Ifa

Yoruba divination system — priests cast palm-nuts or chains to read the 256 *odu* of Yoruba cosmology.

Ifa is the Yoruba (and broader Yoruba-diaspora) divination tradition, addressed to Orunmila — the orisha of wisdom. A babalawo (or iyalawo) casts sixteen palm-nuts (ikin) or an opele divining-chain to produce one of 256 odu — codified verses that hold the response.

Objects in the archive associated with Ifa: divination trays (opon ifa), with the face of Eshu carved into the rim; tappers (iroke ifa); palm-nut bowls (agere ifa); ivory or wooden divination cups. UNESCO inscribed the Ifa divination system in 2005 (Intangible Cultural Heritage).

Back to glossary