EPHA:

An Urhobo System of Divination and Its

Esoteric Language
By
M.Y. Nabofa
Professor of Religiuos Studies, University of Ibadan, Nigeria
and
Ben O. Elugbe
Professor of Linguistics, University of Ibadan, Nigeria

Originally published in Orita: Ibadan Journal of Religious Studies, Vol. 1, June

1981, pages 3-19. Published in URHOBO WAADO by permission of Professor
Michael Nabofa

The process of divination is one of the most essential religious practices among the
Urhobo. It is an important element in sacred duties because the devotee is always eager
to know the wishes of the divine. By our definition, religion is man's effort or desire to
be at peace with the spiritual powers on one hand and with his fellow man on the other.
It is man's effort at bringing about harmony between the mundane and the spiritual
spheres of life. Man believes that failure to establish such harmony would spell doom
for him; therefore, man, in all his sacred duties, is always trying to reach spiritual unity
with the divine. It would not be easy to attain such harmony unless the wishes of the
divine were correctly determined or interpreted.
The Urhobo, therefore, like every other religious people, believe that it is through the
process of divination that the devotee can determine the wishes of the spiritual forces
which have power over his fate. As the saying goes, where there is no vision or prophecy
the people go about their lives blindly. In fact, one of our informants claimed that the
diviner is the light of every community, and where there is none, the people grope
through darkness to doom! It is thus clear that the practice of epha divination is an
essential factor in the religious life of the Urhobo.
Many definitions of divination emphasize the idea that divination seeks to obtain
information from divine beings about the future and the present. However, divination
among the Urhobo is more than merely unveiling the future and the present. What the
Urhobo really believes a competent diviner is capable of doing is to link up and
commune the divine world. Psychologists of religion, theologians, and mystics have
often tried to explain that wherever a mind is exposed in a spirit of absorbed submission
to impressions of the universe, it becomes capable of experiencing intuition and feelings
of the divine.1 In the thinking of the Urhobo it is such a mood that the diviner seeks to
assume when he gazes meditatively at the instrument of divination during his practice
and once he has attained a certain degree of attunement he will be able to tap useful
information from the all-seeing divine beings of the suprasensible world.
The Urboho believe that the physical world is very highly influenced by the
supernatural, which embraces evil and good forces. Happiness or well being which they
refer to as ufuoma can only be guaranteed by seeking out what the unknown holds,
exorcising the forces of evil and aligning one's life, as it were. Since the Urhobo believe
that the affairs of man are controlled by spiritual beings, divination among them is first
and foremost concerned with finding out the plans of these beings for man. They divine
to ensure that the good plans are not changed while the evil ones are reversed or
cancelled. Once this is achieved man will be assured of a state of total well-being
(ufuoma). Without Ufuoma, of course, there can be no happiness. And ufuoma touches
on every aspect of life; the plans of the Divine (as mentioned above); protection against
our earthly enemies, knowing the right thing to do about any situation-including such
cases as trying to recover a lost person or piece of property; whether a person was lying
or saying the truth. Indeed, the reasons for which an Urhobo person will go to a diviner
are so varied and all-embracing as to defy listing.
However, divination and sacrifice almost invariably go together, since whether in
gratitude (for good plans revealed or for an existing state of happiness), or in prayer (to
have evil plans or revelations or situations reversed), the Urhobo must sacrifice to the
power of the divine world. This fact has led some observers to charge that diviners
always insist on sacrifice only as a selfish means of feeding themselves. Nevertheless
the people still believe that divination can reveal the fault and psychologically prepare
the sufferer's mind for the solution, while sacrifice administers, so to say, the medicine
which effects the cure. Unless sacrificial rites are performed the devotee will not have
the peace of mind which is mostly required for a permanent cure. We would like to take
not of the fact that we should not be misled by the above assumed relation
between ephaand sacrifice in view of the following reasons: Firstly, not every sacrifice
is a result of having consulted the epha priest. A sacrifice can follow an unsolicited
fortune telling of some kind at a chance meeting by a person who is not even known to
have such powers of clairvoyance and who may not actually be a practising professional
diviner of any kind. Furthermore, a strange message delivered by a devotee of some cult
or the other, or even a warning to a close relation of the affected person can lead to
sacrificial rites. Such practices abound in Urhoboland: Igbe priests and devotees are
fond of delivering such messages even without being consulted.
Secondly, not all consultations of the epha priest necessitate subsequent sacrifice. The
diviner may in fact say that the relevant problem has been predestined as such it has no
remedy; its course is inevitable therefore the victim should accept his fate calmly.
The Obuepha may also advise that only a "cleansing" ritual is called for. This can take
the form of bathing in a particular stream, or a special exorcising rituals in a specific cult
in which the client is a member, or some special incision of some kind. In fact, the
possibilities are quite numerous. Notwithstanding the above opinion, it is a common
belief among the Urhobo that most instances of sacrifices result form divination and in
several instances of divination one form of sacrificial rites or the other is prescribed.
Whatever rituals that are prescribed, the ultimate aim is to establish and
maintain ufuoma. The most popular device which the Urhobo use to ascertain the wishes
of the divine is know as epha,2 while the process of divining by epha is referred to
as epha ebo which literally means consulting epha." The cultic functionary is know
as obo r'epha or obuepha, which means "doctor of epha" that is, the diviner.
Methods of divination among the Urhobo
There are many methods of divination among the Urhobo. These include divining with
cowries, kola nuts, wine, coins of the same denominations, alligator pepper, a mirror,
birds and Agbragha. Agbragha, which is an apparatus made up of four divining chains
each of which contains four shells of the supposedly sacred Agbragha3 tree, is the most
important and reliable. It is also called Epha. Its revelations are delivered in a language
puzzling even to those who are native speakers of Urhobo. It is this process which we
shall discuss in greater detail. But we shall mention other methods briefly.
Some people claim to have the power and techniques to obtain information from the
supernatural by merely looking intensely into or at any of the following: a glass of wine,
a piece of coin, grains of alligator pepper, and a looking glass. Others claim that, through
training in the practice of intuition or meditation, and by the aid of some medicines
applied into their eyes and ears, they can see through the veil and obtain information
from the spiritual realm. A person who practices such forms of divination is known
as Obo ren aro or Obuaro "the doctor of eyes", that is, " seer." Sometimes a person may
be under the influence of a divinity, or deity, so that he becomes capable of seeing
beyond the ordinary, and revealing hidden facts. In such cases the person may be said to
be possessed, though no necessarily of an evil spirit.
Cowries and a special white kola nut of four lobes are also used by some diviners.
(Divining with kola nuts is also found among the Yoruba).4 In using this form of
divination the diviner uses native white chalk to make a circle on the floor into which he
tosses either the cowries or the lobes of kola nut. 5 He looks at them deciphering the
message they carry. The diviner looks at the divination elements as if a spiritual being is
communicating with him. In fact, most of the diviners claim to be really absorbed in a
mood of meditation and to be engaged in such a communion with super-natural beings.
It is when he emerges out of that mood of meditation and to be engaged in such a
communion with super-natural beings. It is when he emerges out of that mood that he
communicates his findings to his client.
In some cases the diviner using kola nuts reads off their message as he stares at the lobes
of kola nut in either the white circle or on the white plate. It is not uncommon for the
diviner to tilt one of them slightly and examine it more closely for specific details. The
language in which the message of the kola nut is read is exactly the same as the one we
had earlier described as puzzling even to those who are native speakers of Urhobo.
Many diviners claim that they understand the language of birds by means of special
preparations. Such a divination potion is made from special ingredients mixed with the
head of a talkative bird known as Agbreghede.6A living Agbreghede is procured and the
preparation is applied to the ears of both the person and the bird. This is done seven
times daily for seven consecutive days, at the end of which the bird is released. This bird
becomes mystically associated with the prospective diviner and from it he receives
revelations first-hand. From this bird he gradually learns to understand fully words
uttered by some other Agbreghede. The person eventually graduates to understanding the
language of other birds, though not as much as he would that of Agvreghede. This
particular bird, Agbreghede, is used because the Urhobo thin revealing of all birds. Some
diviners, priests and traditional healers are said to have such special reporter-birds which
perch on trees in and around their compounds. The birds deliver their messages from
there if and when the occasion arises.
The most popular divination apparatus among the Urhobo is specially made of sixteen
half-shells of the agbragha fruit, and it is from this tree that Epha derives its other
name Agbragha. Special sacrifices of emare are offered to the tree before the shells are
taken out for this purpose. The sacrifice is done in order to obtain the blessings and
approval of the divine spirits of Agbainabe and Akunable, believed to be dwelling in the
tree. Once the shells are brought home, specialists in divination, that is,
practising ebuopha help to tie them with strings into four lines four on a string as it was
revealed to Omingbo or Dibie, the first hunter-diviner (see figure 1).
Finally the apparatus is treated with special herbs so as to imbue it with more spiritual
potency. It is after this that it will be ready for use.
It is the general belief that most the above systems of divination can easily be
neutralized or rendered ineffective by negative rival forces, but that of Agbragha, which
is strongly backed by powerful spiritual forces cannot easily be thus neutralized or
influenced. In Urhobo mythology the spiritual forces behind Agbragha are those of
Aghainabe and Akunabe. These two spiritual beings are thought to have been mortals
who, because of their psychic power were able to operate freely in both the physical
world (akpo) and the spiritual realm (erivwin). When they died a dispute arose between
the people of akpo and those of erivwin over where they should be buried. None of the
peoples of these spheres would have their corpses buried around their realm. The dispute
arose because both the people of Akpo and the inhabitants of Erivwin regarded
Aghainabe and Akunabe as traitors and tale-bearers, who, in their life-time, had
specialized in learning the secrets of the one world and divulging them to the other, thus
creating confusion between the mortals of Alpo and the immortals of Erivwin. In the end
it was decided as a compromise to bury them at the border between the two realms of
the physical and the spiritual. A fruit-bearing tree known as agbragha was planted on
their graves.
These two spiritual cum-mortal beings felt disgraced and were aggrieved; they therefore
vowed not only to continue but also to intensify their efforts at revealing secrets of both
realms to any one who established communication with them. The legend goes further to
say that in a dream Aghainable and Akunagbe revealed to a hunter named Ominigbo
how to divine, that is, establish this communication with them through the Agbragha
fruits. It is however stated in another version that the secret of divination was first
revealed to a hunter known as Bibie. These shells are believed to be spiritually charged
with the with the powers of those who stand astride Akpo and Erivwin, hence they are
able to know secrets not only of the physical world but also of the spiritual sphere.
Therefore this system of divination, which is referred to as either Agbragha orEpha, is
taken to be the most reliable of all forms of divination and the most popular among the
Urhobo. No power on earth can overcome or neutralize the spiritual force which
operates through Agbragha.
The Divination Procedure
There are many variations in the divination procedure which uses this apparatus. The
procedure differs from one diviner to the other, although there is a general underlying
pattern. The normal procedure is the one we discuss here. In the first place, it must be
noted that each half-shell on the Epha has a concave and a convex side. When
the Epha (that is, the divination apparatus) is thrown on the floor each half-shell will rest
wither on its concave side (with the convex side up) or on its convex side (with the
concave side up). Each rope of four half-shells has a number of possible concave and/or
convex display combinations (see fig.1). Each such combination on the rope constitutes
a reading and has its own name. It is these combinations that are read and interpreted to
find the messages of the Epha. Thus in figure 2, the number 1, and 3 represent readings.
But '1' for example, is meaningful only if combined with some other readings. In figure
2, 1 + 3 would give ogbi + aghare = ogbiaghare, which means money.
 Figure 2
Divination Readings

We have some doubts about Erivwo's explarations as regards the reading of Epha. He
says that when the seeds are cast, there are two ends from which the reading can be
taken viz; the Akpo end the Erivwin end; and he used this diagram to illustrate these
reading ends.

1 2 3 4
0 0 0 x Erivwin
x 0 x 0 End
x 0 0 0 Akpo
x 0 x x End
Key: o-convex; x-concave
That is, the upper part of the divination apparatus is regarded as the Erivwin end while
the lower end of it is taken to be the Akpo end. He further explains that each pair of
seeds either from the Akpo end or Erivwinend has a name, and that the complete various
combinations of these give complete sentences.

We do not subscribe to such interpretation because in Urhobo thought forms Akpo is the
abode of the living-both plants and animals, and this is believed to be on the surface of
the earth. Conversely, Erivwin is the permanent abode of the dead, and it is thought to be
under the earth, though the living-dead are said to show up occasionally in Akpo. Really,
both the Akpo and the Erivwin ends of Epha are read. When the whole divination
element is read from the surface, it is then said that its Akpo end is being read. However,
when the diviner imaginatively goes under the earth and reads the Epha from there, is
then regarded that its Erivwinend is being read, and only competent Epha practitioners
can do so. For example, supposing the Epha is cast and two of its strings (which usually
combine to form a word) fall thus:

1 2
 x x
0 x
0 x
x x
oghori ako
Key: 0 - convex; x - concave
This will be read and interpreted as Oghori + ako = Oghoriako or Ighoriako =ifi, which
means strings, or burden, or punishment or arrest. However, when the diviner
imaginatively dives down so as to read it from there, to him these two strings would
assume following positions:

1 2
0 0
x 0
x 0
0 0
odi ogbi
Key: 0 - convex; x - concave
That is Odi + Ogbi=Odiogbi=Idiogbi=Emu=Food. Idiogbi also means work or labour.
With the aid of these words which the diviner has got from the Eriwbin end, or so to say,
the spiritual spheres of the epha, he may be led to the conclusion that the source of
the Ighoriako = ifi= punishment or arrest, or trouble could be traced to either food or the
client's work or place of work.

Readings and interpretations got from the other two strings would help to throw greater
light on the causes and solutions to the problem. In which case the diviner may not need
to cast the divination ensign several times before he would arrive at his conclusions. It is
only in that form it is said that Epha is being read from both Akpo and Erivwin ends.
Amateur diviners can only read and interprete the Akpo section of Epha while the real
proficient ones can operate both ends with confidence. It should however be noted that
Akpo end and Erivwin end of Epha re symbolic expressions. They mean the overt
section and the hidden part of Epha. Therefore, symbolically, psychologically and
theologically, the Erivwin end of Epha being read conveys the idea that the source and
the solutions to most problems in life are usually hidden under them, and ability to dive
or probe deep into the problems themselves would unearth their cure.
When a client comes to consult Epha the diviner first invokes the good spirits to attend
to his divination in order to ensure accuracy; he also recites incantations to protect
himself against evil spirits. Then he will either ask his client what problem has brought
him, or he will, depending on his confidence in his own practice, elect to find out
though Epha just why the client has come to consult Epha. Even in the second
alternative, the diviner will normally ask the client to confirm his findings about the
purpose of the client's presence.
The usual divination procedure is that the Obuepha tells the Epha (by way of
incantations) what problem the client is enquiring about. Then he, taking the ends of
the Epha pieces, two in each hand, throws them forward on the floor. He studies and
interpretes the pattern, reciting to himself as he goes along. Sometimes, if he thinks that
the message is not clear or that he wants to be very sure, he throws the Epha again and
reads the message. He then turns to the client and tells him what the Ephia says.
There is no doubt that the Epha priest studies the client's face as he studies
the Epha patterns. Psychology is therefore probably a strong element
in Epha consultation. Indeed some sceptics who do not believe in Ephainsist that the
whole process is a psychological exercise during which the Obuepha reduces the client
to a state of near-hypnosis. However, those who go to consult Epha are those who
believe in it naturally or who are suddenly faced with extremely difficult situations in
which they are prepared to believe and try anything, so long as it claims it can solve
their problems. Since few clients accept the revelation of Epha without askingEpha to
prescribe possible remedies, the Epha priest is invariably up-to-date on the most
powerful divinities of the land, the important shrines, the people's cosmology and their
attitude to life. He often finds himself having to suggest a sacrifice to some divinity or
other, or a worship at given shrines here and there. In fact, he may even learn a few
herbs so that he may himself, on occasion, provide the remedy prescribed by Epha. In a
case where you have an obuephat providing herbal and other traditional medical and
spiritual remedies in conjunction with his divination practices, he is then known as
an obo, that is, a full fledged doctor in the traditional sense. He is the one whom some
people have derogatively referred to as a witch-doctor. He is better known as a tradico-
medicalist.
The Language
The revelations of Epha, in answer to a client's approach are often conveyed in
the Epha language which is in itself unintelligible to the client and the ordinary Urhobo
speaker. The diviner, as we said above, studies the pattern assumed by the Epha before
him and he decides whether this pattern conveys the idea of, say, happiness or sorrow, or
war, etc. he then translates the ideas into the language of Epha in which he first recites
the message before tuning to his client to repeat same in Urhobo. In some cases a fellow
diviner is available to do simultaneous interpretating of the revelations of Epha. When
two diviners work together, it is not unusual that one tosses the divination chains or
shells and the other reads out the message in epha language, while the first one translates
for the client. This is also said to be one of the methods for training apprentices. This
method has the advantage of giving the more experienced person, who is actually doing
the tossing, a chance to correct any errors that there may be in the attempt to decipher
the message of the epha shells.
It is one of the curious aspects of Epha and the whole process of divination in Urhobo
that the revelations of Epha should be shrouded in an esoteric language understood only
by initiates of Epha and only marginally by those who are closely associated with the
diviner and who listen to his revelations with some regularity.
The question that quite naturally arises is, "What is the origin of this language? p2 There
are a number of possible answers to this question: (a) it is in fact an older version of
Urhobo language which ahs remained steady in cultic circles while the language has
developed with time, (b) It is the language of a neighbouring tribe brought in by some
diviners and made popular as a distinctive mark of the trade; (c) It is neither Urhobo nor
a neighbouring language, it is a language which was made up arbitrarily with the sole
aim of lending dignity to the art.
The first possibility is to say that Epha is Urhobo. It represents an earlier form of
Urhobo which has remained relatively unchanged while Urhobo, outside of divination,
has developed with time. It is, of course, quite easy to test this possibility, employing the
methods of comparative historical linguistics.
Now if assumption (a) is correct the, applying comparative linguistic procedures, we
should discover that there are definite sound correspondences between Epha and
present-day Urhobo. The establishment of regular sound correspondences is the surest
and most reliable way of proving genetic relationship between languages. This has been
done for Indo-European languages (including languages as diverse as English and San-
skrit) and for various groups of African languages. Unfortunately this has proved quite
impossible for Epha and Urhobo. If we examine the Epha-Urhobo wordlist in Appendix
A, we find that the average Epha word is a noun which is made up of one of a recurrent
set of parts or building blocks. These include:

-Oghori Aku-
Eka-/
-nabe
Eko
-ophu Idi-
-Ogbi Oso-
Thus we have words like Aku-nabe., Ekosc, etc. The Urhobo items, on the other hand do
not repeat parts of words with anything close to the frequency with which Epha does it.
It is not surprising therefore that no regular sound correspondence can be established
between Epha and Urhobo. In the following few lines and test items, the diversity of
Urhobo consonants contrast with the regularity of the Epha items:

English Epha Urhobo

ears -k-gh-r- -rh-
world of spirit -k-gh-r- -r-vb-
father -k-rh -s
fate -k-s- -rh-vb-
house -k-rh- -w-vb-
false -k-n-rh- -f-
wine -k-n-ph- -d-

It is obvious from this that although each of the Epha items selected has a K as first
consonant, the Urhobo items do not reflect the same kind of consistency, so there is no
regular sound correspondence between theEpha and the Urhobo items. The nearest we
come to correspondence is the word for which Epha has Etako while Urhobo has Eta.
But the initial t. t. correspondence is,unfortunately, not repeated, and repetition is the
essence of regularity which is vital for proving a genetic relationship. Et, it is quite easy
to demonstrate this regularity in sound correspondence between Urhobo and Isoko, Edo,
Degema, Esan, and say of the other Edoid languages. In other words, while we can
easily prove that Urhobo is related to these other Edoid languages, we cannot prove, by
the same method, that Urhobo and Epha languages are related. We may conclude
therefore that Epha does not represent an earlier stage of the Urhobo language.
The second possibility is that Epha is a language borrowed from around Urhobo. This
position need not engage us unduly since we know that none of the languages in the
vicinity has lexical items from which theseEpha items could have been derived. They
are no Ijo, Igbo, Edo (Bini), and Itsekiri. The most tempting case is that
of Ophu and Abe which appear similar to the Igbo items for "one" and "two", "ofu" and
"abua" respectively. But that can easily be dismissed since the occurrence of ophu
in Epha has no consistent meaning.
Indeed this is one of the reasons why one should prefer the third possibility, that
is, Epha language was made up without clear or consistent rules and without a code for
deciphering it. As thee is no language without rules, Epha can hardly be called a
language. By Epha Language we mean the Epha Lexicon, (see vocabulary in Appendix
A). for, what we are saying is that those words have been formed by no clear rules: one
cannot on the basis of them formulate new words. While other languages tend to have
parts of words that are recurrent and carrying some kind of consistent semantic or
grammatical meaning, the recurrent parts of Ephawords have no consistent meaning. We
find the stem--ghori with words whose meanings ranging from mourning to father and
dry season, while the apparently prefixal morpheme Idi-refers with different
combinations, to work and father; and nabe refers to eyes, war, happiness, failure and
corner. Here we must insist, until evidence can be found to the contrary, that Epha words
have been formulated without rules.
Another point in favour of this third alternative is the fact that in practice the language is
actually quite simple. It is made up of a relatively small number of items which are
almost invariably nouns. The rest of the language is pure Urhobo. If it had been an
earlier stage of a spoken or borrowed language there would hardly have been need to
mix it with Urhobo as it is now. In the present circumstances we have to assume that the
language was a formulation of the diviners and that it was of necessity kept as a simple
as possible so that, in fact it was not one of the more difficult tasks of the apprentice
diviner. All he had to do was to learn the limited vocabulary off-head. The injection of
the required Epha words at strategic points in his divination would ensure that his client
was in the dark until the Epha words were interpreted.
Why did the diviners have to invent a relatively simple language whose function is
basically to mystify? We suggest that this was to lend authority and dignity plus
reverence to the diviner and his craft-Epha. It gave the impression that Epha was
speaking in a tongue foreign to Urhobo and left only to the messengers of Epha, such as
the diviner, to understand and interpret. Thus, although Epha shows some of the
structural qualities of a contact/marginal language-a sparse vocabulary, no structure of
its own-it differs from such language in one major respect; while contact languages
develop in order to ease communication between linguistically complex communities
(cf, the rise of pidgin languages) Epha was invented to create a lack of intelligibility and
block communication.
To evaluate the success of that goal we have a sample of typical Epha reading for
revelations. Let us take, for example 7(a) on our list, in appendix B. a man is told in
Urhobo "you will receive". Now he does not know what he will receive. If he is told in
plain Urhobo that he will be happy since, in Urhobo culture as in most of the Edoid
areas, white chalk is a symbol of and a metaphor for joy and happiness. However, if he
is told he will receive ighitophu, the sentence, becomes totally meaningless to him. He
becomes mystified. He therefore has to rely on the diviner to tell him what ighitophu is.
It is thus very easy to recite Epha in any language since the practice is invariably to
insert Epha words in the mainstream of the language of the diviner.
Many communities of the world have a tradition that involves disguising speech. The
Yoruba have "Ena" code talking which has a definite pattern. There is a "pig latin"
in North America. The Tagalag of North America have theirs; also the Bakwiri of
Camerouns have a language in which they speak backwards.
It is obvious, therefore, that the development of some kind of disguised speech, such as
we suggest was done in the case of Epha, is not a novel or isolated phenomenon.
Conclusion:
We have tried to show above that the need to consult the supernatural world drives
people to consult "Epha" which may be compared with Yoruba Ifa. We have explained
the physical structure of the "Epha" instrument, the supposed source of its power to
communicate with the "other" world, and the general procedure for consulting Epha.
One of the baffling but nonetheless interesting aspects of Epha is the language. An
examination of this language using some of the methods of linguistics, normally applied
to natural languages, reveals that it is neither Urhobo nor any of the surrounding
languages. We even rule out the possibility that it is the language of an existing group.
We conclude that it is a secret language devised for the purposes of shrouding the whole
practise of Epha in mysticism and secrecy as well as lending dignity to it. The second
author, who is an Edo from the northern parts of Bendel state, claims that some of
the Epha words are recognized as occurring also in the language of divination amongst
his people. It would be rewarding to examine the whole process of divination amongst
the peoples of BendelState for the purposes of determining uniformity or other wise in
the practise. That may yet lead us to the true original source of the invention
of Epha language.
APPENDIX A
EPHA TERMS AND THEIR URHOBO AND ENGLISH MEANINGS
No. Epha Language Common Urhobo English
1. Agharoghori Uvberi Mourning
2. Akunabe Okoko Corner
3. Akuoghori Erho Ears
4. Akuoghori Uvephru Dry Season
5. Daboghori Ugheghe Foolishness, be foolish
6. Dorhophu Nyeme Obey, be vigilant
7. Ebanorha Ofia False, No
8. Ebanose Umu/(Uhuvbu) Medicine, Charm, poison
9. Edisogbi Edeki Market Day
10. Eghariako Odafe A wealthy person
11. Eghariophu Omoshare Boy, male child
12. Egharophu Iglio Money
13. Ekanophu Udi Wine, Gin, Drink
14. Ekanorha Ofia False, No, Not true
15. Ekarako Urhe Tree, wood
16. Ekeghare Oghogho Happiness, blessing
17. Ekerhorokpa Aje, aji Woman, wife
18. Ekoghori Erivin Wold of the Spirits, Death, Land of the dead
19. Ekoghori Osomo Dead father, ancestor
20. Ekose Urhevbe Destiny, fate
21. Ekorhan Osomo Father, ancestor
22. Ekueka Uyovwi Head
23. Ekuorha Uwevwi House, Home
24. Erhurokpophu Amwa Cloth, dress, White, cloth
25. Etako Eta Words, quarrel, dispute
26. Etogbi Aghwa Forest, Bush
27. Idiogbi Iruo Work, labour
28. Idiogbi Emu Food, sacrifices
29. Idioghori Osomo Father, ancestor
30. Idiokara Osomo Dead father, ancestor
31. Igbiako Ole Yam
32. Ighitokaran Oyan Journey, movement
33. Ighitophu Orhen White Chalk, Kaolin
34. Ighitophu Aghogho Happiness, jubilation
35. Ighitovbara Ophunu, Erhovwo Pleading, Prayers
36. Ighorogbi Iyeri, Erin Child, offspring
(Oghorogbi)
37. Ikete Iyeri, Erin Fish
38. Itodi Aso Night, darkness
39. Itophu Urhie River, Sea, Ocean, Stream
40. Obanabe Erharen Fire, trouble, war
41. Odiokaran Oniomo Mother, ancestor
42. Ogviaghare Igho Money
43. Ogbinabe Ababo Failure, Empty handed, false
44. Oghoraghare Eranvbe Meat, animal, sacrificial victim
45. Oghori Ababo Empty handed, Emptiness
46. Oghorughete Ogwha Load, burden, sacrificial material
47. Okanabe Ohore War, Fight
48. Okaneka Ohore War, Fight
49. Ophuako Out Crowd, public, followership
50. Ophuete Ode Plantain
51. Ophuabe Oghogho Happiness, joy
52. Orhaghare Omoni Relation, Brother, Sister
53. Orheka Obi Punishment, Poison, fight
54. Orhete Osio, Ame Rain, Water
55. Orkokaran Oshare Man
56. Orhovbaran Oghene God, Sky heaven
57. Osenabe Ibiaro Eyes
58. Osodi Olo Under the earth, world of the dead
59. Osodi Ose Dead father, ancestor
60. Osogbi Eki Market
61. Osorha Erhi Human double, soul
62. Ovbighite Uehebro Reconciliation, Settlement, Counsel
63. Ovbighitose Orieda Witch, wizard, sorcerer
64. Orhovbu Eme Advice, counsel, attunement
 65. Urhurabe Osa Debt, Cult, Responsibility
66. Ururhete Evbe, Evbi Kolanut
67. Ururheghori Uvberi Mourning
68. Ururhose Orutho Guilt, sin, wrong-doing
APPENDIX B
SOME EPHA SENTENCES
AND THEIR URHOBO AND ENGLISH TRANSLATIONS
Urhobo
No. Epha Lamguage English Translation
Translation
Do not be foolish; do not be deceived, do not be
1 Wo daboghori-I Wo ghe phio-o
misled.
2 Igun Orhurogbi Yan igun opliunu Go and apologize or pray for forgiveness.
Orhovbara cha The sky heaven is going to shed tears or ooze out
3 Osio cha rh.o
vicn orhete water. That is, it will soon rain.
Wo che mien
Wo che nien You will receive (white chalk) happiness. That is, you
4 orhen; wo cha
ighotophu. will be happy.
ghogho
The soul-personality is the child of, or under the
Osorhia ighorogbi Erhi omo ren tutelage of fate or destiny. The soul-personality is
5
ren Ekose. Urhievwe. controlled or piloted by fate or its primordial
declarations.
Ejovi cha rue Ejovi cha ru'
6 Enjovi will become a wealthy person
eghariako odafa.
Wo che mien Wo che mien
ighitophu orhen. You will receive white chalk.
7(a)
Wo che mien Wo che mien You will receive happiness.
ophunabe. aghogho.
Okanabe cha
Okaneka cha Oghore cha War is coming.; Troouble is coming.; Eye will see or
7(b) Oscnabe cha mre Ubiaro cha mre meet with eye (that is, there will
osenabe ubiaro be a serious confrontation).
Oghore cha
Etiyin ebanorha That is false.; It is indeed false.; That is empty handed.
Etiyin ofia
7(c) Etiyin ekanorha (that is, it is totally false, it is a
Etiyin ofia
Etiyin ogbinabe complete failure).
8 Ok' itodi Ok' aso In the night
 When the skyey heaven will shed tears (when it will
R'orhophara cha rain)
vbo vien orhete R' osio cha vbo If you are not careful
Wo gbe d' rhon The ancestors will strike or fight you
orhophu-u Wo gbi nyeme-e You will then start your movement (die)
Idoghori cha sa Esemo ke cha sa If, however, you are careful
wen orheka wen obi And you did not get deceived,
Ko won cha ghwa Ko wo cha kp' Your hand will be happy. (That is you will be
ighitokara oyan successful in life.
Wo ye dorhophu Wo rhe nyeme If a person is prosperous it is said that it is his hand
Wo gbe Wo gbi ghe vbio-o which has made this possible and the person' s hand is
daboghori-I Obo wen ko cha believed to be very happy over its achievements.
Obo wen ko cha ghogho. This is why the cult of hand is one of the prominent
d'ekeghare features in Urhobo traditional
religion)

NOTES AND REFERENCES

1 Rudolf Otto: The Idea of the Holy. (O.U.P. London., 1973) p. 146.
2It is known as eva among the Isoko, and eha or afa among the Igbo, and ifa among the
Yoruba.
3 Agbragha: This is a specie of wild mango tree.
4For details about Kolanut divination among the Yoruba Vide J.O. Awolalu: Yoruba
Beliefs and Sacrificial Rites, Longman Lndon 1979 p. 122.
5 Some people use a white enamel plate in place of a white circle, but, this is a recent
innovation.
6 Also called Agvriegodo, Agbreyede or Okpolo, Bulbul (pychonotus Barbatus).