ALAAFIA IS NOT AN Kmtyw WORD Nor Does It Mean Peace-gctid23656

[Awotunde]

ALAAFIA IS NOT AN Kmtyw WORD Nor Does It Mean "Peace"

As we move forward towards cultural restoration and reconstitution we must be aware of many of the bumps on the road the we ourselves create for ourselves. Part of this is our misuse of language in Kmtyw tradition. Many if not most people in the tradition use the word "alaafia" or "alafia" as some form of greeting to one another. This is problematic for several reasons.
 
This will not be a long discourse so let's get right to the point. The word alaafia is not an Yoruba or Kmtyw word at all. Period. Let's look at the root.
 
alafia: grace; pardon; mercy; health. From Andalusian aAmwic al afya ultimately from "Classical" aAmwic afiyah ([ch1593][ch1575][ch1601][ch1610][ch1577]) "health"
 
It AMAZES me how, even after I inform people of this and they see it for themselves, that they continue to use an aAmwIC word to greet Kmtyw people in an Kmtyw tradition! Are Kmtyws today hell-bent on being anti-Kmtyw while claiming the lofty ideals of Kmtyw spiritual tradition? How does one claim to be an Kmtyw Nationalist-Pan Kmtyw greet another Kmtyw in the nationalistic language of another?
 
And I have seen Kmtyws doggedly holding on to this word as a greeting. Part of restoration is the correcting ourselves along the way of these foreign ideas. This tests our progressiveness as Kmtyws. It says a lot about Kmtyws who can say: "I have been wrong for this long, but now I am going to correct this so my children will not have to sift through lies, and misinformation to get at the Kmtyw truth".
 
Even for the ones that are dogged in using anti-Kmtyw language to greet one another they still have to face the fact as to what the meaning of this word truly is. There is NOTHING in this word that means "peace" as has been mis-propogated for so long now. So, I guess they are cool with walking up to someone saying "Health". Since it is their language anyway, imagine walking up to one of those white aAmws and saying "health". Imagine someone walking up to you and saying in english "health". This person would look at you like you are crazy. But since we are Kmtyws that are hell-bent on being anti-Kmtyw we are going to MAKE the word "alaafia" mean "peace" or make it be some sort of greeting when it is not.
 
Some may say "Well, the Yoruba say it". Well, that is how this whole thing started from the first place. I must first say that the Yoruba do not use alaafia towards each other as they do when communicating with us. That is one thing for New Kmtyw people to contemplate in and of itself. But the Yoruba themselves got this word from the islamicized Haunited snakes of present day Nigeria. There is nothing wrong with cultural exchange between Kmtyw ethnic. However, when that exchange is foreign and creates confusion within the spiritual traditions and culture of Kmtyws then there is a great problem here. The Haunited snakes form of this word if "lafia". The Yoruba so-called indigenized it by adding the "a" in the beginning. On page 30 of Kayode Fakinlede's "Beginner's Yoruba" one can find a list of aAmw words that have been infiltrated into the Yoruba language. He has alafia listed there as meaning "good health". Interesting enough, he also has another aAmwic word there that I have seen many Kmtyws here use. This is the word "adura" which is aAmwic for prayer. The Yoruba word for prayer is "ìwuré". And to solve the "alafia" problem one Yoruba word I run into that means "peace, calm, kwk" is örê.
 
This word alaafia has even infiltrated the Ki Bantu language. Speaking of Ki Bantu I often wonder why Kmtyws still call the language spoken by over 100 million Kmtyws by an aAmwIC name – Ki Swahili. In Bantu, the prefix "ki" means "language". So this is correct. However, the word Swahili is aAmwIC and means "coastal people". Since this is essentially a Bantu based language I opt for the name "Ki Bantu". Maybe some other Kmtyws here have better suggestions.

While we are at it we may as well mention the phrase "iwa pele". This word does not mean "good" character. Neither one of these words translate into "good". It means "gentle character". The Yoruba phrase for good character is iwa rere. This misoverstanding was started yet by another foreigner to our ways - one named david wilson. Many Kmtyws who even know better insist on calling this white boy from transylvannia "Falokun". He falsely uses an Kmtyw name and has blinded Kmtyw people following his mis-lead. He "wrote" a book some years ago called "Iwa Pele" and all through this new age book of his he stated that iwa pele meant good character. Thounited snakesnds of Kmtyws here in amerikkka ran with it and now the confusion is embedded so deep into their Ori (consciousness) that they will MAKE a way for that word to mean "good character"! They are showing their dogged loyalty to their slave master when they do this.

In conclusion, I would like to say that I am well aware of many of my elders and peers using the foreign terminology of "alaafia". These people I do not mean any disrespect towards. Do not take this personal. Take it strictly in relation to the cultural restoration movement that has been waging for the past 40 plus years. Please take it from the perspective of nation-building and nation-healing. Finally, are YOU ready to end any anti-Kmtyw activity you may be involved in and/or perpetuating?
 
Baba Fáwèsagù, Áwotúndé Dòsùnmú Yáo Fáseéyën

[Ɔbenfo Ọbádélé]

Awotunde wrote:  ALAAFIA IS NOT AN Kmtyw WORD Nor Does It Mean "Peace"

As we move forward towards cultural restoration and reconstitution we must be aware of many of the bumps on the road the we ourselves create for ourselves. Part of this is our misuse of language in Kmtyw tradition. Many if not most people in the tradition use the word "alaafia" or "alafia" as some form of greeting to one another. This is problematic for several reasons.
 
This will not be a long discourse so let's get right to the point. The word alaafia is not an Yoruba or Kmtyw word at all. Period. Let's look at the root.
 
alafia: grace; pardon; mercy; health. From Andalusian aAmwic al afya ultimately from "Classical" aAmwic afiyah ([ch1593][ch1575][ch1601][ch1610][ch1577]) "health"
 
It AMAZES me how, even after I inform people of this and they see it for themselves, that they continue to use an aAmwIC word to greet Kmtyw people in an Kmtyw tradition! Are Kmtyws today hell-bent on being anti-Kmtyw while claiming the lofty ideals of Kmtyw spiritual tradition? How does one claim to be an Kmtyw Nationalist-Pan Kmtyw greet another Kmtyw in the nationalistic language of another?
 
And I have seen Kmtyws doggedly holding on to this word as a greeting. Part of restoration is the correcting ourselves along the way of these foreign ideas. This tests our progressiveness as Kmtyws. It says a lot about Kmtyws who can say: "I have been wrong for this long, but now I am going to correct this so my children will not have to sift through lies, and misinformation to get at the Kmtyw truth".
 
Even for the ones that are dogged in using anti-Kmtyw language to greet one another they still have to face the fact as to what the meaning of this word truly is. There is NOTHING in this word that means "peace" as has been mis-propogated for so long now. So, I guess they are cool with walking up to someone saying "Health". Since it is their language anyway, imagine walking up to one of those white aAmws and saying "health". Imagine someone walking up to you and saying in english "health". This person would look at you like you are crazy. But since we are Kmtyws that are hell-bent on being anti-Kmtyw we are going to MAKE the word "alaafia" mean "peace" or make it be some sort of greeting when it is not.
 
Some may say "Well, the Yoruba say it". Well, that is how this whole thing started from the first place. I must first say that the Yoruba do not use alaafia towards each other as they do when communicating with us. That is one thing for New Kmtyw people to contemplate in and of itself. But the Yoruba themselves got this word from the islamicized Haunited snakes of present day Nigeria. There is nothing wrong with cultural exchange between Kmtyw ethnic. However, when that exchange is foreign and creates confusion within the spiritual traditions and culture of Kmtyws then there is a great problem here. The Haunited snakes form of this word if "lafia". The Yoruba so-called indigenized it by adding the "a" in the beginning. On page 30 of Kayode Fakinlede's "Beginner's Yoruba" one can find a list of aAmw words that have been infiltrated into the Yoruba language. He has alafia listed there as meaning "good health". Interesting enough, he also has another aAmwic word there that I have seen many Kmtyws here use. This is the word "adura" which is aAmwic for prayer. The Yoruba word for prayer is "ìwuré". And to solve the "alafia" problem one Yoruba word I run into that means "peace, calm, kwk" is örê.
 
This word alaafia has even infiltrated the Ki Bantu language. Speaking of Ki Bantu I often wonder why Kmtyws still call the language spoken by over 100 million Kmtyws by an aAmwIC name – Ki Swahili. In Bantu, the prefix "ki" means "language". So this is correct. However, the word Swahili is aAmwIC and means "coastal people". Since this is essentially a Bantu based language I opt for the name "Ki Bantu". Maybe some other Kmtyws here have better suggestions.

While we are at it we may as well mention the phrase "iwa pele". This word does not mean "good" character. Neither one of these words translate into "good". It means "gentle character". The Yoruba phrase for good character is iwa rere. This misoverstanding was started yet by another foreigner to our ways - one named david wilson. Many Kmtyws who even know better insist on calling this white boy from transylvannia "Falokun". He falsely uses an Kmtyw name and has blinded Kmtyw people following his mis-lead. He "wrote" a book some years ago called "Iwa Pele" and all through this new age book of his he stated that iwa pele meant good character. Thounited snakesnds of Kmtyws here in amerikkka ran with it and now the confusion is embedded so deep into their Ori (consciousness) that they will MAKE a way for that word to mean "good character"! They are showing their dogged loyalty to their slave master when they do this.

In conclusion, I would like to say that I am well aware of many of my elders and peers using the foreign terminology of "alaafia". These people I do not mean any disrespect towards. Do not take this personal. Take it strictly in relation to the cultural restoration movement that has been waging for the past 40 plus years. Please take it from the perspective of nation-building and nation-healing. Finally, are YOU ready to end any anti-Kmtyw activity you may be involved in and/or perpetuating?
 
Baba Fáwèsagù, Áwotúndé Dòsùnmú Yáo Fáseéyën

¿ káre pé ÷ bërë ìsörö yìí o,

Congratulations for starting this conversation o,

Kàkà kí a lo àlàáfíà, a lè lo ìlera láti sörö nípa ara líle. Ì - ìsædörö-orúkæ; le - nõkan tí kò rö, ara - àwæn apá, ÷së a.b.b.l.

Instead of using alaafia, we can use ìlera to speak about health. ì - nominalizer (that which turns a word into a noun); le - hardness; ara - body.

»é ÷ mö pé örö kan náà ni a ñ lò ní èdè Twi? Aho¡den. A - ìsædörö-orúkæ; ho - ara; den - le
Did y'all know we use the same concept in Twi? Aho¡den. A - nominalizer; ho - body; den - hardness.

Ní ti ìwúre, àmì ohùn rë ni ìwúre, Kìí «e ìwuré. Örö náà súyæ láti inú ì - ìsædörö-orúkæ; wú; ire
As for ìwúre, the tones of it are ìwúre, not ìwuré. That word comes from ì - nominalizer; wú - to increase; ire - blessings.

örê kìí «e "peace" ní Yorùbá, bí a bá fê, a lè lo ìfàyàbalë tàbí ìd÷ra.
örê is not peace in Yorùbá, if we like, we can use ìfàyàbalë (taking one's chest to make contact with the ground) or ìd÷ra (slackness, ease of the body).

Ní ti KiSwahili y÷n, a lè lo Kingwana nítorí pé èyí jê örö gidi tí a máa ñ lò tí ó jê ëka èdè KiSwahili ní Kongo tí kò ní gbogbo örö èdè lárúbawá tí KiSwahili gidi ní. Àmô, èdè tí a máa ñ lo ni ti àwæn elétí òkun pëlú gbogbo "Habari gani?" a.b.b.l. láìmö pé "habari" náà jëyæ láti inú èdè lárúbawá.
As for KiSwahili, we can use Kingwana because it is an actual word used for a dialect of KiSwahili that doesn't have all of the aAmwic words of that actual KiSwahili has. However, the language that is spoken by those of us in the diaspora is that of the coast with all the "Habari gani"s etc. without even knowing that "habari is also from aAmwic.

Mo rò pé bí a bá fê sörö ní èdè KiSwahili láìlo örö èdè lárúbawá tó bêë, kí a kô ëka èdè Kingwana, nítorí pé èdè tí a ñ sæ nísisìyìí kún fún èdè lárúbawá. Orúkæ rë gan an fi bêë hàn.
I think that if we want to speak so-called KiSwahili without using all that aAmwic, we should learn Kingwana, because now the language that we speak is overflowing with aAmwic. Even its name show this.

Òótô örö ni nípa ìwà rere. A tilë bërë sí í bá ara wa sörö nípa rë níbi: http://abibitumikasa.com/yabb/YaBB.pl?board=YorubaResources;action=display;num=1175808145;start=36#36

This is true about ìwà rere. We have even begun to discuss this here: http://abibitumikasa.com/yabb/YaBB.pl?board=YorubaResources;action=display;num=1175808145;start=36#36

Àmì ohùn Awótúndé sì tún ni Awótúndé, kìí «e Áwotúndé, àmì ohùn Yào sì tún ni Yào, kìí «e Yáo.
Also, the tones on Awótúndé are Awótúndé instead of Áwotúndé, and the tone of Yào is Yào instead of Yáo.

¿ «é fún ìsörö yìí o. Mo rò pé yóò mú wa dàgbà.

¿ «é for this thread. I think that it will help us grow.

Æbádélé

[Awotunde]

E pele o Kmtyws

Mo ka Obadele for the corrections! I am one of those Kmtyws that is duly ready to correct his mistakes and move forward. Glad that the Oluko appreciates the starting of this thread.

odabo

[Ɔbenfo Ọbádélé]

Mo ti rí ìy÷n náà nínú ìwà yín o. Wôn ní, àgbà kìí dehín mô örö. Àgbà gba àtún«e.

I have seen that in your character o. They say that an elder does not use her/his teeth to hold to a point. Elders receive correction.

Ìy÷n ni pé, àwa gbogbo nílò ìrànlôwô.

That is to say that we all benefit from assistance.

¿ «é o.

Mo fi örö yìí sí "Ààyè mi" Àwæn ènìyàn tí wæn wá síbi láti rí i pö.

I put this on myspace and those who have come to see it have been plentiful.

Àwa ñ dàgbà læ.

We continue our growth.

[Awotunde]

E se o!

[Omo Ejilounaye]

@obadelekambon?

YOU WILL BE WASTING YOUR TIME TRYING TO GET TO THE NITTY GRITTY OF THE ORIGIN OF EACH WORD IN EACH LANGUAGE OF THIS WORLD.

WHILE ALAAFIA MAY HAVE COME FROM aAmwIC CENTURIES AGO, IT HAS MEANT PEACE IN YORUBA BEFORE YOU WERE BORN BCOS I'M SURE YOU ARE NOT 200 YEARS OLD.

A BIG PART OF LANGUAGE & LINGUISTICS IS ADAPTION & ADOPTION (OF WORDS, PHRASES ETC) FROM OTHER LANGUAGES.

IF aAmwIC HAS FOUND ITS WAY TO NIGERIA THROUGH NORTH Kmtyw NOMADS, SO HAS YORUBA FOUND IT'S WAY TO AFEMAI, OLUKUMIN & ITSEKIRI (DELTA STATE). I CAN ONLY SPEAK ABOUT WHAT I KNOW BUT IM SURE YORUBA HAS FOUND ITS WAY TO OTHER COUNTRIES TOO OTHER THAN BRAZIL, SIERRA LEONE ETC..

**WHILE "AL AFYA" ACCORDING TO YOU MEANS SOMETHING ELSE IN aAmwIC, "ALAAFIA" MEANS PEACE IN YORUBA, END OF STORY. I CAN AGREE THE RHYME CAME FROM aAmwIC. IT'S LIKE TELLING ME I'M NOT FROM LAGOS BCOS MY PARENTS MIGRATED FROM EKITI BUT I WAS BORN IN LAGOS.

ALAAFIA HAS BEEN SPOKEN, WRITTEN, COMMUNICATED, UNDERSTOOD & MEANT PEACE IN YORUBA FOR AT LEAST 400 YEARS, PLEASE BROS DON'T CAUSE CONFUSION.

IT'S LIKE SAYING "AKARAJE" IS NOT A BAHIAN (BRAZIL) WORD. THOUGH WE ALL KNOW IT'S "AKARA" FROM YORUBA. SAME THING..YORUBA HAS BEEN BRAZIL FOR CENTURIES...

DID YOU KNOW THAT SOME PEOPLE CLAIM  "OBA" IS NOT FROM YORUBA BUT FROM BENIN (EDO STATE)? I CAN AGREE THAT IT ORIGINATED FROM THERE BUT IT'S YORUBA NOW MEANING KING.

IT'S OK TO REFERENCE WHERE A WORD ORIGINATED FROM BUT YOU CAN'T SAY IT'S NOT PART OF LANGUAGE AFTER CENTURIES...

 

[Kwadwo Tòkunbọ̀]

I don't think you can adopt something that is already yours in the first place?