Indulgences

1. Ẹmu

   Palm wine

   Usage

   Cloudy white wine from naturally fermenting palm sap. Sweet and weak when tapped in the morning, sourer and stronger as the day goes on. The seller is an ẹlẹ́mu

   Grammar Note

   The prefix ẹ- plus mu (to drink): "the thing one drinks". Ẹmụ in Èkìtì, ẹmọ in Ìkálẹ̀

2. Ògùrọ̀

   Oguro (raffia palm wine)

   Usage

   Palm wine tapped from the raffia palm, distinct from ẹmu. The same word names the tree. The seller is an ológùrọ̀

   Grammar Note

   Tone matters: ògùrọ̀ (all low) is the raffia palm and its wine, while ògúrọ́ (low-high-high) names a different plant in Èkìtì

3. Ògógóró

   Ogogoro (local distilled spirit)

   Usage

   A strong spirit distilled from palm sap. Poisonings from unregulated, illicitly distilled batches are repeatedly reported — do not drink any whose source and maker you cannot identify

   Grammar Note

   The original sense is "the highest point"; the drink name is an extension of it. Also said as ọtí ògógóró

4. Ṣẹ̀kẹ̀tẹ́

   Sekete (maize or millet beer)

   Usage

   Cloudy beer fermented from maize or millet, low in strength. Also called ọtí àgbàdo, "corn liquor"

   Grammar Note

   Ọtí àgbàdo, ọtíkà and ọtí yangan are synonyms; both yangan and àgbàdo mean maize.

5. Sìgá

   Cigarette

   Usage

   Cigarettes, sold singly at kiosks. Smoking is sìgá mímu; a smoker is an amusìgá

   Grammar Note

   A loan from English. The verb for smoking is mu — the same verb as "to drink"

6. Tábà

   Tobacco (leaf)

   Usage

   Tobacco leaf and the plant itself, sold shredded in markets. Ready-made cigarettes take the separate word sìgá

   Grammar Note

   Entered Yoruba by way of Hausa in the north; also said as tánà

7. Gúgúrú

   Guguru (roasted corn / popcorn)

   Usage

   Dry-roasted corn, and popcorn. Classically bagged and sold mixed with groundnuts (ẹ̀pà)

   Grammar Note

   An onomatopoeia from the popping sound; also said as gbúgbúrú

8. Kúlíkúlí

   Kulikuli (fried groundnut snack)

   Usage

   Dry rings or sticks fried from groundnut paste after the oil is pressed out. Not safe if you have a peanut allergy

   Grammar Note

   A loan from Hausa in the north. Crushed to powder, it also goes into the spice rub for suya

9. Ìpékeré

   Ipekere (plantain chips)

   Usage

   Plantain sliced thin and fried crisp. Hawked on long-distance buses and through car windows in traffic

   Grammar Note

   Named by its base: ìpékeré ọ̀dùnkún (sweet potato), ìpékeré ànàmọ́ (potato). Also spelled ìgbékeré

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