Proverbial Names
Yoruba is very rich in wise sayings (proverbs). Some of these proverbs have been clipped into names. The following are examples of proverbial names in Yoruba land:
Baoku :Ise o tan------When there is life, there is hope
Anjoorin: A ko mo ori olowo-----We walk together, we do not know who is destined to be rich
Bolodeoku:Ode re ki wu gbegi-----The compound will not go bushy when the owner is around
Atidade : Kiniun ko sehin Olodumare
Apalara: Igunpa ni yekan-------Your works will deliver you, not family or friends
Ayeloja: Orun n'ile-----------The world is a market place,heaven is home(Life is short)
Ajunmobi : Ko kan ti anu, eni olorun ran sini loun seni l'ore----Only God helps, man may fail
Adabanija: Eni ija o ba ni pe ara re l'okunrin---Who you truly are can be determined in the face of temptation
Awolumatee: Iwon ara re lo mo------ A stranger who would not loose his intergrity should know his bounds
Akeju: nii ba omo olowo je---------Over pampering spoils the children of the rich
Abanigbe: ni a a mo ise eni, eniyan gbokere niyi-----Someone who is far away is often respected, familiarity breeds contempt
Abanikan-n-da: Ikan ko le mu okuta----------Termites only contemplate, they dare not gnaw a stone
Banuso: ma ba eniyan so, eniyan o si mo,aye deke----Keep secrets to yourself alone, do not ever confide in man.(No one can be trusted)
Omoolayole: Eni omo sin lo bimo---------Never boast of having children in your prime age, until the children outlive you
Bolanta: A wu won, bola ba doju de tan, Ola a maa suni,akeyinsi ola kii ro-------It is soothing when things are going smoothly, the reverse could be unbearable
Tanimola: Ko si, ayafi olorun Oba------Only God knows tomorrow
Agbojuleogun: fi ra re fo si ta--------One who relies on inheritance will turn a pauper
Kosalabaro: Bi ko se ori eni--------- There is no confidant but one's destiny
Aberuagba:Ni yio tele pee-----------One who fears the elders will live long
The examples of names given above are names extracted from Yoruba proverbs. This adds to our earlier assertion about the rich culture and the importance of naming to the people.
Friday, September 10, 2010
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Onomastics: Naming in Yoruba (1)
Names are not mere identification tags. They are meaning containers. Naming among the Yoruba people could be a basis for learning the structure of the Yoruba names, because this names are structured like phrases and sentences having extant meaning. In other words, the study of the Yoruba names could be the study of the grammar of the language.
Personal and place names is one of the oldest elements of the Yoruba Language and a good knowledge of them will enhance our knowledge of their history and past experiences.
The Yoruba names can the nominal or sentential and the names has been classified into three: Given Names( Oruko Amutorunwa), Ascribed Names (Oruko Abiso), and Pet Names (Oriki). Also, some names are formed from Yoruba proverbs.
Given Names(Oruko Amutorunwa) are nominal in form, so are some place names. Examples:
Ojo----------A male child that has his umbilical cord tied around his neck at birth.
Ajayi--------A child born with face turned downwards
Talabi-------A child born with the head and body covered with Caul like a masquerade
Oni---------A baby whose incessant cry at birth suggest that he/she is in distress
Ige --------A baby thta came out of the womb with feet first
Aina------Is the female of Ojo(of the two names, Ijebu tribe uses Aina,it is proverbial that (Ijebu Kii je Ojo),"Ijebus never bear the name Ojo."
Dada-----Children with knotted hair or dreads
Ilori------Conceived after a previous birth,before resumption of mensturation
Oke-----A child rapped in a thin membrane at birth, The Amniofil sac
Taiwo----The first to arrive of a twin
Kehinde---The last to arrive of a twin
Eta Oko---Triplet
Idowu-----A child born after a set of twins
Alaba------A child born after Idowu
Olugbodi----A child born with a the sixth finger
Erinle--------A child born with an umbilical cord around his wrist
All the Amutorunwa names are connected to an unusual event at birth, they are instant names. This whispers the significance of the midwifery lore of the Yoruba. Unlike the Abiso names, one waits till the naming ceremony on the eighth day to hear the names the parents woukd like to call their child based on the events at birth, family tradition, and interest.
Other classes of names aside the Amutorunwa are sentential in form, they can be divided into their sentential elements. Examples;
Oyeesoro= Oye+soro---Contest for chieftaincy title could be difficult.
Odetunde=Ode+ tun+de---The god of hunter has come home
Bantale= Ba+mi+ t'ale--------Stay with me till my dying age
Akin-ola-------Hero of affluence
Oluremilekun=Olu+re+mi+ni+ekun-----The Lord has comforted me
We can now say that the form of the Yoruba names can be grouped into two:Mono-morphemic and Poly-morphemic. The poly-morphemic can be further divided into complex and compound. The complex division can be either be sentential or phrasal.
A journey into the study of names is very important and an eye-opener to the aspect of culture often over-looked.
Personal and place names is one of the oldest elements of the Yoruba Language and a good knowledge of them will enhance our knowledge of their history and past experiences.
The Yoruba names can the nominal or sentential and the names has been classified into three: Given Names( Oruko Amutorunwa), Ascribed Names (Oruko Abiso), and Pet Names (Oriki). Also, some names are formed from Yoruba proverbs.
Given Names(Oruko Amutorunwa) are nominal in form, so are some place names. Examples:
Ojo----------A male child that has his umbilical cord tied around his neck at birth.
Ajayi--------A child born with face turned downwards
Talabi-------A child born with the head and body covered with Caul like a masquerade
Oni---------A baby whose incessant cry at birth suggest that he/she is in distress
Ige --------A baby thta came out of the womb with feet first
Aina------Is the female of Ojo(of the two names, Ijebu tribe uses Aina,it is proverbial that (Ijebu Kii je Ojo),"Ijebus never bear the name Ojo."
Dada-----Children with knotted hair or dreads
Ilori------Conceived after a previous birth,before resumption of mensturation
Oke-----A child rapped in a thin membrane at birth, The Amniofil sac
Taiwo----The first to arrive of a twin
Kehinde---The last to arrive of a twin
Eta Oko---Triplet
Idowu-----A child born after a set of twins
Alaba------A child born after Idowu
Olugbodi----A child born with a the sixth finger
Erinle--------A child born with an umbilical cord around his wrist
All the Amutorunwa names are connected to an unusual event at birth, they are instant names. This whispers the significance of the midwifery lore of the Yoruba. Unlike the Abiso names, one waits till the naming ceremony on the eighth day to hear the names the parents woukd like to call their child based on the events at birth, family tradition, and interest.
Other classes of names aside the Amutorunwa are sentential in form, they can be divided into their sentential elements. Examples;
Oyeesoro= Oye+soro---Contest for chieftaincy title could be difficult.
Odetunde=Ode+ tun+de---The god of hunter has come home
Bantale= Ba+mi+ t'ale--------Stay with me till my dying age
Akin-ola-------Hero of affluence
Oluremilekun=Olu+re+mi+ni+ekun-----The Lord has comforted me
We can now say that the form of the Yoruba names can be grouped into two:Mono-morphemic and Poly-morphemic. The poly-morphemic can be further divided into complex and compound. The complex division can be either be sentential or phrasal.
A journey into the study of names is very important and an eye-opener to the aspect of culture often over-looked.
Monday, September 6, 2010
As We Embark on an Interesting Journey: Welcome on Board!
Culture is simply the way of life of every living creature. Everything that has life has a culture. The plants, animals, and human beings all have their cultures which varies based on specie. In other words, there are divers cultures.
Different species of plants have their growth periods, preferred climate,nature of existence,so does different insects and animals. While an Eagle in the family of birds has a culture of not feeding on dead animals, but sets its prey, a vulture finds its sustenance in feeding on dead animals. The horse is known for its strength, just as a cockroach is known for its perseverance. Convincingly, we can say that different living things in existence has a culture that differentiates them from other things. I think culture has its root in the word 'Unique'.
Uniqueness makes every individual value their culture. In fact, we can narrow down culture to the life of an individual. What differentiates Jack from Jacqueline, Paul from Paula, Joseph from Josephine, Mayowa from John, Ikechukwu from Haruna? More so, individuals exist to form families, what makes the Jones' family different from the Peter's family? When we discuss culture we can not but mention values and pride.
The most commonly associated with culture is the society.On a broadview, based on skin colour, the caucasian style of life is very much different when compared to the way of life of the blacks. Every nation has what makes her stand out as a nation. Culture is defined by the beliefs, practices,faith,custom,arts,language,intelligence, food habit and facts about the people.
Kroeber A.L and Kruckhohn (1952), says, 'Culture consist of patterns, explicit and implicit, of and for behavior acquired and transmitted by symbols,constituting the distinctive achievement of human groups,including their embodiment in artifacts;the essential core of culture consist of traditional,( that is, historically derived and selected) ideas and especially, their attached values,culture systems may, on the one hand, be considered as products of action and on the other hand conditioning elements of further action.'
Banks and McGee (1989) says further, 'Most social scientist today view culture as consisting of the symbolic, ideational and intangible aspect of human societies. The essence of culture is not artifacts,tools and other cultural tangible elements but how the people interpret, use and perceive them. It is the values, interpretations and perceptives that distinguish one people from the other in modernized societies;it is not material objects and other tangible aspects of human societies. People within a culture usually interpret the use of symbols, artifacts and behaviorism the same or similar ways.'
Nigeria is a nation known for unity in diversity. Nigeria has about 240 ethnic groups,each with her culture. Every tribe values their culture but the lack of adequate knowledge of the culture is bringing emptiness into the supposed rich and abundant culture. Westernization has caused a major drift away from culture. The reverse would have been better; westernization should drive our culture positively. We should not lose touch with our tradition and way of life but we should make them better aesthetically and give them good publicity.
Cultural trumpet is of the objective of bringing out the beauty in the culture of a group of people known as the Yoruba people in the western part of Nigeria, located in West Africa. The language they speak is the Yoruba language. The Yoruba Language is a tonal language, and it is spoken in different dialects with a standard dialect known as the Yoruba Ajumolo,(Yoruba for the collective).
The ancestors of the Yoruba people according to oral tradition is Oduduwa,son of Olodumare (the supreme god of the Yoruba people). This question comes to mind, what is the meaning of Yoruba? The term emanated from the relationship between the Hausas and the sons of Oduduwa resident in the old Oyo Empire. The concept of the name 'Yoruba' sometimes called 'Yariba' is not well defined. This led to the consensus of the Yoruba scholars to change the nomenclature to 'Omo Oduduwa' (children of Oduduwa), which they can give an explanation for.
As said earlier, the Yoruba language has many dialects. These dialects can be classified into three dialect areas: NorthWest,Central, and SouthWest. The NorthWest Yoruba(Ariwa Iwo Orun Yoruba) consist of: Oyo, Osun Ibadan, and Lagos. The Central Yoruba speakers are: Ife, Ijesha, and Ekiti areas; The SouthWest (Gusu Ila Orun) speakers are: Ondo,Owo,Ilaje, Ikale,Ikare, and Ijebu.
People in this part of the world may not be known for technological innovations and inventions but something is unique about their spirituality, that is, their religion and the oba institution. Beyond the language, there is a lot to share about the traditions, beliefs, history, faith, practices, custom, arts, intelligence, food and facts that this great people exhibit.
As we ride together, welcome on board!
Different species of plants have their growth periods, preferred climate,nature of existence,so does different insects and animals. While an Eagle in the family of birds has a culture of not feeding on dead animals, but sets its prey, a vulture finds its sustenance in feeding on dead animals. The horse is known for its strength, just as a cockroach is known for its perseverance. Convincingly, we can say that different living things in existence has a culture that differentiates them from other things. I think culture has its root in the word 'Unique'.
Uniqueness makes every individual value their culture. In fact, we can narrow down culture to the life of an individual. What differentiates Jack from Jacqueline, Paul from Paula, Joseph from Josephine, Mayowa from John, Ikechukwu from Haruna? More so, individuals exist to form families, what makes the Jones' family different from the Peter's family? When we discuss culture we can not but mention values and pride.
The most commonly associated with culture is the society.On a broadview, based on skin colour, the caucasian style of life is very much different when compared to the way of life of the blacks. Every nation has what makes her stand out as a nation. Culture is defined by the beliefs, practices,faith,custom,arts,language,intelligence, food habit and facts about the people.
Kroeber A.L and Kruckhohn (1952), says, 'Culture consist of patterns, explicit and implicit, of and for behavior acquired and transmitted by symbols,constituting the distinctive achievement of human groups,including their embodiment in artifacts;the essential core of culture consist of traditional,( that is, historically derived and selected) ideas and especially, their attached values,culture systems may, on the one hand, be considered as products of action and on the other hand conditioning elements of further action.'
Banks and McGee (1989) says further, 'Most social scientist today view culture as consisting of the symbolic, ideational and intangible aspect of human societies. The essence of culture is not artifacts,tools and other cultural tangible elements but how the people interpret, use and perceive them. It is the values, interpretations and perceptives that distinguish one people from the other in modernized societies;it is not material objects and other tangible aspects of human societies. People within a culture usually interpret the use of symbols, artifacts and behaviorism the same or similar ways.'
Nigeria is a nation known for unity in diversity. Nigeria has about 240 ethnic groups,each with her culture. Every tribe values their culture but the lack of adequate knowledge of the culture is bringing emptiness into the supposed rich and abundant culture. Westernization has caused a major drift away from culture. The reverse would have been better; westernization should drive our culture positively. We should not lose touch with our tradition and way of life but we should make them better aesthetically and give them good publicity.
Cultural trumpet is of the objective of bringing out the beauty in the culture of a group of people known as the Yoruba people in the western part of Nigeria, located in West Africa. The language they speak is the Yoruba language. The Yoruba Language is a tonal language, and it is spoken in different dialects with a standard dialect known as the Yoruba Ajumolo,(Yoruba for the collective).
The ancestors of the Yoruba people according to oral tradition is Oduduwa,son of Olodumare (the supreme god of the Yoruba people). This question comes to mind, what is the meaning of Yoruba? The term emanated from the relationship between the Hausas and the sons of Oduduwa resident in the old Oyo Empire. The concept of the name 'Yoruba' sometimes called 'Yariba' is not well defined. This led to the consensus of the Yoruba scholars to change the nomenclature to 'Omo Oduduwa' (children of Oduduwa), which they can give an explanation for.
As said earlier, the Yoruba language has many dialects. These dialects can be classified into three dialect areas: NorthWest,Central, and SouthWest. The NorthWest Yoruba(Ariwa Iwo Orun Yoruba) consist of: Oyo, Osun Ibadan, and Lagos. The Central Yoruba speakers are: Ife, Ijesha, and Ekiti areas; The SouthWest (Gusu Ila Orun) speakers are: Ondo,Owo,Ilaje, Ikale,Ikare, and Ijebu.
People in this part of the world may not be known for technological innovations and inventions but something is unique about their spirituality, that is, their religion and the oba institution. Beyond the language, there is a lot to share about the traditions, beliefs, history, faith, practices, custom, arts, intelligence, food and facts that this great people exhibit.
As we ride together, welcome on board!