• Oya
It is used to urge someone to do someone to do something. It originates from Yoruba land from which could mean begin, start or do.
Usage – Oya wo.
• Oga
Oga means boss, one of authority or a rich person. It is from Igbo word ‘Ogaranya’ that it originated. Ogaranya in this case means one who spends a lot of money and has people under him.
Usage – This Oga dey spend sha
• Una
While in English you can be singular or plural, Pidgin English has a word for the plural ‘you’. It is una and it is a corrupted form of ‘unu’ an Igbo word that mean you people. Jamaicans uses unu.
Usage – Una nor go sleep.
• Sabi
Sabi is from Portuguese saber, which means to know. It is still use in this way today.
Usage – You sabi the place?
• Pikin
In Pidgin English pikin means child. Although some rich people simply calls their children child. In fact, some of us know the difference between ‘pikin’ and ‘child’.
The word pikin originated from Portuguese and have a long history of being kind of derogatory. Pequino was the root word which means little. It later became pickaninny to mean children of black slaves. When it came to Nigeria it has become pikin.
Usage – Send that pikin make e buy am come
• Dey
One of the common pidgin word, dey is the pidgin counterpart of ‘to be’. It is from the Igbo word ‘di’ which means to exist. Although, it is debatable. It is used to show position, acts as ‘to be’ (sometime reversed with ‘na’).
Usage – The man dey there.
• Comot
A corruption of the English phrase ‘come out’. It does what the English version do.
Usage – Comot for here.
• Mumu
If you are called mumu by anyone, especially in all caps. My brother or sister go for deliverance. Mumu actually is not a Nigerian word but from the Ewe and Akan language. It means a slowpoke, very dumb, one who behaves like a Mr Bean.
Usage – That man na mumu
• Amebo
Amebo is someone who gossips a lot. In order words, if you want to spread a message but don’t want to do it yourself, tell an amebo. The news would go viral.
It’s of Edoid origin and means a favourite wife. Since the favourite wife knows more about the husband than the other wife/ves do, she usually have more information than the other(s). She would then be the postmaster and the BBC of the house, relaying messages to husband and wives.
Usage – that guy na amebo oh.
• Street
Before 2012, street used to mean a road with house on both side. But in recent years it has come to mean scam, scammers or a tough person. The word evolved from ‘street boys’, which is usually a derogatory term for urchins. Today it has taken a different twist.
Usage – That boy na street. (Scammer, tough person)
- You don run me street. (Scammed)
- See street oh. (When you know of one’s motive to scam you)
• Wahala
Wahala in Arabic means trouble, big mess. It is probably the logical answer for its origin. It would get into the Hausa man vocabulary, who would then pass it into pidgin. In pidgin it means trouble.
Usage – You don spoil the motor. See wahala!
• Doh
In Edo-Delta area, doh is usually used to comfort and cheer someone up. I know it’s used mostly down here in Niger-Delta.
• Abi
It’s used to confirm if something is right. It’s of Yoruba origin. Although some Yoruba prefer shebi.
Usage – Na James number, abi?
• Chop
Chop means to eat in pidgin. It is from English. Chop used to be an informal word in English for eat. It is no longer used.
Usage – You don chop?
• Abeg
From English ‘I beg’. Used to appeal to someone.
Usage – Bros abeg do am for me.

Explorers, baba you get anything to say?

Oga is not from ogaranya sorry.

Oga is a Yoruba word meaning boss.

More to Add


• Oya - Yoruba word meaning "right away" i.e Oya na make we waka go.
• Jeje - "Take it Easy" from Yoruba i.e As I sit down jeje for that corner.
• Jare - No mind am jare (from the Yoruba word for innocent, but used in various contexts)
• Ajebo/Ajepako - Pampered person/Street smart individual or Local champion i.e That boy/girl na real Ajebo/Ajekpako. Origin, Yoruba.
• Še/Shey - Interrogative infix in Yoruba i.e You see wetin dem dey do now shey? or: Shey you eat winch?, Shey u know say na me sha?
• Igbo - Weed i,e I smoke igbbo sotey my eyes begin dey spark.
• Dabaru - Disorganize, destroy, break apart, rumple up, spoil E.tc (Yoruba) I.e Leave dem make dem Bleep up! We go dabaru the pace!
• Lailai - Yoruba word for Never-never a contraction of "Laye laye" Never-Ever. I.e Lailai! we no go gree!
• Gidigba - Yoruba word for a Big, strong and solid object. I.e We dey for your back gidigba!
• Ojoro - Yoruba word for cheating/fraud - The refree that Liverpool-Chelsea game na pure Ojoro man
• Olopa (Olokpa) - Literally means "Rod handler" in Yoruba, from the baton rods policemen carry around. Now widely used in Pidgin
• Omo - Little chlld - Usually used to express camaraderie or some sort of acquaintance. i.e Omo see that babe.
• Patapata - Complete / Supreme - That man na the Oga patapata for AGIP o.
• Shebi - (Similar to "Shey" defined above but different. It means Isn't it in Yoruba) i.e Come carry am na, Shebi na your Papa get am!!!
• Yakata - Yoruba word originally meaning :widen laps: "Ya Akata" (Now used in various contexts). I.e See as she sleep open leg yakata.
• Jõ/Joor - Please (in Yoruba) i.e Abeg free me joor.
• Gra-Gra - From Gira-Gira (Yoruba word for bashful or Shallow behaviour / Action not thought of well before execution)
• Tokunbo - Literally means "From across the sea" in Yoruba. Used to refer to a purchased item that is not factory new / used good resale.
• Ko & Ni - Kö in Yoruba means (Is Not), and Ni (It is). Used together to make fun or jest of a senseless argument from another person/party.
• Wuruwuru - Yoruba word for disorderly/disorganized. i.e This your assignment na wuruwuru to the answer o, I no fit copy am.
• Sha - Yoruba word connoting dissatisfaction or uncompletedness i.e I no like am, but I go take am sha. or: She no too fine but she okay sha.
• Nko - Meaning "How about this/that/those/them/" etc. i.e You don give everyone ashoebi material, me nko?
• Yeye - A Jocular or unserious attribute of someone or something in Yoruba. I.e Stupid yeye man! or Babe, your bf yeye sef too much!

Others I know that are of Yoruba origin are : Akata (A black person lost abroad), Ashewo (Lady of easy virtue), Ogogoro (A locally made gin), Shayo (Alcohol binging), Gbedu (Music hit), Pangolo/Kpangolo (cannister, metal container), Dada (Dreadloks), Shakara (vain aloofness, (Espclly of a lady), Agidi (Strong willed / strong head), Agbaya ( Shameless elderly person), Egunje (Bribery), Bokoto (Cooked cow foot),

If you no dey use at least 70% of the words above dem in your spoken pidgin ehhn, dat one mean say your pidgin na mumu pidgin.

scholes0:
Oga is not from ogaranya sorry.

Oga is a Yoruba word meaning boss.

I don't think so. I asked my mum about oga. She doesn't think oga is a Yoruba word.

liohan:

I don't think so. I asked my mum about oga. She doesn't think oga is a Yoruba word.

Is your mum Yoruba or a native Yoruba speaker?
Oga is a standalone Yoruba word meaning Boss/Master/Leader. Just ask about.

scholes0:


Is your mum Yoruba or a native Yoruba speaker?
Oga is a standalone Yoruba word meaning Boss/Master/Leader. Just ask about.

She's Yoruba, me think Ilesha. Before you yabb me, ma papa na Deltan. I lay my claim there.
She's born and bred there. She left when she was in her 20s.
With what I have collated so far, the word oga might be incorporated into Yoruba. Or maybe mum's dialect is different. Just maybe.

Where did "kuku" and "kukuma" originate from abeg?

liohan:

She's Yoruba, me think Ilesha. Before you yabb me, ma papa na Deltan. I lay my claim there.
She's born and bred there. She left when she was in her 20s.
With what I have collated so far, the word oga might be incorporated into Yoruba. Or maybe mum's dialect is different. Just maybe.

Yab you for what? Your papa na Delta man you don't even need to lay any claim to be from Delta state, it is Your state, and whatever tribe he comes from in Delta is your tribe as well.
Your mum might be nominally Yoruba , that doesn't make her an expert in Yoruba language even if she grew up all her life in Yorubaland.

Annnonymous:
Where did "kuku" and "kukuma" originate from abeg?

Yoruba,

Kuku and Kuku maa.
Meaning "Okay then" and "Okay then! do not ......." respectively

What about 'kapu', 'pene' 'yakata' l?

Annnonymous:
Where did "kuku" and "kukuma" originate from abeg?

Kuku is a filler word like 'just'. It is of Yoruba origin.

Pidgin english originated from the niger delta as a means to communicate with the british who traded with various Ijaw kingdoms, thats why its structure is Subject Object Verb like the Ijaw language, as the creole language spread it started incorporating words from other native languages to become a lingua franca in Nigeria

Here are some words
Na- it is , from Ijaw Na bologha- it isn't far
Yori yori- Ijaw fine and clean
Nyanga- Ijaw (nyongo)- to swing freely from side to side, to make gyne(i dont think dis is an english word)
The Ijaw language uses words twice for adjectives
Kele kele- small small (Ijaw)
Pata pata- the largest eg Oga patapata the biggest boss
Jaga jaga- (jaka jaka) rough, irregular, not uniformed (Ijaw)
Orobo- (orubo) big or grown woman (Ijaw)
Kurusu- canon (Ijaw)
Most sea food items
Esam, ngolo, ikoro, mgbe, afari- Pewerinkle, gastropod shellfish, shellfish, oyster, sardines (Ijaw)

Igbo

Nyanga-is an Igbo word for shakara,also called Nganga

Tey-is an Igbo word for Far or Long time,e.g e don tey

Obodo-meaning community or place,people especially wazobia Fm people use "Obodo Nigeria" a lot

Chink-used in the Caribbean is "Chinchi" in Igbo which means Begbug

Manya-mmaya in Igbo means Drink

Poto poto meaning muddy waters also comes from Igbo language,some call it pito pito(my Grandmother)

Tinkili- small
Boku- plenty
Gidi ba- strong
Kaka raka - strong
Nyash- buttocks
Koro koro- clear
yama yama- disgusting

scholes0:
More to Add


Oya - Yoruba word meaning "right away" i.e Oya na make we waka go.
Jeje - "Take it Easy" from Yoruba i.e As I sit down jeje for that corner.
Jare - No mind am jare (from the Yoruba word for innocent, but used in various contexts)
Ajebo/Ajepako - Pampered person/Street smart individual i.e That boy/girl na real Ajebo/Ajekpako. Origin, Yoruba.
Še/Shey - Interrogative infix in Yoruba i.e You see wetin dem dey do now shey? or: Shey you eat winch?
Igbo - Weed i,e I smoke igbbo sotey my eyes begin dey spark.
Lailai - Yoruba word for Never-never a contraction of "Laye laye" Never-Ever. I.e Lailai! we no go gree!
Ojoro - Yoruba word for cheating/fraud - The refree that Liverpool-Chelsea game na pure Ojoro man
Omo - Little chlld - Usually used to express camaraderie or some sort of acquaintance. i.e Omo see that babe.
Patapata - Complete / Supreme - That man na the Oga patapata for AGIP o.
Yakata - Yoruba word meaning Open laps "Ya Akata" (Although now used in various contexts). I.e See as she sleep open leg yakata for bed.
Jõ/Joor - Please (in Yoruba) i.e Abeg free me joor.
Wuruwuru - Yoruba word for disorderly/disorganized. i.e This your assignment na wuruwuru to the answer o, I no fit copy am.
Sha - Yoruba word connoting dissatisfaction or uncompletedness i.e I no like am, but I go take am sha. or: She no too fine but she okay sha.
Nko - Meaning "How about this/that/those/them/" etc. i.e You don give everyone ashoebi material, me nko?

Others I know that are of Yoruba origin are : Akata (A black person lost abroad), Ashewo (Lady of easy virtue), Ogogoro (A locally made gin), Shayo (Alcohol binging), Gbedu (Music hit), Pangolo/Kpangolo (cannister, metal container), Dada (Dreadloks), Shakara (vain aloofness, (Espclly of a lady),

Yakata doesn't mean open laps in pidgin language, e dey yakata

AdaFonju:
Pidgin english originated from the niger delta as a means to communicate with the british who traded with various Ijaw kingdoms, thats why its structure is Subject Object Verb like the Ijaw language, as the creole language spread it started incorporating words from other native languages to become a lingua franca in Nigeria

Here are some words
Na- it is , from Ijaw Na bologha- it isn't far
Yori yori- Ijaw fine and clean
Nyanga- Ijaw (nyongo)- to swing freely from side to side, to make gyne(i dont think dis is an english word)
The Ijaw language uses words twice for adjectives
Kele kele- small small (Ijaw)
Pata pata- the largest eg Oga patapata the biggest boss
Jaga jaga- (jaka jaka) rough, irregular, not uniformed (Ijaw)
Orobo- (orubo) big or grown woman (Ijaw)
Kurusu- canon (Ijaw)
Most sea food items
Esam, ngolo, ikoro, mgbe, afari- Pewerinkle, gastropod shellfish, shellfish, oyster, sardines (Ijaw)

Orobo is Yoruba for big size. That means round or fat. While lepa is skinny. These words are insults. It shows you are not old enough to remember the song that triggered the slang. The part of the song goes like this: “Ok now, Orobo ki bo, keep on rocking”. Lol!

scholes0:


Yoruba,

Kuku and Kuku maa.
Meaning "Okay then" and "Okay then! do not ......." respectively

Kuku and kuku maa are not Yoruba. The way it's used in Pidgin suggests it comes from Ijaw/Urhobo/Isoko languages. In Ijaw, “kuku” is used to say “quick” or “just” which matches the way it's used in Pidgin. Your explanation of the Yoruba meaning doesn't even fit or make sense. Tbh, I wish you people would stop blindly claiming everything is Yoruba (or another big three tribe). Especially since we already know most Pidgin words come from South South. If something sounds similar to you, it's probably because Nigerian languages use the same sounds. Stop erasing minority cultures and contributions.

agadez007:
Igbo

Nyanga-is an Igbo word for shakara,also called Nganga

Tey-is an Igbo word for Far or Long time,e.g e don tey

Obodo-meaning community or place,people especially wazobia Fm people use "Obodo Nigeria" a lot

Chink-used in the Caribbean is "Chinchi" in Igbo which means Begbug

Manya-mmaya in Igbo means Drink

Tey is Ijaw, not Igbo. Tey (te) is an actual grammatical feature in the Ijaw language that's used to talk about the passage of time. E.g. “Sote” in the middle of a sentence functions like “until” and at the end of the sentence denotes something finishing. (Sote = god/sky/world ends).

SosoKairanuli:


Tey is Ijaw, not Igbo. Tey (te) is an actual grammatical feature in the Ijaw language that's used to talk about the passage of time. E.g. “Sote” in the middle of a sentence functions like “until” and at the end of the sentence denotes something finishing. (Sote = god/sky/world ends).

E don tey (pidgin) = It has been a long time.
O tego/ O teela (Igbo) = it has been a long time

The pidgin word "tey" and the doubling "tey-tey" has a meaning that is very consistent with the Igbo "tee", ị.e., denoting length of time. In addition, it also denotes length of distance in Igbo, but this second meaning seems not to have been carried over into pidgin.

This "sotey" looks like an entirely different word, carrying a different meaning, from just "tey".

SosoKairanuli:



Kuku and kuku maa are not Yoruba. The way it's used in Pidgin suggests it comes from Ijaw/Urhobo/Isoko languages. In Ijaw, “kuku” is used to say “quick” or “just” which matches the way it's used in Pidgin. Your explanation of the Yoruba meaning doesn't even fit or make sense. Tbh, I wish you people would stop blindly claiming everything is Yoruba (or another big three tribe). Especially since we already know most Pidgin words come from South South. If something sounds similar to you, it's probably because Nigerian languages use the same sounds. Stop erasing minority cultures and contributions.

Most pidgin words came from south south since when?
Anyways maybe in your neck of the woods it does because there is no "Nigerian pidgin" per say but a mosaic of collective pidgins.

Kuku that I know is straight from the Yoruba Language.
"Kuku pa mi" - Just kill me already. (Yoruba)
"Make you kuku do am" - Just do it already. (Pidgin)

AdaFonju:
Pidgin english originated from the niger delta as a means to communicate with the british who traded with various Ijaw kingdoms, thats why its structure is Subject Object Verb like the Ijaw language, as the creole language spread it started incorporating words from other native languages to become a lingua franca in Nigeria

Here are some words
Na- it is , from Ijaw Na bologha- it isn't far
Yori yori- Ijaw fine and clean
Nyanga- Ijaw (nyongo)- to swing freely from side to side, to make gyne(i dont think dis is an english word)
The Ijaw language uses words twice for adjectives
Kele kele- small small (Ijaw)
Pata pata- the largest eg Oga patapata the biggest boss
Jaga jaga- (jaka jaka) rough, irregular, not uniformed (Ijaw)
Orobo- (orubo) big or grown woman (Ijaw)
Kurusu- canon (Ijaw)
Most sea food items
Esam, ngolo, ikoro, mgbe, afari- Pewerinkle, gastropod shellfish, shellfish, oyster, sardines (Ijaw)

Patapata is Yoruba.
Jagajaga as well. Although we may not have a 100% claim on this one as it is just an onomatopoeia and not an actual word, so, it might be shared among various groups.

Na in pidgin is from English Now. That's why even in pidgin you will still hear people pronounce it as "Nau", and others as "Naa"
Give me nau/Give me naa. Same thing.

scholes0:


Patapata is Yoruba.
Jagajaga as well. Although we may not have a 100% claim on this one as it is just an onomatopoeia and not an actual word, so, it might be shared among various groups.

Na in pidgin is from English Now. That's why even in pidgin you will still hear people pronounce it as "Nau", and others as "Naa"
Give me nau/Give me naa. Same thing.

Aza is Bini or Edo, it means bank account

Big eye (greed) from the Igbo word “Anya ukwu”

Domot (door mouth) from the Igbo word “onu uzo”

Dey from the Igbo word “di”

Gbam used as a term of confirmation in Igbo language

Una from the Igbo word “unu”

When it comes to food,many tribes use our words without even knowing it
Ogbono,Okra,uziza,okazi,ugu,egusi(debatable) are all Igbo words

While growing up in Lagos Many Nigerian kids do sing “Mama oyoyo” without knowing it’s meaning and origin,oyoyo is a term of endearment in Igbo language

Couldntfigurean:


Domot (door mouth) from the Igbo word “onu uzo"

This is contestable. Domot means the whole house and not the entrance or onu ụzọ. One can make the argument that the part came to mean the whole, but in this case I think there are far better explanations for Domot in European languages. The Latin word for house is domus. The so-called Romance languages (including Portuguese which had an influence on the early development of pidgin) all developed from Latin and probably contained a domus-related word for house in its early stages before it was replaced by other words like casa. But in some Italian dialects house is still domo or domos. And I heard domos is still used in Portuguese and Spanish to refer to big/grand houses.

Anyways, in the time of the slave trade most educated people in Europe including the Portuguese still spoke Latin, and they likely brought with them to Africa a domus-like word that evolved to domot.

Note also that English words relating to the house or home, like domain, domicile and even domestic all evolved from this Latin word, domus. That's where domot came from as well. Not door mouth.

RedboneSmith:


This is contestable. Domot means the whole house and not the entrance or onu ụzọ. One can make the argument that the part came to mean the whole, but in this case I think there are far better explanations for Domot in European languages. The Latin word for house is domus. The so-called Romance languages (including Portuguese which had an influence on the early development of pidgin) all developed from Latin and probably contained a domus-related word for house in its early stages before it was replaced by other words like casa. But in some Italian dialects house is still domo or domos. And I heard domos is still used in Portuguese and Spanish to refer to big/grand houses.

Anyways, in the time of the slave trade most educated people in Europe including the Portuguese still spoke Latin, and they likely brought with them to Africa a domus-like word that evolved to domot.

Note also that English words relating to the house or home, like domain, domicile and even domestic all evolved from this Latin word, domus. That's where domot came from as well. Not door mouth.

doormouth in Nigeria lingo don’t mean the entire house,it means the front of your house
Eg-commot from my domot,nobody uses domot for house please
Doormouth pronounced as domot just like come out is not commot,it’s just the entrance of one’s house not the entire house

The key lesson from this discussion is most Southern Nigerian languages are related. Even Ijaw that seems to be different from others on the surface as ancient words in common with Igbo, Edoid and Yoruba languages.

I laugh when people are saying Orubo is Ijaw, others say Orobo is pure Yoruba and so on. Nobody thought about these languages sharing common ancient root words.

The world did not begin yesterday. Truth has no regard for tribal politics.