SamAfrik:
Pls wat does 'Tapa' mean? any relevance to 'Igala'?
Really want 2 know.
Thanks NLers!

we hav takpa nd it means finish. as in e don finish. lol

Junior66:
akpai stop causing confusion here. if u are from ibaji lga just say so nd stop misinforming other people. it is only ibajis and oda igalas from odolu dat can have the remotest claim to an igbo relationship becos u share boundaries and have inter-married. most of you even look like igbos nd u speak igbo too. u cnt generalise that kinda relationship

hey thats true ooo i am not claiming confusion here ok....am just telling people to stop look at igala tribe as one muslim tribe...ok..the problem with igala is our history is being over shadowed by the islamic identity they put in front of them...its bad....you can see an igalan bearing two muslim names..its bad...why cant u put ur igala name in d middle....see how many igalans know their dress mode the achi dress..but idomas always fly their black n red colour any day anytime....

so cool down...

Revolva:


hey thats true ooo i am not claiming confusion here ok....am just telling people to stop look at igala tribe as one muslim tribe...ok..the problem with igala is our history is being over shadowed by the islamic identity they put in front of them...its bad....you can see an igalan bearing two muslim names..its bad...why cant u put ur igala name in d middle....see how many igalans know their dress mode the achi dress..but idomas always fly their black n red colour any day anytime....

so cool down...

Allow me bump an old thread. I thought Igala was evenly split between Muslims and Christians?

Probz:
Allow me bump an old thread. I thought Igala was evenly split between Muslims and Christians?

yeah musilim in the core area of igala land n christains amongt southern igalas

Revolva:


yeah musilim in the core area of igala land n christains amongt southern igalas

Looks like people don vex you for this thread. Nwayo.

The Igalas are descendants of various waves of expeditions of Yoruba hunters who got lost looooong ago and couldn't find their way back home.
They then mixed with idomas and became a new tribe called Igala.

20CRATES:
The Igalas are descendants of various waves of expeditions of Yoruba hunters who got lost looooong ago and couldn't find their way back home.
They then mixed with idomas and became a new tribe called Igala.

yea but igala share element of yoruaboid language in it ok

Probz:
yea but igala have element of yoruaboid language in it ok

Igala sound like a hybrid of Yoruba and something I can't place my hands on.
It is like 40-60% Yoruba and 60-40% Gibberish.

lol

20CRATES:


Igala sound like a hybrid of Yoruba and something I can't place my hands on.
It is like 40-60% Yoruba and 60-40% Gibberish.

lol

The fusion would most likely come from Idoma and even Igbo. It just depends who speaks it though. My grandma's a core Idah Igala and her own take on the language sounds very Yoruboid but Ibaji Igala's fused with Igbo (for obvious reasons). Itsekiri obviously has a much stronger affinity with Yoruba.

Probz:
The fusion would most likely come from Idoma and even Igbo. It just depends who speaks it though. My grandma's a core Idah Igala and her own take on the language sounds very Yoruboid but Ibaji Igala's fused with Igbo (for obvious reasons). Itsekiri obviously has a much stronger affinity with Yoruba.

Itsekiri is a piece of cake- i don't even have any issues understanding like 80-85%
It sounds more like a dialect than language, like when someone is speaking conc ekiti dialect or something.

Yes Igala fused with Idoma and Igbo. Can u inagine Igalas call cassava Akpu. Lool. Some parts even call a man Okolobia, the Igala actual is Onekule from One- person, Okule/ man (okunrin im Yoruba)

I dont understand Idoma, I would hv probably bn able to pull out the other half of what the language is


BUT surprisingly - Igala sound much more tonally like Yoruba than Itsekiri.

BOTH HAVE THE SAME high, mid and low tones, but Igala mimics Yoruba more. itsekiri sounds more flat, dunno why.

Do u speak Igala?

20CRATES:


Itsekiri is a piece of cake- i don't even have any issues understanding like 80-85%
It sounds more like a dialect than language, like when someone is speaking conc. ekiti dialect or something.

Yes Igala fused with Idoma and Igbo. Can u inagine Igalas call cassava Akpu. Lool. Some parts even call a man Okolobia, the Igala actual is Onekule from One- person, Okule/ man (okunrin im Yoruba)

I dont understand Idoma, I would hv probably bn able to pull out the other half of what the language is


BUT surprisingly - Igala sound much more tonally like Yoruba than Itsekiri.

BOTH HAVE THE SAME high, mid and low tones, but Igala mimics Yoruba more. itsekiri sounds more flat, dunno why.

Do u speak Igala?

I don't speak Igala nah. I kinda wanna though. I'd sooner learn Yoruba first though since Igala itself stems from more of a Yoruba than an Igbo linguistic background.

Yup, I hear Ekiti Yoruba can make anyone's head spin. The whole eastern flank of Yorubaland (Ijebu, Ondo, Ekiti) obviously takes external influence from Bini linguistically compared to the more conc./mainline Ibadan/Osun/Ogun (Ijebu aside) peeps. Itsekiri just sounds like a distinct example of that. A language and a dialect at the same time. More akin to what Ikwerre is to Igbo.

We're both agreed that Itsekiri's more Yoruba than Igala could ever be. Igala names are in a world of their own. Nothing about Ojo or Achimugu would suggest they speak a Yoruboid language.

Probz:


I don't speak Igala nah. I kinda wanna though. I'd sooner learn Yoruba first though since Igala itself stems from more of a Yoruba than an Igbo linguistic background.

Yup, I hear Ekiti Yoruba can make anyone's head spin. The whole eastern flank of Yorubaland (Ijebu, Ondo, Ekiti) obviously takes external influence from Bini linguistically compared to the more conc./mainline Ibadan/Osun/Ogun (Ijebu aside) peeps. Itsekiri just sounds like a distinct example of that. A language and a dialect at the same time. More akin to what Ikwerre is to Igbo.

We're both agreed that Itsekiri's more Yoruba than Igala could ever be. Igala names are in a world of their own. Nothing about Ojo or Achimugu would suggest they speak a Yoruboid language.

You see, that is the thing about Igala, A LOT of what you think does not sound Yoruba anymore are just because they have recieved a little pronunciation twist. They are still very much Yoruboid to a trained linguist, but would sound "Foreign-ish" to a layman.
Lets look at Achimugu or Achimugwu.

It actually means: "with accordance to inheritance" It actually comes from the proverb

"A che mu ogwu ki a jeun, ogwu a na wo"
If you do not eat your inheritance, it will increase (something like that)

Now, the ogwu in this context means Inheritance, which in Yoruba is Ogun, i.e inheritance. In this case Igala has substituted the nasal ending "Un" with "Wu", same way Ogun (medicine) becomes Ogwu in Igala, Ogun (war) becomes Ogwu. Etc.

If it was "Ashemogun", It will immediately sound Yoruboid won't it

Ojo is a shortened form for a longer name for god, can't remember the full word now. Same trick played out.

Probz:


I don't speak Igala nah. I kinda wanna though. I'd sooner learn Yoruba first though since Igala itself stems from more of a Yoruba than an Igbo linguistic background.

Yup, I hear Ekiti Yoruba can make anyone's head spin. The whole eastern flank of Yorubaland (Ijebu, Ondo, Ekiti) obviously takes external influence from Bini linguistically compared to the more conc./mainline Ibadan/Osun/Ogun (Ijebu aside) peeps. Itsekiri just sounds like a distinct example of that. A language and a dialect at the same time. More akin to what Ikwerre is to Igbo.

We're both agreed that Itsekiri's more Yoruba than Igala could ever be. Igala names are in a world of their own. Nothing about Ojo or Achimugu would suggest they speak a Yoruboid language.

The Edo influence in Eastern Yorubaland was more cultural than linguistic actually
There is only very very little Benin influence in south Eastern Yooruboids. There is more Yoruba influence inside Benin language than Benin influence inside south eastern Yoruba dialects.

But yes, culturally the Eastern Yoruba-Benin ties are very strong.

First pic. Oba of the Ondo Kingdom, The Osemawe
Second pic, Ondo girls.
Ondo titled man.
Olori of Ondo. (The Queen)

Note that these things we think of as Benin might actually be old Yoruba customs that have been retained in SE Yorubaland (with which Benin has the most enduring history of contact and relationship) and Benin itself.
The names of the Benin objects of state, Ada and Eben sound toooooo suspiciously Yoruba ( Sword/Cutlass and Knife) respectively in Yoruba.

lol, don't let me talk too much, before i become a legendary parrot.

20CRATES:


You see, that is the thing about Igala, A LOT of what you think does not sound Yoruba anymore are just because they have recieved a little pronunciation twist. They are still very much Yoruboid to a trained linguist, but would sound "Foreign-ish" to a layman.
Lets look at Achimugu or Achimugwu.

It actually means: "with accordance to inheritance" It actually comes from the proverb

"A che mu ogwu ki a jeun, ogwu a na wo"
If you do not eat your inheritance, it will increase (something like that)

Now, the ogwu in this context means Inheritance, which in Yoruba is Ogun, i.e inheritance. In this case Igala has substituted the nasal ending "Un" with "Wu", same way Ogun (medicine) becomes Ogwu in Igala, Ogun (war) becomes Ogwu. Etc.

If it was "Ashemogun", It will immediately sound Yoruboid won't it

Ojo is a shortened form for a longer name for god, can't remember the full word now. Same trick played out.

I see. And what's the weirdest Yoruba dialect?

20CRATES:


The Edo influence in Eastern Yorubaland was more cultural than linguistic actually
There is only very very little Benin influence in south Eastern Yooruboids. There is more Yoruba influence inside Benin language than Benin influence inside south eastern Yoruba dialects.

But yes, culturally the Eastern Yoruba-Benin ties are very strong.

First pic. Oba of the Ondo Kingdom, The Osemawe
Second pic, Ondo girls.
Ondo titled man.
Olori of Ondo. (The Queen)

Note that these things we think of as Benin might actually be old Yoruba customs that have been retained in SE Yorubaland (with which Benin has the most enduring history of contact and relationship) and Benin itself.
The names of the Benin objects of state, Ada and Eben sound toooooo suspiciously Yoruba ( Sword/Cutlass and Knife) respectively in Yoruba.

lol, don't let me talk too much, before i become a legendary parrot.

You can't be a parrot if you're saying interesting things. Continue jare. I'm obviously listening.

Probz:


I see. And what's the weirdest Yoruba dialect?

* Akoko dialects - Oh my gosh!
* Ede Ife (Togolese) - Damn
* Idaasha - (one of the Beninois Yoruba dialects) - Jesu!
* Ilaje
* Owo, Ikale and Ondo tying 5th 3rdd in the Nigerian context.
* Owe (Kabba), Ijumu and Oworo tying 6th.
* Ekiti
* Ijebu

Yup.

20CRATES:


* Akoko dialects - Oh my gosh!
* Ede Ife (Togolese) - Damn
* Idaasha - (one of the Beninois Yoruba dialects) - Jesu!
* Ilaje
* Owo, Ikale and Ondo tying 5th 3rdd in the Nigerian context.
* Owe (Kabba), Ijumu and Oworo tying 6th.
* Ekiti
* Ijebu

Yup.

You got the patience to lecture me on the Akoko-Edo/Ondo thing tonight? That one always throws me.

Probz:
You got the patience to lecture me on the Akoko-Edo/Ondo thing tonight? That one always throws me.

Akoko Ondo are Yoruba, although there were a few villages there that were speakers of edoid dialects but who have since converted, or are currently in the process of doing so.

Akoko Edo is where things get reaally interesting.
It is made up of:
* Etunos (who live in Igarra the LGA HQ). The Etunos are basically Egbiras who just go by a different name to be fancy because they are not in "North" like Egbira Okene people lol.
* Okpameris, The biggest group
* Yorubas
* Unemes (Believed to be migratory blacksmiths) - some of them claim origin to as far away as awka.
* Ososo
* Sasaru - Enwan
Etc.

In short, a tower of Babel , linguistically speaking. In Akoko Edo, you can encounter 5 languages within a 1km radius, or even different sections of the same village speaking different languages.
During the times of the Western Nigeria internecine wars, they were one of the badly affected groups. They suffered some heavy Ibadan raiding, this was a period of high mobility, many Yorubas settled there and began to influence them, lifestyles and linguistically. A lot of them picked up the names of Yoruba war generals, notable people etc.

Then the Nupe Jihadists came along raiding and pillaging, and also left their legacy, especially in the aspects of traditional titles and rulership (although now, the nupe influence has almost vanished), you can still see hints of it in some last names lake Dawudu, Bakare, etc.

Starting from early colonial times, there was an additional influx of early Yoruba christian missionaries, Clerks, office/Government workers, etc into the area, they became influenced even more. The ones that retained their differences earlier all converted to Yoruba names.
They all began to speak Yoruba language - which was honestly more of a plus to them naturally speaking, because of the regions extremely high linguistic diversity, Yoruba made it easier for them to relate within themselves and with their Yoruba neighbors.

Then, many migrated to major Yoruba urban centres and returned home with even more dynamics, influencing what was on ground in the villages even more.

That was how they became a more or less Yoruba people, although with ancestral very very old edoid roots. Roots that are honestly not even connected with Benin. But the original edoid stock of people.

20CRATES:


Akoko Ondo are Yoruba, although there were a few villages there that were speakers of edoid dialects but who have since converted, or are currently in the process of doing so.

Akoko Edo is where things get reaally interesting.
It is made up of:
* Etunos (who live in Igarra the LGA HQ). The Etunos are basically Egbiras who just go by a different name to be fancy because they are not in "North" like Egbira Okene people lol.
* Okpameris, The biggest group
* Yorubas
* Unemes (Believed to be migratory blacksmiths) - some of them claim origin to as far away as awka.
* Ososo
* Sasaru - Enwan
Etc.

In short, a tower of Babel , linguistically speaking. In Akoko Edo, you can encounter 5 languages within a 1km radius, or even different sections of the same village speaking different languages.
During the times of the Western Nigeria internecine wars, they were one of the badly affected groups. They suffered some heavy Ibadan raiding, this was a period of high mobility, many Yorubas settled there and began to influence them, lifestyles and linguistically. A lot of them picked up the names of Yoruba war generals, notable people etc.

Then the Nupe Jihadists came along raiding and pillaging, and also left their legacy, especially in the aspects of traditional titles and rulership (although now, the nupe influence has almost vanished), you can still see hints of it in some last names lake Dawudu, Bakare, etc.

Starting from early colonial times, there was an additional influx of early Yoruba christian missionaries, Clerks, office/Government workers, etc into the area, they became influenced even more. The ones that retained their differences earlier all converted to Yoruba names.
They all began to speak Yoruba language - which was honestly more of a plus to them naturally speaking, because of the regions extremely high linguistic diversity, Yoruba made it easier for them to relate within themselves and with their Yoruba neighbors.

Then, many migrated to major Yoruba urban centres and returned home with even more dynamics, influencing what was on ground in the villages even more.

That was how they became a more or less Yoruba people, although with ancestral very very old edoid roots. Roots that are honestly not even connected with Benin. But the original edoid stock of people.

Can you talk more about bini people. History

aljharem:


Can you talk more about bini people. History

What exactly would you like me to say about them?
Binis are like 30% of Edo population...Give or take a few percentage points.

20CRATES:


What exactly would you like me to say about them?
Binis are like 30% of Edo population...Give or take a few percentage points.

Your theories are very plausible. I want to find out how bini language and by extension urhobo have similar words as yorubas

Example

Yoruba - bini- urhobo - english

Omo -omo-omo- child
apata-akpata----------stone or hill

Ologbo-ologbo-ologbo - cat

Etc just to mention a few

Probz:


I don't speak Igala nah. I kinda wanna though. I'd sooner learn Yoruba first though since Igala itself stems from more of a Yoruba than an Igbo linguistic background.

Yup, I hear Ekiti Yoruba can make anyone's head spin. The whole eastern flank of Yorubaland (Ijebu, Ondo, Ekiti) obviously takes external influence from Bini linguistically compared to the more conc./mainline Ibadan/Osun/Ogun (Ijebu aside) peeps. Itsekiri just sounds like a distinct example of that. A language and a dialect at the same time. More akin to what Ikwerre is to Igbo.

We're both agreed that Itsekiri's more Yoruba than Igala could ever be. Igala names are in a world of their own. Nothing about Ojo or Achimugu would suggest they speak a Yoruboid language.

An important thing to note is that Ekiti dialect is not an Eastern dialect, it's a Central dialect, but it still has many similarities with Eastern dialects. Despite the contact with Bini, it is almost impossible to find Bini words in Ekiti. By the way contact with Bini was lesser especially in Northern and Western Ekiti.

Eastern dialects have very little/insignificant Benin influence in terms of language. Dialects like Ijebu and Remo despite being Eastern weren't directly in the Benin's line of influence. Ijebu were known to practice strict isolationism and any outsider was not allowed in their kingdom. They were pretty much an independent kingdom free of Oyo or Bini for much of their existence.

Also, Eastern dialects like Ilaje and Ondo that were directly in Benin's line of contact were not significantly influenced by Edo language. I think if you want to see the Edo-Yoruba relationship, then you can visit Ogho-Osse area in Ondo state. Ogho craftsmen were utilized in Bini's courtyards, because they were known for their ivory and wood carving skills. Even the Ogho dialect that shares a direct border with Edo was not really that influenced by Edo language. Why? I've heard the Ogho dialect was the dialect of Yoruba spoken in Bini's royal courts centuries ago. Also, Bini took on more Yoruba influence in terms of language than vice versa. I think this is because the Bini didn't really force their language on their neighbors.

Itsekiri and Ilaje Yoruba understand each other and can hold a conversation with each other despite Itsekiri being classified as Yoruboid and Ilaje being a dialect of Yoruba.

The main difference between Itsekiri and Eastern Yoruba dialects is mainly the higher presence of Bini/Urhobo and Portuguese loan words in Itsekiri as compared to Eastern Yoruba dialects.

Names like Ojo can be found in Yoruba as well. I was surprised to find that the tradition for abiku exists in Igala where it's known as abikwu. Abiku rituals are performed on children that are born to die. Abiku contains two verbs: "bi" to be born/to give birth and "ku" or "kwu" to die.

Probz:


I see. And what's the weirdest Yoruba dialect?

No Yoruba dialect is weird, it's just perception. For example a native speaker of Ijebu won't find anything strange about Ijebu, but an Ibadan speaker might and vice versa. If we are going to use the Standard Yoruba register which is based on the Ibadan and Oyo dialects as the basis, then there are some dialects that would be considered "weird" by a person who's not familiar with other dialects. This is why when a lot of people who come to Yorubaland and just learn the Standard Yoruba find it very difficult to understand the many dialectal varieties that exist. This problem can be averted if you train your ears to the different dialects. Native Yorubas can generally pick up on each others' dialects.

But to answer your question, if someone learns the common standard Yoruba, then the NE, SE and the SW dialect groups will be the most difficult to understand. Let me break it down, Standard Yoruba is based on the NW dialects, so you are going to understand other NW dialects(Ibadan, Lagos, Oyo). Some NW dialects like Egba, Ibarapa, Ibolo, Yewa, Onko might give you a little more challenge but you are still going to understand. You will also understand the Central dialects, although you will find some challenges. When you get to the SE(Ijebu,Ondo, Ilaje etc), one's untrained ears will not help.

To put it short, anything SE Yoruba(Most of the many dialects in Ondo state except for Akure as well as the Ijebu and Remo dialects in Ogun and Lagos) will be the "weirdest." These dialects contain reminiscence of old Yoruba as that have changed very little since antiquity in comparison to some Yoruba dialects. These dialects have very complex/unique phonology/sounds that aren't simply present in many Yoruba dialects. This include consonants, oral vowels and nasal vowels that are typically simplified in NW Yoruba dialects. For example, mouth in Yoruba is "enu" and "erhu" in Ilaje. Hole in Yoruba is "iho" and earth is "aye" but "ukhwo" and "ehyale" in the Ikale dialect respectively. You also have the frequent use of nasal sounds like "en" and "on" in those dialects.

The SW dialects, particularly the Ana/Ife dialect of Togo-Benin can be hard to understand, but I won't say it's the "weirdest" sounding. The sound systems are much simpler than the SE varieties.

20CRATES:


* Akoko dialects - Oh my gosh!
* Ede Ife (Togolese) - Damn
* Idaasha - (one of the Beninois Yoruba dialects) - Jesu!
* Ilaje
* Owo, Ikale and Ondo tying 5th 3rdd in the Nigerian context.
* Owe (Kabba), Ijumu and Oworo tying 6th.
* Ekiti
* Ijebu

Yup.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHGDuLjKxis

Listen to him from 2.00 on. Now I can see (or hear) what you mean about Akoko. Chei.

Probz:



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHGDuLjKxis

Listen to him from 2.00 on. Now I can see (or hear) what you mean about Akoko. Chei.

that is not akoko dialect

aljharem:
that is not akoko dialect

I don't speak or sabi Yoruba beyond the obvious pidgin loanwords so I'm counting on you guys to enlighten me. What is it if not Akoko?

Probz:
Looks like people don vex you for this thread. Nwayo.

as in how

vex who am just educating igorant nigerians about how igala land is....ok...too much

Probz:
I’m from Anambra State but I have maternal links to Igala so my mum’s side of the family speaks a decent range of Nigerian languages. My mum’s grandma was from Nsukka and she married an Idah man and her daughter (my grandma) married an Awka man. She’s bilingual in Igala and general Northern Igbo (Nsukka and Awka dialects). My mum picked up Yoruba in Lagos and she was born in Kogi during the war so she can understand about a third of Igala. Her sister was born in Borno so she’s bilingual in Igbo and Hausa. My paternal side’s monolingual in Igbo. That’s four languages represented in my family – the main three (Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba) + Igala. Yours?

I've noticed that most people from Awka are a little mixed with Igala and my maternal side's no exception. Not surprising.

wow bro..really....you have igala roots...even how does igala people in anambra get noticed...am sure...many igbos dont know igala...and northern anambra have good ancestry ties...till date

Revolva:


as in how

vex who am just educating igorant nigerians about how igala land is....ok...too much




wow bro..really....you have igala roots...even how does igala people in anambra get noticed...am sure...many igbos dont know igala...and northern anambra have good ancestry ties...till date

You've obviously got reading comprehension issues. I said people on this thread made you angry and that you should take am easy.

Yes, my maternal grandma's Igala. Even without direct links most of us from the Nri-Awka axis have some distant Igala ancestry. I'm sure you know all about that.

Truly some igala if not most still know their lineage. It is just water that separated the igala from the south. You find them in anambra and recently I heard they are also in delta in anioma region.
The ones in delta came to be from a war they fought and instruction was given to them not to take wives there but some of them did and they were banished so that was how they settled in delta. For the igalas in anamba region they actually share boundary. The state an anambra was named after a river called "anomibara" in igala language. It happened that during the creation of state the culture of people was not taking into consideration when they were creating states. So that part of igala was carved into anambra. Till date you still see people from anam bra having three marks by their mouth which is same as that of a typical igala man.
We have another case like those from Ndoni in rivers state. They speak same language as a kwale man in delta state. Evenis some of them still have cousins in delta state.

Probz:


You've obviously got reading comprehension issues. I said people on this thread made you angry and that you should take am easy.

Yes, my maternal grandma's Igala. Even without direct links most of us from the Nri-Awka axis have some distant Igala ancestry. I'm sure you know all about that.

yeah bro i know ......that....thanks

Revolva:



yeah bro i know ......that....thanks

Why all the dots? Can't you type like a normal person again?

Probz:
Why all the dots? Can't you type like a normal person again?

your name probz shows you got a problem bro.....wetin concern you if i put dot....oga pls relax jare