[5]A HAUSA
BOTANICAL VOCABULARY

A

abakuru, a food made from the ground-bean; vide under kwaruru.

abantoko, a var. of dawa q.v.

abawa, vide under abduga.

abduga or auduga, indigenous species of Gossypium (Malvaceæ)—G. peruvianum, Cav. G. punctatum, Sch. et Thon. G. obtusifolium, Roxb. G. arboreum, L. with varieties, hybrids and other introduced species. The Cotton Plant or raw cotton. Syn. kaḍa (Sok.). Varieties known in different districts are:—ba ka tuka, or ba tuka, ya tabshi, ya tsauri, or ya ḳarifi, kwanta Ali da zugu, Ba-Gwandare, yar gari (G. obtusifolium, var. africana, Watt.), gwundi (G. peruvianum var. with red leaf veins), chukwi, laḅayi (G. punctatum), and kanawa or matan kanawa (G. arboreum, L. var. sanguinea, Watt.); the leaves of the last or of gwundi are used for making a red dye for thread. guriya (Sok.), anguriya (Kano), or yan guriya = cotton seed; sutu or subtu = cotton freed from the seed by crushing with a stone and roller and pulled by hand before carding with the masaḅi or bakan shiḅa (cotton carding bow); saḅi or shiḅa = carded cotton; zare = thinly plied cotton thread, used chiefly for the warp, and sometimes for warp and weft; abawa (Kano), or bartake (Sok.) = thicker loosely[6] plied thread used for the weft; (the coarse cloth goddo, or nuru (East Hausa), woven on a vertical loom in broad strips and with a fringe, has abawa in warp and weft); waḍari = cotton yarn ready for weaving; fari (Kano) = woven cotton strips; zugu (Sok.) = cotton strips in a roll (= kunkurun fari, Kano); sawaye (Sok.) = the same unrolled; taḅe (Sok.), or chin aduga (Kano) = to pluck cotton out of the pod.

abokin kibiya, a tall grass used for arrow-shafts; vide ḳyamro.

aburu, a grass used for food; vide iburu.

acha, Digitaria exilis, Stapf. (Paspalum exile, Kipp.) (Gramineæ); a small grass cultivated as a cereal in several Hausa provinces, in Bornu, and by many pagan tribes. Syn. intaya (Sok. Kamberi, Kamuku, &c.), “Hungry Rice”. cf. also tumbin jaki.

a chi da gero, a chi da kara, a chi da nono, vars. of Guinea Corn; vide under dawa.

aduruku, Newbouldia lævis, Sun. (Bignoniaceæ); a tall slender tree with handsome purple flowers; often planted around native compounds. Syn. ba reshe?

aduwa, Balanites ægyptiaca, Del. (Simarubeæ). “Desert Date”; a thorny tree common in the north, deciduous but with evergreen branches, bifoliate leaves and yellow bitter-sweet fruit; its gum = ḳaron aduwa; the seeds yield “Oil of Betu” (Kanuri, bito); dabagira = flowers of aduwa, boiled and eaten with daudawa, q.v. salt and pepper; kaikwaiyo (Sok. Kano, &c.) = the kernel, sold as a medicine. Fruit edible; a common ingredient in fish-poison.

ago or agu (Gwari); a fish-poison, prepared usually from Tephrosia Vogelii (cf. baina, vide under majimfa); sometimes from the pods of Cassia spp. (vide gamma faḍa, &c.); cf. aduwa.

agugu, a native drug; the rhizome of a fern used for tapeworm; probably = “Male Fern” (Nephrodium Filix-mas); not indigenous; brought chiefly from Adamawa.

agushi, the seeds of a var. of the Water Melon, Citrullus vulgaris (vide guna); chewed raw or used in soup.

[7]aguwa vide ḳaguwa.

akiye or akwiye, the seeds of kiriya, q.v.

akwalu (Kano and East), Trochomeria sp. (Cucurbitaceæ); a wild twiner with a large tuberous root, edible when cooked. Syn. basko, or basgo (West Sokoto).

akwuya, a var. of dawa, q.v.

alale, Blighia sapida, Koenig (Sapindaceæ). “Akee apple”; a tree found in the southern provinces, with red capsular fruit; the spongy white aril around the seeds is edible. (?Nupé ella = the name of the fruit). In Hausa generally called Gwanja kusa, q.v.

alambo, Sesbania leptocarpa, DC. (Leguminosæ); a slender branched tree with yellow flowers and narrow jointed pods, common on river-banks. (Kanuri, paiya paiya). Other species are included, e.g. S. aculeata, Pers. S. ægyptiaca, Poir, &c.; cf. also sasabani and zamarke.

alayafu, Amaranthus caudatus, L. (Amaranthaceæ). Native spinage; an excellent cultivated vegetable; a red variety resembles the ornamental plant “Love-lies-bleeding.” farin alayafu, Celosia argentea, L. (Amaranthaceæ); an erect weed of fields, 1 to 2 feet high, with pink and silvery flowering spike, not cultivated but used as a pot-herb.

albasa, Allium Cepa, Willd. (Liliaceæ). The onion. Two varieties are distinguished, viz. guda (Kano), or gudaji (Sok.), the common bulbous onion; and shafa (Kano), safa (Sok.), the spring onion; lawashi or gabu (Sok.) = onion leaves pounded and dried, sold in the form of balls and used in soup. cf. tafarnuwa.

albasar kura, Urginea nigritiana, Bak. (Liliaceæ), and other common bulbous plants growing wild.

albasar kwaḍi, Crinum yuccæflorum, Salisb. (Amaryllideæ); a common plant of damp places, with an umbel of large lily-like flowers, white with a purple stripe. (Other species are included and the names of this and the last are commonly confused.) The scarlet-flowered[8] Hæmanthus rupestris, Bak. (Amaryllideæ), “Blood Flower”, bears the same name.

algarif, the seeds of the “Common” or “Garden Cress,” Lepidium sativum, Linn. vide labsur; sold as a medicine; a red variety algaru ja in small masses, and a black variety usually loose; preparations are made for external and internal use.

alhaji, Ærua tomentosa, Forst. (Amaranthaceæ); an erect plant with hoary white leaves and flowers. (Etym. from the completely white habit, but the name like Ba-Fillatani, q.v. is probably applied to other white plants). More generally known as furfura ta gyatumi, q.v.

alibida, vide alubada.

aliliba, Cordia abyssinica, R. Br. (Boragineæ); a tree with broad leaves, white flowers, and sweet yellow berries used in making allewa, &c.

aliyara, vide ḳaguwa.

alkama, Triticum sativum, Lam. sub-race T. vulgare, Vill. “Common Wheat;” or T. compositum, Linn. “Mummy,” “Miracle” or “Egyptian Wheat;” grown chiefly in the north on river-banks with irrigation. taliya, a sort of macaroni made from alkama flour; gurasa, a sort of native wheaten bread; punkaso (Kano), or fankaso, wheaten cakes fried in oil. The following are delicacies made from alkama:—dashishi, cakes like masa but made with honey-water; sunasar, a preparation of wheat with meat and butter; tuwon ḅaure = tuwo made with finely ground wheat and butter instead of water.

alkaman tururuwa, Spermacoce stachydea, DC. (Rubiaceæ); a common weed eaten by goats, &c. (Etym. tururuwa, a species of social harvesting ant).

alubada or alibida, Carpodinus hirsuta, Hua (Apocynaceæ); a woody climber; one of the rubber vines in the south.

amai mussa (Sok.), Eragrostis major, Hochst. (Gramineæ); a grass with an unpleasant smell. (Etym. “cat’s vomit”). Syn. buddari (Sok.), q.v, and bunsurun fadama (Katsina and East).

[9]amara, Tacca involucrata, Sch. et Thon. (Taccaceæ); a wild perennial herb with an edible tuber; cultivated in some districts, chiefly by Fulani; in the Benué district gathered wild and sold in the form of a starchy meal. (The same as “South Sea arrowroot” of the Sandwich and Society Islands). vide also under giginyar biri.

anguriya, cotton seed, vide under abduga.

anza (Sok. Kats. &c.), hanza (Gobir), Boscia angustifolia, A. Rich. (Capparideæ); a pale-leaved shrub; the berries are edible and sometimes the bark is prepared with cereals as a food similarly to the plant bagayi, q.v. hence also called anza rashin bagayi; including also the broader-leaved B. senegalensis, Lam. cf. zayi.

arakke (Sok.), vide rake; Saccharum officinarum, L. one of the two species of sugar-cane.

ararabi, vide hano.

ataras, a var. of kola nut; vide under goro.

atillis, a tree, the nut of which yields an oil used medicinally as food, &c. Canarium Schweinfurthii, Engl. (Burseraceæ). “African Elemi Tree.”

auduga, vide abduga.

awarwaro, Ipomœa aquatica, Forsk. (Convolvulaceæ); a prostrate purple-flowered convolvulus with hastate leaves, in muddy and marshy places; (loosely applied to other species of convolvulus). Syn. furen gyado (because the roots are eaten by wart-hog).

aya, Cyperus esculentus, L. the “Tiger Nut” or “Rush Nut;” a sedge, cultivated for its small edible tuber.

aya aya, Cyperus rotundus, L. (Cyperaceæ); a common wild sedge with edible slightly fragrant tuberous root. Syn. giri giri (Sok.); vide also ḍan Tunuga. Other wild sedges, e.g. Cyp. Fenzelianus, Steud., &c. are included.

ayaba, Musa sapientum, L. (Scitamineæ); the Banana. Musa paradisiaca, L. the Plantain. ayabar daji, Musa sp. a wild species with astringent pulp and black stony seeds.

[10]ayana, Vitis Thonningii, Baker, Vitis gracilis, Baker, and other species (Ampelideæ); species of wild vines with small berries. From the acidity of the leaves they are also called yakuwar fatake or y. mahalba. vide also buḍa yau.

B

ba-anguri, a variety of gero, q.v.

baba, b. rini, or b. kore; Indigo plant; chiefly Indigofera arrecta, Hochst. and other cultivated species of Indigofera (Leguminosæ); I. tinctoria, Linn. I. Anil, Linn., &c. cf. talaki. kwosusu = the second crop of baba, said to be the better; shuni = prepared indigo, the extracted blue dye-stuff, usually sold in cones or small masses and not used in dye-pits; shuḍi = cloth or thread dyed blue; tamaseki = a sort of home-made indigo prepared by women, from baba in pots.

baba hun (nasal baba hm), Gynura cernua, Benth. (Compositæ); a common weed with purple flowers and lyrate leaves; used in soup, &c.

babar fadama, Indigofera sp. wild species growing in damp places.

babar giwa (Hadeija, &c.), vide bushi.

babar more (Sok.), Ambrosia maritima, Linn. (Compositæ); an aromatic plant, 1 to 2 feet high, with divided leaves, resembling Wormwood. Syn. bababa (from its common occurrence in indigo fields); also called babar talak and tutubidi (Sok.).

baba rodo, Rogeria adenophylla, J. Gay (Pedaliaceæ); an erect plant with broad leaves, purple tubular flowers and viscid sap. Also called loda (Sok.), but cf. dafara.

babar talaki, Lonchocarpus cyanescens, Benth. (Leguminosæ). “Yoruba Wild Indigo.” vide talaki and cf. farin sansami.

babar tamau, Indigofera arrecta, Hochst. and other spp. wild or escaped from cultivation.

[11]babba juji, b. jibji; 1. In Sokoto and Katsina = Datura Metel, Linn. (Solanaceæ), the “Hairy Thorn Apple.” Syn. zaḳami, q.v. 2. Elsewhere usually = Boerhaavia adscendens, Willd. (Nyctagineæ), a common prostrate weed of rubbish heaps &c. with small pink flowers; also called sarikin juji q.v.

bădo, Nymphæa Lotus, Willd. (Nymphæaceæ). White Water-lily; the starchy rhizome and seeds are edible. (Other species are N. guineensis, Sch. and Thonn. with white flowers; N. Heudelotii, Planch. and N. cœrulea, Sav. with purplish flowers), vide kwankwarita.

Ba-Fillatani, Heliotropium undulatum, Vahl. (Boragineæ); a small weed with white flowers. (Similar names are however loosely applied to other plants with pale foliage; e.g. the grass karani, q.v. and cf. alhaji.)

bafuri, vide under balbela.

bagaruwa (Kano, Sok., &c.), or gabaruwa (Zaria), Acacia arabica, Willd. (Leguminosæ). “Egyptian Mimosa.” Indian “Babool.” An acacia with yellow flower-balls and jointed pods—“Sant pods” or “Gambia pods”—used all over the Sudan for tanning; also used in making a black dye for leather, called kuloko, q.v. The original source of true gum arabic. (Etym. the first name is a metathetic form of the synonym gaba ruwa.)

bagaruwar ḳassa, Cassia mimosoides, L. (Leguminosæ); a common weed with yellow flowers and pinnate leaves.

bagaruwar Makka, vide zogalagandi.

ba gashi? (Kontagora), vide under sheḳani.

bagayi, Cadaba farinosa, Forsk. (Capparideæ); a small-leaved hoary shrub of scrambling habit. The leaves and twigs are mixed with cereals to form a sort of pudding or cake common in East Hausa and Bornu, called parsa (Kanuri), baleno, or tsawa. Syn. balambo. N.B. This plant is confused with anza, q.v. and in some localities (Katagum, &c.) called by the latter name.

Ba-Gwandare (or bugundare); 1. a var. of cotton, vide under abduga. 2. A var. of dawa, q.v. (from Gwandara, the name of a tribe).

[12]baina, 1. A grass with edible seeds. Syn. baya, q.v. 2. The fish-poison prepared from Tephrosia Vogelii, vide under majimfa.

ba-jini, Afrormosia sp. (Leguminosæ); a tree with pale leaves and flat pods. (Etym. from the red resinous bark). Syn. jina jina.

ba ka tuka or ba tuka, a var. of cotton, vide under abduga.

baḳin bunnu (Katagum), Indigofera pulchra, Vahl. (Leguminosæ); a small undershrub with stiff stems, sometimes mixed with thatching grass. (The name is probably applied to other species so used.)

bakin kada, a var. of dawa, q.v.

bakin mutum (Sok.), Pleioceras sp. (Apocynaceæ); a shrub with milky juice and long slender pods. Syn. bakin mayu, sandan mayu (these names refer to mystical uses in divination, &c.); also gamma sanwa (or g. sauwa), from the forked peduncle with 3 or 4 developing carpels resembling the tripod stove for a cooking-pot = sanwa. (? = Holarrhena Wulfsbergii, Stapf).

bakin raḳumi, a var. of dawa, q.v. Syn. ḳerama, and mallen kabi.

bakin suda, Polycarpæa corymbosa, Lam. (Caryophylleæ); a small wild herb with whitish chaffy flowers; scarcely distinguished from magudiya, q.v. (suda is the name of a bird).

balagandi, vide under rawaya.

balambo, vide under bagayi.

balasa, or balasaya, Commelyna nudiflora, Linn. (Commelynaceæ); a “spiderwort,” a weed of pastures and waste places, with delicate azure-blue flowers; gathered as cattle fodder. Syn. kununguru (East Hausa).

balbela, Pulicaria crispa, Clarke (Compositæ); a white-leaved weed with yellow flowers. (Etym. the name of the white padi bird.) Syn. bafuri, and fara saura, q.v.

baleno, vide under bagayi.

bambami (Kontagora, &c.), Alchornea cordata, Benth. (Euphorbiaceæ); a tall woody climber in ravines.

bambamko (East Hausa), vide falfoli.

[13]bambana, the flowering spike of shalla, q.v. a tall bulrush of marshes.

bambus (East Hausa), a variety of Water-Melon; vide guna.

barabutu, a corruption of “Bread-fruit” (Artocarpus incisa); a name used by Hausas in Lagos, &c.

barambo (Gobir). Syn. zogalagandi, q.v.

ḅarankachi or ḅaranchaki, Canavalia ensiformis, DC. “Sword Bean.” “Overlook Bean” of the West Indies. A large climbing bean common about native houses; not much eaten by Hausas; ripe pods used as a rattle by children. Syn.? ladiko, q.v. vide also waken Ankwa. ḍan zago (Kano), is a red-seeded variety of the same. (Etym. chăki = a rattle).

barbaji (East Hausa), Randia nilotica, Stapf (Rubiaceæ); a thorny shrub or small tree found in the north. Syn. tsibra or tsura (Sok.).

ḅare, half a kola nut; vide under goro.

ba reshe? (Kontagora). Syn. aduruku, q.v.

barkono, Capsicum frutescens, Bl. (Solanaceæ). “Shrubby Capsicum,” “Spur Pepper,” &c., and C. annum, Linn. “Chillies” or “Red Pepper,” &c. Synonyms and varieties are:—tanka or tankwa (Sok.) = toshshi or twashshi (Sok. Gobir and Zanfara), small red peppers; tsidufu = the smallest and hottest peppers; bunsurun barkono, a small spherical variety; tatasai (Sok. and Kats.) or tugandai (Kano, &c.) = large and less pungent chillies. vide also filfil.

barkonon biri, Cephalandra sp. (Cucurbitaceæ); a wild twiner with scarlet fruit having a superficial resemblance to capsicum; not edible.

barmatabo (Katagum, &c.), Merremia pentaphylla, Hall. f. (Convolvulaceæ); a convolvulus of fences, &c. with digitate leaves and white flowers. namijin barmatabo, Ipomœa pilosa, Sweet (Convolvulaceæ). Syn. yako (Sok. and Kats.); a coarse-leaved convolvulus or “Morning Glory,” with blue or purple flowers, common on fences. (The native names include several species.)

[14]ḅarna chiki or ḅata wandon Buzu, a species of edible bean over-indulgence in which causes unpleasant effects.

bartake, vide under abduga.

ba ruwana, Salix sp. (Salicaceæ). Willow; found along the banks of rivers. (Etym. from the treacherous yielding of the branches when grasped by a drowning person). Syn. rimni (Sok.).

ba samu (Sok. and Zanfara). Syn. hano (Sok. and Kats.), and ararabi, q.v. Boswellia odorata, Hutch. and Boswellia Dalzielii, Hutch. (Burseraceæ). (The two species are scarcely distinguished under the different native names). Species of “Frankincense Tree,” with pale parchment-like bark and white flowers; yielding a fragrant resin.

basgo or basko, a tuber, vide under akwalu.

ḅata wandon Buzu, vide ḅarna chiki.

ba tuka, a variety of cotton, vide under abduga.

Ba-Ude, a variety of bean, vide under wake, and ḍan Uda.

bauje, an Asclepiad plant with milky juice and a turnip-like edible tuber; probably Xysmalobium Heudelotianum, Decne. (Asclepiadeæ). Syn.? rojiya; cf. also saniya and daiyo.

bauji (East Hausa), Acacia Sieberiana, DC. (Leguminosæ). Syn. fara ḳaya, q.v.

baurairai, Gloriosa superba, L. (Liliaceæ); a climbing lily with splendid crimson and yellow flowers and a tuberous root. Syn. gatarin kurege (Sok.), and gudumar zomo (Kano and East), from the shape of the versatile stamens.

ḅaure, Ficus gnaphalocarpa, A. Rich. (Urticaceæ). Rough-leaved fig-tree, with edible figs. ḅauren fadama, ḅ. rafi &c. = various spp. of Ficus, large broad-leaved trees of ravines; farin ḅaure, vide uwar yara. lubiya or rubiya = edible figs of ḅaure and other spp. of Ficus (vide durumi, cheḍiya, gamji).

ḅauren kiyashi; 1. Chrozophora Senegalensis, A. Juss. (Euphorbiaceæ); a common weed used medicinally. Syn. damaigi, q.v. (kiyashi = a species of ant). 2. A species of fig-tree (Ficus sp.).

[15]baushe, Terminalia sp. nr. T. macroptera, G. et P. (Combretaceæ); a large tree with flat winged fruits. Bows and walking-sticks are made from the roots. (More than one species is included, e.g. T. Elliotii, Engl. and Diels. T. Baumannii, Engl. and Diels. T. avicennioides, Guill. et Per.).

bawu, vide under shinkafa.

baya (Katag. and East), baina (Kano), Panicum albidulum, Kunth. (Gramineæ); a wild grass with an edible grain used as food, common in East Hausa. Syn. saḅe, and ?garaji, q.v.

bayama (Kontagora, &c.), Swartzia madagascariensis, Oliv. (Leguminosæ); a tree of the Cassia tribe, with white flowers and cylindrical pods; (probably including other species, cf. bogo zage, gamma faḍa, &c.).

bayan mariya, Andropogon ceresiæformis, Nees. (Gramineæ); a common bush grass much used for thatch. (Etym. “cob’s back,” from its russet colour when mature).

bazaḳa (Gobir). Syn. zaḳo, a var. of bean; vide under wake.

Ba-Zanfare (Katagum, &c.), Cassia occidentalis, L. (Leguminosæ). Syn. rai ḍore, q.v.

bazana (Zaria and Kano), Commiphora Kerstingii, Engl. (Burseraceæ). Syn. dali, q.v. a tree with green smooth bark, planted around native compounds.

bazaume or bazarme (a corruption of Ba-Zabarme); a var. of gero, q.v.

bidi, 1. a var. of earth-nut; vide under gujiya. 2. A speckled var. of bean; vide under wake.

bijaje (Ful.), Ficus sp. nr. F. populifolia, Vahl. (Urticaceæ); a fig-tree with pale bark and drooping branches, found on rocky hills in Yola province, &c., said to be an ingredient in arrow-poison.

bi ni da zugu, or chi ni da zugu, Jatropha Curcas, L. (Euphorbiaceæ). “Purging Nut;” “Physic Nut,” &c. A soft-wooded shrub with broad leaves, commonly planted as a hedge; one of the less important oil-seeds; seeds used in native medicine (vide kufi). (Etym. from the[16] purging property and the suggested necessity of being prepared with grave-cloth).

bi ni zwei zwei (bi ta zei zei); a native medicine used by youths as a love-charm, &c., hard shining seeds of a plant—Nat. Ord. Acanthaceæ. (Etym. haste or eagerness in following the object of desire.)

bishiya, pl. bishiyoyi, generic for tree.

bi ta ka tsira, Vangueria Dalzielii, Hutch. (Rubiaceae); a shrub with globular berries; used medicinally. (The name is probably applied to several plants supposed to act as antidotes to arrow-poison—makarin dafi, q.v.).

biya rana or bi rana, Crotalaria obovata, Don. (Leguminosæ); a yellow-flowered undershrub with inflated pods. (Etym. similar to “heliotrope,” from the expanding of the leaf-surfaces towards the sun). b. awaki, or geḍar awaki, gujiyar awaki, hudar awaki, are names given to various species of Crotalaria, used as fodder; vide geḍar awaki.

bogo zage (Zanfara), Swartzia madagascariensis, Oliv. and other species (Leguminosæ); a tree with long cylindrical pods used to stupefy fish. vide ago. Syn. gwazkiya, and cf. gamma faḍa, and bayama.

bubuchi (Sok.), Panicum interruptum, Willd. (Gramineæ); a grass of marshes and rivers, 2 or more feet high, with long narrow green flowering spike.

bubukuwa or sabko bubukuwa, Tripogon minimus, Hochst. a small tufted grass. (Etym. from its habitat where the pelican is supposed to alight, and supposed to be the earliest grass of spring).

buḍa yau, the same as ayana or yakuwar fatake, q.v. and perhaps other plants with acid leaves which are used to relieve thirst; (yau = saliva).

buddari, Eragrostis major, Hochst. (Gramineæ); a grass about 1 to 2 feet high, with an unpleasant smell. Syn. amai mussa, q.v. and bunsurun fadama. (Etym. buddari, a malodorous animal).

bugundare (a corruption of Ba-Gwandare), a var. of cotton and a var. of Guinea Corn.

[17]bundin kurege, vide wutsiyar kurege.

bununi, the exserted stamens of any grass; most commonly applied to gero and dawa.

bunsuru, a synonym for burtuntuna, q.v.

bunsurun daji, a name applied to more than one species of rough grass, e.g. Heteropogon contortus, R. and S. (“Wild oats”), and others.

buran jaki, vide under gwazar giwa.

buran kare, vide under ḳwododon kwaḍo. (The name is also used for certain fungi).

buran zaki, Cucumis metuliferus, E. Hey. (Cucurbitaceæ). Syn. nonon kura, q.v.

burburwa (Sok., &c.), Eragrostis tremula, Hochst. (Gramineæ); a wild grass about 2 feet high; an excellent fodder; seeds eaten in scarcity. Syn. komaya (Kano, &c.). burburwar fadama, komaya ta fadama, Eragrostis biformis, Kunth. and perhaps other species; grasses 2 to 4 feet high in meadows, &c. vide also under tsintsiya.

burtuntuna, Ustilago sp. a smut fungus which affects the fruiting dawa, forming a black powder; also called bunsuru.

burugu (Sok.), Panicum stagninum, Koen. (Gramineæ); a grass whose growth chokes up swampy streams; a good fodder; the soft juicy stems are sucked or made into sugar-water.

burungu, unhusked rice. Syn. shanshera; vide under shinkafa.

ḅurzu, Vernonia Perottetii, Sch. Bip. (Compositæ); a weed of cultivated fields, with blue thistle-like flowers. ḅurzun ḍinya = the stone of the fruit of ḍinya, q.v.

bushi (Sok.), Bergia suffruticosa, Fenzl. (Elatineæ); a low heath-like plant, used medicinally. Syn. babar giwa (Hadeija, &c.).

buta, one of the varieties of the “Bottle-gourd;” vide under duma.

bututu, the narrow end of some forms of the “Bottle-gourd” used as a blowing-horn; vide under duma.

[18]C

chauchaka? (Zanfara), Capparis tomentosa; vide ḳabdodo.

checheko, vide zamarke.

cheḍiya, Ficus Thonningii, Blume (Urticaceæ); a very common tree with dark green foliage and small figs; much planted as a shade tree.

cheyi, a fibre, vide under yawa.

chichiwa (Sok.), Mærua angolensis, DC. (Capparideæ); a small tree with white flowers and elongated beaded fruit.

chi ni da zugu, vide bi ni da zugu; Jatropha Curcas, “Physic Nut.”

chiriri (Sok. and Zanf.), Combretum Kerstingii, Engl. and Diels. (Combretaceæ); a gum-yielding tree with smooth leaves and 4-winged fruit. Syn. dagera and probably also zindi, q.v.

chitta, Amomum Melegueta, Roscoe (Scitamineæ). “Guinea Grains.” “Grains of Paradise.” “Melegueta Pepper.” A capsular fruit containing small red aromatic seeds used as a spice. chitta komfa, or chitta yaji = another var. of spice.

chitta Afu, Zingiber officinale, Roscoe (Scitamineæ). Ginger. (Afawa, a pagan tribe in Nassarawa).

chiwo or chuwo, Landolphia owariensis, Beauv. and L. florida, Benth. (Apocynaceæ). Rubber Vines; tall woody climbers with white fragrant flowers and orange-coloured edible fruit. (The latex of L. owariensis forms a good rubber, that of L. florida is useless).

chizaki, probably the same as ḳabdodo, q.v.

chuchun kariya or gaton kariya, vide gujiyar hankaka.

chukwi, a var. of cotton; vide under abduga.

chusar doki, a medicine or food to keep horses fit; made from leaves of kuka, q.v. with dusa and kanwa.

[19]D

dabagira, vide under aduwa.

dabino, Phœnix dactylifera, Linn. (Palmeæ). Date Palm. Varieties of date are:—zabiya or jan dabino, a long red sweet variety; maga or ḍan damana, a stoneless date. kilili = flowers of the date. dabinon biri, a low species of palm with small yellow date-like fruit, found in ravines; used in weaving mats, straw hats, &c. Syn. kajinjiri. (Phœnix reclinata?).

dabrin saniya, vide under gadon machiji.

dadawa or dawa dawa, a grass; vide gyazama.

daddawa (Kano), or daudawa (Sok.), black fermented cakes made from the seeds of the ḍorowa, q.v. Syn. takaluwa.

ḍaḍori or ḍoḍoriya (Kano and Sok.), Vitis quadrangularis, Linn. (Ampelideæ); a vine with quadrangular succulent jointed stems, climbing on trees. (Etym. connected with the multiple branching at the joints). Syn. tsatsarar kura. “Edible-stemmed Vine.”

dafaddu, Elk’s-horn fern; an epiphyte. Platycerium æthiopicum.

dafara, Vitis pallida, Baker (Ampelideæ); a vine bearing a kind of wild grapes; the root-bark forms a viscid solution which is mixed with native cement for lining dye-pits, &c. Syn. loda or lodar marina, cf. also baba rodo. The fruit, used in soup, is sometimes called lubiya, q.v.

dagera, Combretum sp. (Combretaceæ). A gum-yielding tree. Syn. chiriri.

daiyo (Ful?), vide under lojiya, bauje, &c.

dakushe, vide kas kaifi.

ḍakwora, Acacia Senegal, Willd. (Leguminosæ); a thorny acacia, with spikes of white flowers and grey bark; the source of the true “gum-arabic.” Ar. hashab. vide also yawa and meḍi. The name includes the similar Acacia Dudgeoni, Craib.

[20]dalaka, a variety of kola nut; vide under goro.

dali (Kano, Katsina, &c.), also dala, Commiphora Kerstingii, Engl. (Burseraceæ). A soft-wooded tree with smooth green bark, planted around native compounds. Syn. bazana (Kano and Zaria), gurzun dali (Katagum, &c.), hana gobara (Zanfara, from the wood and foliage being difficult to ignite). ka ḳi ganin bula (Zanfara); also bar na gada (because long-lived and inherited).

dalo, Combretum glutinosum, Perr. (Combretaceæ); a tree resembling chiriri and taramniya, q.v.

damaigi, Chrozophora senegalensis, A. Juss. (Euphorbiaceæ); a common weed with small red flowers; used medicinally. Syn. ḅauren kiyashi, q.v. One of the ingredients in the native prescription rigya kafi, q.v.

damana biyu, vide ḍan arbain, a variety of bean.

damba = ?Andropogon tectorum, Sch. et Th. (Gramineæ); a tall grass of marshes, &c., used as fodder when young, and for zana when mature.

damro or dauro, a variety of millet (Pennisetum spicatum, B. and S.), similar to maiwa, q.v. cf. gero.

ḍan arbain, a variety of bean planted near water and supposed to ripen in 40 days. Syn. damana biyu (Sok. and Kano), and kaka biyu (Gobir).

ḍan damana, a variety of date; vide under dabino.

dandami, vide under lallen shamuwa.

dandana, Schwenkia americana, Linn. (Solanaceæ); a herb with narrow tubular flowers; used medicinally. Syn. parpatse or farfatse (Kano).

ḍan ḍata (ḍan ḍwata), vide ḍataniya, a bitter grass. Thelepogon elegans, Roth.

ḍan farkami (Sok.), Monechma hispida, Hochst. (Acanthaceæ); a common weed of pastures, with rough leaves and white flowers. Syn. ?fiso (Sok. and Kats.), fisawa (Katagum).

ḍan garraza = flowers of the tamarind tree—(hudar tsamiya).

ḍan kaḍafi or hankaḍafi, the name of a crab-louse, hence applied to more than one plant with seeds which adhere to the clothing like burs. (Etym. similar to “Cleavers”).[21] Chiefly = Desmodium lasiocarpum, DC. (Leguminosæ). Syn. maḍaḍafi, q.v. Also Triumfetta pentandra, A. Rich. (Tiliaceæ), vide suren fadama.

dankali (Kano, &c.), Ipomœa Batatas, Lam. (Convolvulaceæ). Sweet Potato. Red and white varieties are known. Syn. dukuma and kudaku (Sok. and Zanfara), generally = the red one; lawur = the white one. kugundugu, a name used on the Benue, Yola, &c. = Yor. kukun duku.

dankon kuyangi, dried leaves of the convolvulus Ipomœa pilosa, Sweet, and other species; vide yako and barmatabo; used medicinally.

danko maiwari, Ficus sp. a tree in the south, yielding an inferior rubber.

ḍan kwataho, a variety of kola nut; vide under goro.

ḍan kwoloje, a variety of bean; vide under wake.

ḍan marike (Katagum, &c.), Indigofera secundiflora, Poir. (Leguminosæ). vide under marike.

ḍan Tunuga or kajiji ḍan Tunuga; the fragrant tuber of a sedge, Cyperus sp. (Tunuga = a town in French Borgu). Probably Cyperus rotundus, cf. aya aya and kajiji.

ḍan Uda or Ba-Ude, a variety of bean, half white half black; (cf. a variety of sheep of the same name. Udawa a section of Fulani); vide under wake.

danya, Spondias sp. (Anacardiaceæ); a tree with pinnate leaves and yellow plum-like fruit of pleasant flavour. The fruit is called nunu. cf. also tsadar Masar.

ḍanyen gumi = husked but unboiled rice; vide gumi and shinkafa.

danyi (Sok.), vide dayi.

ḍan zago, a kind of bean, vide under ḅarankachi.

darambuwa = armlets made of plaited grass, hence applied to several species of grass; vide karani, gaji, jema, &c.

dargăza, Grewia mollis, Juss. (Tiliaceæ); a shrub with small yellow flowers; the bark is mucilaginous and used in soup, and occasionally to harden mud floors.

[22]dashi, Balsamodendron africanum, A. Rich. (Burseraceæ). “African Myrrh.” “African Bdellium.” A shrub with the habit of the Blackthorn, yielding a fragrant gum-resin used medicinally and as a scent for clothing. namijin dashi, Balsamodendron pedunculatum, Kotschy. et Peyr. A shrub somewhat similar to the above but less fragrant.

dashishi, vide under alkama.

ḍata or ḍwata, a small bitter native tomato; vide under gauta.

ḍataniya or ḍwatana, Thelepogon elegans, Roth. (Gramineæ); a bitter grass given to horses as a tonic. Syn. gishirin ḍawaki and ḍan ḍata. (Etym. from the bitter taste).

datsi, Aristida Sieberiana, Trin. (Gramineæ); a long-awned grass, common in the north. jan datsi vide jan bako.

dauḍa or kwardauḍa, Dicoma tomentosa, Cass. (Compositæ); a small thistle-like weed. Syn. farin dayi. (Etym. perhaps from use as a local application to putrescent wounds).

dauḍar Maguzawa, ?Blepharis linearifolia, Pers. (Acanthaceæ); a prickly plant with blue flowers. Syn. faskara toyi, and ?gigi, q.v.

dauḍar ruwa, vide limniya.

daudawa (Sok.), vide daddawa and ḍorowa; vide also under kiriya. daudawa beso, seeds of yakuwa (Hibiscus Sabdariffa, Linn.), q.v. boiled and prepared either for food or as a medicinal vehicle, daudawar kuka, seeds of kuka (Adansonia digitata), made into cakes, &c.

dauro, vide damro.

dawa, Sorghum vulgare, Pers. (Gramineæ). “Guinea Corn.” “Great Millet.” “Durra.”

The following are some of the numerous varieties:—abantoko (Illo); a chi da gero—grows rapidly and is ripe with the gero;

a chi da kara, matures at the same season as sugar-cane (takanḍa);

[23]a chi da nono (like farafara), a soft grain only used for kunu and not for tuwo;

akwuya, a yellow grain used for horses;

bakin kada, a variety with a long head;

bakin raḳumi (from the slender quivering habit), the same as ḳerama;

bugundare or Ba-Gwandare, a variety with a compact head; (cf. a variety of cotton; vide abduga);

farafara, a white variety;

giwa kamba, a white variety larger than farafara, late maturing;

hannun giwa, white with a large head of grain;

janjari (Sok. = jigari, Ful.) or janari, a red inferior grain which makes red kunu and tuwo;

jar dawa, a red grain used for horses;

kaura, considered the best for horses, common in Zanfara; in two varieties, viz.:—kaura mai farin kwono (or mai farin soshia), and kaura mai baḳin kwono;

ḳerama, a red grain with loose nodding panicle (= bakin raḳumi);

maikeri, early maturing and considered one of the best;

makafo da wayo, a soft sweet variety, a luxury (dawar sarakuna);

malle (Sokoto West), planted in wet places;

mallen Kabi, the same as ḳerama;

mallen mama or mallen Zanfara, a larger nodding variety like the last;

marmare, a soft sweet variety, nearly the same as makafo da wayo; eaten whole;

masakowa or mazakwa (Ful. maskwari), a dry-season corn, grown in alluvial soil left as the rivers fall; (chiefly in Adamawa and Bornu); sometimes eaten whole after cooking;

wayo, a red or yellow variety;

zago, the same as kaura.

Burtuntuna = Ustilago sp. a guinea corn smut, forming a black powder in the ear; also called ḳatsa ḳatsa, and bunsuru.

[24]gyamro = secondary shoots of guinea corn from the roots left at harvest; said to be injurious to animals.

domana, a gummy blight; (?Aphis Sorghi).

karan dafi, the red leaf sheaths of certain forms of dawa, used as a red dye.

kusumburuwa, corn growing up anywhere from stray seeds; sometimes popularly believed to grow from an unhusked grain and not always maturing. The stems are used for flutes (sarewa).

sambara, dawa or gero half-grown at harvest and left to mature later. cf. also karmami and yabainya.

dawa dawa or dadawa, a grass; vide gyazama.

dawar kada (d. rafi, d. dorina, &c.), Sorghum halepense, Pers. a very tall riverside grass with pith in the stems; the probable ancestor of cultivated dawa; one of several called “Elephant Grass.”

dawo (?Hausa; Yoruba ai-da), Tetrapleura Thonningii, Benth. (Leguminosæ); a large tree with thick 4-angled pods sold as a market drug in the south; cf. kalangon daji and sandan mayu.

dayi, Centaurea Calcitrapa, Linn. (Compositæ). “Star-thistle.” A thistle with long straight spines, common in fields, &c.; eaten by camels; one of the plants sometimes called “caltrop;” cf. Tsaido. Syn. ḍanyi (Sok.), and surendi (Kats.). namijin dayi, Lactuca sp. a species of wild lettuce; probably including several field plants of the Nat. Ord. (Compositæ).

dayin giwa, vide under sare gwiwa.

ḍeiḍoya (ḍoiḍoya or ḍoḍoya), Ocimum americanum, Linn. (Labiatæ); a fragrant herb allied to basil. (The name includes other introduced species planted near houses:—Ocimum viride, Willd. Fever plant of S. Leone and Liberia. Oc. basilicum, Linn. Sweet Basil. Æolanthus Buettneri, Gürke, &c.)

ḍeiḍoyar kare or ḍ. fadama, Hyptis Spicigera, Lam. (Labiatæ). A weed of waste places. Syn. riḍin kada. ḍ. gona, Leucas martinicensis, R. Br. (Labiatæ). An odorous weed with whorls of small white flowers. Syn. sarakuwar sauro (Kats.).

[25]dinkin, the young leaves of certain plants used fresh with ground-nuts, salt, pepper, &c. made up as food; chiefly d. ḍinya (v. ḍinya); also of zuwo, q.v. and sometimes used of rama and other plants with edible leaves.

ḍinya (Kano), ḍumya (Sok.), Vitex Cienkowskii, Kotschy et Peyr. (Verbenaceæ); a common tree with digitate leaves, fragrant flowers, and a black plum-like fruit used in making maḍi; vide under dinkin; ḅurzu or ḳurzun ḍinya = ḳwalon ḍinya, the stone of the fruit.

ḍinyar biri, Vitex diversifolia, Bak., a shrub or small tree with fragrant leaves, and flowers similar to those of ḍinya.

dirin da rani (Kano), a variety of rama, q.v.

ḍiwa, Rhytachne congoensis, Hack., a tall grass; used for making screens, zana, &c.

ḍiyan hanwawa (Sok.), Ctenolepis cerasiformis Hook. f. (Cucurbitaceæ). A twiner with scarlet berries; (hanwawa or hawainya = chamæleon); syn. namijin garafuni.

ḍoḍoriya, Vitis quadrangularis, Linn. (Ampelideæ), vide ḍaḍori.

ḍoiḍoya or ḍoḍoya, vide ḍeiḍoya.

doka, Isoberlinia doka, Craib. et Stapf (Leguminosæ); a large tree with white flowers, shining leaves and large flat pods; very abundant in central Hausaland. fara doka, Isoberlinia Dalzielii, Craib. et Stapf, a large tree closely allied to the last, with paler leaves and bark.

domana, a gummy blight on Guinea Corn and other cereals; (?Aphis Sorghi).

domashi, Vernonia Kotschyana, Schultz. (Compositæ); an under-shrub with bitter root, used as a tonic-medicine, &c. domashin maza? (Katagum), vide under matsarmama.

ḍorowa or ḍorawa, Parkia filicoidea, Welw. (Leguminosæ). “African Locust Bean Tree;” a large acacia-like tree with pendulous balls of deep-red flowers and bunches of pods; the seeds and the mealy yellow pulp[26] of the pods are used as food. kaluwa = seeds of ḍorowa, which are made into black fermented cakes called daudawa (Sok.) or daddawa (Kano), and also takaluwa; makuba = fermented extract of husks of ḍorowa pods, used for hardening beaten floors, sides of indigo pits, &c. saḅada or safada (Kano) = young fruiting heads of ḍorowa (etym. from resemblance in shape and surface to a plaited garment of that name). tutu (or turu-turu) = the red pendulous flower-balls (sucked by boys); gundar tutu = the unexpanded flower-buds; garda = the unripe pods when bright brown in colour and beginning to form seeds (the name of a brown-winged dove). The successive stages from bud to pod are:—kashin awaki, kashin raḳuma, tutu, safada, garda. harawan ḍorawa = the membranous lining of the pods used as a fibre for tying arrows, &c.

doya, Dioscorea sativa, Linn. D. prehensilis, Benth. D. abyssinica, Hochst. D. alata, L. (Dioscorideæ). Cultivated yams. vide also sakata, and ḳarasa (doyar kudu).

doyar bisa, the edible solid bulbs in the leaf-axils of certain species of Dioscorea. Syn. tuwon biri.

doyar daji, wild species of Dioscorea.

doyar kurege, Curculigo gallabatensis, Schweinf. (Amaryllideæ); a yellow-flowered herb with a stout vertical rhizome. Syn. muruchin makeruwa, q.v.

doyar giwa, vide ḳayar giwa.

dufuwa, a dense thorny thicket, cf. gumbi and ḳumchi; generally applied to the acacia called sarḳaḳiya, q.v.

dukki or dunki (Sok. and Kats.), Celtis integrifolia, Lam. (Urticaceæ); “Nettle Tree;” a large tree with serrate leaves somewhat like those of the nettle; the young leaves are used in soup and as fodder. Syn. zuwo (Kano, Zaria, &c.). cf. also dinkin.

dukuma, vide under dankali.

dulu, Ficus sp. a tree with large figs; common in ravines.

duma, Lagenaria vulgaris, Ser. (Cucurbitaceæ). “Bottle Gourd,” “Club Gourd” or “White Pumpkin;” the[27] common white-flowered cultivated gourd with soft foliage and variously shaped fruits known by different names:—buta, gora, and gyandama, common water-bottle gourds; jallo, a small pear-shaped one used to carry ruwan alwalla; ḳoḳo, kwokwo or kwachiya, a small-sized calabash used as a cup; kumbu, ditto with cover, used as a small box for snuff, &c.; ḳwariya, common larger calabash; masaki and mabakachi, the largest-sized calabash used at market, and for separating grain from husk, &c., &c. ludai or luddai (Sok.), bottle gourd with narrow neck, split to form spoons, ladles, &c. kololo, similar to luddai, with hollow neck; gako (Sok.), like luddai with solid neck; moda, larger bottle gourd with curved neck which serves as a handle, the body pierced for use as a dipper or handled pot; shantu, long narrow gourd used as a musical instrument; bututu, the narrow portion of shantu or luddai, &c. used as a blowing horn; jemo, a short wide-mouthed club-shaped or large pear-shaped gourd, used to hold milk, &c.; zuru and zunguru, club-shaped or cylindrical gourds used in the application of lalle to the hand; kurtu, bottle or club-shaped with narrow neck, the wider portion used for immersing the hand in staining with henna, the narrow half used as a blowing horn; kwoton tadawa, an ovoid tubercled gourd, used for native ink-pots, &c. vide also kulbutu or tsana (Sok.), an edible variety resembling a cucumber, and kurzunu, a tubercled variety of the same.

dumar dutsi, vide under gaḍaukuka.

dumar kada, d. rafi, Ipomœa repens, Lam. (Convolvulaceæ); a common trailing convolvulus with broad round leaves and purple flowers.

dumar kwaḍi, Ipomœa sp. a var. of convolvulus.

ḍumya (Sok.), vide ḍinya (Kano).

ḍunḍu, Dichrostachys nutans, Br. (Leguminosæ); a thorny shrub like an acacia, with pendulous lilac-coloured flower-spikes, and clusters of twisted pods; fibre from the root-bark. vide under meḍi and yawa.

dunki, vide dukki.

[28]durumi, Ficus Syringifolia, Werb. (Urticaceæ); a very familiar species of fig-tree with small figs and heart-shaped shining leaves, affording splendid shade.

dushe (Kano), dussa (East Hausa), Acacia Seyal, Del. (Leguminosæ); the “Talh” gum-acacia; a thorny tree with yellow flower-balls and an ochrey powder on the bark. Syn. jimshi (Sok.), and ?gishishiya (Zanfara).

duza (Sok. and Zanf.), Setaria aurea, Hochst. (Gramineæ). “Bristly Fox-tail Grass;” a grass of damp places, used for thatch. Syn. ḳyasuwar rafi or ḳ. ta fadama. cf. ḳyasuwa.

ḍwata or ḍata, a small native bitter tomato; vide under gauta.

ḍwatana, vide ḍataniya.

F

fafewa (Sok. and Zanf.), Pennisetum unisetum, Benth. (Gramineæ); a tall grass with hollow stems and sharp leaf-edges. (Etym. because it rasps the hand—fafe = to scrape.) Syn. karan kauje and korkoro (Kontagora).

falfoli (Sok.), Æschynome sensitiva, Swartz. (Leguminosæ); a tall slender plant of marshes, with spongy pith used for floats (karu), &c. Syn. gombiliki, and bambamko (East Hausa).

fankaso or punkaso, vide under alkama.

fara doka, Isoberlinia Dalzielii, Craib. et Stapf (Leguminosæ); a large tree; vide under doka.

farafara, a white var. of dawa, q.v.

fara geza, Combretum aculeatum, Vent. (Combretaceæ); a shrub with white flowers (somewhat resembling hawthorn), and 4-angled fruit.

fara ḳaya, Acacia Sieberiana, DC. (Leguminosæ); a gum-yielding acacia with long white thorns, dark foliage, and white flower-balls. Syn. bauji (East Hausa).

fara saura, Pulicaria crispa, Clarke (Compositæ); a white-leaved weed with yellow flowers, common in fields. (Etym. saura or sabra = fallow fields). Syn. bafuri, and balbela, q.v.

[29]farfatse or parpatse, vide dandana.

fari, vide under abduga.

fari, a var. of Water Melon; vide under guna.

farichin shafo, or ḳumbar shafo (= “falcon’s claw”); a tall acacia with strong curved thorns, the same as or closely similar to ḳarḳara, q.v. Acacia campylacantha, Hochst. or nearly allied species.

farin gammo, Ipomœa argentaurata, Hall. f. (Convolvulaceæ); a trailing convolvulus with whitish flowers and silvery-hairy leaves. Syn. ka fi boka. (Etym. ganmo, gammo or ganwo = a head-pad).

farin sansami (Sok. and Kats.), Lonchocarpus laxiflorus, G. et P. (Leguminosæ); a tree with purple flowers. The leaves are capable of affording a dye like indigo. cf. talaki. Syn. shunin biri, and cf. halshen sa.

faru, Odina Barteri, Oliv. (and other spp. Anacardiaceæ); a large tree with pinnate leaves and small berries; the bark yields a resin. Syn. tuḍi (Zanfara), or farun biri (Sok.). In Sokoto faru or farun mutane = Odina sp. different from the above, with paler and smoother foliage.

farun makiyaya, a wild vine; vide under tsibiri kinkini.

fasa daga, the seeds of the tree kawo, q.v. Afzelia africana, Sm. (Leguminosæ), sold as a medicine or charm in fight, &c. (Etym. from its use as a charm in battle—daga—to put the enemy to flight, suggested by the explosive dehiscence of the pods scattering the seeds). Also called fasa maza.

fasa ḳabba, or fasa kumburi, Portulaca oleracea, L. and other spp. (Portulacaceæ). “Purslane.” A weed with succulent leaves, used as a local application to swellings. (Etym. “disperse swellings”). Syn. sarikin jibji, and harshen saniya or dabrin saniya; cf. gadon machiji and vide rigya kafi.

fasa ḳwari, Zanthoxylum senegalense, DC. (Rutaceæ); a thorny tree with pinnate leaves, found in ravines in the Benué district; the fragrant bark is sold as a medicine and spice.

[30]faskara giwa, Ormocarpum bibracteatum, Baker (Leguminosæ); a shrub with tough flexible branches, small pinnate leaves and purple flowers. (Etym. from the tough texture of the wood which the elephant cannot break). In Zanfara this is sometimes called tsa q.v.

faskara toyi, Blepharis linearifolia, Pers. (Acanthaceæ); a prickly herb with blue flowers and spiny leaves used to trace ornamental lines on earthenware. Syn. gigi? dauḍar Maguzawa? (Etym. because it often remains unburnt when the grass is fired).

fatakka, Pergularia tomentosa, L. (Asclepiadeæ); a plant with orbicular hoary leaves and milky juice; used by tanners as a “bating” bath after unhairing and before tanning. Syn. kwotowa (Sok.).

fate fate, a medicine or love potion used by women, made from the leaves of shiwaka, &c. (Vernonia amygdalina), q.v. Also a food prepared from various plants, e.g. flowers of tsamiya, or leaves of rama, yaḍiya or zoḅarodo.

feḍḍa, screens made usually of the bulrush shalla, q.v.

fidda hakukuwa, Dyschoriste Perrottetii, O. Kunth. (Acanthaceæ); a water-side plant. (Etym. from the use of the seed to remove spicules of grass, &c. from the eye, the foreign particle adhering to the mucilaginous coat of the seed when placed in the eye).

fidda sartsi, or fidda saruta (Gobir), Euphorbia lateriflora, Sch. et Thon. A shrub with milky juice much used for hedges. (Etym. from its use as a poultice to extract a splinter).

fideli, Cassia Absus, L. (Leguminosæ). “Four-leaved Senna;” an undershrub with viscous foliage used medicinally.

filasko, Cassia obovata, Collad. (Leguminosæ). “Italian,” “Senegal” or “Tripoli Senna;” a low shrub with yellow flowers and flat sickle-shaped transversely ribbed pods; one of the varieties of commercial senna.

filfil, a spice; probably a var. of Capsicum (Arab. felfel).

fisawa or fiso? vide ḍan farkami.

[31]fita, Clinogyne filipes, Benth. (= Donax filipes, Schaumann) (Scitamineæ); a water-plant with spear-head-shaped leaves commonly used to wrap up food.

fiyaka, vide jibda ḳassa and gaḍaukuka.

fuda or huda = young flower-buds of any tree; cf. tofo and labaye. hudar awaki, vide geḍar awaki.

fular tsofo, Polycarpæa linearifolia, DC. (Caryophylleæ); a herb with heads of white chaffy flowers. Syn. magudiya, q.v. cf. bakin suda.

fura, a grass, Pennisetum pedicellatum. Syn. ḳyasuwa, q.v.

fure = a flower; (when unqualified generally = flowers of the tobacco plant).

furen gadu (f. gyado), vide awarwaro.

furen yan sariki, Lonchocarpus sp.? a tree with panicles of blue or purple flowers; used as a charm by one who hopes to be king.

furfura ta gyatumi (or jatumi), Ærua tomentosa, Forst. (Amaranthaceæ); a hoary white erect plant; vide alhaji. (Etym. “hoary locks”). The name is loosely applied to some other plants of white habit.

G

gaba chara (Sok. and Zanf.), Acacia Dalzielli, Craib. (Leguminosæ); a tree with panicles of yellow flower-balls. (Etym. the name of the yellow-breasted thrush Cossypha albicapilla). Syn. gwanno.

gabara (Sok.), Arundo Donax, L. (Gramineæ). “Spanish Reed;” a very tall grass of river-banks, with hollow stem and large silky flowering head; stems used for flutes and pipe-stems. Syn. machara, q.v. and wutsiyar giwa.

gabaruwa, syn. bagaruwa, q.v. Acacia arabica, Willd.

gabu, vide under albasa.

gaḍakuka or gaḍaukuka (Katagum, &c. the Ful. name); Aristolochia albida, Duch. (Aristolochiaceæ); a[32] twiner with oddly shaped lurid black-purple flowers; sometimes confused with jibda ḳassa, q.v, and the bitter root sold as such; a remedy for Guinea-worm, &c. and a bitter tonic. Syn. maḍachin ḳassa, dumar dutsi, and ?fiyaka.

gadagi, Alysicarpus vaginalis, DC. (Leguminosæ); a common herb, used when ripe as a fodder for horses; (including the similar A. rugosus, DC.).

gadon machiji (Sok.), Trianthema monogyna, L. and T. pentandra, L. (Ficoideæ). “Horse Purslane;” two very similar and common succulent weeds, forming a thick growth in waste places. Synonyms are hana taḳama (because one has to walk warily amongst it), and dabrin saniya (= “cow’s lip” but cf. halshen saniya or fasa ḳabba). The name is elsewhere commonly applied to a species of convolvulus, yamḅururu, q.v.

gadu (Zanfara), Pavetta Barteri, Dawe (Rubiaceæ); a shrub the leaves of which are used by some pagan tribes as food, with kunu of cereals, &c.

gagayi, an aphrodisiac prescription of 12 ingredients; vide gangawari; applied also to several plants supposed to have the same property, e.g. baḳin gagayi = Fadogia agrestis, Schweinf. (Rubiaceæ), an erect plant with a tough root.

gaji (Sok.), a grass used for plaiting armlets, &c. (Syn. ?karani and darambuwa).

gajiri, Cymbopogon hirtus (Gramineæ); a tall grass used for thatching, for zana, &c. Syn. jimfi, or jimpa jimpa (Sok. Kats. and Zanf.). The name probably includes more than one species.

gamba, Andropogon Guyanus, Kunth. (Gramineæ); a very common tall grass with bifid flowering spikes; perhaps the most commonly used grass for zana.

gamji or ganji (Kano), Ficus platyphylla Del. (Urticaceæ). “Gutta-percha Tree;” a large tree with broad conspicuously veined leaves and small edible figs (vide lubiya). The latex forms an inferior kind of rubber (“Red Kano rubber”).

[33]gamma faḍa (Kano, &c.), Cassia Kotschyana, Oliv. (Leguminosæ); a tree with laburnum-like yellow flowers and long cylindrical pods which do not split. Syn. malga or marga (Sok. Gobir, &c.). Also Cassia Sieberiana, DC. and perhaps other species (very similar to the “Pudding Pipe Tree”—Cassia fistula). The dark pulp around the seeds is a laxative drug. Scarcely distinguished in Hausa from the somewhat similar Cassia Arereh, Swartzia madagascariensis, Oliv. and others whose pods split longitudinally. vide under bayama, bogo zage, and haḍa fuḍa. The pods of some of these are sometimes used as a fish-poison, vide under ago and baina. (Etym. gamma faḍa—“leading to feud,” from unskilled or improper use as a drug.)

gamma gari, vide under goro.

gamma sanwa, vide bakin mutum.

gammon bawa, Merremia angustifolia. Syn. yamḅururu. (Etym. the equivalent of a Beri Beri name—“slave’s head-pad”).

gandi, a var. of kola nut; vide under goro.

gangamau, Curcuma longa, L. (Scitamineæ); Turmeric, a plant like ginger; the rhizome is sold in the form of slices and used as a yellow dye for leather, &c. Syn. turri. (Kanuri kurgum, Arabic and Hebrew kurkum). cf. zabibi.

gangame (Sok.), the expanded fronds of the palms goriba or giginya, &c. Syn. kari (Kano); nearly the same as kaba, q.v.

gangawari, the thickened root of a sedge or grass; one of the constant ingredients of the aphrodisiac gagayi, q.v.

ganji (Kano). Syn. gamji, q.v. Ficus platyphylla, Del.

ganji gaga, a var. of kola nut; vide under goro.

ganwon rama = coils of undressed hemp fibre, vide under rama.

garafuni, Momordica balsamina, L. (Cucurbitaceæ). “Balsam Apple;” a twiner of the cucumber family, with yellow flowers and orange-yellow tubercled fruits; used medicinally and in soup, and as a soap forming a viscid solution in water.

[34]namijin garafuni, Ctenolepis cerasiformis, Hook. f. a twiner of the same family, with scarlet cherry-like fruit. Syn. ḍiyan hanwawa (Sok.).

garafunin fadama or g. kwata, vide gautan kwaḍo.

garamani (Sok.), Sida cordifolia, L. (Malvaceæ); a hard-stemmed weed with soft cordate leaves and yellow flowers; (a pest in Sokoto, &c.). Syn. farin garamani as distinct from baḳin garamani or ramaniya, q.v. In East Hausa sometimes called mai-ḳafo (from the paired long processes on the carpels); also kardafi (Katagum). The bark yields a fibre.

garaji, a fodder grass with edible grain. ?The same as baya and saḅe, q.v.

garangarma, vide under guna.

garasa, vide katsaimu.

gardayi, Acacia macrostachys, Reich. (Leguminosæ); a gum-yielding acacia common in Sokoto province.

garicha (Zanfara), Ficus sp. (Urticaceæ). vide haguguwa and uwar yara.

gasaya (Kano, &c.), Gynandropsis pentaphylla, DC. (Capparideæ); a common herb near habitations, with 5-foliate leaves and white flowers; used as a pot-herb. Syn. yar unguwa (Sok.). The name namijin gasaya is applied loosely to several weeds, e.g. Amaranthus polygamus, L. (Amaranthaceæ), Polanisia viscosa, DC. (Capparideæ), Croton lobatus, L. (Euphorbiaceæ), &c.

gatarin kurege (Sok.), Gloriosa superba, L. a climbing lily, more generally known as baurairai, q.v.

gatarin zomo, Tacca pinnatifida, Forst. more commonly known as giginyar biri, q.v.

gaton kariya or chuchun kariya, vide gujiyar hankaka.

gauḍe, Gardenia erubescens, Stapf and Hutch. (Rubiaceæ); a shrub, common in the bush, with fragrant white tubular flowers, tough wood and yellowish ovoid edible fruit. The fruit is used by women in the preparation of a form of the black cosmetic katambiri, q.v.

[35]gauḍen dutsi (Sok.), Gardenia Sokotensis, Hutch. a low shrub with white flowers, found on rocky hills.

gauḍen kura, Gardenia ternifolia, Thunberg (= G. Thunbergii, Linn. f.), a shrub similar to gauḍe, with coarse not edible fruit.

gaugayi, vide ḳuduji.

gauta, Solanum sp. Native bitter tomato; probably a var. of Solanum Melongena. ḍata or ḍwata (gautan ḍwachi) is a small very bitter variety, scarlet when ripe, and usually lobed; used in soup; kulufita, smaller than gauta; yalo, a large var. scarlet when ripe, often eaten raw = Solanum Melongena, var. inerme, Hiern. (N.B. The “Brinjal” or “Aubergine” or “Egg Plant” is S. Melongena, Linn.).

gautan bagirmi, vide gorgo.

gautan kaji, Solanum nodiflorum, Jacq. (= S. nigrum, var. guineense, Linn.) “Black Nightshade;” an erect branching weed of waste places with white flowers and small black berries. cf. gautan tsuntsu.

gautan kura, Solanum incanum, L. a prickly undershrub with hoary leaves, a yellow tomato-like fruit, and white or lilac-purple flowers; a deliriant poison. The name includes other poisonous species of Solanum in different districts. Sometimes called idon saniya = “ox-eye,” from the Ful. name giti nai.

gautan kwaḍo, Cardiospermum Halicacabum, L. (Sapindaceæ). “Balloon Vine,” “Winter Cherry,” or “Heart Pea;” a straggling plant of damp and waste places, with tendrils and graceful foliage, small white flowers and bladdery 3-angled capsule. Syn. garafunin fadama or garafunin kwata (kwata = water-side); vide also godar zomo.

gautan tsuntsu, Solanum scalare, C. H. Wright; a plant of the native tomato tribe, with small red edible berries, cultivated near houses. (The name is often confused with gautan kaji, q.v.).

[36]gautan zomo, Mukia scabrella, Arn. (Cucurbitaceæ); a rough-leaved twining plant (like Bryony), with small red berries. Syn. malami, q.v.

gawasa, Parinarium macrophyllum, Sabine (Rosaceæ). “Ginger-bread Plum;” a broad-leaved tree found in the northern provinces, bearing a dry plum-like fruit.

gawo, Acacia albida, Del. (Leguminosæ); a large acacia-tree very common in the north; bearing creamy-white flower-spikes and orange-yellow twisted pods; it is leafless during the rains and blooms from October onward; foliage a good camel food. A sort of pack-saddle called tasshi (East Hausa), is made from the bark.

gayan gayan, a sort of twining bean. (?Vigna membranacea, A. Rich.), vide waken barewa.

gazara, a tall grass, used for arrow-shafts.

gazari, a var. of kola nut; vide under goro.

gazari or gizeri (Hadeija), Mærua sp. (Capparideæ); a tree with smooth bark, whitish flowers and small beaded pods.

geḍa (Kano, &c.), gyaḍa (Sok.), Arachis hypogæa, L. (Leguminosæ). “Ground Nut.” “Monkey Nut.” “Archides.” “Earth-pea.” In Sokoto usually called gujiya, q.v. Eaten raw or roasted or prepared in various ways. man geḍa = the expressed oil, used for cooking and as an illuminant; harawar geḍa, ground-nut hay, a valuable dry-season fodder; kwalli kwalli, balls or rings like doughnuts, made of ground-nut paste fried in oil. gujiya kolanche (Sok.), a var. of geḍa with long pods.

geḍar awaki, common leguminous weeds of fields, with yellow flowers and inflated pods, used as fodder. Syn. hudar awaki, biranar awaki, &c. (Crotalaria cylindrocarpa, DC. C. atrorubens, Hochst. C. macrocalyx, Benth. C. maxillaris, Hochst. and other species).

geḍar kurumi, Pterocarpus esculentus, Sch. et Thon. (Leguminosæ); a tree of river banks and forests in the south, with yellow flowers and short irregularly shaped 2-seeded pods; the seeds—called also gunduru—are roasted and eaten in scarcity.

[37]geḍar ruwa, Trapa bispinosa, Roxb. (Onagrarieæ). “Water Chestnut.” “Water Caltrop.” An aquatic plant with floating leaves and edible horned fruit, cultivated in ponds. (Scarcely known in Hausa; the name is the equivalent of the Ful. biriji diam). Syn. kwankwarita (East Hausa).

gemen kusu or g. ḅera, Fimbristylis exilis, R. and S. (and other spp. Cyperaceæ); a small tufted sedge with very slender leaves and slightly fragrant root. Syn. riḍin tuji.

gero, Pennisetum typhoideum, Rich. (= P. spicatum, R. and S.). “Bulrush Millet.” “Pearl Millet.” cf. maiwa (P. spicatum, var.), and damro; (vide also under karmami and yabainya).

Some of the varieties of gero are:—

idon hawanya, with a large grain concealed in the husk;

haḳorin machiji (North of Kano), a long spike with abundant hard very small grains;

zango, with a very long fruiting spike;

zamfaruwa; bazaume or bazarme (a corruption of Ba-Zabarme);

girgera or gargasa, a white-grained variety like maiwa, but considered one of the best or most elegant (= farin gero or geron Adar, because common in French territory);

ba anguri (East Hausa), the same as or a near variety to girgera;

tarnekuwa; wuyan bajimi, a short thick spike with hard grain and much chaff;

tamangaji, a variety with pointed grains;

lawur, a short variety quickly ripe;

shibra or shura (Pennisetum Benthamii, Steud. var.?), a short and thin-stemmed variety early maturing; (also applied to infertile spikes not maturing, stripped while young and used in kunu or soup, &c.).

Lesser variations are:—

halshen damo, with a bifid spike;

gero mai geme, when the lower part of the flowering spike is compound;

[38]gero mai gashi, a bristly spike, (considered of value because birds cannot plunder), and called gargasa (= hirsute) in Kano; the same as girgera;

gumba = gero cleaned, husked and winnowed, and ground up for eating uncooked with milk and other food.

Geron tsuntsaye, 1. Phyllanthus pentandrus, Sch. and Thon. (and other similar species of Euphorbiaceæ); a common slender-branched weed with minute capsular fruit eaten by birds; syn. hatsin tsuntsaye. 2. The fruiting head of a species of bulrush (Typha australis), called shalla, q.v.

gewayen tsamiya, usually = Vitis quadrangularis, vide ḍaḍori, but sometimes applied to several other plants growing under or climbing upon the tamarind-tree.

geza, Combretum sp. probably C. altum, Perr. (Combretaceæ); a shrub or small tree with white flowers and 4-winged fruit, well known in the north.

fara geza, Combretum aculeatum, Vent. a shrub with 4-winged fruit and clusters of white flowers; (a different species from the above).

gigi? (Sok.), vide faskara toyi.

giginya, Borassus flabellifer, var. æthiopum, Warb. (Palmeæ). “Deleb Palm,” “Fan” or “Palmyra Palm;” common straight-stemmed palm with fan-like leaves.

muruchi = the young germinating shoots, eaten as a vegetable; shedari = a mat made of the unexpanded fronds—(called murlin giginya, vide under murli).

ḳodago, the nut, and the kernel kwalshi, vide under goriba. cf. also gangame, kankămi and ḳarari. ḳarri (Kano) = fronds of giginya, cf. kaba.

ḳundu (Kano) = the bulging of the giginya stem.

giginyar biri, Tacca pinnatifida, Forst. (= T. involucrata, Sch. and Thon.) (Taccaceæ). A perennial herb with a superficial resemblance to a small palm, having a long-stalked divided leaf and an umbel of greenish flowers and yellow succulent fruit. The large starchy tuber is an important article of food in some countries; a var. of[39] “arrowroot” is prepared from it in the Pacific Islands and elsewhere; vide under amara. Boys call the tall flowering stems sandan yan bori, sandan biri, or sandan dutsi, and use them as toy spears. Other names for the plant are gatarin zomo and ?yayu or tara yaya (Katagum).

girgera, a var. of gero, q.v.

giri giri, 1. In Sokoto = aya aya, q.v. the tuber of a sedge. 2. In Kano, Hadeija, &c. = ?Pachyrhizus tuberosus, Spreng. “Yam Bean” or “Manioc Pea;” a bean with a starchy tuberous root. (vide also sa baba sata). The name includes Vigna ornata, Welw. a tuberous-rooted bean, with handsome pink flowers, in the Benué district (Munchi-ahoma). A speckled variety of the seeds is called kashin kaza.

gishirin dawaki, a grass; vide dataniya.

gishishiya? (Zanfara), a species of acacia; vide dussa.

giwa kamba, a var. of dawa, q.v.

giyeya or giyaiya, Mitragyne africana, Korth. (Rubiaceæ); a tree with spherical heads of flowers, abundant in damp localities.

gizaḳi (Zanfara), Carissa edulis, Vahl. (Apocynaceæ); a scrambling shrub with black sweet berries. The root is put in the goran ruwa to render water agreeable. Syn. ?uwa banza.

gizari, vide gazari.

gizgiri, Cyperus auricomus, Spreng. (Cyperaceæ); a tall sedge with tuberous slightly fragrant root which is used like kajiji, q.v. Syn. kajijin fadama; (possibly the same as ḍan Tunuga, q.v.).

gizgirin kaba, vide under goriba.

godar zomo, Tinnea Barteri, Gürke (Labiatæ); an undershrub with a deep-purple flower and inflated calyx. (Etym. “hare-bell”). (Also applied to Cardiospermum Halicacabum, vide gautan kwaḍo, on account of the inflated capsule).

goga jiki, Combretum sp. ?C. leonense, Engl. and Diels.; a tree with rough fissured bark. (Etym. from the chafing[40] of the skin when faggots are carried in the arms). A gum-yielder. ?Syn. wuyan damo, q.v. gogin damo (Zanfara).

goga masu, Mitracarpum scabrum, Zucc. (Rubiaceæ); a weed with small white flowers, used as a medicine for hair-lice, itch, &c. (Etym. “smear spears,” from its superstitious use as a preventive against wounds). Syn. harwatsi (Sok.).

goge (?Hausa), Feretia canthioides, Hiern. (Rubiaceæ). Syn. ḳuruḳuru, q.v. and lallen suri.

gogin damo, vide goga jiki.

goji, pumpkin, vide under kabewa.

gojin jima or gunar jima, Adenopus breviflorus, Benth. (Cucurbitaceæ); a wild pumpkin-like twiner growing on trees, with ovoid mottled fruit used by tanners for dehairing.

gombiliki (Sok.), vide falfoli.

gongola or gwongola, a canoe-pole of the tukuruwa palm, q.v. (gwangwala = the Nupé name for the palm Raphia vinifera).

gora, a var. of the bottle-gourd; vide under duma.

gora, Oxytenanthera abyssinica, Monro (Gramineæ); a kind of bamboo, common in ravines.

gorgo (?Kanuri), Solanum sp.; the flowers of a plant like the native tomato (gauta), used to rub the teeth. Syn. gautan bagirmi and jaudari (East Hausa).

goriba, Hyphæne Thebaica, Mart. (Palmeæ). “Dum Palm.” “Ginger-bread Palm.” Common palm with forked stems. kaba, q.v. = the fronds, used for plaiting various articles; gizgirin kaba = the thickened root of giginya; kwalshi = the edible kernel of the unripe nut eaten raw; ḳodago or ḳwalu = the ripe hard nut; the rind is used as food and in making maḍi (molasses) and allewa (a sweetmeat); zaḳi birri (East Hausa or Kanuri) = the rind made into cakes (waina, &c.). Fibre is got from the root, vide under meḍi. cf. also gangame, kankămi, ḳarari and murli.

goriya, vide under goro.

[41]goro, Kola Nut; the seed of Cola acuminata, Schott. and Endl. and other species (Sterculiaceæ). (The true Kola has the seed divisible into 2 sections (cotyledons), in the other species there are usually 3 or 4. “Genuine” Kola nut = C. acuminata (Gold Coast). “False” Kola nut = C. Johnsoni and C. verticillata (Gold Coast). “Bitter Kola seeds” = Garcinia Conrauana, Engl. (Guttiferæ) (N. and S. Nigeria), eaten but not a stimulant). Imported from Gold Coast, Lagos, and Adamawa; cultivated in some southern provinces. Some of the numerous trade varieties are:—

goriya, pl. goriye, the largest nuts; marsa, the second size of nuts; minu, the smallest; labuje, a large pale var. from Gwanja and grown in Bida, said to be the best; ḍan kwataho, the best in Adamawa, Benué, from Ngaumdere, Bamyo, &c.; ataras, a Gwanja nut; hannu ruwa, a cheap pale variety divisible into 3 or more sections, from Bamyo, &c. (name from the viscid juice); ḍalaka or ḍan laka, a larger nut resembling hannu ruwa; sandalu, also a pale nut of similar type; ganji gaga, pale with about 4 sections, of inferior quality; from Bafum, &c.; gazari, an inferior var. viscid like hannu ruwa, from Bafum, &c.; ibi, an inferior var. got from Yoruba, not reddening the mouth (sometimes classed as goron biri); gandi, an inferior pale var. like ibi; jan karago, an early maturing rough-skinned var.; gamma gari, mature at the height of the season; nata, red and smooth, usually small.

ḅare = half a kola nut; gutsuri = pieces of kola nut handed round a company.

saran waga = 100 nuts of mixed sizes; farsa = the separated sections.

mijin goro, Sterculia or Cola, or Garcinia sp. (vide above), “Wild Kola,” “False Kola,” used medicinally. vide also sarawan goro.

goron biri or g. ruwa, Irvingia Smithii, Hook. f. (Simarubeæ); a large evergreen tree by streams and in ravines, with scarlet plum-like fruit.

[42]goron yan makaranta, an insect gall on the grass called katsaimu, q.v.

guda (Kano) or gudaji (Sok.), a bulb; the common onion, one of the varieties of albasa, q.v.

guḍe guḍe, Dactyloctenium ægyptiacum, Willd. (Gramineæ). “Comb Fringe Grass;” a small grass with 4-rayed spikes; a good horse fodder.

gudumar biri, vide katsaimu.

gudumar zomo (East Hausa), a name for Gloriosa superba, L. vide baurairai.

gujiya (Kano &c.), Voandzeia subterranea, Thouars. (Leguminosæ); a kind of ground-bean; the so-called “Bambarra Ground Nut.” Syn. kwaruru, q.v. N.B. In Sokoto and some other districts gujiya is also used for geḍa (Arachis hypogæa)—kwaruru or Voandzeia subterranea being distinguished as g. dukkus (Sok. and West), etym. from the dwarf habit—; similarly g. ḳwarasḳwaras (Sok. and Kano); g. tsugunne (Kano)—etym. tsugunna = to squat—gujiya al kuluga, and g. maikwokwo (from the resemblance of the pods to the smallest calabash) are names in East Hausa; g. kolanche (Sok.) = a long variety of Arachis or geḍa, q.v. bidi = one of the varieties of gujiya with spotted and mottled seeds.

gujiyar awaki, vide geḍar awaki.

gujiyar dawaki (Zanfara), Polygala arenaria, Willd. vide sa hankaki dako.

gujiyar hankaka (Katagum), Indigofera echinata, Willd. (Leguminosæ); a weed with small prickly pods, eaten by goats, &c. Syn. kwankwan dafi (Sok. and Kats.); also chuchun kariya or gaton kariya.

gumba, vide under gero.

gumbi, loosely applied to several plants which form thorny thickets; e.g. in Sokoto gumbi generally = Mimosa asperata, a thorny shrub very abundant on river-banks. vide ḳaidaji and cf. dufuwa and ḳumchi.

gumi = rice boiled and dried (in which form it is commonly sold); ḍanyen gumi = husked but still unboiled rice. vide under shinkafa.

[43]guna, Citrullus vulgaris, Schrad. (Cucurbitaceæ). The “Water-Melon” (a very variable species). gunar mutane or kankana = the edible or garden water-melon, with red pulp and black or red seeds; gunar shanu = the common half wild and cultivated var. with deeply cut leaves, and spherical fruit with green variegated stripes when unripe; fari (Kano and East) = a large water-melon, usually white-fleshed; kwokiya = a smaller sweet melon; tamna geḍa = a small melon like kwokiya, but only eaten cooked (= garangarma, East Hausa); bambus = a variety known in the north; agushi (Yoruba egushi) = seeds of water-melon, sold for various uses—chewing, medicine, oil, and food.

gunar jima, vide gojin jima.

gunar kura, Cucumis Figarei, Del. (Cucurbitaceæ); a wild prostrate gourd with ovoid slightly prickly fruit; better known as tsuwawun zaki, q.v.; also called maḳaimi.

gunda, gundar kabewa = the small immature fruits of the pumpkin (vide kabewa), used in soup. gundar turu turu = unexpanded flower-buds of ḍorowa, q.v.

gunduru, vide under geḍar kurumi.

gunguma, a long-leaved plant (?Amaryllideæ), used to stupefy birds, and sometimes added to arrow-poison. ?Syn. murtsunguwa.

guntsu = seeds of kuka, q.v.

gurasa, vide under alkama.

gurdugu, Grewia sp. (Tiliaceæ); a shrub with small yellow flowers and sweet edible berries. Syn. kamu mowa, q.v. and ?kimbar dutsi.

gurguzu = seeds of the “Red Sorrel” or yakuwa, q.v.

guriya (Sok.) = seeds of cotton; vide under abduga.

gurji, Cucumis Melo, Linn. var. agrestis, Naud. (Cucurbitaceæ); a small prostrate gourd with ovoid striped fruit used in soup; much used in East Hausa and Bornu; probably more than one variety; e.g. kwantal or gurji kwantal—a smaller one less used. Syn. gwalli (Sok.). gurjin daji, applied to some wild gourds, e.g. Cephalandra indica, Naud. a wild climber with white flowers and cucumber-like fruit turning red and succulent; not edible.

[44]gurjiya, Bombax buonopozense, Beauv. (Malvaceæ). “Red-flowered Silk Cotton Tree;” a tree like rimi, q.v. but smaller, with red tulip-like flowers and stout thorns on the branches. The silky hairs are used to stuff pack-saddles, armour-quilts &c. Syn. kuriya (Sok. and Zanf.).

guro (Sok.), Hibiscus esculentus, Linn. The okra. Syn. kuḅewa, q.v.

gursami, a plant with radiate tuberous roots eaten in scarcity.

gusu? (Zanfara). Syn. for tsa, q.v. a shrub—Phyllanthus reticulatus.

gutsuri, vide under goro.

gwabsa (Sok. Kats. and Zanf.), Cussonia nigerica, Hutch. sp. nov. (Araliaceæ); a tree with large digitate leaves, corrugated bark and odorous sap; often called takanḍar giwa, q.v.; also hannun kuturu (from the bare leafless branches in the dry season). namijin gwabsa (or takanḍar giwa, Sok. Kats. and Zanf.) = Hannoa undulata, Planch. (Simarubeæ); a tree with pinnate leaves, fragrant white blossoms, and black plum-like fruit.

gwaḍayi or gwoḍeyi, Hippocratea obtusifolia, var. Richardiana, Loes. (Celastrineæ); a twining shrub with tough stems used as tie-tie for tanka, &c., resisting white ants. (Perhaps several plants of similar habit and use are included in the Hausa name; cf. kana kana). cf. the expression gwaḍayi, ba saranka, ba ja—if not cut first it cannot be broken by pulling.

gwaigwaya? (Katagum &c.), Cyperus exaltatus, Retz. (Cyperaceæ); a tall sedge of wet places, with 3-angled stem, and radiating numerous flower-spikes. Syn. karan masallachin kogi.

gwalli, vide gurji.

gwanda or g. Masar, Carica Papaia, Linn. (Papayaceæ). The “Pawpaw” or “Melon Tree.”

gwandar daji, Anona senegalensis, Pers. (Anonaceæ); a species of Custard Apple common in the bush, with yellow edible fruit and fragrant leaves.

[45]gwandayi (Kano &c.), Stylochiton Dalzielii, N.E. Br. sp. nov. (Aroideæ); a plant of the Arum-lily family, with arrow-head leaves and a yellow root; young leaves and root sometimes eaten as a pot-herb after prolonged boiling to remove the acrid principle. Syn. kinchiya (Sok. and Kats.).

Gwanja kusa, a name for several plants supposed to have properties resembling kola and other economic products of Gwanja in G. Coast, N. Terr. e.g. often applied to the “Akee Apple”—Blighia sapida, Koenig. (vide alale), which has scarlet fruit reminiscent of kola; also Parinarium curatellæfolium (vide rura), a tree the young leaf of which is sometimes chewed and reddens the mouth; the flowers of Trichilia emetica (vide jan saye), similarly used; the herb Heliotropium Zeylanicum, Lam. (Boragineæ), used as a tonic, and staining the lips like kola. Also several plants which turn black in drying (chiefly Scrophularineæ), and are sometimes mixed with indigo, e.g. Cycnium camporum, Eng. with white petunia-like flowers.

gwanno (Sok. and Zanf.), vide gabachara.

gwano rafi, Olax subscorpioidea, Oliv. (Olacineæ); an evergreen shrub with an unpleasant odour; (gwano = the stink ant).

gwaska, itchen gwaska, Erythrophlœum guineense, Don. (Leguminosæ). “Sasswood.” “Ordeal Tree.” A forest tree; the bark (“sassy bark”) is used by some pagan tribes in an ordeal brew and as an occasional ingredient in arrow-poison.

gwaza, Colocasia antiquorum, Schott. (Aroideæ). The “Koko yam” (Yoruba—koko); an aroid plant with huge arrow-head leaves, cultivated for the starchy tuber. gwazar giwa, one of many names for an aroid with large lurid purple flower-spathe, a much-divided leaf and a bulky tuber with acrid juice; called also hansar giwa (“elephant’s breast”), kunnen jaki, buran jaki, and sometimes kinchiya, q.v.) = Amorphophallus dracontioides, N.E. Br.

[46]gwazkiya (Zanf.), vide bogo zage.

gwoḍeyi, vide gwaḍayi.

gwolon zaki, vide tsuwawun zaki.

gwundi, a var. of cotton; vide under abduga.

gyaḍa, the ground-nut, vide geḍa.

gyamro, vide under dawa.

gyandama, a var. of the bottle-gourd, vide under duma.

gyazama, Rottbœllia exaltata, Linn. fil. (Gramineæ); a tall harsh-leaved grass, eaten by horses; called also dadawa and dawa dawa.

H

haḍa fuḍa (Sok.), a name for Cassia Kotschyana, Oliv. (Leguminosæ), and probably other species of Cassia; vide under gamma faḍa. (?a corruption of a Fulani name).

haguguwa, a species of Ficus; vide uwar yara.

haki, pl. hakukuwa, any kind of grass or weed.

hakin furtau (Sok.), Sporobolus festivus, Hochst. (Gramineæ); a small slender grass with delicate panicle of small purplish flowers; sometimes mixed with others for thatching. (Etym. furtau = a quail).

haḳorin kada, Argemone Mexicana, Linn. Yellow prickly poppy; vide under kwarko.

haḳorin kare, Panicum fluitans, Retz. (Gramineæ); a grass with hollow stem, in wet places; used as fodder. (Etym. “dog’s tooth,” from the shape of the flower spikelets.)

haḳorin machiji, Achryanthes aspera, L. (Amaranthaceæ); a troublesome weed of waste places, with small sharply pointed reflexed flowers; commonly also called ḳaimin ḳadangare, q.v.

halshen saniya, 1. In Sok. Kats. Bauchi, &c. = Portulaca oleracea, Linn. “Purslane,” a common weed of waste places, with yellow flowers and succulent spathulate leaves, commonly called fasa ḳabba, q.v. and cf. also[47] dabrin saniya, vide under gadon machiji. 2. In Zanfara, &c. halshen sa = a name for Lonchocarpus laxiflorus, G. et P. a leguminous tree with purple flowers; leaves given to goats as fodder. vide shunin biri and farin sansami.

halshen damo, a var. of gero, q.v.

hana gobara (Zanfara), vide under dali.

hana taḳama, vide under gadon machiji.

hanjin rago, Oxystelma bornouense, R. Br. (Asclepiadeæ); a slender twiner with milky juice and white and purple flowers, commonly growing on bushes by streams.

hankufa, Waltheria americana, Linn. (Buettneriaceæ); a common erect weed or undershrub with soft leaves and small yellow flowers; used medicinally.

hannu biat or yatsa biat, a plant with 5-digitate leaves; used medicinally.

hannun giwa, a var. of dawa, q.v.

hannun kuturu, vide under gwabsa.

hannun marini, a var. of bean, vide under wake.

hannu ruwa, a var. of kola nut; vide under goro.

hano (Sok. and Kats., &c.), Boswellia Dalzielii, Hutch. sp. nov. and Boswellia odorata, Hutch. sp. nov. (Burseraceæ). Two closely similar species of “Frankincense Tree” (the former more in Sokoto, Kontagora, Zaria, &c., the latter in Yola province, &c.). Syn. ararabi (Katsina, &c.), basamu (Sok. and Zanf.). The fragrant gum-resin is used medicinally and as a fumigation for clothing, houses, &c. (Etym. from hana, to prevent, from a prejudice some have against it, believing that it prevents success in trade, &c.; a form of deceit is to adulterate or substitute it for other resins such as ḳaron maje, &c. cf. the name ba samu indicating the same idea).

hansar gada, hansar giwa, names given to several Aroid plants; vide tsakara, gwazar giwa, &c.; (hansa = the breast).

hanza, vide anza.

[48]harawa, stem and leaf of bean and ground-nut plants, used as fodder, harawan wake, harawan geḍa. harawan ḍorowa, vide under ḍorowa.

harḳiya, Digitaria debilis, Willd. (Gramineæ); a common fodder grass, 1½ to 2 feet high, with several slender flower rays. “Finger Grass.”

harwatsi (Sok.), Mitracarpum scabrum, Zucc. (Rubiaceæ); a common weed. Syn. goga masu, q.v.

hatsin manoma (Sok.), Pancratium trianthum, Herb. (Amaryllideæ); a bulbous herb with beautiful white lily-like flowers appearing with the early rains; (sometimes called “Spider Lily”).

haujeri (Katagum, &c.), haujerin mutane, Capparis corymbosa, Lam. (Capparideæ). A climbing thorny shrub, with white flowers and yellow fruit like a small orange, sometimes eaten. The leaves are sometimes used as food. haujerin raḳumi, Capparis tomentosa, Lam. A thorny woody climber similar to the last, more common and with larger fruit, not eaten. Generally called ḳabdodo (Sok. Kats., &c.); ?chauchaka (Zanfara).

haukat yaro, Datura Metel, Linn. (Solanaceæ). “Hairy Thorn Apple.” vide zaḳami, and babba juji. A large weed of waste places, with long trumpet-shaped white flowers. (Etym. from its deliriant property).

hawayen zaki, Anaphrenium abyssinicum, Hochst. (= Rhus insignis, Del.) (Anacardiaceæ). A tree with milky juice; the stems are commonly used as sticks to apply kwolli.

huda, vide fuda; hudar awaki, vide under geḍa and biya rana.

I

ibi, a var. of kola nut; vide under goro.

iburu (or aburu), a common cereal much planted in Zaria and other districts.

idon saniya (Kano and East), Solanum incanum, Linn. and other species of Solanum; (the equivalent of the Ful. name giti nai or “ox-eye”). vide gautan kura.

[49]idon zakara, Abrus precatorius, Linn. (Leguminosæ). “Prayer Beads,” “Jequirity,” “Bird’s Eye” (S. Leone). A twiner with pinnate leaves and clustered pods containing small scarlet seeds with a black spot; used chiefly as a medicinal charm. Syn. tandara (Kano and Kats.), taga rana (Kano market), (idon zakara is also used for the scarlet seeds of minjiriya, q.v. Erythrina senegalensis).

ingidido, Cratæva Adansonii, G. et P. (Capparideæ); a tree with 3 fol. leaves, white flowers and a yellow-shelled fruit.

ingirichi = chopped-up hay as fodder.

intaya, vide acha, a small grass cultivated as a cereal.

innuwar ḅauna, Morelia senegalensis, A. Rich. (Rubiaceae); an evergreen shrub with white flowers, common on the banks of streams.

innuwar gada, Opilia celtidifolia, Endl. (Olacineæ); a climbing shrub with fragrant whitish flowers; used medicinally for horses, &c.; sometimes called namijin lemu.

innuwar tufi (Sok.), a floating plant in pools, &c. (tufi = a sp. of fish). ?Æschynome crassicaulis, Harms. vide kaiḍajin ruwa.

itchen gado, Fluggea microcarpa, Blume (Euphorbiaceæ); a shrub the stems of which are used for native beds, &c.; more generally called tsa, q.v.

itchen kurḍi, 1. In Sokoto = Melia Azedarach, Linn. (Meliaceæ). “Pride of India,” “Persian” or “African Lilac.” A tree with twice-pinnate leaves, bunches of lilac flowers and ovoid yellow fruit. (Etym. “taḅa ni ka samu kurḍi,” from a supposed virtue as a charm). Syn. kurnan nasara (Kontagora, East Hausa, &c.), q.v. 2. Burkea africana, Hook. (Leguminosæ); a large tree with pale twice-pinnate leaves, spikes of creamy flowers and small flat pods. vide kurḍi.

itchen Masar, Croton Zambesicus, Müell. Arg. (Euphorbiaceæ); a shrub sometimes planted in native compounds; (name given to several exotic plants).

[50]J

jallo, a small var. of bottle-gourd; vide under duma.

jan baḳo (Sok. and Zanf.), a name given to certain thatching grasses which turn red in colour when mature; e.g. Andropogon apricus, var. africanus, Hack. and Andropogon exilis, Hochst. (vide jan rauno). Syn. jan bauje, jan datsi; vide also laḅanda.

jan itache, vide jan yaro.

janjari (Sok.), a var. of dawa, q.v.

jan karago, vide under goro.

jan rauno (or jan ramno, Sok.), Andropogon exilis, Hochst. (Gramineæ). A grass about 1½ to 2 feet high, turning russet-red in autumn; used for thatch, and chopped up to mix with building clay; also a fodder grass. Syn. jan bauje; cf. also jan baḳo, and vide ramno.

jan saye (Sok., Zanf., Kontagora), Trichilia emetica, Vahl. (Meliaceæ). A tree common in central Hausaland. The seeds yield a less important oil; root used in native medicine. vide Gwanja kusa.

jan yaro (or jan itache), Hymenocardia acida, Tul. (Euphorbiaceæ). A shrub or small tree with a reddish bark.

jaudari (East Hausa), Solanum sp. Syn. gorgo, q.v.

jawul = Myrrh, the gum-resin of Balsamodendron myrrha, Nees. (Burseraceæ); brought by Arabs; (possibly also that of Odina Wodier, Roxb. called jewul or jiyal in India).

jema, Vetiveria zizanioides, Stapf. (Gramineæ). “Vetiver” or “Cus Cus,” a tall clump-grass of marshy places; used for zana, and for plaiting straw armlets called darambuwa, q.v. In some districts the large swamp-grass with red-purple flowering heads—Rhytachne gigantea, Stapf.—is included.

jemo, a short club-shaped var. of the bottle-gourd; vide under duma.

[51]jibda ḳassa, Cissampelos Pareira, Linn. (Menispermaceæ). “Velvet-leaf” of “False Pareira Brava.” An ivy-like twiner with greyish velvety leaves; the bitter root is sold as a medicine for many purposes, and is considered sarikin ḍachi as zuma is sarikin zaḳi. (The name is sometimes corrupted into judar ḳas). Also called fiyaka or piyaka. vide also under gaḍaukuka.

jigari (Ful.), a var. of dawa, q.v.

jimbiri, “haricots verts,” uncooked bean pods used for food, vide under wake.

jimfa, vide majimfa.

jimfi or jimpa jimpa (Kats. Sok. and Zanf.), vide gajiri.

jimshi, vide dussa.

jina jina (Sok. and Zanf.), vide bajini.

jinin mutum, Arnebia Hispidissima, DC. (Boragineæ); a rough-leaved weed with small yellow flowers and a red root capable of use as a dye.

jirga (Sok. and Kats.), Bauhinia rufescens, Lam. (Leguminosæ). A shrub with small bifid leaves and black twisted pods; used medicinally and as a charm. Syn. tsatsagi (Sok. Zaria, Kano, &c.) or matsagi.

jiri, Stereospermum Kunthianum, Cham. (Bignoniaceæ). A tree with beautiful pink flowers, smooth bark and slender pendulous pods; more commonly called sansami, q.v.

K

kaba, the fronds of the goriba, q.v. or “Dum Palm,” Hyphæne Thebaica, Mart. (less applied to other palms, e.g. kabar giginya); used for plaiting mats, baskets, cordage, &c. cf. gangame, kankami, and ḳarri.

kabar giwa (Kano and East), Aloe Barteri, Baker? (Liliaceæ); an aloe with speckled succulent sharp-pointed leaves and yellow or red flowers. Syn. zabo (Sok.), q.v.

[52]ḳabdodo or ḳaudodo (Sok. and Kats.), or ḳwododo, Capparis tomentosa, Lam. (Capparideæ); a thorny shrub of climbing habit with a small orange-like fruit. vide haujeri (Katagum, &c.), and ?chauchaka (Zanfara), also ?chizaki.

kabewa (Kano, &c. = kubewa, Sok. but not kuḅewa, the okra, q.v.) Cucurbita Pepo, DC. (Cucurbitaceæ). Pumpkin or Pompion; (probably also C. maxima, Duch. Squash Gourd) a large cultivated gourd with harsh foliage and yellow flowers. Syn. goji (Zaria). kabushi (Sok.), or ruguguwa (Kano) = a long var. (var. ovifera) the Vegetable Marrow. gundar kabewa = the small immature fruits, used in soup; cf. under ḍorowa.

kabido, a long waterproof hood, made usually from palm-leaf of tukuruwa, q.v.

kachalla (Kanuri), vide shalla or salla.

kaḍa (Sok.), Cotton or the Cotton Plant; vide abduga.

kaḍa kaḍa (Kontagora), Cienfuegosia heteroclada, Sprague, (Bixineæ). A low shrub with pink flowers appearing from the base, and pods with a rusty wool resembling cotton.

kaḍanya or kaḍai, Butyrospermum Parkii, Kotschy. (Sapotaceæ). Shea Butter Tree. ḳwara = the kernel, used for production of the fat by boiling and skimming; man kaḍai = shea butter used as food, as an illuminant, and as a vehicle for medicines. The soft fleshy part of the fruit is edible. (hanchin kaḍai, vide ḳanumfari). namijin kaḍai, or mijin kaḍai = Lophira alata, Banks. (Dipterocarpeæ). “Meni Oil Tree.” A tree with white flowers and foliage which resembles that of kaḍanya. Bark medicinal, and leaf a common ju-ju or charm amongst some pagan tribes. The tree is sometimes (erroneously) called “African Oak.” Syn. kujeme?

kaḍanyar rafi or kaḍanyar kurumi, Adina microcephala, Hiern. (Rubiaceæ); a large tree with spherical heads of flowers, found on the banks of streams. (In the Benué region the name kaḍanyar kurumi or kiriyar kurumi has been applied to a different hard-wooded forest-tree.)

[53]kadaura (Kano, Zaria, &c.), Pardaniellia oliveri, Rolfe (= Daniellia thurifera, Bennett), (Leguminosæ). West African or Ilorin Copaiba Balsam Tree. Wood oil Tree. A large tree, the source of much of the West African copal. Syn. maje (Sok., &c.), q.v.

kaḍai, vide kaḍanya.

ka fafogo, Uapaca guineensis, Muell. Arg. (Euphorbiaceæ); a tree resembling a fig-tree, with broad shining leaves and yellowish ovoid fruit; sometimes an ingredient in arrow poison.

ḳafar fakara, or ḳafar gauraka (Sok. and Kats.), Chloris breviseta, Benth. (Gramineæ) (and C. virgata, Sw.). A grass about 2 feet high with radiating flower-spikes; seeds edible. Syn. sawun gauraka (Katagum &c.).

ḳafar kaza (Sok. and Zanf.), Ipomœa pterygocaulos, Hall fil. (Convolvulaceæ); a twiner with white flowers, winged stems and a divided leaf.

ḳafar mutuwa, Mallotus oppositifolius, Muell. Arg. (Euphorbiaceæ); a shrub growing on river-banks, with heart-shaped leaves used as a vermifuge.

ka fi boka, Ipomœa argentaurata, Hall fil. (Convolvulaceæ); a trailing convolvulus with whitish flowers and silvery hairy leaves. (Etym. from its use as a medicinal charm). Syn. farin gammo.

ka fi malam, Evolvulus alsinoides, Linn. (Convolvulaceæ). A small herb with pale blue flowers. (Etym. from its many uses as a medicine, love charm, &c.)

ka fi rama (Kano, &c.), Urena lobata, Linn. (Malvaceæ). An undershrub with pink flowers and bark yielding a fibre. Syn. ramaniya (Sok., Kats., &c.), q.v. vide also under garamani.

ḳafon baḍi or ḳ. batsi (Kano), a plant eaten in famine at the end of the dry season. Probably some of the tuberous Asclepiads or “Milkweeds” and others related, e.g. Cryptolepis nigritana, N.E. Br. (Apocynaceæ), an erect slender-branched undershrub with milky juice and a thickened root, is so named.

[54]ḳaguwa (Kano and East), or aguwa (Sok., Kats., &c.), Euphorbia sepium, N.E. Br.; a variety of “Milk Hedge,” a shrub with milky juice, planted as a hedge; very common in the north; (different from fidda sartsi, q.v.). Syn. aliyara (Gobir); waiyaro (Katagum). Used medicinally chiefly for horses.

ḳaidaji (Kano), ḳardaji (Sok.), Mimosa asperata, Linn. (Leguminosæ). A thorny mimosa abundant on river-banks with pinkish balls of flowers and slightly sensitive leaves. (Etym. a corruption of ḳaya da jini). In Sokoto sometimes spoken of as gumbi, q.v.

ḳaidajin ruwa, Æschynome crassicaulis, Harms. (Leguminosæ); a trailing water-plant with pinnate leaves and yellow flowers, on the surface of pools or muddy swamps. ?Syn. innuwar tufi (Sok.), q.v. and yaron kogi (Katagum).

ḳaiḳai, Parinarium polyandrum, Benth. (Rosaceæ); a tree with bunches of purple grape-like fruit; (scarcely distinct in Hausa from rura, q.v.).

ḳaiḳai ḳoma ḳan mashikiya, Indigofera astragalina, DC. (Leguminosæ); an erect hairy weed, used as a medicinal charm against poison and other injury. (Etym. “Oh chaff, return upon the winnower”!—intended injury returning to the evildoer’s hurt).

kaikwaiyo, vide under aduwa.

ḳaimin ḳadangare, Achryanthes aspera, Linn. (Amaranthaceæ). A weed with reflexed sharply spiked flowers. Syn. haḳorin machiji, q.v.

kain ḅarawo or kain mutum, Leonotis pallida, Benth. (Labiatæ). A tall herb with large globular whorls of flowers. Syn. tsikar sabra or tsikar gida (Sok.).

kain fakara, Cucumis Prophetarum, Linn. (Cucurbitaceæ). A ground trailer with striped gooseberry-like fruit, covered with soft prickles. Used medicinally. Syn. kanchekulkul (Kano, Kats. and East), and ya manya (Sok.).

kain mutum, vide kain ḅarawo.

[55]kai nuwa, Pistia Stratiotes, Linn. (Aroideæ). “Water Lettuce.” A floating plant filling stagnant pools.

kaiwa (Sok.), or kanya (Kano), Diospyros mespiliformis, Hochst. (Ebenaceæ). African Ebony Tree or Monkey Guava. A tree with very dark foliage and bark; the yellowish fruit with a brittle rind is edible and used for making maḍi.

kajiji (Kanuri), Cyperus articulatus, Linn. A sedge with fragrant tuberous root, wild and cultivated in Bornu, &c., much used as a perfume for clothing, &c., and as a medicine.

kajiji ḍan Tunuga, Cyperus sp. A sedge with a fragrant tuber similarly used. (Tunuga = a town in French Borgu). Other varieties of false kajiji are species of Cyperus with fragrant roots. vide gizgiri.

kajinjiri, a small species of palm; vide dabinon biri.

kaka biyu, a var. of bean; vide under wake.

kaka or (yaya) kai ka fitto, Sida linifolia, Cav. (Malvaceæ). A weed with hard stem. (Etym. from growing in hard soil; probably used for several different plants).

ka ḳi ganinbila, vide under hana gobara and dali.

ka ḳi ruwan Allah, vide kwarko.

ka ḳi zuwa Hausa, Costus afer, Ker. (Scitamineæ); a plant of the ginger family found in shaded ravines. (Etym. because supposed not to grow in Hausaland).

kakuma, a grass of marshes and river-banks; used to form tie-tie for zana, &c.

kalangon daji, a tree with large 4-angled pods. ?Tetrapleura sp. cf. dawo and sandan mayu.

kalgo, vide kargo.

kaluwa = seeds of ḍorowa, q.v.

kama, a tuber, somewhat like risga, planted in marshy ground; (different from gwaza and tumuku).

kamu mowa, Grewia sp. (Tiliaceæ); a shrub with small yellow flowers and sweet berries. Syn. gurdugu and ?kimbar dutsi.

[56]kana kana (Sok. and Zanf.), Paullinia pinnata, Linn. (Sapindaceæ). A woody twiner with white flowers and scarlet capsular fruit; stems used as tanka for houses and fences, &c.; (perhaps included also under gwoḍeyi, q.v.).

ka nannaḍe (Kano), ka nannaḍo (Sok. Kats. and Gobir), a var. of bean with curled pods, used as food; the beans are small but broad, with pale brown speckling.

kanawa, a var. of cotton; vide under abduga.

kanchekulkul (Kano, Kats., &c.), Cucumis Prophetarum, Linn. (Cucurbitaceæ); vide kain fakara.

kandari, Terminalia macroptera, G. et P. (Combretaceæ); a large tree with flat-winged and embossed fruits; (very similar to baushe, q.v. but a different species).

kanju, coast Hausa for Cashew, Anacardium occidentale.

kankami = the withered fronds of any palm, burnt by pagans in several districts (e.g. Fogha), to extract a sort of inferior salt.

kankana, water-melon; vide under guna.

kansuwa, a grass; vide kyasuwa.

ḳanumfari = cloves, the flower-buds of Eugenia caryophyllata, Thunb. (Myrtaceæ); brought from the north. Called also hanchin kaḍai, from the resemblance to the peduncle of the shea fruit. (Etym. Arab. karanfal).

kanya (Kano), or kaiwa (Sok.), q.v. Diospyros mespiliformis, Hochst. (Ebenaceæ). “African Ebony Tree.”

ḳarama anta, Withania somnifera, Dunal. (Solanaceæ). A shrub sometimes planted near houses, with small red berries within an inflated calyx (like the Cape Gooseberry); used medicinally.

ḳarama mowa (Sok. and Kats.). A wild var. of rama, q.v. Hibiscus cannabinus, Linn. (Malvaceæ). A tall plant chiefly of damp places, having large yellow flowers with a purple centre (similar to rama) and a harsh almost prickly surface. (Etym. “little beloved,” said to be from the spicular pubescence which clings to the clothing). Synonyms of the same or allied varieties are:—ramar rafi, ramar ruwa, yakuwar daji, yakuwar kwaḍi, yakuwar ḳaimamowa, yakuwar ḳaya, &c.

[57]karan dafi = the red leaf-sheaths of a var. of Sorghum (vide dawa), used chiefly as a dye for leather.

ḳarangiya, Cenchrus catharticus, Del. (Gramineæ). Prickly bur grass. A good fodder; seeds edible. ḳarangiya gumba, the uncooked seeds pounded and eaten raw, or prepared as fura.

ḳarangiyar kusu (Kano), or maḍaḍafin kusu (Sok.), Cyathula prostrata, Blume (Amaranthaceæ). A luxuriant weed of waste places, with a prickly bur. Also called tsatsarar ḅera, q.v.

karani, Digitaria Guyana, Kunth. a pale grass with white silvery flowering spikes; also called Ba-Fillatani, q.v. Syn. ?gaji (Sok.). vide darambuwa.

karan kaḅau, Andropogon (Arthrolepis) sp. nov. (Gramineæ). A tall grass with rather broad leaves. Syn. shamrayi (Gando).

karan kauji, vide fafewa.

karan masallachi, Caralluma Dalzielii, N.E. Br. (Asclepiadeæ). A leafless succulent plant with the habit of a small cactus, wild or planted near mosques, &c. Syn. wutsiyar damo (Sok. West), from the resemblance of the tapering young shoots to the tail of the damo, a large lizard, Varanus exanthematicus.

karan masallachin kogi, a name sometimes given to the taller sedges in pools, &c. vide gwaigwaya, (Cyperus exaltatus, Retz. &c.).

karan sariki, a name for rake, a sugar-cane. Saccharum officinarum, Linn.

karara, Mucuna pruriensis, DC. (Leguminosæ). “Cowitch” or “Cowhage.” A herbaceous climber with 3-foliate leaves; the pods especially are covered with rusty pungent hairs which cause intense irritation of the skin. (A species of “Velvet-bean”).

ḳarari = the fibrous veins of palm fronds (chiefly giginya and goriba), used for cordage, brooms, &c.

[58]ḳarasa, 1. In Gobir, Daura, &c. = Bitter Cassava, Manihot utilissima, vide under rogo. 2. In Kano, &c. = the tuber of a species of yam = doyar kudu (“southern yam”) planted south of Kano, and in Zanfara, &c.; not eaten as sokwara (cooked mashed yam).

kardafi, vide under garamani.

ḳardaji, vide ḳaidaji.

ḳare aiki, a var. of rama, q.v.

kargo or kalgo, Bauhinia reticulata, DC. (Leguminosæ). A very common shrub in the bush, with bifid leaves and brown pods; bark used as cordage.

ḳariya, Adenium Honghel, DC. (Apocynaceæ). A peculiar shrub planted near dwellings, with pink flowers; leafless at the time of flowering. (Etym. “the falsehood,” because rarely seen in fruit—ḳariya fure ta ke yi yaya ba ta yi ba).

kariye galma (“break hoe”), Combretum herbaceum, Don, an undershrub with a hard root; vide taru. Several very different plants with fibrous tufted roots are sometimes called by this name, the peculiar structure of the galma rendering it liable to injury; e.g. Aneilema beniniensis, and others; vide under tsidaun kare.

kariye gatari (“break axe”), a name given to some hard-wood trees, e.g. maḳarfo and kurḍi, q.v.

ḳarḳara (Kano, &c.), Acacia campylacantha, Hochst. (= A. Catechu, Willd. Leguminosæ); a thorny acacia which yields a good gum used in commerce and medicinally. Syn. karki (Sok. Kats. and Zanf.), and ḳayar raḳumi; also ḳaro (Kano, Sok. and Kats. the name merely meaning gum and applied to other trees). vide also farichin shafo or ḳumbar shafo.

karkashi or kalkashi, Ceratotheca sesamoides, Endl. (Pedaliaceæ). A prostrate herb with viscid juice and flowers similar to riḍi, or beni seed, q.v. Leaves used in soup, &c. Syn. yauḍo, Sok. q.v.

karkashin zomo, Indigofera bracteolata, G. et P. (Leguminosæ). A very common plant in the bush, with small leaves and red flowers.

[59]karki, vide ḳarḳara.

ḳaro, vide under ḳarḳara. (A name chiefly applied to Acacia campylacantha, but sometimes to other gum or resin-producing trees, e.g. kadaura, &c.); vide under maje.

kasara, Chloris robusta, Stapf, a tall grass with white radiating flower-spikes, found in the beds of rivers.

karmami = leafy shoots of dawa, gero, &c.

ḳarri = palm fronds; chiefly applied to giginya; vide kaba and gangame.

kasfiya (Sok. Kats. and Zanf.), Crossopteryx Kotschyana, Fenzl. (Rubiaceæ). A tree with bunches of whitish flowers and small hard black fruit. Also called kashin awaki (from the appearance of the fruit).

kashe kaji, vide under kaskawami.

kashi kashi ?(Kontagora), a large leguminous tree; vide kolo.

kashin gwanki, one of the names for Cucumis Figarei, Del. a prostrate weed of the gourd family; vide gunar kura or tsuwawun zaki.

kashin kaza, a kind of bean; vide under giri giri.

kaskaifi, Uraria picta, Desv. (Leguminosæ). A low perennial plant with long cylindrical flower-spike. (Etym. from its use as a medicinal charm against cutting weapons). Syn. dakushe, Sok. (Etym. “to be blunt”)—name probably applied to several plants, or to the prescription so used. cf. miya tsanya.

kaskawami, Psorospermum senegalense, Spach. (Hypericineæ). A shrub with red berries and dotted leaves. The leaves and bark are used as a remedy for itch, &c. also called kashe kaji.

kasmakaru, Aristida mutabilis, Trin. and Rupr. (Gramineæ). A grass with 3-rayed sharp awns, injurious to horses. (Etym. from injury to the jaw caused by the sharp awns)—name probably applied to several grasses.

[60]katambiri, 1. A tree with a ribbed fleshy fruit full of small seeds used to prepare a black cosmetic; (probably several species of Randia, and Gardenia, Nat. Ord. Rubiaceæ, e.g. Randia malleifera, Benth. et Hook. fil.). 2. The cosmetic prepared from this or from the fruit of gauḍe, q.v.

katsaimu (Sok. Kats. and East), Aristida stipoides, Lam. (Gramineæ). A tall grass with graceful panicle of sharply awned florets; commonly used for thatching, &c. Syn. garasa (Sok. and West); also wutsiyar jaki (Sok., &c.), and tsintsiyar kogi or ts. maza (Katagum). An insect-gall forming a top-shaped swelling on the stem of this grass is variously named, kunda, q.v. mazarin kyanwa, gudumar biri, or goron yan makaranta.

ḳatsa ḳatsa = burtuntuna, a Guinea-corn blight; vide under dawa.

katsami = daudawar kuka, vide under kuka.

katsări, Albizzia Chevalieri, Harms. (Leguminosæ); a tree of the acacia type, with loose balls of whitish fragrant flowers and flat brown pods; the bark is used by tanners in some districts.

kauchi, Loranthus pentagona, DC. (and L. dodoneæfolius, DC. and other spp.) (Loranthaceæ). A parasitic shrub commonly growing on various trees; e.g. on ḳadanya called kauchin kaḍai. Used medicinally and as a charm. vide also under sansami. Sometimes called W. Indian Mistletoe.

ḳaudodo, vide ḳabdodo.

kaura, a var. of dawa, q.v.

kawo, Afzelia africana, Smith (Leguminosæ); one of the African Mahoganies or “Mahogany Bean,” a large shade tree, with thick very hard pods and large black seeds. The seeds are sold as a medicinal charm called fasa daga, q.v. The leaves are used as a cattle food.

ḳawuri, Ficus kawuri, Hutch. (Urticaceæ); a large tree of the fig family, yielding a white latex collected as rubber. (Ficus glumosa, Del. is included).

[61]ḳayar giwa, a ground-trailer with thorny stem and a tuberous root edible when cooked; sometimes used in famine. Syn. doyar giwa.

ḳayar ḳadangare, Asparagus Pauli-Guilelmi, Solms. and Laub. and other spp. (Liliaceæ); a straggling half-climbing plant with prickles and acicular leaves. Syn. masun ḳadangare (“lizard’s spears”); more commonly called tsatsarar ḅera, but vide also ḳarangiyar kusu. Stems used for traps, &c.

ḳayar kusu? vide kwaranga.

ḳayar raḳumi, vide under ḳarḳara.

ḳeḳasheshe, 1. Syn. tsiyayi = peeled stems of rama, q.v. used in medicine and magic; also after scotching applied as a black pigment in wall decoration; (cf. zamarke). 2. The name of one or more different plants in the bush.

ḳerama, a var. of dawa, q.v.

kerana (Kano, &c.), Euphorbia Barteri, N.E. Br. a tall branched cactus-like tree with angled prickly stem and milky juice. The name includes other species commonly classed as E. abyssinica, Gmelin, used as a fence.

kibiyar daji, vide under tsika.

kilili = flowers of the date palm; vide under dabino.

kimba, Xylopia æthiopica, A. Rich. (Anonaceæ). “African,” “Guinea,” or “Negro Pepper.” A tree; the small cylindrical black pods are sold as a medicine and spice.

kimba kimba or kimbar dawaki, &c., Hyptis pectinata, Poir (Labiatæ). An erect odorous weed of damp places.

kimbar dutsi, vide kamu mowa.

kimbar mahalba (Sok. Kats. and Zanf.), Lantana salvifolia, Jacq. (Verbenaceæ). An undershrub with fragrant leaves and flowers used to flavour food, milk, &c.

kimbar rafi, ?Platystonia africana, P. Beauv. (Labiatæ). A luxuriant weed of river-beds with slightly fragrant leaves; used medicinally.

[62]kinchiya (Sok. and Kats.), Stylochiton Dalzielii, N.E. Br. (Aroideæ). Syn. gwandayi, q.v.

ḳini (Sok. and Kats.), Tephrosia purpurea, Pers. (Leguminosæ). A branched undershrub with soft leaves and pink flowers; used medicinally. Syn. maraguwa (Katagum, &c.).

kiri kiri, Cynodon dactylon, Pers. (Gramineæ). “Dub Grass.” “Bermuda Grass.” A small creeping grass with narrow radiating flower-spikes; a good fodder; capable of forming turf and binding sand. Syn. tsarkiyar zomo (Sok.).

kiriya, Prosopis oblonga, Benth. (Leguminosæ); an acacia-like tree with white flowering spikes and brown pods; the seeds called akiye or akwiye (Nupe piye), are used to make daudawa, q.v.

namijin kiriya, vide kolo.

kiriyar kurumi or kaḍanyar kurumi, a name given to a hard-wooded forest tree of the Benué region, not known in Hausa.

kirni (Kano), or kisni (Sok. and Zanf.), Briedelia ferruginea, Benth. (Euphorbiaceæ). A shrub, the root of which is in some districts used as an antidote to arrow-poison. makubar mahalba = a fermented extract of the bark used sometimes for hardening floors; (vide under ḍorowa).

kirtani, a strong twine made from fibre of yawan wake, tumfafiya, and yaḍiya, q.v.

ḳi taḅewa, a medicine; sold in the form of small tuberous pieces with rootlets (probably the root of a grass); used in fumigation as a charm, love-potion, &c. (Etym. “fail me never”).

ḳodagaya, a kind of bean; ?Canavalia ensiformis, DC. Cultivated as a climber on fences and trees, &c.

ḳodago or (ḳwalo), the hard-shelled nut of the Dum palm, vide under goriba.

kokara, a hard-wooded tree; walking-sticks and cudgels called umara, are made from it.

ko karani, a var. of rama, q.v.

[63]ḳoḳiya, Strychnos spinosa, Lam. (Loganiaceæ). A tree with yellow hard-shelled fruit a little larger than an orange; the acid pulp is edible, the seeds are poisonous.

namijin ḳoḳiya, Strychnos alnifolia, Baker, and S. triclisioides, Baker; two very similar shrubs with smaller fruit than ḳoḳiya; not edible.

ḳoḳiyar biri (Kontagora), Voacanga obtusa, K. Schum. (Apocynaceæ). A tree with paired capsular fruit, which grows in damp ravines.

koko, vide under duma.

kokochiko, Oncoba spinosa, Forsk. (Bixaceæ); a thorny tree with white rose-like flowers and a hard globular fruit which is used as a rattle. (Etym. kokochiko = a child’s rattle).

kokuwa (Sok. and West), Limonia sp. (Rutaceæ); a tree with hard green orange-like fruit.

kolo (Zanfara), Amblygonocarpus Schweinfurthii, Harms. (Leguminosæ); a large tree with twice-pinnate leaves and brown 4-angled pods. Syn. namijin kiriya (Sok.), kashi kashi ?(Kontagora).

kololo, a var. of the bottle-gourd; vide under duma.

komaya (Kano), Eragrostis tremula, Hochst. (Gramineæ). A common wild fodder grass; grain eaten in scarcity. Syn. burburwa (Sok.). komaya ta fadama, Eragrostis biformis, Kunth. and other spp.; taller grasses of wet places, resembling komaya.

komfa or chitta komfa, a var. of spice; vide under chitta.

korkoro (Kontagora), a grass, vide fafewa. cf. also kwarkoro, vide under kwarko.

ḳosai, vide under wake.

ḳosain rogo, Dioscorea dumetorum, Pax. (Dioscorideæ); a species of wild yam with 3-fol. leaves. Syn. rogon biri.

kosfa = the shell or pod of a dehiscent fruit.

kuḅewa, Hibiscus esculentus, Linn. (Malvaceæ). Okra. A broad-leaved malvaceous plant cultivated for its mucilaginous capsules used as a vegetable. Syn. guro (Sok.);

takeyi (East Hausa) = soup of okra (from the Ful. name takeiyeji). (kubewa, pumpkin, vide kabewa).

[64]kubla (Sok.), or kulla, Thonningia sanguinea, Vahl. (Balanophoreæ); a parasitic plant found in the bush, with an aromatic root used as a spice.

kudaku (Sok. Zanf., &c.). Sweet Potato. vide dankali.

ḳuduji, Striga senegalensis, Benth. (Scrophularineæ). A red-flowered parasitic weed common in cultivated fields. It is believed to destroy the growing dawa, and hence is called makasar dawa or makasha. Syn. wuta wuta; gaugayi ?(Gobir).

kufi, an oily extract made from the seeds of zurma (Castor Oil, Ricinus communis), chi ni da zugu (Physic Nut, Jatropha Curcas), and aduwa (Balanites ægyptiaca); used as an application for sores in domestic stock.

kugundugu, vide under dankali.

kujeme, vide under kaḍanya.

kuka, Adansonia digitata, B. Juss. (Malvaceæ). “Baobab,” “Monkey Bread Tree,” “Sour Gourd.” Inner bark used for rope, strings of musical instruments, &c. The acid and mucilaginous pulp of the fruit is used in various ways as food and drink. kwaikwaiyo (Kano) = the husk or shell of the indehiscent fruit; garin kuka = the mealy acid pulp around the seeds; guntsu (Kano) = seeds of kuka (Ful. gorgomi); daudawar kuka = fermented cakes made from the seeds (as with ḍorowa, q.v.), also called katsami (Kano and East); chusar doki = pounded leaves of kuka, with dusa and kanwa, used as food or medicine for horses; miyar kuka or kalun kuka = the leaves used for soup; kumbali = the Baobab flower.

kukuki, Sterculia tomentosa, Guill. et Perr. (Sterculiaceæ); a common tree which yields a gum like tragacanth; the bark contains an almost tasteless watery juice which is sucked by thirsty carriers, &c.

kulbutu, vide tsana.

kulla, vide kubla.

[65]kuloko (Sok., &c.) = a black dye for leather, prepared as a fermented extract of “Sant Pods” (bagaruwa, q.v. Acacia arabica), and kwan mukera (blacksmiths’ refuse of fused iron oxide and carbon), and mixed with honey or syrup.

kulufita, a small prolific var. of the native bitter tomato; vide under gauta. (Etym. kullum fita).

kumbali = the flower of the Baobab; vide under kuka.

ḳumbar shafo, vide farichin shafo.

kumbu, vide under duma.

ḳumchi (Sok. and Zanf.), vide majiriyar kurumi.

kunda (Sok. and Kats.), an insect-gall forming a swelling on the stem of the grass katsaimu, q.v. used as a toy dart to shoot birds.

ḳundu, vide giginya.

ḳunḳushewa, Gymnosporia senegalensis, Loes. (Celastrineæ); a common shrub in the bush, with spines and delicate white flowers. Syn. namijin tsada.

kunnen zomo, vide takalmin zomo.

kununguru (East Hausa), Commelyna nudiflora, Linn.; a common weed, better known as balasa, q.v.

ḳurar shanu, Euphorbia ægyptiaca, Boiss. (Euphorbiaceæ); a small weed of pastures with milky juice; used medicinally. Syn. rapasa (Kano).

kurḍi, Burkea africana, Hook. (Leguminosæ); a large hard-wooded tree with black bark and pale twice-pinnate leaves; sometimes called baḳin maḳarfo. (In Sokoto itchen kurḍi = Melia Azedarach, vide kurnan nasara). cf. also kariye gatari.

kurḍin machiji (Katagum), Ipomœa sp. (Convolvulaceæ). A twining convolvulus with purple and white flowers. (Etym. perhaps from the resemblance of the ripe capsules to cowrie shells).

kurgum (Kanuri) = turmeric; vide gangamau.

kuringa, vide kwaranga.

kuriya (Sok. and Zanf.), Bombax buonopozense, Beauv. (Malvaceæ). “Red-flowered Silk Cotton Tree.” Syn. gurjiya, q.v.

[66]kurna, Zizyphus Spina-Christi, Willd. (Rhamnaceæ). A thorny tree with brownish edible berries, common in towns. cf. magariya.

kurnan nasara (Kontagora, &c.), Melia Azedarach, Linn. (Meliaceæ). “Pride of India,” “Persian or Egyptian Lilac,” or “Bead Tree.” A tree with twice-pinnate leaves and panicles of lilac flowers, often planted in towns. (The ovoid yellow fruit has a superficial resemblance to that of kurna. Etym. from its exotic origin; nasara = Christian). In Sokoto called itchen kurḍi or taḅa ni ka samu (kurḍi) from some belief in luck associated with it; seeds called yayan tasbaha because used for rosary beads.

kurtu or kurtun lalle, vide under duma.

kurukubi, Grewia sp. (Tiliaceæ); a shrub with rough leaves and edible berries.

ḳuruḳuru (Sok. Kats. Katagum, &c.), Feretia canthioides, Hiern. (Rubiaceæ); a shrub with fragrant jasmine-like white flowers. Syn. lallen suri or lallen jibba (from its common habitat near ant-hills); goge (?Hausa); vide rigyakafi.

ḳurzun ḍinya, vide under ḍinya.

kurzunu, a tubercled variety of an edible gourd like a cucumber; (?a var. of the bottle-gourd Lagenaria vulgaris, vide under duma).

kusumburuwa, vide under dawa.

kututu, vide under masara.

kwachiya, a small calabash; vide under duma.

kwagiri, a woody creeper, a sort of jointed cane used for walking sticks, &c.

kwaikwaiyo, vide under kuka and aduwa.

kwakwa, Elais guineensis, Jacq. (Palmeæ). Oil Palm. man ja = palm oil derived from the outer fleshy pulp of the nut; the kernel yields a different oil.

kwakwar Attagara, Cocos nucifera, Linn. Coco-nut Palm (from the name of an Igara town on the lower Niger).

kwalli kwalli, vide under geḍa.

[67]ḳwalo = the ripe hard-shelled nut of the palm goriba, q.v. Syn. ḳodago.

kwalshi = the edible kernel of the unripe nut of goriba chiefly (but also of giginya); q.v.

ḳwama (Sok. and Gobir), a var. of the common bean; vide under wake.

ḳwandariya, a thorny acacia yielding gum; (?Acacia caffra, Willd.); stems used for walking-sticks; said to be so thorny that biri ya kwana a ḳassa.

kwankwani, Strophanthus hispidus, DC. and S. sarmentosus, DC. (Apocynaceæ). Arrow-poison plants. The former is a shrub with lax branches, frequently cultivated, with long narrow beaked pods; the latter a tall woody climber growing on trees, &c. chiefly in ravines, and has stout obtuse pods. The seeds are the chief and the only essential ingredient in N. Nigerian arrow-poison. Syn. tantsiya (Sok. Ful. tantsiyari). yaḅi (East Hausa) = arrow-poison (from yaḅe to daub or smear); syn. zabgai.

kwankwan dafi (Sok. and Kats.), Indigofera echinata, Willd. (Leguminosæ). vide gujiyar hankaka.

kwankwarimi (Zanfara), Wissadula rostrata, Planch. (Malvaceæ). A tall stiff undershrub with small yellow flowers; the bark yields a hemp-like fibre. Sometimes called ramar kurimi.

kwankwarita (East Hausa), Trapa bispinosa, Roxb. (Onagrarieæ). “Water Chestnut.” vide under geḍar ruwa. The name includes the rhizome of bădo, q.v.

kwanta Ali da zugu, a var. of the cotton shrub; vide under abduga.

kwantal (Sok.), or gurji kwantal; vide gurji.

kwaranga or (kuringa), kwarangar wofi, Smilax Kraussiana, Meisn. (Liliaceæ); a prickly twiner with 5-nerved leaves and a tuberous root used medicinally; related to Sarsaparilla. (Etym. “bastard ladder”). Syn. ?ḳayar kusu.

ḳwaras ḳwaras, the same as kwaruru but vide under gujiya.

kwardauḍa, vide dauḍa.

[68]kwari, a slender soft-wooded tree with long broad leaves, in ravines, sometimes called “Cabbage Tree.” (Etym. kwari = a quiver, because used for making quivers). Anthocleista nobilis, G. Don. (= A. Vogelii, Planch.) and A. parviflora, Baker (Loganiaceæ).

ḳwariya, the common calabash; vide under duma.

kwarko (Kano), or kwarkoro, Argemone mexicana, Linn. (Papaveraceæ). “Yellow Mexican Poppy,” a common prickly poppy of fields and waste places near houses. Syn. haḳorin kada (from the Ful. name); ya (or ka) ḳi ruwan Allah (because essentially a dry-season plant, and because the glaucous leaves throw off rain or dew); (kada ka taḅa yaro is a Yoruba equivalent). The root is used for cotton spools, and as a stimulant by drummers, &c.

kwaruru, Voandzeia subterranea, Thouars. (Leguminosæ). The Bambarra Ground Nut. Syn. gujiya, q.v. A species of ground bean cultivated like geḍa and like it developing its pods underground. It differs from geḍa in having 3-foliate leaves (4 leaflets in geḍa), and spherical usually one-seeded pods with variegated seeds. The allied Kerstingiella geocarpa, Harms. is cultivated in some districts in Nupé and the south. yaro da dariya = the seeds cracked and roasted (etym. from the gaping cracks); abakuru (Yoruba obokuru) = cooked ovoid cakes or balls with pepper, salt, &c. fried in oil (prepared preferably from kwaruru because it keeps better on a journey, &c.). lubatu = a kind of food made from kwaruru. (Etym. Yor. epa roro = round ground nut).

ḳwiwa or ḳwiya, Adenodolichos sp. nr. A. Auchietas, Harms. (Leguminosæ); a tall undershrub with 3-foliate leaves and slender straight branches used for tanka, &c.

ḳwododo, vide ḳabdodo.

ḳwododon kwaḍo (Kano), Amorphophallus Barteri, N.E. Br. (and other similar species of Aroideæ), an oddly shaped plant of the Arum lily family, with a flat lurid purple spathe. Syn. maḳworin maḳwododo and buran kare, q.v.

[69]kwokiya, a var. of melon; vide under guna.

kwokwo or ḳoḳo, a small var. of calabash; vide under duma.

kwosusu, the second annual crop of indigo, said to be better than the first; vide under baba.

kwoton tadawa, vide under duma.

kwotowa (Sok.), Pergularia tomentosa, Linn. (Asclepiadeæ); vide fatakka.

kyamro or kyauro, k. kibiya, Saccharum spontaneum, Linn. (Gramineæ). A tall grass of river-banks and wet places with white plume-like flowering panicle. Stems commonly used for arrow-shafts. Syn. sheme, and ?sansari (Illo; used for arrows with detachable head). Sometimes referred to as abokin kibiya.

ḳyara, Cymbopogon Ruprechtii, Hack. (Gramineæ). A very common tall grass with sharp long-awned spikelets; used for zana after the spikelets have fallen.

ḳyasuwa or ḳansuwa, Pennisetum pedicellatum, (and P. setosum) (Gramineæ). A coarse tall grass with fluffy flowering heads; a common pest in waste places in towns, &c. Syn. fura (Kano and East). Sometimes distinguished from a somewhat similar grass of wet places as ḳ. tudu or ḳ. waje. cf. duza.

L

labaye = tofo, q.v. sprouting leaves of any plant; (sabon ganye mai tofo).

laḅayi, a var. of cotton; vide under abduga.

laḅanda, a name given to several varieties of grass used for thatching; in Sokoto and Zanfara generally = Andropogon apricus, var. africanus, Hack. vide jan baḳo.

labsur or lausur, Lepidium sativum, Linn. (Cruciferæ). “Common” or “Garden Cress.” Cultivated in Kano, &c. The seeds are a native medicine called algarif, q.v.

labuje, a var. of kola nut; vide under goro.

[70]ladiko? a species of bean; vide ḅarankachi. (Possibly = lalego (Kano), a sort of hand-rattle used by women).

laka, vide under shalla.

lalaki (Sok.), vide under shinkafa.

lalemo (Sok.), a grass for thatching.

lalle, Lawsonia alba, Lam. (Lythrarieæ). “Egyptian Privet” or “Henna;” a small shrub planted for the sake of the leaves which are used all over the Sudan, in Egypt and the East, to dye the nails, &c.

lallen jibba or lallen suri, vide ḳuruḳuru.

lallen shamuwa (Sok.), Gisekia pharnaceoides, Linn. (Ficoideæ); a common spreading weed. (Etym. probably from the ruddy tinge of the plant). Syn. ?dandami.

lalu, Corchorus tridens, L. and C. trilocularis, L. (Tiliaceæ); common weeds related to jute, used as pot-herbs. Syn. turgunuwa; (including also the wild form of C. olitorius, vide under malafiya).

lanya, vide limniya.

lausur, vide labsur.

lawashi, vide under albasa.

lawur, 1. = Sweet Potato, vide dankali. 2. A var. of gero, q.v.

lemu, Citrus Medica, var. acida, Brandis (Aurantiaceæ). The Lime. A naturalized shrub in Nigeria. babban lemu or lemun Maka, The Orange (Citrus Aurantium, Linn.). lemun yan sariki, lemun magajiya or lemun Masar, The Citron (Citrus Medica, Linn.); rare but half naturalized near Sokoto. namijin lemu, vide innuwar gada.

liḍi, vide riḍi.

limniya or lanya = green algæ forming a slimy growth in stagnant water. Syn. dauḍar ruwa.

limniyar kwaḍi or lanyar kwaḍi, Kœmpferia æthiopica, Benth. (Scitamineæ); a plant with a conspicuous delicate purple flower growing in shady places (commonly mistaken for an orchid). Etym. = “frog-spawn,” from the slimy juice.

[71]loda or lodar marina, Vitis pallida, Baker (Ampelideæ). Syn. dafara, q.v. A vine. The viscid extract of the root-bark gives a smooth surface to native cement used for dye-pits, &c. N.B. In Sokoto the name loda is also used for the plant with viscid juice, Rogeria adenophylla, J. Gay (Pedaliaceæ), vide baba rodo.

lojiya, vide rojiya.

loko, Chlorophora excelsa, Benth. and Hook. fil. (Urticaceæ). Iroko (S. Nigeria), or Odum (Gold Coast); a large timber tree; used for canoes, building, &c.

lubiya, vide rubiya.

luddai, a var. of the bottle-gourd; vide under duma.

lubatu, a kind of food made from the ground-bean kwaruru, q.v.

M

mabakachi, a large calabash; vide under duma.

machara, a name for more than one species of grass with hollow stems; chiefly = the tall reed-grass Arundo Donax, Linn. from which flageolets are made. Syn. gabara, q.v. Also the smaller Panicum proliferum, Lam. var. longijubatum, Stapf; used by boys to make small whistles.

maḍachi or maḍwachi (Sok.), Khaya senegalensis, A. Juss. (Meliaceæ). A large timber tree; one of the species of “African Mahogany.” The bark is much used medicinally. (Etym. from the bitter bark).

maḍachin ḳassa, Aristolochia albida. Syn. dumar dutsi; vide under gaḍaukuka.

maḍaḍafi, Desmodium lasiocarpum, DC. (Leguminosæ); an undershrub the seeds of which are covered with minute hooked hairs which adhere to the clothing; vide ḍan kaḍafi.

maḍaḍafin kusu, vide ḳarangiyar kusu.

maḍas or maḍat, a poison usually made from tururibi, q.v. used for killing fish and vermin, as well as criminally.

[72]madobia, Pterocarpus erinaceus, Poir. (Leguminosæ). An “African Rosewood” or “Bloodwood.” A large tree with yellow flowers and flat winged fruit with soft prickles. The blood-red resin from the trunk is a variety of “African Kino,” or “Dragon’s Blood,” a medicinal astringent. The bark is in some districts used as a red dye or cosmetic like majigi, q.v. where the latter is scarce.

maga, a var. of date; vide under ḍabino.

maganin kunama (Katagum), the local name for a leguminous weed with yellow flowers and inflated pods, used as a remedy for scorpion bite; Crotalaria atrorubens, Hochst.

magariya, Zizyphus jujuba, Lam. (Rhamnaceæ). “Jujube Tree.” A thorny shrub, resembling kurna, q.v. with pale brown edible berries.

magariyar kura, Zizyphus mucronata, Willd. (Rhamnaceæ). “Buffalo-horn.” A thorny scrambling shrub with red-brown berries; not edible.

magiumfa (Zanfara), vide majimfa.

magudiya (Kano, Sok., &c.), Polycarpæa linearifolia, DC. (Caryophylleæ). A common herb with heads of small scarious flowers; a common medicinal charm and ingredient of love-philtres, &c. (maganin farin jini). Syn. fular tsofo. cf. bakin suda. Also called mai-nasara, when used as a charm in hunting or war.

mai-farin kai (Sok.), Tricholæna rosea, Nees. var. sphacelata; a grass about 2 feet high with silvery fluffy flowering panicle.

mai-kain dubu (Sok.), Alternanthera sessilis, Br. (Amaranthaceæ); a prostrate weed with numerous small clusters of inconspicuous flowers.

maikeri, a var. of dawa, q.v.

mai-lalita, vide under matsarmama.

mai-nasara, vide under magudiya.

maiwa, Pennisetum spicatum, R. and S. var. a var of millet; cf. gero and damro; less wholesome than gero, and said to be injurious to horses.

[73]maje (Sok., &c.), Pardaniellia Oliveri, Rolfe, (Daniellia Thurifera, Bennett), “West Afr. Copaiba Balsam Tree.” Syn. kadaura (Kano, Zaria, &c.), q.v. Both names are equally well known; sometimes loosely included under the name ḳaro, q.v. ḳaron maje (in Sokoto sometimes also called ḳaron darma) = the exuded balsam or oleo-resin, a variety of West Afr. copal, used as scent to fumigate clothing, to impart a gloss to beaten dyed cloth, &c.

majigi, Baphia pubescens, Hook. fil. (Leguminosæ). Camwood, a tree the wood of which is used as a red dye and cosmetic. (Also probably B. nitida, Afzel. in the south). cf. madobia.

majimfa or magiumfa (or jimfa), Tephrosia Vogelii, Hook. fil. (Leguminosæ); an erect shrub cultivated near houses; the leaves are much used as a poison to stupefy fish. baina (Kano) = the fish-poison prepared from it. cf. ago.

majiriya (Sok. and Kats.), or minjiriya (Kano, &c.), Erythrina senegalensis, DC. (Leguminosæ). “Coral Tree;” a prickly tree with brilliant scarlet flowers and 3-foliate leaves. The scarlet seeds are sometimes called idon zakara, q.v.

majiriyar kurumi (Kano), Phyllanthus floribundus, Muell. Arg. (Euphorbiaceæ); a thorny scrambling shrub with small red berries. (The term ḳumchi, Sok. and Zanf. is sometimes applied to this, and more widely to any thorny thicket; cf. gumbi and dufuwa).

maka = dried bean leaves; vide under wake.

makafo, makafo da wayo, a var. of dawa, q.v.

maḳaimi, vide tsuwawun zaki.

maḳarfo, Afrormosia laxiflora, Harms. (Leguminosæ); a hard-wooded tree with smooth bark and shining foliage; the wood is used for axe-handles, &c.; the bark and root are used medicinally. (Etym. probably ḳarifi—from the hardness of the wood). Sometimes also called kariye gatari (“break axe”). cf. baḳin maḳarfo, vide kurḍi.

[74]makari, Digitaria sp.? A grass cultivated in some districts with a small grain like acha, q.v.

makarin dafi = any antidote to arrow-poison, usually vegetable substances containing tannin. cf. bi ta ka tsira.

makarin faḳo, Panicum falciferum, Trin. (Gramineæ). A wild grass 1½ to 2 feet high, with golden hairy flowering spike; seeds edible, sometimes gathered for food.

makasar dawa and makasha, vide ḳuduji.

makuba, vide under ḍorowa.

makubar mahalba, vide under kirni.

maḳworin maḳwododo, vide ḳwododon kwaḍo.

malafiya (or marafiya), Corchorus olitorius, L. (Tiliaceæ). “Jews’ Mallow.” One of the jute plants, cultivated in N. Nigeria more as a vegetable than for fibre. (Arab. molukhiya).

malami or malami na mata, Mukia scabrella, Arn. (Cucurbitaceæ); a small twiner with rough leaves and red berries resembling Bryony. (Etym. from its frequent use as a love-charm). Syn. gautan zomo.

malamkochi, vide zaḳi banza.

malga or marga, vide gamma faḍa.

malle, m. kabi, m. mama, m. Zanfara; varieties of dawa, q.v.

malmo, Eugenia owariensis, Beauv. (Myrtaceæ); an evergreen tree with fragrant flowers and leaves, and black or purple berries; common by streams and pools.

mangoro, the name given to the mango, Mangifera indica, Linn. (Anacardiaceæ).

manta uwa, 1. A medicine given to a child at weaning, or to prevent a slave running away (etym. “forget mother”); the name is applied to several plants; (in Katagum the species was Crotalaria arenaria, R. Br. Leguminosæ, a low weed with small yellow flowers and inflated pods). 2. A name for some epiphytic orchids, e.g. Ansellia congoensis, Rodiges, &c. (etym. because growing on trees away from the ground). vide muruchin bissa.

[75]marafiya, vide malafiya.

maraguwa, vide ḳini.

marasiri, vide under riḍi.

marga or malga, vide gamma faḍa.

mariḳe, Anogeissus leiocarpus, Guill. et Perr. (Combretaceæ). A tree with small pale leaves and balls of whitish flowers; a good timber; it yields a soluble gum; the fruit is used as a vermifuge for horses, &c. “Chew-stick Tree.” ḍan marike (Katagum, &c.), Indigofera secundiflora, Poir. (Leguminosæ). A weed or low undershrub with pale pinnate leaves covered with a gummy glandular secretion.

marin kusu, Pupalia lappacea, Juss. (Amaranthaceæ); a straggling spiny weed of waste places, resembling ḳaimin ḳadangare, q.v. (Etym. “mouse’s irons”).

marmare, a var. of dawa, q.v.

marsa, a var. of kola nut; vide under goro.

masaki, a large calabash; vide under duma.

masakowa or mazakwa, a dry-season var. of Guinea-Corn; vide under dawa.

masara, Zea Mays, Linn. (Gramineæ). Maize. Indian Corn. Varieties are:—m. wada, a dwarf variety; m. Fulani; m. kwona, tall with about 3 corn cobs with large white grain; kain masara or maburkaki = the terminal male inflorescence; goyon masara = the lateral fruiting spike or mealie cob; toton masara (Sok.), or kututu (Kano and East) = the cob after removal of seeds, used to make pipe-stems.

mashayi, Clerodendron capitatum, Sch. and Thonn. (Verbenaceæ). A shrub with bunches of tubular white flowers and purple berries; the pithy branches are used for pipe-stems. Etym. instrument used for smoking; cf. syn. tataba (Sok.).

mashin zomo, Ophioglossum vulgatum, Linn. (Filices). “Adder’s tongue fern,” a small fern with simple leaf and erect fruiting spike. (Etym. “hare’s spear”).

[76]masoro, “West Afr. Black Pepper,” “Benin Pepper;” small dried berries sold for spice and medicinal use; the fruit of Piper Clusii, Cas. DC. (?P. guineense, Piperaceæ); a climbing plant on trees in the South.

masun ḳadangare, vide tsatsarar ḅera.

matakashi, a plant resembling sesame (vide riḍi); used for soup.

matsagi or matsatsagi, vide jirga.

matsarmama, Physalis angulata, L. and P. minima, L. (Solanaceæ); common weeds of waste places with inflated calyx enclosing a small berry; (related to the Cape Gooseberry, P. peruviana); used medicinally. Etym. matsarmama = gall-bladder; also called mai-lalita—lalita = a small leather pouch. Syn. ?domashin maza (Katag.).

maye, vide under shiwaka.

mazakwa, a dry-season var. of Guinea Corn; vide under dawa.

mazarin kyanwa, an insect-gall on the grass katsaimu, q.v.

meḍi, a fibre from the root-bark of the shrub ḍunḍu, q.v. and from other acacias, root of the “dum” palm &c. cf. yawa, and vide ḍakwora, goriba, &c. Used for network bags, &c., mending calabashes, &c.

mijin kaḍai, vide under kaḍanya.

mijin goro, vide under goro.

minjiriya, vide majiriya.

minu, the smallest kola nuts, vide under goro.

miya tsanya (Sok. and Kats.), Sida rhombifolia, L. (Malvaceæ); an undershrub or perennial weed with small yellow flowers and a fibrous bark. (Etym. “grasshoppers’ greens”). It is one of the plants included in kaskaifi, q.v.

moda, Sansevieria sp. (Liliaceæ). “African Bowstring Hemp;” a stemless plant with long straight mottled leaves affording a useful fibre; root and leaf used medicinally.

[77]murli = the unexpanded fronds of any palm (kwakwa, giginya, goriba, tukuruwa). shedari = a mat made from murlin giginya.

murtsunguwa, a long-leaved stemless plant, sometimes added to arrow-poison. Syn. ?gunguma.

muruchi, the young germinating shoots of the Fan Palm, vide giginya, used as a vegetable.

muruchin bisa or m. sama, a name for several species of orchid, growing as epiphytes on trees,—Ansellia congoensis and other spp. vide manta uwa.

muruchin daji, a name for some ground orchids with long straight leaves; usually Habenaria spp. growing in wet places.

muruchin jibba or m. jibji, a species of fungus; vide under tumukun suri.

muruchin makaruwa, Curculigo gallabatensis, Schweinf. (Amaryllideæ). A stemless plant with straight grass-like leaves, yellow flowers, and a thickened root-stock; syn. doyar kurege.

N

naman kaza (naman angulu, &c.), Agaricus campestris, the edible mushroom. (Etym. from the pale fleshy appearance of the cut surface, but sometimes also called naman ḳassa).

nanafo, Celosia trigyna, Linn. (Amaranthaceæ). An erect weed with white scarious flowers. Used as a medicine for tapeworm, &c.

nanare (Sok.), vide under shinkafa.

nanake, Aspilia Kotschyi, Benth. and Hook. (Compositæ). A plant in the bush with rough foliage and deep purple flowers.

nata, vide under goro.

nobe, Cymbopogon sennariensis, var. proximus, Stapf (Gramineæ). A fragrant grass, 2 to 3 feet high, with very narrow leaves; much used for thatch. cf. tsabre.

[78]nome (Sok., &c.), Sesamum indicum, Linn. Sesame or Beni seed; vide riḍi.

nonon ḅariya, Lactuca taraxacifolia, Sch. and Thonn. (Compositæ). A field weed with pale yellow flowers and milky juice. (ḅariya = a species of gazelle).

nonon giwa, vide rahaina.

nonon gwanki, Ficus sp. A tree of the fig tribe with milky juice.

nonon kura, Cucumis metuliferus, E. Mey. (Cucurbitaceæ). A climber with a cucumber-shaped fruit covered with large spines, scarlet when ripe. Also called buran zaki.

nonon kurchiya, Euphorbia hirta, Linn. (= E. pilulifera, &c.), a prostrate weed with clusters of small inconspicuous flowers and milky juice; used medicinally. (Allied species are included, e.g. E. convolvuloides, Hochst. &c.)

nunu (Sok. and Kano), the fruit of the tree danya, q.v.

P

parpatsi or farfatsi, vide dandana.

pasa daga, vide fasa daga.

pasa ḳabba, vide fasa ḳabba.

pasa ḳwari, vide fasa ḳwari.

piyaka or fiyaka, vide jibda ḳassa.

punkaso, vide under alkama.

R

Raḅa, Cyanotis lanata, Benth. (Commelynaceæ); a somewhat succulent herb growing amongst grass, which is said to cause eczema of horses’ muzzles. (Etym. from raḅa = dew, which is supposed to have a similar effect).

[79]rahaina, Kigelia æthiopica, Decne, var. bornuensis, Sprague (Bignoniaceæ). “Sausage-tree.” A large shade tree with pendulous lurid purple flowers, and huge cucumber-shaped fruit. Syn. rawuya (Sok.), and nonon giwa.

rai ḍore, Cassia occidentalis, Linn. (Leguminosæ). An erect shrubby plant with pinnate leaves and yellow flowers, of the senna tribe; used medicinally for fevers, &c. (Etym. from attributed restorative powers). Syn. sanga sanga (Sok. and West), and Ba-Zanfare (Katagum and East).

rake (Kano, &c.), (Saccharum officinarum), Linn. (Gramineæ). One of the species of sugar-cane, grown near streams; arakke (Sok.). Called also karan sariki. cf. takanḍa.

raken giwa (or takanḍar giwa), Peucedanum sp. (Umbelliferæ); a shrub with pinnate leaves and fragrant sap; used as a scented fumigation for clothing. cf. takanḍar giwa.

rama, Hibiscus cannabinus, Linn. (Malvaceæ), and perhaps H. lunariifolius, Willd. “Bastard Jute,” “Indian Hemp.” A tall straight annual grown for its bark fibre from which cordage is made; leaves acid, used in soup. Black, white and red varieties are recognized according to the tint of the bark—jar rama, farar rama; ḳare aiki (Sok.), with black and red varieties (etym. because considered the last agricultural labour of the season); or koka rani (Katsina), and dirin da rani (Kano), jirin da rani (Bauchi), ganwon rama = coil of rama bark or fibre. ḍinkin rama = leaves of rama used for soup; vide under ḍinya. ḳeḳasheshe or tsiyayi = peeled stems of rama, used in medicine in occult practice and as a sooty application when burnt applied for mural decoration. ramar rafi, &c. wild varieties of the same botanical species; vide ḳarama mowa. ramar kurumi, vide kwankwarimi; rama rama, vide ramaniya.

[80]ramaniya (Sok. Kats., &c.), Urena lobata, Linn. (Malvaceæ). A hard erect shrub, 2 to 3 feet high with pink flowers; the bark yields a strong fibre. Syn. rama rama, or ka fi rama; (baḳin garamani and jan tsu, vide under garamani and tsu). cf. also uwar maganni.

ramno (Sok.), or rauno (Kano), chopped grass mixed with building clay to act as mortar. cf. jan raumo.

rapasa, vide under ḳurar shanu.

rariyar ḳassa (Kontagora), Chrysanthellum procumbens, Pers. (Compositæ); a small wayside weed with yellow flowers.

rauma fada, vide roma fada.

rawaya, Cochlospermum tinctorium, Rich. (Bixaceæ); a common shrub with yellow rose-like flowers and a yellow root used as a dye and in cooking. Syn. zunzuna.

rawuya, vide rahaina.

riḍi, or liḍi, Sesamum indicum, Linn. (Pedaliaceæ). Sesame, Gingelly, Beni Seed. Simsim (Arab.). An annual with white or red flowers, cultivated for its oily seeds; leaves and seeds used as food. Syn. nome, cf. karkashi. marasiri (Ful. West) = sesamum porridge. samsam or samsamum (Arab. simsim), an extract probably of sesame, used as an eye medicine.

riḍin barewa or nomen barewa, Sesamum alatum, Thonn. (Pedaliaceæ). A wild species with divided leaves and beaked pods; not eaten.

riḍin kada, vide ḍeiḍoyar kare.

riḍin tuji, Fimbristylis exilis, R. and S. (Cyperaceæ). A small sedge; vide gemen kusu.

rigyar biri, vide tsuwawun biri.

rigya kafi (Sok.), a native prescription and reputed remedy for syphilis composed of the plants damaigi, fara biya rana, fasa ḳabba and ḳuru ḳuru, q.v.

rimani = the fruit of the pomegranate, Punica Granatum, L. cf. ruman, the flowers of the same.

[81]rimi (Kano, &c.) or rini (Sok.), Eriodendron orientale, Steud. (Malvaceæ). White Silk Cotton Tree. The silky floss around the seeds forms the upholstery material called “Kapok;” rimin Masar, a variety without thorns on the branches when young, and with a superior cotton.

rimin agwada, Sopubia simplex, Hochst. and other spp. (Scrophularineæ). An erect herb in the bush with narrow leaves and pink flowers. (agwada = Rock dassie, Procavia sp.).

rimin samari, Oldenlandia grandiflora, Hiern. (Rubiaceæ). A common slender-branched herb of fields and waste places, with bright red 4-partite flowers. Also O. senegalensis, Hiern. a similar plant with smaller less conspicuous flowers. Used as a love-potion or charm for popularity.

rimni (Sok.), Salix sp. (Salicaceæ). A common species of willow on river-banks. Syn. ba ruwana, q.v.

risga, a cultivated plant with an edible tuber. Plectranthus sp. (Labiatæ); like the “Kaffir Potato,” P. esculentus, N.E. Br.

risgar kurege, Asclepias lineolata, Schl. (Asclepiadeæ). A shrub with milky juice and umbels of purple flowers; the spindle-shaped root tubers are used medicinally.

roba, Panicum pyramidale, Lam. (Gramineæ). A tall grass of marshy places; (probably applied to several grasses).

rogo, Manihot palmata, Muell. Arg. (Euphorbiaceæ). Sweet Cassava or Manioc; and Manihot utilissima, Pohl. Bitter Cassava. The former or non-poisonous species is the one chiefly cultivated in Nigeria, cf. ḳarasa. rogon sabara or r. magariya (Sok.) are terms used for Cassava grown in arid areas (sabara and magariya, q.v. being shrubs of dry scrub districts).

rogon biri, vide ḳosain rogo.

rogon daji, a species of vine with thickened roots; vide tsibiri kinkini; (also applied to other twiners with thickened roots, e.g. a wild species of yam, Dioscorea sp., a species of Clematis, &c.).

[82]rojiya or lojiya, a perennial herb (Asclepiadeæ), with long narrow leaves milky juice and an edible succulent tuberous root-stock. rojiyar mahalba, Xysmalobium Heudelotianum, Decne (Asclepiadeæ); a somewhat similar plant with milky juice, short leaves, lateral umbels of small flowers, and a harder tuberous root edible when cooked. (The names bauje, saniya and daiyo, probably refer to the same or allied Asclepiad plants or “Milkweeds,” with tuberous roots, e.g. Schizoglossum Petherickianum, Oliv. which has short broad leaves and umbels of white flowers).

roko, a var. of bean; vide under wake.

rubiya or lubiya = the edible figs of several species of Ficus:—ḅaure, cheḍiya, durumi, gamji, q.v. (The name is sometimes extended to include other fruits of similar shape, &c. e.g. dates, the grapes of dafara, q.v., &c.).

ruguguwa, vide under kabewa.

ruḳuḅu, vide zaḳi banza.

roma fada or rauma fada, Scoparia dulcis, L. (Scrophularineæ). “Sweet Broom Weed.” A common herb with small white flowers. (Etym. from use as a charm to ensure “court favour;” roma = rakiya, to act as companion or sponsor). namijin roma fada, Heliotropium zeylanicum, Lam. (Boragineæ); a weed used medicinally; vide under Gwanja kusa; (probably applied to several plants with some resemblance to roma fada).

ruman = flowers of pomegranate; vide rimani; (ruman, the Indian name).

rumana, Gladiolus spicatus, Klatt. G. quartinianus, A. Rich. G. unguiculatus, Baker, and other species (Irideæ). Common gladioli with edible corms.

rumanan doki, a plant with a larger bulb used as a medicine for horses. A large species in the Benué district is sold for making a sweet food kunun zaḳi.

rumaya, a slender grass with tough stems, used for cordage, tying thatch, &c.

[83]rumfar gada, Cassytha guineensis, Sch. et Thon. (Lauraceæ), a parasitic leafless and rootless twiner like dodder, with wiry stems and small clusters of white flowers and berries. Syn. ?siliyar sulkuwa.

runhu or rumfu, Cassia goratensis, Fres. (Leguminosæ); a small tree with yellow flowers; an infusion of the leaves and pods is used as a wash in parturition, and for fever. cf. rai ḍore.

rura, Parinarium curatellæfolium, Planch. (Rosaceæ); a small tree with an edible mealy pear-shaped fruit; vide under Gwanja kusa and ḳaiḳai.

S

sa baba sata, a species of cultivated bean; ?the “yam bean,” vide giri giri.

saḅada or safada, vide under ḍorowa.

sabani, Tephrosia elongata, Hook. (Leguminosæ); a tall slender plant with pink flowers and pinnate leaves; used as a medicinal charm. Syn. samachi. (Etym. “rupture of friendship”—if a leaflet be sharply pulled apart it tears in a forked manner suggesting the parting of roads or disagreement, such as occurs when one challenges another to split it straight), cf. shege.

sabara, Guiera senegalensis, Lam. (Combretaceæ). A shrub with whitish dusty-looking leaves, very abundant in dry infertile regions; a typical plant of dry scrub localities with a small rainfall. Leaves used in various ways as medicine and also as food in some northern districts; burnt to fumigate cattle-pens, &c. to keep off flies; as maganin rongomi by women after parturition; in Sokoto a recognized prophylactic of leprosy; &c., &c.

saḅi, vide baya, Panicum albidulum, Kunth. (Gramineæ). A wild grass with edible grain gathered by sweeping a calabash across the heads. (Etym. from the method of gathering saḅi, and thus perhaps applied to more than one species). cf. garaji.

[84]saḅi or shiḅa = carded cotton; vide under abduga.

sabko (or sauko) bubukuwa, vide bubukuwa.

sabulun kuyangi, Zornia diphylla, Pers. (Leguminosæ), a low herb with paired leaflets; sometimes used as fodder and medicinally; said to form a slight lather with water. (Etym. “slaves’ soap”). Syn. sabulun sallo.

sabulum mata (Sok. Zanf. and Kats.), Vernonia primulina, O. Hoffm. (Compositæ). An erect plant, 1 to 2 feet high, with blue thistle-like flowers. Syn. tozalin kura.

safa (Sok.), or shafa (Kano and East), spring onion; vide albasa.

sa furfura (Sok.), Crotalaria polychotoma, Taub. (Leguminosæ). A small herb with yellow flowers and pale pubescent leaves; supposed, if accidentally given to an infant, to cause the hair to turn grey before puberty. ?Syn. yauki, q.v.

sagagi (Katagum), Indigofera simplicifolia, Lam. (Leguminosæ). A stiff-branched undershrub with small narrow pods.

sa hankaki dako, Polygala arenaria, Willd. (Polygalaceæ). A small field herb, used medicinally in cases of serious internal disease, syphilis, &c. (Etym. “cause the crows to wait,” because supposed to be very poisonous). Syn. sha ni ka san ni; and gujiyar dawaki (Zanfara).

sainya (Kano, Kats., &c.), Securidaca longipedunculata, Fres. (Polygalaceæ). A shrub with purple flowers and a winged seed. The root has a rank smell and is used medicinally in many ways, as a purge, worn as a charm, &c. Syn. uwar magunguna (Sok., &c.—“mother of medicines”). It is an occasional ingredient in some prescriptions for arrow-poison.

sakata, a var. of yam, said to be inferior to others and not used for sokwara. (Dioscorea alata, L.). cf. doya.

salla, vide shalla.

samachi, vide sabani.

[85]samarin danga, a name for the tree Moringa pterygosperma (vide zogalagandi), because commonly planted as a compound fence.

sambara = dawa or gero, &c. half-grown at harvest, and left to mature later.

samberu, a tree the leaves of which are poisonous to cattle.

samsam, vide under riḍi.

sandalu, vide under goro.

sandan biri, s. dutsi, or s. yan bori, vide under giginyar biri.

sandan mayu, a name for more than one tree with magical uses; vide under bakin mutum and dawo.

sanga sanga (Sok. and West), Cassia occidentalis, Linn. Syn. rai ḍore, q.v.

saniya, an Asclepiad plant with milky sap; vide under rojiya and tafo ka sha mama.

sankachen dawa, s. gero = corn reaped and laid out in lines to dry.

sankwo (Kano), Syncolostemon ocymoides, Sch. et Thon. (Labiatæ); a wild herb related to tumuku, q.v. with wrinkled leaves, spikes of deep red flowers, and a tuberous root. Syn. tumukun biri.

sansami (or sasămi), Stereospermum Kunthianum, Cham. (Bignoniaceæ). A small tree with smooth bark, beautiful pink flowers and long narrow pendulous pods. The bark is used medicinally. Syn. jiri. (This tree is apparently held in much respect; in Sokoto, &c. called ḍan sarikin itatuwa, and not cut for firewood). kauchin sansami, the parasitic plant Loranthus (vide kauchi), when growing on this species is considered a lucky find.

farin sansami, vide shunin biri, and halshen sa.

sansami (Sok. and Kats.) = foliage.

sansari, vide under kyamro.

sarakuwar sauro (Katsina, &c.), Leucas martinicensis, R. Br. (Labiatæ); an odorous weed with whorls of small white flowers. (Etym. because supposed to be incompatible with mosquitoes). Syn. ḍeiḍoyar gona.

[86]saran waga, vide under goro.

sarawan goro, cf. proverb sarawan goro a zanche ni—2 calabashes of kola nuts being bought by two persons are divided for fairness into equal halves, either buyer taking one-half of each.

sare gwiwa, Hygrophila spinosa, T. Anders. (Acanthaceæ); an erect hard plant of damp places with blue flowers and long spines. (Etym. “prick the knee”). Syn. zazar giwa, and dayin giwa.

sarikin jibji (s. juji), vide under fasa ḳabba and babba juji. (Species of Boerhaavia, Trianthema, and Portulaca are all somewhat succulent weeds of waste places and rubbish heaps, and their names are often interchangeable).

sarḳaḳiya, Dichrostachys platycarpa, Welw. (Leguminosæ); a very thorny scrambling shrub in the bush forming dense thickets; a sort of “wait a bit thorn.” Sometimes loosely called dufuwa, baḳin gumbi and ḳumchi, q.v.

sarri? (Bauchi), a plant used as a neutralizing bath in tanning leather. (? = katsari).

sasabani (Hadeija, &c.), Parkinsonia aculeata, L. (Leguminosæ). “Jerusalem Thorn.” (Arab. sasaban, Sesbania ægyptica, Poir.). An exotic tree with yellow flowers and narrow pinnate leaves, planted in towns. In Sokoto called by the Ful. name sharan labbi. cf. alambo.

sawaye, vide under abduga.

sawu dubu, Ipomœa dissecta, Willd. (Convolvulaceæ). A small ground trailer with white flowers and deeply divided leaves. (Etym. “1000 foot-prints,” from the numerous dissect leaves).

sawun gauraka, vide ḳafar fakara.

sawun gwanki, a flat-leaved stemless herb, used as a medicine for hunters.

[87]shafa (Kano), or safa (Sok.). A variety of onion; vide albasa.

shair (Arab.), Hordeum sativum, Pers. Barley; rarely grown in N. Nigeria.

sha ka sani, vide sa hankaki dako.

shalla (Kano and East), or salla (Sok.). A tall reed with light stems growing in marshes in the north; stems used for screens called feḍḍa, &c. A bulrush. Typha australis, Sch. and Thonn. bambana = the flowering or fruiting head, called also geron tsuntsaye (Kano), or tumun shalla. laka = the soft edible core of the immature flowering head.

shamrayi, vide karan kabau.

shanshera, unhusked rice; vide under shinkafa.

shantu, a long narrow var. of the bottle-gourd; vide under duma.

sharan labbi (Sok. Ful.), vide sasabani.

sha shatau, a malam’s charm to secure favour, hence applied to some plants with a similar use, e.g. Jussiæa villosa, Lam. (Onagraceæ), an erect weed of wet places with yellow flowers, used as a medicine or charm by wrong-doing slaves and others. (Etym. shashasha = simpleton or irresponsible person who is treated with lenient ridicule rather than seriously).

shedari, a mat made from the unexpanded fronds of the Fan Palm, vide giginya and murli.

shege, a term similar to sabani, q.v. applied to several leguminous weeds with leaves which tear in an irregular manner.

sheḳani or sheḳar zomo, Vernonia sp. near V. pumila, (Compositæ); a low herb with thistle-like flower and broad flat leaves; the root-tubers are bitter and used medicinally for venereal and other diseases. (Syn. ba gashi? Kontagora—from the bristly pappus).

sheme, vide kyamro.

[88]shiḅa or saḅi = carded cotton; vide under abduga.

shibra or shura, vide under gero.

shinaka (Sok. Kats., &c.), Ctenium elegans, Kunth. (Gramineæ). A grass about 2 feet high with a single one-sided bristly flower-spike. Syn. wutsiyar kusu. (The name includes the similar species Schœnefeldia gracilis, Kunth. with several one-sided flower-spikes). Used in thatching.

shinkafa, Oryza sativa, Linn. (Gramineæ). Rice; cultivated in marshes and inundated localities. shanshera or burungu = rice grain in the husk; ḍanyen gumi = husked but unboiled rice; gumi = husked rice boiled and dried; bawu (Sok. Ful.?), or shinkafa wutsiya = rice unsown but growing sporadically from fallen grains; often harvested and eaten.

shinkafe, or lalaki (Sok.), Oryza silvestris, Stapf. Wild Rice; common in marshes and pools; much used for thatch and eaten in scarcity; (= Ful. nanare, name used equally by Hausas in Sokoto). Syn. shinkafar rishi (Katsina and East; rishi = wart-hog, gadu or mugun dăwa, which eats the roots).

shirinya, Ficus sp. (Urticaceæ). Narrow-leaved fig-tree. A large tree with milky juice and small figs. Syn. shiriya (Sok.).

shiwaka, Vernonia amygdalina, Delile (Compositæ). A shrub with whitish flowers, wild and commonly planted in compounds; the root is used as a tooth-stick and bitter tonic, and the leaves medicinally in various ways. maye (Sok.), or fatte (Kano), or fate fate (East Hausa), is a secret medicine of women, prepared from the leaves along with other native drugs.

shiwakar jan garigari, a shrub with bitter properties like the above. (Etym. because said to grow in places of red soil). Anaphrenium pulcherrimum, Schweinf. (Anacardiaceæ), and probably others.

[89]shuni, prepared indigo; the blue dye-stuff extracted from baba, usually sold as blue cones or lumps.

shunin biri (Kontagora), Lonchocarpus laxiflorus, G. et P. (Leguminosæ). A small tree with bunches of purple flowers. Syn. farin sansami (Sok. and Kats.), halshen sa (Zanfara). In some pagan districts this is called babar talaki, and used as a dye; vide talaki.

shura or shibra, vide under gero.

siliyar sulkuwa, vide under rumfar gada.

siyayi or tsiyayi = ḳeḳasheshe; vide under rama.

soso, Luffa ægyptiaca, Mill. (Cucurbitaceæ). “Loofah gourd;” a climber with yellow flowers and cucumber-shaped fruit with a fibrous vascular skeleton used as a scrubber or strainer, &c. Pulp of immature fruit eaten cooked. soson yama, Luffa acutangula, Roxb. a species with larger fruit with longitudinal ridges; (called also soson wanka, because more used as a loofah in washing).

subtu or sutu; cotton before carding, pulled by hand after removal of the seeds by a roller on a stone; vide under abduga.

sunasar = a food made from wheat; vide under alkama.

sure (Sok.) = yakuwa, q.v. Hibiscus Sabdariffa, Linn. “Red Sorrel.”

suren fadama (Sok.), Triumfetta pentandra, A. Rich. (Tiliaceæ); an erect branching undershrub with small echinate fruits which adhere to the clothing; vide ḍan kaḍafi. The leaves are sometimes used as chusar doki; vide under kuka.

surendi, vide dayi.

sutura, a species of Euphorbia with milky juice; called also tutar yan sariki; (vide also under zaḳami).

[90]T

Taba, Nicotiana tabacum, Linn. (Solanaceæ). Tobacco. Cultivated in most parts of N. Nigeria in alluvial soil; used for smoking and in the form of powder for chewing and as snuff. Flowers rubbed on the teeth while chewing certain varieties of kola nut, to give a red colour; fure = a flower, when unqualified generally means tobacco flowers.

taḅa ni ka samu, a name applied to several trees affording useful products; e.g. Ficus Vogelii, Miq. of which the latex forms a variety of rubber. cf. kurnan nasara, and zogalagandi.

tabar angulu, tabar kura, a species of fungus; vide tumukun suri.

tabarman zomo, vide takalmin zomo.

tafarnuwa, Allium sativum, Linn. (Liliaceæ). Garlic. Cultivated like the onion; vide albasa, from which it differs in having flat leaves (hollow or fistular in the onion), and the bulb divided into several lesser bulblets. Only used as a medicine, commonly for fevers and stomach complaints.

tafasa, Cassia tora, Linn. (Leguminosæ). An undershrub of the senna tribe with yellow flowers; leaves used in soup and as a mild laxative.

tafashia, Sarcocephalus Russegeri, Kotschy (Rubiaceæ). A shrub with large balls of white flowers and a red edible fruit; bark and root used medicinally; a common “Chew-stick.”

tafo ka sha mamarka, Schizoglossum sp. nr. S. Petherickianum, Oliv. (Asclepiadeæ). A small herb with umbels of white flowers and milky juice. (Etym. “come and take the breast;” probably used for others of the same Natural Order, the “milkweed” family; vide tatarida, saniya, and rojiya.)

taga rana, vide idon zakara.

[91]takalmin zomo (Kano, Sok., &c.), Cadalvena Dalzielii, C. H. Wright (Scitamineæ). A low stemless herb of the ginger family, with 4 flat succulent leaves and yellow flowers. Syn. tabarman zomo (Zaria), and kunnen zomo.

takaluwa, a synonym for daddawa, q.v.

takanḍa, Sorghum vulgare, var. saccharatum (Gramineæ). One of the species of sugar-cane; grown like Guinea Corn to which it is botanically akin. cf. rake.

takanḍar giwa (Kats. Sok. and Zanf.), Hannoa undulata, Planch. (Simarubeæ). A tree with pinnate leaves, white fragrant blossoms and black plum-like fruit. Syn. namijin gwabsa (Kontagora, &c.). N.B. In many districts the name is applied to the tree Cussonia nigerica, Hutch. or gwabsa, q.v. cf. also raken giwa.

takeyi, vide under kuḅewa.

talaki or talakin Yarubawa, Lonchocarpus cyanescens, Benth. (Leguminosæ). “West African Indigo.” “Yoruba Wild Indigo.” A woody climber. The indigo dye prepared from the leaves, better than that from baba, is imported into N. Nigeria (e.g. to Sokoto from Illorin), and dyeing is done in pots not in pits. vide also shunin biri.

taliya, a sort of macaroni made from flour of alkama, q.v. (Etym. probably from Italy).

tamangaji, vide under gero.

tamaseki, vide under baba.

tamba, Eleusine corocana, Gaertn. (Gramineæ). A grass about 2 feet high, wild and cultivated as a kind of millet; flowering head with many crowded rays, “Kurakan”—Ceylon; “Marua” or “Ragi” Millet—India.

tambari, a herb; ?Grangea maderaspatana, Poir. (Compositæ). A weed with small solid heads of yellow flowers and divided leaves.

tamna geḍa, a small var. of water-melon; vide under guna.

[92]tamraro or tauraro, Anthericum sp. (Liliaceæ). A small liliaceous plant with yellowish stems and white flowers opening in the evening; somewhat resembling “Star of Bethlehem.” (Etym. “star.”). In Zanfara used also for Cyanotis cæspitosa, Kotschy. et Peyr. (Commelynaceæ), a small stemless plant with azure blue flowers (and probably other species).

tandara, vide idon zakara.

tankwa (Sok.), red pepper; vide barkono.

tantaroba, Indigofera diphylla, Vent. (Leguminosæ). A low spreading herb with 2-foliate leaves and pink flowers; used medicinally.

tantsiya, vide kwankwani.

taramniya, Combretum verticillatum, Eng. and Diels, and several other species (Combretaceæ). A tree with white spikes of flowers and 4-winged fruit; a source of gum. (C. geitonophyllum, Diels, and others).

tara yaya, vide giginyar biri.

tarin gida (Sok., &c.), Glossonema nubicum, Decne. (Asclepiadeæ). A low branched herb of fields and waste places in the north, with milky juice and follicles covered with soft prickles. Syn. tatarida. (Etym. of both names from the pods crowded to bursting with silky seeds). Sometimes called tafo ka sha mama, q.v. Eaten by goats and capable of being used as a vegetable.

tarnekuwa, a var. of gero, q.v.

taru, Combretum herbaceum, Don. (Combretaceæ). A low undershrub with 4-winged fruit and hard root (hence also called kariye galma, q.v., or “break hoe”).

tasshi, vide under gawo.