🌾 The bold, the brilliant, and the beautiful Yoruba names

General Name Discussion
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Introduction

Yoruba names have had my attention for a long while. Not only do they have beautiful sounds, they have the most magnificent meanings. Of all the cultures I’ve looked into when creating my list of thousands of names, Yoruba names, in my opinion, have the most brilliant meanings. I’ve done research on their culture and their names and I’m excited to share them with you all! Please note that I am not Yoruba. I am by no means an expert, I just have a deep respect and interest in their history, so please do your own research if you are interested in learning more. The information in this post is extremely limited and doesn’t even scratch the surface of the beautiful Yoruba history. I really encourage you to go and learn more for yourself, especially if you are interested in their names.

All my sources will be linked at the bottom of this post.

Who are the Yoruba people?

They are an ethnic group that resides in Western Africa – most predominantly Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. There are approximately 40 million Yoruba people across Africa, most concentrated in Nigeria (specifically the south-west), where they make up 13.9% of the country’s population.

The Yoruba people are some of the most talented craftsmen of Africa, working in a variety of trades including weaving and ivory/wood carving. They have absolutely mastered many of their crafts, and in the 13th/14th century reached such technical excellence in lost-wax casting that has never since been reached in West Africa. In pre-colonial times, they had vast kingdoms ruled by an oba - a sacred king. The kingdoms began to decline in the 18th century, and they still survive today, but with nowhere near the political power they once had. The Yoruba language is incredibly extensive, with great literature, poetry, stories, myths, and proverbs.

Open for some pictures/maps!

Ori Olokun, Goddess of the sea. An important symbol in Yoruba heritage.
Retrieved from Lord Booksy on Instagram: ""Ori Olokun", a symbol of our heritage. #OriOlokun #Yoruba #Heritage #Art #Mayfair #IleIfe #OsunState #Nigeria #Africa"

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Some Yoruba cities in the middle ages
Retrieved from File:HistoYoruba.jpeg - Wikimedia Commons
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A Yoruba children’s culture troupe from Fasta International School in the 1990s (Lagos)
Retrieved from Yoruba people - Wikipedia
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Yoruba Naming Culture

The Yoruba people take naming their children incredibly seriously! Infants are named in a special ceremony that occurs a week after they are born. The names are traditionally found by divination performed by IfĂĄ priests, however nowadays families are allowed to select significant names to the family. The priests ensure that the ÒrĂŹáčŁĂ  (spirits sent to guide the creation of humanity) guide the child and uncover whether the child is a reincarnated ancestor and the future destinies of the child.

The entire week before the ceremony is used to decide on the name that will be given to the child, as great importance is put on ensuring the name is not one that relates to anything negative, as it is believed that could result in the child growing up to become a criminal. Names are classified into categories:

  1. Destiny names. Names that are seen to be “bought from heaven” or derived from a religious background. Destiny names are commonly given to twins, where the first born is named Taiwo and the second born is named Kehinde. If the mother goes on to have more children after the twins, the baby will be named Idowu. Another example is Babatunde, which is given to a child if they are born around the same time as the death of a family elder. All my information around destiny names was collected from https://www.ileoduduwa.com/naming-ceremony-yoruba-culture/.
  2. Acquired names. Names that are chosen when the baby arrives on earth, rather than decided prior. These can signify position in the family or honour someone significant.
  3. Panegyrics/Oruko Oriki names. Names used to express praise.
  4. Oriki A biku names. Attributive names.
  5. Oruko Inagije names. Alias names. (I found the least information online about these, so I don’t know a lot about these types of names).

Yoruba Names

Onto the Yoruba names! The most commonly given name to Yoruba babies is Abimbola. This is a unisex name meaning “born into wealth”. Interestingly, it is also a Yoruba surname!

Some other popular Yoruba names include


Boys:
Abioye – “the son of royalty”
Adebowale – “the king came back home”
Adegoke – “the king has risen”
Adetokunbo – “the king across the sea”
Adewale – “the king came back home”
Adisa – “the clear one”
Alabi – “a rare gem”
Ajibola – “awake to richness”
Amadi – “highly praised; one who thanks God”
Ayokunle – “joy has filled our home”
Gbenga – “lift up”
Olaoluwa – “grace of God”
Olalekan – “added wealth”
Ademola – “the wealthy king”

Girls
Abiodun – “born during war”
Anuoluwapo – “God’s mercies are in abundance”
Darasimi – “the Lord has been good to me”
Damilola – “blessed with wealth”
Folashade – “honoured with a crown”
Eniola - “wealthy person”
Adesewa – “crown of beauty”
Ayotola – “joy is enough wealth”
Bimpe – “gorgeous”
Damola – “mixed with wealth”
Bisi – “first child”
Lolade – “God is with you”
Tosin – “worthy to be served”
Ayomide – “my joy has arrived”
Oluwasegun – “God is victorious”

The first pattern I noticed upon looking at these names was how popular ‘a’ names are, especially for boys! I also noticed a particular emphasis on wealth, joy, and God in the meanings for both genders.

Some of my favourite Yoruba names

Boys
Ayodele – “joy has come home”
Kehinde – “second-born of twins or one who falls behind”
Abiodun – “born during festival/celebration”
Abeo – “bringer of happiness”
Adesanya – “my pains have been compensated with the arrival of this child”
Banjoko – “don’t ever leave me”
Durojaiye – “one who waits for the joy of life”
Jesutosin – “Jesus is worthy of worship”

Girls
Abeke – “one who is begged to care for”
ÀnĂŹkĂ© – “child born to be pampered”
ÀshĂ kĂ© – “daughter picked to be cherished”
Abeni – “we asked for her, now she is ours”
Anuoluwabamise – “the mercy of the Lord has done it for me”
Eyitope – “worthy of praise”
Folake – “a child taken care with wealth”
Ibironke – “the family will care for this child”
Morenikeji – “this girl resembles me”
Oluwajomiloju – “the Lord has surprised me”
Tejumola – “this child looks forward to better days”
Majekodunmi – “do not let it be a thing of pain”
Modupeore – “thank you God for this gift”
Oluwagbenga – “God has lifted me up”
Pamilekunayo – “one who brings tears of joy”
Sunmoluwa – “moving closer to God”

Use this resource to find more names! There are over 10,000 to explore.

Questions for YOU

  1. What is your favourite Yoruba name? Either on this list, or one you know from elsewhere.
  2. What did you learn about Yoruba people? What do you find fascinating/interesting?
  3. Which name meaning stuck out to you?
SOURCES

Yoruba people - Wikipedia
Yoruba | people | Britannica
Togo
https://www.momjunction.com/baby-names/yoruba/boy/page/3/
Yoruba name - Wikipedia
https://www.yorubaname.com/
https://www.ileoduduwa.com/naming-ceremony-yoruba-culture/
Lord Booksy on Instagram: ""Ori Olokun", a symbol of our heritage. #OriOlokun #Yoruba #Heritage #Art #Mayfair #IleIfe #OsunState #Nigeria #Africa"
Who's Your Baby? Âź Alabi Name Meanings, A Yoruba Name For Boys.
https://theculturetrip.com/africa/nigeria/articles/an-introduction-to-nigerias-yoruba-people/
https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/nigeria/
A History Of The Yoruba People - YouTube

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Woah! Thank you so much for this [name_f]Thea[/name_f]! This was so cool to explore and learn more about.

  1. I really love ÀnĂŹkĂ©, Eniola, and [name_f]Adisa[/name_f]!
  2. Sadly, I never really knew much about the Yoruba people, so most of this was all new information. I find it really interesting how they hold naming ceremonies and how important naming is to their culture. It really shows the power and beauty of a name.
  3. I really like the meanings “one who brings tears of joy”, “worthy of praise,” “bringer of happiness,” “joy has come home,” “joy is enough wealth,” “joy has filled our home,” and “lift up”.
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I’m glad you could learn something new! That was my goal, I think it’s so valuable for us to really learn about and understanding more about cultures outside of our own.

This was certainly an interesting find! Perhaps a nice alternative to Enola?

This one absolutely has a special place in my heart too. :slight_smile:

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Interesting!

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Wow, this is some extensive research, [name_f]Thea[/name_f]. And definitely on a subject nb doesn’t have a whole lot of info regarding too

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Thank you! Which are your favourites, @skylerros & @kidpix21? So many new finds for me!

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The meanings of these ones really stand out to me!

Such unique names with very empowering meanings!

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Thank you for sharing your extensive research! You always put so much thought and love into your posts and I appreciate it so much.

[name_f]My[/name_f] absolute favorite Yoruba names are Idowu and Oluwatoyin (meaning “God is worthy to be praised”) and I adore the meaning of [name_f]Abeni[/name_f]!

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Wow, thank you for sharing! There is such rich history in African naming culture but so few people know about it. :cry:. Though I know of some naming practices for other African ethnicities, Yoruba was not one of them I was familiar with, so all of this info is new to me!

I think my favorite is Abeke—so simple but so charming! I love [name_f]Abeni[/name_f], too, and her meaning is so lovely.

Of all the meanings, though, Anuoluwabamise gets me almost choked up
 that a name with such a lovely and deep meaning actually exists! “The mercy of the [name_m]Lord[/name_m] has done it for me”! Wow. So many of these names have stunning meanings, but this one takes the cake for me. :heart:

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This is so interesting, thank you! One of our neighbors is Yoruba, so I already knew a tiny bit about the culture from talking to him. His name is Ayotunde. I looked it up when I first learned his name (I am a name nerd after all) and if I remember correctly it means “joy has returned”. I remember this clearly because I thought it was such a lovely meaning.
These are my favorites:

Adewale
[name_u]Amadi[/name_u]
Ademola
[name_u]Ayodele[/name_u] (this is probably my absolute favorite out of these, and the meaning is just :sparkling_heart:)
Jesutosin

[name_f]Folashade[/name_f]
Eniola
Lolade
Tejumola
Sunmoluwa

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Wow, this is so interesting! I barely knew anything about the Yoruba people and culture so this was very informative, thank you!! I love ÀnĂŹkĂ©, [name_f]Abeni[/name_f], [name_u]Ayodele[/name_u], [name_f]Folashade[/name_f], Eniola, Lolade, [name_m]Ayokunle[/name_m] and Ademola and the meanings of Adetokunbo, Alabi, Ayomide, Pamilekunayo and Abeo really speak to me :purple_heart:

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  1. [name_f]My[/name_f] favourite on your list for boys is Damilola. This is a familiar name in the UK due to the tragic killing of 10 year old Damilola [name_u]Taylor[/name_u]. I didn’t know it was a Yoruba name.
    [name_f]My[/name_f] favourite for girls is ÀnĂŹkĂ©.

2 & 3. I learned that there are specific and detailed meanings and traditions in the naming traditions, such as [name_u]Kehinde[/name_u] for the second born twin. I think I should have named [name_u]Beck[/name_u] Banjoko as “don’t ever leave me” sums up how I feel about him moving out! (“No, you can’t, it is written in your name!”)

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Folosade and it’s shortened form Sade are the most recognizable to me because of the singer. Very popular in my region.
I know an ÀnĂŹkĂ©, she says it “Ah-knee-kay”.Always thought that it was gorgeous.

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  1. my favourites are abioye, adegoke, adisa, alabi, amadi, gbenga, eniola (i really like this), ayotola, bimpe, bisi, ayomide, abeo, abeni, eyitope

  2. i really didn’t know anything about Yoruba people, i had heard of them but nothing else. it’s really interesting how many of them there are, especially since they are never really spoken about. their language and customs also sound extremely interesting!

  3. i really love “joy has filled our home” and “my joy is arrived”, they’re just such happy meanings :blush:

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Thank you so much for sharing this! This was lovely to read and I am in love with many of these names :heart_eyes: your posts always give me some gift :heart:

I’m always one for a long and elaborate name, so Pamilekunayo is appealing to me :blush: however, my top choices tool be Kenhinde, Adesanya, and Ajibola :two_hearts: all three of which are going on my list!

I found Yoruba culture regarding infants especially interesting! This

was particularly intriguing.

the meanings of Majekodumni “do not let it be a thing of pain” and of Tejumola “this child looks forward to better days” are very beautiful to me :two_hearts:

Thank you again for sharing this !!