Page-148-R

*oɽ̃ɔʋ̃ɛ [ ˩ ˥ ˩ ] married state; cf.



*    ɽ̃ɔʋ̃ɛ [ ˩ ˥ ].



*oɽ̃uʋ̃u [ ˥ ˥ ˩ ] avocado-pear, Pachy-



*    lobus edulis; another sort (list



*    of Forestry Dept.): oɽ̃uʋ̃-ɛzɛ



*    [ ˥ ˥ \ ˩ ] “river-pear” Pachylobus



*    barteri; yet another sort is:



*    oɽ̃uʋ̃-ũxioxio [ ˥ ˥ \ ˩ ˩ ].



*osa [ ˩ ˥ ] debt; v. ɽu [ ˥ ], ɽe 1 [ ˥ ],



*    ʋ̃ɛ [ / ].



*Osa [ ˩ ˩ ] (1) the Bini high god,



*    creator of the world; his worship



*    seems to have developed mostly



*    since the times of the Ɔba Ɛsigie



*    [ ˥ ˦ ˩ ]; he has shrines and priests



*    in Benin City only; the cult



*    was stated to be a later out-



*    come of the early Portugese



*    missionary activity developed



*    after the departure of the Euro-



*    pean missionaries. The cross



*    plays a rôle in the cult: the



*    Osa [ ˩ ˩ ] shrine at Akpakpava



*    [ ˩ ˩ \ ˩ ] street contains a cross



*    and a kind of rosary, the state



*    sword of the Ɔba (ada [ ˥ ˥ ]) that



*    is used when he goes to aɽ-



*    xxxxx



*    osa [ ˩ \ ˩ ], the Osa shrine, was



*    said to bear a cross, and the



*    badges worn by participants in



*    the new yam fast (agwɛ [ ˩ ˩ ])



*    which are distributed to them by



*    the oh-ɔ̃sa [ ˩ \ ˩ ], the Osa priest,



*    are in the shape of a cross. The



*    three shrines in Benin City were



*    said to stand on the sites of



*    early Portuguese chapels. Osa



*    is often called Osanobua [ ˩ ˩ ˥ (4-1) ],



*    Erhaʋ̃osa [ ˥ ˩ \ ˩ ], “godfather”,



*    and has also the names Oɣodua



*    [ ˥ ˩ \ ], Ododua [ ˥ / \ ] (?), Udazi



*    [ ˥ / ˩ ], and Itɛbitɛ [ ˩ ˥ \ ˥ ], which



*    have been taken over by Chris-



*    tian translators. Many names



*    containing the word Osa [ ˩ ˩ ]



*    seem to be used by Christians