aywhy93:


There's more to history and research than assumptions. The yorubas are known to have a wide historical movements, from Africa to North and South Americas and other countries in different continents, so assuming they have never seen a Tiger to give it that name EKUN is a dumb thought, or you probably think the Yorubas are just those people you see in Lagos, Ibadan and South Western Nigerian.

For even thinking Millions of Indigenous Yorubas who have existed before in the pasts doesnt know what they are doing, or have a wrong nomenclature in their local language shows one is a wise fool. There are enough and undebatable proofs that shows Ekun is tiger and Amotekun is Leopard and so on as stated in my initial post, just do your research. Let me even ask, which department of Yoruba studies in which University have you conducted the slightest research to even think you know anything about YORUBA..? And come up with your blabbing thoughts. You and Op just disappointed your forefathers.

I will school you in Yoruba history, you know absolutely next to nothing. Can you explain with facts the movement of Yorubas to North and south america o and I hope you are not trying to mention slavery,

macof:



Your grandfather was probably saying the word "Ẹkùn" and Google translate made you think the Ẹkùn he was talking about is Tiger

But no Yoruba hunter would find Tigers because Tigers don't live in our part of the world. I don't know what University you studied zoology that told you otherwise

Lol I actually saw the hides of the tiger with my eyes and not some hearsay in my grandfather's words only seasoned hunters dare a face off with a live tiger as they can also hypnotize their prey with their fierce look.

There is a Yoruba folklore song
Oju EKUN Yi pon Iru EKUN Yi Le loosely translated as The tigers eyes is bloodshot and the tigers tail is hard

Tigers have the most vicious bloodshot eyes of all the big cats,their eyes are bloodshot red even in cartoons so u do the math.

What makes u think there are no Tigers in Africa really,just google？

im not a professional zoologist studied something close however im a conservationist.

Hayelomo:
The "amo" in amotekun does not mean "looks like", it is rather " knows as", so amotekun literally means "knows as ekun". If it is looks like, it would be " bi ekun" not amotekun.

I hope you read the post you quoted well

TAO11:


It is I who is harboring and nursing sime grudge from elsewhere.

Listen again, I have commented negatively on an indigenous Yoruba source I cited in relation to an indigenous Yoruba topic.

What I should have done (and which I have requeated me to do) is to present a more authoritative source which disagrees with mine.

Nay, I failed the second time. Irather referred me to some everyone else who do not necessarily agree with me or disagree with me.

Am I a jester?

I remember you from the other thread where you chatted so much nonsense I got tired and gave you back the thread to do as you like.


Let's do that routine again, stop quoting me, thanks. Where are your friends who were hailing your every post? They're needed once more.

You all have tried. One of the few enlightening rather than toxic and tribalistic
Thread

aywhy93:


There's more to history and research than assumptions. The yorubas are known to have a wide historical movements, from Africa to North and South Americas and other countries in different continents, so assuming they have never seen a Tiger to give it that name EKUN is a dumb thought, or you probably think the Yorubas are just those people you see in Lagos, Ibadan and South Western Nigerian.

For even thinking Millions of Indigenous Yorubas who have existed before in the pasts doesnt know what they are doing, or have a wrong nomenclature in their local language shows one is a wise fool. There are enough and undebatable proofs that shows Ekun is tiger and Amotekun is Leopard and so on as stated in my initial post, just do your research. Let me even ask, which department of Yoruba studies in which University have you conducted the slightest research to even think you know anything about YORUBA..? And come up with your blabbing thoughts. You and Op just disappointed your forefathers.

Unless you're saying those millions of Yorubas were not residing in Africa? I dont get your point.

Yes.
Ekun-Tiger
Amotekun-Leopard
Done and dusted

macof:


That is why a word needs to be thought of for tigers not using the word for leopard

Ẹkùn cannot be both tiger and leopard

macof:


That is why a word needs to be thought of for tigers not using the word for leopard

Ẹkùn cannot be both tiger and leopard

For those who feel linked to tigers, Ekun is tiger.

For those who know the Yoruba word for leopard, ekun is leopard.

The first group can go with ekun as a descriptive term for big cats.

cbrass:


I will school you in Yoruba history, you know absolutely next to nothing. Can you explain with facts the movement of Yorubas to North and south america o and I hope you are not trying to mention slavery,

Lol... I'll give you the project topic I did back then in school (in Yoruba) and you wont be able to read the title, let alone comprehend the content. I wont waste my knowledge on you. Come to Institute of African Studies in UI and learn Yoruba. Back to the topic, does it come to your thinking that whatever caused the movements of Yoruba, it doesn't change the fact that they've roamed enough places to have seen a tiger which you claimed they never saw to give it that name, Ekun..?

From the quoted post:
He even went on to say thag Amotekun looks like Ekun. So does Tiger look Leopard?

cbrass:


I hope you read the post you quoted well

And I was trying to say, this is not about a comparison of likeness.

nlPoster:


Unless you're saying those millions of Yorubas were not residing in Africa? I dont get your point.

Read and comprehend. Millions of Yorubas resided in Africa and beyond Africa (other continents) over those years.

nlPoster:



I remember you from the other thread where you chatted so much nonsense I got tired and gave you back the thread to do as you like.


Let's do that routine again, stop quoting me, thanks. Where are your friends who were hailing your every post? They're needed once more.

Of course you do remember me. And you must have thought this was a great opportunity for you.

Now you've just confirmed that I got to you the last time from your remark here that I was chatting nonsense. But sincerely, I didn't mean to get to you.

I was simply pointing out to everyone that your position is crappy, and I was doing that in good faith.

Lol I was chatting nonsense, says the same guy who claims that the Yoruba word "Atégùn" ("breeze" ) etymologically comes from some step/stair climbing crap.

How do you quote someone first and then complain about them quoting you in return?? I still don't get this specific aspect of your reasoning!

neyobills:


Lol I actually saw the hides of the tiger with my eyes and not some hearsay in my grandfather's words only seasoned hunters dare a face off with a live tiger as they can also hypnotize their prey with their fierce look.

There is a Yoruba folklore song
Oju EKUN Yi pon Iru EKUN Yi Le loosely translated as The tigers eyes is bloodshot and the tigers tail is hard

Tigers have the most vicious bloodshot eyes of all the big cats,their eyes are bloodshot red even in cartoons so u do the math.

What makes u think there are no Tigers in Africa really,just google？

im not a professional zoologist studied something close however im a conservationist.

Can you describe how the hide looked like? Or better post a picture because we know how things dey be with personal claims on this forum

And wtf! "Oju EKUN Yi pon Iru EKUN Yi Le" is consistent with the leopard
In cartoons?? Are you kidding me? Cartoons are your reference?
Not saying tigers do not possess blood lustful eyes but your reference to cartoons just renders your whole point very weak if popular media is where you draw this knowledge from

I don't rely on random or questionable sources.
There are countless articles from experts that I'm sure you can find if you want to be convinced
Asking me what makes me think tigers aren't native to Africa is like saying what makes me think USA is a country

It's simple knowledge

I got this beautiful post from my WhatsApp group


ON THE MEANING OF ÀMỌ̀TẸ́KÙN

A debate has been raging on since two days ago about what animal exactly do Yorùbá refer to as Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn. One thing that amazes me is the number of people that erroneously believe and claim that Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn is leopard. This people gave link to website offering Yoruba names of different animals and lo and behold, it renders Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn as leopard. This site also claims ẹkùn is tiger, an animal that never exist in the whole of Africa and by implication it never exist in Yorùbá land. It translates àjàò as nurctunal animal.

I want to appreciate the brain behind the website but they need to research more and give accurate names of these animals. It also shows that we need a central authority in terms of reference book where we can turn to for accurate Yorùbá names of flora and fauna. An ideal rendition of the animal call "Tiger" by a Yoruba man will likely be "ẹkùn abilà" just as we have adopted "kẹ́tẹ́kẹ́tẹ́ abilà" for zebra.

To this debate I have some responses to make in order to clear the air. First of all, tiger is an Asian animal. What we have here is leopard. Thank God I was born and brought up in rural area and followed elders a little. More, my hometown, Ibese in 1979 became famous when a stray ẹkùn was killed in a farmland near the town by some brave hunters. We have pictures of what Yoruba refers to as Ẹkùn and it is leopard.

Concerning Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn, there is no confusion about it. Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn is cheetah. Yoruba says, "Asunkún pani obìnrin Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn." This saying draws a comparison between a deceptive woman who can kill her husband even though she will be the first to start crying at the slightest provocation, and Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn with its two black stripes on its face resembling black tears streaming down its cheek.

The comparison also fits perfectly because of the sleeky shape of Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn (compared to the robust shape of leopard) which Yoruba must have regarded as prominent feminine feature.

More, cheetah is common in Africa and in Yorùbá land. The colonialists recorded it was a common site in Ilorin then.

Now, back to operation Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn, either by fortuity or deliberate design, those who came up with the name seem to have hit the perfect spot.


OP you have really done well.
Akure is a town very familiar with Ekun..it is the leopard. There are lots of leopards in ancient African photos. Their hides/skin also exist in abundance too.


Yearly Tigers kill people in Asia..no such occurrence in Africa. You won't find their hides too.



Many people want to remain ignorant.

nlPoster:


For those who feel linked to tigers, Ekun is tiger.

For those who know the Yoruba word for leopard, ekun is leopard.

The first group can go with ekun as a descriptive term for big cats.

In what language is this done?

One group of people call one animal by one name then another group who don't know better call another animal by the same name?? Weird stuff right there

nlPoster:


For those who feel linked to tigers, Ekun is tiger.

For those who know the Yoruba word for leopard, ekun is leopard.

The first group can go with ekun as a descriptive term for big cats.

But come to think of it. If someone maintains that ekun is leopard and tiger has no Yoruba name wouldn't it be absurd to mean that we are the first generation to have seen tiger? Are we the first generation to know a tiger? That our forefathers have never encountered it before and has never given it a name?

Nezero:
I got this beautiful post from my WhatsApp group


ON THE MEANING OF ÀMỌ̀TẸ́KÙN

A debate has been raging on since two days ago about what animal exactly do Yorùbá refer to as Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn. One thing that amazes me is the number of people that erroneously believe and claim that Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn is leopard. This people gave link to website offering Yoruba names of different animals and lo and behold, it renders Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn as leopard. This site also claims ẹkùn is tiger, an animal that never exist in the whole of Africa and by implication it never exist in Yorùbá land. It translates àjàò as nurctunal animal.

I want to appreciate the brain behind the website but they need to research more and give accurate names of these animals. It also shows that we need a central authority in terms of reference book where we can turn to for accurate Yorùbá names of flora and fauna. An ideal rendition of the animal call "Tiger" by a Yoruba man will likely be "ẹkùn abilà" just as we have adopted "kẹ́tẹ́kẹ́tẹ́ abilà" for zebra.

To this debate I have some responses to make in order to clear the air. First of all, tiger is an Asian animal. What we have here is leopard. Thank God I was born and brought up in rural area and followed elders a little. More, my hometown, Ibese in 1979 became famous when a stray ẹkùn was killed in a farmland near the town by some brave hunters. We have pictures of what Yoruba refers to as Ẹkùn and it is leopard.

Concerning Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn, there is no confusion about it. Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn is cheetah. Yoruba says, "Asunkún pani obìnrin Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn." This saying draws a comparison between a deceptive woman who can kill her husband even though she will be the first to start crying at the slightest provocation, and Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn with its two black stripes on its face resembling black tears streaming down its cheek.

The comparison also fits perfectly because of the sleeky shape of Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn (compared to the robust shape of leopard) which Yoruba must have regarded as prominent feminine feature.

More, cheetah is common in Africa and in Yorùbá land. The colonialists recorded it was a common site in Ilorin then.

Now, back to operation Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn, either by fortuity or deliberate design, those who came up with the name seem to have hit the perfect spot.


OP you have really done well.
Akure is a town very familiar with Ekun..it is the leopard. There are lots of leopards in ancient African photos. Their hides/skin also exist in abundance too.


Yearly Tigers kill people in Asia..no such occurrence in Africa. You won't find their hides too.



Many people want to remain ignorant.

A lot of Nigerians love ignorance

So unready to unlearn a false information to relearn the right thing

Venerable612:


This is wrong.

First off the name Amotekun has nothing to do physical semblance as such.

It literally translates - “one who knows as Ekun”.

Again, you are wrong that Yoruba doesn’t have a transalation for Tiger - because our fathers didn’t have an encounter with them.

In fact Tiger has two Yoruba names. It could be called OGIDAN or EKUN. That’s why they say this provide - “Ogidan o ni se Barber, ki aja de be lo ge irun”.

And “KAKA KI KINIUN SAKAPO EKUN, OLODE A MAA RODE.“ Mind you Lion in Yoruba is Kiniun. And no one will ever compare a Lion with a Leopard. No animal can stand the Lion grit for grit amongst the Cat Family other than the Tiger; hence, the comparison.

Also, when Yorubas jokingly refer to someone as Ekun - it’s to represent that the person is a Strong man.

Thus,

Lion - Kiniun
Tiger - Ogidan and Ekun
Leopard - Amotekun
Cheetah - Owawa.

Hope this helps.

.
In the process of you tryna correct, there are errors
Owawa isn't cheetah (I suspect you got that info form Yorubablog)
Owawa (I don't know the English name, but certainly not Cheetah) is not even close to big cat family
not too small animal, has white furs that run from its back to tail, makes its sound at night.
You can ask a Yoruba Hunter if you wanna know more about it.
Tiger can't possibly have a Yoruba name as it's not found here in Nigeria.
What I think is Ekun and Ogidan are just Yoruba Adjectives which by time are used to qualify the Animal (Tiger) due to it's courage and Size

No tiger in Africa. So Ekun is Leopard. Amotekun is Cheetah. Amotekun means looks like the *animal*. Amo means could be. does tiger look like leopard? Spots and stripes are not the same. Cheetah and Leopard however look almost the same. Amotekun means Cheetah. Asukun pani bi Amotekun... the one who looks like it’s crying while killing. Taking note of the dark lines below Cheetahs eyes.

godspeed:


It's not that simple.

First, you have to look at the origin of the Yoruba language and how it has developed over the centuries.

No doubts, contact with foreigners either thru trade, slavery or colonialism would have had a large influence on the Yoruba language.( Much like the English language is heavily influenced by Latin and French) .

That the yorubas never saw tigers does not mean they never heard about it or didn't at least get a description.

Remember, one of the stories about oduduwa is that he came to Ife from Arabia haven fled the peninsula when Mohammad the prophet was ridding Arabia of idolaters, infact, oduduwa brought the IFA religion from Arabia.

No doubts, oduduwa arrival in Ile Ife would have had an effect on the local language as a lot of new words would have been introduced into the Yoruba lexicon.

So as regards' Ekun' , it could have been a borrowed word from oduduwa's language, or a coinage from the description of the animal as given to them by oduduwa.

Remember, Arabia is neighbors with India, so the tiger will not be strange to them.

BTW, amotekun means Leopard, cheetahs also not native to west Africa.

godspeed:


But they definitely came from the middle East, probably from Arabia ( who are neighbors with India) at least this is one of the myths about oduduwa the progenitor of the yorubas

1. Yorùbá are not from Arabia
2. No traditional Yoruba story says oduduwa came from mecca, that's another error made popular by Muslims clerics and missionaries just like the Ekun - Tiger error or Esu - Satan error

So all this errors are being corrected now

Venerable612:


This is wrong.

First off the name Amotekun has nothing to do physical semblance as such.

It literally translates - “one who knows as Ekun”.

Again, you are wrong that Yoruba doesn’t have a transalation for Tiger - because our fathers didn’t have an encounter with them.

In fact Tiger has two Yoruba names. It could be called OGIDAN or EKUN. That’s why they say this provide - “Ogidan o ni se Barber, ki aja de be lo ge irun”.

And “KAKA KI KINIUN SAKAPO EKUN, OLODE A MAA RODE.“ Mind you Lion in Yoruba is Kiniun. And no one will ever compare a Lion with a Leopard. No animal can stand the Lion grit for grit amongst the Cat Family other than the Tiger; hence, the comparison.

Also, when Yorubas jokingly refer to someone as Ekun - it’s to represent that the person is a Strong man.

Thus,

Lion - Kiniun
Tiger - Ogidan and Ekun
Leopard - Amotekun
Cheetah - Owawa.

Hope this helps.

Wow! Thanks for this breakdown. Yoruba language and culture really is Rich.

But what do you have to say about what the OP said about Tigers not present in Nigeria? This is a fact. There are no Tigers in Nigeria, so where did our forefathers see Tiger to give it a name?

wunmi590:


At least even if the OP is wrong or right, I have learnt smethings from him.

I am fake yoruba man...

Me too. Lol

Leopard has spots on its body, not stripes, similar as the cheetah, the cheetah is known for its faster speed, Tiger has long stripes all over it's body. the skin and hides we usually see and familiar with is likely that of a leopard or cheetah. You can't ever have an encounter with a Tiger, it's very big similar to a lion. Leopard is Ekun, cheetah is amotekun, Lion the king of jungle is kinniu

Zeinymira:
[/b]

Ipob goals is different from Amotekun. They do not share the same vision. Ipob wants it's own country but Amotekun is all about protecting the Yorubas

Don't respond to that chap. He's seriously looking for attention. Once he's ignored he'll deactivate all by himself.

macof:


In what language is this done?

One group of people call one animal by one name then another group who don't know better call another animal by the same name?? Weird stuff right there

History was removed from Nigerian schools so now many Nigerians are vocal on social media but have no inkling what they're talking about. Neither do they understand the meaning of logical inference, rather they go with hypothetical guesswork as fact which btw they also do not demand proof for.

Hayelomo:


But come to think of it. If someone maintains that ekun is leopard and tiger has no Yoruba name wouldn't it be absurd to mean that we are the first generation to have seen tiger? Are we the first generation to know a tiger? That our forefathers have never encountered it before and has never given it a name?

I've pointed out before, ancient Yorubas might have seen tigers under certain conditions, but not in Africa.

If they did, they encountered them in Asia and brought the info with them when they either moved to Africa or returned there.

Third option: the colonial officers introduced the concept of tiger to Nigerian people.

A question no one is asking is can tigers live in west Africa. Probably not, unless their habitat is found there.

aywhy93:
@OP, Demzlent... While trying to show us and impress us that you're a true Yoruba. You were doing the opposite.
@Mods, Lalastica... Please edit the topic on the front page, it's misleading to everyone.

Venerable612 has done justice to the post. He explained exactly the way it is.
So for anyone who really wants to know.

In Yoruba,

Lion is Kìnìún
Tiger is Ẹkùn/Ògìdán
Cheetah is Ọ̀wàwà
Leopard is Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn

PS: For those who care to read, this is a comprehensive article on EKUN (Yoruba Article) - https://wol.jw.org/yo/wol/d/r36/lp-yr/101996845

Thank You!

but why was the picture of a cheetah used in the amotekun dp instead of that of a leopard if truly amotekun means leopard?

Nezero:
I got this beautiful post from my WhatsApp group


ON THE MEANING OF ÀMỌ̀TẸ́KÙN

A debate has been raging on since two days ago about what animal exactly do Yorùbá refer to as Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn. One thing that amazes me is the number of people that erroneously believe and claim that Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn is leopard. This people gave link to website offering Yoruba names of different animals and lo and behold, it renders Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn as leopard. This site also claims ẹkùn is tiger, an animal that never exist in the whole of Africa and by implication it never exist in Yorùbá land. It translates àjàò as nurctunal animal.

I want to appreciate the brain behind the website but they need to research more and give accurate names of these animals. It also shows that we need a central authority in terms of reference book where we can turn to for accurate Yorùbá names of flora and fauna. An ideal rendition of the animal call "Tiger" by a Yoruba man will likely be "ẹkùn abilà" just as we have adopted "kẹ́tẹ́kẹ́tẹ́ abilà" for zebra.

To this debate I have some responses to make in order to clear the air. First of all, tiger is an Asian animal. What we have here is leopard. Thank God I was born and brought up in rural area and followed elders a little. More, my hometown, Ibese in 1979 became famous when a stray ẹkùn was killed in a farmland near the town by some brave hunters. We have pictures of what Yoruba refers to as Ẹkùn and it is leopard.

Concerning Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn, there is no confusion about it. Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn is cheetah. Yoruba says, "Asunkún pani obìnrin Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn." This saying draws a comparison between a deceptive woman who can kill her husband even though she will be the first to start crying at the slightest provocation, and Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn with its two black stripes on its face resembling black tears streaming down its cheek.

The comparison also fits perfectly because of the sleeky shape of Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn (compared to the robust shape of leopard) which Yoruba must have regarded as prominent feminine feature.

More, cheetah is common in Africa and in Yorùbá land. The colonialists recorded it was a common site in Ilorin then.

Now, back to operation Àmọ̀tẹ́kùn, either by fortuity or deliberate design, those who came up with the name seem to have hit the perfect spot.


OP you have really done well.
Akure is a town very familiar with Ekun..it is the leopard. There are lots of leopards in ancient African photos. Their hides/skin also exist in abundance too.


Yearly Tigers kill people in Asia..no such occurrence in Africa. You won't find their hides too.



Many people want to remain ignorant.

if you people dont mention Akure, marriage, 1979, etc, you just dont feel at ease.

Lot of balooney in your post, reread it and correct yourself. And quit the name dropping, nobody asked you to identify yourself that way, you're probably just fake.

Niccoloimhotep:
but why was the picture of a cheetah used in the amotekun dp instead of that of a leopard if truly amotekun means leopard?

Probably because there's so much confusion with people insisting ekun means tiger.

Niccoloimhotep:
but why was the picture of a cheetah used in the amotekun dp instead of that of a leopard if truly amotekun means leopard?

The Op just downloaded and edited those pics at random.

aywhy93:


The Op just downloaded and edited those pics at random.

it wasn't edited by op. That pix has been there since the emergence of the amotekun saga

nlPoster:


Probably because there's so much confusion with people insisting ekun means tiger.

proof to the fact that op is probably right