The First 11 Intergers In Yorùbá

The first 11 integers in Yorùbá. Repost from Ọlọ́bẹ Yọyon Facebook Page

In the first book of Ifá (Eji-Ogbe), Ọ̀rúnmìlà recited the following poem, giving us the names of the first 11 integers of the Yorùbá number system…

Ifá l’ó di’ní
Iní l’ọmọde nka ‘wó
Ifá l’o d’eji
Eji l’ọmọde nka ‘wó
Ifá l’o d’ẹ̀ta
Àtapa l’ode ń’tẹran
Ifá l’o d’ẹ̀rin
Ẹ̀rin ni nwọn rin fọnná ọtín
Ẹ̀rín l’àgbàrá nrin k’odo l’ọ́nà
Ifá l’o d’àrún
Mo l’o dàrún
Àrún mo’ka,l’a ńrún àgbàdo
Ifá l’o d’ẹ̀fà
Ifá ilé nwọn o to fa oko
Ifá oko nwọn o to ‘fà ilé
Ifá l’o d’èje
Olúgbọ́n ki ṣ’oro kó má ki ‘je
Ifá l’o d’ẹ̀jọ
Ilé awo, ẹ̀jọ ni, ọ̀nå awo ẹ̀jọ ni
Ifá l’o d’ẹ̀sán
Ẹ̀sán mi, àsọ́ngbó aṣọ
Asọ́ngbó ma ni t’ẹ̀wọ̀
Ifá l’o d’ẹ̀wá
Wíwá ni nwọn nwa babalawo kiri
K’o to wa ṣ’ifa rere fún ni
Ifá l’o d’ọ̀kànlá
Mo ló d’èlé
Èlé ni nwọn ńdẹrù Alárá
Èlé ni nwọn ńdẹrù Ajerò
Èlé ni nwọn ńdẹrù Ajánpadá in Ilẹ Akurẹ

Translation…

Ifá says ‘one’
A child starts counting with ‘one’
Ifá says ‘two’
A child follows one with ‘two’
Ifá says ‘three’
A hunter shoots his quarry dead
Ifá says ‘four’
Fire of liquor is taken with a smile
The rainstorm smiles on discharging into the river
Ifá says ‘five’
I say ‘five’
Maize seeds are chewed uncounted
Ifá says ‘six’
Home gains are less than farm gains
Farm gains are less than home gains
Ifá says ‘seven’
Olugbọn worships only on the seventh day
Ifá says ‘eight’
A diviner uses the eight-beaded Ọpẹlẹ to make divination
Ifá says ‘nine’
My girdle will outlast the cloth
Ifá says ‘ten’
You look for the diviner to give you a good divination
Ifá says ‘eleven’
I say we now reckon in increments
Alara’s luggage is assembled incrementally
Ajero’s luggage is assembled incrementally
Ajanpada’s own is assembled incrementally in Akurẹ town.

Reference:
Longe O. The Yoruba Ancient, Traditional Number System and A Yoruba New Decimal Number System (2016)

Prof Olu Longẹ is the first professor of computer science in Nigeria.