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*ikũ [ ˩ \ ] a type of room in Bini

* houses containing a hollow on

* the floor called ukpafɛ̃ [ ˩ ˥ ˩ ] into

* which the rain-water flows from

* an open space in the roof (v.

* Roman atrium and piscina);

* the various shrines of the

* ancestors and the powers wor-

* shipped by the family are found

* each in one ikũ. So there is an

* ikũ n-aɽu‿erha [ ˩ ˥ ˦ ˧ ˧ ˧ ] ikũ of

* the father’s shrine, and an ikũ

* n-aɽu‿iye [ ˩ ˥ ˦ ˧ ˧ ˧ ] ikũ of the

* mother’s shrine. The former is

* the first ikũ: ikũ n-uɣ-oɽe [ ˩ ˥ ˦ ˧ ˧ ],

* i.e. the ikũ of the outside uɣa

* [ ˩ ˩ ], the latter, the second ikũ:

* ikũ n-ɔk-adesɛ [ ˩ ˥ ˦ ˩ ˩ ˩ ] (ke [ ˥ ])

* the middle ikũ. The third ikũ is

* that of Olokũ: ikũ n-aɽu‿olokũ

* [ ˩ ˥ ˦ ˧ ˧ ˧ ˨ ]; it is always long and

* narrow and may contain an

* ɛɣodo [ ˥ ˩ ˩ ] or ukpafɛ̃ (which is

* the same); not all houses seem

* to possess it, but in former times

* every house is said to have had

* one. The third ikũ is the last

* one of those to be found in the

* houses of “ordinary people”.

* It is then their private ikũ, ikũ

* n-od-uw-owa [ ˩ ˥ ˦ ˧ ˧ ˨ ] “ikũ of the

* inside of the house”, and will in

* that case not contain the Olokũ-

* shrine which will be kept at

* od-ɛriɛ [ ˩ ˥ ˦ ]. The father’s and

* mother’s shrines must, if pos-

* sible, not be kept in the same ikũ;

* therefore, if a house has only

* one ikũ, besides the private

* apartments, the mother’s shrine

* is in the ukp-ube [ ˥ ˥ ˩ ], i.e. in an

* ɔgwa [ ˩ ˥ ] opening into the room

* containing the ɛɣod-ɛriɛ [ ˥ ˥ ˩ ˥ ],

* or else the two shrines, though

* in the same ikũ, are kept

* on different ibas [ ˥ ˥ ]. There is
