Part 1 & 2 TFA Vocabulary

Willy

(adj.) sly, shrewd, cunning

Ultimatum

A final proposal or statement of conditions

Harmattan

A dry, dusty easterly or northeasterly wind on the West African coast, occurring from December to February

Haggard

Thin, pale, and careworn as a result of worry or suffering; wild-looking

Improvident

Not thrifty; failing to plan ahead

Incipient

Beginning to come into being or to become apparent

Dregs

The last remaining part; the part of least worth

Guttural

Produced in the throat; harsh; rasping; throaty

iyi-uwa

A special kind of stone which forms the links between an ogbanje and the spirit world.

Chi

personal God

Feign

To pretend

ndichie

elders; tribal leaders of the clan-known for their age and wisdom

contemptible

deserving of scorn; despicable

ilo

the village green, where assemblies for sports, discussions, etc, take place.

uli

a dye used by women for drawing patterns on the skin

obi

a hut within a compound

agbala

Goddess of the Oracle of the Hills and the Caves, also means woman or a man without a title

egwugwu

a masquerader who impersonates one of the ancestral spirits of the village

Umunna

A wide group of kinsmen

cowries

a brightly colored, glossy mollusk shells used as money in parts of Africa and Asia

Pottage

A thick soup vegetables that often contains meat

ogbanje

a changeling; a child who repeatedly dies and returns to its mother to be reborn

kola

an African tree whose nuts contain caffeine and yield a flavorful extract

Lamentation

The passionate expression of grief or sorrow; weeping

Jigida

a string of wasit beads

requisite

needed, necessary, regarded as essential or indispensable

gnash

to grind or strike teeth together, as from rage

harbinger

an omen or sign

efulefu

(Igbo) worthless man

derisive

ridiculing, mocking

marrow

the soft connective tissue that fills the internal spaces in bone

callow

immature, young

impudent

disrespectful

Miscreant

villain; criminal

impotent

powerless; lacking strength

osu

outcast

blashpheme

to speak irreverently about sacred things

Ostracize

to exclude from a group

expedient

convenient; practical

Ikenga

a shrine figure symbolizing traditional male attributes of thee Igbo people

Pacification

the act of achieving or restoring peace

mope

To be sad and gloomy; to lose interest in things that usually bring pleasure

appease

to relieve, satisfy; to yield to

tumultuous

noisy and disorderly

resolute

determined; steadfast