I love you= Ahụrụ m gị n'anya; ị dị m n'obi.

I like you = ihe gị masịrị m; enwere m mmasị na gị/ enwere m mmasị n'ebe ị nọ.

I like you so much= ihe gị masịrị m nke ukwuu; enwere m mmasị na gị nke ukwuu; enwere m mmasị n'ebe ị nọ nke ukwuu.
I missed you= anya gị na-eme m; obi gị na-eme m.

Truth is, each language has a way of expressing a thought, feeling, idea and emotions and it must not be directly as a foreign language you are juxtaposing it with.
You don't validate an authenticity of a language with another because one of the constant characteristics of language is uniqueness.

Igbo language is an expressive language. The problem most people who don't know how language works, have, is that they expect every English word
to have a single word in Igbo without putting into consideration the nature of Igbo language and the feelings of the users. Some end up translating what they cannot defend, what they cannot explain, what only them can read. Translation is an art and skill.
Even before we learnt English language, our ancestors had ways of expressing themselves with emotions, love and expression of endearment.

Have you considered why they called their wives:

Obidiya

Ugodiya

Ọdịmnobi

Ugegbem

Ụdaradiya

Apụnanwụ

Achalugo/Acharaugo
Ọmaụmasaahụ?

Who told you that our forefathers weren't romantic and never expressed themselves lovely? Who told you they were only into a rịgoro a rịdata level?

It is because you have not taken into recognition, the deep things enshrouded in Igbo language.
The above names are powerful than "sweetheart" or "dorling" anyị kwuga like Tony Umez.

Igbo language has ways by which it expresses love, emotions and endearment. Should I talk about "Eleweukwuegbuoewu?"—Looking-nyash-killing-goat.
E jiri Igbo saa gị isi ma ị daghị, mara na ị bụ isi shampoo.

I paused.

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More from @maazi_ogbonnaya

3 Aug
This was my hand holding a recorder as I was interviewing some elders behind Oji Anya Lere Cultural Dance Group, Amasịrị some years ago. Those cap on their head represent different age grade. I will be writing extensively about age grade system and how it's represented by cap
in some part of Igbo land. The ones with normal cap in this picture are between 45-75 years. The man in a different cap is between 75-95. There are cap for 95-105, 105—

You dare not wear this cap in this community for fashion sake. You can't try it. Dem never born you.
This is not about being rich, you must be initiated into an age grade before and such culture must be respected.

This is the way I toured Igbo communities even yours. The day I will describe your village for you e go shock you. I did this immediately and after my NYSC.
Read 18 tweets
3 Aug
As the world was asleep, my new and first published book on Igbo grammar is out. It will be available for the public for purchase on Thursday— a day after tomorrow.

With your phone and computer or any gadget, you can carry your Igbo textbook anywhere you go without struggling ImageImage
to carry paperbook.

This book is prepared for all—begineers and advanced level one. I have everyone in mind when writing it. You can start from here and get there. It is a guide on best way to write and speak Igbo.
Beautiful thing— this is a bilingual textbook unlike every other textbook written only in Igbo, this takes in recognition none Igbo— learners and teachers of Igbo as foreign language and second language.
Read 5 tweets
2 Aug
Nobody is talking about ofe Uturukpa/nturukpa again? How far nah?

All man focus on ọha.

Ọkpọsị call ọha soup— ove oko.

Ofe is ove in Ọkpọsị dialect.

Ọkpọsị dialect share to some extent similar dialectal feature with some Anambra dialect especially those using "V
Ihe in Ọkpọsị is ive (something)

I have noticed much sentential similarities between the Ọkpọsị dialect and Ogbunka in Orumba, when I visited there.

Anywhere I go, l listen to people while they speak. I love it when people speak to me in their dialect.
If you speak Nsụka through the nose I understand it. I know the differences between Nsụka dialect within the speech communities.

Anyhow you speak a dialect of IGBO I can understand it.
Read 4 tweets
1 Aug
Differences between "Izu" and "Izu Ụka" in Igbo Language.

Of course the Igbo word for "week" is "izu". You should also note that the Igbo calender is quite different from the Gregorian calender the English use.

No one thought our ancestors how to count days, weeks,
months and years, they had their own system. In their subconscious minds, they knew that once the moon is full, month has come to an end. That time, children would be happy. They would gather in the village square or people's compound for egwu ọnwa (moonlight plays).
They would stage all kinds of games, have the elders engage them on folktales. Children would chant. Do gwam gwam gwam, okwuntabire and others.

What the English man called month, centuries before they came, our people knew it as "ọnwa". Ọnwa is "moon".
Read 10 tweets
1 Aug
There are many reasons you will never get exact direct meanings of some Igbo lexicons in English, no matter how you try, you can only give explanation which will not be exactly the way it's in Igbo.

Igbo language is spiritual. You may not understand this.
It draws you to a certain level of consciousness and deep thinking. On the other hand, Igbo language is philosophical.

Certain words are left like that. K.ill yourself, you can't translate them even the equivalent translation will not be the same.
See our proverbs. You must bite your tongue trying to translate them. Even when you translate the Igbo proverbs, they are no longer deep. It will float like nylon thrown on the river. The nucleus will be zapped.

Most Igbo words cannot & will never have enough English equivalent
Read 5 tweets
29 Jul
Remember, next week Thursday, a week today, what I have been working for will be unveiled. My Igbo learning website.

The content go shock you. All of you who want to learn Igbo from the scratch and those who want to perfect their writing and communicative Igbo,
I got your back this time.

Our e-commerce platform too to shop audiobooks in Igbo and ebooks will be available. Our Igbo lessons are bilingual.

We speak Igbo and explain in English. We got it right this time having foreign learners and second learners students in mind.
Each course has study materials attached to them as well. I have not been replying DMs, please forgive me. I am not snubbing you or feeling too big. I will reply everything. I don't sleep. I don't rest. I work round the clock to ensure this is possible.
Read 6 tweets

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