Elegbara
/ɛ̀lɛ́ɡ͡bára/noun
A name or epithet for Èṣù, the Yoruba orisha associated with communication, crossroads, trickery, and the power to open or block paths.
Did you know?Elegbara is often treated as a form of Èṣù, but missionaries and colonial writers sometimes recast Èṣù as the Christian Devil—a major historical distortion of Yoruba religious ideas.
Etymological Timeline
Precolonial Yoruba tradition
Yoruba
Èṣù / Elégbára
“A powerful orisha connected with communication, crossroads, transformation, and enforcing divine order.”
19th Century
Yoruba
Elégbára
“A Yoruba epithet or name associated with Èṣù; spelling and pronunciation varied by dialect and transcription system.”
19th Century
English
Elegba
“An early English-language transcription of the Yoruba divine name, especially in missionary and ethnographic writing.”
20th Century
English
Elegbara
“A scholarly and religious transliteration used for Èṣù or one of his recognized forms.”
Modern English
English
Elegbara
“A proper name used in discussions of Yoruba religion, African diasporic traditions, mythology, and comparative symbolism.”