SYMBOLS OF WARNING, CONFLICT, PUNISHMENT AND WAR AND THEIR MEANINGS AMONG THE PRE-COLONIAL YORUBA NATIVES: A CASE OF AROKO

Abstract

This paper is an anthropological explanation of Aroko among the Yoruba natives of western part of Nigeria. Aroko is a non-verbal system of communication which is fastest dying out among these people. Attempts are made in this paper to explain Aroko that are for: warning, conflict, punishment and impending war, and the same are represented in pictures for content analyses. The paper concludes, by recommending more anthropological and ethnological researches on Aroko, which this anthropological work does not cover. The admonition is also made, that Yoruba parents who have the skills of encoding and decoding Aroko should teach their children the same thing to keep Yoruba culture alive. In addition, recommendation is also made, that the traditional priests should open up hidden Aroko being used in the past for proper documentation. Finally, governments of the south-western states of Nigeria are also requested to set up regional commission that will oversee the research into the dying aspects of Yoruba culture, document them and transmit the same from generation to generation to prevent the aspects of Yoruba culture from going into extinction.