Re[2]: What is Oluwa?
W. Azeez
James,
I think the basis of your minor disagreement with Femi is your
interpretation of "Oluwa". While I agree with you that the existence
of the supreme deity precedes christianity and Islam, the expression
Oluwa does not exclusively refer to God Almighty. The common association
of Oluwa to God is a christian invention.
True, Oluwa translates to "lord", which could be any deity/divine, the
king, the head of a community. Anybody who has a natural or acquired
authority over another person can be Oluwa of the latter. A husband
can be "Oluwa" to his wife(s). A slave-owner to his/her slaves, a
judge to supplicants, and a general to foot-soldiers are all Oluwa's.
Previously only exclusive expressions such as "OlOrun ", ElEda
e/odumare (or ele/olodumare) refer to the God Almighty, b/4 the
christian adoption of Oluwa. If you accept this, the name Oluwamide
(shortened to Olumide or Olude) should make sense, as it portrays
the arrival of a child who is believed to be a re-incarnation of a
king or any other kind of lord (in the belief of the parents). It
could also be a child destined to be a lord, as foretold by diviners.
I agree with you that not all olu's are expandible to Oluwa. Olu
ordinarily could mean "a chief" or "a head", aside from "a lord"
For instance the "olu" in olu-OmO and olu-ilu cannot be expanded
into "oluwa". The two cases refer to "olu" as head or chief. In
contrast, olu-igbo and olu-ibadan can be expanded to Oluwa-Igbo
(the lord of the bush) and Oluwa-Ibadan (the lord/sovereign of
Ibadan).
Best,
Wemimo.
>Dear 'Femi:
>
>There are some names that begin with Olu but clearly do not reference God per
> se. When
>I said "all" names in my earlier posting, I was responding specifically to the
> names
>that came to my mind at that moment. For example:
>
>Olumide = My lord (king) has arrived, debatably may not reference God. Although
> some
>staunch believers may still want to associate it with the coming of the Lord. I
> this
>particular case, one can see that nobody walks around calling himself/herself
> "Oluwade"
>or "Oluwamide" etc. Whereas many of the "Olu-" names are sometimes expanded to
> "Oluwa-"
>e.g. Olusegun = Oluwasegun or Oluseun = Oluwaseun etc.
>
>Once a name is coined, it is up to the bearer to interpret it anyway they want.
> My
>posting on names were motivated by specific questions about the origin of those
> names.
>Afterall, I do not quarrel with Adey when he chooses to attach a "y" to his own
>spelling :-)
>
>One can also approach this discussion from another angle. One can assert that
> Oluwa =
>God was the original word, and Olu was a shortening of it, and kings were calle
> Olu or
>Oluwa from the times when Kings were believed to have been direct descendants o
> God or
>even "gods" themselves (note the smaall "g"). The Yorubas have been monotheisti
> long
>before they were exposed to Christianity or the Jewish religion. The reference
> to
>mushrooms as Olu could also have derived from the crown shaped head of
> mushrooms.
>
>As to being an agnostic, I cannot judge your beliefs. Each one of us has his/he
> own
>unique points of conversion. The pragmatic issue is how we each achieve our
> desired
>outcomes through the beliefs that we profess. Given the uncertainties that
> abound in
>various religions, I think it is probably wise to err on the side of believing.
> Just my
>humble opinion.
>
>James.
>
>Babafem...@unon.org wrote:
>
>> Dr. Fabunmi,
>>
>> I am glad that you explained the basis of your translation of Olu in
>> terms of "King of Kings" as a Christian concept put into Yoruba. I
>> also read Segun's contribution.
>>
>> You may be right that a poll will suggest that most Yorubas will
>> prefer Christ. I am not sure about that and we need not debate that.
>> Suffice it to note, however, that Yoruba as a language or dialects
>> of it existed before Christ. Cheikh Anta Diop and others are
>> helpful in the linguistic and other cultural linkages to the
>> Nubian/Egyptian civilisations BC.
>>
>> I am Ijebu and do not know if "Olusensen" is only Ijebu and not in
>> mainstream Yoruba but it is a name for a particular type of mushroom.
>> Is this King of Kings of mushrooms? What about "Olu-Igbo" (Lord of
>> the Forest) in our folk tales. Read Fagunwa and Soyinka's translation
>> and see if Olu in this sense implies Heavenly Lord.
>>
>> On the personal question which I wanted to avoid since I do not like
>> discussing personalities, I am not a Christian. I am agnostic and in
>> that spirit would not have cared if the patriach in my family
>> named after the earthly or heavenly King.
>>
>> The beauty of our culture is the relative freedom that my father gave
>> me in following neighbours to the mosque and following him to the
>> church and his comment that it is for me to decide. I became an
>> agnostic in 1969 and remain thus, at least, for now. I gave the same
>> freedom I received to my children and they follow my wife to church
>> and listen to them "curse" me in their prayers that I will not know
>> peace until I know Christ.
>>
>> I am Babafemi in which case father loves or wants me. Some people
>> have tried to interprete it to mean "Baba" i.e. Father in Heaven. I
>> know some tried the same on Awo's Obafemi i.e. the King loves or
>> wants me, and even those who are Adefemi i.e., the Crown loves or
>> wants me, by saying it is the Heavenly King/Crown. But I was informed
>> that my own Baba is restricted to my immediate grandfather in terms
>> of the circumstances of his death and my birth. In effect, if I were
>> Olufemi, it could very well be only the earthly King.
>>
>> May I note that Yoruba names are very complex, at times, in
>> understanding. Many a time we may be giving just the literal meanings
>> to some names that are deeper in meaning. Of course in the absence
>> of the Adeboye Babalola and Wande Abimbolas on this net, we can use
>> the best we can get. And it is for this reason that I commended and
>> still commend your effort.
>>
>> Sorry that time difference did not allow me to reply earlier.
>>
>> 'Femi
>>
>> On 6 Jun 98 at 13:25, Dr. James A. Fabunmi wrote:
>>
>> > Date: Sat, 06 Jun 1998 13:25:21 -0400
>> > From: "Dr. James A. Fabunmi" <jfab...@erols.com>
>> > To: Babafem...@unon.org
>> > Cc: naij...@esosoft.com
>> > Subject: Re: What is Oluwa?
>>
>> > 'Femi:
>> >
>> > The reason why I broke it down in such detail is to underscore the spiritua
>> > foundation of the name. If you were to take a poll of all those whose names
> begin
>> > with Olu, you will be able to ascertain what percentage of them will
> translate
>> > their "Olu" as a reference to God. If you had a choice of associating your
> name
>> > with "king" or "King of kings", which one will you choose?
>> >
>> > James.
>> >
>> > Babafem...@unon.org wrote:
>> >
>> > > Dr. Fabunmi,
>> > >
>> > > I join others to commend you.
>> > >
>> > > On the concept of Olu, are you sure you are not restricting it to
>> > > Christianity by making Lord=God. What about Olu ilu i.e. town head?
>> > > In which case King is not equal to the idea of "Heavenly King" but
>> > > the "earthly King" Not all Olu=Oluwa since Olu Ilu cannot = Oluwa.
>> > > Also Oluwa could equal Olu-ti-wa i.e. Our own Olu. Furthermore, there
>> > > could be another conception of Olu that is not as simplistic as the
>> > > two we have both used. Or else why Olude? Oluwa has arrived? or King
>> > > or Head of the Town has arrived? It will be too early to so specify
>> > > for a child just being born in terms of circumstances of birth as
>> > > basis for Yoruba names. But on a second thought, it may simply mean
>> > > our own King has arrived given the importance attached to the birth
>> > > and not necessarily a prediction that a King for the town has been
>> > > born.
>> > >
>> > > Please note that mine is not an attempt to reduce your relevance. I
>> > > learnt all these names many years ago in Pry/Sec. and appreciate your
>> > > efforts in reminding us.
>> > >
>> > > 'Femi
>> > >
>> > > On 6 Jun 98 at 10:27, Dr. James A. Fabunmi wrote:
>> > >
>> > > > Date: Sat, 06 Jun 1998 10:27:41 -0400
>> > > > From: "Dr. James A. Fabunmi" <jfab...@erols.com>
>> > > > To: Prince Adey <oye...@chapman.edu>
>> > > > Cc: naij...@esosoft.com
>> > > > Subject: Re: What is the meaning of AWENI
>> > >
>> > > > Adey:
>> > > >
>> > > > "Olu" means King or Lord. In all names beginning with Olu, reference is
>> > > > being made to Oluwa (Olu-wa) = Our King = Our Lord = God. Hence
> Olu-segun =
>> > > > Oluwa se'gun = Oluwa se ogun = Our Lord has won the battle = Our Lord i
>> > > > Victorious = God is Victorious.
>> > > >
>> > > > "Ola" means Wealth or Well-being (pronounced slightly differently). A
>> > > > common saying is that "Enia to l'ola, to si tun l'ola" = A human being
> who
>> > > > is wealthy and also lives well. Names beginning with Ola, reference
> Wealth.
>> > > > So that Ola-dade = Ola d'ade = Ola de ade = Wealth is wearing a crown,
> or
>> > > > Wealth wears a crown. "Ade" is the Yoruba word for crown, as you well
> know.
>> > > >
>> > > > James.
>> > > >
>> > > > Prince Adey wrote:
>> > > >
>> > > > > Dr. James A. Fabunmi wrote:
>> > > > > >When my grandmother was alive, she could be calling my "oriki" from
>> > > > > >as far as she can see me. You can tell this because as she grew olde
>> > > > > >and weaker in sight, her appellations diminished :-)
>> > > > >
>> > > > > Ha ha ha ha ha...
>> > > > >
>> > > > > >A-yin-la, A-yin-de and A-yin-ke all contain the verb "yin" which
> means
>> > > > > >"praise". "La" is loosely related to the kissing of the feet (or
> hand)
>> > > > > >of a king. "De" is the crowning of a king. "Ke" is the caring for (o
>> > > > > >protection of) a princess. So as you can see, all three names are
> used
>> > > > > >to greet persons of royal origin.
>> > > > >
>> > > > > Great info!
>> > > > >
>> > > > > Thanks... Doc, what about OLUSEGUN and OLADADE?
>> > > > >
>> > > > > Prince Adey.
>> > > >
>> > > >
>> > > >
>> > > >
>> > > >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>
>
>
Kueberuwa, Steven S.
Wemimo/James/Babafemi,
You got very close to a question I have always had but didn't quite lay it
to the rest. The question is the meaning and implication of the word
'Olorun'. You see, the Yorubas (as far as I know) do not look heavenwards
as the abode of their gods (perhaps, except Sango at work). So the word
'Olorun', which roughly translates to 'prince of the heavens' is
etiologically baffling to me. Am I also correct to say that the primary
meaning of 'Olu' in Yoruba is 'prince' and not 'king'? Could you help me
out here?
Salaam.
Stevek.
Dr. James A. Fabunmi
Wemimo:
There is a broader semantic context for the word "oluwa" (note the small case "o").
For example:
"Tani oluwa re?" = Who is the person? or Who is that?
Actually, what the Yoruba would say is "Taal'olu'a re?" However since it was the
early Christians (led by the likes of Bishop Ajayi Crowther) who introduced the
present written form of Yoruba language, they took their liberties in approximating
the language to the form that we know now. In other words, it is near futile to
separate the syntax and grammar of written Yoruba language from the influence of
Christianity.
Following your observation, it is also noteworthy that Yoruba Muslims prefer to say
"Oloun Oba", as compared to Yoruba Christians saying "Olorun Eledumare" or "Olorun
Olodumare".
Peace.
James.
W. Azeez wrote:
> >As to being an agnostic, I cannot judge your beliefs.. Each one of us has his/he
Dr. James A. Fabunmi
Stevek:
Please know once and for all that the Yorubas do not confuse any deity with
Olorun. They do not look to the sky because the sky is not where Olorun resides.
As a matter of fact, "orun" does not mean sky. "Orun" is the habitat of the
spirits. God (Olorun), being a spirit Himself is the Lord, King, Owner (or
whatever you choose) of the habitat of the spirits (Olu Orun). The Yorubas
believe that they can traverse the medium between the habitat of humans and the
habitat of the spirits. This is the part that scared foreign missionaries into
assigning all kinds of hideous attributes to the Yoruba religion.
Ara orun, ara orun (spirit, spirit)
Inanda terere kunte, inanda (vocal chant for acapelo music)
Kil'owa'se ni leyi o (what brings you here?)
Inanda terere kunte, inanda
Emu ni mo wa da (I came to tap palmwine)
Inanda terere kunte, inanda
Gb'emu sile k'o ma lo (leave your palmwine and go)
Inanda terere kunte, inanda
The above is a chant from Ogunmola's play - The Palmwine Drinkard.
Peace.
James
e.o.shadare
Hi there again netters,
Hope you don't mind me butting in again ?
Oluwa or Olu, also refers to the owner of inanimate things.
For instance, if I found say a pen at work e.t.c. I would ask
"Se ko lolu(ni olu) ?" to enquire whether or not it belonged to
anybody.
Olu/Oluwa can be usd as a short form for "Olohun" i.e. owner of the
"thing/object/item/article/property/attribute".
Olu-Igbo refers to wild mushrooms, which are edible, whereas Olu-Ile
refers to mushrooms which grow around houses e.t.c and are
considered poisonous (In Yoruba society that is, I don't know if
they have been medically proived to be poisonous).
Olu-Ilu does refer to capital city, so also does Ilu-Alade, i.e a
town which has a ruler who wears a beaded crown. The beaded crown
signifies the ruler's links to Oduduwa(I believe). A non-beaded crown
ruler, is/was not considered to be a senior king in Yorubaland.
Hope this helps,
and I bow to Dr. Fabunmi .
cheers,
E.O. SHADARE