Ade: meaning “Crown”
Aanu: meaning “Mercy”
Ayo: meaning “Joy”
Emi: meaning “Spirit”
Eni: meaning ‘historical, there birth is a story’
Ike: meaning “The Care”
Ifa: meaning “Oracle”
Iyi: meaning “Prestige”
Odu: meaning “Oracular Utterance aka Holy Speech or Prophecies”
Ola: meaning “High, as in estate or status”
Olu: meaning “God”
Oyin: meaning “Sweet as Honey, Sweetness”
Yoruba Days - Read Complete Article
- Sunday - Ojo Aiku
- Monday- Ojo Aje
- Tuesday - Ojo Isegun
- Wednesday -Ojoru
- Thursday - Ojobo
- Friday - Ojo Eti
- Saturday - Ojo Abameta
Yoruba Months - Read Complete Article
- Xéré January
- ìrèlé February
- erénà March
- igbe April
- òbìbí May
- okúdù June
- agcmo July
- ògún August
- owéwe September
- òwàrà October
- tere November
- òpe December
Yoruba Vocabulary
Abia: pronounced “a bee a” noun meaning Underarm
Agbari: pronounced “A gbi ahree” noun meaning forehead
Agere: Pronouned “A gree ree” noun which are bowls that hold sacred objects such as ikin.
Ahan: noun meaning Tounge
Akala: noun meaning Vulture
Akiu: pronounced “A Key U” verb meaning immortality
Apa: noun “ahh pa” meaning arm
Ase: noun Proununced “A Shay” and sometimes spelled “Ashe” meaning vital life force energy (chi) known as a neutral energy or force used to destroy or create.
Aye: pronounced “A yee” noun meaning earth
Babalowa: pronounced “Ba ba lo wow” noun meaning male priest or spiritual leader.
Diaspora: noun Dispersion or spread of culture, language or people; particularly african peoples of color.
Du du: Pronounced “doo doo” adj. Represents earth tone colors such as greens and browns in Yoruba color theory.
ẹjẹ: Blood
ẹlẹdẹ: pig
Egun: pronounced “ee goon” this is a Ancestor
Egungun: noun pronounced“ee goon goon” Masquerade for ancestors, also skeleton.
Ejika: pronounced“ee jee kah” meaning shoulder
Emu: pronounced “ee mu” meaning nose
Enu: pronounced “ee new” meaning mouth
Erinle: noun pronounced “ee reen lay” is the Divinity of waters.
Eti: meaning ear
Ewa: pronounced “ee wa” is the Principal of balance.
Eya: pronounced “ee yah” noun meaning Wild Cat
Esu: pronounced “e shu” an orisa known as the Trickster.
Fila: pronounced “fee la” noun meaning hat
Ẹgbẹ[pataki] Legion
Fun-fun: Represents cool colors such as white, blue, or silver in Yoruba color theory.
Gelede: pronounced “gay lay day” Masquerades that honor mothers
Ibeji: noun pronounced “ee bay jee” which are wooden sculptures that represent deceased twins.
Iroke: pronounced “ee roe kay” Long wooden implement or tapper used for divination.
Ida Owa: meaning palmprint
Idi: pronounced “ee dee” Represents the idea of hidden truth (Women) or genitals.
Ika Owa: pronounced “eeka owa” noun meaning finger
Ika Ese: noun meaning toe
Ikin: pronounced“ee ken” noun meaning Sacred palm nuts used in divination.
Ikun: pronounced “Ikoon” noun meaning Stomach
Isheju: meaning minutes
Itele ese: meaning the sole of the foot
Iyami: noun pronounced “ee am me” noun A female Orisha
idan: magic
Kojoda: noun meaning traditional Yoruba Calendar
Nok: Allegedly a portion of yoruba ancestry. (Controversial of Timeline & Relation)
Obatala: Male orisa that created mankind.
oṣupa: moon
Òòrùn: Sun
okan: heart
Oba: Meaning king.
Ochosi: pronounced “O cho- see” Male warrior orisa of the forest.
Oduduwa: “A” beginning of divine Yoruba on earth. (Controversy of Female)
Ogun: Male warrior orisa of technology and iron represented by green.
Ojo: meaning days
Oju: noun meaning eyes
Olorun: Owner of the sky, first orisa of Yoruba Pantheon.
Opon: pronounced “o pon” Wooden trays used for divination.
Orisa: Simply explained, deified Yoruba ancestors both literal and comogentic. Additionally, non Yoruba people worship these ancestors as there saints and/or Gods in similar fashion to christianity or catholic faith, in the way that or “picked up” religious beliefs that unfortunately blur lines of historical culture and organized worship.
Orun: meaning neck
Osanyin: “o shan yeen” Male orisa of herbal medicine.
Ose: meaning weeks
Osu: meaning months
Osun: pronounced “O Shoon” Female orisa of the river.
Owo: pronounced “O wee O” noun meaning hand
Oya: Female orisa of fire and cemeteries.
Oyo: Great kingdom of Yoruba that flourished in the 15th century and an Orisa.
Patakinoun (Santeria): short stories/parables (odu) from the lucumi branch of santeria which are both taken from a portion of Yoruba-Nigeria-African-cosmology ‘ifa’.
Pupa(poo pa): Represents shades of red such as oranges, reds and other warm colors in Yoruba color theory.
Raffia(raf fee a): Dried grasses used to decorate sacred and mundane objects.
Sango: Great king and ancestor who became orisa of thunder.
Se: meaning disallowed
Sibi: pronounced “she bee” meaning spoo
sipeli: spell
Wakati: meaning hours
Yemoja: Known as the “Mother of All,” including the Orisa themselves. She is a constant shapeshifter, manifesting as the mermaid Sirena to some, and to others as the all-seeing Wise Woman represented by the regal peacock. As the sovereign of the seas and rivers, her relationship with her sister Osun completes the celestial balance: the Moon to Osun's Sun.
The Yoruba: An Unbroken Lineage
Pronunciation: “You’re r(h)ow bah”
The Yoruba people of Southwest Nigeria, the Republic of Benin, and Togo are the indigenous keepers of a civilization that has flourished in West Africa since at least 500 BCE. By 1000 CE, they had established a complex and stable urban society that remains a cornerstone of African history. While the specific umbrella term "Yoruba" is a 19th-century designation, the people and their culture predate such labels by millennia.
The Dynastic Connection to Kemet
The Yoruba heritage is woven into the very fabric of Kemet (Ancient Egypt). They ruled as Pharaohs across several pivotal eras, most notably during the 24th, 25th, and 26th Dynasties. The names of these rulers—such as Pharaoh Shabaka, Taharqa, and Shebitku—are not merely "ancient" or "Nubian" relics; they remain recognizable within the Yoruba cultural and linguistic tradition today.
Restoring the Narrative
Though Western history often uses the term “Nubian Renaissance” to describe the period when these Pharaohs unified and ruled all of Kemet, this label often acts as an external "catch-all" similar to how "Indian" was incorrectly applied to the Americas. By looking through the lens of direct Yoruba culture rather than Western academic classifications, we see a clear, continuous line of leadership and spiritual authority that moved across the continent, proving that the heights of Kemet were an integral part of the Yoruba story.
A Note on Oral History: Reclaiming these names and connections is a vital step in correcting a history written by those who viewed the continent from the outside. It honors the truth that the people never disappeared; their names and identities simply lived on through their descendants.
Please feel free to contribute to this list in the comments
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