-Alfred Olaiya innocence a lake in her eyes; men drown. stars plucked from her skin dye the night, but she ate the ‘t,’ replaced the ‘y’ with ‘i’ till longings die nigh her tighs. yet, that’s not Kòfó. she melts every ice cream before they get to her, you couldn’t blame her– she’s a sunshine to a dark world. she ate the moon’s yolk & … Continue reading Kòfó
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-Nimi Wariboko Image Credit: Filipe Almeida On April 19, 2025, a cousin in the United States asked me for the Kalabari word for romantic lover. She believed there was no equivalent in the language. Below are the words I shared with her. Olosikiya: A Kalabari word for darling, lover, or beloved. Literally, it means the person who does not reject love or romantic relationship. The … Continue reading Olobo (Lover)
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-Dayọ̀ Ayílárá Image credit: Ahmad odeh It is the thinking that we have arrived when we are nowhere that made Ọlọ́wọ̀ look Ọ̀rúnmìlà in the eye. The result was that yams no longer shot in their beds, small rivers wore garments of leaves birds’ songs hung in their startled throats. Like the striking of two red stones against each other in the birthing of fire that roasts yams … Continue reading It is the Thinking That We Have Arrived
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-Dayọ̀ Ayílárá Image Credit: Stephen Konev Sometimes, there are words but there’s no time. Sometimes, time converges like bees, while words escape through the hollow like Òkété. But if we have words and time, let us sit down and break them. Ọ̀jọ̀gbọ́n said words are never finished in the house of Ọlọ́rọ̀. I took my journey to Ọlọ́rọ̀’s house on the hill of Kàbìtì. He offered me guinea corn-brewed beer, … Continue reading Òkété
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-Dayọ̀ Ayílárá Image Credit: Alvaro Serrano Bàámi, I have walked the dusty roads where your feet once etched silence into the earth. I have tasted the harmattan and felt its wisdom blade my skin like the truths you carved into my ears with your eyes— the only tool you ever needed to teach me reverence. They say time forgets, but I have not forgotten how you … Continue reading Letter to Bàámi
ArtisansQuill| Celebrating Wordcraft 