West Africa · Diaspora
Yoruba
Èdè YorùbáThe language of the Yoruba city-states — Ifẹ̀, Ọ̀yọ́, Ìbàdàn — and a root language of Lucumí, Candomblé and Santería vocabulary across the Americas.
- Family
- Niger–Congo (Volta–Niger)
- Script
- Latin with tone marks
- Speakers
- ~45 million speakers
- Spoken in
- Nigeria, Benin, Togo
The course
Five units, one word at a time
0/5 mastered
Unit 1
Greetings
Yoruba has a greeting for nearly every hour and occasion.
- Ẹ n lẹ́ — Hello (respectful)
- Ẹ káàrọ̀ — Good morning
- Ẹ káàsán — Good afternoon
- Ẹ kúùrọ̀lẹ́ — Good evening
- Ó dàbọ̀ — Goodbye
- Ẹ ṣé — Thank you
Unit 2
People and family
Family words carry seniority — older and younger siblings are named differently.
- Ìyá — Mother
- Bàbá — Father
- Ọmọ — Child
- Ẹ̀gbọ́n — Older sibling
- Àbúrò — Younger sibling
- Ọ̀rẹ́ — Friend
Unit 3
Numbers one to ten
Yoruba counting is famously base-twenty once you go higher.
- Ọ̀kan — One
- Èjì — Two
- Ẹ̀ta — Three
- Ẹ̀rin — Four
- Àrún — Five
- Ẹ̀wá — Ten
Unit 4
Food and the market
Market Yoruba, where bargaining is a conversation.
- Oúnjẹ — Food
- Omi — Water
- Ọjà — Market
- Élòó ni? — How much is it?
- Ó wọ́n — It is expensive
- Mo fẹ́ — I want
Unit 5
Everyday phrases
Small phrases that carry a lot of politeness.
- Ẹ jọ̀ọ́ — Please
- Bẹ́ẹ̀ ni — Yes
- Rárá — No
- Níbo? — Where?
- Mo gbọ́ — I understand / I hear
- Ẹ pẹ̀lẹ́ — Sorry / take it easy
How to sound right
- Yoruba is tonal: high (á), mid (a) and low (à). Change the tone and you change the word.
- The dot under ẹ, ọ and ṣ matters — ṣ is 'sh', ẹ is like 'e' in bet, ọ is like 'o' in fought.
- Ẹ before a greeting marks respect, used for elders and for more than one person.
The audio button in lessons uses your device's speech engine, which rarely has a native African voice. Treat it as a rough guide and trust the written pronunciation hints and the coach instead.
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