Oral Poetry from Africa
An Oríkì (praise poem) in praise of Dada Areogun, one of the most famous Yorùbá carvers in wood (1880–1954). Born in the village of Osi, now known as Osi-Ilorin in Ekiti state. See the Ere-Yorùbá site for more information about Dada Areogun.
Dada, who has Ogun’s money to spend.
The end of his cloth is knotted like an infant’s umbilical cord…
Shango, or Ṣàngó, was the third Alafin (king) of the Oyo kingdom. He was deified after his death and is one of the most popular Òrìṣàs across the Caribbean and the Americas. These praises are sung by devotees of Ṣàngó and emphasise the daily duty of paying respect to the Òrìṣà.
When the elephant wakes in the morning,
he must pay his respects to his new wife…
A collection of Yorùbá Oríkì (praise poems) for the Òrìṣà Ògún. Some of these were included in a previous post, but are included again here to illustrate how different Oríkì could be recombined in performance.
Ogun kills on the right and destroys on the right.
Ogun kills on the left and destroys on the left…
A Yorùbá praise-poem from Nigeria. According to legend, the first Alaafin or King of the powerful Yorùbá kingdom of Oyo was Ọranyan. He chose a trader whom he named Onikoyi to be one of his generals, holding command over 1469 men who were obliged to fight to the death and never turn their backs to the enemy. Onikoyi, then, is remembered first and foremost as a warrior.
Onikoyi, the warrior who never received an arrow in his back.
Child of the water lily, child of the squirrel.
A Yorùbá Oríkì (praise-poem) from Nigeria. Ògún is the god of iron and metallurgy. He is pictured as a blacksmith, but presides over every activity in which iron is used — hoes for cultivating, cutlasses for reaping, guns for hunting, cars for travelling, and so on. He therefore becomes a god of creativity and of harvesting, of hunting and of warfare, of invention and exploration and destruction.
Ogun kills on the right and destroys on the right.
Ogun kills on the left and destroys on the left.
