Mola Mbua Ndoko: Wisdom and Ways of the Bakweri People

Did Traditional "Mokpwe" Houses Have Windows?

By Mola Mbua Ndoko

Mokpwe traditional houses as I knew them before I started going to school at the age of eight had no windows. The walls were constructed with "vee-ye", "ngonja", "vekaka", "meyowo me mae", "meyoli me wanga/likomba". The "veyee" were planted on the ground like a fence.

Sketch of a bakweri traditional dwelling in the 1870s. Culled from Thomson, E. Honeyman. Memoir of George Thomson (Edinburg: A Elliot, 1881)

Proverb 14: ii-ja asa-nyo-nge-ya o-mwita

Pus cannot disappear inside the body / The truth cannot be crushed (It will come out in due course)

Source: Tales of the Animal World.
ii-ja = pus.
nyongo/li-nyongo/e-nyongi = disappear; evaporate.
mwita = the human body.
Ngowa Wanga = a wild pig that lives in the forest.

Yasi nanu:  Ngowa Wanga had acute pain at the groin.  He was not able to fall asleep for five consecutive nights. The family then invited the renowned physician and sorcerer Mosongi Inoni to render assistance to Ngowe.
After examining Ngowe, Mosongo said a boil had developed at the groin, and that it was already due surgical operation.

Proverb 13: Waa yo-ngi, aseene liwondo

The owner of a hut will refer to it as a house / A Man’s Hut is his Castle

liwondo = a hut; a small structure in a farm used
as shelter from rain and sun.
Njoku/Njoke/Njoka Nyame = an elephant.
muu-tu = a cluster of a climbing plant.
la  soole = to go under.
ndava  veka-i-seli = a court of law.
efo-to-to = dilapidated.

Proverb 12: Liyeme asa-le ee-Mbee

A creditor cannot rely on an unpaid debt to defray funeral expenses

Source: Stories of the Animal World.
liyeme = a debt.
ee-Mbee = the corpse of a human being.
li-le  or  mole-li = assistance given by friends and concerned persons to members of a bereaved family.
wooli = money/wealth.
Njika = a wild animal, about the size of a cow.
Eso = a fox. 
Kaave = a wild animal, about the size of a sheep.
mbgwe-nde = month/moon.
mbgwe-nda Loova = a lunar month.
woso  wo  mbgwe-nde = first appearance or the first phase of a new moon. 
Ikula Nyame = a tortoise. 
soongo = a grave. 
evi-nja  soongo = a formal tidying of the grave of a deceased person, a day after he has been buried.
sassa/sasse = a formal memorial feast that takes place three days after the burial of a deceased person.
Eyuu = a memorial ceremony/feast in honour of a deceased man who was wealthy.  The ceremony serves as a show of the wealth of the deceased person and the wealth of his family.
lite-ise = to organise properly.

Origins of Names among the Bakweri

Parents give names to their children following certain considerations. Some of our ancestral names are therefore derived from certain seemingly unique occurrences that parents have experienced or continue to experience. Here are some examples:

Eyole = peaceful, tranquil.
Ewelisane ("li-we-lisane") = endurance.
Molisa/Litake = poverty.
Efome = striker.
Gbwemba = power.
Wonya Nango = the descendants of Nango.
Wo-njiya = the descendants of Njie.

A Bakweri Christmas Carol

“Vee-jeli  ve   e-Mwaana  Lova” (The coming of the Son of God)

Intro.
“Vee-jeli  ve   e-Mwaana  Lova”
“Yo, yo, yo” ! (One, one, one).
“Yo, vee-va; yo-vee-va; yo, vee-va” 
(One-two; one-two; one-two)

Then in quick succession:
“Yo, vee-va, veyau” (One, two three), followed by the Carol:

“Vee-jeli  ve   e-Mwaana  Lova,
(The coming of the Son of God)
ve-veni  monyi-ngisene,    
na  mosombise,         
o-matongo  ma  Ese  yase”.
(causes tremors of jubilation in all corners of the World).

Proverb No.11: Va yavi asa-kane li-liya o-tena woolo wo

Members of the same family should avoid sailing in one canoe / Do Not Put all your Eggs in One Basket

Foo = the original name of the town of Victoria.
Lisu = another name of the town/clan of Bimbia.
Keeka = the original name of the town of Tiko.
Vewo-nde = the original name of the town of Idenau.
Mojome = my husband/my dear husband.
motende = line of ancestry.
motende mo = of the same line of ancestry.
lili-mise = to exterminate; to extinquish.
Ekanga ya Litumba = a shrine said to protect the health, and prosperty of members of a family.
Ekale = a sect; a society; a club.

Proverb No.10: Wuva Mwaana asa vanda Mbando

It is Risky to Involve the fowl of a Child in affairs of a "Mbando" / Do not Rely on other People's Property and Resources even when they are Under your Control

wuva = a chicken; hen, cock.
Mwaana = a child.
vaanda = to cover, to protect.
Nyongo = a secret society said to enable its members to become wealthy.
Yowo ye elinge: literally, medication for the spirit.
Nganga = a doctor.
Nganga ya Yowo ya Velinge = a doctor who administers medication for healing illness of the "spirit"
Mbando refers generally to peace and efforts to achieve peace; the village shrine of peace, prosperty and good governance.
matono ma wuva OR wuva  matono = a fowl that has distinctive black and white spots on its feathers.
la-tonde = to change and acquire mystical power.
woteme-teme = immediately.

Proverb No.09: Teke na Moluwe, yoo-wo asave wonyango

Teke and Moluwe! Medication cannot be dispensed for free even to a brother / Services should be paid for, even when rendered by a brother

Yoo-wo = medication.

wo-nyango = family relationship.

moteya = medication for massaging.

wooli wo  yoo-wo = fee paid to a doctor.

ekanga = a relic that an ordained traditional doctor invokes before commencement of business.

Yasi nanu: Teke and Moluwa were brothers of the same father, the same mother. Teke was a hunter, while Moluwa was an ordained traditional Doctor. Teke called at Moluwa's house early in the morning before dawn, to complain that he had been sick for a week. He had pains on the waist, the knees, and the ankles, and that a sorcerer directed him to receive medication from Moluwa.

Proverb No.08: Vasongo, va-leene i-sango, vasa wulu-wane !

Allies do not Expose Each Other's Wrongdoings in Public

Source: Tales of the Animal World.
vasongo = wealthy persons; wizards.
va-leene = sharing; community sharing of available resources.
i-sango = reciprocal sharing.
va mbgwa  Maanga = sorcerers; singular "mwa-mbgwa Liyanga".

Yasi nanu: In a discussion with his mother-in-law, Kangi Inoni said he was about to consult a local sorcerer to explain the cause of occurrence of frequent illness of inmates of his home. Responding, the mother-in-law said: "Our local sorcerers are no longer reliable because they have entered into alliances with the local witches.

Proverb No. 7: e-Nge-ngu ema soo-wa Mo-ndi-ye ndiye, yondi ema soo-wa fe Ewe-we

The razor that was used to shave the rooster's comb was subsequently used to slash the rooster's comb / What is good for the goose is good for the gander !

Source: Stories of the Animal Kingdom.

nge-ngu = razor. 
Mo-ndi-ye ndi-ye = the name of a bird.

Ewe-we = the name of a bird. 

li-soo-wa = to shave.

li-seko = cocks-comb. 
eseke = a hair style.

woteme-teme = immediately. 

esoko/mosai = a basket carried by women on the back.

Yasi nanu. The court found Mo-ndi-ye ndiye guilty of immodest behaviour, and then ordered him to immediately pay the prescribed fine. After Mo-ndi-ye had paid the fine, Ewe-we, being jealous of Mo-ndi-ye ndiye's outstanding and very attractive cocks-comb, (liseko) addressed the court as follows:

Proverb No.06: Moleli mo nyama fe a kiyava

(Food with plenty of meat can be rejected / It should not be taken for granted that every gift has to be accepted)

moleli = food.  nyama = meat, fish.

kiya = reject.

motima = an animal which dies as a consequence of illness.

Yasi nanu: Mola Nalionge was wealthy and generous. He used to receive many visitors, especially on Muea Market days, when friends and acquaintances stopped to either drink water from his house, or to rest under the shadow of the orchard in his compound. His guests were always lavishly entertained with palatable food, containing very large pieces of meat.

When it became known that Nalionge was entertaining his guests with meat of animals that had died from sickness, people refrained from eating food in his house.

Elenge yamba Molengu Mbole: wheni a fanga ewoongo yeni a nanga, ama; jaee ! a sooko ndi e-ndava amba Sange!

The foolishness of Molengu Mbole. He continues to damage his own bed but claims he is merely soiling his master's home

Source: Tales of the Animal World.
Molengu/Molengu  Mbole = Sheep.
Mwa-mbala = Cat.
ewoo-ngo = Sofa.
ekaka = Mat.
mwee-ni =a guest: plural, "vae-ni".
elenge/etii = being foolish.
a-kooli = he/she is shameless; grossly disrespectful; uncouth.