunited in the capital, Abuja, where the girls were taken by Nigerian authorities after their release early this month.