LEANN YOUR LANGUAGE

based on the Mein Dialect

by

JOTIN O.E. ODISI

Edited by

KAY WILLIAMSONKIERAN FLYNN

LESSION 19 School

1. Soiyc/,sukulu qbgg owcimg

2. Sutulu/3. /sukultr/eYe tolumQ ki wui kV

4Jsukulumi a emi tonrgg<Ycmil

lal5. Tolumqweimy'v.uro./6. /tung9-gbisa/daw47. /sukulu-anrmy'8. /tolumgwei9. sukulumi/kiribott/lO./sukulu adakiri/dgbal

LESSON 22 Religim1 J'Beirikurukunr ki stlg/

LESSON 21 Hedth1. /oybYg bgdltnqlr{ni2. ti owcV tr{ rmsnl IcyqlggdYr'oeidYaPsiqP-wui em"a. /coqpnl bibd5. /dtoitr{trbolool6Jntsi onuoUtrii mie ksomdTJdt4p-hp9fr/s.14 irfontototunfllki i oqdgllip *co kimi a$ng/lo.Iiiwl{dl kts{ br/ Po/

2/dein/binotu/dawaito. rg al andal

;i€tl ki-ii kpq d ii" ru*q/ frt.pT " tid

;.w; ;hu.t / dq"iY"i z-uz seri a $1i mo/

5. Abianl eseribo sd patng (or Kgri)

;.iffi ki mi akpo./ owoi mq gbeleigba/oturo/

7/ki owei mq gbeleighatimi ofuro/

8. Jesu fi tiq ki Pri/9. Jesu/akpgg $9 PrY

io.ri"ti d;kit"i ru,si znryt ri- :Iq ebdiliiti.gt * eunitvpu-qe*i"i.ki'o ms gal

r z -rviisi ti-Ym., hqvqnry'sgqgha/

il. ti,i,e.*u teni (kin eyij *""*"."Elsei tgmi$uo/

la.Tiyq ky' Jesu kai bal

15.ltinmini ogun'

87

ANSWERSLESSON 13 The llouset. Ekpedii/fini2.ErGrinmlni3.Egbmu/4.Eni/s. /ygwqi f€/6Jozii fei7/algni8. Mu olomrqiae.rleidel0/ogmtg/

LESIK)N 14 lfixtetl.E&Ta/2.Tiycfl3.rifega. ftnrm/5./cyoti@6.Ani/fg/?-Eodpeftnlcmq fgf8.TiyCfrn/9. $U a/ agbgkr/ dqpl0.Tibgky fE;say'.

LE$K)N 15 lkRivcrt.ftibgkqrry2./cadi@gyg3.'Aniuggtgin/4. Alrsiogtu ki di dq/s. (tg1p)ygsbginl6.Tgtpis€riil7.lrybuwei/8" Bcni'cycri/9. Tin-uigb abodi/endi d9gy9 a1O. Bodg o bgm$n/b€ni biri

LBS$ON 16 TheFarmlandl.Eyintiygki sil2.ldidgp si (or tgry kfl3.Tiefie/4Jaifie I gborct5. /ini kirim/igina mg odu mS6- /berebekiri.7. Kiriologbo/ki €rni8-Apaly'kgrppin/9, /Ipgotididg.10-&gnbo.aqn/

LESXS'ON f7 TheBush1. Adakatiyg ki yerin/2-Bosouwei/tga/3.Qproborilqmin/4.|$yelow€nl5- Seiye (or seiyeaa/6.rbouaowgg bgmi.7- logmmltinl.S.Bounama/disde.Kimi@/qe'1O. rboumy' opu-obori/

LESXS'ON 13 Theskyt. inatumini.Z.$rmmpgmi.3.Agqngweil dtyEtl4.lsgriil5. Osuo/koro/6. Dein/erein/gbelei7. Aqodg.8. Abidoin (or sei deinyg.lagur.at

lOAfri

(c) J.o. E. ODISI

Ail Rights Rescrvcd

First kinting lWl

86

ogbo ladg aba, kimi sg "Ewiri bodg, Ewiri bodg, Ewiri bodg" gbaa bo'kgri mgmg mu babamini.

Mi kpg i na wEri dUni img gbami,i peldq egbcri ho-o-o-o-o-

Now a.ruwer the following qrestiotrs in lzqn1. Is it wnong to bite the finger that feeds you?

Demonstrate your ensw€r from the pass4go.

2- What is belief is portrayed by the Judge in applylng the music that

was heard under his seat in.giving verdict?

3. If you were the Judge, how would you give vendict

in respect of this issue todaY?

4. Mention, at l€ast, two effects of telling lies from thc passagc.

5. Explain briefly the italicised words.

85

par$ ni 'a daB rrq d-olai nam44rrra mg ki bo yari la ki gba a?" esin i bnnami'o bglgg seimi.

. Tu akgn baimi"ab" ryryi.esin mi gbai zini kidikidi anda andaghani nama'o mg bagha. Ewiri Afgfgin kgrir{. 'A anda oya timi n9 ki Er{6irI efEei" gbmi. bo wasaidg ni klni s9 wari amrunini'mi, erlnkiali bain bglgg mu wgri owggbirimi a keni qdqg rr sou wgriopc,ofomi'esgwgi timi Ewiri konrmi-

_Ewiri bo eygg la bo, qsi" -tsi iqr$arrra plnlkgrgmg gube Ewiri dimi. Ewiri misi brami aqmi -omini 6" U4 ,a-dgbeinmg koromg wgri bainmi. Qsin pa bo wgri,"-"" iqr-i. -

Eyiri tu a Qsin kimisi bra kgn 'o migrni e bma nanri, -o trn pu esintinmi. Misi amamifrmd€kim! s9 baki bamini'A bo OgBIa SgqWarli lami,kimi sg nini bira gunti. Ogpla Sgg

Wa{mi ogBlaa sg nasinng r4i, bai ka ogglaa pglg€mini gUami.6iin gLibrami 'a tgrg kgrigha, liki bibini arnba kimi Ewiri- frr"i

'*itnanl

-iglTA"i duoni ogglanri'wo bira ka seiimg bma ki padg.

_ Deinmi, Qsin mg -i"i awggama mg kiri ye kiri ye duo sou muOggla Spg Warimi oggta pe.lgowei penetimiyg kiirii lami. .A mfsi brasou sinng mi,'a wd wari a mumi.

bo bd ni og$Ia pe.lggmg efie ladg mi, ogpla pe.lg_oweimi mumini perretimiyg a pe,retimii bo, esin awggbo kiriy" duobo-eygg la wgriozi farimi.'A ozi faqmini mi'a keni tibi kpq d-i gba-i"ilbgUf.iEwiri bira sei. Qsin bFa €bi. E*rt-r bi* sei . qsin bira Ji-.."

' '

Oggla pglg-oweimi kiri pei di a, numoumi fie bglgU b9lg9 kamumini.'Wo Oggla Sgq Warii h peimi.'.A kimi *€ kpirei" timi pei a,mi numoumi mukpg fiemini,"Ogglarni Ewiri bira s€i. $in bia ebi. Ewiribfia sci.Qsin blra ebi..."

OgUla pglg-oweimi Ewiri bq, "Ewiri eni mig dUF sg gba e.n Ewirigbtdt:omini zid bra niggha e. esin ki 'wo esisimg wgri'wo nama kgnbra ki'o mg nerni wgri emi ye." 'O baxi Sin kpg Ue pgi pE-i gunmi.

'A bari ma lQmi brbibo non€ mi, oggla pglgoweii gb4mi,"MiggqlTikgn zini pglggmq bra fa e. Kiri akpg a emi otubo kpq oeUta,niEwiri bjra ka sei emi bra ari wEi gba& mi o kiri ba q bm qrniama nimgmg ogpla pglg asin seimqgm' timi ml o?"

OgUla pglgowei ogglaa pelp aki Ewiri seimgni. Qsin ki og$arnibfia s€riimi. Ewiri kgn mu baamini 'o mg kgn angq a nmi *gri *ri

"i,kiri'a'o kgriimg orom rgnmini mi, Ewiri Warii duo desi pa *gri Ucni arnu fami. Aniki duoni Ewiri mg b€Nd ki yerin ogbo dgF emi y". .O

Uo

This book is dedicated to

JOHN O.E. ODISI

who made it possible

It is Not Good To Bite The Finger That Feeds YouACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I wish to record my profound gratitude to the following fromwhom I obtained most of the pruisages in Part tr of this book:

Miss Mercy Evinson of Ayamasa, (Bassage 2); Ml- Francis

A. Egbain of Ayamasa,(passages 6 & 7); and- Mr. DavidGbolokgmg of Kpakiama,(passages 4 & 5r, and who, inaddition, provided names of some months which enabled me

to have a complete lunar calendar.

I wish to declare that I found the following books very useful

while miting this book lzgz Bibi Fun by Chief T- N.Onduku and especially lzgn-English Dictionary by MI.Agbegha.

I am immensely grateful to Kay Williamson who speirt much

time, in spite of her pressurized activities, in going thrcugh

tho manuscript on her own, and for having provided the

opportunity to go through it again with me and making

nec€ssary corrections and providing useful suggestions.

I should like to declare that I am particularly grateful to MissMercy Evinson again, and my wife ---Mrs Monica Odisi who,

in their respetive ways, provided such conducive atmosphere

which assisted greatly while writing this book. $ addition' Iwish to say thar'l am thankful to Catechist Pius Ll. Sgqkgmorfor his words of encouragemeirt. I wish to rhan$ Mr. A. P.

Faotu;for assistance in the chapter on counting- Additionally'l am higbfy grateful to Mr. Jonathan Brake-ebi whose artisticdesrgn is displayed on the cover page. I am also graleful toany other p€finn who, in any way, helped me to have unitteir

this book.

Finally,l have to say that I lack the fitting words to thank and

praise Rev.Fr. Kieran Flynn (SPS), for his differreirt ways ofassistance offered me since the beginning of the projoct-

May God, in His mcrcy Bless them all.

Egberi -o-o-o-o-

. Alaghabo Adotimii gbirain koro emi.

Kgni efie Ewiri mg gsin mq eyq kqri wgri mi.'A yerin timi kqni bai la a'

narna ebemi okpan koromi. Nama ebee sg bgni wqri pesikiriyai

bgr-rimgmi. Andami korodq b99 sg,'o gbo bqg ki nama padg't 'O. sin-anda timi bo a, ba namabo bein;'o bira digmq aki Ewiri primi,

titi UiUi"i amba Ewiri andaygmi mugha. Misi bra'a rn' ko.n yerin timi

te"i U"i ia a, Ewiri gbadq'o kpQ andaygmi muumini ye' Qsin bggha'

ewiri tpg bogha, 'o mugln timi afima dqnmq e"O kpgn braa bo k$rp

UqdE ni Qsin mg biberinmi- Akqn bai ki'a rra aada aadamini'- -Tfuni bo tu akgn lail{, Ewrir kqkq QBin'try rnurni"A mu andaki4 la

a,'aanda y9r9i timi bo $in fpq pri pa mumi-'Wo U.tgbira ki-kqrimi'

Kiri'a pa sB99 ki diibo, Qsin Vtgbixa k-on gbeinng-kqni opu U.tpbirn'

Timi yoo'o ba ziniYai gbodg.'a anda timi kgNd efie larni, Ewiri kpg owei tin pa mu Qgbq kqrimi'

Andakirimi tgrg fini wqri anda dimi.tA anda osumei timi n9 bo wasa ke

pami.to*i g.titi ba owei tin pa mu El99l9 ki kqrimi. Kiri 'a pa sUQ ki diibo'

Elgo.ig Ewiri sibe gbeinng. q3in bo rnanaa nr:u'a runaa ki timimi. 'O ba

zini- miggmg bra ia ni,'o pa ki mini ba wqri erni namabo a kqni kqn'od;irkidiq bra gbami. Bouu sg gbadg, mlsi bra ki'o m9 mig dggmini

ala,'ominiU.ttJbirakiken'odei.'.OkqkqU.tgbixakqn'odeimi'Ewiribo fomung.

fiti *a* s€riiminii bo, Ewiri bUlqlr kqri bain mu wgri sibeye kqn

owggbirimi a pidg tga timi Qsin konrmi. Kiri Sin bo ey99 laabo' Ewiri

.iU"y". t"i"mi- $in sibeye fiee naa bo , 'omini ba wgri namab s9

gt"i"-g koromg wgri bain fami- Ewiri pa bo 'a sg tqlg aki wari mumi'rO *u warimi'o gbamini awgJbo primi, "Sin ki zini kimi pri gbo wEri

i parg ni i n\o mi dqlaf aamabo np bo emi."-g*iti rnie braa duoni Qsin pa bira ka mu warl lami' Timi k€ni bai l8

a, Ewiri "o"99Uo

mA Qsin awqg bo mg tei gbelei timi Ewiri ydbo p4

Qsin VaiUo w€,rimi,n Ovi baimi, e dag ki'a pd gbo wqri wo da+ pri parl

oi:o -g dglai narnaarna bomi e:" Qsin awggbo mi egberii nami 'amini

tqr t"u -iA da{ bimi,'A CaOi, nwiri awqgbo gbadg emini mi UqdE

Aiq""ti:a pri gbo ki gbo wqri Ewiri p{ ki mini'ba wqci namaama kqn

iii 83

yinbowei, tu yai, oormi--'*o!|bi[:bi kgni-yinbowei e. Sei k1p inie,cffi kpg inie. I m'o buiimini.'

Ani &mi al ox@i mr -i"i kgi-yinbo*rei lar{,'wo'o Dihi. 'Tibra ki wo kf mr cai ercma kgqnmini yan o?' ''W'<r 'o pargmi,"i migemgbra mnigha e.' Th yemi gbamiffi b'ra ki wo np mig€mini ye. Wo ozikgnng aba, o kgn bouu duo gbolo sgg muumini ye. Mi vo gboloomgbrrmi. F:ngbou qmgbou tini tiyq ka €mi yan o. Emgbou erngbou kimipbodq wo e kg4 mu aqr gUqg mi e. Emgbol erngbou kimi kg gBAeNng

diri i,o bp@ k$pmq be Fmi ye. Frngbou emgbog kimi erriyo *iyqgsg pa bodq wn e kgn mu diri gggg mi e.' Mi brami 'o m9 nang aba,'oboitrnlni ye"' Mi brami'a mg gba pglg siinbo,'a ozi kgn wgri wgni bouu&ry rgqrni.'A dAlg w€ni sgg mun€ mi,'wo kgni-yinboweimi koro misg

t.bragbolomi.'A gbolo sgq rumini mi, Emgou emgbou kimi gbolomini braa

nimi.'O dgb beri ti@ kiri pei a,'wo ang tin r.vgri timi gbolomini. 'Opcr pgtg a,'o ffi kgn mu diri grtg dggmini ki bra 'o m9 nami. 'O gbarni,

' E yva-a, d&re i nu timi a ifada e, i kiali ba{nng ki kiri'a bo mi eyg laati Gbi &i!qi ye.'Ani q bm ki i mq migEmini yan o? I mi namaa kgn

"tri hts a,nitimilg bo i la w€ri i kgn mu diri ggggmini yo. ! nariaakft[. r6i fory @ bain'a bira duo tgii ki ebi dgin erni ye.' Anlibn'o p $ @$ ryz @g *angln timi tuin a tibt tW?14.

Ua bi-ylntoU*o bo eyqg lryri, Emgbou eingbou ki-i 'a mgadgh. 'A ertma bimi'{ t pargmi,*Wo ani gbo}o egberii naabo, 'o pa kimgp sti ftq8ara @era bqin bouu dpg sggrri e.o Tu oweimi gbami, "fnnntep @ ba h e, q kiali hemaa. kgnng o bain saxarng 4ma a mu c.n'A kgtq ne"rna sibc rgitremt ry bap ana a mumi.'A @ hi, kiti ni bol tein+weimi mi narnaa digmq yarimq agbgionrbo 19 yaini. Misg erein kormq bg$g a muu s9, mi kimi ba bitibi eyeli yain yerinehs. Mi i na weri dry ni i mq gbami i pelde egberi bd fa o-o-(x>

Nan oswa tle fonwing in lzent. S,hrtisfu themc ofrhis$ory?2. Wbrtbssm(s) do yurderircftomit?3. Ir t gpod to suspct yourmfubbdr?4.. Ehdrh fo your own urcds ee ilalkiscd crpncosimg

CONTENTSl. ThA&hrba2.Formation of Words......;.........."....,3. V€rb Teirses: The Past t@ss..........4.The Preseirt tense........... :. -...............5. The futuretense6. Prcnouns--Personal...7. Prronouns continud...8. The use of some words...-.....9. Miscellanmus10. Numerationi1. Measuration12. Currency..................-13. lsson on the house.........14. Lesson on Market---15. Lesson on the river..."-......16" L.sssca on farmland17. l,esson on the Bush."..-.....I8. Lesson on the sky.............19. Lesson on school....20.Isson on parts of the body...........21. I-esson on health....22. Isson on religion..23. lsson on (Iz. gn) caleirdar.....

Paft tr Compreheirsionl. Why the cricket's teeth are singed?.."....2. The hunter and the sow.....................--..3. How mosquitoes came to live....-........4. It is more painful to be beateir with words5. How the He-goat bocare a domestic animaI..........6. Th_e hunter and the skeleton (man).........7. It is not good to bite the finger that feeds you.........

iv

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t710!2t4LIwntt3S

3E

4l45475052v56586064,

66

69707274788183

E2

INTRODUCTIONIt is corpletely tnre that the Izqn languago has suffer,edtaibly frrorn the hands of those living in the presentgaeration-specially the youths, who pursue westei:r valuesal the exp€nse of theirs which has producd some ill-oonqu€naes. Sequel to the above, the vocabulary is graduallydying. Many p;u,ents can iot teach their children in their ownmother-tongue; ilutny youths regard it as a foreign languagernd have relegated il into a state of disuse.One of the greatest means of prbserving one's culture is toF€s€rve one's language. And one's language can hardly bepreserved if it is not usod in everyday conversation andwritten down. Thus to pr€s€rve the lzgn language has been achallenge before us all. Unless somc self-sacrificingeirthusiastic and patriotic prcple painstaingkinly respond toface this noble and natural challeirge, no on€ could predict thefate of the langu4ge tomonow.

Though very few have dared to face the challenge, Ithought it not unwise and most useful to contribute my quota

also which has come under the title nl-earn Your l-anguagen.In it, I cleated room for two classes of people to use:

the natives and foreigners- Heirce, there is a serious attemptmade to give the meaning of words which, to the natives whospeak it, may be repelitive or boring. A particular attentionhas be€n paid to the demands of foreigners.

In order to assist my audieirce, answ€ns to manyqucstions which I think nocessary have beeir provided,bdid€s translafing each senteirce into F-nglish.

(6) The Hunter And The Skeleton (Man)Egberi-o-o-o-o-o-Alaghabo Adotimii gbirain koro emi.

Kgnl efie keni boutein-owei kgn! ama a timimi.'.Omini bou teindg fa kitimimi. Ania'omini bou teiyg dgg bodg aba, mini ba wgri emi narnabo

kgn bitibi ki q fi timim!, zini kimi p4gha.'Ani taara kiryt ki 'a sla kgxi-yinbo a pa emi. Kgni gerede eyg kpg'o m9 kqri wgrffi . Misi eygg kpg'o ma ye ko.n p{gha. Ania 'o bou teinyg a mumiqi efie sg, kiri'o panama tein koromgg bo, emgbou emgbou-kimi eseribo sg a 1n, bo 'om-omg narnaa dig dignini, ani duoni'omini ekise nama mo ki war! a mumumini.

Timi bo k94 b4 Ia a, "o tama'o bgmi, "A i yEe, tiye ki ducrni emo.mg ekise nama k-on wari a ba qri yan o? E z-lra kqua end lg€tei wgri erni arag m9 dig digmini ye. Ani duonl i kpg mi gba o rngmg bouteinyg a muumini.n A yei gbami, nf ta,'ye e pebi i nqmg mugha fa e."Ererna gba yei pargm!, "'Ye e rymg mugba aba, odu kp bibagha burukp bibagha fa e.n Yetuni ba zini migqrng bra fa ni,'o pa ki k9k9 6 trlamumi.

'A bouu dug wgni s$g mu timi dgin kpg nama'a nq adgha" "A w4boo mg ororo kpg torn sinng ki ki{ kgni nama'a mg arimi. Yeimi minisibeye k4 wqri mi namaa teinmi, bira bggha, kqkg tein koro wgri erni.Kiri'a rna mu nanua kqn dggmini mi, emgbou erngbou kimi ba bo psmi.Kiri er€rna 'wo arli'bo 6 koro girigirigiri angg sgimi. 'O bo pami 'ogbami,"Mi gbai ma nama sg ki e mo.mg ba ma? Kimi kgni kpi ki wo m9

ye.n Bou tein-oweimi biberinmi. Emgbou egtou kimi gbami,

'Erema ki i mq kggnmini , e ba namaa korn ye.n Kirmimi ba miggnrg branemigha.'O bqgha gba a, emgbou emgbou kimi kgn'o migrng bra *o

mg nemigha.'Wo erema ko.n'o p4 wgri mu ama a gbaamg bra kpg fa.'O gba emgbou erngbou kimi primi,'Timi i konr e , i bomini ye.n

Emgbou erngbou kimi biberinmi. Kimimi erlelna mg nailuta mg wgri bainamaamumi.

'O mu ama l,a ni pa brarni'o gba mini kgni-yinbowei, b$lEJ yeprimi,'wo kgni-yinbowei gba'o diami. "E ba ba timi namabo kgni bai ema dglg kqn i p4 wgri 4 akpotu pade kiri emini bo i tinmini a o?' 'O mutu oweii ki la kpg,'o kpg tarik.umg bra gbami.'O mu mini eygowei la a,'o kpg tarik.umg bra. 'O ba miggrng bra nemigha. Tumi 'wo kgni-

h

VJohn O. E. Odisi

w€ti bgtfgn kgn dgsirymi.'Wo'o fidg a, kgn mi99m9 bra fa. Embe.lgkUrpmg b9 kpo bgmi.

Okodi ba gba Kura primi, "i w4 mu 4ni diri kgnng i bomid e."Kura'o pargmi,'Mun€ bo e.l O-kodi ba bain mu Abedi lami,'o gba'odiami, nSisei ye, wai zini k-on bo e. Gbelei a sgndie sili e." Abedi kgkgba zini tga 'o primi.'IVo'o k-on wai bain mu bonii lami. Kura'o bimi,"Mi ba ko.n ti bm ki mlgmini ye a o?n Okodi'o panlmi, nKuf,a, di ye,ernini'o kgn Kgngowei kp$n pu wgri mi dirii kgn'o dgsimg weri fidgaha, e rnu arna a trnamini e.o

Kura Kgngowei tlnmi, nKo.ngowei, kiali owou pa bo e.n Kgng-owei kpg kgkg owou pa bomi.Kura kiali'o kpgn pumi. Aniibo bo.gnmi'o rng ko.n 'o d€simqnri,'wo 'o {mi. Ko.n gbaamg bra fa.

Okodi ba gba Kuna primi,"Tu pe.lg yemi kq emi e. { mu'o kqnnq ibomini e." Kurakpg ba biberinmi. Aniibo Okodi ba bain mu Abodi lami.'O gbami, "Wd zini trla i p4 e.'Wo'o k-on wai mu b€Ndi lami. Kura'obrmi, "Mi ba kgn tiye ki migrnini yan o?" Otodi'o pargmi, 'Mi ko.n

Anda-owei ka qa ffnini ye. Kura gbami,'Ani aba, timi i konr e. i kialimu Andaowei dW keridE i bomini e.' Aniibo Kura kpira boru duo bains-ugmi.

'O gbein sgg mu fadg mi, Okodi mini ta bgrni, nB4n efie ladg ye.oMi'a kom 16un digha, torm digha bain tind bo ama la brami e. 'A boama ladg mi,Ourei-okodi gbanri, ni ta, o ba bou si kgrng e. Wo arna kalgwa timi timi €yc dgg fi e." Aniki duoni Okodi mgnrg bou lagha e.

Mii kpg i na -gri dq ni i mq gbarni, i pe.lqde egberi fa-o-o-o-

Now answer tlrc following questiot s in lzgn1. Was it ri&t for tk He-goat to have escap€d at the expeirse of lives?2. Was the any other way it could have planned such?3. Do you think there is d4tlger if it decidd to go back to the forest?4. Has it paid the debt it owed the Nile monitor lizard (Iguana)?

-1, Whl was the total debt owed?6. Why do you think the Nile monitor lizard was known as the

seller of honey?

n,t*prt*,rVWyz

obms

abdegfs (h)i i k Imnogprstuuvw

yz

-TLBSSON 1

TIIE ALPHABET

This lesson is dividEd into four sections. Each sation dals withparticular aspect ofthe alphabet. Study thern conscientiously.

SBCTION I..THE CONSONANTSThis section deals with the singleJetter consonants only. They are-

*bd'F!Ff

(h) 'r' t( k I

As of now there ale sev€,nte€,lr consonants only. Study ttwn proprly.Besides using it for exclamatory purpos€, nhn as a single-letter consooanthas hardly any use in lzo.n. It can only be usd in exclamatims such as:-Oho! Ahaa! Ehee! Hei! Hu! etc

SECTION IJ-.THE VOWEI.SThere are nine vowels in fzgn, The consonants in section I above are tobe used with them.They are:-

aegiiogu$

SECTION III--THE CONSONANTS AND TflEUOWELSIf you observed carefully while studying the consonnnts,you would havediscovered that there w€re som€ spots marked with asterisk. They arre notinserted for decoration but to inform you that somethin! is to be added toeach spot.If both the consonanrs and vowels are combined, the result will be asfollows:-

80

Like some other languages in the world, when compared with the English

alphabet, tbe fzqn language is short of some letters; it has no place for the

following:-c j q andx

It is obscrvod that "c", nj" and oqn are respectively replaced by "sn, nzn

and'k' but "x" has no such replacemeirt; these lettdrs have no function to

play in tho language, henco they are all deleted.

It is argud by some people that nJn is not part of the alphabet as itis not on thi tongue of any typical Ijaw. It is replaced by 'zo , as "c" and

'q" arc rcplacd by'os' and nkn. Hence Jesus, James, John etc would in

poctioo * pronounced asTsu,Tnrnis and @ni respectively. Besides

ihcrc iS no traditional word which begins with the letter nJn- Personally, Iam of the same opinion with this school of thought'

Ther,e are some other persons whq hold the contrary, that it was part

of the alphabet. These argue that it was eveir used by some early workers

in thc language; and exanrples could be eveir found in some works.

Howcver this is not a work to settle this argumeirt. It is obvious that

if it wcro not part of the alphabet before, it has be€n incorporated into the

a$haba on the ground fh€t it is used like any other letter in most rrorks

irLIZr,and it is heard on the lips of modein Ijaws who could not escap€

its usc. On this ground, it is usod in this book as well'

SEETION IV-.TTIE DIGNAGPHS AND TRIGRAPHThclc rrcthreo digrapts and one trigraph in lzgn which are give'n below

gb gh kP and ngb-

Thccc do not re,prescnt double sounds but only one. The ngff trigraph is

p6trlirl' to Kololrurna and sorre other dialecB but abseirt in the one used

icG--MED.I, and some others also. There ale tweirty-seveir letters in

fzp crclusivcof the digpphs and the trigraph'

kpg'ye eye liimini ye ." ani duoni a kiali b€nimi owein sararng e." Aniibo'omini aka dr.u d99 timi'a dimi.

Ala kagha timi Adaka pd bmi.Kgngowei Adaka bomini bramiargg bo,'o qridi mu benimi oweinni.'A owein timi Adaka pri bo eygglanf. Adaka Kgngowei bimi, n A Kgngowei, bodg i kpg benimi asggg ma.n Ko.ng-owei'o panrmi, "B€nimi iniegha e, i kpg Okodi ki i sgqerni ye. Adaka Okodi bimi. Okodi biberinmi. Aniibo Adaka gbami, "Miberdmi a mg owein sinng aba, a eye ki ba)kpg 'ye €ye fiimini, a ba eyeki baga kpg'ye eye lllmini e. Anf duoni a kiali b€nimi owein e." Aniibo'wo ak a peretimi'a drmi.

Timi ba d9l9 z9b9r9 mini bo, Kura bomini bra Adaka mgarimi.Aniibo, kimi kg'o be.gha mi,'o qridi b€Ndmi a sgg wgri oweinmi.Kura bo pab,'wo Adaka bimi, oA Adaka, bodg iftpq beirimi a sggma.n ddaka'o parymi, "i kpg bi ki bi srp emi e. Okodi ki beni ye."Aniibo Kura Okodi bimi,"Bodg i kpg sggg rna." Okodi'o pargmi;"See,Ko.ng.owei i bi a, i kp$ngha; Adaka ki i bi kpq i kpgngha. Ti bra ki miqni e kiri i bi a i ba miq timi kpggnmg bra an o? Bo qridi sUe e." AniiboKura gba'a diami, "Mi benimi a mg oweinng a eirdi ki ba kpg'y€ eyeqinini, a ba eirdi ki bagha kpg'yc eye fiimini. Ani duoni a kiali b€nimiowein ye." Aniibo'o koro bein 4kaa duo wqni dU wgri tginmi.

'A owein timi kgni efie laabo, Owd Okodi ghmi, "i bomini e."Kura'o bimi, nE tiyq ka mumini yan o?" Okodi'o pargmi, oSoe,Kura,

'ye ekeir eni bira duo bain elEi tEi a p emi yan o? i kgni awa ki k-on bainkpq'ani kiri eN{ kgni seri desi.ki tpn. i bomini e.i da{ kgni ebi diri nanawgri emi ni'ye'o kiri kqn eyog a mumini e." Kura gbami,nMu kgnng wa!bo e." Okodi kqkg bainmg bggmg a eygrni a brasinmi.

Okodi bain mu Abedi lami,'o gba'o primi, 'A Ab€di, sisei kgni

@gn ololo yeri i p4 wgri ye. I bo tu a e gbggmini e.' Kgni @gn ololom!taaxa sili ti Vqrimini .Abedi k9k9 kgni bo.gn ololo tga Okodi primi.

Okodimi UqFnololoo kqn bain wai mu benii lami. Kura'o bimi,"Tiki diirimi ni e mu ko.n ye mi yan o?" Okodi b-ogn ololoo parn-omi.'Ogbami, "Mi dirirmi e." Kura'o bimi, "Mi dirimi kgn tiye ki migmini yano?Kura 'o bimj,- "Mi dirimi kgn tiye ki migrnini yan o?n Okodi 'opargmi,o Kura, di ye, emini Adaka kppn pu wgri mi dirii kgn'o dqsimgwgri 'o k-on f,dg aba, ye eye ariimini ye-n

Kura Adaka tinmi,n Adaka, kiali owou bo e.n Arlaka kgkg owou pabomi. Aniibo Kura Adaka kgn kporodaa kpgn w.gri 'o kg n kiri a korcmg

2 79

'Wo sggNrg a timi kqni bai la a' Erefighaowei 'o tinmi,'Angiri, koro

bo e," Ab$kg gbami,' i koro bogha fa e-" Erefighaowei gbami'"imini

Ayegeleftt, i kiri e tinmini Ye."- -Ab{kg kgkg koro bomi)O bo kiri lami,'o gba Erfighaowei primi'

'Eygp iqkb ebami e. Are;bibi kimi mq timi vsrp a , kqkq kimi do.n bira

*o-.q -tlttgg

dgin emi ye. i kgn e ki braa sq i mq brade e'E mi ko.n irytq i mqmq *9*i *"i f1rimi i mq bragha timi ini fi €r€in laamini ye'

eii 4"."i i t" titi a eye dgg qgha fa e." Mi AbUkg k9k9 Ereflghaowei

wqri aggnq amu wgri timi yerinmini ye-- 'AdtG kpq E tqgh"owei kgn 'wo alqimg braa duon! wai bo

Erelighaowei ."gt"i biri sei'o p4 ni 'wo'o k-on gbein pgi weri'o kqn

qmi;. Aniki duoni Adaka mq Ereflgha arg aba,'o kqn tin gbein pgi wqri

'o kgn S fimini ye.Mii sg i na wgri dU ni i mq gbarni i pqlgdgegberi fao-o-o-o-o-

Now antswer thefoll.owing in lzgnl. What other tit(s) would like to give to the passage?

2. Was it actually right for Monkey to have honoured the

supPosod invitation bY Lion?3. If you werc in the shoes of Monkey, how would you have reacted

to the rqu€st to come down from the tree?

4. Was Lion actuatty in its proper seNrs€ to have takeir such

action againstMonkeY?5. Do you think-Tortoise suceoded in fulfilling his saying?

(O How The He-Gmt Became A Domestic AnimatEgberi-o-oo'+oAlaglabo, Adotimii gbirain koro emi'

K€ni cfre okodi mg mini-eromn mg yerin timimi.'A yerin timi bo kgni

oiiti "f

a, ow-ei Okodi;ini ta b€mi, t'Bdq o mu beiri owein ye'n 'A

kgtgurynibou sggni.' -'A mil b*iqti owchmini mi, daghbbo, Kqng-owei bo eaqi' Ko.ng-

owei Oksdi bgrri,;A Qkodi, iroCE i kpq e mo.mq benimioweiin ma? o

Okodi'o pnqiti,'S-€o, G kiri lgl9 bo sggg mi e gba "' i

b1 mig timi

beghmq ts;i; o? Bo fi{di sUq e'" Kqng-owei gbarni' mi benimi a

d"".it sinnf aba, a endi ki ba kPg'yo €yc fiimini, a ba endi ki bagha

LESSON 2

FORMATION OF WORDS

Having learnt the alphabet, it is now time to apply them to fomr words.Before we proceed to forming words which is divided into sections, thereare some words which need to be mentioned first, and they arc t€atod insection 1 below; they are single-letter words.

SECTION I-. SINGLE.LETTER WORDSSome singleletter words are:-

6-- which means You-- second person plural or she

i-- which means theye- which means You-socond p€rson singular

!-- which meians Ib-- which means He or It

SECTION II-- TWO.LETTERED WORDSIn this section, we shall treat two-letter words. Words are usually formdby the combination of vowel and consonant sounds. I-et us visit sectionsI and tr of lesson I. Taking b first and the other consonants in turnrespectively with the vowels one by one-suffixing each consonant with avowel, we shall arrive at forming two-letter words. Here they are in theorder in which they are writteir.

ba be b9 bi bi bo b9 bu bgda de d9 di di do d9 du dgfafef9fiIifofgturyga ge 99 gi gi go 99 gu ggha he h9 hi hi ho h9 hu hgja je je ji ji jo jq ju jvka ke k9 ki ki ko k9 ku kBla le 19 li li lo l9 lu l9ma me mg mi mi mo mg mu m$na ne ng ni ni no ng nu n\rpa pe p9 pi pi po p9 pu ptrtarergri4rorgrurysa se sg si si so sg su sg

78

ta tova vowt wc

SEC''JION III.-T H RE E -IETT ER W O R DS

d'enr t9* this s€cton we shall treat how to form three-letter words. Three-letter

words could be formed in any order but the one to be treated first is to

pr€fix rnd suffix a consonant with the same vowel. Look at how they are

fonrpd here;-

tg ti ti to tg tu tg

vg vi vi vo vQ vtl vtlwg wi wi wo wq wu wU

y9 yi yi Yo Yq Yu YB

zg A zi zo zq ztJ AIyl y€7A Ze

aba ebe 9bg ibi ibi obo 9b9 ubu gbg

ada ede gdq idi idi odo gdq udu gdg

afa efe gfg ifi ifi ofo gfq utu Ufu

Abgkq kgkg engeing bignmi. Adaka mini biralimgbisabo kgnafianbo tqki wgri kgn bibi a dadi a, k9k9 kolokolo ki erni, einbglggha. 'Ogba Abgkg diami, "Wan ebi yaibo ki i rng d-ogmini ye." Abgkg 'opargrni,'Mii ki ini a{anbo o, zini y4 ba fa o." Adaka'o bgrni, iF.ni wanebi afianbo ki i mq dggmini ye, kiali 'a bign ye." Abr;kg ba kgkg €Nrgcrne

sglglg dglo bignmi- Adaka ba mini bira-imgbisabo k-on 'a taki wqridadimi.'A kpq mukpg tarikgrng bra ki emi.

Adaka bo bira koromg AbUkq birii lglmi. n'Wo'o kgri pou w€ri'olgli timi Abrfkq birii sg p4 bo kgni tibi a p9,p9l99mi.'O timi'o lgliminim!,Ere{ghaowei wai bo pami.'Wo'ani arimi,'wo'a bimi."Mi-€mi tisye kl'a m9 migninf yan o?n Adaka'o parymi, "Abrlkg mini ebi {anbobiqn e gba a bggha ni i mq 'wo birii lg{mini ye." Erefighaowei garri,nAdaka an,rni bra ki ko.n migmini ki gba ma o? Emini Tgmgarary tgghg,anlki k!r! Abgkq peroe timi rnini aQanb<i bign, ba kBrp kpg miggba ye e.Adaka wgri qfidi'wo a brasin ye. E k9k9 AbUkq a{anbo ki q dggminiaba, eni tgrybo gban e. Enf tgrubo a opoolo kpg Qa kgmg. Eni birabo kpgseriimg n! koro Tgmgaral kghg e ."

Adaka kqkq gi4ngisin mini to.rgbo gbarni, 'omini birabe kpg'O koro Tgmgararl tgghgrni.

'O timi misi bra migrnini mi,Ere{ghaowei lgg warii duo bain pa mumlni do.g arg wqri s9w9iim9 .iyq*i a mu sgwgffi"Adaka AbUkq lglibrami kgrg bgg duoni, Abgkq ba eken kia[ weni a pagha. Fi odududuoni,'wo angg kgrpmg kpUin bo gaan la wgrj Adaka warii sou wgri emiodo.g-tibii lami. Odgg-tibimi kgni Kiriowoso tirnimi.'Wo'wo owou apagha.Angg kgro.mg bra ki'o mg k-on siki siki tiinmi kpomg owou mutimi biri laabo,'o ba ekengha ni 'o p4 misi eyg a embafoumi,'o sanowou mu tin-birabo kg lagha.

Adaka mini t9gh9 mig tirni bo dginng ni'omini birabo koromg bamini tgrgbo fini a,'o ba kgnii bqg kpg arggha. 'O pa bo gaan h a,Erefi.ghaowei ba fa,aniaAbgkg'wo wai!-otumi a emi braki'o me a{mi.'Omini aggnq oweu dlgha duod 'o pa ki kirii duo aran Uain yqqimi.Abgkq kpq deinne ni eken ba kgn bglgg owoumggha; tinmi'o mg kgrikrppwg{cmi.

Abgkq misi tin-birimi a timi taara dein baiQ ki'o dgh kgrg nanawgri kgn bglgg owoumg timi mu tin-birabo duo qlgrni.'O br misi .yqtimi zini ma dein baimi; gbelei a sggnrgn dcin, kiri AbUkg fp bUleggUcinrnqmi.

arna

at^ ete gtq iti

azt ezs gzg ui

imi omo-omgumuUmU

iti oto gtq utu gtg

izi ozo o.zg uzu gzU

ThA mcs not treated are left as an exercise for you. Try them on your

owB.

NOTE: Some of the words formed in this way havd no meaning- It is to

*n*""yourabilityinpronouncingandspellingwordscorrectly.Itisquitc lndrstooA thal thi; rnay not be of great use to the traditional Ijaw

l|,holvrsbornandbroughtupwiththelanguage,butitisusefirltoforcigncc. This tye of exercise is repeatedly given in some other sections

as wcll.

PART IT-IIING VOWEISb the erdiqg Put, thlE-lcttcr words were formed by prelixing and

suffixng a consomnt wttb tho rrnro vowcl. Now,lct us try anoiher way.

77

f

aba, i sonrdio kgn t1;a boomini ye, nein i mq {dg aba, e ba mamg kqnriFFi p.r Asiib 'a bsi kgn zgzq pdmi.

timi bo {ni bli lami, Erefighaowei ba mumi.'O mu misi kiri disinuryd kgrgghl, sondie a dgn kgkg timi'o pri arimi.'Wo'a tqlg siinbo,'o kgNr hlhg Wimqmi.

'O nnr vadi la a, Adaka mi gbai kpg wari a timimi. Adaka'o kqriaki siinbo, Erefighaowei mi dgnbo a kqni kgn bii gb€inmqmi. Adaka'obimi, Erefighaowei'o p4gha timi zini ko.n bibi gb€inmqmi. Adaka timibimini, "Mi ti €bi €y€ama o? i pridg i kpq'a fi rladii ma.n Erefi.ghaowei'o peigha timi zini kgn ba fim!. Adaka gMg, 'Mi gbai kpq ye i prigha

aba,'ye e mW zry nagha fa e." Ere{ghaowei bitlbi nein fi siinbo, kqmamgbo )o mg kgn'o primi. Adaka'a { di a, eyebo embglq hurgmg bg

ni'wo Erefighaowei bimi, "Mi ti embgig eyeama o? Tiyo kie mg duo'a nana ma o?' Erefighaowei gbami, 'Di ye, mi Abgkq bign

afian-ama ye. Ye AbUkq bi ni'o bign e p4 de si, ye'a ko.n fidg ye."

Arlaka'o bimi, "T! bra ki i mq timi Abgkq a4 *e4'o bggmini yan o?n

Erefighaowei'o argmi,ndi ye, emlni pesigha {yd tin ye. E misi bra

migng aba,'ye'o mo.mg boomini ye." Aniibo Ere{ghaowei'o mqmq

nei-a dein kimi.'A zqzq brasinmi.Erefighaowei w4 bo timi Abgkq mq gbaleimi,'o gba Abgkq primi.

"Mi-€mi Adaka eyg ki i mg duo bomini ye.Mi br$gg a neia dein pesigha

fiy{'o mg kgn nanra ebee sg tiinmini ye. Emlni kpq bo ki gbami e."

AbUkg gbam!, nAdaka warii kpo kimi mu la lamini ye?'Yeeken mugha

fa e.' Eretghaowei gbami, "imini kpg duoni mu timi wai bo pamini ye

mi, ti bra ki mig ni emini ki mg mu wgr! w4 bo a pagha fa o?n AbtJkq

kpir€in timi ng to bo biberinmi.Timi bo ereiin lami, Abgkq mq Erefighaowei mq kqkq mumi-'A

mu warii laabo, Adaka'a kgri akimi. 'A mu sgg alagha timi Ereflghaowei

pri 'i bminl ye" gba wgri wqni pami- '.Omini mu sqwqiimq eyg Ed-ogrni.

'O wEni padg mi, Adaka wari a gb-olg ka timimi' Abgkq duo paamq

eyo fa. Adaka Ab+kq bgm!, "Wqri eni afianbo bigr ng k-on i fiimq e'"

Ab9k9'o pargr{, oSee, ti bra kl mie ni emini ki i"i afia" ti {imq bra mian o? ini afianbo tpititpi[ ki emi o-7-1ni ebi eye ni i qmini eye kpg fao, €pg{ bci:nyai ki i mq ryr{ni o.n Adaka'o bgmi, "E mi timi aremffi s9

ye efic ki kPodudumini ye.Kilai bign e."

Instead of placing the sarno vowcl beforc artd after €, sa;fisr,.s&Eat, bansfertho one beforo the consmmt to thc lrst position. For exarnple:*

abawillreadbze& will readb*

ber b99 bii bii boo beg buu bgg

mee m99 mrr mU moo nry.r mUU muu

saa see sgg sfi sii r* t"e ;;r *zaz zw zq ni 4l zao 14 zuu al$

PART rrr--SEgAENCE OF VOWETSThere is still another way of forming thrco-letter words. &S iE can notfollow any definite way a! tho oocc abovc. It is done by taking twodiffereirt vowels together and plac.ing thern after any consonant.Look at the following:-

aandi:- bai dai faiaandi:- b4 dd raia and g:- bag dary tag

i and a:- dia and kiali and so on.

ai, 4, ao, au, ag, ei, ei, eu, eB, ia, oi, gi, ou, and gg,

There are only fourteeir given above. They may be more than thc abovein other dialccts.

NOTE: Please do not commit the mistake of regarding the above as

diphthongs because each may carry its own tone, wherreas withdiphthongs they would always carry only one tone.

S ECTION IV -.F OA R.LETTER W ORDSThere are numy ways of aniving at four-letter words but the rinciplegiven here is this; it is the reetition of two-letter words as follows:-

babadede

5

baa

nula

76

flrarnanini

sasa

zfiIA

CoryLic thc rest bY Yourself.

SECNONV-FOXUATION OF WORDSWITE TIIE DIGRAPHS

It should be noted that the digraphs are used in forming words just likethc other consonants, except "ghn and nngn. The other two ngbn and nkpn

arcnowusod.gba gbe gbe gbi

@ kp€ kpg kPr

S ECNON W -V OW F,L N ARM O NYLook at the foll,owing words:-

ABCfpi tabg grdgs€ri kaoo Ambierein gaqn gggtti

ete ttla tlkgk$ib€reb€ gkPasg ggqimq

Whrtdid you notice? Now look at the table below:-

WIDE NEUTRAL NARROW

Frw the above, it is soen that the words in group A all fall into thenwIDE grorlp of vowols, while those in c fall into the'NARROW',

ttoup. fto* itr B fatl into cither gloup. This is referred to "Vowol

ftlfrny;. Tn most siryh wotrds, any vowcl after the ftst is always in

humny with it (ic. thc ffi onc)

gbi gbo g@ gbu gbp

kpi kpo kpg kpu kpg

o? Frnini gbade kimi arg bibi kgn o rTry a c dgn a|i tlni pd birakommg e v!Fp9 dEin erni ki c kqtg q gbui{ ?' Enillbrowci'oparfi,'Gesi egberi ki i mq gh c primini yc.' Abghg'o bpf, 'Eni eye

a sggglia egberi kgn wan gbamg.' A km bt$gt, tolng td tpi ofielaabo'apki s€rirni.

Timi ba zini b4 la ni'a bo gbeleimi,'a ba timi wuru bot t@i mi,Erefighaowei gba Abgkg primi, "Angi{, kimi a,r,g bibi fgn i qpg mi aba idgn aki ti-i p4 bira koromg i vgrp dgin emi !e." Abgkg bari'o fi;mi.Eref[baowei gbadg, nGerede egberi fi i np gbamini ye."'A lp bUtqtlteimg timi kgni efie laabo ,'a ba wasaimi.

'A yerin timi k€Nd bd lani, "a ba o gbeleimi. Mi Sbai Ab1kg ninilg gbein ogoun kp-o ko.n tga bo wgri emi.'A ba peretimi timi mini wrubou rcimini mi, Erefighaowei b bari gbadg,'fJni eygowei, di yc, ki-iarg bibi kg i vBre mi aba i dgn kgrpmg aki Li-i pdbifa koropg i rnlrpania kq i kii dgin emi ye.o Kiri'wo atp pglgrnini mi, Abgkg nini lggbein qgouu kgn'wo abebirimi a k€ni ak$ kiri a taara eyq trur ctqkimi.'Wo'o ki siin bo,'wo Erefighaowei wgri gbein aggnq ors ntufami.Erefighaowei angqmi asinbo timi dalu dabu ki tgignini. Kr hrkito

ma eten Sgin wgnimi. 'O wgni mu osi lar{,'wo osi bg mi, 'Sirci yc,bo€ni qhbo kgn ini eiro.gnbo gr19 e.' Osi k9k9 biberin wqri lwo agqpbogggmi. Engpbo bo bibadg mi, F,refighaowei abebirimi bo gbi gbi kitimimi.

Erefighaowei niini, Adaka mq eyg. Mis[ efiemi kiri bctri scribomimi. Erefighaowi w€rli 'o bunr mumi. 'O mumini owqpi@, klnik$p ni kg'owggg disin wgri ye timimi.'Wo 'o di a,'o t-ua €mi ni 'wo'wo anei-a dgn a{mi.'Wo'a tglg wgri kgn bglo.g wgnim@i.

Adika warimi, odqU kiri ka opoolo sou wgri €mi. Wari bgbgtnl tpgErefigbaowei duo mumini akgp ki dia emi. Adka kpg wili a tfuftni.Erefighaowei kiri mu warii duo sggg miEmini'mi,'o brtlqg kgni kpi @kgn bibi gbinmgmi. Timi ba ?SW mi,'o marnq karamg ye kgn bibigbeinmqmi. Adaka 'o bimi,"Ti €,y€ama ki e mg flnlni yu o?o

Erefighaowei_'o pargmi,akpg eye atu bi $imi o.i 'A timi arpmini mi,'o ba +i kgn bibi gbeinmmini mi, Adaka'o bimi, "Kgni kgn i Fi dadi

,ye-' Erefighaowei :o a4rmi, "'Ye e prigha fa e." Erefighaorti kgkgAdake di timi 'a s€ kgn fi simi. 'A tei timi kgni cfie lami, grciligDow€i'*o hsinni. Ercfigbaowci gbo Adaka pri wgri cmi, 'Ib i me wai boag

e

.iou

eiou

75

miE timi efin tu gbami.'A ba bo qgbg brmi,'o kpq s-oni.sqni cyce migtimi pa tuu qg gba' a primi.

'A Otongbolo bunr mu dggmini mi,'o ba kgn zini gbainmggm bgfa ni,'wo afq{ ki tEghErni.'O gbadg, " Afgti, mi-emi kgni opu eyee kipa emi ni bou braa sg i kiri buru bomini ye. Ani duo-ni, ye {zo,n ebe amumini mij tga f-ogn mu e, miki bou bra akpotumi! ma t-eiimini ye.Afgri kpg k-okg biberinmi.

Di a, bou brami kgkg wan duo biri sei Otongbolo buru bomini.Otongbolo di a, di g@gha ni 'o keni tibi ka Af-ori @mi,"Mi-emi la ki ladgy€. " Agri kpg di a, ba efie kpoduumg tu fa. Kiri 'a bo eygg lami, Af-oriOtongbolo k-on puree efin !zo.n ebe a bodg. 'Anf efiee Fp-o si Otongbolokoro fz4n-otu mgyerin gbelei,'a br;d-on timi mi erein la emi ye.

Mi kpq i nh wgri dB ni i mg gbami, i pEledg egbpri fa o-o-o-o-

Now arawer thefollowing questions in lzen1. Was it by similar laughter that the Redless Tre Squirrel

lost most of his toeth or it is natural with it?? $[as it right forthe House fly to have kept flying into tho

mouth through the anus, and back into the anus through themouth, of the Elephant?

3. In your opinion, who do you think was the chief causeof the mishap' in the story?

4. Was it actually good for the Wind to have assisted Mosquitoeto escape from the danger that was approaching?

5. Expldn in iour own words the italicised expression in the passage.

(4) It Is More Painful To Be Beaten With Word Than HandEgboi-o-o-o-o-oAlsgha bo Adotimi gbirain koro emi.

Kgni efie Erefighaowei m9 Abgkg m9 eyg kgri werimi. Abqlg lU gbcin-owei.'A yerin timi ng "a bo kgni eyp a gbelei, wuru pa a'a gbelei boubakpf,itei, kiri'a wasai wasaimini.

Mi brami'a mg yerin timi bo kgni b4 lami, ta timi mini ebe wurubou teimii. mi, Ercfighaowei gba Abqkq primi,"Angiri,n 'ani Ablkqkilemi, "Kimi are bibi ko,n i vgrgmi aba, i dgn aki ki mi p4 bira koromg ivgrgg dgin emi ye." AbUkq'o b1d9 "Eyg, ti egberi ki e mg gbamini yan

VF'RB TENSES

unfortunately, this is another topic in {z-on which does not eonuspondconsistently with the English verb tenses. Howev€q, thma rre wordswhich really indicate tenses, and they are given below.

THE PAST:SECTION I--The Past TenseTh9 rast tense in {zgn is indicatd by suffixing omio to the verb afifoctod,and *ritten jointly with it. I-ook at these exartrples:-

LESSON 3

IzgnBoGbaMisDesiBain

Pnsfr TenscEnglish lzqn EngtishCome Bomi CameSay cbami SaidDo Migmi DidJump Desim! JumpedRun Bainmi Ran

This is how the past tehse is formed in Izqn

SECTION II-The Past Continuous'lhe past continuous teirse in Jzgn is formed by using 'timin with "minjointly but unitt€Nr s€pafttely from the word it goes-with. Look at theexamples beilow, Tho words in soction I above are simpry repeatod hece.

Parf Continu(xrf TenseIzgn English lzqn EnglishBo Come Bo tinaimi was comingGba Say Gbatimimi was sayingMig Do Migtimimi was doingDesi Jurlp Desi timimi was ;umfingHarn Bain Bain timimi was running-

Now give thre past te,nse and past continuous tense of the following:-l.Bung slee,p 4. ygg....to paddleZFielarg ralk 5. Wgni....walk

743Peretimi sit 6.Z;1.... bearachild

F

SECTION III-The Past PedeaIt is hard to get the past perfect in lzgn.But suffixing ndgn or nngn jointly

to the verb affected, *d ryriting "Lf"separately will give the past perfect

in lzqn. Now look at these sentences:-

1. Obodou eYe {dg ki'o bUnU mi- Obodou had eaten before he slePt'

2. Ebi<re'o weridq ki sUU ParniEbi-ere nad iot"tiea him before the fight occured'

3. EbiPadq wgniPadq ki i bomiEbipadq had walked out before I came

4. Obodo firii wEninE ki osuoo koromi- bU"d" had done the work beforothe rain

5. Ebi-owei bUnUPg ki kimee PamiEbi-owei had slept beforethe stdrm'

Sornctimesthewordnkiriniswrittenimmediatelyafter"kftoeffect

"*phasit. Look at the seirte'nces give'n above with 'kiri" added'

1. Obodou eYe fidg ki kiri 'o bgngmi

2. Ebi-ere'o weridg ki kiri sgg pami

3. EbiPadg wgniPadg ki kiri i bomi

4. Obodo fftii *e"i"e ki ki{ osuoo koromi

5. Ebi-owei bUngng ki kiri kimee pami

Now stndy this table:- past pedect

lz+n English lzqn English

G write Gedeki hadwritten

T; Phy Teideki na{ntgea

Cb" S"V Gbadqki ha{said.

Si oaneirdtoones Sidq ki hadatt€Nrded

ooatp"l,i- or duty to ones occupation

TQni toUilttnrel- Tqninqki - .h'dli1Fg; amu. to go 6 mitttil Fgya-munq ki'nad gone to rnarket

Gb€i* - ioscw Obcinneki hadsew

8

kpgkoro z*ebaz€k€babainbouuduosg!ryi Nii ni' Otinikini kpq

aqgg spn gbglqsi gbo.lesi timi gwgra t€biimini' Opu'obori nini 4l9trdiild* digh" bti" t9, bain timi mu Okirikini dan azs bq mu frdg'

NI oi, Opua"Uori Ofinitini emgbqs dan yainnnq wgri gil: Eygoi bo

Oiriniiiini-a timi a seide, kgn €neemq b'ra fa. Okinikini lpg g1pl -89uiCg, 'fiy" ki Opuobori atgiqtQ ai opl bain baiunini yrn o? Mi boumi

htp oy" p. cnri-yc.' Eygmi'o dqnrrini brami hFq b99 duoni ,'o kpg

pabainmi.

Egberi-o-o-o E-e'e-e-e- KPirasi kpirasi eghri {{-o-I.liioi, Okinikini kor bain timi mu Perp*tain egbc ni, egbe brami

qrp Udbiuoni PErEretain soi koromi. okinikinibainbglggamt Sdg'- 'Niini, oioaloto mi PErs*tairuni " **i kgi *qt ry' rgo{oE

u"'qU kpg *i wari buloumi a etni. Okinikini bo Pgrpctain c.gbc-k@

"d ;"i;Okorikoko so.ngrrla awggbo warimi a '"rri keni qbikr ! fi -i:Awao3bo dag m9 yinmq bo si ki si fimt-i"A si eyqduo !1.-i *tife"f i"gri,t"-i ;i ko'o eini bra ki'a m9 arimi.'A tu bi a, 'Okinitini ki

t+ U"i"i egbo ni, egbe brami tVtp UqQ ni'i mq soi koromi c'' Pqrg{ain

-q gUfr.'A*i"i awqgbo dgg a, kgldi kpg'a mQ arigha"A dqi oya

timi n9 ki kiri awqgbo'a mq arffi-:a sg ki g sinng'

nvqiq'cirotitoto ba ti"ti 4!i eve korugha' A pffi Pingii Phgiiseri lu-lou ba ogemi. Owei yougha yougha mi gtai €yoe bo hFgdf ni'

owei Okorikokomlni ta di a, di gbe.gha,'o bplo.g tibi fql tr-"'P I €Nro

gbggha ni,'o koro mini ta -9 you gbel€imi''A you braa bo kgrp @duoni, bou brami bo b.enimi-

.-Abobgrisinngmi,.aoweiokorikokobimi.oxyciotorikokopa

braa gba'u iiu-i. 'A peog*t"i" bi a,'O kpq Okinikini 5 bdg bo'woegbeloromg braa gbami.:i bno*i"i bimi,'o gbami' "A dilcimini

{*a ba enqg fi -gq sr;n gbqlgsi gbqlqsi }wgra tebii timi.Onu'oiori

pri wan au, Lur".g ati,"L"i"u" kpe aigb" timi bain boini abcbfuii d8n

"i,'*oi dan brami f-otp qq duoniini abebiri emgbggmi yai4mi c''Yc e'ne

u'"* g'Uggha nii mq *rt U.i" tihi *tt Pgrq-gtain €F YFt .o pti *i

t"-rd".:a uopuouori bia, ou-obori kpq gbadg, " A diycimini d99

ki gw.ura ki tgbii timi emqmq pri wan duo abangba Ebanghr $anghl

efin boini bibi duo ,,tq *. Uign auo Pa, ba bign ero cfin cUQ bo biibi

d* p*,i-e. erremA-ba pglq kpg pete bqghfii di a" bdi e kqdq nii mq

bain timi'm0 Okinikini.ifiti ".'e Uo AmAmq bimi, Amqmq kPq 4ini

7.MuSAnda

gowrestlo

9. Eye gbein.....to sew

l0-Fiyai tgg...to cook

73

(3) How Mocquitoes Came To Llve With Human Being

Egberi'o'o-o-o-o E c'c-e-e'c-ce+

efa$at Adotimigbirainko.t*i' - - . !-L^--Onrs€ri mf, otongpl'o u"" uigui ka timimi e' Kimi tg@g mq y€nn

gbcbighae.---- i;rri bo k€ni bai la a, qgQ mq otongbolo mq ki arp tei timi amqmq

priboeYq lami.- KPirasikpirasiegbriooQgbe mq Ot"lg["f" tq arq tg timi bo kg'ni efie t*"i'*9-9}9ri

bo koromi. Aoaa.giJ " (oln4, Otongbolo kiali Uira g@in mlni bibi a

rrr w€4 oy" yo*ni.'o gbad9,"-i*1**jl,d -ry9'"11mi

ilnini ova'

il'itFi oV". " -d-i"i-tibti kpg Ta. fgsn ova voumi' gsbe'o mie

Sigtri timi oy" G*i"i;*"{-'ittlt, gbasi'oit'19 angq b99 ni'wo

dtffiro uit"i "i. ot"Igutto, ti.ye ki-d ma o? Tive ki e me duo timi

oYrYoumini Yan o?"

Otongbolo'o pargmi' "qgbg, di yejmini u*iyti PT-t

a timi efie m!' ibo anda.yq "

rrrui + ;i ;-ipi *q"9-" egbemu.*i *g"iti mi buqbo

iik iq *eti."d"-G;*;ryi;.ib-;bq sal|'o pebi arq kps are pEle$a

timi k€ni ou dgri G$"1 Dgri a, pgldL bqgha'Tffi I'o bo pe'lgryri'

.wo otongbol" bi;1.-"i ot""iur",; kpa d;ti@ kq-ni, e pami e k€ni

rcri a mu anoa-uJra w€ri ni "*iti *g"qn* egteml kqn €ni kqinkqin

$@-b99 tpi rpq f" Ueqb" k{i+g *gt| -ot-titi a mu timi rna o?n

dbu "-t';ti L; k.;'t bimini mi' 'o w.ai defi a birat4nni.

Asbs d€rim$;""ti ol'tntono: ni' Ameme -o b15'A o' gbg' e

dsfnini b*tti k-,fr bq{ t::-il"i"b" duoni la ka vai vo-o-3 deri

ttrni 6i akabo a*i'pri pffi m'ye a sBg rpq,i b-ogha fa a. E mi-emi to.n

ugqkgriYo'"-'s.o lua bibi kpq a pqlgigha bo,lgbg kgni aka p-logl -: Amqmq a

' .uedf. Amqmrg #GQi**i faaeabne di a ene ebgsha"o kil4 efin

cy99 duo s"rimi, o lii"i q sob efin yqrgi timi bo opu-obori admi'

Opabori Uwpa ki tebii timirni o*Fq "tio

mtr opu-oboribibii duo

syg kpi tiUi a muTiEe" Auo p"' U"-Uibp duo efin sUQ mu bo'wo bibfl

Ci,i, fri. etttqtttg ba p9l9 kpg pels bqgha' i--'6.uo.i

ki,g tii'"'111r*:. kqn'o migmini brami eire a €'!re

gbtfhi.:Ottioi tlio UtOt, "tiv: fi-i boumi a pa:mr 1an

o? Amo'me

pae \ppg tf rni t td;ht;''.'o di a' Amo'mq kqn bslqu bulqu ki

ffiffiilij'o;;-;{il'Gg pdni"micvsi ma timi vani fade vc'" 'o

72

(

Give the pa.st perfect of the following:-1. s9.... figbt2.kqrt... hold3. Brasin..."leave4.h19..., save

5. Sin ... shave

fallto gci eink in thcrivaswimtqkillpare (to cut fingernails)

6.korc...7.Bibo...8. qrki ..9.8a..,10-k9...

Excrcis€I . Give the past t€,lrse of each of the words giveir above-Section Itr2. Write them in the past continuous tenso.

3. Give tho past perfmt of the words in section tr above.

SECTION IV-The Past Pedcct ConlinuousThe past perfect continuous is obtained by writing the give't word

s€parately from its past continuous t€nso.

Look ar these examples:-

Izqn English Past Contintmus Past Pcrfect Contintmw

Gzo.n) (zqn)8o... come bo timimi bo botimimiGba... say gbatimimi gbagbatimimiWgni... walk wqnitimimi wqniwgnitimimi .

Efin... fly efin timimi' efin efintimimiTein... sting tein timimi tein teintimimi

Now do tho same with the following:-1. Gg... write 11.sqi..' dance

2. Tubo.. to price 12.Olo miq... play

3.TUa...puton l3.Tqghg... PxaY

4. Dibi...bury l4.Kari... worshiP

5.Fi... eat 15.Si.-. (exPlained)

6. Tein...shoot7-Tgin... flow8. Gbo.lg...box9. Kgn... takel0.Gbein...throw

16-Fitri...17-Fielarg...18.89in...19.Furu...20.Kai...

9

op€rlralkcK)sssteallock

]-

LES$f'&N 4TIIB PRESEI{T:

SECflON I-Thc Pruscnt ShndoIt is vcry difficult to get the preseirt simple in IzQn unliko thc othertenses

trcatod, tmless it is give,n in seirteirces such as the ones below:-

Present Simplo

TimitFi bri bmi,timii rnaerebo srrmi.Izf crErnamini ymfuanrEdml,' E hgpgn kimi a, cmfii cai &ro bo cyg ncmigha. Wri $idi cni nema 6[61p1tc. Emini nama ki tggn. Yc e,ni nama-ozimi arigha ni c mgmq i yci nanawgri emi ki tgn." A Uo mini angg a nemi ni d yci {ni €mi tnr $r tlmipridg bra nemimi. A Ua Uinl fiegha, 6 \pirein tai fi-inni.

Dein korodg mi,6 yei 6 rnemg bgng €Nni 4,A6yei @i. ' Yc iniemi braa gba pamgng e, wgri ini nama-ozii kp i pri e.' Yeimi kqtq {niaama-ozii dibi wgri eygg duo 'o sou pary wgri'o kgn a primi. A 'o di a'o bo budukubuduku ba kain kain ki fadg. Ania 6 pa'o tglq xrFi'okgn tUa di a , pa mukpg te.tgmg mu mini ebe a sgg la emi: A,'o t{qsinng mi, k€ni d€in fmttyej tin perctimi wgri gba'o diAmi. 'i yci qyei mig ka mi e, ania mi-€mi mi, e ba i nana @3gha drmi 'ye yc hr.trrrngye. Ebi tgrg tpa ini awggbo di e. Ye i tari kgpNng Ua i nq fpgyerindi ka wgri mi e. Ania \imi tgb-og eye miekiri kirimini ni c mp nifpii wgnimi e. Ani ki bgA kg,'ye e mW zi awggbo eken mr i ryqwan yeringha fa e. Ani duoni 'ye eni peneE ken n1a mnrgba fr c. Mikoronlg bglgl a mu mi, ghdai gba kimi pri agUgghr qgbqi h gfb kl{pri tgmg e. ! mung e, bai ye."

A n4 Ura gh siinbo 4'wo brasin wgri deinmi r4ni bou sqqmi. Amu:lni €b€o lad€ni,'ad beriye akibaoge ggbidprimi.

Kimii b9 nini pgp yerin kgn bglgg yerimq timi bo'rc li crcinlami.

Mi lpe i na weri d+ ni i mq gbami, i p9l9d9 qgberi ba fa o+o.o,E++,+,+,+*x,<-e-

Now answer tIrc following qucstions in lzgnl. Was it wise for the rnarr fs have refused the aninral,

tur€dinto humanboing,oftheslough heharolbclod?Do you also believe that ft6 man's hter prqrerous life wrr

nrade possible by his second wife?Have you sm anfthing similar in real life? How do srdpoople live, if your answ€r to this Ercctlon is pocitivu?CouHyou give any convincing example ?If &e man hd revealod the socrctto his first wifc,

*'hat& you tbink wouldhavcthefrtcof furm?Wbat candid hssondo you derive ftmtheposcago

SECTION II-The Present PedcctThe present perfect in Izo.n is obtainod at by suffixing either ndgn or nng"

to the affected verb- and writing it jointly with it. ExarnplesrPresqt Perfed

Izqn English lz.gn EnglishMi€ do Imiene lhavedoneVgrp b€at lvgrgdg thavebeate'n

G9 (explained) Igde lhavewrittenFina tie I {nang I havetiedBain (explaind) [ bainng I haverun

Now give the preseirt perfoct of thdfollowing:-weed(grass)

EnglishI talk everydayI eaf everydayI sleep every nightI brealhe ev€ry mom€,nt

lzgn'Ye ereinbo sg aaryminitYe ereinbo sg a €ye fimini! deinbo s9 a bgngmin!'Ye eseribo sg a einba saragmini

6.D9n9...7:Ier:i-..8.Yo.gpa...9.Gbg...10F9...,\

1. Kdi... pluckz.Fgia... roast3. Firimg... send

4. Gbala... carry a baby

5.Eyg f,... makefrieirds

closetravelpaybuy

3.

4.

10 7t

(2) The llunter And The SowEgbcri-o-o-o-o- E-ee-€-c-c

AlShbo Adotimii gbirain konr eini.Klni @ kfi boutcin-owei kgni,ima a tinfmi-'Omini bou timi oroupaki podt;'o sing'wo €ye bagha timi wari bomini bai-fa.'O nagha eyg kpgba fr- bou-biraa sg ba izqn ebee sg kpg'o nang.

K€ni bai )o rna bou teinyg mumi; akEnb{ .'Wo owggg duo sggmu timi kEni eyq 14 a, owggmi bo mamg ki piidg,'o kgn-obira akgg duosggni. 'O wgri slg na alagha mi, eye wgni fiong bra'o mg narni. WgNdbrrmi'o disEgha duoni'wo eyg do.g sgwgimi.'O sqwqi emi mi, kg"i

"pt€ygrp gnrbi ki timi wgri bomini bra ki'o m9 arimi. Kiri'omini sibeyekai wEi'o tein d-ogmini mi, mi -ombimi'o di timi

"ygrp timl d"irq.A"i

nama ozimi d mg kgn eyg dgg sgwgi wgni anrami fgg tuboyg a mumi.A mung mi, kimimi mu mi narna-oai k-on reri wgni ** a -urr4.

A mu fou tubo timi w4 bomi,6 ba 6ni naura-ozimi adgha. Bourni 6rna ririni t$rp dpU s9 ko.n'o dggmi, d'wo arigha. Kirni ki'o kgn wgri emibtl d bo mg ko.n tu a ororomi. Ani duoni 6 ani eyebo sg koromg wgri walnmrymi a tu dgg eyg mumi. A tu Oo.g timi bo'o ko.n wgri emi bgmiarini. A kgn'o qghggha pa kpg fa, ania timimi bo.gha-. fumi-:a b zqz7nrnuA bra btberinmi. Mi ma kimibo koro zgzg nanami. A lr4 mughadmf, dni avgrbo mg ba wariotubo mg tgr$ di timi bo dginng ni , dkiniotu ti pd baOe b'ra E akimi.

'A yerin timi awggama zimi. Erema kpg yerin ebi fa. Timi kgN{ baihmi,kimimi bglgg ercrnamini yei bimi. " A i yei, tiyq ki e mg duo micrcma nana bo ma o?n Kimimi zini bra gba 4 diagha. Timi ba zini bai laml, { ba'o bimi. nA

i y.i, sisei ye, e dug mi ererna nana bo eygg gba i diao.r A yei 6 bimi, "Tiye ki e nlg duo bimini yan o?n A 'o pargmi, n'Ye iyanfaran duo bo eyg nemigha mi ebigha ki tUBn."Ye aniki duo nerridgt mini. Ti bra ti mie ni ma kimi kqni yei nana weri emi aba, mie rimi?ere a$t nemigha timi yerin gbeleimini brami an o?" A bi braa bokgrgdg, d ba duo bimini tuu kpg pei a ebi emi duoni , yeimi kgkg gba adiami.

Nama duo dei bo kimi pa wgri 'o pq nana e,rema,,mi kimii 11rigpggrxgta , aniki 'wo ani emi haa gba kimi prigha fa braduoni. A tpq ba kiali mini ama a muumq onoro UlUi

"r"ughajtiki A*"i

aba t[ bo Wyqktimi bgqdg.

{

-TSECTION III-The Prescnt ContinwusThe present continuous tensc in lzan is obtaino<t by sufiixing sini tstbcgiven word. Examples:-

Present ContinuaasIqn English lzqn EnglishGba... say I gbamini I am sayingWEni... work I (firfwgnimini I arn *ortingG9... write { gnmini I am writingTUg... cook I ryqmini I am cookingEndi dgg..do fishing 'Ye (ki) endi dggmini I arn doing fishingTolurng teach {tolumgnini larnteaching

SECTION IV--The Present Perfect ContinuousThe {zgn preseirt perfect continuous te,nse is arrived ar by doubting ltcverb and adding the preseirt continuous suffix. Now look at tbcscexamples:-

Present PcrfeA Continrmu{zgn English lqn EnglishGba:.. say ] gba gbamini I have boen sayingFie... talk { fie fiemimi I have been ra*t"gGb€in... sew { gbein gbeinmini I have boeir sewingMig... do I mig migrnini I have beeir doingSgrg... wash { sgrg sgrymini I have been washing

Now give the present continuous and present perfoct continrrcus of t[cfollowing:-l. Tin..2. Kedi...3. kpa...4. Ororo...5.Y-og...

to callto pluckto stoer acano€to thinkto paddle

62i...T.Bqiats.Biyen fi...9.Tei...lO.Gboro-..

tobarachiHto fetch waterto sw€arto playto plant

70 1l

LESSON 5Thc Fufirre

SECTION l-lhe Slmfu FntueThe sirplcfutur€itd* it Jt"O at by lengtheningthe verb and adding

-minito il.EmnPIcs:'SirnPlc Future

Iz.qn... English Wi nslhh

Mu... go Imuumini I shall go

Buou... sleep ltgn1umini T1"{will.sleepoki... .Jt" Yb;kiimini fh"tt.:Y:"ss... "-h, {-'uu^i"i lh: Yiu.fshtA!e-.. dk 'Ye arggminf I shalltalk

SECilON II-Thc Fttture PedeaThc futtrne perfect i" t; is $rmed by-zuffixing ndgo or nngn .to

the

gt"* *.ti^."d wdting "ki" separar3ly.' Exnmvles:'

I bodg ki ouio xoioiini ^

I shall have come before night falls.

I bfrngnE ti'o il"^i"i- I shall have slept before his arival

PART II COMPREIIENSIONListcn to thi$ passage carefully and aoswcf thc folbsing qu34jl@

(1) WhyThecricket'sTeethArcSlnged?kgoi

"n" Ekirikiri r4 Atggkudu mq timimi.'A ycrin timi kFi lr ffii'

'"'"y" "r"u

r"gti-qgl.. El{{ki4 gba Atggkudu Prini,' A Atglhdu'Uodi ya r"o rno eirrUi y"-" Atggkudu kpq bib€rinfti'Ani &oni'a winipo.g koromi.' " 'A -u pqg ladg mi,'a koro €Nrlbimi. 'A €mbi timi dqin kpq kfnieyee kpg'a mgb.eb"-kpq kgni opuar biqbi"A €mhi sinng-mi, Ekiritiiglu Aiqi,LOopti,ti, "B-ulgg mi tqami oki b€in b99 ki mi oprmru tqa

Uirpi fii"ti"i y"." atESzuCu kpq kqkg ba biberinmi"A koro okimi'" lA'oki-ti-i nq kgni in" umi, EkfiHri Atqgkudu tirrmi' rA

Atggkgdu mi-€mi 6 bomi!i?" Atggkudu'o pan;mi, 'I bo.mi{ ye'' 'A oki

t#ik€"i efie lami, Ekirikiri ba Atggkudu tin didg, 'A Atg-utudu miaie uomlnff" Atg-ukudu

lo p*;*i, "I bomini ye'" ania prg bibiai cycri

kiri a mung. fr{i m'a mQ kqn arg z9z9 pri timi bo kgt{ "1"

t" -i'u".*.gh". Eki4ki4'o tin kpg, kpirein--bs bibi fiegha' Niini'

Atggkudu beniPrl Ygimq famgng.

Ekirikiri bffi oki @in wqri feni tUa tebii ba misi opunru FgFmi''Wo'o nbi" -i-e mi,'wo 'o kqn qmi. 'O po.wgi k-ureNnq @ &mi'om9 dEri kip kia timi mini andil kon mu bgr99 dpg'wo 4t9ry mfqyq,l" inirin kudfi €dti y€. Mi i na wqri dU ni i mq ghmi i pelede qgDcti

ba fa o o o. E--e--+-ff-

Now answer thefoilowing qrcstions in lzgn1 Which other title would you like to give to the lnssage?

2 What reason(s) do think cricket had in mind fc zuggesting

swimming across the river first before eating the only

fruit of thcir labour?

3srhatwiilyousayahoutAtg.ukudu'forhavingagrcodtohavcundertake,n such veirture?

\Idat will you say about the way cricket and

'Atggkqdu' thinks resPectivelY ?

What lesson do you derivo ftrom the passagc?

Do you think it was a retribution effectod bt Ctod to crickct

for having its t€cth singod or it was jurt rn aocident?

69

*

Izgn..- EnglishKign... countKin... hewKonr--. fallS9.." ngbt8a... kill

Fulare PcdedIzqn'O kienne kit rinne ki'O korodqki'A sgdq kiA badeki

EnglhhHe willhave counted

I shallhavehewnHe will have falleirThey wilf have foughtShe will have killed

56

t2

while counting. Hence, in issues of age determination, those who were

bonr in a yftr in which a particular event occurred are declared elders to

those who were bom after such €v€,nt, and similar issues are settled insame way.

Geirerally, there is the counting of a year ago, two years ago'fiveyea111 ago; that is,'Kgni kgrai @dg, ma kgrai bqdg' sgilpn a k.urai b.odq

etc

Note that in place of bqdg','padg'could as well be used.

Wheir referring to an ev€,lrt which is yet to come, two differeirt

phrases are available for use; either ofthem could be used. They are:-

.........K9 or Mi bglo.g a ... ........The number of days or period should bc ins€rted in the blank spaces.

For exarnple, Ma dein kq' or Mi br$o.g a nn dein; that is, more two days

or in two days time. Simailarly, weeks, months or y€axs are countd insame way.

kC

SECTIGN III-The Fature ContinaorNThe future continuous tens€ is obtainad by by lcnthmnimg ahff hst vowelof the audliary verb "timin and writing -mini jointty to it. How rhrdy thefollowing carefully.

Fulure Continaouslzqn Engtish,Ye oki timiimini I shall be swinrmlngIrbt"t timiimini I shall be sleepingA wgni timiimini She will be walking

.Oggtimiimini HewillbewitingA arg timiimini They will be talking

lryn EnglishOki... swimbgng... slee,p

W€ni... walkG9... WriteAr9... talk

SECTION IV-The Ffiurc Pedect CorrtinuousThe fun:re perfect continuous in Izgn is arrived at by writing the giveirword twice separately adding timi and suffixing it with nne", and nriting"ki" separately. Ernnple:-

'Ye'o mie mie timine ki deinI shall have been doing it before night falls.

I ge gE timing ki eneiin laaminiI shall have been writing before the day.

Now study the table below.Futare Perfea Contintuus

Iryn English !4n EnglishGba... say 'O gba gba-timing ki He will have beeir sayingGbcin...sew A gbein gbein timing ki She will have been sewingS9i... dance 'A sei sgi timing ki They will have been dancingPei... listen I p€l p€r timing ki I shall.have been listeiringTun... sing I tun tun timing ki I shall have beeir singing

Note the use of 'nnen inst@d of ndg" suffixed to timi, because it isnasalis€d whe,n pronounced.This is because the nm!.of ntimin is nasal.

68 13

LESSON 6

SECTION l;Pcnorul

PRONOUNSSECTION III-MmthsAgain, therc is a diffenence in the traditional or hmr rnontb and the civilcaleirdar in respect of the months in the year.Whilrc thc ciyil calcndar has

twelve months in the year, the traditional has thirteen. Bascd on thisinformation there is no correlation between the rcnths of thc civilcalendar and thal of the traditional, but they are written down below.

1 January.." Ebi aggmg+wei2 Febnrary... Birernqkiriry3 March... Konu mo kiri mo

Slngdcr

lst person: f; Ye ..- I2ndperson: E; Y€..- You

3rdperson: ',O;'wo; owo He/[tA... She

Plural

O; wo/ owo... We4...'A...

YouThey-do-

t.

These are the personal pronouns in IzQn' Study how ft? T" preseirted'

There is one-point wiich ought to be treated fi'"t b€fore pro.cediilg

further. In the first persc*r plural and third p€rson singular, it could be

d.t td that "wo/oio' app"at. In the dialect used, botb are preseirt but

'wo' shall always bo used anytime the need arises'

Ijtusseehowtheaboveareappliedinseirte,nces.FirsttheffrsLsocd and third p€rson singular'

tnolv bs@tlsA f mugfu--. ldidnotgo

E gbadg?--- Have You said it?

A uggha,.. Shedidnot agree

'O brtnUng... . Hehas slept; orlt has slept

B'Yeendi badq"' lhavekilledafishYe 'o badg?.-' HaveYou killod it?

A okidg.-. Shehas swum'Wo'o miq{ni.-. He did it

NAIE:Thepersonal psonouns used in A always pt""{-" word beginning

with a consonant ornii" tho*. in B a word beginqing with a vor'el' This is

,pgUjrc 1o any other dialoct(s) of lzgn which is similar to the one used

iathisbook.Buttb€thfudp"oo"singularforfernaledoesnotobcythe,1o""; it takcs both cascs-iord$ beginning with a consonanJ or vowel.

-f;ry sorre other wotds oo yoru own as treated abovc'SiJ pov lacvisit thc plunl personal Pronouns'

t4

4 April.".5 May"..6 June.."

!mgnemiwgriaiturugbaBou seinto okenyeir/I(efereKalaOkeyen

7 Opu Okeoyen...Opu 0keyeirI August... KalaAwaran9 September.,. OpuAwaranl0Octotrer... Spgnuoweiyai1l November... Bunibiriyaif2 Dece,mber... Benieyeri aggng-orei13 Seiagqngorei

NOTE: Rernember that the traditional months do not exactly corrcspondwith the civil calendar.

SECTION fV-lteSeasonsThene ale principally two seasons; narnely, the rainy scason and the drys€ason. These arc respectively known and callod as 'Osuo ofic' and

'Baaraa efie. The Osuo efie is sometirnee designated'Buwei cfic'Ihar is,period of flood wliile that of Baaraa is 'Beiri eyeri efie';that is , period oflow water.

SECTION V--YearsYears could be qnnipulatd to correspond with thG B.C md A.D systcrnof counting with the civil caleirdar, but traditinally suc,h is not inpractice.

As thcrc is no markod or gcncrally rcccptd cvcnt rvhich cqrld serveas a base of oouting, references are mrdc to .somc pruormcod events

67

LESSON 23

CALEIVDARDAYSThc fzqn wock c Mitimat week doo not tally with the civil cateirdar.It has cigbt days as follows:-

SBCTION I-:Thc Treditimrl W€€kt Atpf .monai... the day aftermarkd day2 Biribsi-". the middle day or day in-betweeir3 &ryygbai-.. tkdaypriortomarketday,f Akinboi-.. themarketdaymdayofrest5 Akintgmreai6 Btufroi7 FWySbaiI Atinboi

It is obsavod thrl trcro are oly four days which have names that arercpearcAty ountsdto mke up the eight days in the traditional woek; andtherr are forty fiva (4t srd trditional woeks and about five days in they€r.Bofh days aad th traditimm ryo* aro us€d in cormting days accordtng tusitnlion ordesire" So we oftahsarpoople saying:-Me doin bgdg; sgnry a dein bEdq; ma fqr b9d9; taraa fgg nrg nein a

dcin mg @nwhfrt rcryGrtiycty ureans:-Two days ago; five days ago; two rnarkets ago; thre ma*ets and four

days ago.

SECTION II-IacCHWnkThc CiYil Uf6*, as gmal$r known, has seven days. Unfortunately the,reis no exacl y,uds in lzqn for these days but they could be read asfolbws:-

SECTION II-PlamIA O baFmi ... Wcru

AUainmi... YouSbrrnA bainmi .". Theyran

B Wo okimi ... We swama okimi... You swarnA okimi ... 1@ rwamA okimi ... Sho swEm

{D

NorE: In section l1 A above, as already preseirted, o tatcs t wordbeginning with a consonant while n'',on takes a word beginnrrr8 withsifh€r a consonant or a vowel.

Know that the thftd person singular feminine has the samc tm viththe seond person plural-high tone.

The above is precisely hor' ths personal prononns are usod in thedialat.

SECTION lll-PosscssiwSingufar

lst Person: Mine: ror only one ob.iectfor more than ono object

--do---

2nd Person: Yours: Eniye... foronly oneobjoctEnaiy{... formorc tttanoncdirtF.Br.ii.. -do--

IIiV Its: 'Woye/ 'Oniye for on_ly onc objGetWoyay''Oniya/'On4...fin morc one

Ours: Woye... for only one objectWoy{... for more tlian one obirt

2ndPerson' Yours: Aniye... foronlyoneobjectAniy4... for more rhaa one obJoct

3rdPerson: Theirs:'AqiJlc... foronlyoneoblf'Aniy{ for morc tban w obJd'Ani.....-.. {-

3rd Person:

PluralIst Person:

l.Smday.-.2-Mmday-"-3.Trmday..- .Wednesday...5.Thrsday...6.Riday.-.7-SaUday...

Kaq bai.Br$qBbaiMamolkramobaiTaq KaramobaiNeinldanrn baiSqnrgn Karalno baiEmbofoufai

156

I

3rd Person Hers:

S E CTION IV -Intcrto gdiv eWhich... Ti,endiWho-'- Tibg,TibqkqdWhom... -do--Whose... TibqYeni'TibqkqYeni

SECTION AdjoctiwsThis (1)That (2)Th€s{3)Tlios{4)

In sent€nces:-Tiwarini?"' Whichhouse?

drq ki'o mie ni?"' Who did it?

fiUqtqyenif"' Forwhom?

Mitild fq arunif"' Whose shirt is this?

Note that tnu t n*tatioo,oith"'io,""rogative pronouns in Izan are almost

the same.

4. .... gbadg.... gbeleiminiOur fihcrs say-thar poltergeist sornetimes come acmss human bcings.

5. ....tolu....seinigbq ...-. gh"Trial by ordeal does not always show a otlprlt:

6. ...mi a.....timi.....-ni?Who didnotmeet withany man before concqfion ia rhis wsIS

7. Meri......rniIt was Mary who did not meet with any man before conception'

8. ........-ma? Igho did Jesus die for ?

9. ...q ......mi Jesus diod forthe whole world

fO. .......tari...mi He said ererybody should love in his neighbour

1 1 .... .ki ...-kimi.....-ni?Wnat aid ni say tnat will happ€n to anybody who keeps €nmily?

12. ..--..ni,...a.... That p€rson will not go to heavcn

13. .....-aba...."--iti If holy water is sprinklod, it expels evil spirit'

14. ........ a rna.....ni? Where did they crucidy Jesus (to death)?

15. I(alyad.. At a mrmrain callod Cahnry'

Aniyo... for oniY one object

Itii'.i... for more th,ur on€ object

Anai... -do--

G

NOTE;Know that 3 and 4 are the plurals of 1 and 2'respectivoly' But I

and2couldstill.beu'.oirwhatisrefcrlodtocanbe<nllectivelytakentogcthcr. Hcoce, we sometimes hear-

MiPgrgoycama, instead of 3 Bso h PEr'g eyeama; aad

Ani wo nmaarna, instead of 4 'Anai bo wo narnaanra

t6 65

I.ESSON ZZ

RELIGION

Exrmples:-l. Emini ti karibgg ka erri ni? Which religion do you belong to?

z.Imini oru ki karimini I belong to traditional religion(NOIE The use of "onr kari" to mean traditional religioa would be

offensive to some PeoPJe-

I prefer the the following to it. "fzgn KaribBg" or n'Wo dagotu k@ b99")

3.Biett pei k9k9 timi bamini? Does swearing actually kill? .Wyqa pei bign kiini ba Swearing tlrat done secetly does not kill5. Woyin-tpi diamgnini Seeing Black blind snake is a bad omeir

Exrmples:-l.Dadi-owei ........€lni Dadi-owei is possessed by "Benikurukunr"

2. Mi ... rni..ki.....i ke-ri-".rniMany people Ynestled with mo in my dream tast night

3. ....rry......,e.tinmi aba'obqrni arq seirng .....miniDo[d mtion anybody's naine' if you do the person ryill sue

You fa chencfer assasination"

'4

LESSON 7PRONOI'NS CONTII\TIJED

Personal Pronouns in the Ac{ive and Passive VoiceNOTE It is difficult to get the Passive Voice in fzgn. Thereforc, what ispreseirted below as the Passive Voice should not be taken for it.

GeneralSECTION I Singalar PlurullstPerson:'Ye;fm9... Me Wo;Omg;Womg...Wcps2nd Person: E; E mg... You A; A mp...........You3rd Person: 'O;'O nq... He,tlim,It 'A;'A mg.....They[hcnt' A: A "te... She

SECTION IIlst Fersan Singular'Ye okuboo ko.nng'Ye eirdi bade

lst Ferson PlumlWo eremaarimio q4i wgnlng

Eremao mg arlmiFlrimi wo mg wgnimf

SECTION III2ndPenon Singular

E tgbo.g zidgE tgrymi oki bginng

TVbqU e mg zidgTAqmiemgoki bginmi

Okubomi i mg kgnm! The money was takeir by rneEndiimgbami Fishwaskilledbyme

Active VoiceI have takeir the money - ActiveI have killed fish - Voice

PassiveVoice

Active VoieeWe sawtheladyWe have done the work

Passive VoiieThe lady was seen by usThe work was done by us

ActiveVoiceYou have given birth to a baby.You have swunn acmss thcriver

PossivcVoicoA baby was borne by youThe river was swum across by you)

17&

ZtdPerron-PlumlA furuowcikgrideA gbclci finuowci vtpgrni

Furrrowcimi' a mq kqrimi'Funrowcimi a rfigvgrgmi

SECr|ON IV3rdPenon-'Singtbr

'Otpbo.g,t darimo.miA qv"iitsgrni

3dPcnon-Pfurol'A cndi bami'A ry firii weoi mi

Endi'amgbamiFirimi'a s€ mq wgnimi

lst Penon-Singabr(1) okubomiiP4tqnmi(2) Endiipdbami

lst Pcnon-Phral(3) Eremao pri arimi(4) Firimi o pd wenimi

Active YobeYou havc caugbt tho thicfYou beat tho thicf jointlY

PassiwVobcThe thief was @ught bY YouThe thief was jointly beateir by you

ActiveVobeHe rebuked the childShecookedthe food

PossiveVoice

Activc VoiceThey killed fisltThey alldidthe work

PassiveVoiceFish was killed bY them

The work was done bY all of them

s

Nowdothe following:-1. Kirmi €kis€diri ........2. ..-ki .-d€in emi yan?3.....&gn....n94.Eni.....d9?5. Mi.... ki emi6. Ala-ere ....Jrg.

9..-.-..rniniyo1O. -....a........erni

7. Ala-ere ---.---. Ala-ere usually suffer from hard labour in chiH dcliv€ry8. .... -vamuvamu.-. Jnini My carbuncle is thmbbing prinfully.

Slorn'c linimenrt shrivels a swollen part.

Who is tho bcst masscur ia rhis towl?Thc corpc hrr ba takcn to nsttary.

Iryorrumdhcal€d?Thistrbhisinsipid

Ala-ere has Ebdtd hcr pqnrey

Intestinal wonns could cause one to bem lcu.IncubusmHtill.

T$ggmi'omq darimqmi The child was rebuked by him

Fiy.i-i i-q,itg-i The food was cooked by her

SECTION V-Passive Yoice ContinuedThepa.ssivevoicein[zgncouldeverrbeeasilyexpressedbytheuseofthe word "Pri", so *" ot* hear people speaking in the passive voico

with it. Now look again at the iollowing se'tences--the ones in the

passivc voice of all what we have just tr€ated above'

The moneY was takeir bY me

Fish was being killed bY me

The lady was seeir bY us

The work was being done bY us

1863

'Exercises:-1. Ifthe boil has festered, please bave it incis€d.

2. E butlFsci moo, tiye ki e ra ma o? oteinmi tgadg aba,'o kubu e

You look einaciatd, what is wrong with you?3. Ofimqc eyc Qgha timi aladg aba, arru pr! oyamomini"y"

".regnqgnant lady goes withour cafid f* u ro"g i'imJ,rh" usalysUfre13 6ep dizziness.

1'$bq{"i anggga The chitd is sick.l'Tiy"ti tgbgBglamao? whariswrongwithGchild?!.1\fa.aweuve ki oyam-omini ft is suffering io-

"*"ot.to'T.Jpapakaawuunmini I yawn frequently!. F_tq

e dgnmini yan? Are you suffering iiom any pain?9.'Ye asin asin ki bignmini iarn sufferin"e m_ frr*trry10. Kiri'ye aya aggno.woi seri w9{ erni.

r..yeangskis€riimini rj-t:liiHffiJff613y-12. Aniifn,mu eni angg lgg a Their, go and massage your body.13. Angbai ye, i dgnzggwari ka muumini-

No,l would rather go to hospiral14. E bign ki blgnnini aba, blg,ndiri bou e

Ifyou are suffering ftom diarrhoea, take a purgalive.l:'Btili i yamini My ear is irching mel6.Angolokgn'osgglge " Tickleitwithstubborngrassl7. fngfiai{gn -g ggoporei mg ba m!_emi papa kimi k94sh;.small-pox and chickenpox do not affect poople frequently nowadays.!!. fife ti tw fin Tggmini yan? unar is

"rra i" "*ir! ,ingwo.mz

19.'Ani prkimi birisei sare ka mi. Thar leper g"t, urfiofri *"ity20. E lila gbcin rx)o, ye ofuru pglg eirri yan.

21. amgloloku @ibg ki *. r"oo spit often' are you newly pregnant?

Mumps is contacted by making mockery of a victim

NoIE:Ttble not bas€d gl medicar ground but on the commoar sayingpreveiht in&cMcin-speaking district arad its surroundmg

s

2nd Penon-singalar(5) TgbqUep{zimi(6) Tgrgmi epri oki bgfnmi2nd Penon--pluralO Funroweimiap{kgrimi(8) Funroweimi apri gbelei

3rd Penon-singular(9) TBbgBm!'o pri darimgmi(10) Flyaimi a.p4 rr;gmi3rd Perxon-plural(11) Endi'ap{ bam!(12) Firimi'a s9 pd wgnimi

_- A baby was being bom by youThe river was being swum across by you

The theif was being caught by ySuvypmi The theif was Ueing jointly

beaten by you

The child was being rebuked by himThe food was being cooked by her

Fish was being killed by themThe work was being done by aII of them

NorE There is one drawback with the use of 'pri'; it is this. It sornetimesdistorts the meaning and substance of some sentences. In rine with theabove, senteirces I A $, tO and, l2suffer from this defect.In senteirce

f , money is attributed with the right or power to preveirt mefrom taking it but did not use it.

In sentence 4, work is rikewise attributed with the right or pow€r topfevent them from working b"t dii;;;;;ir as we'. The same defect ispres€nt in sentences 6,tO ar:d 12.However, what is clear about iti use is that it is usually aipliod to Iivingthings.

62l9

-----FI

LESSON tTHE USE OF SOME WORDS

In this lesson, the use of some words are treated, pay special attention to

how theY are treated.

l. nan: As a posposition ( Equivalent of the English Pre'position)

Wari a la..' not in/inside the house

Ama a fa... not irVinside the town

Wari atimi'.. live in house

Funiolumg war.i/Sukulu a mu"' go to school

. T$9 a mu.arg a fa"' go to river not in canoe

Its conesponding substitute,"ghon is used in Kolokuma and Nernbe

dialects. "-Gho" in these orttrograptries takes at, in' on' and to in sentences

which require its use' ExamPles:-

Wari gho fa not in/inside the house

ry

33.Bgtgasei... [ran,emaciatcd34. Dgnzgg... Medication35. Duwei... sPrain

36. Dgwgi-tr1a-wa4... MortgarY

37.Ereye... Afterpains38. Erezimg-wari MaternitY

39. Eteghe... ElaPhantiasis

40. Emba darag.. Breathe

41. Eno.gn... Woud, sore,12.Eo.9n-f!na-bid9 Bandage

43. pyglgowei... Masseur

44.Fin... Ringworm45. Gerigeri... Reddish

46. Dr;wgi-dumou The downY hairofnewborm babies

47. [viadgnA{ama-dgn Rheumatism

48. Kubu ... Incise(abscess)

a9.Lvi... Goitre; derbyshire

50. NlmU... MadnessJ-unacY

51. Ofolo... Asthma

52.Ofoni-do.n.. EPilePsY

53. Onugbonu... Nettle-rash

54. Oruru... Cotton-wool55. Otein... BoiI

Dcoi.... Benumbed

Discin... Snoeze .

Dggn... Chcwing rtickEfm... WcdE$in... PturylGs

Esq$n... Intestinal wolmsEmba... Br€ath.

Embglg... Sweet

Eyqlge... Massage

Eyqlgarag.. Masseuse

Fila...FgrT...

Spttle, SalivaSmell

triri ... Craw-crawScrbicd

[mginidgn.. SrnallPox'Kiripglg... MeiroauscIQgnpolei... ChickcnPox1a... LigarncntNiniyai... Nasal Muctu; cnot

Odin... DuneOfoniorcin... CarbrmclcOkilo... L.arno

Opomboro... StamrsOsobo... YcllowfcvcrOyindgn... hopcY

hrmou... Futif,rfitsSiiri... tubSikgi... HiccqrS99n19... TtutbTibi-akrl-gbglU HqdecncTgnl-otoin... StYlcVamuvarur... ThrobYa... Itc& intetcTcrriojbob... Syrlryo

Ygp... BunDpU{p... TctrnruJocltsw

Bulou gho fa

Tin gho eminot insidein or on a tree

did not dodidnot saY

didnot go

s6. Qmbi...57. Pgnki...

64.Tqa...55.Temi...

Hump;hunchIry

fest€r;suppurat€Injection

not the ones58. Sin... Vomise. sidi... Suffocate

60. Siplrsipt]... Jerk

61. Taboloo... Insipid62.To.rya sei... [.oathe; hale

63.To.rgbgin... Teething

3. "Kgmg"(a) As nogativo

Positivc Negative

MiP ... do Miq kurnq"' do not do

G&... Eey Gba kr1mg"""do not say

Mu... io Mu kgmg"""'do not go

ii;... it-o Tig kurnq"' do not stand

Cornpare the abova wtth 2 rbovc' What do you notice?

66. Temi-noun.,. Needdlc forinftrtion67. Wurrr-ogbudu Measlos

68. Zikgrj... Travail; to bc i! Irbou

6120

LESSON 21

IIRdAlgIzAn Engritth

t. Dgna;gwari... nfrmaryf hospital2.Dgnargbg.-. DoctorBhysician3 Agbagbggbab$...TaAorary cramo

c numbnessGonorheaGdnding of teetb

4Asii...5.Akafi...

Iz.qn English. arteryrvcin

D,tlwgidi... IncubusDawai... DreamSeidawai... NightmarcOmoun... SweatAl.oB... CoughSei-alg-u... T.BAnggfa... SickjllAnggri... SnoreAnggs€rii.. High feverApgng... BelchAridgn... MalingerAsin-asin... BloodyAsinfa... RloodlessanarnicAsisi... AbradeAso.n... SoapAsgmai... HissAwofie... Delirium; ravingAfuga... JiggerA^tzt... (Hand)FanAkpg... ExpectoratePidi... PinchBign... Pass stool,dofocate

0

(b) As a quantifier

Jan timi tgmg ti 'o .ro mi It was only three persons that killod it.Sgpr-on a bibi krprng ki'o mq fie mi. It w@.

4.,Fa'This word is used differently as follows:-

i. (a) Fun fa... no booksApia fa... no cutlassNa / san fa... not yet in stockKimi fa... no p€ffion

O) Endi ba fa... no more fishDB ba fa.-. no more storyTin ba fa... no rcr€ trees

Note the addition of ba'incontrast to those in 4 t (a) above

ii. Consider its another use in the following:-Bo timi fx... Keep coming for everY€drimih... Kee,p selling fmcverByng tirni ft-.. Keep steeping for everEye Qr;mi 1a... Koep eeting forcver

In fact timi fa'd€notes exist orreinain for ever

ar. Examine its anothuse in sharp contrast to 4 d (a) above.

6.Akatudgn.. Toothache7.Akdq... Ulcer8: Akgasgma..infiamation of the groin9. Amu... Dizinessl0.Amgbaloku Mumps11.Apipi... Squeezel2.Asin... Blood13.Asin-bign... Dysentery14.Asinkpo.... Clotofblood15. Asinmakpo.. internal clot of blooa16. Afian/Bignyai Feacesptool. excreta17. Avi!'1i... I-gstl8.Awuun... Yawn19. Ayrrrvggye.. C-onvulsion20.Ah... Sploen2l.Atpgyri... Sputumphtegm22.Bd$.h... Yellowpale23.Brh... Pubic louseZ.Bigndiri.. Purgative25. Bign-gbain... Costipation26.8@ib€ni... Watery27.Brcxa-f1m.... Earvax28. Bgin....The folds in fte skin of

sonre fat poople29, Biripuzi... Caosarian section30. Biris€rii... Intestinal colic3 1. Bira sibe/I$ripo.:..Me,nstruate32. Bunr-{-aka.. Milk todh

Ban... Be blindBigndq"... DianhoeaBeni disg... ThirstyB€ri k-urp... hard of hearingBeridgn... Eaxach€Birikoro... AbortionBirikoromg... Carse abortionBiba... (of wound)healBign-wari... ktrineBulou-imgbi H€NmiarupturcBr;ng@.Slecping sichs

Furufa...Seifa---

Etpefr..-Kafa...Kgrpfr...Kolifr...

tvtiey{ mlgfa... tull of imrnratity

full of stealingfull of hadness

full of liesfull of stormtnessfull of power; power,frrlfull ofshortness; dwarf!p

?

&NorE: It should not bc wdtten separatcly ftrom the word it qualifiee as itcould be seeir ftrom abovc if rhis use is applied, otherwise it wouH bcar aditr€rcntmeaning.

60 2l

5. oFi"

(a) This word too has differtnt urcs'ut p'rasented below'

Part III-The Leg

Iz,gn English

1 At9n9... Thigh

2 Emgbele... Knee

3 Erngbele-fqr9.- I(nee caP

4 Bgg-ogbo... Shins

5 B99 abg... InsteP

6 Opub99tibi... Bigtoe7 BUg emgbisa-ama.'Toes

Izgn EngEsh

8 Kunounbgqemgbisa Little toe

Musa{...I sa{de...

go toborlowmoa€'yI bave bornowod nroneY' 9 Bgg-teun'..

10 Bggkubu.-.l1Bg9ernbgl ...

12Bgqtgry.-.13 Bg9 ofou-..

The hoolSoletuchAnkle.Calf

Consider the following: -

Erc rna fidg... the. woman is d€ad

Ayapldiifide-.. the babY is doad

niiL'ipqde... Ebiis dead also

Examin€ the following: -

a-f"-tt" oig" qdg... AL-ere has sworn or takeil oarh'

fi ar*;*";... Ala-ere has eateir her feaces

(d) Considerthe following also:-' ; Yanfaran q.-. to be co-wives'Ye e mqrnq Yanfaranli dgg erni

I would iif"to be a co-wife to your husband

or I would lfteto marry the same husband withyou

ii EYg fi.-. to be friends

I would like to rnake frieird with you - 'Ye e nvry €yq q dqB €nti

iii Fuo fi--. to be in-laws

I should like to be an in-law to you -'Ye e momo: fuo fi dEf emi

NOTE: The word'k tl' ;ld be substitutod for 'f in this contcxt-s

above.

6. ncb€in" This is another word which has diffeneirt uses:-

(a) Bfdq gbein-.- 'to sow cloth

Amuna-ere bid€; gU"it"g"' Amuna-ere has sewn the clothes

Alabo bid€ bibi ;;ott""U"' Alabo has hemmed the cloth

(b) Ogun gbcin... to waSo war\-/ ALm;ft ogun kqn Abalaotu gbeinmi-:Th"

p""Pb of enma wagd-war against the people of Abala'

Afarnaotr'rnOAbahottl mq ogrm gbein mi'-:Th"-p""pdot.lfrma

anA eUahwaged war against each other

(b)

(c)

€

sl

q

2259

LESSON ?.O

l2AkU...l3 Andi...

Part I-The Head and Neck

Izo.n EnglhhI Tibi... H€ad2 Tibi durnoun... Hair3 Okodo... Forehead

4 Tgry etgrng... Eye lashes

5 Tg'rU... Ey"6 Niniogbg... Bridge7 Nini... Nose8 Niniopoolo... Nostril9 Bibi... Mouthl0 Bibiodu... Lipll Kiriekpe..- Chin

PARTS OF THE BODY

22Kqpl.n...

The chestThe face

{zgn Englishl7 Amgba... Cheek18 Okeketu... Jaw19 Mgnimg-ofoni Adam's aPPle

20Meqimq... Thrcat21 Kgo.n-ernba mundness of the

neckNeck

23 Kgo.n-busu...The length of theneck

24 Kglipgbg... Nape258ai... Ear26 Akpgbr$-og.-- The breast

27 Tgry-akpa-.. The eYelid

28 Blb!-btflq9-aka Incisor29 MglqU/BUl-o9.. The tongue

ad

(c) Sei gbein... to nuke feastAbalaotu sei gbein mini - The people of Abala are making feastAsamaotu aya k-urai sei gbein mini- The people of Asama are making their new ycar feast.

(d) Akain ghin... to make tharchAba-owei akain gbeinmini Aba-owei is sewing thatch

(e) Asu gbein... to pull a c:lno€ with a poleE yin argmi a asu gbein timi mi.- Your mother was pulling the canoe with a pole

(Q LB gbein... to cut oil palm fruitAsamaowei lg gbeinowei Asamaowei is oil palm fruit colloctorAsamaowei lg gbeinyg duo bode- Asarnaowei has come from collecting oil palm fruit

(g) Ogbolo gbein... to tlrow sticksBa ogbolo ko.n obirii gbcin k.um Do not throw sticks aI the dog agsin.

(h) Ogbp ghin... to fish with a throwing-netE dag ogbg gbein mini Your father is fishing with a throwing-net

(i) Endi gbein... to fish with a kind of spear with iron point.Embidg embiowei k-on eirdi gbein bami- Embidg killed a fish with a spear

(i) Kin gbein... to cut downEre ma 4in kin gbeinnq The woman has felled the tnee

(k) Gb€in koromg... to fell an object by throwing something af itAladu tin beinyai gbein koromgng Aladu has stoned down a Auit

(l) Gbein gban... to coverahole/ gap with any objrrctAkala atg-u kgn opooloo gbein gbanng- Akala has covered the hole with mud.

la Agqneipo.4... MustacheI 5 Asgmakara-aka. -.Canine16 Tgng-okeke... Eyebrow

Pril II--The Hand and Trunk of theBodY

Izo.n English1 Apcle... Snriutder2 Biracggliyainmg

Elbow jointOpubiratibi...ThumbBira esangbalaama/

Izgn English12 Biraeggli... Elbow13 Atgnlgbulou... Amtpit14 Angasara... Side15 Bri-.. AMomen/BellY16 Ekokutu... HrP

34

Biraelrngbisaama..Fingers lTAninatu/Apq'r$u--- Groin

5 Apanala... Theliver6 Ifunoubbira esangbala...

The Little finger7 Birakubu... PalmS Biratqry... The wrist9 Amabira... Rigbthand10 AbU.." Bact11 Amba".. BellY;bowels

18 Ombu...19 Agbobu...20 Endou...21Endobibi...22 Kgng bira...23 Abgbiri...24Bien...

58

NavelChestBreastNipplekfthandThe backBuftocks

$

{S

23

7. nKidn This word too has differc,nt usm but only two ar€ t€atod below

(a) In atrrmativc slrtcrrots:I firi gtrni ... I apthc one who ssftl ittr kiri anru kantni- I am the one who tse the $irt

(b) As anAdverb of tire:Mi eyee paAe ki kiri i bo mi - This

.hmg had happenod before t cam€

E. 'Mg"(a) As aConjunction

Ebila ry Alale m9 binaotuama Ebila and Alale are reliatives

(b) As an Adverb:tO nrg bgngmi .-. Hothen slePt'O nq bainni -.- He then ran

9. "Ki' As afocus marker

Imini ki namaa bami It was I whokilled the animal

Note that'omini / Amini can go with it.Geirerally, it is used when ever there is a long prcnorm'

10. "Ni"(a) As a relative Particle.-Ani

ere mani angqdgntimi arag ma-That bthe woman who was sick

Mi tubgu ma oi yio *gri fi arar ma - This is the girl whose mother is l,ate

(b) As a linkerMo.,p.o kgri bg ni'o rng furu mi - He stolc boutc bc was too hlmgly

11, Consider the use of these words:-etu; ekPudu; bo and esou

Whe6 any of these words is su11ixed to a wo'rd, it mkes the word plurat

but colloctiveily"Kimi€fit... acrowdofPoqilcNamadu.-- aPackofmimalsEndi etu--- aPackof fish(es)

.24\

€

SECTION II ErendreI Aniwosukulumi.2 Mi wo eye tolumgwari mi.

Solobo sukuluamune.Ama-enefun gggnini

10In! tun-gggblsaa fadg

Now complete the following:-1 ....ftqni...2 .........teride

That is our schoolThis is ourclassrcom

Solobo has gone go schoolAma-ere is writing book

My pen is lost

A snake has bitten apupilThe school has gone on vacation

3 Ada sukulumima eye tolumlwari ki emiThere are two classrooms in the school at Ada

Ani tibi tglumgoweimi That is the headmaster,Omini sukulu-awgg vprp bg mi He whips pupils too much

Atama sukulurni neretimi eyeamafaThere are no seats in the school at Atama

456

789 Asamaotu mg Ebiamaotu mg ki adanmini

The people of Asama and Ebiama are wrostling

3 Ani ..........eirdgna-...........emi ni?How many classrooms are there in the school at your town?

4 Mi ......dirimg laghaThe blackboard in this school is not blackened enougb.

56 Ala-ere kiri-..". kgn eye g99 ..-rnini

......e kpg ..-..rna? Were you beaten by the teacher also?

Al;a-ere is beginning to lem writing with pen.7 Ebi-er,e .........191i bg rni Ebi-e,re's school uniform is too dirty8 { yei ........9 Wo ......-kgni ebi ...- nana wgri emi

My husband is a teacher

Our school has a beautifulgadqll0 Ani...rni ..ka r{- Yow school's field is very big.

ft

I

*s

57

LESSON 19

The sarnp principle appli€s with the rcst; h€Nrce:-

kimi ekPudu--. a grouP of PeoPleNama ekPudu--. a grouP of animals

SCHOOL

Izgn English1 Sukulu/

Funwar.i/Funtolunqwari School

2 Tohungowei... Teacher

3 Sutrututgbqrl PWiV Stud€Nrt

4 Apiatga... Fencing

5 Ada-kiri..- Fiold6 Peretimi-eYe--. S€at

7 Kiribou-.. Garden

8Funkien/Funtiin/Fun go... R€ad

9 Omgbggb$UnBqli' Ball

Ilo.n English

tO f,*-gggbisa.-. Pen

ll Tqu--- Chalk

12 Sukulu-arg.-- Uniform

13 Tom g99+Y€-.. Black-board

14 Eye tolurngwari-.' Class room

15 Eye tolumg/EYedawai l'eam

16 Akpa-.. Bag

17 Gbgl-u.-' Box/ PlaY ball

l8 Apg-.- Fower

19 Apo.Yai--. Flowers

20Fun g9.-- Write

Endi ekpudu... a group offish(es)

13. Examine critically the following:-bgnggha e..' did not sleeP

mu @gha e... did not agrce to go

wgn! saramggha e.-. did not walk fast

These are all assimilated emphasisers

a

Kimi bo-.- the PeoPleNama bo... the animals

Endi bo... the fish(es)

Nama esou... some animals

Endi esou-.. a haul of fish(es)

12. Errphasisers: a o, e, ki, ni, all, tun, ya, and ye

Ti.bg ki eyee mi.e n!?-.. Who did the thing?

E ki4'o migmi an?... Were you the one who did it?

Ti.@ ka o?... Who is it?

Osiarna firij wgni ni ya?... Has Osiama done the work?

Abalama-bain ki bain timi mi..' Abatama was just running'Obgngnie... fl6haq slePt

Wgribodq o mu a o..- Come let us goplease

Alaba ki egberii gba ki t+n It was Alaba who delivered the messageNoTE|Thisword'bo.li'istheadulteratedformoftheEnglishwordnBalln. The fz4n *an i'n-_f* way 9f -plying

ball b."tu th$ of the

westein world.It is called "omguggu$lgn.It was played with at least two

pairs of players- The pui* tf pfiy;;;[y sit opposite each other' with

legs astride, anf eacUltay- fit* o* lT of lhe two who sit opposite

him/her into the *ioarJ"iui*no rcgr- I" this way, two lines of players

are fomrd, *ftn tn"*ttt op*a plece of cloth is folded into the shape

of a sphere or globe, and it it pot "l

the ceirtre of the play€rs' The legs'

supporrd try {he nJr, wiI ie lifted and let fall rythmically which

makes the nglobe' ,o *fi to the rhe one side aad the other' It is usually

accornpanied by any enticing song' H it falls out of the legs at any

extr€me, their it is a goal ugui"ti those who occupied that extreme'

Unforhmately, one rarel5l sees that garne nowadays' and its name bas

suffe,rod at the expense ottn" adulterated wordnbo'li" which has come to

$ay on the liPsthe lzp

fi.gha e.." did not diefiegha e"..did not talk

s

l4.Auxiliary Verbs:

thi, €rni" wgri and sin-Note the use of these words in seirte'nces' Exarnple:-

koro timi -.. to stay on / keep a falleir position

koro emi... is falleirkoro sin-'. complete falU a complete dofcat'

Note:They should be wwritte,n separately frompreceding vcrb'

56

25

t5. Agcrt suffiCs rfrich arc definite articles are mitten together with

thc c/or& tkY $telifv.For emnryf,e:'

Kiniotu"- peopb): Oc'ciottl"mcn; Aw$tbo"' the childrtn;

EYqr onr.-. wones; Yinbo"' trc mtks;fg"i-y-Uq..- full b'rother or sister;

16.In line with the introduction of ihe two vowels-ni" and "9"spelling of some words are changedfor example:-

keme now qrlt kimi"' P€nion

WartAro --do--

b€be -do-Ercwoubao -do-

--rdo--- wari... house

SECTION IIf Oqpanreogtr2 Miaggng-owcidcin3 Okir€ngh@ikgpkami.4 Aggng-ofonibo efi"-ini5 Ereiin.fadg6 Efin-ar1rydiye7 Obudoubot€inmini8 Aggg-oweimiagbadg9 Ereiinseimini

Now complete the following:-I Erein2 ........gumugumu.......3 ........mi..........de4 Ow.nra ..........:bomini5 ....-ki .....d9gnrini6 ....m9 ....mg....&i biri a ......erni7 Dein..............I ........tipaemi9 Mi......fadeinl0 ..........mini

The srm hqsnot risenThis is amoonlitnight

The harmattan is tm scvereTlebirdsare flying

Thesm has setLookattbafuEraft

The clouds uc flowingIt is nowfullrnoon

The whoalheris getting bad

It is lighteinniagThe day is toohot

It is nowhalfrmnThe sun is.risingIt is about to rain

There is an eclipscNight has fallen

It is amoonless nightThis is a starless night

Thewindis blowing

a'

G

aq... canoe

bibi... word/moutherewgpba... girl

10 Oko-owei agbaradagbunrdu fri ton UaAg

Okoowei is shocked dead by thunder11 Osuobggbo dgba kami Therain eopkts arcactuany big12 Kg,g kime ki pa mig mini { strurg stomr is apemachlng13 Aggngoweimi bira k€*€mini The moon is diminishbg (in sizr)Arao -do- ara+"' hdY

Ako -do-- akF"' bitter/side

Fc -do-- Fi"" ear/die

fUe cnanges should Ue carenrUy ;"t"d There arc many other wotds

which are likewise alfected and ought to navg Ueen enfist"O but tftunwritteir.

lT.TheHYPhenIt is used io nypnenare (to Fin) cornpound words; For exarrple'

Endi-angg... '." Endi-bibi-ipqri"' ba$cls

Beni-seiye... water-snake Ariri-tqg"' meshoffish-net

18..TonesGenerallv. there are only two tonos in [zqn:-High and low'

fnJnieh tone is rnarked this sign 'The low is marked with this sign ' on the word affectod'

Note thrt the third person fernale singuhr has high tone'

d

2655

LBSSON 18

TIIElzgn EngW

1 Agqng. Up/skY/Atmosphere

2 Aggng-obudou..Cloud/Fog3 AdynE... WhtulwindI Osuo... Rain5 pqra... Sun6 Aggng-owei..- Moon7 AgUra... Star

8 Olielic... Wsgail9 Aggrytgn;... Wearher

l0 Bekc+gbein Mango11 Noo... Blue12 Ago-ago... C'r€cn

13 Asaisai... Pled Kingfiser14 Obi...15 Koto...16Fgpn...17 Er€in...

F1ying squinelFdlBlow(Wind)Day/$/hgather

18 S€i doin... lYfosnlcss nighr

19 Soi... Bad

20 S9w9i... Hid€2lEfin... Fli22Abalabala... ButterflY23 Akabofoni...%Agbgitgrgkgrigha. Weaverbird25 Akiy{... Kingfisher26At9l9bibi... ParrotZTAfpqhkpglq Honrbill28 Angg... Egg29 Apb... Wing30Ann... G€fin3 I Arggbgli-owei...Wood Paker32AYinYin... DragonflY33 Elckpukpu... Pigoon

SKYIzo,n Engfsh?4T€m<yelAgpgbiyot/35 Agbaradagburudu....Thrmder36 Afgri... Wind37 Agbalakoko... River-eagle38Aggngofoni... Btud39 Okir€ngh@... Ilamaffan40 Erein matu... I ightenning

4lKirrrc... Stum42 Tgrgtonwein... Homet43 B{-kBi... Muning star

ct

p

LESSON 9MISCELTANEOUS

83CTION I-COMPAR,ATIVE DEGNEECAthough there are three basic comparativc dctts h Ea1!lrb, thc lzgnIangrrage does not exactly follow the same pattcm. Cctrh wofdt hrvc tobc us€d so as to arrive at the desired degree-For cxarnplc,la Enjllrh thewold big is usod to 6mfr€ objats as follows:-

Word Comprdive SuptldiwBig bigger biggest

But its [zd.n counteriart --d+ba can not be used so, excqrt with additionof other words. Look at it now:-

Word Compralive SupcrbiveDgba dgba dgin erni dgba'a s€ dg.in emi

1a F.nglish, the comparative degree is usually applid when there are twoobjects--one is bigger than the other; it is the same in Iz$. "Dgba dginemio means exactly 'is bigger lhann. Sometimes the focus marker --oki'is calld into play: For exarnple;'Ebiotu ki bgtig Alaotu dgin emi"; that is, "Ebiotu is taller than Alaotu.'

In English, the superlative degree is usually usad wheir there are at leastthree distinct ob!:cts. It is the same in IzAn. A long secte,nce has to bemade to indicate the degrw, hence instead of having a single word werather have "dgba 'a sg dgin einin;that is, nbigger rhan all of thernn or 'thebiggest of alln.It could eveir be urritt€Nr ntA sg a dgba doin emin, it mcansthe same thing- The seirse portrayed is this:there are al least throe distinctobjects, and one is bigger than the others. There is not much proble,m,only to add 'dgin emin and n'a sg dgin €Nni" to the giveir word

in the comparative and superlative degrees.

Now look al this table below.

44 Odon...45Dtufsq....t6 Pim...

49 A{;n;...50 Ein-arg...5f Dein...52 Akanghan...

HdAftrnrft

MghtToucan

YcllowBtdWhits

4?Gbongbolu.-. PigEY Kingfi sher

48Agbab9gbdbg... I{mbill

53 Kimi+bimgerein Twilight54 Bdabata... Momingtwilight55 Esqeg...- fubtud56 Odele ... Vulfirc

STOdoko ... Ilaurk58 Odudumgdu/Ifuukur Dove59 Oge... Eagle60 Okilei..- Kite6l Okpudukpudu..- Owl62 otietie... Swallow63 SeiofonilAkrangbelegbe

Harmmerheadod stock

.+

s,Word

{zgn-.- EnglishFinii... wideKoli... shortPina... white

Comparative

finii dgin emikoli dginemipinadginemi

27

Superbive

finii'as€dgin661dkoli 'a sg dgin cnnipina'a 8g dgin crni

54

64 Apianpian Hornbill

1-, .t

KUry... strorgSu... weak

k-ufpdeinemisu dginemi

k-urg'a s€ dgin €misria sg dfin €mi

Now complete the following: -I ............minini?2 .......efiayeir ......mini.3 .....ti €ye ki .....-ni?4 Sala-owei......p4 ..........wqri emi.

Where docs lion live?The dwarf takes in snuffWhatdocs elcphanteat?

Izgn English2,0 Lepele..Brush-tailod Porcupine

(Atherurus africanus)2l Mein-oweV

(Mig-owei?) Blackcobra22 l-alal Akpara... SwamP

Now dothc samc withthe following:-1Fio...2 Si...3 Sei...4 suq...

6Wgni...? Ebi.., good

8 Fanghaan.-. drYish

9 Fanghain.-. bent;crooked

Bin bgmi ... too rnany

Dgba@mi toobig/too great

SeibAn{. toobad

2 Ogbuduu..- gingerJilY3. Adein... Tsetsefly4 Akpgkg... Male lizard5.Agba... Calabash

6. Akpgwei... Corkwood-tree(Musanga cecroPiodes)

7 Akpaikpai... grasshoPPer

8 Amgmg... HouseflY

9 Awiri... Fox10 Dein-asginsqin

Ekirikiri Cricket11 D-oUn... Grub

12Elapglg-owei Mantis13 E19919... Civet

5 Danghain... 10 Andai"'

NOTE: Consider the following: -

Many, More, Most, in tnJsanre order--for uncountable objccts'

ComPntive SuPrlaiveBin-Many Bin &in eini Bin'a sg a dqin erni

Wesomstiffihearpoopleusingthosewords-Jbo.'andka'insenteirces.lrt us cxamine their uses

c}

Bin... rumYD\$a.., bigSei... bad

Table IIIzqn

I Abtrkg...EnglishMonkey

GoniIaMaggotIntmtinal worm

fl6666 ft6 F.nglish equivaleirt of b9' is too'

Now consider the following: -

Bin kami"' actually iluny'muchmany

D$bakami"' actuallY big'much big

Sei kami "' actually bad'rnuch bad

The English equivalent for'ka' $eems to be much'

The above is precisely how the comparative degrees are ussd in lrc'n'

SECTION II-. THE GENDERSThere are two geirders in fzgn-masculine and feminine' The neuter

g€Nrt€risaccording]yassimitateobythesetwo.I-ookatthaseexarrples:-Mi'wo wari"' This islis louse

- masculino

Mi *i wari:" This is her house - feminine

Mi'wo wari"' This is its house'- neul€r

AcarefirlilEminationofthes€l$€nc€saboveshowsthatthereisnodiffere,ncobctweenthcseirteircesintbemascutineandneutergendersin

26 Odumaganlanga..Chamclon

23 Akpg...24Ekatn...25 K9...

27 Ofo...28 Ogun...

32 Or9...33 Otongbolo...34 Vtgbira...35 K9d9k9d9...36 Angala..37 Asi....

Iron-woodTermites

Mahogany

PutradcrMountain

.Giant Rat;MosquitoAntelope

AssponkeyMangrove-tnoo

Horsetailor-ant

29AkaweilOka... Greenrnamba30 Okinikin... ...Boa3 1 Akpalakpa-tun....Wild-c8nna

rs

14 Ele...15 Engulei...16 Esggn.-.17 Gboru... Red Squirrel

(Funisciunrs PYnhoPus)1 8 Ko. ngowei/Bousci.. J.eoPard

19 Qgbg... Redless Trce-squirel

2853

38 Egctcbinasgi...

Iza.n EngBsh1 Bon... Bush/Forest

2 Bor-oma-.(Bush)Wild animal

3 Borrezercba.-. Giart4 Tin... Tree

5 Bousou-owei..- DwarfO Bila/OPuoUori.- ElePhant

7 Seiye/Kirirtani-eYe--SnakreS Ogbokoro-owei-.TerraPin9 Ongsru... CarerPiller

mssoN l7

10D9$...11Sadia...

15 Osi...16 Bagba...

THE BUSH

12Agireghan... Hog-PtumSPondias mombin)

13 Adaka... Lion14 Tuo... Grass

{zqn English18 Angolo-.. Stubbom grass

19Odqg..- Hill20 Bein-owei...

- Hunter

22Pomu... l-eat23Wangban... Hare

24 Bgr;n.". HoneY

25 Bgp-war!. JloneY-comb26 Ambi.Nat(Urticaceae)27 Tonwein..- WasP

28 Tonwein-wari..lYasp nest

29Esingbin...'Milli@e30 Obnrgbomu.-- Centi@e31 Atgm$qmq..- WasP

32 Otomi..- Otter-shrew

33 Wofin-tibi SPotted snakc

34 Ogori..- Bush-cow35 Birai... (Indian) bamboo

36 &okuku... Cabbage-trm

,e

[zgn. with animals or birds, the masculine/neuter is rnostly used. Very

occasionally, the feminine is uscd.

Now consider a hen trying to lay eggs.

Qttzstion: What is that hen trying to do?

Arnwer: It is trying to lay eggs - ncut€ror She is trying to lay eggs. - feminine

In fzq,n:Questinn: Ani ofonimi ti eyekimie dqgmini yan?

Arawer: 'Wo angg ki komnrg dqgmini ye- - masculinc/ncuteror A angg ki kororng dggmini c..-. - feminine

The first sent€,nce, which is in tho neuter gender in English, is spokcn ofin the masculine/neuter gender n[zp.,but the secnnd retains it8 gCnder.

These two sente,nces are used as alteirratives, but the onc in the

masculine is more used than the other. Except in sorne cases ufrcrc the

neuter gender finds such uses in the ferninine, it'is mostly usod in the

masculine.

SECTIOiI ru-- THE IF CLAUSEThe if-clause is obtained in Izqn in ar least throe ways. l,ook at these

examples:-

ffyou are going to martec- E fgp a mumini aba,E fggamuumini egbaaE fgg amuumini enry bg a

If you can do it Ye ekeir'o miqgrnini aba

Ye ekeir'o miggmini e gba a

Ye eke,n'o miggrnini emg b9 a

Ifyou can not sleep Ye ekeir bungqha abaYeekeir bgngghae gbaaYe ekeir bgngghaemA bg a

Now do the same with the following:-I If you can not work 4If You arc sic*2If you can s,ew 5If sh€ will help mc3 If thcy will come 6If he will saY

29

EafifrwormPSrthon

Elephant gnssAbura

l? Ombi....3ush-pig/Red River-hog

SECTION IIl Bouezerebabgtlgkietni Giantisatallbeing

2 Bousou-oweil"iitikoliemi Du/arfisashortbeing

3 Adakak-urqnama Lionisapowerfrrlanimal

4Maopuo-boririrnasptimimi.Twolelqlhalrtswerefighting5 E kpg adaka aridei Have you seeir lion also?

6 Ad€alran{ oborii kpppu wgri'o ko.n fimi'The lion torethe goat and ate it'

? Boutein-oweimikgni opuobori tcin bami'The huntershot dead an elePhant

S Okinikinimi bouteinowei tgbq1rl mqnlm!'The boa swallowed up the hrmte'ds child

9 Ebika ogorm kp keni bagha kin koromgr{'' Ebika fell down an aburatroe with an axe'

.*

s

52

I

Examine the following: -If I had known If she had corne

[nenri wgrirai aba A bo wgrimi aba

Inemiwgrimi e gbaa A bo wgrimie gbaa

fnemiwgrimiemgbga Abowqrimiemgbga

Now do the same with the following:-I If she had said it 4 If they had not come

2lfhehadwashed 5 Ifthey hadnot agreed

3If they had not come 6If he had not slept

SECTION IVNow examine critically the following:-Casc I You arp not going to mir*et. Are you?

My mother has gone to my father's (palm wine) tapping_camp3 E dag kgrppingbenemi ti eyg ka emi ni?

Where is your fatheds (palm wine) tapping_cunp?4 | dag boumi bfba ko.rgama bin emi.t' There are many matured palm wine trees at wncrs my &rtcrt4e .g 5 Eni bina-owei kgrp aggngduo pglgibo loromi.

Your brother fell off palm wine tnee' 6 Eni bina-arag ti eyg ki sfi emi yan o? whe'e.has ri"iie.i";.rd.gr7 Bginmg-kiri ki sii erni.

She has gone worting at the opposite srde (of the town)8 BUrqmia&nibohnimq Re-eirkindletheinrheoven9 Tiki eiri kiribou efinghin mi?

Where is the boundary of your farmland?l0 Ye eni kirirbouu gboogboo sinne?

Have you finished weeding your farnrland?

Complete the following:-I .......emi yan? Where has your mother gone worting?2 I ................,.........ki sii emi

My motherhas gone working in the river{fishing)3 .......................ki a ma wai boomini yan?

Whe,n will she be returning (home)?4 Y6 ....Jdriboumi a .....ti ....rd?

What did you plant in your famrland?5'Ye ........9[a..............ki gboromi.

6 Ani............I planted pepper and cocoyam in my farmhnd.

Yes, I am...No, I amnot

positivenegative

SECTION II1 E yin ama a emi?2 lyn i daU kqrgpingbeire amu emi

7 ..........koIokoIo......S .......-ki kgn ...........-tninfl9 Ama-ebi........?10 ............tangbei

Is your mothe,r in toum?

That is plantain frrmBitter_leaf is bitt6

Palm winc tree is tapped with tapping-knifeHas Ama-ebi learnt bow to swim also?

Swocp away thc ashes

In lTgn: E fo.g a mugha fa ki tUn. E muumini yan?

Yinye,ImuuminiYe... PositiveAngh4 e,! mugha fa e... negative

Case II You were the thief. Were you not?

Yes,l was... PositiveNo,l was not... nagative

In lzgni Emini ki ftruoweii ki trfu".Eminigha?YinYe, irnini Ye--. PositiveAnghd e, iminigha e... negative

u

o

30 51

I-ESSON 16

Table IIzqnI Si...

2 Kiribou...3 Asibai...a D"ung...5 Gbogbo...6 Fgni...7 Gboroye...

8 Efiin...9 Gboro...10 Y9o.l9...l1Yqqr?...12 K99...13 fzp-wunt14Apali...

Arahic !m.n1... K€ni2... Mary3... Taarg4... Nein5... Sgqnrpn

FARMTAND

EnglishTo atteird to oners

duty oroccupationFarrnlandHoeTo clear aplot of landTo cut roughly(afarm)FirowoodAnything plantodto beplantod

BoundaryTo plantFull of fruits,etcSurroundPalmwine treePalmwine(Palm wine)Tapping-

Izgn Englisk30 Esiabg... Okro31Adg.". Barn

32 Bgr9... Oveir33 BgrgfEp... Ashes

S4Kqrgpin.. Tapping35 Kergtqni.. palmtree36Pina... Rip€

37 EsaggggpgEsawg.Ground-nut38 Pouye..Stone;Whetstone39 Pou... Sharpen

40 FE tittla.- To set fire4l Pupou... Hut

42Fgnibgnimg. -re-enkindle fire43 Ogogolopani.. Jerr-can44 Akpara.. Palrn winetree45 Tggwuru/Beke-wum..

DistilldPalm wine46 Kiri.... Ground/ Earth47 Ogugu... Pit48 Wurutggyg DistillerY49 Kiriologbo. Bitter-leaf5O Odu-.. Cocoyarn5l Kokodia.." Coconut52 Kpokoduku SweetPotato

53 Beke-ogbein." lvlango54 Oyinbo."" Eann616

55 Okpu.". Sugar cane

54 Oka Corn55 Oresi... Rice

56 @erebe/Oyinbo)Tag...Sucker

LESSON t0I\TTJMERATION

SECTIONIIn rhis lessonArabic numerals shall be writtcn ffnt h oontrast toprevirous ones in which lzgn words were first gveir, and rftcfc the noedarises, explanatim shall always be nrade.

tr!.

k Arfric lzo.n6... Sondie7... Sgngrra8... NiinaNighina9... Is€10... Oyi

15 Fangbain... Beirt/ crookdl6Emg@8... S€od

17 U. tgta ... Onion18 Wuruq9@... Distiller19 Adgndg... Pawpaw7n Agba... Gourd21Ago.". Orange22 Akan... Bitter-koia23 Berebe... Plantai*24 Bunr.." Yam25 Dabu Kola-nut26 Dabu-tin.J(ola-nut tree

27 lg;lna Pepper28 Embadagha29 Embadkala.......Cassava

f'l.

'5

$

A,s from elevsn to ninetee,n(l1-19), teir is repeatodly countod with any ofthe other numeials-For ex4mple:- 11 is r€ad oyi kgni feni

12 is read oyi mary feni13 isr€ad oyitarg feni14 is md oyinein feni15 is rcad oyi sggnrgn feiri and so on

Nola Fiftee,n could be read'die'also. Die could also be read or uscd anytime when there is rcrmant of fiftren after any numbcr of tcns ortweirties.

It is highly ex@ieirt to make a rcnnrk here in rcspet of the |zgnsystem of counting. When counting on base foun five is rcad eleve,n;thatis, one teir and one left over. When counting on base sevmgen is rradthirtoen; tbat is, one t€Nr and three left over. Again, when counting onbase nine: sixtee,n is read sev€nteeir; that is, one teir and seven left over"Finally, wheir aounting on base.ten:eightoen is rcad eighteen; that is, oneteir and eight left ovetr, and so on.

One would not be wrong to declare that a matheirratir:elinvestigation into the lzgn counting systern reveals that it is denarf ; thatiso on base teir. Heirce the,rp is a stop or note when teir is obtainod rvtile6sun.ing, and the counting is r€peated all over again. Sequcl to thc above,the word "fenin ufiich literally moans 'left over or rcmaindcr. ir alwaysus€d to denotc thar thc counting has crossod the basc. [1rhir wty, cleveNr

3150

rs r€ad "oyi k€ni feni'; that is, on9 ten 31f one left over' Nineteen is rcad

novi ise feni';thatis J,* LOoio" left over'and so on'Twenty also

;:::ffi;; ;o;f*i'. rf i, i, oiriony cxamined, it ub€s twentv the

word "feni" ta*u* ti""oty *" t"o tlYy' Thercafter' thc schlal bosc

co*€s in.Hencthirty;;- rcad'li oyikgni f:tl'T* T:*"twenty and one ,*

"oo "i" r"n over. It does-not it"ely that twenty is the

base. In the-usual Arabic counting syst€m' sev€nty could as well be rcad

nthr€e scores.no t-l rnis aoesiot mn that the scoro is the base'hc

the base is te,n.I **i;;;;it"*," doclalo thatthe[zgn counting

":V.,*t-Jt"t. line with this mathematicat principle'

But a cultural investigaton jnto tho tyst"- reveals that it is on base

tw€,rrty. This system ltiXtnt "i"n"t"ti*t principles which T€ rct in

hafinon:y with the *Oi'f"""f way of "ot-tiog'

fno trditionat wriy of

counting is highly btt"d - **y so that toy ttt*'pt to doviafc ftom it

would rcsuh to # dcfocts,and it g€rilem[y-us€d. Bas€d on tbe above'

U* **aY is us€d in this book as woll'

,o

g

Now orrylete the followingI Ani...........-oi?2 Ye.........lamlnffi3 ...............mini4 ..............-ini5 Ebise.........-n€6 ................mi"i7 Mi.........--..-8 ..................d€

,"Hff:ffir':'ffi;That canoc is going adrift

Alasa is fishing with throwing net

Ebi-e're has paddlod acrcss

The river is riiingThis is abig flood

The flood has recoded

9 ........ ki i ma .....-murnini I am going fishing in the ocean

10 ........-...mi arnn ..-.....- Core let us to bathe in the sandbank

SECTION IIAfter nineteen(19)' thc

"si"; that is, two tens'

numeral aft€rtw€nty'For uanPlcr

rcst next cormting nuir is tv€nty and it is rcad

Gffi;a;"dty counted with anY other

21 is rcad si kgni feni

22isrcad simamqfeni30isr€ad sioYifeni31 is r€ad si oYi kgnifeniii l* teao si oYr trg f€ni and so on'

Note.'As atready expleained,35 is Fad 'Si oyi sggnrln f€ni'lxil oilH

atso bc rcad 'si die feni''Note also that me ailry is anived at sb "**i"g,

tb€r€ is always a

not€ of sto'p. It l, not oo--'ac"otrnt of having r€achcd a bosc brr rather a

counting rmit; for tbe -Vtt*t n^ already t6g[it"d ta "". F-but"'

In linc witb the"'ail' lg r read 'si oyi isc feai';6at' is' w

tw€aty,onetcnandnine.Brrtthemomtitclimbsontoforty(40)'thcni, ir -La 'ma si'; tbrt is , two twcnti€s'

.

Inthiswry; 60isrced taesrSO isrcad noi-asi

I

4,'

o

32

49

Table IIIzon Bngti* lzqn n-dltr

1YqU... Topaddle tl Bowei... Flood2 Yggdi..Knowhowto paddle l2BaanalBenieyeci... Dry Scason

3 Fin... Bait 13 Eyeri... R€cde4B,a,.... Kill 14 W919... Fish(c) scrambling for5 Tgry sii... To go fishing food excitedly6 Tgrybiri... Midriver 15 Weirghele Shak{Bottle/ Canoe)7Bgin... Tocroas l6Esanghan.-. Anenclosure asahap8 Tein... Shoot/Shock

q

fs

l0oisread sggnran silmisr€ad sondieasil4O is read sgngma si16Oisread niinasilg0isread iscnasiZ)0 is rcrd oyi a si

Again note the omission of oa" in the |zgn intapretation of l4o and 160,and the addition of nnan in l8O.

27fi is md oyi kgnisi feni2AA is read oyi ma si feni260 is read oyi tara a si feiri280 is read oyi nei-a si feiri300 is rcad oyi sggnrran feni or Die a si320 is read oyi sondie a si feni-)40 is read oyi sgno.ma si feni360 is read oyi niina si fsni38O is read oyi ise na si feni

SECTION IIIBefore going firther, I would like to make out the difference in Izrpcounting syst€m arnong two classes of thought which arc labellod classA and B rwpectivety.As from forty one (41) especially fifty(io) and above, there is a littlediff:reirce in the way nume,rals are read. while class A forgo using theconjunction omoo, class B always uses it. This is best explaind in thefollowing table-

GroupA4O....Ma si41...Ma si kgni feni45...Ma si sgo.nrgn feni5O...Ma oyi feiri55...Ma oyi sgo.nrgn f€ni67 .. lt an si so. ngrna feirilZ..Iarasi oyi ma feiri84...Nei-a si nein feni

Grcup BMa siMasimgkgnimgMa si nrg sggilpn mgMasimgoyimgMa si mg oyi sgo.nrpn feni rnqTara si mg so.ngma rngTara si mg oyi nulmg feni npNei-asimgnein mg

33

9 Gboin... sedthlow for fishl0 Bilee... To sink

SECTION III Ti eyq ki e ma mumini ni?2 'Ye endii dgg eygkamumini

17 Okun/agblq... Periwinkle18 Okpoku... Clam

Where are you going to?I amgoing (to do) fishing

3 Ti eve ki e m9 kgn endii dgg eyg a mumini ni?With what are you going (to do) fishing?

4 A sii tgrgbiri a mu k.umg o Do not go fishing into midriver5 Sama-ere ygldigha Sama-ere does not know how to paddle

6 A bodg o ygg tgryg @in Come Iet us paddle :lcross tlre river7 Muaniargmiabiygn Gotopassf,eaoesinthatcanoe8 Aladg oki timi oma p{ teinmi

Aladg was shocked by electric fish while swimming9 Akan-owei og@ gbeinmiai Akan-owei is fishing with cast-net

10 Ani beke ary.....That is an eirgine boat

11 Ti eirdiiama ki e mg ba ma o? What fishes did you catch

12 Endiibo bein ye;Sika,Ayin, Oma etc

There are many fishes;Ray, Silver fish, electric catfish etc

13 Ti fin ki e m9k9n siima o? What bait did youuse in fishing?14 E yin sii timi axsg pri bil€emi

Youmotherwas fishing wheir fhe canoe sank

15 Adapnwainbo aryg vgrg wai otoumiThe waves causdtbecmoe to capsired

cl

,!-

$tr

48

I

I

l02..Sggnran si ma feiri Sggran si mg rmrq mgl2?..Sondb a si sgngrna feni...Sondie a si mg sqnQrna mQ

la3..Sppasitargfeni SgngmasimqtarymQ150..Sgnp si oyi feni Sqngna si mg oyr mgl69.Niinr si iso fclti Niinasimqis€mg23O..Oyi k€ni si oyi feai Oyi kg{ si feni mq oyi mpZA2..$wsi malng feni Oyi ma si feni mq mamg mq

Note that as ftrom two hundred and thirty m Group B there is a littlochange. Thc 'feni' which always precedes the last 'm9' i4 othcr

numerals befone it@30), is withdrawn bapkwaxd- It s€rvos as a

demarsatiorc betrvm the twe,nti€s and the t€ns units.An robirsed invcstigation reveals that Group A is almost now extint

in thc Mcin Dfu:hct. ltis Group B that is in use. Bas€d on this ground, itis usod througloutthe rest of this work.

SECTION IVt It mgnfy oryodient to note that four hudred (a'00) was the counting

limit h mst plam in lzan land' cglled "Si o si', 'ondg"pr nandgn,

whilc in fee$ dhstrs it is one thousa*d (1,000), callod 'Egbgwao" Any

number <r mmting was based on {he muhiples of these numerals

respoctively ie thos€ differrent places' As "egbgwa" is travtlling to other

;ffi *trn'* it hd not been used, and on thc grormd thar it rrnkes a

gl€stctrandmgeconve,nientcountingnuit,lshouldliketouseitinthisbook.

Bes€d mr thc *ove" and the systein by Group B of thc two different

claegcgigsrc€imlllofthislesson,thenrwationasfromfourhundrcd will be as f,ollows:-

,tffiisr€ad Siasi'Ond9'A@

LESSON lsTIIN, RIVER

€'.{r

5 Sggbcni Ilightide6 Pglg-benilAmo.gn-beiri.fuwtide 39 Ala.. Saltwater7 Kusughu..- lvleander 4O Bomupali.Sole fish8 Tgrg-finii... River wiilth 41 Asa..-The stwp side of a river9 Ariri-.. Net 42Btob.. The swallow side

Izqn EnglicltI Tinarigha abadi...Oc€an2 Abadi... Sea

3 Tgng... River4 Adagnwain... Wave

10 Beiri-nama... Sea-animalllEndi... Fish12B€ni-ariri... seine-net13 Isakirisa... Drag net

16 Agbamghntegbene..Butterfly fish

17 Okiliyin Soapfish18 Oru.-. Juju19 Aygn... Butter fish?nE;beln... Dolphin2l Ago.".Swiryming crab

23 Edern-ofu-.. Shftnp24 Evutai... Whirlpool25 Abadi-kgri.. sae-sicks25 Abaditgkpa Lighthouse27 Ebi€s€ni Mud-fish

30 lrnpg.".-Catfish{clarias sp'p)

3r lkbi... Tiger-fish32 Ofiyou".. BackwarerSSObubu Puffier-fish

22D9rniniowei... Guinea-worm 55 Agii.. atypeoffish

Izgn English3TUg... Island35 Beke mg.. F.ngtne Boat36 Aqrgmq.,.Shark37 Sika... Ray38 Orna. Electric catlish

45 Bgmo.gn...Sandbank46 Aza,.. lady-fish@lopsl47 Emein.. Manatoe4? Ogbunu...- WaI€r woeds'

50 Otobo.... Hypopotamus51 Abala-arg... Sail-boatS?Egere... Ctocodile53 Sibiri......Alligaror54 Ewiri/Ere{ghaowei...Turtoise56 Agilgg..a seafish;parrot grunt57 Akgdimakgdi.. fresh water fish

58 Ekan bira...fiddler crab(Uca s)

59 Abadi-arg...a sea-going vessel

6O Abadi-okolai... Ctulew61Afgg... nSilverbrcam'

62Akpada... Large shrimp

65 ft-oin... Climbing-perch66 Kina... Nile-pench67 Saradaye...Trawl-line68 Bginm.okiri..The opposite side

la Ogbg... Throwingnet 48 Ogbo... Eel15 Apedi... type of Morrryridfish 49 Awiin/Ak-ula... ltrh

500 isr€ad60Si$rgld?misrreadSffiisc€ad90Ois@adlffii$rad

Mamdqmq*ise mqif based on4O0

Keniondgmgsggoran siryKqniondgnPoYrasimgKqni ondgrngdie asi mgMaOndgMaondgmq sqqffian'sirqEgbgwa or Ma ondg mq ryi a si mQ or

'D

+l

s

28 Ana...Cmaker ( Pseudolithus spp) 63 Ayolo... Ghost shrimp

29Ekpidi... (Gold€nfish?) 64Eweri...Moonfish

3447

10 Taraa Naira yai kgn mi alryani a tga ehlt in tbroe Naira worth (of onion) ilto this bag

l1 Tibg ki mi apg.eagbo ygrimini yan o? Who is selling thcse nails?13 Ebila-owei, bodg o fEg amu Ebila-owei,come let us go to m{rket

SECTION VThe counting systcm is tbc sanp as tcarod above eveir if it ciirnbs overone thousand. Basically" after one thousandjt i$ ss follows:-

1000 is kgni egbgu'a2000 is maegbgwa3000 is tara egbgwa4O00 is neinaegbgwa5000 is sggnran egbgwa6000 is sondieaqgbgwa7000 is smgrna egbgwa8000 is niina egbgwa90rJ0 is isenaegbgwa

wheir it comes to one minion, what will you say? Tmditicm hords thatisbiaiuiri has alwdys be€n used wheir uncountabte situation prevails; thatis, beyond counting. In line with this tradifion, I have no alternativeother than to appiy it for one million.

In ttris way: 1p00,000 is read kgn! igbidibiri or Egbidibiri2pmp00 is r€d ma igbidibiri orEgbidibiri3p00O00 is rcad tara igbidibiri o,

"gUldifiri and so on.

la Adqr+ kpg e np f9d9?...

Now complete the following:-1 .---...rnuuminiyan?

5 Fgpni.......€Nni6 .......Tuomg....mi

Have bought salt also?

Will you go to market?

Things are cheap in the marketThat is Tuomo's rnarket

2 .....-..e mg fE i yarimini ni? Whar will you go and buy for me?3 .......ki emamuminini? Which market are you going to?4 ....... kpg fggmi a emi yan? Are th€rt: books also in the market?

f,

1'lr

7 ..... ki......dggmini yan o? How rnany books do you want to buy?I ....-ki'a ma .... ygrimini yan? Where are they selling books?9 l.....mu.....fe.....mini Iwantto go to andbuy shoe frromthemarket10 .... e ma ...ma? Who did you se,lrd to buy something from the market?

1Ar

,t ''

:C

46 35

F

rJssoN 14

LESSON 11

MEASI]RATIONSECTIONI - . .. f_-^ -iJi,i*"gv, the following rmits were usod by the lzgn rnan m

nr$lurcnr€nt- TheY are-(1) "Bira_isaagbata",tnat is, nfmger.,Hence people sometirnes say, it is\-/

'ffil;r":isangbalan , thal is' ' a fingeds leirgth" '' an tn" other units are applied in similar way'

IT,IARIruT

tr"i

Trble IV# F-nglfidt

I Fo.g... Ma*ef2 Fogkiii... Martensfte3 Fgg-wari... Mdd stall4 Eyedg... DisplaYofgoods5 Ygri... SeIl6 Bidg... Cloth7 Saka... Trursers8 Apgrgdt1..- Nails9 Ary... Ciloc10Dqgi... Jugf l Egodo-yin. Padlock

12Egodo-bira... Kery

13Tibi-zalaye... Crmb14 Qzag... Beans

15 A@... Basket16 Beritgaqe... Euing17 Oyinbu... Sugar18 Fun-g9gbisa."- Pen

19 FqB-arB... C.anoe loadod

20 Ozoboogu..- bmass

SECTION trl Mitifo.gao?2 Mi Bomadi fgg3 Mu kqni egodeym fe i Vgri.-.a FgBmi ti eyg ka emi Yan?--.

lry2l Arya...

Eng[*Onions

22 AOar.m/Emg.ufou... Salt

23 frm... Books?A Ahla -- Bag25 F*ef*e... Saw26 Ygri eye . articles for sale

n Sibeye... gun

28 Anda..- Paint29 Osi... Snail3b Fgrg... Eartheir-ware Plate31 Ekeluku... StaPles

32Esanf@Algtg/Asede Plale33A&maku.,. Plate34 EQodi-{p.um9ye.. camPhor35 Abogidi..- Bucket36 Y9$ry'Ogige-kgriye... Hinges

3TEkeleku-.. StaPleE

33 Fggsai..- To send to rnartet39 Aghl@... Sword4O Pome. qkpa... flashligbt

Which market is this?This is Bomadins market

Goto buy rne apadlogkWhereis the market?

Q)(3)(4)(5)(6)(7)(8)(e)

"Birazg" fhat is, none handsPann

"Blra-yainmqn, that is,n one cubit'

"niraaangai" that is, nan arn's leirgth'

'liUouu ikisen , that is, nhalf a fathomn

"Agbobu', that is, na fathom' .

"kfrnitp",tnar is, "height of ahrl-nan being'

"Bgg;, that is, na Pace (of the leg)"

"ero", nua is,na folen i tn" """ oUt i"A from the midrib of rafia

ffi - itt equivaleirt, irrespective of the length' Hence we

sometimes bsar people say in response to questions such as " IIos

O""g i--tn" ttob tiO. of tne rivert nMa asu olomu" that is"two

poles dwp")

Apart from the above, the following are also used:-

;ffi. ,* olomu; nmg;re onmi; Ekoku,olomu; apele olomu" that is'

"-A;fu;d;p; mJ dep; waist deep; shoulderdeep"

NOTE: ' ola 6min coulil as weil be used in the place of oolomu"

but nolornun specifically flre'ms ndepthn

SECTIONIIIt is unfortunate that the language has no equivalent words for the units in

the motric system' ifter"iot"-u"io in the metric system are to be

adultcrated. il<:trThe lincartable will be as follows:-

Mi$isnstre will rad nMilimitan

Ce'ntimctnr will read "S€ntimita"Decimstrc will read "Dqsimia'Metre wil! r€ad "Mita"

and its abbreviarion is orffnn

and its abbreviation is nsm"

and its abbreviation is "drn"and its abbreviation is 'm"

5 Endqna fE;-wa{ kimi fg-umi a emi ni?How many ma*et stalls are therc in this mrket?

6 Ti bra ki e m.q kp u-utabo ygrimin! ni?How are you selling the onions?

7 Sqilpn kgoi Nafua ki ygrimini ye- They are sold at five per Naira

S Zqsin ye. Please lower the price a little

9 Ghangban c, ba singha ye No, it shall mt be rcduced any morc

4536

-T28 Ekirainbraqbg$..,29 Bina-owei/Embirei.".30 Bina-arary/Embirag...31Yei...32 Egir€n/Ogireo...33 YabilYin kgriyinbo-owei34 Yaby'Yin kgriyinbo-arag35 Wari/Ekurun...36 Yab(owei) tgbeg...37 Yab(eygno. ) tgbgg...

The first born(fleir)BrctherSisterHusbandEoeinyUncleAuntFamilyNephewNiece

c

r*i

Kilometre will r€ad nKilomita" and its abbreviati*::r is ohrl"NOTE As there is no "c" in the languagc, centimetrp is e"hbreviated tonsmo, but I would prefer the use of nc" in the place of "s" for intcrnationalrecognition.

The mass and weight measure table will be as follows:-Milligramme will read "Miligram" and its abbreviation is "rngnCeirtigramme will read "Sgntigramn and its abhreviation is "sg"Decigramme will rcad nDesigramn and its abbreviation is "drnnGramme will read oGramn and its abbreviation is og"

Kilogramme will read oKilogramnand its abbreviation is "kg",NOTE: The note giveir in respect of centimetre applies to eeirtignmme.

The capacity meirure table (fluid volume) will be as follows:-Millilitre will read nMililitan and its abbreviation is ' ml'Centilitre will read oSg,ntilitan and its abbreviation is ,sl'D€ilitre will read nDgsilitan

Litr€ will road nl-itanand its abbreviation is "dl'

and its abbreviation is 'l'NOTE:\\o note give,n in respect of ce,ntimetre applies{o ccntititre also.

l.'

'1..

'-

M 37

LESSON t2CURRENCY

SECTION IIzgn llnd being not excqrted,Iike any other cormtry in the world before

the cvolution of money as we now have it today,had some objects ufrichwerc usod to satisfy the mon@ry dernands of its daily-activities. Thqse

objt*ts w€re:-

{r} 'Okubotgrgo; that is, cowEr. Coweries were popularly used as

nnn€y in rnany parts of Africa and Asia. It is a srnall shellwhich was tegally t€cognis€d md acceptod as money or an

objoct which was acc€,pted as a modium of exchange.

O) "Ekpdi"; that is, box. It ntas not the box usotl for clothes butthe qn?valent of a carton for drinks. Hence, nWunt ekpedi'which rReans 'a box (carton) of drinks that was used

oontained twelve bottles of itlicit gin.(c) 'Abo" or nAdoo; that is , basket. Financial transaction was

cfratod sometirnes by either a basketful of fish(es), tubem

ofyarrr, coconuts erc or any desired number of such baskets.

(d) 'Egbe"; that is, a type of dnrm that was used for liquidsubstances. Heiace, "Polou egbe' rneans one of such drumfullofpalmoil-

It is only one of the four objects givem above that still comes into use. Itis item (b)--"Ekp€di". n'Wuru ek@i" is used in some traditional issues

today in some places, all theothers have give'n way for mode'rn curreNrcy-

-thcy arc functional no trnore.

SECTI(}N XT

History gtaringly Enaintains that Nageria was once ruled by the British'and as a result the British pound sterling was recognised and used by

everybody in the Country.Though the pound stetling was changed to Naira and Kobo in 1973, but

the faurrrr cunrency still exerts great influe.nce in financial transactions in**me places in IzEn land in some traditional issues and among the

uno&rcstod. It would the,lefore be a wholesome idea if the former

curr€ncy is presentod in her deirominationsJt is as follows:-Ahini...Epqni...

One farthingHalf penny

t

e.t

7T9kpa.................. Lightthelarnp8 ......... beni zu bo Go and draw waler from the well9 Ololm .. The bottle is bqok€n

l0 Ebi..fgni pumini Ebi is chopping wood with an axc

Part trTHE HOUSE CONTII\ruH)

1

IrynI Opu dag...2 Opuyin...3 Foi/Fei/Fuowei...4 Yaforo...5 Agg-owei/Dogho-owei... Brother-in-law6 Aggarag/Yadogho.. Sister-in-law7 Bira-ere...8 Ekie-erp...9 Ta-..10 Yanfanran...11Nana...12Tg1lYeraQi...13 Ofuro...147.t..-t5 Tar1qbgg...16 Dumoun...17 Afinyoun...18 Panye...

21 Kgniyinbo-owei...22Kpjyinbo-arag-..23 Kgaidagbo-owei ...

24 Kgnidagbo-arag...

EnglishGrand farherGrandmotherFather-in-lawMother-in-law

a slave wifeA friendshipmariageWifeCo-wifeMarryDivorcePregnantBomGrand childGroat grandchildGreat greal grand childGreat great great grand child

Frell brotherFuli sisterHalf brotheHalf sister

19 (Afinyoun) Ekpinkpa... Great great great great grand child20 Ekawa... Grandchild of two slaves,

who bears the relation of great -grandchild to the ownerr,'I

.l

25 Kgr{yinbootuzi aw-ogama.. First cousins26 Tibiotu...27 Ko.nptUb-oU/

38 43

TrHe IIIzgn Engbh1 Mi... This2 Ani... That3 Kqnbo.. Bring4 F9... BuY

5 D,.. Look6 Bo... Come7 Fini... OP€NI

8 T€ri-.. Close

9 Tiin... Call

SECTION III,n rhis section, we shall learn how to constnrct. siryle -sentences with the

words with the assistane of those in Table tr'f Agoo di... Lok at the ory2 Mi i daq wili.-- This is my falheds house

f AnieYin... ThatisYorrmother4 Enibinaowei bomini--- Yourb'rotheriscoming5 Ogigcfui.-- QPenthe door

6 Ogigee teri..- Close the door

7 TurmkgniYari--- Bringmethe har

S Edagetiinmini.-- Ymfatheriscallingyou9 Mi k€ili.kglq.-- This is a walking stick

10 Obtuimi baionini- . The dog is running

l1-Obiriiqd€..- Tbdqgisddl2Wari-kirimia$--- Sweqrthefloor13 Iksimi ap€r€rtimi--- Sit m the chair

14I da$ ang-ofa .-- My farher is sick

15 il d;,lmqyin mq s4mini Yonrfafiher rod mothcare quelling

Now corylete the follrowing-I Ekp€dii...2 EYin3 ............ gbolo4 .5i4a-araP bainmini5 Mu .......i Vari6 Bomi

l+2

!z4n EngfshlOGbolo".. Ringll Pu... ftoP(wood)12Fa4... B€at(dntm)13 Pgi... Brcak14F€ni... Wood15 Beni zu.. Drawing water

16Tgni... Ligh(lamp)17 K€ni... One18 Anggfa.. Being sick

Openthe boxYmmotheris calling YouRingthcb€[

Yorr sisler is np4ingCrotobnrY mPddlcCme andbeattnis&um

Kepg/kg@...Etgrp...Sisi...Enai...Sily'Sele...Sqryo.n a sili...Oyiasili...

OnepennyThree penceSix penceNine penceTwelvep€,ncepiys sfueilingsTe,n shellings

p Kenipo.en Cfweirty shellings)... One pound

Pggnrng sili mg One Guinea

Akpa... One hundred Pounds

To sore poople;wo Naira is always one pound whatever the Naira value

or vice v€rsa. If you come by such situation, divide wharavef, amount ofNaira there is by two and the answ€r. The highest counting limit among

the Ijaws, under this cont€xt, is nAkpan; that is, bag -it is equal to one

hundred pounds (9100). Now that the currancy is changed to Naira, it ispossible to rcad one hundrod Naira (N100;m) as nNaira akpa' but inpractice in many places it is two hundrd Naira (N20Oil0) that rnake up

the nakpa'.

In {zqn,the Naira is read last; for exarr4rle,

Nl ... KgN{Naira N20...Si a Naira ot Oyis Pg$nOnee it is up to forty Naira or above there is little changc--thc reverse

prevails. For example,N40:0o..Nairamasi or Siapo.BnN60:00...Nairatara si or Si oyi apo.gn feniN65... Naira tara si mq sgo.nr-w mQ or Si oui ma pg;n feni ry oyi m9

N70:00 . Nairataxa si mg oyi mg or Si oyi sqBnran pE;n feniN89:00 Naira nei-si nrr.o ise mg or Pggn a ma si mq nei-a pE;n rry oyi lnq

N10ft00 Naira akpa or Akpa ekise or Pggn a ma si rrlg oyl rryN120:fi) Naira sondie a si or Pggn a tara siN135:fl) Naira tara si mg oyr sgnrgn. or diqmq

. or Pggn a tara si rng sQno.ma p99n np oyi mqN147:fi) Naira sgngna si mq sqnqma mq

or Pggn a tara si mq oyi tar4 pQTn feni mq oyi mgNl50:00 Naira sgno.ma si mg oYi mq

or PE;n a tara si mg oyi sgenran pggn feni pg or db mg

39

$

l1

-TN160:00 Naira niina si or Po.pn a nei-a siN185:00 Naira ise na si mg sggnrqn mq

or Po.gn a nei-a si mg oyi *u p-o,Jo feni m9 oyi m9

N196:00 Naira ise na si m9 oyi sondie feni mgor P-o1m a nei-N si rng niina po.gn mq

N200:00 Ma Naira akpa or Kqni sili akpa-if the Pound system is used'

NOTE: Oncc it climbs onto eighty Naira and above, counting in Pounds

bears littlc change, nPo.gnn is mentioned first. Note also the use of the

word "feiri". It comesat the end of any number of pounds. It could occur

twice in som€ cas6s. Examine the above translation thoroughly and

master its use"

The counting treomes based on the multiples of two hundred (N200:00)

once it reaches two hundred or above.In this way;N4OO:0O... Nei-aNaira akpa orma akpa

N600:00... Sondie a Naira akpa or taraa akpa

N800:00... NiinaNaira akpaornei-aakpaNl000:00... Naira egbgwa (Not egbr;wa Naira)

SECTION IIIIf there is any &action on top of any two hundred Naira NZn:Oo), there

is change as follows.N250:00..Naira oyi ma si feni mg oyi mg

or Ma Naira akPa mg ma si mq oYi mgor Akpamg si sgo.nran Pqgn feni mq

N300:00.. "Taara Naira akPa

or Akpamgekisemgor AkpamgPQUn a masimgoYimg

N350:00...TaraNaira akpamg ma si mg oyi mgar Akpa mg pqgn a taara si m9 oyi sQglqon fe'ni mg or die mp

N510:00"......Sggnran Naira akpa mg oyi mgor Ma akpa mg po.Un a ma si mg oyi s99ru9n feni mq or die m9

N663:00....Sondie aNairaakpamq tara si mq targ mq

or Tara akpa mg si oyi kEni pggn fmi mq oyi mq

N876:0O...Niina Naira akpa m9 tara si mq oyi sondie feni m9

or Nein a akpa mg si oyi nina pg;n fc'ni mg ; and so on.

q.'!,

LESSON 13

TiIE IIOUSE

It is assumed that the foreign lcarne.r has beeir acquainted with manywords now, and has also leamt how to pronounce and spell themcorrectly. In gene,ml, it is assumed that the studeirt has grasped theworking of grammar in Izo,n language.It is now time to apply it into use.There are two tables giveir below. Study thern well and do the exercisegiveir.

i1!'r

(:)

Tahlo IIzqn EnglishI Agg... cup2 Panghan... a gourd cup3 Apia/Ogidi... cutlass4lpia-abg,.. scabbard5 Ogoun... :u(e

6 Apala..- atre7 Ekpedi... box8 Kasi... chair9 Ogun... a gourd pot10 Tun... hat11 Obiri... dog12 Adgin... knife13 Asisa... umbrella14 Ogige... door15 Olomu... well16 Egbagi... hob17 Egbomu... bell18 Ozi... drum19 Obori... goat2.0 Alagba... gun21 Amatu... city22 Amila. -. husband-less

woman23 Agg... respect,honour

A Arsqq'... a eartheirjar25 Akpg.gtun Eton cap26 TTkpa.". larnpTl Ololo... bottle28 Ygwgi... paddle29 Aagere... bicycle30 Akppgrg... basket3l Engasi... spoon32 Okoygrg.-. spoon33 Atgng/Ivlgzg... table3 Ak919... walking stick35 Afinyoun... broom36 Dag... father37 Yin... mother38 Bina-owei... brotl'c'39 Bina-arag... sister40 Warikiri... floor41 Tibiso.n... kitcheir42 Angala... charcool43 Beke-odin... pomade,t4 Abggrg... dagger45 Ago-koromg... consumate

marriage;46 Bidg-oku... bodbug47 Obine-a-san... bod-wetting48 Atagba... gun

40 4t