By Kayode Emola
Every civilisation across the world and throughout history is shaped by culture. Civilisations are influenced by the cultures of those who came before them, and defined by the culture they develop. Traditions are handed from generation to generation, some consciously, some unconsciously, for millennia. Culture and tradition are such an integral part of shaping who we are, that, if lost, it becomes hard for the race to even survive.
We know that Africans hold the oldest civilisations and best-preserved cultures, and this resonates throughout our daily lives, even in the modernity of today. Although many of our cultures have been watered down by the European and American civilisations, the vast majority of them have been preserved in one form or another. Our generations must endeavour to preserve this culture and tradition, passing it down to the upcoming generation, so that they may also have something to hand down.
As the Oyo would say, “Óyó ò ṣé bí bàbà ẹni kàn kàn, a jí ṣé bí Óyó l’a ń rí,” meaning, “Oyo does not behave like anyone’s father, it is only those that behave like Oyo that you will see.” This is a very well-known adage in Oyo, saying that their cultural heritage is supreme above all, and so others must conform to the Oyo way of life rather than expecting the Oyo to be conformed to theirs.
However, Oyo also recognises that “Bá yìí l’a ṣé ṣe ni ilé wà, ewọ ẹlò mí ni;” “This is how we live in our house; it may be forbidden in another’s house.” Therefore, we must demonstrate mutual respect when dealing with others who are not from our culture.
This, however, was not exhibited by the European explorers who for centuries forced their way of life upon us in Africa; ‘til today they still continue to insist that we must live the way they live. While the totality of the European way of life is not in itself bad, forcing it on other cultures is nothing more than a way of declaring cultural supremacy.
As the journey toward a sovereign Yoruba nation intensifies, it is clear that Yoruba must be the official medium of communication, with English and other European languages as optional. The use of Yoruba, though it may be strange and difficult for some people at first, will undoubtedly strengthen our culture, and therefore our nation, in the long run.
The use of Yoruba for every day communication would rapidly expand the vocabulary of many Yoruba, as well as non-Yoruba in our midst. New Yoruba words will be required and thus developed for everyday items – such as ‘fridge’, ‘flat’, ‘bed’, ‘pen’, ‘bag’, ‘bread’, etc – that were not a part of our culture, and so also not of our language, prior to our encounter with the Europeans.
One important facet that we must endeavour to preserve is our numbering system, so that we do not lose it the way we lost our calendar to the Gregorian system. Most of the Romanised world – that is, Europe and America – uses a decimal numbering system, based on multiples of 10. This is believed to have its roots in the fact that we have 10 fingers.
Yoruba, by contrast, have always used a vigesimal system, based on multiples of 20. However, unlike others of this ilk, such as old Welsh or Parisian French, the Yoruba system has a much richer origin story than simply adopting it based on the sum total of fingers and toes.
Pre-colonisation, our ancestors traded in cowrie shells. These would be grouped in twenties, then subdivided into fives. As the standard base number was 20, the naming of the other numbers stems from the name for one group of twenty, ’ogún’. Therefore, if counting from one to 14, it made sense to count individually. However, a faster means of obtaining 15 was to take a group of 20 and remove one subgroup of five.
This unique counting system means that some numbers are counted using the subtraction method. For instance, rather than say sixteen, we say twenty take away four (mẹrìndínlógún). We also use the addition or multiplication in twenties for higher numbers. For instance, numbers like eighty are counted as four multiply by twenty (ọgọ́rin: ọgún mẹrin). Also, numbers like a thousand are the multiplication of five by two hundred (ẹgbẹ màrún: ẹgbẹ̀rún).
Even amongst those who use this numbering system daily, not many understand its root or how playing with the numbers in the fives and twenties can give you the means of counting in Yoruba from one to one million. A system so steeped in our heritage and culture, yet that same heritage forgotten by the collective memory.
One aspect in which it will be of especial importance to refer back to our history for guidance is the political structure of our new nation. In the past, the Kabiyesi was the head of the government in their domain, wielding all the executive power. The Kabiyesi cannot be removed except by death, potentially deleterious if the throne is occupied by an evil Kabiyesi. With the Yoruba nation not lacking in Kabiyesi, the biggest challenge will be determining who will become the overall Kabiyesi of the new Yoruba nation.
This article is not trying to suggest a system of government for the new Yoruba nation. However, with our long history of monarchical rule, it will be difficult for the Yoruba nation to thrive under a presidential system of government. It therefore seems most probable that we would instead be practicing a parliamentary system.
Accepting that it may not be practical to return fully to the system used in the old Yoruba government, we nevertheless should endeavour to retain much of our historical system of governance when building the future Yoruba government. We must construct a system that works for the benefit of our people, eliminating such loopholes as permit fraudsters to defraud the government and the good people of Yoruba nation. We must strive hard to ensure that those who take on leadership roles are ready to serve the people, not those who pursue political positions solely for what they can extort for themselves and their cabal.
In our new nation, the Omoluabi ethos must always be projected and adhered to. Furthermore, we must ensure that our education system is returned to its former focus, where intelligent reasoning is encouraged and developed; rather than the current system where rote-memorisation and exams are considered the metric of academic excellence. Above all, we should not be afraid to adopt new ideas if proven to be better than our current approach. This is not about ignoring our past, but embodying it in a new way, utilising the best of all that makes Yoruba Yoruba, to harness our destination of a glorious future.
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