the Ɛguae [ ˩ ˩ ], esp. the Ɔba’s
harem. There was once a law
that anybody who touched this
wall was to be killed. This,
however, led to so many false
denunciations that the Ɔba de-
creed that the man who de-
nounced the offender should be
killed as well. Since then, it is said,
there has been no further report.
ekɛ̃ [ ˩ \ ] egg; ek-ɔ̃xɔxɔ [ ˩ ˥ ˦ ˩ ] hen’s
egg; ekɛ̃-kpɛkpɛyɛ [ ˩ ˥ ˦ ˦ ˦ ] duck’s
egg. Throwing eggs at a man is
the greatest insult in Benin.
eki [ ˥ ˩ ] a pad used when carrying
loads (cloth, grass, etc.); same
as ukuoki [ ˥ ˥ ˩ ]; uɣuga rhi-eki
[ ˩ ˥ ˥ ˦ ˦ ˩ ] “may you not serve (and)
take the pad” scil. “as your only
reward”: may you be rewarded
for your service (to a servant
coming from work, as an answer
to his greeting, by a senior
man). There is also a curse:
t-uɽaga rhi-eki [ ˥ ˦ ˩ ˩ ˥ ˩ ] may you
serve and receive a pad (as
your reward).
ekia [ ˥ ˥ ] (1) penis. (2) eki-osisi
[ ˥ ˥ ˥ ˥ ˥ ] trigger of a gun. (3) eki-
awa [ ˥ ˥ ˥ ˦ ] “dog’spenis”: a shrub,
Erythrina spec. (also Callichilia
stenosepala); one has a long
fruit and a dark green stem, the
other, a short fruit (distribution
of the Latin names unknown).
(e)kigbesiyeha [ ˩ ˥ ˥ ˩ ˥ ˦ ] “missing ten
in sixty”: fifty.
ekita [ ˥ ˥ ˩ ] dog; cf. Ibo nkita [ ˥ ˥ ˦ ];
v. oʋi-akota [ ˩ ˥ ˩ ˩ ˩ ], awa [ ˩ ˥ ].
eko [ ˩ ˥ ] (1) a “camp”, i.e. a tem-
porary, though possibly long-
inhabited settlement for pur-
poses of hunting, farming, and
formerly war; ek-aɣɛ̃ [ ˩ \ ˩ ] a
shelter consisting of four poles
