Oral Poetry from Africa
This Yorùbá Ìjálá (Hunting Poem) is different, praising not an animal but a plant. Cassava, also called manioc or tapioca, is a root vegetable, rich in starch, but not so nutritious as yams or maize, and consequently grown only along the farm’s boundary.
Lafunyinrin,
a stand-by cheering the despondent…
Another Ìjálá or hunter’s poem from the Yorùbá of Nigeria (see also the poems Elephant, Buffalo, Five Creatures and Hunters’ Salutes). This one is a salute to Fabunmi, celebrating both his skills as a hunter and his generosity towards others.
Oolo of Iware Forest,
why is it we no longer see Fabunmi…
A Yorùbá Ìjálá (hunter’s poem) from Nigeria (see also Hunters’ Salutes). The poem describes vividly the buffalo’s attributes of speed and terrifying strength.
Buffalo, we salute you:
Butterfly of the savannah…
A Yorùbá poem from Nigeria, and among the noblest of all Ìjálá (hunters’ chants). Many different versions of this chant have been published, but all reveal the same admiration and wonder at this animal’s qualities.
Elephant, opulent creature, elephant,
huge as a hill even when kneeling:
Elephant, robed in honour,
a demon, flapping fans of war:
